Home Blog Page 3985

Gujarat: Bharat Mata Mandir inaugurated in Gandhinagar, deputy CM Nitin Patel says highways and bridges to have posters of Bharat Mata

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Gujarat: Bharat Mata Mandir inaugurated in Gandhinagar, deputy CM Nitin Patel says highways and bridges to have posters of Bharat Mata

A Bharat Mata Mandir is constructed in Sector 7-A of Gujarat’s capital, Gandhinagar. The temple, which houses an idol of Bharat Mata sitting atop a lion, with the map of India in the background and holding a saffron flag, was inaugurated on Friday amidst chants of Bharat Mata Ki Jai.

A huge crowd had gathered to attend the concluding ceremony of the temple dedicated to Bharat Mata. The chief guest of the event was Deputy CM Nitin Patel, who announced that this was perhaps the only temple in the country where all Hindus can worship.

“Bharat Mata belongs to us all. She is not the resident goddess of any particular community or caste. This is possibly the first temple of its kind that I have seen,” Times of India quoted Patel as saying.

Speaking at the Shri Bharat Mata Mandir Murti Pratishtha Mahotsav, Patel announced that henceforth, bridges, highways, roads and other development projects will have posters and plaques of Bharat Mata. He said the first such poster has already been put up at newly constructed flyovers in Gandhinagar.

Patel made a hard-hitting speech at the ceremony organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), touching upon several aspects, including the current situation in Afghanistan, the growing cases of Love Jihad and the law passed by the state assembly to curb the menace.

The ceremony was also attended by the Minister of state for home, Pradipsinh Jadeja, who said, “A centre for strength, worship and energy has been unveiled today. A sense of patriotism flows through our veins when we invoke Bharat Mata and pray to her,” he said. He heaped praises on the VHP for taking the initiative of building the state’s first Bharat Mata Mandir. The temple was built by the VHP, with the help of donations from many people.

The temple will serve as an impetus to spark the feelings of nationalism across the country, opined VHP international joint general secretary Satyendra Jain, adding that Hindus will be able to worship their gods and goddesses only if Bharat Mata is safeguarded.

Gujarat govt enforces strict measures against people arriving from Kerala, makes Covid-19 tests mandatory

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Gujarat govt enforces strict measures against people arriving from Kerala, makes Covid-19 tests mandatory

As Covid-19 continues to soar in Communist-ruled Kerala, the Gujarat government has decided to enforce strict rules against people arriving from Kerala. According to the reports, the state government has made it mandatory for all the people arriving from Kerala to undergo a thorough check-up for coronavirus symptoms before entering Gujarat.

Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, who is also the health minister, said that if a person is found to have symptoms, she or he will be quarantined as per the Union government’s protocol.

“Kerala’s population is four crores, less than that of Gujarat (6.5 crores). But that state recorded 30,000 coronavirus cases yesterday,” said Patel, adding that despite Kerala vaccinating a large number of people, a large number of people are contracting Covid-19 infection.

The Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister also said the government has directed the health department to ensure check-up of all people coming from Kerala for coronavirus symptoms. “They may arrive by train or flight or by any other means, they should be checked,” added Patel.

He has also asked officials to find out why there is a surge in infections in Kerala despite a high vaccination rate.

“Gujarat has also administered over 4.5 crore doses of vaccine, and we would like to know the scientific reason as to why people are getting infected in large numbers in Kerala even after being vaccinated,” Nitin Patel said.

Kerala – the epicenter of the Covid-19

Kerala is one of the two biggest epicentres of Covid-19 infections in the country, along with Maharashtra. In fact, Kerala remains the worst Covid-19 affected state in the country and continues to burden the country’s efforts in tackling the second wave of the pandemic even as other states have successfully reduced fresh Covid-19 cases.

For over a week now, Kerala has recorded close to 30,000 fresh coronavirus cases, along with over 200 deaths and a test positive rate above 19 per cent. With only 3 per cent of India’s population, Kerala now accounts for almost 70 per cent of all new Covid-19 cases. It ranks top in the daily number of deaths. The nationwide test positive rate is 2.4 per cent, while in Kerala, it is over 19 per cent.

In the last 24 hours, Kerala has reported 32,801 new cases, 18,573 recoveries and 179 deaths. With this, the total active Covid cases have now gone up to 1,95,254. 

Image Source: Covid19India.org

With Kerala reporting more than 30,000 cases every day on an average over the last two weeks, the total tally of Covid-19 cases in the state now stands at 39,46,307, the second-highest in the country after Maharashtra. 

Image Source: Covid19India.org

Kerala has recorded on an average 150 deaths due to Covid-19 in the last two weeks, taking the related death toll in the state to 20,313.

Setback to IPS Hemant Nimbalkar, husband of Congress MLA Anjali Nimbalkar, as SC stays HC order granting relief in IMA Scam: Full details

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Setback to IPS Hemant Nimbalkar, husband of Congress MLA Anjali Nimbalkar, as SC stays HC order granting relief in IMA Scam: Full details

In a setback to IPS officer and Karnataka IGP Hemant Nimbalkar, the Supreme Court on Friday stayed a Karnataka High Court order quashing an FIR and chargesheet filed against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation in the Rs 4,000 crore I-Monetary Advisory (IMA) ponzi scam.

According to the reports, the Supreme Court bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and R Subhash Reddy stayed the Karnataka High Court’s order passed on March 19, 2021, that had quashed the sanction provided by the government to prosecute Nimbalkar in the IMA case.

Justice John Micheal Cunha of the Karnataka High Court had stayed the FIR, claiming that they are “illegal and invalid” under Section 17 A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, which bars any enquiry or investigation into offences committed by the public servants while discharging their official duties.

However, the Supreme Court has now stayed the order passed by the Karnataka High Court and also issued a notice to Nimbalkar, asking him to reply in response to a petition filed by the CBI. Senior police officer Hemant Nimbalkar is the husband of Congress MLA Anjali Nimbalkar.

Hemanth Nimbalkar will now face criminal proceedings in the IMA scam case registered by the CBI on February 1, 2020. The CBI had alleged that Nimbalkar, during his tenure as the IGP of the CID, had forwarded the enquiry report of EB Sridhara – another accused in the case, to the State DG and IGP giving a clean chit to the IMA group. The senior cop had asserted that the probe had not found any wrongdoings on the part of the IMA group of entities to invoke the provisions of Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishment Act, 2004 against them.

Hemant Nimbalkar gave clean chit to the IMA company, did not carry out probe despite RBI’s request

The CBI has alleged that the officer had categorically maintained that the deposits collected by the IMA group of entities were exempted under the law. Despite RBI’s request for a detailed enquiry by the CID on unauthorised deposits, Hemant Nimbalkar had asserted that there was no requirement to probe into the IMA issue.

Earlier in October last year, the CBI had filed a charge sheet against 28 accused persons, including five police officers, in connection with the multi-crore IMA scam. The charge sheet also included Mohammed Mansoor Khan, the CEO and managing director of the Bengaluru-based investment firm I-Monetary Advisory (IMA), who had duped investors across the state to the tune of Rs 4,000 crore.

The CBI had named six police officers, who are currently under investigation by the SIT for their alleged involvement in the IMA scam. The senior officers named in the FIR are LC Nagaraj, EB Sridhara, Hemant Nimbalkar, Ajay Hilori, M Ramesh, and P Gowrishankar.

The charge sheet alleged senior police officials did not verify and act on the complaints against IMA. The CBI said that the accused instead gave a clean chit to the company and recommended that the complaints be closed, stating that IMA had not indulged in any illegal acts. The charge sheet also alleged that the “illegal” activities of the company continued unabated, and thousands of investors were scammed, who lost crores of rupees in the scam. 

IMA halal investment scam

The IMA halal Ponzi scheme was run by the founder of IMA group Mohammed Mansoor Khan and his associates, who duped lakhs of people by promising higher returns using the Islamic way of investment. The IMA promoter has been charged for running the Ponzi scheme, which allegedly duped 40,000 investors to the tune of over Rs 4,000 crore. 

The IMA scam is one of the biggest money laundering and financial fraud cases unearthed in Karnataka recently. Around 40,000 investors reportedly lost their money in this scam. IMA Managing Director Mohammad Mansoor Khan had attracted investors, especially Muslims, by offering an investment scheme that appeared to follow Islamic precepts and provided lucrative returns.

More than 41,000 complaints were registered by investors accusing IMA directors of committing fraud after the firm closed in May 2019 and ceased to pay dividends. 

The names of a few Congress leaders had also surfaced for their alleged involvement in the Ponzi scheme, making it a high-profile case. Senior Congress leaders like BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan, former Congress MLA Roshan Baig, Congress legislator from Khanapur in Belagavi Anjali Nimbalkar’s husband and Karnataka IPS officer, Hemant Nimbalkar’s name had also surfaced in the investigation.

Bengaluru: BBMP orders closure of meat shops on Sri Krishna Janmashtami. Here is what the circular says

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Bengaluru: BBMP orders closure of meat shops on Sri Krishna Janmashtami. Here is what the circular says

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has issued a notice to shut all meat shops in the city on the occasion of Sri Krishna Janmashtami on Monday.

The Joint Director (animal welfare), BBMP, has issued a public circular stating that there would be a ban on animal slaughter and sale of meat on August 30, 2021, on the occasion of Shri Krishna Janmashtami. In addition, the BBMP has ordered the closure of abattoirs and slaughterhouses in the city on the occasion of the Hindu festival.

Circular issued by BBMP (Source: TimesNow)

On earlier occasions too, the BBMP had ordered a similar ban on animal slaughter and sale of meat on the Janmashtami and Ganesh Chaturthi.

Crores through Hawala and foreign donations, 103 mosques built and possible J&K terror angle: Police on conversion racket accused Salahuddin

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Crores through Hawala and foreign donations, 103 mosques built and possible J&K terror angle: Police on conversion racket accused Salahuddin

On Friday (August 27), the Vadodara police informed that one of the ‘UP conversion racket’ accused Salahuddin Sheikh has been involved in funding terror activities in Jammu and Kashmir. The development came hours after a Special Operations Group (SOG) of Vadodara police reached Lucknow with a production warrant from a local court.

As per reports, the Vadodara police have begun probing the terror funding angle after accused Salahuddin’s connections surfaced in Jammu and Kashmir. According to a senior police official, he diverted hawla funds to the Union territory for the past few years. “He was in touch with many people in J&K and hence we are investigating if the money he diverted was used for terror activities or creating unrest in J&K,” the official emphasised.

While speaking about the matter, Vadodara police commissioner Shamshee Singh added that Salahuddin Sheikh received ₹60 crores through hawala schemes and ₹19 crores through foreign donations. He pointed out, “We are conducting a detailed investigation of how the money was used and who all received the cash that Sheikh diverted…Hawala funds used to come via Dubai. They (accused) also received foreign donations from UK, USA & UAE via a trust. Accused also got 103 mosques built in 5 states. They also used hawala funding for anti-govt protests and have connections in J&K also”

Reportedly, the accused built 45 mosques in Maharashtra, 17 mosques in Madhya Pradesh, 3 mosques in Assam, 30 and 8 mosques in Rajasthan and Gujarat. Another police official informed that Salahuddin Sheikh used to run a school in Chhota Udepur to facilitate his money laundering activities. Sheikh’s name surfaced during the investigation, following which the cops found his bank accounts that were used in hawala transactions.

Umar Gautam involved in mass conversions

Umar Gautam along with his aide Mufti Qazi Jahangir Qasmi was arrested by the UP ATS in the month of June this year. The two accused ran an organisation named Islamic Dawah Centre(IDC), along with their other associates, to mass convert people into Islam through inducements such as marriage, job and money and mental pressure.

They were also accused of specifically converting deaf and mute children. The investigations revealed that Gautam converted 1500 children at a deaf and dumb school in Noida to Islam. The two, and their organisation were booked under Sections 420, 120 B, 153A, 153B, 295 and 511 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3/5 of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance-2020 and are currently in Lucknow jail.

Total Covid-19 vaccinations in a day cross 1 crore for the first time in India, more than 62 crore doses administered so far

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Total Covid-19 vaccinations in a day cross 1 crore for the first time in India, more than 62 crore doses administered so far

The number Covid-19 vaccine doses administered today in the country created a record, as the number crossed 1 crore (10 million) for the first time. According to the latest data provided in the CoWIN portal, the total doses administered today was 1,02,06,475, which is expected to go up further later in the night.

With this, the total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses given in India has crossed 62 crore, the second-highest in the world after China.

1 crore doses of vaccine administered in a day is a very significant achievement. This is more than the population of over 100 countries in the world.

While the vaccination in the country had started at a slower rate, largely due to the availability of doses, it has picked up in the last two months. The daily average vaccination in the country has gone up substantially since 21st June, the date from when the union govt took the responsibility of all citizens above 18 years of age.

Before that, as the non-NDA ruled state governments had demanded independence in the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines, the central govt had tasked states with vaccinating people in the 18 to 44 years age group, while the central govt was vaccinating Indians above 45 years of age for free. But due to the global shortage of vaccines, the state governments could not procure enough vaccines, resulting in low vaccinations. After that, the central govt had decided to vaccinate everyone aged above 18 years for free, while also allowing private hospitals to run vaccinations against payments.

21 June had seen a record vaccination of over 86 doses in a single day. Since then, daily vaccinations are hovering between around 40 lakh to 80 lakh per day, barring holidays. On 16th August, that record was broken and the 90 lakh mark was crossed, when 92.39 doses were administered in a single day.

And now in just 11 days, the record has been again broken, with more than 1 crore doses in a single day. The Country is consistently administering above 50 lakh doses per day for the last several weeks, signifying the acceleration in the inoculation programme.

Screenshot of CoWIN dashboard on 27 August

More than 14 crore people have received two doses of Covid-19 vaccines so far, while more than 48 crore people have received the first dose. Uttar Pradesh leads with 6.97 crore total doses and more than 29 lakh doses administered today. UP is followed by Maharashtra (5.63 crore), Gujarat (4.5 crore), Madhya Pradesh (4.46 crore) and Rajasthan (4.22 crore)

India has approved six Covid-19 vaccines so far, Covishield developed by Astra Zeneca and Oxford University, Covaxin developed by Bharat Biotech, Sputnik V developed in Russia, Spikevax developed by Moderna, the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, and ZyCoV-D developed by Zydus-Cadila.

The bulk of the vaccination programme in the country is dependent on Covishield and Covaxin, both made in India. The union health ministry on Friday informed that above 4.05 crore Covid vaccine doses are still available with states and Union Territories for inoculation, while more than 17.64 lakh doses are in the pipeline.

As vaccinations have picked up, the Covid-19 cases are going down in the country. India has now around 3.5 lakh active cases, with Kerala contributing 1.95 lakh cases.

JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar met the Taliban leaders in Kandahar to seek support for fomenting terror in Kashmir: Report

OpIndia Staff
-
0
JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar met the Taliban leaders in Kandahar to seek support for fomenting terror in Kashmir: Report

Jaish-e-Muhammad chief Masood Azhar visited Kandahar in the third week of August to meet the Taliban for seeking their support in inciting terror in Jammu and Kashmir, a report published by India Today said.

Citing sources, the report said Maulana Masood Azhar met Taliban leaders, including Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the head of the political committee. Azhar has reportedly asked for help from the Taliban to foment unrest in the Kashmir Valley and help JeM for its operations in the Indian Union Territory.

Reportedly, Masood Azhar also conveyed his happiness for the Taliban’s “victory” after they formally took control of Afghanistan following the seizure of Kabul on August 15. As per sources, the terror chief has lavished praises on the Taliban for ousting the “US-backed Afghanistan government”. Even in their write-up titled “Manzil Ki Taraf”(towards the destination) on August 16, the JeM chief commended the terror group for the success of their “mujahideen” against the western forces.

Besides, congratulatory messages were also being exchanged between the JeM functionaries at its Markaz(headquarters) at Bahawalpur in Pakistan after the Taliban took over Afghanistan.

It is worth noting that the Taliban and Jaish-e-Muhammad share the same ideological fountainhead—the Deobandi School of Sunni Islam. Jaish-e-Muhammad has been carrying out terror activities in Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of India after it was founded by Masood Azhar in 1999.

Azhar was languishing in an Indian jail when an Indian Airlines flight IC 814 was hijacked by Pakistani terrorists, who got the plane to the Talibani controlled Kandahar. They demanded the release of Masood Azhar and other terrorists in exchange for the safety of passengers who were on the flight when it was hijacked while it was on its way from Kathmandu to Lucknow.

According to the reports, soon after the Pakistani terrorists got the Indian flight landed in Kandahar, the Talibani terrorists created a perimeter around the airbus, ensuring that they remain in control of the situation till terrorists, including Masood Azhar, were released by the Indian government.

The return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan has obviously raised concerns among Indian security experts, who believe the JeM and other Pakistan-based terror outfits might benefit from the rise of their ideological counterpart in the neighbouring country. The Taliban had recently vowed that it won’t allow its territory to be used for terror activities, but like its other promises, it is hard to believe if the Taliban would honour its promise.

Ujjain: 200 shops, houses built illegally on government land demolished as per Madhya Pradesh High Court order

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Ujjain: 200 shops, houses built illegally on government land demolished as per Madhya Pradesh High Court order

On Friday (August 27), the district administration demolished 200 shops built illegally on government land in the Ujjain district of Madhya Pradesh, reported Zee News. The demolition drive was carried out as part of the Smart City Project in accordance with the order of the High Court.

Under the Smart City Project, the government is building an urban forest, a hawker zone, gardens, and parking spaces. The Mahakaleshwar Temple is also being expanded to 10 times its original size under the project. It must be mentioned that the High Court of Madhya Pradesh had ordered to demolish illegal shops and houses in Mahakal Tekri, located within a radius of 500 metres from the temple. The Court had directed the administration to issue notice to the illegal encroachers and provide them 45 days’ time to vacate the government land.

After the notice period expired on Thursday (August 26), the district administration carried out the demolition drive today. The development was confirmed by Municipal Corporation Commissioner Kshitij Singhal. Reportedly, the illegal shops and houses were built on 2.5 hectares of government land located near Sanwer road in the Begum Magh area of Ujjain. The area falls under the jurisdiction of the Neelganga police station. and connects Mahakaleshwar temple, Chintaman Ganesh, Harisiddhi, Kshipra Ghat, Badnagar, and Indore-Ujjain Marg.

Zee News reported that a large contingent of police personnel was deployed to avert any law and order situation during the demolition drive. In visuals, a large crowd of seen watching as the district administration bulldozed the illegal encroachments. Most shops, which were demolished during the drive were garages. Earlier in July, a total of 100 houses were removed for the expansion of the Mahakaleshwar temple. The Madhya Pradesh government is paying ₹3 lacs to each family and about 130 people had recieved the compensation as of July this year.

Atmanirbhar Bharat: Mahindra Defence bags Indian Navy contract worth ₹1,349.95 crore for Integrated Anti-Submarine Warfare Defence Suite

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Atmanirbhar Bharat: Mahindra Defence bags Indian Navy contract worth ₹1,349.95 crore for Integrated Anti-Submarine Warfare Defence Suite

Mahindra Defence Systems Limited (MDS) has bagged a major defence deal from the Indian government for the manufacturing of Integrated Anti-Submarine Warfare Defence Suite (IADS) for the Indian navy. The Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd group company signed a contract worth Rs 1,349.95 crore for manufacturing of 14 IADS systems for modern warships of the Indian Navy with the Union Defence Ministry on August 27.

The system will enhance the anti-submarine warfare capability of the Indian Navy. The IADS comes with an integrated capability for detecting enemy submarines and torpedoes at extended ranges as well as diverting incoming torpedoes fired by enemy submarines. It is high-end underwater equipment designed to detect underwater threats and protest the ships from them. According to a statement issued by Mahindra Defence, the complex array of sensors in water undertakes surveillance, and provides inputs for signal processing and analysis, to enable necessary action.

The company informed that competitive bids from Indian companies were invited by the defence ministry through open tender, wherein the systems fielded were put through detailed trials at sea to prove their capability. Mahindra Defence said that the company was qualified in the tender by proving the capability of the system through comprehensive testing by the Indian MoD in actual operations at sea. After the technical qualification, the company was declared the winner of the commercial bid.

The company added that it would be supplying 14 IADS systems for the Indian Navy warships. “It is the first major contract with the private sector meant for underwater detection and protection from threats. This contract once again epitomises the success of the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative,” Mahindra Defence Systems Ltd Chairman SP Shukla said.

In a statement, the defence ministry said that the contract with an Indian firm under the ‘Buy and Make (Indian)’ category of defence procurement is an important boost to India’s ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ mission and provides a major fillip to the indigenous defence industry in technology development and production. “The MoD has continued to demonstrate its resolve to augment the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the Government and the resolve of the country to become ‘Atmanirbhar’ in advance technologies with induction of multiple equipment through home-grown defence industry,” the ministry added. Mahindra Defence Systems Limited had tied up with UK based Ultra Electronics for manufacturing of underwater warfare equipment for the Indian Navy.

1...3,9843,9853,986...7,652Page 3,985 of 7,652