The State Government is planning to construct to more flyovers to ease congestion in Kolkata.
One is a 4.8 km flyover, from Rajabazar tram depot to Baghbazar Bata, passing through Maniktala, Khanna and Shyambazar. Once they are constructed, the vehicular loads on the roads of north Kolkata will be reduced a lot.
The other covers a distance of 6.2 km, from Tala Bridge to Dunlop. It will pass through Chiria More and Sinthee More along the way. From Dunlop, the flyover will bifurcate, with one heading to Dakshineswar and the other to Barrackpore.
Both the flyovers are being planned to be of six lanes. The Public Works Department (PWD) will submit a detailed project report (DPR) within two months. It wants the projects to happen on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis. The construction agency will be selected on the basis of a tender.
The cost of construction of the two flyovers together is estimated to be Rs 1,960 crore.
These two are among the nine flyovers across Kolkata announced by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during the inauguration of the Garden Reach flyover in March that are to be constructed over the next three to four years.
Bengal Chief Minister has once again raised the issue of Central deprivation alleging the BJP Government has held back its rightful Rs 10,000 crore earmarked for development.
In the recent weeks the Chief Minister has shot off at least three letters to the Centre demanding clearance of her State’s dues amounting to about Rs 9,959 crore under 16 heads.
According to officials in the State Finance Department the Centre is yet to clear Rs 609 crore — due on account of good performance. Besides, the State has also demanded its due of Rs 3830 crore on account of Sarva Shiksha Aviyan and Rs 790 crore under Mid Day Meal scheme.
Besides there are a number of other schemes under which the State has been deprived of its lawful grants from the Centre, sources said. Accordingly huge amount of money is due under Urban Renewal Mission, National Urban Employment Scheme, Swacchh Bharat and other programmes.
“This is a blatant denial of State rights. The people of Bengal are being deprived. We are not begging for funds. We are only demanding our dues. The Centre will have to keep in mind that the people of the States pay taxes and out of those taxes the States get their dues for development of their people,” the Chief Minister has said wondering whether Bengal is being deprived because of its political preference.
To make information to tourists easily available, the Bengal Government has decided to open as many as 50 tourist information centres across the State.
Though aimed primarily at tourists from other parts of the country as well as from across the world, the information centres would cater to tourists from the State as well. All information related to a particular area would be available at each centre. These would be run by the Tourism Department.
These tourist centres would play a major role in making Bengal more tourist-friendly. As it is, it is one of the top States in terms of tourist arrivals, both nationally and internationally. This project would take Bengal significantly higher in the rankings.
Where to stay, what to do, what to eat, what to buy, what are the specialities of a particular place or area – information of every kind would be available at these centres. Guide books would be available in English, Hindi and Bengali. They would contain detailed information about the history, geography and culture of a place.
These centres are already running at the airports in Kolkata and Bagdogra. Soon they would come up in four other places in Kolkata (Kolkata and Sealdah railway stations, Rabindra Sadan and Madhusadan Mancha), Howrah and Santragachi railway stations, Kakdwip and Diamond Harbour railway stations (South 24 Parganas district), Murshidabad, Malda, Bankura, Birbhum district, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Siliguri and other places to cover all the districts.
The information available at the centres would also help tourists to decide how and where to go next. All in all, the tourist information centres would act as one-stop centres for all tourists visiting Bengal.
Like every year, National President of Trinamool Youth Congress, and Diamond Harbour MP, Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday released a booklet containing details of all the work done by him his constituency for the last four years. The book-release ceremony was held at Sarisha school grounds in South 24 Parganas.
Speaking on the occasion, Abhishek Banerjee said that the people of the country showed the yellow card to BJP in bypolls. They will show the red card in 2019. He claimed that Trinamool will win all 42 Lok Sabha seats in Bengal.
He also said, “BJP is trying to blame Trinamool for the death of its workers. Five doctors said that the death was due to suicide. But BJP is still blaming us. They want to blame Trinamool and Mamata Banerjee for everything under the sun. But in reality, they have blood on their hands. The BJP practices communalism.”
He also advised the BJP to look after their party’s condition in Uttar Pradesh first, before turning their attention to Bengal.
The West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) is a statutory regulatory authority of the Bengal Government. It is responsible for setting standards and monitoring pollution levels and taking steps as and when required.
Among its responsibilities, functions and activities are:
Monitoring and control of industrial effluents and emissions
Management of wastes in coordination with urban local bodies
Installation of online effluent quality monitoring system at 42 grossly polluting industrial units
Control of vehicular tail pipe permission, especially in Kolkata, by working in collaboration with the State Transport Department and Kolkata Traffic Police
Provision of e-rickshaws in rural areas
Installation of rainwater harvesting structures in 32 schools and solar panels on the roofs of 200 schools
Creation of environmental awareness programmes on World Environment Day, organising rallies, cultural programmes and training programmes, reclamation and beautification of waterbodies and parks, distribution of non-toxic colours to idol-makers participating in various fairs, etc.
Effective use of the fly ash generated in thermal power plants
Provision of solid waste management units in rural areas
These and other measures being taken by WBPCB are resulting in the improvement of all aspects of the environment of the State.
The lightning detection system put up under the initiative of the State Disaster Management and Civil Defence Department has been a saviour of sorts in many districts across Bengal. The state-of-the-art system was introduced on February 1 this year, using which lightning can be predicted and information, with specific location, disseminated. An American company had put the system in place.
Devices like sensors have been installed at places including Siliguri, Cooch Behar, Raiganj, Jangipur (in Murshidabad district), Haldia, Kolkata and Kharagpur.
The system generates an SMS alerting people at least 45 minutes before a lightning strike. The alert messages contain names and location of the blocks where lightning would strike.
Officials up to the level of block development officer (BDO) and members of panchayats receive the alerts. They then disseminate the information amongst the locals within a short span of time and people take precautions as prescribed.
District Magistrates also receive alerts and can coordinate with the concerned officials in this connection and it helps in taking prompt action and saving more lives.
According to a senior official of the Disaster Management Department, this is the first time that such a system is being used, and helpfully, at a time when lightning strikes have gone up drastically.
Usually, heavy lightning occurs from mid-April till the end of monsoon. The system has proven fruitful as the officials are receiving good feedback as to how it is helping people to move to a safer place after getting the alert that lightning might strike.
The system is helping generate alarm among people even in the furthest corners of the State and so people are getting time to move to a safer place before lightning strikes.
To protest against the sky-high fuel prices of recent days, Trinamool Youth Congress today organised a protest march in Kolkata today.
A protest march was held today from Subodh Mullick Square to Park Street, led by National President of AITYC and MP, Abhishek Banerjee. In the districts, the protest rallies will be taken out on Saturday and Sunday (May 26 and 27).
Addressing the party workers after the march ended, Abhishek Banerjee slammed the Centre for its anti-people policies.
Highlights of Abhishek Banerjee’s speech:
Our workers are our biggest assets. The party’s existence is because of our committed workers.
People from all walks of life are here today. There are people from various religions, communities here today. Our leader has taught us about communal harmony. Unity in harmony is our culture.
We had organised a protest rally several months back against FCRA Bill. We will lay down our lives but we will not allow the BJP to promulgate anti-people policies.
We are launching our protests against fuel price rise today. We will organise protest marches and rallies in every district. Our protest will continue till the hike in prices is not rolled back.
We will continue to raise our voices, under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, whenever people have to bear the brunt of the policies of the Central Government.
Bengal is a land of culture. We challenge our opponents to fight us politically. Let the competition be based on facts and statistics. Let there be comparison of the work done by the Left in 34 years, Mamata Banerjee in 7 years and the Centre in 4 years.
They promised to bring ‘Achhe Din’. But where is ‘Achhe Din’? If people keep money at home, it is termed ‘black money’. And their money in banks is not secure. We arrested the kingpin of ‘Sarada’. Why has Nirav Modi not been arrested yet?
The Centre wants to decide what we will eat and what we will wear. They might control other States using money power, but Mamata Banerjee’s Bengal is not so meek.
They want to disturb the communal harmony in the State for political gains. We will not allow that. We will fight them back tooth and nail.
The death knell for the arrogant government at the Centre has been sounded. Our leader Mamata Banerjee was present at the swearing-in ceremony in Karnataka. The ‘bisarjan’ of the central government will take place in 2019.
They cannot fight us politically. They tried to foil the Panchayat elections. But people gave us 20 out of 20 Zilla Parishads. In 2019 also people will give us 42 out of 42 seats.
Opposition parties will become signboards in future. We will need microscopes to find them.
To protest against the sky-high fuel prices of recent days, Trinamool Congress and Trinamool Youth Congress are together organising a state-wide protest today. It will consist of protest marches in every district across the State, including in Kolkata.
In Kolkata, there will be a protest march from Subodh Mullick Square to Park Street, and it will be organised by Trinamool Youth Congress. In the districts, the protest rallies will be taken out on Saturday and Sunday (May 26 and 27).
It may be mentioned that the prices of petrol and diesel have touched all-time highs, having shot up in the past nine days.
The programme of protests was announced by Partha Chatterjee, Secretary General of Trinamool Congress on Wednesday.
Chief Minister and All India Trinamool Congress Chairperson Mamata Banerjee had tweeted on May 20 in this connection: “We are very concerned about the rising prices of petrol and diesel. This will certainly affect prices all around. Common people, farmers and many will suffer.”
On May 22, All India Trinamool Youth Congress Chairperson and Member of Parliament Abhishek Banerjee had tweeted: “As we witness the magic of #AccheDin on this momentous occasion, Petrol turns 80 and Diesel turns 70. Please do send in your good wishes to their custodians for being so generous and sincere in raising the two.”
On May 21, there was a protest rally in Hooghly district in this connection in which common people had joined. Now, Trinamool and its youth wing are going to organise the protest rallies all across the state.
Shortly before 1 PM, Mamata Banerjee entered the Raj Bhavan. Earlier in the morning, she had visited the Kalighat temple and took blessings of her mother, now late Gayatri Devi. Alighting at the north gate of the Raj Bhavan, she walked in, amidst cheers and slogans from the people waiting outside in thousands.
At 1.05 PM, Mamata Banerjee took oath as the first woman Chief Minister of West Bengal. History was created.
Mamata Banerjee takes oath as Bengal CM
Mamata Banerjee and her cabinet took oath in the presence of some 3,000 people that included her party workers and relatives of the victims of violence in Nandigram and Singur. This has perhaps been one of the most crowded swearing-in ceremonies of a chief minister. Along with her, 35 MLAs from Trinamool Congress took oath as ministers of the two-tier ministry. Four of the Trinamool Congress MLAs were sworn in as Ministers of State.
Mamata Banerjee takes oath
Clad in a simple white sari and wearing a tricolor uttariya (long scarf) that has by now become her trade mark, Mamata Banerjee took the oath in Bengali in the name of God, which was administered by Governor M.K. Narayanan.
Some hours earlier, Ms Banerjee had set off from her humble Harish Chatterjee Street house on a journey to change Bengal`s course. Thousands of supporters had already lined the route she would take to Raj Bhavan, holding puja thalis and blowing conch shells. Many were barefoot, as if had come to worship a deity.
In Ms Banerjee’s para, the atmosphere was Puja-like. When she emerged from the door, wearing a crisp off-white saree with a blue zari border, a chant of “Didi…Didi” went up. Her car was ready to take her to Raj Bhavan, but the Iron Lady of Bengal walked into the crowd, much to the dismay of her bodyguards from the Special Security Unit. She touched as many hands as she could, smiled, and folded her hands in humility. Someone passed her a microphone.
At exactly 12.55 PM, the Chief Minister-in-waiting walked into Raj Bhavan. She greeted Governor M K Narayanan and took the sheet of paper she was to read from.
The historic march from Raj Bhavan to Writers’
Trailed by a sea of supporters, Mamata Banerjee walked the 1 km from Raj Bhavan, where she took oath as the first non-Left Chief Minister in 34 years, to Writers’ Building on Friday, May 20, 2011. Euphoric, swelling crowds — nearly 2.5 lakh — thronged the kilometre-long road to Writers’ Buildings. “Democracy has to be with the people,” she said. “I saw the crowds and asked the governor’s permission to walk to Writers’ Buildings.”
Her first day at Writers’ Building
Bureaucrats and security officers escorted Mamata Banerjee up the same flight of stairs along which she had been dragged down in 1993. In the corridor, she suddenly cut her brisk stride and turned towards a balcony. She stood there for a while and waved to the delirious crowd. A bodyguard swiftly crouched before her, hanging on to the low guard rails to protect her from the mad scramble of photojournalists. With a final wave, Ms Banerjee walked off purposefully to the CM`s chamber. It was 4.44pm.
It was from there that Ms Banerjee had been hauled out 17 years ago. Then a firebrand Congress worker, she had been agitating outside former CM Jyoti Basu’s office, insisting he meet a woman who had been allegedly raped by CPM workers. As the police yanked her out, Banerjee swore to set foot in Writers’ Buildings only after the Left was ousted. On the afternoon of 20 May, she kept her vow.
The first Cabinet Meeting
On her first days as chief minister, the people’s leader broke all protocol. She refused a bullet-proof car, declined the privilege of free passage, instructed police to halt her black car at traffic signals, worked in office until 12.35 AM the day she was sworn in.
People greet Mamata Banerjee on 20 May, 2011
After the swearing-in, Mamata Banerjee chaired her first Cabinet meeting at around 5 PM: Singur topped the agenda, then came her first press conference as CM around 8 PM. Then she sat in her office, allotting ministries to her Cabinet colleagues. The CM left office at 12:35 AM on Saturday.
The State Fisheries Department has decided to set up a daily market (or ‘haat’) on the field beside the lake in Nalban. This venue will be used for selling fish, meat, poultry, vegetables as well as handicrafts, to be sold by the manufacturers themselves.
The handicrafts stalls will be run by women belonging to self-help groups (SHGs). These SHGs get financial aid under the State Government’s Anandadhara Scheme, which entails making and selling handicrafts and other items.
This city haat, or market, is expected to become famous the same way the Sonajhuri Haat in Santiniketan, Mangala Haat in Howrah and the Hari Sahar Haat in Shyambazar, Kolkata, have become.
The spot is ideal for a haat as it is quite near the IT hub of Sector V, where thousands come every day to work. Already a few snacks outlets and restaurants have opened up at Nalban, including by the State Fisheries Development Corporation (SFDC).
পয়লা বৈশাখ থেকে নলবনে ঝিলের পাড়ে বসবে শহুরে হাট
খোদ কলকাতায় দৈনন্দিন গেরস্থালির যাবতীয় উপকরণ নিয়ে হাট বসতে চলেছে। সৌজন্যে মৎস্য দপ্তর। এখানে একদিকে মাছ-মাংস, সব্জি তো বিক্রি হবেই, অন্যদিকে হাতের কাজের বিভিন্ন সম্ভার নিয়ে হাজির হবেন প্রত্যন্ত গ্রামের শিল্পীরা। নলবনের জলাশয়ের পাড়ে খোলা মাঠে ঘুরতে ঘুরতে কেনাকাটা করবেন শহরের বাসিন্দারা।
শান্তিনিকেতনে সোনাঝুরির হাট, হাওড়ার মঙ্গলা হাট বা হরি সাহার হাটের মতো এখনও শহর থেকে রাজ্যের বিভিন্ন প্রান্তে ছড়িয়ে-ছিটিয়ে বহু হাট রয়েছে। কিন্তু, এর অনেকগুলিরই পুরনো ঐতিহ্য এখন অনেকটাই ম্লান। তাই এবার সেই হাটের ঐতিহ্য এবং ব্যবসায়িক গুরুত্বকে বোঝাতেই নলবনে ভেড়ির পাশে বসবে নগরায়িত হাট। মৎস্য দপ্তরের অধীনস্থ মৎস্য উন্নয়ন নিগমের পক্ষ থেকে এই হাট বসানো হচ্ছে।
নলবনের কাছেই তথ্যপ্রযুক্তি তালুক। এখানে প্রচুর মানুষ কাজ করতে আসে। সপ্তাহান্তে যদি তাঁরা জলাশয়ের পাশে একটু ‘স্ন্যাক্স’ খেতে খেতে জরুরি সমস্ত সামগ্রী পেয়ে যান, তাহলে অনেকেই হাটে আসতে চাইবেন। সেই কথাকে মাথায় রেখেই সপ্তাহান্তের বিকেলে এই হাট বসানো হবে। পয়লা বৈশাখ থেকে বসবে এই হাট।
প্রসঙ্গত, নলবনের ওই মাঠে ইতিমধ্যে একাধিক বাঙালি-কন্টিনেন্টাল খাবারের রেস্তরাঁ আগে থেকেই রয়েছে। পাশাপাশি নিগমের পক্ষ থেকে কাঁচা প্যাকেটজাত মাছ বিক্রি করা হচ্ছে। সেই সঙ্গে রান্না মাছের বিভিন্ন পদও বিক্রি করা শুরু হয়েছে। হরিণঘাটা থেকে কাঁচা মাংস সহ বিভিন্ন পদ বিক্রি করা হচ্ছে। সুফল বাংলাও ইতিমধ্যে দোকান দিয়েছে সেখানে। ফলে কাঁচা সব্জি থেকে আরও বিভিন্ন রান্নার সামগ্রী সেখানে বিক্রি করা হবে।
সেই তালিকায় এবার নতুন সংযোজন হাতের কাজের সম্ভার। আনন্দধারা প্রকল্পের অধীনে যে সমস্ত স্বনির্ভর গোষ্ঠী রাজ্যের বিভিন্ন প্রান্তে ছড়িয়ে-ছিটিয়ে রয়েছে, তাদের নলবনের হাটে আনা হবে। প্রত্যেক সপ্তাহে স্বনির্ভর গোষ্ঠীর মহিলারা সেখানে এসে নিজেদের হাতে তৈরি বড়ি, আচার, পাঁপড় ছাড়াও হাতের কাজের বিভিন্ন ব্যাগ, শৌখিন ঘর সাজানোর জিনিস বিক্রি করতে পারবেন। এর মাধ্যমে গ্রামীণ মহিলারা যেমন নিজেদের সামগ্রী বিক্রির একটা নতুন জায়গা খুঁজে পাবেন, সেই সঙ্গে শহুরে ক্রেতারাও বিভিন্ন সামগ্রী কিনতে পারবেন নিজের হাতে দেখে নিয়ে।
