Govt will hang Tahawwur Rana during Bihar polls, claims Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut
Mumbai, Apr 10 (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said 26/11 terror attack key accused Tahawwur Hussain Rana, who was extradited to India on Thursday, should be hanged immediately and claimed the government will do so during Bihar elections.
Raut also demanded that Kulbhushan Jadhav, who was captured in 2016 and was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for alleged spying, be brought back home. India has dismissed Pakistan's accusation as concocted.
According to New Delhi, Jadhav was kidnapped in Iran where he had legitimate business interests, and brought to Pakistan. To save Jadhav, India moved the International Court of Justice, which ordered Pakistan to stay his execution.
"Rana should be immediately hanged but he will be hanged during the Bihar polls (scheduled later this year)," Raut told PTI.
Raut said there was a 16-year-old battle to bring Rana to India and it started during the Congress rule. "So no one should take the credit of bringing back Rana," Raut added.
The Sena (UBT) MP said Rana is not the first accused to be extradited to India. In the past, 1993 serial blast accused Abu Salem too was extradited to India, he noted.
He also demanded that economic fugitives Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi be extradited to India.
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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.
