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While new Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar claims he will do ‘Tukde-Tukde’ of BJP, RJD says he is another Sidhu who will destroy Congress

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While new Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar claims he will do ‘Tukde-Tukde’ of BJP, RJD says he is another Sidhu who will destroy Congress

The new Congress entrant Kanhaiya Kumar has claimed that he will do ‘Tukde-Tukde’ of BJP. Speaking to NDTV, the former JNUSU president and the former CPI leader, who had failed to impress the people of his hometown of Begusarai in Bihar and suffered a humiliating defeat in the 2019 election at the hands of the BJP candidate Giriraj Singh, has claimed that he would not let BJP win the upcoming assembly elections in Gujarat.

“The BJP calls me ‘Tukde-Tukde gang.’ I am ‘Tukde-Tukde’ for the BJP, and I will do ‘Tukde-Tukde’ of BJP”, Kanhaiya Kumar told NDTV in an interview. Echoing the Congress party’s senior leader Rahul Gandhi’s sentiments, he added that “this party (BJP) considers Godse the father of the nation, not Gandhi. They only praise Gandhi in front of [US President Joe] Biden.”

Calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah a “Nathuram-banai jodi” in reference to Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi, Kanhaiya Kumar claimed BJP’s ideology was openly against the father of the nation.

Kanhaiya Kumar could not stop gushing praises for Rahul Gandhi, his new boss. He called Rahul Gandhi an “honest and fearless leader” who wants the truth to prevail.

“My interactions with Rahul Gandhi made me feel that he is a compassionate leader… always asked me about my mother’s well-being, my father’s health. I really appreciate that about him and these are the qualities that attract me. He is sincere, there is sincerity in his fight. He is a fearless leader who wants the truth to prevail,” he said.

While Kanhaiya Kumar has taken it upon himself to help Congress re-establish its waning career, its allies are wary of betting on him.

RJD feels Kanhaiya Kumar is ‘another Sidhu’ who would ‘destroy’ the party

Bihar’s main opposition party RJD, which is also an ally of the Congress party, took a dig at the ex-CPI leader saying that Kumar is “another Navjot Singh Sidhu” who would “destroy” the grand old party.

Senior RJD leader Shivanand Tiwari mocked the Congress, calling it a sinking ship, and claimed that Kumar’s joining would make little difference to the party. “Kanhaiya Kumar’s induction won’t make any difference. He can’t save the party. Congress is a sinking ship and it has no future,” the RJD leader told reporters.

It may be noted, that Kanhaiya Kumar was welcomed into the Congress party with great fanfare by Rahul Gandhi. On September 28, when Kumar was inducted into the party, Rahul Gandhi was spotted celebrating with him at Shaheed-E-Azam Bhagat Singh Park, ITO, Delhi.

Almost unruffled by the crisis his Punjab unit was going through, Rahul Gandhi along with Kanhaiya Kumar, Jignesh Mevani and Hardik Patel were seen holding each other’s hands and lifting them in the air as they sought to celebrate the formal induction of Kanhaiya Kumar and Jignesh Mevani in the party fold.

‘Why discriminate against OCIs when there’s CAA’, says SC while allowing OCI candidates to compete for medical seats in open category

OpIndia Staff
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‘Why discriminate against OCIs when there’s CAA’, says SC while allowing OCI candidates to compete for medical seats in open category

A Bench of Justices S. Abdul Nazeer and Justice Krishna Murari of the Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) candidates to appear in the NEET-UG 2021 counselling in the general category.

Strangely, the court equated the case of OCI candidates with Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The bench said that if the central government can bring non-citizen from neighbouring countries to India and grant them citizenship under the CAA, then these OCIs are very much Indians. The court said that India is known for its spirit of inclusiveness.

“Look what your CAA does. It makes even a non-citizen as citizen of this country,” the bench further told additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati.

During the argument, ASG Aishwarya Bhati said that OCIs have a lesser threshold to become Indian citizens. They need to stay in India for 12 months and they will be recognized as full citizen of India. She asked why petitioners are not doing so and why they don’t act at par with Indian citizens. The Additional Solicitor General contended that OCIs are treated as foreigners since they have pledged their allegiance to a foreign state. She further pointed that if OCIs are treated at par with the general category, it will deny opportunity to Indian aspirants who aspire to work as doctors in India. She also pointed out that there was a high chance these successful OCIs candidates will return to their countries with their degrees after completing medical studies in India.

The Ministry of Home Affairs on March 4 had issued a notification keeping OCI candidates at par with Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) for the purpose all-India entrance examinations such as National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) and others. By this order, this was ensured that OCIs will compete with NRI for a limited number of seats and they will have to pay a fee at par with the NRI. This notification was challenged by some OICs.

It may be noted that the CAA and the legal battle fought by OCIs are two different things. CAA 2019 was passed by the Indian Parliament to grant citizenship to six marginalized minorities communities who have been facing prosecution owing to their religion. The act has amended the definition of an illegal immigrant for Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, Christian, Jain and Buddhist immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who were forced to seek shelter in India due to their prosecutions on religious grounds. This Act fast tracks their citizenship to India from 12 years to 6 years.

India reciprocates to UK’s travel guidelines, imposes mandatory Covid-19 tests, 10-day quarantine for all travellers from the UK

OpIndia Staff
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India reciprocates to UK’s travel guidelines, imposes mandatory Covid-19 tests, 10-day quarantine for all travellers from the UK

The Indian government on Friday decided to impose reciprocal travel curbs on British visitors arriving in India from the UK, with effect from October 4. 

As per the new rules mandated by the government, all UK nationals travelling to India will have to compulsorily need to undertake RT-PCR test 72 hours prior to their departure. Besides, they will also be required to take COVID-19 test on arrival and 8 days after landing. 

In addition to this, a 10-day quarantine is also made mandatory for the flyers from the UK at home or the destination address, regardless of their vaccination status.

Earlier today, a senior official of the Home Ministry was quoted as saying by news agency ANI that the Indian government has decided on ‘reciprocal treatment’ to the applicants under new visa conditions. 

As per the decision, the visa facilitation will be incumbent on the applicant’s home country’s policy for Indian tourists. The official said that to settle issues arising out of such a situation, a meeting was convened last week that was attended by representatives from all concerned agencies.

“In the meeting, it was decided to provide reciprocal treatment to tourists visiting India. Many countries have opened for tourists from foreign countries but have posed several restrictions for Indian travellers. The issues have been raised with the diplomats of concerned countries to get issues resolved,” the official said.

The decision came in the wake of the United Kingdom’s move to not recognise vaccination certificates issued by CoWIN platform in India. Earlier, the UK govt had refused to consider Covishield at par with AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, despite being the same vaccine made in India. After India lodged a strong objection, UK had later accepted Covishield as an approved Covid-19 vaccine. But the requirement of 10-day quarantine for travellers from India had remained even if travellers are fully vaccinated, as the UK had refused to accept the vaccination certificates issued by India.

As a result, as warned by India earlier, the Indian govt has introduced reciprocal measures for UK residents visiting India. India had said that it has the right to impose reciprocal measures if the UK does not address concerns over the new travel rules relating to Covid-19 vaccine certification.

Great grandson asks PM Modi to stop BJP from ‘demonising’ Nizam of Hyderabad who is responsible for a genocide of Hindus

OpIndia Staff
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Great grandson asks PM Modi to stop BJP from ‘demonising’ Nizam of Hyderabad who is responsible for a genocide of Hindus

The great grandson of Mir Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam of Hyderabad, has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to prevent BJP leaders from dragging the name of Khan during election campaigns. Himayat Ali Mirza, the great grandson, has also approached the Election Commission over the matter.

Mirza claims that the name of Mir Osman Ali Khan, who was the Nizam of Hyderabad when the Razakars committed a genocide of Hindus, is misused for electoral and political benefits. He told TOI, “When India became the Republic on January 26, 1950, the Government of India appointed him as the Raj Pramukh or governor of Hyderabad state. The Nizam held a constitutional post and no political party or politician can talk bad about him.”

“The Nizam saw Hindus and Muslims as his two eyes. He was the largest donor of grants to places of worship of all faiths. The Nizam gave special paid leave for employees visiting pilgrim centres like Banaras,” added Himayat Ali Mirza.

Mirza rued the fact that Mir Osman Ali Khan was “maligned during every election” in Telangana. During the independence era, the Nizam attempted to retain Hyderabad’s independence and wished to refrain from joining either India or Pakistan. However, there was pressure from Majlis-e-Itihadul Muslimeen (precursor of present-day AIMIM) to join Pakistan instead.

Fearing reprisal from the Hindu populace in his state, the Nizam sanctioned the formation of Razakars, who were to serve as the paramilitary wing of the MIM. Subsequently, the Razakars went on a rampage, slaughtering and raping Hindus in their wake in their bid to turn Hyderabad into a Muslim majority province.

Numerous atrocities were committed against the Hindu community, leading then Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to initiate Operation Polo to rid Hyderabad of the menace. It ended with Hyderabad joining the Indian Union.

Decades later, the Nizam’s grandson wants political parties to not “malign” the person who sanctioned the creation of the force that committed a genocide.

Naxalism on the rise, mineral reserves being looted in Jharkhand: Union Minister for Heavy Industries

OpIndia Staff
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Naxalism on the rise, mineral reserves being looted in Jharkhand: Union Minister for Heavy Industries

Mahendra Nath Pandey, the Union Minister for Heavy Industries, has raised concerns about the surge in Naxal activities in the state of Jharkhand. He also expressed apprehension about the loot of mineral resources under the ruling dispensation of the Congress-JMM-RJD alliance in the state.

Pandey said on Thursday, September 30, that the development and growth achieved in the state under the former BJP government has been “shattered” by the Hemant Soren government.

The Union Minister was responding to a demand by Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) President Ashok Bhalotia to set up heavy industries in the state.

Expressing his keenness to develop Jamshedpur into an auto hub, Pandey added: “Extremism and Naxalism have started spreading its tentacles in the state, and freedom is also being granted to loot mineral reserves”.

He claimed that opposition parties, including the Congress, were geared around alliance and compromise politics, but the Narendra Modi government was delivering on people’s expectations and desires.

Naxalism has been a long-standing issue in Jharkhand. So far many civilians, tribals and even security personnel have lost their life in Jharkhand due to Naxal violence.

Notably, during a meeting on anti-Naxal operation chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on September 26 in New Delhi, Jharkhand chief minister had claimed that Naxal incidents have declined in Jharkhand.

The Chief Minister had further claimed that the presence of Naxals (CPI-Maoist, PLFI, JJMP, TSPC and others) are now limited to Parasnath Pahar, Budha Pahar, tri-junction of Saraikela Kharsawan-Khunti-Chaibasa districts comprising parts of Kolhan and Chhotanagpur besides some parts sharing a border with Bihar.

Officer of Jharkhand Jaguar killed by Naxals days after Hemant Soren claims Naxalism has dipped in the state

However, only two days after Hemant Soren’s statement, a deputy commandant of Jharkhand Jaguar (an elite assault group of Jharkhand Police) Rajesh Kumar was martyred during an encounter with extremists of banned outfit Jharkhand Jana Mukti Parishad (JJMP) on the afternoon of September 28.

The incident took place in the forest of Salaiya village under Sadar police station of Latehar district which is barely 10 km from the district headquarters. Rajesh Kumar, originally from Border Security Force (BSF), was on deputation in Jharkhand Jaguar.

Illegal encroachments are part of a blueprint to win elections by changing demography in constituencies: Himanta Biswa Sarma

OpIndia Staff
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Illegal encroachments are part of a blueprint to win elections by changing demography in constituencies: Himanta Biswa Sarma

On Thursday (September 30), Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma flagged off concerns about changing demographics in the State and how illegal immigrants can alter election results in Vidhan Sabha constituencies. He stated that Bangladesh origin Muslims have a clear strategy to take over 3-5 constituencies each election by increasing their population, eventually grabbing power in the state after a few decades.

While speaking to the media, Sarma stated that the goal of the illegal immigrants was to capture power at Dispur by 2050 through demographic change. The Assam CM stated that the illegal encroachment at Dholpur in Darrang district was part of the plan to take control of the Sipajhar Vidhan Sabha constituency. He added that most people in the area (6000 out of an estimated 10000 people) did not have their names in the preliminary list of the National Register of Citizens.

CM Himanta Biswa Sarma further stated, “Earlier, when I was not the chief minister, I did not have access to intelligence files. But now I have them and these reports talk about a blueprint to take over constituencies after constituencies. Their common thought is to turn around the demography and emerge as the majority to take control of power at Dispur by 2050…If we can stop this from happening, it will be a big achievement for us.”

(Video Courtesy: Youtube/News18 Assam)


The Assam CM clarified that his reference was to immigrants from Bangladesh and not native Assamese Muslims. He said that the native Muslims were not part of the vicious blueprint to change the demography of the State. “In fact, the desi Muslims are complaining to me that their mosques have been grabbed by these illegal settlers,” he emphasised. In Assam, Muslims are categorised into two categories, Bengali speaking Muslim immigrants from Bangladesh, both legal and illegal, and native Assamese Muslims, descendants of native Assamese who had converted to Islam centuries ago.

Himanta Biswa Sarma also stated that in the last Vidhan Sabha election, constituencies such as Batadraba, Barkhetri, and Mangaldai constituencies fell to illegal immigrants.

Violence breaks out in Darrang district in Assam as encroachers lock horns with security forces

On September 23, an eviction drive conducted by the administration in Darrang district in Assam had turned violent after encroachers of the land attacked security forces. While 9 policemen were injured in the attack by the mob of illegal encroachers, 2 attackers were killed in retaliatory police firing.

The incident took place at the Dholpur in the Garukhuti area near the Sipajhar town in Darrang district in Assam, where the Himanta Biswa Sarma government is conducting an eviction drive of illegal settlers on land belonging to the government or other organisations like temples. When the eviction party reached the place inhabited by Bengali-speaking Muslims on Thursday, hundreds of people clashed with the police, attacking them with stones, machetes, pointed bamboo sticks, etc.

Delhi BJP leader Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga sends defamation notice to BJP MP Subramanian Swamy: Read details

OpIndia Staff
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Delhi BJP leader Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga sends defamation notice to BJP MP Subramanian Swamy: Read details

Delhi BJP leader Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga today sent a defamation notice to BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy over allegations Swamy had made against him. The notice was sent after Swamy had alleged on Twitter that Bagga was jailed many times for petty crimes before he had joined BJP.

Earlier, Bagga had asked Swamy to prove his allegation, saying that he will take legal action if the allegations are not proved within 48 hours. As the given had expired yesterday, Bagga sent a notice for civil and criminal defamation to Subramanian Swamy today.

Swamy said in the tweet on the 28th September, “Delhi journalists inform me that before joining BJP, Tajinder Bagga had been jailed many times for petty crimes by the New Delhi Mandir Marg Police Station. True? If so Nadda should know.” After this, Tajinder Bagga had hit back saying that instead of tweeting, Swamy should call Mandir Marg Police Station, take the details of his alleged arrests and then expose him.

The notice said that the tweet by Swamy was posted with clear intentions to damage and harm the reputation of Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga despite knowing fully well that the allegations made were not correct. The notice asks Subramanian Swamy to justify his allegations against Bagga.

The notice asks Swamy to furnish details like serial numbers of FIRs registered against Bagga at Mandir Marg police station in Delhi, DD numbers of complaints registered or lodged against Bagga, dates when Bagga was allegedly arrested and jailed, and names of journalists who had reported about the alleged arrest or detention of Bagga in newspapers and news channels, as Swamy had said Delhi journalists had informed him about Bagga’s multiple arrest in petty crimes before joining BJP.

The defamation notice states that if Subramanian Swamy fails to provide the sought details within 7 days of receiving the notice, he will have to submit a written apology to Tajinder Bagga for circulating a false, frivolous and defamatory tweet. The notice adds that if Swamy does not submit the apology, Bagga will legally proceed against him in appropriate courts for causing Defamation.

How the liberal PM of Canada spent years fighting against compensation to indigenous children who faced discrimination

OpIndia Staff
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How the liberal PM of Canada spent years fighting against compensation to indigenous children who faced discrimination

Indigenous children in Canada are set to receive billions in compensation after overcoming the challenges put forth by the Trudeau government.

A federal court judge in Canada finally dismissed a pair of legal challenges made by the Canadian government thus ending the years of discrimination faced by the First Nations indigenous children in the hands of the Canadian government according to The Guardian report.

Two years ago, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal in a court ruling had accused the Canadian government of “willfully and recklessly” discriminating against the indigenous children living on reserves by depriving them of child and family services. However, the Trudeau government had legally challenged the order to compensate the First Nation children for the discrimination.

Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, who had launched the initial human rights complaint, said to media, “We had evidence-based solutions, in 2000 and 2005. If the government had acted on them and if they had even acted on them after we filed the case, there would not be victims to compensate.”

Assembly of First Nations national chief Rose Ann Archibald said on the court ruling that she hopes the government sees the federal court ruling as a fair decision and will move forward with compensation. “You can’t talk about truth and reconciliation and then turn around and fight our children in court,” she added.

The court had then ruled that the Canadian government was supposed to pay compensation of C$40,000 to each child who was removed from his or her home. But, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that his government would appeal against the ruling to “make sure we’re getting compensation right”.

A federal judge however decided on Wednesday that the tribunal’s compensation ruling was not unreasonable. Justice Paul Favel wrote in his decision that “No one can seriously doubt that First Nations people are among the most disadvantaged and marginalized members of Canadian society,” also adding, “The tribunal was aware of this and reasonably attempted to remedy the discrimination while being attentive to the very different positions of the parties.”

The court also mentioned the “Jordan’s principle” which was named after Jordan River Anderson, a five-year-old child who died due to a medical condition while governments fought over who should pay for his care. The judge concluded that the government failed to establish that the tribunal’s decisions were unreasonable in both cases.

 Justin Trudeau’s decision to fight both of these rulings have been criticized by the indigenous leaders while critics argue that Trudeau’s denying compensation to children is an indication of a government not committed to reconciliation.

This fight against the Canadian government for compensation is 14 years old. In the past, Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society equated underfunding of the child welfare on reserve to racial discrimination.

Trudeau administration spent millions fighting a court case against rights of indigenous children

Indigenous leaders and lawmakers celebrated Wednesday’s landmark ruling after a long battle against the Canadian government. Guardian cited Lawmaker Charlie Angus as saying, “Today was an absolute victory for First Nation children. For six years Justin Trudeau spent millions fighting the rights of Indigenous children and trying to overturn a ruling that found his government guilty of ‘wilful and reckless’ discrimination against vulnerable Indigenous kids. The court has thrown his case out,” 

First Nations Caring Society claimed the decision was a “huge win” for indigenous children and families, as per the report in the Guardian.

The Assembly of First Nations said in a tweet, “Today’s decision acknowledges the personal harm caused by Canada’s discrimination and affirms that First Nations deserve justice,”. It further added, “We hope that Canadians stand with us in recognizing that #EveryChildMatters.”

Canada’s government and Church had been discriminating against First Nation people for decades

For several decades, the Church and the Canadian government had forcibly taken indigenous children away from their families and put them in the infamous residential school system to “educate” them. The so-called “education” was the systematic wiping out of indigenous culture, languages and rituals. The children were forcefully ‘Christianized’ to fit in a White Christian society.

The First Nation people of Canada have been struggling for years to stop the discrimination and demand reconciliation for the injustice meted out to them.

Indigenous Canadians are marking September 30 as the first National Day of Truth and Reconciliation and celebrating it as #OrangeShirtDay to create awareness about the systemic racial discrimination and suffering endured by First Nation people.

‘Bring non-Muslim girls to get money, pleasure’: What member of Fatehpur Mosque said about Maulana Firoze Alam and the conversion racket

OpIndia Staff
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‘Bring non-Muslim girls to get money, pleasure’: What member of Fatehpur Mosque said about Maulana Firoze Alam and the conversion racket

A committee member of a mosque in Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh has made stunning revelations about another cleric of the same mosque. As per Majeed Khan, Maulana Hafiz Firoze Alam encouraged youths to trap girls of other religions for conversion to Islam and sexual exploitation. He also solemnised nikahs after the conversions of these victims.

Firoze persuaded the youths to carry out the criminal activity by promising them ‘money and pleasure’. He allegedly told the youths that if they manage to lure non-Muslim girls and bring them to him, they would earn money as well get to enjoy themselves.

Majeed Khan revealed how Maulana Firoze had once solemnised one such nikah of a Brahmin girl whom a youth had lured to elope with him.

He added that Maulana Firoze’s place origin is also doubtful. Majeed Khan said that though the cleric maintained that he originally hails from Nepal, he felt that Firoze might be a Bangladeshi or a Rohingya who illegally entered India. He said that Firoze has never been able to produce any valid document to attest that he is a resident of Nepal and now, he has managed to get an Aadhar, a ration card and even a passport made in his name.

Many years ago, Alam was appointed to the Fatehpur mosque. Khan claims that after 14-15 years of service, he was dismissed from the mosque two years ago owing to his problematic teachings. He added that he had filed a complaint against Maulana Firoze with the police, including CO (Circle Officer) and SP so that the social peace of his village remains unhinged, but no action has been taken against him in this matter.

The Maulana was, however, arrested on September 24 after the Fatehpur police filed a case against the Maulana under IPC sections 419, 420, 467, 468, 471 and Section 12 of the Passport Act.

It may be noted that the Maulana has been arrested for procuring a fake Indian passport, Aadhar card and other identity proofs. However, the police have not yet evoked any charges of forced religious conversion against Maulana Firoze.

Meanwhile, Firoze Alam has refuted the conversion allegations levelled against him. He said that his two daughters live in Nepal. The passport he obtained in India was intended for Haj, but he was unable to go because of his wife’s demise.

Uttar Pradesh police investigate’s Fatehpur Maulana Firoze’s alleged links withUmar Gautam

The police are, however, investigating Maulana Firoze’s alleged links with the massive ISI-funded conversion racket operated by the recently arrested Umar Gautam of Islamic Dawah Centre.

Earlier, in June, the Uttar Pradesh ATS had busted a huge ISI-funded religious conversion racket and arrested Maulana Mohammed Umar Gautam and his accomplice Mufti Qazi Jehangir from Delhi for allegedly forcing over 1,000 people to adopt Islam. The duo, who ran an organisation named Islamic Dawah Centre (IDC), along with their other associates, were charged for mass conversion of people into Islam through inducements such as marriage, job and money and mental pressure.

In continuation with the crackdown, the Uttar Pradesh ATS, on the 21st of September arrested one Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui. Siddiqui had admitted that upper caste girls from the Brahmin and Kshatriya community were his targets for conversion to Islam. Following Siddiqui’s arrest, the Uttar Pradesh ATS, on September 26, made three more arrests in the conversion racket case. The arrested were identified as Mohammed Idris Qureshi, Mohammed Salim and Kunal Ashok Chaudhry alias Atif

PM Narendra Modi launches Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 and AMRUT 2.0, pledges to remove garbage mountains from cities

OpIndia Staff
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PM Narendra Modi launches Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 and AMRUT 2.0, pledges to remove garbage mountains from cities

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said that the Swachh Bharat Mission had a positive impact on people and it changed the mindset to an extent that even children now don’t throw toffee wrappers at public places. The Prime Minister said this while launching Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 (SBM-U) with the aim to ensure ‘Garbage-Free’ cities.

“Toffee wrappers are now no more thrown on the floor. These are rather kept in the pocket. Children even ask elders not to litter around,” the PM said. He expressed satisfaction that the young generation has come forward to support the cleanliness mission.   

The Prime Minister also inaugurated Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation 2.0 (AMRUT). He launched both the programme through video-conferencing and said that SBM-U and AMRUT 2.0 are in “the line of our commitment to ensure top quality urban spaces that are garbage-free and water-secure,” to support the rapid urbanization of India.

He reminded how the nation had taken a pledge in 2014 to make India Open Defecation Free by 2019 and the target was achieved as 10 crore toilets were constructed.

He said that the second phase of SBM-U will help to remove mountains of garbage from cities, adding that Delhi too has one such mountain of garbage. Through AMRUT 2.0, the government aims to provide safe drinking water and improve sewerage and drainage systems across the country. It will also focus on grey and black water management. The PM said that both the programmes are the mission as well as pride of the country and this is an attempt to save rivers and water sources of the country.

The SBM 2.0 will focus on source segregation of solid waste, utilizing the principles of 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), scientific processing of all types of municipal solid waste, and remediation of legacy dumpsites for effective solid waste management.

The Prime Minister said that when SBM was launched in 2014, less than 20 per cent of the total waste could be processed.

“India is currently processing about one lakh tonne of waste every day. In 2014, when Swachh Bharat Abhiyan was launched, less than 20 per cent of the waste generated in the country every day could be processed. Today about 70 per cent of daily waste is processed but we have to  take it to 100 per cent,” he said.

He said that waste processing has also become the source of income that benefits people. He informed that both programmes are part of the visions of Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar who emphasized that urbanization can remove evils of social disparity. He said that under the second phase, the government aims to provide 2.64 crore sewerage connections, 2.68 crore water connections.

The Prime Minister remembered how the Nirmal Gujarat Abhiyan became a public campaign and received a huge response in Gujarat when it was launched in 2007. He said that Gujarat received benefits of this campaign in the long run as it developed good civil sense and also boosted the tourism sector.

But the Prime Minister at the same time also advised that maintaining cleanliness is not an affair of a day, a fortnight and a year. “Cleanliness is lifestyle, cleanliness is life mantra and all should participate in it,” he said.

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