New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) The Indian Army clarified on Wednesday night that martyred Agniveer Ajay Kumar’s family was paid Rs 98.39 lakh as compensation, rebutting Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s claim that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had “lied” about recompensating the family on the floor of the Lok Sabha.

The clarification came soon after Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said in a video message on X: “Protection of truth is the foundation of every religion. But Defence Minister Rajnath Singh lied in the Parliament about the assistance given to the family of a martyred Agniveer.”

Rahul Gandhi also accused the Defence Minister of deceiving the Parliament regarding the ‘assistance’ provided to the family of martyred Agniveer Ajay Singh, as he demanded an apology from Rajnath Singh to the Parliament, the nation, the armed forces, and the bereaved family.

Clearing the air, the Army said in a post on X: “Certain posts on social media have brought out that compensation hasn’t been paid to the next of kin of Agniveer Ajay Kumar who lost his life in the line of duty. It is emphasised that the Indian Army salutes the supreme sacrifice made by Agniveer Ajay Kumar. The last rites were carried out with full military honours.

“Of the total amount due, the family of Agniveer Ajay has already been paid Rs 98.39 lakh. Ex-gratia and other benefits amounting to approximately 67 lakh, as applicable according to the provisions of the Agniveer scheme, will be paid on final account settlement shortly post due police verification. The total amount will be Rs 1.65 crore approximately.

“It is re-emphasised that emoluments due to a fallen hero are paid expeditiously to the next of kin of departed soldiers, including Agniveers.”

To recall, Rahul Gandhi, who has always been critical of the Agnipath scheme of recruiting Agniveers into the armed forces, reiterated his opposition to the scheme during his first speech as the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha on Monday.

He accused the government of creating division among soldiers by providing pensions to some and not others, stating, “Agniveer is a disposable tool. One soldier receives pension, while another does not. You are fostering a divide among soldiers.”

Rajnath Singh countered Rahul Gandhi’s allegations, accusing him of spreading misinformation. He also emphasised that the government provides Rs 1 crore in compensation to the families of martyred Agniveers.

–IANS

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Bengaluru, July 3 (IANS) A six-year-old girl’s body was found at the Bengaluru railway station on Wednesday and police, after a preliminary investigation, suspect that she was raped and murdered.

According to police, the body of the girl was found near the parking space close to a platform in the Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna railway station premises by the parking lot staff.

Scratch injury marks were found all over the girl’s body and her clothes were found stained with blood. The police probe has revealed that the victim girl was the daughter of a couple who are daily wage workers.

It is suspected that the body was dumped in the parking lot after she was raped, but it is yet to be ascertained whether the girl was gang raped or it was a crime committed by a single person.

The body has been shifted to the Victoria Hospital for autopsy.

Superintendent of Police, Railways, Sowmya Latha stated that the police have taken up the case and are examining CCTV footage. The girl was murdered first and then the body was dumped here, she added. Further details are awaited.

–IANS

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Imphal, July 3 (IANS) Incessant rainfall since Monday caused flooding at many places in Manipur’s five valley districts, including Imphal West and Imphal East, as two major rivers breached their embankments, officials said on Wednesday.

The flood waters inundated low-lying areas and human habitations and entered a large number of houses, and government and private offices, forcing the state government to declare a holiday for all government offices on Wednesday, while educational institutions would remain closed till Thursday.

Several thousand families were affected in the five valley districts, including the capital Imphal. Disaster management officials said that the Imphal River breached its embankment at Singjamei Oinam Thingel in Imphal West district, and the Kongba River at Kongba Irong and parts of Keirao in Imphal East district.

The repairs of the river bank and rescue operations are going on right now. The Iril River is also overflowing in several places of Imphal East district.

Several highways including the India-Myanmar road have also been flooded. Relief and rescue operations are underway for the affected people, officials said.

A district official said that the body of a 25-year-old man, who fell into the Senapati River on Tuesday afternoon, was recovered by a team of the Indian Red Cross Society with help from locals.

After visiting some flood-affected areas, Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said on X : “Visited the flood affected zones at Singjamei and its surrounding areas. Necessary measures are being undertaken to assist the affected families while preparations are underway to tackle and address any eventualities. I urge all to remain calm and cooperate with the authorities for any issues and challenges”.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely to occur in the state in the coming two days. A round-the-clock control room has been set up to coordinate rescue, relief, and rehabilitation efforts and to address the requirements of the people affected by heavy rainfall, floods, and landslides.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has vehemently criticised Defence Minister Rajnath Singh regarding the controversial Agnipath scheme for recruitment of Agniveers into the armed forces.

In a statement issued on X on Wednesday, Rahul Gandhi accused Rajnath Singh of misleading the Parliament on the Agnipath scheme.

In fact, during Rahul Gandhi’s maiden speech in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Rajnath Singh had interrupted, alleging that the Congress MP was intentionally misinforming the House. The Defence Minister had claimed that every martyr in the Indian Army covered under this scheme receives compensation exceeding Rs 1 crore.

“Protection of truth is the foundation of every religion. But Defence Minister Rajnath Singh lied in the Parliament about the assistance given to the family of a martyred Agniveer,” Rahul Gandhi wrote on X.

The Congress leader intensified his criticism of the Defence Minister by sharing a video featuring an interview with the father of Shaheed Ajay Singh, who stated that “their family had not received” any compensation from the Central government.

In the video, Rahul Gandhi also displayed a picture of Lord Shiva, which he had brandished in the Lok Sabha on Monday, saying Rajnath Singh lied in front of Shivji’s photo.

Rahul Gandhi also accused the Defence Minister of deceiving the Parliament regarding the assistance provided to the family of the martyred Agniveer, alleging that the father of martyr Ajay Singh exposed these falsehoods as he demanded an apology from Rajnath Singh to the Parliament, the nation, the armed forces, and the bereaved family.

Rahul Gandhi, who has been critical of the Agnipath scheme, reiterated his opposition during his first speech as Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

He accused the government of creating division among soldiers by providing pensions to some and not others, stating, “Agniveer is a disposable tool. One soldier receives pension, while another does not. You are fostering a divide among soldiers.”

Rajnath Singh countered Rahul Gandhi’s allegations, accusing him of spreading misinformation. He also emphasised that the government provides Rs 1 crore in compensation to the families of martyred Agniveers.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also shared the video of Rahul Gandhi on her X handle, stating, “When opposition leader Rahul Gandhi raised the issue of Agniveer, the BJP government responded with falsehoods in Parliament.

“By lying, they insulted the sacrifice and martyrdom of families who have given their sons for the nation. Is this the BJP’s nationalism? The Prime Minister owes the nation an apology for lying and disrespecting the martyrs.”

–IANS

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Amaravati, July 3 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday reiterated his resolve to build Amaravati as a world-class capital but admitted that restoring the investors’ confidence after the “destruction during the last five years” will not be easy.

He said he would have to talk to the Singapore government, which had prepared the master plan, and a consortium of Singapore companies, which had signed an agreement for the Amaravati Capital City Startup Project during the earlier TDP rule but then, the venture was cancelled by the previous YSRCP government.

Asserting that his government will live up to the people’s expectations by overcoming challenges and legal hurdles to build the state capital as per the earlier vision document and master plan, he, however, said he was open to new ideas and improved versions.

The Chief Minister was talking to media persons after releasing a White Paper on Amaravati, whose foundation stone was laid in 2016 when he was the Chief Minister.

He lashed out at his predecessor Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who stopped construction of Amaravati after coming to power in 2019 by mooting the idea of three state capitals.

“This is a case of one person destroying the future of the coming generations. We need to introspect if such persons should occupy a public office,” he said, adding that as a result of the previous government’s policies, investor confidence was lost and Andhra Pradesh’s brand image suffered.

“For example, the Singapore government. I need to talk to them. They may come or may not come. They have their own experience. They don’t need to lose money for us. There are hundreds of such countries and states for them,” he said.

Naidu said investors may have apprehensions about the future as the man responsible for the destruction of the last five years is still in politics. “They feel why they should take risks. They say you have a good track record but what about tomorrow? How can you give assurances,” he said.

The TDP chief said people need to ponder whether such a person is fit to remain in politics. “I am speaking for the future of five crore people of this state,” he said.

The Chief Minister, whose TDP is a partner in BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, said he would use all opportunities and take the help of the Centre to restart the works in Amaravati. He said he would talk to all investors including individuals, companies and institutions and reiterated his vision to create a world-class capital which boosts the image of the state and improves the confidence of the people.

“We need to restart the construction activity, restore the investor confidence, rebuild the brand image and resurrect the economy,” he said. The Chief Minister said if the original plan was implemented between 2019 to 2024, a world-class capital for the state would have been in place, 50,000 to 1,00,000 people would have been residing in the capital, seven lakh jobs could have been created during construction and Rs 2 lakh crore would have been added to the GDP. There would have been Rs 10,000 crore of income through state taxes every year with an increment of 15 per cent every year, he added.

There would have also been an increase in property prices and wealth generation across the state.

Naidu alleged that the previous government systematically weakened and destroyed Amaravati. Land acquisition notification for 1,197.30 acres was withdrawn, annuity for 2,903 farmers was stopped, pensions stopped for 4,422 families and the Rs 485.32 crore budget of the APCRDA lapsed.

The contract of Master Architect for Amaravati Government Complex (AGC) Norman+ Foster was cancelled. It was ordered to limit the civil works to Rs 3,000 crore out of the balance works of Rs 35,583.5 crore, while the YSRCP government complained to the World Bank and stopped the $300 million funding and also the Centre’s Rs 1,000 crore grant. He mentioned that 122 out of 130 land allottees, mostly top institutions in various sectors like education, health and hospitality, lost confidence.

He said due to systematic destruction, buildings remained unfinished and roads got damaged. Credit ratings of the Amaravati bonds were negatively affected.

“The pride and self-respect of Andhra Pradesh people shattered. There was a sharp depreciation in property prices. Wealth generation did not happen. It led to the migration of people from the state to other states as new job creation stopped. There was a loss of existing jobs as businesses moved out due to uncertainty,” Naidu said.

There was cost escalation, damages to the structure, cost of demobilisation of men and machinery, loss of jobs for the labour working, funds locked up in incomplete works, loss of revenue (GST & income tax), theft of materials and probable ill-effect on the structural stability due to long exposure to elements.

He recalled that the state government had taken recommendations of the K.C. Siva Rama Krishnan Committee as well as opinions of various stakeholders for choosing Amaravati as the state capital. On September 3, 2014, the Assembly passed a resolution to establish Amaravati as the state capital. It was centrally located and was planned as a liveable city, a self-financed project, and a growth engine.

Naidu claimed that the largest land pooling exercise in the world was taken up for Amaravati as 29,966 farmers voluntarily came forward to give 34,400 acres of land. Farmers and the APCRDA had entered into a binding agreement under which farmers were promised an annuity for 10 years at the rate of Rs 30,000 per acre for dry land and Rs 50,000 per acre for wet land, while there was a provision for an annual increment of Rs 3,000 per acre for dry land and Rs 5,000 per acre for wet land.

For each acre, farmers were given a returnable plot of 1,000 square yards (residential) and 250 square yards (commercial) for dry land, and 1,000 square yards (residential) plus 450 square yards (commercial) for wet land. Naidu also mentioned that the cost of the total project including tier I and tier II infrastructure and Amaravati Government Complex was Rs 51,687 crore. Tenders were called for a value of Rs 41,170.78 crore out of which all works were grounded and Rs 4,318.67 crore was paid. Rs 1,268.81 crore has to be paid as of date, says the White Paper.

–IANS

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