CPM decides against former Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja accepting Raman Magsaysay Award
A report published in the New Indian Express has claimed that the CPM leader KK Shailaja was selected for the 64th Magsaysay Award for her commitment and service towards ensuring an accessible health system and effectively leading from the front to manage the Nipah and COVID-19 outbreaks in Kerala but the CPM scuttled the chance.
According to the reports, Shailaja who is the former Health Minister of Kerala and a senior leader of CPM, consulted the party leadership when the Magsaysay Foundation reached out to her through email for confirming her willingness to accept the award. The party leadership, after looking at the different aspects of the award decided against her accepting it.
The report further added that the public announcement of Shailaja’s name as the recipient of the award this year was supposed to be made towards the end of August subject to her acceptance of the award. The party while deciding against her accepting the order, opined that she was only doing the duty entrusted to her by the party. In addition, the state’s efforts in fighting the Nipah outbreak and the Covid pandemic were part of a collective movement and therefore she need not accept the award in her individual capacity.
Following this, Shailaja wrote to the foundation expressing her inability to accept the award. It’s also learnt that the party decided against her receiving the award as it was in the name of Magsaysay who was known for putting down Communist guerillas. The CPM felt that accepting such an award would backfire in the long run, the report added.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
