Govt taking steps to control price rise, tomatoes being imported from Nepal: FM Nirmala Sitharaman
New Delhi, Aug 10: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said the government is taking steps to control inflation and as part of the measures tomatoes are being imported from Nepal to meet the demand and check prices.
"Lot of steps have been taken to contain inflation. Group of Ministers has been taking timely steps to control prices which are hitting common people," Sitharman said while participating in a debate on the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha.
Sitharaman said Tur dal is being imported from Mozambique, Urad dal will be imported from Myanmar, while around three lakh tonnes of onions have been procured to create a buffer stock.
She said tomatoes are being procured from Maharashtra and Karnataka, and distributed in Delhi-NCR, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan through the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) and other cooperative societies.
National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India Ltd. (NCCF) has distributed 8.84 lakh kg of tomatoes in these states.
"This will continue, and be increased," she said, adding that the wholesale prices of tomatoes in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are coming down.
"We have allowed imports from Nepal by removing import restrictions. The first lot will reach Varanasi, Kanpur, Lucknow this week," she said.
NCCF is also planning a mega sale of tomatoes in Delhi NCR region at a subsidized rate of Rs 70 per kg this weekend, the minister said adding that more such steps will be taken.
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4 held for sexually assaulting woman, girl on moving bus after social media alert in UP's Agra
Agra (UP) (PTI): Four people were arrested, after a prompt response by police following a social media alert, for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman and a girl inside a moving bus here, officials said on Tuesday.
According to an official police statement, at 12:27 am on April 27, information was received on the social media platform X about an incident of sexual assault on a bus travelling from Kanpur to Ahmedabad, which was approaching Namner crossing in Agra.
Acting under the direction of Police Commissioner Deepak Kumar, the Agra Police social media team immediately alerted the Rakabganj police station within minutes and coordinated with the victims to confirm the incident and obtain the exact location, it stated.
Police teams launched intensive checking at Namner crossing and intercepted the bus as it reached the spot. The four accused involved in the incident were apprehended on the spot, and legal action was initiated against them, the statement said.
The police said the swift response and coordination between the social media team and field units ensured timely action, bringing relief to the victims and other passengers, who expressed gratitude towards the police, it added.
