Jaipur, July 11 (IANS) Jaipur Municipal Corporation Heritage on Thursday took against illegal slaughterhouses and meat shops in the city and sealed five meat shops along with 19 chickens and 90 kg of meat.

Deputy Commissioner of Animal Management Branch of Municipal Corporation, Rakesh Sharma said that action was taken against these units as complaints of illegal meat shops were being received for a long time.

“Meat was being sold in the open against the rules,” he added.

He said that these shopkeepers did not even have licenses. “Also, 19 live chickens, six cages and 90 kg of meat present there were also seized and challans of Rs 5,500 were imposed against the shopkeepers,” he said.

He said that the Municipal Corporation will start a campaign against illegal meat shops as well as stray animals in all four zones of the Heritage Corporation.

–IANS

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Guwahati, July 11 (IANS) Assam’s overall flood situation has significantly improved during the past one week and there was no casualty on Thursday while around 14 lakh people remain affected in 26 of the state’s 35 districts, Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) officials said.

However, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday said that fairly widespread light to moderate rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning, is very likely over Andaman and Nicobar Islands, sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and Sikkim, Bihar, and northeast India during the next five days.

According to the ASDMA officials, the number of affected people has come down from over 24.20 lakh in 30 districts as of July 5.

Till Wednesday, at least 84 people died due to the flood and around 10 more people died due to landslides and other calamities after the monsoon rain started early last month.

According to the ASDMA officials, the flood water also submerged over 39,133 hectares of crop area in 2,545 villages in 26 districts while over 9.86 lakh domestic animals have also been badly affected by the annual deluge.

Out of the 26 flood-affected districts, Dhubri, Cachar, Barpeta, Dhemaji, Darrang, Goalpara, Golaghat, Sivasagar, Majuli, and South Salmara are the worst hit.

The Brahmaputra is flowing above the danger level at Neamatighat, Tezpur, and Dhubri, while Burhidihing, Disang, and Kushiyara rivers are also flowing above the danger level in many places.

The officials said that over 41,600 people are sheltered in the 299 relief camps set up by the district administrations, while 110 more relief distribution centres are functioning in different districts.

Many National and State Disaster Response Forces teams, Fire and Emergency Service personnel, police forces, the AAPDA Mitra Volunteers of ASDMA, and volunteers from various NGOs have also continued rescue and relief operations.

According to officials, the second wave of floods caused major damage to agricultural land and standing crops, fisheries, and infrastructure including roads, bridges and culverts. Road communication has been affected due to floods and surging waters washed away bridges and damaged roads and embankments, they said.

District administrations are providing food and other essential materials to the affected people.

Wild animals in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR) were also affected by the flood as a vast area of the park has been inundated and park authorities continued their efforts to rescue the animals and to prevent poaching. Till Thursday evening, 135 wild animals have been rescued while 174 animals, including deer, rhino, and hog deer, have drowned in flood waters, KNPTR Director Sonali Ghosh told the media.

–IANS

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Chandigarh, July 11 (IANS) Congress’ Punjab unit chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring on Thursday said with the state police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) confirming that gangster Lawrence Bishnoi’s infamous interview in 2023 was conducted within the state, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann must provide an explanation.

“The SIT of the Punjab Police has informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that the viral interview of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi in 2023 was indeed conducted within Punjab, as we have been asserting since the interview aired. However, both the Punjab Police and the AAP government repeatedly denied this, insisting the interview had not taken place within the state.”

“Not only was the interview conducted in Punjab, but it was also held within the confines of a Punjab jail. This exposes the influence that a criminal like Lawrence Bishnoi has over the administration and the government, enabling him to orchestrate such activities. It is profoundly shameful to witness such power in the hands of criminals.” Warring said in a statement.

“It’s disheartening that a respected officer like DGP Gaurav Yadav was swayed by the government to claim the interview did not occur in Punjab. I have raised this issue multiple times and will continue to do so. How could such an interview take place within a Punjab jail? I now demand an explanation from the Chief Minister, who previously dismissed our allegations and confidently asserted that such an interview from within a Punjab Police jail was impossible,” he added.

“How can justice be served for Sidhu Moosewala and his family when the Punjab government appears to be in collusion with a criminal like Lawrence Bishnoi? Bishnoi seems to enjoy immunity, receiving preferential treatment even within prison walls. This raises serious concerns about the administration’s integrity,” the state Congress chief added.

–IANS

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Chandigarh, July 11 (IANS) The Congress’ Haryana unit on Thursday released a ‘charge sheet’ against the state’s BJP government, posing 15 questions.

The party also launched the ‘Haryana Maange Hisaab’ campaign to take this charge sheet and the party’s announcements to the public.

Senior leaders, comprising Leader of Opposition and former CM Bhupinder Hooda, state party chief Chaudhary Udaibhan, senior leader Chaudhary Birendra Singh, MPs Deepender Hooda, Satpal Brahmachari and Varun Mullana, among others, jointly released the charge sheet and launched the campaign here.

Hooda said all programmes that the Congress has done so far, including Bharat Jodo Yatra, Vipaksh Aapke Samaksh, Ghar Ghar Congress, Hath Se Hath Jodo Abhiyan, Jan Milan Samaroh and Dhanyani Karyakarta Sammelan, have received tremendous support from the public.

“In this series, Haryana Mange Hisaab is a new beginning. Through this, we will not only convey the failures of the BJP government and the announcements of the party to the public but suggestions are also to be collected from the public for the party’s manifesto. When the party forms the government, the problems of the people can be solved effectively,” he said.

A meeting of the party has been called in Sonipat on July 14 to prepare a roadmap for implementing this campaign.

The ‘Haryana Mange Hisaab’ campaign will formally start on July 15.

Sharing details about the charge sheet with the media, Chaudhary Udaibhan said the Congress has asked 15 questions to the BJP on different issues.

“Along with these questions, the party has also added facts and figures on the basis of which these questions are being raised before this government,” he said.

The questions include: Why Haryana has the highest unemployment in the country? Why did the BJP central government call Haryana the most unsafe state of the country? How have intoxication and drugs reached every home in the state? Why Haryana has the highest inflation in the country? and Why have government portals and IDs become the cause of corruption and a headache for the public?

Choudhary Birendra Singh said the BJP could not understand Haryana politically and socially at all.

“It always carried out politics of fanaticism and casteism. That is why this government proved to be a failure on every front. The BJP, which carried out all kinds of corruption in 10 years, also carried out political corruption by forming an alliance with the JJP,” he said.

Deepender Hooda said the party’s votes increased by 20 per cent in the Lok Sabha elections and the votes increased in all 90 Assembly constituencies, while BJP’s votes decreased in every Lok Sabha and assembly constituency.

“These results have given a clear message that the people of Haryana want change in the state and the Congress is going to form the government. To ensure public participation in the coming government, as per the instructions of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, the Congress is taking suggestions directly from the public for its manifesto, so that it can prepare a people’s manifesto,” he added.

–IANS

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Hyderabad, July 11 (IANS) As many as 55 drunk drivers, caught in Hyderabad Police Commissionerate limits, were sent to jail during the last 10 days, police said on Thursday.

A total of 1,614 motorists who were driving the vehicles in a drunken state were booked from July 1 to July 10, Additional Commissioner of Police, Traffic, P. Viswa Prasad said.

The police filed 992 charge sheets (including previous cases) in various courts and the same were disposed of.

As many as 55 drunk drivers were sentenced to imprisonment from one to 15 days. Further, eight driving licenses were also suspended.

The Magistrates have imposed a fine of Rs 21.36 lakh on all the violators.

Of the overall cases, maximum cases were booked against two-wheelers (1346). During the last 10 days, 79 motorists with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) exceeding 200 mg/100 ml of blood were caught which is well beyond the permissible limit of less than 30 mg/100mL.

The violators, who committed the offence under section 185 of MV Act, were also counselled at the TTIs of Goshamahal and Begumpet.

The Additional Commissioner said the traffic police were continuing its drive against drunk drivers to ensure road safety.

“The motorists should remember that alcohol hampers vision due to dizziness and it also dampens fear and incite humans to take risks. All these factors while driving result in accidents and many times it proves fatal,” he said.

Drunk driving is an offence under section 185 of the MV Act. The punishment is a penalty of Rs 10,000 and/or 6 months imprisonment. The driving licenses will be suspended for three months and above or permanently.

–IANS

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