Parliament Monsoon Session Day 13 LIVE: Randeep Surjewala gives Suspension of Business notice in Rajya Sabha to discuss ‘integrity of the electoral processes'
Also Read | Parliament Monsoon Session Day 12 highlights: Rajya Sabha adopts resolution to extend President's rule in Manipur
The Lower House took a few queries during the Question Hour, but Speaker Om Birla soon adjourned the House to reconvene at 2 p.m. as the Opposition continued to protest. Later, it passed the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa, 2024 Bill before being adjourned for the day, even as the Opposition members continued to protest.
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Time of India
33 minutes ago
- Time of India
Turning to ‘spiritual powers' to fight ‘vote jihad' led to Mahayuti's victory: CM Fadnavis
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said he and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde turned to the 'spiritual powers' in the state to counter the 'vote jihad' experiment observed during last year's Lok Sabha election in May which led to their unprecedented victory in the assembly poll later in Nov. "An experiment was conducted in the name of 'vote jihad' during the Lok Sabha poll. Some people united to defeat nationalist thoughts. When we unearthed their conspiracy, I and Shinde Saheb, appealed to the spiritual powers in Maharashtra," he said. Fadnavis was speaking at an event organised by spiritual leader Ramgiri Maharaj at Shani Devgaon village in Vaijapur taluka of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. The BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP's Mahayuti alliance suffered a setback in Maharashtra during the Lok Sabha election but made a remarkable comeback six months later in the assembly poll. "We told Ramgiri Maharaj and other seers in Maharashtra that this (vote jihad) is not a political invasion but a clear attack on our culture. There is a feeling that a handful of people are uniting to defeat the thoughts of nationalism and our sants," Fadnavis said. The CM said Maharashtra would have witnessed attacks on temples and its culture, as in the past, had the vote jihad experiment succeeded. "Govts come and go. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like They Are Unstoppable: The Most Beautiful and Talented Female Athletes Undo No post is permanent. However, this country and 'dharma' should remain united and intact," he said. Fadnavis said he bowed to spiritual leaders as they ignite the minds of people. "Ramgiri Maharaj and the others told people that they have bury caste differences to save our culture," the CM said, adding that their power was seen in Mahayuti's 'unprecedented' victory. BJP won 132 seats, Shiv Sena 57 and NCP 41 during the 2024 assembly election in the 288-member legislative assembly. In his speech, the CM said but he met the seer to express gratitude. Fadnavis also announced govt's support for a Rs 109-crore development plan of 'Sarala Bet', a shrine under the aegis of Ramgiri Maharaj, and the approval to construct a barrage on a river at Shani Devgaon village. Work on the diversion project to bring excess water from west-flowing rivers to Marathwada would begin this year, he added.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
State has used upto 60% of its groundwater, Rajya Sabha told
1 2 Bhopal: The state has extracted nearly 60% of its groundwater reserves, placing it among the country's most water-stressed states, Rajya Sabha was informed. The state's extraction rate is higher than those of neighbouring Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Gujarat. The state ranks 12th nationally in terms of groundwater extraction as a percentage of total available resources. Punjab recorded the highest stage of groundwater extraction, followed by Rajasthan. The data was shared on Aug 4 by the Union minister of state for Jal Shakti, Raj Bhushan Choudhary, in response to a written query from MPs Subhash Barala, Mayankkumar Nayak, Kesridevsinh Jhala and Narayana Koragappa. The Rajya Sabha members had sought details on the status of groundwater across states, pollution levels, and measures being taken to address the crisis. Choudhary replied that assessment of dynamic groundwater resources of each state/UT was being carried out on an annual basis jointly by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), and the concerned state nodal/ground water departments. As per the report of 'National Compilation of Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India, 2024', the total annual groundwater recharge in the country has been assessed as 446.9 billion cubic metres (bcm). by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Most Beautiful Women In The World Undo Total annual extractable groundwater resource has been assessed as 406.19 bcm, and the total annual groundwater extraction for all purposes (like domestic, industrial, agricultural uses etc) is estimated as 245.64 bcm. The stage of groundwater extraction (SoE), which is defined as a ratio of annual groundwater extraction over annual extractable groundwater resources for the whole country, has arrived at 60.47%. Water being a state subject, sustainable development and management of groundwater resources are primarily the responsibility of the state govts. However, the central govt facilitates the efforts of the state govts by way of technical and financial assistance through its various schemes and projects. In this direction, the important steps taken by the ministry included the govt implemented "Jal Shakti Abhiyan" launched in 2019. As per the Abhiyan dashboard, in the past 4 years, more than 1.14 cr water harvesting and recharge works have been completed through coordination in the country. Further, the CGWB has also completed the National Aquifer Mapping project covering approximately 25 lakh square km of mappable area across the country. The central govt is implementing Atal Bhujal Yojana in 80 water stressed districts of 7 states which has community-led sustainable management of groundwater resources and demand management as its core theme. The CGWA has been constituted under the ministry for the purpose of regulation and control of groundwater development and management in the country. It generates ground water quality data of the entire country on a regional scale as part of its groundwater quality monitoring program and various scientific studies. It may be recalled that 'Dynamic Groundwater Resources of Madhya Pradesh 2024' report had revealed that groundwater extraction in parts of Madhya Pradesh, including its major cities, Bhopal and Indore has reached alarming levels. The industrial capital Indore was rated in "critical", while Bhopal was under "semi-critical" category and had extracted close to 80 per cent of groundwater. The state's Malwa region overall was rated in the critical category. The report stated out of the total 317 assessment units (hydrogeological units), 225 assessment units fall in the safe category, 61 assessment units fall under semi-critical, 5 in critical and 26 fall in the over exploited category.
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
MHA says more facial recognition CCTVs to be installed in Delhi
New Delhi Security is being strengthened in the run-up to Independence Day. (Representative photo) Select parts of Delhi will be covered with facial recognition-enabled closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras as part of the ministry of home affairs' 'Safe City Project', the ministry said in a written response in Rajya Sabha to a question by Trinamool Congress (TMC) Parliamentarian Saket Gokhale. It stated that the project aims to enhance urban security and surveillance infrastructure, including the establishment of an Integrated Command, Control, Communication & Computer Centre (C4I). The 'Safe City Project', funded by the Centre, aims to ensure technology-enabled enhanced policing and better security, especially for women, and costs around ₹798 crore, officials associated with the programme said. This involves the setting up of command and control centres, with facilities for video analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and facial recognition. The ministry stated that the facial recognition system will be used to monitor 'suspected persons/criminals', and that its operation is governed by Standing Order No. Tech. & PI/04/2022, issued by Delhi Police on June 9, 2022. In August 2024, Delhi Police procured 700 facial recognition CCTV cameras to ensure robust security arrangements for the Independence Day celebrations in the city. These cameras were installed in and around the north and central districts, especially covering the Red Fort, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered his Independence Day speech, to monitor VVIP movement and keep a close eye on suspicious activities. Delhi Police officers said that presently, there are nearly 25,000 CCTV cameras installed by them under various schemes, including the Safe City Project, besides installations by other agencies, such as Indian Railways and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC). The city police's C4I has a facial recognition software (FRS) database of around 350,000 criminals with facial details. 'The 10,000 CCTV cameras that we will be installing under the Safe City Project will all be dynamic cameras on which the FRS can be run. Even now, we have the FRS software in our C4I through which live feed of normal CCTV cameras can also be used for identification of the suspect,' a senior police officer with the modernisation unit of the city police said. The Delhi Police has recently issued directions to commercial establishments in Aerocity, including hotels, guest houses, restaurants and petrol pumps, to install a 'sufficient number' of CCTV cameras covering a 50-metre radius outside their premises to bolster surveillance and enhance public safety ahead of Independence Day. The CCTV footage must be stored for a minimum of 90 days, officials said. 'The FRS helps us in identifying and locating high-value targets and criminals who are wanted by the law enforcement agencies or those looking for a safe haven,' said special commissioner of police (operations and modernisation) Manish Kumar Agarwal. The directive, which remains in force until September 2, aims to prevent crimes and strengthen monitoring in high-profile areas near the IGI Airport, which clocks heavy tourist footfall. A senior Delhi Police officer said that all establishments in and around the Aerocity have been asked to ensure their CCTV systems are in working order, and report any malfunction immediately to the nearest police station.
