Amaravati, July 3 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Thursday to discuss various state-specific issues.

This will be his first meeting with the Prime Minister after assuming office as the Chief Minister on June 13.

He is likely to seek the Centre’s help for building the state capital Amaravati, completing the Polavaram project, and tiding over the state’s difficult financial position.

Naidu, whose Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is a key partner in the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, will submit a memorandum to the Prime Minister.

The Chief Minister will subsequently meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to discuss various issues relating to the state. Before leaving for Delhi on Wednesday, he told media persons that he would discuss all issues.

“Not just Amaravati, all issues will be discussed,” he said after releasing a White Paper on Amaravati.

Naidu said rebuilding the state was the responsibility of everyone in the NDA. “Three parties contested together as NDA partners. We will explain to them and take the Centre’s help. Rebuilding of the state should start,” he said.

Stating that people gave 164 out of 175 Assembly seats to the NDA, Naidu said the alliance has to live up to people’s expectations. The TDP, which won 16 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats from the state, is the second biggest party in the NDA after the BJP.

–IANS

ms/vd

New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi, replying to the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address in Rajya Sabha, launched a tirade at the Opposition for orchestrating a ‘samvidhaan bachaao’ campaign despite having a dark history of abusing it for ‘personal interests’ and also boasted about the government’s achievements and vision for next five years.

PM Modi started off his speech in the Rajya Sabha by turning the tables on Congress ‘1/3rd government’ jibe with his 20 more years retort and said that nothing could be bigger truth than this.

“A Congress colleague repeatedly said 1/3rd government. We have completed 10 years now and there is 20 more to go. So, we have completed 1/3rd term, 2/3rd remains. So, ‘unke muh mein ghee shakkar’ for his prophecy,” said PM Modi, drawing cheers from the Treasury benches.

During the later part of the speech, PM Modi came down heavily on the Congress over waving booklets of the Constitution and reminded how it abused the supreme rule book and took the democracy for a ride during its rule.

He reminded the party of the dark period of Emergency, belittling the chair of Prime Minister in UPA I and II by ‘Super PM’ and tearing apart of the Cabinet note by the then Congress MP (Rahul Gandhi).

The Prime Minister underlined that the Constitution is not just a compilation of Articles but its spirit and imprint are extremely valuable.

“It is the Constitution given by Baba Saheb Ambedkar which has allowed people like me, who have zero political lineage, to enter politics and reach such a stage,” he said.

PM Modi also recalled that there was a staunch opposition when his government had proposed to commemorate November 26 as the “Constitution Day”.

He said that Congress ran its governments on auto-pilot mode, left people to fend for themselves and is now resorting to fake propaganda campaign to mislead and misguide the public.

The Prime Minister added that it is not surprising to see the party ‘reducing itself to mere slogan-shouting group’.

PM Modi, further speaking about the achievements and milestones of his government, said that the people of the country voted the NDA to power thrice to achieve the goals of development and reliance through ‘Viksit Bharat’ and ‘Atamnirbhar Bharat’.

“The country has seen its economy rising from tenth to the fifth-largest economy in the last 10 years despite challenges like global disturbances and pandemic. This mandate is to take the economy to third place from the present fifth place,” he said.

Speaking about the government’s priorities and developmental pitch, PM Modi underlined the importance of strengthening the four pillars of farmers, poor, narishakti and youth and impressed upon the members on how the Kisan Credit Card and PM Kisan Samman Nidhi and Kisan Kalyan Schemes were benefitting crores of farmers.

PM Modi said that his government gave a subsidy of Rs 12 lakh crores for fertilizers to the poor farmers, the highest figure since Independence.

The Prime Minister said that the era of ‘ifs and buts’ has ceased to exist today as Bharat has gone global and is now welcoming foreign investments which are paving the way for employment opportunities for its youth while also showcasing their potential and talent on an international platform.

He also recalled the time of the 1977 Lok Sabha elections when the press and radio were curtailed and people’s voices were muted.

The Prime Minister expressed concern for the tendency to protect the corrupt by certain quarters in the opposition.

Mentioning various scams committed by the various governments run by the opposition parties, the Prime Minister rejected the charge of misusing enforcement agencies. He also criticised double standards in the sphere of the fight against corruption.

“They join ranks with a motive, accuse the Centre of misusing investigative agencies and then plot a conspiracy against their own alliance partners in the states,” he said.

Reiterating the President’s concern over the recent paper leaks, PM Modi assured the youth that his government is taking strict action against those playing with the future of our country and will not let them go unpunished.

On Manipur, PM Modi reiterated that the government was continuously making efforts to ease the situation in the northeastern state. He added that there were more than 11,000 FIRs lodged and more than 500 wrongdoers were arrested during and after the unrest in Manipur.

“We must acknowledge the fact that the incidents of violence in Manipur are on a continuous downward trajectory and this means that the hope for peace was a definite possibility in Manipur,” he emphasised.

–IANS

mr/pgh

Patna July 3 (IANS) Continuing the series of bridge collapses in Bihar in recent times, four more bridges collapsed in the state in the last 24 hours in Saran and Siwan districts.

The first incident occurred at Janata Bazar under Lahladpur block in Saran district where rising water levels due to heavy downpour created a pit around one of the pillars, eventually causing it to collapse.

This bridge was the main route to the Baba Dhund Nath temple. Locals anticipated the collapse and even recorded the incident, even as the authorities barricaded the area.

In Siwan, a 40-year-old bridge in Deoria village under Maharajganj subdivision submerged in the Gandak River. The villagers claimed that a lack of repair work led to its collapse.

The third bridge collapsed at Tevatha panchayat in Maharajganj block in Siwan district on Wednesday morning. The bridge connected Nautan block with Sikandarpur village.

Earlier, a bridge collapsed at Damai village in Siwan district on Tuesday night. The villagers claimed the strong flow of water was the reason for the collapse. The bridge was repaired recently.

Earlier, similar incidents were reported from Araria on June 18, Siwan on June 22, Motihari on June 23, Kishanganj on June 27, Madhubani on June 28, and Kishanganj on June 30.

–IANS

ajk/arm

Agartala, July 3 (IANS) A couple died and their two minor children were critically injured after their mud house in West Tripura collapsed while they were asleep, officials said on Wednesday.

Officials said that due to the incessant rain during the last three days, a part of the mud house collapsed causing the death of Rajen Tanti (35) and his wife Jhuma Tanti (26) at Meghli Para village in West Tripura district late on Tuesday night.

The victims’ four-month and nine-year-old daughters received critical injuries and have been admitted to a hospital.

Senior officials including West Tripura District Magistrate Vishal Kumar and Panchayat Samiti members visited the spot.

Meanwhile, 430 people from 100 families have been sheltered in 8 relief camps in Kumarghat in Unakoti district since Tuesday after flood water submerged their homes and localities following heavy rain.

Over 122 houses have been damaged in the heavy downpour till Wednesday.

The water level in most rivers of the state is below the expected floor level but parts of Manu river in Unakoti district had crossed the warning level by Wednesday evening as per a report of the water resource department.

–IANS

sc/bg

Noida, July 3 (IANS) Two women from Uttar Pradesh’s Gautam Buddh Nagar district are among the 121 people who were killed after a stampede broke out at a ‘Satsang’ in Hathras on Tuesday, an official said on Wednesday.

The deceased have been identified as Sumanna Devi (69) and Premwati (73) — both hailing from Dadri.

Besides, three other women — Babita, Anita, and Kamlesh, also from Dadri — were injured in the stampede and are currently undergoing treatment at a hospital in Sector 39 here.

One of the injured — Kamlesh — is the daughter of Premwati who died in the stampede.

According to a family member, Kamlesh somehow managed to crawl out of the commotion.

At least 121 people died in the stampede during a ‘Satsang’ (religious congregation) of Sakar Vishwa Hari Bhole Baba towards the concluding phase of the programme after his ‘followers’ rushed to seek blessings from him.

The self-styled godman is currently absconding.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered a probe into the incident.

–IANS

pkt/pgh/arm