Ranchi

Rail blockade by Kurmis hits Jharkhand train services, key routes disrupted

Defying prohibitory orders, a rail blockade by Kurmis is underway at various stations in Jharkhand on Saturday morning, disrupting train services partially in the state, officials said. The protestors were seen sitting on tracks at Rai station in Ranchi, Parasnath in Giridih and Chandrpura in Bokaro district under the banner of Adivasi Kurmi Samaj (AKS) to press their demand for a Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for the community and inclusion of the Kurmali language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. According to a statement issued by the railways, train services in the jurisdiction of the South Eastern Railway (SER) and Dhanbad division of the East Central Railway (ECR) have been partially affected due to the agitation by Adivasi Kudmi Samaj. "At least three trains, including Hatia-Barddhaman Memu and Tatanagar-Gua-Tatanagar Memu, have been cancelled, one has been short-terminated and four were controlled," it said. Security personnel were trying to pacify the protestors and

Amit Shah to chair Eastern Zonal Council meeting in Ranchi on July 10

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to chair the Eastern Zonal Council meeting in Ranchi on July 10 in which about 70 representatives from the four eastern states -- Jharkhand, Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal -- are expected to participate, an official said on Wednesday. Security has been beefed up in Ranchi in view of the meeting and Shah is scheduled to arrive in the state capital on Wednesday evening. Under Sections 15 to 22 of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, five zonal councils were established in the country. The Union home minister is the chairperson of these five zonal councils, and the chief ministers/lieutenant governors/administrators of the member states and Union territories are the members. "Massive security arrangements have been made in the state capital in view of the Eastern Zonal Council meeting here tomorrow, to be chaired by the Home Minister," the official said. The zonal councils take up many important issues including discussing broad issues of ...

Gadkari to inaugurate, lay foundation stone for projects worth ₹6,350 cr

Union minister Nitin Gadkari will on Thursday inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of projects worth Rs 6,350 crore in Jharkhand, officials said. The Union Road Transport and Highways Minister will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of 11 National Highway projects in the state, including nine from Ranchi and two from Garhwa. Among the projects are an elevated corridor worth Rs 560 crore in Ranchi, and two projects worth Rs 2,460 crore in Garhwa. Gadkari will inaugurate the 4.18-km elevated 'Ratu Road flyover', which starts near Raj Bhavan and ends at OTC Ground in Ranchi. In Garhwa, he will inaugurate a 23-km four-lane highway from Shankha to Khajoori, built at a cost of Rs 1,130 crore, the officials said. He will also lay the foundation stone of a Rs 1,330-crore project for four-laning of a 32-km stretch of NH 39 from the Chhattisgarh-Jharkhand inter-state boundary to Gumla, they added. "From Ranchi, the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Gadkari will launch the

Patna-bound IndiGo flight grounded in Ranchi due to deflated tyre: Official

A Patna-bound Indigo flight was grounded at Birsa Munda airport here on Friday afternoon because of deflation in one of its tyres, an airport official said. The flight, originating from Kolkata, was scheduled to fly to Patna and then to Lucknow, he said. "The flight was grounded due to precautionary safety reasons," airport director RR Maurya said. "After landing at Ranchi, the pilot suspected one of the front tyres might be deflated and requested an inspection," he added. He added that Patna passengers were sent by road, while those traveling to Lucknow were put on other flights via alternate routes.

SC terms delay in verdicts 'very disturbing', to issue mandatory norms

Frowning upon the Jharkhand High Court for not pronouncing verdicts after reserving them for years, the Supreme Court on Monday sought reports within a month from all high courts on cases where judgements have been reserved on or before January 31. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh termed such non-pronouncement of verdicts by courts a "very disturbing issue" and said it will lay down some mandatory guidelines for the high courts. "Let us see. Honestly speaking it is a very disturbing issue but we don't know the circumstances -- why it has happened -- but we would like to definitely lay down some mandatory guidelines. It cannot be allowed to happen like this," the bench observed. The top court perused a report of the registrar general of Jharkhand High Court on a plea of four life convicts who have complained that the high court has not pronounced its verdict on their criminal appeals despite reserving its order in 2022. "Having perused the report sent by the ...

ICAR clears release of improved fodder crop by Ranchi agri university

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has recommended the release of an improved variety of fodder crop, Birsa Lathyrus-1, developed by scientists at the Ranchi-based Birsa Agricultural University (BAU). According to a statement from BAU, the new variety was developed under the All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on fodder crops. The average green fodder yield (GFY) of this variety, released for the country's north east zone and central zone, is 190 quintals per hectare, which is 6.3 per cent more than that obtained from national check variety Mahateora, the statement said. The variety, moderately resistant to leaf blight in the north east zone, is also suitable for timely-sown, normal fertility and under irrigated conditions of Jharkhand, it said. "This variety carries per cent crude protein which is 4-5 per cent higher than the national check. It gives a seed yield of 8.3 quintal per hectare, which is 15 per cent superior to the check variety Mahateora," i

BJP workers protest in Ranchi over leader's murder, 9-hour bandh begins

Supporters of the BJP, AJSU Party and other organisations took to the streets in Jharkhand's Ranchi on Thursday morning, as they called for a nine-hour bandh in the state capital over the killing of a saffron party leader. BJP's Ranchi Rural District general secretary Anil Mahto Tiger was shot dead in broad daylight in Ranchi on Wednesday. He was also a former zila parishad member. Holding party flags, the workers were seen staging demonstrations in various areas of Ranchi since morning, including Harmu, Dhurwa and Piska More. "We have called for a nine-hour bandh till 5 pm to protest against the deteriorating law and order situation in the state and the murder of Anil Mahto Tiger," party spokesperson Pradeep Sinha said. Jharkhand Krantikari Loktantrik Morcha, Kendriya Sarna Samiti and some other organisations have also extended support to the bandh. Most schools in the city remained shut on Thursday in view of the bandh. Vehicles plying on roads in the morning hours were fewer in

J'khand chief secy urges expediting fund utilisation for capital investment

Jharkhand chief secretary Alka Tiwari on Friday instructed state departments to promptly submit utilisation certificates to the Centre for funds received under the Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) scheme. She said submitting the certificates on time would strengthen the state's claim to remaining funds and demonstrate its commitment to financial discipline. Tiwari was reviewing the scheme with the secretaries of the departments concerned. Notably, the Centre provides interest-free loans to states for 50 years under SASCI. For the financial year 2023-24, the state was allocated Rs 5,255.14 crore by the Centre, with Rs 4,580.62 crore already received, according to an official communique. For 2024-25 fiscal, the state has proposed Rs 4,302 crore, with Rs 2,763 crore approved and Rs 1,233 crore received so far. Additionally, the state is eligible for an extra Rs 1,250 crore under the scheme, the statement added. "If work is done according to the guidelines o

Jharkhand CM Soren, ministers take oath as members of Legislative Assembly

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday took oath as a member of the Jharkhand Assembly on the first day of the four-day session of the House. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Radhakrishna Kishore, Revenue and Land Reforms Minister Deepak Birua and Labour Minister Sanjay Prasad Yadav were among the ministers in the Hemant Soren cabinet who also took oath as members of the assembly. The CM and the ministers were among 80 elected representatives who were administered the oath as MLAs by the assembly's pro-tem Speaker Stephen Marandi soon after the proceedings of the House began at 11 am. The House was adjourned till 11 am on Tuesday after the oath-taking ceremony. "All MLAs and ministers took oath today. We will move for next proceedings tomorrow," the CM later told reporters. The Speaker's election is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, an assembly official said. Kishore said Nala MLA Rabindra Nath Mahato is likely to be elected as Speaker of the House unopposed as all members,

Birsa Munda's great-grandson, injured in road accident, dies in Ranchi

Tribal icon Birsa Munda's great-grandson Mangal Munda, who was undergoing treatment at a hospital here after being injured in a road accident, died of "cardiovascular failure" on Friday, an official of the health facility said. He was 45. Mangal Munda breathed his last at 12.30 am at the state's apex health facility - Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences. Munda sustained severe head injuries after he fell from the roof of a passenger vehicle in Jharkhand's Khunti district on November 25. "Birsa Munda's kin Mangal Munda died of cardiovascular failure around 12.30 am. He was on a ventilator after being critically injured. We tried our best to save him but failed," RIMS Medical Superintendent Dr Hiren Birua told PTI. Mangal Munda was referred to RIMS on Tuesday from Khunti's Sadar Hospital. Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Governor Santosh Gangwar condoled the demise of Mangal Munda. "I am deeply saddened by the news of the demise of Shri Mangal Munda Ji, a descendant of

IAS officer removed by EC before polls reinstated as Ranchi dy commissioner

The Hemant Soren government has reinstated Manjunath Bhajantri as the Ranchi district deputy commissioner (DC), from which he was removed by the EC before the Assembly elections following a complaint by the BJP, according to a notification. The decision to bring Bhajantri back to the post was taken hours after JMM leader Hemant Soren took oath as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand. The 2011 batch IAS officer was appointed as Ranchi DC by the Hemant Soren government on September 30 ahead of the polls which took place in two phases - November 20 and 23. He was removed on October 15 following a complaint by the BJP legal cell to the Chief Electoral Officer and shifted to Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society as its CEO. "Chief Executive Officer of Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS) Manjunath Bhajantri has been transferred and appointed as Deputy Commissioner, Ranchi, till further orders," a notification from the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms .

Anurag Gupta reinstated as Jharkhand DGP by Hemant Soren govt

IPS officer Anurag Gupta, who was removed from the post of Jharkhand DGP by the Election Commission ahead of the assembly polls, has been reinstated by the Hemant Soren government, an official said on Friday. Gupta's reinstatement comes hours after Soren took oath as the 14th chief minister of Jharkhand on Thursday. Gupta was removed from the DGP post due to his "history of election-related misconduct" in previous polls, and the commission had appointed 1989-batch Jharkhand cadre senior most IPS officer Ajay Kumar Singh as DGP on October 21. "Anurag Gupta, Director General, Crime Investigation Department, has been given charge of Director General, Police....DGP Ajay Kumar Singh has been given charge of Chairman cum Managing Director of Jharkhand Police Housing Corporation Ltd," said a notification from the Department of Home, Prisons and Disaster Management. The state went to polls in two phases on November 13 and 20 and the JMM-led alliance registered a stunning victory, securing

Jharkhand Maoist 'commander' with Rs 15 lakh bounty killed in internal feud

A CPI(Maoist) 'commander', who had a Rs 15 lakh bounty on his head, was killed in an internal feud of the proscribed organisation in Jharkhand's Latehar district, police said on Wednesday. Chotu Kherwar, the 'zonal commander' of Palamu division, was allegedly killed by other Maoists in Bhimpal forest in Chipadohar police station area on Tuesday night, they said. DIG (Palamu Range) YS Ramesh said that after receiving news about the incident, police personnel were sent to the remote location to retrieve the body. Kherwar was wanted in multiple criminal cases, police said. An investigation is underway to ascertain the exact cause of the death, they said.

J'khand Assembly elections: PM Modi to hold mega roadshow in Ranchi today

Last week, PM Modi addressed rallies in Chaibasa and Garhwa on November 5, a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah released the BJP's manifesto for Jharkhand assembly polls

Amit Shah releases BJP's Sankalp Patra for Jharkhand Assembly elections

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, Union Ministers Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Sanjay Seth, and BJP Jharkhand president Babulal Marandi were present during the launch

Jharkhand polls: NDA 'almost' finalises seat sharing; BJP gets 68, AJSU 10

Jharkhand elections: The BJP is likely to contest 68 seats, but discussions are ongoing in the final stages, Assam CM Himanta Sarma said at a press conference in Ranchi

ECI delegation meets govt officials to review poll preparedness in J'khand

The state is likely to witness elections to the 81-member Jharkhand legislative assembly on or before December 2024 as the tenure of the current government is set to end in January 2025

Bharat Bandh gets mixed response; scuffle in Bihar's Patna: Top updates

The Bharat Bandh call has been initiated by the National Confederation of Dalit and Adivasi Organisations (NACDAOR) to protest against the August 1 Supreme Court ruling

WATCH: Vande Bharat passenger slaps server after being served non-veg food

Vande Bharat viral video: Several passengers came to the defence of the server while condemning the elderly man for 'attacking a poor worker'

ED raids in Ranchi recover Rs 1 crore cash, 100 bullets in land grab case

The Enforcement Directorate has seized Rs 1 crore in cash and 100 live bullet rounds following raids in Ranchi as part of an alleged land grab-linked money laundering investigation against former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and others, officials said Saturday. The seizure was made on Friday evening from the Kanke road premise of a person identified as Kamlesh Singh. The raids were being carried out in the alleged land grab case against former CM and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader Hemant Soren but pertains to a different land plot, according to sources. The federal agency has also registered a police case under the Arms Act in connection with the seizure of the live ammunition, they said. More than 25 persons including Soren, IAS officer and former Ranchi deputy commissioner Chhavi Ranjan, Bhanu Pratap Prasad and others have been arrested by the ED as part of the investigation into the case. Land parcels worth Rs 266 crore, including a clutch of plots spread across