National News
Hindi issue yet another attempt to divert attention from real problems, say WB leaders

Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent statement on Hindi at the meeting of Parliament’s Official Language Committee has taken the form of a full-blown political controversy.
Anti-BJP political leaders from West Bengal have described this Hindi language imposition attempt as not just an attempt to divide the Hindi-speaking and non-Hindi speaking people, but also a clandestine bid by the Union government to divert attention from burning issues like price rise etc.
IANS talked to a number of political leaders from West Bengal having affiliation to different political parties. Leaders of non-BJP parties like the Trinamool Congress, the CPI(M) and the Congress, who are always at loggerheads over different state-related issues, surprisingly talked on the same lines in slamming the Union home minister’s proposals.
Mainly two points came out from the arguments of the non-BJP leaders from West Bengal. The first point is a question from them about which particular form of the Hindi dialect does the Union home minister want to push as an alternative to English since Hindi dialects vary from state-to-state and often one single state has more than one Hindi dialect.
The second point that the non-BJP leaders raise is about raking up the Hindi issue to divert attention from burning issues like inflation, price rise and rising unemployment in the country.
The first person that IANS spoke to on this issue was the newly-elected Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member from West Bengal, Sushmita Dev.
The daughter of late heavyweight Congress leader and former Union minister, Santosh Mohan Dev, Sushmita had gone through varied linguistic cultures. A Bengali by birth and having pursued her academic and political careers mainly in Assam and the party in Tripura, she is now the Rajya Sabha member from West Bengal.
“This is somewhat an absurd proposition. This Hindi imposition attempt will bring an automatic divide between people speaking different regional languages. I am sure that the Union home minister’s attempt to project Hindi as an alternative to English will ultimately boil down to projecting Hindi as the official language as an alternative to other Indian regional languages. Every person is proud of speaking his or her own mother tongue. There is no harm if any individual learns Hindi voluntarily.
“But forcing Hindi in a linguistically diversified country like India is absurd. Secondly, the Union home minister should confirm which particular dialect of Hindi does he want to push as an alternative to English, since there are so many dialects of Hindi. Our party’s stand is very clear on this issue ad that is we will resit this Hindi-imposition at any cost,” she said.
Trinamool Congress MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy said that this Hindi- imposition attempt is to fulfil the long standing agenda of the BJP and the RSS of “One nation-one language-one religion,” or “Hindi-Hindu-Hindustan,” This attempt will create tension in the country since there are bound to be protests from non-Hindi speaking people. This is totally unconstitutional and rather an attempt to divert attention from burning issues like inflation and rising unemployment throughout the country. The Trinamool Congress will resist it at any cost, he said.
Almost echoing Deb and Roy, All-India Congress Committee (AICC) member from West Bengal, Subhankar Sarkar, said that Amit Shah is projecting juggled statistics to mislead the people on this issue.
“He is claiming that almost 70 per cent of the Union cabinet communiques are made in Hindi. But that cannot be a valid reason for this Hindi-position attempt. As per the latest statistics, 47 per cent of the country’s population speaks in different dialects of Hindi, while the remaining 53 per cent speak in other Indian languages.
“So why impose a language spoken by 47 per cent of the population on the remaining 53 per cent. Secondly, the Union home minister should come clear on which dialect of Hindi he wants to promote as the official language as an alternative to English.
“Actually, these are nothing but tactics to divert attention from burning issues like price rise and unemployment. The current Union government is playing this attention-diversion tactics every time burning issues erupt. The latest example is the Union government’s promotion of the movie, ‘The Kashmir Files’,” Sarkar told IANS.
The opinion expressed to IANS by the CPI(M) central committee member and former leader of the Left Parties in the West Bengal assembly Sujan Chakraborty was no different.
“This is a long standing agenda of the BJP and the RSS that the current Union government is trying to rake up. But this will be against the spirit of ‘Unity in diversity’. This is bound to create a rift between the Hindi-speaking and non Hindi-speaking population of the country. This is yet another attempt to divert attention from issues bothering the common people every day,” Chakraborty said.
Understanding that this was a sensitive issue concerning Bengal’s sentiment with Bengali as its language, BJP spokesman in West Bengal Shamik Bhattacharya was extremely cautious about giving his reaction.
“It has become a habit of the Congress, the CPI(M) and the Trinamool Congress to oppose and politicise every proposal and initiative of the Union government. The Union home minister has just mooted a proposal based on some realities. I request the opposition leaders to be aware of the country’s realities before politicizing any issue,” he said.
National News
241 dead, one survivor as Air India Dreamliner crashes after takeoff from Ahmedabad: Air India

New Delhi, June 13: In what is being described as one of the worst aviation disasters in Indian history, an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 people crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport.
The aircraft, operating as Flight AI-171 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, plunged into a residential complex near BJ Medical College, killing 241 people on board.
The ill-fated flight had 230 passengers, 10 cabin crew, and two pilots. According to officials, only one person, a British national of Indian origin seated in 11A, survived the crash and is currently undergoing treatment at a local hospital.
The aircraft took off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 1.38 p.m. (IST) on Thursday before losing control moments later and crashing into a densely populated area, igniting a massive blaze and triggering emergency response teams across the city.
Air India confirmed the accident in an official statement on X: “UPDATE: Air India confirms that flight AI171, operating from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick on 12 June 2025, was involved in an accident. The 12-year-old Boeing 787-8 aircraft departed from Ahmedabad at 1338 hrs, carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew. The aircraft crashed shortly after take-off. We regret to inform that, of the 242 aboard, there are 241 confirmed fatalities. The sole survivor is being treated in a hospital.”
The airline also shared the nationality breakdown of passengers: 169 Indian nationals, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian.
“Air India offers its deepest condolences to the families of the deceased. Our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of all those affected, their families and loved ones. A team of caregivers from Air India is now in Ahmedabad to provide additional support,” the statement added.
The national carrier has pledged full cooperation with authorities investigating the cause of the crash and has established dedicated helplines for families seeking information.
Domestic callers can reach the support team at 1800 5691 444, while international callers are advised to dial +91 8062779200.
Regular updates will be provided through Air India’s official website and its X handle.
National News
Plastic nurdle spill from sunken cargo ship reaches TN’s Dhanushkodi sanctuary, raising alarm

Chennai, June 10: A plastic nurdle spill from the sunken cargo ship MSC ELSA 3 has spread into the newly declared Dhanushkodi Greater Flamingo Sanctuary in Ramanathapuram district, threatening one of India’s most fragile coastal ecosystems.
The MSC ELSA 3, a Liberian-flagged vessel, sank off the Kochi coast a few weeks ago while carrying 640 containers, including 13 with hazardous materials, 12 with calcium carbide, 367 tonnes of furnace oil, and 84 tonnes of diesel.
The ship’s cargo manifest remains undisclosed, fuelling speculation about the full extent of environmental risk.
Dhanushkodi Sanctuary, located within the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve, supports 128 species of birds — including Greater and Lesser Flamingos — and is home to sea turtles, crustaceans, molluscs, and fish. Its dunes, marshes, and seagrass beds form part of the Central Asian Flyway for migratory birds.
The nurdles — tiny plastic pellets used in industrial manufacturing — resemble fish eggs and can be deadly to marine life. When ingested, they cause internal blockages, starvation, and often death. They also absorb toxins, entering the food chain and posing long-term health hazards.
About 80 bags, each weighing 25 kilograms, have reportedly washed ashore along a 12-km coastal stretch. Affected sites include the Dhanushkodi old church, Irattaithalai, Mugandharayan Chathiram, Gothanda Ramar temple, and Patchappatti village.
Carried by ocean currents from the Thiruvananthapuram-Kanniyakumari coast, the spill now threatens the adjacent Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park, home to vital coral reefs and seagrass beds.
Experts warn these habitats could be smothered by plastic debris, blocking sunlight and disrupting photosynthesis.
Ramanathapuram District Collector Simranjeet Singh Kahlon said, “We’ve identified between 15 and 30 nurdle bags along the coast. A special team has been deployed for cleanup, and additional teams are monitoring for further debris.”
He urged the public not to panic, stating that swift action was underway.
The disaster evokes memories of the 2021 X-Press Pearl incident in Sri Lanka, where 1,680 tonnes of nurdles led to mass marine deaths and crippled fisheries.
Studies showed severe impacts on plankton and larval life forms, threatening entire food chains.
Cleanup efforts in Ramanathapuram face challenges due to the nurdles’ buoyancy and small size, worsened by monsoon waves that break them into microplastics.
With the 61-day annual fishing ban nearing its end, fishermen fear reduced fish catches and consumer hesitancy could harm their livelihoods if the spill worsens.
Environmentalists are calling for urgent intervention, cargo transparency, and long-term containment measures to prevent irreversible damage to one of India’s most critical marine ecosystems.
National News
Eight Punjab and Haryana HC judges take lead to boost Kashmir tourism post Pahalgam terror attack

Srinagar, June 9: To give a boost to Kashmir tourism post Pahalgam terror attack, eight judges of the Punjab and Haryana High Court are visiting the valley along with their families.
The visit of the legal personalities along with their families carries a powerful message for the revival of tourism in Kashmir, which got shattered after the Pahalgam terror attack.
On April 22, Pakistan-backed terrorists of Lashkar-e-Kashmir (LeT) killed 26 civilians, including 25 tourists and a local pony owner.
The pony owner sacrificed his life while trying to protect the tourists from the bullets of the terrorists.
The terror attack caused outrage in the entire country, and to avenge the killings of innocent civilians, the Indian Armed Forces carried out airstrikes against terror infrastructure in Pakistan under Operation Sindoor.
In retaliation for India’s attack on terrorist infrastructure, Pakistan resorted to heavy mortar shelling on civilian facilities in Poonch, Rajouri, Baramulla, Kupwara and Bandipora districts.
Eighteen civilians were killed in Pakistan shelling, 13 of them in Poonch district, in addition to the destruction of scores of homes, shops, a temple, a mosque, a church and a Gurudwara.
The itinerary of the visiting high court judges includes visits to the Mughal Gardens of Nishat and Shalimar, Shikara rides on the Dal Lake, a visit to the historic Pari Mahal and buying a few handicrafts at the local market.
There could be no better omen for the revival of tourism in Kashmir than the decision of the honourable justices of the High Court to come here along with their families.
Coinciding with the visit of these dignitaries, local tour and travel operators and hotel owners are reporting a gradual rise in the tourist bookings that had virtually stopped after the Pahalgam terror attack.
Tour and travel operators and others connected with the tourist industry have expressed hope that the visit by the most respected legal dignitaries, like the high court judges, will restore confidence among visitors, both domestic and foreign, that Kashmir is a safe tourist destination.
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