Three-term Tamil Nadu Congress MLA joins BJP
New Delhi / Chennai, Feb 24: S Vijayadharani, a Congress MLA from Tamil Nadu for three consecutive terms, joined the BJP on Saturday, asserting that the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is very important for the country.
The development is a shot in the arm for the BJP in the southern state where it has struggled to gain ground.
Vijayadharani is the MLA from Vilavancode, which is part of the Kanyakumari Lok Sabha seat, a constituency the BJP has won in the past.
She posted on X her letter of resignation from the Congress before joining the BJP.
She joined the party in the national capital in the presence of Union Minister L Murugan and the party's national secretary Arvind Menon, who is the poll in-charge for Tamil Nadu.
Vijayadharani lauded the central government for its various good schemes and lamented that some of those are not being implemented in Tamil Nadu, where the DMK-Congress alliance is in power.
A lot of great things are happening to the country, she said, praising the BJP's focus on women.
Murugan said people from different sections of society are coming forward to join the BJP to strengthen Modi's hand.
The BJP was unable to win any of the 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu in the 2019 general elections.
Vijayadharani, who is also a successful lawyer, is the first sitting MLA to join the BJP.
Prior to the 2021 Assembly election, former state Minister from the AIADMK Nainar Nagendra joined the saffron party from the southern district of Tirunelveli and he is currently the party floor leader.
The Kanyakumari district from where she hails is represented by senior BJP leader M R Gandhi from Nagercoil in the Assembly House. She joins the increasing list of legislators from the district which sent C Velayutham Pillai from the Padmanabhapuram constituency to the Assembly for the first time in 1996.
The political career of Vijayadharani, an intense debater in TV channels, spans over three decades and she is known for her sense of commitment to public service and a strong focus on welfare of the marginalised.
"Her presence will be advantageous to the BJP as she has established for herself a clean image championing the cause of the people especially the downtrodden," a senior BJP leader said.
He confirmed that she was in touch with the senior leaders in the party before taking the final plunge to embrace the BJP.
Her conspicuous absence in the Assembly during the brief Budget session which concluded on February 22, raised eyebrows and sparked rumours of her joining the BJP. But, the new TNCC chief Selvaperunthagai denied that she was quitting the Congress.
She was first elected from the Vilavancode assembly constituency in 2011 and romped home the winner in 2016 and 2021 elections. Before joining the BJP, the 54-year-old leader was the general secretary of AICC and chief whip of the Congress Legislative Party in the Assembly.
As a legislator she has been voicing for total prohibition and was instrumental in ensuring the closure of some liquor shops in her constituency. This advocate for women empowerment has been batting for 50 percent reservation for women in civic polls.
#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Congress MLA Vijayadharani joins BJP, in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/eTnkJx2oJe
— ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2024
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.
MP: 40 years after Bhopal gas disaster, toxic waste leaves Union Carbide factory for disposal
Bhopal, Jan 1: Forty years after the Bhopal gas tragedy, the shifting of some 377 tons of hazardous waste began from the defunct Union Carbide factory on Wednesday night for its disposal, an official said.
The toxic waste is being shifted in 12 sealed container trucks to the Pithampur industrial area in Dhar district, 250 km away from Bhopal.
"12 container trucks carrying the waste set off on a non-stop journey around 9 pm. A green corridor has been created for the vehicles which are expected to reach Pithampur industrial area in Dhar district in seven hours," said Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Department Director Swatantra Kumar Singh.
He said around 100 people worked in 30-minute shifts since Sunday to pack and load the waste in trucks.
"They underwent health check-ups and were given rest every 30 minutes," he added.
Highly toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide factory on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, killing at least 5,479 people and leaving thousands with serious and long-lasting health issues. It is considered to be among the worst industrial disasters in the world.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court on December 3 rebuked authorities for not clearing the Union Carbide site in Bhopal despite directions from even the Supreme Court and set a four-week deadline to shift the waste, observing that even 40 years after the gas tragedy, authorities were in a "state of inertia".
The high court bench had warned the government of contempt proceedings if its directive was not followed.
"If everything is found to be fine, the waste will be incinerated within three months. Otherwise, it might take up to nine months," Singh told PTI on Wednesday morning.
Initially, some of the waste will be burnt at the waste disposal unit in Pithampur and the residue (ash) will be examined to find whether any harmful elements are left, Singh said.
The smoke from the incinerator will pass through special four-layer filters so that the surrounding air is not polluted, he added.
Once it is confirmed that no traces of toxic elements are left, the ash will be covered by a two-layer membrane and buried to ensure it does not come in contact with soil and water in any way.
A team of experts under the supervision of officials of the Central Pollution Control Board and State Pollution Control Board will carry out the process, Singh said.
Some local activists have claimed that 10 tons of Union Carbide waste was incinerated on a trial basis in Pithampur in 2015, after which the soil, underground water and water sources in surrounding villages became polluted.
But Singh rejected the claim, stating that the decision to dispose of the waste at Pithampur was taken only after the report of the 2015 test and all the objections were examined.
There would be no reason to worry, he said.
A large number of people had on Sunday taken out a protest march in Pithampur to oppose the disposal of Union Carbide waste in the city which has a population of about 1.75 lakh.
12 trucks carrying 337 tonnes of toxic waste from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal, stored for 40 years, left at 9:05 p.m. for Pithampur near Indore. The waste is expected to arrive early on January 2nd, following a 250-km green corridor with heavy security.
— The Hindu (@the_hindu) January 1, 2025
📹@MehulMalpani pic.twitter.com/zU78cVRE85
