Will discuss Bihar pre-poll fund transfers to women with Oppn leaders: Sharad Pawar
Pune (PTI): NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar has said he intends to raise the issue of pre-election fund transfers to women under a government scheme in Bihar during his discussions with Opposition leaders.
His remarks came days after the ruling NDA secured a landslide victory in the Bihar elections by decimating the Opposition Mahagathbandhan bloc.
"The poll outcome turned out different from our expectations; however, one has to accept the mandate of the people. Everyone saw that in Maharashtra and Bihar, schemes like Ladki Bahin and direct benefit transfers of Rs 10,000 to women were rolled out just before the polls. Such things were never witnessed earlier," Pawar told reporters in Solapur on Sunday.
He was referring to the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana, which provides money to a woman member of each family for setting up a business in Bihar.
Under the scheme, Rs 10,000 each was transferred to the bank accounts of women in Bihar ahead of the state polls.
Pawar said he had heard that money is distributed during local body elections, but a government providing Rs 10,000 directly to women ahead of the state elections is something new.
"If the deposition of Rs 10,000 was the reason behind the (NDA's victory in) Bihar elections, then we need to think over it. The Parliament session is scheduled to start on December 1. During this period, we will discuss this issue by bringing together key Opposition leaders and chalk out a response. At least, I am thinking in this direction," he said.
Earlier, Pawar had wondered how the Election Commission allowed the distribution of funds during the poll process in Bihar.
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Odisha: Normalcy returns to violence-hit Malkangiri; internet services fully restored
Malkangiri (PTI): Normalcy returned to Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Monday, nearly a week after around 200 villages were damaged in violent clashes in a village, with the district administration fully restoring internet services, a senior official said.
Additional District Magistrate Bedabar Pradhan said internet services, suspended across the district on December 8 to curb the spread of rumours and misinformation following the clashes, were restored after the situation improved.
The suspension had been extended in phases till 12 noon on Monday.
The administration also withdrew prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita within a 10-km radius of MV-26 village, where arson incidents were reported on December 7 and December 8.
Though the violence was confined to two villages, tension had gripped the entire district, as the incident took the form of a clash between local tribals and Bengali settlers following the recovery of a headless body of a woman on December 4, officials said.
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The violence broke out after residents of Rakhelguda village allegedly set ablaze several houses belonging to Bengali residents, forcing hundreds to flee. The headless body of Lake Podiami (51), a woman from the Koya tribe, was recovered from the banks of the Poteru river on December 4, while her head was found six days later at a location about 15 km away.
Officials said the district administration held several rounds of discussions with representatives of the tribal and Bengali communities, following which both sides agreed to maintain peace.
Relief and rehabilitation work has since been launched at MV-26 village, with preliminary assessment pegging property damage at around Rs 3.8 crore.
A two-member ministerial team headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo visited the affected village, interacted with officials and locals, and submitted a report to the chief minister.
So far, 18 people have been arrested in connection with the violence, the officials said, adding that despite the withdrawal of prohibitory orders and restoration of internet services, security forces, including BSF and CRPF personnel, continue to be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
On Sunday, Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi visited MV-26 and neighbouring Rakhelguda villages, and held discussions with members of both communities as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and restore peace.
More than two lakh Bengali-speaking Bangladeshis were rehabilitated by the Centre in Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts in 1968, and they currently reside in 124 villages of Malkangiri.
