1. Hardlook Yamuna Pollution: Woe Ammonia
A report in The Indian Express states that on 19 January DJB officials noticed an alarming rate of degradation in the quality of water coming from the Yamuna. A quick inspection pointed out that ammonia in the river was increasing at dangerous levels, and the situation remained as grave for the next two days.
A thorough look into the factors revealed that effluents were being illegally released into the river. But the biggest worry is that the pollutants could be carcinogenic, meaning that they could cause cancer.
If the quantum of ammonia in raw water increases to 0.5 ppm or mg/l and beyond, the operation of raw water has to be suspended as ammonia with the treating agent chlorine gives rise to Trihalomethane which is carcinogenic in nature.Kapil Mishra, Delhi’s Tourism Minister
Read the extensive report by The Indian Express here.
2. Alliance at Breakpoint as BJP Snubs PDP Demand for ‘Written Assurance’
The BJP has not appreciated Mehbooba Mufti’s demand that it give written assurances to the PDP as a condition to continue with the alliance in the state, reports The Times of India.
We are not ready to give any written assurance because that is not necessary. We are committed to sincere implementation of the common minimum programme (CMP) that was agreed upon between Mufti sahab and BJP. There will be no deviation from it.Top BJP sources to TOI
Days after the death of her father and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, Mehbooba had spoken about her party’s plan for the state.
Mufti Mohammad Sayeed took a courageous, although unpopular, decision of aligning with the BJP with the hope that the Central government headed by Narendra Modi will take decisive measures to address the core political and economic issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir and its people.Mehbooba Mufti
Read the full report here.
Also on The Quint: No Government Until BJP Assures on Mufti’s Vision: Mehbooba
3. Caste Ceiling on Campuses
In the backdrop of PhD scholar Rohith Vemula’s suicide, The Telegraph has dug out a report released by the government with damning statistics about the percentage of SC/ST professors in universities across the country.
According to the report,
Only seven out of every 100 hundred teachers in colleges and universities across the country were from the Scheduled Castes last year. Those from the Scheduled Tribes were even worse off, numbering only 2 percent.
Recently, questions have been raised over whether Rohith would have been alive had he found professors who could have understood the predicament he was in.
BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya even suggested that the scholar was not so weak as to kill himself, kicking up a storm.
Read the details here.
4. Easiest to Get Drugs in Goa, but Punjab Branded Drugs Capital, Says Sukhbir Singh Badal
At a session conducted by The Indian Express, Sukhbir Singh Badal made some candid statements about the drug situation in India. In response to a question put to him, Punjab’s deputy Chief Minister said that the easiest access to drugs in India was from Goa but Punjab has to bear the burden of being the country’s drug capital.
The session also entailed discussions on pre-poll alliances in the state before the 2017 assembly elections, Shiromani Akali Dal’s development agenda and the couple’s entry into politics many years ago.
Goa is the easiest place in India to get drugs, but there are hardly any arrests. Punjab is acting tough, but gets branded as the drug capital. We all know that drugs coming from Pakistan and Afghanistan and meant for the rest of the country enter India through Punjab. Punjab is just a highway for the drugs route and not the market.Sukhbir Singh Badal, Punjab Deputy CM
Read the full story here.
5. As JD(U) Cozies up to RLD, Congress Calls for Mahagathbandhan in UP
The Bihar Assembly election result gave the Congress party a much-needed boost. And it seems that the party is trying to recreate that scenario in Uttar Pradesh, which is headed for polls in 2017, according to The Times of India.
The AICC western UP in-charge Naseeb Singh is sending feelers that the party is open to a “grand secular alliance” like the RJD-JDU-Congress combine in Bihar. But of course, the combinations are still being worked on. The report says,
Another source in the Congress said they were “sure” that a grand alliance would be forged, but its success would hinge on whether the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) comes on board. The source said JD(U) and RLD were “ideal candidates” for a secular alliance with Congress. An alliance with the SP, the source said, would only end up hurting the Congress.
Read the full story here.
6. Simply Put: The Bill That Bounced Three Times
Recently President Pranab Mukherjee sent back the Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime Bill, asking for more clarifications. This Bill has been rejected thrice so far. In its segment Simply Put, The Indian Express explains what the Bill is all about, what has led the President to turn it down and what it means for Gujarat.
The report says,
The bill has another important and controversial provision: that a statement made before a police officer, not below the rank of Superintendent of Police, is admissible as evidence in court. Civil rights organisations have been opposing this provision, calling it a violation of the fundamental rights of an accused.
Read all about it here.
7. Chandy’s Sunburn
The solar scam in Kerala and allegations of graft against ministers have made Chief Minister Oommen Chandy’s situation a little more than mildly uncomfortable. He might have received temporary relief from the High Court, but the real challenge is in being able to debunk these allegations as myths.
And to do this, especially at a time when the opposition is demonstrating its resurgence in the state is quite the task.
Chandy has also offered to quit public life if charges are proved. But a leaked audio tape allegedly shows a Congress spokesperson telling Nair to “play safe” in her judicial deposition. Chandy has become the first Kerala chief minister to be questioned by a judicial commission and the chief minister is clearly on the political defensive.
Read the full opinion from today’s The Times of India here.
8. Pathankot and After: Still No Firm Answer to the Pakistan Problem
In an editorial in The Telegraph, Kanwal Sibal writes that with each terror attack from across the border, India exposes its vulnerability to Pakistan. He explains that Pakistan is convinced that whether India sticks to its “talks and terror do not go hand-in-hand” policy or not, the government will eventually want dialogue with its neighbour.
Read The Telegraph’s report here.
Also Read on The Quint: Pathankot Attack: Intelligence and the Keystone Syndrome
9. Aligning Political Interests with Smart City Goals Must for Success
Last week the Centre announced the first batch of cities that have made the cut for the Smart Cities project. While that could be the project that would resonate in the long run, the success of the project actually depends on “governance will be the core of maintaining the existing infrastructure and development of new ones”.
An editorial in the Hindustan Times says,
While it sounds futuristic and all Indian cities would want to have such fancy ‘hardware’ upgrades, the success of the project and, more importantly, the longevity of the expensive future assets would be dependent on the investment made to improve the city’s ‘software’ — the quality of governance and the human resource — and funds earmarked to maintain the new infrastructure.
Read the full report here.
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