News Analysis India

Tag: Patna

  • Nine die, three rescued after jeep falls off bridge into Ganga in Patna

    Express News Service
    PATNA: Nine people including three women died and three others were rescued when a jeep carrying them fell into the river Ganga from a pontoon bridge in Danapur diara area of Patna on Friday.

    The deceased were returning after attending a wedding function and were residents of Bhojpur and Saran districts. Upon being informed, the Patna district administration engaged trained divers of the SDRF to fish out the bodies. According to official sources, nine bodies including that of a 12-year-old minor and 75-year-old woman were recovered by the SDRF and the NDRF teams. The Patliputra MP Ram Kripal Yadav of the BJP reached the site after being informed about the tragedy. Officials said the driver of the jeep lost control of the vehicle. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh to the next of kin of all the deceased. Meanwhile, the state government ordered an inquiry into the accident by a three-member team of the district administration.

  • Patna Diary

    Express News Service
    CM flags off electric bus services in state capitalPromoting eco-friendly transportation, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar flagged off 12 electric buses in Patna recently, besides launching 70 deluxe and semi-deluxe buses to different destinations from the state capital. The chief Minister said a total of 25 electric buses would start operations from this month. Transport Secretary Sanjay K Aggarwal said all the newly launched electric buses are equipped with CCTV cameras, panic buttons, GPS system and other security facilities. “Also, certain seats are reserved for women and girls in the electric buses,” the Transport Secretary said. 

    10-day Silk India exhibition commencesWith the advent of festivals, the Silk India Art and Craft has organised a 10-day Silk India Exhibition at Patna with an aim to provide a wide range of saris, suited to various events like wedding ceremonies and family events.

    Manas Acharya, managing director of Silk India Art and Craft, said silk saris from 15 states are on display. The event started on March 5 and will continue till March 14. Silk saris from Coimbatore and Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu, Bengaluru silk, Crepe and Georgette sarees from Karnataka, raw silk material, Kalamkari from Andhra, pure silk sari from Bihar and other states have been exhibited. Tabi silk, Pashimana shawl, Chinan silk from J&K, Jaipuri Kuti, block prints, Sanganeri prints, Kota Doria from UP, Shanti Niketan Kantha sarees from Bengal are the other attractions.

    Alertness on part of cops a must for women safetyThe director general of Bihar Home Guards, Shobha Ohatkar said alertness and promptness of police in responding to distress calls from women is one of the effective ways to ensure safety to women. Speaking as chief guest after inaugurating a five-day workshop on women safety at the police headquarter, Ohatkar dwelt upon various measures related to women safety in Bihar. The workshop has been organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Police Research and Develo-pment Bureau of New Delhi.

    Self defence lessons for minority community girlsIn an initiative aimed at empowering girls, Kishanganj police superintendent Kumar Ashish organised a self-defence training session for 800 girls from the minority community in the district. Organised at the Tauhid Educational Trust-run school, Kishanganj’s specialised wing of women police personnel imparted training to the girls on self defence and made them aware about PINK patrolling also. The Kishanganj police superintendent, known for his creative policing methods, said that the specialised women force of district police are deployed exclusively for protection of girls and women. 

  • After being declared ‘open defecation free’ city, Patna now aims for ‘garbage free’ status

    Express News Service
    PATNA: After years of efforts, Patna is now decalred ‘Open Defecation Free’ (ODF). With this distinction achieved, the Patna Municipal Corporation has taken up another task — to make the capital ‘Garbage free.’

    “Being declared ODF is a great achievement for Patna. The Government of India has given ODF certificate declaring Patna Municipal Corporation area as “ODF Plus” with effect from December 2020,” a senior officer said.

    To achieve ‘garbage free’ city status. Patna administrator Himanshu Sharma has held many rounds of meetings with other officials of the corporations and discussed strategies on how to achieve this. 

    It is believed that if efforts continue, Patna will at least get the “3 Star City” certificate after proper waste management and garbage disposal efforts.

    According to the criteria set for Swachh Survekshan 2021, ODF Plus cities get 300 marks and “3- Star” cities are given additional 600 marks. 

    Under the Swachh Survekshan 2021, a total of 1,800 points are prescribed in various categories for certification. It is known that under Swachh Survekshan 2021, it is mandatory for cities to apply for star rating by 28 January.

    Spokesperson of Patna Municipal Corporation, Harshita, told The New Indian Express that efforts are being taken to make Patna ‘Garbage Free City’ by this year.

    “Under the garbage free certification, cities are awarded either 1-STARor 3-star or 5 star or 7 –star depending upon the cleanliness and works quantum. The PMC is working to claim for 3-star status as it fulfils all the mandatory provisions laid for the Garbage Free City”, Harshita said.

    Meanwhile, she said that the Patna Municipal Commissioner Himanshu Sharma has made an appeal to the citizens to avoid dumping garbage in improper places.

    In Patna, there are 200 modular toilets and more than 80 public and community toilets. Nearly 500 people carry out the sanitation work across the city.

    She said that adequate number of toilet facilities have been provided by the Patna Municipal Corporation, other government agencies and commercial establishments throughout the city. 

    “One can get information about the nearest toilet easily through the Google toilet locator”, she claimed.

    She said that both manual and mechanised sweeping are daily carried out across the city in addition to road washing exercises.