Wastage of FCI food grains came down to 0.2%: Joshi
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44 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
Congress urges PM Modi to restore Jammu and Kashmir statehood
The Congress on Wednesday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, adding that the demand being made by the residents of the Union Territory was legitimate and 'firmly grounded in their constitutional and democratic rights'. In a joint letter to the prime minister, Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge urged the Union government to introduce a legislation in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to grant statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. The Monsoon Session will begin on July 21 and end on August 12. The residents of Jammu and Kashmir have consistently called for the restoration of statehood for the past five years, the Congress leaders said in their letter. 'It is important to recognise that while there have been instances of Union Territories being granted statehood in the past, the case of Jammu and Kashmir is without precedent in independent India,' they said. 'This is the first time a full-fledged state has been downgraded to a Union Territory following its bifurcation.' In August 2019, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government had abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution, which gave special status to the erstwhile state. It also bifurcated the state into two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. In December 2023, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the 2019 order abrogating Article 370 and ordered the Union government to restore Jammu and Kashmir's statehood. In their letter, Gandhi and Kharge referred to statements made by the prime minister on May 19, 2024, and September 19, 2024, reiterating the Union government's commitment to restoring statehood. The letter noted that the Union government had made similar assurances to the Supreme Court in the matter. "We urge upon the Government to bring forward a legislation in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament to grant full statehood to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Additionally, we request that the Government bring forward legislation to include the Union Territory of… — Congress (@INCIndia) July 16, 2025 The Congress leaders also requested the Union government to bring a legislation to implement provisions of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution in Ladakh. The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 (Administration of Scheduled Areas and Tribal Areas) of the Constitution guarantees protections for land and a nominal autonomy for citizens in designated tribal areas. In Ladakh, more than 97% of the population belong to Scheduled Tribes while Kargil is a Muslim-majority region in the Union Territory. The inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule would allow for the creation of autonomous development councils to govern land, public health and agriculture. Ten such councils exist in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram, the only states where the Sixth Schedule has been implemented. Civil society groups have been demanding the inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule. The Congress leaders said in their letter that the inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule would be a 'significant step towards addressing the cultural, developmental and political aspirations' of the people while 'safeguarding their rights, land and identity'. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that the Congress' letter was a 'good move'. The Congress and Abdullah's National Conference are allies. 'We have been waiting for the Opposition to raise our voice in Parliament', The Hindu quoted him as saying. 'I am thankful to Rahul ji and Kharge ji for raising the issue with the Centre,' he was quoted as saying. 'We are not demanding something that was not promised to us. Inside Parliament and outside it, we were promised statehood. The SC also suggested 'at the earliest'.' In November, the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly passed a resolution calling for the restoration of the special status that the erstwhile state had under Article 370. Through the resolution, the Assembly had sought to reaffirm the importance of the special status and constitutional guarantees that 'safeguarded the identity, culture and rights of the people' of Jammu and Kashmir and 'expresses concern over their unilateral removal'. In January, Abdullah said that he wanted to give the Centre the 'first opportunity' to restore the Union Territory's statehood before seeking legal recourse.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Bihar SIR: Rahul Gandhi repeats voter theft charge; asks if EC is now BJP's 'election chori' branch
NEW DELHI: MP and leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, , on Thursday accused the of acting as the 's "election chori wing," claiming it is helping the saffron party commit voter fraud ahead of the upcoming Bihar assembly polls. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now He reposted a video on X, which claims that government officials were filling out voter forms and signing them without the knowledge of the voters. Rahul Gandhi questioned whether the Election Commission is still neutral or has become BJP's "Election Theft" wing. In a post on X, he wrote, "In Bihar, the Election Commission was caught red-handed stealing votes in the name of 'SIR'. Their job is just theft, named 'SIR' - an FIR will be filed against those who expose them! Is the EC still the 'Election Commission' or has it completely become BJP's 'Election Theft' wing?" This is not the first time former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has questioned the poll body. He has done so on multiple occasions. Referring to Maharashtra election results, he even wrote a detailed article in a daily newspaper, sparking widespread debate over the credibility and impartiality of the EC. On July 10, the allowed the poll body to continue with its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The top court advised the EC to consider accepting Aadhaar, ration card, and voter ID as valid proof of identity. The court said in its order, "We are of the prima facie opinion that in the interest of justice, the Election Commission will also include documents like Aadhaar, Ration Card, Voter ID card, etc. It is for the ECI to decide whether it wants to accept the documents or not, and if it does not, then provide reasons for its decision, which shall be sufficient to satisfy the petitioners. Meanwhile, petitioners are not pressing for an interim stay. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now " According to the EC, by Saturday evening, 80.11 percent of voters in Bihar had submitted their forms. The commission is aiming to complete the process before the deadline of July 25. The Bihar assembly elections are expected to take place in October or November this year, but the EC has not yet announced an official date. In the upcoming elections, the NDA alliance, made up of BJP, JD(U), and LJP, will try to retain power. The INDIA bloc, consisting of RJD, Congress, and Left parties -- will try to defeat CM Nitish Kumar. At present, the Bihar Assembly has 243 seats. The NDA holds 131 of these, BJP has 80 MLAs, JD(U) has 45, HAM(S) has 4, and there are 2 independent MLAs. The INDIA bloc has 111 members -- RJD with 77, Congress with 19, CPI(ML) with 11, CPI(M) with 2, and CPI with 2.
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
RDF, Market Fees: Mann knocks Joshi door for Punjab's share of Rs 9,000 cr, arhtiya commission
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday urged Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi to intervene and help release state's pending share of over Rs 9,000 crore related to the Rural Development Fund (RDF) and market fees. Mann, who called on Joshi, raised the issue of non-allowance of RDF since Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2021-22 and insufficient allowance of market fees since Rabi Marketing Season (RMS) 2022-23. 'The purpose of RDF is to promote agriculture and rural infrastructure, including the development of rural roads, marketing infrastructure, storage facilities in mandis, and automation and mechanization of mandis,' Mann told the minister, as per an official statement. The chief minister said that despite amending the Punjab Rural Development Act, 1987, in accordance with the Department of Food & Public Distribution guidelines, the Punjab's share in RDF has not been released since KMS 2021-22. 'Rs 7,737.27 crore under RDF and Rs 1,836.62 crore under market fees are yet to be released by the Centre. This non-reimbursement has severely impacted the development and maintenance of rural infrastructure and the rural economy in the state,' Mann told the Union minister. He also highlighted the persistent shortage of covered storage space in the state over the past two years. During KMS 2023-24, he said that the shortage of space led to the extension of the delivery period for milled rice up to September 30, 2024. Mann said that this caused concern among millers during the last Kharif season, making them initially reluctant to lift and store paddy, adding that the issue was later resolved with the cooperation of central government. The CM said that for KMS 2024-25, out of 117 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of rice to be delivered to the Food Corporation of India (FCI), only around 107 LMT had been delivered by June 30, 2025. He said that only 80 LMT of rice has been moved out of the state in the last 12 months. He further said that although FCI had planned to move 14 LMT in June 2025, only 8.5 LMT was actually lifted. The Punjab CM stressed the need for the movement of at least 15 LMT of rice in July 2025 to complete milling by July 31. He said that delays may trigger unrest among millers and hinder paddy procurement for KMS 2025-26. To optimize storage, he urged the Union minister to adopt a proactive approach to identifying, approving, and hiring covered godown. Mann said that a strategy of converting covered godowns of wheat to rice needs to be implemented. This strategy could free up 7 LMT of capacity for rice storage in KMS 2025-?26, he said, adding that this model be adopted nationwide to mitigate space shortages. Raising the issue of 'arhtiya' commission, the chief minister said that the Union government had de-linked the commission from MSP in Kharif season 2020-21, fixing it at Rs 45.88 per quintal for paddy and Rs 46 per quintal for wheat. He said that these rates have remained unchanged, although Punjab Agriculture Marketing Board bylaws stipulate a 2.5% commission on MSP, which translates to 59.72/quintal for the upcoming Kharif season. He urged the Union Minister to revise the commission to prevent hardships for farmers and avert potential unrest in this sensitive border state. After the meeting, Union minister Joshi in a post on X said, '…Discussions related to farmers welfare and food grain procurement were held.' He said that issues revolved around rice procurement from Punjab, optimal use of covered storage godowns and approval of private godowns under the FCI. 'Have directed the department to look at the issues and take necessary actions. The Central Government remains firmly committed to the welfare of Punjab's farmers and to ensuring a transparent, efficient, and farmer-friendly procurement system,' Joshi said.
