Spread the message of development in J-K, do visit villages: PM tells union ministers
New Delhi/Jammu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday told the group of union ministers visiting Jammu and Kashmir to spread the message of development among the people not only in the urban areas but also in the villages of the Valley, sources said.
As part of a massive outreach programme, 38 central ministers will visit 60 locations in Jammu and Kashmir starting from Saturday, Chief Secretary B V R Subrahmanyam said after a review meeting in Jammu.
At a meeting of the Council of Ministers in New Delhi, the prime minister asked the ministers to spread the message of development during their interaction with the locals, the sources said. They were also asked to spread the message about the various central schemes which will benefit the people at grassroots level.
He said the ministers should not restrict themselves to the urban areas but meet people in villages also to inform about the developmental work carried out by the central government in Jammu and Kashmir.
The 38 Union ministers will visit different districts in both the divisions of the Union Territory starting from January 18 to January 24 and the home ministry is coordinating it. There will be 51 visits to Jammu and eight to Srinagar.
Union minister Smriti Irani will visit Katra and Panthal areas of Reasi district on January 19, while on the same day her cabinet colleague Piyush Goyal will be in Srinagar.
Whereas Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy will be in Ganderbal on January 22 and Manigam on January 23, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad will visit Sopore in Baramulla district on January 24.
V K Singh is scheduled to visit Tikri in Udhampur on January 20 while Kiren Rijiju will go to Suchetgarh in Jammu on January 21. Similarly, Union ministers R K Singh will visit Khellani in Doda district and Shripad Naik will hold a meeting at SKICC in Srinagar.
Besides them, Union ministers Anurag Thakur, Giriraj Singh, Pralhad Joshi, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank and Jitendra Singh are among other ministers who will visit different districts during the period.
Meanwhile, J&K Chief Secretary B V R Subrahmanyam held a meeting in Jammu with administrative secretaries, divisional and district administrations to review the preparations for the visit, an official spokesman said.
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Power tariffs under BESCOM to rise from May 1
Bengaluru (PTI): Power bills for consumers under the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) will go up from May 1, following an order issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) on Friday.
The hike comes after KERC allowed the BESCOM to recover a revenue deficit of Rs 2,068 crore incurred in 2024-25, from the consumers.
As a result, for every unit of electricity consumed in 2024-25, the customers will be charged an additional 56 paise, it said.
"BESCOM shall calculate, for each of the active consumers of FY2024-25 the amount to be recovered based on their actual energy consumption during FY2024-25. Such amount shall be recovered during FY 2026-27 in equal monthly instalments, to be called as 'FY25 True up Charges', commencing from the first meter reading date falling on or after 1 May 2026 and concluding with the reading date ending on 30 April 2027," the order said.
"It is further ordered that BESCOM shall maintain a separate head of account, allocated for the purpose, to record the adjustment of the said amount to ensure full recovery of the deficit," it added.
Similarly Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESC) has also recorded a revenue deficit of Rs 121.71 crore and can collect an additional 15 paisa per unit for consumption in 2024-25, official sources said.
