For Modi standoff was event, Chinese still in Doklam: Rahul
London, Aug 24 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he views the Doklam issue as an event and added that Chinese presence is still there.
Gandhi was speaking at an event in London in the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS).
"I don't have the details of Doklam, so I can't answer how I would've handled it differently. What I can tell you is that Doklam is not an unrelated episode, it's not a one off, it is not a border issue, it is a strategic issue.
"It is a part of a sequence of events and Doklam was a crisis that happened because the government is episodic," he added.
Gandhi further said: "...the government and the PM view things very much from an event's perspective. I view Doklam as a process, a point in the process. The PM views Doklam as an event."
He said: "So I would look at the process and I would tackle the process and I am pretty confident that Doklam wouldn't have happened...because you could've stopped Doklam if you were carefully watching the process."
"The Chinese have withdrawn from the point of contact, they've withdrawn from where the altercation happened. (But) The truth is the Chinese are still in Doklam," he added.
Talking about what India can learn from China, Gandhi said: "Looking at the mobility in India, how do you transform air travel in India, how do open up the air space, that's one thing India can learn from China.
"The other thing India can learn from China is decentralisation. In China, local governments run the system. In India, the PMO runs the system," he added.
"Let me tell you, today the PMO and CMO have veto all the way down. They have no business having that power, that power should be with the local government," he added.
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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.
