Page 13 - West Bengal

Crackdown on common man, says Irani on removal of TET protestors in Howrah

Union Minister Smriti Irani slammed West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee after TET job seekers' were forcibly removed from the protest site by the police and termed it a "crackdown" on common people

Possible cyclone likely to hit Bengal, Odisha on Oct 25; warning issued

A low-pressure system over the Andaman Sea is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm and reach West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts on October 25, causing wind gusting to 110 km per hour, the IMD said on Friday. Sanjib Bandopadhyay, the deputy director-general of Regional Met Centre in Kolkata, said that the system is likely to cause light to moderate rain in Gangetic West Bengal, with isolated heavy rain in the coastal districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and Purba Medinipur. He said that it is likely to cause light to moderate rain in Kolkata on October 24 and 25. "Wind speed of 45 to 55 km gusting to 65 kmph will occur in the coastal districts of South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and Purba Medinipur on October 24, while on October 25, wind speed will reach 90 to 100 kmph gusting to 110 kmph," he told reporters here. Wind speed of 30 to 40 kmph gusting to 50 kmph will occur in Kolkata and adjoining districts of Howrah and Hooghly, he said. "It will not be a super cyc

Odisha, W Bengal mobilising resources as possible cyclone approaches

Odisha is bracing for heavy rainfall early next week under the impact of a possible cyclone in the Bay of Bengal, which is likely to skirt the state and move towards West Bengal and Bangladesh, the IMD said on Friday. The West Bengal government has initiated the process of evacuating people from low-lying areas in several districts, officials said. The weather system, which is presently in the form of a low pressure area over the North Andaman sea and adjoining areas, is likely to take shape of a depression on Saturday and a deep depression on Sunday, before intensifying into a cyclonic storm on Monday, and move in north and north-east direction towards West Bengal and Bangladesh, the IMD said. The cyclonic storm is expected to be christened Sitrang', as suggested by Thailand. Odisha's Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Pramila Mallick said that instructions have been issued to all the districts and coastal region authorities to deal with any eventuality. The system is likel

Kolkata police removes 500 TET protesters, says section 144 imposed

High drama was witnessed at the site of the sit-in by TET candidates here on Thursday midnight as police dispersed the protesters, saying section 144 of the CrPC had been imposed in the area. A strong police contingent led by senior officers removed the 500-odd protesters, who claimed to have qualified the 2014 TET exams but were still omitted from the merit list, from near the head office of the West Bengal Board of Primary Education. Section 144 of the CrPC prohibits the assembly of four or more people in an area. Violation of the order is punishable under section 188 of the Indian Penal Code. The agitators had earlier ignored repeated pleas by police to vacate the spot insisting they would leave only after getting appointment letters for teaching jobs in state-run and state-aided primary schools. A police officer said as the agitators refused to move away from the spot despite repeated appeals, minimum force was used to remove them from the site around 12.35 am. However, the ..

Cyclone likely to reach WB-Bangladesh coasts by Oct 25, skirt Odisha: IMD

The IMD Thursday said that the possible cyclone in the Bay of Bengal is likely to reach West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts by October 25, skirting Odisha. The IMD in a statement said that a low pressure area has formed in the Bay of Bengal on Thursday and is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm on October 24. The low pressure area is very likely to move west-northwestwards and develop into a depression over east-central and adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal around October 22. It is likely to intensify into a deep depression by October 23. "Subsequently, it is likely to re-curve northwards and intensify into a cyclonic storm over west-central and adjoining east-central Bay of Bengal by October 24. Thereafter, it is likely to gradually move north-northeastwards and reach near the West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts by October 25, skirting Odisha," IMD Director General Mrutunjay Mohapatra said. He, however, said the IMD has not so far made any forecast on the possible landfall, intensity an

Bengal teacher recruitment scam: SC upholds Manik Bhattacharya's arrest

The Supreme Court declined to interfere with the arrest of TMC's Manik Bhattacharya by ED in connection with the money laundering matter regarding the teachers' appointment scam

Agitating TET candidates should withdraw sit-in protest: Bengal edu min

West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu said the agitating candidates of Teacher Eligibility Test 2014 should withdraw their sit-in demonstration near the state primary education board office. Hinting that the sit-in protest, which began on October 17 in Salt Lake area, was instigated by some political parties, Basu told reporters here on Wednesday, "There are people who want the impasse to continue." "Is it feasible that everyone who has sat for a test automatically gets recruited? Does everyone in the NET, NEET, WBJEE panel (merit list) get job at the outset?" he said on the candidates' demand that they be given direct recruitment despite not having cleared the interviews. Basu alleged the agitation appeared to have been instigated by those who don't want the recruitment process to begin. "I have been asked not to accept anyone's instruction, not from any higher-ups the entire interview process will be strictly based on merit. Don't the agitators favour merit-based recruitment

Not me, but CPI(M) drove Tata Motors out of Singur: Bengal CM Mamata

On a sunny afternoon just two days before Durga Puja in 2008, then Tata Group Chairman Ratan Tata had announced to pull out the ambitious Nano small car project from Singur in West Bengal's

Sourav Ganguly's exit as BCCI president takes political turn in West Bengal

Sourav Ganguly's exit as BCCI president has become a subject of political spat rather than a sports administration affair

NIA files FIR in clashes between two communities in Kolkata's Ekbalpur

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has registered an FIR in the October 8-9 clashes between two communities in Ekbalpur area of Kolkata, a senior official said. The anti-terror agency is likely to start an investigation into the clashes from Wednesday and its officers may submit a copy of the complaint at Bankshall Court in the city, he said. The NIA has taken over the investigation and registered the FIR on Tuesday. "We are going to seek the custody of those arrested by Kolkata Police. We may seek video footage of the CCTV from the area. Our officers may reach the spot tomorrow," the officer told PTI when contacted. The police had clamped Section 144 Cr PC in Ekbalpur till October 16 to maintain the law and order situation in the area. So far over 45 people have been arrested in connection with their alleged involvement in the clashes. The Calcutta High Court last week stated that it is for the central government's consideration, given the gravity of the incident, whether t

CBI summons Trinamool Congress MLA's husband in post-poll murder case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has issued summons to the husband of a Trinamool Congress legislator in connection with the West Bengal post-poll violence case

Bowbazar residents hit by metro fiasco need to claim compensation in a week

Application forms for claiming compensation are being distributed among those affected by the damage caused to the 12 buildings in Bowbazar here last week during work in an East-West Metro tunnel, a senior official said. The forms will have to be filled up and submitted within a week, following which the claims will be verified by the police and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, the official of the project's executing agency, KMRC, stated. At least 12 houses at Madan Dutta Lane of Bowbazar developed cracks on Friday morning in central Kolkata following water seepage during work in the tunnel, the third such incident in a little over three years. The Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC) had said that efforts will be made for disbursal of monetary compensation within 15 days. So far, 183 people have been shifted to hotels from the affected buildings. "The compensation claim forms will have to be submitted within a week, following which verification will be done in another seven da

With eye on panchayat, LS polls, Nadda forms core committee for Bengal BJP

BJP national president J P Nadda on Monday constituted a new core committee for the party's state unit with an eye on next year's panchayat polls and the Lok Sabha elections in 2024, a party leader said. The West Bengal BJP unit didn't have any core committee since last year when Sukanta Majumdar was appointed the state president, replacing Dilip Ghosh who was made a national vice president. The 20-member new core committee included, apart from Majumdar and Ghosh, Leader of the Opposition in West Bengal assembly Suvendu Adhikari, film star Mithun Chakraborty, and the four union ministers from the state Subhas Sarkar, Shantanu Thakur, John Barla and Nisith Pramanik. BJP national general secretary and state observer Sunil Bansal, and the state in charge Mangal Pandey are among the four special invitees to the core committee. This is the first time after Sukanta Majumdar took over that a core committee has been set up. Earlier during Dilip Ghosh's tenure, there was a core committee,

Make Ganguly Bengal's brand ambassador replacing SRK: Suvendu to Mamata

Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari advised Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to offer the chair of brand ambassador of the state to former cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly

Shocked that Sourav was deprived of second term as BCCI president: Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said she was shocked that former India captain Sourav Ganguly was deprived of a second term as BCCI president. Banerjee, while talking to reporters at the Kolkata airport before leaving for a trip to north Bengal, also said she would urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene so that Ganguly is allowed to contest the elections for ICC chief. "Sourav has proved himself to be an able administrator, and I am shocked at his removal from the BCCI president's post. This was injustice meted out to him. I will request the PM to ensure that Ganguly is allowed to contest elections for ICC chief, she said. There should be no politics on this matter, Banerjee added.

Dilip Mahalanabis, whose ORS saved lives during 1971 Bangladesh War, dies

Dilip Mahalanabis, whose Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) saved numerous lives during the 1971 Liberation war of Bangladesh, passed away in Kolkata on Sunday, a local media report said.

Spike in Dengue cases across India, October most vulnerable month

Delhi and many other states including Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal have seen a sudden spurt in dengue cases in the last couple of days

Bengal farmer earns 3 times less than Punjab counterpart: NABARD report

A recent report titled "Farmers' Welfare: An analysis across states of India," by the National Bank for Agriculture & Rural Development (NABARD) has pointed out that West Bengal's farming sector is lagging behind other states on two crucial counts.

CM Mamata befooling people: Suvendu Adhikari in a letter to Piyush Goyal

Bhartiya Janta Party MLA from Nandigram, West Bengal Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday wrote a letter to the Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Piyush Goyal, indicting Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamta Banerjee of "befooling people by renaming the schemes 'already' launched by Central Government".While taking a dig out at Mamta Banerjee's Festive Schemes, Suvendu wrote, "I would like to draw your kind attention towards a specific publicity material published and displayed by the Department of Food & Supplies: West Bengal Government". This poster, a copy of which has duly been annexed herewith. provides information about a 'Festive Scheme' made available to the AAY (Antyodaya Anna Yojana) & SPHH (State Priority Ration Card) Ration Card holders for a limited time period starting from 23rd September 2022 till 30th October 2022.""The message which is being circulated by the Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee, the Department of Food & Supplies; West ...

West Bengal govt hands over Letter of Award for Tajpur port to Adani Ports

At the event attended by industrialists and CEOs, Banerjee pointed to the growth in agricultural output and said, "Similarly, we have to take care of industry and investment."