Rajasthan governor should recommend President's Rule: Mayawati
Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati said on Saturday that Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra should take cognisance of the instability in the state and recommend President's Rule.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, she said, had openly violated the Anti-Defection law and cheated the BSP for a second time by getting its MLAs included in the Congress.
"And it is also evident he did an illegal and unconstitutional thing by phone tapping," Mayawati said in a series of tweets in Hindi.
"The governor (of Rajasthan) must take cognisance of the political deadlock and instability prevailing in Rajasthan, and should recommend imposition of President's Rule in the state, so that the condition of democracy in the state does not deteriorate," she said.
Sachin Pilot and other Congress dissidents have got a four-day reprieve from any action by Rajasthan Speaker on the disqualification notices served on them, as the high court on Friday extended the hearing into their petition to the next week.
The Rajasthan High Court will resume the hearing at 10 am on Monday and Speaker C P Joshi will not take any action on the disqualification notices till 5.30 pm on Tuesday.
Outside the courtroom, the Congress and its government in Rajasthan acted tough, even sending a police team to a hotel in Gurgaon's Manesar where the dissidents are supposed to be holed up.
Pilot and 18 other dissident MLAs are challenging the Congress move to disqualify them from the state assembly, and were initially asked to send their replies by 1 pm on Friday.
Speaker C P Joshi had written to the court that he will not act on the notices till 5 pm on Friday, by when the court proceedings were earlier expected to be over.
His counsel agreed to extend this breather to 5.30 pm on Tuesday as the division bench of Chief Justice Indrajit Mahanty and Justice Prakash Gupta had not delivered its order by that time.
An assembly statement said this was mutually agreed by both sides.
Pilot was sacked as deputy chief minister and the president of the state unit of the party after he rebelled against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.
The BJP has demand for a CBI probe into the audio tapes that showed a conspiracy to topple the Ashok Gehlot government in Rajasthan.
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Karnataka rolls out climate action plan to tackle global warming: Minister Khandre
Bengaluru (PTI): Minister Eshwar Khandre on Tuesday said that a Karnataka state action plan on climate change has been formulated to mitigate the impact of global warming and climate change, and directions have been issued to ensure its proper implementation.
Speaking after presiding over a seminar on extreme heat and its impact on Bengaluru, organised by the Karnataka Media Academy, he said the Environmental Management and Policy Research Institute (EMPRI), which comes under the environment department, has taken steps to implement the action plan in coordination with various state government departments.
He said training programmes are being organised in cooperation with zilla panchayat offices for district officials and other related institutions regarding the implementation and progress of the Karnataka state action plan on climate change.
The Forest, Ecology and Environment minister said such programmes will be conducted in all 31 districts of Karnataka.
According to a statement issued by the minister’s office, in terms of climate resilience, Khandre said a dedicated radio programme, “Havamaana Mitra” (weather friend), was launched in April 2025 to share information on best practices, and 24 programmes have so far been broadcast on Akashvani.
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He said these efforts aim to create public awareness.
Khandre emphasised that due to global warming and climate change, even seasons are changing today.
“Keeping this in mind, after becoming Forest Minister, I have been making every effort to increase green cover, especially in Bengaluru city,” he said.
He noted that during the last three years, about 11 crore saplings have been planted in the state, and information on their survival rate has been made available on the Forest Department website.
According to him, encroachments on about 250 acres of forest land worth around Rs 10,000 crore in several parts of Bengaluru, including Kothanur, Kadugodi, B M Kaval, and Turahalli, have been cleared.
Thousands of saplings have been planted and groves created on the cleared land, thereby preserving lung spaces essential for Bengaluru city.
The minister also recalled that more than 400 acres of forest land in Peenya plantation had earlier been allotted to the central government-owned HMT for industrial purposes.
He said HMT had sold 160 acres of this land, while 280 acres remain, and a decision has been taken to reclaim it for the department to preserve an essential lung space for Bengaluru. A legal battle is underway, and the case is currently in the Supreme Court.
In addition, he said 444 acres in the Jarakabande area had been allotted to the Indian Air Force. Under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, forest land cannot be diverted without due process. Hence, in 2017, the then Deputy Commissioner cancelled the land allotment.
“Steps are now being taken to reclaim this forest land and preserve the green space,” he said.
Khandre also highlighted that the Yelahanka Air Force Station in Gantiganahalli, where the international air show is held once every two years in Bengaluru, is on forest land.
He said 159 acres in Gantiganahalli village is classified as a reserved forest area.
“If the Air Force submits a proposal for diversion and provides alternative land, this area may be considered for transfer; otherwise, steps will be taken to reclaim it for the forest department,” he said.
“The Indian Air Force is presently using this area as a runway. However, the RTC and mutation records are in the name of the Forest Department, and the land has not been legally converted. Hence, this forest land will be reclaimed,” he said.
He added that the government has resolved to construct a major biological park on 153 acres at Madappanahalli in Bengaluru North taluk, and cabinet approval has been obtained.
“The CM will lay the foundation stone next month. This will be the largest park after Lalbagh and Cubbon Park. It would not be incorrect to call this an achievement of the century,” he said.
