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Modi flags off Uttarakhand’s first Vande Bharat Express train

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 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday flagged off the inaugural run of Uttarakhand’s first Vande Bharat Express from Dehradun to Delhi and slammed the previous governments for not working on the connectivity in the hill state.

The Prime Minister said that the Vande Bharat Express will attract more tourists to �the state.

Prime Minister Modi also dedicated the newly electrified rail line sections as a part of his vision to provide cleaner means of public transport and electrifying rail routes in the country. With this, the state will have its entire rail route 100 per cent electrified.

Speaking on the occasion, Modi underlined that now Dev bhoomi will be connected to the national capital through Vande Bhart Express which will make the journey more pleasant.

Modi said that the manner in which India has strengthened its economy has earned the trust of the world. Even during the Covid pandemic, the country gave a tough fight and supplied vaccines to other countries.

“Today, people want to come to India and in such a scenario, it is a big opportunity for Uttarakhand and this Vande Bharat train will help the hill state,” Modi said.

“After offering prayers at Baba Kedarnath, I had murmured that this decade will be of Uttarakhand’s and today the way the state is striding ahead in development is commendable. It is good for preserving the identity of Devbhoomi. This devbhoomi will be the centre of attraction of spirituality,” he said.

On tourists visiting Uttarakhand, the PM said, “We have seen how people visit the state for char dham yatra and also to participate in the Kumbh here. There are only a few states in the country where people come in such large numbers.”

Catering to so many people is not an easy task but the double engine government is working at full pace. BJP has focused on Kedarnath and Badrinath projects worth Rs 1,300 crore, Rs 2,500 crore for Gaurikund-Kedarnath and Hemkund Sahib ropeway work, promotion of home stay, 16 eco tourism development, spread of health services, among others.

In Udhamsingh Nagar AIIMS satellite centre is being built, Tihri lake development project work Rs 2000 crore is underway, Rishikesh and Hardiwar are emerging as adventure tourism destinations and yoga capital. Work on the Tanakpur-Bageshwar rail line will also start soon, he said.

Under Pushkar Singh Dhami government, all the projects have been paced up on Chardham project with Rs 12,000 crore, between Dehradun and Delhi expressway is also on fast track, which will ease the travel.

Besides roadways, works are also going on ropeway connectivity. With the Parvat Mala project, it will change the face of the state as people have waited for long for proper connectivity. Riskiest and Karnprayag projects will be completed in the next two to three years and over Rs 16,000 crore is being spent on that,” Modi said.

“This project will help in creating employment opportunities and industrial development and Vande Bharat Express will also act as a big gift for the people,” Modi said.

Uttarakhand is now emerging as a film shooting destination, wedding destination, tourism Hub, adventure tourism hub with the efforts of the state government and is attracting the foreign tourists as well, he said.

Now, many parts of the country are having Vande Bharat Express. Train is the first choice of families for long travels.

Taking a pot shot at the previous governments, Modi said, “For��long, the ruling parties did not understand the people’s requirements. Those were focused more on scams, corruption, they were involved in families. In India for high speed trains, previous governments made hig promises. And even after many years they couldn’t do so.

“Similar was the condition of electrification of the Railway network as only one third of the rail network was electrified. So it was impossible to think of running high speed trains. So after 2014, we started bringing the high speed train projects and on other hand we also started preparing trains for semi high speed trains. And also sped up the process of electrification of the rail network. Today, more than 90 per cent of electrification of the entire network has been done and in Uttarakhand we have achieved 100 per cent electrification of the rail network,” he said.

During previous governments, Uttarakhand used to get Rs 200 crore, but this time the state has been granted Rs 5,000 crore projects and this is the reason why the rail network is expanding in the state which is needed for a hill state,” he charged.

“How many villages went vacant due to connectivity issues, we want to save the generations from the issue and thus we are focusing on connectivity. Even for providing proper connectivity to defence forces these projects would help,” he said.

The semi-high speed train will be India’s 17th and Uttarakhand’s first-ever Vande Bharat train which commenced its inaugural run from Dehradun to Delhi’s Anand Vihar terminal.

According to Northern Railway, the regular operations for the Delhi-Dehradun Vande Bharat Express will commence on May 29. The train will cover a distance of 302 km in four hours and forty-five minutes. It will operate six days a week, except Wednesday.

The Vande Bharat is scheduled to depart from Dehradun at 7 a.m. and will reach Delhi’s Anand Vihar terminal at 11.45 a.m., while it would depart from Anand Vihar at 05.50 p.m., and arrive at Dehradun by 10.35 p.m.

During the journey, the train will stop at Meerut City, Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Roorkee, and Haridwar.

The fare for an AC chair seat from Delhi to Dehradun will be Rs 1,065, while an executive chair car ticket will cost Rs 1,890.

According to the Prime Minister Office’s (PMO) official release, the train is equipped with advanced safety features including the Kavach technology.

General

Strict action will now be taken against criminals who flee the country. Their passports will be cancelled and they will not be able to travel abroad.

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New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah stated that fugitives involved in various crimes, including terrorist activities, gangsterism, cyber and economic crimes, who flee the country will not be spared under any circumstances. A more stringent approach will be adopted against them. During the process of issuing Red Corner Notices against such fugitives, their passports will be red flagged, meaning they will be cancelled, preventing them from legally moving from one country to another. He also called for at least one special jail in each state, meeting international standards, to be built to refute fugitives’ claims in foreign courts about the poor quality of facilities in Indian prisons. Home Minister Amit Shah made this statement on Thursday at a two-day conference organized by the CBI on “Extradition of Fugitives – Challenges and Strategies.”

He stated that after 2027, any accused in an FIR will be able to receive justice within three years, from the lower court to the Supreme Court. He also urged police officers from all states present to establish a focus group to coordinate narcotics, terrorism, gangsterism, economic, and cybercrime, which the IB and CBI should work to accelerate through the Multi-Agency Center (MAC). He emphasized that a strict approach should be adopted not only against corruption, crime, and terrorism, but also against gangsters and criminals operating in syndicates outside India. No matter how swift the tactics of crime and criminals, access to justice must be even faster. Referring to the three new criminal laws that will come into effect in July 2024, Shah said that for the first time since independence, a provision has been made to prosecute fugitives even in their absence. Thus, if a fugitive is convicted, his status under international law changes significantly.

The enactment of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act in 2018 empowered the government to seize the assets of fugitives. Within just four years, we have seized assets worth nearly two billion dollars, and between 2014 and 2023, assets worth approximately $12 billion have been seized. The Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has also been strengthened. Since the CBI is the designated agency in India for the extradition of fugitives who have fled abroad, each state should establish a special cell unit with the agency’s assistance to create a mechanism for bringing back fugitives who have fled their respective states. The CBI has established a Global Operations Center (GOC) to apprehend fugitives internationally, providing real-time coordination with police forces around the world.

Regarding the online portal “Bharatpol,” established by the CBI for international police cooperation, the Home Minister stated that it has achieved significant results since its inception in January 2025. Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, the Foreign Secretary, CBI Director Praveen Sood, and IB Chiefs, along with police officers from various states, were present on the occasion. A SOP will be developed through discussions during this two-day conference, which will address the challenges of repatriating fugitives, tracking their real-time status, and identifying shortcomings in their failure to be repatriated.

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Maharashtra

Mumbai BMC employees and officers get bonus Diwali gift

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Mumbai: The Mumbai Municipal Corporation administration has announced a bonus of Rs 31,000 to the officers and employees of Mumbai BMC Corporation for Diwali – 2025.

The decision to provide bonus grant to the officers / employees of the Municipal Corporation for Diwali 2025 was announced by the Municipal Commissioner and Administrator Bhushan Gagrani. The order, details and amount of ex-gratia grant are as follows. The officers / employees of the corporation are Rs 31,000 bonus
‎Private primary school teachers / non-teaching staff who received the grant of Rs 31,000. Municipal primary school and aided private primary school teaching Rs. 31,000. Secondary school teachers / non-teaching staff (aided/unaided): Rs. 31,000/
‎5. Secondary school teaching staff (aided/unaided): Rs. 31,000.Teacher School Lecturer/Non-Teaching Staff (Aided/Unaided): Rs. 31,000.Teacher School Teaching Staff (Full Time) (Aided/Unaided): Rs. 31,000Social Health Volunteer (CHV): Bhaubej Gift Rs. 14,000/-
‎9. Kindergarten Teacher/Helper – Bhaubej Gift Rs. 05,000/-
‎Maharashtra Chief Minister. Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister. Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister. Ajit Pawar has greeted the officers and employees of the Municipal Corporation on the occasion of Diwali.
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Maharashtra

Gadchiroli : After the surrender of commander Bhupati alias Sanu and 60 Maoists with weapons, the Naxalites got a shock, confidence in government was restored : Devendra Fadnavis

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Mumbai: The end of Maoists in Maharashtra is near. In Gudchiroli, a prominent Maoist, Venugopal Malujo alias Bhupati alias Sonu, who was active in many places, has surrendered along with his associates. 60 Maoists have surrendered before the Gudchiroli police, which is a big success for the Maharashtra Police. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said that the Naxalites have been eliminated from the state’s Gadchiroli area and many Maoists have surrendered and they have returned to the right path and normal life. Their faith in the Constitution of India and the administration has been restored. It is a great blessing that the Naxalites have been eliminated from the state. Soon, the 10 to 15 Maoists who are hiding in the forests will also surrender. He said that Bhupati had expressed his desire to surrender. The police were in touch with him and then he expressed his desire that he wanted to surrender to me. So I said that I am ready to go to the forest too. But Bhupati was brought here and today Bhupati has surrendered. This is a big success. With the efforts of the central and state governments, the Naxalites have now become unstable and weak, which is why many Naxalites have surrendered before.

Fadnavis has said that the red terror has ended, the surrender of Naxalites from the borders around Gudchiroli is certain, due to the crackdown on Maoists from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and other borders, Maoists have either surrendered or repented from Naxalism to a large extent. He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah’s dream of a Pakistan-India relationship with the Naxalites is being realized in shame. Bhupati was a Maoist who was the backbone and ideological ideology of the Maoists. His surrender will further strengthen the police operation. He said that it is the result of the hard work of all the senior officers including Maharashtra Police DGP Rashmi Shukla and the officers involved in the Naxal operation that the Maoists’ back has been broken today. Fadnavis said that there was a reward of Rs 6 crore on the Naxalites and now this Maoist has been brought back to the right path.

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