Puducherry

Free rice, sugar to be given via fair price shops in Pondy before Diwali

Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy announced here on Sunday that his government has decided to distribute 10 kg rice and 2 kg sugar, free of cost, through fair price shops to card holders before Diwali. Addressing media here, he said the decision to distribute free rice and sugar to all families covered under public distribution system in the Union Territory before Diwali was taken in keeping with the pleas from various quarters. The ration shops which have remained closed for some months now would be reopened to distribute rice and sugar. He said workers employed in fair price shops who remain unpaid for several months would be paid a month's salary when the shops reopen. The territorial government has finalized the tender for supply of rice and sugar. The CM noted that funds have been earmarked to procure the rice and sugar for the free distribution scheme. There are around three lakh families covered under public distribution system in the Union Territory.

27 TN pilgrims stranded on flooded causeway in Gujarat rescued in operation

In an overnight operation, 29 persons, including 27 pilgrims from Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, were rescued from a bus that was stranded on a flooded causeway in Gujarat's Bhavnagar district, officials said on Friday. The bus got stuck on the raised path on a stream near Koliyak village on Thursday evening, said District Collector RK Mehta, who was at the spot to supervise the rescue operation that went on for nearly eight hours. The pilgrims were headed towards Bhavnagar city after visiting Nishkalank Mahadev temple near the village. Due to heavy rains in the region, the causeway on the river was submerged. Despite that, the bus driver decided to cross the river, said Mehta. However, due to the force of the water, the front of the bus dipped into the river while the rear remained stuck on the causeway, he said. During the operation, rescuers reached the site in a mini-truck and transferred all the 27 pilgrims from the bus, its driver and cleaner to the vehicle through the rear windo

Power tariff hike: INDIA bloc's day-long bandh hits life in Puducherry

The day-long bandh called by the INDIA bloc to protest the hike over power tariff and to condemn the territorial government's move to privatise the power sector hit normal life in Puducherry on Wednesday. All privately owned transport services were off the roads, while government buses operated with police protection. Police were deployed in strength at all vantage points. The local bus terminal and main shopping centres presented a deserted look in the town. Shops and establishments, vegetable sales outlets, hotels and tea stalls were shut in several parts of the town and its suburbs. Director of School Education P Priyadharshini ordered the closure of all schools, including privately managed institutions, in Puducherry on Wednesday. However, classes IX to XII were exempted from the holiday in view of mid-term tests, official sources said. With the local buses and autos being off the roads, the turn-out at the OPD blocks in hospitals was less than usual. Government offices report

Puducherry steps up long-standing demand for statehood in state Assembly

A long-pending demand, the plea for statehood to this union territory echoed once again in the state Assembly earlier this week, when the House passed a unanimous resolution expressing its sentiments with the Centre on the matter. The territorial Assembly had in the past adopted resolutions on 15 occasions seeking statehood. The election manifestos of all political parties released during the run up to either Assembly or Lok Sabha polls all along had been insisting they would strive hard for ensuring statehood to Puducherry, a coastal town located about 170 km from Chennai. Puducherry and its outlying regions of Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam located as enclaves either in Tamilnadu, Kerala or Andhra Pradesh had been together as a union territory since their merger with the Indian Union through a referendum in 1954. It has been the contention of the parties coming to power that the lack of full-fledged powers to the elected government at had been a major handicap. They state that even to .

To generate jobs, Puducherry minister to unveil new industrial policy soon

Puducherry Industries Minister A Namassivayam told the territorial Assembly on Friday that a new industrial policy would be unveiled soon for the development of industries in the union territory and to generate job opportunities for the youth. Replying to a question tabled by V P Ramalingam (nominated legislator), the minister said that those coming forward to set up industrial enterprises in the union territory were seeking several concessions which related to GST and Income Tax. The government would have to consider these pleas. "Our intention is to encourage industries to come up in Puducherry so that jobs can be created for the educated youth," he said, and added that all aspects were being considered to ensure industrial development in the union territory. Namassivayam said that the government also proposed establishing an Information Technology park. On the number of industries established since the present government assumed office in 2021, he said that 189 industries have c

Puducherry CM Rangasamy presents Rs 12,700 cr tax-free budget for UT

Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy presented a tax-free budget involving allocation of Rs 12,700 crore for the fiscal 2024-2025 in the territorial Assembly on Friday. He said the budget size of Puducherry has been fixed at Rs 12,700 crore. Rangasamy, who holds the Finance portfolio, also stated that the Union Territory's own receipts have been estimated at Rs 6,914.66 crore while the Central assistance including State Disaster Relief fund has been estimated at Rs 3,268.98 crore. The Central road fund has been estimated at Rs 20 crore while allocation under Centrally-sponsored schemes has been estimated at Rs 430 crore. During his 80-minute-long address, Rangasamy also said that he was extremely happy to present his fourth budget in the fifteenth legislative Assembly. The Central government had conveyed its approval for the net borrowing ceiling to the extent of Rs 2,066.36 crore "to bridge our fiscal deficit," he said. He said out of the budget estimate of Rs 12,700 crore, a su

Ruling Coalition MLAs seek Delhi's aid against AINRC-BJP govt in Puducherry

A political crisis involving the ruling AINRC-BJP coalition is brewing in the union territory with a section of saffron party MLAs expressing displeasure against the government over issues including corruption, and have knocked on the doors of the national leadership with a plea to set things right before they 'become worse.' Among others, they want a reshuffle of the cabinet. Fissures within the local BJP unit also seem to have come to the fore with calls being made for replacing the incumbent UT head over the party nominee's loss in the just concluded Lok Sabha elections. BJP candidate, Puducherry Home Minister A Namassivayam lost to Congress' Ve Vaithilingam by a margin of over 1.36 lakh votes in the April 19 polls and murmurs are being heard in the saffron camp that the three-year old N Rangasamy-led government's 'deficient performance' also contributed to his defeat. A delegation of seven legislators belonging to the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) and also a couple of nominated

Puducherry govt all set to implement new criminal laws from July 1

The Puducherry government on Satruday said all necessary steps have been taken to implement the new criminal laws, which are to come into effect from July 1. PWD and Law Minister K Lakshminarayanan said already training has been imparted to all those concerned with implementation of the new laws-- Indian Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and the Evidence Act. He said a manual had already been published for the benefit of the police and advocates highlighting the features of the new legislations. "It is a Central Act and we have no say and we implement the Actfrom July 1." A comparative picture is also presented between the new and the old criminal laws. "We also propose to publish the book and make it available for a price to the public and others soon," Lakshminarayanan said. A meeting will be held on Monday to bring to focus the features of the new legislations. The Lt Governor, the Chief Minister of Puducherry, Law Minister and high ranking police officials would participate

Lok Sabha polls 2024 phase 1: Over 9.7% voter turnout recorded till 9 am

The first phase of the Lok Sabha polls will see 102 out of 534 constituencies go to polls in 17 states and four Union Territories

Will provide statehood to Puducherry if INDIA bloc wins LS polls: Stalin

DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday said that the INDIA bloc, if voted to power after Lok Sabha polls, will provide statehood to Puducherry. Addressing an election rally here seeking support for Congress candidate and present MP V Vaithilingam, he said the DMK and Congress are firm that Puducherry should be made a full-fledged state. Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy is a "puppet in the hands of the Centre," Stalin said and added, "We are keen that the rights of not only bigger states like Tamil Nadu, but also the rights of union territories like Puducherry should be protected." Stating that Puducherry had not gained during the ten-year rule by the BJP at the Centre, the Tamil Nadu chief minister said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi was campaigning only in the name of religion and caste. "Modi has not highlighted any measure to ameliorate the lot of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and weaker sections, but has been campaigning in the nam

Jharkhand Guv gets charge of Telangana, Puducherry as Soundararajan quits

Governor of Jharkhand C P Radhakrishnan has been appointed Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry by President Murmu, until regular arrangements are made

Puducherry govt to raise Rs 200 crore through auction of dated securities

The Puducherry government has offered to sell 12-year dated securities to the public in the form of stocks by auction for an aggregate amount of Rs 200 crore, a release from the Commissioner-cum-Secretary to Finance of Puducherry administration Ashish Madhaorao More said. The auction would be conducted by the Reserve Bank of India's Mumbai office (Fort) on January 9. Securities will be issued for a minimum nominal amount of Rs 10,000 and in multiples of Rs 10,000 thereafter. Interested persons, firms, companies, corporate bodies, institutions, Provident Funds, trusts, regional rural banks and cooperative banks may submit a single consolidated non-competitive bid on behalf of all its constituents in electronic format on the Reserve Bank of India Core banking solution (E-Kuber), available on the website www.rbi.org.in on January 9 between 10.30 am and 11 am, the release said. The result of the auction will be displayed by RBI Mumbai (Fort) on January 9 on the website. Successful ..

Rajya Sabha clears Bills to extend women's reservation to J-K, Puducherry

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 4 pm on Monday after two Bills to introduce reservation for women in legislative assemblies of Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir were passed by voice vote in the House amid an uproar by the opposition over the Parliament security breach. The Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Second Amendment) Bill were passed by the Lok Sabha last week. The Bills were passed by the Upper House amid continuous sloganeering by opposition parties, who have been demanding that Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement on the December 13 security breach in the House. After the passage of the Bills, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said the security breach is a matter of "collective concern". "Incidents of such nature have also occurred in the past. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that this august institution works in the safest and most conducive atmosphere. "A high-level enquiry committee for an in-d

LS nod to two bills extending women's quota to Puducherry, J-K assemblies

Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed two bills that seek to extend the provisions of the women's reservation law to the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir. Replying to a debate on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Second Amendment) Bill and the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said the twin measures will enable greater representation and participation of women as public representatives in law-making processes in the two legislative assemblies. Hitting out at the opposition, Rai said that "be it the Mughal rule, the reign of aggressors, the British rule or Congress governments", women's rights were snatched, they were never given adequate opportunities to grow and injustice was meted out to them. Rai said post revocation of Article 370, widow pension has reached 100 per cent saturation coverage in Jammu and Kashmir and one-stop centres for the benefit of women have come up in every .

Govt to introduce in parl 2 bills for 33% women's quota in J-K, Puducherry

The government is planning to introduce two bills in Parliament on Tuesday for reservation of 33 per cent seats for women in the assemblies of Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry, sources said. In September, the Parliament passed the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam to provide reservation of one-third of seats for women in Lok Sabha and Assemblies. The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam shall come into effect after a delimitation exercise is undertaken in 2029. The government is planning to introduce on Tuesday two bills for reservation of 33 per cent seats for women in the assemblies of the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry, sources said. There are 30 assembly constituencies in Puducherry while in Jammu and Kashmir, after the delimitation, the total seats in the assembly rose to 114 seats, out of which 24 seats are designated for areas that fall under Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.

IMD Issues thunderstorm warning for Tamil Nadu, Puducherry for next 3 hrs

Chennai received heavy rains throughout the day on Wednesday, and the intensity of the showers increased in the evening, causing major traffic snarls across the city

NIA files charge sheet against 13 people in killing of a political worker

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a charge sheet against 13 people in the case of killing of a political functionary in Puducherry about six months ago, an official said on Friday. Senthil Kumaran was brutally killed by six motorcycle-borne assailants on March 26. The accused hurled country-made bombs at the political activist in front of a bakery in the Villianur area of the Union territory and then attacked him with machetes, killing him on the spot. The local police had initially registered a case, which was handed over to the NIA and re-registered by the central agency on April 29. The key conspirator in the case, Nithiyanantham, was later arrested along with his associates identified as Vignesh, Siva Sankar, Raja, Pradap, Karthikeyan, Vengatesh, Rajamani, Ezhumalai, Kathirvel, Ramachandiran, Lakshmanan, Dhilipan and Ramanathan. "All of them, except Ramanathan, have been charge-sheeted by the NIA under various sections of IPC, Arms Act, Explosive Substances Act

PM Vishwakarma yojana aims to empower beneficiaries economically: Min

Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment A Narayanaswamy on Sunday said the Prime Minister Vishwakarma scheme is aimed at empowering the Vishwakarma community socially and economically. Addressing a gathering here, he said Puducherry was among the 70 locations where the scheme was launched. Extending his birthday greetings to the Prime Minister today, Narayanaswamy said, "we believe in the importance of preserving our cultural heritage and promoting inclusive growth." Through the PM Vishwakarma scheme we are providing a platform for the Vishwakarma artisans and workers to flourish and contribute to the nation's progress, he said. Under the scheme 30 lakh artisans would benefit across the country with the budget allocation of Rs 13,000 crores. It would enable the artisans to skill and upskill their capacity. Those engaged in one of the 18 family based traditional trades can register on the PM Vishwakarma portal through Common Service Centre with bio metric ...

IMD predicts heavy rainfall in Puducherry from August 30 to September 1

An official press release from the IMD on August 30, said, "Heavy rainfall very likely over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal from 30 August- 1 September

Spiritual tourism has potential to boost development in Puducherry: Prez

President Droupadi Murmu on Monday said she was glad to find that spiritual tourism was getting a boost in Union Territory of Puducherry. Addressing a gathering at the civic reception accorded to her at JIPMER during her first visit to Puducherry, the President said Puducherry was a 'wonderful destination for spiritual tourism' and added that spiritual tourism was emerging fast as a global trend. Murmu further said, "spiritual tourism has the potential to boost socio economic development in Puducherry." She noted that the central government has taken several measures under Swadesh Dharshan scheme to promote tourism related activities in Puducherry. Earlier, after inaugurating the Rs 17 crore advanced linear accelerator equipment for treatment of cancer patients in JIPMER, the President said the facility would minimize radio therapy exposure. She virtually inaugurated the Rs 10.51 crore Ayush hospital set up in the neighbouring Villianoor and said it had come up under the National