
Govt. circular to ration dealers raises eyebrows
The Hindu
Fanfare in Onam food kit distribution
A circular issued by the Civil Supplies Department that instructs ration dealers to hold programmes with fanfare to mark the launch of the distribution of the Onam food kits has raised eyebrows. The order, which contravened the COVID-19 guidelines on public gatherings, has been met with opposition by a section of dealers.
In , the grape capital of India and host of the Simhastha Kumbh Mela every 12 years, environmental concerns over a plan to cut 1,800 trees for the proposed Sadhugram project in the historic Tapovan area have sharpened political fault lines ahead of local body elections. The issue has pitted both Sena factions against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which leads the ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra. While Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief, and Uddhav Thackeray, chief of the Shiv Sena (UBT), remain political rivals, their parties have found rare common ground in Tapovan, where authorities propose clearing trees across 34 acres to build Sadhugram and a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) hub, as part of a ₹300-crore infrastructure push linked to the pilgrimage.












