Page 31 - Rajasthan

February rain kindles hope of better harvest in Rajasthan traders

If rain lashes the state in the next 10-15 days, then it will further boost production, traders said, adding that more rainfall after that will affect the crops

Rajasthan FM proposes Rs 1,000 cr for schools, colleges, hospitals

Provision of Rs 1,000 crore to establish and upgrade schools, colleges, hospitals and administrative buildings in assembly constituencies, recruitment to fill 70,000 posts were among the key announcements by Rajasthan Finance Minister Diya Kumari, who presented the state's interim Budget on Thursday. The other major announcement was Mukhyamantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyan to create 5 lakh water harvesting structures in 20,000 villages over the next four years, for which a Rs 11,200 crore provision has been made. Kumari said the former government ignored several assembly constituencies. "The previous government did not approve any plan for many areas like Ladpura, Nasirabad, Siwana, Ahor, Dag, Malpura. Now, to ensure regional balance of development, Rs 1,000 crore has been announced for setting up and upgrading additional colleges, schools, hospitals, and administrative buildings," she said. The minister said a Detailed Project Report to expand Jaipur Metro from Sitapura to Ambabari wil

Work on multipurpose coaching hub in Rajasthan's Pratapnagar gains pace

In the first phase, 70 of 140 units have been allotted to various educational institutions. Of the 90 commercial units, 53 have been allotted, along with two residential units and one mixed unit

Rooftop solar charges up electric vehicle boom in India's smaller cities

Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Kerala see more users

Congress could have won Rajasthan polls with little more effort: Pilot

Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Tuesday said his party could have won the Rajasthan Assembly polls if they had made some more efforts, adding that differences between him and former chief minister Ashok Gehlot had been ironed out and they did not impact the poll results. Speaking at the Lokmat National Conclave here, Pilot said the Congress gave a good fight in Rajasthan. However, he regretted that they did not win. "I felt in Rajasthan we had a very good chance. We made a lot of effort. But if we would have done a bit more, like changed the tickets... 17-18 out of 25 sitting ministers lost the election. If we would have picked different candidates, perhaps the performance would have been better," he said. Pilot, who was the deputy chief minister in Rajasthan and was removed from the post after a fallout with Gehlot, said he and the former chief minister have discussed the issues that were there, and they did not affect the election. Asked if Gehlot needs to be changed as a face fo

Domestic tourism in Rajasthan up 12 times, foreigners' numbers see spike

The number of domestic tourists visiting Rajasthan has increased about 12 times in the last four years, with the footfall of foreign tourists also witnessing a sharp uptick since the Covid-induced slump. According to the Tourism Department, in 2020, more than 1.51 crore domestic tourists visited the state. The number shot up to over 17.90 crore in 2023. A total of 32.44 crore domestic tourists visited Rajasthan from January 2020 to December 2023. On the other hand, over 22.20 lakh foreign tourists visited the desert state to witness its historical heritage during the same period. "Rajasthan has been a major tourist attraction among the tourists. After the corona pandemic, a large number of domestic tourists have started visiting the state. The number of foreign tourists have also significantly risen," Deputy Director of Tourism Department, Daleep Singh Rathore, said. The freshly elected BJP government's focus is to make the state a leader in the tourism sector in the country. Rece

Kota DM starts 'Dinner with Collector' to ease stress of coaching students

Kota District Magistrate Dr Ravinder Goswami has launched a weekly 'Dinner with Collector' programme under the 'Kamyab Kota' campaign to ease the stress of the coaching students in this coaching city. Himself an MBBS and a former coaching student from the town, Goswami launched the programme last month in view of the rising number of suicides by coaching students, mainly due to study-related stress. Under the 'Dinner with Collector', he has dinner with the students in a hostel every Friday to listen to their mind and heart. On February 1, he interacted with the students of a hostel in the Indraprastha area. He sang Bollywood songs with the students, shared success mantras and motivated them. Notably, two coaching students and a 27-year-old BTech student committed suicide by hanging last month. Twenty-six coaching students allegedly committed suicide in Kota in 2023, the highest figure so far in the city, where over two lakh students come from all parts of the country every year for

Former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot tests positive for Covid-19, swine flu

Former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday said he has tested positive for COVID-19 and swine flu. In a post on X, the Congress leader advised people to take care of their health in the changing season. "Due to fever for the last few days, today I got myself tested on the advice of doctors which confirmed (that I have) Covid and swine flu. Because of this, I will not be able to meet (anyone) for the next seven days," Gehlot said. "In this changing season, everyone should also take care of their health," he said.

Rajasthan may see drop in mustard production during 2023-2024 crop season

"The experts peg the output at around 1-1.2 mt lower than the estimates," said Anil Chatar, joint secretary of the Mustard Oil Producers Association of India

Nearly 180 million domestic tourists visited Rajasthan in 2023: Govt

Nearly 18 crore domestic and about 17 lakh foreign tourists visited Rajasthan last year, the state assembly was informed on Monday. According to a government reply in the Rajasthan Assembly, about 32.44 crore domestic tourists and over 22.20 lakh foreign tourists came to the state from January 2020 to December 2023 to visit its heritage sites. In the year 2023, more than 17.90 crore domestic tourists and about 16.99 lakh foreign tourists visited Rajasthan, the government said in its reply to a question raised by BJP MLA Kalicharan Saraf. A total of 1,51,17,239 domestic tourists and 4,46,467 foreign tourists visited Rajasthan in 2020, 2,19,88,734 domestic and 34,806 foreign tourists in 2021 and 10,83,28,156 domestic and 39,684 foreign tourists visited in 2022, the government said. Notably, the Covid pandemic had affected the tourism industry during the period from 2020 to 2022. MLA Saraf had asked for year-wise details of domestic and foreign tourist visits made in the state from .

Rajasthan govt turns to open market as power cuts hit irrigation

This is prompting the Rajasthan Urja Vikas Nigam to purchase electricity from the open market, sources in the state energy department said

18-year-old girl dies by suicide in Kota, second case in less than a week

The victim was to give the JEE test in a day or two. She lived at her family home in Shiv Vihar Colony in the city's Borekheda area

MP signs MoU of Rs 75,000 cr with Centre, Rajasthan for canal project

A tripartite MoU for the revised Parvati-Kali Sindh-Chambal-Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) link project, worth Rs 75,000 crore, was signed between Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and the Centre on Sunday. The MoU was signed in New Delhi in the presence of Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, MP Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and his Rajasthan counterpart Bhajan Lal Sharma, the MP government said in a release. After the signing of the MoU, Yadav said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this project, which has been pending for almost two decades, will now take shape. He said the project will benefit 13 districts of Chambal and Malwa region of MP. Water availability will increase in the dry belt districts of the state like Morena, Gwalior, Shivpuri, Guna, Bhind and Sheopur and the industrialisation of industrial belt districts like Indore, Ujjain, Dhar, Agar-Malwa, Shajapur, Dewas and Rajgarh will get a further boost, he said. Yadav said that the .

Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan chief ministers meet Home minister Amit Shah

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and his Rajasthan counterpart Bhajanlal Sharma on Sunday called on Union Home Minister Amit Shah here and discussed various issues regarding their respective states. Yadav and Sharma took charge as chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, respectively, in December. "There was a meeting with the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shri Dr Mohan Yadav ji today. A meaningful discussion took place on various issues related to the development and good governance of the state," Shah said in Hindi in a post on X. The home minister said the Rajasthan chief minister also met him. "Taking forward the vision of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji, Bhajan Lal ji is doing positive work towards freeing Rajasthan from the misrule of the Congress and moving it towards a new path of progress," Shah said in another post in Hindi. "I am confident that under his leadership, Rajasthan will witness all-round development," he added.

Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan CMs hold talks on Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Sunday reached Jaipur to meet his Rajasthan counterpart Bhajanlal Sharma to discuss the long pending Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project. The chief ministers of both the states held a joint press conference to inform that both the governments were committed to solve the drinking and irrigation water issues of the people. "We will take the promise, which we had made with the people under the leadership of the prime minister, to the final stage very soon. There are some key issues, they will be included," Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma told reporters. He said that with the decision of both the governments, people of 13 districts will get drinking water and 2.80 lakh hectare of land will get water for irrigation. Addressing the press conference, Yadav said that an MoU will be signed for the benefit of the people. "I hope that by today evening an agreement will be ready and an MoU will be signed for the benefit of the people. It will

Drone surveys to be conducted in Rajasthan to curb illegal mining

As part of the ongoing statewide campaign against illegal mining activities in Rajasthan, drone surveys will be conducted in large mining areas so that such activities can be stopped. Mines Secretary Anandhi has given instructions to this effect in the meeting of the departmental officers on Saturday. According to the official statement, in the statewide campaign being run against illegal mining activities, instructions have been given to take action against illegal mining activities by conducting surveys through drones, if necessary, in large mining areas. In the meeting, she said that emphasis has been laid on eliminating the source of illegal mining activities so that these illegal mining activities can be effectively stopped. Anandhi held a virtual meeting with the officials of the Mines Department. She asked the revenue officers to take action in cases of illegal mining. It was told in the meeting that in Bhilwara alone, 70-75 cases of illegal mining have been identified and

LS polls: Election dept begins preparations in Raj with checking of EVMs

With the first level checking of the electronic voting machines, the Election department has started the preparations for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan, an official said on Saturday. Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta in a statement said the Election department has started the process of preparations for the Lok Sabha elections in the state with the first level checking (FLC) of the electronic voting machines (EVMs). He said the first level checking of the EVMs is necessary for fair, free and transparent elections. Gupta said that as per the instructions of the Election Commission of India, the first level checking work of EVM/VVPAT machines for the Lok Sabha elections has been started by the engineers of the Bharat Electronics Limited, Bengaluru, from January 27 in all the districts of the state. This work is likely to be completed on February 20, he added. Gupta said this work will be done in the presence of recognised national and state political parties. EV

French Prez Macron reaches Jaipur to join roadshow, hold talks with PM Modi

French president Emmanuel Macron arrived Thursday in this decked-up city, where he will spend several hours savouring the sites and perhaps some roadside chai -- before engaging in talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on strengthening India France ties. Macron, who is the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in Delhi on January 26, will spend several hours here, visiting iconic sites, including the hilltop Amber Palace nearby, and participating in a roadshow with Modi. The two leaders will hold official talks at Rambagh Palace hotel in the evening. The French delegation was received by Governor Kalraj Mishra and Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma at the airport. Modi, who was on a visit to Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr, was to reach Jaipur later. Macron was scheduled to visit Amber Fort, Jantar Mantar and Hawa Mahal. It will also be Modi's first visit to Rajasthan after the recent assembly polls, in which his Bharatiya Janata Party ousted the Congress government in the ...

French Prez Macron to arrive in Jaipur, will tour pink city with PM Modi

Macron will be on a state visit as the chief guest of India's 75th Republic Day celebrations at the invitation of PM Modi

Rajasthan HC dismisses PIL challenging swearing-in of deputy CMs

The Rajasthan High Court on Tuesday dismissed a PIL challenging the "swearing-in" of Diya Kumari and Prem Chand Bairwa as deputy chief ministers by claiming that the Constitution does not recognise this post. Petitioner Om Prakash Solanki, a lawyer, had also sought cancellation of the appointments. A bench headed by Acting (designated) Chief Justice MM Srivastava held that there was no substantial material in the PIL and it was only a publicity stunt by the advocate. The court dismissed the PIL and also imposed a penalty of Rs 25,000 to be paid by the petitioner to the state government. The PIL was filed on December 16, a day after Kumari and Biarwa took oath along with Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma.