The minimum temperature on Tuesday is likely to be 13 degree Celsius, while the maximum could be 28 degree Celsius. (PTI)Daily News: Delhi’s air quality remained in ‘severe’ category on Sunday because of the large influx of stubble-related pollutants, apparently from much higher effective fire count, authorities said.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, the city’s air quality index (AQI) stood at 416 (severe) at 8 pm.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also tweeted about the air pollution situation and shared data. “Nov 7 – AQI – 428 (401 to 500 – Severe) PM10 – 450 (Above 430 – Severe) PM2.5 – 309 (Above 250 – Severe),” he tweeted.
Strong surface winds had slightly improved Delhi’s air quality on Saturday but it had remained in the ‘severe’ category as the contribution of farm fires in the city’s PM2.5 pollution had reached the season’s highest of 41 per cent. (PTI)
Meanwhile, Delhi recorded 47 new Covid-19 cases and zero daily deaths due to the disease on Sunday, while the positivity rate stood at 0.11 per cent, data shared by the health department showed. The number of cumulative cases now stands at 14,40,118. Over 14.14 lakh patients have recovered from the infection so far. The death toll due to the coronavirus infection in Delhi stands at 25,091. The national capital has not reported any fatality due to Covid-19 so far this month
In other news, with ammonia levels having risen in the Yamuna River, water supply across several areas in the city has been disrupted, according to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB). Treatment and pumping of water from five out of eight treatment plants in the city have been affected, resulting in a massive disruption of supply. These are the Sonia Vihar, Bhagirathi, Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants.
Delhi’s air turned severely polluted the morning after Diwali, with the city having witnessed bursting of firecrackers despite the ban. Levels of pollutants rose sharply from Thursday night onwards, data from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) indicates. (PTI)
A 12-year-old boy died after a fire broke out inside his house on the night of Diwali in North Delhi’s Burari area. The boy was alone at the house while his siblings were playing outside and their parents were at a nearby shop.
Police said the Delhi Fire Services were called to douse the fire at the house, and they found the boy’s burnt body. The deceased allegedly died of asphyxia and burn injuries, said officials. Read more
Water production at treatment plants in Delhi affected by high level of ammonia in River Yamuna was restored by Sunday evening, an official statement said.
The relentless efforts of the Arvind Kejriwal government have brought back normalcy at Bhagirathi, Sonia Vihar, Chandrawal, Okhla and Wazirabad water treatment plants, the statement by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) said.
The government is keeping a constant check on the preparedness of DJB in dealing with reduced water supply in the city, it said.
DJB vice chairman Raghav Chadha earlier said water production by the treatment plants was hit due to heavy sewage and industrial discharge from Haryana.
"Heavy sewage and industrial waste was discharged by Haryana during Diwali in Yamuna. Increased ammonia levels forced a reduction in water treatment plants (WTPs) operating capacity by 50 per cent. Delhi Jal Board's marvelous work has led to the WTPs operating at full capacity now," he said. (PTI)
Delhi's air quality remained in 'severe' category on Sunday because of the large influx of stubble-related pollutants, apparently from much higher effective fire count, authorities said.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, the city's air quality index (AQI) stood at 416 (severe) at 8 pm.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also tweeted about the air pollution situation and shared data. "Nov 7 - AQI - 428 (401 to 500 - Severe) PM10 - 450 (Above 430 - Severe) PM2.5 - 309 (Above 250 - Severe)," he tweeted.
Strong surface winds had slightly improved Delhi's air quality on Saturday but it had remained in the 'severe' category as the contribution of farm fires in the city's PM2.5 pollution had reached the season's highest of 41 per cent. (PTI)
The East Delhi Premiere League is set to start from November 30 with 10 teams named after the 10 constituencies – Gandhi Nagar Gladiators, Krishna Nagar Royals, Patparganj Panthers, Okhla Tigers, Shahdara Avengers, Vishwas Nagar Devils, Kondli Kings, Jangpura Lions, Laxmi Nagar Warriors, and Trilokpuri Stars.
East Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir, who is conducting the tournament, said people living in East Delhi in the age group of 17 to 36 years can appear for trials. Read more
The Delhi government’s Department of Higher Education has asked Delhi University’s Vice-Chancellor to take action against the principals of 12 Delhi government-funded colleges, accusing them of “inciting teachers” and “creating a hostile education environment” over funding issues. The principals, however, said they are facing financial issues with budget estimates having been reduced to approximately 75% to that of last year’s.
There are 12 DU colleges that are fully funded by the Delhi government, and tussles between them and the government over the release of grants has been a long-standing issue. Read more
Water supply across Delhi is likely to return to normal by Sunday evening, said Raghav Chadha, vice-chairman, Delhi Jal Board (DJB). Parts of Delhi where water supply had dipped in the last 24 hours, like East, North East and South Delhi, will see normal supply by evening, he said. The DJB Board has resolved the situation after talks with the Haryana government, he added. Read more
The Centre must hold an "emergency" meeting of states neighbouring Delhi to devise a mechanism to deal with crop residue burning due to which the city's air quality has deteriorated, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Sunday.
The city's air quality index (AQI) stood at 437 in the severe category at 8 am on Sunday. It was 449 on Saturday.
Incidents of crop residue (parali) burning in other states and the air quality in Delhi are linked as deteriorating air quality figures show, Rai said at a press conference.
"There was also effect of cracker bursting on Diwali but it's waning now. The effect of 'parali' burning, however, continues to worsen air quality in Delhi," he said.
Rai said he has written to the Union environment minister, asking for an "emergency" meeting of states, including Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi to find a mechanism to address the perennial issue of crop residue burning and high level of air pollution in the national capital. (PTI)
The one-upmanship over Chhath celebration involving the ruling AAP and opposition BJP intensified on Sunday with saffron party MP Parvesh Verma asserting to defy the ban on celebrating the festival at Yamuna banks and challenging Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to stop him if he can.
Meanwhile, some Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislators staged a protest accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of stopping them from preparing a Chhath ghat at Dwarka. The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has prohibited Chhath Puja on the banks of the Yamuna this year. The AAP and BJP leaders have been involved in a war of words over Chhath for the last several days.
The festival assumes political significance as Purvanchalis (natives of eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar) who are settled in Delhi and celebrate the festival are a major vote bank in the city. (PTI)
Delhi recorded 47 COVID-19 cases and zero daily deaths due to the disease on Sunday, while the positivity rate stood at 0.11 per cent, data shared by the health department showed.
The number of cumulative cases now stands at 14,40,118. Over 14.14 lakh patients have recovered from the infection so far.
The death toll due to the coronavirus infection in Delhi stands at 25,091. The national capital has not reported any fatality due to COVID-19 so far this month. It reported four deaths in October and five in September. (PTI)
With continuing day-time winds of 8 to 10kmph from west to northwest over Delhi, visibility further improved from 1200 to 2200 m at the airport, says the meteorological department.
The Delhi government has sanctioned the installation of high-mast national flags at 500 locations at an estimated cost of Rs 104.37 crore. The flags, each 35 metres high, are to be installed before the next Republic Day.
A circular dated October 25 states that the administrative nod and expenditure sanction has been approved by the Expenditure Finance Committee, Finance Department, Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD). Read more
A 22-year-old man was beaten to death and his friend was severely injured by a group of men for allegedly resisting a robbery bid in outer Delhi’s Swaroop Nagar on the night of Diwali, Thursday. The police arrested four in connection with the case on Sunday.
The deceased, identified as Ankit Jaiswal (22), was a student at Delhi University’s School of Open Learning and he also worked at a shop to support his family, said the police. Read more
Ghaziabad Police are scanning CCTV footage in connection with the murder of an elderly couple on Diwali night. According to the police, Ashok Jaidka (75) and Madhu Jaidka (73) were found dead in their Patel Nagar house around midnight Thursday.
“We have identified 4-5 people from the vicinity of the victims’ residence. We are hoping the lead will materialise into arrests. Questioning and scanning of CCTV footage is being done for more clues,” said Devpal Tyagi, SHO of Sihani Gate police station. Read more
To control mosquito-borne diseases, especially dengue, South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) has set up a 15-bed treatment facility at Tilak Nagar Colony Hospital.
The facility has ICU support and will be available 24 hours for patients suffering from vector-borne diseases, said a senior south civic body official. Read more
The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police has arrested a builder who allegedly cheated 13 people, including former Indian cricketer Chetan Sharma.
The police said the accused took investments from victims on the pretext of high returns but never returned the money. He is currently being interrogated. Read more
Delhi University will resume biometric attendance for all its staff from Monday, after having discontinued the system during the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
The university’s registrar, Vikas Gupta, has issued a notification in this regard. The biometric attendance system was put on pause since it was a commonly touched surface by multiple people. Read more
Not a single monkey has been sterilised in Delhi since January 2019 when the Centre released funds to the city forest department to control the simian population through laparoscopic sterilisation, officials said.
In 2018, the then chief wildlife warden, Ishwar Singh, had prepared a three-year plan to sterilise monkeys of reproductive age to curb the simian menace in the national capital.
The Centre sanctioned Rs 5.43 crore to the forest department in January 2019 for sterilisation of 8,000 monkeys in the first year.
Over two-and-a-half years later, officials say “not a single monkey has been sterilised in Delhi”. (PTI)
Over 100 people were arrested under the Arms Act, 85 people under the Excise Act, and 22 people under the NDPS Act in three districts of the Delhi Police in October, according to official data.
Eighteen people were held under the Arms Act in north district and five country-made pistols and 10 cartridges were seized from their possession, it said. According to the data, the southeast district registered 17 cases under the Arms Act and arrested 18 people. Six firearms and 11 knives were recovered from their possession.
In the northeast district, 59 cases under the Arms Act were registered and 68 people have been arrested. A total of 23 pistols, 45 live cartridges and 40 knives were recovered, it said.
The north, southeast and northeast districts made the arrest of 85 people under the Excise Act last month. Among them, 19 were arrested in north, 44 in southeast, and 22 in northeast districts. (PTI)
With ammonia levels having risen in the Yamuna River, water supply across several areas in the city has been disrupted, according to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).
Treatment and pumping of water from five out of eight treatment plants in the city have been affected, resulting in a massive disruption of supply. These are the Sonia Vihar, Bhagirathi, Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants.
A statement from the DJB said that supply would be affected in the evening on Saturday and in the morning and evening on Sunday. Areas that will be affected include East Delhi, Northeast Delhi, South Delhi, parts of the New Delhi Municipal Council area, and parts of Burari, Model Town, Jahangirpuri, Kamla Nagar, Karol Bagh, Civil Lines, Sarita Vihar, Vasant Kunj, Moolchand and Greater Kailash. Read the full report here.
At Aalam Muradabadi Biryani shop in Delhi’s Burari, it was business as usual on Saturday evening, two days after shopkeepers and staff were allegedly threatened to shut the establishment by a man who claimed to be part of the Rashtriya Bajrang Dal. In a video, the man can purportedly be seen using communal slurs towards the staff for “opening their shop on Diwali”, and telling them they were operating in a predominantly Hindu area.
The shopkeeper and staff eventually start packing up and towards the end of the video, the man tells them his name and that he is part of the Rashtriya Bajrang Dal.
DCP (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi said: “We have registered an FIR in connection with the incident.” No arrest has been made so far. Read the full report here.
AQI in the National Capital is predicted to improve marginally to reach the 'very poor' category on Sunday, after having remained 'severe' for two consecutive days.
Air quality update sent.
Nearly a year before the deadly Ahmednagar hospital blaze, a similar incident in Rajkot in November 2020 prompted the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognizance of the issue and call for a monthly fire safety audit of Covid-19hospitals across the country.
“All States/Union Territories should appoint one nodal officer for each covid hospital, if not already appointed, who shall be made responsible for ensuring the compliance of all fire safety measures,” a bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Redddy and M R Shah said in its December 18, 2020 order. Read the full report here.
Nearly a year before the deadly Ahmednagar hospital blaze, a similar incident in Rajkot in November 2020 prompted the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognizance of the issue and call for a monthly fire safety audit of Covid-19hospitals across the country.
“All States/Union Territories should appoint one nodal officer for each covid hospital, if not already appointed, who shall be made responsible for ensuring the compliance of all fire safety measures,” a bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Redddy and M R Shah said in its December 18, 2020 order. Read the full report here.
Delhi University will resume biometric attendance for all its staff from Monday, after having discontinued the system during the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
The university’s registrar, Vikas Gupta, has issued a notification in this regard. The biometric attendance system was put on pause since it was a commonly touched surface by multiple people.
The notification states that sanitizers have to be mandatorily placed next to the biometric machines and all staff have been directed to sanitize their hands before and after marking their attendance. Read the full report here.
With ammonia levels having risen in the Yamuna River, water supply across several areas in the city has been disrupted, according to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).
Treatment and pumping of water from five out of eight treatment plants in the city have been affected, resulting in a massive disruption of supply. These are the Sonia Vihar, Bhagirathi, Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants.
A statement from the DJB said that supply would be affected in the evening on Saturday and in the morning and evening on Sunday. Areas that will be affected include East Delhi, Northeast Delhi, South Delhi, parts of the New Delhi Municipal Council area, and parts of Burari, Model Town, Jahangirpuri, Kamla Nagar, Karol Bagh, Civil Lines, Sarita Vihar, Vasant Kunj, Moolchand and Greater Kailash. Read the full report here.
With ammonia levels having risen in the Yamuna River, water supply across several areas in the city has been disrupted, according to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).
Treatment and pumping of water from five out of eight treatment plants in the city have been affected, resulting in a massive disruption of supply. These are the Sonia Vihar, Bhagirathi, Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants.
A statement from the DJB said that supply would be affected in the evening on Saturday and in the morning and evening on Sunday. Areas that will be affected include East Delhi, Northeast Delhi, South Delhi, parts of the New Delhi Municipal Council area, and parts of Burari, Model Town, Jahangirpuri, Kamla Nagar, Karol Bagh, Civil Lines, Sarita Vihar, Vasant Kunj, Moolchand and Greater Kailash. Read More
At least seven unidentified men allegedly robbed Rs 2.13 lakh from a woman at knifepoint on Wednesday evening at Sector 44. Police said the accused are yet to be arrested.
According to the complainant, a Delhi resident who works with a flower retailer in Gurgaon, the incident took place around 6.15 pm Wednesday when she was walking on a service road adjacent to Apparel House at Sector 44, police said.
In the FIR, she said that after leaving work, she was walking towards Huda City Centre when a group of seven men waylaid her. “Three of them stopped at a distance while four of them got hold of me. One man asked me to hand over cash from my purse while another snatched my bag. They took Rs 500 cash from the purse. They also took my laptop, but I asked them to return it. The accused then snatched my phone and at knifepoint, forced me to transfer money from digital wallets,” she alleged in the complaint. Read More
Air quality in Gurgaon remained in the ‘severe’ category Saturday, recording a reading of 456 on the Central Pollution Control Board’s air quality index (AQI) bulletin. On Friday, the AQI had plummeted to 472, recording the worst air quality recorded during Diwali since 2016 according to the CPCB data. On Thursday, Gurgaon’s AQI was 395 (very poor).
At the city’s four monitoring stations, the air quality remained severe on Saturday recording an AQI of 446 at Gwal Pahari, 492 at Sector 51, 466 at Teri Gram and 435 at Vikas Sadan. The prominent pollutant was PM2.5.
Gurgaon and Faridabad were found to be the most polluted cities among all districts in Haryana as per the CPCB data for Friday. Read More
At Aalam Muradabadi Biryani shop in Delhi’s Burari, it was business as usual on Saturday evening, two days after shopkeepers and staff were allegedly threatened to shut the establishment by a man who claimed to be part of the Rashtriya Bajrang Dal. In a video, the man can purportedly be seen using communal slurs towards the staff for “opening their shop on Diwali”, and telling them they were operating in a predominantly Hindu area.
The shopkeeper and staff eventually start packing up and towards the end of the video, the man tells them his name and that he is part of the Rashtriya Bajrang Dal.
DCP (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi said: “We have registered an FIR in connection with the incident.” No arrest has been made so far.
Magroob Ali (27), also known as Alam, manages the shop and cooks the biryani in a kitchen nearby. He said: “We shut soon after the incident even though others in the market were there to support us. We do not know why he targeted us but we think he just wanted to instigate people and instil fear.” Read More
The contribution of crop residue burning to PM 2.5 levels in Delhi peaked on Saturday at 41%, the highest recorded this season, according to the SAFAR forecasting system.
The air quality index remained in the ‘severe’ category on Saturday and stood at a figure of 437, marginally better than the 462 recorded on Friday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) bulletin. The main pollutants were PM 2.5 and PM 10.
The share of stubble burning to PM 2.5 levels has been climbing steadily over the past few days, with an increase in instances of stubble burning and a change in the wind direction to northwest. The effective fire count was 5,159 on Saturday, up from 3,299 on Friday. This fire count, of over 5,000, is the highest figure so far, as per the SAFAR system. Read More
Two days after Diwali, pollution in Noida and Ghaziabad continued to remain in the ‘severe’ range. According to officials, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in both districts is at an average of 430 and may see a dip if pollution is controlled on Saturday night.
Noida recorded an alarming AQI of 470 while it peaked to 419 in Ghaziabad on the day of Diwali. The levels fluctuated between the ‘very poor’ and ‘severe’ category for the next 48 hours.
“We have to monitor the air quality closely on Saturday night. While crackers have contributed majorly to the pollution, the lack of winds and calm temperature in the night allows the dust to settle, adding to the spike. From Sunday onwards, the situation will improve considerably. In the afternoon, one of the stations recorded AQI less than 350 which is a sign of major relief,” said Utsav Sharma, Asst Engineer, UP Pollution Control Board. Read More
Politics over Chhath Puja in Delhi intensified on Saturday with the AAP accusing the BJP of not letting 'Purvanchalis' prepare 'ghats' required to perform rituals pertaining to the festival.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) urged the BJP to stop playing "dirty politics" over Chhath Puja and let people celebrate the festival in Delhi.
"And, if they (BJP) continue playing dirty politics over Chhath Puja, Purvanchalvasi (People who hail from Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh) will not forgive them," AAP legislator Sanjeev Jha warned while addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here.
There was no immediate response from the BJP over the AAP's allegations. (PTI)
Amid several cases of Zika virus being reported in the last two weeks in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur district, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Saturday said the city government was alert and watchful of the developments.
Delhi shares a border with Uttar Pradesh too, and many people commute back and forth from the two states, for work or other purposes.
Thirty more people have tested positive for Zika virus in Kanpur, taking the total number of those infected in Kanpur district to 66, including nine IAF personnel, a senior official had said on Friday.
Of those infected, 45 are men and 21 women, according to officials. The first case in Kanpur was reported on October 23 when an Indian Air Force (IAF) warrant officer had tested positive for Zika virus.
On Saturday, at a press conference here, Sisodia was asked about the situation in Delhi, given the frequent movement of people between Delhi and UP, via Ghaziabad and Noida by road, or train and other means of transportation. The deputy chief minister said the Delhi government is alert and watchful of the Zika virus cases reported in UP. (PTI)
On hold for two years, the Delhi education department’s plan to convert more of its schools from double-shift to single-shift is being revisited and reviewed after increased enrolment in government schools over the last year.
In November 2019, the education department had identified 92 school buildings as suitable for conversion into single-shift schools after new classrooms were constructed in them. These buildings had been identified after mapping capacities of all government schools and were estimated to have 40 or fewer students per classroom after construction of new classrooms.
There are currently 1,053 schools run by the Delhi government. Of these, apart from Schools of Excellence and RPVVS, approximately 168 are single shift co-educational schools. Of the rest, most operate as double-shift schools – the morning shift functions as girls’ schools and the afternoon shift as boys’ schools. Read More
The Delhi BJP on Saturday staged a dharna near Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence at Flagstaff Road, demanding cut in value added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel.
Leading the protesters, Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta said that the party workers will continue the agitation unless Kejriwal announces reduction in VAT on petrol and diesel.
The central government on Wednesday cut excise duty on petrol by Rs 5 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 10 a litre to give reprieve to consumers battered by record high retail fuel prices. Since states charge local sales tax or VAT not just on the base price but also on the excise duty levied by the centre, the total incidence of price reduction is higher.
Petrol now costs Rs 103.97 per litre in Delhi against Rs 110.04 per litre, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. (PTI)
Days after the Centre slashed excise duty on petrol and diesel, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Saturday said the AAP government is looking into steps it can take to provide more relief to the people.
He, however, demanded that the central government should reduce the prices of these fuels by at least Rs 15 each, saying states have fewer resources.
Sisodia was responding to the question whether the Delhi government was considering a reduction in Value Added Tax (VAT) on diesel and petrol like other states.
The central government on Wednesday reduced excise duty by Rs 5 per litre on petrol and Rs 10 per litre on Diesel.
Following the reduction in excise duty by the Centre, several state governments, including Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh among others, have slashed VAT rates on fuel. (PTI)
Alleging corruption in the construction of the multi-level parking facility in Green Park, a portion of which collapsed Tuesday, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said he has ordered a probe into the matter under the Director of Local Bodies.
Inaugurated just a year ago, a portion of the multi-level parking facility had collapsed on Tuesday, damaging some cars. The parking lot near Green Park Metro station is the capital’s first fully automated tower car parking facility constructed using over Rs 18 crore. It was inaugurated by L-G Anil Baijal in two phases, in January and November 2020. Read the full report here.
The schools which fail to complete the practical and internal assessment and submit the marks for the board exams by December 23 will face penal action which can affect their students’ results, the CBSE has notified.
The Term-1 board examinations are set to begin on November 16 and 17 for Class XII and Class X students respectively.
The schools have time till December 23 to organise the practicals, internal assessments, and project work, and the marks can only be uploaded on the same day the tests are held. These practicals are to be conducted without an external examiner and will have to be completed under the concerned school’s teachers. Read the full report here.
The Delhi government has declared Chhath Puja, which falls on November 10, as a public holiday.
An order from the office of the Deputy Chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, read, “Chhat Puja is important for the people of NCT of Delhi. Accordingly, government of NCT of Delhi, has decided to declare 10th November, 2021, as a public holiday on account of Chhat Puja. Necessary notification in this regard may be issued.”
On October 29, the DDMA had allowed Chhath Puja celebrations at designated sites, except at the banks of the Yamuna river. Earlier, DDMA had denied permission to celebrate the festival in public, citing restrictions in place because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Read the full report here.
A week after 26 people, a majority affiliated with right-wing outfits, were arrested for attempting to disrupt Friday namaz in Gurgaon’s Sector 12A, a group of 22 local right-wing outfits Friday held a Govardhan puja at the same site. Organised by the Sanyukt Hindu Sangharsh Samiti, it was attended by BJP’s Kapil Mishra, Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s international joint general secretary Surendra Jain, and Haryana BJP spokesperson Suraj Pal Amu.
Said Mishra: “Do not use roads for your politics. We saw it in Shaheen Bagh. They had done tamasha by blocking roads. What happened? Has CAA been revoked? Arteries and nerves, if blocked, stop the body’s movements. Similarly, if roads are blocked, the city and country stop.” Read the full report here.
The Centre on Friday said that at present, there is no proposal to extend the provision of free foodgrain via the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) to ration card holders, in view of the recovery in the economy and good disposal of foodgrains under the open market sale scheme (OMSS) policy.
Initially, the additional free benefit of 5 kg foodgrain under the PMGKAY scheme was provided for three months (April-June 2020) to address the distress caused by the pandemic. However, with the crisis continuing, the programme was extended for another five months (July-November 2020).
After the onset of the second wave of the pandemic, the scheme was once again rolled out for a period of two months (May-June 2021), which was further extended for five months (July-November 2021). Read the full report here.