Latest news with #PCCs
BBC News
19 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Conference to discuss fly-tipping problem across South East
Police and crime commissioners (PCCs) across the South East have been invited to attend a conference to discuss tackling organised criminal waste dumping. According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, during 2023/24 there were 101,694 cases of fly-tipping in the South East National Audit Office estimates that illegal waste dumping, much of it organised, costs the economy more than £900m a year. Kent PCC Matthew Scott has invited colleagues Katy Bourne and Lisa Townsend - from Sussex and Surrey respectively - to discuss a problem he has called "the new county lines". Tuesday's event will also see representatives from regional organised crime units and the Environment Agency (EA) Scott said: "What this summit is about is bringing together those who have the powers like the Environment Agency and local councils to see how we can work better to tackle this criminality because, tragically, the outcomes for fly-tipping and waste crime are very low."In the two years up until December, the EA received 3,407 incident reports of suspected criminal activity, such as dumping and burning waste, in the South East scale fly tipping is punishable with a fine of up to £50,000 or 12 months imprisonment if convicted in a magistrates' court, or an unlimited fine and up to five years' imprisonment if convicted in a crown court. The conference will be held at the Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council building in Kings Hill, Kent.
The Hindu
15-05-2025
- The Hindu
Two arrested for human trafficking
Two members of a human trafficking ring that targeted vulnerable individuals from Andhra Pradesh were arrested by the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) police and Shamshabad Special Operations Team (SOT). Following a tip-off, Chilukuri Balaji, 43, and Sunkara Shiva Kumar, 30, were arrested from a hotel in Nampally. The police seized 14 tampered visas and passports, police clearance certificates (PCCs), 16 flight tickets, and other incriminating documents. The scam came to light on May 13 following a complaint by Gandikota Venkata Ramana, a 38-year-old resident of West Godavari, Andhra Pradesh, who stated that the Kuwait visa, issued on a tourist basis, was tampered with to conceal the real travel purpose. The complainant was one of eight women lured with promises of lucrative jobs in Kuwait, only to realise at RGIA that the passport had been illegally altered, showing a 'cancelled' visa stamp to mislead immigration officers. Investigations revealed that Balaji and Shiva Kumar, both self-styled Gulf travel agents, were running a widespread network of sub-agents across Andhra Pradesh and Mumbai. Operating under Srinivasa Global Recruits, the duo forged travel documents, tampered with visas, and coordinated with medical diagnostic centres in Hyderabad to process pre-departure formalities. After collecting victim's passports, fraudsters also arranged accommodation near Nampally before transporting them to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport for travel. Their modus operandi involved two levels - they stamped genuine work visas with a fake 'cancelled' imprint and paired them with tourist visas and round-trip tickets, to fool immigration at departure; second - they removed cancellation marks and presented original work documents, police clearance certificates (PCCs) and boarding passes at the point of entry in the Gulf countries. Victims were instructed to destroy all tourist-related documents mid-journey to avoid detection. Balaji collected ₹5,000 and ₹8,000 from the victims in the form of fee for visa, medical clearances and flight bookings. Police also said that sub-agents paid as much as ₹60,000 per person, out of which the accused retained ₹5,000 to ₹8,000 as commission. The scam exploited gaps in emigration protocols. While ECNR (Emigration Check Not Required) passport holders can travel with original work visas and PCCs, ECR (Emigration Check Required) holders require additional documents including a POE (Protector of Emigrants) clearance. The accused bypassed these regulations, sending people on tourist visas without job contracts or insurance, exposing them to exploitation abroad. Further investigation and efforts to trace the remaining accused are underway.
The Guardian
11-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Appointment of chief constables is a fair and open process
Police and crime commissioners (PCCs) are elected to appoint chief constables and hold them to account. The article about chief officer appointments in London and Merseyside (Two top job openings in UK policing get one applicant each, 6 May) includes a comment from a senior policing source that suggests there no checks and balances on who we choose. The legislation on the appointment of chief constables is clear: our decision must be either agreed with, or vetoed by, the local police and crime panel – a body made up of cross-party councillors and independent members. In addition, the Home Office circular says that PCCs should appoint an independent person as part of the process to ensure that it is fair and open, and that the candidate is selected on merit. PCCs have been widening the search for new chief constables as much as we can to find suitable candidates. However, there are different barriers to the recruitment of senior officers, such as pensions, the number of candidates available and ScottKent police and crime commissioner
Arab Times
10-05-2025
- Arab Times
No Passport Services at the Indian Embassy in Kuwait This Sunday
KUWAIT CITY, May 10: The Embassy of India in Kuwait has announced that the Passport Seva Portal will be temporarily unavailable on Sunday, May 11, 2025, from 06:30 AM to 06:30 PM (Kuwait time) due to scheduled maintenance. As a result, passport and passport-related services, including Tatkaal passport issuance and Police Clearance Certificates (PCCs), will not be available during this period. This disruption will affect services at the Embassy and the Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs) in Kuwait City, Fahaheel, Jleeb Al Shuyoukh, and Jahra. However, visa and other consular services will continue to be rendered at the ICACs without interruption. The Embassy has advised Indian nationals to plan their visits accordingly to avoid inconvenience.
The Print
04-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Cong asks state units to highlight ‘BJP opposition to caste census', Rahul's sustained efforts
'In particular, the demand for the immediate implementation of Article 15(5) should be prominently highlighted,' Venugopal said. In a circular to all Pradesh Congress Committee presidents and Congress Legislature Party leaders, Congress general secretary organisation K C Venugopal instructed all state units to raise the demands made in the CWC meeting last week, including carrying out the caste census without delay and implementation of Article 15(5), during the upcoming 'Samvidhan Bachao Rallies' scheduled to be held across all states and districts. New Delhi, May 4 (PTI) In a bid to ramp up pressure on the government over the caste census issue and amplify its social justice agenda, the Congress has asked its state units to highlight the BJP's opposition to the caste survey in the past and Rahul Gandhi's sustained efforts for it. The article pertains to reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs in private educational institutions. Venugopal also directed all PCCs that during the assembly-level Samvidhan Bachao rallies and house-to-house campaigns scheduled till May 30, the state units must organise 'chaupal meetings' with active participation from social activists, civil society activists, teachers, lawyers, shopkeepers, self help groups members, and Bahujan communities. He also urged state units to disseminate the Congress Party's historical and ongoing commitments at the grass root level, including the leadership role played by Rahul Gandhi. The circular called on the state units to 'expose the BJP's anti-Bahujan ideology, its resistance to caste enumeration, and its efforts to suppress social justice'. It urged leaders to mobilise broad-based public support for the caste census and full implementation of Article 15(5). The circular also called for state-wise press conferences in each Assembly constituency, with regular media briefings at the Assembly level, coordinated with the AICC Communication Department. All PCCs must work closely with the AICC Social Media Department to ensure that party workers, youth leaders, and elected representatives actively post on all social platforms amplifying the Congress' demand for caste census, the leadership role of Rahul Gandhi and the CWC resolution. Venugopal urged the leaders to highlight the BJP's record of caste denial and anti-Bahujan actions. 'These efforts must reflect a unified communication strategy that brings clarity, conviction, and high visibility to our campaign for social justice. PCCs are requested to treat this campaign with top priority and submit weekly reports on the progress of each action point to the AICC,' the circular dated May 3 said. In his circular, Venugopal said, 'As you are aware, after sustained and principled pressure from the Congress, the Modi government, which had long ridiculed, delayed, and dismissed the demand, has now been compelled to accept the genuine and democratic call for a caste-wise census.' Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had formally written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and reiterated the party's demand for an updated and comprehensive caste census, it said. Rahul Gandhi has been the most consistent and forceful voice championing this cause, firmly asserting that social justice requires caste census, it said. Venugopal also highlighted the Congress Working Committee's demand for immediate implementation of Article 15(5) of the Constitution to enable reservations for OBCs, Dalits, and Adivasis in private educational institutions. The CWC has also demanded that the caste census must be conducted without delay, avoiding any pretext or bureaucratic evasion. The CWC called for a transparent, time-bound process, including immediate Parliamentary debate and full budgetary allocation for the census. It also called for a participatory and inclusive approach in designing the questionnaire, enumeration, classification, and publication of data of the caste census. The CWC had also called for the use of updated caste data to review and strengthen policies on reservation, education, employment, and targeted welfare. PTI ASK DV DV This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
