Archives for January 2023

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma

Guwahati: Accusing Left historians of ‘distorting’ Indian history by making it a tale of defeats and submissions, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday asserted that history should be rewritten to record the nation’s victories.

He also alleged that the Left ideology followers have been trying to divide the state along linguistic lines for decades and maintained that the people must defeat such attempts by embracing their “religious similarities”.

Addressing the 28th state convention of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) here, Sarma said, “The Leftists have always tried to distort our history as they wanted to project Bharat as a defeated jati’ (community).

“They overlook the kings and heroes who resisted and defeated Mughal attacks successfully and write only about those who were defeated,” he claimed.

He cited the examples of Guru Gobind Singh, Chhatrapati Shivaji, Durga Das Rathore and Lachit Borphukan who had successfully led campaigns against Mughal armies, and alleged that the Leftist historians leave out their exploits while writing history.

Asserting that the time was ripe for history to be written anew, the BJP leader said, “We should inspire the students of history to write it anew not as a tale of defeats and slavery, but one of glory and achievement. This will motivate our new generations further towards nation building.”

Sarma also accused Left intellectuals of diving the people of Assam along linguistic lines as the state is home to numerous languages.

“Jatiyatadab’ (sub-nationalism) based on linguistic differences was a ploy of the Leftists to keep Assam divided for over three decades Leftists try to project language as a point of conflict. Had our leaders stood up to them earlier, we would not have seen so much unrest and problems over the years,” he maintained.

While language is an important component, it cannot be the sole identity of a community and religion and history also play equally vital roles, he maintained, adding, “Language will survive only when our religion and culture survives.”

He emphasised on the need for Assamese language speakers to embrace other languages of the state and ensure that all the tribes and communities are accorded equal importance.

The chief minister also stressed on need for economic self-reliance and exhorted the youths to focus on skill development, entrepreneurship and farming.

“A community needs cultural identity and political pride. But if we can’t progress economically, we cannot become atma nirbhar’ (self-reliant), on which our prime minister has also accorded much emphasis,” he said.

He urged the youths to take up agriculture themselves and not let out their land to others for farming.

“If we let others farm on our lands, then we will remain owners only on paper and the actual ownership will slip into the hands of others. There is a huge market potential for our organic and other agricultural products and our youths must explore these,” Sarma added.

He claimed that a notion was created erroneously that Assam and North East were not part of rest of India historically, which had led to a different stream of thoughts’ in this part of the country post-Independence.

The perceptions were being corrected gradually, which has gained momentum since 2014 and the state was now a partner in nation building, he said.

“We are in a special geographical and political stage in Assam now. There are many challenges before us and we have to meet those by equipping ourselves with correct understanding of history,” Sarma said.

Alluding to various mythological and historical recorded evidences of Assam being linked with rest of India since ancient times, Sarma said, “Our (Bharat and Assam) atma’ (souls) are same but a distorted version was being propagated. Those who did so have been reduced to naught. This is a new Assam where we are proud Assamese and proud Indians.”

Racer K E Kumar

Chennai : K E Kumar, a well-respected racer, died on Sunday following a crash in the second round of the MRF MMSC FMSCI Indian National Car Racing Championship at the Madras International Circuit here. He was 59.

The incident occurred when Kumar’s car came in contact with that of a competitor during the saloon cars race this morning. The car slid across the track and landed on the roof after slamming into a fence.

The race was immediately stopped (red flag). Within minutes, Kumar was extricated from the wreckage and transferred into an ambulance before being shifted to a nearby hospital after a preliminary examination at the track’s medical centre. Despite the best efforts of the hospital’s doctors, he succumbed to his injuries.

Chairman of the Meet Vicky Chandhok said: “It is a most unfortunate incident. Kumar was an experienced racer. I have known him for several decades as a friend and competitor. The MMSC and entire racing fraternity mourn his passing away and convey heartfelt condolences to his family.”

Chandhok added that the national governing body for the sport FMSCI and the organisers, MMSC, have launched an investigation into the incident.

Meanwhile, as a mark of respect to Kumar, who was a life member of MMSC, the remainder of the day’s schedule was cancelled.

Jammu/New Delhi : Shubam Sangra, declared an adult by the Supreme Court, is formally chargesheeted by the Jammu and Kashmir Police’s crime branch in a case related to the sensational gangrape and murder case of an eight-year-old in Kathua in 2018.

Though the trial is expected to start in neighbouring Punjab’s Pathankot, as ordered by the Supreme Court in 2018, the crime branch submitted its charge sheet under various sections including those related to murder, rape, kidnapping and wrongful confinement before chief judicial magistrate in Kathua

The charge sheet was committed to sessions court in Kathua which has fixed January 24 as the next date of hearing in the case.

According to the Supreme Court order of 2018, the sessions court of Pathankot will be hearing the case and the appellate court would be the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Sangra was also shifted from a Juvenile Home to the regular Kathua Jail after the crime branch served the Supreme court order of November 22 in which he was declared an adult.

The Crime Branch charge sheet detailed Sangra’s alleged involvement in the horrific crime. It said Sangra was responsible for an overdose of sedatives forcibly administered to the eight-year-old, rendering her “incapacitated” to resist sexual assault on her as well as her murder.

“She was forcefully administered five tablets of Clonazepam of 0.5 mg each on January 11, 2018 which is higher than the safe therapeutic dose. Subsequently more tablets were given…The signs and symptoms of an overdose may include drowsiness, confusion, impaired coordination, slow reflexes, slowed or stopped breathing, coma (loss of consciousness) and death,” a medical expert was quoted as saying in the charge sheet.

The peak concentration of clonazepam is achieved in the blood after one hour to 90 minutes of oral administration and its absorption is complete, “irrespective of administered either with or without food”, according to the concluding opinion.

Doctors were of the opinion that tablets given to the child could have pushed her into a state of shock or coma.

The crime branch had filed a complaint (a charge sheet in case of juvenile) when he was lodged at the correctional home in Kathua as per the laid down norms under the law.

Sangra, who had been filing petitions at various courts, finally got caught when a shoddily drafted application for a birth certificate led to the unravelling of the conspiracy to proclaim him as a juvenile.

With Sangra being tried in the gang rape-murder, the quest for justice for the child who was smothered to death in captivity in January 2018 takes a decisive turn.

The inconsistencies in dates and false information in the application for a birth registration certificate filed by Sangra’s father on April 15, 2004 were crucial in nailing the lie.

According to the charge sheet in the case filed by the Jammu and Kashmir Crime Branch, Sangra was instrumental in the abduction, gang rape and killing of the child. Eight people, including Sangra, were accused in the case that shook the nation with its details of brutality.

The affidavit filed in the court cited the inconsistencies in the application to buttress its claim that Sangra was a juvenile. This was submitted in court along with medical reasons by the Crime Branch, which was contesting the trial court’s decision to treat Sangra as a minor.

The application at the tehsildar’s office in HIranagar, Jammu, was filed by Sangra’s father who wanted birth registration certificates of his three children. The eldest, a boy, whose date of birth was stated to be November 23, 1997, a daughter said to be born on February 21, 1998, and Shubam Sangra on October 23, 2002, police said.

The difference in the birth days of the two elder children was just two months and 28 days, “which by any medical standard is impossible”, the affidavit states.

This, it says, indicates the father’s casual approach in furnishing the particulars of the dates of birth.

Moreover, no place of birth was mentioned for the older two, but Shubam Sangra was stated to be born in a Hiranagar hospital. A subsequent investigation to test the veracity of that statement did not bear that out, officials said.

The painstaking investigation, which resulted in the affidavit, was backed by a report of a board of medical experts that determined Sangra’s age as not less than 19 and not more than 23 on January 10, 2018 when the brutal assault took place.

The case was transferred out of Jammu and Kashmir and shifted to Pathankot on orders from the Supreme Court on May 7, 2018.

The special court on June 10, 2019 sentenced three men to life imprisonment “till last breath”. These were Sanji Ram, the mastermind and caretaker of the ‘devasthanam’ (temple) where the crime took place, special police officer Deepak Khajuria and a civilian called Parvesh Kumar.

Three other accused — Sub Inspector Anand Dutta, Head Constable Tilak Raj and special police officer Surender Verma — were convicted for destruction of evidence to cover up the crime and handed down five years in jail and Rs 50,000 fine each. They are out on parole.

The seventh accused, Vishal Jangotra, son of Sanji Ram, was acquitted.

Dehradun: Joshimath has been declared a landslide-subsidence zone and over 60 families living in uninhabitable houses in the sinking town have been evacuated to temporary relief centres, a senior official said on Sunday.

At least 90 more families have to be evacuated. The local administration has set up relief centres at four-five places in the Himalayan town, Garhwal Commissioner Sushil Kumar said.

Meanwhile, Chamoli District Magistrate (DM) Himanshu Khurana went from door to door in the affected area to assess the damage and appealed to people living in houses that have developed cracks to move to the relief centres.

Joshimath has been declared a landslide-subsidence zone. More than 60 families living in uninhabitable houses in the sinking town have been evacuated to temporary relief centres, Kumar told PTI.

Considering the extent of the damage, at least 90 more families will have to be evacuated as soon as possible, he said.

Kumar, who has been camping in Joshimath since Thursday, heads a committee tasked with monitoring the situation on the ground level.

There are a total of 4,500 buildings in Joshimath and 610 of these have developed huge cracks, making them unfit for habitation, he said.

A survey is underway and the number of affected buildings could go up, he added.

Kumar said the affected area, including houses that developed cracks earlier and the ones damaged recently, forms a big arch which could be spread over 1.5 km.

Temporary relief centres have been set up at four-five safe places within Joshimath. Some more buildings, including a few hotels, a gurdwara and two inter-colleges, have been acquired to serve as makeshift shelters that can accommodate around 1,500 people, he said.

“Land subsidence has been going on slowly in Joshimath for quite some time but it has increased over the past week with huge cracks appearing in houses, fields and roads,” the Garhwal commissioner said.

“The situation worsened apparently after a water channel beneath the town erupted last week,” he said.

The priority at present is evacuating the affected people to safety, he said.

Kumar said long-term measures being explored to deal with the situation range from reconstruction to retrofitting.

Chamoli DM Khurana surveyed the affected area.

People were told to move out of unsafe and uninhabitable houses as arrangements for their stay have been made in hotels, homestays and other safe places, he said.

The state government will pay Rs 4,000 per month for up to six months to those who want to move to rented accommodations, he said, asking people not to risk their lives by choosing to continue living in the damaged houses.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who visited the affected areas in Joshimath on Saturday, held a meeting with officials here after returning and asked them to relax norms to expedite relief operations.

He said they were asked not to get entangled in long procedural complexities and take direct clearance from him for work related to drainage treatment and sewage systems in Joshimath.

The National Remote Sensing Centre, Hyderabad and the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, Dehradun have been asked to conduct a study of Joshimath through satellite imagery and submit a detailed report with photographs.

The Geological Survey of India has also been asked to examine the suitability of Koti Farm, Herb Institute and the Horticulture Department’s land in Joshimath and in Pipalkoti’s Semaldala area for rehabilitation purposes.

Agartala : Appealing Left leaders to join the BJP, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Sunday said his party is like river Ganga and “taking a dip” in it will help them get rid of all sins.

Addressing a public meeting as part of the Jan Vishwas rally in South Tripura’s Kakraban, Saha said BJP is confident about winning the assembly elections due this year.

“I appeal to the people who still believe in the ideology of Stalin and Lenin to join the BJP because it is like river Ganga. All your sins will vanish if you take a holy bath in Ganga,” he said.

“The compartments of the train are still vacant. Sit in the vacant bogies and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take all of us to the destination where we are supposed to be,” he added.

Targeting the opposition CPI(M), Saha alleged the Communists suppressed the people’s democratic rights and ruled Tripura for years.

“There was no democracy during the Communist regime as they believe in violence and terror tactics. In South Tripura district, as many as 69 opposition leaders were killed during the Left rule. Kakraban was no exception where a lot of political murders happened,” he alleged.

Exuding confidence about the BJP’s win in the elections, Saha said the Jan Viswas rally which was flagged off by Union Home Minister Amit Saha on January 5 will floor the opposition parties.

“The idea of ‘prestha pramukh’ (page in charge) was successfully carried out by Shah in Tripura during the 2018 assembly elections. It demolished the Communist fort after 25 years. This time, the Jan Viswas rally will do the same to the opposition. They will be visible only through a microscope after the elections,” he claimed.

Kurukshetra (Haryana): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by him has received an overwhelming response everywhere in the country, asserting that the foot march is against hatred and fear being spread in society as well as against unemployment and inflation.

He said the Yatra’s purpose is also to let people hear the true voice of the country.

“Bharat Jodo Yatra has received overwhelming response everywhere,” Gandhi says addressing media in Samana near Kurukshetra.

Talking about the Kanyakumari to Kashmir foot march, which is currently passing through Haryana, Gandhi said he got to to learn many things during the course of the journey so far.

“What is in the country’s heart got to hear that directly (interacting with people). The Yatra has received good response in Haryana — it is energetic, enthusiastic response,” he said.

In an attack on the critics of the Yatra, Gandhi said when it was started, “people said the response which we got in Kerala, we wont get that in Karnataka, which is a BJP-ruled state. But we got even better response there. Then they said the Yatra got response in south India, but when it reaches Maharashtra, it won’t get that response. When we reached Maharashtra, we got even better response than the south”.

“Then it was said we will not get good response when the Yatra passes through the Hindi belt, but in Madhya Pradesh there was even more improvement to the response. When we reached Haryana, it was said it is a BJP-ruled state, but here too the response was overwhelming. As we are moving forward, the response is improving,” he said.

Replying to a question, Gandhi said, “The voice of India which is being suppressed, the fear which is being spread and India which is being divided, one caste being put up against the other, one religion being put up against the other, this Yatra is against that.”

There is other purpose of this Yatra that we are seeing is that this Yatra is like a “tapasya”, he added.

“We love our country, we love our people, farmers, poor and we want to walk with them. So, Yatra’s purpose is also that people of this country get to hear true voice of the country,” the Congress leader said.

He said there is economic inequality in the country and wealth, media and other institutions are being controlled by a few people.

This Yatra is against unemployment, inflation, he added.

New Delhi: A petition has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking a direction to the Centre to constitute a committee headed by a retired judge to look into the issue of sinking of Joshimath in Uttarakhand and rehabilitate the affected families.

Cracks have appeared in hundreds of houses of Joshimath, the gateway to some renowned pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib.

Highlighting the woes of over 3000 people of Joshimath, the plea said cracks have developed in at least 570 houses due to continued land subsidence.

After sinking of land, apparently caused by climate and infrastructural changes, over 60 families are reported to have left the town while others are either risking their lives by staying there or searching for an alternate accommodation in winter, it claimed.

Petitioner and advocate Rohit Dandriyal claimed the construction activities done by the ministries of Road Transport and Highways and Power, New and Renewable Energy, in the town of Joshimath in past years have worked as a catalyst in the present scenario and “violated” the fundament rights of the residents there.

“The respondent no.1 (Ministry of Road Transport and Highways) invested Rs 12,000 crore in the programme for connectivity improvement for Char-Dham (Kedarnath, Badrinath, Yamunothri and Gangothri) in Uttarakhand,” it said.

The plea said the Ministry of Power has also invested Rs 2976.5 crore through NTPC and started constructing Tapovan Vishnugad power plant in 2013 for 520 MW Power run-of-river project which is under construction on Dhauliganga River in Chamoli District of Uttarakhand.

It sought to direct the authorities to constitute a high-power joint committee under the chairmanship of retired judge of the high court and representatives of all relevant ministries to inspect the affected areas and look into the issue and rehabilitate the affected people.

Joshimath is sinking gradually with huge cracks developing in houses, roads and fields there. Many houses have suffered subsidence, locals said.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has ordered immediate evacuation of 600 families living in houses at risk.

New Delhi: The Prime Minister’s Office will hold a high-level meeting on the Joshimath crisis on Sunday afternoon amid alarm in the Uttarakhand region due to sinking of land and cracks in houses at several places.

P K Mishra, the principal secretary to the prime minister, will hold the review meeting with the cabinet secretary, other senior officials of the central government and members of the National Disaster Management Authority, an official statement said.

District officials of Joshimath besides senior officials of Uttarakhand will also attend the review meeting through video-conferencing.

Uttrakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had visited Joshimath on Saturday to assess the situation on the ground, a day after he directed immediate evacuation of around 600 affected families.

Dhami said Joshimath is an important place from the cultural, religious and tourism point of view and all efforts will be made to save it.

Joshimath, the gateway to famous pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib and international skiing destination Auli, is facing a major challenge due to land subsidence.

Lucknow: As the temperature drops in the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, the Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological garden here has placed heaters and blankets inside the animal cages to protect them from the chilling weather.

Apart from the heaters and blankets, the zoo administration has also placed hay grass inside the cages of tigers, lions and bears.

Director of the Zoo Vishnu Kant Mishra said that they have also changed the diet of the animals and birds to help them cope with the ongoing cold weather.

“We have placed heaters, blankets and hays in the animal cages and have also arranged the sleepers for the animals of cat family,” he said.

The heaters have been placed in the cages of reptiles as they need constant heat to maintain the body temperature.

The animals are being provided with rich fat and protein diets, so that they can keep up their energy levels up to the mark.

“We are giving more non-vegetarian food to carnivores animals while wheat barn and peanuts are being given to other animals,” Mishra said.

New Delhi: The railways on Sunday said foggy weather has affected the movement of over 480 trains.

“Around 335 trains have been delayed, 88 cancelled, 31 diverted and 33 short terminated due to foggy weather,” a railway official said.

A blinding layer of dense fog enveloped northwest India and the adjoining central and eastern parts of the country, affecting road, rail and air traffic movement.

Very dense fog lowered visibility to 50 metres at the Palam observatory near the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport at 5:30 am.

The Delhi International Airport Limited tweeted that flights, which are not CAT III compliant, may get affected.

Passengers have been advised to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information.

According to the weather office, very dense fog is when visibility is between 0 and 50 metres, between 51 and 200 metres is dense, between 201 and 500 metres moderate, and between 501 and 1,000 metres shallow.