Planning Commission splurges Rs 35 lakh to upgrade 2 toilets

June 6, 2012

ToiletNew Delhi, June 6: The Yojana Bhavan toilets are causing a stink of a different kind. The Planning Commission, which estimated a poverty line figure of Rs 28 per day per person, lavished Rs 35 lakh on refurbishing two toilets in its headquarters.

For good measure, the commission has admitted in an RTI response, it has spent Rs 5.19 lakh in installing an access control system in the toilets. The facility, installed while the toilets were renovated recently, is aimed at limiting access to only those people who had smart cards.

According to data given to RTI activist SC Agrawal, 60 smart cards were issued to Plan panel officials.

The commission had also decided to install CCTV cameras in the corridors leading to these toilets as the officials said there were instances of pilferage in the washrooms. Estimates have been sought from the CPWD.

The disclosure comes on the back of reports that Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia had spent over Rs 2 lakh per day on foreign travel between May and October 2011. Another report said that he undertook 42 official trips aggregating 274 days between June 2004 and January 2011 at a cost of Rs 2.34 crore.

Refuting the inferences drawn, Ahluwalia had said that foreign travels are needed for discharge of official duties.

In its response, the Plan panel has said the system in the toilets is still to be made operational. However, sources said that the door access system was disabled within hours of the toilets being declared fit for use after protests from people working on the floor.

A note from the commission officials proposing the upgrade of toilets last year shows that the two toilets to be renovated as a pilot project and after execution of the work, decision on renovation of other washrooms would be taken.

Times View

At a time when the government is ostensibly in the midst of an austerity drive, it seems unacceptably extravagant for Rs 35 lakh to be spent on a couple of toilets. What adds to the irony is the fact that it the same Planning Commission that informs us that it is possible for Indians to survive on sums as measly as less than Rs 32 a day.

Surely it cannot fail to see how absurd the situation is. If the government advocates belt tightening, examples must be set at the very top of the hierarchy. Such examples of splurging rob its message of any meaning.



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Agencies
June 7,2020

Lucknow, Jun 7: From Anamika Shukla to Anamika Singh and finally Priya. The primary school teacher who was found to be teaching simultaneously in 25 schools, not only has multiple jobs but also multiple identities.

Anamika was arrested on Saturday from Kasganj district when she went to submit her resignation after she was served a show cause notice by the Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA), Anjali Agarwal.

Agarwal informed the police and Anamika was arrested.

According to the Kasganj BSA, Anamika Shukla, originally a resident of Kaimganj in Farukhabad is currently doing her B.Ed from the Raghukul Degree College in Gonda. Her other documents are also from the same college.

During interrogation, Anamika Shukla said that she was actually Anamika Singh but as questioning proceeded, it turned out that she was Priya from Farrukhabad.

She has been booked for cheating and forgery under IPC sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (forgery of valuable security, will etc.) and 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating).

According to the police, the woman claimed that she had paid Rs five lakh to a Mainpuri-based man to get this job.

She used Anamika Shukla's credentials to get the job while her real name is Priya, daughter of Mahipal, a resident of the Lakhanpur village of the Kayamganj police circle in Farrukhabad district.

Soron station house officer (SHO) Ripudaman Singh said, "During interrogation, the accused initially claimed to be Anamika Singh, daughter of Subhas Singh. However, her documents are in the name of Anamika Shukla, daughter of Subhas Chandra Shukla."

The accused claimed that she paid the hefty amount to Raj, a Mainpuri-based man for the job and was posted in Faridpur Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) since August 2018.

The police are now trying to zero in on the man who got her the job.

The police also believe that it could be possible that multiple candidates used credentials and 'eligibility' of Anamika Shukla - the real one still remains elusive.

According to the Uttar Pradesh government, five more Anamika Shuklas have been found working in KGBVs in Ambedkar Nagar, Baghpat, Aligarh, Saharanpur and Prayagraj districts. She has reportedly drawn a combined salary of Rs one crore in the past one year.

Teachers in KGBV, a residential setup for girls from weaker sections of the society, are appointed on contract and are paid approximately Rs 30,000 per month. Each block in a district has one Kasturba Gandhi school.

Basic Education Minister Satish Dwivedi said that the incident was 'shocking' and the police would unravel the entire racket in the case. "No officer, employee who connived with this teacher in providing her job at KGBV and subsequently hiding it, will be spared," he said.

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Agencies
February 6,2020

Akhil Bhartiya Hindu Mahasabha President Ranjit Bachchan was shot dead on Sunday because of an extra-marital relationship of his second wife.

Lucknow Police Commissioner Sujit Pandey said at a press conference here on Thursday that Ranjit Bachchan's second wife Smriti Srivastava, her paramour Dipendra and driver Sanjit Gautam have been arrested in connection with the case. All three were held on Thursday, while the shooter -- Jitendra -- is yet to be arrested.

Pandey said that Smriti wanted a divorce from Ranjit Bachchan and their case was pending in the family court since 2016. While she was keen to marry Dipendra, Ranjit Bachchan was unwilling to leave her.

"On January 17, Ranjit had met Smriti and even slapped her, which became the provocation for the murder," he said.

The Police Commissioner said that during investigation, the police had probed all possible angles, including a terror angle.

"We found there were no financial disputes, no property disputes and no terror angle to the case. It emerged that Smriti had an affair with Dipendra and wanted to leave Ranjit Bachchan, who had four criminal cases against him. Through technical and electronic surveillance, we found the connection between Smriti, Dipendra, driver Sanjit and the shooter Jitendra," he said.

Ranjeet Bachchan, 40, who had founded the Vishwa Hindu Mahasabha, was shot in the head on Sunday morning while his brother Aditya Srivastava was injured in the attack by the assailant who also snatched their mobile phones.

The attacker had covered himself in a shawl and was on foot. The police had released CCTV footages showing a suspect and announced a cash reward of Rs 50,000 for providing information.

Four police personnel, including a sub-inspector, were suspended for alleged laxity and a case was registered at the Hazratganj po

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News Network
July 19,2020

Thane, Jul 19: A 34-year-old man was arrested on Saturday for allegedly killing his wife after picking up a fight as he did not like the food she cooked, Thane police said.

Sachin Godane, a resident of Gaikwad Pada in Ambernath, locked his two children and an aunt in one room of the house on Friday afternoon and brutally beat up his wife Chandrakala (28) with a log and then strangled her, said Assistant Inspector JB Bhoyer of Shivajinagar police station.

Godane has been remanded in police custody for four days, he added. 

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