Congress must talk about status of INDIA bloc, says Shiv Sena (UBT)
Mumbai, Apr 12 (PTI): The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Saturday said the Congress must talk about the status of the INDIA bloc and should have addressed questions about the opposition alliance in the party's recent meeting in Ahmedabad.
In an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana', the Sena (UBT) pointed out that the Congress only spoke about itself in the Ahmedabad meet, and INDIA or Bharat was nowhere in the discussion.
"Questions are being raised about where the INDIA bloc stands after the Lok Sabha election. The Congress needed to address this in its Ahmedabad session," the editorial said.
"What happened to the alliance? Did it get buried in the ground or vanish into thin air? The responsibility to answer this question lies with the Congress president," it said.
The Congress held its session on April 8-9 in Gujarat, where it has been out of power for two decades. Senior Congress leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, addressed party workers.
The Sena (UBT) also sought to know the Congress's stand for the Bihar, Gujarat and West Bengal state polls. "Or will the party again welcome defeat?" it asked.
In Bihar, the Rashtriya Janata Dal is a senior partner, while in Gujarat and West Bengal, INDIA partners, the Aam Aadmi Party and Trinamool Congress, will also be in the fray.
"The Congress held its session in Gujarat but this did not yield any success in the state in the Lok Sabha polls, as the party won one seat in the western state after 2014," the Sena UBT said.
It said the Congress needs to make efforts in Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. While the party met with success in Maharashtra in the Lok Sabha polls, it suffered a humiliating defeat in the state assembly polls.
"The scams of the BJP are as much responsible for this loss as the internal issues of the Congress. It has to deliberate on this," the editorial added.
The Congress has to take the lead in fighting dictatorship, the Sena (UBT) said.
Referring to the Delhi assembly polls, where the AAP and Congress faced defeat, the Sena (UBT) said some Congress leaders thought the road was clear for the party in the national capital.
If Congress uses this strategy of contesting against the INDIA bloc partners in other states, it will only help the BJP, it said.
"We have to defeat the BJP and not our friends," the party said.
The Sena UBT said an alliance between the Congress and AAP would have proved beneficial.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
