National
Once ridiculed as 'part-time' politician, Pawan Kalyan takes centre stage in Andhra politics
Amaravati, June 20 (IANS) From being ridiculed by his critics as a “non-serious” and “part-time” politician till a couple of years ago to now Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, it’s quite an achievement for actor-politician Konidela Pawan Kalyan.
The Jana Sena leader, who assumed office on Wednesday, has come a long way since floating the party a decade ago despite the political disaster experienced by his more famous elder brother Chiranjeevi.
Though he made a modest beginning as a campaigner for the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and its ally Bharatiya Jana Party (BJP) in 2014 and had a disastrous electoral debut five years later, Pawan Kalyan stayed the course, determined to carve a niche for himself.
He, however, had to face bitter attacks from YSRCP leaders on his personal life. YSRCP President and former Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, at every public meeting, targeted the actor-politician over his three marriages, always referred to him as the “foster son” of TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu and called him a “non-resident politician” and a “package star”.
“Power star”, as Pawan Kalyan is popularly known in film circles, has finally tasted victory and power. After succeeding in his mission to end the “destructive rule” of the YSRCP, he appears set to play a big role in the changed political environment.
As the number two in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, the actor-politician is expected to have a major say in the decision-making. He has been entrusted with key portfolios like Panchayati Raj, Rural Development & Rural Water Supply, Environment and Forest, and Science and Technology.
Over the last decade, he has shown keen interest in subjects like rural development and the environment.
As Chandrababu Naidu’s deputy, Pawan Kalyan will not only be looking for an active role in government but may also capitalise on this to strengthen his party, which put up an incredible show in recent elections to win all 21 Assembly and two Lok Sabha seats it contested. After the 2019 disaster when he lost both the seats he contested, Pawan Kalyan was elected from the Pithapuram constituency in Kakinada.
His Jana Sena, which has three ministers in the Cabinet including him, is the second biggest party in the 175-member Assembly after the TDP, which won a whopping 135 seats.
Many from his party had criticised Pawan Kalyan for not bargaining for more seats. He, however, was realistic and admitted the limited bargaining power of his party. “If we had a few seats in the Assembly, we could have bargained,” was his response.
In 2019, the Jana Sena had won a single seat and the lone MLA had also deserted the party. Pawan Kalyan also sacrificed a few more seats to bring the BJP on board in a grand alliance to ensure that anti-incumbency votes are not divided. His initiative to ally with the TDP and later convince the BJP leadership to join them proved a game changer as the YSRCP, which had 151 seats in the previous Assembly, bit the dust.
As the YSRCP’s tally dropped to just 11 in the Assembly, the Jana Sena will be looking to expand in areas beyond certain pockets of south coastal Andhra.
Political analysts say Pawan Kalyan has got a platform from where he can build his party into a major force.
“His achievement is phenomenal. Perhaps there is no other party which achieved a 100 per cent success rate while contesting more than 20 seats,” said analyst Palwai Raghavendra Reddy.
He believes that going forward, Pawan Kalyan’s role will be significant. He may use his good offices with the BJP leadership to take up state-specific pending issues with the Centre. He, however, said it would be too early to predict if he would expand the party beyond the limited pockets where Kapus (the community to which Pawan Kalyan belongs) are in sizable numbers.
“Any serious attempt to expand the Jana Sena in other parts of the state may put him in direct conflict with Chandrababu Naidu’s son Lokesh whom the TDP considers as the future Chief Minister,” he said.
Lokesh is the TDP General Secretary and a key minister in Naidu’s Cabinet. Naidu, who is already 74, will be looking to groom his son as his successor.
Unlike elder brother Chiranjeevi who wound up his Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) within a couple of years of its launch, Pawan Kalyan never feared defeat. Though he began his political career as the leader of the PRP’s youth wing in 2008, he was not happy with the party’s merger with Congress in 2011. After launching the Jana Sena Party in March 2014, he supported the NDA in the elections held the same year as he was angry with Congress for bifurcating Andhra Pradesh, and shared the dais with then Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu.
Pawan Kalyan later distanced himself from both the BJP and the TDP for going back on the promise to accord special category status. In 2019, he had an alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Left parties. However, the Jana Sena could win just one Assembly seat and drew a blank in Lok Sabha polls. After the disaster of 2019, he re-joined hands with the BJP and in September last year, announced an alliance with the TDP. Aware of his strengths and weaknesses, the 52-year-old was cautious not to repeat past mistakes and this was the reason he did not bargain hard for seats. Seen as a youth icon, he crafted the image of a fighter. In tune with his screen image of an angry young man, Pawan Kalyan displayed aggression during the showdown with the Jagan government on a few occasions while taking up people’s issues.
–IANS
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Mumbai, July 30 (IANS) In a major policy initiative, the Maharashtra Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday approved to carry out renovation, modernisation, degradation, and life extension (RMU&LE) of the old hydroelectricity plants on lease, renovate, operate and transfer (LROT) basis.
The move will initially cover hydroelectric power projects of over 167 MW which are mainly irrigation projects where power generation is incidental. The government will initiate the RMU&LE process later for projects of 2411,5 MW which are used mainly for power generation.
For the implementation of this policy, two categories of hydroelectric power projects have been made based on water consumption. Category one will include projects whose main objective is power generation. Renovation and modernisation of such projects will be done by the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company (MahaGenco).
Category two will include irrigation and power generation projects. The renovation and modernisation of these projects will be done through competitive bidding.
The Chief Minister’s Office said that the government will not make any capital investment, but it will annually earn a revenue of Rs 507 crore through threshold premium, upfront premium, 13 per cent free electricity, lease, and intake maintenance charges.
Out of the 25 projects owned and constructed by the Water Resources Department (WRD), nine are independent hydropower projects (IPP) of 2411.5 MW capacity. In these, water is used only for power generation and the projects are important for stability and management of the grid.
“Considering the strategic importance of these projects, MahaGenco will carry out RMU&LE works of these IPPs after the expiry of their 35 years of normative life,” read the Cabinet note.
In the remaining hydroelectric projects of 167.45 MW and six others with 9.575 MW capacity, where power generation is incidental to irrigation and/or water supply, releases will be carried out on LROT basis.
Some of the major projects which can be leased out to private players include Yeldari (22.5 MW), Bhatghar (16MW), Paithan (12 MW), Pawna (10 MW), Khadakwasla (8MW+8MW), Ujani (12 MW), and Bhatsa (15 MW), among others.
The project shall be allotted through a bidding process where MahaGenco is also allowed to participate. The term of the lease will be 25 years from the commercial operation date.
According to the objectives of the policy, it will give about 25 years beyond the project’s normative life; improve the performance of the over-lived hydroelectric projects in terms of efficiency, output, availability, and reliability; converting existing base load stations to peaking stations for the benefit of the electricity grid; reducing maintenance requirements and ensuring ease of operation and safety; and protection of consumer interests by timely completion of RMU&LE works without cost overrun and minimum loss of generation.
The projects to undergo RMU&LE will be identified based on their performance records. A residual life assessment (RLA) study will be carried out to assess the health and residual life of every component of the hydro generating unit. A detailed project report (DPR) will be filed to avoid further complications, especially related to the cost.
–IANS
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Imphal, July 30 (IANS) Miffed with the ‘failure’ of the Central and state governments and the existing political parties’ sluggishness to end the over a year-long ethnic strife in Manipur, people from different walks of life have formed a new political party — Good Governance Party (GGP) — in the northeastern state.
Former Manipur Human Rights Commission member Yambem Laba and political activist Sanabam Radhumani have been elected as President and General Secretary of the GGP, respectively.
Leading personalities of Manipur including political commentator Nongdalenkhomba Moirangthem, retired Colonel Haorungbam Sharat, and retired IPS officer Potsangbam Sonamani, among others, are also associated with the new party.
Interacting with the media on Tuesday, Laba said the new political party is a product of the public sentiment on the current crisis the state has been witnessing for more than a year now.
Public representatives like ministers, MLAs, and MPs are unable to handle the crisis properly, he said.
While announcing that the GGP would contest the 2027 Assembly elections, Laba said that candidates would be chosen from a simple, honest, dedicated, and dynamic background.
The GGP President also underlined that the BJP-led government’s inability to reach out to all parts of Manipur is a big hindrance in resolving the ongoing crisis.
“We would choose a Chief Minister who can travel to all parts of the state and is acceptable to all,” he added.
–IANS
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Hyderabad, July 30 (IANS) A woman was injured when a stray bullet hit her on the terrace of her home at Narsingi area in Hyderabad on Tuesday, officials said.
This was the second incident in as many weeks and it sent panic among residents.
Police suspect that it may have misfired from a nearby army firing range where soldiers were practising.
The incident occurred under the limits of the Narsingi police station of Cyberabad Commissionerate. The woman, identified as Padma, was on the terrace of her building in Gandhamguda when a bullet struck her leg and she sustained a bullet injury near the ankle.
She was rushed to a hospital, where she received treatment and was later discharged. Alerted by the local residents, police rushed to the spot and seized the bullet.
This was the second incident in Narsingi this month.
On June 13, a stray bullet had pierced through the glass windows of a flat on the fifth floor of an apartment complex. No one was injured in the incident.
There are two firing ranges near Gandhamguda where police and army personnel conduct firing practice.
–IANS
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Srinagar, July 30 (IANS) J&K’s Shias on Tuesday asked the Indian government to take a strong stand against the persecution of the community in Pakistan.
Senior Shia leader and head of J&K Shia Association, Imran Raza Ansari appealed to the Centre to take a strong stand against the persecution of the Shia community in Pakistan.
“I am writing to bring to your attention a catastrophic situation unfolding in Parachinar, Pakistan, where the Shia community is facing an existential threat from extremist groups. “The situation is dire and immediate action is necessary to prevent a massacre. Years of sectarian violence, apathy and inaction of Pakistani government have emboldened extremist groups leaving the Shia community vulnerable to further attacks,” he said in a letter to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
“The recent escalation of violence has created a humanitarian crisis and it is imperative that India takes a strong stance to prevent further bloodshed. India has a moral obligation to act given its commitment to human rights and religious freedom,” Ansari said.
–IANS
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Imphal, July 30 (IANS) A potentially catastrophic train accident was averted due to the swift action of Territorial Army personnel in Manipur’s Noney district on Tuesday, officials said.
Defence spokesman Lt Col Amit Shukla said that a goods train, comprising of 21 wagons carrying rice, was en route to Khongsang station in the Noney district, when excessive rainfall in the early hours of Tuesday washed away the crushed stone that supports the tracks in some portions, and the damage posed a significant risk of track instability and misalignment.
However, a Territorial Army patrol deployed along Jiribam to Khongsang detected the damage and promptly alerted authorities about the impending danger.
Railway authorities were immediately informed and the goods train was stopped at Kambiron by the Army personnel.
The timely intervention by the Territorial Army prevented what could have been a major train accident, the defence spokesman said.
The Territorial Army is deployed along this stretch of the railway line to provide security for the under-construction 110-km-long mega railway project linking Jiribam (near southern Assam) to Imphal. The soldiers’ vigilance and quick response underscore the critical role they play in ensuring the safety and security of this essential infrastructure project, the Army official said.
–IANS
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Maha Cabinet clears renovation of old hydroelectric projects on LROT basis- New political party floated in ethnic violence-hit Manipur
- Stray bullet injures woman in Hyderabad
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- J&K's Shias ask govt to take strong stand on persecution of community in Pakistan
- Prompt action by Territorial Army personnel averts goods train accident in Manipur
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