News Analysis India

Tag: Shivraj Singh Chouhan

  • Bypoll take aways: BJP CMs in focus after MP victory, Himachal rout

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  BJP’s by-election victories in Madhya Pradesh may give breather to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, while closer scrutiny is likely on his Himachal Pradesh counterpart Jairam Thakur as the party put up a poor show in the Himalayan state.

    Both Chouhan and Thakur for a while have been seen as prospective candidates in the saffron party’s leadership reset agenda.

    The ruling party is likely to review the bypolls performance in its national executive meeting on November 7. The campaign responsibilities for the bypolls were left on the local leadership, with the larger narrative shaped around the milestone of 100 crore Covid-19 vaccinations.

    Chouhan, who had made multiple visits to Dehli, which also included a meeting with PM Modi, was being widely speculated in the BJP circles of being a candidate for change in the leadership as the ruling party is seeking to project a younger leadership. 

    “Chouhan has proven that his popularity remains intact in Madhya Pradesh as he carried out a whirlwind campaigning. The Congress’ loss of support base after the exit of Jyotiraditya Scindia continues to give advantage to the BJP in the state. It will be hard for the BJP leadership to change the chief minister as there is no credible alternative in the state unit of the party,” said a senior BJP functionary, who added that Chouhan continued to focus on welfare schemes to win popular support.  

    In contrast, Himachal Chief Minister Jairam Thakur is likely to be in a spot after the BJP’s rout in the by-elections, which also included losing the Mandi Lok Sabha constituency to the Congress. 

    The BJP national leadership is learnt to have taken note of the infighting in the ranks of the party in the hilly state which will go to Assembly election later next year.

    Thakur, incidentally, was summoned to the national capital in the run up to the by-elections amid assessment that the outcome of the elections will set the tone for the Assembly battle next year. 

  • Shivraj strengthens his stamp over Kamal Nath

    Express News Service

    BHOPAL:  In what was billed as the battle of heavyweights, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan  outsmarted Leader of Opposition Kamal Nath as the ruling BJP outperformed the Congress in Madhya Pradesh. Chouhan came all out in the campaign trail. In contrast, Nath not only joined the campaign trail late, but also largely confined himself to addressing lesser rallies.

    While Chouhan addressed 39 rallies between September 29 and October 27 (maximum 8 in Prithvipur assembly seat, Nath addressed merely 13 rallies between October 12 and October 17.  Not only did 74-year-old Kamal Nath hit the campaign trail nearly two weeks after 62-year-old Chouhan did, but also addressed 26 less meetings than the present CM.

    And that wasn’t all, as Nath just stood confined to addressing a few rallies, while Chouhan followed the rallies with night halts at the houses of BJP workers at five places. “These polls have once again established that the CM is the most charismatic BJP leader in the state. His night halt in Jobat-ST seat, which has been a Congress citadel, played a seminal role in boosting BJP’s chances.

    The night halt was followed by early morning chaupal with tribals, which not only boosted BJP prospects among tribals, but also compelled the BJP workers to shelve their anger over fielding of imported candidate (Sulochana Rawat) instead of a core BJP candidate and work unitedly for the party’s success,” said Chandrabhan Singh Bhadauria, a senior journalist who extensively covered the Jobat-ST by-poll.Another Congress Digvijaya Singh too suffered major jolt due to the loss in Khandwa Lok Sabha and Jobat-ST seat, where electioneering was largely supervised by him.

  • Big win for Shivraj Singh Chouhan as BJP trounces Congress 3-1 in Madhya Pradesh bypolls

    By Express News Service

    BHOPAL: In what was seen as Shivraj Vs Kamal Nath battle, the Madhya Pradesh chief minister has outsmarted the Leader of Opposition.

    The CM, who is undoubtedly BJP’s most popular face in the state after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned to the full against Nath, who not only joined the campaign trail late, but also largely remained confined to addressing lesser rallies than Chouhan.

    While Chouhan addressed 39 rallies between September 29 and October 27 (maximum 8 in Prithvipur assembly seat and minimum five in Jobat-ST assembly seat, besides 17 rallies in eight assembly segments of Khandwa Lok Sabha constituency), Kamal Nath addressed merely 13 rallies between October 12 and October 17. 

    Not only did 74-year-old Kamal Nath hit the campaign trail nearly two weeks after 62-year-old Chouhan did, but also addressed 26 fewer meetings than the present CM.

    And that wasn’t all. As Kamal Nath just stood confined to addressing a few rallies, Chouhan followed the rallies with night halts at the houses of BJP workers at five places in the by-poll bound assembly and parliamentary constituencies.

    ROUNDUP | BJP consolidates in Assam, MP; Congress wrests seats from it in four states; TMC reigns in Bengal

    “These polls have once again established that the CM is the most charismatic BJP leader in the state. His night halt in Jobat-ST seat, which has since decades been a Congress citadel, played a seminal role in boosting BJP’s chances. The night halt was followed by early morning chaupal with tribals, which not only boosted BJP prospects among tribals but also compelled the BJP workers to shelve their anger over the fielding of imported candidate (ex-Congress MLA Sulochana Rawat) instead of a core BJP candidate and work unitedly for the party’s success. On the other hand, Nath remained more in the air and less on the ground, sticking largely to the virtual world of Twitter,” said Chandrabhan Singh Bhadauria, a senior journalist, who extensively covered the Jobat-ST by-poll.

    Even in the Raigaon-SC seat of Satna district (a BJP citadel) which was the lone seat won by the Congress, the CM had started working on ground zero, even before the by-polls were announced. “It was largely due to faulty candidate selection which led to internal differences within the local party organisation and the absence of a BSP candidate that helped the Congress candidate win the by-election. There was no decline in the CM’s popularity anywhere in the constituency. Had the CM not toured the constituency proactively, the BJP candidate would have lost by much bigger than the present 12,000-plus votes margin,” Satna district-based political commentator Vishnukant Tripathi said.

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    Not only was ex-CM Kamal Nath outclassed by Shivraj Singh Chouhan, but another Congress stalwart and ex-CM Digvijaya Singh too suffered major jolt due to the loss in Khandwa Lok Sabha and Jobat-ST seat, where electioneering was largely supervised by him. Particularly in the Khandwa Lok Sabha seat, the former MLA Raj Narayan Singh Purni was given the Congress ticket due to proximity to Singh only.

    The 3-1 by-poll win not only ended up becoming a shot in the arm for Chouhan (ending speculations about his replacement as CM), but also once again brought to the fore organisational capabilities and poll winning strategies of young state BJP president VD Sharma. “Though he came under heavy criticism over outsiders Sulochana Rawat (who won from Jobat-ST) and Shishupal Yadav (who won from Prithvipur) being fielded as BJP candidates instead of core BJP leaders, but his micro-level planning ensured the party’s triumph on three of the four seats,” said political journalist Chandrabhan Singh Bhaduaria.

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    The loss of three out of four seats (two of which were won by Congress in 2018 polls) also once exposed the hollowness of the tall claims of the Congress party of being united in the by-polls. In Khandwa, fielding Raj Narayan Singh Purni instead of ex-MP and former union minister Arun Yadav, was seen to have largely prompted first-time Congress MLA Sachin Birla to switch to BJP just six days before the by-poll. Importantly, it was Birla’s Barwaha assembly segment (one of the eight seats making the Khandwa LS seat) from where the BJP led by maximum margin.

    In Jobat assembly seat, the Congress being a divided house became official, after the loser Congress candidate Mahesh Patel blamed some senior Congress leaders for the defeat. “Some Congress leaders have contributed to the party’s defeat, I’ll submit a report about it to state party chief Kamal Nath,” Patel said.        

    Results:

    Khandwa Lok Sabha seat: BJP’s Gyaneshwar Patil defeated Congress’s Raj Narayan Singh Purni by 82,140 votes (2019 LS polls: Congress won by 2.73 lakh plus votes)
    Jobat-ST assembly seat: BJP’s Sulochana Rawat defeated Congress’s Mahesh Patel by 6,104 votes. (2018 polls: Congress won by 2,056 votes)
    Prithvipur assembly seat: BJP’s Shishupal Yadav defeated Congress’s Nitendra Singh Rathore by 15,687 votes. (2018 polls: Congress defeated SP by 7620 votes)
    Raigaon-SC assembly seat: Congress’s Kalpana Verma defeated BJP’s Pratima Bagri by 12,290 votes (2018 polls: Cong won by 17,421 votes)

  • MP Foundation Day: CM announces twin schemes for solar power production on local bodies level

    By Express News Service

    BHOPAL: Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced two new schemes on the 66th Foundation Day of Madhya Pradesh, which was celebrated as Madhya Pradesh Utsav with the guiding theme of Atmanirbhar MP on Monday. 

    The two new schemes, included Kusum Yojana, under which cooperation will be provided to the local bodies for setting up 2 MW solar power plants and arrangements will be made by the government to purchase electricity produced by them. The other scheme Mukyamantri Udyam Kranti Yojana will be very helpful in providing self-employment to the youth. “Under the scheme, loans ranging from Rs One Lakh to 50 lakh will be given to the youth for setting up enterprises, which will be guaranteed by the government. Under it, a three percent interest subsidy will also be given. He added that old schemes would be given a new look. There will be speedy work in the field of small medium and micro industries. 

    Chouhan informed about the efforts being made in various fields. He provided information about the work being done in Atal Expressway, Narmada Expressway, River Link Abhiyan, implementation of schemes in the field of irrigation, drinking water, power generation and new efforts in solar energy sector. He remembered the contribution of different sections in the development of the country and thanked them.

    The program which was graced by the MP Governor Mangubhai Patel and minister of state for culture and tourism Usha Thakur, saw the CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Leader of Opposition Kamal Nath seated next to each other, after days of political acrimony during the campaigning for the October 30 by-elections to four Lok Sabha and assembly seats.

    Earlier, in the day aiming to promote toy art and create employment opportunities, a toy cluster would be constructed in Budhni town of Sehore district of Madhya Pradesh, the state’s chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced on Monday. Budhni, importantly, is the home town and assembly constituency of the MP CM.

    Addressing the virtual inauguration of Budhni Toy Festival organized from November 1-14 at Dussehra ground in Budhni from his residence in Bhopal, the CM said that one product of every district is being promoted under ‘Ek Zila-Ek Utpad Yojana’. This will help in increasing employment opportunities. While maintaining that the wooden toys of Budhni are much in demand, he said “We’ll work on priority to promote this art. Budhni’s toys would be recognized at national and international level. No stone will be left unturned in promoting the art of traditional wooden toys. Wooden toys are not harmful. Necessary steps will be taken to supply training, raw material and capital to the artisans engaged in this art. Promotion and marketing of the art of toys will be done by talking to JAM portal and big companies.”

    While promising to make Budhni self-sufficient, Chouhan congratulated the toy manufacturers. He said that today Corona is under control, but still, there is a need to take precautions. He congratulated and honored Corona warriors who did amazing work. The Chief Minister said that due to our collective awareness, the third wave has not come to the state, but for complete protection, both doses of the vaccine must be administered.

  • MP government to allot free plots for big-size families in rural areas

    By Express News Service

    BHOPAL: There’s good news for big-size joint families which are forced to live in small houses in Madhya Pradesh.

    The MP government has decided to ensure that not more than one family has to live in one house.

    Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday reiterated his resolve that free residential plots will be provided by the government, in cases where more than one family (comprising a couple and their children) is living in a single house, if they do not have any plot of land to live in.

    Calling the decision “historic”, the CM said, “This will also open the way for the construction of more houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and the benefits of other schemes will also be available.”

    “This is a historic decision in favour of the poor. Under the Mukhyamantri Awasiya Bhu-adhikar Yojna, the state government has issued guidelines for allotment of plots on abaadi (populated) land in rural areas,” he said.

    This scheme has been implemented with the objective of ensuring that every family has the right to a dignified life with minimum basic necessities.

    On getting the resid ential plot, it will be helped in getting loans from government schemes and banks. 

    The Mukhyamantri Awasiya Bhu-adhikar Yojna has been started by the state government to provide residential plots to the eligible families in each gram panchayat.

    Under the scheme, respective district collectors have been empowered with respect to the availability of abaadi land’.

    The maximum area of the plot for allotment will be 60 square metre. Only those applicant families will be eligible to apply who are residents of the respective village.

    For getting a residential plot, application has to be submitted online through the SAARA portal.

    The village-wise list of eligible families under the scheme will be published for the purpose of inviting objections and suggestions from villagers.

  • Woman cop takes toddler daughter in carrier bag to duty at helipad, wins Madhya Pradesh CM’s praise

    By PTI

    BHOPAL: A woman police officer carrying her toddler daughter in a baby carrier bag while discharging her duty at a helipad in Madhya Pradesh’s Alirajpur district has won praise from Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for her dedication to work.

    The opposition Congress, however, alleged that posting a woman officer, who has a one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, under heat at the helipad for the CM’s chopper shows insensitivity on part of the state government.

    The officer identified as Monika Singh is posted as deputy superintendent of police (DSP) in MP’s Dhar district.

    She was deployed at the helipad for the CM’s chopper, who reached Alirajpur on Tuesday for the two-day campaigning for the upcoming bypoll for the Jobat Assembly seat.

    “During my visit to Alirajpur, I saw that DSP Monika Singh was on duty carrying her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter in a baby carrier bag. Her dedication towards duty is commendable. Madhya Pradesh is proud of you. I wish her my best wishes and blessings to her little daughter,” Chouhan said in a tweet on Wednesday and shared a video clip of the police officer with her daughter.

    In a photo shared by Chouhan, he is seen placing his hand on the head of the baby girl sitting in the carrier bag tied to the body of her mother, before boarding the chopper on Wednesday.

    Madhya Pradesh Congress spokesman Narendra Saluja said, “This is the incompetence of the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government that the woman officer along with her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter was posted on duty under the heat at the helipad. She should have been posted in the office.”

    Monika Singh, currently posted in the Dhar district, told PTI that she took her daughter along with her as she had to go to Alirajpur, nearly 145 km from Dhar, for two days.

    When she was leaving for her duty on Tuesday morning (while staying in Alirajpur), her daughter also woke up and began to insist on coming along, she said.

    “I had to fulfill the responsibility as a mother and also had to perform my duty (as a police officer) together,” she added.

  • BJP has fielded 50 per cent women candidates in MP bypolls: CM Chouhan

    After holding five public meetings, Chouhan spent the night at the house of a tribal, Bharchand Bhuria, in Kabirsej village of Jobal Assembly constituency.

  • 163 oxygen plants set up during second Covid wave in MP after shortage: CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

    By PTI

    BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh has set up 163 oxygen plants, generating over 182 metric tonnes (MT) of the life saving gas per day so far, after facing scarcity during the second wave of coronavirus, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said.

    In March 2020 (before the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak), oxygen generation plants were not available in any of the government hospitals in the state, the CM noted.

    “Now, 163 oxygen plants with a generation capacity of 182 MT per day have been started in different districts of the state,” Chouhan said in an official statement on Monday.

    About 230 MT of medical oxygen will be generated daily when all 202 plants will become operational in the state, he said.

    “The work on these plants was started after experiencing scarcity of the life saving gas during the second wave of coronavirus. The completion of the remaining 39 oxygen plants will be ensured by the end of this month,” the CM said.

    At present, a collective storage facility of 360 MT liquid oxygen is available in government medical colleges of the state.

    Apart from this, liquid oxygen tanks, having a capacity of 6 kilo litres each and collective capacity of 248 MT, are being set up in 34 district hospitals of the state, he said.

    Also, 13,956 oxygen concentrators has been made available in government hospitals and 1,350 in medical colleges of the state, Chouhan said.

    Besides, the Centre has also provided 3,860 oxygen concentrators, he added.

    On Monday, Madhya Pradesh reported six fresh cases of coronavirus, raising the infection tally in the state to 7,92,690, while the death toll remained unchanged at 10,523, health officials earlier said.

    The COVID-19 recovery count in MP stood at 7,82,086, leaving the state with 81 active cases, they said.

  • Ramcharitmanas quiz in Madhya Pradesh; winners to get air tickets to Ayodhya

    By Express News Service

    BHOPAL: The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in Madhya Pradesh has decided to organise general knowledge competitions on Ramcharitmanas and the winners will get an opportunity to fly to Ayodhya.State’s culture and tourism minister Usha Thakur announced the decision while inaugurating one such competition in Mhow town of Indore district on Sunday evening.

    The minister said that based on the competition, eight participants, including four students will be selected from each district of the state. The competition will focus on the Ayodhya Kand of the Hindu epic authored by Goswami Tulsidas. The dates for statewide competitions are yet to be finalised.

    The competition will be held not only on state, but also on national and international level by the MP tourism and culture department. Thakur also inaugurated a picture exhibition on Ramayana’s character Shabri.

    The state tourism and culture department’s decision to hold Ramayana based general knowledge competitions comes a few weeks after the state’s higher education minister announced including Applied Philosophy of Ramcharitmanas as an elective subject in the graduation first year curriculum in colleges and universities of the state under the New Education Policy. Also, first year arts students in colleges of MP will be taught the preface to Mahabharata by C Rajgopalachari in the English Foundation Course.

  • Rains lash most parts of Madhya Pradesh; CM Chouhan postpones Khandwa LS bypoll campaign tour

    By PTI

    BHOPAL: Most parts of Madhya Pradesh received rains in the last 24 hours and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also postponed his campaign tour on Monday to Khandwa, for the upcoming Lok Sabha bypoll there, due to the rough weather, officials said.

    Almost the entire state received post-monsoon showers in the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Monday and more rains are likely over the next couple of days, P K Saha, senior meteorologist at the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Bhopal office, told PTI.

    “Western parts of MP received more rainfall than the eastern areas,” he said.

    CM Chouhan postponed his Monday visit to Khandwa due to the inclement weather, an official from Chief Minister’s Office said.

    The overnight rains caused slush at the venue where the CM was supposed to address public meetings, ahead of the Lok Sabha bypoll in Khandwa on October 30, the official said, adding that there was also a forecast of more rain in the area.

    A low pressure area lying over south-west MP was causing the wet spell, IMD Bhopal office’s senior meteorologist G D Mishra said.

    The interaction between the easterly and westerly winds was also resulting in rains in the state, among other reasons, he added.

    According to Saha, Karhal area in Sheopur district received the highest 312 mm rainfall in west MP, while Niwari city recorded the maximum 101 mm downpour in the eastern part of the state in the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Monday.

    The state capital Bhopal received 48.1 mm downpour during the same period, he said.

    The wet spell is likely to prevail for two more days, he added.