AIADMK ruling TN for longest period after British: CM
Chennai, Sep 30 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami on Sunday said that after the British, it is the AIADMK which has ruled the state for the longest period of time.
Speaking at AIADMK founder and late Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran's (MGR) centenary celebrations here, Palaniswami said till MGR was alive, the opposition parties were not even thinking of taking power in Tamil Nadu.
Taking a dig at the much older DMK, Palaniswami said that after the British, it is only the AIADMK that has ruled the state for the longest time from Fort St.George, where the Secretariat is located.
After MGR, Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa took the party to further heights, he said.
Palaniswami said MGR was the first actor-turned-politician to be elected the Chief Minister of any state in the country and he was an example of how a leader should be.
MGR introduced the much acclaimed Nutritious Mid-Day Meals Scheme for school students to arrest the dropout rate of poor pupils.
The Chief Minister listed the Telugu Ganga Water Scheme for Chennai and waiving of Rs 330 crore of farm loans and others as the major welfare schemes implemented by MGR during his rule between 1977 and 1987.
Palaniswami announced his government will increase of Floor Space Index (FSI) in cities, set up a new international airport near Chennai; form a body to protect and restore water bodies and encourage households to grow vegetables in their homes.
The Chennai Muffosil Bus Terminus, popularly known as Koyambedu Bus Stand, will be renamed as Purathi Thalaivar Dr. MGR Bus Stand, he added.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
