Navy should apologise and pay Rs 25L compensation to families of missing fishermen: Pramod Madhwaraj
Udupi: Former fisheries minister Pramod Madhawraj on Saturday once again came down hard on Indian Navy for allegedly killing the seven fishermen onboard Suvarna Tribhuja fishing boat that went missing on December 15 last year.
The JD(S)-Congress Candidate from Udupi-Chikmagalur constituency has been constantly claiming that Indian Navy ship INS Cochin collided with the fishing boat killing all seven fishermen onboard.
Madhawraj on Saturday asserted that the Navy should apologise to the families of fishermen for hiding the truth from them for over four months and that the Navy should pay immediate compensation of Rs. 25 Lakhs to the families of fishermen.
He added that he has also written to the President of India, Prime Minister, Chief Ministers of Karnataka and Maharashtra and Defence Minister in this regard.
“If they confess to accept their crime within time, I will approach Supreme Court to get justice for the poor fishermen. And if necessary I will also file case against Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman” Madhawraj said.
“The navy wouldn't have information about the incident that happened on the night of Dec 15-16. But, they should have admitted the incident after a case was filed at Udupi and it caught headlines of national media. But they remained silent. Due to the Lok Sabha Elections the BJP leaders played politics over the incident and acted like helping the families by meeting them and assuring help to gain political mileage in the election” Madhawraj told reporters while addressing press conference in Udupi.
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.
13 lakh litres of 'Rail Neer' supplied to train passengers daily: Government
New Delhi (PTI): Approximately 13 lakh litres of packaged drinking water -- 'Rail Neer' -- are being supplied to train passengers across the railway network daily, the government informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply on Wednesday.
Apprising the Lower House about the Indian Railways' endeavour to provide safe and potable drinking water facilities at all stations, the government also provided zone-wise details of the water vending machines (WVMs) installed there.
"To ensure the quality of drinking water being made available at the railway stations, instructions exist for periodical checking and required corrective action to be taken.
"Regular inspection and maintenance of drinking water facilities is carried out and complaints are attended to promptly," Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said while responding to a question raised by BJP MP Anup Sanjay Dhotre seeking to know the supply of drinking water at railway stations across the country
"Complaints regarding deficiency in services, including water supply, are received through various channels such as public complaints, web portals, social media, etc. These complaints are received at various levels, including the Railway Board, zonal railways, division office, etc.," Vaishnaw said.
"The complaints so received are forwarded to the concerned wings of Railways and necessary action is taken to check and address them. As receipt of such complaints and action taken thereon is a continuous and dynamic process, a centralised compendium of these is not maintained," he added.
Providing zone-wise details of water vending machines, the minister said 954 such machines have been installed across railway stations.
"The Indian Railways also provides safe and affordable packaged drinking water bottles -- Rail Neer -- approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) in trains and at stations," Vaishnaw said.
"Approximately, 13 lakh litres of Rail Neer are being supplied per day to the travelling passengers in trains and at stations across the Indian Railways network," he added.
