Relief for emperor’s descendent in government hands

October 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Indian Railways Wednesday said it would transport for free relief material to flood ravaged places in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The railway minister (Mamata Banerjee) has taken this major humanitarian gesture as a special case with a view to facilitate movement of relief material to flood affected areas for the benefit of millions of people marooned by the recent floods in these two states, the Indian Railways said in a statement.

July 28th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Delhiites, hit by a sudden rise in prices of pulses, can heave a sigh of relief with Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit Tuesday launching 80 retail outlets across the capital where pulses will be sold at subsidised rates. Dikshit said Chana Dal in 1 kg packet would be available at Rs.34, Moong Dhuli at Rs.58, Urad Dhuli at Rs.49 and Arhar at Rs.75 against the market prices of Rs.36, Rs.68, Rs.65 and Rs.83 respectively.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government Monday came to the rescue of a recession-hit media by extending the hike in government advertisement rates for print media by another six months. Since the print media is still reeling under recession, the government has decided to extend the hike in advertisement rates by another six months, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said Monday while presenting the budget for fiscal 2009-10.

July 1st, 2009 KOLKATA - State-run Coal India Ltd (CIL) has decided to offer employment to Madhu, the poverty-stricken fifth generation descendent of India's last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar. Madhu, 33, is the daughter of Sultana Begum and the late Muhammad Bedar Bakht, the great grandson of Bahadur Shah Zafar.

June 14th, 2009 KOLKATA - The West Bengal Government has convened a second round of an all-party meeting in Kolkata on Sunday evening over cyclone relief issue. The meet to be presided over the Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee is meant to expedite relief and restoration works in Aila-hit districts in the state.

June 7th, 2009 KOLKATA - The West Bengal government Sunday conceded that there were inadequacies in reaching relief to remote areas devastated by Cyclone Aila and said it was considering stepping up efforts to improve the delivery system. Briefing newspersons after a nearly two-hour all-party meeting, boycotted by main opposition Trinamool Congress, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said the parleys were "successful".

June 6th, 2009 KOLKATA - The Congress will attend the all-party meeting convened by West Bengal's Left Front (LF) government Sunday to chart out a course of action for relief and rescue operations in the cyclone-hit districts including the Sundarbans. "We'll participate in the all-party meeting and provide constructive suggestions to the government.

June 6th, 2009 KOLKATA - The Trinamool Congress will not attend an all-party meeting on Sunday to exchange views and seek suggestions for expediting relief in the cyclone-affected areas. Sudip Bandopadhyay, TMC aspirant in Kolkata (North), said, "It is a desperate attempt to put a government seal on the efforts to get Central funds for the cyclone victims when the state has miserably failed to arrange relief and rehabilitation." The meeting has been called by State Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

June 2nd, 2009 KOLKATA - West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Tuesday visited cyclone relief camps at Sarberia in North 24 Parganas district. Assuring that the government will provide money to rebuild their houses, he said, "The government will provide the money to rebuild your houses." Bhattacharjee, who talked to people who have taken shelter in the relief camp, demanded that they be provided permanent shelter so that they do not become refugees after every flood.

June 2nd, 2009 KOLKATA - Paying a visit to the cyclone-ravaged areas of coastal West Bengal, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Tuesday proposed that residents of various islands in the Sundarbans help rebuild the embankments damaged by Cyclone Aila. They would be paid for the work they do, he said.

June 2nd, 2009 KOLKATA - West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was heckled and jeered by the disgruntled survivors of Cyclone Aila Tuesday when he visited a relief camp in Sunderbans, while a ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) legislator was smeared with mud. Venting their anger after the devastating cyclone caused death and destruction last month, villagers at a relief camp asked the chief minister why the state government had failed to build concrete embankments in Sundarbans despite being in power for more than past three decades.

May 31st, 2009 KOLKATA - The Indian Air Force helicopters wound-up all the rescue and relief operations in West Bengal on Sunday, which were being carried out in the state since May 26 in the wake of devastation caused by Aila cyclone in the state. IAF had pressed two Mi-17 helicopters into service from the Eastern Air Command airbases to undertake all the relief and rescue work.

May 30th, 2009 KOLKATA - The central government will send relief material for West Bengal's cyclone victims, as also a team to assess the extent of devastation, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said Saturday. Speaking to a Bengali television news channel in New Delhi, Banerjee said the decision was taken at a meeting of the union cabinet Saturday.

May 26th, 2009 KOLKATA - West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Tuesday visited cyclone relief camps in Nimpith in South 24 Parganas, the area worst hit by 'Cyclone Alia'. Bhattacharjee talked to people who have taken shelter in the relief camp.

December 28th, 2008 PATNA - The flood-hit victims of Bihar Monday blocked roads and railway lines to protest against the inadequate assistance provided by the state government to them. Thousands of victims from the districts of Saharsa, Madhepura and Supaul disrupted normal life at different places.