Minister urges children to end plastic pollution
New Delhi, June 3: Urging school children to protect the environment, Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan on Sunday sought their help to end the menace of plastic pollution.
Plastic pollution is also the theme of the World Environment day, being hosted by India on Tuesday.
"I request you all to become green warriors, take a green good deed every day and help us stop the single-use plastic," the minister said.
According to experts, about 500 billion plastic bags are used across the world every day.
In India, around 4,059 tonnes per day of plastic waste is generated from 60 major cities with Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad topping the list, states a 2015 Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report.
It adds that around 25,940 tonnes per day of plastic waste is generated in the country.
Addressing a gathering of the students here at Chanakyapuri, the Minster also administered a pledge to the children to minimize the use of plastic and to totally stop single-use or disposable plastic in their day-to-day life.
He later flagged off 'Envithon', a mini-marathon, riding a bicycle on the World Bicycle Day.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
