1. Many Conspired Against Sardar Sarovar Dam Project, World Bank Refused Funding: PM Modi
Inaugurating the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada river on 17 September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said no other project in the world had faced so many “hurdles”. He said many people had “conspired to stop” the project and launched a “massive misinformation campaign”, and the World Bank had refused to fund it.
Returning to Gujarat on his 67th birthday, two days after he hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in his home state, Modi also reached out to farmers and the Patidar community ahead of the Gujarat Assembly elections due later this year.
Source: The Indian Express
2. Korea Open Final: PV Sindhu Defeats Okuhara in ‘Revenge Match’
This was being called a ‘revenge match’, and revenge PV Sindhu did take. The fifth-seeded Indian defeated her victor from last month’s World Championships, Nozomi Okuhara, to bag her first-ever Korea Open Super Series title.
Sindhu bagged the title with a scoreline of 22-20, 11-21, 21-18, and in the process also became the first-ever Indian to win the Korea Open title.
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3. Sleep Time on Trains Cut: It's Now 10pm-6am
The railways will allow you to sleep for eight hours on trains, instead of nine earlier, as it seeks to put an end to frequent fights among passengers because of travellers oversleeping on the middle and lower berths in reserved compartments.
In a circular issued last month, the railways said that sleeping time would be between 10pm and 6am so that co-travellers could sit comfortably.
For years, the permissible time was 9pm to 6am.
Source: The Times of India
4. Vijay Mallya Assets: Rs 100-cr Shares Transferred to Central Govt
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has started the process of confiscating the assets of Vijay Mallya, chairman of the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines Ltd, which were attached by the agency under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), according to sources familiar with the development.
Sources said that the Stock Holding Corporation of India Ltd (SHCIL) has transferred the title and rights of shares worth Rs 100 crore of United Breweries Ltd (UBL), held directly and indirectly by Mallya, to the central government.
Source: The Indian Express
5. Medha Patkar Ends Jal Satyagrah as Narmada Dam Opens, Says Struggle to Continue
Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar and 36 others affected by the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) in Madhya Pradesh ended their ‘jal satyagrah’ on 17 September evening, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated one of the dams of the project to the nation in Gujarat.
The dam became a reality 56 years after the then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru laid its foundation.
Patkar and her supporters had started jal satyagraha at Chhota Barda Ghat, about 350 km southwest of Bhopal on Friday. Although the protest ended at about 6 pm on Sunday, the NBA leaders said they would continue their agitation for proper rehabilitation of the SSP affected people.
Source: Hindustan Times
6. 3 Cops to Protect Each VIP, but Just 1 for Every 663 Common Man
Despite promises by politicians year after year, VIP culture continues to thrive in India.
The latest data reveals that some 20,000 VIPs have on average three cops to protect each of them while there is a huge shortage of policemen for ordinary citizens. Data compiled by the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) under the home ministry shows that out of a total 19.26 lakh police officers in the country, 56,944 are deployed just for the safety of 20,828 VIPs across 29 states and six union territories. That makes an average of 2.73 cops for every VIP in the country. Lakshadweep is the only state/UT where no one has been given dedicated police protection.
For ordinary citizens, however, India remains among the least policed countries in the world, with one cop looking after every 663 Indians.
Source: The Times of India
7. St Stephen’s a Step Closer to Autonomy
St Stephen’s College has come yet another step closer to gaining autonomy.
However, there is a small hurdle. As the University Grants Commission has come up with new guidelines on autonomous colleges, the institution will be required to move a fresh application based on the revised format.
The institution had earlier decided to apply for autonomy on 25 March, even as students and faculty members objected on the grounds that they weren’t consulted. Sources said the college pushed through the application anyway, only to be told by the UGC that it would have to be re-filed in the new format.
Source: Hindustan Times
8. Eye on Electrification, Railways Looks at Winding up Bihar Diesel Project
Given that electrification is the roadmap for the future, the Railways is considering the possibility of exiting or winding up the Marhowra diesel locomotive factory being set up in Bihar’s Saran in partnership with General Electric, two years after the project was awarded.
This possibility was discussed during a review meeting of Railway Minister Piyush Goyal with members of the Railway Board on 7 September, according to internal communications issued a day later.
The reason for the proposed move is that diesel will no longer be used by the Railways, which is expeditiously implementing the near-total electrification of its network with the aim of moving to a cheaper and cleaner source of energy.
Source: The Indian Express
9. NRI Wife-Deserters Might Lose Passports
Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) who harass their wives or desert them could face impoundment or cancellation of their passport if the Centre accepts the recommendations of a high-level panel.
Following several complaints by women deserted by their NRI husbands, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) constituted the committee in May to look into various legal and regulatory challenges and suggest measures to address them.
Source: Hindustan Times
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