Rahul slams Modi over I-Day speech, calls PM arrogant
London, Aug 26 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi has targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his "sleeping elephant" remark made during the Independence Day speech, saying he was "arrogant" and had insulted every Indian and his ancestors by belittling contribution of people who worked for country's progress in the last 70 years.
Addressing an event here on Saturday organised by the Indian Overseas Congress, Gandhi also slammed Modi over the Rafale deal saying he could not answer his questions in parliament on the issue.
Gandhi termed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah a "murder accused".
He said it will be wrong to say that progress achieved by the country in the last 70 years had been brought by the Congress as people of country had worked for it and the party had only helped the process.
He said those who predicted that India will break were today saying it is the country that will show the future.
"How did this happen. Congress only helped but people of India did it. Congress brought people together, your parents did it, your ancestors did it by working in the fields and when the Prime Minister says that before he came nothing happened in this country, he is not saying this about Congress, he is insulting every Indian, his parents, grand parents. But the media is with him.
"I was sitting during his Independence Day address. He said before the national flag that before he came, India was a sleeping elephant and he woke it up. How much arrogance he has. The Prime Minister of India cannot understand if India has strength, it is not due to an individual, if sweat has been given, it has been given by farmers, small businessmen, industrialists, judges, everybody together," Gandhi said.
He also said Congress speaks the truth.
Gandhi said Congress was started by NRIs (non-resident Indians) and described Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, B.R. Ambedkar as NRIs.
"They went out, saw the world, thought in a fresh way and then helped the country. You are following their footsteps," he said.
Gandhi said if NRIs were asked about their religion, caste when they arrived first at the airport here and told that they will not get anything and cannot serve the country, how they would have felt.
"This is what is happening in India. If you are Dalit, tribal, farmer, poor, you won't get anything. If you speak more, you will be beaten. India is being changed, its power is being weakened", he said, adding that institutions such as Supreme Court, Election Commission and RBI are being destroyed.
Gandhi said Modi remained silent when diamond trader Nirav Modi escaped, when Supreme Court judges talked about Judge Loya's death and when a BJP MLA was accused of rape.
He said "made in China" stuff was flooding the Indian market and he wanted to see local places shine as manufacturing hubs. Gandhi said loans of industrialists have been waived but Modi was not willing to give farm loan waiver.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
