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| EYE on INDIA |
aMarinder Singh iSSueS neW lOckdOWn ruleS
AUGUST 21, 2020 | The Indian Eye Rajasthan
BJp SeekS explanatiOn MiSSing MlaS
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Punjab has ordered a daily night curfew - from 7 PM to 5 AM, starting Friday - and a weekend lockdown in all 167 cities and towns in the state, as part of a strict response to the worrying surge in Covid cases.
The emergency measures, which will be in place till August 31, include restrictions on pub- lic and private transport, a ban on public gatherings (except for weddings and funerals) and clos- ing of 50 per cent of shops, in the five worst-affected districts, sell- ing non-essential goods.
Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, making the announce- ment on Thursday evening, called for “war-like prepared- ness” to deal with the spike in coronavirus cases.
“Enough is enough. We need to be tough without affecting the state’s economy,” the Chief Minister said today, adding that each of the more than 900 Covid-linked deaths in the state “pains me”.
The measures were an- nounced after a serological sur- vey of the five worst-hit districts - Aitsar, Ludhiana, SAS Nagar, Patiala and Jalandhar. Conduct- ed between August 1 and 17, the survey revealed that 27.7 per cent of all people in containment zones in these districts had been exposed to the virus. “The pro- jections for the coming weeks are grim,” the Chief Minister said, asserting the state was in an “emergency health situation that necessitated harsh measures”.
The Rajasthan unit of the BJP on Thursday sought an explanation from four MLAs, who were absent during the trust vote in the assembly on Friday last despite a whip. The MLAs were called to Jaipur to give their explanation. Leader of opposition, Gulab Chand Ka- taria, said the whip was issued to the party MLAs asking them to remain present during the ses- sion but the four left the assem- bly after the House adjourned after obituary reference.
The House reassembled at 1 pm but the MLAs, Gopi Chand Meena, Kailash Meena, Haren- dra Ninama and Gotham Mee- na, were absent. The Ashok Ge- hlot government had moved a motion of confidence on Friday
and if the BJP had demanded a division on the motion, only 68 from the BJP would have voted instead of 73 and the party could have faced embarrassment.
“i have spoken to the Mlas and the party’s state pres- ident too will talk to them. We will match their explana- tion with our feedback and an appropriate action will be taken,” kataria told re- porters. the motion of con- fidence was passed by voice vote on friday.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram today ac- cused the BJP-led govern- ment at the Centre of shielding the PM-CARES Fund from any kind of scrutiny. Chidambaram raised several questions on the setting up of the fund. “It is abun- dantly clear that the BJP govern- ment is making desperate efforts to shield PM-CARES Fund from any kind of scrutiny,” he claimed.
“It is abundantly clear that the BJP government is making desperate efforts to shield PM-
CARES Fund from any kind of scrutiny,” he claimed.
His comments come after the Supreme court refused to
direct the Centre to transfer the contributions made to the PM- CARES Fund for battling the COVID-19 pandemic to the Na- tional Disaster Response Fund. “Was the Fund set up by the cen- tral government as concluded by the Ministry of Corporate Af- fairs? If not, who set up the Fund and in what capacity?” he asked in a series of tweets.
“If the Fund was not set up by the central government, why are the PM and three Ministers serv- ing as Trustees? Who appointed
them as Trustees?” the senior Congress leader asked. “If the Fund is a private established fund, why are donations to the Fund counted against CSR? Will donations to other privately-es- tablished funds be also counted against CSR,” he tweeted.
The former union minister asked who authorized the Minis- try of Corporate Affairs to make a retrospective amendment to the Schedule to the Companies Act inserting the name of PM- CARES Fund in the Schedule.
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