Sonia Gandhi pitches for collective leadership ahead of Karnataka Assembly bypolls
New Delhi, Oct 17: Ahead of the Assembly bypolls in Karnataka, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked the state unit to work under collective leadership and take dominant communities of the state into confidence, senior party leader S R Patil said on Thursday.
Patil, who met Gandhi at her residence here along with M C Venugopal, said he also discussed about the flood situation in details and about the forthcoming bypolls in 15 assembly constituencies in the state.
"The party chief advised us to work with collective leadership and take all major castes and communities into confidence," Patil told the media after the meeting.
She was referring to major communities, especially vokkaliga, lingayat and brahmin, he said.
Gandhi also advised the state leaders to shun personal ego and build a strong party in the state, he said.
She said the party should win in the coming by-elections in December, he added.
Patil thanked her for giving him the opportunity for the second time as the Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council of Karnataka.
The party had on October 9 appointed former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Legislative Assembly in the state while Patil was appointed as the LoP in the Legislative Council.
Siddaramaiah had on Wednesday met Gandhi in the national capital.
Patil attacked the BJP government in the state for the "delay" in providing flood relief and took a dig at state BJP president Naveen Kumar Kateel.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Elephant calf brought from Bijnor kept under care at Pilibhit Tiger Reserve
Pilibhit (PTI): A 19-day-old elephant calf, brought from Bijnor, was placed under care at the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) on Sunday, an official said and added that the calf got separated from its mother in the forest area of Bijnor.
The calf was born on December 2 in the Bijnor forest area and got separated from its mother shortly after birth, the official said.
The forest department made several attempts to reunite it with its mother, but without any success. To ensure the calf's safety and better care, it was decided to transfer it to the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve on the instructions of senior officials.
On Saturday, Deputy Director Manish Singh received the calf. Special arrangements have been made in the reserve for its care. It has been kept in a safe and clean environment to provide it with a natural setting and protect it from external noise and disturbances.
Singh told reporters that raising an 19-day-old calf is challenging.
It requires a special diet as a substitute for mother's milk and constant monitoring.
He said a special team has been formed to provide 24-hour care. Since the calf is very young, it is being cared for like a newborn baby.
According to Singh, the primary responsibility for monitoring the calf's health has been entrusted to PTR's veterinarian, Dr Daksh Gangwar. Under his supervision, a complete record of the calf's health checkups, diet, and body temperature is being maintained. The team is ensuring that the calf does not contract any infection.
