Railway Minister Vaishnaw shifts blame to Karnataka govt over Bengaluru Metro rail fare hike
Bengaluru, Feb 15 (PTI): Amid public outcry over the steep hike in Metro rail fare in Bengaluru, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday shifted the blame to the state government, saying the fare fixation committee for the Metro Rail is not based in Delhi.
He said the Chief Minister should be asked about the hike in Metro rail fare and not the central government.
“The state government knows the ground reality of the city and they should be in the prime decision making process for every metro project. So please ask this question to the state Chief Minister,” Vaishnaw said, addressing a press conference here.
“Regarding Fare hiking, the question should be asked to the state government. The Price Fixation Committee is not from Delhi. The price fixation proposal has to be prepared by the State government.”
ALSO READ: Indian Railways to launch train connectivity from Bengaluru city to Airport: Ashwini Vaishnaw
According to Vaishnaw, the state government is responsible for everything related to Metro Rail and they should be asked about the hike in fare.
A week ago, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) announced a fare hike, doubling Metro prices in the city, citing increased operational costs and the need to repay loans.
It also increased the fare by five per cent during the ‘peak hour’ taking a cue from the ride hailing taxi services.
After people vented their anger and gave a representation to the state government, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed the BMRCL Managing Director M Maheshwar Rao to address the anomalies where the prices have doubled in certain sections.
The hike had been in the pipeline, and according to Bengaluru Central MP P C Mohan, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre had instructed the BMRCL to put the proposed hike on hold last month.
In a post on ‘X’ on January 29, Mohan said, “BMRCL’s proposed 45% metro fare hike, set for Feb 1, has been put on hold. The Modi government has directed BMRCL to submit a comprehensive report before making any decision. A big win for the people of Bengaluru—ensuring transparency, accountability, and fair metro pricing.”
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.
Screenwriter Salim Khan on ventilator support and stable, say doctors
Mumbai (PTI): Veteran screenwriter Salim Khan suffered a brain haemorrhage which has been tackled, is on ventilator support as a safeguard and stable, doctors treating him said on Wednesday, a day after he was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital here.
The 90-year-old, one half of the celebrated Salim-Javed duo which scripted films such as "Sholay", "Deewar" and "Don" with Javed Akhtar, is in the ICU and recovery might take some time given his age.
"His blood pressure was high for which we treated him and we had to put him on a ventilator because we wanted to do certain investigations. Now the ventilator was put as a safeguard so that his situation doesn't get worse. So it is not that he is critical," Dr Jalil Parkar told reporters.
"We did the investigations that were required and today we have done a small procedure on him, I will not go into the details. The procedure done is called DSA (digital subtraction angiography). The procedure has been accomplished, he is fine and stable and shifted back to ICU. By tomorrow, we hope to get him off the ventilator. All in all, he is doing quite well," he added.
Asked whether he suffered a brain haemorrhage, the doctor said, "Unko thoda haemorrhage hua tha, which we’ve tackled. No surgery is required.
As concern over Khan's health mounted, his children, including superstar Salman Khan and Arbaaz Khan, daughter Alvira, and sons-in-law Atul Agnihotri and Aayush Sharma, have been seen outside the hospital along with other well-wishers. His long-time partner Akhtar was also seen coming out of the hospital.
Khan, a household name in the 70s and 80s, turned 90 on November 24 last year. It was the day Dharmendra, the star of many of his films, including "Sholay", "Seeta aur Geeta" and "Yaadon Ki Baraat", passed away.
Hailing from an affluent family in Indore, Khan arrived in Mumbai in his 20s with dreams of stardom. He was good looking and confident he would make a mark in the industry as an actor. But that did not happen. And then, after struggling for close to a decade and getting confined to small roles in films, he changed lanes.
He worked as an assistant to Abrar Alvi and soon met Akhtar to form one of Hindi cinema's most formidable writing partnerships. They worked together on two dozen movies with most of them achieving blockbuster status.
Other than "Sholay", "Deewar" and "Don", Khan and Akhtar also penned "Trishul", "Zanjeer", "Seeta Aur Geeta", "Haathi Mere Saathi", "Yaadon Ki Baarat" and "Mr India".
