Distilleries converted kickbacks into gold, says SIT
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
Investment intent of Rs 7,808cr at textile summit
1 2 3 4 5 Bhubaneswar: State govtsigned 33 memoranda of understanding with investment intent of Rs 7,808 crore and the potential to create jobs for over 53,300 people in the textile and apparel sector during the inaugural session of Odisha Tex 2025 investment summit here on Friday. Inaugurating the summit, chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi said, "Odisha is going to be the textile hub of eastern India. Odisha TEX 2025 is not just an event, it is a declaration that Odisha is ready to lead eastern India's textile revolution." The strategic move is set to transform Odisha into a hub for apparel and technical textiles, with participation from more than 160 companies, including industry giants like Page Industries, First Step Baby Wear, KPR Mills and Sportking. Among the MoUs, Hindalco Industries Limited will invest Rs 200 crore to set up apparel manufacturing units in Keonjhar and Sambalpur districts. The two units have the potential to create direct employment for 2,400 people, official sources said. Majhi announced an increase in employment cost subsidy under the Odisha Technical Textile & Apparel Policy 2022, raising it from Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 per month for male workers and from Rs 6,000 to Rs 7,000 per month for female workers. He announced the formation of a dedicated task force under the industries department to ensure fast-track implementation and full govt support for investors. "Odisha offers the most attractive incentive packages in the country under its Industrial Policy Resolution 2022 and the Odisha Apparel & Technical Textiles Policy 2022, backed by excellent infrastructure and governance," said the CM. Besides, two state-of-the-art textile and footwear parks with plug-and-play facilities for global standard manufacturing were launched, and modern workers' hostels to enhance industrial stability were announced. The govt also signed MoUs for skill development, enabling youth and especially women, to gain expertise in automated garmenting, textile machinery and wearable technologies. The CM also announced an ambitious vision to create over 1 lakh jobs in textiles and apparel by 2030, with plans to expand new textile clusters in Balangir, Keonjhar, Sambalpur, Jagatsinghpur, Ganjam and Cuttack. The event, organised by the state govt, attracted over 650 delegates, including global brands, leading textile and apparel companies, investors, technology providers, startups and senior govt officials. The CM also declared that Odisha Tex will become an annual event, showcasing the state's rich handloom legacy and its foray into modern textiles, apparel, and technical textiles ecosystems. Industries minister Sampad Chandra Swain, minister for handloom, textiles and handicrafts, Pradeep Bal Samant, Chief secretary Manoj Ahuja, development commissioner Anu Garg, and industries secretary Hemant Sharma, among others, were present.
Time of India
37 minutes ago
- Time of India
7 kids die, 21 hurt in Rajasthan classroom roof collapse
KOTA/JAIPUR: Seven children were killed and at least 21 injured when a classroom ceiling collapsed on them at Piplodi Govt Upper Primary School in Rajasthan's Jhalawar district on Friday morning, moments after a teacher who had been alerted to "falling brick pieces" allegedly asked them to "sit quietly". Ten of the injured students were hospitalised in a critical condition, officials said. Principal Meena Garg and four teachers were suspended for alleged negligence pending a high-level probe while school education minister Madan Dilawar owned moral responsibility for the tragedy. "I won't engage in a blame game. Being the education minister, I am responsible for this... We will conduct a fair investigation and strict action will be taken against those found guilty. We allocated funds for the maintenance of 2,000 dilapidated govt schools in phases," Dilawar said. He announced Rs 10 lakh in ex gratia and a contractual govt job for one family member of each of the victims. Outrage over the ceiling collapse triggered violence in Jhalawar later in the day, prompting police to baton charge groups of protesters blocking roads and pelting them with stones at Guradi Circle and outside SRG Hospital. The victims, between 10 and 15, were among 31 students of different classes inside the classroom when cracks in the ceiling suspected to have been caused by rainwater seepage purportedly opened up before their eyes. "We told sir that pieces of the ceiling were falling on us but he ignored it," said a teary-eyed girl. Rains had forced kids to remain indoors Within seconds, screams of children drowned in the noise of brick and mortar coming down in a heap. Villagers who had sprinted towards the school compound on seeing clouds of dust spiralling into the air were the first rescuers, sources said. Witnesses said parents frantically searched for their children in the mounds of debris. "At least 13 kids were pulled out within 20 minutes of the ceiling collapse," said village sarpanch Ram Prasad Lodha, who drove his payloader to the site to assist in the rescue. Lodha alleged that an ambulance reached the village 45 minutes after being informed of the accident. Most of the injured students were taken to hospital on motorcycles, he said. While the education minister's office said 21 students were injured, Jhalawar district education officer Narso Meena's official report mentions injuries to 24 people. Preliminary reports suggested the students had been made to wait in their classrooms instead of going to the ground for morning prayers, as usual, because it was raining at the time. The classroom's rear wall collapsed first, causing the roof to fall on the students. The classroom whose ceiling collapsed was one of two built in 1994 with funds from the gram panchayat. "Funds were released recently for repairs. We aren't sure if the rooms built by the gram panchayat were renovated or not," said an official. Collector Rathore said district administration recently instructed education department to draw up a list of dilapidated school buildings. Piplodi Govt Upper Primary School, whose building is three decades old, didn't figure in that list, he said. Education secretary Krishna Kunal said the school's roof had been repaired in 2023. "If a little caution were exercised, such a tragedy wouldn't have occurred. We are appealing not only to teachers but also to parents and village representatives that children should not be sent to schools with dilapidated rooms."
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Chilla elevated road much delayed, now pillar steel found subpar
Noida: A long-delayed infrastructure project meant to ease traffic between Delhi and Noida has come under fresh scrutiny after the Noida Authority flagged the use of substandard steel in its construction. The quality of steel used in the Rs 893-crore Chilla Elevated Road, under construction by the Uttar Pradesh State Bridge Corporation Limited (UPSBCL), was flagged during a recent review by Noida Authority. The inspection revealed that a non-approved grade of steel was being used in the piling work for the project. On Friday, CEO Lokesh M expressed dissatisfaction with the UPSBCL for using substandard steel in the pillars and issued a notice to the construction agency, directing it to replace the material with the approved grade of steel. You Can Also Check: Noida AQI | Weather in Noida | Bank Holidays in Noida | Public Holidays in Noida UPSBCL general manager Sandeep Gupta told TOI that the particular brand of steel being used is an NHAI-approved supplier listed under national specifications. "The steel used meets the required BIS standard for high-strength deformed bars used in reinforced concrete and is compliant with IRC and MORTH specifications applicable to the project," Gupta said. He added that the brand is widely accepted and used by other public sector undertakings, including the Indian Railways, UP PWD, and the Greater Noida Authority. He also said that regular third-party lab testing is conducted to verify the steel's mechanical and chemical properties, and test reports are available for review. UPSBCL, however, has assured the Noida Authority that it will discontinue use of the current steel brand. Going forward, only materials from reputed suppliers such as SAIL, TATA, RINL, or JSPL will be used for the rest of the work. While only 6% of fresh work has been completed since construction resumed in March this year, the overall progress stands at approximately 20%, including earlier work done before the project stalled in 2021. The six-lane, 5.9-km elevated corridor aims to connect the Chilla Regulator near Mayur Vihar to the Mahamaya Flyover in Noida, offering relief to thousands of daily commuters who currently face up to an hour of congestion along the Delhi-Noida Link Road. First proposed in 2012 and inaugurated by chief minister Yogi Adityanath in 2019, the Chilla elevated road has faced years of delay due to funding bottlenecks, the relocation of a GAIL gas pipeline, and the Covid pandemic. No construction took place between 2021 and early 2025. The project resumed only after MG Contractors was appointed in December 2024, having submitted the lowest bid—7% below the estimated cost. Once completed, the corridor is expected to significantly ease congestion near Film City, Sector 14A/15A, and improve access to Greater Noida, Kalindi Kunj, and Faridabad.
