Maharashtra Assembly polls: BJP scales down its demand for seats to salvage alliance with Shiv Sena

Shah spoke to Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and made a ‘very liberal offer’ of accepting 130 of the 288 seats. He also offered to accept the ‘worst possible seats’ which Sena has not won in the last 25 years of their alliance.
   
"Shah has spoken to Sena chief and that itself indicates that we are very very eager to have the alliance," BJP's general secretary in charge of Maharashtra Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
   
"We are very keen that the alliance exists," Rudy told reporters on a day the party blew hot and cold on the alliance and said it is prepared to fight in the all 288 seats if it is "compelled" to break ties with Sena.
   
Thackeray had made it clear in Mumbai earlier that his final offer to BJP was 119 seats while Sena will fight 151 seats, leaving 18 for smaller allies.
   
Rejecting the proposal, Rudy said "it may not be possible" as BJP had contested 119 seats last time as well.
   
"We won't pull the plug. We are hopeful that a solution will be found. The general consensus (in party's Central Election Commission and Parliamentary Board meetings yesterday) was that we want to have an alliance and we should work for the alliance,” Rudy said.
   
"It would be very disheartening if we have to break the alliance, so the proposal has been made," he said.
   
The party has authorized Shah to publish the list of its candidates depending upon the fate of its alliance.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper

'Clean India' drive in Uttar Pradesh from 25th September

Chief Secretary Alok Ranjan, through a government order (GO), has issued directives to divisional commissioners, district magistrates, vice-chairpersons of development authorities, commissioners and officers of municipal boards besides city panchayats to ensure that urban areas are cleaned during the week-long mission.

Officials have been ordered to organize 'clean road and street day', 'clean schools and colleges day', 'clean hospitals day', 'clean toilets day', 'institutional cleanliness day', 'clean shops, hotels, restaurants, bakeries and eateries day'.

Ranjan has also instructed people to take pledge for cleanliness. Street plays, skits, media drives, drawing and essay competitions will also be held on cleanliness-focused programs, officials informed.

Authorities have been asked to make maximum use of "pamphlets, print, electronic and social media" to get across the message of cleanliness and hygiene.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper

Delhi Metro shuts down Race Course station

"As advised by the police, Race Course Metro station has been closed for public from 8.20 am till further directions," a Delhi Metro official said.

Additional Commissioner of Police S.B.S. Tyagi said: "Yes, we have asked the Delhi Metro to shut down the station. Let us see how the situation develops."He added that adequate barricading has also been done in view of the protests.

Singh, who will shift to a three-bedroom house in south Delhi has demanded to convert the 12, Tughlak Road bungalow occupied by him into a memorial dedicated to his father Charan Singh.

This had led to clashes between police and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) workers on 19th September and left about 200 farmers and policemen injured.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper

Kashmir secretariat resumes functioning after 16 days

The Civil Secretariat, the state legislature complex and the High Court complex were inundated  on 7th September causing damage to the records kept in these institutions.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday morning visited all these sites to take stock of the latest situation. He directed the departments concerned to further intensify their efforts so that these institutions begin functioning normally as soon as possible.

He, along with various ministers and senior officials, reviewed the relief and rehabilitation work in a meeting he chaired in the secretariat.

Abdullah directed gearing up men and machinery at all levels to reach out to the affected people in all flood-hit areas. He said more attention should be paid to de-watering of water- logged areas particularly in Srinagar city.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper

Delhi government announces new circle rates

The revised rates in posh category A colonies, will be Rs 7,74,000 per square meter. The present rate is Rs 6,45,000 per square meter, said a government statement.

Colonies like Vasant Vihar, Jor Bagh, Friends Colony among other fall in the A category. In category B colonies, the present circle rate of Rs 2,04,600 per square meter will be revised to Rs 2,45,520 per square meter.

The category B colonies include Greater Kailash 1 and 2, Neeti Bagh, Hauz Khas, Green Park and others.

The revised circle rate in category C colonies will be Rs 1,59,840 against the prevailing rate of Rs 1,09,200 per square meter. Areas like Saket, Kailash Hills, East of Kailash belong to C category. In category D colonies, where the current circle rate is Rs 1,06,384, the revised rate will be Rs 1,27,680 per square meter.

In category E colonies, the prevailing circle rate of Rs 58,365 per square meter will be raised to Rs 70,080 while in category F colonies the present rate of Rs 47,140 will now be increased to Rs 56,640.The revised rates of category G colonies will be Rs 46,200. The prevailing rate is Rs.31,510 per square meter.

In category H colonies, the revised circle rate will be Rs 23,280 per square meter, from Rs 19,361 per square meter. The circle rates in Delhi were introduced July 17, 2007.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper

17 candidates file nomination papers for Haryana polls

On Sunday, the first day of filing nominations, five candidates filed their papers. Among the candidates who filed nominations today are Independents Manoj Kumar from Ambala City, Lal Singh and Jai Chand Chauhan from Jagadhari.
   
National Jan Shakti Party candidate Ramnik Singh filed nominations from Ladwa Assembly constituency in Kurukshetra district while Socialist Unity Centre of India Communist (SUCIC) Party's Mahavir Singh submitted papers from Pundri seat in Kaithal, and SUCIC's Harish from Rohtak.
   
Independent candidate Attar Lal filed nominations from Ateli Assembly constituency in Mahendergarh district.
   
Walgad said that the last date for filing nomination papers is September 27 and the candidates could file their nomination papers between 11 am and 3 pm.
   
The scrutiny of nomination papers would be carried out on September 29 and candidates would be able to withdraw their candidature by October 1.
   
Polling will be held on October 15 and counting would be held on October 19. About 1.61 crore voters would cast their votes at 16,244 polling stations to be set up in the state.
   
In the last Assembly elections, Congress won 40 seats, INLD 31, BJP 4, HJC-BL 6, SAD and BSP one each and Independents seven.
   
Though Bhupinder Singh Hooda had failed to lead the Congress to a majority in 2009, Congress formed the government for the second term with the support of five of the six HJC-BL members and seven Independents.
   
Haryana is set to witness a multi-corner contest with key players Congress, BJP, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP), BSP, Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC)-Jan Chetna Manch (JCM) alliance all set to cross swords in the battle of ballots.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper

AP CM concludes Polavaram discussions with Chhattisgarh CM

"Polavaram is a very important project and the Andhra Pradesh government has already spent Rs 6,000 crore on it. Hence we requested the Chhattisgarh government to co-operate (with AP) in constructing it. We have allayed their apprehensions about submergence of villages on their side and assured that the best rehabilitation and resettlement package will be given," Chandrababu told reporters after returning to Hyderabad on Monday.

He recalled that the then states of (undivided) Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, along with Orissa, had signed two agreements in 1978 and 1980 about the Polavaram project on Godavari river by constructing a protective embankment along areas facing likely to be submerged.

"I have explained to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh about the agreements and also that Polavaram has now been declared a national project. In fact, the Central Water Commission, Planning Commission, forest and environmental clearances were given to Polavaram based on the 1978 and 1980 agreements between the three states. The national project status was also conferred, based on the same agreements," Naidu said.

"Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh said a case is pending in the Supreme Court against Polavaram, but since it's a very crucial project and all clearances have been granted, I requested his government not to object and to co-operate in completing the project. I also told him that a liberal rehabilitation package will be offered," the AP Chief Minister said.

Source: News in Hindi and Newspaper