Page 110 - West Bengal

Braving rains, lakhs throng pandals in West Bengal on Maha Saptami

Braving overcast skies and intermittent rains, lakhs of people hit the brightly illuminated streets in the city and elsewhere in West Bengal on Maha Saptami to see the exquisitely crafted idols of the goddess and her progeny. The number of pandal hoppers looked bigger on Maha Saptami, officially the first day of the four-day fsetival, than on the previous two days when the marquees were opened in advance for the enthusiastic public. Large crowds were seen near popular Puja pandals like Sribhumi Sporting Club, Santosh Mitra Square, College Square, Chetla Agrani, Ahiritola Sarbojonin, Kumortuli Sarbojonin, Hati Bagan Sarbojonin, Baghbazar Sarbojonin, Hindustan Park, Kashi Bose Lane, Mudiali Sarbojonin, 95 Pally, Jodhpur Park to name a few among the large number of big ticket pujas in the city. The giant 'ekchala' traditional idol at Baghbazar Sarbojonin attracted lakhs of viewers and Kolkata police and club volunteers worked hard to prevent any stampede-like situation. "As it rained

Best of BS Opinion: Surviving interesting times, Indian rich list & more

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

The lows of a high office: 'My ear is not working'

The moves made by former West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and his subsequent elevation as vice president have set a new benchmark for the actions of those who occupy Raj Bhavans

Adhikari urges Centre to check 'illegal diversion of funds' by WB govt

Accusing the West Bengal government of illegally diverting" Central funds, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, urged Union Finance minister to take appropriate steps so that the malpractices come to an end. He made the accusation in a series of tweets and also wrote a letter to the Union Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in this regard. The BJP leader in a tweet alleged that the state government had tactfully opened the State Nodal Account of Public Finance Management System in a private bank where the State Emergency Relief Fund Account was in operation so that Central funds could be easily diverted. "It is a can of worms waiting to be opened," he wrote on the micro-blogging site on Thursday. The MLA from Nandigram requested the Union minister to keep a tab on the transactions of the state government and attached a copy of the letter, dated September 29, with his tweet. Adhikari later tweeted, "one tweet of mine and West Bengal government is out of lin

1 dead, 9 TMC supporters injured in accident while returning from rally

An 11-year-old boy was killed and nine other TMC supporters were injured in a head on collision between their e-rickshaw and an SUV in West Bengal's Malda district, police said on Thursday. The TMC supporters were returning from a protest rally over price rise on Wednesday night when the accident happened at Sripur in Pukuria police station area, they said. The driver of the SUV, which was heading to Sripur from Lashkarpur, was allegedly drunk and not able to control the vehicle, he hit the e-rickshaw coming from the other side, they added. Six of those injured were admitted to the Chanchol Hospital, while four others were sent to the Malda Medical College and Hospital (MMCH), police said. The boy, who was undergoing treatment at MMCH, died on Thursday morning, they said. The driver of the SUV has been apprehended, and the vehicle seized, police said.

WBSSC scam: Partha Chatterjee, Arpita's judicial custody extended to Oct 31

This means that the duo will spend not just the Durga Puja, but the entire festive season including Laxmi Puja, Kali Puja, Diwali, and Bhai Dooj behind the bars

Mamata Banerjee voices happiness over Bengal's Jal Jeevan Mission feat

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday expressed happiness that the state has been selected for its superlative performance in the 'quantity' parameter under the Centre's Jal Jeevan Mission scheme. She said the feat bears testimony to the pro-people approach of her government. I am pleased to announce that West Bengal has been selected for felicitation for exemplary performance in the 'Quantity' parameter under Jal Jeevan Mission, Banerjee said in a Twitter post. Jal Jeevan Mission under Union Jal Shakti Ministry is envisioned to provide safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections to all households in rural India by 2024. She also thanked the ministry for recognising the state's efforts. This award is a testament to the perseverance and commitment of the officials who prioritised public service. Upholding our pro-people approach, we will continue serving the state with utmost dedication, the chief minister said.

YouTuber arrested for meme on Mamata, search on for 7 more content creators

A 29-year-old YouTuber was arrested from West Bengal's Nadia district on Tuesday for allegedly creating memes on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that were derogatory, police said. Tuhin Mondal, the content creator, was arrested from his house in Bapujinagar in Taherpur police station area by officers of the Kolkata Police's Intelligence Branch, they said. He was arrested on the basis of a complaint filed by a 21-year-old man at Taratala police station in south Kolkata a week back, they said. "Mondal, who has no steady income, is believed to have made provocative, derogatory and abusive memes by editing parts of the chief minister's speeches to defame her. The complainant claimed that such acts can incite violence and disrupt peace," an officer of Kolkata Police said. The complaint also names at least seven other content creators, and police said that a search is on to arrest them. A case has been filed under relevant sections of the IPC, they said. In June, Kolkata Police arrested

Mamata asks mayor to rename Kolkata road, park after Pranab Mukherjee

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday directed Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim to rename a road and a park in the city after former president Pranab Mukherjee. Speaking at the inauguration of Chetla Agrani's Durga Puja pandal in south Kolkata, Banerjee remembered Mukherjee. "I will ask Bobby (Firhad Hakim) to name a road, even if small, and a small park in remembrance of Pranab Mukherjee," she said. She also remembered singers Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, Dwijen Mukhopadhyay and Nirmala Mishra, and asked the mayor to rename roads and parks after them. Banerjee said the Durga Puja festival has twin feathers on its crown this year -- Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO and Best Destination for Culture by a global organisation of travel writers. She said that these recognitions will show the path of peace and togetherness to the world. Banerjee said that it would also be the responsibility of community puja organisers to assist the police in crowd management. "As I had told Sujit (Bose),

21 TMC MLAs in touch with me, claims BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty

Actor and BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty claimed that nearly 21 Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLAs are in touch with him

Bengal govt's Rs 100-cr Jagannath Temple in Digha to be complete by 2023

The Rs 100-crore Jagannath Temple being built by the West Bengal government at the beach town of Digha in Purba Medinipur district will be completed by December 2023, an official said on Saturday. The temple, coming up on a 20-acre plot near the beach, is being built by West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (WBHIDCO), resembling the centuries-old Jagannath Temple in Odisha's Puri. The 65-metre-high temple will have idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra, WBHIDCO chief engineer Suman Neogi said. The Digha Shankarpur Development Authority (DSDA) will be running the affairs of the temple when the construction is complete, he said. "We are hopeful about completing the project by the end of next year. Around 200 labourers are working round the clock to realise the dream of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to have a Jagannath Temple, resembling the one in Puri, in Digha," Neogi said. The temple will be of red sandstone, which is being brought fr

Calcutta HC rejects dearness allowance review petition filed by Bengal govt

A division bench of the Calcutta High Court on Thursday rejected a review petition of West Bengal government to reconsider an earlier judgement of the bench to clear dearness allowance (DA) arrears within three months. The bench comprising justices Harish Tandon and Rabindranath Samanta rejected the state government's petition to review its May 20 order. Upholding an order of the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT), the Calcutta High Court had in May directed the West Bengal government to release dearness DA arrears since July 2009, when the Revision of Pay and Allowances (ROPA) came into effect in the state, within three months. The state government had filed a writ petition in the high court challenging the SAT order of July 2019 that directed it to pay DA at par with the Centre, and to clear the amount in three instalments. The division bench on Thursday also fixed November 9 as the date of hearing of a contempt petition filed by the associations of state government employees, .

Mamata's decision to postpone north Bengal visit attracts opposition jibes

During her two-day visit, the CM was supposed to attend three programmes at Uttarkanya which is considered as the mini-secretariat in north Bengal, Bagdogra and Bagha Jatin Park at Siliguri

CBI arrests North Bengal University VC in 2016 teachers' recruitment scam

The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested North Bengal University Vice-Chancellor Subires Bhattacharyya in connection with an assistant teachers' recruitment scam in West Bengal in 2016

West Bengal govt nod to Adani's Tajpur greenfield port development

APSEZ had emerged as the H1 bidder earlier this year, but the state government had not declared it

Partha Chatterjee-Arpita Mukherjee assets worth Rs 103 cr: ED charge sheet

ED officials said that the assets include cash amounting to Rs 49.80 crore and gold worth Rs 5.08 crore seized from the two residences of Mukherjee in Kolkata in July.

ED attaches over Rs 46 crore assets of ex-minister Partha Chatterjee, aide

The Enforcement Directorate on Monday said it has attached assets worth Rs 46.22 crore "beneficially owned" by former minister Partha Chatterjee and his alleged associate Arpita Mukherjee as part of a money laundering probe in the West Bengal teachers' recruitment 'scam'. The attached properties include 40 immovable assets such as a farmhouse, flats and "prime land" located in Kolkata worth a total Rs 40.33 crore, apart from Rs 7.89 crore worth deposits kept in 35 bank accounts, the federal agency said in a statement. "The attached properties are found to be beneficially owned by Partha Chatterjee and Arpita Mukherjee," it said. According to the agency, several of the attached properties were registered in the name of shell companies and persons acting as proxies for Chatterjee. The former minister in the TMC-led government in West Bengal and his "close associate" were arrested by the ED in July. The agency had seized Rs 49.80 crore cash, gold and other jewellery worth more than R

CBI might quiz CA of TMC's Anubrata Mondal again in cattle smuggling case

The Central Bureau of Investigation might again question Manish Kothari, the chartered account of TMC strongman Anubrata Mondal, in connection with the multi-crore cattle smuggling scam in West Bengal

Violent mob at BJP's rally can be taught a lesson in 10 minutes: TMC leader

TMC leader Madan Mitra has courted controversy by claiming that those involved in violence and attacks on police during BJP's recent march to the West Bengal secretariat can be "taught a lesson in just 10 minutes". Mitra, however, added that the Trinamool Congress is not in favour of such an action in retaliation to BJP's "disruptive policies". The former state minister's comments come close on the heels of TMC general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee's remark that if I was there, I would have shot the violent protesters in the head. Mitra, speaking at a public meeting in Kamarhati constituency on Sunday, said, "If there is an instruction from the party, it won't take more than 10 minutes to thrash those who were involved in hooliganism and vandalism (during BJP's Nabanna Abhijan' on September 14). We can retaliate with double the force than the attackers. The maverick MLA also said TMC has emphasised it wants development not violence. It speaks the language of love and compassio

Bill to help SC/ST appeal against caste certificates passed in West Bengal

The West Bengal Assembly on Friday passed a bill which seeks to provide the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities of the state with opportunities to appeal against cancellation, refusal and revocation of caste certificates. The West Bengal Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Identification) (Amendment) Bill, 2022, was tabled by the Backward Classes Welfare Minister, Bulu Chik Baraik. The bill will enable the people of the SC and ST communities to appeal against refusal to issue a caste certificate. There was no provision of appeal against cancellation, impoundment or revocation of the caste certificate. Now we have decided to provide this provision, the minister said. The matter will be dealt with by district magistrates or additional district magistrates in the districts and by the commissioner, Presidency Division, in Kolkata. Baraik also said that every appeal has to be disposed of within three months from the date of application. No such appeal shall be