Page 32 - Rajasthan

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.

Rajasthan aims to be leader state in providing water connections: Minister

Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) Minister Kanhaiya Lal Choudhary said the fast progress in the Jal Jeevan Mission is important for Rajasthan

Promises made in BJP manifesto will be delivered before time: Rajasthan CM

Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma on Saturday said the promises the BJP made in its election manifesto will be fulfilled before time. Sharma was speaking at a "Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra" camp organised at Bhanipura Gram Panchayat in Bikaner. He said through it is being ensured through this Yatra that the benefits of central government schemes reach every eligible person. "Our government will fulfil the dreams of the common people," the chief minister was quoted as saying in a statement. Sharma said in the public meeting that the yatra has been launched with the resolve to make India a developed nation by 2047. The chief minister said more than 2.75 crore people have participated in the camps organised in the state and got information about welfare schemes. Sharma said the promises made by the BJP in its manifesto for the Rajasthan Assembly elections 2023 will be fulfilled before time. The chief minister administered oath to the common people to realize the dream of mak

Rajasthan govt shuts down slaughterhouses, meat shops on January 22

Meanwhile, the Indian government has declared a half-day closure for all Central Government Offices, Central Institutions, and Central Industrial Establishments across the country on Monday, Jan 22

Industry gives call to regularise hotels in state's residential areas

Hotel owners feel that if their problems are resolved, Rajasthan will progress significantly in tourism

Raj: ED searches premises linked to ex-minister in Jal Jeevan Mission case

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday searched premises linked to former Rajasthan minister Mahesh Joshi and some others in a money laundering probe linked to alleged irregularities in the Jal Jeevan Mission, official sources said. Last year, the federal agency had conducted at least two rounds of raids in the case related to the central government programme. The locations linked to Joshi, a former minister of the public health engineering (PHE) department, are being searched under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. Joshi was denied a ticket by the Congress to contest from the Hawa Mahal seat in Jaipur in the recently held assembly polls in the state. The agency had earlier claimed that several middlemen and property dealers "aided" officials of the Rajasthan government's PHE department to siphon off "illegally earned" money from the Jal Jeevan Mission. Probe found that contractors were involved in securing tenders pertaining to Ja

Highway Infrastructure Trust to acquire 12 road projects for Rs 9,005 cr

Highway Infrastructure Trust has signed definitive agreements with PNC Infratech Ltd and PNC Infra Holdings Ltd for acquisition of 12 road projects at an enterprise value of Rs 9,005.7 crore. The target portfolio comprise 11 Hybrid Annuity (HAM) concessions from NHAI and 1 toll road concession from Uttar Pradesh State Highways Authority (UPSHA) and represents about 3,800 lane kms in the states of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka, Highway Infrastructure Trust (HIT) said in a statement. Out of the 12 projects, 10 projects are currently operational and balance 2 projects are under-construction, which will be acquired post commencement of operations, the trust said. "We look forward to integrating these assets into our portfolio and to continue our journey of high-quality asset management backed by world class ESG standards," said Neeraj Sanghi, Chief Executive Officer, Highway Concessions One (Investment Manager to HIT). Gaurav Chandna, Head Strategic Finance, .

Rajasthan govt likely to seek PM Narendra Modi's help to promote tourism

Tour operator Sanjay Kaushik said that Rajasthan is very famous for its heritage and the state has the highest number of heritage properties in the world

ED arrests 5 people in money laundering case linked to Rajasthan paper leak

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday said it has arrested five people as part of its money laundering investigation into an alleged teacher recruitment exam paper leak case in Rajasthan. Suresh Kumar alias Suresh Sau, Vijay Damore, Peeraram, Pukhraj, and Arun Sharma were taken into custody under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on January 11, the agency said. They were sent to three-day ED custody by a special PMLA court in Jaipur, it said in a statement. The probe pertains to alleged paper leak case of senior teacher 2nd grade competitive examination, 2022 in Rajasthan. Former Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) member Babulal Katara and two other persons identified as Anil Kumar Meena and Bhupendra Saran were earlier arrested by the ED in this case. Arun Sharma provided 29 candidates (for whom leaked papers were arranged and who were appearing for the said competitive examination) to Anil Kumar Meena in lieu of Rs 2 lakh per candidate, th

Trade bodies, exporters in Rajasthan demand task force to boost exports

According to available government data, exports from Rajasthan touched Rs 70,000 crore in the 2022-2023. Trade pundits expect it to reach Rs 80,000 crore in 2023-2024

Rajasthan Board Class 5, 8 board exam 2024 registration to begin today

The Board of Secondary Education, Rajasthan, released the exam registration for class 5th and 8th board exams 2024. Here's all you need to know

Conduct 5-day operation to crackdown on mining mafia: Raj CM to officials

Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma on Thursday directed officials to crackdown on the "mining mafia" in the state by conducting a five-day operation. Chairing a meeting of the mines and geology department here, he said preventing illegal mining, especially of gravel, is the priority of his government. Only strict and effective action will curb illegal mining in the state, Sharma stressed. He directed that a five-day joint campaign by police, district administrations, forest department, transport department and mines department be conducted to take strict action against the "mining mafia". Drones and other modern technology should be used to check illegal mining in the state, Sharma said. The chief minister also directed that a task force be formed under the chairmanship of the chief secretary to prevent illegal mining. Only when strict enforcement of the law is ensured, there will be fear among those involved illegal mining, Sharma said. He directed district superintendent

Rajasthan CM Sharma flags power companies' debt burden of Rs 90,000 cr

Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma on Monday said power companies in the state have a debt of about 90,000 crore and a large portion of the budget is going towards repaying this debt. He said the state has immense natural resources in the field of renewable energy. "With proper policy formulation and implementation in this area, the Energy Department can generate resources and employment on a large scale for the development and bright future of the state," Sharma said. He said self-reliance in energy production is very important to provide relief to the common people through various public welfare schemes. Sharma was addressing the review meeting of the Energy Department at the Chief Minister's Office on Monday. He directed the officials to prepare a road map for the future keeping in mind the energy needs of the state. The focus of the department should be on giving real and concrete results instead of manipulation of data, he said. The chief minister said it should be .

Karanpur poll: Another election, another loss for daily wager Titar Singh

Titar Singh, 78, is used to losing elections. So the result of the Karanapur assembly poll on Monday wouldn't have surprised him. The habitual contestant who has fought about 30 elections so far got 1,223 votes in this election, in which Rajasthan minister Surendra Pal Singh, the BJP nominee, lost to Congress rival Rupinder Singh Koonar. This secured Titar Singh, a daily wage labourer, the fourth place, higher than the NOTA (None of the Above) option. Titar Singh has contested every election in Rajasthan, from sarpanch to Lok Sabha, since the 1970s and forfeited his deposit every time but that hasn't deterred the Dalit community leader from trying his luck. "Why should I not fight? The government should give land, facilities... this election is a fight for rights," Titar Singh had told PTI in an interview in November last year. According to Election Department data, Koonar won the Karanpur election with 94,950 votes. BJP's Surendra Pal Singh got 83,667 votes, Aam Aadmi Party's .

Days after taking oath, Rajasthan minister loses bypoll to Cong candidate

BJP's Surendra Pal Singh lost to Congress' Rupinder Singh Koonar by 11,283 votes in the Sri Ganganagar's Karanpur Assembly bypoll

Hotels, restaurants in Rajasthan to serve millet dishes to tourists

The move comes after a delegation of the Hotel Federation of Rajasthan recently met Chief Minister (CM) Bhajanlal Sharma

GST officers detect over 29,000 bogus firms involved in fake ITC claims

The government on Sunday said GST officers have detected 29,273 bogus firms involved in fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims of Rs 44,015 crore in eight months till December 2023 during a drive against fake registration, which helped save revenue of Rs 4,646 crore. In the October-December quarter, 4,153 bogus firms that involved suspected ITC evasion of around Rs 12,036 crore were detected. As many as 2,358 of these bogus firms were detected by the Central GST Authorities. Maharashtra topped the list with 926 bogus firms detected, followed by Rajasthan (507), Delhi (483) and Haryana (424). The detection during the December quarter protected revenue of Rs 1,317 crore of which Rs 319 crore has been realised and Rs 997 crore has been protected by blocking ITC. As many as 41 persons were arrested in these cases while 31 of these arrests were made by Central GST Authorities, the finance ministry said. "Since the initiation of the special drive against fake registrations in mid-May 2023, a

Voting concludes at Rajasthan's Karanpur assembly seat with 80% turnout

A turnout of more than 80 per cent was recorded in Karanpur as polling concluded for the Rajasthan assembly constituency where minister Surendra Pal Singh is contesting as the BJP nominee. Voting was held peacefully across booths, said officials. The counting of votes will take place on January 8. The election for the seat was postponed due to the death of the Congress candidate and the then MLA Gurmeet Singh Koonar. The Congress has fielded Koonar's son, Rupinder Singh, from the seat. Surendra Pal Singh has already been inducted into the Rajasthan cabinet after the BJP won the assembly polls, bagging 115 of the 199 seats where the elections were held. Voting began at 7 am and concluded at 6 pm. Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta said around 80.50 per cent of voters had exercised their franchise by the end of polling. "Voters are coming to cast their votes amid severe cold and fog," he said. The Congress has criticised the BJP nominee's induction in the ministry, terming it a

SJVN Green Energy to supply 200 MW solar power to Uttarakhand Power Corp

SJVN Green Energy Ltd has signed a pact with Uttarakhand Power Corporation Ltd (UPCL) to supply 200 MW solar power from a 1,000 MW Bikaner project in Rajasthan. State-owned SJVN, through its wholly-owned subsidiary SJVN Green Energy Ltd (SGEL) has signed a Power Usage Agreement (PUA) with UPCL. The solar project is being developed by SJVN through SGEL in Rajasthan under CPSU (Central Public Sector Undertaking) scheme of IREDA (Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency), a statement said on Friday. The development cost of the project, which is under construction, is Rs 5,491 crore. It is being developed under the domestic content requirement mode and is scheduled to be commissioned by April 2024. The power generated from the project will be used by government entities, either directly or through discoms. President Droupadi Murmu laid the foundation stone for the Bikaner solar power project in January 2023. The project is expected to generate 2,455 million units in the first year

Rajasthan Karanpur Assembly elections: 24.41% voter turnout till 11 am

A voter turnout of 24.41 per cent was recorded in Rajasthan's Karanpur assembly constituency in the first four hours of polling, which began at 7 am, on Friday, officials said. The voting will continue till 6 pm. Till 11 am, 24.41 per cent voters had exercised their franchise in Karanpur constituency. This shows that voters are coming to cast their votes despite severe cold and fog, said Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta. Voting for 199 out of the 200 assembly seats in the state was held on November 25. The election in Karanpur was postponed due to the death of Congress candidate Gurmeet Singh Koonar. The Congress has fielded Koonar's son, Rupinder Singh, from the seat. He is pitted against the BJP's Surendra Pal Singh. The BJP has already inducted Surendra Pal Singh into the cabinet led by Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma as a minister of state (independent charge), a move criticised by the Congress. Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot had called it a "clear violation of the c