Priyanka urges Centre to waive loans of Wayanad flood victims, laments 'lack of support'
New Delhi (PTI): Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday urged the Centre to waive loans for the flood and landslide victims from her parliamentary constituency of Wayanad, and lamented the "lack" of central assistance in helping the affected people rebuild their lives.
Raising the issue during the Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, Vadra said hundreds of people lost their lives, 17 families were wiped out, and more than 1,600 buildings were destroyed in the landslides and floods in the Kerala district.
"Hundreds of acres of land were also destroyed... There are coffee plantations, tea plantations, cardamom...there were people whose entire lives were destroyed, including auto drivers, jeep drivers, people who run home stays and do small businesses," she said.
She said it has been a year since the disaster, and those affected have not been rehabilitated properly.
"For one year, we've been requesting the release of funds for Wayanad. Some funds were released, but they were insufficient and given as loans, which is unprecedented. People have lost their lives and entire livelihoods, and we expect them to repay loans while rebuilding their lives?" she said.
It was requested that the landslides and floods be declared a national disaster, which wasn't done initially, but it was eventually designated as a "disaster of a severe nature", she said.
"However, this hasn't been enough as the victims' families are still struggling one year later. It's my honest and heartfelt request on behalf of the people of Wayanad that the central government consider waiving these loans, which are a small amount for the Centre," she said.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
