BENGALURU: Leader of he Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, on Tuesday called upon the Muslim community to put up a united front and back the Congress in a bid to stop the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre, which he claimed, has been posing a threat to the Constitution.

Addressing the gathering at an event where Abdul Jabbar took charge as the KPCC Minority Cell president at Palace Grounds, Kharge stated, “Modi, who came to power twice, has destroyed the country. If this government is voted to power again, they will change the Constitution. The minorities must unite to defeat him and protect the Constitution. We will fight it out and defeat them.” 

While appreciating the community for standing by the Congress, KPCC president D K Shivakumar told the youth to be aware of the BJP removing their names from the electoral list. “I will set up a committee in this regard. You need not worry about the remarks against the community, as we are with you,” he said.
Meanwhile, the AICC Minority Wing president Imran Pratapgarhi alleged that the BJP had continued with its design of dividing society on communal lines.

NEW DELHI: The Central government on Wednesday expressed its unwillingness before the Supreme Court to ask its employees to work from home and instead it has advised its employees in the national capital to resort to carpooling to reduce the number of vehicles used by them for commuting.

The Centre in its affidavit point outs directives issued by the Commission for air quality management for Delhi-NCR and adjoining areas that included a ban on entry of trucks in Delhi till November 21 except trucks carrying essential commodities, closure of thermal plants, ban on construction and demolition activities, deployed anti-smog guns and water sprinklers etc.

The Central Government has also considered the possibility of functioning under online mode i.e. “work from home”.

In this regard, it is submitted that in the recent past, several governmental functions were impacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic for substantially a long period of time which entailed pan India ramifications.

The Central Government thus considered the number of vehicles used for Central Government business in NCR and after finding that the said number is was not very significant, the Central Government decided that in view of the recent normalization of the functioning of Central Government offices post COVID-19 pandemic, the advantage of not passing work from home direction would outweigh the advantages which would be gained from work from home directions which would be limited to only less number of Central Government vehicles on road.

Instead, the Department of Personnel and Training Government of India has issued an advisory for Central Government officers and staff for pooling and sharing of vehicles to the maximum extent possible so that number of Central Government vehicles plying for commuting of officers and staff are reduced substantially.

Earlier on Monday, the Supreme Court directed the Central government to call for an “emergency meeting” on November 16 with Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh and sought an action plan to curb the air pollution in Delhi-NCR.

The apex court asked the Centre about drastic steps which are scientifically proven and are taken to bring down pollution.

As per Centre’s affidavit, 75 per cent of the pollution according to scientific study is due to industries, heavy vehicular traffic and dust, thus it’s not stubble burning and these three factors have to be reduced, observed the Bench.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s Air quality continues to be in the ‘very poor’ category for the fourth consecutive day today, as per the System of Air Quality & Weather Forecasting & Research (SAFAR).

However, the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) reduced from 396 from Tuesday to 379 today.

The Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and adjoining Areas (CAQM) on Tuesday also issued directions like a ban on construction work, shutting of public schools, work from home, among other measures to control air pollution in the region.

The commission has also directed five states to submit a compliance report before November 22 to the commission and directions will be closely monitored by Chief Secretary of NCR states, GNCTD on a regular basis, said the official release.

HYDERABAD: A BJP MLA from Telangana on Monday wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, seeking a ban on Congress leader Salman Khurshid’s book which has stoked a controversy over the former Union Minister allegedly comparing ‘Hindutva’ with jihadi organisations.

In a letter addressed to Shah, Singh, floor leader of BJP in the state Legislative Assembly, said Hindu Dharma is all-embracing, overarching and wishes for the welfare of the universe.

In its verdict related to ‘Hindutva’, the Supreme Court had stated it is a lifestyle with high thinking and ideal living, he said.

“Even then, only to defame Hindus and create misconceptions about ‘Hindutva’ and ‘Hindu-phobia’, Congress leader Salman Khurshid has compared ‘Hindutva’ with jihadi organisations like the ‘Islamic State’ and ‘Boko Haram’ in his book titled ‘Sunrise over Ayodhya: Nationhood in our times’,” he said.

Thus, Khurshid has insulted all Hindus, he alleged.

Hitting out at Congress, he said the party has always been creating a false impression about ‘Hindutva’.

He claimed Khurshid and Congress leaders were also spreading false information about Hindus staying all over the world, thus endangering their life.

It is a crime under law to insult a large community of people by accusing them of being terrorists, misusing the freedom to think and write which are available in the country, he claimed, demanding that the government took immediate action to stop such things.

He demanded that a ban should be immediately imposed on Salman Khurshid’s book for its anti-Hindu content.

He said if ‘Satanic Verses’, by Salman Rushdie, could be banned in the country, then Khurshid’s book also could face a similar action.

The BJP leader also also sought legal action against Khurshid for allegedly hurting religious sentiments of Hindus.

Apart from the BJP, Khurshid had faced criticism from his own party leader and former Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad for comparing Hindutva with terror groups.

Incidentally, Khurshid’s house in Uttarakhand’s Nainital was vandalised on Monday amid the row over the book.

KOLKATA: Amid joy among pupils and teachers and trepidation among a section of parents, schools in West Bengal reopened on Tuesday for students of classes 9-12 after shutting doors for physical classes for nearly 20 months owing to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Students queued up at school gates across West Bengal since morning as per the schedule announced by the state government for holding classes in different timings for secondary and higher secondary sections.

This segregation was undertaken to minimise mingling to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Teachers and staffers welcomed the boys and girls with hand sanitiser and thermal guns to check their temperature and advised them to wear masks at all times throughout the school hours.

Basu has said that no student would be forced to attend physical classes and it is up to them and their parents to take a call on this.

Some parents, though happy over the reopening of schools for physical classes, expressed apprehension whether their wards will adhere to the guidelines for COVID safety since the students will be seeing each other and sitting in classrooms together after a very long time.

Educational institutions were closed for physical classes in March, 2020 after the central government announced a countrywide COVID-induced lockdown.

Though the lockdown was later lifted, schools and colleges continued to remain closed in the state owing to the pandemic situation.

Colleges and universities also opened their gates to students on Tuesday, although authorities of some of these institutions have said that different days will be scheduled for various faculties to reduce crowding and mingling on campuses.

“I am thrilled to be back in school after such a long time, interacting online can never be as good as talking to friends and teachers face to face,” said Sohini Mukherjee, student of a private school in south Kolkata.

As a government school teacher in north Kolkata put it, “It feels so good that the children will be back among us in the school; in institutions like ours, online can never be an equal alternative to face-to-face interaction between students and teachers.”

Students have been asked not to share their tiffin and to adhere to social distancing norms.

BENGALURU: All districts in Karnataka, except Bengaluru Urban, have reported zero Covid-19 deaths for second consecutive day on Sunday with the state capital reporting three deaths on Saturday and two on Sunday — the latter being the lowest number of deaths in daily figures.  Although the daily deaths have remained in single digits consecutively since November 1, Karnataka’s mortality rate has remained constant at 1.27 per cent since October 4. The Health Department is aiming to bring it down to below 1 per cent, although that has remained evasive.

Twenty-nine of the 30 districts of the state reporting zero deaths, and deaths remaining in single digits, are an indicator to the Covid-19 pandemic being on the decline despite the feared surges that had been expected due to the festive season,  Health Department officials claimed. The low figures, and the improving situation is also despite the State Government lifting all curbs that had been earlier imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19 infection among the population.

Bengaluru also saw its recovery rate climbing marginally to 98.17 per cent on Sunday after it had slightly dipped, although the city had touched a record high recovery rate of 98.19 per cent on November 6 and retained that level till the next day after which it started dipping marginally. Statewide, the recovery rate has remained at 98.45 per cent since November 5, and has remained the highest on record through both the pandemic waves.  The active cases (the patients currently infected) in the state, too, went below the 8,000-mark on Sunday and stood at 7,997. However, the lowest number of active cases in the second wave has been 7,955 on November 9, after which it rose to above the 8,000-mark until Sunday. 

Parmesh Jain

Former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had a major role in Independence movement and nation building after the country attained Independence,Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said here on Sunday.

Paying rich tributes to former PM on the occasion of his 132nd birth anniversary Bommai said,Nehru is a great leader who laid a strong foundation for the country’s development through the Five Year Plans after India attained independence. 

Recalling Nehru’s contribution to raise India’s stature,Bommai said,Nehru played a significant role in raising India’s stature at international level.

His affection for children is well known as he was lovingly called the ChaCha Nehru for this aspect. Many institutions in his name have been working for the development of the country.Bommai called upon the people to dedicate themselves in the nation building endeavor by paying tributes to Nehru.

CMs’ meet of southern states in Tirupati :

Replying to a question about meeting of the Chief Ministers of Southern States to be chaired by union Home Minister Amit Shah in Tirupati later in the evening,Bommai said, that the meeting would deliberate on evolving consensus for development with cordial spirit among the states.

When asked whether issues of inter-state river water disputes would figure in the meeting the Bommai said,”it is unlikely as many of these issues are before the courts. Irrigation works in Palar river basin, railway projects and infrastructure development issue are on the agenda.