Page 90 - West Bengal

Odisha train tragedy: 31 from West Bengal are still missing, says Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said 31 passengers from her state, who were travelling in the express trains that met with an accident on June 2 evening in Odisha's Balasore, are missing

3.9 magnitude earthquake jolts Bay of Bengal, no casualties reported

The Bay of Bengal struck a 3.9 magnitude earthquake on Monday morning of June 5. It is the third such quake in the last six months in the Bay of Bengal.

Odisha tragedy: Death toll from Bengal at 81 as more bodies identified

The death toll from West Bengal in the Odisha triple train tragedy has risen to 81, according to the state government.

Less than 1 in 3 startups manage to raise follow-on funding: Study

The West Bengal government has also sent 10 buses to the spot to bring back the passengers from Balasore

Teachers' recruitment case: Custody of Kuntal Ghosh extended by 14 days

On May 19, when the CBI submitted a charge sheet in the case, the court sought certain explanations, which the central agency was supposed to submit to the court on Friday

Calcutta HC seeks report from WBBSE, on hirring without appointment case

Justice Biswajit Basu of the Calcutta High Court on Friday sought a detailed report from the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE)

WBJELET Admit Card 2023 released, here's how to check and download

WB JELET admit card 2023 was released on June 1, 2023. Candidates can check and download their admit cards from the official website, wbjeeb.nic.in.

Planning of Bengal school recruitment scam done at WBBPE office: ED

The basic planning of the multi-crore school recruitment case was conducted at the office of the West Bengal Board of Primary Education (WBBPE)

PM Modi, Amit Shah, JP Nadda to hold rallies in West Bengal in June

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president J P Nadda will address rallies in West Bengal next month, party state unit president Sukanta Majumdar said on Wednesday. The rallies will be part of the countrywide mass outreach campaign on the BJP-led NDA government's completion of nine years in power at the Centre, he said. "The PM, Union home minister and BJP national president will address one rally each, across north and south Bengal, in June. The dates and venues are yet to be fixed," Majumdar told reporters. The Balurghat MP said the state unit of the BJP has decided to hold 1,000 big and small rallies across 1,000 mandals (local units) as part of the campaign. "Of these 1,000 rallies, 294 will be held in June itself," he said. Majumdar said other senior party leaders and ministers such as Sarbananda Sonowal, Dharmendra Pradhan, Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Sidharth Nath Singh and Sushil Modi will address rallies in various parts of th

Bengal govt introduces 4-year UG honours course from this academic year

The West Bengal government on Wednesday announced introduction of a four- year honours course at the undergraduate level in all government and state-aided higher educational institutions from this academic year. In a statement, the higher education department said the decision has been taken after holding talks with all stakeholders and based on the recommendation of a state-appointed expert panel which had suggested rolling out a four-year UG course from the 2023-24 academic year. "After consulting various stakeholders and keeping the future of students in mind, it has been decided by the competent authority in the State Government that the four-year UG level programme will be introduced in all Government/ Government aided/ Government sponsored Higher Education Institutions from the academic session 2023-2024..... "They shall be awarded degrees in accordance with the UGC national curriculum and credit framework for UG level programmes," the statement said. This will be in place of

West Bengal school jobs scam accused Sujay Krishna Bhadra arrested by ED

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday night arrested Sujay Krishna Bhadra for his alleged involvement in the illegal appointments made in different state-run and aided schools in West Bengal, an official said. Bhadra, popular as 'Kalighat er Kaku' (Uncle from Kalighat), was arrested following a 12-hour-long grilling by ED officials at the agency's city office in connection with their ongoing investigation into the scam. "He did not cooperate with our officers during today's questioning. We tried a lot to get answers to some relevant questions connected to the job scam," the ED officer told PTI over the phone. Bhadra had appeared before the ED officials earlier in the day after he was served a notice by the central investigating agency last week. He had earlier appeared a couple of times before the CBI which is also running a parallel investigation into the recruitment scam. The ED has so far arrested West Bengal's former education minister Partha Chatterjee, apart from his .

Bengal govt to make 125,000 fresh appointments over next few months: Mamata

With panchayat elections due shortly, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday announced that her administration will make 1.25 lakh fresh appointments across various departments over the next few months. Making the announcement at state secretariat Nabanna, she said that 11,000 primary teachers, 14,500 secondary school teachers, 20,000 policemen, 12,000 Group D staffers, and 3,000 Group C staffers will be recruited. Also, 2,000 professors and doctors each, 7,000 nurses and ASHA workers each, 9,493 Anganwadi workers and 13,926 Anganwadi helpers will be appointed. She urged opposition parties not to "indulge in politics" when it comes to recruitment drives. "The least they can do is not create hurdles in their appointment," she added.

Bengal CM Mamata seeks Central permission to visit violence-hit Manipur

Expressing her wish to stand by the people of the violence-hit state of Manipur, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written to the Centre seeking permission to visit the northeastern state, a senior official said on Tuesday. "The CM has written to the central government seeking permission to visit Manipur. She wants to stand by the victims of violence there," the official told PTI. According to the official, the Trinamool Congress supremo has been closely monitoring the situation in Manipur. Banerjee, last week had accused the BJP of trying to create "Manipur-like conflicts" in West Bengal. Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in strife-torn Manipur on Monday night to try to restore peace by hammering out a solution between the warring communities. Manipur, afflicted by ethnic conflict for nearly a month witnessed a sudden spurt in clashes and firing between militants and security forces on Sunday, after a relative lull for several weeks.

BJP trying to replicate Manipur-like situation in Bengal: Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday alleged that the BJP was trying to replicate a Manipur-like situation in her state by planning to orchestrate ethnic riots. She condemned the attack on state minister Birbaha Hansda's vehicle and said that the BJP activists, not members of the Kurmi community, were behind the incident that took place on Friday. "The BJP was behind ethnic violence in Manipur. The saffron party is trying to replicate similar riots between communities in West Bengal. They want to create a situation wherein Adivasis will fight Kurmis so that army can be called in and the military will have shoot-at-sight orders," she said at a rally in Salboni in Paschim Medinipur district. Banerjee said those trying to fuel ethnic riots in the state will not be spared. The state minister's vehicle, which was part of TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee's convoy, was damaged after being pelted with stones in the tribal-dominated district. "I condemn ..

Mamata apologises for blast in illegal firecracker factory at Bengal's Egra

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday apologised to the people of Egra area in Purba Medinipur district of the state for a blast at an illegal firecracker factory here, in which 12 people were killed and many injured. The Trinamool Congress supremo, who reached Khadikul village in this area, 11 days after the blast, also said the incident could have been averted if the state had received proper intelligence inputs. "I will bow my head down to you and apologise for the incident (blast at the illegal fire factory on May 16)... Had intelligence worked properly then this blast could have been averted," Banerjee said after distributing compensation cheques to relatives of those killed and injured in the blast. She also handed over appointment letters for jobs as home guards to one member each from the family of those killed in the May 16 blast. Stating that two members from the family which owned the illegal factory, have been arrested, Banerjee urged the villagers to k

WB govt to take a call on 4-year UG course next week: Education minister

Amid concerns among teachers and students over the delay in the proposed launch of the 4-year honours course at the undergraduate level in state-run and aided higher educational institutions, Education Minister Bratya Basu said the government will take the final call on the matter next week. Basu told this to reporters on Friday on the sidelines of an event. "I will meet the chief minister next week to hold detailed talks on the issue (4-year UG course). We will come up with the notice afterwards" he told reporters when asked about the introduction of four-year UG courses in state-run and aided higher educational institutions. Meanwhile, some college authorities and teacher associations have expressed concern over the delay in official notice changing the period of honours studies in the state from three to four years. Principal of government-run Lady Brabourne College, Siuli Sarkar told PTI, "We had participated in various workshops on New Education Policy till mid-May. We had eve

Bengal min's vehicle vandalised as Kurmi protest targets Abhishek's convoy

West Bengal minister Birbaha Hansda's vehicle was vandalised in Paschim Medinipur district on Friday as members of the Kurmi community allegedly hurled stones at senior TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee's convoy, in which she was travelling, officials said. The incident happened in Salboni where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to attend a party programme on Saturday. Abhishek, a Z-plus protectee, led a roadshow in Jhargram's Binpur and Gopiballavpur as part of his Trinamooley Nabojowar (new wave in Trinamool) campaign. Following the rally, he was travelling through Salboni when members of the Kurmi community, who are protesting demanding ST status, gathered on both sides of the road, a party leader said. As his car moved ahead, they allegedly started throwing stones at the convoy. "The vehicle of Hansda, which was in the convoy, was damaged in the attack," the leader said. A huge police contingent was rushed to the spot to control the situation, officials said. It could not

WB school jobs scam: SC stays HC order imposing Rs 25 lakh cost on TMC MP

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the imposition of Rs 25 lakh cost on TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee by the Calcutta High Court which had dismissed his plea for recall of its previous order that CBI and ED could interrogate him in the West Bengal school jobs scam cases. The top court, however, did not stay at this stage the part of the high court order which had said that central probe agencies could quiz the Trinamool Congress general secretary in connection with these cases and fixed his plea for hearing in July. Abhishek Banerjee is the nephew of TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. An apex court vacation bench comprising Justices J K Maheshwari and P S Narasimha termed the high court's order "very balanced and fair" and observed that imposition of a cost of Rs 25 lakh was "perhaps not warranted". "But then, it does not mean that no cost can be imposed at all... I think the order is very balanced and fair," Justice Narasimha observed. The Calcutta High Co

Results of West Bengal Joint Entrance Exam declared, 96,913 passed

Results of the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination (WBJEE) for admission into engineering and architecture courses were announced on Friday, and 96,913 candidates were declared successful. Md Sahil Akhtar and Soham Das of Delhi Public School Ruby Park bagged the first and the second ranks, respectively, while Sara Mukherjee of Bankura Banga Vidyalaya secured the third rank, WBJEE Board chairman Malayendu Saha said. A total of 1,24,919 candidates had enrolled for the examination, while 97,524 appeared in it and 96,913 qualified, he said, adding that the success rate was 99.4 per cent. Of the candidates who qualified, 69,560 were from West Bengal, Saha said. The exams were held on April 30, across 303 centres in the state, and three venues in Northeast India. The examinations were held for Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. Akhtar, who bagged the top spot, told reporters that he used to study six-seven hours daily as part of his preparation. He said that he wants to pursue Com

No West Bengal representative at Niti Aayog meeting in Delhi on Saturday

West Bengal will not have any representative at the Niti Aayog meeting in New Delhi on Saturday as the TMC government's request to send the state finance minister and the chief secretary was "turned down" by the Centre, which "insisted" that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee may attend the event. Banerjee has already decided not to attend the eighth governing council meeting of Niti Aayog. Confirming the development, State Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya told PTI, "We had requested the Centre to allow me and the chief secretary to attend the meeting as Mamata Banerjee is busy with some other work. In its reply, the Centre said the 'CM may attend'. This is an indirect way of not allowing anybody other than the CM to attend the meeting. Hence, there will be no representative of West Bengal at tomorrow's meeting." "If the chief minister of the state is preoccupied with some other work, can't she send any minister or official on her behalf? After all, I am the finance minister of t