‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ like ‘tapasya’ for me; ready for ‘long battle’ to unite country: Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday told a group of civil society representatives the party’s upcoming ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ is like a “tapasya” for him and that he is ready for the “long battle” to unite the country. The Congress had announced last week it will launch on 7 September the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ – being billed by the party as the longest yatra mounted in this country over the last century. The “padayatra” (foot march) will cover 12 states and two Union territories. It will be about 3,500-km long and will be completed in about 150 days, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh told reporters last week.Stressing that the politics of the country has become “polarised”, Gandhi said the idea of undertaking the yatra is to tell that on one side there is the ideology of the Sangh and on the other side is the ideology of uniting everyone.
Jantar Mantar protest: Farmers charm the lot with traditional attire, emotional connect
New Delhi: Jantar Mantar buzzed with voices of dissent on Monday as farmers from all over the country gathered here demanding a law ensuring minimum support price for crops, farm loan waiver, and sacking of Union minister Ajay Mishra. They waved flags, wore caps with the name of their farm organisations inscribed on them, and raised slogans for farmer unity and against the Centre accusing it of not coming good on its promises. Among the hundreds of farmers who began their demonstration at the Jantar Mantar over a slew of issues, 64-year-old Sriaj Kodyuriv from Kerala garnered the most attention with his Adivasi attire. Many farmers registered their protest in their own unique ways. One of them came wearing a garland of garlic, while another, a woman, wore a saree with tricolours. Other than north India, farmers from states such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha and Kerala arrived in Delhi to take part in the “mahapanchayat.”
Will provide free education, healthcare if elected in Guj: Kejriwal; slams BJP for ‘bad’ condition of schools
Ahmedabad: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and deputy CM Manish Sisodia on Monday “guaranteed” free and quality education and healthcare in poll-bound Gujarat along the lines of Delhi if the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is voted to power. In a joint press conference, Kejriwal promised free and quality healthcare to all in Gujarat, the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Reacting to the Gujarat government’s decision to hike the compensation for families of martyred soldiers from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1 crore, Kejriwal said the move came after he made a similar promise to the protesting ex-servicemen in Gujarat during his visit two months back. During his earlier visits to Gujarat, Kejriwal had “guaranteed” free electricity up to 300 units in a month, free and quality education, a Rs 3,000 monthly unemployment allowance and a job to every youth in Gujarat if his party was voted to power.
Assam, Arunachal panels begin border visits to settle disputes
Namsai/Guwahati: Regional committees formed by the Assam and Arunachal Pradesh governments to resolve interstate border disputes began their joint field visits on Monday.One of teams, led by Assam Border Protection and Development department minister Atul Bora, visited Namsai district of Arunachal Pradesh, adjacent to Tinsukia of the neighbouring state, during the day. The second team from Assam, headed by Water Resource Minister Pijush Hazarika, did a recce of Sonitpur, adjoining Arunachal’s Pakke Kessang district. As many as 12 panels were formed by the two governments, following discussions between Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his Arunachal Pradesh counterpart Pema Khandu on 15 July, which had also led to the signing of the ‘Namsai Declaration’. The two states, as per the declaration, decided to restrict the number of ‘disputed villages’ to 86, instead of the previous 123, and agreed to make attempts to resolve all issues by 15 September.
Detailed schedule for election of Congress chief likely to be out in 3-4 days: Sources
New Delhi: The detailed schedule for the election of the Congress president is likely to be out in the next three-four days, party sources said on Monday. The party’s election authority has said it will stick to the schedule of electing a new chief by 20 September. Chairman of the party’s Central Election Authority Madhusudan Mistry had said it was up to the Congress Working Committee (CWC) to approve the final date for the election of the Congress chief but “from our side, we are ready”. There have been several calls by leaders publicly exhorting Rahul Gandhi to become party chief again, but uncertainty and suspense continue to loom over the party’s presidency conundrum.
Mamata hikes donation for Durga puja clubs by Rs 10k
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday hiked the donation amount for each club organising Durga Puja to Rs 60,000 from last year’s Rs 50,000, besides announcing a 60 per cent rebate on electricity bills. She also said that state government employees would be entitled to a 11-day leave on the occasion of Durga puja the biggest festival in Bengal from 30 September. Banerjee said her government would take out a rally on 1 September to thank UNESCO for according the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) tag to the festival. The CM also said that the annual Durga Puja carnival at Red Road here would be held on 8 October, three days after ‘Dashami’. Similar carnivals would also be arranged in the districts, she added.
