
Vizag Cinephiles screens ‘Five Broken Cameras'
The documentary chronicles the resistance by the villagers of Bil'in—a small Palestinian farming town, against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank. It highlights the brutality meted out by the Israeli defence forces while occupying the land on the residents of Bil'in and surrounding villages, where they have lived for centuries.
After the screening, the attendees discussed the themes of freedom, oppression, occupation, and resistance.
The discussion also touched on the history of occupation by Israel, India's historical stance of supporting the Palestinian resistance to occupation, and the current BJP-led government's change of stance.
The organisers spoke about the necessity to support the Palestinian people's struggle for freedom. They urged the attendees to take part in the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement to bring pressure on the State of Israel and companies supporting Israel in helping it occupy Palestinian land.
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Hindustan Times
16 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
BEST credit society served notices ahead of polls
MUMBAI: The BEST Employees' Credit Society, touted as a symbol of the much-hyped, recent alliance between the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), has been served notices by the state government and the police over alleged irregularities in the cooperative. Raj Thackeray, Chief of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), and Uddhav Thackeray, Chief of Shiv Sena (UBT). (Raju Shinde/ HT Photo) The BEST Kamgar Sena, a wing of the Sena (UBT) currently in control of the credit society, says the move is a ploy by the BJP-led Mahayuti government to muddy the waters ahead of the August 18 elections in the credit cooperative. The poll will pit the Sena (UBT)-MNS alliance against Mahayuti coalition partners, the BJP and Shiv Sena, both on the back foot in these elections. More critically, the BEST Kamgar Sena sees the move as an attempt to undermine Sena (UBT)-MNS unity, the first formal alliance between the two political parties led by the Thackeray cousins, Uddhav and Raj, leaders of the Sena (UBT) and MNS, respectively. For the upcoming polls, the Sena (UBT) will contest 18 of the 21 seats up for grabs, the MNS two seats, and the BEST SC/ST Employees Welfare Association one seat. If the alliance wins the election, the MNS will bag one more post, that of a nominated director. In contrast, the BJP and Shiv Sena led by deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde will be contesting the election as opposition parties. Now, less than a week before the polls, the credit cooperative has been served notices by the state cooperation department and the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police. The first notice, dated August 13, has been served by the divisional joint registrar of co-operative societies in Mumbai. It states, 'As per the complaint application by Vivekanand Ghag and Rajendra Gore, under section 89 A of Maharashtra Cooperation Department, deputy registrar Rajendra Gaikwad has been appointed as investigation officer to conduct inquiry of records of society of year 2024-25. Jitendra Chavan will assist him and they will submit an inquiry report by August 29.' The credit society has also received a notice from the EOW, initiating an inquiry into an alleged ₹24-crore irregularity in the cooperative, on a complaint filed by Ghag. Suhas Samant, president of the BEST Kamgar Sena, slammed the Mahayuti government and BJP leaders, alleging that BJP MLC Prasad Lad has instigated the inquiry. 'For years, the BEST Kamgar Sena has been in power in the credit society. This time, however, the Sena (UBT) and MNS have entered into an alliance for the elections, which has upset Mahayuti leaders. Now the society's office-bearers have received notices. BJP MLC Prasad Lad is behind this. They want to create confusion among voters,' he said. 'But in the last audit conducted by a government auditor, the BEST Employees Credit Society received an 'A' grade and this is in the public domain. How can a credit society assigned an A grade be accused of irregularities,' asked Samant. Responding to the allegation, Prasad Lad said an inquiry will be conducted as there were irregularities in the credit cooperative. Government agencies have initiated an inquiry on the basis of a complaint filed by Ghag. The cooperation department is conducting a separate inquiry and the EOW is looking into irregularities of ₹24 crore in the credit society. If there are complaints of irregularities, how can we keep quiet, asked Lad.


Time of India
30 minutes ago
- Time of India
The debate that involved 'em from dawn to dawn
1 2 Lucknow: The 24-hour session of the UP legislative Assembly on 'Viksit Bharat Viksit Uttar Pradesh' had many of its women members, like RLD's Mithilesh Pal, BJP's Ketaki Singh and Saroj Sonker and Samajwadi Party's Indrani Verma waiting patiently for their turn to speak on the government's vision document. Some till as late as 1.00 am and others till 3.30 am on Thursday. There were also some who had spoken but still sat through the session whole night to listen to others, including Congress' Aradhna Misra 'Mona', SP's Puja Pal and BJP's Minakshi Singh and Krishna Paswan. For the BJP members, it clearly sent a message that it was the subject of discussion which was important and not the late-hour and early-morning timing for the women legislators, while for members from Opposition, it was an opportunity to expose government's failure and for a few to come out with flying colours before their party bosses and last but not the least to be part of the history that was in the making. It was the second such session in recent history to have been continued throughout the night, with a total of 189 speakers across party lines. A few legislators were pleading with the chair to include their names in the list of the speakers. However, there were others who wanted to jump the long queue of speakers. Earlier in October, 2019, the UP Assembly had held a 36-hour special session on sustainable development goals set up by the United Nations to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Interestingly, leader of the House and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also made a few visits during the 24-hour discussion even as late as 9.30pm on Wednesday. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like TV providers are furious: this gadget gives you access to all channels Techno Mag Learn More Undo The CM remained in the House until 11.11pm and patiently heard members across the party line before returning the next morning. Speaker Satish Mahana also remained in the chair till around 10.20pm and so was present Finance and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Khanna. Khanna remained in the House until around 11.45pm. BJP member Anupama Jaiswal then replaced Mahana in the chair before unattached MLA Manoj Pandey replaced her at 11.37pm. SP MLA Indrani Varma from Bhinga in Shravasti waited for her turn to speak until 1 am and left only after making her statement. So did Saiyyada Khatoon from Domariyaganj who spoke before Indrani at 11.04pm. BJP's Minakshi Singh spoke at 10.01 pm but remained in the House until wee hours giving patient hearing to other members. The women members' activeness could be gauged from the fact that Congress MLA Mona Misra remained in the House whole night just like BJP MLA Ketki Singh. Malihabad MLA Jai Devi was also seen seated in the House throughout the night. Rae Bareli MLA Aditi Singh also was in the House until 1.45am. A heated exchange of words was also witnessed between Maant MLA Rajesh Chaudhary and Varanasi Cantt MLA Saurabh Srivastava, who was acting as chief whip in the absence of Ram Naresh Agnihotri. Rajesh could not speak during the time allocated for members from his Braj region which was between 9pm and 12 midnight. Since those who had to speak between 6pm and 9pm continued until 11pm and those who had to speak after that could not speak, Rajesh objected to it. It was only after the spat that seven MLAs from Braj and West UP were accommodated in the 12 midnight to 3 am slot. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Happy Independence Day wishes , messages , and quotes !


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
New portal to help secure BPL ration cards within 24 hours
Bengaluru: The govt will soon launch a web portal which will enable those eligible to secure below poverty line (BPL) ration cards within 24 hours, food and civil supplies minister KH Muniyappa told the legislative assembly Thursday. The initiative is aimed at streamlining the application process and making it more transparent, while also ensuring the economically poor secure benefits under the public distribution system (PDS). "We will launch the dedicated portal next month and eligible applicants can get BPL cards in 24 hours. I request people to make use of it," Muniyappa said in response to a question from BJP's Bharath Shetty Y. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru | Gold Rates Today in Bengaluru | Silver Rates Today in Bengaluru Admitting that about 13 lakh of the state's 25 lakh BPL cardholders are ineligible, Muniyappa urged such households to voluntarily convert their cards to above poverty line (APL) status. "We are committed to eliminating ineligible cards," Muniyappa said. "Our earlier efforts led to some confusion and I request the cooperation of all, including the opposition. I also appeal to those who are ineligible to voluntarily convert their cards from BPL to APL." A BPL family in Karnataka is defined as one with an annual income below Rs 1.25 lakh. Benefits under the BPL category include 10kg of rice per family member under the Anna Bhagya scheme, though the govt is currently dispensing cash in lieu of 5kg rice. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Is this legal? Access all TV channels without a subscription! Techno Mag Learn More Undo A survey by the food and civil supplies department revealed that lakhs of ineligible people, including thousands of govt employees, had obtained BPL cards. The minister said this distorted distribution of benefits meant for the poor and put unnecessary pressure on the PDS network. In Nov 2023, Muniyappa had launched a drive to weed out fake and ineligible BPL cards, but it sparked controversy after several genuine beneficiaries complained that their cards were wrongly deleted. The backlash forced the govt to halt the exercise. Muniyappa acknowledged the issue, stating that political consensus was needed to resume the clean-up. "Eligible cardholders can reapply even if their cards are removed by mistake," he said. Highlighting the scale of the problem, the minister also said that Karnataka's BPL coverage stands at 75% of the population — a figure he described as "astronomically abnormal" compared with neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where BPL coverage is around 50%. He was confident the new portal, coupled with a transparent verification process, would help ensure benefits reach only those who genuinely qualify. He reiterated that cooperation from all political parties and the public was essential to make the system fairer and more efficient. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Happy Independence Day wishes , messages , and quotes !