3 dead as heavy rains lash Gujarat's Saurashtra region
Gandhinagar, July 14 : Friday, the 13th, turned out to be a nightmare for the usually dry Saurashtra region of Gujarat, as the rain gods lashed it with torrential downpours that claimed three lives.
During the last 10 hours, the region has received from 60 mm to more than 180 mm rainfall, particularly in the Junagadh district, the state emergency response centre said.
For the past 10 hours, heavy rains hit Kodinar taluka (tehsil/block) of Junagadh district with 180 mm downpour. Heavy downpour also took place in Maliya and Sutrapada talukas of Gir-Somnath district, with 175 mm and 166 mm of rains, respectively. Visavadar in Gir-Somnath received 96 mm of rains on Friday.
Other talukas like Bhesan and Mendarda of Junagadh district and Talala of Gir-Somnath district registered 85, 105 and 85 mm rainfall over the past 10 hours. Veraval in Gir-Somnath received 75 mm and Jamkandorna taluka in Rajkot district received 98 mm rains.
According to the Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL), power supply has been affected in 24 villages of these districts, besides Amreli, where supply has been cut off in five villages.
Shetrunji Dam in Saurashtra is overflowing with flood waters. The authorities have shut 154 roads of the state, including one national highway and four state highways.
Meanwhile, incessant rains continued in south Gujarat, with Waghai in Dang district receiving 60 mm, Mangrol in Surat 55 mm and Meghraj in Aravalli 52 mm rainfall.
The Met Department has predicted that torrential downpour will continue in Gujarat over the next two days, with heavy to very heavy rains in some regions.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
