India

Hyderabad, Sep 11 (IANS) Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and and JD-S leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Sunday discussed the agenda of the national party proposed to be launched by the former.

The Janata Dal-Secular leader met KCR, as the Telangana Rashtra Samiti leader is popularly known, at the latter's official residence and they discussed a wide range of issues relating to national politics during the three-hour long meeting.

KCR told Kumaraswamy that the formation of the national party and formulation of policies will soon take place after continuing discussions with intellectuals, economists, and experts from various fields and reaching a consensus on an alternative national agenda.

According to the Chief Minister's Office, they discussed the threat of a political and governance crisis in the country if the BJP's "destructive political moves are not stopped". They felt that people of the country are waiting for an alternative political platform that will carry on the spirit of the Indian Constitution by integrating all communities irrespective of castes, religions and regions, it said.

The two leaders arrived at a consensus that they should put an end to the BJP rule, which is exploiting emotional issues, and use the upcoming general elections as a platform for that.

Kumaraswamy asserted that the immense experience of KCR, who achieved Telangana state by uniting all sections and moving forward in a democratic and peaceful manner, is required by the country in the present situation.

He felt that KCR should move forward to constitute an alternative front in the national politics and play a key role and assured his full support. He added that the country urgently needs a senior leader like KCR in the wake of the space for an alternative in the current national politics.

Kumaraswamy congratulated KCR saying that the entire country is discussing the development achieved by Telangana in just a span of eight years and the whole nation also wants to have similar development.

The TRS leader stressed the need to collectively thwart the conspiracies to create division among people. The two leaders discussed the "dangerous and selfish political path" adopted by the BJP government at the Centre and its consequences and expressed serious concerns.

They arrived at a consensus that they will protect the country from being pushed into dangerous religious hatred in any situation. In this direction, they stressed the need for unity of all alternative political forces to safeguard the spirit of the country's democratic federalism.

The former Karnataka Chief Minister said that people are waiting for an alternative to the BJP across the country. He urged KCR to foray into national politics and contribute his part for the qualitative progress of the country. He said he would extend full support if a political party is established for that purpose

The two leaders felt that people have come to an opinion that the Congress is not a strong alternative to the BJP and they lost faith in the Congress leadership. They discussed the urgent need for the unity of regional parties so that the spirit of democratic federation will flourish.

KCR told Kumaraswamy that there is increasing pressure on him to enter national politics and lead the country like Telangana. He said that people are extending their support in public meetings everywhere during his district tours with cheers and slogans to fight against the BJP and Modi's anti-people and autocratic attitude.

He asserted that people are completely against the BJP, which is constantly creating problems in Telangana, which is running on the path of progress.

The two leaders condemned the anti-farmer policies adopted by the BJP government at the Centre, which is acting as "an anti-farmer" government and is indulging in conspiracies to undermine domestic agriculture.

--IANS
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Chandigarh, Sep 11 (IANS) In an important development, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has observed that constitutional body, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, "does not possess the power of adjudication and has no authority to issue any mandatory injunction or interim injunction".

Further, Article 338 (5) of the Constitution imposes a duty on the commission to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes and to conduct inquiries into complaints pertaining to the deprivation of rights and safeguards, observed Justice Vinod S. Bhardwaj, while staying the commission's directive to the local administration to hand over 28 acres of land in Fatehgarh Sahib in Punjab to Nahar Nath.

It has ordered that the possession of the land should remain with petitioner Vikas Nath.

"Article 338 (8) vests powers of Civil Court upon the Commission only for limited purposes. The limited scope of power of a Civil Court vested in the Commission is only for enabling it to secure summoning and enforcement of attendance of any person or requiring discovery and production of documents etc.," the court observed.

After hearing counsel for petitioner Rakesh Chopra, the court stayed the operation of the commission order dated July 26-27. It prima facie agreed with the contention of the petitioner that the powers of the commission are limited.

The high court, while listing the matter for next hearing on November 3, contended that "such order of the commission runs contrary to the Supreme Court judgment".

The commission had ordered that the right of cultivation should be given after handing over the possession of land owned of a 'dera' by the administration to complainant Nahar Nath and adequate security be provided to him.

--IANS
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New York, Sep 11 (IANS) Several drugs used to treat Covid-19 patients -- including remdesivir, dexamethasone, and antibiotics for associated bacterial infections -- persist through wastewater treatment and may occur in waterways at levels high enough to negatively affect aquatic organisms, finds a new study.

According to researcher Heather Preisendanz from Penn State, over-the-counter and prescription-strength pharmaceuticals, including antibiotics and pain relievers, are excreted by humans, and many are known to persist through wastewater treatment plants and into nearby waterways, where they can negatively affect aquatic organisms.

"This knowledge spurred concerns that increased use of pharmaceuticals during the pandemic could also lead to increased concentrations of these drugs in wastewater treatment plant effluent and potentially harm aquatic life," said Preisendanz.

For the study, published in the Journal of Environmental Quality, the team collected weekly influent (incoming) and effluent (outgoing) samples from two wastewater treatment plants in central Pennsylvania between May 2020 and May 2021. One of the sites includes a hospital in its service area.

The researchers analysed the influent at both wastewater treatment plants for the virus SARS-CoV-2, as well as the influent and effluent for a variety of medications that may have been used to treat Covid-19.

In their study, the researchers examined two over-the-counter fever reducer/pain relievers (acetaminophen and naproxen), five antibiotics (ampicillin, doxycycline, ofloxacin, sulfamethoxazole, and trimethoprim), two Covid-19 therapeutic agents (remdesivir and dexamethasone, which is used to reduce severe upper respiratory inflammation in patients on ventilators), and hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug that was ultimately shown in clinical trials to be ineffective for treating Covid-19.

The team found that remdesivir concentrations were correlated with the number of hospitalised Covid-19 patients, while dexamethasone concentrations were associated with the number of hospitalised patients on ventilators.

Specifically, influent to the wastewater treatment plant servicing the hospital had concentrations of remdesivir and dexamethasone of 28 per cent and 31 per cent, respectively, while the average removal efficiencies by the wastewater treatment plant for these drugs were 39 per cent and 56 per cent, respectively.

Hydroxychloroquine was not detected in any of the influent samples collected at either treatment plant.

According to Preisendanz, although risk to aquatic organisms from remdesivir could not be calculated, as no research has yet been done to determine the concentrations that could pose a risk, dexamethasone was detected in quantities that could pose a low acute risk to fish.

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 11 (IANS) After the national council meeting of NCP on Sunday, party general secretary Praful Patel said that Sharad Pawar was not a contender for the prime minister's post, and the opposition unity was paramount.

He said Pawar was going to play an important role to bring many forces together.

Patel said, "Sharad Pawar was never and will never be the PM face. He only speaks about the real issues of this country. Some workers of the party expressed their views but Sharad Pawar is not aspiring for the PM post.

"We know our limitations and he is not the opposition's face but will play an important role."

Patel said the NCP was going to play a key role in the upcoming General Elections. But the party's stand was clear that there was a need for the Opposition to unite.

"We were also a part of the UPA government. We don't have any such issue with the Congress," he said.

Sharad Pawar was re-elected as the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President on Saturday unopposed during the party's national executive meeting.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who was in the national capital recently met scores of political leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, NCP leader Sharad Pawar, CPI-M Secretary General Sitaram Yechury, CPI's D. Raja and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Nitish Kumar's purpose of visit was to talk about the opposition unity. He is likely to meet Sonia Gandhi when she returns from abroad. Kumar had also met RJD leader Lalu Prasad and TRS Chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao.A

Nitish Kumar officially denied any prime ministerial ambition, but the political commentators feel that the target is PM's chair. However, the biggest obstacle is the Congress, which is maintaining that being the biggest political formation it's going to the fulcrum of any alliance.

--IANS
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Srinagar, Sep 11 (IANS) Former senior Congress leader, Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Sunday that he has not promised restoration of Article 370 in his new political agenda because he doesn't believe in making false promises.

Addressing a public meeting in north Kashmir's Baramulla town, Azad said, "To restore Article 370 would need around 350 votes in the Lok Sabha and 175 votes in the Rajya Sabha.

"This is a number no political party has or is likely to ever get. The Congress has shrunken to less than 50 seats and if they speak of restoring Article 370, they are making false promises."

He said his political agenda includes restoration of statehood, land and jobs for the locals as these are achievable objectives.

"Some people have blamed me for voting in favour of the Article 370 abrogation motion brought in by the home minister.

"I have voted against the abrogation and these people who have no idea about the working of Parliament are saying that I voted against Article 370," he said.

He said when he was the chief minister of the state, he arrested 13 police personnel for staging a fake encounter in which three persons were killed.

"The arrested persons are in jail for the last 15 years," he said.

He spoke of the developmental works and creation of districts during his tenure as the chief minister.

"Four new districts were created in the Valley and three in the Jammu division during my tenure as the chief minister. I got new medical colleges during that period.

"Whether I get four votes or lakhs of votes during the elections, I will never deceive the people," he assured the public gathering.

This was Azad's first public meeting in Kashmir after he resigned from the basic membership of the Congress party.

--IANS
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Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 11 (IANS) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has embarked on a the Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir from September 8 has commenced his 19-day Kerala leg from Parassala bordering Tamil Nadu.

The Congress scion reached Parassala on Saturday night and started the journey in the morning. He was accorded a warm welcome with people thronging on both sides of the road to shower petals on him.

Party General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal, who is coordinating the Yatra, and former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and party general secretary, Digvijaya Singh were walking along with Rahul Gandhi.

Gandhi will be reaching Thiruvananthapuram city on Monday and will address a public meeting there. The Congress leader is covering around 25 km on foot per day.

Kerala Pradesh Congress committee President K. Sudhakaran, Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly and senior Congress leader V.D. Satheeshan, coordinator for the Kerala leg of the Yatra, Kodikkunnil Suresh MP, Thiruvananthapuram District congress president Palode Ravi and senior leader Manacaud Suresh were also present with Rahul Gandhi as he beagn his Kerala leg padyatra.

--IANS
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Kolkata, Sep 11 (IANS) Trinamool Congress's national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee's sister-in-law, Maneka Gambhir, was stopped from travelling abroad on Saturday night following an objection by the Enforcement Directorate.

Gambhir is under probe by the ED in connection with the multi-crore coal scam.

She was supposed to leave for Bangkok on Saturday night, and accordingly she reached the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport. But she was stopped at the immigration department soon after she submitted her ticket and passport at the immigration department.

She was asked to wait for some time and meanwhile the immigration department official contacted ED headquarter in New Delhi. Later Gambhir was denied boarding at the Bangkok- bound flight on grounds that already a lookout notice has been issued against her in a particular case and hence she cannot be allowed to leave the country.

As a supporting document, the immigration department furnished an email printout of a notice from the ED, through which the latter had summoned her to be present at the ED office in Kolkata this week for questioning in a particular case.

To recall, on August 30, the Calcutta High Court, allowed Maneka Gambhir to appear for questioning at the Enforcement Directorate (ED)'s Kolkata office instead of its New Delhi office. The ED had summoned Gambhir at its Delhi office on September 5 for questioning in the coal smuggling scam. However, she had challenged the decision in the high court.

--IANS
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By Ajay Kumar
Patna, Sep 11 (IANS) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's recent three-day visit to Delhi to unite the opposition parties to contest against the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections seems to have had a deep impact on the saffron brigade.


Now, the question is whether Nitish Kumar is dreaming of being the main challenger to Narendra Modi in the next general elections.

Political experts believe that Nitish Kumar has one of the sharpest brains among the political leaders in the country. He is completely aware of his strengths and weaknesses and hence he is not pitching himself as the Prime Ministerial candidate of the opposition parties.

"The BJP's Bihar unit is dragging his name in the race for opposition PM candidate with the aim of creating differences among other opposition leaders. Nitish Kumar is backed by his fellow political commanders such as JD-U national president Lalan Singh, state ministers Ashok Chaudhary, Vijay Chaudhary, among others, who always say that he has all the abilities to be the next Prime Minister, but he is not in the race," said Rajnish Singh, a Bihar-based political expert.

While interacting with mediapersons in Delhi, Nitish Kumar had denied that he is in the race to be the next Prime Minister.

"Our idea is to unite the opposition against the BJP. The opposition parties have enough strength to challenge the BJP and defeat it. I am not in the race to be the prime ministerial candidate of the opposition parties in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections," he had said.

The opposition parties know how the BJP is attempting to corner them, and that may be the reason why they are showing a positive intent towards Nitish Kumar's initiative to unite the forces opposing the saffron camp. This may have something to do with BJP national President J.P. Nadda claiming in Patna recently to achieve the target of an opposition-free government.

The BJP in the recent past had successfully toppled governments in the states of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra to assume power. But in Bihar, it was Nitish Kumar who severed ties with the BJP and forged an alliance with the RJD, Congress and Left parties to form a Mahagathbandhan government, much to the dismay of the saffron camp.

After severing ties with the BJP, JD-U's Lalan Singh had said that the BJP has 16 Lok Sabha MPs in Bihar, 17 MPs in West Bengal and 11 MPs in Jharkhand.

If Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav manage to reduce the BJP to zero in Bihar, and the same is achieved by Mamata Benerjee in West Bengal and Hemant Soren in Jharkhand, the BJP would automatically come down below the majority mark of 272 in the Lok Sabha, which is possible, Lalan Singh had said.

He had also suggested that the opposition leaders should adopt the poll strategy of the BJP to defeat the BJP.

The actual idea is to take poll benefits in crunch situations. The BJP has an advantage of double engine government on this count in states where it is in power.

Opposition leaders like Nitish Kumar, Mamata Banerjee, Hemant Soren, K. Chandrashekher Rao, Ashok Gahlot, Raman Singh, Naveen Patnaik and M.K. Stalin should look at cashing in on the anti-incumbency factor against eight years of BJP rule at the Centre.

If these leaders manage to conduct free and fair elections in their respective states, the BJP may be up against a tough competition.

Following Nitish Kumar's three-day visit to Delhi, the BJP top brass reportedly gave a message to its Bihar unit to attack Nitish Kumar, sources said.

Hence, statements were issued by Sushil Kumar Modi, Giriraj Singh, Sanjay Jaiswal, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Tarkishore Prasad, among others, against Nitish Kumar.

Sushil Modi said, "Nitish Kumar had humiliated George Fernandes, Sharad Yadav and R.C.P. Singh in the past. He will do the same with Lalan Singh and Upendra Kushwaha. However, Lalan Singh and Kushwaha said sorry to Nitish Kumar and remained in JD-U while the others were removed."

Reacting to Sushil Modi, Lalan Singh said: "No one gets humiliation better than what you are undergoing. Despite all your efforts and statements against Nitish Kumar and JD-U, your party has not given any post to you. Still, our good wishes are with you."

--IANS
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By Vishal Gulati
Shimla, Sep 11 (IANS) The saffron brigade soldiers are depending upon their General to win the electoral battle for them in Himachal Pradesh.


Facing strong winds of anti-incumbency, the BJP leadership in the state led by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur seems banking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "charisma", instead of flashing its own achievement card.

The party is holding a mass public meeting of Modi on September 24, the first of the three rallies planned ahead of the poll announcement, in Mandi town, the home turf of the Chief Minister, with an expected gathering of over one lakh youths.

Normally in every public meeting, Thakur, who is currently on an inauguration spree by travelling to every nook and corner of the state, is missing no opportunity to remind the public about PM Modi's special bond and love for the people of the state where he spent a few years as the in-charge of the state's affairs in the late 90s.

Getting nostalgic by speaking often in the local dialect, even Prime Minister Modi in his public addresses became vocal about his emotional bond and connection with the state that he says has had a very positive impact in shaping and giving direction to his life.

"The Prime Minister has always bestowed his blessings on Himachal by offering so many developmental projects in the past five years. It is his charisma and the local connection with the masses which the state BJP is going to rely on to retain power," senior Cabinet minister Suresh Bhardwaj told IANS on Saturday, adding, "What is wrong in seeking votes on the name of the 'pradhan sevak' who devoted his life to the welfare of the people and good governance."

Modi last visited the state on May 31 to address beneficiaries of the Central government's schemes to mark the eighth anniversary of his government from the historic Ridge -- once the promenade of the British colonial rulers when Shimla was their summer capital.

He will be coming to the hill state again on September 24. This time he is coming to Mandi, the district with 10 assembly segments, the state's second highest, to launch the BJP's campaign for elections slated for the end of this year for the 68-member BJP-ruled assembly.

Earlier, he addressed a rally in Mandi on December 27, 2021, to mark the fourth anniversary of the state government.

According to Bhardwaj, the legislator from Shimla, in the last five years there is a double-engine government in the state and at the Centre and the speed of development and the implementation of schemes has gained momentum.

"Himachal proposes projects and the Centre approves the funds. Recently, the Centre approved a bulk drug park for Himachal, a major achievement for a small state. There are several projects and schemes that Himachal has benefitted from. If I talk about urban development, Shimla and Dharamsala have benefitted from the Smart City Mission while AMRUT-I and AMRUT-II are there for other cities."

"Not only this, Modi-ji wears a Himachali cap during his foreign sojourns, which also brands the state across the globe," an optimistic Bhardwaj added.

For Chief Minister Thakur, who is quite younger to Modi, Himachal is the second home of "our Prime Minister and he is always excited to visit it".

Expressing gratitude to Modi for sanctioning a bulk drug park in Haroli tehsil of Una district, Thakur, in full page newspaper advertisements last week, said Himachal is the only northern state to get this prestigious project.

"The bulk drug park will not only accelerate the pace of industrialization in the state but will also generate employment opportunities, thereby leading to a significant boost in the prosperity of the region," said Thakur.

Apart from Himachal Pradesh, housing Asia's biggest pharmaceutical hub, the Department of Pharmaceuticals has given 'in-principle' approval to the proposals for pharma parks in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.

Thakur in a recent interview to IANS said it is due to the 'double-engine government' that the state has got six government medical colleges and one in the private sector, apart from the completion of the Atal Tunnel and sanctioning a PGIMER Satellite Centre in Una and AIIMS in Bilaspur.

He said the government is spending over Rs 1,300 crore annually on providing social security pension to the needy as compared to only Rs 400 crore spent by the previous state government.

"Our HIMCARE, Sahara Yojna, Ghrihini Suvidha Yojna and Shagun Yojna have been providing much needed relief to the needy and poor," he added.

Thakur said the Prime Minister has visited the state seven times. "Under his leadership, we will start electioneering with renewed energy," he said while inaugurating developmental projects in his Seraj assembly constituency in Mandi district on Friday.

Political observers told IANS the focus of Modi's September 24 rally ahead of the Assembly polls, which are slated later this year, is to keep his party's 'double engine government' on track by recapitulating the milestones the state achieved through the Centre's welfare schemes.

Aiming to make it one of the biggest rallies of the Prime Minister, state BJP chief Suresh Kashyap told IANS that over one lakh people below the age of 40 will attend the rally.

"Youths at the booth level will be mobilised to participate in the rally, while others would also join virtually," he said.

Despite the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) striving hard to make inroads ahead of the polls, the political scenario in Himachal Pradesh seems so far largely bipolar -- a tug-of-war between the two conventional arch rivals -- the Congress and the BJP.

Himachal Pradesh was traditionally dominated by the Congress and saw its first non-Congress chief minister, Shanta Kumar, in 1977, when the Janata Party came to power.

The Congress appointed its three-time MP Pratibha Singh, the widow of six-time chief minister Virbhadra Singh, as the state unit president in April.

Unlike her husband who had a direct connect at the grassroots, Pratibha Singh has spearheaded the poll campaign in a bid to oust the incumbent Jai Ram Thakur-led government by saying people are highly upset with its poor performance.

She often blames the BJP for banking on the popularity of Modi to win the polls as it did nothing for the people's welfare.

The Congress is banking on its promise to bring back the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) that will benefit 225,000 employees, a crucial vote bank.

The Congress is banking mainly on an anti-incumbency wave against the ruling dispensation. It won three Assembly and one parliamentary seat in the October 2021 by-polls.

Chief Minister Thakur believes good governance with zero corruption, which is essential for economic growth, and no witch hunting are the mantras for his success. Unprecedented development will remain the party's main poll plank for the forthcoming polls.

The BJP had won a majority in the 2017 Assembly polls with 44 seats in the 68-member Assembly.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)

--IANS
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Lucknow, Sep 11 (IANS) A woman underwent a massive and complex 48-hour surgery to cure her of brain aneurysm. Doctors at Lucknow's Apollomedics Hospital successfully performed the surgery.

Brain aneurysm is a bulge or ballooning in a blood vessel in the brain.

MD and CEO, Apollomedics Super speciality Hospital, Dr. Mayank Somani said: "We saved the life of a woman who is a sketch artiste. She was not only cured of her life-threatening condition but also got her eyesight back."

The 40-year-old woman was admitted to emergency with loss of vision and altered sensory faculties.

Senior Consultant of Neurosurgery at Apollomedics Hospital, Dr. Sunil Kumar Singh said: "The patient came to the hospital with no eyesight."

The brain aneurysm exceeding a little over the size of a golf ball, had developed in the base of patient's brain and was about to burst any minute, leading to excessive bleeding in the brain, which would have been a life-threatening condition.

"The surgery involved 50 doctors and paramedics and took about 48 hours. The entire team worked tirelessly and committed themselves to saving the patient's life," said Dr. Somani.

--IANS
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