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Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Ward 57 to get Rs 15 cr makeover for safer, smarter living
1 2 Ludhiana: In a bid to enhance women's safety and improve urban infrastructure, civic officials are working on a neighbourhood improvement plan under governance reforms directed by the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs. Officials have selected ward number 57 for the purpose. They will spend Rs 15 crore on the project sanctioned by the Centre. Ward 57, which covers areas near BRS Nagar is centrally located and has a population cutting across socio-economic categories. It also has infrastructure like schools and parks. Officials said that they would work on improving water supply, storm sewers, tubewells, health centres, community halls, and public parks. T raffic and security will remain a major focus. Besides, there are plans to develop a mobile app with SoS alerts and geo-tagging to enable quick emergency response. Patrol vehicles and smart surveillance tools will support ground-level action and real-time monitoring. The system will be integrated with the Ludhiana Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) for for 24/7 centralised monitoring and support. In the initial plan, officials proposed 100 CCTV cameras, to be increased to double later. They plan to construct tabletops to ease traffic snarls near school buildings by getting vehicles to slow down. There are around 16 tubewells in the ward, which will be developed properly. Superintending engineer, MC bridges and road department, Sham Lal Gupta, said, "This is a very good project where one ward will be enabled with all basic and required facilities. We are preparing a DPR for the project. We will go ahead with the plan after getting required approvals." Key initiatives include: - Installation of over 100 CCTV cameras and emergency call boxes - Improvement in parks, sanitation, and stormwater systems - Upgrade of footpaths and addition of shade, seating, and pedestrian crossings - Ensuring safe routes to schools and public transit - Enhancing lighting and visibility in public spaces - Providing libraries for senior citizens - Building ramps, tactile paths, and accessible public toilets - Adding road markings and green pathways - Implementing smart street lighting and signage - Traffic calming measures where speeding is a problem - Parking solutions, especially in high-density residential areas Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Raksha Bandhan wishes , messages and quotes !
Scotsman
07-07-2025
- General
- Scotsman
How Scotland's housing crisis is tearing families apart
Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Access to adequate housing isn't a luxury, it's a fundamental right. Yet every week, my office hears from families in crisis, caught in a system that appears more focused on managing scarcity than delivering solutions. Across Edinburgh and the Lothians, families with young children are being forced to spend years in unsuitable temporary accommodation, often in distressing, overcrowded, and even unsafe conditions. These are not isolated incidents. This is a systemic failure. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad On June 5, I raised this issue in the Scottish Parliament, asking the government for a clear update on efforts to reduce the time families spend in temporary housing. While the response highlighted funding schemes and affordable housing initiatives, these promises ring hollow for my constituents, families like Laura's, Stacey's and Sofiane's, who remain trapped with no end in sight. This is not just a local challenge; it is the direct result of years of under-investment and short-term thinking in national housing policy. The Scottish Government's inability to construct enough truly affordable homes has left councils overwhelmed and under resourced, forced to make impossible decisions and manage an emergency they did not create. Children need stable and secure places to call home (Picture by Colin Hattersley, posed by model, with parents' permission) | SoS license 'Left in limbo', 'utterly forgotten' Laura has lived in temporary accommodation in South Queensferry for nearly four years. Since March, her family has been battling an ongoing bed bug infestation that has destroyed their belongings and forced them to sleep in one room. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Despite contacting the City of Edinburgh Council, the managing agent, and others, no permanent solution has been provided. 'Despite doing everything asked of us… We have been left in limbo with no one taking full responsibility,' Laura wrote. Another constituent, Stacey, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in Drylaw for six years. Initially, she was told she would be moved into permanent housing within two years, but that promise was never fulfilled. Her mental health has deteriorated. Her youngest daughter, who is suspected to have ADHD and autism, struggles in an environment with no stability or privacy. Stacey hasn't even been allowed to hang proper curtains. 'I feel utterly forgotten by the system that was meant to help us,' she said. 'We all deserve a safe, secure, and stable home where we can finally begin to heal.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Facing homelessness Sofiane's story is another urgent reminder of how this housing crisis is tearing families apart. A father of three who lived in Scotland for over a decade without seeking public assistance, yet now he faces eviction, and his family is on the brink of homelessness. Despite exhausting every option to find private housing, he continues to struggle. Sofiane fears for his children's health, safety, and development. 'All I want is a secure, stable home where my children can grow up safely and with dignity,' he says. However, even that, in today's Edinburgh, feels heartbreakingly out of reach. These are not exceptions. It's a reflection of a system failing the very families it should protect. According to Shelter Scotland, the number of children trapped in temporary accommodation across the country has reached record levels. In many cases, families are being forced to move multiple times, uprooting children from their schools and support networks. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad These frequent disruptions erode trust, destroy routine, and make it nearly impossible for parents to maintain employment or access consistent healthcare. Thousands in Edinburgh alone Edinburgh council's latest report to the housing, homelessness and fair work committee confirmed that, as of March 31, more than 5,400 households were living in temporary accommodation, with 3,155 of these households including children. Even more concerning is the fact that 970 of those households were placed in unsuitable temporary accommodation, in breach of legal standards, including 42 children under the age of 16. Alarmingly, we are seeing a growing number of families placed in bed and breakfasts or hostels, environments never intended for long-term living. These settings often lack privacy and the stability children need to grow and thrive. Councils are doing what they can with the limited means at their disposal, but they are being asked to manage an escalating crisis without the necessary resources, funding, or legislative backing to address the root causes and implement lasting solutions. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Despite the clear harm, the SNP recently voted down amendments that would have required local authorities to consider the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of the Child when allocating temporary housing. By rejecting these protections, the government is allowing children to remain in conditions far below acceptable standards of safety and dignity. People deserve dignity While initiatives like the Southeast Regional Delivery Alliance aim to accelerate homebuilding, progress is still slow. In north-west Edinburgh, the average waiting time for non-priority applicants can exceed more than 22 years. Even those with 'silver' priority can wait up to three-and-a-half years. That is not a waiting list, it is a sentence. Laura, Stacey and Sofiane are parents doing everything right, raising children in impossible circumstances. They deserve more than vague timelines; they deserve homes, dignity, and stability. The Scottish Government must stop shifting responsibility and act with urgency. That means properly funding councils, setting clear housing targets, and ensuring temporary accommodation is safe, suitable, and truly temporary. Without decisive intervention, this crisis will deepen, leaving a generation of children to grow up in limbo. That is not a legacy any government should be willing to accept. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As an MSP for Lothian, I will continue fighting for urgent change. Until we address the root causes of this crisis, families will continue to pay the price, with their health, hope, and futures put on hold. That is simply unacceptable.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Trump admin likely violated Constitution in bid to deport Columbia University activist, judge says
Supporters of Mahmoud Khalil rally outside the federal courthouse in Newark on March 28, 2025. (Reena Rose Sibayan for New Jersey Monitor) A federal judge said Wednesday that attempts to deport a pro-Palestinian Columbia University activist likely violate the Constitution, dealing a potential blow to efforts by the Trump administration to kick political student activists out of the country. But U.S. Judge Michael Farbiarz stopped short of releasing Mahmoud Khalil, a legal resident of the U.S., from the Louisiana jail where he is being held. Farbiarz directed Khalil's legal team to present more arguments on why he should be released. The judge added that while Khalil may be successful in challenging the government's 'vagueness' regarding his detention, the government may still be justified in detaining him based on their allegation that he lied on his green card application. Khalil contends he is a political prisoner detained in violation of his free speech rights. 'If an immigration court holds that the Petitioner did not have to disclose the allegedly omitted information, that could fully dispose of the underlying ground for removal, without any need for a federal court to reach a potentially complex First Amendment question,' Farbiarz wrote in the 106-page decision. Khalil was arrested by federal immigration agents in New York City on March 8 and has been held in immigration detention in Louisiana since. He was among the first in a wave of pro-Palestinian legal residents who have been arrested by federal authorities as the Trump administration has ramped up mass deportation and tested the limits of immigration law. While Khalil hasn't been charged with a crime, he's facing removal based on two claims: inaccuracies on his green card application and a determination by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Khail's presence in the country would have 'serious adverse foreign policy consequences' and 'compromise a compelling U.S. foreign policy interest.' Khalil's legal challenge to his detention is playing out in two courts — immigration court in Louisiana, where a judge said she had no authority to question the government's decision to remove Khalil, and in federal court in New Jersey, where Khalil was temporarily held while his attorneys filed a petition for his release. Farbiarz's ruling says Rubio likely overstepped his authority when he invoked a rarely used provision of federal law called section 1227 to target Khalil and other student activists for deportation. The statute allows for the deportation of non-citizens if the secretary of state determines their 'presence or activities … would have serious adverse foreign policy consequences.' 'The petitioner is likely to succeed on the merits of his claim that section 1227 is unconstitutionally vague as applied to him through the SoS's determination,' Farbiarz wrote. Removal of this kind, he added, would be 'unprecedented.' The judge asked for additional briefings on the government's claims surrounding Kahlil's green card application. He also said he would soon issue another order with the next steps in the case. The American Civil Liberties Union, part of the legal team representing Khalil, said in a statement they vow to keep fighting for his release. 'We will work as quickly as possible to provide the court the additional information it requested supporting our effort to free Mahmoud or otherwise return him to his wife and newborn son. Every day Mahmoud spends languishing in an ICE detention facility in Jena, Louisiana, is an affront to justice, and we won't stop working until he is free,' his legal team said. Khalil is protected from being deported immediately under a previous order from Farbiarz that bars the government from removing him while his fight to be released from detention proceeds.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Man 'hit the jackpot' with rare find in Aussie bush after 86 years
A native plant thought to be extinct for over 86 years has been rediscovered, and the Aussie scientists who stumbled upon it during a rare bloom admit they were "super lucky" to be in the right place at the right time. The "elusive bush-pea" had long lived up to its name until Robert T Miller, an experienced botanist, was out on field work recently with colleagues west of Wollongong in New South Wales. They were searching through the "swampy habitat" in the Upper Nepean State Conservation Area as part of the state government's Saving our Species (SoS) program when he spotted a flower in bloom. "That one plant being in flower caught Rob's eye," Simon Lee from SOS told Yahoo News. "It was super lucky. We went back a couple of weeks later to collect a bunch of seed and the plant was no longer in flower, so it was pretty hard to find." Robert sensed he had "hit the jackpot" when he made the discovery, and when the plant was confirmed as the elusive bush-pea, the scientists were "jumping in joy" as the first and last time it was recorded was back in 1938. Since the rediscovery in October, 222 of the plants have been located and 790 seeds collected in the area — situated less than 50 kilometres from where the first ever discovery was made. "We're obviously very excited... it just shows the significance of conservation programs and the efforts across the country that lead to these really remarkable discoveries," Simon said. "I was really grateful to be out there with Rob at the time and it shows the importance of these areas, and what they can hold." Incredible discovery centimetres from train tracks leaves Aussie stunned Air crew makes exciting 'once-in-a-lifetime' discovery in outback Council workers make incredible discovery on roadside The elusive bush-pea (scientific name pultenaea elusa) is a small plant with branches up to 50 centimetres long, and it is easily overlooked among the grass swamp-like habitat where it grows. There are now extensive efforts into re-establishing the "rare" plant which is currently listed as critically endangered in the state. A Project Officer from the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services, Alison Foster, said authorities are "committed to zero extinctions of plants and animals" and conservation programs like the SoS helps them meet this target. "Being able to quickly respond to this find with more field surveys enabled us to collect seed to help secure the future of this elusive plant," Foster said. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
The Citizen
26-05-2025
- The Citizen
Gauteng education responds to school scandals
Complaints about the SGB's financial practices prompted a governance intervention in April The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) has addressed a series of concerns involving Unity Secondary School in Daveyton, a fire incident at Riverlea High School, and challenges in funding for Schools of Specialisation (SoS). The department on Monday acknowledged allegations that teaching posts were being sold at Unity Secondary School. The case dates back to a 2024 complaint alleging that a R17 000 deposit was made into a teacher's account in exchange for employment. 'The implicated teacher denied any involvement, and with no further cooperation from the complainant, the matter was closed due to a lack of evidence,' the GDE said. The department also responded to claims that parents were forced to pay R450 for student report cards. It said this was 'a voluntary donation, agreed upon at the Annual General Meeting', which aligns with Section 37(1) of the South African Schools Act. Complaints about the School Governing Body's (SGB) financial practices prompted a governance intervention in April. 'All SGB members were granted access to the school's financial statements, and communication structures were strengthened,' said the GDE. ALSO READ: Education minister calls on all roleplayers to help kids' kids bullying Decline in pass rates and staffing shortages The department acknowledged a decrease in the school's matric pass rate from 98% in 2020 to 86% in 2024. In response, it has rolled out teacher development programmes and learner support through the Secondary School Intervention Programme (SSIP). Staffing shortages remain an issue. 'The school currently has two vacant departmental head (DH) posts and one vacant deputy principal post,' the statement confirmed. A mid-year appointment is expected for the deputy principal position. ALSO READ: Discipline and learning collapse at Wordsworth High School Riverlea High fire under investigation Riverlea High School sustained significant infrastructure damage after a fire broke out on 27 April. Investigations by the South African Police Service (Saps) forensic unit are ongoing. While five mobile classrooms were delivered to reduce disruptions, the department confirmed that 'no expenditures to report at this time' for the R2.5 million repair plan. The school had limited fire safety infrastructure, and the last fire safety inspection was not recorded before the incident. Fire blankets and basic firefighting training were introduced after the fire, and further collaboration with emergency services is planned for later this year. ALSO READ: VIDEO: Second blaze destroys 11 Riverlea High School classrooms Specialisation schools face budget constraints Funding for SoS schools has been reduced due to broader budgetary constraints. However, the department said it 'continues to pay salaries for all state-employed educators and supports infrastructure costs, excluding minor maintenance.' The GDE reiterated that schools can supplement resources through fundraising. 'Any additional needs are to be addressed through the school's fundraising initiatives,' the statement read. The department urged collaboration with SGBs and stakeholders to improve accountability and learning outcomes. 'These issues are being attended to with the necessary diligence,' it said. NOW READ: School in south of Joburg rocked by sexual harassment claims
