Rains in Chandigarh bring relief from dust, pollution
Chandigarh, June 16 : Chandigarh and its nearby areas in Punjab and Haryana were lashed by rains, bringing much relief from a thick haze of dust and pollution that enveloped the region for the past two days, the weather office said on Saturday.
The weather turned pleasant and the visibility cleared following the overnight rainfall, which lasted for around two hours. However, the sky remained overcast with chances of more showers later in the day.
In the past two days, Chandigarh and surrounding areas witnessed a dusty weather throughout the day with poor visibility that led to grounding of 27 of the 30 flights from here.
The local meteorological office said the city experienced 21.6 mm of rain till 8.30 a.m. on Saturday and the minimum temperature was 23.5 degrees Celsius.
Chandigarh saw the highest ever concentration of PM2.5, a fine pollutant that can reach the lungs directly.
A Chandigarh Pollution Control Committee observatory measured PM2.5 at 572 microgram per cubic metre of air on an average on Friday morning. On Thursday, it was 360 microgram per cubic metre.
The normal value of PM2.5 is 60 microgram per cubic metre for a 24-hour period. Experts at the observatory said it was the highest ever in the city.
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.
Centre spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print media ads for RSS centenary, reveals RTI
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.
The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.
Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.
“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.
RTI reply shows Min of Culture Govt of India spent a Whopping Rs 76L,13K,129 on Advertisement in Print Media on occasion of 100 yrs of #RSS
— AJAY Basudev Bose (@AjayBos93388306) April 16, 2026
When Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??@RSSorg… pic.twitter.com/dW4IUtdNCg
Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”
Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.
In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”
"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added.
Why is public money being used to serve a private ideological project?
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) April 16, 2026
Modi Sarkar spent ₹76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS.
Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to… pic.twitter.com/EoZ6Pim3IM
According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.
Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.
