Archives for November 2022

Pilibhit (UP): A road in UP’s Pilibhit District that was reportedly constructed at a cost of Rs. 3.90 crores was torn off by a man with bare hands, a video of this incident has since been doing rounds across social media platforms.

The incident comes amidst the tall claims of fringe right-wing Hindutva groups and activists gloating tall claims of development in the state by the CM Adityanath-led BJP government.

In the video, a man can be seen peeling off the road from the ground, exposing the negligence with which the road was constructed.

The villagers are now preparing to protest against the poor quality of the road. It is alleged that apart from the contractor, Junior Engineer (JE) has an important role in this whole matter.

The road was reportedly constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojana from Puranpur to Bhagwantapur village in the district.

New Delhi: The Central Information Commission has summoned officials of the offices of the lieutenant governor, chief minister, and chief secretary over the non-disclosure of information on salaries paid to Imams of mosques in Delhi under the RTI Act.

Information Commissioner Uday Mahurkar has also issued notices to officers of the Delhi Waqf Board on the plea of activist Subhash Agrawal.

Agrawal wanted complete information, including the file notes, on the decision to pay salaries to Imams in Delhi mosques through his application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

He sought to know the total number of mosques in the national capital where Imams receive salaries, the total amount incurred, annual expenditure, and details of the competent authority responsible for the payments.

Through his RTI application, Agrawal also asked if such salaries are being paid to priests of Hindu temples as well.

The offices of the LG and the chief minister did not respond to the RTI application, but the office of the chief secretary transferred it to the Department of Revenue and Delhi Waqf Board.

The Delhi Waqf Board, in its reply to Agrawal, said none of the queries are related to it.

The commissioner has also issued notices to the Public Information Officers of these two departments asking them to appear before it for hearing on November 18.

The CIC has asked the officers to bring all the files related to the matter for hearing.

The Supreme Court in 1993 had ordered the Waqf Boards to pay adequate salaries to Imams working in mosques managed by the boards.

“We are, therefore, not willing to accept the submission that…in the absence of any statutory provision in the Waqf Act the Imams who look after religious activities of mosques are not entitled to any remuneration,” the Bench of Justice R M Sahai had held on a petition by All India Imam Organisation which had approached the apex court for “enforcement of fundamental right against their exploitation by Waqf Boards.”

The organisation had approached the apex court seeking a direction to Central and State Waqf Boards to treat them as employees of the Board and to pay them basic wages to enable them to survive.

Waqf Boards in several states, including Haryana, Karnataka, and Delhi, are following the practice of paying salaries to Imams.

Imphal: A 47-year-old man in Manipur’s Imphal West district has converted barren land into a 300 acre forest with a wide variety of plant species in 20 years.

Moirangthem Loiya, who hails from Uripok Khaidem Leikai area of the district, started planting trees on the outskirts of Imphal town in the Langol Hill range about 20 years ago.

A nature lover from his childhood days, Loiya told PTI, “in early 2000, after completing my college studies from Chennai, when I went to the Koubru mountain, I was appalled by the wide scale deforestation of the previously thick vegetation that marked the Koubru hill ranges. I felt a strong urge to give back to mother nature what we humans as a whole have destroyed so much in modern times.”

The search soon led him to Maru Langol renamed “Punshilok Maru” or “Spring of Life” in the Langol Hill range on the outskirts of capital Imphal town.

“I encountered the place accidentally while taking a hike and immediately felt the area which was all barren due to jhum cultivation could be converted into a thick green lush forest with time and dedication,” the 47-year-old told PTI.

“The site served as a home for me for six years, as I lived in isolation in a hut which I had constructed myself, planting bamboo, oak, jackfruit trees and teaks while nurturing the area previously destroyed by human activities” Loiya who now stays “on and off” at the forest said.

“I would purchase saplings from my own pocket and plant it whenever possible,” Loiya said, adding “the plantation is done mostly ahead of the monsoon season and vegetative growth was always quick.”

“Periodic illegal wildlife hunting for deers, mostly for sports, is another problem we generally face,” Loiya who established Wild Life and Habitat Protection Society (WAHPS) said. The society is devoted to preserving the Punshilok forest and fighting off illegal hunting and wildfires.

The state forest officials have been supportive of the endeavour of Loiya in planting trees in the Longol hill range.

There are more than 100 species of plants, around 25 varieties of bamboo species in the 300 acre forest which also has barking deers, porcupines and snakes, forest officials said.

The officials said the land was barren some 20 years ago.

Forest officials said that most of the wildfires spread as people want a piece of land either for cultivation or any other activity.

Meanwhile, Loiya is certain that the task of growing a forest and nurturing it is going to be “a lifelong mission” although he now works in a pharmacy to earn a living and to sustain his family.

Loiya is currently preparing to organise a camp for volunteers this November so as to protect the forest from wildfire ahead of the dry season. During the camp, a fireline will be created along the periphery of the forest, so that wildfires cannot cross into the forest section, he added.