The medical colleges that will be made functional this month will be in Deoria, Etah, Fatehpur, Ghazipur, Hardoi, Jaunpur, Mirzapur, Pratapgarh, and Siddhartha Nagar….reports Asian Lite News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate nine new medical colleges on July 30 from Siddhartha Nagar district.
The new medical colleges will become functional after the inauguration.
According to the government spokesman, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has asked the administration to complete all necessary arrangements on time. It will be a historic occasion for the state when all the nine medical colleges in nine districts are inaugurated simultaneously.
The medical colleges that will be made functional this month will be in Deoria, Etah, Fatehpur, Ghazipur, Hardoi, Jaunpur, Mirzapur, Pratapgarh, and Siddhartha Nagar.
The state had only 12 medical colleges till 2017. But as soon as the Yogi Government came to power, the number increased.
The state government has planned to open medical colleges on the Public-Private-Partnership model in 16 districts of the state that do not have a medical college till now.
The state government is preparing to make Uttar Pradesh a hub of medical education, where not only the people of the state but people across the world can get all types of medical facilities.
Uttar Pradesh already has four premier medical institutes namely Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS), Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, Sefai institute and King George’s Medical University (KGMU).
Leading from the front is Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who faces the uphill task of reviving a near defunct party….reports Asian Lite News
With around six months left for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, it is a new generation of leaders that is preparing to lead the political campaign, paving the way for a new look politics in the state.
Leading from the front is Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who faces the uphill task of reviving a near defunct party. Priyanka will not contest the Assembly elections but there is no doubt that she will design an aggressive campaign for her party.
Under her leadership the Congress will try to catch the proverbial bull by its horns and her direct and aggressive style of campaigning is bound to unnerve her opponents to an extent.
Another new generation politician who will be leading his party into the electoral arena is Jayant Chaudhary, president of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD).
For Jayant, this is his first independent election when he will not have the guidance of his father, Chaudhary Ajit Singh, who succumbed to Covid in May this year.
The scales, however, are tipping in his favour because of his proactive role in the ongoing farmers’ agitation and the overwhelming support that he has been receiving from his Jat community.
Aditya Yadav, son of Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Shivpal Singh Yadav, will be contesting his maiden election in 2022 though his choice of constituency is not yet decided.
Aditya was scheduled to debut in electoral politics in 2017 but the family feud that almost split the Samajwadi Party vertically, made him put off his plans.
A quiet and unobtrusive leader, Aditya has been learning organisational skills form his father Shivpal Yadav and is his most trusted backroom boy.
Chandra Shekhar Azad, head of the Bhim Army that will be contesting the UP elections under the name of Azad Samaj Party, is another young politician to mark his debut in the state.
The 34-year-old Dalit activist has already plunged headlong into the campaign and his cycle yatras are criss-crossing the state these days.
Chandra Shekhar’s aides say that he may not contest the elections this time but will ensure that his party gets ample Dalit support — a move that could be directly detrimental to the interests of the Bahujan Samaj Party.
While the BJP will also be fielding several new candidates, (including sons and daughters of senior leaders) after replacing sitting legislators, the party is apparently not worried about the onslaught of young leaders from other parties.
“New faces cannot bring a change. The BJP has been working on the ground and people know what our governments have done for them. These new faces can grab eyeballs but not votes,” said state BJP vice president Vijay Bahadur Pathak.
SP spokesperson Juhie Singh, however, said the change was an ongoing process and with the entry of new faces, new leaders would bring a change in the political scenario.
The BSP had formed a majority government in UP in 2007 with the support of Brahmins….reports Asian Lite News
The Bahujan Samaj Party is all set to woo back Brahmins and make a bid for return to power in Uttar Pradesh.
BSP President Mayawati, on Sunday, said the Brahmins will not vote for the BJP and her party will begin a campaign from Ayodhya next week to “awaken” the community.
Talking to media persons, Mayawati said she is fully assured that the Brahmin community will not get misled by the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and vote for the party in the upcoming elections.
“A campaign, led by BSP General Secretary Satish Chandra Mishra, will be launched from Ayodhya on July 23 to awaken the Brahmin community once again. The Brahmins will be assured that their interests will remain safe under the BSP regime,” she said.
The BSP had formed a majority government in UP in 2007 with the support of Brahmins.
Mayawati also slammed the Narendra Modi-led Central government on the issue of farmers.
She said all political parties should come together and hold the Centre accountable.
“The indifferent attitude of the Centre towards farmers protesting against the three farm laws is extremely sad. It is necessary that pressure of all kinds is put on the Centre in Parliament,” she stated.
Mayawati said the BSP MPs will raise issues such as rise in fuel and cooking gas prices and matters related to Covid vaccination, during the monsoon session of Parliament which begins on Monday.
AIMIM supremo Asaduddin Owaisi MP
BJP-SBSP spar over Owaisi’s dargah visit in UP
The All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi’s visit to dargah sharif at Bahraich to pay obeisance to medieval Ghaznavid general, Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Masud a.k.a. Ghazi Miyan has kicked off a major controversy.
Owaisi visited the dargah on Thursday evening during his visit to Bahraich and offered ‘chadar’.
His visit has led to trading of charges between the BJP and the Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha constituents — AIMIM and the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP).
Uttar Pradesh Minister, Anil Rajbhar, said that the AIMIM and SBSP alliance was an insult to the backward Rajbhar community.
“The visit of Owaisi to the dargah is an insult to Maharaja Suheldev, an 11th century ruler, who is said to have defeated and killed Masud in a battle at Bahraich in 1034 AD,” he said.
The minister said that the BJP government was working to restore the pride of Suheldev by constructing a memorial and installing a statue at Chittaura in Bahraich.
“The leaders of Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha have hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community who revered Maharaja Suheldev,” he said.
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Sardhana Assembly seat in Meerut, Sangeet Som, also lashed out at Owaisi and Om Prakash Rajbhar on the issue.
SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar said BJP leaders were trying to drive a wedge between the AIMIM and the SBSP over the issue of Maharaja Suheldev and Salar Masud as they feared that OBC (Other Backward Class) voters will not support the BJP in the Assembly election.
“The SBSP will contest the Assembly election in alliance with the AIMIM. We will work on Backward-Muslim and Dalit unity to win the Assembly election,” he asserted.
Owaisi also hit back at the BJP leaders, “We are not jokers of the circus but ring masters and all will dance to our tunes.”
He alleged that the BJP was trying to divert the attention from the Covid mismanagement by the state government by raking up irrelevant issues.
Owaisi said AIMIM will contest the 2022 Assembly election in alliance with SBSP-led Bhagidari Sankalp Morcha which would highlight the failure of the BJP government to keep the promises made during the 2017 Assembly election.
The organisation said the one-child policy norm in the draft proposal is likely to lead to furthering of the imbalance between different communities…reports Asian Lite News
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has written a letter to the Uttar Pradesh State Law Commission, seeking removal of the one-child norm from the draft of its Population Control Bill.
In a two-page letter, the VHP said that it agreed with the objects of the draft Bill but certain sections need to be reconsidered as they go ‘beyond the said objectives’.
The organisation said the one-child policy norm in the draft proposal is likely to lead to furthering of the imbalance between different communities and contraction of the population as well.
“The preamble of the Bill states that this is a Bill, inter alia, to stabilise the population and promote the two-child norm. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad agrees with both objectives. However, sections 5, 6(2) and 7 of the Bill, which incentivise public servants and others to have only one child in the family, go well beyond the said objects,” VHP working president Alok Kumar said in the letter to the state Law Commission.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has also urged the Uttar Pradesh government to remove the one-child norm from the draft of its Population Control Bill, saying it will lead to an imbalance in the society.
The Yogi Adityanath-led government had recently put up a draft of its population control Bill on the website of the Uttar Pradesh Law Commission inviting suggestions from the public till July 19.
The VHP further sought attention towards Total Fertility Rate (TFR) mentioned in the document, saying the Bill has an objective to bring it to 1.7.
A policy aiming at an average of less than 2 children per woman leads to contraction of the population over time, which has several negative social and economic consequences, the VHP letter said.
In a contracting population, the ratio between the working-age and dependent population gets disrupted, said the VHP and added that “in extreme cases, the one-child policy would lead to a situation where there is only one working-age adult to look after 2 parents and 4 grandparents”.
It further cited the example of China’s one-child policy and said it was never applied to more than half of the prospective parents and was withdrawn later.
It said that the one-child norm would create an imbalance between different communities because they are known to respond differently to the incentives and disincentives related to family planning.
The letter said that the policy needs to be tailored to redress the imbalance otherwise the one-child policy may end up doing the opposite.
Mayawati clarified that party will contest the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand alone….reports Asian Lite News
Bahujan Samaj Party President Mayawati has said that her party would contest the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand alone.
In a series of tweets on Sunday, she ruled out reports that the BSP would join hands with Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM in Uttar Pradesh.
“This news is being circulated that the AIMIM and BSP will fight the upcoming assembly elections in UP together. This news is completely false, misleading and baseless. There is not even an iota of truth in this, and BSP vehemently denies it,” she said.
She further said that the BSP would like to clarify that, except for Punjab, the party will contest the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand alone.
The BSP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) have allied to contest the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections.
The BSP, which stormed to power in 2007 by winning 206 seats, was left with just 80 seats in 2012.
In 2014, Mayawati’s party did not win a single Lok Sabha seat, and in the 2017 Uttar Assembly elections, it bagged only 19 seats.
With BSP’s support base dwindling over the years, the BJP and the Samajwadi Party have been trying to woo the Dalit voters ahead of the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections in 2022.
In April, Akhilesh Yadav announced that Samajwadi Party (SP) will constitute a Baba Saheb Vahini named after Dalit icon Dr B.R. Ambedkar.
The Baba Saheb Vahini aims to bring Dalits into the Samajwadi fold and assure them protection against social exploitation.
The BJP has now announced that it will build a memorial in the name of Ambedkar.
The SP and BSP were allies in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
However, immediately after the Lok Sabha elections, Mayawati snapped ties with the party announcing that her party would never ally with SP again.
The UP ATS arrested two clerics, accusing them of converting people under duress using “fear and temptation”….reports Asian Lite News
Renowned Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Jawad has raised questions over the working of the ATS and has asked for a fair investigation into religious conversions case slapped on two men in Uttar Pradesh.
Following the arrest of Mufti Jahangir and Umar Gautam by UP ATS, the links of religious conversion are being probed all across the state.
Talking to reporters, Jawad said: “UP ATS should ensure a fair investigation of this whole matter. Also, it should be kept in mind that no innocent person is punished.”
Maulana Jawad said, “The statements of those who have been converted should be recorded. Were they really forced to convert to Islam or did they convert voluntarily? If a person voluntarily converts, then he cannot be held guilty in the Indian Constitution, because every religion has the right to promote its religion as per the Indian Constitution.
“Whether it is Hinduism, Muslim religion or Christianity, there is complete freedom in any religion to propagate its religion.”
He further explained that “Forced conversion cannot be done in Islam. Moreover, if a person is forced to convert, then that person is not considered to be included in Islam.”
On the issue of foreign funding, Jawad said that it is a failure on the part of agencies if funding was going on from foreign countries.
Umar Gautam and Jahangir
“If the agencies say that funding was being done from abroad and that is why religious conversion was being done, then they should prove this.
“They should also reveal from which countries the money was coming and how the money kept coming for so long and the investigating agencies did not even know about it. This is a big lapse in terms of security,” he pointed out.
The UP ATS arrested two clerics, accusing them of converting people under duress using “fear and temptation”.
During their interrogation, the police found that Gautam himself converted to Islam.
“He had disclosed that they have converted at least 1,000 people to Islam so far. The two men have also disclosed that they received funds from international organizations with the purpose of converting people into Islam,” UP ADG (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar had said.
The matter came to light when parents of a student of Noida Deaf Society reported that their son has been missing and was later found to have been forcefully converted to Islam.
Both accused have been booked for promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc, injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion, criminal conspiracy and cheating.
Dinesh, owner and editor of ‘Vidya Darshan’ newspaper, does not own a printing press, does not employ any staff and does not even have a typewriter….reports Asian Lite News
In this digital age, a handwritten newspaper seems archaic but it is still relevant in one corner of Muzaffarnagar district.
Dinesh, owner and editor of ‘Vidya Darshan’ newspaper, does not own a printing press, does not employ any staff and does not even have a typewriter.
In art paper sheets, he writes out the news and makes sketches.
After writing the newspaper, her gets it photocopied and then goes to the various vantage points in the city and pastes his newspapers.
“I have been writing my own newspaper since the past 17 years. It takes me about three hours to write the news”, said Dinesh, who is in his late fifties.
A resident of Gandhi Nagar colony, he owns a worn-out bicycle and cannot even afford a change of clothes every day.
“People read my newspaper because I highlight local issues and incidents. Since I do not earn anything from the newspaper, I sell ice-cream in the evening for a living,” he said.
Happiness for Dinesh is when he sees people flocking around his newspaper to read it.
Journalism is a passion for Dinesh. “I do not earn a penny from journalism. I have never got any advertisement or government support but my work gives me immense satisfaction,” he said.
Moreover, Dinesh said that he freely expressed his opinion in his newspaper which compelled people to introspect.
“I rarely write on politics. I prefer to write on incidents that have a social relevance. Anyone who reads my newspaper, knows what exactly is happening in the district,” he said.
Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah Faizabadi-- Ayodhya mosque to be named after him.
IICF has decided to dedicate the entire project after Faizabadi, also called ‘Lighthouse of Independence’ for keeping Awadh free of British dominance for over two years after the 1857 revolt…reports Asian Lite News
The proposed mosque and hospital complex that is to be built in Dhannipur village in Ayodhya, will be named after noted freedom fighter and revolutionary Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah Faizabadi, who died 164 years ago.
The Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) has decided to dedicate the entire project comprising the mosque, hospital, museum, research centre and community kitchen, after Faizabadi, also called ‘Lighthouse of Independence’ for keeping Awadh free of British dominance for over two years after the 1857 revolt.
Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation unveils design of Ayodhya mosque(ANI)
IICF secretary Athar Hussain, said: “On his martyrdom day, we have decided to name the entire project after his name. In January, we dedicated the research centre to Maulvi Faizabadi, who was the icon of Hindu-Muslim brotherhood. Even 160 years after the first war of independence, Ahmadullah Shah Faizabadi is yet to get his due in the annals of Indian history. Masjid Sarai, Faizabad, which was Maulvi’s headquarters during the 1857 mutiny, is the lone surviving building that preserves his name.”
After being killed and decapitated by a British agent, they buried his body and head in two different places to prevent people from turning his grave into a mausoleum, said Husain.
War veteran and mosque trustee Captain Afzaal Ahmad Khan said: “The British feared Maulvi was as dangerous in death as he was during his lifetime. It’s unfortunate that even though British officers like George Bruce Malleson and Thomas Seaton have mentioned his courage, valour and organizational capabilities in the history of Indian mutiny, Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah is blanked out in our school and college textbooks.”
Babri Masjid. (File Photo: IANS)
Researcher and historian Ram Shankar Tripathi, said: “While being a practising Muslim, he was also the epitome of religious unity and Ganga-Jamuni culture of Faizabad. In the revolt of 1857, royalties like Nana Sahib of Kanpur, Kunwar Singh of Arrah fought alongside Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah. His 22nd Infantry Regiment was commanded by Subedar Ghamandi Singh and Subedar Umrao Singh in the famous Battle of Chinhat.
“Maulvi wanted Raja Jagannath Singh of Pawayan, a zamindar in district Shahjahanpur to join the anti-colonial war. On June 5, 1858, with prior appointment, he went to meet Raja Jagannath Singh in his fortress. On arriving at the gate, he was greeted with bullets from Jagannath Singh’s brother and retainers. The Maulvi died on the spot.”
The Ayodhya mosque and hospital project will be built on the on the five-acre land given to the Muslims in the Supreme Court verdict of November 2019
The IICF trust constituted by Sunni Waqf Board had taken a decision not to name the mosque after Mughal emperor Babur.
The Janata Dal (United) has decided to contest the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls independently.
JD(U) national General Secretary K.C. Tyagi has been entrusted the responsibility of strengthening the party organization ahead of the assembly elections next year.
Tyagi recently held meetings with party office bearers in this regard.
According to a party functionary, “JD(U) is keen to expand its base outside Bihar and the party will contest assembly elections in other states too.”
poll
The JD(U) decision to contest the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections could add to BJP’s woes since the JD(U) is planning an OBC-centric campaign which will directly hit the BJP game plan for the next assembly elections.
“Nitish Kumar is known for policies that benefit the most backward sections of society and we will base our campaign on this. If it hurts other parties, we are not concerned,” the functionary said.
The JD(U) plans to raise the demand for reservation for extremely backward classes (EBCs) in Uttar Pradesh.
“In Bihar every party celebrates Karpoori Thakur’s anniversary. We will now take it to UP and raise the demand for reservation for EBCs in the state based on the Karpoori Thakur formula,” the JD(U) leader said.
In 1977, as chief minister, Karpoori Thakur had advocated division of Other Backward Classes into EBCs and backward classes for reservation. “We will ensure 30 per cent reservation for EBCs in our party structure in UP,” said the leader.
The JD(U) did not contest the 2017 elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said the state was now moving towards becoming ‘Atmanirbhar UP’.
The Chief Minister, while speaking on the occasion of ‘UP Diwas’ said the state was firmly on the path of progress and development.
This is the fourth edition of the UP Diwas, the celebration of which began only after Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath came to power in the state.
The celebrations of the foundation day will continue for three days till January 26.
Uttar Pradesh Diwas or the Uttar Pradesh Day is observed as the foundation day of this state. It was on this very same day in 1950 that Uttar Pradesh was renamed. Earlier, the state was known as the United Provinces.
This idea of celebrating the day was proposed by the then Governor Ram Naik and the first UP Diwas was celebrated in 2018.
The main programme is being held at Awadh Shilpgram with state Governor Anandiben Patel and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath as the guests.
Besides the state capital, events are being held in all the 75 districts of the state.
This year the theme of Uttar Pradesh Diwas is ‘Self-reliant Uttar Pradesh: Women, youths, Farmers: Development of all, Honour to All.’
Dignitaries and people contributing in different fields will be honoured on the occasion. The state government will also be presenting ‘Uttar Pradesh Gaurav Samman’ this year to deserving individuals.
The program aims to motivate local talents by encouraging folk music, culture and practices that are instrumental to enriching a society, taking it forward by building exemplary figures.
An app of the MSME department ‘Udhyam Sarthi’ is being launched on this occasion.
The largest mask made from Khadi was also unfolded at the event.
As part of the celebration, the day will witness a number of programmes, to encourage handicrafts, songs and plays. There have been talks of ‘Shilp Mela’, ‘Shabri-Ram’ play, a band display by acid-attack survivors and acts by transgender artistes.
