Amid LA riots, Trump's HUD chief stuns Democrats with major anti-migrant moves
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Time of India
23-07-2025
- Time of India
Punjab cabinet approves amendments to land pooling policy
CHANDIGARH : The Punjab Cabinet on Tuesday approved amendments to its land pooling policy, with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann slamming the opposition parties for allegedly spreading propaganda against the scheme. Mann countered the opposition's charge that the scheme would "rob" farmers of their land and claimed that the farming community was "liking" the policy. The Punjab Cabinet last month gave its nod to the land pooling policy and had then asserted that not even a single yard will be forcibly acquired from land owners. After chairing a Cabinet meeting here, Mann said the opposition parties' claim that there will be no land registry once the notification of a piece of land is issued was baseless. For example, if an urban estate is to be developed over 140 acres of land and the land owners of 15 acres do not give their land for it. Then it does not mean that farmers (owning 15 acres) cannot take a loan, or mortgage their land," he said while speaking to reporters here. Mann said that until the urban development work starts over a piece of land, farmers who opt for the land pooling scheme can do farming activities. They will get Rs 50,000 per acre as compensation, he further said. After the government takes possession of the land, farmers will then get Rs one lakh per acre, he said. "If it takes more than a year in land development, then farmers will get a 10 per cent increase every year in the (Rs 1 lakh) amount," said Mann, while referring to amendments made in the policy following suggestions of farmers. Mann described the land pooling policy as a "historic" policy of the AAP government and said it is a policy in which there is no injustice to farmers. "Rather, they (farmers) are becoming partners (of the scheme). They are liking the policy," he said. Under the land pooling policy, a land owner will be given a 1,000 square yards of residential plot and a 200 square yards of commercial plot in fully developed land in lieu of one acre of land, the state government had said earlier. Mann said if a farmer does not want 200 square yards of a commercial plot, then he will be given an additional 600 square yards in a residential plot, which will then become a total of 1,600 square yards. Chief Secretary K A P Sinha said farmers will be able to get a loan against the letter of intent. "Farmers will not face any financial loss," said the chief minister. According to an official statement issued later, the most significant highlight of these amendments is that farmers will now receive an annual livelihood allowance of Rs 1 lakh until their land is developed, a fivefold increase compared to the Rs 20,000 given by previous governments. There will be no restrictions on the sale or purchase of land. Farmers will be free to buy, sell, or register their land at any time, said the statement. These amendments aim to make the land collection process by the Department of Housing and Urban Development more efficient, inclusive, and attractive. The Punjab government had earlier introduced the land pooling policy 2025 to involve landowners, promoters, and companies as stakeholders in urban development and to encourage participation in land pooling. To gather feedback for the policy, the state government conducted several meetings with sarpanches of various villages, representatives of different unions, and farmers. Based on the suggestions received, amendments have now been incorporated into the policy to make it more progressive, rational, and development-oriented. As per the amended policy, landowners whose land is taken will be offered an alternative of 125 square yards of residential land and 25 square yards of commercial land per kanal of land. It was also decided that no charges other than external development charges (EDC) will be levied in the case of land pooling involving 50 acres or more. Additionally, landowners surrendering commercial land will receive three times the residential area in return. The AAP government has been facing flak from the opposition parties, which dubbed the land pooling policy a "looting" scheme to "rob" farmers of their land. Even farmer bodies, including the Samukta Kisan Morcha, have also opposed the scheme. After clearing the policy last month, Mann had said it was designed to foster transparent and planned urban development across the state.
Hindustan Times
11-06-2025
- Hindustan Times
Amid LA riots, Trump's HUD chief stuns Democrats with major anti-migrant moves
The US House Committee on Appropriations held budget hearings on June 10, as part of the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations process. During the Department of Housing and Urban Development's hearing, priorities like affordable housing, homelessness programs, H.U.D.'s response to housing market challenges were addressed. Scott Turner, US Secretary for Housing and Urban Development answered questions posed by members of the committee. Watch the full hearing here.
Time of India
02-05-2025
- Time of India
Meet Elon Musk's new DOGE staffer, a college student assigned to revolutionise agency rules and regulations using AI
Since Elon Musk himself is departing Washington, D.C., his DOGE initiative is still shaking up the government. One recent instance is the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) employing Christopher Sweet , a young and inexperienced man, to help revise federal regulations. The action serves to illustrate the disorderly effect of DOGE's method of reforming the government, where oftentimes, untrained recruits are assigned to major positions with minimal backup. The appointment is problematic regarding the efficacy and long-term impact of DOGE's practices, since the government increasingly struggles to deal with intricate regulations and to provide responsible and experienced leadership. DOGE team welcomes Christopher Sweet to lead According to the reports, Christopher Sweet, a government newcomer, has been hired onto the HUD DOGE team. Though still in the process of finishing his undergraduate degree, Sweet has been given a position at the center of federal regulation reform. As per reports, citing internal emails, Sweet has come on board HUD as a "special assistant" with a fairly unusual title, "Al computer programming quant analyst." Sweet's limited experience in government positions and his sparse academic credentials call into question the legitimacy and purpose of his appointment. Sweet's primary duty will be to spearhead efforts to cut and reform government regulations at HUD. His work entails using artificial intelligence to review current regulations, comparing them with the laws upon which they are founded, and determining where regulations might be eased or eliminated altogether. In addition, Sweet has been given access to HUD's most important data repositories, such as the Public and Indian Housing Center Information Center and the enterprise income verification systems. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like AI guru Andrew Ng recommends: Read These 5 Books And Turn Your Life Around in 2025 Blinkist: Andrew Ng's Reading List Undo DOGE's reform strategy faces backlash as Musk admits program failures The hiring of Christopher Sweet fits within DOGE's wider strategy for government reform. This strategy appears to be based largely upon the recruitment of young, comparatively inexperienced tech enthusiasts and placing them in challenging government areas. These recruits are subsequently charged with managing complicated governmental procedures without undue support or familiarity. Consequently, they are usually in over their heads, which triggers additional chaos in the government. This "trial by fire" style of operating appears to be part of a greater campaign to demolish established systems of government. During a recent press conference at the White House, Elon Musk conceded that the DOGE program had fallen short of its lofty boasts. While Musk had originally intended to slash $2 trillion of government expenditure, he conceded that the program had made many errors. In the opinion of Musk, the program has succeeded with only around 70-80% of efforts, a hardly satisfactory success rate when working on programs that influence millions of lives. DOGE faces scrutiny as Project 2025 and rising expenditures raise doubts Though it claimed to aim for decreased government expenditures and enhanced efficiency, skepticism has been increasing that DOGE's real goal is not to increase the functionality of the government, but to systematically eliminate many of the agencies. This theory is consistent with the overall political platform of Project 2025, a right-wing libertarian effort supported by former President Donald Trump, which aims to significantly curtail government functions to an absolute minimum. Additional proof for the theory that DOGE is not seriously devoted to reducing government expenditure is evidenced by the actual expenditures of the U.S. government. In spite of DOGE's ideology, the U.S. incurred $220 billion more in spending during Trump's first 100 days in office than during the same time frame in 2024. The inconsistency makes one wonder about the actual effect and motive of DOGE's continuing reforms. Also Read | 5 Biggest cyber attacks in history that changed the digital security landscape forever AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
