2019 polls: Shatrughan Sinha keeps all sides guessing

Agencies
December 23, 2018

Patna, Dec 23: Amid speculation that he may be denied a BJP ticket for Lok Sabha polls and join the RJD, actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha has kept all sides guessing by saying that people should instead speculate whether he would contest on a BJP ticket or not.

Sinha, who has represented his native Patna Sahib as a BJP MP for two consecutive terms, said his remarks on various issues which have not been liked by some party leaders, were meant to "show the mirror" to the BJP and cannot be termed as "anti-party."

"Instead of guessing whether they (BJP leaders) will give me the ticket or not speculation should be whether I will take the ticket or not," Sinha told PTI.

The actor-turned BJP leader met jailed RJD president Lalu Prasad in Ranchi on Saturday.

Though he said the meeting with Prasad at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences was personal, the timing of the meeting assumes significance.

Speculation is rife that Sinha, whose attack on his party has sharpened in recent times, may enter into fray from Patna Sahib from Prasad's party if he is denied a BJP ticket for the Lok Sabha polls.

Sinha, popularly known as "Bihari Babu", has on several occasions made it clear that the "place (constituency) will be the same, even if the situation changes."

He said loss of power in three states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh is enough to show that the situation is not good in the NDA.

"Many people have left, some others are preparing to leave and others driving tough negotiations...all said and done the party's popularity and that of one leader and two-men Army have taken a beating," he said.

He was alluding to Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief and former Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi and RLSP leader Upendra Kushwaha leaving NDA and LJP of Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan bargaining hard with a "weakened" BJP.

The actor-politician, who served as a Cabinet minister in the NDA ministry of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and was a star campaigner for BJP for a long time before falling out with the current leadership after being ignored in the 2015 Bihar Assembly polls, has been critical of the party functioning, alleging all power is vested in one leader (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) and two-men Army (Modi and BJP president Amit Shah).

Maintaining that the "writing is on the wall", the BJP leader said, "There is still some time and some hope left if party veterans like L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Arun Shourie are brought at the front."

On his remarks on GST, demonetisation and the party functioning often putting the BJP in an embarrassing situation, Sinha said he had been manifesting peoples' voice and not asking for any personal favour for himself.

Besides meeting Prasad and praising his younger son Tejashwi Yadav as "Bihar's face" and "its future", the BJP leader has been frequently seen sharing the dais with former union ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie and at functions of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) much to the discomfort of partymen.

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Agencies
January 5,2020

Bikaner, Jan 5: A government-run hospital in Bikaner saw the death of at least 162 children, higher than the number of deaths in Kota's JK Lon Hospital in December.

"In December, we received 2,219 children from different hospitals out of which 162 children died in the Intensive Care Unit here. None of them was born at the hospital," said Dr HS Kumar, Principal, Sardar Patel Medical College, PBM Hospital.

He, however, denied any negligence on the part of the hospital and said that all efforts were made to save every single life.

The official said that all the deceased children had taken birth at the Primary Healthcare Centres (PHC) and the Community Health Centres (CHC) and were referred to the PBM Hospital in a critical condition.

"Their condition was critical and they breathed their last during treatment," he said.

At least 110 children have lost their lives at JK Lon government hospital in Kota, Rajasthan.

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News Network
May 15,2020

Vishakhapatnam, May 15: LG Chem on Thursday said following the gas leak at its Visakhapatnam polymers plant, the company has started support measures and has begun the transportation of the Styrene Monomer inventory to South Korea to eliminate all risks factors.

The company would continue to work with government agencies to ensure all possible support for bereaved families and victims, LG Polymers, a step-down firm of LG Chem, said in a statement.

"We confirm the status-quo of the plant remains completely controlled by all measures. We have begun the transportation of the Styrene Monomer (SM) inventory within the plant as well as in the styrene tanks at the port by vessels to South Korea to prevent and eliminate all risks factors," the statement said.

The South Korean chemicals giant has sent an eight-member team from Seoul to investigate the Visakhapatnam gas leak incident and rehabilitate the victims of the tragedy that killed at least 11 people and forced the evacuation of thousands.

"The team of production, environment, and safety experts are currently investigating the cause of the incident and already supporting responsible rehabilitation which is their main objective," the statement said.

Furthermore, the team is working closely with related authorities to analyze the cause of the incident, prevent a recurrence, and support damage recovery in a prompt and expedient manner, it added.

On the support measures, the company said a special task force is currently supporting the bereaved victims and families and visiting them at the hospitals and their homes.

Besides, food and medical services have been organized for the returning residents. Various support activities such as supplying medical and household goods and sanitation of homes will be continued, it said.

"We assure everyone we will do our best to resolve the situation and prevent any incident in the future," the company said.

The company further said that "our teams will carry out mid-to-long-term Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects that can contribute to the local community based on suggestions of the residents.

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News Network
April 22,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 22: Eleven more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Kerala with totalpositive cases in the State touching 437on Wednesday.

Two house surgeonsof the Kozhikode Medical college are among those who have tested positive for the virus.

The two had travelled outside the state,Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters.

Kannur reported seven cases, Kozhikode two, while one case each was reported from the districts of Kottayam and Malappuram.

Only one person tested negative.

The state has 127 active cases and 29,000 people are under observation, including 346 in hospitals.

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