Archives for February 2021

KAKDWIP: Alleging that the TMC government has introduced a “cut-money” culture in West Bengal, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said the BJP’s fight is to end it and take the state to the path of development if voted to power in the upcoming assembly polls.

He said the BJP’s ‘Parivartan Yatra’ is not for changing a chief minister, an MLA or a minister but ending infiltration and transforming West Bengal into a developed state.

“This ‘Parivartan Yatra’ is not for changing a CM, or a minister. It is for ending infiltration and also for the transformation of Bengal. You vote for the BJP. Leave alone illegal immigrants, not even a bird from across the border will be allowed to enter the state,” Shah said addressing a rally here.

He also spoke about the killings of BJP workers and warned that the perpetrators will be thrown behind bars.

The union minister said the BJP is ready to take on the “goons” and the “syndicates” of the ruling TMC.

Speaking on the controversy over the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan, Shah said, “Bengal CM gets angry at the slogan due to her appeasement politics.

” Banerjee had on January 23 declined to speak at an event to celebrate Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s birth anniversary where “Jai Shri Ram” slogans were raised in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Shah also slammed the TMC dispensation in the state for alleged corruption in disbursing ‘Amphan’ relief funds.

“The central government had sent relief funds after ‘Amphan’ cyclone, the money was siphoned off by the TMC leaders.

If voted to power, we will probe into this corruption.

We will form a task force for saving lives from cyclones and environmental disasters,” he said.

Shah also reached out to the West Bengal government employees and said the 7th Pay Commission will be implemented in the state if the saffron party is voted to power.

“The financial condition of Bengal is so bad that the state government employees don’t get the benefits of the 7th Pay Commission. If voted to power we would implement it in the state,” he said.

The floor test will be conducted to ascertain whether the Congress government in the Union Territory enjoys majority. 

Lt Governor of Puducherry, Tamilisai Soundararajan, who took over the additional charge on Thursday, has ordered an assembly floor test on February 22 in the wake of multiple MLAs from the ruling party resigning.

With the availability of five vacancies now in the Assembly, the strength of both the ruling and opposition parties stand at 14 in the 33-member house, including three nominated legislators of the BJP.

The floor test will be conducted to ascertain whether the Congress government in the Union Territory enjoys majority. 

In a release from the Lt. Governor’s Secretariat, it was revealed that the Soundararajan’s direction to the Chief Minister V Narayanasamy came following reiterations by the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly and the AINRC Chief N Rangasamy that the government has to prove its majority on the floor of the House. 

The Assembly is set to meet on Monday and will concern only one agenda — “namely whether the government of the incumbent Chief Minister continues to enjoy the confidence of the House,” it further said. 

“The floor test in pursuance of the above directions shall be concluded by 5 pm on 22.02.2021 and the proceedings shall not be adjourned/delayed or suspended at any cost,” it said.

The voting shall take place by show of hands and the entire proceedings be videographed, it said.

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday insisted that nothing much should be read into his recent meeting with an MP of the LJP, which is headed by his bte noire Chirag Paswan, since members of Parliament and the state legislature call on him regularly over matters relating to their constituencies.

About the visit of CPI’s Kanhaiya Kumar to his key aide and cabinet colleague Ashok Choudhary, the chief minister said that the former JNU student leader and an MLA of his party had met him earlier but did not discuss politics.

Nitish Kumar, who gave up the post of JD(U)s national president recently but continues to wield supreme control over it, was asked by reporters at the party’s state headquarters here whether Paswan needs to worry after LJP Nawada MP Chandan Kumar Singh’s visit to the chief minister’s official residence on Sunday.

There is nothing to be worried about. Being the chief minister I am often approached by members of the state legislature and the Parliament who wish to discuss matters relating to their areas. They come when I grant an appointment and we talk. Thats it, he said.

Notably, the Singh’s visit came less than a month after LJPs lone MLA Raj Kumar Singh had taken part in a book launch ceremony held at Choudhary’s residence.

Chirag Paswan’s rebellion against Kumar ahead of the Bihar assembly election in which he fielded candidates against JD(U) nominees, cost the party dearly causing its tally to fall below 50 in the 243-strong house.

The LJP and JD(U), both NDA allies, have since been at daggers drawn. At a recent NDA meeting in New Delhi chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Paswan excused himself citing ill-health after the JD(U) raised strong objections over invitation having been extended to him despite his brinkmanship in the assembly poll.

About Kanhaiya Kumar, who met Choudhary Sunday afternoon along with CPI MLA Suryakant Paswan, the chief minister said Kanhaiya had met me before. And so had a legislator of his party. But our discussions were about issues relating to their constituencies. There was nothing political about it.

Reports in a section of the media had claimed that Kanhaiya, who is understood to be sore over the manner in which he has been treated by the CPI a number of times, was considering crossing over to the JD(U), an ally of the BJP.

The CPI central office in Delhi later came out with an angry statement condemning the mala fide and mischievous intentions of some sections of the media to malign the CPI and Kanhaiya Kumar.

Asked about JD(U) raising the demand for caste-based census in the Lok Sabha, Nitish Kumar said This is a genuine demand and is one we have been raising for quite some time. In the past we had even sent resolutions to this effect which were passed by both houses of the state legislature to the Centre.

“We must have an accurate idea of the respective population of different social groups so that we can formulate policies accordingly, he said.

Nitish Kumar also expressed confidence that the budget session of the assembly, which will commence on February 18 and conclude on March 24, will be conducted safely. Members have been asked to take precautions like wearing of masks in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2020 the budget session was curtailed in view of the outbreak. This year, the opposition Grand Alliance led by RJDs Tejashwi Yadav has threatened to boycott the assembly and gherao the chief ministers residence if the session was shortened in the name of the pandemic.

New Delhi: On a day when petrol crossed the Rs 100 mark, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the middle-class would not have been burdened if the previous governments had focussed on reducing India’s energy import dependence.

Without referring to the relentless increase in retail fuel prices, which are linked to international rates, he said India imported over 85 per cent of its oil needs in the 2019-20 financial year and 53 per cent of its gas requirement.

“Can a diverse and talented nation like ours be so energy import dependent?” he asked, addressing an online event to inaugurate oil and gas projects in poll-bound Tamil Nadu.

“I do not want to criticise anyone but I want to say (that) had we focused on this subject much earlier, our middle-class would not be burdened,” he said.

Price of petrol crossed the Rs 100 per litre mark in Rajasthan after fuel rates were hiked for the ninth day in a row. Since India imports the majority of its oil needs, retail rates are benchmarked to international prices, which have spiralled in recent weeks.

Opposition parties including Congress have criticised the price hikes, blaming it on the Modi government raising taxes to scoop out the benefit that arose from international oil rates plunging to a two-decade low in April/May last year. While global rates have rebounded with pick up in demand, the government has not restored the taxes, which are at a record high.

Central and state taxes make up for 60 per cent of the retail selling price of petrol and over 54 per cent of diesel.

The Prime Minister further said it was a collective duty to work towards clean and green sources of energy as well as energy independence.

“Our government is sensitive to the concerns of the middle class. That is why India is now increasing the focus on ethanol to help farmers and consumers,” he said.

Ethanol extracted from sugarcane is being doped in petrol to reduce the requirement of imports. Currently, 8.5 per cent of petrol is ethanol and this proportion is targeted to be raised to 20 per cent by 2025, helping cut imports as well as give farmers an alternate source of income.

India, he said, is looking to cut energy import dependence as well as diversify its sources to reduce risks.

The focus now is also towards using renewable sources of energy, which will by 2030 form 40 per cent of energy generated in the country, he said, listing measures such as increased share of solar power, focus on public transport, switching to LED bulbs, scrappage policy for vehicles and use of solar pumps in irrigation.

“Today, India is increasing the share of energy from renewable sources. By 2030, 40 per cent of all energy will be generated from green energy sources,” he said.

Modi further said India is looking to reduce energy import dependence through capacity building. “In 2019-20, we were fourth in the world in (oil) refining capacity. About 65.2 million tonnes of petroleum product have been exported. This number is expected to rise even further.”

Also, Indian firms have ventured overseas in the acquisition of oil and gas assets, which provide energy security.

“Today Indian oil and gas companies are present in 27 countries with an investment worth about Rs 2.70 lakh crore,” he said.

Modi said the nation is looking to build a natural gas pipeline grid to boost usage of the environment-friendly fuel that would help cut carbon emissions.

“We have planned to spend Rs 7.5 lakh crore in creating oil and gas infrastructure over five years,” he said. “A strong emphasis has been laid on the expansion of city gas distribution network by covering 470 districts.”

City gas projects will provide clean cooking fuel to households in form of piped natural gas, alternate transport fuel as CNG to vehicles and feedstock and fuel to industries.

The government is working towards raising the share of natural gas in the energy basket to 15 per cent from the current 6.3 per cent and is committed to bringing it under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime to eliminate cascading effect of multiple taxes, he added.

“We are trying to eliminate the cascading effect of different taxes on natural gas across different states,” he said adding this would help bring down the cost of gas.

“We are eager to increase the share of natural gas in energy basket from 6.3 per cent currently to 15 per cent… We are committed to bringing natural gas under the GST regime,” he said.

When the GST in 2017 subsumed over a dozen central and states taxes, five products — crude oil, natural gas, petrol, diesel and jet fuel (ATF) — were kept out of it for the time being.

This has meant that taxes paid on inputs cannot be offset by taxes on the final product.

“Since 2014, we have brought in various reforms across the oil and gas sector, covering exploration and production, natural gas marketing and distribution. We are working on attracting domestic and international investment through investor-friendly measures,” Modi said. “I want to tell the world come invest in India’s energy.”

The Prime Minister dedicated to the nation the Ramanathapuram-Thoothukudi natural gas pipeline and Rs 500 crore gasoline desulphurisation unit at Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited, Manali. He also laid the foundation stone of a Rs 31,500 crore Cauvery Basin Refinery at Nagapattinam.

Hyderabad: A lawyer couple was stabbed to death by unidentified assailants in broad daylight in Peddapalli district on Wednesday, Police said.

G Vaman Rao and his wife, both practicing lawyers in the Telangana High Court, were travelling in a car when the assailants intercepted and attacked them using knives near a village in Ramagiri Mandal, about 200 kms from here, around 2.30 pm, they said.

The assailants fled the scene after fatally attacking the two who died on the way while being rushed to a hospital, a senior police official told PTI over phone, citing preliminary investigation.

A hunt has been launched to nab those involved in the crime, the official said, adding police have detained some people based on suspicion.

Some TV channels showed visuals of Rao lying on the road in a pool of blood and his wife in the car.

The Telangana Bar Council condemned the brutal murder of the advocate couple and demanded that the police arrest the culprits immediately.

Chandigarh: The ruling Congress won six of the seven municipal corporations in the civic polls in Punjab for which results were declared Wednesday, officials said.

The Congress won in Bathinda, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Abohar, Batala and Pathankot.

The result for the seventh corporation was expected later in the day. The counting of votes for yet another corporation will take place on Thursday.

The outcome of the elections held against the backdrop of the farmers’ agitation against the BJP-led government at the Centre has come as a boost for the Congress, which is also eyeing to win the assembly elections due early next year.

The Shiromani Akali Dal, the Aam Aadmi party and the Bharatiya Janata Party failed to make a mark in the elections for the municipal corporations.

Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar said people have rejected the negative politics of parties like the BJP, SAD and AAP.

We contested on the development agenda. This victory will embolden our workers to work hard, Jakhar told reporters.

The State Election Commission had ordered repolling at two booths for the Mohali municipal corporation. Therefore, the counting for the entire civic body will take place on Thursday.

Over 70 per cent voting was recorded in the civic body elections on February 14.

New Delhi: For the first time ever, the price of petrol crossed the Rs 100 per litre mark in Rajasthan on Wednesday after fuel rates were hiked for the ninth day in a row.

Petrol and diesel prices were increased by 25 paise per litre each, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers.

While branded or additive-laced petrol, which attracts higher taxes, had crossed the Rs 100-mark in some places in states like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, this is the first time that regular petrol crossed the physiological mark.

In Sriganganagar town of Rajasthan, petrol price soared to Rs 100.13 a litre on Wednesday.

Fuel prices differ from state to state depending on the incidence of local taxes such as VAT and freight charges. Rajasthan levies the highest VAT on petrol in the country.

After Wednesday’s price increase, petrol in Delhi cost Rs 89.54 per litre and diesel Rs 79.95.

In Mumbai, petrol price rose to Rs 96 a litre and diesel was priced at Rs 86.98.

The record price in Rajasthan is despite the state government late last month cutting VAT on petrol and diesel by 2 per cent.

The value-added tax (VAT) on petrol, after the cut, at 36 per cent plus Rs 1.5 per litre road cess is still the highest in the country. On diesel, the state levies 26 per cent and Rs 1.75 per litre road cess.

Diesel in Sriganganagar is priced at 92.13 a litre.

In Anuppur of Madhya Pradesh, petrol is priced at 99.90 per litre and diesel at Rs 90.35.

Branded petrol at Sriganganagar was priced at Rs 102.91 a litre and similar grade diesel at Rs 95.79.

Branded petrol is priced at Rs 92.37 per litre in Delhi and the same grade diesel at Rs 83.24.

In nine straight days, prices have gone up by Rs 2.59 per litre for petrol and Rs 2.82 per litre for diesel.

The relentless hike in prices has been criticised by the opposition parties including the Congress, that has demanded an immediate cut in taxes to ease the burden on the common man.

Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan last week had told Parliament that the government is not considering a reduction in excise duty to cool rates from their record highs.

Central and state taxes make up for 60 per cent of the retail selling price of petrol and over 54 per cent of diesel.

The union government levies Rs 32.90 per litre of excise duty on petrol and Rs 31.80 a litre on diesel.

Retail petrol rates have risen by Rs 19.95 per litre since mid-March 2020, after the government raised taxes by a record margin to mop up gains arising from fall in international oil prices. Diesel rates have gone up by Rs 17.66.