DK Shivakumar clarifies stand on caste census after Kharge’s criticism in Rajya Sabha
Belgaum: Deputy Chief Minister (DCM) D.K. Shivakumar addressed the media near Suvarnasoudha in Belgaum on Tuesday, clarifying his position on the caste census and dismissing reports of opposition. In response to questions about his stance and comments made by AICC President Mallikarjuna Kharge, Shivakumar emphasized that he had never expressed opposition to the caste census.
Kharge, on Monday had criticised DK Shivakumar for his stance on caste census asserting "All upper caste people are united on this. He [Shivakumar] is also opposing, you [BJP] are also opposing. Both are one in this issue. This is the character of caste. Upper caste people will be united internally."
Shivakumar clarified, "Our opinion is that the caste census survey should be done scientifically and systematically." Shivakumar explained that concerns had been raised by several MLAs regarding the proper conduct of the caste census survey. Complaints were received about the lack of a thorough house-to-house survey, leading to questions about the scientific validity of the process, added.
ALSO READ: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge criticizes DK Shivakumar's stand on caste census
"We believe in social and economic surveys. I stand by the Congress party's commitment to providing social justice to all sections of society," Shivakumar affirmed. Responding to reports of missing caste census records, he mentioned that the information received from Jayaprakash Hegde indicated that the report in question lacked the necessary signatures of secretaries, raising doubts about its validity.
When asked if Kumaraswamy's statement that influential ministers will join the BJP along with 50-60 MLAs after the Lok Sabha elections was aimed at him, he said, "I am a Congressman by birth. I am not crazy to go to another party. I have my own basic ideals and great faith in the Gandhi family and the Congress party."
"I am not responsible for anything they say. Let them say something and turn around; I will not worry about it." he further added.
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2 LPG tankers sail through Strait of Hormuz, 16 still stranded
New Delhi (PTI): Two more Indian-flagged LPG tankers have safely crossed the war-hit Strait of Hormuz and are headed for Indian ports even as 16 other vessels remain stranded in the Persian Gulf, officials said Monday.
LPG vessel Green Sanvi carrying 46,650 tonnes of LPG is scheduled to reach Indian port on April 7 while Green Asha with 15,500 tonnes of cargo is scheduled to touch Indian coast on April 9, said Mukesh Mangal, Additional Secretary in Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways at a news briefing.
"Indian maritime operations remain safe and uninterrupted amid West Asia crisis. 16 Indian-flagged vessels with 433 seafarers are in the region; two LPG carriers, Green Sanvi and Green Asha, safely crossed Strait of Hormuz," he said.
With this, eight Indian-flagged LPG tankers have safely transited through the strategic waterway, which has remained effectively shut since the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28 and Tehran's sweeping retaliation.
Of the vessels still stuck in the Persian Gulf, one is of a loaded liquefied natural gas (LNG), two are LPG tankers (one loaded and one empty), six are crude carriers (five loaded, one empty), three are container ships, one is a dredger, one is carrying chemical cargo and two are bulk carriers, he said.
Asked about reports of Iran charging a fee for letting ships cross the strait, Mangal said, "we have no information of such payments."
For a country that relies on imports from Gulf nations to meet as much as 60 per cent of its cooking gas needs, the arrivals will help ease the worst LPG shortage it is battling in decades. India consumed 33.15 million tonne of LPG last year, with imports accounting for about 60 per cent of demand. As much as 90 per cent of those imports came from West Asia.
The US-Israel attacks on Iran, and Tehran's sweeping retaliation have all but halted shipping through the strait - the narrow shipping lane that is the conduit for oil and gas exports from Gulf countries to the world. Iran has, however, stated that "non-hostile vessels" may transit the waterway after coordinating with Iranian authorities.
Last week, two LPG carriers, BW TYR and BW ELM, carrying combined LPG cargo of about 94,000 tonnes safely transited the region. While BW TYR reached Mumbai on March 31, BW ELM docked at New Mangalore on April 1.
Prior to that, four Indian-flagged LPG tankers had safely sailed through the strait. Pine Gas and Jag Vasant, carrying 92,612 tonnes of LPG, reached Indian ports between March 26 and March 28. MT Shivalik and MT Nanda Devi, carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG, had reached Mundra port in Gujarat on March 16 and Kandla port in the state on March 17.
Originally, there were 28 Indian-flagged vessels in the Strait of Hormuz when the war in West Asia broke. Of these, 24 were on the West side of the strait and four on the East side. Eight vessels from the west side and two from east have managed to sail to safety.
Besides the eight LPG tankers, the Indian-flagged oil tanker Jag Laadki, with 80,886 tonnes of crude oil from the UAE, reached Mundra on March 18.
Another tanker, Jag Prakash, carrying gasoline from Oman to Africa, had previously safely crossed the strait and is en route to Tanzania.
