Mining lease case: Allegation against me baseless, says Soren before leaving for ED office
Ranchi (PTI): Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Thursday said that the allegations leveled against him in a mining lease case were baseless.
Addressing media persons as he left for the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in Ranchi, where he will be questioned in connection with the matter, Soren claimed that he was a victim of a conspiracy by the Opposition.
"The agency should level allegations only after a detailed investigation into the matter," he said.
The ED summoned Soren to its regional office here for interrogation in a money laundering case linked to the allegedly illegal mining in the state.
The agency has said it has ‘identified’ proceeds of crime relating to illegal mining in the state to the tune of Rs 1,000 crore till now.
Soren, talking to reporters, said, "If we calculate the yearly revenue from mines and minerals, it would not touch Rs 1,000 crore. I am going to ED office and want to see how they arrived at that figure."
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up around the ED office to prevent any untoward incident.
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Heavy rain, hailstorms likely to lash Uttarakhand on Tuesday; IMD issues warning
Dehradun/Pithoragarh (PTI): The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning for heavy rain and hailstorms across several districts of Uttarakhand on Tuesday, as temperatures remained markedly below normal in the region.
Heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places in Dehradun, Haridwar, Tehri, Pauri, Nainital, Champawat, and Udham Singh Nagar districts. Most places across all districts are expected to receive light to moderate rain or thunderstorms, while higher reaches are likely to witness snowfall, officials said on Monday.
The weather department warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, hail and intense spells of rain in six districts, including Dehradun and Nainital. Gusty winds with speeds reaching 40-50 kmph are also expected at isolated locations in these areas and other hilly districts.
In the state capital, Dehradun, the sky is forecast to remain partly cloudy with light rain and thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds of 30-40 kmph.
The maximum and minimum temperatures in the city are expected to hover around 31 degrees Celsius and 19 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Maximum temperatures during the past 24 hours remained markedly below normal in the hills and appreciably below normal in the plains. While no significant change in temperature is expected over the next 2-3 days, the IMD predicts a rise of 3-5 degrees Celsius during the subsequent 3-4 days.
Rainfall was recorded in several areas after 8.30 am today, with Ramnagar receiving 31.5 mm and Nainital recording 26.5 mm. Other areas, including Pithoragarh, Khatima and Champawat, also reported moderate precipitation.
Authorities have stopped a batch of 36 Adi Kailash pilgrims at the Dharchula base camp and placed the high-altitude yatra route on high alert following heavy rains and hailstorms in the district on Monday.
Dharchula SDM Ashish Joshi said the pilgrimage was halted due to adverse weather conditions. The issuance of new inner-line passes has been suspended until the weather normalises.
With 1,700 passes issued so far, pilgrims already at higher camps are being monitored for safety, the official added.
