Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the occasion of Constitution Day, which India started celebrating from 2015 onwards, said that this event should have been celebrated each year since 1950 to educate everyone about what went into the making of the Constitution.
Addressing an event on the occasion of Constitution Day in the Central Hall of the Parliament, the Prime Minister said, “Constitution Day should have been celebrated each year after 1950 to educate all about what went into the making of the Constitution. But some people did not do so.
He further added that this day should also be celebrated to evaluate whether what we do is right or not. “During this ‘Azaadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, it is necessary for us to move forward on the path of duty so that our rights are protected,” added PM Modi.
President Ram Nath Kovind led the celebrations of Constitution Day at the Central Hall of Parliament House. Constitution Day is celebrated on November 26 each year to mark the adoption of the Indian Constitution by the Constituent Assembly in 1949.
Constitution came into force on January 26, 1950, marking the beginning of a new era in the history of the Indian Republic. The Constitution Day was first celebrated in 2015 as a mark of tribute to India’s first Law Minister Bhim Rao Ambedkar, who played a pivotal role in the drafting of the document.
The Constitution of India, one of the longest written Constitutions of the world, constitutes of a Preamble, 22 parts with 395 articles and eight schedules.
First demonetization, then GST and after that prolonged lockdown and above all climate changes, has overburdened the common man’s pocket. After fuel, prices of vegetables have hit a century in several metropolitan cities, pinching customers’ pockets. It is not just the customers who are expressing concerns over the soaring prices, but the traders are also taking the hit. Prices for other vegetables, such as capsicum and onions, have also risen.
The prices are expected to be high in the coming days. Food Inflation especially vegetable and fruit inflation is one of the prime monetary policy movers. In India, Food inflation was steady until 2005 after which it began galloping at more than 5% Y-o-Y despite the growth in demand is less than that. Naturally one might get a doubt as to why this anomaly?
Market Economy, Prices of vegetables are no longer related to what the farmers do or don’t. Prices today are decided by traders who buy up what farmers bring to the wholesale market in cities. The traders then sell to wholesalers, who then sell to retailers. Each price the lot based on what they paid to the previous party, plus opportunity price based on external factors. Farmers get the least. Final consumers – you & I – pay the most! “Prices going up” is the effect of events like lockdown, lack of manpower, fuel price rise and other such natural calamities, geopolitical disturbances and other that affect supply
Winter is supposed to be good for veggies but it’s not like that, today this winter concept is not true in large cities and towns, and hybridized vegetables. Vegetables are grown just about everywhere – and in all seasons. This has resulted in availability throughout the year in cities and towns. Transport and logistics take care of this. Carrots from Ooty, mustard greens from WB, potatoes no longer from Himachal Pradesh obviously there is a difference in taste and costs!
An assessment of the inflation trends over the last six decades indicates that India has encountered successive bouts of high food inflation, but the underlying drivers have changed over time; the influence of monsoon has declined and some new sources of price pressures have emerged. What is particularly notable is that during the 2000s, average food inflation fell significantly in contrast, since 2008-09 average food inflation has been higher than the average food inflation in each of the past six decades. This cannot all be attributed to poor monsoon. But then BJP in opposition made a lot of demonstrations and agitations. Now the same leaders are in mute mode.
Between 2012 and 2014 was the time when Indian media, the then opposition BJP and citizens had a deafening time whipping, questioning and mocking the UPA government on everything. The price rise was a particularly favourite subject. BJP leader and current Union Minister Smriti Irani shouted herself hoarse over the high cost of LPG cylinders. Others mocked that they would have to store vegetables in bank lockers.
The then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi was on fire. The unchecked rise in petroleum prices was testimony to the UPA government’s failure and inefficiency. The Prime Minister had lost all moral authority to govern and must resign, he roared. Eight years later, voices have been muffled. The loud politicians are noiseless. The celebrities no longer mock the government or express their outrage on social media. Anchors no longer rage in TV studios. Even the man on the street does not protest.
Narendra Modi wards off attention from issues concerning common people like economic slowdown, price rise and unemployment. Top BJP leaders, including Modi and party president Amit Shah, have been repeatedly speaking about the abrogation of provisions of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir in their rallies in poll-bound states but they turned blind on inflation.
Between 2014 and 2018 when BJP-ruled Maharashtra 220 factories were shut down. Thousands of industrial units in Pune, an automobile hub, were on the verge of closure. Unplanned lockdown and events like the inauguration of the stadium brooked the nation. The common public finding it difficult to survive but the central home minister kept us glued to Kangana Ranaut controversies, Aryan Khan’s arrest and Sushant Singh’s suicide. School fees are rising, train tickets to fuel prices have gone unreachable, commuting has become costly, prices of medicines, house rents, electricity bills are rising.
On the other hand, income sources are constant there is no change rather, salaries were cut during lockdown but no respite to salaried people. No government is worried about the fate of voters but they are just diverting the attention of people to thrive on their vulnerability.
Any suggestions, comments or disputes with regards to this article send us at feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com
The price of tomatoes has soared in Mumbai, reaching as much as Rs 100 per KG in the wholesale market, among the highest prices ever reported. Borivali BMC market, Dadar and Vashi wholesale vegetable market are some of the largest mandis in Mumbai, and according to reports, the highest prices previously reported was Rs 98 per kilo.
The market exports to several states in the country. With a sharp drop in the arrival of tomatoes at the wholesale market, the retail price of an important kitchen staple has skyrocketed.
Prices have touched Rs 100 per kg in many parts of the city and traders say there will be no respite for at least the next 20 days. As if that were not enough, retail prices of other vegetables too have doubled, as crops have been damaged due to unseasonal rain in vegetable-growing areas.
Shankar Pingle, director of the vegetable market at the Agriculture Produce Market (APMC) in Vashi told Afternoon Voice that, “The meagre supply has pushed up the price of tomatoes. The plunge in supply began in September-end and unseasonal rains in many parts of the state made the situation worse.”
There has been a sharp rise in retail tomato prices in major cities of South India due to widespread moderate to heavy rainfalls during the northeast monsoon since the first week of November due to frequent formations of low-pressure areas in the Bay of Bengal, or cyclonic circulation in the Arabian Sea. As a result, the tomato crop has been damaged causing a tight supply.
According to traders, the supply has dipped by 40 to 50 per cent. “Due to excess rainfall in September and due to unseasonal rainfall, the sowing of the new crop was also delayed by another trader from APMC. According to the traders, the reason is the unseasonal rainfall in vegetable-growing areas of the state especially Nashik, Pune and Satara. Brinjal and cauliflower, which were available for around Rs 40 per kg now cost Rs 80 per kg. Spinach and methi cost Rs 20 to Rs 30 per bunch.”
Mumbai, including Navi Mumbai, needs around 300 tonnes of tomatoes every day, and the majority of the demand is met from Nashik and Satara. At present, the market is receiving one-third of the daily requirement, about 100 tonnes per day. In the meantime, the prices of green and leafy vegetables have soared in the market.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday laid the foundation stone of Noida International Airport (NIA) in Jewar, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. The PM was accompanied by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia at the project site.
“Noida International Airport will be a multi-modal connectivity hub. It will create employment opportunities for more than 1 lakh people. Soon we will see 17 airports including an international airport at Ayodhya in the state,” Scindia said. The airport is being developed by Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), a 100 per cent subsidiary of the project’s Swiss concessionaire Zurich International Airport AG.
Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd (YIAPL) is developing Noida International Airport under the PPP model in close partnership with the Government of Uttar Pradesh and the Government of India. With the construction of the airport, it is being expressed that the job opportunities will open in the state.
According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the International Airport near Jewar will be developed as an Aviation Hub which is conceived to provide all the modern, efficient and hi-tech facilities. The airport area when fully operational is expected to have Aero and Non-Aero activities along with MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Operations) facilities. The present project envisages an area of land requirement measuring 3500 acres. In the first phase of development, only 1327 hectares of land would be developed.
Noida International Airport is strategically located, which is at a road distance of about 72 km from IGI Airport, 40 km from Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad respectively, 28 km from Greater Noida, 65 km from Gurugram and 130 km from Agra. “Noida and Delhi will be connected to the airport through hassle-free metro service. All major nearby roads and highways like the Yamuna Expressway, Western Peripheral Expressway, Eastern Peripheral Expressway, Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and others will be connected to the airport,” the ministry said.
The airport will also be linked to the planned Delhi-Varanasi High-Speed Rail, enabling the journey between Delhi and the airport in only 21 minutes The airport will be the logistics gateway for North India. Owing to its scale and capacity, the Noida International Airport will prove to be a game-changer for the state.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the airport is strategically located and will serve the people of cities including Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Agra, Faridabad and neighbouring areas. The projected cost of the proposed project is estimated at around Rs 15000- 20000 crore and the development of the first phase of the airport is being done at a cost of around Rs 10,050 crore.
The ministry further said that the airport will house two passenger terminals while adding that Terminal 1 will have a capacity of 30 million 10 passengers per year and Terminal 2 will have a capacity of 40 million passengers per year. “Terminal 1 will be built in two stages – the first for 12 million passengers per year and the second with an additional capacity for 18 million passengers per year. This phase is scheduled to be completed by the year 2024. Terminal 2 will also be built in two stages – with a first stage capacity of 12 million passengers per year and second stage capacity of 18 million passengers per year,” it said.
This is one of the largest financings in an Indian greenfield airport. The financial close marks another crucial milestone for the project, bringing it closer to the start of construction works. The project is being funded on a debt-to-equity ratio of 65:35. The work at the airport is scheduled to be completed by 2024.
The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to provide two additional companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to secure every polling booth during the Tripura municipal polls.
The opposition Trinamool Congress and CPI(M) in the state told a bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant and Vikram Nath that since the polling started in the morning, its candidates and supporters are not allegedly allowed to cast their votes and there is a serious breach of law and order.
The bench directed the DGP and Tripura Home Secretary to immediately review the security arrangements during the municipal polls and make requisition to MHA for additional CAPF if required.
Each company of CAPF has 100 troops.
It directed the Tripura State Election Commissioner (SEC), DGP and home secretary to ensure polling booths are manned by sufficient CAPF personnel to ensure free and fair elections and every polling official can take help of that personnel if any exigency arises. The bench noted that since the state government has submitted before the high court that there is no coverage of CCTV cameras in polling booths, it is allowing unhindered access of print and electronic media during the civic polls.
It clarified that CAPF personnel will remain deployed in securing the ballot boxes till the counting of votes on November 28.
On November 23, the top court had refused the TMC’s plea for postponing of municipal elections in Tripura and said it is an “extreme recourse” and last resort to do in a democracy and passed a slew of directions to the state police to ensure free and fair elections.
The top court was hearing a plea of TMC and intervention application of CPI (M) seeking direction to the Tripura government and other officials for ensuring free and fair elections in the Municipal polls. Polling began in the morning at 770 booths of Tripura civic polls and the counting of votes will be held on November 28.
Former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, declared a proclaimed offender by a Mumbai court, arrived in Mumbai on Thursday to join the investigation as directed by the court, an official said.
Singh flew in from Chandigarh, the official said. “He has come to join the investigation with the orders of the court and will co-operate the investigation,” he added.
“I will join the investigation as directed by the court,” Singh told media on arrival.
After leaving the airport, Singh appeared before the Mumbai police crime branch Unit-11, where his statement in connection with an extortion case registered at Goregaon police station here will be recorded, the official said.
The IPS officer, who is facing several extortion cases in Maharashtra, had told news channels on Wednesday that he was in Chandigarh.
Singh has not reported to work since May this year, after his transfer from the post of Mumbai police commissioner and his subsequent allegations of corruption against then Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh.
The Supreme Court has granted Singh protection from arrest.
He was transferred after Mumbai police officer Sachin Vaze was arrested in the case of an SUV with explosives found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s house, ‘Antilia’ and the subsequent suspicious death of businessman Mansukh Hiran.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday commuted to life imprisonment the death penalty awarded to three convicts in the 2013 gang rape case of a 22-year-old photojournalist inside the defunct Shakti Mills compound in central Mumbai, saying that they “deserve imprisonment for life to repent the offence committed by them”.
A division bench of Justices Sadhana Jadhav and Prithviraj Chavan refused to confirm the death penalty awarded to Vijay Jadhav, Mohammad Qasim Shaikh, and Mohammad Ansari and commuted their sentence to life imprisonment for the remainder of their lives.
The bench, while pronouncing its order said that it cannot ignore the fact that the offence has shocked the collective conscience of the society and rape is a violation of human rights, but the sentence of death is irrevocable.
It added that courts have to consider cases dispassionately and cannot ignore the procedure laid down by the law.
“Death puts an end to the concept of repentance. It cannot be said that the accused deserved the only death penalty. They deserve imprisonment for life to repent the offence committed by them,” the bench said.
It added that the convict shall not be entitled to parole or furlough as they cannot be allowed to assimilate into the society and as there is no scope for reformation.
In March 2104, the trial court had convicted four persons for gangraping a 22-year-old photo-journalist inside the abandoned Shakti Mills compound in central Mumbai on August 22, 2013.
The court had then imposed the death penalty on three of the convicts – Jadhav, Bengali, and Ansari – as they were also convicted for gang-raping a 19-year-old telephone operator at the same place months before raping the photojournalist.
The trio was awarded the death penalty under the amended section 376 (e) of IPC which says maximum sentence of life or death can be awarded to repeat offenders.
The fourth convict, Siraj Khan, was sentenced to life imprisonment, and a minor accused was sent to a correctional facility.
In April 2014, the trio had approached the high court challenging the validity of section 376 (e) of IPC and contended that the sessions court acted beyond its power in awarding them the death penalty.
The Elgar Parishad case became prominent because of the arrests of some high-profile activists and lawyers, some of whom are in jail for years now. The initial investigation had focused on the people and groups who had organized the Elgar Parishad. Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mewani and former JNU student Umar Khalid were among those who had participated in Elgar Parishad and made speeches. Pune police claimed that while carrying out the investigation; it had stumbled upon material that provided clues about the operations of a larger underground network of banned Naxalite groups.
In June 2018, the Pune police had arrested five activists and lawyers from Pune, Nagpur and Delhi, claiming that these had links to the banned Naxalite organization, CPI (Maoist) and had played a role in organizing the Elgar Parishad. Later that year, in August, the Pune police carried out simultaneous searches at the houses of eight prominent activists in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Goa and Ranchi. Its bid to arrest the activists was foiled by judicial intervention, but three months later, it managed to arrest four of them, including Chhattisgarh-based Sudha Bhardwaj, and Hyderabad-based Varavara Rao. They have been in jail ever since. The others, Anand Teltumbde, a Goa-based academic and professor, and Delhi-based Gautam Navalakha have managed to obtain judicial reprieve against their arrests.
In the courts, the Pune police have claimed that the arrested activists had active links to the CPI(Maoist) which was engaged in destabilising the country and working against national security. It had even been claimed that the arrested people were associated with a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi but no such claims could be proved by agencies or cops.
The Elgar Parishad was an event held on 31 December 2017 to commemorate the two hundredth anniversary of the Battle of Koregaon Bhima. It was organised by a coalition of 260 non-profit organisations at Pune’s Shaniwarwada Fort and had approximately 35,000 people in attendance. The program consisted of a number of cultural performances, speeches and slogans. On 1 January 2018, violence broke out at Bhima Koregaon, where lakhs of Dalits had converged to commemorate the battle. One person was killed, and three others were injured.
In the months following the event, a number of people present at the event were arrested under laws such as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). This included Surendra Gadling, Rona Wilson, Mahesh Raut, Sudhir Dhawale and Shoma Sen. However, Justices BG Kolse-Patil and PB Sawant refuted their claims. The Justices said that it was the two of them who were the main organisers and sole funders of the event and that they had held a similar event against communalism and Hindutva in October 2015 at the same venue.
Every year on the first day of January, thousands of people belonging to the Dalit community (Mostly Mahars) gather near the ‘victory pillar’ in Koregaon to celebrate an event that took place 2 centuries back. Dalit groups observe this day as a victory over the forces of the upper caste Peshwas. This year the event turned into a violent episode, as the Dalits and Upper casts’ rightists clashed very badly.
However, according to various think tanks and prominent personalities, Elgar Parishad has no connection with Naxalites. Prakash Ambedkar has also stated that the objective of Elgar Parishad was to bridge the growing divide between Marathas versus OBC and SC/STs. He finds no reason for linking Elgar Parishad’s activities with Maoists or Bhima Koregaon violence.
Maha Vikas Aghadi in Maharashtra had said it would re-examine the Elgar Parishad case. A team of Pune police had made a presentation before deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and then the home minister Anil Deshmukh about the status of the case but no conclusion was drawn. There was a difference of opinion between Uddhav Thackeray and Ajit Pawar over the same issue.
So far, The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has submitted 17 draft charges against the accused in the Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) before a special court in Mumbai. The draft states, the accused attempted to “wage war against the governments of India and Maharashtra.” The accused recruited students from various universities, including Jawaharlal Nehru University and Tata Institute of Social Science for the commission of terrorist activity and that there was a specific allegation against Anand Teltumbde that he “knowingly caused evidence to disappear with the intention of screening the offenders from legal punishment.
The criminal conspiracy was with the intention of “bringing about the cession of a part of the territory of India” and “incited individuals to bring about such secession and disrupted the territorial integrity of India.” The accused had, “intent to strike terror in the people, any section of the people in India and in the state of Maharashtra by using explosive substances like logistics, wires, nails, nitrate powder, and possessing and transporting sophisticated weapons like, Chinese QLZ 87 Automatic Grenade Launcher and, Russian GM-94 Grenade Launcher and M-4 with 400,000 rounds which by its very nature was to cause or likely to cause death or injuries to any person or persons or loss of or damage to or destruction of properties and was an attempt to do or cause the death of public functionary. But so far none of these claims is proven against them. Most of them are senior citizens and languishing in jail.
Any suggestions, comments or disputes with regards to this article send us at feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com
Dismissed police officer Sachin Vaze on Wednesday told an inquiry commission in Maharashtra that he used to receive instructions from former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh through “proper channel” on cases he was supervising.
Vaze is being-crossed examined before the commission probing corruption allegations against former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh.
In March this year, the Maharashtra government formed the one-member commission of retired Justice Kailash Uttamchand Chandiwal to probe Singh’s allegations against Deshmukh (71).
On Wednesday, Vaze was examined by Shekhar Jagtap, a lawyer representing Sanjeev Palande, personal secretary of then-home minister, Deshmukh. Palande, an additional collector-rank officer, is currently in judicial custody in a money laundering case pertaining to the corruption allegations against Deshmukh.
Singh, in a letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, had claimed in and around mid-February and thereafter, Deshmukh had called Vaze to his official residence.
At that time, one or two staff members of the then-home minister, including his personal secretary (Palande), were also present, Singh had said.
Asked whether he knew Palande personally, Vaze replied in the negative and said he knew him only as an aide of Deshmukh.
To a query whether Palande ever made any demand or communicated anything related to money to him, Vaze responded in the negative.
In response to another query, “Vaze told the commission that personally he was investigating only one case.”
“But as a unit in charge I was supervising several cases,” he said.
On whether he was getting any instructions from Singh on the case he was supervising, Vaze said he used to get directions concerning cases he was supervising from his immediate bosses and superiors, including the then-police commissioner (Singh), through “proper channel”. Days after he was shunted out as Mumbai police commissioner and transferred to the Home Guards in March this year, Singh had claimed in the letter to the CM that Deshmukh used to ask police officers to collect money from restaurant and bar owners in the metropolis.
Deshmukh resigned from the post of state home minister in April this year. The NCP leader has repeatedly denied the allegations against him.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) are separately probing the allegations made against Deshmukh related to corruption and money laundering.
The former minister is in judicial custody in the case related to alleged money laundering.
Vaze was dismissed from police service after his arrest in a case related to the recovery of an explosives-laden SUV from near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s house in south Mumbai in February year and the subsequent murder of Thane businessman Mansukh Hiran, the owner of the vehicle.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a bill to repeal the three farm laws, which triggered protests at Delhi borders by thousands of farmers, and will be tabled in Parliament during the upcoming winter session for passage.
On November 19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation had announced the withdrawal of the three farm laws, saying the government could not convince protesting farmers about the benefits of the agriculture sector reforms. He had also urged them to end the protest and return home.
The Cabinet has approved the Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 to roll back the three laws passed by Parliament in September last year, to bring reforms in the agriculture sector, especially the marketing of farm produce.
The three laws to be repealed are Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act; The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act; and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act.
The Cabinet has completed the formalities to repeal the three farm laws, I&B Minister Anurag Thakur told reporters.
”In the upcoming session of Parliament, it will be our priority to take back these three laws,” he said.
The winter session will begin on November 29 and conclude on December 23.
The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 has been approved days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement to repeal the three central farm laws. Besides this, Parliament is scheduled to take 25 other bills, including one on cryptocurrencies.
The repeal of the three-farm legislation has been one of the key demands of around 40 farmer unions protesting against these reforms for nearly a year now.
These laws, which are under suspension following a Supreme Court order in January this year, had triggered widespread protests by thousands of farmers mainly from Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh at Delhi borders.
The protest started at the fag-end of November 2020 and is continuing.
On November 21, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) — joint body of farmer unions leading the current protests — had written to the Prime Minister to immediately resume talks on the farmers’ six demands including legal guarantee for the procurement of crops at minimum support price (MSP).
The other demands were sacking and arrest of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra in connection with the Lakhimpur Kheri incident, withdrawal of cases against farmers, and building of a memorial for those who lost their lives during the agitation.
They also sought removal of penal provisions on farmers in the ”Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act 2021” and withdrawal of the draft ”Electricity Amendments Bill, 2020/2021” proposed by the government.
SKM had said it would continue its planned protests, including the march to Parliament on November 29, to observe one year of anti-farm law protests.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the occasion of Constitution Day, which India started celebrating from 2015 onwards, said that this event should have been celebrated each year since 1950 to educate everyone about what went into the making of the Constitution.
The price of tomatoes has soared in Mumbai, reaching as much as Rs 100 per KG in the wholesale market, among the highest prices ever reported. Borivali BMC market, Dadar and Vashi wholesale vegetable market are some of the largest mandis in Mumbai, and according to reports, the highest prices previously reported was Rs 98 per kilo.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday laid the foundation stone of Noida International Airport (NIA) in Jewar, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. The PM was accompanied by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia at the project site.
The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to provide two additional companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to secure every polling booth during the Tripura municipal polls.
