PM Modi to hold virtual meeting with CMs, discuss rising Covid-19 cases

These will be the sixth and seventh meetings between the Prime Minister and various chief ministers on the coronavirus outbreak

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Tuesday meet chief ministers on Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss the increasing number of coronavirus cases in the country after a weeks-long lockdown to contain the disease was eased. Modi will hold a video conference with the leaders of 21 states and union territories at 3 pm Tuesday, including Punjab, Assam, Kerala and all northeastern states. On Wednesday, also at 3 pm, he will meet with the 15 worst-affected: including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Delhi.

These will be the sixth and seventh meetings between the Prime Minister and various chief ministers on the coronavirus outbreak India saw a jump of over 11,000 novel coronavirus cases for the third consecutive day on Monday, taking the total number of infections to over 3.32 lakh, while the toll rose to 9,520 with 325 more deaths.

ALSO READ: Covid-19 impact: After 60% fall in April, exports shrink another 36% in May

The unlocking of the economy in June 2020 witnessed a rapid fall in the unemployment rate. After clocking 23.5 per cent in April and May, the unemployment rate first dropped to 17.5 per cent in the first week of June and then it took a steeper fall to 11.6 per cent in the second week. This fall is almost as dramatic as the rise in unemployment when the lockdown began..Read More

Delhi will need 80,000 hospital beds by July for Covid patients: Kejriwal

Arvind Kejriwal says will follow centre's order overriding his decision to reserve hospitals for Delhi residents.

Delhi would need 80,000 hospital beds more by the end of July as coronavirus cases rising rapidly in the city, said chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday. “Numbers show that coronavirus is going to spread rapidly in Delhi. By June 15, there might be 42,000 cases in Delhi and by July-end 500,000,” he said in a televised statement.

Kejriwal said his government will follow the central government’s decision overriding his order that Delhi government hospitals would be reserved for residents of the city. "We are not debating, or fighting over anything. We will totally stick to the decision taken by the L-G,” he said, referring to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal.

"In the past one week, Delhi hospitals have admitted 1,900 people and 4,200 beds are still available…by July 31, 80,000 beds will be required in Delhi." "It is a challenge, daunting even, but we will do our best to meet the medical needs of all,” he said. Kejriwal said medical tests found he didn’t have coronavirus after he fell unwell on Wednesday.

Free bus, Metro rides scheme: What Delhi govt’s proposal means to women

Contrary to the expectation that women in urban areas get more employment opportunities, the data show that India’s female labour force participation rate in cities is lower than in rural areas

On a winter’s day in early 2018, 23-year-old data entry executive Sheela* had to make a split-second decision when the driver of her shared mini-van ignored her requests to slow down and drop her off: she could either stay on the vehicle–the lone passenger–and risk possible assault, or jump off the moving vehicle and risk injury.

She chose to leap off, injuring her right arm and ankle to ensure her safety from the driver of the gramin seva (rural service) van, a preferred mode of transport in the low-income suburbs of India’s capital. Travelling more than 7 km from an office in Okhla Phase I in southern Delhi to her home in Dakshinpuri, the shared van–Rs 5 per ride versus a minimum of Rs 10 per km for an auto–was the only reliable and affordable transport option for Sheela, in a city with 3,900 buses and an 8-line, 373-km metro-rail network.

Sheela is one of many women who navigate risks on the streets of Delhi while going about their daily activities. The recent announcement by the Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, to make metro and bus rides free for women in the city, has key implications for women’s mobility, which, in turn, is linked to decisions about education, employment and access to public spaces.

Wife with toddler walks, husband takes motorcycle

In my research on women and service work in Delhi, young women seeking work raised concerns over safety, accessibility and affordability of public transport. Take the case of 29-year-old Sushma*, a car driver. After she got married and moved to Delhi from a village in Rajasthan, Sushma was keen to study further and find employment. She had heard about driver-training classes for women and told her husband that she wanted to sign up. However, her in-laws discouraged her, telling Sushma that her place was at home.

PWD scam: Anti-Corruption Bureau arrests Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal's kin

Three FIRs, including one against a company run by the chief minister's brother-in-law Surender Bansal, were registered by the ACB in this case on May 9 last year.

 

A man related to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested today by the Anti-Corruption Bureau in connection with the PWD scam.

Vinay Bansal, son of Kejriwal's brother-in-law, was arrested this morning, ACB chief Arvind Deep said.

Three FIRs, including one against a company run by the chief minister's brother-in-law Surender Bansal, were registered by the ACB in this case on May 9 last year.

Three companies, including Renu Constructions (owned by Bansal, Kamal Singh and Pawan Kumar), were included in the FIRs.

In a complaint, Rahul Sharma, founder of Roads Anti-Corruption Organisation (RACO), had alleged that Kejriwal and PWD minister Satyendra Jain misused their office for grant of contracts to Bansal. However, they were not named in the FIR.

RACO, an organisation which claims to monitor construction projects in the national capital, had alleged that a firm linked to Bansal was involved in financial irregularities in building a drainage system in north-west Delhi.

It was also alleged that the bills sent to the Public Works Department (PWD) for unfinished works were "false and fabricated".

Click here : PWD Scam