Sanction Rs 70 lakh to set up drinking water facility at Alangulam college: Tirunelveli MP Robert Bruce
TENKASI: Citing deficient water infrastructure at a government college in Alangulam in Tenkasi district, Tirunelveli MP C Robert Bruce has petitioned Higher Education Minister Govi Chezhiaan to sanction Rs 70 lakh to the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board for establishing a drinking water facility at the institution.
In a memorandum submitted to the minister during a recent meeting at the secretariat, Bruce pointed out that over 892 students and staff members of Alangulam Government Arts and Science College for Women have been facing severe inconvenience due to a lack of adequate drinking water infrastructure. He said, 'With plans underway to introduce additional academic programmes during the present fiscal, the student strength is expected to exceed 1,500.'
Bruce said that a proposal for a dedicated drinking water scheme, estimated at Rs 70 lakh, has already been prepared by the TWAD Board and remains pending due to lack of funds.
He urged the minister to consider releasing the funds through the Higher Education Department to implement the scheme. Later, while speaking to reporters, he said the minister had assured him that the demand would be taken up with due priority.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
United News of India
24 minutes ago
- United News of India
Calcutta High Court reserves verdict on petition against state's aid to dismissed non-teaching staff
Kolkata, June 9 (UNI): The Calcutta High Court on Monday reserved its judgment on a petition challenging the West Bengal government's recently introduced scheme that offers monetary assistance to non-teaching staff dismissed following a Supreme Court verdict. Justice Amrita Sinha reserved her decision on the petition, which opposes the state's plan to pay ex-gratia amounts of Rs 25,000 to Group C and Rs 20,000 to Group D employees. During the case hearing, Justice Singh questioned the state as to why the decision to grant the allowance was taken so hastily, without any discussion or scrutiny, following the Supreme Court's verdict. Justice Sinha also raised questions about the allowance amount. Addressing the state, she asked, "Why were the amounts set at Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000? On what basis were these figures determined?" The West Bengal government had launched the scheme to provide temporary financial relief and social security on humanitarian grounds to families affected by the dismissals. The scheme applies to Group C and D non-teaching staff who were recruited through the 2016 selection process conducted by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) and have lost their jobs because of Supreme Court order. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, announcing the ex-gratia payments had said that the aid was a one-time measure aimed at supporting those left jobless after the Supreme Court's decision earlier this month in connection with the cash-for-jobs scam. The crisis began on April 3 when a Supreme Court bench led by then Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar upheld a Calcutta High Court order dismissing 25,753 teaching and non-teaching staff from state-run and aided schools. The apex court concluded that the entire 2016 recruitment process had been tainted by large-scale fraud and manipulation. While the court later allowed secondary school teachers (Classes IX–XII) to return to classrooms temporarily, it made no such concession for Group C and D employees. It also ordered the state to complete a fresh recruitment process by December 31. Meanwhile, the state has filed a review petition against the Supreme Court's ruling. 'Since a review petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, how long will the allowance continue to be paid?,' Justice Sinha asked. She also asked the state whether Group C and Group D employees would keep receiving the allowance without doing any work. UNI XC SSP
Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
HC slams NIA's ‘casual approach' in Darivit case
1 2 Kolkata: Criticising NIA's "casual approach" for not submitting a report in the 2018 Darivit school firing case, Calcutta High Court on Monday directed the agency to file it by July 9. On Sept 20, 2018, two youths were killed at North Dinajpur's Islampur when cops fired on people protesting against appointment of teachers at Darivit High School. The deceased were Tapas Barman and Rajesh Sarkar. Told that the informal report had not been signed yet and would take three more weeks to be submitted, a division bench of justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Reetobroto Kumar Mitra said: "I will give appropriate remarks against your officer. They have become very strong and are thinking what will the high court do. It is a casual approach. Do not justify your conduct. In 2024, you were asked to come with a report." The bench asked the NIA counsel when the charge sheet would be filed. The counsel said: "After the probe is over. It will take some time." Asked for an exact time, the counsel added: "It's a faulty probe by the state authorities. No evidence was collected." The bench also asked the victims' families why they had not accepted the Rs 2 lakh compensation. Their counsel said that the state had initially agreed to pay Rs 20 lakh to each family.
Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
TMC slams BJP over ‘sindoor-selling' remark
1 2 Kolkata: TMC targeted BJP 's state leadership on Monday over alleged derogatory remarks about women and the freezing of central funds. The criticism came at a press conference after leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari's comments about sindoor and bangles at a Sandeshkhali rally on Sunday. "Yesterday, Adhikari spoke about Lakshmir Bhandar and said that women shouldn't sell their sindoor and bangles at Rs 500-1,000," said state minister Shashi Panja. "Lakshmir Bhandar is a universal scheme for each and every woman of Bengal, unlike the exclusionary schemes in BJP-governed states," she added and went on to say: "They (BJP) are in office in a lot of states. Why doesn't Adhikari ask those govts to extend benefits and give Rs 3,000 to every woman?" The netas slammed other BJP seniors' misogynist comments, including remarks of Union minister Sukanta Majumdar and former state BJP chief Dilip Ghosh about CM Mamata Banerjee. On central funds, MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said: "Over Rs 1.75 lakh crore of Bengal's funds have been wilfully blocked by Centre." Netas also spoke of BJP's "manipulation" in the Sandeshkhali incident. "They cheated the women of Sandeshkhali by making them sign on blank papers, using those later to file fake complaints," Panja claimed. tnn
