Malappuram (Kerala) : The 21st day of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ resumed from Pandikkad here with massive turnout in this district on Wednesday.
The 18th day of Kerala leg of Yatra will halt at Wandoor at 10.30 am and resume at 5 pm to reach Nilambur in Malappuram at 7 pm.
While speaking at a public meeting on Tuesday evening, Rahul said “India’s women are our biggest strength. But they are being treated as ‘objects’ by the BJP. A most disgusting example is the murder of Ankita in Uttarakhand. BJP’s CM bulldozed all evidence to protect the accused. We will not allow BJP to treat women as second-class citizens.”
Over 19 days in the state, the Yatra will cover 7 districts over 450 kms, before it commences in Karnataka on October 1.
The Bharat Jodo Yatra is a five month, over 3,500 km-long foot march from Kanyakumari to Srinagar. It is part of the party’s national mass outreach program aimed at highlighting social polarisation, economic inequalities and political centralisation.
(agencies)
Bharat Jodo Yatra resumes with massive turnout
Active Covid cases decline to 40,979
New Delhi, Sep 28 (PTI) India added 3,615 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,45,79,088, while the active cases declined to 40,979, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.
The death toll climbed to 5,28,584 with 22 fatalities which includes eight deaths reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.
The active cases comprise 0.09 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate increased to 98.72 per cent, the ministry said.
A decline of 1,378 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19. The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year. It crossed the four-crore mark on January 25 this year.
CM Yogi to inaugurate Lata Mangeshkar Chowk in Ayodhya
On the birth anniversary of late singer Lata Mangeskar, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will inaugurate a crossing named after the nightingale of India.
The Lata Mangeshkar Chowk will be inaugurated by CM Yogi in Ayodhya on Wednesday as a gift to her fans.
A 40-foot-long Veena has been installed at the crossing as a key attraction. It weighs around 14 tonnes.
2 Jaish terrorists killed in encounter with security forces in J&K’s Kulgam
Two terrorists were killed in an encounter with the security forces on Tuesday in the Ahwatoo village of Kulgam district in Jammu and Kashmir.
The terrorists were identified as Md Shafi Ganie, resident of Batpora, Kulgam and Mohammad Asif Wani alias Yawar, resident of Takiya, Kulgam. Both the terrorists were members of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorist outfit.
Based on specific information regarding the presence of terrorists in the village, a joint cordon and search operation was launched in the area by the Indian Army along with J&K Police and CRPF at around 3.20 pm.
After security forces cordoned off the area, terrorists hiding in the target house started firing, drawing retaliation by the security forces.
During the firing, one soldier sustained a splinter/ricochet injury in the foot. The soldier was evacuated to 439 Field Hospital, Awantipura. Meanwhile, due to the indiscriminate fire by the terrorists, the gas godown in the vicinity of the target house caught fire, leading to multiple explosions.
Later, contact was re-established and two terrorists were neutralised. On search of the encounter site, two AK series rifles and grenades were recovered.
Gautam Narula of SMVDU delivers a talk on Groundwater Management
Gautam Narula, Assistant Professor, School of Civil Engineering, Shri Mata Vaishno
Devi University, delivered a talk on Groundwater Management at KG Reddy College
of Engineering and Technology, Andhra Pradesh. The talk aimed to make students
understand groundwater crises in India and the world. Students were made aware
that India is the biggest consumer of groundwater in the world. The topics
discussed during the talk were the policies and facts presented in United Nations
Ground Water Report 2022, the need to understand groundwater management, the
steps that can be taken, and successful case studies in India and the world,
including Andhra Pradesh Farmers Managed Ground Water System Project, China
Sponge City and Managed Aquifer Recharge technique. The comparison was set up
between the tapping and managing of groundwater and surface water. Special
attention was given to the falling groundwater table in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan
and some places in Andhra Pradesh. The talk showcased to the students the various
dimensions the policymakers and Engineers must consider controlling groundwater
abstraction so that we are not exhausted from groundwater resources.
Abducted infant rescued in Kishtwar
Jammu, September:
Barely a few hours after a six-month-old infant was allegedly kidnapped from the government hospital in Kishtwar district, the police rescued him and also nabbed the woman abductor, officials said.
Earlier in the day, the police announced a reward of Rs 10,000 on the abductor. She is being questioned, said Senior Superintendent of Police Shafqat Hussain Bhat.
Mayawati can join oppn alliance if projected as PM candidate
In a major development, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has said that it can join the opposition alliance for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, provided the alliance partners are ready to project Mayawati as their Prime Ministerial candidate.
BSP national spokesperson Dharamveer Chaudhary said that the “ultimate decision, however, will be taken by Behenji (Mayawati)”,
Chaudhary added that if the opposition parties reach out to BSP in a respectful manner and apprise the party chief of their agenda, there is no harm that the party would see in aligning with them.
“The opposition parties have no leader of Mayawati’s stature. She is a big leader with a pan-India appeal,” he said.
Asked about the possibility of an alliance with Akhilesh Yadav, Chaudhary said: “Mayawati ji is a much bigger leader than Akhilesh Yadav. She has been the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh four times, while Akhilesh has held the post only once. She also is a large-hearted eader and forgives the mistakes of others. If Akhilesh accepts her as a leader with a clean heart, we will welcome him with flowers.”
Notably, the BSP was kept out of the meetings of the opposition parties called by TMC and NCP when they were to decide their candidates for the President and Vice President posts.
Mayawati had expressed her anger in public in a tweet on the opposition’s behaviour.
Halting of fruit trucks on highway: SSP Traffic Highway transferred, attached with Police Hqrs J&K
Srinagar, Sept 28: Amid vehement protests by fruit traders against halting of fruit trucks on the Srinagar-Jammu highway which was causing them huge losses, the J&K government on Wednesday transferred SSP Traffic Highway Shabir Ahmad Malik and attached him with the police Headquarters J&K with immediate effect.
According to an order issued by R K Goyal, Financial Commissioner Additional Chief Secretary, Mohita Sharma, SP Ramban has been given the additional charge of the post till further orders.
The move comes amid protests by Kashmir fruit traders against halting of trucks on the highway.
According to fruit traders, roadwork has prevented thousands of trucks from travelling on Kashmir’s main route carrying millions of dollars worth of apples, leading to complaints from farmers as their harvest starts to spoil.
Dry weather to continue in J&K during next 24 hours
Jammu, Sep 28: Weather was dry in Jammu and Kashmir during the last 24 hours as the Meteorological (MeT) office said on Wednesday that the same conditions are likely to continue.
“Dry weather is likely to continue in J&K during the next 24 hours,” an official of the MeT department said.
Srinagar had 12.8, Pahalgam 6.8 and Gulmarg 7 degrees Celsius as the minimum temperature.
Drass in Ladakh had 3.3, Kargil 6.6 and Leh 4.4 as the minimum temperature.
“Dry weather is likely to continue in J&K during the next 24 hours,” an official of the MeT department said.
Srinagar had 12.8, Pahalgam 6.8 and Gulmarg 7 degrees Celsius as the minimum temperature.
Drass in Ladakh had 3.3, Kargil 6.6 and Leh 4.4 as the minimum temperature.
Jammu had 22.8, Katra 20.3, Batote 14.2, Banihal 11.4 and Bhaderwah 12.4 as the minimum temperature.
Put in place robust mechanism to regulate highway traffic, officials told
Jammu, September:
A day after fruit growers of Kashmir held protests over the traffic disruption on the Srinagar-Jammu highway, Chief Secretary Arun Kumar Mehta on Tuesday held a meeting to take stock of the traffic movement on the highway.
He stressed on putting in place a robust mechanism to regulate traffic of heavy motor vehicles (HMV) at critical points on the vital stretch. The meeting held in Jammu was attended by officials of the administration, the traffic police and the NHAI. The Chief Secretary instructed traffic officials to issue daily bulletin for stakeholders, mentioning travel time taken by heavy motor vehicles from Qazigund to Jakhani, loss of time due to shooting stones at Cafteria Morh, Mehar, and number of vehicles waiting to leave for Jammu.
Mehta also stressed on putting in place the robust communication and information mechanism by the traffic police so as to regulate the HMV traffic at critical points, like Qazigund- Banihal, Banihal market, Sherbibi and Panthayal.
Officials were asked to augment manpower requirement from all sources to regulate traffic in an optimal manner, besides enforcing lane discipline on the critical stretches between Ramban and Banihal.
Moreover, the Ramban administration was instructed to ensure deployment of adequate manpower and traffic management team at Banihal. Farmers as well as traders are worried as thousands of trucks carrying fruits are stuck on the highway for days. Rotting has begun, they say.