Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Manoj Jha has said that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s visit to Delhi to meet leaders of various opposition parties was an effort to explore “policy-oriented political alternative” and not for a person-oriented alternative to the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

Nitish Kumar, who met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday, has also met Samajwadi Party leaders Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav, Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

He also met Indian National Lok Dal leader Om Prakash Chautala. Jha said Nitish Kumar has made it clear that he has no personal ambition for the post of Prime Minister. He targeted the BJP and said prices of essential commodities were rising.

“Unemployment is on rise and people are suffering due to rising prices, the economy is not in good shape. Whatever data you may try to hide under, you are unable to do it. There should be an policy-oriented alternative to this. Nitish Kumar coming to Delhi and meeting leaders of different parties is a step in that direction,” Jha told ANI.

He said personality-oriented politics has always not been successful and asked who was the face in 1977, when Indira Gandhi was deposed?

“Which face was there in 1989? Who was the face in front of Atalji in 2004? If there is face, there will be person-centred politics. We need to take democracy to collectiveness. As for the face of opposition, it can be anyone,” Jha said.

Nitish Kumar broke the alliance with the BJP in August and formed the government with RJD in Bihar.

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao also visited Bihar and met Nitish Kumar, and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav as part of efforts towards opposition unity.

Jha took dig at the government and said problems caused by its policies cannot be solved by changing names of roads. The government has decided to rename Rajpath as Kartavya Path.

“Race Course Road was renamed Lok Kalyan Marg, but what is happening for public welfare? Now it is Kartavya Path also. What is the duty of a government? Make fun of history? Create a ‘name changing ministry, change the name of every road in India in one go, but do some work,” he said.

New Delhi, Sept 7: Those sitting in the back of a car and not wearing a seatbelt will be fined soon, announced Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday, two days after Cyrus Mistry died in a car crash near Mumbai.
Mr Mistry, former Tata Sons Chairman, was sitting in the back seat and was not wearing a seatbelt as his speeding Mercedes crashed into a divider in the Palghar district of Maharashtra on Sunday.
“Already, it’s mandatory to wear seatbelt at the rear seat but people are not following it. There will be a siren if the people at the rear seat don’t wear belts like for the front seats. And if they don’t wear belts, there will be a fine,” said Mr Gadkari in an exclusive interview to NDTV, stressing that “at any lost, lives have to be saved”.
Taking fines is not the motive but spreading awareness is, said Mr Gadkari on the compulsory use of seatbelts for those sitting in the back. He said by 2024 the goal is to reduce the road fatalities by 50 per cent.
Answering a direct question on what the fine for not wearing a rear seltbelt would be, the Minister said, “The minimum fine is ₹ 1,000.”
Asked whether enforcement of a fine will be problematic since state governments have a say in the matter, the Minister said, “No. I don’t think so. They always support us.”
“There are cameras and anywhere people who aren’t following can be caught easily,” said Mr Gadkari.
Asked if compulsory installation of airbags in the back seat will drive up the cost, the Minister underscored that saving lives is vital.
“Cost of 1 airbag is 1,000, for 6, it’s 6,000. With more production, the cost will be reduced. Cost is not important, people’s lives are,” he emphasised.
As per the regulations, airbags are mandatory for the front passenger and the driver in India. As of January 2022, the government has made it mandatory to install 6 airbags in each passenger car with a passenger limit of up to 8.
Celebrities are campaigning for road safety, said the Minister, adding that he seeks cooperation from media.
“I am really very sorry and feeling bad. We should take the lesson and learn from it,” said Mr Gadkari on Cyrus Mistry’s death in car accident.
More than 59,000 people have died and 80,000 seriously injured in road accidents in Maharashtra in less than five years, the data released by the highway police revealed today.
According to the report titled ‘Road accidents in India – 2020’, more than 11 per cent of deaths and injuries were caused due to non-usage of seat belts, while 30.1 per cent of deaths and 26 per cent of injuries were caused due to non-usage of helmets in 2020.

New Delhi, Sep 7: India saw a single day rise of 5,379 coronavirus infections, taking the tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,44,72,241, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Wednesday.
Active Covid cases have declined to 50,594, while the death toll has climbed to 5,28,057 with 27 fatalities, including 11 deaths reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am showed.
The active cases comprises 0.11 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.70 per cent, the health ministry said.
A decline of 1,742 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.67 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 2 per cent, according to the health ministry.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,38,93,590, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.
According to the ministry, 213.91 crore doses of Covid vaccines have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive.
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.
India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4, three crore on June 23 last year and four crore on January 25 this year.
The 16 new fatalities include two each from Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and West Bengal among others. (AGENCIES)

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday met Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi during her four-day visit to India.

Hasina began her four-day visit to India yesterday as Bangladesh is an important partner under India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy. Soon after arriving in New Delhi on Monday, Bangladesh Prime Minister met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and discussed issues of bilateral interest. She also visited Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah, a prominent pilgrimage tourist attraction in Delhi.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also met President Droupadi Murmu and Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar in New Delhi.

While welcoming Sheikh Hasina to Rashtrapati Bhavan, the President said that “our shared history, language and culture connect us with each other”, according to a statement released by Rashtrapati Bhavan.

President noted that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, bilateral ties between India and Bangladesh have grown immensely. She further said that the way the two countries have celebrated the 50th year of Bangladesh’s independence and the golden jubilee of India-Bangladesh bilateral relations is truly special.

The President was happy to note that Bangladesh has achieved great success in the socio-economic prosperity of its people. She assured me that India will continue to be a reliable partner in the developmental journey of Bangladesh.

Earlier today, Sheikh Hasina met Prime minister Narendra Modi and held bilateral talks to review and further strengthen the relationship between both countries at Hyderabad House, following which seven MoUs have been signed between India and Bangladesh during the visit of Sheikh Hasina to India.