Hyderabad

BRS demands Congress to complete pending works of Palamuru-Rangareddy LIS

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Before Telangana formation, the Congress ruled erstwhile Andhra Pradesh for over five decades, but failed to complete irrigation projects to provide even 2-3 TMC in the Palamuru region, said BRS leaders

Published Date – 29 February 2024, 09:45 PM


BRS demands Congress to complete pending works of Palamuru-Rangareddy LIS

File Photo

Hyderabad: Holding the Congress responsible for the backwardness of the Palamuru region, BRS leaders on Thursday demanded the Congress government to complete the pending works of Palamuru-Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme to provide irrigation water to farmers. They advised the Congress leadership to focus on governance rather than trying to blame the BRS and mislead the people.

Speaking to mediapersons at Telangana Bhavan on Thursday, former Ministers V Srinivas Goud and C Laxma Reddy reminded that before the State formation, the Congress ruled erstwhile Andhra Pradesh for over five decades, but failed to complete irrigation projects to provide even 2-3 TMC in the Palamuru region. They dared the Congress to compete with the BRS regime in terms of development, rather than passing time by resorting to mudslinging.

“Only after K Chandrashekhar Rao came to power were pending projects completed and all five existing major reservoirs constructed. Nearly 90 percent of works pertaining to Palamuru-Rangareddy project also were completed during his tenure. The Congress government should focus on completing the pending works pertaining to canals and provide water to agriculture lands,” they suggested.

MP Manne Srinivas Reddy, MLC Basavaraju Saraiah and former MLC Karne Prabhakar also spoke.

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Putin warns West of nuclear war risk over troops in Ukraine

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Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers his annual state of the nation address at the Gostiny Dvor conference center in central Moscow on February 29, 2024. (Photo by AFP)

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin says certain Western countries are risking triggering a nuclear war by deploying boots in eastern Ukraine, warning Moscow could strike Western targets.

Putin was delivering his annual state of the nation speech on Thursday. He had previously spoken of the dangers of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia, but his nuclear warning on Thursday was one of his most explicit.

He said that perhaps leaders in the West could not understand how risking their provocations were, and warned them once again about the catastrophic danger of meddling in Russia’s internal affairs.

Putin linked his nuclear warning to remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this week.

Macron told reporters at a news conference on Monday that while he and other European leaders were not in agreement about sending Western countries’ military forces to fight Russia, he had no objections to dispatching troops to Ukraine. “We will do anything we can to prevent Russia from winning this war.”

“Nothing should be ruled out,” Macron stated.

However, the French president’s suggestion was quickly rejected by the United States, Germany, Britain and Kiev allies who have been supplying weapons and munitions to Ukraine.

“(Western nations) must realize that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory,” Putin said.

Leonid Slutsky, the international affairs head of Russia’s State Duma’s committee, the lower house of the federal assembly of Russia, warned that dispatching troops to Donbas means the start of World War III.

“If NATO soldiers set foot on the land of Donbas, this will mean transition to the direct military phase of NATO’s struggle with Russia.”

“This spells World War III. I hope that even most frenzied NATO Russophobes are aware of the possible consequences of such decisions,” Slutsky said.

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Hyderabad

We will reveal the truth on Kaleshwaram: Kotha Prabhakar Reddy

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Addressing farmers after inaugurating a sunflower purchasing centre at the Agriculture Market in Thoguta on Thursday, Kotha Prabhakar Reddy termed Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme as the lifeline of North Telangana

Published Date – 29 February 2024, 09:04 PM


We will reveal the truth on Kaleshwaram: Kotha Prabhakar Reddy

Dubbak MLA Kotha Prabhakar Reddy is inaugurating Sunflower purchasing centre at Thoguta in Siddipet district on Thursday.

Sangareddy: Dubbak MLA Kotha Prabhakar Reddy said the BRS would disclose the truth about the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) to the people of Telangana during the Chalo Medigadda programme.

Addressing farmers after inaugurating a sunflower purchasing centre at the Agriculture Market in Thoguta on Thursday, he termed KLIS as the lifeline of North Telangana, and said it was sad to see the Congress government projecting Kaleshwaram in bad light just for political gains. Former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao had conceived the idea of KLIS to irrigate fields in North Telangana.

The Congress government should supply irrigation water from KLIS for the benefit of farmers keeping politics aside, he said, also pointing out how the previous BRS government had undertaken desilting of minor irrigation tanks under Mission Kakatiya apart from building several irrigation projects across the State.

Reddy appealed to farmers to sell their sunflower produce at the government procurement centre to get an MSP of Rs.6,760. DCCB Chairman Chitti Devendar Reddy and others were present.

World

Imran Khan’s letter to IMF akin to hostility towards state, says Nawaz Sharif

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He noted that negotiations with the IMF are underway for a USD 6-billion-dollar agreement, which is crucial for the country’s economic health.

Published Date – 29 February 2024, 09:36 PM


Imran Khan’s letter to IMF akin to hostility towards state, says Nawaz Sharif


Islamabad: Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday criticised jailed ex-premier Imran Khan‘s letter to the IMF linking the cash-strapped country’s political stability with any future bailout talks, saying his action was akin to hostility against the state.

Nawaz Sharif made these remarks as he arrived at Parliament House for the inaugural session of the 16th National Assembly.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo said such tactics were the ‘tradition’ of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party. The 74-year-old three-time prime minister said that “no political party will write such letters” and asked if this was not an act of hostility.

“You can draw the conclusions yourself.” A day earlier, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar also expressed his disapproval of the PTI chief’s letter to the International Monetary Fund, terming this move as ‘highly irresponsible’.

Appearing on a talk show on a private TV channel, Kakar said the letter was sent at a time when the caretaker government had significantly worked for economic revival, with relevant indicators showing positive trends and achieving various financial targets.

He noted that negotiations with the IMF are underway for a USD 6-billion-dollar agreement, which is crucial for the country’s economic health.

Moreover, different multilateral agreements also depend on it. He said there are appropriate forums to sort out electoral disputes, and PTI’s decision to write a letter to the IMF was unjustified and highly irresponsible.

However, he noted that the letter would have no effects in tangible terms, but it would have political costs for the PTI. PTI founder Khan confirmed that he had penned a letter to the IMF, urging the global lender to give the poll results a thorough once-over before cutting any new cheques for Pakistan.

Khan has urged the IMF to conduct an “audit” of at least 30 per cent of the national and provincial assembly seats to unearth the brazen “intervention and fraud” during the elections before considering any further bailout talks with the cash-strapped country.

“If the country gets a loan in such a situation, then who will return it?” he questioned, expressing concerns that such a loan could lead to a rise in poverty. The former prime minister warned that without substantial investment in the country, the burden of loans would continue to rise, underscoring the need for political stability.

Khan, 71, alleged that the institutions were compromised to ensure the selection of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, causing harm to various organisations, including the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

In his letter, Khan accused that the election process was rigged in favour of Nawaz and claimed that he had been unfairly subjected to corruption allegations. Official sources said that the new government would seek a fresh loan of about USD 6 billion from the IMF to help it address the issue of balance of payments.

Pakistan last year avoided default after the IMF provided a USD 3 billion short-term loan and it may face problems to meet external liabilities in case the new IMF loan is delayed.

Despite Imran’s efforts, it remains to be seen whether the letter will yield the desired results, as the IMF has expressed its willingness to work with the new Pakistani government.

Nawaz Sharif has nominated his younger brother and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif to be the next prime minister to head a coalition government with a post-poll power-sharing deal with Bilawal Zardari-Bhutto-led Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). The new prime minister is expected to be elected by the newly formed National Assembly on Sunday.

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"Both Iyer And Kishan Are…": Bhogle's Strong Take On BCCI Contracts

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Veteran cricket analyst and commentator Harsha Bhogle has shared his views on BCCI’s Annual Central Contracts, which were revealed on Wednesday. Star cricketers Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer were the biggest absentees from the list, which have been finalised for the duration between October 1st, 2023 to September 30th, 2024. Kishan and Iyer were not considered for central contracts by the BCCI, with the board warning players to emphasise domestic cricket if they are fit and not travelling with the national team.

Reacting to the latest central contract list, Bhogle wants players to identify which format they want to play. He said that if the players prioritise Test cricket, they should play Ranji Trophy for their respective state associations. Similarly, Bhogle wants white-ball enthusiasts to perform in several List-A and T20 tournaments.

“My thoughts on the central contracts. This is a very strong message to players and puts Indian cricket at the forefront. If you have red ball ambition and want to play for India, you must go back and play domestic cricket if you are passed fit. I would like to see an equally strong stance taken at first class cricket level. It is entirely possible that red ball cricket isn’t where you see your future or your joy. And that you want to be a purely white ball player; In which case, you must make it clear and play Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare for the state that nurtured you through age group cricket,” Bhogle wrote in a post on X.

On Ishan and Iyer losing their contracts, Bhogle urged the players to go back to domestic cricket and pointed out how big names like Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble played for their respective domestic teams after being axed from the Indian team.

“Both Shreyas and Ishan are very gifted players and I expect them to score a lot of runs and fight their way back into the national team. That is how bigger cricketers have done it, whether Ganguly or Laxman or Jadeja or Kumble. It won’t surprise me if Chahal forces his way into contention either,” he added.

Bengal pacer Akash Deep, who made his Test debut in the 4th game against England, was one of the five players who has been recommended for a fast bowling contract. Bhogle lauded the BCCI for the idea of fast bowling contracts.

“I like the idea of fast bowling contracts. We have to look after them and there are so many exciting prospects,” he concluded.

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Hyderabad

Telangana: Leopard population increases in Amrabad Tiger Reserve

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Across Telangana, the leopard population came down from 334 in 2018 to 297 in 2022. On the other hand, in Amrabad, the population went up from 94 to 121 within the reserve limits

Published Date – 29 February 2024, 09:30 PM


Telangana: Leopard population increases in Amrabad Tiger Reserve

File Photo

Hyderabad: The ‘Status of Leopards in India’ report released by the union government has come as a mixed bag for the State. While, the leopard population increased considerably in Amrabad Tiger Reserve, it came down in the entire Telangana limits.

Across the State, the leopard population came down from 334 in 2018 to 297 in 2022. On the other hand, in Amrabad, the population went up from 94 to 121 within the reserve limits. The number of leopards using the tiger reserve, which come and go, went up from 160 to 178.

This was majorly due to the effective measures ensuring that the habitat remained intact. This apart, focus was laid on increasing the preybase and ensuring water availability through different interventions. More importantly, increased surveillance on poaching and measures to curb such activities helped in improving the leopard population, Amrabad FDO Rohit Gopidi said.

On the other hand, in the Kawal Tiger Reserve, the population has come down considerably. The population within the reserve limits came down from 42 to 19.

The country wide estimates assessment was conducted in 20 States. The foot survey was conducted covering 6,41,449 km to estimate carnivore signs and prey abundance. Effective patrolling and law enforcement were particularly critical in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Telangana, the report said.

Middle East

Israel marks over 600 acres of seized Palestinian land for settlement expansion

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This file picture shows a general view of the Israeli settler enclave of Nof Zion in the occupied East al-Quds. (Photo by Reuters)

Israel plans to seize hundreds of acres of Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank to expand a settlement.

It is viewed as one of the regime’s biggest land-grab schemes.

The regime’s authorities on Thursday appropriated several tracts of land near the settlement. The territory would now be designated as part of the Maale Adumim settlement, east of al-Quds.

The tracts amount to 2,640 dunams, or 652 acres.

The West Bank, including East al-Quds, is among the territories Israel captured in 1967.

Much of the international community deems the settlements illegal.

On February 24, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington deemed the West Bank settlements inconsistent with international law.

The Palestinian Authority has called on all countries to put individuals tied to settler organizations or companies investing in settlement construction across the occupied Palestinian territories on their terror lists.

The United Nations has already published a list of companies with business ties to Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Palestinians have called for serious international intervention to force the regime to stop the settlement expansion.

The UN is concerned about the surging violence perpetuated by Israeli settlers in the West Bank, terming it “terrorism” against the Palestinians.

Acts of violence by Israeli settlers against the Palestinians and their property are a daily occurrence throughout the West Bank.

The regime has escalated its acts of aggression against the Palestinians across the West Bank since early October 2023, when it began the campaign of death and destruction in the besieged Gaza Strip.

In its latest report, the UN said around 400 Palestinians, including at least 100 children, have been killed in the West Bank since.

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Iran Stops Jailed Noble Laureate From Attending Father's Funeral: Family

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Iran Stops Jailed Noble Laureate From Attending Father's Funeral: Family

Family had said it was Mohammadi’s “unequivocal right” to attend her father’s funeral.

Paris:

Iranian authorities have prevented jailed Iranian Nobel peace laureate Narges Mohammadi from attending the burial ceremony of her father who died earlier this week, her family said Thursday.

Karim Mohammadi, who had not seen his daughter for almost two years, died on Tuesday aged 90. He was buried earlier Thursday in the city of Zanjan northwest of Tehran.

“Heartbreakingly, Narges Mohammadi was denied the opportunity to attend the ceremony and bid her final farewell to her father,” her family said in a statement.

The family had previously said it was Mohammadi’s “unequivocal right” to attend her father’s funeral.

Mohammadi, 51, was last year awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her campaign for human rights in Iran which has seen her spend much of the last two decades in and out of jail.

She now been incarcerated since November 2021 and has not seen her Paris-based husband and twin children for several years. Last year, she was also deprived of the right to make telephone calls from prison even to relatives inside Iran and this has yet to be restored.

The family said the restrictions meant that she had not seen her father for 22 months and had not spoken to him by phone for the last three months. Even on the day he died “she wasn’t allowed to make a call to offer condolences to her family.”

The New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran cited her father as saying a few days before he died: “The longing to hear my daughter’s voice from the prison of the oppressor is unbearable.”

Mohammadi has been hit with a string of extra convictions while behind bars, the latest an additional sentence of more than one year in prison on charges of spreading propaganda against the Islamic republic while in prison.

According to her family, her sentences now amount to 12 years and three months of imprisonment, 154 lashes, two years of exile, and various social and political restrictions.

But there has been no let-up in Mohammadi’s campaigning despite her incarceration.

She has expressed dismay over the surge of executions in Iran while backing the protests that erupted from September 2022 after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, 22, for allegedly violating Iran’s strict female dress code.

A vehement opponent of the head covering required of women in the Islamic republic, Mohammadi has also defied rules about wearing the headscarf inside prison.

“The Iranian people have turned the page on this regime,” she told France’s Le Monde daily in an interview published on Thursday. “I think at the earliest opportunity people will return to the street.”

Her comments came a day before Iran holds on Friday elections for parliament and the key Assembly of Experts.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Hyderabad

Decentralised system to speed up Dharani application disposal

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All the District Collectors have been directed to form two-three teams in every Tahsildar office to scrutinise the pending applications, conduct field inspection and prepare reports, within a stipulated timeframe.

Published Date – 29 February 2024, 09:07 PM


Decentralised system to speed up Dharani application disposal

All the District Collectors have been directed to form two-three teams in every Tahsildar office to scrutinise the pending applications, conduct field inspection and prepare reports, within a stipulated timeframe.

Hyderabad: For speedy disposal of pending applications in the Dharani portal, the State government has now partially decentralised powers for making changes in specific modules of the portal. A total of 16 modules have been identified for quick disposal in the first phase, at the level of the Tahsildar, the Revenue Divisional Officer, the District Collector and also the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration.

Further, a revenue special drive will be conducted at all the Tahsildar offices across the State from March 1 to 9. All the District Collectors have been directed to form two-three teams in every Tahsildar office to scrutinise the pending applications, conduct field inspection and prepare reports, within a stipulated timeframe.

The special teams comprising revenue officials, paralegals and community surveyors working in DRDAs, Agriculture Extension Officers and Panchayat secretaries, will verify all types of land records including Setwar, Khasra Pahani, Sessala Pahani, old pahanies, 1B register and Dharani portal as well as details pertaining to assignment, inam, PoT registers, Bhoodan, Wakf and endowment lands.

The District Collectors have been instructed to provide the Tahsildar office teams with access to pending applications and the documents submitted along with those applications. The team leads will ensure that information is given to applicants through village level officers or WhatsApp/phone/SMS. Based on the verification, the teams will prepare reports on each application recommending acceptance or rejection.

While the Tahsildars and the District Collectors have been directed to dispose the applications within seven days, the RDOs and the Additional Collectors (Revenue) must dispose them within three days.

“The special drive is being conducted based on the suggestions made by the Dharani Committee and to bail out of the problems faced by the farmers and other applicants. The grievances which can be resolved without much complications will be disposed immediately. Based on the reports submitted by the District Collectors and disposal of the applications, pending applications pertaining to certain complex issues will be disposed in the next phase,” a top official in the Revenue department said.

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PM To Chair BJP's Top Poll Body Meet, Pick Candidates For Over 50% Seats

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PM To Chair BJP's Top Poll Body Meet, Pick Candidates For Over 50% Seats

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to attend a meeting of the BJP’s top decision-making body at the party headquarters shortly, to take a call on the first list of candidates for the Lok Sabha election. Sources indicated that it is likely that the party will announce a chunk of candidates before the election dates are announced — a move that is expected to bring pressure on the Opposition INDIA bloc, which is still making its way through the seat sharing process.

Sources said PM Modi, the party’s chief strategist Amit Shah, party chief JP Nadda and senior leaders including Rajnath Singh will be part of the meeting to focus on lists drawn up by the 550-plus members   of the Central Election Committee. The leaders are on way to the meet after a mega meeting at the Prime Minister’s residence.

Senior leaders Devendra Fanavis, Prakash Javadekar, Mansukhbhai Mandaviya, Pushkar Dhami, Pramod Sawant, Bhupendra Yadav, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Keshav Maurya, Yogi Adityanath and others have already reached the venue.

Sources said the meet will focus on the names of the candidates for the Lok Sabha seats of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Telangana, Rajasthan, Goa, Gujarat and other states.

A decision on candidates for the states of Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu has been put on hold. Alliance discussions are in progress in all three states — with Akali Dal in Punjab, Telugu Desam Party and Jana Sena in Andhra Pradesh and the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, sources said.

Shortlists that name the top three candidates for each seat have been drawn up and the BJP is hoping to announce candidates for 300 seats ahead of March 10.

This was the game plan during the last general election in 2019 also, when the BJP had announced 164 candidates on March 21, weeks before the elections were announced.

The lists, sources said, follows what the party called a “visibility survey”.

The Congress meanwhile, is hoping to wrap up the seat sharing process in Maharashtra as soon as possible. Leaders of the Maha Vikas Aghadi are expected to meet in Mumbai this evening.

The BJP is expecting the first-off-the-block strategy will put psychological pressure on the Congress as well as portray their ‘ineptitude” before the voters, sources said.