New Delhi, August 2 (IANS) Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, faced public outrage during his visit to the landslide-affected areas of Wayanad in Kerala.

“Brother, tell him to stop the car! We are the ones who voted for him and made him win. He used to be the MP here,” shouted a man running after Rahul Gandhi’s car.

“If he’s so worried about dirtying his legs in the mud, why did he even come here? What is he trying to see,” he asked.

Locals said the man lost his loved ones in the landslide.

Sandeep Vaachaspathi, a Kerala BJP spokesman, shared a video on X showing Rahul Gandhi’s convoy being pursued by a group of visibly upset individuals.

Vaachaspathi wrote, “Rahul Gandhi faced public outrage during his visit to the landslide-affected areas of Wayanad.”

Vaachaspati also slammed Rahul Gandhi, a former Wayanad MP, and termed him a “tourist MP”.

“He should be here with the people sharing their sorrow in the affected areas, but he is nowhere here as he fled to Uttar Pradesh. Rahul came with 10 cameras and his PR team which irked the locals, who have been suffering on account of the disaster and that’s why the people were angry,” said Vaachaspathi in his video post.

He also said that even though he was in Wayanad, he was not present at the venue where this incident took place.

The BJP leader added, “The people of Wayanad are enduring one of the worst crises of their lives. Rahul Gandhi, whom they heavily voted for as their MP, has abandoned them to flee to Uttar Pradesh.

“It is astonishing that Rahul Gandhi is visiting his own constituency like a tourist, which is unusual in a democratic context. He should be present with his constituents in both their sorrow and joy. The people, angered by this, have demanded that Rahul Gandhi should go back.

“They do not want an MP who acts like a tourist. When representatives are absent during critical times, it is disastrous for the country. Rahul Gandhi should quit politics, as he is clearly unfit for public life. He should resign and refrain from politics.”

BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya also shared the same video on X, and wrote, “Angry protesters accost Third Time Fail Rahul Gandhi, on his visit to Wayanad, in the aftermath of the devastating landslide, which has claimed more than 300 lives.

“Balak Buddhi Rahul Gandhi has blood on his hand because it was the Congress-led UPA government which buried the Western Ghats Ecology Experts Panel report, prepared by Madhav Gadgil, that had especially cautioned against anti-environmental activities in Mepaddi. Then, as a Member of Parliament from Wayanad, he failed them again.”

Another BJP leader in the Wayanad constituency also said Rahul Gandhi faced outrage from the locals who alleged that the Congress leader’s visit was causing problems in the rescue operations as vehicles were stopped due to his visit.

Meanwhile, local Congress legislator T. Siddique said the video was edited.

Speaking to IANS, he said the person who is seen running behind the vehicle and then asking it to stop is a supporter of the Congress-led UDF.

He claimed, “This person lost his family members in the tragedy and the video which is now being circulated is an edited one done with some vested interests. I heard him speaking well about Rahul Gandhi.”

Rahul Gandhi along with his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra arrived in Wayanad on Thursday. They met numerous affected people, and visited several affected areas in the past two days.

Into the fourth day of the state’s worst-ever natural calamity, the toll of the Wayanad landslides touched 302 on Friday, while 206 people continue to be missing as rescue teams continue to search for them among the debris.

–IANS

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New Delhi, Aug 2 (IANS) The volume of cargo transported through India’s inland waterways has taken a more than 6-fold leap from 18.07 million metric tonnes (MMT) in 2013-14 to 133.03 MMT in 2023-24, Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal told the Lok Sabha on Friday.

From FY 2014-15, the country’s waterways traffic has been surging at an impressive Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 18.07 per cent, the Union Minister said.

The minister pointed out that as many as 106 new National Waterways were declared in 2016, with the number of operational waterways increasing from just 3 in 2013-14 to 26 by 2024.

In response to queries about the development of new waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal stated that 14 new National Waterways (NWs) have been approved for development. These waterways, located in Kerala, Goa, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam, are being developed at an estimated cost of Rs 400 crore.

With the ambitious targets set under the Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, the Central government aims to further boost cargo traffic, targeting 200 MMT by 2030 and an impressive 500 MMT by 2047, he added.

Sarbananda Sonowal said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on holistic development, and his mantra of ‘Transformation through Transportation’, are turning waterways into the new highways of India.

The last decade has seen tremendous improvements in this sector, which is both affordable and eco-friendly. MoPSW is committed to further developing and modernizing the over 14,500 km inland waterways, in alignment with the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047.

Among the significant measures taken by the government to enhance cargo movement through waterways is the introduction of the Inland Vessels Act, 2021. It stands out as a key legislative reform, replacing a century-old law.

This modern regulatory framework has facilitated seamless transportation, trade, and ease of doing business in the inland waterways sector, the Union Minister said.

The Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP), launched in 2018, aims to augment the capacity of NW1 (Ganga – Bhagirathi – Hooghly river system) from Haldia to Varanasi, covering a total length of 1,390 km. This project is being implemented with a financial outlay of Rs 5,369.18 crore. Additionally, the government approved the development of 13 new NWs in 2022.

The opening of the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route has further boosted cargo movement by linking NW 1 and NW 2 (Brahmaputra river), thereby enhancing trade and commerce in the Northeast. Significant projects are also underway on NW 2 and NW 16 (Barak river), promising to further boost cargo movement in the North East and along the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route.

Digital initiatives are playing a pivotal role in increasing cargo movement on waterways. Innovations such as the IWAI Vessel Tracker and the PANI Portal provide real-time tracking and navigation information, while the CAR-D portal streamlines cargo and passenger data management, Sarbananda Sonowal added.

–IANS

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Kolkata, Aug 2 (IANS) A special PMLA court on Friday remanded a Trinamool Congress leader and his brother, who were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the multi-crore ration distribution case in West Bengal, to 10-day ED custody.

Anisur Rahaman a.k.a. Bidesh, a Trinamool block president in North 24 Parganas district, and his brother Alif Nur a.k.a. Mukul were arrested by the ED on Friday morning after a marathon raid that began on Thursday and went on for over 14 hours.

The duo was presented before a special PMLA court, where the agency counsel presented details of their modus operandi for irregularities in the ration distribution case using the PG High Tech Rice Mill.

According to the ED counsel, the two brothers received Rs 45 crore from the state government in phases to procure rice from the farmers. However, they subsequently showed procurement from ‘fake’ farmers in the guise of the employees of the rice mill.

The ED counsel also claimed that the duo used to regularly pay hefty amounts to former Food & Supplies Minister Jyotipriya Mallick, who is currently in jail in connection with the ration distribution case.

The ED counsel told the court that during a raid at the PG High Tech Rice Mill last Tuesday, the agency officials seized several incriminating documents related to the case along with cash worth Rs 13 lakh.

Notably, Bidesh and Mukul are cousins of businessman Bakibur Rahaman, who was the first person to be arrested in the ration distribution case.

–IANS

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Hyderabad, Aug 2 (IANS) The Telangana Assembly on Friday witnessed bedlam when an MLA who defected to the ruling Congress from the opposition BRS allegedly used foul language against BRS members.

There were some tense moments in the House when Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLAs lodged their strong protest when Danam Nagender allegedly used some abusive and threatening words.

When the protesting MLAs from BRS rushed towards the podium to register their protest, the former minister also tried to advance towards them.

The Congress MLAs intervened to pacify Nagender.

BRS MLAs led by K.T. Rama Rao walked out of the House in protest against the unparliamentary language used by Nagender, who quit BRS to join Congress a few months ago.

Nagender, a former minister, was irked by the interruptions from BRS members when he was participating in the short discussion on the development of Hyderabad.

The BRS MLAs wanted to know which party Nagender was representing.

Nagender, the MLA from the Khairatabad constituency in Hyderabad, allegedly used abusive words against P. Kaushik Reddy and other BRS MLAs. The former minister dared them to come out.

He warned that he would ‘peel off their skin’ and ‘not allow them to walk on roads’.

The situation turned tense when the BRS members rushed towards the podium and Nagender too tried to advance towards them.

Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar directed Nagender to go back to his seat.

AIMIM floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi found fault with the language used by Nagender.

He said the members should avoid using abusive words.

The Speaker asked Nagender not to use unparliamentary words. He defended himself by saying he did not mean to offend anyone.

The MLA said the words he used are part of Hyderabadi slang. He also said he expressed regret if his words offended any member.

Nagender is one of the 10 BRS MLAs who defected to the Congress party since March.

–IANS

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Jammu, Aug 2 (IANS) Security forces were put on high alert in Jammu on Friday after a Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist went missing from his home district of Kulgam in the Kashmir Valley, officials said.

The Hizbul terrorist, Yasir Bhat was on bail when he went missing from Kulgam district on Thursday.

Police have distributed the poster pictures of the terrorist so that he can be identified and brought to justice.

Two civilians – Mohammad Riyaz of the Valley and Mohammad Shariq of Uttarakhand – were killed and 32 others injured when Bhat carried out a grenade attack at the Jammu bus stand in March 2019. He was arrested from Nagrota, a day after the attack, while trying to escape to Valley. He confessed to having carried out the attack at the direction of Hizbul commander, Farooq Ahmad.

Officials said that since Bhat was a juvenile, the court had granted him bail which he has now jumped.

–IANS

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