Cong MLA Jignesh Mevani evicted from Gujarat assembly for creating ruckus during debate
Gandhinagar, Aug 23: Gujarat Congress MLA Jignesh Mevani was evicted from the state assembly on the direction of Speaker Shankar Chaudhary for creating a ruckus and entering the well of the House during a debate on the last day of the monsoon session on Friday.
Mevani was escorted out of the assembly by sergeants without using any force after the Speaker ordered his eviction.
During a debate on drug seizures by Gujarat police, Mevani stood up and started shouting at treasury benches and challenged the BJP government to debate on other "burning" issues such as rapes.
Mevani, a working president of the Gujarat Congress, rushed towards the well and dared Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi to have a debate on live television on tragedies such as the Rajkot game zone fire, Morbi bridge collapse and Vadodara boat capsize incident.
Despite repeated requests by the Speaker to maintain decorum, the MLA, while standing near his seat, kept demanding a debate and walked into the well, prompting the Speaker to evict him.
Condemning Mevani's behaviour, Chaudhary said the Congress MLA disrespected the Constitution through such acts.
BJP MLAs Ramanlal Vora, Jitu Vaghani and Minister Rushikesh Patel termed Mevani's behaviour "unacceptable" and said he was only interested in getting publicity.
After the issue was settled, Sanghavi responded to a "matter of urgent public importance" raised by BJP MLA Bharat Patel about the seizure of narcotics.
He informed the House that the police had recovered unclaimed drugs worth Rs 850 crore along the Gujarat coastline in the last 15 days.
The minister said drug packets get washed ashore after they are dumped into the sea by smugglers due to the heightened security by the police.
In the last one year, the police arrested 431 persons involved in the illegal narcotics trade and seized drugs worth Rs 5,640 crore.
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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.
