SATURDAY 10 FEBRUARY 2024 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC Twitter.com/thestatesman Facebook.com/thestatesman INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ANDHRA CM CALLS ON PM, SEEKS RELEASE OF PENDING FUNDS ‘NEW HOPE IN MP CONGRESS’ P7 SENSEX 71,595.49167.06 NIFTY 21,782.5064.55 P4 ` vs $ 83.034 PAISE P9 GOLD 63,16070 Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 25 °C and 14 °C respectively. Bharat Ratna for former PMs, M S Swaminathan RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Announcement came 6 days after BJP stalwart L K Advani was named for award WEATHER Max. 86 % Min. 35 % Max: 24.6°C (-4) SUN RISES 06:12 hrs MOON RISES 05:45 hrs Min: 15.2°C (-2) SUN SETS 17:29 hrs MOON SETS 16:52 hrs TEMPERATURE THUMBNAILS STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 9 FEBRUARY STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 9 FEBRUARY he government has decided to confer the Bharat Ratna, the nation's highest civilian award, posthumously on former Prime Ministers Charan Singh and P V Narasimha Rao and legendary agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Friday. The announcement came six days after BJP stalwart and former Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani was named for the award. “The President has been pleased to award Bharat Ratna to the following eminent persons: Shri Chaudhary Charan Singh (posthumously), Shri PV Narasimha Rao (posthumously), Dr M S Swaminathan (posthumously),” a Rashtrapati T Tulips are in bloom in the Capital city on Friday. SNS Haldwani mob unrest was pre-planned, p says admin; toll 4: Haldwani remained tense on Friday following clashes between police and unruly mobs that left as least four people dead, as the administration alleged that the violence was pre-planned by the rioters. According to Nainital district administration, the rioters used the five-day notification period ahead of the demolition that triggered the riots to plan violence and terrorise people. (Pg 10) Bhavan communique said. Earlier, in separate social media posts on X, Mr Modi paid rich tributes to the two former PMs for their incomparable contribution to the nation and lauded the role of Dr Swaminathan, considered architect of India's ‘Green Revolution’, for his pivotal role in helping the country achieve self-reliance in agriculture during challenging times. Both Chaudhary Charan Singh and Mr Narasimha Rao come from non-BJP backgrounds. “This only shows the government's belief in conferring national honours in a very party agnostic manner,” a BJP source said, adding the award to Dr Swaminathan exemplifies the Modi regime's commitment to the agricultural sector. Sources said two of the three awardees ~ Mr Expressing his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for announcing nation's highest civilian award Bharat Ratna to former Prime Minister Charan Singh on Friday, an elated Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Jayant Chaudhary said ‘’Dil jeet liya’’. The Prime Minister announced on social media that the government has decided to confer Bharat Ratna posthumously on former Prime Ministers Charan Singh and PV Narasimha Rao and legendary Agriculture Scientist M S Swaminathan. The award for Chaudhary Charan Singh comes at a time when his grandson and chief of the RLD Jayant is said to be holding talks with the BJP for an alliance for the Lok Sabha election. Talks were underway between BJP and RLD for the past couple of days. After the announcement, it seems that a deal for RLD to join NDA is now sealed. Narasimha Rao and Dr Swaminathan ~ hail from South India, showing that the PM values the contribution and expertise from all corners of the country. Incidentally, the award for Chaudhary Charan Singh comes at a time when his grandson and chief of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) Jayant Chaudhary is said to be holding talks with the BJP for an alliance for the Lok Sabha election. Mr Narasimha Rao was the ninth Prime Minister of India who led a minority Congress government from 1991-1996 and successfully tackled the unprecedented financial crisis the country was facing at that time. CMYK P12 SILVER 74,500 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 81.480.14 Chief secy disputes CAG report, denies fund irregularities Bharat Ratna for Charan Singh: ‘Dil jeet liya’, says RLD chief, BJP- RLD alliance sealed? New Moon on 10 February ‘SHREYAS IYER LIKELY TO MISS LAST THREE TESTS’ PTI-BACKED INDEPENDENT CANDIDATES TAKE EARLY LEAD IN PAK ELECTIONS STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 9 FEBRUARY : The state government does not accept the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India that says the government delayed the submission of utilisation certificates for crores of funds against allocations made under different schemes by the Centre, state chief secretary B P Gopalika said on Friday. Addressing mediapersons in Nabanna, the state secretariat, Mr Gopalika said: "The state government does not agree with the CAG report. The report discusses the matter of eight departments, mentioning a staggering amount of Rs. 2,29,000 crore. An error has been made in it. Because it is claimed to be a report for the year 2021, but the accounts span 20 years from 2002-03. Therefore, the state government is clarifying that it pertains to a 20-year period." The CAG report says that the West Bengal government has not submitted utilisation certificates (UC) for more than Rs. 94,000 crore of central funds allocated up to March 2021 from when she came to power in 2011. Based on the CAG’s report, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Central government had alleged that the state government has not accounted for almost Rs. 2,29,000 crore of central funds. In response to these allegations, chief minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to examine the matter thoroughly. The TMC claims that the funds have been properly utilised, and the issue is politically motivated. Chief secretary Gopalika emphasised during the Press conference that the CAG report is not accepted by the state government. Sonia-led NAC ruined economy under UPA: FM STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 9 FEBRUARY Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the Indian economy suffered during the UPA rule because of interference from an extra-Constitutional body, the National Advisory Council (NAC), while the Narendra Modi government worked with a vision to bring it back on the rails, and to meet aspirations of the people. She was replying to a day-long discussion on the Modi government’s White Paper on the economy in the Lok Sabha. The finance minister said the White Paper is a serious document with documental evidence on everything it said, prepared with the intention to inform the House on the efforts made by the NDA government during its 10 year rule to correct the mistakes made during the 10-year rule of the Congress-led UPA. Ms Sitharaman said there was mismanagement during the UPA rule because it was rudderless and leaderless and there was pressure on the government from the National Advisory Council (NAC) led by Congress leader Mrs Sonia Gandhi.
The Statesman is one of India's oldest English newspapers. It was founded in Kolkata in 1875 and is directly descended from The Friend of India (founded 1818). The Englishman (founded 1821) was merged with The Statesman in 1934. The Delhi edition of The Statesman began publication in 1931. The Statesman Weekly is a compendium of news and views from the Kolkata and Delhi editions. Printed on airmail paper, it is popular with readers outside India. The Statesman (average weekday circulation approximately 180,000) is a leading English newspaper in West Bengal. The Sunday Statesman has a circulation of 230,000.
