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Time of India
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Bills that sparked standoff with guv in past await assent as list stacks up
Raipur: Over half a dozen key bills passed by the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly since 2020 are still awaiting the governor's assent, including two contentious amendments from the previous Congress govt aimed at raising reservation quotas in jobs and education — a move that had sparked a protracted standoff between the then govt and the Raj Bhavan. At the heart of the impasse were two key bills passed unanimously by the Vidhan Sabha in Dec 2022 during the then Congress-led govt — the Chhattisgarh Public Service (Reservation for SC, ST, and OBC) Amendment Bill and the Chhattisgarh Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Amendment Bill. These legislations sought to raise the quotas for Scheduled Tribes (ST) to 32%, Other Backward Classes (OBC) to 27%, Scheduled Castes (SC) to 13%, and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) to 4%, taking the total to 76% — the highest in India at that time. However, the then-governor Anusuiya Uikey withheld assent, citing a 2012 Chhattisgarh High Court judgment that declared a 58% quota formula unconstitutional for breaching the 50% ceiling imposed by the Supreme Court. She demanded quantifiable population data from the state's commission to justify the proposed hike, but the Congress govt declined to share the report, leading to a standoff. Although the controversy momentarily subsided after governor Uikey's transfer to Manipur in early 2023, her successor Vishwabhushan Harichandan was yet to clear the bills. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like She's 75 and Retiring - Her Handcrafted Jewelry Is 80% OFF The Heritage Journal Read More Undo The delay continues to stall govt recruitments and admissions under the enhanced reservation structure, frustrating job seekers and students alike. The issue has triggered fierce political crossfire. The Congress accuses the BJP of deliberately blocking pro-reservation reforms for political mileage. The BJP counters that constitutional propriety must not be compromised and supports the governor's demand for data-backed justification. Officials said the other bills, passed by the assembly since 2000, were also awaiting gubernatorial assent. These include the Chhattisgarh University (Amendment) Bill 2020, Pt. Sundarlal Sharma Open University Chhattisgarh (Amendment) Bill 2020, Indira Kala Sangeet University (Amendment) Bill 2020, Chhattisgarh Agricultural Produce Market (Amendment) Bill 2020, and Chhattisgarh Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2020. The Chhattisgarh Kushabhau Thakre University of Journalism and Mass Communication (Amendment) Bill presents a tricky situation as it proposes to rename the university after veteran Congress leader Chandulal Chandrakar, a respected journalist and five-time Member of Parliament from Durg, who was among the strong advocates for carving out a Chhattisgarh state from undivided Madhya Pradesh. The university is currently named after Kushabhau Thakre, a senior BJP ideologue, who held the position of national BJP president from 1998 to 2000. Thakre, a veteran RSS pracharak and one of the BJP's founding organisers, was known for his organisational work, especially in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. During the previous Congress regime, the Bhupesh Baghel govt got the amendment bill passed in the legislative assembly, but the bill is still awaiting the governor's assent. Chhattisgarh Congress senior spokesperson Surendra Verma said, "The crucial bills are in limbo as they are pending with Raj Bhawan. The Mandi amendment bill is crucial for the farmers as it will provide security to farmers directly selling their produce to traders. Naming the journalism university after veteran journalist Chandulal Chandrakar is an issue linked with the state's pride," he added. Two older bills — including a Religious Freedom Bill from Ajit Jogi's regime and another by BJP leader Ramvichar Netam during Dr Raman Singh's tenure — remain pending with the President of India, adding further weight to the growing pile of legislations awaiting final clearance, he said. Senior BJP leader and former minister Ajay Chandrakar said, "The issue of bills pending for the governor's assent is neither a matter for political debate nor something that should be raised in the Assembly. There are clear constitutional powers vested in the governor on such matters. The Congress is trying to politicise these issues for narrow brownie points."
The Print
03-07-2025
- Politics
- The Print
After cabinet meet, Mohan Yadav govt issues show cause to official who ordered probe against minister
The previous day, Sanjay Andhavan, engineer-in-chief of the public health engineering department, had ordered an inquiry into claims involving expenditure of a portion of the Rs 30,000 crore in central funds received for work under the Jal Jeevan Mission. In a letter, Andhavan ordered officials in the department to look into properties held by Uikey as well as the executive engineer in Mandla, alleged to be 'collecting money' for the minister. During the state cabinet meeting Tuesday, Uikey who is the minister for public health engineering and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Mandla questioned whether the official could initiate an inquiry against her, eventually leading to the show cause. Bhopal: A day after the start of an enquiry into allegations of corruption against state minister Sampatiya Uikey, the Madhya Pradesh government Wednesday issued a show cause notice to the official who ordered the probe. At the state cabinet briefing Tuesday, Uikey raised the issue before Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and sought to know the extent of the engineer's authority. A state BJP leader said on condition of anonymity that Uikey also urged Yadav to act against Andhavan for initiating what she termed 'unsubstantiated' allegations. The demand was backed by a larger section of ministers present, it is learnt. Soon after, Public Health Engineering Principal Secretary P. Narhari was issued directions to provide a clarification on the matter. Speaking to The Print, Narhari said, 'We have issued a show cause notice to engineer-in-chief Sanjay Andhavan, seeking his explanation on ordering a probe into the complaint.' 'We receive several complaints against public representatives and public servants. The engineer-in-chief is supposed to check the facts, as well as work with authorities in his capacity, without initiating an inquiry. The engineer-in-chief is under the minister, not the other way round,' he added. The allegations stem from a complaint Kishore Samrite, national president of Sanyukt Kranti Party, sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that ministers, officers, and contractors in Madhya Pradesh were misusing funds meant to provide tap water connections to rural households. In his complaint, Samrite alleged that the accused had already misused Rs 1,000 crore from central funds allocated to the state. The PMO forwarded the complaint to the Madhya Pradesh chief secretary, and then, the public health engineering department. 'The response received from the engineer-in-chief on the show cause notice issued to him will decide the further course of action, whether a departmental inquiry against him will continue or not. However, any person holding his post will be well aware of the rules,' said a senior official from the MP government who did not wish to be named. (Edited by Madhurita Goswami) Also Read: Madhya Pradesh CM's convoy comes to a grinding halt after cars are refuelled with 'water-mixed' diesel
Indian Express
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
MP dept orders probe against own minister over Jal Jeevan funds
The Madhya Pradesh Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department has ordered an investigation against its own minister, Sampatiya Uikey, over allegations of corruption linked to Central funds under the Jal Jeevan Mission. In a communication dated June 21, Engineer-in-Chief (ENC) Sanjay Andhavan directed a probe into claims regarding 'expenditure of Rs 30,000 crore given by the Government of India to Madhya Pradesh under Jal Jeevan Mission and investigation of properties of the Departmental Minister in Public Health Engineering Department and Executive Engineer-Mandla who collected money' for the minister. The letter was sent to the Chief Engineer of PHE Department for all regions of the state and the Project Director of the MP Water Corporation Limited, Bhopal. They have been instructed to submit detailed reports within seven days. Uikey did not respond to calls and messages seeking comment. The investigation stems from an April 12 complaint filed by Kishore Samrite, a former MLA from Lanji and the national president of Sanyukt Kranti Party, who alleged that 'ministers, officers and contractors' 'misused' the Central funds meant for providing tap water connections to rural households in the BJP-ruled state. Samrite's complaint, addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was referenced by the Under Secretary of the MP Government in a letter to the state PHE Department on May 30, ENC Andhavan's communication stated. In his complaint, Samrite alleged that '30 crore rupees given by the Government of India under Jal Jeevan Mission in the Public Health Engineering Department have been misused by ministers, officers and contractors.' The complaint alleged that Uikey took 'commission in this scheme' and a large amount was taken through a Mandla-based Executive Engineer. Samrite's complaint also alleged widespread corruption involving multiple officials and contractors across the state's water supply infrastructure projects. 'In this scheme, 3,000 completely fake work completion and utility certificates have been sent to the Government of India which should be immediately seized…,' his complaint read.
The Hindu
19-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
Centre plans to set up National Tribal Health and Research Institute under AIIMS, New Delhi
The Union government is planning to set up a National Tribal Health and Research Institute (NTHRI) under the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi and there are also plans to hold a competition for the development of drugs to manage Sickle Cell Disease, especially prevalent among certain tribal populations in the country. These announcements were made by Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey on Thursday (June 19, 2025) at an event to mark the World Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) Day at the AIIMS campus here. Mr. Uikey said the competition would be for the Bhagwan Birsa Munda Prize and the winning drug development project would get up to ₹10 crore in funding for taking the drug forward. At the event meant to mark awareness of SCD, government officials said the Ministry had sanctioned Centre of Competence (CoC) in 15 tertiary care hospitals, including AIIMS, which were meant to provide 'state-of-the-art diagnostics for and management of SCD, including ante-natal diagnosis.' Course in 'tribal medicine' Mr. Uikey said there was also a proposal to offer a postgraduate course in 'tribal medicine', which 'aims to address the long-standing health inequities faced by tribal communities'. The government, in its statement, said the 'specialised course' would be designed to develop a cadre of medical professionals with contextual knowledge, clinical skills and public health competencies 'tailored to tribal settings'. Ministry officials told The Hindu that the government's efforts to develop a gene therapy for treating SCD were 'progressing on the right path' and was in the trials stage for the time being. In a statement issued on Thursday (June 18, 2025), the Union government said there was only a single drug available for the management of SCD. 'There is currently no option to select a drug from a spectrum of drugs options for management of a patient, depending on his/her body conditions and severity of the disease.' 'This problem gets augmented in special situations such as pregnancy, other serious medical conditions etc. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the development of a new drug/s for the management of the disease,' it said on the announcement for the Bhagwan Birsa Munda Prize, adding that the competition for this drug development would be held by the Ministry in collaboration with AIIMS Delhi. Guide in policymaking On the setting up of the NTHRI, the government said this institute was meant to be an 'advanced research centre for diseases particularly predominant among tribal people'. It would be expected to guide the government in policymaking in addition to its functions as an outpatient/inpatient facility for providing 'highest quality medical care to tribal people'. Currently, the Tribal Affairs Ministry's guidelines for managing SCD cases amongst tribal populations entailed a process involving screening, management and counselling. Under the government's programme run in collaboration with the Health Ministry, over 5.8 crore people had been screened for SCD across the 17 target States for SCD mission. Of these, about 16.38 lakh people or close to 2.82% were found positive for SCD traits and a total of about 2.1 lakh people were found to be having Sickle Cell Disease. The proportion of people identified with SCD comprise about 0.36% of total screenings.
Time of India
12-06-2025
- Time of India
17-year-old's miscarriage leads to rape case, live-in partner held
Nagpur: A 17-year-old complaining bouts of abdominal pain was taken to Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) on Monday. She was discharged the same evening only to return late evening after complaining the same excruciating pain. Two days later, the GMCH staff was rattled after the teen suffered a miscarriage and evidently it turned out to be case of rape. The incident got the GMCH staff into action and alerted the cops leading to the arrest of 20-year-old labourer Deepak Uikey on Wednesday. The incident once against stoked the debate about the contentious issue of consent and legal accountability in live-in relationships. Police report said the teen was into a lived-in partnership with Uikey from 2023. The medical staff, following protocol, found her age from her Aadhaar card, which confirmed that she was a minor. The matter turned sensitive as the teen got impregnated while being a minor. The duo, both residents of a nearby neighbourhood, reportedly had a consensual relationship. However, legal complications arose as the girl was a minor, raising questions about the contentious issue of consent under Indian law, said Hudkeshwar police station senior inspector Dnyaneshwar Bhedodkar. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Egypt: New Small Electric Car For Seniors. Prices Might Surprise You. Electric Cars | Search Ads Undo A medical examination post her miscarriage uncovered evidence leading to the filing of rape charges under the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act. Hudkeshwar police took Uikey into custody on Wednesday following a complaint lodged by the survivor's family. Uikey maintained to the authorities that their relationship was consensual, but the legal age of consent and the circumstances of the miscarriage went against him. The police are investigating whether coercion or abuse was involved in this case. The case has sparked debate about live-in relationships, particularly involving young individuals, and the legal protection for minors. "The families of the accused and the minors are camping at the police station. They want the case to be withdrawn. We are trying to explain to them about the legal complexities regarding the issues," said Bhedodkar. Follow more information on Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here . Get real-time live updates on rescue operations and check full list of passengers onboard AI 171 .
