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Sushma Swaraj
With Joshimath reeling under severe crisis after hundreds of buildings developed cracks due to shifting soil, an old video of late BJP leader Sushma Swaraj has surfaced where she warns of an imminent threat to Uttarakhand from dams being built on the Ganga river. In the video being widely shared on social media and flashed on news channels, Swaraj is seen saying in Parliament that the dams being built on the Ganga and its tributaries will have to be scrapped to save Uttarakhand in the wake of the 2013 Kedarnath disaster. This assumes significance as questions are being raised on the role of NTPC's Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project in the land subsidence crisis in Joshimath. Swaraj was addressing the Lok Sabha as the then Leader of Opposition. Disasters are occurring in Uttarakhand as the Ganga river is being confined in tunnels, she had said. "Whatever amount of money may have been spent over them (dams), it will be less than the amount that will have to be spent over relief and ...
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has praised his predecessor late Sushma Swaraj, commending her for being at the forefront in bolstering relations with the Indian diaspora. Jaishankar made these comments while addressing members of the Indian diaspora here in the Austrian capital on Sunday. When the minister was asked what foreign policies have changed since Swaraj took over as India's External Affairs Minister, Jaishankar said: "I'm very glad that you mentioned my predecessor the late Sushma Swaraj ji. The fact that our relationship with the Indian communities abroad are strong and will remain stronger, she led from the front. "I would say in those five years when she was the minister as she was the face and the voice of that message," Jaishankar said. "And of course we created a system for that to happen but I still feel that she was so symbolic of that change that I'm personally very grateful that you have recalled her at a time like this," he added. Swaraj passed away on
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Friday paid rich tributes to former Union minister Sushma Swaraj on her death anniversary and said her selfless service to the nation will always be remembered. Former external affairs minister Swaraj died of cardiac arrest in 2019 at the age of 67. "Remembering my dear sister, Smt. Sushma Swaraj on her Punya Tithi today. She was a distinguished parliamentarian and an eloquent orator, who strove relentlessly for the empowerment of women & downtrodden sections," the vice president said on his official Twitter handle. "She was a dedicated leader whose compassion knew no bounds. Her selfless service to the nation will always be remembered," he said.