The Congress on Friday appointed its leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge as the general secretary in charge of Maharashtra, where assembly elections will be held next year.

Kharge’s appointment has come into force with immediate effect. He replaces party leader Mohan Prakash.

“Congress President Rahul Gandhi has appointed Mallikarjun Kharge as AICC general secretary incharge of Maharashtra,” a party statement said.

The party also appointed Sonal Patel from Gujarat, Ashish Dua from Haryana and Sampath Kumar from Telangana as AICC secretaries to assist Kharge. They replaced Shyoraj Jivan Valmiki and Bala Bachchan.

The JD(S)-Congress state cabinet will not be expanded anytime in the near future, sources have said. However, the nomination of presidents for state corporation boards is going to take place soon.

At present, six ministerial positions are vacant under the Congress quota. More than a dozen senior MLAs are lobbying to get included in the ministry. They are also showing their might through their supporters. However, Congress high command has warned that it will not budge to pressures of this nature by its party MLAs. It is also learned that the Congress high command has taken a decision not to expand the cabinet in the next six months.

In the midst of these developments, it has been decided to complete the first phase of a nomination of presidents for the state corporations and boards. As per the decision that was taken in the meeting of the coordination committee, Congress will get 20 of the 30 vacant positions of boards and corporations, while the JD(S) will get 10.

Generally, party workers are given preference in the recruitment of state corporation boards. However, this time around it is likely that these will be given to MLAs, in order to keep them under control as most of them are unhappy with not being included in the ministry. However, Congress is facing stiff opposition for this move by the lower level leaders and workers of the party. It is learned that the high command of Congress is not paying any heed to this pressure and has decided to pacify the frustrated MLAs by offering them the top positions in the state corporations and boards.

KC Venugopal, general secretary of AICC in charge of Karnataka, will visit the city by the end of this week. He will finalize the names of the MLAs for the positions of presidentship of various state corporations after holding a discussion with Dr. G Parameshwar, deputy chief minister and the eminent leaders of the Congress party. It is learned that Rahul Gandhi, president of AICC has already given the go-ahead in this connection.

The state cabinet will continue to function without hiccups as the unhappy MLAs, who raised the voice of dissent, are pacified due to the offer of the president positions in various state corporation boards. If the state cabinet is expanded now, the dissident MLAs may assume that the high command bowed to their pressure. In addition, this might lead to further rebellion in the party. If the MLAs, who are deprived of any authority, begin to raise their voice again, it might shake the very foundation of the coalition government. So the Congress high command has taken a decision to avert any impending situation, and taken the firm decision of not getting the cabinet expanded at all for the time being.

For the same reason, the valuation of the style of functioning of the present ministers will be undertaken after completion of six months of their tenure. The present ministers including DCM Dr. Parameshwar will be holding the positions for only two years. The cabinet is going to be then reshuffled for the next three years. Moreover, till the next Lok Sabha elections, the coalition government wants to stay put at any cost. It is being said that Congress high command will expand the state cabinet only after taking into account the results of the Lok Sabha elections and the developments that might take place after the results.

To discuss situation in wake of Governor’s rule in the state

Jammu n Kashmir Governor N N Vohra has called an all-party meeting in Srinagar this evening (Friday, June 22) to discuss the situation in wake of the implementation of the Governor’s rule in the state.

According to the officials, all party heads, including the heads of the state units of the national parties have been called by Vohra for this meeting.

Jammu n Kashmir was placed under the Governor’s rule on Wednesday, a day after the PDP-BJP government collapsed as the BJP snapped its three-year-old alliance with the regional party citing larger national interest and deteriorating security situation.

The Governor also placed the Legislative Assembly in suspended animation till the proclamation of Governor’s rule is revoked or varied by a subsequent proclamation, according to a gazette notification. The six-year term of the current Assembly ends in March, 2021.

Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw

Condemning the S.K. Jain report on the firing on farmers in Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur last year, Congress on Thursday said it has termed the killed farmers as “anti-social elements”.

Congress leader Pramod Tiwari said that the government is “not only cheating the farmers but also humiliating and insulting them”.

The Jain inquiry committee was set up by Shivraj Singh Chouhan government to probe the Mandsaur firing incident.

Tiwari said the report justified the firing against the farmers, and gave a clean chit to the police and the paramilitary forces.

“… Nobody is guilty of firing, the police, collector, or the CRPF and terms the farmers who were killed as anti-social elements.

“We condemn this report. The government should have expressed solidarity with their families. How can you call them anti-socials,” he said.

“They have insulted all the farmers of the country. It is a murder and it exposes Prime Minister (Narendra Modi), who calls the farmers ‘annadata’ (provider of food).”

Mocking Modi over his claim of doubling farm incomes by 2022, Tiwari said: “PM said farmers’ income would be doubled. The increase in the prices of diesel has led to the increse in prices of components like seeds, compost. But farmers are not getting anything.

“The PMO is spreading propaganda about farmers regularly. As being publicised, the farmers are not getting 50 per cent more than the actual cost of production.”

He said that the Finance Ministry had promised to provide Minimum Support Price to farmers, but without adding C2 (Comprehensive Cost), while the crop insurance scheme benefits insurance companies and not farmers.

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu said populist measures such as loan waivers and free power would not provide lasting solution to the distressed farmers in the country and sought timely credit at affordable interest rates besides giving latest know-how to them to improve farm productivity.

Inaugurating a two-day National Consultation on Making Agriculture Sustainable and Profitable in here, he said concerted, coordinated and focused action was required to double the farmers income in the coming years, according to an official statement.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, former Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and renowned agricultural acientist Prof. M.S. Swaminathan were present at the event.

Calling for making agriculture viable, profitable and sustainable to improve the lot of farmers and ensure home-grown food security, he stressed on the need to identify gaps in policy formulation to evolve a multipronged strategy to make agriculture viable, profitable and sustainable was the main purpose of this consultation, the statement said.

“Our policies should be more pro farmer and there should be a pronounced bias towards agriculture,” he said, emphasising that the 4 Is – Irrigation, Infrastructure, Investment and Insurance sectors – needed to be strengthened for an integrated development of farm sector.

“It is important to make agriculture sustainable through a judicious use of scarce resources like water, electricity and by avoiding indiscriminate use of fertilizers and pesticides,” he said.

Observing that populist programs like loan waivers and free power would not provide lasting solutions, the Vice President said that farmers must be provided timely credit at affordable interest rates.

“Farmers have to be given the latest know-how and trained in the do-how to improve farm productivity,” he added.

Naidu said that along with increased production, there was need to have efficient distribution of food grains.

“Only then can we move our country forward to achieve the goal of zero hunger and adequate nutrition for all,” he said.

Expressing his concern over the restrictions on export of agriculture produce, Naidu advocated to strike a balance between the interests of farmers and consumers.

Referring to the need to promote diversification of crops, he said that farmers should be encouraged to cultivate high value crops like fruits, vegetables, condiments, pulses, spices and sugarcane.

Naidu also said that it is important to encourage farmers to take up allied activities like poultry, dairy, fisheries and aquacultures to not only enhance farmers income but also to provide a cushion against the adverse impact of failed crops.

Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for doubling farmer’s income by 2022, the Vice President said although many initiatives were taken to boost agricultural growth, there is a need to examine if policy changes are required.

Congress party leader and former MLA Belur Gopalakrishna dropped a sensation, on June 20, saying that no less than seven BJP MLAs who needed to jump to Congress were in contact with him.

Strikingly, Beluru Gopalakrishna himself had changed sides from BJP to the Congress.

A portion of these MLAs includes the ones who had left the Congress for joining BJP, he said. “If the party agrees then I am ready to bring them back to Congress”, he included.

The Congress leader additionally sounded certain about the Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government in the state finishing full residency. “BJP’s attempts to topple the state government will fail pitiably”, he said. Giving explanations behind his optimism about the failure of “Operation Kamala”, he said that he knew about the strategies of the BJP. “I have learned everything from B S Yeddyurappa’s tutelage”, he said.

The Minister of Petroleum n Natural Gas and Skill Development n Entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan will visit Germany from 21-22nd June.

He will visit Lapp Company – a German SME that has expanded onto the global stage; Vocational School ‘Berufsschule’ at Stuttgart and a Utility Company ‘Berlin Water and Energy supply’ wherein he will get acquainted with the apprentices training in the utility sector.

He will meet apprentices in person to have a firsthand view of apprentices’ training in Germany.

To lead Int’l Day of Yoga at Alexander Platz

He will lead International Day of Yoga at Alexander Platz today, Berlin wherein he will take part in an event organized by Indian Embassy to promote Yoga.

He will be apprised about the German VET system and role of the Chamber of Crafts in German Dual Training System at the Chamber of Crafts in Berlin, Germany. The discussions will be followed by a visit to Siemens Dual VET Centre, Berlin, Germany.

He will also meet Ms. Anja Karliczek, German Federal Minister for Education and Research on 22nd June 2018 and discuss mutual issues on Vocational Education n Training (VET) Cooperation between India and Germany.

Pradhan will be accompanied by senior officials of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship apart from CMDs of IOCL, BPCL and HPCL and CEO of NSDC.

The visit comes at a crucial time when the global crude oil prices are at the highest since the peak of 2014. India’s engagement with OPEC is important as India sources about 82% of crude oil, 75% of natural gas and 97% of LPG from OPEC member countries.

Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw

Withdrawal of “ceasefire” by the union government against the advice of the Jammu and Kashmir chief minister appeared to be immediate provocation for BJP pulling out of the government in Jammu and Kashmir.
The outgoing chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday evening clarified she wanted the state government wanted the ceasefire to continue, but the union government did not agree.
She said the Centre wanted the implementation of strict measures, and she opposed it.”I wanted to follow healing touch policy and they wanted muscular policy against our youths”,she alleged.
Mehbooba also charged the BJP workers with harassing the PDP workers and minorities in Jammu region.
She met the Governor and submitted her papers and requested N N Vohra to arrange for fresh elections as PDP too would not enter into a further alliance with any party to form the government.
Her predecessor and National Conference leader, Omar Abdullah, who also met the Governor demanded fresh elections to the state assembly and informed Vohra that NC was against any alliance to form an alternative government.”Governor’s rule should be for a brief period”, he said.
The term of the Governor expires on June 25. Vohra had been Governor for two terms of ten years in all. He is likely to get a further extension in view of the absence of a popular government and Amarnath yatra.
Abdullah said Mehbooba should have resigned earlier than allowing the BJP to take the lead.
The union home minister Rajnath Singh called the union home secretary, Rajeev Guava,heads of the IB and national security adviser to prepare plans for the Governor’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir.
K Vijay Kumar, former DG of Tamil Nadu Police and advisor to home ministry is likely to be sent to Srinagar as one of the advisers to assist the Governor. Kumar had served in Srinagar as IG of BSF during the peak of militancy.
Hindusthan Samachar/Law Kumar Mishra/Shri Ram

Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Tuesday said the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)-Congress coalition government is committed to waiving farm loans.

“I am soon going to call a meeting with the nationalized banks to figure out the modalities to waive loans of farmers in a scientific way. Our government is highly committed to waiving farm loans,” Kumaraswamy said at his maiden press conference here after assuming office on May 23.

The Chief Minister, who met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a two-day visit to New Delhi starting Sunday, said he has requested the Central government to bear 50 percent of the cost of the farm loans the state government plans to waive.

“As we are ready to waive loans to free farmers from debt, I request the Central government to provide 50 percent financial support to our initiative,” the JD-S leader had said at the fourth meeting of the governing council of Niti Aayog.

He also wrote to the Prime Minister on Monday to allocate 25 percent of Rs 2 lakh-crore special bonds the Central government plans to raise to bail-out state-run banks to waive farm loans across the country.

Admitting that his JD-S did not receive people’s mandate, the Chief Minister said his government will work for the all-round development of the state and its citizens.

“The state government will work towards presenting a scheme which allows all the farmers to get loans without any difficulty.”

The JD-S leader promised in the party’s election manifesto that it would waive farm loans within 24 hours of assuming office if it was voted to power with a majority.

“Since we were not voted to power with a majority, we need to discuss with the other leaders in the coalition government,” he said.

The Chief Minister who was late by 90 minutes for the press conference at Press Club in the city center said he was busy with public visiting him at his home in the southern suburb.