BJP is all geared up to win 2019 elections

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March 27, 2019

This time it was not very easy for BJP to choose the leaders for the 2019 elections; however, after the elections results in four major states, BJP was bound to go by full-proof strategy. Winning the general election in 2019 won’t be as easy for BJP as it was in 2014. BJP has certainly not done as expected in the recent past. By-polls are never the basis on which the general elections are measured. Even in these by-polls, BJP lost by less than 5 per cent in low turnout elections. However, BJP needs to know that combined opposition is mightier than the party believed it to be.

BJP reached maximum in its bastions of Uttar Pradesh (73), Bihar ( 22), Maharashtra (23), Chhattisgarh (10), Delhi (7), Goa (2), Gujarat (26), Madhya Pradesh (27), Jharkhand (12), Haryana (7), Himachal Pradesh (4), Uttarakhand (5), Rajasthan (25) — a total of 243 out of 298 which is 81.5 per cent strike rate. The party has reached its maximum in these states. It can only go down. If the opposition unites, the number may come down by at least 70 to 80 seats in these states.

In Bihar, Janata Dal (United) has started asserting itself and wants a maximum of 25 seats for itself. In Maharashtra, Shiv Sena once announced that it will contest solo but later on, they joined hands with BJP. Although, this time, the stake of Sena might be higher than BJP. TDP has severed its ties with NDA. If JD(U) and Samajwadi Janata Party (SJP) too distance themselves, there is a great danger for NDA. The only silver lining is Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) which has stated that its relation with BJP is intact. In Karnataka, Janata Dal (Secular) and Congress may give a joint fight to BJP which is tough to overcome for the saffron party. Although PM Modi’s popularity is intact, Rahul too is improving his ratings. People’s expectations were too high and delivery was not adequate with their expectations. Though there is good progress in all fields and that is better than the UPA regime, people tend to forget the past quickly. Apart from Rahul Gandhi, this time, even his sister Priyanka has entered politics. Besides, many other stalwarts have joined Congress. If we look at the broader picture, Congress is getting revived.

When it comes to riots and caste equations, Congress sponsored violence in the name of Dalit Andolan and has made things worse for BJP.

BJP is in power in 21 states which send 328 seats. NDA has 278 seats which is 84 per cent of the total number of seats. BJP’s resilience to retain the vote share and seats are very high in the general elections. All their unity can only dent BJP’s strength marginally. At most, the party may lose 50 to 70 seats. Still, BJP will be getting anywhere around 220 and NDA around 250. If NDA gets 250, the opposition has no chance in forming the government. Modi is still at the forefront as the most admired figure with an acceptance rating above 50 per cent.

BJP has the best booth level committee that has made the party very strong at the grassroot level. It has extended its influence to new areas of Northeast, West Bengal, and Odisha. In Northeast, the party is in an unassailable position. In WB and Odisha, it is occupying the second position. In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the party is expected to enter into an alliance with YSR Congress Party and JanaSena Party of Pawan Kalyan. If it happens, it becomes a formidable combination. In Tamil Nadu, BJP is expected to ally with AIDMK. In Kerala, it may give a good fight though it is in contention only in two or three seats. Hence, the opposition unity will be challenged in all these states. There is every possibility of BJP alone scoring 65 seats out of 190 seats. Hence, all the loss in other cow belt states will be made good in these states.

In Karnataka, even if JDS and Congress come together, its effect will be restricted to only 12 seats of old Mysore, areas. In all the other five regions, JDS does not have any influence. Hence, BJP will face combined opposition only in nine seats. There is every possibility of BJP repeating 2014 or increasing marginally. People have previous experience of such United Fronts. The opposition is coming together on a single premise of hatred towards PM Modi which is not acceptable to the people at large.

BJP has absolute control over 21 states. Last time, such absolute control over states was witnessed 25-five years back during 1993 when Congress was in power in 16 states. Because of this, BJP has full control over police, government machinery, CBI, etc., which can be efficiently used to offset the advantages of the coming together of the opposition.

BJP should secure relationships with the present alliance partners. Amit Shah is more accommodative. Hence, he can retain the leading ones of JDU, SJP, and SS. Also, the party should take in new partners of YSRCP, JanaSena party, and AIADMK as the party needs to extend its influence in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu. They should also try to attract smaller parties into NDA in Kerala, Odisha, and West Bengal.

Since there is no alternative to PM Modi and Modi wave is still solid, BJP is the only party which has any chance of forming the government. The opposition all together will not cross 180. BJP under Amit Shah and his strategies will deliver the desired results. Narendra Modi has not lost an election as the CM and will not lose an election as the PM as well.

In 2014, people went against Congress because of scams and poor plans implemented during UPA-2 and also we can’t forget the similar Modi wave. In these five years, BJP emerged as the largest political party in the world. There are pros and cons for both BJP and Congress in different states. However, there are many factors that are going to benefit BJP such as Absence of Competitive Opposition against the NDA, Rahul Gandhi being not a perfect PM candidate, and BJP’s newly established roots in Goa, Bihar, and other states by the coalition. Moreover, the split in Congress party as many MLA and leaders are quitting the party and joining BJP. In the end, the rule of the election game is very simple: Gain a majority and voila, you are declared as the winner of 2019 Lok Sabha elections and we all know this is surely possible for BJP!

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

Commercial establishments in Esplanade building get BMC notice

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is asking the commercial establishments running from the dilapidated Esplanade Mansion in south Mumbai to down the shutters for the time being.

It’s a historical building, recognised by UNESCO as a heritage structure, but now considered hazardous.

The building, formerly known as Watson Hotel, was built with cast iron fabricated in England, and holds the distinction of hosting the first-ever film screening in India in 1896.

The civic body has so far served notices to nine commercial establishments, asking them to stop operating from the premises until the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay submits a structural stability report.

Though the building is rickety, its occupants — many of them lawyers who have offices there — have given undertaking to the Bombay High Court that they would like to stay put and will be solely responsible for consequences.

“But we are fearful about customers who visit the building and who are not aware (of the danger it poses). To avoid any untoward incident, as a preventive measure we have asked commercial owners or operators to keep their businesses closed for some time,” a senior civic official said.

The popular Army Restaurant, which runs from the ground floor of the five-storey building, has been closed following the BMC notice.

Another occupant, ‘Smart and Hollywood Ladies & Gents Tailor’, said to be the city’s oldest tailoring establishment, too has been asked to close.

Mumtaz Ahmed, who has been working at the shop for over five decades, said the shop will soon down its shutter.

“We have stitched clothes for Miss Indias back in the ’50s and ’60s, and also for Alyque Padamsee’s (theatrical) productions,” Mumtaz said.

Assistant Municipal Commissioner Kiran Dighavkar said BMC’s notices conform to guidelines laid down by the Bombay High Court while hearing the matter when some of the occupants moved the court against eviction notices.

“The decision (to issue present notices) respects the High Court ruling’s framework,” he said.

The Maharashtra Housing Area Development Authority (MHADA), responsible for the upkeep of old buildings, placed the building in the list of “most dangerous” in 2010, and asked its occupants to vacate it.

However, the occupants moved the court, arguing that the building was “repairable” and MHADA should repair it.

“The building is extremely rickety and we served them notices twice….Now the matter is sub-judice,” said a MHADA official.

ASAT indicator of political will backing scientists: Tawde

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

The anti-satellite (ASAT) missile capability demonstration on Wednesday was an indicator of the political will backing the country’s scientists, Maharashtra minister and senior BJP leader Vinod Tawde said.

In a morning television address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that India had demonstrated anti-satellite missile capability by shooting down a live satellite, describing it as a rare achievement that puts the country in an exclusive club of space super powers.

“There has been international pressure on the government against carrying out research and tests on critical issues such as anti-satellite missiles. The Modi government has shown its political will by standing firmly behind the scientists,” Tawde claimed.

He alleged that work on the ASAT had slowed down under the previous government due to international pressure before it got revived and picked up speed after 2014 under PM Modi.

Queried on PM Modi’s televised address, Tawde said such critical achievements were important and hence needed to be announced by the PM himself.

“I wonder why some people are jealous of PM Modi making the announcement,” Tawde asked.

High Court raps railways, civic body over Mumbai bridge collapse

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

Referring to the recent bridge collapse in Mumbai, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday asked the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the railways why such incidents continued to take place despite their claims of regular structural audits.

A bench of Chief Justice Naresh Patil and Justice NM Jamdar said such accidents were apparently a result of lack of coordination between the two agencies.

On March 14, a foot overbridge near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus collapsed killing six persons and injuring 31.

The observation came after Suresh Kumar, the counsel for Central Railway, told the court that the bridge collapse was “a lapse on the BMC’s part”.

However, the bench said, “There is no point of blaming anyone now. To us it seems apparent such accidents continue to happen because agencies do not coordinate with each other.”

“You (BMC and railways) have all technical expertise, you claim to conduct audits. But why don’t you coordinate with each other? Why don’t you conduct joint meetings to take stock of the condition of all existing foot overbridges, safety measures etc,” the bench said.

“Bridges collapse, accidents take place on foot over bridges, people die…but nothing is done. What is happening?” the bench said.

The court said both agencies must look into the wide range of problems affecting suburban rail travel in the city.

It asked the agencies to look at issues such as conducting safety audits of overbridges and foot overbridges, removal of encroachers abutting tracks, and entry and exit points of such bridges.

It was hearing a PIL filed after the 2017 Elphinstone Road station foot overbridge stampede.

10 Blunders Every UPSC Aspirant should avoid

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

NOT following the curriculum – one of the biggest mistakes the aspirants commit is not to follow the syllabus given by the UPSC. Many of them start their preparation without referring to the syllabus and within no time find themselves in ‘no progress zone’. Though the topics may be vast, but not completely unlimited. CSE aspirants need to break this myth as this may prove fatal in the long run costing you with time, money, energy, and resource. In their course of preparation, consider the UPSC syllabus as your roadmap to start with and continue referring it at all points of preparation.

Missing to go through previous years – Aspirants do not realise that the previous year papers can help them prepare in accordance with the latest trend followed by the UPSC. While preparing, refer to previous years after each step in order to co-relate with the topics finished, as this is a good indicator of whether you are moving in the right direction or not.

Piling up irrelevant books – Flooding the room completely with UPSC preparation books does not always land you in success. For effective preparation, choose handpicked books that are genuinely relevant. Though there are several market place in the city that is the hub for such preparation books with various authors and publications available, scrutinise for the relevant book to idealise your preparation. It is preferable for the aspirants to seek advise from their seniors, experienced mentors or reliable sources before going for a book purchase.

Not getting basic reference – Most of the aspirants do this by going for heavyweight books instead of getting the basics clear. The NCERT books upto 12 standard are a good source of knowledge to initiate steadily. This is the most atomic sized mistake that can compel your preparations to fall.

Writing skills deficiency – the mains exams is the criteria for the selection process that includes writing essays. One lacking writing skills may not be well efficient in clearing the selection process. The aspirants should be well equipped with facts and wisdom, the fluent flow of knowledge in a very precise and skillfull manner. Being one of the toughest tasks, if not rectified on time, failure is guaranteed. Aspirants should be focusing on exam pattern oriented writing rigorously rather than blogging to improve writing and typing skills.

Way of Choosing optional paper – Aspirants opt for the optional paper based on the subject scores and marking trends, length and extent of the curriculum and subject that covers almost the GS paper. These insights and estimations can prove fatal during results. The optional paper should be chosen in such a way that it should also suit the aspirants interest and inclination towards it.

NOT perceiving the bottom line of the newspapers – if the newspapers and the magazines are not understood about ‘what and how to read’, the results will yield low in the long run. A newspaper has three segments from an exam point of view – events (that gives facts and figures), Issues (provides views and reviews that helps in developing an individuals understanding and opinion on contemporary subjects.) and gossips. In addition articles on various other segments also helps the aspirants to frame and write well structured essays. Hence utilise the newspapers with persistent efforts.

Improper analysis of your strengths – SWOT analysis is undertaken to identify the internal strengths and weaknesses, as well as external opportunities and threats. As the nature of the UPSC exam demands high dynamism and adaptability, candidates miss to analyse their inbuilt strengths and weakness along with the posing opportunity and threats. This takes them in a wrong direction during preparation leading to loss of tempo and zeal. Aspirants should, therefore, keep a consistent grip over their strong areas and at least a loose fist over weaker section.

Not prioritising the task – improper management of time can lead to undesirable outcomes. As aspirants put years together for UPSC preparation, managing time and prioritising their work is a must. Any ambition without a time frame is nothing more than a fantasy. Understand the difference between urgent and important to achieve fruitful benefits.

Circumventing regular reviewing – To retain the information stored during the preparation, it is necessary to revise consistently. There has to be a very well maintained cohesion between what you read and ‘revise’ what have you read till date. Video Lectures, Subject Audios, and Group Discussions (Group Study) can prove to be a boon for an aspirant of UPSC CSE.

By AK Mishra

Diljit Dosanjh, Kriti Sanon-starrer ‘Arjun Patiala’ gets new release date

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

Diljit Dosanjh and Kriti Sanon starrer ‘ArjunPatiala’, which was scheduled to release on May 3, will now hit the theatres on July 19 – the same day as Sunny Deol’s directorial ‘Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas’ starring his son Karan is set to release.

“New release date for #ArjunPatiala… Will now release on 19 July 2019… Stars Diljit Dosanjh, Kriti Sanon and Varun Sharma… Directed by Rohit Jugraj… Produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Dinesh Vijan and Sandeep Leyzell,” Indian film critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted.

The film also stars ‘Fukrey’ fame Varun Sharma.

The first look of the flick, which was unveiled last year, featured Diljit and Varun as police officers, while Kriti sits on a chair in front of them pointing a gun to her head.

Kriti will play a scoop-hungry crime reporter in ‘Arjun Patiala,’ which is being directed by Rohit Jugraj.

This will be the second time when Diljit will be seen playing a cop in a Bollywood film after ‘Udta Punjab.’ The film marks Kriti and Diljit’s first collaboration together.

‘Arjun Patiala’ is being co-produced by T-Series honcho Bhushan Kumar and Dinesh Vijan of Maddock Films.

Meanwhile, ‘Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas’, also starring Sahher Bammba is a love story and has been shot across various exotic locales of Manali. This is Sunny’s third directorial after ‘Dillagi’ and ‘Ghayal Once Again’.

Manu Bhaker-Saurabh Chaudhary Smash World Record in 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team Match

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

The ace Indian pairing of Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary won the 10m Air Pistol mixed team match on day one of the ongoing 12th Asian Airgun Championship in Taipei’s Taoyuan. The pair in the win smashed the qualification world record in the process.

This win comes exactly after a month for the pair after winning an International Shooting Sport Federation World Cup stage gold medal.

The pair shot a combined 784 in the qualification round, breaking the record set by Russians Vitalina Batsarashkina and Artem Chernousov at the European Championships five days back before going on to win the five-team finals with a score of 484.8.

Hwang Seongeun and Kim Mose of Korea won silver with a score of 481.1 while Wu Chia Ying and Kou Kuan-Ting won Bronze for the host country with a score of 413.3.

The second Indian team comprising of Anuradha and Abhishek Verma also reached the finals to finish fourth with a score of 372.1

Manu and Saurabh had previously won a gold medal in the same event at the New Delhi World Cup as well.

Savita to lead Indian women’s hockey team in Malaysia tour

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

Goalkeeper Savita will captain an 18-strong Indian women’s hockey team for the five-match series against Malaysia starting April 4, Hockey India announced on Wednesday.

Savita will stand in for regular skipper Rani Rampal, who is nursing an injury. The eight-day tour to Kuala Lumpur will have defender Deep Grace Ekka as Savita’s deputy.

Speaking about the tour ahead of 2020 Olympic Qualifying events, chief coach Sjoerd Marijne said: “One of the things we wanted to improve after the Spain Tour was our One Vs One defending and create more opportunities after we intercept the ball.”

“These are the two key areas we want to focus on in Malaysia and we keep working on individual consistency of players.”

In the absence of Rani, the experienced Namita Toppo and dragflicker Gurjit Kaur, Marijne said, it would be an opportunity for the youngsters to strengthen their future prospects.

I started doubting my character, wasn’t ready to face people: Rahul on ‘Koffee’ controversy

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

“I couldn’t help but doubt myself, doubt my own character,” said Indian cricketer K L Rahul as he reflected on the storm triggered by his and Hardik Pandya’s sexist comments on a TV show.

Rahul and India teammate Pandya were provisionally suspended by the BCCI for their loose talk on women on the show. The Committee of Administrators (COA) handed the inquiry into the matter to the Supreme Court-appointed BCCI Ombudsman and a decision is still awaited.

Weeks away from his 27th birthday, Rahul spoke about what he endured after he was sent back before the ODI series in Australia.

“…it was hard as I am not used to people disliking me. For the first one week or 10 days, I couldn’t help but doubt myself, doubt my own character. The hardest thing was to know whether actually you are a bad person, when so much has been written about you,” Rahul told ‘India Today’.

It was a time when Rahul briefly cut himself off socially as he was “scared to face” uncomfortable questions from outsiders.

“I was quite honestly scared to step out as I wasn’t ready. If somebody would ask questions, I didn’t know what I would answer. I would go for practice, come back home and be on my playstation as I wasn’t simply ready to face people,” the eloquent batsman said.

Rahul admitted that the glamour and razzmatazz that surrounds the Indian team has briefly left him disconnected with his roots and his well-wishers.

However, he was thankful to the Indian team members and the support staff, who were there during his trying times.

Maha LS poll: Uddhav, Aaditya among star campaigners for Sena

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Web Team

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March 27, 2019

The Shiv Sena on Wednesday released its list of 20 star campaigners for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, prominent among them being party president Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya.

Others on the list are state cabinet ministers Subhash Desai, Diwakar Raote, Ramdas Kadam and Eknath Shinde.

The list also contains the name of Sena MPs Sanjay Raut, Anant Geete, Anandrao Adsul and Chandrakant Khaire.

Sena leaders Aadesh Bandekar, Gulabrao Patil, Vijay Shivtare, Suryakant Mahadik, Vinod Ghosalkar, Neelam Gorhe, Laxman Vadle, Nitin Bangude Patil, Varun Sardesai and Rahul Londhe will also be star campaigners.

Earlier, the Congress and the BJP had announced the names of their respective star campaigners. Maharashtra leaders Ashok Chavan, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Sushilkumar Shinde, Prithviraj Chavan, Balasaheb Thorat were some of the names on the Congress’ list.

The BJP’s list included names of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, Prakash Javadekar and Suresh Prabhu, besides MP Raosaheb Danve and state minister Vinod Tawde.

Maharashtra will go to polls on April 11, 18, 23 and 29. Counting of votes will take place nationwide on May 23.