PM Modi inaugurates Kartavya Bhavan
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inaugurated Kartavya Bhavan, the first of the ten upcoming Common Central Secretariat buildings to house the bureaucracy.
The ambitious project is aimed at bringing ministries and departments under one roof for efficiency.
Kartavya Bhavan-03, the first to be inaugurated, will house the Home Affairs, External Affairs, Rural Development, MSME, DoPT, Petroleum & Natural Gas ministries, and the Principal Scientific Adviser's office.
Many key ministries currently function from ageing buildings like Shastri Bhawan, Krishi Bhawan, Udyog Bhawan, and Nirman Bhawan, constructed between the 1950s and 1970s, which are now "structurally outdated and inefficient," according to the government.
The Union Housing and Urban Affairs (HUA) Ministry has plans to construct ten buildings as part of the Common Central Secretariat under the government's Central Vista redevelopment project.
Two under-construction buildings, 2 and 3, are scheduled to be completed by next month, while construction work on CCS 10 will be finished by April next year.
The project of CCS buildings 6 and 7 will be completed by October 2026.
On Tuesday, Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said that offices functioning from the four bhawans will shift to four new locations on Kasturba Gandhi Marg, Minto Road, and Netaji Palace temporarily for two years, while the construction is carried out.
A few buildings are currently proposed to be retained.
These include the National Museum, National Archives, Jawaharlal Nehru Bhawan (External Affairs Ministry), and Dr Ambedkar Auditorium, which are new buildings. Vanijya Bhawan will also be retained.
Under the Central Vista redevelopment plan, the government has already constructed a new Parliament building and the Vice President Enclave, and redeveloped the Kartavya Path that spans from Vijay Chowk to India Gate.
Besides the Common Central Secretariat, the government will also construct an Executive Enclave that will house a new Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Cabinet Secretariat, India House, and National Security Council Secretariat.
Under the second phase of the Executive Enclave, a new Prime Minister's residence will be constructed.
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Right to vote under threat, must be made fundamental right: Cong's Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on Thursday that the right to vote is under threat and the time has come when it should be made a fundamental right for citizens.
Speaking with reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying the Election Commission (EC) has never been as compromised as it has been under him.
"The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer," the Congress leader said, slamming Kumar.
Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections, he alleged.
"Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds -- detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported," Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote is now under threat.
On opposition parties submitting a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to move a motion for the CEC's removal, the Congress leader said they will continue to make efforts for Kumar's removal as he is "compromised".
Ramesh also batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
"I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable," he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
"Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens," Ramesh asserted.
