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Major irrigation projects nowhere near completion, no work undertaken in 11 of total 16: CAG

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Major irrigation projects nowhere near completion, no work undertaken in 11 of total 16: CAG

Modi government’s promises of boosting farm sector and doubling farm income aside, the latest report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) revealed that sixteen major multi-purpose water projects, taken up on an expeditious basis about a decade ago, are nowhere near completion, with no work being undertaken in as many as 11 projects.

Out of the 16 projects, undertaken under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP) in February 2008, only five projects with estimated irrigation potential of 25.10 lakh hectares were under implementation and even these projects suffer from 8 to 99 per cent shortfall in physical progress, the CAG said, according to a report on the website of SANDRP (South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People).

The remaining 11 projects with estimated irrigation potential of 10.48 lakh hectares are yet to commence and are at different stages of approval.

While the envisaged irrigation potential of the ongoing projects was 25.1 lakh hectares, what has been realised so far was just 5.36 lakh hectares, a mere 21 per cent, the CAG report said.

Similarly, though the projects were meant to generate 1,236.5 MW of electricity and supply 672.585 million cubic metre of drinking water, not even a drop of drinking water or a single unit of electricity was made available so far.

All 16 major water resource development and irrigation projects “were languishing due to various constraints and hurdles including land acquisition, inter-State coordination, financial constraints and issues relating to rehabilitation and re-settlement of affected population,” the CAG said.

The projects that the CAG reviewed were Indira Sagar Polavaram Project in Andhra Pradesh, Gosikhurd Irrigation Project in Maharashtra, Shahpur Khandi Dam Project in Punjab, Saryu Nahar Pariyojana in Uttar Pradesh and Teesta Barrage Project in West Bengal.

Pulling up the Ministry of Water Resources for the inordinate delays, the CAG said the initially estimated cost of the five projects was Rs 3,530 crore, which has now escalated by a whopping 2,341 per cent to Rs 86,172 crore. So far, an expenditure of Rs13,299 crore has already been incurred on these projects.

According to the national auditor, the tardy implementation and cost escalation was on account of management failures and deficiencies in terms of non-adherence to the provisions relating to survey and investigations that are essential ingredients for preparation of detailed project reports.

Similarly, administrative delays, poor contract management and lack of monitoring has led to cost escalation of more than Rs 49,800 crore in these national projects undertaken by the Central Govt, says the report.

2024 Lok Sabha Elections

Lok Sabha elections 2024: 102-year-old man walks to polling booth to cast his vote in Jammu

The lowest voter turnout so far was noted in Ramgarh at 1.53%.

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A 102-year-old man showed up at a Jammu polling place to cast his vote in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on Friday. Haji Karam Din arrived at the Reasi district polling place in the Jammu constituency with a walking stick in hand and a family member who assisted him with the pre-voting process.

Haji Karam Din, who is 102-year-old, showed his inked finger and posed for pictures outside the polling booth after casting his vote. He said voting at this polling place at this age makes him very happy. He has always cast his vote. Even at the age of 102, this experience is still ongoing, he said.

Reasi district is a part of the Jammu parliamentary constituency, and 22 candidates are up for vote with around 17.81 lakh eligible voters.

BJP’s sitting member Jugal Kishore Sharma is aiming for a third term in office following wins in the elections of 2014 and 2019. Former minister and Congress candidate Raman Bhalla is his main opponent.

Voting in the Jammu-Reasi Lok Sabha constituency began with eager voters showing up at the polling places. Some of them were wearing traditional Dogra attire.

In 2,416 polling places around the constituency, voting got underway at 7 a.m., and 10.39% of the total votes were cast by 9 a.m. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Jammu recorded a 74% voter turnout.

Following the repeal of Article 370 and the division of the former state into two Union Territories five years ago, this is Jammu’s first significant election.

The Akhnoor segment received the highest percentage of votes, 14.24%, followed by Reasi (14.13%), Gulabgarh (13.53%), Shri Mata Vaishnodevi (12.71%), Marh (12.31%), Samba (8.56%), R S Pura Jammu South (8.17%), and Suchetgarh (5.67%), according to the officials. Ramgarh recorded the lowest voter participation of 1.53% so far.

Low attendance was observed in the border areas of the districts of Jammu and Samba till nine in the morning, according to poll data.

The officials said that big lines of voters were observed at several polling places throughout Jammu city. Voters were observed heading towards polling places early in the morning.

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India News

Salman Khan house firing case: NIA interrogates arrested shooters Sagar Pal, Vicky Gupta for three hours

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The investigation into the shocking firing incident that took place outside Salman Khan’s house on April 14 keeps bringing new updates with every passing day. In this case, Sagar Pal and Vicky Gupta, the two suspected shooters, have already been taken into custody.

The two shooters have reportedly been questioned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), according to a new development. Every day that goes by, more information is revealed about the inquiry into the shocking firing incident that happened outside Salman Khan’s house on April 14. Sagar Pal and Vicky Gupta, the two accused shooters, are being held in custody after their first arrests.

It was recently discovered that the two shooters were questioned by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

NIA has reportedly begun questioning Sagar Pal and Vicky Gupta, who were detained a few days ago for firing openly outside Salman Khan’s Galaxy Apartments in Mumbai, according to a recent update posted on their X (Twitter) account. NIA has interrogated shooters Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal, arrested in the firing case, the tweet said.

According to the reports, two Punjabi residents were taken into custody by the Mumbai Crime Branch yesterday on suspicion of being involved in the recent shooting incident outside the house of Bollywood actor Salman Khan.

The two men, Sonu Subhash Chander and Anuj Thapan, provided guns to Sagar Pal and Vicky Gupta, the shooters, according to information released by the Mumbai Crime Branch. It was also reported that they had communication with the Bishnoi gang. For those who don’t know, hours after the incident, Anmol Bishnoi, the brother of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, allegedly took credit for the firing in a Facebook post.

The shooters’ custody has been extended by Mumbai’s Esplanade Court until April 29.

Meanwhile, on the workfront Salman Khan was last seen in Tiger 3 alongside Katrina Kaif.

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2024 Lok Sabha Elections

PM Modi calls for high voter turnout in second phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024, says your vote is your voice

Prime Minister Narendra Modi urges citizens to participate in record numbers during the second phase of polling for the Lok Sabha Elections 2024.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to social media as the second phase of voting for the Lok Sabha Elections of 2024 got underway across the country to encourage voters to cast votes in huge numbers. PM Modi emphasized in his speech the value of voting in preserving democracy and notably urged women and young people to cast votes.

Taking to social media X, formerly Twitter, PM Modi wrote, urging everyone in constituencies to participate in record numbers in today’s second phase of the Lok Sabha elections. He said our democracy is strengthened by high voter turnout. He especially urged female and youth voters to cast votes in large numbers. Your vote is your voice, he added.

It is important to remember that 88 Lok Sabha constituencies—spread among 13 states and Union Territories—are presently holding polls. Twenty seats in Kerala, fourteen in Karnataka, thirteen in Rajasthan, eight in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, six in Madhya Pradesh, five in Assam and Bihar, three in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and one in each of Tripura, Jammu & Kashmir, and Manipur are currently up for election. Notably, the untimely death of a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate has resulted in the Madhya Pradesh constituency of Betul being spared from voting on April 26.

Meanwhile, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar emphasized the thorough planning that has taken place over the previous two years and reassured the public of careful security measures at every voting place. They have been preparing for the last two years, he said. At each booth, the arrangements are ready. Everything has been prepared for the voters, including fans and drinking water. Voters must turn out to cast their votes. Safety has been considered. There is zero information available anywhere regarding violence. However, there will be forces at every booth.

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