ECI has allowed Centre to assist Karnataka with drought relief: Centre informs Supreme Court
New Delhi: The Central government informed the Supreme Court on Monday that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has authorised it to provide assistance to Karnataka to address the ongoing drought situation in certain areas of the state.
A Bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and Sandeep Mehta adjourned the matter after Attorney General of India R Venkataramani assured that the issue would be promptly addressed.
"No arguments are needed at this time," the AG stated, further mentioning that there would be progress in the matter by Monday.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the State of Karnataka, did not oppose the request for adjournment. The Court emphasised the need for an amicable resolution, stating, "Given this is a federal structure."
The Bench was considering a plea by the Karnataka government alleging that the Central government had failed to provide financial assistance to the State under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).
The State's plea highlighted that it had been forced to approach the top court due to the Central government's alleged arbitrary actions, which had led to violations of the fundamental rights of the people of Karnataka.
The Union government had not yet acted upon an Inter-Ministerial Central Team report on the disaster for nearly six months, exacerbating the situation due to the withholding of NDRF benefits to the State, as per the submissions made in court.
In a previous hearing, the Court had stressed the need to avoid conflicts between the Union and State governments.
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UP: Misled by GPS navigation, car falls into river from partially constructed bridge, 3 dead
Bareilly (UP), Nov 24: Three people died when their car fell into the Ramganga river from a partially constructed bridge here on Sunday, police said, adding that they suspect the driver was misled by its navigation system into taking the unsafe route.
The accident occurred around 10 am on the Khalpur-Dataganj road when the victims were travelling from Bareilly to Dataganj in the Badaun district, they said.
"Earlier this year, floods had caused the front portion of the bridge to collapse into the river, but this change had not been updated in the system," Circle Officer Ashutosh Shivam said.
The driver was using a navigation system and did not realise that the bridge was unsafe, driving the car off the damaged section, the police said.
There were no safety barriers or warning signs on the approach to the damaged bridge, leading to the fatal accident, Shivam said.
Upon receiving information, police teams from Faridpur, Bareilly and Dataganj police station rushed to the spot. They recovered the vehicle and the bodies from the river, Shivam added.
The circle officer said that bodies had been sent for post-mortem. Further investigation into the matter is underway.
— Bareilly Police (@bareillypolice) November 24, 2024
