Page 2532 - Politics
HIGHLIGHTS FROM WESTERN REGION AT 1640 HRS
Top stories from the Western Region at 1640 hrs. ELX 7 CG-POLL-LD SHAH Raipur: BJP chief Amit Shah Saturday lauds the Raman Singh government for making Chhattisgarh "almost free" of Naxalism. ELX 8 CG-POLL-LD RAHUL Charama (C'garh): Congress chief Rahul Gandhi accuses Prime Minister Narendra Modi of waiving loans worth Rs 3.5 lakh crore of 15 select industrialists, hits out at Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh over the issue of corruption. ELX 6 CG-POLL-ADITYANATH Lormi (Chhattisgarh): Raking up the Ram temple issue, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath seeks to know whether the Congress was concerned about Lord Ram or Mughal emperor Babur. BOM 5 MH-TIGRESS-UDDHAV Mumbai: The committee constituted by the Maharashtra government to probe the killing of man-eater tigress Avni is a "farce", says Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray.
As polls loom, Chhattisgarh paradox of rich resources, poor development comes to fore (Lead correcting headline)
Raipur, Nov 10 (IANS/Mongabay) It is probably the 'resource curse' that best explains the present condition of one of India's most mineral-rich states, Chhattisgarh.
World War I centennial commemorations underway
A weekend of commemorations involving dozens of world leaders to mark 100 years since the end of World War I is underway, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicking off the events in France and elsewhere with a visit to a cemetery. Trudeau met veterans and laid a wreath Saturday at a Canadian cemetery in northern France containing the remains of 820 casualties from the 1914-1918 conflict, many unidentified and lying under white headstones marked simply: A soldier of the Great War. More than 60 heads of state and government are converging on France for the commemorations that will crescendo Sunday with ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Paris on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, exactly a century after the armistice.
Leadership in Goa will have to be changed: Naik
Considering the health of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, Union Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Naik has said the leadership in Goa will have to be changed today or tomorrow."Change (of leadership in Goa) will have to be done today or tomorrow. It is a requirement. You know the Chief Minister's health is not good. But he (Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar) is still working in this condition," Naik said on Friday night.On October 29, Goa Congress spokesperson Jeetendra Deshprabhu claimed that Parrikar had not been seen publicly in the recent past. Deshprabhu's statement had come a day after Goa's Health Minister Vishwajit Rane revealed that Parrikar was suffering from pancreatic cancer.The Goa Chief Minister was discharged from Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on October 14 after undergoing treatment for a pancreatic ailment.Earlier, the Congress claimed that Goa is facing leadership crisis due to Parrikar's ill health. For long, the party has also been ...
Will remain with the party in power, says Athawale
Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale, who claimed to have been offered to join Congress, clarified that he would remain with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as long as it stays in power.Addressing a gathering on Friday, Athawale who is the president of the Republic Party of India said that he will decide on switching sides once he figures out which way "the wind (is) blowing.""Naseem Khan has offered me to join the (Congress) party. I stayed with the Congress for 10-15 years, so I will have to stay with them (BJP) for at least same number of years. I will be here till the time the current government stays in power. I will decide on switching sides when I figure out which way the wind is blowing," he added.Earlier, Athawale had claimed that he would contest the 2019 Lok Sabha polls from Mumbai South Central constituency. Interestingly, the sitting member of Parliament from the Mumbai South Central seat is Shiv Sena's Rahul Shewale who contested the 2014
Cong creates obstructions in path of development: MP CM
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday fired a fresh salvo at the Congress party, asserting they were creating obstructions when development works were being carried out by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state.Addressing a rally here, Chouhan pointed out that the poor conditions of roads and erratic electricity and water supplies in the state, which he alleged, were not taken care of during the previous Congress government headed by Digvijaya Singh."When I came to power in 2003, Madhya Pradesh was in a terrible condition. Roads were in a bad shape. There was no power and electricity supply in villages. And now, everything has changed. Roads have been paved in all villages. Electricity connection has been expanded and power supply reach has widened," he said.Continuing his tirade, Chouhan claimed that the people were fed up with the Congress party, which had betrayed them several times."When I give food grain by charging just Re 1 to the ...
BJP has made Chhattisgarh nearly Maoist-free: Shah
BJP President Amit Shah on Saturday said the Chhattisgarh government under Chief Minister Raman Singh has made the state nearly Maoist-free, developing it into a power hub of prospering cement, steel and aluminium industries, besides making rapid progress in education and health.
Once Ram temple built in C'garh, it'll be constructed in Ayodhya: UP CM
What amounts to retreating his commitment to build a Ram temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during a campaign rally in Chhattisgarh on Saturday said that once Ram temple is built in his maternal state Chhattisgarh, it will also be constructed in Ayodhya.Adityanath addressed a gathering in poll bound Chhattisgarh's Lormi where he said, "During my earlier visit I had said once Lord Ram's temple is constructed at his maternal residence, then it will certainly be built at his birthplace too. I would like to express my gratitude to the people of Raipur for constructing a grand Ram temple."As per Indian mythology Ram has deep connect with Chhattisgarh as his mother Kaushalya was from Kaushal near Raipur and he himself spent 14 years in exile, while living in Dantkarni jungles now in Chhattisgarh. It is the same area where his wife Sita was abducted.Adityanath further added that Chhattisgarh is Lord Ram's maternal homeland and today the matter of his ...
BJP, Congress head for photo finish in battle for Bastar
The insurgency-riddled Bastar region, which is made up of seven districts, is heading for a cliffhanger between the ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress as assembly polling begins in Chhattisgarh on Monday.
Ousted Lanka PM's party to fight dissolution of parliament in court
Ousted Sri Lankan prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's United National Party will challenge in court what it termed as the illegal dissolution of Parliament by President Maithripala Sirisena a day after he announced a snap election in January. "The party will be pursuing the intervention of the courts to ensure the rule of law and the Constitution is protected against autocratic moves," a UNP statement said. Former finance minister and UNP leader Mangala Samaraweera said, "the emerging tyranny of Maithripala Sirisena will be fought in courts, in parliament and at the election". Sirisena sacked Wickremesinghe on October 26 and on Friday he set the election for January 5. Sri Lanka's political crisis deepened as Sirisena dissolved Parliament and announced snap polls after it became evident that he did not have enough support in the House for Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was appointed by him under controversial circumstances. Dinesh Gunawardena, a government minister from ...
CPI-M backs Kerala minister accused of nepotism
A Kerala minister facing nepotism charges received support on Saturday from the Communist Party of India-Marxist that heads the ruling coalition.
Modi waived loans of select industrialists: Rahul
Congress chief Rahul Gandhi Saturday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of waiving loans worth Rs 3.5 lakh crore of 15 select industrialists and hit out at Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh over the issue of corruption. On the second day of his campaigning in the state, where the first phase of polling would be held Monday, Gandhi targeted the Raman Singh government over the alleged chit fund scam, civil supplies scam and the chief minister's son Abhishek Singh, who is accused of holding offshore assets. "In the last four-five years, Modiji gave Rs 3.5 lakh crore to the 15 richest people. While an amount of Rs 35,000 crore is needed yearly to run the MGNREGA scheme in the country, he waived loans worth 10 times that amount of 15 select industrialists," he alleged. Gandhi said he wanted Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to become agriculture centres in five years and provide food, fruits and vegetables to the country. "Modiji has given the keys to the treasury to 15 select ...
U.S. grants Iraq 45-day waiver over Iran sanctions to import gas, electricity - U.S. Embassy
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq can continue to import natural gas and energy supplies from Iran for a period of 45 days, the United States has said, several days after reimposing sanctions on Tehran's oil sector.
Yemen conflict: Pentagon backs Saudi decision to refuel aircraft on its own
US Secretary of Defence James Mattis announced that the Pentagon backed Saudi Arabia's decision to use the Saudi-led coalition's own military capabilities to refuel aircraft engaged in Yemen.
'Tipu Jayanthi' celebrations in K'taka amid BJP protests; CM, DyCM skip event
Protests by the BJP and right-wing outfits coupled with the absence of Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and his deputy marked the 'Tipu Jayanthi' celebrations in Karnataka Saturday. Tipu Jayanthi is celebrated to observe the birth anniversary of controversial 18th-century ruler of the erstwhile Mysore kingdom, Tipu Sultan. The celebrations brought the state under a thick security blanket, amid threats of protests by the BJP and other organisations, with the main event in Bengaluru turning out to be lacklustre. Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, who was to inaugurate the main event at Vidhana Soudha, the seat of state legislature here, in the absence of Kumaraswamy, also skipped the function. Kumaraswamy did not attend the event, citing doctors' advice to take rest for three days till November 11. The chief minister's office had made prior announcement about Kumaraswamy's inability to attend the function and his name was also not printed in the invitation. Parameshwara did not ...
Myanmar Def College delegation vists Fort William
A 38-member Myanmar delegation led by Major General Myat Kyaw, Commandant of National Defence College, Myanmar visited Eastern Command headquarters at Fort William here Saturday, a Defence spokesman said. The delegation members were updated on various dimensions of operational environment of Eastern Command including aspects of multilateral initiatives of military to military cooperation between two armies and their constructive role in promoting India's 'Act East' policy. "The visit will further strengthen bilateral defence cooperation mechanism between the two friendly neighbouring countries and will help in ensuring better management of Indo-Myanmar Border," the spokesman said. India shares a 1643 km border with Myanmar in its northeastern frontier. Four states of the country - Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram share international border with Myanmar.
Bihar: RSLP demands more than three seats
Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP) president Upendra Kushwaha has demanded that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should allot more than three seats to his party for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as the party has grown in strength.Kushwaha told reporters on Friday, "We fought in three seats previously (in 2014) and we won. Our party has grown in significant strength as compared to what it was in 2014. Now, we want to contest in more than three seats."In 2014 general elections, RLSP contested from three seats, Jahanabad, Sitamarhi and Karakat constituencies, and it won all the seats.Kushwaha's statement comes after BJP president Amit Shah divulged last month saying, "It has been decided that BJP and JD(U) will fight on an equal number of seats for Lok Sabha elections 2019 in Bihar. Other allies will also get a respectable seat share. Numbers will be announced in a few days."The RLSP president assured that his party would continue to maintain its alliance with the BJP and Lok Janashakti ...
BJP promises Naxal-free, new Chhattisgarh
A day after the Congress released its manifesto for Chhattisgarh, the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party came up with several schemes and promises of a "Naxal free" and "Naya Chhattisgarh" to woo the voters ahead of the Assembly polls in the state. The first phase of voting in security-sensitive zone of Chhattisgarh will take place on November 12 where polling will take place for 18 Assembly seats.While releasing the manifesto, BJP national president Amit Shah asserted that the last 15 years rule of the BJP is a model of an ideal state. "Raman Singh government has successfully tried to contain the Naxal and made the state an education hub. This manifesto is for Naya Chhattisgarh," Amit Shah said.Talking about the developments in the state, Shah said that the use of information technology has helped reduce leakages in the Public Distribution System (PDS). He lauded the 'Kaushal Unayan' scheme for tribal employment and said that under MNREGA scheme, Chhattisgarh gave 150 days of work to ..
Karnataka celebrates Tipu Jayanti as CM stays away
Karnataka on Saturday celebrated the 269th birth anniversary of erstwhile Mysore (Mysuru) ruler Tipu Sultan and the one person who was conspicuously missing from the festivities was Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.
PWD asks senior officers to personally inspect foot overbridges in Delhi
The Public Works Department (PWD) of the Delhi government has directed its senior officers to carry out "personal inspections" of all the foot overbridges (FOBs) in the city to ensure maintenance, cleaning and functional escalators at these facilities. According to the PWD, the move comes after several reports were received by the department that the maintenance of several FOBs was not up to the mark. The issue was taken up by the engineer-in-chief at a recent meeting attended by senior officers of the department. "The engineer-in-chief directed that personal inspections should be carried out by higher officers to ensure that proper maintenance/cleaning is being done and escalators are made functional in all FOBs," the minutes of the meeting stated. There are around 80 FOBs constructed and maintained by the PWD to facilitate pedestrians across the national capital. In June, the government had approved construction of seven FOBs at RTR Marg, Nelson Mandela Marg, ISBT in Sarai Kale ...