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Almost one year into her reign, it looks like Australian-born Queen Mary of Denmark may be ascending to a prestigious new role: podcast host. The Danish queen announced this week that her charity, the Mary Foundation, is launching a podcast called Lonely Youth. The three-part series inspired by Denmark’s high rates of youth loneliness promises to “give an in-depth insight into the nuances of loneliness by mixing [expert analysis] and personal narratives from young people”. Though we don’t yet know if she will feature in each episode, Queen Mary announced the news via Instagram, pointing out that a recent study found 73 per cent of Danes, aged 16-19, experience loneliness and 17 per cent of those, between 16-24, feel “very lonely”. “These are heavy numbers that we need to do something about,” the post read. At first glance, it might seem strange that a 52-year-old monarch would be the go-to person to reach disconnected youth – and stranger still that they would do so via a medium often associated with influencers, true-crime detectives and young men in basements. But, this is actually the latest in a long line of royal podcasting projects (and no, it didn’t start with Meghan Markle). The rise of royal podcasting Dr Lisa Beckett, a lecturer at the University of New England researching royalty and popular culture, says it was only a matter of time before royal family members entered the podcast market. “Royals tend to be later than everybody else entering these spaces,” she says, “but [engaging in new mediums] is one of the ways they stay relevant.” And, as a kind of celebrity (“they have been since the time of the Georgians”, she notes), this kind of direct contact with audiences is expected of them. “Queen Elizabeth could get away with quite a bit of distance because she started her reign so long ago, but the younger royals are expected to act more modern and to be in this space ... That distance between celebrities and fans has been shrinking, particularly with social media.” India Hicks, goddaughter of King Charles, was the first notable name to get in on the action. The India Hicks Podcast , which debuted in 2019, offered a “wonderfully intimate look” into her life and her “extraordinary family”. It consisted of conversations about “movie stars, matadors and maharajas” with her mother, Lady Pamela Hicks, the late Queen Elizabeth’s former lady-in-waiting. A couple of years later, Princess Eugenie co-hosted Floodlight : an interview podcast about modern slavery made with her charity, the Anti-Slavery Collective. Then came Meghan Markle’s Archetypes. In this much-hyped 2022 series, the Duchess of Sussex spoke to some of the biggest names in popular culture (including Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Serena Williams) about the “labels that try to hold women back”. The following year Sarah “Fergie” Ferguson, the Duchess of York, debuted a chat podcast with her friend Sarah Thomson, and Queen Camilla launched The Queen’s Reading Room podcast. The latter, an extension of her literacy charity of the same name, features interviews with authors and prominent book-lovers such as Dame Joanna Lumley and Richard E. Grant. But Camilla is only featured for a couple of minutes per episode. Though podcasts are an intimate medium, as Dr Beckett points out, they also enable royals to maintain a great deal of control – certainly more so than in a traditional TV interview. “They have to be careful because they’ve tried different tactics like this,” Beckett says. “In 1969, Queen Elizabeth actually allowed for a documentary of her home life. It was broadcast on the BBC once, then she realised it was a mistake. It let people in too much into her personal life, and she actually banned it from being ever played again.” (Decades later, it leaked on YouTube .) In 1987, younger members of the British royal family also competed in the TV game show It’s a Royal Knockout alongside celebrities, running around in costumes doing obstacle courses for charity. “People thought it was a disaster,” Beckett says. “Royals are not like other celebrities, they have to act a certain way and maintain certain standards ... but at the same time be ‘normal enough’ that we [relate to] them.” Moral influencers or ‘f---ing grifters’? So, do people actually care about this exclusive royal content or are they content just watching The Crown ? The most successful of the bunch is undoubtedly Meghan Markle’s Archetypes. The show debuted in the top spot on Spotify in Britain, the US, Canada, Ireland, India, Australia and New Zealand. But it also lost a lot of steam by the end of the season, and Meghan and Harry’s Archewell Audio “mutually agreed” to leave Spotify soon after. Meghan Markle made one season of Archetypes , in collaboration with Spotify. Credit: Their initial deal reportedly cost $US25 million ($38.5 million), and The Wall Street Journal reported the couple had failed to meet “productivity benchmarks” to justify the sum. Though their 2020 agreement promised “a multi-year partnership ... to produce podcasts and shows” (multiple), nothing else materialised. Bloomberg reported that Harry had pitched a number of ideas, including a show in which he interviewed “controversial guests such as Vladimir Putin, Mark Zuckerberg and Donald Trump about their early formative years”. Celebrating their exit from the company, Spotify executive Bill Simmons went so far to call the pair “f---ing grifters” on his own podcast. He had also previously criticised Prince Harry, saying: “Why are we listening to you? Nobody cares what you have to say about anything unless you talk about the royal family, and you just complain about them.” Dr Beckett believes it is a good thing, however, when royals publicly lend themselves to causes. Whether it’s Princess Eugenie with modern slavery or Queen Mary with youth loneliness – or, historically, Princess Diana with AIDS – “royalty adds cachet”. “When they get involved, it really gives the charity or the cause a lot of support and a lot of attention,” she says. At the very least, she adds, “It gets the attention of the media.” Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday .Concord’s school board is at a crossroads. An election day vote threw plans to build a new middle school into the ringer, and the board now faces a variety of options about what to do next. None have officially been ruled out, but their once-fervent plan for a new school in East Concord has faded. Recent discussions largely circled around either an immediate decision to redirect plans to the South End or to hold a referendum of some kind. Potential paths outlined by the board include: Continuing with plans to build at Broken Ground or immediately reversing course and creating designs to rebuild at Rundlett. They could hold a special election to ask the voters to choose a location or wait until city elections next November to ask voters to choose a location. They could renovate the current school or renovate the current school and also build a second, smaller middle school at Broken Ground. On the more extreme end, they could engage with Merrimack Valley about a “one city, one school district” model – or drop the project entirely. The board voted last December, almost a year to the day before Wednesday’s meeting, to locate its new middle school in East Concord rather than rebuild it at its current location in the south end. On election day, roughly two-thirds of voters approved a change to the district charter that now requires the board to pass any relocation of a school in a referendum vote, throwing its plans to replace the current middle school, several years in the making, into uncertainty. The board is awaiting more information about costs and timelines for each path before it proceeds. While no action was taken at a special meeting Wednesday, the meeting laid bare how disagreement over the location question, after a year of contention, has soured into resentment on all sides. “I don’t really like going out in public anymore because of this,” said Sarah Robinson, a board member from East Concord. “We need a damn school, already. And this dragging out is obnoxious, and has been contentious for no reason; it has been really unprofessional and disappointing from so many individuals. I’m done dealing with it.” According to the board’s legal counsel, they don’t. Because the relocation decision had already been made prior to the new rule going into effect, it cannot be retroactively undone, according to Dean Eggert, the school board’s legal counsel. His analysis determined that the board could move forward with building a new school at Broken Ground as planned on solid legal footing. Article continues after... Cross|Word Flipart Typeshift SpellTower Really Bad Chess “Amendment number one applies to all decisions to relocate schools made after June 30 of 2025. It does not apply retroactively to rescind the December 6, 2023 vote,” Eggert said. However, he added, “We’re providing you with a legal opinion... I don’t provide you with business advice. I don’t provide you with political advice.” Taking that path — charging ahead as planned — wasn’t officially voted down. But board discussion indicated most members see it as unwise — not only because they would seem to flout voters’ expressed wishes but also because they would likely land in court. “Although I agree with his analysis of the retroactivity, I respect the vote I saw in November,” Board President Pamela Walsh said. “I think I would work personally from options coming out of that.” Walsh’s comment aligned with ones she made at a candidate forum in October. Then running for re-election, she pledged to “honor” the amendments if they passed. But, Wednesday night, the board didn’t reach a consensus on what honoring the vote really means. On one hand, the amendments were written and advocated for by people who want a rebuild at Rundlett. They reiterated these thoughts, and opposition to the Broken Ground site, during public comment. “Hopefully you got the message,” Debra Samaha said during public testimony. “Now, the public expects you to tell your legal counsel that you want to remain at Rundlett and not litigate or further delay... Now, the public expects you to take your thumb off the scale and do what you should have done years ago.” At the same time, others countered, that may not be why all voters backed the rule change. “Yes, the amendments passed with a supermajority. But they themselves were not a direct referendum on where the school should be placed. I know the Concerned Citizens folks want to paint it as a direct referendum, but that’s not what it was,” said Alex Streeter, a South End resident. Holding an election, he continued, “is the best way to find out what the constituents actually want.” Streeter cited the findings of a Monitor survey done in October in which respondents were divided over where the school should go: 21% agreed with the board’s decision to move it to Broken Ground, 44% said they preferred the Rundlett location and 35% were undecided. Notably, though, while the vast majority of residents who participated in the survey agreed with the general sentiment of the amendment, not everyone saw it as a direct referendum on the location. By contrast, only 35% of respondents said they felt the school board should reverse course now and rebuild at Rundlett. At the polls on election day, many voters were unaware that the middle school question would appear on their ballot and told the Monitor they voted in support because of a literal reading of the amendment’s language. As one voter put it, “People should have a say.” As soon as possible Beyond the question of voter intent, some district parents both in the audience and on the board wanted to ensure student needs weren’t overshadowed. For board member Cara Meeker, the best thing for the district is a new school as soon as possible — wherever it goes. “I’m thinking about this in terms of what is the fastest, cheapest way we can get the school built — a new school, at this juncture. With our options, rescinding the vote and moving it back to Rundlett is the only option that doesn’t make us wait for a vote in November and doesn’t put us at high risk of litigation,” she said. “I think we need to recognize that it’s possible that’s the fastest option.” During public comment, Nicole Fox similarly urged the board to move forward. While she pushed for the board to choose Rundlett a year ago, Fox said her primary goal is a new school as soon as possible — and she put in a lot of volunteer hours on committees for this project to make that happen. She didn’t want the amendments to pass because she feared their associated delays. But they did. “It’s really hard for me to look at you guys and have you say that this the community does not want the school built at Rundlett, even now,” Fox said. “That’s what they want. They voted. You can have another election, but it’s not going to change the outcome.” “Anything else,” she concluded, “is really just ignoring the voters and wasting time.” To make their decision, board members wanted more information about what the timeline and associated costs would be for each option they have now. Walsh requested a report to be presented and weighed at a future meeting, likely in January. Everything costs money Members of the school board and the concerned citizens’ group that has criticized it over the last year both feel that neither party has listened to — or is willing to listen to — the other. Wednesday, as in the past, speakers criticized the board for not reconsidering the location debate sooner, described the project as an extravagance and accused the board of concealing important financial information and skewing the facts about site comparisons. Meanwhile, members of the board expressed frustration that what they saw as a genuine pursuit of what is best for Concord schools had not resonated. “At this point, there’s no way that we’re able to have a conversation. I don’t feel like any information that I give in good faith is taken as being given in good faith,” Robinson said. “I think it really doesn’t matter how much more information we provide — people have made up their minds.” For Robinson, the deadlock has taken its toll. “Children have been completely written out of this conversation, for the most part,” she continued. “I thought for sure at one point, ‘okay, we’re gonna get through this. We’re gonna have an awesome school for kids’ — My children will never walk through those doors.” From timelines to price tags to the availability or not of state building aid , uncertainty about this project looms, Meeker noted. But, she continued, the board has a decision to make. “I don’t want to throw in the towel. I want to continue to advocate for all of the possible resources that we can get in this process. I don’t want to give up. I don’t want to assume we’re not getting a new school. I don’t want to assume we’re not going to move forward with what is best for our kids,” she said. “This is our city. These are our kids. These are our families. Everything costs money. That’s how our community is run. It’s how it’s built... I don’t necessarily want to drag it out, but I want to have the information so that we can make a decision, and then we just keep going.” Catherine McLaughlin can be reached at cmclaughlin@cmonitor.comMichigan hopes it has found a long-term solution to the quarterback woes that have plagued the Wolverines in 2024. The school got a . The Michigan native is the No. 2 player in the country, according to Rivals, and had previously been committed to LSU. If Underwood signs with Michigan in December’s early signing period or the normal signing period in 2025, he’ll be the school’s highest-ranked recruit since Rashan Gary committed to the Wolverines in 2016. Underwood would also be the first Rivals five-star to sign with the Wolverines since DB Will Johnson in 2022. Johnson has become one of the best defensive backs in college football and is a likely first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The verbal commitment from Underwood comes on the same day that Colorado landed . He's the No. 6 player in the country and had recently de-committed from USC. Underwood plays for Belleville High School, the same school that currently employs disgraced ex-Michigan staffer Connor Stalions. Stalions has been serving as an assistant for the school after his alleged advance scouting scheme was the storyline of the 2023 college football season. It's the second high school job for Stalions this season. He started the season at Detroit Mumford. The connection with Stalions aside and any role the former staffer may or may not have played in Underwood's recruitment, it's hard to overstate the significance of Underwood's flip for Michigan. The Wolverines have missed out on high-profile in-state QBs in recent years and drastically need a solid quarterback to overhaul the offense under first-year head coach Sherrone Moore. The coach was understandably excited about the news on social media. YES SIR ! 🔵 The Best players in Michigan go to Michigan ! — Sherrone Moore (@Coach_SMoore) Michigan is just 5-5 with two games to go in the regular season thanks largely to porous QB play. Three different players have started at QB for Michigan this season and they’ve combined to complete less than 60% of their passes and throw nine TDs and nine interceptions. Overall, Michigan QBs are averaging just six yards per passing attempt. If Underwood signs in December, he'll have the opportunity to enroll early at Michigan and participate in spring practices. The only player ranked ahead of Underwood in Rivals' rankings is QB Tavien St. Clair. He has been verbally committed to Michigan's archrival Ohio State since June of 2023. The Buckeyes added two top quarterbacks in the class of 2024 in Air Noland and Julian Sayin. After Underwood's commitment, Michigan's 19-person class
Gloucester City manager Mike Cook was delighted to be back to winning ways this afternoon, and the Tigers did it in some style against Poole Town. New signing Stanley Anaebonam opened the scoring in the 22nd minute after latching on to a rebound, before assisting two more to finish as the man of the match on his home debut. Cook said: “He’s a good player and he’ll score some goals as well. A lot of people are saying we’re screaming out for a centre forward, but what we’re screaming out for is just players who can score goals. “We’ve just got to mix it around a bit because Joe Hanks is not going to score every week, he won’t do that in the job we’re asking him to do.” Another man on the scoresheet for the Tigers was Torquay United loanee Jadyn Crosbie, who bagged himself a brace in City’s dominant display. The youngster got his first just before half time by tapping in from close range, only one minute after Poole had initially equalised from a corner through Joshua Staunton. Ed Williams made it 3-1 in the 54th minute before Crosbie rounded off the scoring four minutes later capitalising on a spill from the goalkeeper to finish the game 4-1. Cook said: “I’m really pleased for him because he’s still learning his trade. He’s got potential, he’s got to fulfil that over the next few seasons, at the moment we’re the vehicle for him. “I thought his overall game today, with winning his headers, linking up play, scoring goals, he was a threat today.” This was City’s first win since October 22, claiming three crucial points to stay in the mix for promotion. After a run of average performances, the Tigers have now scored eight goals in two matches, and are starting to gel together in an everchanging team. Cook was pleased that his side managed to produce such a dominant display, and get over the line once again. He said: “It makes a difference when you score goals, doesn’t it? I was worried for 10 minutes because I didn’t want them to do to us what we did to Walton last week. “We haven’t had 90 minutes where we’ve dominated any game so far this season, maybe that’s a little bit unrealistic for us where we are with the team. “We’ve brought in six or seven players since the beginning of the season so we’re relatively new to each other, but it’s good to have a strong bench today.” The Tigers now have a two-week break until their next game at home to Chertsey Town, with time to rest and focus on what’s next. City find themselves in second place, but have played more games than Merthyr Town above them, and AFC Totton below them, relying on them slipping up. Cook knows that there is more to focus on than other teams’ results, and made clear how his side are looking. He said: “We’ve just got to do what we can do; I’m not going to be worried about Totton and Merthyr because I can’t do anything about them. “When we play against them, we’ll worry about them and we’ll know what they are all about, as they will with us. “We’ve definitely worried more about ourselves this season than worrying about the opposition all the time, and so far this season, that’s worked really well.” Gloucester City: Thompson, Leadbitter, Duffus, Richards-Everton, Ball, Hanks (Grubb 64), Williams, Burns (Liggett 95), Smalley (Phillips 64), Crosbie (Robinson 90), Anaebonam (Emmett 73). Poole Town: Plain, Staunton, Whisken (Hewlett 82), Lowes, De Luca (Holmes 74), Touray, Ramos (Almeida 74), Thomas, Slade, Taylor (Nippard 58), Clarke. Sub not used: Starner-Reid. Attendance: 903.WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden signed a bill into law Saturday that averts a government shutdown, bringing a final close to days of upheaval after Congress approved a temporary funding plan just past the deadline and refused President-elect Donald Trump’s core debt demands in the package. The deal funds the government at current levels through March 14 and provides $100 billion in disaster aid and $10 billion in agricultural assistance to farmers. “This agreement represents a compromise, which means neither side got everything it wanted,” Biden said in a statement, adding that “it ensures the government can continue to operate at full capacity. That’s good news for the American people.” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., had insisted lawmakers would “meet our obligations” and not allow federal operations to close. But the outcome at the end of a tumultuous week was uncertain after Trump had insisted the deal include an increase in the government's borrowing limit. If not, he had said, then let the closures “start now.” Johnson's revised plan was approved 366-34, and it was passed by the Senate by a 85-11 vote after midnight. By then, the White House said it had ceased shutdown preparations. “There will be no government shutdown,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Johnson, who had spoken to Trump after the House vote, said the compromise was "a good outcome for the country” and that the president-elect “was certainly happy about this outcome, as well.” The final product was the third attempt from Johnson, the beleaguered speaker, to achieve one of the basic requirements of the federal government — keeping it open. The difficulties raised questions about whether Johnson will be able to keep his job, in the face of angry Republican colleagues, and work alongside Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk , who was calling the legislative plays from afar. The House is scheduled to elect the next speaker on Jan. 3, 2025, when the new Congress convenes. Republicans will have an exceedingly narrow majority, 220-215, leaving Johnson little margin for error as he tries to win the speaker's gavel. One House Republican, Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, criticized Republicans for the deficit spending in the bill and said he was now “undecided” about the GOP leadership. Others are signaling unhappiness with Johnson as well. Yet Trump's last-minute debt limit demand was almost an impossible ask, and Johnson had almost no choice but to work around that pressure. The speaker knew there wouldn’t be enough support within the slim Republican majority alone to pass any funding package because many Republican deficit hawks prefer to cut the federal government and would not allow more debt. Instead, the Republicans, who will have full control of the White House, House and Senate in the new year, with big plans for tax cuts and other priorities, are showing they must routinely rely on Democrats for the votes needed to keep up with the routine operations of governing. The federal debt stands at roughly $36 trillion, and the spike in inflation after the coronavirus pandemic has pushed up the government’s borrowing costs such that debt service next year will exceed spending on national security. The last time lawmakers raised the debt limit was June 2023. Rather than raise the limit by a dollar amount, lawmakers suspended the debt limit through Jan. 1, 2025. There is no need to raise that limit right now because the Treasury Department can begin using what it calls “extraordinary measures” to ensure that America does not default on its debts. Some estimate these accounting maneuvers could push the default deadline to the summer of 2025. But that’s what Trump wanted to avoid because an increase would be needed while he was president. GOP leaders said the debt ceiling would be debated as part of tax and border packages in the new year. Republicans made a so-called handshake agreement to raise the debt limit at that time while also cutting $2.5 trillion in spending over 10 years. It was essentially the same deal that flopped Thursday night — minus Trump’s debt demand. But it's far smaller than the original deal Johnson struck with Democratic and Republican leaders — a 1,500-page bill that Trump and Musk rejected, forcing him to start over. It was stuffed with a long list of other bills — including much-derided pay raises for lawmakers — but also other measures with broad bipartisan support that now have a tougher path to becoming law. Trump, who has not yet been sworn into office, is showing the power but also the limits of his sway with Congress, as he intervenes and orchestrates affairs from Mar-a-Lago alongside Musk , who is heading up the new Department of Government Efficiency. Associated Press writers Kevin Freking, Stephen Groves, Mary Clare Jalonick, Darlene Superville and Bill Barrow contributed to this report.
New Delhi, Nov 30 (IANS): BJP spokesperson Gourav Vallabh on Saturday took aim at Congress over its Maharashtra MLA Bhai Jagtap's "dog" remarks against the Election Commission of India (ECI) and said that Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi "does not have faith in the Constitution" otherwise the MLA would have been expelled for using such language against the constitutional bodies. Launching a scathing attack on Congress, he said that the party is in its "winding-up stage," and that is why "no one wants to form an alliance with it." In an interview with IANS, Gourav Vallabh also talked about the Sambhal incident, the Delhi Assembly elections, AAP MLA Naresh Balyan's alleged extortion audio clip and attacks on minorities in Bangladesh. Following are the excerpts from the interview: IANS: Congress MLA Bhai Jagtap has called the Election Commission a "dog" of PM Modi. How do you see this? Gourav Vallabh: Congress leader (Rahul Gandhi), who has a childish mindset, keeps the Constitution book in his hands. In the Constitution book, the Election Commission of India is written as an independent and impartial body, while its leaders are using abusive language for it. This means that Rahul Gandhi does not have faith in the Constitution because if it was there, then a person who is using the word 'dog' for the Election Commission would have been expelled right now. However, Rahul Gandhi does not believe in the Constitution. I think their only belief is to create obstacles in the development of India and talk like brand ambassadors of those who speak against India. IANS: Do you think Congress and AAP will form an alliance for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections? Gourav Vallabh: By-elections were held in Uttar Pradesh... the SP said we do not want to form an alliance with Congress. When the elections were held in Haryana, Congress said they did not want to form an alliance. In Punjab by-elections, the AAP said they do not want to form an alliance, so this is not an alliance, this INDIA bloc's attempt to fool the people. On one hand, there is a party, whose leaders, from the Chief Minister to the Health Minister, all ended up in jail because of the liquor scam and on the other hand, there is a good, double-engine governance of the BJP. Just like in Maharashtra, the BJP will form a government with an overwhelming majority. IANS: What do you think is the reason that no other party is willing to form an alliance with such a grand party like Congress, which has ruled the nation for several years? Gourav Vallabh: Few parties formed an alliance with the Congress, be it Shiv Sena-UBT, the NCP-Sharad Pawar, or Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). In Jharkhand, Congress only got a few seats because of JMM, otherwise, there would not have been a trace of it there. Similarly, look at the result of Uddhav Thackeray aligning with Congress; he joined a party that Balasaheb Thackeray once warned against. Congress does not have policies, intentions or leadership. In the name of leadership, they have a brother, sister, mother, brother-in-law, niece, nephew, etc. There cannot be a bigger example of dynastic politics other than this. They do not have proper policies, but that of dividing the people based on caste and show the people the Constitution, asking them to follow and respect it but never do it themselves. They have such intentions that when rape was committed in Kolkata, none of their leaders went there. If they had gone there, Mamata Didi would have been upset, and the few remaining partners of the INDIA bloc would also have lost. However, if it had happened in any other state, they would have thronged there. This is why the people do not want to vote for them, and the parties do not want an alliance with them. This happened in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and will happen in Delhi also. Congress is in its winding-up stage. IANS: When there was talk of determining responsibility for election defeat, Rahul Gandhi asked Mallikarjun Kharge to "take action" considering the bad results. What do you have to say about this? Gourav Vallabh: On one hand, Congress claims there is a problem with EVMs, and yet, in the CWC meeting yesterday, they admitted that the people of the country are not voting for them. Congress should first tell whether EVM is fine or not. If EVM is faulty, then why did it not malfunction in Wayanad? It is fine in Ranchi, but it is faulty in Mumbai. There is no problem in any fault in EVM but in the leadership and policies of Congress. The party has taken up the role of becoming the spokesperson of those who try to halt the development of the country. The party has become a brand ambassador for those who talk against the nation. Congress is in a confused state of mind. IANS: A Samajwadi Party (SP) delegation was scheduled to visit Sambhal, however, they were stopped from doing so. What is your take on this? Gourav Vallabh: SP leaders should not go to Sambhal. They did not want to make any arrangements for peace. They would have added fuel to the fire. They would have made several statements there and turned different groups against each other. This is because the INDIA bloc only has one strategy -- divide and rule. This is why the police stopped them, to stop violence from escalating. IANS: The BJP has released an audio clip of AAP MLA Naresh Balyan, claiming that the leader has connections with gangsters and resorts to them for extorting money from people. What do you have to say about this? Gourav Vallabh: Look, a video is everywhere on social media; there is an audio tape of Naresh Balyan, MLA of the party, having a love for liquor (AAP), that how he is extorting weekly money from a builder, that audio tape has gone viral everywhere. Will Atishi expel this MLA from the party? Can Atishi remove the former CM, who has gone to jail in a liquor policy scam, from the Daru Premi Party? She cannot because she is the CM only in name; the powers are still practised by Arvind Kejriwal only. This is not why Delhi elected this government, and people are noticing this closely. Just as the Communist Party got wiped from most parts of India, this Daru Premi Party will have the same fate. IANS: Minorities in Bangladesh are being attacked again. What do you have to say about this? Gourav Vallabh: It is very unfortunate that any kind of attack is happening here in our neighbouring country on the basis of religion. There cannot be a more unfortunate incident than this. The Government of India and the people of India have expressed their concern about this. In the coming times, India will not tolerate the way Hindus are being attacked. And remember, whatever government is there in Bangladesh, I want to tell them that there is no Congress government here that you can attack Hindus, and they will sit silently; this is the Modi government, which will not tolerate any kind of atrocities against the Hindus.
(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump has promised to reduce government waste and employed wealthy businessmen Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the charge. So far, spending on federal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies are prime targets for Musk and Ramaswamy, and a recent report shows just how widespread federal DEI spending has become. The report from Do No Harm shows 500 ways the Biden-Harris administration “infused DEI into the federal government.” Those examples include federal agencies starting dozens of equity training programs, doling out federal contracts and jobs based on race and gender, and teaching Americans more about their country’s racism, both past and present. The DEI explosion took off after Biden issued executive orders on his first day in office as well as another in June of 2021. The first executive order “established that affirmatively advancing equity, civil rights, racial justice, and equal opportunity is the responsibility of the whole of our Government.” The second order established “that it is the policy of my Administration to cultivate a workforce that draws from the full diversity of the Nation.” Biden also issued other executive orders, including around gender and sexuality, to the same effect his first year in office. Those orders gave federal bureaucrats not only permission but actually direct orders to embrace DEI policies across the board. And Do No Harm’s report shows they did, full-throttle, citing 80 “Equity Action Plans” submitted by agencies that promised over 500 taxpayer-funded actions. Some of the actions are seemingly mild, such as the U.S. Social Security Administration tracking more racial data. Other examples of DEI policies, though, made the federal government the nation’s teacher. For example, a blog for the U.S. Treasury Department lectures Americans on racial inequality. More directly, the federal government began implementing training programs for many federal employees that fully embrace racial ideology labeled “woke” by its opponents. For instance, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission invested in training for employees to consider equity more in its regulatory decisions. “Training will address how equity and environmental justice involves removing barriers underserved communities may face in the context of the Commission’s practices, processes, and policies,” FERC said in its Equity Action Plan. “Training also will address how, consistent with FERC’s mission and statutory duties, the Commission considers the impact of its actions on such communities. More specific trainings geared toward the responsibilities of different program offices and issue areas also may be identified or developed and offered.” Other actions seem to favor some groups over others. Changing the “percentage” of benefits received necessarily requires giving contracts, grants, or other federal resources to certain groups, almost always at the expense of white Americans, even more often white men. For example, the American Battle Monuments Commissions in its Equity Action Plan called for “expanding the percentage of U.S.-based contracted goods and services awarded to minority-owned, women-owned, and service disabled veteran-owned enterprises.” In fact, the ABMC pledged to pay a worker for this sole purpose. In another instance, the Smithsonian Institute pledged to recruit more Black and indigenous interns. “One of the simplest ways to ensure equity and accessibility in internships is to provide a livable stipend and advertise it clearly in promotion materials,” the federal group said in its Equity Action Plan. “Many units include a statement directly in their internship description about their commitment to equity. They also are intentional about making the application process simple and transparent, offering access services for interviews and allowing for multiple formats in place of a required essay.” The Smithsonian Institution , the federal steward of America’s past, also promised to begin promoting a historical framework that emphasizes American racism in the past and today. The federal group pledged to “Address the historical roots and contemporary impacts of race and racism in the United States and globally through interdisciplinary scholarship, creative partnerships, dialogue, education, and engagement.” The Center Square has reported on other examples of DEI policies and grants becoming the norm in recent years as well, though much of this kind of spending began before the Biden-Harris administration took power. Those include:The San Diego Police Department’s use of surveillance technology is at the center of a new lawsuit filed against the city. The suit, which was filed this week, stems from accusations the agency tried to sidestep the law when it installed license plate readers and smart streetlights during Comic-Con and Pride. A San Diego municipal ordinance requires a city council vote prior to the installation of the LPRs and smart streetlights at any new locations — or uses of that technology that wasn't previously approved. > 24/7 San Diego news stream: Watch NBC 7 free wherever you are The complaint, which was filed Monday in San Diego Superior Court on behalf of city residents Lilly Irani, Seth Hall and Mat Wahlstrom, alleges that the department failed to receive proper approval from the San Diego City Council prior to installing the technology. San Diego police chief Scott Wahl announced before the cameras were turned on that he was citing "exigent circumstances" to better protect the public, a clause in the ordinance that would allow the tech to be deployed without council approval. The lawsuit claims, however, that the department didn't provide enough proof of the exigent circumstances. Local Things to do this weekend: The Nutcracker, USS Midway Jingle Jets, skating rinks, and more San Diego home prices fall in November but remain higher than last year The events began before this summer's San Diego Pride Parade and Pride Festival, when San Diego police announced the installation of additional smart streetlight cameras with automated license plate recognition technology at various Hillcrest locations as a safety measure amid a rise in hate crimes. Privacy advocates railed against the plan, saying the police department was invoking the "exigent circumstances" section of the TRUST ordinance in order to avoid the standard approval process. In a statement, the advocate groups said the police "lack justification to claim that this recurring event is an emergency that justifies an unauthorized expansion of surveillance streetlights." The use of smart streetlights in San Diego has sparked debate after what was initially billed as a traffic management tool was later publicly revealed to involve camera technology utilized by police. The camera network was shut down amid the ensuing uproar, but was revived last year with city council approval. SDPD began deploying cameras to 500 locations last December, though infrastructure issues such as power problems or objects blocking the camera view prevented installations at 42 locations, according to police. Earlier this year, Mayor Todd Gloria's office issued a public statement that claimed smart streetlights and license plate readers were instrumental in solving more than 200 criminal cases this year, including a widely publicized case in which a man allegedly attempted to kidnap two children from a Mission Valley mall. "The results speak for themselves," Gloria said. "Smart streetlights and ALPR technology have proven to be essential tools for our police officers, helping to quickly identify suspects and solve crimes." NBC 7 has reached out to the city attorney’s office for comment, but was told that officials were unable to comment on pending litigation. SDPD was also contacted for this story but it has not yet replied to the request for comment. All parties are due in court on May 23 for a case-management conference.
( MENAFN - Daily News Egypt) Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of health and Population, met with Karim Saada, CEO and Managing Director of Al-Ahly Capital- the investment arm of the National bank of Egypt (NBE)- and his accompanying delegation on Wednesday at the Ministry of Health and Population. The meeting focused on exploring ways to enhance investment opportunities within Egypt's health sector, emphasizing community collaboration between state institutions to strengthen healthcare. During the meeting, the Deputy Prime Minister underscored the importance of deepening the national investment partnership between the two parties, aligning with the country's vision to promote community participation in sustainable development. Abdel Ghaffar emphasized that the government offers a range of promising investment opportunities in the health sector. The Ministry of Health is working to attract both local and international investments, aiming to improve the quality of medical services provided to citizens. He also highlighted the critical role of private sector partnerships, particularly as the government moves forward with its comprehensive health insurance system across the country, as part of the directives set by the political leadership. The discussion also covered the recently introduced law aimed at streamlining investment procedures in Egypt. This law is designed to facilitate investments by offering various incentive packages and necessary support for health sector projects. The Minister reiterated the government's commitment to overcoming any challenges that may hinder investment in healthcare. Another key topic was the future of radiology services in Egypt. The delegation explored investment opportunities in this area, recognizing its importance in improving healthcare delivery. Abdel Ghaffar stressed the need to fully harness the potential of Egypt's health system to provide optimal services to citizens. Karim Saada, CEO of Al-Ahly Capital, expressed the company's strong commitment to investing in Egypt's health sector. He emphasized that the collaboration with the Ministry of Health reflects the company's dedication to playing a significant role in healthcare, which is a crucial component of sustainable development. MENAFN27112024000153011029ID1108934522 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.Chargers place J.K. Dobbins, Alohi Gilman on injured reserveSusan Shelley: The mundane reality of UFOsAs part of a national “moonshot” to cure blindness, researchers at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus will receive as much as $46 million in federal funding over the next five years to pursue a first-of-its-kind full eye transplantation. “This is no easy undertaking, but I believe we can achieve this together,” said Dr. Kia Washington, the lead researcher for the University of Colorado-led team, during a press conference Monday. “And in fact I’ve never been more hopeful that a cure for blindness is within reach.” The CU team was one of four in the United States that received funding awards from the federal Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health , or ARPA-H. The CU-based group will focus on achieving the first-ever vision-restoring eye transplant by using “novel stem cell and bioelectronic technologies,” according to a news release announcing the funding. The work will be interdisciplinary, Washington and others said, and will link together researchers at institutions across the country. The four teams that received the funding will work alongside each other on distinct approaches, though officials said the teams would likely collaborate and eventually may merge depending on which research avenues show the most promise toward achieving the ultimate goal of transplanting an eye and curing blindness. Dr. Calvin Roberts, who will oversee the broader project for ARPA-H, said the agency wanted to take multiple “shots on goal” to ensure progress. “In the broader picture, achieving this would be probably the most monumental task in medicine within the last several decades,” said Dr. Daniel Pelaez of the University of Miami’s Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, which also received ARPA-H funding. Pelaez is the lead investigator for that team, which has pursued new procedures to successfully remove and preserve eyes from donors, amid other research. He told The Denver Post that only four organ systems have not been successfully transplanted: the inner ear, the brain, the spinal cord and the eye. All four are part of the central nervous system, which does not repair itself when damaged. If researchers can successfully transplant the human eye and restore vision to the patient, it might help unlock deeper discoveries about repairing damage to the brain and spine, Pelaez said, as well as addressing hearing loss. To succeed, researchers must successfully remove and preserve eyes from donors and then successfully connect and repair the optical nerve, which takes information from the eye and tells the brain what the eye sees. A team at New York University performed a full eye transplant on a human patient in November 2023, though the procedure — while a “remarkable achievement,” Pelaez said — did not restore the patient’s vision. It was also part of a partial face transplant; other approaches pursued via the ARPA-H funding will involve eye-specific transplants. Washington, the lead CU researcher, said she and her colleagues have already completed the eye transplant procedure — albeit without vision restoration — in rats. The CU team will next work on large animals to advance “optic nerve regenerative strategies,” the school said, as well as to study immunosuppression, which is critical to ensuring that patients’ immune systems don’t reject a donated organ. The goal is to eventually advance to human trials. Pelaez and his colleagues have completed their eye-removal procedure in cadavers, he said, and they’ve also studied regeneration in several animals that are capable of regenerating parts of their eyes, like salamanders or zebra fish. His team’s funding will focus in part on a life-support machine for the eye to keep it healthy and viable during the removal process. InGel Therapeutics, a Massachusetts-based Harvard spinoff and the lead of a third team, will pursue research on 3-D printed technology and “micro-tunneled scaffolds” that carry certain types of stem cells as part of a focus on optical nerve regeneration and repair, ARPA-H said. ARPH-A, created two years ago, will oversee the teams’ work. Researchers at 52 institutions nationwide will also contribute to the teams. The CU-led group will include researchers from the University of Southern California, the University of Wisconsin, Indiana University and Johns Hopkins University, as well as from the National Eye Institute . The teams will simultaneously compete and collaborate: Pelaez said his team has communicated with researchers at CU and at Stanford, another award recipient, about their eye-removal research. The total funding available for the teams is $125 million, ARPA-H officials said Monday, and it will be distributed in phases, in part dependent on teams’ success. U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Democrat who represents Denver in Congress, acknowledged the recent election results at the press conference Monday and pledged to continue fighting to preserve ARPA-H’s funding under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. The effort to cure blindness, Washington joked, was “biblical” in its enormity — a reference to the Bible story in which Jesus cures a blind man. She and others also likened it to a moonshot, meaning the effort to successfully put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon nearly 50 years ago. If curing blindness is similar to landing on the moon, then the space shuttle has already left the launchpad, Washington said. “We have launched,” she said, “and we are on our trajectory.”
Susan Shelley: The mundane reality of UFOsAs part of a national “moonshot” to cure blindness, researchers at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus will receive as much as $46 million in federal funding over the next five years to pursue a first-of-its-kind full eye transplantation. “This is no easy undertaking, but I believe we can achieve this together,” said Dr. Kia Washington, the lead researcher for the University of Colorado-led team, during a press conference Monday. “And in fact I’ve never been more hopeful that a cure for blindness is within reach.” The CU team was one of four in the United States that received funding awards from the federal Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health , or ARPA-H. The CU-based group will focus on achieving the first-ever vision-restoring eye transplant by using “novel stem cell and bioelectronic technologies,” according to a news release announcing the funding. The work will be interdisciplinary, Washington and others said, and will link together researchers at institutions across the country. The four teams that received the funding will work alongside each other on distinct approaches, though officials said the teams would likely collaborate and eventually may merge depending on which research avenues show the most promise toward achieving the ultimate goal of transplanting an eye and curing blindness. Dr. Calvin Roberts, who will oversee the broader project for ARPA-H, said the agency wanted to take multiple “shots on goal” to ensure progress. “In the broader picture, achieving this would be probably the most monumental task in medicine within the last several decades,” said Dr. Daniel Pelaez of the University of Miami’s Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, which also received ARPA-H funding. Pelaez is the lead investigator for that team, which has pursued new procedures to successfully remove and preserve eyes from donors, amid other research. He told The Denver Post that only four organ systems have not been successfully transplanted: the inner ear, the brain, the spinal cord and the eye. All four are part of the central nervous system, which does not repair itself when damaged. If researchers can successfully transplant the human eye and restore vision to the patient, it might help unlock deeper discoveries about repairing damage to the brain and spine, Pelaez said, as well as addressing hearing loss. To succeed, researchers must successfully remove and preserve eyes from donors and then successfully connect and repair the optical nerve, which takes information from the eye and tells the brain what the eye sees. A team at New York University performed a full eye transplant on a human patient in November 2023, though the procedure — while a “remarkable achievement,” Pelaez said — did not restore the patient’s vision. It was also part of a partial face transplant; other approaches pursued via the ARPA-H funding will involve eye-specific transplants. Washington, the lead CU researcher, said she and her colleagues have already completed the eye transplant procedure — albeit without vision restoration — in rats. The CU team will next work on large animals to advance “optic nerve regenerative strategies,” the school said, as well as to study immunosuppression, which is critical to ensuring that patients’ immune systems don’t reject a donated organ. The goal is to eventually advance to human trials. Pelaez and his colleagues have completed their eye-removal procedure in cadavers, he said, and they’ve also studied regeneration in several animals that are capable of regenerating parts of their eyes, like salamanders or zebra fish. His team’s funding will focus in part on a life-support machine for the eye to keep it healthy and viable during the removal process. InGel Therapeutics, a Massachusetts-based Harvard spinoff and the lead of a third team, will pursue research on 3-D printed technology and “micro-tunneled scaffolds” that carry certain types of stem cells as part of a focus on optical nerve regeneration and repair, ARPA-H said. ARPH-A, created two years ago, will oversee the teams’ work. Researchers at 52 institutions nationwide will also contribute to the teams. The CU-led group will include researchers from the University of Southern California, the University of Wisconsin, Indiana University and Johns Hopkins University, as well as from the National Eye Institute . The teams will simultaneously compete and collaborate: Pelaez said his team has communicated with researchers at CU and at Stanford, another award recipient, about their eye-removal research. The total funding available for the teams is $125 million, ARPA-H officials said Monday, and it will be distributed in phases, in part dependent on teams’ success. U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Democrat who represents Denver in Congress, acknowledged the recent election results at the press conference Monday and pledged to continue fighting to preserve ARPA-H’s funding under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. The effort to cure blindness, Washington joked, was “biblical” in its enormity — a reference to the Bible story in which Jesus cures a blind man. She and others also likened it to a moonshot, meaning the effort to successfully put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon nearly 50 years ago. If curing blindness is similar to landing on the moon, then the space shuttle has already left the launchpad, Washington said. “We have launched,” she said, “and we are on our trajectory.”
By ROB GILLIES TORONTO (AP) — Canada is already examining possible retaliatory tariffs on certain items from the United States should President-elect Donald Trump follow through on his threat to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products, a senior official said Wednesday. Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico if the countries don’t stop what he called the flow of drugs and migrants across southern and northern borders. He said he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders. A Canadian government official said Canada is preparing for every eventuality and has started thinking about what items to target with tariffs in retaliation. The official stressed no decision has been made. The person spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak publicly. When Trump imposed higher tariffs during his first term in office, other countries responded with retaliatory tariffs of their own. Canada, for instance, announced billions of new duties in 2018 against the U.S. in a tit-for-tat response to new taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum. Many of the U.S. products were chosen for their political rather than economic impact. For example, Canada imports $3 million worth of yogurt from the U.S. annually and most comes from one plant in Wisconsin, home state of then-House Speaker Paul Ryan. That product was hit with a 10% duty. Another product on the list was whiskey, which comes from Tennessee and Kentucky, the latter of which is the home state of then-Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell. Trump made the threat Monday while railing against an influx of illegal migrants, even though the numbers at Canadian border pale in comparison to the southern border. The U.S. Border Patrol made 56,530 arrests at the Mexican border in October alone — and 23,721 arrests at the Canadian one between October 2023 and September 2024. Canadian officials say lumping Canada in with Mexico is unfair but say they are happy to work with the Trump administration to lower the numbers from Canada. The Canadians are also worried about a influx north of migrants if Trump follows through with his plan for mass deportations. Trump also railed about fentanyl from Mexico and Canada, even though seizures from the Canadian border pale in comparison to the Mexican border. U.S. customs agents seized 43 pounds of fentanyl at the Canadian border last fiscal year, compared with 21,100 pounds at the Mexican border. Related Articles National Politics | Trump selects longtime adviser Keith Kellogg as special envoy for Ukraine and Russia National Politics | Trump’s tariffs in his first term did little to alter the economy, but this time could be different National Politics | Trump transition says Cabinet picks, appointees were targeted by bomb threats, swatting attacks National Politics | Southwest states certify election results after the process led to controversy in previous years National Politics | Political stress: Can you stay engaged without sacrificing your mental health? Canadian officials argue their country is not the problem and that tariffs will have severe implications for both countries. Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports are from Canada. Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing in for national security. “Canada is essential to the United States’ domestic energy supply,” Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said. Trump has pledged to cut American energy bills in half within 18 months, something that could be made harder if a 25% premium is added to Canadian oil imports. In 2023, Canadian oil accounted for almost two-thirds of total U.S. oil imports and about one-fifth of the U.S. oil supply. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is holding a emergency virtual meeting on Wednesday with the leaders of Canada’s provinces, who want Trudeau to negotiate a bilateral trade deal with the United States that excludes Mexico. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Wednesday that her administration is already working up a list of possible retaliatory tariffs “if the situation comes to that.”
Subscribe to our newsletter Privacy Policy Success! Your account was created and you’re signed in. Please visit My Account to verify and manage your account. An account was already registered with this email. Please check your inbox for an authentication link. Support Independent Arts Journalism As an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider becoming a member today . Already a member? Sign in here. We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, please join us as a member . A gallery participating in the Scope Art Show in Miami Beach was asked by fair organizers to remove a portrait of Donald Trump, which depicts the Republican president-elect mid-speech with the word “huge” overlaid in neon letters. The Miami-based gallery L Kotler Fine Art said it had been “forced” to remove the piece by artist Shyglo, titled “HUGE” (2016), and is now auctioning the work online instead, where it is listed with an estimate of $15,000 to $30,000. “May the conversation continue,” the gallery said in an Instagram story. A representative for Scope Art Show denied that the work was targeted on the basis of its content, telling Hyperallergic that the gallery is one of at least 40 exhibitors asked to rehang or remove artworks that “weren’t part of their original accepted proposal.” Art galleries are required to submit an application months in advance with a booth presentation proposal including the artworks they plan to show. Get the latest art news, reviews and opinions from Hyperallergic. Daily Weekly Opportunities “SCOPE Art Show is a steadfast champion of freedom of expression and has never asked a gallery to remove a work based on political or personal views in its 23-year history,” the spokesperson said. “L. Kotler Fine Art was asked to remove or rehang multiple works — not only the work in question — because they were not part of their original proposal and not installed according to the specifications given to all galleries.” Lindsay Kotler, the gallery’s owner, told Hyperallergic that Scope had featured works by Shyglo in its last three editions and that she was surprised when the fair’s director approached her booth and asked her to take down the piece on opening day, Tuesday, December 3, in front of visitors. “Most of the art in my booth wasn’t part of my original curation. This was the only one that was singled out and demanded to be removed immediately,” Kotler told Hyperallergic . “The previous piece that was on view was sold. We didn’t want to display something that you can’t acquire, so we switched it out,” Kotler explained. Shyglo’s paintings are typically rendered in a photorealistic style, portraying political leaders and notable figures such as late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, artist Frida Kahlo, and Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour juxtaposed with words like “icon” or “lucky” scrawled in neon cursive lettering. “When I created ‘HUGE’ it was meant to spark conversation, not conflict,” Shyglo told Hyperallergic . “So when we learned the piece was removed from the Scope Art Show, we were shocked. It wasn’t intended to offend; it was meant to engage. To have it silenced felt like a loss of the very purpose of art: inspiring thought, dialogue, and emotion,” the artist said. We hope you enjoyed this article! Before you keep reading, please consider supporting Hyperallergic ’s journalism during a time when independent, critical reporting is increasingly scarce. Unlike many in the art world, we are not beholden to large corporations or billionaires. Our journalism is funded by readers like you , ensuring integrity and independence in our coverage. We strive to offer trustworthy perspectives on everything from art history to contemporary art. We spotlight artist-led social movements, uncover overlooked stories, and challenge established norms to make art more inclusive and accessible. With your support, we can continue to provide global coverage without the elitism often found in art journalism. If you can, please join us as a member today . Millions rely on Hyperallergic for free, reliable information. By becoming a member, you help keep our journalism free, independent, and accessible to all. Thank you for reading. Share Copied to clipboard Mail Bluesky Threads LinkedIn FacebookHyderabad: Chief minister A Revanth Reddy has disclosed that Rs 22,606 crore out of the Rs 72,816 crore was disbursed into the accounts of ineligible persons through Rythu Bandhu scheme for lands not under cultivation during the the BRS government. Speaking in the Legislative Assembly during a Short Discussion on the support scheme for farmers on Saturday, December 21, citing an estimate he said, Rs 22,600 crore had been credited to the lands that were not under cultivation. He said that many of these funds were given to lands associated with mining leases, national highways, granite crushing units, farmhouses, real estate layouts, industries, hilly mounds, and those converted for commercial purposes. “Does the Opposition want us to continue the same mistakes,” CM Revanth asked. CM Revanth claimed that fake pattadar passbooks were issued for podu lands, with non-tribal individuals cultivating those lands, while 70-80% of the land within a 50 km radius of Hyderabad remained uncultivated. “I would prefer to use that money to provide bonuses for all crops and increase input assistance for farmers in the future. Our goal is to reach the poorest individuals in the last mile,” he said. CM Revanth said the government is ready to take constructive and specific suggestions from the Opposition parties on the implementation of the Rythu Bandhu scheme. “The BRS government used to provide Rs 5,000 per acre per season under the ‘Rythu Bandhu’ scheme. The Congress government has deposited Rs 7,625 crores in farmers’ accounts after it assumed office an year ago,” the chief minister said. Discussing the state’s farm loan waiver of Rs 2 lakh, which benefited 25,35,963 farmers with a total of Rs 20,616.89 crore in loans forgiven, he stated that the waiver was implemented as a top priority. CM Revanth emphasized that had it been delayed by five years, the interest on those loans could have escalated to Rs 50,000 crore. “For them (Opposition), everything is transactional for give and take, but for us farm loan waiver is an emotion. We wanted to save the farmers from that interest which increased multi-fold,” he said. CM Revanth highlighted that during the “one family” rule over 9.5 years, the state accumulated debts totalling Rs 6,40,000 crore. “As of December 7, 2023, the total outstanding loans, including guaranteed and non-guaranteed debts and unpaid bills, amounted to Rs 7,11,911 crore,” he said. CM Revanth noted that these loans were taken at an interest rate of 11.5 percent, while the BRS government had reduced the state’s liability by securing loans with interest rates as low as 5 percent, 25 percent, or 50 percent, with the rest to be paid by the public. He said that the BRS government had not only reported these deflated numbers to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) but its leaders were now showing the same numbers to misguide the House. CPI secretary and Kothagudem MLA Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao stated that 45 lakh acres of the 1,60,000 acres of cultivable land in Telangana are uncultivated but still receive Rythu Bandhu benefits. He suggested extending Rythu Bharosa assistance to farmers with up to 15 acres of land, as only 7 lakh acres fall under the category of farmers owning more than 15 acres. He also urged the state government to implement the MS Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations on minimum support price (MSP) and extend Rythu Bharosa to tenant farmers by providing them loan eligibility cards. Regarding farmer suicides, he pointed out that NCRB data shows 7,000 farmer suicides in Telangana over the last 10 years, with an average of 640 suicides per year. He also requested the state government to implement the Koneru Ranga Rao Commission’s recommendations for tenant farmers. Sambasiva Rao recalled that government subsidies for horticulture, micro-irrigation, loan interest, and various inputs had been discontinued. In 2009, subsidies for agriculture were Rs 1,19,000 crore, but now they are only Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 crore. He compared this to Japan’s 90 percent, the US’s 80 percent, Colombia’s 61 percent, and China’s 37 percent spending on agricultural subsidies, while India spends just 3 percent. State agriculture minister Thummala Nageswara Rao assured that the state government would disburse the Rythu Bharosa amount after Sankranthi and that Rs 1,100 crore has been deposited as a premium for Rythu Bima. He also promised that crop insurance would be implemented before the next kharif season.
New Delhi: The Congress will hold protest marches against Union Home Minister Amit Shah for “insulting” BR Ambedkar and observe a weeklong campaign on the issue, party leaders said on Saturday. As part of the “Ambedkar Samman Saptah”, Congress workers and leaders will hold marches and press conferences to remember the legacy of B R Ambedkar, they said. The Congress and the BJP are at loggerheads over Shah’s remarks on Ambedkar during a debate in Parliament. AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said party MPs and leaders will hold press conferences at 150 locations across the country on December 22 and 23 and workers will take out protest marches across the country on December 24. The Congress has also decided to hold a CWC meeting on December 26 in Belagavi, Karnataka to mark 100 years of the 1924 Indian National Congress session, presided over by Mahatma Gandhi. The party will then hold a rally in Belagavi on December 27. “Our agitation demanding Home Minister Amit Shah’s resignation will continue! We will fight to protect Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s legacy against the Manusmriti worshippers,” Venugopal said in a post on X. The INC will mark the upcoming week as Dr Ambedkar Samman Saptah, he said. “On 24 December, all across the country, we will hold Babasaheb Ambedkar Samman Marches and submit a memorandum to the president of India through District Collectors demanding Amit Shah’s resignation. “All INC workers will garland Babsaheb’s statue, hold his giant portrait at the front of the march and carry huge placards with our key demands,” the Congress leader said. “On 26-27 December, we will hold an extended CWC session and a mega rally in Belagavi where we will reiterate our commitment to Dr. Ambedkar and his ideals. Jai Bhim! Jai Hind!” Venugopal said in his post. Later addressing a press conference, All India Congress Media and Publicity department head Pawan Khera said, “The attack (against Ambedkar) came from none other than the home minister of India, the second most powerful man in this country, Mr. Amit Shah. He is unrepentant. The prime minister is unrepentant.” “We have demanded his resignation and this demand will be reiterated in these 150 press conferences across the country,” Khera said. Criticising their “continued defence” of Shah’s comments, Khera said it is a “blatant insult to Dr. Ambedkar’s legacy”. On December 24, he said, in every district headquarter, there will be a Babasaheb Ambedkar Samman march that will be carried out by Congress leaders and workers. “Again, we will reiterate our demand, we will give a memorandum through the collector to the President of India and we will be garlanding the statues of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Ji in every district headquarter,” he said. He noted that to mark 100 years of Mahatma Gandhi’s presidency at the Belagavi Congress Session in 1924, the party will hold an extended CWC meeting on December 26, followed by a large rally on December 27 in Belagavi. Khera emphasised that Mahatma Gandhi ji’s leadership transformed the freedom movement by introducing powerful ideas like ‘Swaraj’ and ‘Satyagraha,’ which became central to India’s independence struggle. During a debate on the Constitution in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, Shah had said, “Abhi ek fashion ho gaya hai – Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar. Itna naam agar Bhagwan ka lete to saat janmon tak swarg mil jata (It has become a fashion to say Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar. If they had taken God’s name so many times, they would have attained heaven for seven lifetimes).” On Wednesday, Shah held a press conference in which he accused the Congress of twisting facts and distorting his comments in the Rajya Sabha. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessed constant protests from treasury benches and opposition members over the alleged insult of Ambedkar until both the houses were adjourned sine die on Friday.
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