National News
Another round of district bifurcation in Bengal likely next year
Speculation is rife that West Bengal is heading for a fresh round of district bifurcation by 2023.
Reportedly a brainchild of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the preparatory planning for this proposed fresh district bifurcation has already started and the plan is currently restricted among a selected members of the cabinet and the top bureaucrats of the state. Although none of the top cabinet members and bureaucrats were willing to make any official comment on this matter, highly placed sources said if the fresh bifurcation is done the total number of districts in West Bengal will increase to 27 from the existing 23.
The planned three new districts will be forked out of the two big districts of North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas. To recall, the two existing districts of North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas were formed by bifurcating the erstwhile undivided 24 Parganas district on March 1, 1980.
A state government official, aware of the planning on the formation of the three new districts, told IANS on condition of anonymity, that the proposed three districts would be Sunderbans, Basirhat and Alipur.
Of the three, the formation of Sunderbans district will be the most complicated process and it will have to be formed by forking out pockets from both North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas district. According to him, the proposed Sunderbans district might be forked out mainly out of Gosaba, Basanti and Kultali areas in South 24 Parganas district as well as Hingalganj and Sandeshkhali blocks in the current North 24 Parganas district.
The state government official also said that the formation process of the planned Basirhat and Alipur districts will be comparatively simple. Alipur might be formed with the pockets forked out of the Kolkata adjacent pockets in South 24 Parganas districts as well as the Assembly constituencies under Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha constituency, where from the MP is the Trinamool Congress’s national general secretary and the chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee.
On the other hand, the state government official said the proposed Basirhat district would be formed from pockets forked out of the existing Basirhat and Bangaon sub-divisions in North 24 Parganas district.
Since 1980, West Bengal has witnessed district bifurcations for seven times, out of which three developments were during the previous Left Front regime and four developments took place during the current Trinamool Congress regime.
The first event of district bifurcation in the state was on March 1, 1980 when the previous Left Front government was in force with late nonagenarian Indian Marxist, Jyoti Basu as the state chief minister.
The second phase of district bifurcation was on April 1, 1992, when the erstwhile West Dinajpur district was bifurcated into the existing North Dinajpur and South Dinajpur districts. At that point of time the Jyoti Basu-led Left Front government was in power in the state.
The third phase of bifurcation was on January 1, 2002, when the undivided Midnapore district was divided into the existing two districts of East Midnapore and West Midnapore. Mamata Banerjee’s predecessor, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was the chief minister of West Bengal then.
On June 25, 2014, when the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress regime came to power, the new Alipurduar district was formed by bifurcating Jalpaiguri district.
Again, on February 14, 2017, the hill district of Kalimpong was formed by bifurcating the Darjeeling district.
On April 4, 2017, the formation of the new Jhargram district was formed by bifurcating the West Midnapore district.
Finally, on April 7, 2017, two districts of West Burdwan and East Burdwan were created by bifurcating the erstwhile undivided Burdwan district.
Commenting on the practical justification of the bifurcation of districts, senior political analyst and former registrar of Calcutta University, Raja Gopal Dhar Chakraborty told IANS that formation of smaller districts through bifurcation of bigger districts is always a welcome move.
“First this will provide a relief to the common people from travelling long distances to reach government offices. Secondly, formation of new districts means creation of new government offices which enhances the scope of fresh employment. However, at the same time, I would also like to say that like the formation of new and smaller districts I also do not find any harm in creation of new and smaller states through bifurcation of bigger states. There might be some sentimental issues involved with the bifurcation of states but creation of smaller states enhances administrative advantage,” Dhar Chakraborty said.
Business
India’s infrastructure market expected to hit Rs 25 lakh crore by 2030: Report

New Delhi, Nov 25: India is entering a multi-year infra super-cycle, with the Nifty Infrastructure index delivering 2 times returns of the Nifty 50 over the past three years, a report said on Tuesday.
India’s infrastructure equities have evolved from defensive to high‑beta, high‑alpha and could nearly double in market size by 2030 to around Rs 25 lakh crore, the report from Smallcase said.
Analysts said that the growth is driven government spending and private capex revival — helped by PLI schemes, global supply-chain shifts, and manufacturing incentives.
Smallcase estimated that Rs 1 of infrastructure capex delivers roughly Rs 2.5 — Rs 3 of GDP impact.
Markets are likely to maintain a high beta to infrastructure execution; earnings visibility across engineering, construction, industrials, cement, power equipment and logistics remain robust, the report noted.
InvITs growth will be underpinned by predictable, contract-based revenue streams offering pre‑tax yields of about 10–12 per cent and post‑tax returns near 7–9 per cent generally higher than many conventional fixed-income instruments.
The Nifty Infrastructure Index returned 14.5 per cent, 82.8 per cent and 181.2 per cent over the past 1, 3 and 5 years, outperforming the Nifty 50’s 10.5 per cent, 41.5 per cent and 100.3 per cent, the report said.
“Though Infrastructure investment in India Although these assets can experience temporary fluctuations during periods of market uncertainty, their historical volatility of about 10.2 per cent is well below the equity market’s 15.4 per cent, resulting in comparatively steadier performance,” said Abhishek Banerjee, Investment manager on smallcase, and founder of LotusDew.
With a correlation of only 0.42 to equities, infrastructure platforms tend to behave similarly to utilities, producing consistent, inflation-linked income that is largely unaffected by economic swings, he added.
National News
Sadiyo ke ghav bhar rahe hain: PM Modi at Ram Temple Dhwajarohan Utsav

Ayodhya, Nov 25: After leading the ‘Dhwajarohan Utsav’ by hoisting the sacred flag atop the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the day marks the end of centuries of pain and struggle.
PM Modi and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat led the ‘Dhwajarohan Utsav’ at the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple by hoisting the specially-designed sacred saffron flag atop the temple.
Addressing the large gathering from the Ram Janmabhoomi temple premises, PM Modi said, “Today, the city of Ayodhya is witnessing another turning point in India’s cultural consciousness. Today, the entire country, the entire world is filled with devotion for Lord Ram.”
The ceremony holds deep cultural and spiritual meaning for devotees across the country.
“Every Ram devotee’s heart is filled with immense satisfaction, gratitude and happiness. ‘Sadiyo ke ghav bhar rahe hain (centuries old wounds are healing today)’. The pain of centuries is coming to an end today, and the resolve of centuries is achieving success today. Today is the ‘poornahuti’ (final offering)’ of that ‘yagna’ whose fire burned for 500 years. The yagya that never wavered in faith, not even for a moment,” he added.
The flag, specially crafted for the Ram Temple, measures 22 feet in length and 11 feet in width. Designed by a parachute specialist from Ahmedabad, Gujarat, the flag weighs between 2 and 3 kilograms and has been designed to withstand winds at high altitudes.
The flag carries the Sun symbol, representing Lord Rama’s Suryavanshi heritage and divine radiance. The flag is adorned with an image of the Kovidara tree, Sun and Om. It is saffron in colour — symbolising fire, the rising Sun, sacrifice and dedication.
Speaking about the sacred flag, PM Modi said, “This Dharma Dhwaj is not just a flag, it is the symbol of the renaissance of Indian civilisation. The flag’s saffron colour, the symbol of the Sun, the holy word ‘Om’ and the Kovidar tree represent the glory of Ramrajya. This ‘Dhwaj’ is a resolution, a success, a tale of creation from struggle, a representation of a dream come true, an evidence of saints’ devotion and social participation.”
“This Dharm Dhwaj will become an inspiration of ‘Pran jaaye par vachan na jaaye’ (We will give our life to keep a promise). This will give a message that ‘Karma’ and ‘Kartavya’ should be given priority in the world. This will also make us resolve to maintain peace and prosperity in society, where no one is poor and suffering,” he added.
The event marks the completion of the temple construction.
National News
Six injured in fire at electronics shop in Hyderabad

Hyderabad, Nov 25: Six people were injured in a massive fire in an electronics shop in the old city of Hyderabad.
On Monday night, the fire started in the electronics shop on Shahalibanda due to a short circuit, completely gutting it. A CNG cylinder explosion in a car parked in front of the shop further spread the blaze.
Eight fire engines, a skylift fire truck, and a firefighting robot were pressed into service to bring the blaze under control. It took more than two hours for the firefighting personnel to douse the flames.
The fire, which started in an electronics shop, spread to the adjoining warehouse and other shops, resulting in huge property loss.
A cloth shop was also completely gutted in the fire.
Window panes in the surrounding houses were also shattered under the impact of the explosion.
The fire was also suspected to have intensified due to the explosion of several refrigerator cylinders, geysers and electronic items stored in the shop.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Zone) Khare Kiran Prabhakar said, prima facie, the fire started in an electronics shop due to a short circuit.
The flames engulfed the CNG car parked in front of the shop, and the cylinder blast caused the fire to spread rapidly.
Few people were working in the shops, and a few were also sitting in the car. Because of fire and an explosion, six people were injured and admitted to the hospital.
The DCP told the media that firefighters brought the situation under control, preventing further damage.
He appealed to citizens not to believe fake news circulating on social media. He urged them to rely only on official information from the police and avoid sharing unverified news that may lead to unnecessary panic.
According to eyewitnesses, the loud explosion was heard in a radius of one kilometre, triggering panic among residents.
Locals also claimed that the clock on the nearby Rajarai Clock Tower also stopped at the time of the explosion.
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