Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered suspension of all cattle fairs in view of the increasing number of cases of lumpy skin disease (LSD) till the situation returns to normal.

A special vaccination drive will also be carried out to vaccinate cattle against the LSD.

Sources in the state government said that the chief minister would be closely monitoring such cases from now onwards and was likely to take a review of such cases in the near future.

Chief Minister Adityanath on Tuesday said since several cattle had died due to the virus in other states, Uttar Pradesh would have to work in mission mode to prevent the spread of the virus.

“Interstate transport of cattle should be stopped immediately till further notice. Those who rear cattle should be informed about the symptoms and treatment for this virus. Unnecessary entry of people in cow shelters should also be stopped immediately,” he said.

To ensure availability of the vaccine, the department of animal husbandry has been asked to coordinate with the Centre.

Since the virus is spread through flies and mosquitoes, the departments of rural and urban development, and animal husbandry should work together to ensure proper sanitation in urban and rural areas. If any infected cattle die, it should be cremated as per the medical protocol.

Additional chief secretary, animal husbandry and dairy development, Rajneesh Dubey said orders have been issued to set up dedicated vet centres in affected districts. A 24 X 7 control room has been set up at animal husbandry directorate which can be reached by dairy and livestock owners through dedicated phone lines.

“Around 15 districts have reported instances of the LSD,” he said, adding that instances are higher in western Uttar Pradesh region.

The Uttar Pradesh government is making efforts to restrict movement of cattle and cows from Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh into the state.

“The Centre Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting raids at 16 places in Delhi, Patna and district Gopalganj of Bihar in connection with the alleged land-for-job scam involving former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, RJD leader.

The raids are also being held at the residence of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MLC Sunil Singh, who is considered to be close to Lalu. The CBI team is currently scanning various documents at his house.

The CBI had learnt during the probe that Lalu’s wife Rabri Devi and daughter Hema Yadav were gifted lands in connection with the scam by job seekers who were later appointed in the railways.

Haridayanand Chaudhary, a railway employee and Bhola Yadav, the then OSD to former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad were earlier arrested by the CBI. Bhola was Lalu’s OSD between 2004 to 2009.

The CBI registered a case against Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi, two daughters and 15 others, including unknown public servants and private persons.

“During the period 2004-2009 Yadav had obtained pecuniary advantages in the form of transfer of landed property in the name of his family members in lieu of appointment of Substitutes in Group ‘D’ Post in different zones of Railways,” the official said.

A number of residents of Patna or through their family members sold and gifted their lands in the state capital in favour of the family members of Lalu Prasad and a private company controlled by the former chief minister and his family and they were also involved in transfer of such immovable properties.

“No advertisement or any public notice was issued for such appointment of substitutes in Zonal Railways, yet the appointees who were residents of Patna were appointed as Substitutes in different Zonal Railways located at Mumbai, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Jaipur and Hajipur.

“In continuation of this modus operandi, about 1,05,292 Sq. feet land, immovable properties situated at Patna were acquired by Yadav and his family members through five sales deeds and two gift deeds, showing the payment made to the seller in cash in most of the land transfers,” the CBI official said.

Congress General Secretary in charge Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday said that the party’s interim president Sonia Gandhi will be travelling abroad for her medical check-up along with Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

“Congress President Sonia Gandhi, along with Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, will be travelling abroad for medical check-ups. Party MP Rahul Gandhi will address ‘Mehangai Par Halla Bol’ rally in Delhi on September 4,” Ramesh said in a statement. Party MP Rahul Gandhi will address the ‘Mehangai Par Halla Bol’ rally in Delhi on September 4.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi will also visit her ailing mother before she returns to Delhi, he added.

Earlier on Tuesday, Congress president Sonia Gandhi met the newly elected President of India Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi.
Sonia Gandhi paid a visit to President Murmu amidst the ongoing internal differences in the Congress party.

Recently, Congress senior leader Anand Sharma announced his resignation from the chairmanship of the party’s steering committee for the state, saying he was left with no choice after the continuing exclusion and insults.

Meanwhile, the AICC in charge of Himachal Pradesh, Rajeev Shukla was sent to pacify him. After his meeting with Anand Sharma, Shukla travelled to Delhi to meet Sonia Gandhi.

Reportedly, Sonia Gandhi recently tested positive for Covid-19.

The Delhi government, in a historic step on Tuesday, handed over letters of appointment to 11 women drivers joining Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) as bus drivers.

The letters of appointment were handed over by Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot in the presence of Transport Commissioner Ashish Kundra, Managing Director Delhi Integrated Multimodal Transit System (DIMTS) Rajesh Agarwal and other senior officials. The first batch of 11 women will now start their career as bus drivers and have been deployed under various depots of Delhi Transport Corporation.

The appointment of women as bus drivers has come in the backdrop of the Delhi government’s consistent effort to induct women as bus drivers under its city transportation fleet. Many women have also come out and spoken about willingness to become bus drivers in the state public transport services.

Gahlot, on the occasion further stated, “I want to thank all women today being handed over the letters of appointment today, for their courage to take up bus driving as career choice and becoming a role model for society. I am very hopeful that they will inspire more women to become bus drivers with Delhi’s Transportation fleet. I am very hopeful that with more women driving Delhi Government’s buses, the public transportation in the city will become safer and passenger friendly. I wish them the very best for the future.”

In February, the Delhi government had relaxed the norms and eligibility criteria to recruit women as drivers within its bus operations. It reduced minimum height criteria from 159cm to 153cm and ‘experience criteria’ for induction as bus drivers to one month for women applicants. The step increased opportunities for women employment within the combined fleet strength of approximately 7370 buses in the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and the Delhi Integrated Multi-modal Transit System (DIMTS). The move also opened the doors for women to be employed within the 15000 strong workforce of bus drivers within the state public transportation.