Technical committee to inspect state’s dams formed: D K Shivakumar
Vijayapura: DCM D K Shivakumar stated that a technical committee comprising the Central team and retired members of Central Water Commission (CWC) had been formed to check dam safety in the state. The team was already visiting the dams across the state, he said. He was addressing a press meet after offering ‘bagina’, along with the CM, to Lal Bahadur Shasthri dam at Almatti in Vijayapura on Wednesday.
Stating that the govermnet would work for the safety of the dams in the state on the basis of the committee's report, D K Shivakumar said that the gates at Narayanpura dam had been installed using ultra-modern technology. He said that Minister M B Patil, Shivananda Patil and R B Timmapur have requested for the initiation of Krishan River aarati in the model of Ganga aarti. "Tunga aarti is already in motion. A committee has been formed to conduct Kaveri aarti. Krishna aarti will also be planned in this way", he said.
Praising the garden at the dam which attracts many visitors, DCM stated that the government would do whatever was needed to attract more tourists. He assured that measures would be taken to resolve grievances of people who lost land to the Upper Krishna Project. "The government will also deliberate on rehabilitation. An inspection has been done already in last April and November", he said.
Speaking on the water related issues with Tamil Nadu, D K Shivakumar said that this year the state had released 100 TMC water more to the neighbouring state along with the mandatory 177.25 TMC. "We cannot retain additional water. On the basis of all these we will request for their consent to the Mekedatu project", he said.
DCM stated that more than 220 taluks in the state were declared drought affected last year. Rains did not differentiate between governments and droughts once in every 3-4 years was a natural occurrence, he said. "All the major dams in the state are full now. A few lakes in some districts were not filled", he added.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
