Maharashtra Cm Eknath Shinde (left) and NCP’s Ajit Pawar
Pune: Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar on Saturday slammed the “publicity” around the Ayodhya visit of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and also ridiculed relentless media updates on the latter’s programme there.
Shinde will be proceeding to Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh by helicopter on Sunday after arriving in Lucknow later in the evening on Saturday.
Shinde will offer prayers at the Hanumangarhi temple and the Ram temple, see the ongoing construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple, perform evening ‘aarti’ on the banks of the Saryu river, meet seers, address a press conference and then return to Mumbai, as per the CM’s aides.
“When I offer prayers anywhere, I do not create such publicity. The CM is visiting there to seek blessings. There is no need for such updates as he has arrived, he is at the airport, his flight has taken off etc,” Pawar told reporters.
Pawar, a former deputy chief minister of the state, said there are pressing issues related to unemployment, crime, and farmers’ distress that require more attention.
Speaking on bypolls to the Pune Lok Sabha seat following the death of BJP’s Girish Bapat, the NCP leader said his party will spell out its role after the Election Commission announces the schedule.
Hyderabad: Maharashtra Shiv Sena leader Dilip Gore here on Wednesday joined the Bharat Rashtra Samithi in the presence of Chief Minister and BRS president K Chandrashekhar Rao.
KCR formally welcomed Shiv Sena Beed district president Gore into the BRS by offering him the party scarf.
On Sunday, the Vice president of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in Maharashtra Syed Abdul Khadeer Maulana joined the BRS.
While on Saturday, over 150 leaders from Shetkari Sangathana led by its State Youth president Sudhir Sudhakarrao Bindu joined the BRS.
On Wednesday, BRS leaders staged a protest outside Hanumakonda District Court against Telangana Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Bandi Sanjay while he was bought to produce before the magistrate.
Telangana BJP president Sanjay was detained post-midnight on Wednesday from his residence in Karimnagar ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the state.
The police have registered a case under sections 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 4(A), 6 TS Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractices and 66-D ITA-2000-2008 at the Kamlapur police station of Warangal district. PM Modi is scheduled to visit Telangana on April 8 to inaugurate the Vande Bharat Express from Secunderabad to Tirupati and launch several other developmental projects.
Hyderabad: Several farmer leaders belonging to the Maharashtra Shetkari Sangathan (Maharashtra Rythu Sangham) joined the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party in the presence of party president and Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao at the Telangana Bhavan here on Saturday.
KCR welcomed several new entrants along with the farm leader Sharad Joshi Praneeth by presenting them with the party’s pink scarfs.
తెలంగాణ భవన్ లో బీఆర్ఎస్ జాతీయ అధ్యక్షులు, ముఖ్యమంత్రి కె.చంద్రశేఖర్ రావు గారి అధ్యక్షతన మహారాష్ట్ర నేతలతో సమావేశం జరిగింది. ఈ సందర్భంగా మహారాష్ట్ర షెట్కారీ సంఘటన్ (రైతు సంఘం) నేతలకు గులాబీ కండువా కప్పి బీఆర్ఎస్ పార్టీలోకి ఆహ్వానించారు. pic.twitter.com/mH3MbLRGkK
Kolhapur: An offence was registered on Sunday against a man from a minority community in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district for allegedly hailing Mughal emperor Aurangzeb on his WhatsApp status, police said.
Based on a complaint, a case under section 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code was registered at Vadgaon police station, an official said.
The man had allegedly hailed emperor Aurangzeb on his WhatsApp status and it came to light on March 16, he said.
The matter is being probed, the official said, urging people not to post any derogatory remarks about any religion on social media.
Hyderabad/Maharashtra: Armor MLA and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Nizamabad district president Asannagari Jeevan Reddy on Sunday launched 16 video screen vehicles designed to explain the development and welfare schemes implemented by CM K Chandrashekar Rao in Maharashtra’s Kandar Loha.
He said that the mammoth public meeting organised at Kandar Loha on March 26 will make history.
“We will send 16 video screen-enabled vehicles to 1,600 villages in 16 talukas in Kandar Loha to explain about the Telangana model,” he said.
Mentioning the Kaleshwaram project, Rythu Bandhu, and Rythu Bima as unique welfare schemes implemented by the BRS government, Jeevan Reddy said, “The Telangana model is to guarantee 24 hours free electricity to farmers. The uniqueness of the model is that high-quality seeds and fertilisers are available to farmers in any season, especially in Kharif and Rabi. BRS means the welfare of Backward Classes (BCs) and farmers.”
He further said that Telangana has become a role model for the country in agriculture, and KCR spent Rs 80,000 crores to build the Kaleshwaram project facilitating the irrigation of crores of acres.
The BRS MLA said that Telangana is flourishing as a storehouse of grains and juices. “Seeds and fertilisers are being supplied on time and we have spent nearly Rs 3 Lakh crores for the welfare of farmers. As a result, Telangana became top in agriculture surpassing Punjab,” he added.
Mumbai: Maharashtra farmers continued their 175 km foot march to Mumbai for the second day on Tuesday even as the government said it would hold talks with a leaders’ delegation on Wednesday.
The farmers’ stir is spearheaded by the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and comprises over 10,000 peasants walking in the blistering heat with banners, placards, posters and raising slogans en route.
En route, the marchers were enthusiastically welcomed in various villages by the locals, offered food and water, and people expressed their support for the cause as they walked past.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis were slated to meet the farmers’ leaders on Tuesday, but the meeting was put off owing to the strike launched by state government employees demanding a return to the Old Pension Scheme (OPS).
“We were informed that the meeting has been cancelled, but no reasons were given… Our march continues as usual,” AIKS Maharashtra General Secretary Dr Ajit Nawale told the media.
Slamming Shinde’s offer of giving an ex-gratia of Rs 300/quintal for onion growers, he said it was too meager and the amount should be hiked to at least Rs 600/quintal, failing which the agitation would intensify.
“Unless the government talks to us, we may be compelled to block the Mumbai-Gujarat Highway, only then they will listen,” Nawale said.
Leader of Opposition Ajit Pawar and other Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders have raised the matter in the Assembly and have rooted for the distressed farmers’ cause.
Congress state President Nana Patole, NCP state President Jayant Patil, Shiv Sena-UBT leaders like Bhaskar Jadhav and others have demanded that the government should give between Rs 500-Rs 700/quintal to the farmers reeling under a crisis owing to fallen prices.
Farmers on foot march from Nashik to Mumbai take time to rest. (Photo: AIKS/@KisanSabha)
From the government side, Nashik Guardian Minister Dada Bhuse said that at the Wednesday meeting, the CM and Deputy CM as well as concerned department secretaries shall be present to discuss the issues and resolve the farmers’ problems.
He expressed confidence that all the positive demands would be heard out and the needful would be done for the farmers.
On Sunday, the AIKS released its 17-point charter of demands which includes compensation for onion growers and MSP of Rs 2000/quintal from the next season, better prices for other crops like cotton, soybean, tur, green gram, milk, and related issues of ASHA workers, etc.
This is the third “long march” by farmers in the past five years – the first one was in 2018, later in 2019, and again this year.
For the third time in five years, thousands of farmers are again on the road to Mumbai for their various demands that remain pending since long, braving the intense summer heat.
It has come after similar marches in 2018 and 2019 – and will traverse around 175 kms – attracting farmers from all over the state who converged in Nashik on Sunday.
What are their demands?
Among the demands are an immediate subsidy of Rs 600/quintal and MSP of Rs 2000/quintal from next season for onion growers, writing off of farmers’ loans, suitable remuneration for all agriculture produce, power bills waivers, quick compensation for crop losses due to unseasonal rains-hail, forest land rights, etc.
They sought regularisation of encroachers on forest lands up to four hectares with names in the 7/12 documents, waiver of power bills and making electricity available 12 hours daily for farmlands, clear the 7/12 of farmers by waiving off their entire agriculture loans.
They have also demanded NDRF amount of compensation for all crop damages due to unseasonal rains and other natural calamities that hit the agriculturists round the year, quick compensation and curb the “loot” by crop insurance companies, create an independent system for regular inspection of milk meters and weighing forks for milk and a minimum price of Rs 47 for cow milk and Rs 67 for buffalo milk and stop the conspiracy to slash prices of soybean, cotton, tur and grams, re-start selling grain along with free rations on ration cards every month.
Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) national president and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao will attend a mammoth public meeting at Kandar Loha in Maharashtra on March 26, stated an official release on Tuesday.
According to the release, the BRS’ policies and the vision of the party’s national President and CM KCR are leaving a lasting impression on people in the entire country as well as many senior and prominent political leaders across parties.
“Many senior leaders from many states are already joining the BRS party as they liked BRS policies, which aimed to bring about a qualitative change in the lives of the people of the entire country. The recently held Nanded public meeting drew an overwhelming response and became a sensation in Indian politics which led to a big debate in national politics. BRS chief CM KCR’s quest for India people’s development and welfare and his vision already attracted North India people including Maharashtra. Revolutionary development programmes and welfare schemes in Telangana are already drawing country-wide attention,” it read.
The BRS Supremo recently held a long discussion with leaders about the party’s policies and future action plans.
The leaders said they will join the public gathering in the neighbouring state with their followers on a large scale.
Nagpur: A 15-year-old girl, an alleged victim of sexual exploitation, delivered a girl at her home in Nagpur city of Maharashtra after watching YouTube videos and killed the newborn, police said on Sunday.
A police official said the girl was sexually exploited by a man she got acquainted with on social media.
“She hid her baby bump from her mother by telling her that she was having some health issues,” the official said.
To maintain secrecy, the girl, a resident of Ambazari area, hit upon the idea of home delivery and started watching YouTube videos. “On March 2, she gave birth to a girl at her home and immediately strangled the newborn to death. She hid the body in a box in her home,” the official added.
When her mother returned home, she questioned the girl about her health condition. “The girl narrated her ordeal to her mother, following which she was taken to a hospital. The body of the newborn was sent for postmortem,” he said.
A case was registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The charge of murder will be invoked after receiving a postmortem report, the official added.
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government told the state Legislative Assembly on Friday that the licenses of six manufacturers of cough syrups in the state have been suspended for not following the rules.
Food and Drugs Administration Minister Sanjay Rathod made the statement while replying to a calling attention notice by Ashish Shelar (BJP) and others.
Recently, a cough syrup made by a Noida-based firm was alleged to have caused the death of 18 children in Uzbekistan. Noida police on Friday said they had arrested three employees of the firm.
Rathod said that the Maharashtra government had initiated inquiry against 84 out of 108 manufacturers of cough syrups in the state.
Four of them were directed to stop production while the licences of six companies were suspended, he said.
As many as 17 firms were served show-cause notices for violation of rules, the minister added.
Shelar referred to the deaths of 66 children in Gambia allegedly because of cough syrups imported from India.
But the minister said that the company which was facing the charge of violation of rules in that case was based in Haryana and had no manufacturing unit in Maharashtra.
“We have, however, taken a strict action against the violators of rules. We are ensuring that the World Health Organization’s GMP (good manufacturing practises) certification-related rules and Certificate of Pharmaceutical Products are complied with while exporting products (from the state),” he added.
Presiding officer Sanjay Shirsat said if 20 per cent of manufacturers faced raids because of suspected violation of rules, it needs to be taken very seriously as it was akin to playing with people’s lives.
Rathod said of 996 allopathic drug manufacturers in the state, 514 manufacturers export their products.
