Jharkhand shutdown evokes mixed response
Ranchi, July 5 : A state-wide shutdown called by the opposition in Jharkhand to protest against an amendment to the Land Acquisition Act authorising direct parchases witnessed mixed response on Thursday.
More than 1,000 people were arrested in different parts of the state after opposition parties' supporters tried to enforce the shutdown against the legal provision allowing the government to acquire land directly from owners.
Most shops and schools remained closed, while buses on long-distance routes were not plying. Train services were affected in Sahebganj district.
The Jharkhand government has warned of strict action against those involved in the violence.
"Anyone found damaging public or private property will be dealt with as per law. They will have to pay for the losses incurred," Home Secretary S.K. Rahate had said on Wednesday.
The Jharkhand Assembly passed the amendment bill by a voice vote in August 2017, while the President cleared it in June.
The state government has maintained that the amendment was necessary as people-oriented projects were getting delayed by the earlier provisions that had capped the direct purchase of land.
Around 5,000 personnel of the state police have been deployed along with two companies of the Rapid Action Force, six companies of the Reserve Armed Police and 3,100 home guards to tackle the situation arising from the protests against the changes made in the Land Acquisition Amendment Act 2013.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
