Palghar: With the election programme for the Vasai–Virar Municipal Corporation General Elections 2026 announced by the State Election Commission, preparations for the polling process were reviewed on Monday by the Chief Election Observer, Pradeep P. 

Polling for the Vasai–Virar Municipal Corporation will be held on January 15, 2026. In this context, a review meeting was convened at the Municipal Corporation headquarters under the chairmanship of the Chief Election Observer to assess the readiness of the administration for the smooth conduct of elections.

The meeting was attended by Municipal Commissioner and Chief Election Officer Manojkumar Suryawanshi (IAS), Additional Commissioner (Elections) Sanjay Herwade, Additional Commissioner Deepak Sawant, all ward-wise Returning Officers, Chief Accounts and Finance Officer Indrajit Gore, Deputy Commissioner of Police Pournima Chaugule-Shringi, Deputy Commissioner of Police Suhas Bavche, Superintendent of Police (State Excise) Bargaje, City Engineer Pradeep Pachange, along with all Deputy Commissioners, Executive Engineers and department heads of the Municipal Corporation.

During the meeting, officials from the Police Department and State Excise Department presented details regarding security arrangements, inspection drives, enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct, and security measures for strong rooms. The Chief Election Observer directed the police administration to ensure comprehensive planning and effective measures to maintain law and order throughout the election period.

The Observer was also briefed on the procedures followed during the scrutiny and acceptance of nomination papers. Ward-wise Returning Officers presented information on polling arrangements, including the number and facilities of polling stations, deployment and training of polling staff, vehicle arrangements, security planning, availability and distribution of EVMs, and the establishment and security of strong rooms.

Further, the Municipal Corporation shared details on staff deployment, distribution of election materials, voter awareness initiatives, implementation of the Model Code of Conduct, and medical facilities to be provided at polling centres. The Chief Election Observer issued necessary instructions to ensure that the polling process is conducted in a smooth, transparent and orderly manner.

Expressing satisfaction over the preparations and measures undertaken so far, the Chief Election Observer appreciated the coordinated efforts of the Municipal Corporation and the police administration in ensuring free and fair elections.

Lucknow, Jan 6: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Tuesday that the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission – Gramin (VB-G RAM G) Act is going to prove to be a milestone for achieving Viksit Bharat 2047 and hit out at the Congress and its allies for criticising the new rural job law.

Addressing mediapersons, the Chief Minister said the VB-G RAM G law will boost rural infrastructure and development in states, as a precursor to building a developed Bharat.

“The empowerment of the rural economy and farmers and workers is needed to achieve the vision of Viksit Bharat 2025,” said CM Adityanath, congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the revolutionary law.

Chief Minister Adityanath said, “The Congress and its allies are raising various questions regarding this important legislation. It is unexpected that, in the interest of the nation, workers, farmers, and rural development, this crucial step should receive full support and appreciation. The legislation reflects the government’s commitment, and people should acknowledge the Prime Minister and the NDA for this initiative…”

He said fake job cards, weak social audits and administrative shortcomings were plaguing the earlier rural job scheme.

The need for calling the media briefing arose as people who ruled the country for a long period, looted the resources and forced the poor to starve to death, are opposing the VB-G RAM G law as they fear that they would be “exposed” if they praise such a revolutionary reform, he said.

“The people will question them as to why they did not carry out the reform when they were in power,” he said, claiming that the opposition bloc is supporting its old “corruption-riddled” formula instead of thanking PM Modi for the revolutionary reform.

He said the Congress-era rural job scheme was a total “failure” as it could not create a sustainable mechanism for building durable assets.

“Therefore, under the new amendment, the employment guarantee has increased from 100 days to 125 days. Wages will now be paid every week; workers will no longer have to wait months or years. If a labourer works during the week, payment will be made weekly, and if there is any delay, compensation will also be provided,” he said.

Calling the new law a boon for the state, Chief Minister Adityanath said, “Uttar Pradesh has more than 57,600 gram panchayats, and if we talk about revenue villages, the state has over 1,05,000 revenue villages. Even today, nearly 60 to 70 per cent of Uttar Pradesh’s population lives in rural areas. Uttar Pradesh is also known as the food basket of India, and naturally, farmers and workers play a crucial role in sustaining the country.”

New Delhi, Jan 6: Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Tuesday that as many as 10.41 crore LPG connections have already been provided for the supply of subsidised cooking gas to poor families under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana as the government steadily progresses to achieve its target of covering 10.6 crore families under the scheme.

Puri further stated that the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana has succeeded in building a nationwide system that delivers clean cooking fuel reliably with every refill.

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Ujjwala has transformed clean cooking from a welfare measure into a reliable everyday infrastructure,” the minister said in a post on X.

LPG is being made affordable for the poor through a targeted subsidy of Rs 300 per 14.2 kg cylinder for up to nine refills per year under the PMUY scheme. This intervention has resulted in a steady rise in LPG consumption. The average per capita consumption increased from about three refills in 2019-20 to 4.47 refills in FY 2024-25 and further to a pro-rated level of about 4.85 refills per annum during FY 2025-26, indicating sustained adoption of clean cooking fuel, according to figures compiled by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

To clear pending applications and achieve saturation of LPG access, the government approved the release of 25 lakh additional LPG connections during FY 2025-26. Subsidy targeting and transparency were improved with the acceleration of Aadhaar authentication. As on December 1, 2025, biometric authentication covered 71 per cent of PMUY consumers and 62 per cent of non-PMUY consumers, according to an official statement.

Consumer safety was strengthened through the nationwide Basic Safety Check campaign. More than 12.12 crore free safety inspections were conducted at customer premises, and over 4.65 crore LPG hoses were replaced at discounted rates, significantly enhancing awareness and safety standards in domestic LPG usage, the statement added.