Page 2 - Puducherry

Ruling Coalition MLAs seek Delhi's aid against AINRC-BJP govt in Puducherry

A political crisis involving the ruling AINRC-BJP coalition is brewing in the union territory with a section of saffron party MLAs expressing displeasure against the government over issues including corruption, and have knocked on the doors of the national leadership with a plea to set things right before they 'become worse.' Among others, they want a reshuffle of the cabinet. Fissures within the local BJP unit also seem to have come to the fore with calls being made for replacing the incumbent UT head over the party nominee's loss in the just concluded Lok Sabha elections. BJP candidate, Puducherry Home Minister A Namassivayam lost to Congress' Ve Vaithilingam by a margin of over 1.36 lakh votes in the April 19 polls and murmurs are being heard in the saffron camp that the three-year old N Rangasamy-led government's 'deficient performance' also contributed to his defeat. A delegation of seven legislators belonging to the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) and also a couple of nominated

Puducherry govt all set to implement new criminal laws from July 1

The Puducherry government on Satruday said all necessary steps have been taken to implement the new criminal laws, which are to come into effect from July 1. PWD and Law Minister K Lakshminarayanan said already training has been imparted to all those concerned with implementation of the new laws-- Indian Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and the Evidence Act. He said a manual had already been published for the benefit of the police and advocates highlighting the features of the new legislations. "It is a Central Act and we have no say and we implement the Actfrom July 1." A comparative picture is also presented between the new and the old criminal laws. "We also propose to publish the book and make it available for a price to the public and others soon," Lakshminarayanan said. A meeting will be held on Monday to bring to focus the features of the new legislations. The Lt Governor, the Chief Minister of Puducherry, Law Minister and high ranking police officials would participate

Lok Sabha polls 2024 phase 1: Over 9.7% voter turnout recorded till 9 am

The first phase of the Lok Sabha polls will see 102 out of 534 constituencies go to polls in 17 states and four Union Territories

Will provide statehood to Puducherry if INDIA bloc wins LS polls: Stalin

DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday said that the INDIA bloc, if voted to power after Lok Sabha polls, will provide statehood to Puducherry. Addressing an election rally here seeking support for Congress candidate and present MP V Vaithilingam, he said the DMK and Congress are firm that Puducherry should be made a full-fledged state. Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy is a "puppet in the hands of the Centre," Stalin said and added, "We are keen that the rights of not only bigger states like Tamil Nadu, but also the rights of union territories like Puducherry should be protected." Stating that Puducherry had not gained during the ten-year rule by the BJP at the Centre, the Tamil Nadu chief minister said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi was campaigning only in the name of religion and caste. "Modi has not highlighted any measure to ameliorate the lot of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and weaker sections, but has been campaigning in the nam

Jharkhand Guv gets charge of Telangana, Puducherry as Soundararajan quits

Governor of Jharkhand C P Radhakrishnan has been appointed Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry by President Murmu, until regular arrangements are made

Puducherry govt to raise Rs 200 crore through auction of dated securities

The Puducherry government has offered to sell 12-year dated securities to the public in the form of stocks by auction for an aggregate amount of Rs 200 crore, a release from the Commissioner-cum-Secretary to Finance of Puducherry administration Ashish Madhaorao More said. The auction would be conducted by the Reserve Bank of India's Mumbai office (Fort) on January 9. Securities will be issued for a minimum nominal amount of Rs 10,000 and in multiples of Rs 10,000 thereafter. Interested persons, firms, companies, corporate bodies, institutions, Provident Funds, trusts, regional rural banks and cooperative banks may submit a single consolidated non-competitive bid on behalf of all its constituents in electronic format on the Reserve Bank of India Core banking solution (E-Kuber), available on the website www.rbi.org.in on January 9 between 10.30 am and 11 am, the release said. The result of the auction will be displayed by RBI Mumbai (Fort) on January 9 on the website. Successful ..

Rajya Sabha clears Bills to extend women's reservation to J-K, Puducherry

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 4 pm on Monday after two Bills to introduce reservation for women in legislative assemblies of Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir were passed by voice vote in the House amid an uproar by the opposition over the Parliament security breach. The Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Second Amendment) Bill were passed by the Lok Sabha last week. The Bills were passed by the Upper House amid continuous sloganeering by opposition parties, who have been demanding that Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement on the December 13 security breach in the House. After the passage of the Bills, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said the security breach is a matter of "collective concern". "Incidents of such nature have also occurred in the past. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that this august institution works in the safest and most conducive atmosphere. "A high-level enquiry committee for an in-d

LS nod to two bills extending women's quota to Puducherry, J-K assemblies

Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed two bills that seek to extend the provisions of the women's reservation law to the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir. Replying to a debate on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Second Amendment) Bill and the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said the twin measures will enable greater representation and participation of women as public representatives in law-making processes in the two legislative assemblies. Hitting out at the opposition, Rai said that "be it the Mughal rule, the reign of aggressors, the British rule or Congress governments", women's rights were snatched, they were never given adequate opportunities to grow and injustice was meted out to them. Rai said post revocation of Article 370, widow pension has reached 100 per cent saturation coverage in Jammu and Kashmir and one-stop centres for the benefit of women have come up in every .

Govt to introduce in parl 2 bills for 33% women's quota in J-K, Puducherry

The government is planning to introduce two bills in Parliament on Tuesday for reservation of 33 per cent seats for women in the assemblies of Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry, sources said. In September, the Parliament passed the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam to provide reservation of one-third of seats for women in Lok Sabha and Assemblies. The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam shall come into effect after a delimitation exercise is undertaken in 2029. The government is planning to introduce on Tuesday two bills for reservation of 33 per cent seats for women in the assemblies of the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry, sources said. There are 30 assembly constituencies in Puducherry while in Jammu and Kashmir, after the delimitation, the total seats in the assembly rose to 114 seats, out of which 24 seats are designated for areas that fall under Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.

IMD Issues thunderstorm warning for Tamil Nadu, Puducherry for next 3 hrs

Chennai received heavy rains throughout the day on Wednesday, and the intensity of the showers increased in the evening, causing major traffic snarls across the city

NIA files charge sheet against 13 people in killing of a political worker

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a charge sheet against 13 people in the case of killing of a political functionary in Puducherry about six months ago, an official said on Friday. Senthil Kumaran was brutally killed by six motorcycle-borne assailants on March 26. The accused hurled country-made bombs at the political activist in front of a bakery in the Villianur area of the Union territory and then attacked him with machetes, killing him on the spot. The local police had initially registered a case, which was handed over to the NIA and re-registered by the central agency on April 29. The key conspirator in the case, Nithiyanantham, was later arrested along with his associates identified as Vignesh, Siva Sankar, Raja, Pradap, Karthikeyan, Vengatesh, Rajamani, Ezhumalai, Kathirvel, Ramachandiran, Lakshmanan, Dhilipan and Ramanathan. "All of them, except Ramanathan, have been charge-sheeted by the NIA under various sections of IPC, Arms Act, Explosive Substances Act

PM Vishwakarma yojana aims to empower beneficiaries economically: Min

Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment A Narayanaswamy on Sunday said the Prime Minister Vishwakarma scheme is aimed at empowering the Vishwakarma community socially and economically. Addressing a gathering here, he said Puducherry was among the 70 locations where the scheme was launched. Extending his birthday greetings to the Prime Minister today, Narayanaswamy said, "we believe in the importance of preserving our cultural heritage and promoting inclusive growth." Through the PM Vishwakarma scheme we are providing a platform for the Vishwakarma artisans and workers to flourish and contribute to the nation's progress, he said. Under the scheme 30 lakh artisans would benefit across the country with the budget allocation of Rs 13,000 crores. It would enable the artisans to skill and upskill their capacity. Those engaged in one of the 18 family based traditional trades can register on the PM Vishwakarma portal through Common Service Centre with bio metric ...

IMD predicts heavy rainfall in Puducherry from August 30 to September 1

An official press release from the IMD on August 30, said, "Heavy rainfall very likely over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal from 30 August- 1 September

Spiritual tourism has potential to boost development in Puducherry: Prez

President Droupadi Murmu on Monday said she was glad to find that spiritual tourism was getting a boost in Union Territory of Puducherry. Addressing a gathering at the civic reception accorded to her at JIPMER during her first visit to Puducherry, the President said Puducherry was a 'wonderful destination for spiritual tourism' and added that spiritual tourism was emerging fast as a global trend. Murmu further said, "spiritual tourism has the potential to boost socio economic development in Puducherry." She noted that the central government has taken several measures under Swadesh Dharshan scheme to promote tourism related activities in Puducherry. Earlier, after inaugurating the Rs 17 crore advanced linear accelerator equipment for treatment of cancer patients in JIPMER, the President said the facility would minimize radio therapy exposure. She virtually inaugurated the Rs 10.51 crore Ayush hospital set up in the neighbouring Villianoor and said it had come up under the National

Implementation of GST has brought in economic revolution: Puducherry LG

Puducherry Lt Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan on Saturday said the introduction and implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in the country has brought in an economic revolution in the country. Addressing officers and tax payers at the celebrations of 'Six Years of GST' organised by the Commissionerate of GST and Central Excise (Puducherry), the Lt Governor said it (GST) marked a significant milestone in the indirect system of taxation. "It is a remarkable initiative in a diverse and federal country as multiple tax laws have been consolidated into a single system. It is no small feat," the Lt Governor said. She said tax compliance had also increased. "Where there is increased response and compliance the development of the nation is also ensured," the Lt Governor, who also gave away awards to the tax payers on the occasion said. Soundararajan said the GST Council meeting also took into consideration periodically the various views and feedback from Finance Ministers of state

NMC restores recognition to govt med college in Puducherry: CM Rangasamy

Chief Minister N Rangasamy said here on Friday that the National Medical Commission (NMC) has restored recognition to the Puducherry government-run Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute (IGMCRI) after the college rectified the deficiencies that the NMC had pointed out while declining continuation of its recognition on May 26. Rangasamy told reporters through a virtual address that the dean of the institution had appealed to the NMC that the deficiencies it had pointed out with respect to the faculty and functioning of cameras installed in the college were rectified. After considering the dean's representation, NMC informed his government on Friday that the recognition of the college has been restored. Following the restoration of recognition, IGMCRI would admit 150 students to the first MBBS course in the current academic year (2023-2024), the chief minister added. The chief minister said the government would upgrade the facilities in the college. "We have also decid

Light to moderate rain likely in parts of TN, Puducherry from June 11-15

Light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunder and lightning is likely to occur in parts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday

Puducherry will establish IT park to create jobs: CM at NITI Aayog meet

Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy informed the eighth Governing Council meeting of NITI Aayog on Saturday that his government would establish an IT park in the Union Territory to generate job opportunities for the youth. Keeping in view the national strategies and the vision of 'Viksit Bharat' (developed India) 2047, the Puducherry government has framed a vision document for raising the GSDP of the Union Territory to USD 50 million by 2047. In his speech at the meeting in New Delhi, Rangasamy said that through development of Karasur industrial estate, it is expected that around Rs 5,000 crore would be invested through private investment over a period of five years and around 10,000 people would be benefitted either directly or indirectly. The Chief Minister said it is a challenging task for the line departments to ascertain whether welfare measures of the government reach intended beneficiaries without pilferage. To overcome this arduous task, a centralised database called ...

Puducherry Assembly adopts resolution urging Centre to grant statehood

The territorial Assembly on Friday adopted a resolution unanimously urging the Centre to grant statehood to Puducherry after Chief Minister N Rangasamy made out a strong case for it. The resolution was first moved as private members resolution by the opposition DMK and an Independent member G Nehru seeking statehood for Puducherry 'to overcome several handicaps and hindrances the elected government was facing now as Puducherry was an Union Territory.' The Chief Minister, who rose to respond to the resolution, said "it (resolution) is converted into an official resolution." With all the members who spoke earlier extending support to the resolution for statehood, Speaker R Selvam announced it was treated as an official resolution and was adopted unanimously. All members, irrespective of their party affiliation and nominated and Independent members stood up and banged the desks showing their joy at the resolution being adopted unanimously and as an official resolution. Earlier, DMK

Privatisation of power sector in Pondy will not affect consumers: Minister

Puducherry Home and Electricity Minister A Namassivayam on Wednesday allayed the fears of the elected members and also members of public that the government's decision to privatise power sector would hit employees and consumers in the Union Territory. Replying to the views expressed by the members during the debate on demands for grants to his departments including Electricity in territorial Assembly, the Minister denied rumours that the privatisation of power sector would affect the employees, consumers and the farmers here. He also said that there was "unfounded rumour" that the assets of the Department of Electricity were worth Rs 20,000 crore and that they would all be transferred to the private players once privatisation materalised. "The value of the assets is only Rs 1,030 crore and after depreciation it would come to Rs 551 crore," Namassivayam said. "No immovable properties would be handed to the private players. The land belonging to the government now used by the Departme