300 houses for Wayanad landslide victims to be handed over in Feb: CM Vijayan
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Thursday that the state government aims to complete about 300 houses with related facilities and hand them over in February as the first phase of rehabilitation for Wayanad landslide disaster victims.
"The target is to complete around 300 houses along with associated facilities and hand them over to beneficiaries as the first phase in February," the CM said while addressing a press conference here.
He said the houses are part of a large township being constructed on the Elston Estate land near the Kalpetta bypass for families affected by the Mundakkai-Chooralmala landslides in Wayanad.
The project is progressing at a rapid pace, with a strong focus on safety, quality and long-term sustainability, Vijayan said.
He said the township will consist of 410 houses and all essential facilities required for a dignified life.
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"This is not just about providing a roof over people's heads. It is about rebuilding lives that were shattered by the disaster," he said.
According to him, the township will include an underground electricity network, drinking water supply with a large-capacity tank, internal roads, a public health centre, anganwadi, community hall, market, playgrounds and waste management facilities.
Each house will also have a solar power plant and its own drinking water storage tank.
He said construction work is being carried out with strict quality control measures. Materials such as cement, sand and steel are being tested in on-site laboratories and also verified by independent third-party agencies.
"We are ensuring quality at every stage. Work moves forward only after inspections," he said, adding that contractors will provide five years of protection against construction defects.
Around 1,600 workers are engaged in the project, working round the clock. Several key works, including roofing of many houses, road formation and drinking water tank construction, have already been completed, the chief minister said.
Referring to the government's approach to disaster rehabilitation, Vijayan said the project follows the "Build Back Better" principle.
"Our responsibility is to ensure that every disaster-affected family gets a safer and better living space than before," he said.
Vijayan said that the LIFE Mission and similar housing initiatives reflect the state's commitment to treating housing as a basic right.
"A total of 476,076 houses have been completed and handed over through the LIFE Mission. That many families have moved into secure homes. This February, the number will reach five lakh. Construction of 124,471 houses is currently at various stages," he added.
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Delhi court sentences Haryana gangster Vikas Gulia, associate to life imprisonment
New Delhi (PTI): A Delhi court has sentenced Haryana gangster Vikas Gulia and his associate to life imprisonment under MCOCA provisions, but refused the death penalty saying the offences did not fall under the category of 'rarest of the rare cases'.
Additional Sessions Judge Vandana Jain sentenced Gulia and Dhirpal alias Kana to rigorous imprisonment for life under Section 3 (punishment for organised crime) of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
In an order dated December 13, the judge said, "Death sentence can only be awarded in 'rarest of the rare cases' wherein the murder is committed in an extremely inhumane, barbarous, grotesque or dastardly manner as to arouse umbrage of the community at large."
The judge said that on weighing the aggravating and mitigating circumstances, it could be concluded that the present case did not fall under the category, and so, the death penalty could not be imposed upon the convicts.
"Thus, both the convicts are sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs 3 lakh each, for committing the offence under Section 3 of MCOCA," she said.
The public prosecutor, seeking the death penalty for both the accused, submitted that they were involved in several unlawful activities while they were on bail in other cases.
He argued that the accused had shown no respect for the law and acted without any fear of legal consequences, and therefore did not deserve any leniency from the court.
The court noted that both convicts were involved in offences of murder, attempt to murder, extortion, robbery, house trespass, and criminal intimidation. Besides, they had misused the liberty of interim bail granted to them by absconding.
It said, "The terror of the convicts was such that it created fear psychosis in the mind of the general public, and they lost complete faith in the law enforcement agencies and chose to accede to the illegal demands of convicts. Despite suffering losses, they could not gather the courage to depose against them."
The court noted that Gulia was involved in at least 18 criminal cases, while Dhirpal had links to 10 serious offences.
It underlined that MCOCA had been enacted "keeping in view the fact that organised crime had come up as a serious threat to society, as it knew no territorial boundaries and is fuelled by illegal wealth generated by committing the offence of extortion, contract killings, kidnapping for ransom, collection of protection money, murder, etc."
Both accused persons had been convicted on December 10 in a case registered at Najafgarh police station. The police filed a chargesheet under Section 3 (punishment for organised crime) and 4 (punishment for possessing unaccountable wealth on behalf of member of organised crime syndicate) of MCOCA.
