Gurjar quota agitation leader Kirori Singh Bainsla joins BJP
New Delhi: Gurjar quota agitation leader Kirori Singh Bainsla on Wednesday joined the BJP, giving a boost to the saffron party's efforts to win over influential leaders in Rajasthan where it had lost assembly polls.
Bainsla and his son Vijay Bainsla met BJP president Amit Shah and announced their decision to join the party at press conference in the presence of Union minister Prakash Javadekar, who is handling his party's election affairs in the western state.
"I have seen rarest of rare qualities in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and that's why I am joining the BJP. The country needs his leadership," Kirori Singh Bainsla said, adding that he is inspired by Modi's working style.
Recently, Jat leader Hanuman Beniwal had also joined the BJP and merged his regional party with it. The BJP has fielded him from Nagaur.
The BJP is considering fielding Bainsla or his son from a Lok Sabha seat, sources said.
Bainsla said he has been close to chief ministers of both parties -- the BJP and the Congress -- and had seen their ideologies.
"After seeing two parties closely, I am joining the BJP," he said.
Javadekar said with each passing day, the BJP is emerging stronger in Rajasthan and win all 25 Lok Sabha seats.
Bainsla was earlier in the BJP as well and had fought the 2009 Lok Sabha polls on its ticket but lost. He has been spearheading the quota agitation.
The BJP had won all 25 seats in the 2014 general election. However, its defeat in the assembly polls raised questions as to whether the party will be able to put up a strong show in the state in the coming elections.
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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.
