Page 79 - West Bengal

Bidyut Chakraborty retires as Visva-Bharati VC after controversial tenure

Visva-Bharati Vice-Chancellor Bidyut Chakraborty, whose five-year tenure in the central university was riddled with controversies including the land row with economist Amartya Sen and the UNESCO plaque issue, retired on Wednesday. In a notification, the varsity said that Prof Sanjoy Kumar Mallik, the principal of Kala Bhavana (Institute of Fine Arts), was appointed as the officiating vice-chancellor. Mallik will perform the duties of the vice-chancellor with effect from forenoon of November 9 until a new vice-chancellor assumes office or until further orders of the Ministry of Education, the notification said. The tenure of Chakarborty, who became the university's VC in 2018, was full of controversies that often took political turns and landed in courts. The varsity in April this year directed Amartya Sen to vacate 1.38 acres of land on the Santiniketan campus claiming he is enjoying it unauthorisedly. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took the side of the Nobel Laureate and personall

Bengal recruitment 'scam': ED summons TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee on Nov 9

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee to appear before it here on November 9 in connection with the alleged school jobs scam, a TMC leader said on Wednesday. Banerjee will appear before the ED on Thursday, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare Minister and TMC spokesperson Shashi Panja said, alleging that the party national general secretary is a victim of "vendetta politics". She also alleged that the BJP does such vendetta politics to "harass" leaders ahead of crucial election early next year. State BJP spokesperson Shamik Lahiri said the party does not believe in vendetta politics. He stated that summoning by central agencies is happening under the supervision of the court, and if the TMC has any problem, it can approach the court. The ED had earlier summoned Banerjee to appear before it on October 9, after he skipped the October 3 summons to participate in a TMC protest rally in New Delhi, demanding immediate release of central fund

Singur saga: TaMo's arbitration award roils political waters in West Bengal

The SC verdict triggered the compensation clause for Tata Motors

Tata Motors wins Singur land case against WB govt: Here are case details

Tata Motors secured an arbitral award of Rs 766 crore, with 11 per cent interest in the Singur plant case against the West Bengal government

Bengal recorded Rs 85,000 cr biz during this Durga Puja: CM Mamata

Asserting that the recently-concluded Durga Puja was "peaceful", West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said that the state witnessed business of over Rs 85,000 crore and employment generation for around 3 lakh people during the festivities. Referring to a survey by the British Council which stated that West Bengal recorded a business of Rs 72,000 crore during this year's Durga Puja, a seemingly happy Banerjee said she hoped that the business will grow in the coming years. "Durga Puja has reached a new height this year. In the coming years, we will organise it in a bigger way. A British Council research stated that this year, there was business of around Rs 72,000 crore but I believe that it will be around Rs 80,000 crore to Rs 85,000 crore. Over 3 lakh job opportunities were created, which is a big gain for the poor," Banerjee told reporters at the state secretariat. "Last time, some people moved the court because I had given some funds to clubs. I give money to th

Tagore is an emotion, his memory cannot be obliterated: WB Governor

Maintaining that Rabindranath Tagore was an emotion, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Wednesday said that the Nobel laureate's memory cannot be obliterated or ignored. Bose made the comment when asked by reporters about the row over the plaques installed at the Visva-Bharati, founded by Tagore, to mark the UNESCO world heritage tag. The plaques installed at the central varsity's campus in Birbhum district's Santiniketan do not have Tagore's name, but those of PM Narendra Modi, who is the chancellor, and vice-chancellor Bidyut Chakrabarty. "Tagore is a feeling, an emotion felt in the blood and heart of Indians. There cannot be any instance where Gurudev's memory is obliterated or ignored. Gurudev enjoys the highest respect in the minds of all Indians," said Bose, who is also the rector of the varsity, on the sidelines of a programme. Santiniketan, where Tagore built Visva-Bharati over a century ago, was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in September. The Trinamool ..

Registration for JEMAT 2023 phase 3 to begin today at official website

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology (MAKAUT) will start the Joint Entrance Management Aptitude Test (JEMAT) 2023 phase 3 registration procedure today i.e. on November 1

Visva-Bharati V-C accuses protesting TMC leaders of threatening to kill him

Visva-Bharati Vice Chancellor Bidyut Chakrabarty has lodged a complaint with the police, alleging that he received life threats from Trinamool Congress leaders who have been protesting outside the central varsity's campus in Santiniketan over the plaque row, a senior officer said on Tuesday. The VC emailed his complaint to the Santiniketan Police Station in West Bengal's Birbhum district on Monday, he said. Since October 27, workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress have been protesting outside the university campus, demanding the removal of the plaques on UNESCO World Heritage site status to Santiniketan for not bearing the name of Visva-Bharati founder Rabindranath Tagore. "The VC has sent a letter to us alleging that he has received life threats from some people who are staging a protest outside the university campus. We are looking into his complaint," the officer told PTI. Chakrabarty, in his complaint, has accused TMC leaders of threatening to kill him and he is scared about h

Tata Motors wins Singur land case, entitled to recover Rs 766 cr from WB

Tata Motors on Monday said an arbitral tribunal has asked the West Bengal Industrial Development Corp to pay the company Rs 766 crore compensation in connection with losses incurred on its manufacturing site in Singur. Tata Motors had to shift its plant to produce small car Nano from Singur in West Bengal to Sanand in Gujarat in October 2008 due to a land row. Tatas, by then, had already put over Rs 1,000 crore in Singur. In a regulatory filing, the auto major said a three-member Arbitral Tribunal has ruled that the company is entitled to recover from the respondent West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation Ltd (WBIDC) a sum of Rs 765.78 crore with interest thereon 11 per cent per annum from September 1, 2016, till actual recovery thereof. The compensation is in respect to the auto major's claim of compensation from WBIDC under various heads, including the loss of capital investments with regard to the automobile manufacturing facility at Singur. "This is to inform that the ..

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Work on to make new plaque under ASI norms: Visva-Bharati VC to Bengal CM

Visva-Bharati vice-chancellor on Sunday said work was underway to "prepare" a plaque retaining UNESCO's declaration of Santiniketan as a world heritage site and in adherence to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) guidelines. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday urged the Centre to remove the plaques on UNESCO World Heritage Site status to Santiniketan for not bearing the name of Visva-Bharati founder Rabindranath Tagore. In a letter to Banerjee, vice-chancellor Bidyut Chakraborty called upon her "not to continue to form your opinion on the basis of what your sycophants convey". "I wonder whether you are perturbed that in the plaque, Rabindranath does not figureI just would like to draw your attention to our difficulties," Chakraborty said. Urging Banerjee to "please apply your mind," the VC said, "UNESCO declared Santiniketan as a World Heritage Site and we need to follow the ASI instructions while preparing the plaque and we are doing it, the result of which wil

Jyotipriyo Mallick: From Mamata loyalist to "scam-tainted" minister

Jyotipriyo Mallick, a senior TMC leader, saw his four-decade-long political journey take a severe hit as the Enforcement Directorate arrested him on Friday in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged multi-crore ration distribution scam in the state. Sixty-five-year-old Mallick presently holds the portfolios of Forest Affairs and Non-Conventional and Renewable Energy in the Mamata Banerjee government. He was the West Bengal Food Supplies Minister from 2011 to 2021, a period during which the alleged irregularities in ration distribution reportedly took place. Mallick stepped into politics as a leader of the Congress students' wing Chatra Parishad - in the early eighties during his college years, inspired by then-firebrand mass leaders Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi and Mamata Banerjee. Born into a middle-class family in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district in 1958, he delved into politics while pursuing a career in law. Recognizing his organizational skills, a local

ED arrests Bengal minister Jyotipriyo Mallick in money laundering case

The Enforcement Directorate has arrested West Bengal minister Jyotipriyo Mallick in a money laundering case linked to an alleged multi-core ration distribution scam in the state, official sources said on Friday. The minister was apprehended under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in the early hours of Friday following over 17-18 hours of questioning, they said. He will be produced before a local court where the ED will seek his custody."I am a victim of a great conspiracy," the TMC minister said after being arrested by ED in connection with the alleged ration distribution scam. Earlier on Thursday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee threatened to file a police complaint if anything happens to Mallick during the questioning as he was unwell and had several medical ailments. The central agency had launched searches at Mallick's premises on Thursday. It also searched his ancestral house on Amherst Street in central Kolkata. The alleged scam pertains to reported ...

After plaque row, Visva Bharati says it was a temporary structure

Visva Bharati University on Wednesday said the plaque, which triggered a row to mark the UNESCO heritage status to Santiniketan, was just a temporary structure to demarcate the heritage site. The plaque set up at several places in the sprawling campus of the central university bore the names of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is ex-officio Chancellor of the university, and Vice-Chancellor Bidyut Chakrabarty, but does not have any mention of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore who set up the varsity. Reacting to this, TMC's Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar had earlier said, "UNESCO specifically said they are honouring Rabindranath Tagore and his unique legacy by declaring Santiniketan as a World Heritage Site. A megalomaniac V-C and his boss seem to think UNESCO is honouring them!!," A section of ashramites and left-leaning student activists had also objected to the move. When contacted, Visva Bharati spokesperson Mahua Bandyopadhyay told PTI, "It was a purely temporary structure raised to ...

Cyclone 'Hamoon' intensifies into severe cyclonic storm over Bay of Bengal

The cyclone, which passes in the sea, will remain about 200 km from Odisha coast and therefore, no major impact is expected in the state other than light to moderate rainfall in the coastal areas

TMC will launch bigger movement if no response on MGNREGA dues: Abhishek

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Friday said the party will launch a bigger movement, in which West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will also participate, if a response from the Centre regarding the state's MGNREGA dues is not received by the end of this month. Addressing a meeting in South 24 Parganas district's Bishnupur, which falls under his Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha constituency, the TMC national general secretary said, "People of West Bengal have worked for two years but have not received their wages under the scheme. I had asked people to choose between 'Paa Dhoro' (beg them) and 'Delhi Chalo' (march to Delhi) options to get their dues and they chose the latter." "Trains were cancelled at the last moment to prevent West Bengal's poor from reaching Delhi to fight for their rights. Permission for protests was also not granted," he said. Banerjee, while recalling the TMC's stir earlier this month over the issue, alleged that Union Minister of State for

Ronaldinho ignites Durga Puja festivities, casts spell on WB football fans

Wearing his infectious goofy grin, 'Samba Magician' Ronaldinho cast a spell on the football-crazy denizens of Kolkata as his arrival for a two-day visit here ushered in an early onset of the Durga Puja festival. The Durga Puja, the grandest festival in the region, traditionally commences on the sixth day (Shasthi) following Mahalaya, but it got rolling on the second day itself with the 'Gaucho' inaugurating a series of pandals. On a day Union Home Minister Amit Shah also came to inaugurate a Durga Puja pandal, it was the Brazil legend who took all the limelight. Wherever he went, chants of 'Ronaldinho, Ronaldinho' and 'Brazil, Brazil' echoed through the crowd, as hundreds of fans eagerly gathered to catch a glimpse of the former Barcelona and AC Milan star. Ronaldinho got himself dressed up in casual shorts, a loosely-fitted navy blue T-shirt, and topping it with his signature snapback cap. "Muchas gracias. Mucho carino (many thanks, much affection)," the 'King of Jogo Bonito' ...

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CBI books 24 in passport 'scam', raids 50 locations in West Bengal, Gangtok

The CBI is conducting searches at 50 locations in West Bengal and Gangtok having booked 24 persons including government officials and private individuals for allegedly issuing passports on the basis of forged documents, officials said Saturday. The CBI has detained an official posted in Gangtok and also a middleman, they said. The FIR names 24 individuals including 16 officials who were allegedly issuing passports on the basis of forged documents to ineligible persons, including non-residents, in return for bribes, they said. The searches are spread across Kolkata, Siliguri, Gangtok, and other locations, they said.

BJP threatens mega rally against corruption in MGNREGA in WB, TMC counters

BJP on Friday threatened to hold a massive rally in the city after Durga Puja against the alleged corruption in the utilisation of MGNREGA funds in rural Bengal. It provoked a sharp retort from the ruling TMC, which accused the saffron camp of diverting attention from legitimate demands for the release of overdue state funds. The state BJP indicated that the date and time of the proposed protest rally will be announced soon. West Bengal BJP president, Sukanta Majumdar said that the party will mobilise the underprivileged rural communities deprived of benefits of various central schemes due to the alleged corruption by local TMC leaders. "There are thousands of cases of corruption by local TMC leaders which have deprived the people of rural Bengal of the benefits of various central schemes, including housing under PM Awas Yojna and access to toilets under the Swachh Bharat scheme," he said. Majumdar's assertions followed TMC's protest in New Delhi and the five-day sit-in outside