National News
Goal of ‘Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0’ is to make cities garbage-free: Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the goal of ‘Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0’ is to make the cities garbage-free. He was speaking after launching the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation 2.0.
“In 2014, the countrymen took a pledge to make India open defecation free – ODF and they fulfilled this pledge with the construction of more than 10 crore toilets. Now the goal of ‘Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0’ is to make the city garbage-free, completely free of garbage,” the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister underlined the scope of the country’s target in the next phase of Mission AMRUT as ‘Improving sewage and septic management, making our cities water safe and ensuring that no sewage drains anywhere in our rivers’.
The Prime Minister dedicated the successes of transformation in urban regeneration and cleanliness to Mahatma Gandhi. “These missions are the result of inspiration by Mahatma Gandhi and are being realized through his ideals only,” he said.
The Prime Minister also highlighted the ease for mothers and daughters due to the construction of toilets.
Saluting the spirit of the nation, the Prime Minister said that the journey of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and AMRUT Mission so far makes every countryman proud. “In this, there is a mission, there is respect, there is dignity, there is also the ambition of a country and there is also the unmatched love for the motherland,” he said.
Noting that today’s event was taking place in the Ambedkar International Centre, the Prime Minister said that Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar believed in urban development as a great means of removing inequality and many people from villages come to cities with an aspiration for a better life.
“They get employment but their standard of living remains in a difficult situation even compared to their lives in the villages. This is like double jeopardy of staying away from home, and after that to stay in such a difficult situation. Babasaheb’s emphasis was on changing this situation by removing this inequality. The next phase of Swachh Bharat Mission and Mission Amrit is an important step towards fulfilling the dreams of Babasaheb,” said the Prime Minister.
He said, along with Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas are critical for the campaign of cleanliness.
Talking about the level of public participation with regard to cleanliness, the Prime Minister expressed happiness that the present generation has taken the initiative to strengthen the cleanliness campaign, and the toffee wrappers are no longer thrown on the ground but kept in pockets by children. Small children now ask the elders to avoid mess.
“We have to remember that cleanliness is not a task just for a day, a fortnight, a year or for just a few people. Cleanliness is a great campaign for everyone, every day, every fortnight, every year, generation after generation. Cleanliness is a lifestyle, cleanliness is a life mantra,” said the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister recalled his efforts as the Chief Minister of Gujarat for enhancing the tourist potential of Gujarat where he turned the quest for cleanliness into Jan Andolan by the Nirmal Gujarat Programme.
The Prime Minister pointed out that today India is processing about one lakh tonnes of waste every day. “When the country started the campaign in 2014, less than 20 per cent of the waste generated every day in the country was processed. Today we are processing about 70 per cent of daily waste. Now we have to take it to 100 per cent,” he said.
The Prime Minister also talked about enhanced allocations for the Urban Development Ministry. “In the preceding seven years before 2014, the Ministry was given about Rs 1.25 lakh crore while in seven years from 2014 almost Rs four lakh crore were allocated to the Ministry,” the Prime Minister said.
The use of modern technology is also continuously increasing for the development of cities in the country. The Prime Minister mentioned the recently launched National Automobile Scrappage Policy, and pointed out that this new scrapping policy strengthens the campaign of Waste to Wealth and a circular economy.
National News
Delhi BJP releases ‘chargesheet’ against Kejriwal, AAP govt
New Delhi, Dec 23: The Delhi BJP on Monday released a political “chargesheet” against AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal and his party, enlisting alleged failures of the Delhi government over the last 10 years and instances of corruption involving ministers.
Releasing the “chargesheet” or “Aarop Patra” ahead of Assembly elections, former Union Minister Anurag Thakur said, “About Rs 52 crore of public money was wasted on Kejriwal’s luxurious Sheeshmahal (official residence). The AAP promised to clean Yamuna by 2025, but it turned into a toxic sewer filled with poisonous foam.”
He said that during the 10 years of “misgovernance,” Delhi turned into a “corruption capital.”
“Eight AAP ministers, 15 legislators and an MP have been jailed in these years,” he said, pointing to the liquor policy scam and slamming Kejriwal’s promise of ridding the city of corruption.
The BJP MP also targeted the AAP government for ignoring women’s safety, alleging that it failed to utilise the Nirbhaya Fund or build promised fast-track courts.
Kejriwal’s promises of fighting pollution, improving the quality of education and ending the tanker mafia have not been fulfilled in 10 years, said Thakur.
“The AQI once crossed 1,200, and even today it is over 500,” he said, adding that Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva, who took a dip in the Yamuna, would be able to give a first-hand account of how polluted the river was despite tall claims by the AAP government.
“Delhi’s air pollution equals smoking 50 cigarettes a day. AAP failed to take action. The city is now home to the world’s tallest garbage mountain due to the AAP government’s mismanagement,” he said.
The BJP “chargesheet” also alleged that fake medicines distributed in Mohalla Clinics claimed lives, exposing AAP’s “world-class health model.” Thakur alleged that Rs 1,125 crore were wasted on incomplete ICU hospitals.
Delhi’s youth were betrayed by the AAP government as 29 Pratibha schools were shut under it, depriving students of quality education, he said.
Referring to the tanker mafia, Thakur said Rs 28,400 crore was allocated to the Delhi Jal Board, yet residents rely on tankers for water.
While the AAP promised free water, it has supplied only dirty, toxic water, risking public health, he said.
The former Union Minister said the AAP government’s promises of giving a “world-class drainage system” have been exposed by water-logging and monsoon deaths.
He added that the cost of water is the highest in the city.
Later, speaking to the reporters, Thakur said, “Arvind Kejriwal is the culprit behind the problems of Delhi residents. The infection of lungs in 22 lakh children is due to Delhi’s pollution and dirty water, which is the result of the failures of Kejriwal’s government.”
“They couldn’t utilise the Nirbhaya Fund, and the initiative to provide Rs 6,000 each to pregnant women was left incomplete. Now, after 10 years, they talk of distributing money. Where was Kejriwal’s government all this time? Where was the respect for women?” he questioned.
Criticising the management of the national capital’s finances, Thakur said, “Despite thousands of crores in Delhi’s treasury, the government is under debt. They talk about good education, yet one-and-a-half lakh students in classes 9 and 11 failed. Crores are spent on advertisements, but their sports university exists only on paper, and their skill and entrepreneurship universities remain under-utilised.”
He also accused the AAP government of doing disservice to the poor by denying them access to healthcare by not implementing the Central government’s Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana.
“By refusing to implement the scheme, they have taken away the right of the poor to avail medical insurance for treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh. Whether it’s clean water, free treatment, good education, better roads, or a pollution-free environment, the common citizen of Delhi feels betrayed,” Thakur said, calling Kejriwal the “biggest cheater.”
National News
‘Congress Remembers Dalits Only In Bad Times,’ Says BSP Chief Mayawati, Slamming Rahul Gandhi’s Parbhani Visit
Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Monday took a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his visit to violence-hit Parbhani in Maharashtra. She said he was going there only to shed crocodile tears and accused the Congress of historically adopting a casteist and contemptuous attitude toward Dalits and backward classes.
Taking to X on Monday, Mayawati wrote, “Unfortunate incidents like Parbhani happened as a result of disrespect/insult towards the original architect of the Indian Constitution, the most revered Babasaheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar and the feeling of inferiority towards his crores of followers. It is proved that Congress and BJP are not their true well-wishers, everyone’s intentions and policies are flawed.”
BSP Chief Mayawati On Rahul Gandhi’s Visit
Referring to Gandhi’s visit, Mayawati said, “The Congress leader’s visit today to Parbhani is nothing more than shedding crocodile tears because the Congress’ attitude towards the interests and welfare of Babasaheb and his followers has always been casteist and contemptuous, both during his lifetime and after his death. They remember the Dalits and backward classes only in their bad times.”
About Rahul Gandhi’s Visit To Parbhani
Rahul Gandhi, during his brief visit to Parbhani, will meet the bereaved families of Somnath Vyankat Suryawanshi, 35, who was studying his LlB, and another Dalit social worker Vijay Wakode, who suffered a heart attack and succumbed while attempting to control the rampaging mobs on December 11-12.
BSP Chief Calls For A Peacefl Nationwide Demonstration
The BSP chief also called for a peaceful nationwide demonstration at district headquarters to demand the withdrawal of alleged anti-Ambedkar remarks made in Parliament. “The entire society should unite and make these protests successful,” she urged, cautioning against “deceptive politics” carried out in the name of Ambedkar.
Mayawati reiterated her party’s commitment to its Ambedkarite mission, stating, “The BSP’s self-respect movement aims to empower the ‘Bahujan Samaj’ politically, while other parties merely pretend to champion Ambedkar’s legacy for political gains. Their actions are duplicitous — Ram on their lips, but a knife under their arm.”
The BSP has announced a nationwide agitation on December 24 to protest against Home Minister Amit Shah’s controversial remarks about Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar in Parliament, which they claim disrespected the architect of India’s Constitution.
disaster
Jaipur tanker blast: Vasundhara Raje meets kin of injured, follows medical protocol
Jaipur, Dec 23: Former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje visited SMS Hospital in Jaipur on Monday to check on the condition of those injured in the Jaipur LPG tanker blast.
In line with medical protocols and to avoid the risk of infection to the patients, she refrained from entering the ICU of the Burn Unit. Instead, she met the families of the injured in the office of Superintendent Sushil Bhati.
Lok Sabha member from Jaipur Manju Sharma accompanied her during the visit.
Raje expressed her empathy with the kin of the injured victims and offered all assistance.
After visiting the families, she said and also posted on X, “I wish to extend my condolences to the families who have lost their members. It was a horrible accident. The doctors are taking care of everyone…”
She said this was a humanitarian issue and not a political matter.
At least 12 people were burnt alive in a catastrophic chain of events that unfolded on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway early on December 20 when a truck crashed into an LPG Tanker taking a U-turn, triggering a fireball that engulfed close to 34 vehicles. Several people were injured with some battling for their lives with severe burn injuries.
“The Jaipur-bound tanker was coming from Ajmer and tried to take a U-turn from the highway to move towards the Agra Road,” said Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph. “While taking the turn, an Ajmer-bound truck coming from Jaipur suddenly appeared and hit it from behind. The collision caused a gas leak and it immediately caught fire. The rest of the mishap took only 10 to 15 minutes.” Over 30 people are in SMS hospital getting treatment for burn injuries. Out of these, many are on ventilators and have sustained over 60 per cent burn injuries.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for those injured in the accident. The Rajasthan government also announced financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for those injured.
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