Shame HP govt can't even run disaster relief fund, actor Kangana after 'failed attempts' to donate
Shimla(PTI): Actor Kangana Ranaut has slammed the Himachal Pradesh government after making "50-60" failed attempts to donate money online for disaster relief, claiming that the state cannot even run properly the fund set up for it.
"Such a shame," she said on microblogging site X' on Thursday night.
The actor, who hails from the hill state, however, managed to make the donation of Rs 5 lakh online and posted a screen shot indicating this.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's office pooh-poohed her claim, suggesting that this could be just a technical hitch.
"Trying to donate for the Himachal floods disaster but the government there can't even run aapada rahat kosh properly, such a shame, after trying the whole day more than 50-60 times could only donate some amount," she posted, targeting the Congress-run state.
When contacted, Naresh Chauhan, the media advisor to the CM, said, "We don't want to comment on Kangana's tweet. People have donated over Rs 200 crore towards the state disaster relief fund, a part of which was donated online and no such issue has come to our notice".
"If there is some technical glitch it could be resolved. And people from all walks of life and even state governments have contributed towards the fund, which is being used for relief and rehabilitation," he said.
Last month, Bollywood star Aamir Khan contributed Rs 25 lakh to the state's disaster relief fund.
The governments of Assam, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Bihar, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh donated a total of over Rs 80 crore to help with relief and rehabilitation.
Temple trusts, NGOs and others have also come forward to help.
Heavy rains in the months of July and August caused huge damage to roads, water supply projects and houses. Over 300 people have died in the state in rain-related incidents since the monsoon began on June 24.
Sukhu has claimed that the state suffered losses of about Rs 12,000 crore. The state government has announced a special relief package of Rs 4,500 crore for the affected people.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
