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India Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Uttar Pradesh tops cleanliness survey, Lucknow wins presidential award
In a landmark achievement, Uttar Pradesh has claimed top honours in the Swachh Survekshan 202425. The state stood out across multiple categories in the ninth edition of the cleanliness survey, with its awards being presented at a ceremony at Delhi's Vigyan Bhawan by President Droupadi Murmu. Cabinet Minister A.K. Sharma received the awards on behalf of the state. Lucknow secured third place among cities with over one million residents and achieved a historic 7star Garbage Free City (GFC) rating. The presidential award for Lucknow marked a major milestone in urban sanitation in Uttar Lucknow, other cities in the state earned top recognition: Prayagraj was honoured as the Cleanest Ganga City, Agra was declared an Emerging Clean City, and Gorakhpur secured strong ranks in both the Safaimitra Safe City category and for midsize urban cleanliness. Prayagraj was praised for its sanitation efforts during Mahakumbh 2025, while Gorakhpur earned a 5star GFC rating and ranked high in the 3–10 lakh population class. Agra entered the top thirty nationally and received a 5star GFC certification, showcasing its growing commitment to urban cleanup efforts have also reached smaller cities: Moradabad ranked tenth nationally, Bijnor's municipal council placed twenty-ninth, and Shamshabad stood at ninety-fifth, showing a wide implementation of sanitation initiatives across Uttar Pradesh. Honoured for its innovations during Mahakumbh 2025, the state's success is due to effective coordination between urban bodies, diligent monitoring, and public cooperation. Urban Development Minister A.K. Sharma highlighted that these awards reflect Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's commitment to creating clean cities. Special Secretary Anuj Jha reported an increase in door-to-door waste collection from 48% to 62% and waste processing from 48% to over 85%. With advancements like GFC certification and progress in ODF++ and Water+, Uttar Pradesh is on the path to becoming India's leader in urban sanitation.- Ends advertisement
The Hindu
04-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Wayanad landslides: HC seeks govt.'s report on utilisation of Central funds for rehabilitation
A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court of Justice A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice P.M. Manoj has sought a report from the State government on the utilisation of ₹120 crore the Centre had allotted for rehabilitation of people affected by the landslides in Wayanad in 2024. The directive came after amicus curiae Ranjith Thampan suggested that a report be called from the government regarding the manner of utilisation of the funds, when the court took up a suo motu case relating to the prevention and management of natural disasters in Kerala. The Advocate General was asked to file a report by July 25. The court also gave two more weeks to the Centre to decide on waiver of loans of the landslides-affected people. Central government's counsel had requested two weeks to inform the court about the waiver, stating that discussions were on between the Ministries concerned and a decision was expected within that time frame. The court was also informed that the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has taken steps to frame a comprehensive disaster management plan (DMP) for its implementing agencies, including the National Highways Authority of India, to mitigate all kinds of natural disasters. This comprises a subplan for highways and another one for road accidents. The MoRTH is now working to incorporate suggestions of the National Disaster Management Authority for benchmarking and to complete the DMP. A notification in this regard is expected in three months.
The Hindu
13-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
A.K. Saseendran to launch seed ball dispersal drive
Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran will formally inaugurate the 'Vitthoot' initiative in Kozhikode on June 15. 'Seed balls' will be dispersed as part of the 'Mission Food, Fodder and Water' ecological restoration campaign to ensure food availability within the forests across the State. The balls will be made using a mix of indigenous plant seeds, soil, compost, cow dung and natural fungicides. Degraded forests and abandoned plantations are among the sites that have been chosen for the programme. In Thiruvananthapuram, the project will get underway at Kuttappara in Paruthipally forest range on June 17. Students, sociocultural activists and the local populace will come together for the conservation effort, a press release stated.
The Hindu
10-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Union Minister's claims about Malappuram teen's death baseless, says Kerala Forest Minister Saseendran
Kerala Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran on Tuesday (June 10, 2025) termed as "half-truths" and "baseless" the reported claims by regarding the State's powers to kill wild animals and the recent death of a teen in Malappuram due to a live wire trap laid for wild boars. Mr. Saseendran said that the Union Environment Minister was merely reiterating the allegations of the Opposition with regard to the boy's death. He denied that there was any negligence on the part of the State government as was reportedly claimed by the Union Minister. Mr. Saseendran also said that while the Chief Wildlife Warden (CWC) has powers to order killing of a wild animal which causes loss of life or property in populated areas, a standard operating procedure (SOP) has to be followed before issuing any such direction. One of the requirements under the SOP is to constitute a local area committee which shall also include a representative of the National Tiger Conservation Authority, the Forest Minister said. He said that there are similar impractical requirements in the SOP which hamper the decision to be taken by the CWC. "We sent a letter requesting the Central government to give relaxations with regard to such requirements in the SOP. However, there is no response yet on that and the Union Minister was silent about it when he spoke to the media," Mr. Saseendran contended. He claimed that such "double standards" of the Centre were responsible for the sufferings of the people living in the forested hilly regions of Kerala. Mr. Yadav, while reportedly speaking to the media in Delhi a day ago, had blamed Kerala government for the death of the boy and also claimed that the Centre has issued guidelines permitting panchayats to kill wild boars if they pose a threat to human life and property. 15-year-old Ananthu, alias Jithu, a Class 10 student, died after coming into contact with a live wire from an electric fence set up illegally on a private land to trap wild boars at Vazhikadavu in Malappuram district on Saturday.
The Print
10-06-2025
- Politics
- The Print
MHA resumes talks with Kuki-Zo insurgent groups after 2 yrs to discuss ‘way forward', renewal of SoO pact
According to government sources, the discussion revolved around opening of highways to ensure that free movement of people across the state without any obstruction, and the Kuki-Zo groups demanding a 'revision in the ground rules' of the SoO agreement. The talks were held with five members of Kuki Zo SoO groups, MHA's Northeast adviser A.K. Mishra and Intelligence Bureau officials Monday. New Delhi: After a gap of almost 2 years, the Ministry of Home Affairs resumed talks with Kuki-Zo insurgent groups in Manipur to discuss a 'way ahead' for a 'political solution' for the state and a broad outline for the suspension of operations (SoO) pact that remains in limbo. The surrender of weapons that were looted post 3 May, 2023, was also discussed in detail, the source said. National Highways-2 and 37, that connect the Imphal valley to Nagaland and Assam respectively, are critical for supply of essentials and other commodities. They pass through Kuki-Zo inhabited areas and have seen blockades and protests in the last 3 years, hindering supply of essentials. 'We are glad that the resumption of dialogue happened after so long. We discussed how to find a way forward. It is a good start, we covered many points in the discussion including revision of the ground rules of the SoO pact,' a leader who attended the meeting told ThePrint. 'The new ground rules which require rewording of many phrases has to be done. The second meeting will be held soon, hopefully within a week.' Before the violence erupted in the state, the key demand of the SoO groups was to have autonomous territorial councils within Manipur, which later changed to a separate administration for Kuki-Zo areas, defining it as a Union territory with a legislature. The SoO camps had become the focal point of the ongoing conflict in the state as former CM N. Biren Singh, time and again, accused these cadres of 'contributing to the escalation of violence'. The camps were established as part of a pact signed on 22 August, 2008, between the Kuki militant groups and the central and Manipur governments, in light of the Kuki-Naga clashes in the 1990s. According to the SoO agreement, members of these groups were required to suspend their operation as insurgents and stay within designated camps with their weapons securely stored in safe zones under a double-locking system. The agreement has been periodically extended each year, except on 29 February last year when the Manipur government pulled out from the tripartite pact. There is now a demand to relocate the SoO camps away from areas near the valley districts—which has a concentration of Meitei population—and to reduce the number of camps from 14 to 7. 'The discussion on the renewal of the camps has not yet happened. It is an ongoing process,' a government source said. (Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri) Also read: Manipur on edge after arrest of radical Meitei leader—ex-cop wanted for abduction of senior officer
