Page 39 - Chhattisgarh

NMDC in line to set up two slurry pipelines in Bastar district

NMDC is eyeing 46 to 50 mt of production in the current financial year after its output marginally slipped to 41.22 mt year-on-year

Chhattisgarh CM questions presence of Sengol in Parliament inauguration

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said the 'Sengol' was a symbol of transfer of power from the British and questioned its presence in the inauguration of the new Parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi by asking what kind of transfer of power took place on Sunday. The PM inaugurated the new Parliament building on Sunday morning and installed the historic Sengol, a Chola-era spectre made of silver with a coat of gold, in the Lok Sabha chamber. Speaking to reporters after returning from Delhi, Baghel said, "Today, national media is full of news about the transfer of power from the British and Sengol. At the time (1947), the British were leaving and transfer of power was happening. What kind of transfer of power has happened today? Is it the transfer from democracy to autocracy?" An organisation, an apparent reference to BJP-RSS, that had opposed Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru for so long was now using him name to save themselves, he claimed, adding if there could be a mo

NITI meet: C'garh CM asks Centre to make arrangement for GST compensation

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Saturday urged the Centre to make a "permanent arrangement" to compensate for the revenue loss suffered by states due to the GST regime and demanded a refund of Rs 19,000 crore deposited in the New Pension Scheme. The chief minister made the demands during the eighth meeting of the governing council of NITI Aayog held here under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During the meeting, Baghel also asked the central government to transfer the amount of 4,170 crore additional levy received from minerals to Chhattisgarh. The senior Congress leader said a civil suit has been filed by the Chhattisgarh government in the Supreme Court in this matter, and requested the Centre to reply soon and resolve the issue, according to a statement issued by the state government. Besides, the chief minister demanded revision of royalty rates of coal and other major minerals from his state. Baghel said that due to non-amendment, the financial ..

Official suspended for draining entire dam to retrieve his phone

A Chhattisgarh government employee allegedly drained out 41 lakh litres of water from a weir after his mobile phone fell into it in the state's Kanker district, an official said on Friday. The employee was suspended for the colossal waste of water in the peak of summer at Paralkot reservoir last weekend. The incident came to light on Friday, the official said. Food inspector Rajesh Vishwas, posted in Pakhanjore area of the district, had gone to the reservoir for an outing with his friends on May 21 when his mobile phone fell into a waste weir, a channel that carries away surplus water, while taking a selfie, the official said. Vishwas allegedly roped in villagers and got diesel pumps to empty the water from the weir till his mobile phone was retrieved on Thursday, he said. After the matter came to light, Kanker Collector Priyanka Shukla sought a report in this regard, following which the official was suspended, he said. The collector also issued a show-cause notice to the ...

SECR to revamp Chhattisgarh rly stations under Amrit Bharat Station scheme

At least 49 railway stations of the South East Central Railway (SECR) zone, including 30 in Chhattisgarh, will be renovated and modernised under the 'Amrit Bharat Station' scheme, an official said on Friday. A long term master plan will be drafted for the redevelopment of railway stations as per the requirements under the scheme and it will be implemented in a phased manner, he said. The Railway Ministry plans to revamp 1,275 railway stations under the 'Amrit Bharat Station' scheme. This includes 49 stations in the SECR zone, headquartered in Bilaspur, said Shiv Prasad, the senior publicity inspector, Raipur Railway Division. The SECR zone comprises Raipur, Bilaspur and Nagpur divisions. Of the 49 stations in the SECR zone, 30 are in Chhattisgarh, nine in Madhya Pradesh, eight in Maharashtra and two in Odisha, he said. Raipur, Bilaspur, Raigarh, Korba, Ambikapur, Durg, Rajnandgaon (Chhattisgarh), Anuppur, Shahdol, Umaria, Balaghat (Madhya Pradesh), Gondia (Maharashtra) are some of

Chhattisgarh govt plans to plant 30 million saplings during monsoon

The plantation will be conducted not just in forest regions but also on private and government lands

AAP to launch campaigns in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, MP with 'maha' rallies

The Aam Aadmi Party will soon launch its poll campaign in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh where assembly elections are due later this year. Party sources said the poll campaigns will start with a "maha rally" in each of the three states. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is also the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) national convener, will lead the "maha rally" in the three states. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann will also participate in the rallies, the sources added. "The 'maha rally' will be organised in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in view of elections in these states. These rallies are going to be the biggest ever event organised by the party so far," a source in the party said. After these rallies, the AAP will organise a series of Town Hall events, roadshows, public meetings and events to woo voters in the three poll-bound states, the source said. "The dates for the three mega rallies will soon be announced," the source added. The AAP will organi

BJP seeks votes in name of cows, visiting gauthans: Chhattisgarh CM

Raising a question mark on the timing of BJP leaders' visit to gauthans, CM Baghel said that during summer cattle do not stay in gauthans and this is not the tradition of Chhattisgarh

A world record in 'eco-friendly' cow dung paint in Chhattisgarh's Raipur

Under the flagship scheme, the state government is procuring cow dung at Rs 2 a kg

2 CoBRA commandos injured in Naxalite encounter in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur

Two commandos of the Central Reserve Police Force's jungle warfare unit CoBRA were injured in an encounter between security forces and Naxalites in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, police said on Monday. Two-three Naxalites also received bullet injuries in the gun fight which took place at around 8 pm on Sunday in Bijapur, located around 400 km from the state capital Raipur, they said. A joint team of the District Reserve Guard and the CRPF's Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) launched a search operation from Pusnar camp on Sunday evening after getting information about an improvised explosive device (IED) planted between Pusnar and Hiroli villages under Gangaloor police station limits, an official said. At around 8 pm, the gun battle broke out between the security personnel and Naxalites in the area. After a brief exchange of fire, Naxalites escaped into the dense forest, he said. Constables Nakul and Mohammad Shahid, belonging to CoBRA's 202nd battalion, suffered fro

BJP seeks votes in name of cows, but has never served them: Chhattisgarh CM

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) only seeks votes in the name of cows, but has never served them. Speaking at 'Bharose ka Sammelan' programme in his constituency Patan in Durg district, the chief minister slammed the BJP's claims about the absence of cows at "gauthans" (cow shelters) in the state. "BJP leaders and workers have been visiting 'gauthans' and claiming that there are no cattle at these shelters. People of Chhattisgarh know that in summers cattle are left to graze outside in the afternoons and only brought back in the evenings," Baghel said. "You (the BJP) ask for votes in the name of cows, but have never served them. You do not know Chhattisgarh. We know when garwa' (cattle) is at a khar (a place for cattle resting and grazing) or gauthan, he said. Meanwhile, the chief minister transferred Rs 2,800 crore in bank accounts of beneficiaries of various government schemes. A total of Rs 111 crore was transfer

Three Maoists arrested in Chhattisgarh's Kanker; IED recovered, says police

Security forces have arrested three Maoists and recovered an improvised explosive device (IED) planted by them on a road in Chhattisgarh's Kanker district, police said on Sunday. Two of them were carrying rewards of Rs 8 lakh each on their heads, they said. A joint team of the District Reserve Guard and the Central Reserve Police Force's 30th battalion launched a search/area domination operation from the CRPF's Chilparas camp in the district on Friday. "During the operation, the security forces spotted three persons in a forested patch under Koilibead police station limits. They were arrested while they were trying to run away after seeing the police," Superintendent of Police Shalabh Kumar Sinha said. A walkie-talkie set, a torch and Rs 6,000 cash were recovered from their possession, he said. Based on information given by them, an IED which they had planted on Chilparas Dudta road was found with a wire attached, the official said. The three accused have been identified as Peelu

11 jawans injured after storm hits CRPF camp in Chhattisgarh's Bastar

Eleven Central Reserve Police Force troopers were injured after a storm hit their camp in Bastar district in Chhattisgarh on Friday afternoon, an official said. The camp of 241st battalion, located at Sedva village under Dharbha police station limits, some 336 kilometres from state capital Raipur, suffered substantial damage after a powerful storm hit it, Inspector General of Police Bastar Sundarraj P said. "Eleven CRPF jawans were injured in the incident. The residential quarters of jawans were damaged as the storm blew away tin sheets that formed the roof, power lines, iron frames and false ceilings," he said. "The wind speed was so high that tin sheets were scattered across the camp and several trees were uprooted. The injured jawans have been admitted in the battalion hospital and are out of danger," the IG added.

Senior executives at Bhilai Steel Plant to get EVs in Chhattisgarh

The EVs will be replacing petrol-driven vehicles

Fourth airport upgrade, ready for commercial flights in Chhattisgarh

Ambikapur airport is one of the oldest in the country. It was built in 1950 after independence. Indira Gandhi as Prime Minister landed in the airstrip in 1974

Chhattisgarh CM Baghel approves increase in post of ITI training officers

Eligible candidates from Chhattisgarh will be considered for recruitment. The decision was taken by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel

6 killed, 21 injured in collision between two trucks in Chhattisgarh

Five women and a child were killed and 21 others injured when a mini goods truck they were travelling in collided head-on with another big truck in Chhattisgarh's Balodabazar district, police said on Monday. Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has announced an assistance of Rs 4 lakh to the kin of each of the deceased. The accident took place late Sunday night near Gauda Pulia under Palari police station area, located 70 km from the state capital Raipur. The victims, natives of Latua village, were returning after attending a family function in Parsada village, a senior police official said. Their pickup truck collided head-on with another truck. Five women and a six-year-old boy died on the spot and 21 others were injured, five of them critically, the police official said. The deceased have been identified as Dhaneshwari Fekar (35), Prabha Nayak (18), Agar Bai (60), Shanti Fekar (60), Hema Dhruv (20) and Ghanshyam Fekar (6), he said. The critically injured persons were shifted to a hos

BJP demands Chhattisgarh CM Baghel's resignation in Rs 2,000 cr liquor scam

The BJP on Friday demanded Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel's resignation over an alleged Rs 2,000-crore liquor scam in the state, claiming corruption at such a big scale for more than four years was not possible without links to his government. BJP spokesperson K K Sharma also took a swipe at Baghel for his claim that the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the central agency probing the case, was trying to implicate him in the matter, asking if this was a "confession" from him about his role or merely an expression of his suspicion. Noting that Anwar Dhebar, who has been arrested in the case and is the elder brother of Raipur Mayor and Congress leader Aijaz Dhebar, is a private person and holds no position in the government, Sharma said he used to hold meetings with liquor dealers and government officials. The liquor industry in the state is run by the government, from procurement to retail, but it was Anwar Dhebar who "captured" the public body tasked with running the busines

Chhattisgarh liquor scam case: ED should arrest CM Baghel, says AAP

The Aam Aadmi Party has demanded that the Enforcement Directorate arrest Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and probe his role in the alleged liquor scam in the state. The federal agency on Saturday arrested liquor businessman Anwar Dhebar, the brother of Congress leader and Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar, in connection with the alleged scam. In its remand application filed in a special court, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had claimed that there was a "massive scam" in the liquor trade in Chhattisgarh by a syndicate, comprising high-level state government officials, private persons and political executives. It also claimed that the scam generated corruption money of more than Rs 2,000 crore between 2019-22. "Such a massive scam is not possible without a nexus from bottom to top. To run such a syndicate, the blessings of a big political leader are required. The pattern of the scam directly points fingers at the chief minister of the state," Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Del

CM rubbishes liquor scam allegations in Chhattisgarh, calls ED a BJP agent

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Monday called the Enforcement Directorate an "agent" of the Bharatiya Janata Party and dubbed the ED's claim of unearthing an alleged liquor scam in the state as false and baseless. As the Assembly polls were nearing in the state, the "disappointed" BJP was trying to defame the Congress government using the ED, he claimed. The state polls are due this year-end. The ED on Saturday arrested liquor businessman Anwar Dhebar, the brother of Congress leader and Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar, in connection with an alleged liquor scam. In its remand application filed in a special court here seeking remand of Anwar, the ED claimed there was a "massive scam" in liquor trade in Chhattisgarh by a syndicate, comprising high-level state government officials, private persons and political executives, that generated corruption money of more than Rs 2,000 crore between 2019-22. The ED said Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Anil Tuteja was the ..