‘Can a state govt build a temple?': PIL in Calcutta HC seeks probe into funding of Digha's Jagannath Temple
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was moved in the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday alleging 'irregularities' in the administration and functioning of the newly inaugurated Jagannath Dham temple in Digha. West Bengal.
The matter was mentioned before the division bench of Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Smita Das De, which granted permission to file the petition formally.
The petitioner questioned how tax exemptions on donations can be justified if the temple is officially part of a 'West Bengal government-funded cultural centre'.
The petition claims that the temple is being operated under the guise of a private trust. However, the address listed for donations is allegedly that of HIDCO (Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation), a government agency. The petitioner has called for an investigation into how a trust can legally use the premises and resources of a state-run body.
Another issue raised in the PIL is the recruitment of civic volunteers for temple-related duties. The petitioner stated that the state cabinet approved the hiring of approximately 100 civic volunteers for the temple, and a notification has been issued in this regard. The petition urges the court to direct the temple authorities to clarify the legal and administrative basis for such recruitment.
The Jagannath Dham temple, inaugurated by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on April 30, is modeled after the iconic Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha. Built in the traditional Kalinga architectural style, the temple was developed at a cost of Rs 250 crore by the state government.
More than 800 artisans contributed to the project, which aims to position Digha as a major religious and tourist destination. According to sources, the state government also plans to organize an annual Ratha Yatra at the temple site.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
34 minutes ago
- Business Standard
NHAI to consider public InvIT to widen investor base, include retail buyers
Aiming to raise public funds for its asset monetisation pipeline, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Monday said it is considering a new infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) open to retail investors. 'NHAI has successfully launched private InvIT and monetised over 2,300 km of highways. NHAI is now considering launching public InvIT to increase the overall investor base, develop a competitive environment in the InvIT market, and mitigate the risk of a limited investor base. Further, public InvIT will also cater to retail investors, thereby providing access to infrastructure assets,' the highway authority said in its Asset Monetisation Strategy Report. Union highways minister Nitin Gadkari has repeatedly said over the past four years that he wants common citizens to benefit from rapid infrastructure expansion by allowing them to invest in highway projects via InvITs. However, officials said the process has turned out to be lengthy and complicated with tough regulations in place. In its report, NHAI did not confirm it will decisively go through with the proposal. InvITs are one of the three primary modes of highway monetisation used by NHAI, under which a trust manages several road assets and investors can benefit from toll revenues by becoming unitholders. As a department, NHAI has contributed significantly to the first National Monetisation Pipeline. It has achieved 71 per cent of NITI Aayog's NMP Road Sector Pipeline from 2021-22 to 2024-25 (Rs 1.15 trillion achieved out of a target of Rs 1.6 trillion). Total monetisation so far stands at Rs 1.4 trillion. The highways ministry is also likely to be given the steepest target of all government departments in the second monetisation pipeline, which will run up to 2029-30. It will likely have to monetise highways worth Rs 3.5 trillion over the next five years. The authority also mentioned an issue that had previously been a bone of contention between the private sector and government – the determination of Initial Estimated Concession Value (IECV). In 2020, the authority stopped declaring IECV of toll-operate-transfer (TOT) bundles, fearing a concentration of bids around the disclosed price. The sector responded that the disclosure of IECV was an important requirement, after which NHAI started disclosing the assumptions made to reach the IECV, but not the amount itself. Now, it plans to make the disclosure model more transparent. 'By aligning investor expectations with the potential performance of the asset, NHAI will aim to minimise risks and enhance the attractiveness of the investment opportunity through monetisation. Currently, NHAI declares macroeconomic factors such as interest rate, inflation, traffic and revenue growth rate, operating and maintenance expenditure, etc. NHAI will regularly review and update these factors to assist potential investors in preparing more realistic estimations,' it said. NHAI already has initiatives underway to increase the number and volume of ToT bundles and InvIT phases. Specifically, NHAI aims to offer three ToT bundles per quarter, including one smaller (Rs 2,000 crore), one medium (Rs 5,000 crore), and one large (Rs 9,000 crore) bundle, and to conduct one or two InvIT phases each year to cater to a broad spectrum of investors. NHAI will also assess market conditions in future and adjust bundle sizes accordingly, it said.
Indian Express
36 minutes ago
- Indian Express
‘Encroachers can't claim right to occupy public land pending their rehabilitation': Delhi HC refuses relief to over 350 slum dwellers
'Encroachers cannot claim the right to continue occupying public land, pending the resolution of their rehabilitation claims under the applicable policy, as this would unduly impede public projects,' the Delhi High Court held last Friday (June 6) while deciding pleas by as many as 417 residents of Bhoomiheen Camp in Kalkaji. The residents were seeking the HC's protection from demolition of their settlements as well as their rehabilitation. Reasoning that the right to seek rehabilitation, as it is, is not an absolute constitutional entitlement 'available to encroachers such as themselves', Justice Dharmesh Sharma added that 'determination of eligibility for rehabilitation is a separate process from the removal of encroachers from public land.' Of the over 400-odd petitioners, the HC granted some relief to around 30 of them. On June 2, minutes before petitions to stay demolition of homes at the slum in Southeast Delhi's Govindpuri were heard by a HC vacation bench, the civic authorities had already started razing down the hutments. The petitioners had challenged orders by Justice Sharma, on May 26 and May 30, where he had rejected the dwellers' pleas for protection from demolition and their rehabilitation. The petitioners had moved the court first in 2023, claiming that the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), in 'an arbitrary and illegal manner, proposed to demolish their jhuggi-jhopdis'. The proposal, they contended, was contrary to the Delhi Slum & JJ Rehabilitation and Relocation Policy, 2015, and surveys for their rehabilitation were conducted 'by an obscure, outsourced agency appointed by DDA'. It was also pointed out that due processes were not followed. Justice Sharma, while closing a bunch of petitions moved by the 417 dwellers, ruled, '… it is evident that the interim injunctions obtained by the petitioners have not only hindered the timely execution of the rehabilitation project but have also resulted in a significant escalation of public expenditure, thereby causing financial strain on the State. Even assuming, arguendo, that the petitioners may have plausible grounds to assert a legal right to rehabilitation, a favourable adjudication would at best extend the scope of eligible beneficiaries under the prevailing rehabilitation policy. However, such a contention cannot translate into a right to indefinitely occupy public land or retain possession of their respective jhuggi jhopri dwellings, especially when the removal is in furtherance of a larger public interest and in accordance with due process.' What the court ruled -Among the 417 petitioners, for 165 who were occupying upper floors of the jhuggis, and those who approached the HC without exhausting the remedy of the appellate authority after their claim for rehabilitation was rejected by the Eligibility Determination Committee (EDC), the court dismissed their petitions. Such petitioners can, however, approach the appellate authority within six weeks, the court directed. However, the court clarified, such remedies 'shall not stand in the way of the DDA proceeding with the demolition action.' -The court also refused to grant any relief to a bunch of petitioners whose rehabilitation claims were rejected by the EDC as well as the Appellate Authority on the ground that they had failed to produce a valid and separate ration card in their individual names. -Justice Sharma, however, allowed relief for 26 petitioner-dwellers, whose rehabilitation claims were allowed by the appellate authority but were subsequently rejected by DDA. The court directed the competent authority 'to review, reconsider or recall their impugned decisions rejecting the claims of the present set of petitioners within six weeks, as per the 2015 policy, and to proceed with their relocation and rehabilitation in accordance with law.' -It dismissed pleas by 50 dwellers, where the appellate authority had rejected the claims on the ground that their names do not figure in the voter lists for the years 2012-2015, before the eligibility cut-off date, or on the ground that the voter card furnished by them was found to be invalid. -The court also dismissed pleas by six dwellers who were seeking two allotments against one jhuggi despite one allotment already made against the claimed structure. -In the case of one petitioner where the appellate authority allowed the claim but was not allotted an alternative dwelling unit, the HC directed DDA 'to proceed with the allotment of an alternative dwelling to the petitioner within six weeks, as per the 2015 Policy.'
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
‘Better than America…': Nitin Gadkari asserts India's roads to be comparable to US in 2 years, adds ‘main picture yet to start'
Gadkari explained that the improved road network developed by the government has decreased logistics expenses in India. (AI image) India's road infrastructure would rival that of America within two years, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Monday. Highlighting Modi government's increased investment in roads and highways during the past decade, Gadkari said that projects are progressing well. "The question is not about the facelift, it has already changed. You have just watched the news reel, the main picture is yet to start,' Gadkari told ANI. He mentioned that certain American visitors had acknowledged that India's infrastructure surpassed their own. 'Some people from America met me and said our infrastructure is better than America,' he said. 'The projects in the pipeline are progressing rapidly. In another two years, you will be able to see that Indian road infrastructure will be similar to that of America," the Minister of Road Transport and Highways said when questioned about the transformation of Indian roads. Also Read | USBRL project: Chenab bridge, Anji & new Vande Bharat trains - Kashmir finally gets Indian Railways connectivity with rest of India; top 25 stunning facts Gadkari explained that the improved road network developed by the government has decreased logistics expenses in India, which will enhance export competitiveness. "If we raise our exports, it will improve our agricultural sector, manufacturing, and services, among all other sectors," he said. Gadkari highlighted that India's primary challenge in the past has been its high logistics cost of 16%, compared to China's 8% and the US and European nations' 12%. "Our roads were not good, our ports were not good. Traffic congestion raised costs," he explained. The Modi government has successfully reduced logistics costs to 9% through enhanced road infrastructure, according to Gadkari. "This reduced cost will make us export competitive," he reiterated. The minister outlined ongoing projects, including 25 greenfield expressways, a 3,000 km port connectivity highway, and religious tourism circuit roads valued at Rs 1 lakh crore. Also Read | Indian Railways to achieve net zero targets in 2025 itself - 5 years ahead of 2030 goal He highlighted plans for connecting Buddhist circuits and ensuring all-weather access to Char Dhams. "We are developing 36 tunnels between Jammu and Srinagar; 23 have been completed, and works for another 4-5 are underway," Gadkari said. "We are developing 15 ropeways under Parvatmala Yojana, besides 35 multi-modal logistics parks." India maintains the world's second-largest network of roads, with National Highways extending approximately 146,000 kilometres, serving as the nation's crucial transport arteries. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
