Kerala CM writes to Jaishankar offering support for Indians stranded at Colombo airport
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar offering all necessary support from the state for the Indians stranded at the Colombo airport due to Cyclone Ditwah.
Vijayan, in his letter on Saturday, said the cyclone has caused severe disruptions at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo, stranding nearly 300 Indian passengers, many of whom are from Kerala.
He said the Indian passengers have been stuck there for the last three days without adequate food, water and basic facilities.
The chief minister said many of the passengers were using Colombo as a pit stop for return journeys to home or going abroad and are in crisis at present.
"We are deeply concerned about the condition of the people who are stranded. The Government of Kerala stands ready to provide all necessary support and awaits your kind urgent response and action," Vijayan said in the letter to Jaishankar.
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Electorate in 9 states, UTs shrink by 1.70 crore after SIR
New Delhi (PTI): Voter base in nine states and Union territories has shrunk by more than 1.70 crore following the publication of final electoral rolls as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR), according to official data.
The data shared by the chief electoral officers of Gujarat, Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Goa and Kerala on Saturday showed that their combined voter base stood at over 21.45 crore before the SIR exercise began on October 27 last year.
It shrunk to 19.75 crore after publication of their final electoral rolls this week, a net change of over 1.70 crore electors.
While the exercise, which kept the Election Commission in the spotlight, has been completed in Bihar, it is currently underway in 12 states and Union territories covering nearly 60 crore electors.
The remaining 40 crore electors will be covered in 17 states and five Union territories.
In Assam, a "special revision", instead of SIR, was completed on February 10.
Due to a variety of reasons, the SIR in the nine states and three Union territories have seen frequent tweaking in schedules.
As in Bihar, political parties have approached the Supreme Court challenging the exercise in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
