Gujarat local polls: BJP fields 31 Muslim candidates in Bharuch
Bharuch, Feb 12: The BJP has given tickets to as many as 31 Muslim candidates in Bharuch district for February 28 elections to local bodies in Gujarat.
According to Marutisinh Atodariya, district BJP chief, this is for the first time that the party has fielded so many candidates from the Muslim community in the district.
But he denied that this has anything to do with a rival alliance between the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) and Asaduddin Owaisi's All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul-Muslimeen.
Bharuch district, with a sizable number of Muslim voters, will see elections to the district panchayat, nine taluka (tehsil) panchayats and four municipalities.
"Of total 320 candidates declared by the BJP parliamentary board on Wednesday for the district, 31 are Muslim, the highest ever in Bharuch so far," Atodariya said.
Some candidates may be replaced if their nominations get rejected by the election authorities, he added.
Bharuch district panchayat, which has 34 seats, was ruled by the Congress and Jhaghadia MLA Chhotu Vasava's BTP which was formed following a split in the JD(U).
Recently, Vasava announced poll alliance with AIMIM and also held a joint rally with Owaisi last week.
But Atodariya denied that this alliance prompted the saffron party to pick more Muslim candidates.
"We have not selected candidates just because they belong to a minority community. They were selected on merit.
For instance, we have selected a Muslim BJP worker for Valia seat in district panchayat where Hindus are in majority," he said.
The BJP's acceptability among Muslims has increased and many of them have joined the party, he claimed.
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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.
