logo
‘SIR is need of the hour else state will become West B'desh'

‘SIR is need of the hour else state will become West B'desh'

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is the need of the hour in West Bengal; otherwise the state will become West Bangladesh,' West Bengal BJP chief and Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya tells Rajesh Kumar Thakur in an interview. Genuine natives of the state of all castes and religions have 'nothing to fear' from the SIR, he assures. Excerpts:
After Bihar, it's perhaps West Bengal's turn to undergo the SIR, ahead of the 2026 Assembly election. Why is it needed there?
It is needed to filter illegally enrolled voters—who migrated from other places, mostly from Bangladesh through the porous Indo-Bangladesh border—and address electoral malpractices the ruling Trinamool Congress has carried out for long. The SIR will take place in West Bengal as it has become the need of the hour; otherwise, the state will become West Bangladesh. The state is clamouring for the SIR, as it has always followed democratic values and practices. Genuine people here, irrespective of their caste and creed, want it. I assure the people of even Indian minorities that their original rights of voting will remain as secure as they need to be.
How prepared is the BJP ahead of the election when the Opposition, including TMC, has called the SIR process anti-democratic?
Bengal is in a total mess due to TMC misgovernance. It only engages in politics of appeasement—not politics of progress, peace, and prosperity. The BJP has emerged as the viable and last option for people who are fed up with the tyranny of TMC, corruption, and crime. Violence has become a state-sponsored occurrence. We are reaching out to people, and they want change, change, and only change for the welfare of Bengal.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

No name will be deleted without notice, says ECI on Bihar SIR
No name will be deleted without notice, says ECI on Bihar SIR

The Hindu

time26 minutes ago

  • The Hindu

No name will be deleted without notice, says ECI on Bihar SIR

The Election Commission of India (ECI) assured the Supreme Court on Saturday (August 9, 2025) that deletion of voters' names in the Bihar draft electoral roll, published on August 1 as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, would be done only after issuing prior notice indicating the grounds for the action. The ECI was responding to an application filed by Association for Democratic Reforms, represented by advocates Prashant Bhushan and Neha Rathi, in court to direct the poll body to provide individual details of the approximately 65 lakh names deleted from the draft electoral roll. The affidavit did not directly address this point raised by the NGO. Instead, the commission said its policy would be adhere to the principles of natural justice by giving voters facing deletion a 'reasonable opportunity of being heard and furnishing relevant documents'. The subsequent order by the competent authority would be 'a reasoned and speaking' one. 'These safeguards are further reinforced by a robust two-tier appeal mechanism prescribed under the relevant rules, thereby ensuring that every elector has adequate recourse against any adverse action,' the EC said in an additional affidavit. Booth-level lists have been provided to political parties, the EC assured. 'To facilitate thorough scrutiny of the draft roll from August 1 to September 1, printed and digital copies of draft rolls have been made available to political parties, and online facility for the public at large,' the affidavit said. The poll body said 2.5 lakh volunteers, mostly Bihar government officials, have been deployed to assist eligible voters obtain requisite documents from the various State departments to avoid exclusion from the final electoral roll. 'Accordingly, even in cases in which any vulnerable elector does not presently possess any document, he/she would be facilitated in the process of obtaining such documents. The Commission is taking every possible step to ensure that eligible elector is not excluded from the electoral roll,' the affidavit updated about the ongoing claims and objections process following the publication of the draft roll. The poll body said advertisements in Hindi were issued setting out the timeframe and the manner for filing applications and participating in the claims and objections period so as to secure inclusion of the names of eligible voters before the final publication of the Bihar electoral rolls. The EC said it has completed the first stage of the SIR, which has yielded 'substantial progress'. Repeated house visits were made by the 77,895 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to collect enumeration forms to ensure no voter was left behind in Bihar. Provisions were made for any of the over 1.6 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs), appointed by 'all major political parties', to submit up to 50 enumeration forms in a day, the EC said. Special urban camps in 261 urban local bodies to attract the attention of urban voters and Hindi advertisements in 246 newspapers were issued and Chief Electoral Officers of all States and Union Territories were asked to facilitate the online/physical filing of forms to make sure that no temporary migrant from Bihar was left out of the roll. Young electors who attained the qualifying age as on October 1 are being wooed to enrol in special campaigns scheduled for the claims and objections period.

Heavy rains, waterlogging paralyse Delhi; AAP blames BJP
Heavy rains, waterlogging paralyse Delhi; AAP blames BJP

Mint

time26 minutes ago

  • Mint

Heavy rains, waterlogging paralyse Delhi; AAP blames BJP

In Pics | Heavy rains, waterlogging paralyse Delhi; AAP blames BJP 10 Photos . Updated: 09 Aug 2025, 10:27 PM IST Share Via The national capital received heavy rainfall on Saturday, which waterlogged areas like Shastri Bhawan, R.K. Puram, Moti Bagh, and Kidwai Nagar. Traffic was also badly hit in many areas, keeping people stranded for hours. Here are 10 images. 1/10Commuters wading through a water logged stretch at Zakhira Underpass in New Delhi, India, on Saturday, August 9, 2025. Heavy rain in the national capital has caused widespread waterlogging, causing inconvenience to commuters. (Sanchit Khanna/ Hindustan Times) 2/10A view of a traffic jam at Yamuna Bazar area due to the Raksha Bandhan festival and waterlogging at Kashmiri Gate, in New Delhi on Saturday. areas like Shastri Bhawan, R.K. Puram, Moti Bagh, and Kidwai Nagar receiving intense showers. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO) 3/10A massive traffic jam and severe waterlogging on Lal Kuan Road leave commuters stranded for hours in Ghaziabad on Saturday. Light rain led to waterlogging on Mathura Road, while Gate No. 7 of Bharat Mandapam was also submerged following early morning precipitation. (Sakib Ali/Hindustan Times) 4/10A view of a traffic jam at Yamuna Bazar area due to the Raksha Bandhan festival and waterlogging at Kashmiri Gate, in New Delhi on Saturday. AAP leader Atishi demanded a probe into the desilting works undertaken in Delhi ahead of the monsoon season, accusing the ruling BJP of pocketing the funds. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO) 5/10A water pump operates to tackle waterlogging during heavy rainfall at Azad Market in New Delhi on Saturday. Even AAP Chief and former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal lashed out at the BJP government, led by CM Rekha Gupta, over the persisting waterlogging issue in the national capital following heavy rains. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO) 6/10Overnight showers led to waterlogging in several areas. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast for Saturday predicted 'thunderstorms with rain', with temperatures expected to reach a high of 33 degree Celcius and a low of 25 degree Celcius. (HT_PRINT) 7/10Commuters wading through a water logged stretch at Zakhira Underpass in New Delhi, India, on Saturday, August 9, 2025. (Sanchit Khanna/ Hindustan Times) 8/10Commuters wading through a water logged stretch over Rohtak Road near Anand Parbat in New Delhi, India, on Saturday, August 9, 2025. (Sanchit Khanna/ Hindustan Times) 9/10Commuters wading through a water logged stretch over Rohtak Road near Anand Parbat in New Delhi, India, on Saturday, August 9, 2025. (Hindustan Times)

Defence production hits record Rs 1.5 lakh crore, private firms' share up
Defence production hits record Rs 1.5 lakh crore, private firms' share up

Economic Times

time26 minutes ago

  • Economic Times

Defence production hits record Rs 1.5 lakh crore, private firms' share up

Synopsis India's defence production has surpassed ₹1.5 lakh crore, marking a significant milestone fueled by increased private sector participation. The defence minister highlighted an 18% growth in FY 2024-25, showcasing the strengthening of India's defence industrial base. Defence exports also saw a surge, reaching ₹23,622 crore, reflecting a 12% increase over the previous year. PTI Indian defence production has crossed the ₹1.5 lakh crore mark, with private companies increasing their share in production and export of military systems, defence minister Rajnath Singh said on Saturday. Lauding the collective effort that led to an all-time high figure of defence production worth ₹1,50,590 crore, Singh said that the milestone is a clear indicator of India's strengthening defence industrial base. Officials said that in the 2024-25 FY, there has been an 18% growth over the previous fiscal's output of ₹1.27 lakh crore, and a 90% increase since FY 2019-20, when the figure was ₹79,071 crore. The numbers have been achieved as the government has gone on overdrive to promote Indian companies to enter the sector and has initiated programs like Emergency Procurement (EPs) that have given orders to a large number of startups and smaller companies as well. Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) and other PSUs accounted for around 77% of total production, while the private sector contributed 23%. The share of the private sector has been steadily rising, from 21% in FY 2023-24 to 23% in FY 2024-25, and is expected to go up exponentially in the coming years as several big projects have been opened up to competitive bidding. Dozens of companies, from backgrounds as diverse as automobile component manufacturing to civil works have entered the defence manufacturing sector as opportunities grow."Both public and private segments of the industry have demonstrated consistent year-on-year growth, attributed to far-reaching policy reforms, enhanced ease of doing business, and a strategic focus on indigenisation over the past decade," officials said. There has been a surge in defence exports as well, with the figure growing to ₹23,622 crore in FY 2024-25, a 12% growth over the previous year.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store