Latest news with #AparajitaSingh
Hindustan Times
25-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
UP Rural Tourism Push: 465 village women being trained in local crafts near tourist spots
With an aim to expand rural tourism in Uttar Pradesh, villages near popular tourist destinations are being developed as rural tourism hubs by the UP tourism department under its rural tourism project. As part of this initiative, local stakeholders are being trained in various skills, officials said. Local women and youth in selected villages are being trained in manufacturing and providing tourism-related products and services to help them become self-reliant. Regional tourism officer of Prayagraj, Aparajita Singh, said that ODOP (One District One Product) items and local crafts have been chosen for the initiative. A total of 465 women have been selected from the Prayagraj division, including 185 from the Prayagraj district, she added. These women are being trained in villages like Gadha Katra, Ghoorpur, Shringverpur, and Uparhar. The training includes skills for homestay owners, local boatmen, and tourist guides. Trainers from the Manyavar Kanshi Ram Tourism Management Institute in Lucknow are being engaged for this purpose, she said. Training aligned with local identity The Academy of Management Studies, Lucknow, is the implementing agency providing training in different crafts. Its head, Anand Sagar Tiwari, said that 11 crafts and services have been selected for training across rural areas in Prayagraj. The selected crafts include jute and handbag making, moonj craft, pearl garland making, plaster of Paris statue crafting, cow dung products, amla-based items, and embroidery. Skilled trainers have been deployed in villages for hands-on sessions. Trainer coordinator Vandana Rathore said that priority is being given to crafts that use raw materials readily available locally. Items made from cow dung, temple flowers, moonj, and jute are being promoted. In religious tourism zones, products like Swastikas made from cow dung, bandhanwars, and decorative door hangings are also being developed. While selecting crafts, care is being taken to ensure that products are closely linked to local tourist sites. This approach encourages visiting tourists to purchase these items, generating income and economic activity for the villagers, officials added.
Hindustan Times
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
SC raps Samay Raina, 4 others over remarks on disabled persons
The Supreme Court on Monday summoned five social media influencers and stand-up comics including Samay Raina over offensive and derogatory remarks made against persons with disabilities, even as it stressed that any speech that demeans a community or class of persons will be curtailed. The court considered the issue in a petition filed by Cure SMA Foundation working for the welfare of disabled persons, that produced as evidence, videos where comedian Raina and four others were seen making fun of persons with disabilities. Issuing notice on the petition to the Centre and Maharashtra government, the court directed the Mumbai Police Commissioner to ensure the presence of the five in court on the next date failing which the bench threatened to order coercive steps to secure their presence. Besides Raina, the other persons summoned by the court are Vipul Goyal, Balraj Paramjit Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar, and Nishant Jagdish Tanwar. Raina is no stranger to controversy; he hosted India's Got Latent, the show in which podcaster and influencer Ranveer Allahbadia made distasteful and obnoxious comments The bench headed by justice Surya Kant took strong objection to 'irresponsible statements' made by the five: 'There are people who seek fundamental right of free speech. If there is such freedom, then we will curtail any speech which demeans another community.' The order said, 'The Commissioner of Police, Mumbai is directed to serve notice on the respondents (Raina and others) to ensure their presence in court failing which coercive steps will be taken to secure their presence.' The petition argued by senior advocate Aparajita Singh said that while the foundation is a votary of free speech, such speech should respect other communities as the effect of making such statements has a very damaging effect on persons with disabilities and their families. According to her, the offensive expressions used to mock at disabled persons amounts to 'hate speech' which does not deserve any protection under right to free speech, a constitutionally guaranteed right under Article 19(1)(a). The bench, also comprising justice N Kotiswar Singh, said, 'On one hand, through judicial and legislative measures, we want to integrate such persons into the society, and you damage it by passing such statements.' The court said that it was keen to lay down guidelines, both punitive and preventive, to ensure persons indulging in such speech are not spared. 'We would like to lay down some guidelines to prevent such persons from indulging in irresponsible behaviour. We need to think about having remedial and punitive steps which can be preventive in nature, that can be taken against such persons,' the bench observed. The court requested Attorney General R Venkatramani to assist the court on the next date 'having regard to the sensitivity and importance of the issue' and permitted the Union government, state of Maharashtra, and Aparajita Singh to make suggestions in this regard. The petitioner initially filed an application before the top court last month in a case where Allahbadia approached the court to club criminal cases against him pending in Assam and Maharashtra after he made some offensive comments on a show 'India's Got Latent'. SMA Foundation said that in the same show, Raina made fun of a blind and cross-eyed persons and upon deeper probe, the organisation came across multiple instances where persons with disabilities were ridiculed and humiliated on this show. The petitioner attached video clips of statements made by the other four persons 'denigrating' persons with disabilities. The petition sought a two-fold relief - guidelines to regulate the broadcast of such online content which violates the right to life and dignity of the persons with disabilities, and a positive obligation on the government and private entities to adopt a unique standard of representation of persons with disability in the online domain. Although there is a regulatory framework governing the broadcasting of online content, under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, the Code of Conduct and the Programme Code provided under Rule 6 of the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994, the petition pointed out that such instances point to the yawning gap between the existence of regulations and their implementation.
Time of India
27-04-2025
- Time of India
Tourism dept promoting visits to Shringverpur Dham
1 2 3 Prayagraj: Feeling neglected for decades, Shringverpur Dham, about 40 km from Prayagraj, is turning a favourite destination for village tourism among visitors. After obtaining religious and cultural identity, officials of the tourism department are promoting visits to Shringverpur Dham among tour and travel operators. Officials said that with the development of Sangam and its surrounding areas, the priority of the state govt is to make Shringverpur Dham a place of social harmony as well as a hub of tourism. The govt is initiating fresh measures to make it a new destination for village tourism. Regional Tourism Officer (Prayagraj), Aparajita Singh, said, "A 13-member group of travel and tour operators from Delhi, Lucknow and Varanasi had visited the dham campus on Saturday as part of the Introduction Tour. The group first visited Satyam Shivam Sundaram Agri Tourism Complex, where they were given a grand welcome. After experiencing the local activities, the group visited the Shri Ram Shayan Sthal mentioned in the Ramayana, where Lord Shri Ram, Goddess Sita, and Lord Lakshman stayed overnight in Shringverpur before departing for 14 years of exile. The members saw the main attraction of the park, the 51-foot-high statue of Lord Ram and Nishadraj Guhya. The group stayed in a traditional homestay and experienced the hospitality of the local people and traditional cuisine. The members visited the Munj Shilp Gram, prepared under the Rural Tourism Scheme, where they purchased products made of Munj. They also visted historic Nishadraj Fort, Shri Ram Ghat, and Maa Shanta Shringi Ashram and interacted with the local boatmen. The members also visited the Bioved Agri Tourism Complex. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trade Bitcoin & Ethereum – No Wallet Needed! IC Markets Start Now Undo The members shared their suggestions and experiences during their introduction journey. Senior executive of Easy Connect Travel Group from Delhi, Umesh Rathore, said that there are immense possibilities for village tourism in Shringverpur Dham. For this, transport facilities should be improved, and link routes to tourist places should be enhanced. Senior Sales Manager (Operations) of Lucknow's Global Tour and Travel Group, Sujit Mishra, said that due to CM Yogi's efforts, this place is now being recognised at the global level in tourism. To increase the footfall of tourists at this tourist place of new possibilities, day visit tours will be planned. Day visit packages for students from colleges of nearby districts will also help to increase the footfall at the dham. Once the footfall increases, locals will get employment. On the other hand, the officials of the tourism department are enthusiastic about the beginning of introduction tours. Singh, meanwhile, said, "In this sequence, the tourism department is all set to organise a mega camp with all stakeholders on April 28 at a city-based hotel. Apart from travel tour operators, hoteliers, restaurant owners, members of Chambers of Commerce, and members of Udyog Bandhu are invited to this tourism camp. In the camp, along with the facilities provided by the govt in the new tourism policy, there will also be the facility of instant registration."
