Politics

POLITICS

This is History (929) The parliamentary system is the most responsive and responsible system of government. Let us not allow it to go into disuse.               Will UP see a new CM? BJP high command is now serious about UP. There is a thinking to over haul the par

By Whispers in the Corridors June 4, 2018 9 min read

This is History (929)

The parliamentary system is the most responsive and responsible system of government. Let us not allow it to go into disuse.

Will UP see a new CM?

BJP high command is now serious about UP. There is a thinking to over haul the party and the government. Names of Home Minister, Raj Nath Singh and Union Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha have already started doing the round.

Why Telengana CM is active?

Why Telengana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is active on the national scene these days? Political observers say knowing the political wind he is now keen to play the role of King Maker as played by Chandra Babu Naidu in Making Devegowda as PM.

Andhar ki bagaawat

My friend who works for a Political Think Tank drops in and over Cold Coffees and Cheese Sandwiches we get chatting.

Me: Really matters in Didi Land getting bad to worse...second BJP supporter murdered... though as expected the Police there says these are suicides..

Friend: If you ask me if Modi was 1/10th of the Dictator that Indhra was he'd have dismissed Didi's Governmemt by invoking Article 356...

M: Now the Cops in Bangalore say Gauri Lankesh was murdered because of her being anti Hindu..

F: Expected.... they'll even manufacture a story and fassao one or two Hindus... its dangerous being a Hindu or BJP supporter in Congress ruled States (2 1/2) ... Didi's State... CPM ruled State....

M: So actually the shoe is on the other foot when it comes to religious persecution....

F: The newly elected MP from Kairana went to the extent of saying Allah won and Ram lost...

M: Modi going to a Masjid has not gone down well with his core Vote Bank...

F: Even Vajpayee in the last year of his tenure visted Ajmer Dargah... which kickstarted rumors that election was going to be preponed...

M: Only difference is Vajpayee hardly visited any Mandirs...Modi visits Mandirs wherever he goes... so visiting a Masjid or two hardly matters....

F: Maybe he went there to check out... which virus afflicts those performing Namaz that after Namaz they become so volatile....

M: The Fuel pain continues..

F: All hyped by Media... as per my calculations ...meagre impact on Budgets of Middle Class and below...

M: And not allowing Fuel to become a bleeder Government has kept deficit in-check..

F: Despite... paying back Iraq $ $ 6.5 Billion.... and repaying $ 28 Billion bonds raised by Rockstar Rajan...42% of taxes to States...65 lac houses electrified... 7.8 lac toilets built...4 crore LPG connections to poor.. 30 crore LED Bulbs.... 13 crore Mudra Loans disbursed (number of loans)...1 crore houses built....1.7 lac kms., new roads...now add Modi Care and MSP assurance....despite the huge outgo our deficit is in check..

M: Not that Government is not concerned... a lot of thinking going on ....how to reduce prices... from bringing fuel under GST ..to alternative energy etc..

F: MMS was a reckless Economist during his UPA stints... allowed bubble formations... subsidy loot.... letting deficit balloon...

M: If by a miracle Opposition comes to power.. will MMS be a consensus Candidate..

F: Its a unision of a quarellsome.... over ambitious..... corrupt....dynastic lot... Cast of characters seeking to be next PM: 1) Mamata in blood-soaked West Bengal & chit fund scams; 2) Mayawati with CBI corruption cases; 3) RaGa with nil experience of Constitutional office; 4) Pawar, KCR , CBN, Tejaswi and Akhilesh. List endless. Take your pick....all bad to worse...

M: Now a Darbari Journo says Generals should not make political statements..

F: Stupid anology... what's wrong if Government and COAS agree publically on the way ahead.... or how some issue has been tackled....

M: I think now after damning every Institution the Darbaris have set their sights on the Army..

F: I'm sure the Darbaari lot would have encouraged COAS to speak up had he been at odds with Government.....andar se bagaawat ki boo.... they don't feel sad when Soldiers are martyred... but beat their chests when Stone Pelters face the music.... question Judiciary... Army..... EC....

M: Jabh andar se aathi hai bagawat ki badboo...tabh samjho ki yeh ishaara hai ....ke andar se aar paar ki ladaayi karro shuroo.... ya firr darro...aur sirr aukhli mein dharo..

Disclaimer: Satire . Not meant to influence, inform, insult or cast any aspersions. Purely for Entertainment purposes only. With inputs from MSM, SM and Blogs

VJS

Ministry of Tourism bets on world-class infra to boost tourist traffic

Ministry of Tourism (MoT) is according high priority for holistic development of tourism destinations into world class destinations using a cluster approach including development of infrastructure, amenities, interpretation centres and skill development by achieving synergy and convergence with other Central Ministries, State Governments and Industry Stakeholders. The result had been a significant rise in the arrival of both domestic and foreign tourists in various tourist destinations across the country. Our Special Correspondent Ajay K Chaturvedi talks to Union Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) K J Alphons to know about the future tourism Roadmap for India: Excerpts:

WIC- Do you have any plan to formulate a New Tourism Policy, because NTP@002 is quite old and a 15 year policy cannot meet the new challenges?

KJ Alphons- Yes , a new Tourism policy is in the pipe line. Focus will be on employment generation with community participation, especially people in general. The will help development of tourism in a sustainable and responsible manner. New policy will also help India as a must Experience and Transformational Destination for foreign and domestic tourists. As envisaged by the Prime Minister, the major focus will on domestic travel preservation of the varied cultural heritage of our nation. Along with traditional areas new products such as Medical & Wellness, Meetings, Conferences, Exhibitions, Adventure Sports, Golf, Cruise etc will be given due attention to attract tourists. The development of quality human resources and use of technology are the other major points which require more attention.

WIC- What is the progress of "Swadesh Darshan" and "Prasad" schemes which were launched by the present govt?

KJ Alphons- The objective of these schemes is to create the basic infrastructure at the tourist destinations. We have made commendable progress in this area. These schemes were launched in January 2015 and as on date, the Ministry has sanctioned 67 projects worth Rs 6528 crore. A total of 30 projects would be ready by December this year. Each project costs Rs 100 crore. Under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme, all 29 states and UTs are covered and various thematic circuits are being developed. Under the Prasad Scheme, the Ministry has sanctioned 23 projects in 15 states.

WIC- In 2017, MoT announced to develop the "Ramayana' and "Buddha" circuits. What is the present status of these projects and when these circuits will be operational?

KJ Alphons- Ramayana circuit is one of the 15 thematic circuits identified for development. The destinations identified for development under Ramayana Circuit are- Ayodhya, Nandigram, Shringverpur and Chitrakoot(UP), Sitamarhi, Buxur and Darbhang(Bihar), Chitrakoot(MP),Mahendragiri(Odisha), Jagdalpur(Chhattisgarh),Nagpur & Nashil(Maharastra), Bhadrachalam(Telangana), Hampi( Karnataka) and Rameshwaram(TN). Under Buddhist Circuit, all the sites associated with the heritage of Lord Buddha in MP,UP, Bihar, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh are covered.

WIC- It’s good that arrival of foreign tourists have increased many fold. Could you please tell, as per govt decision, that how much SIM cards were given to foreign tourists on arrival?

KJ Alphons- Foreign Tourist arrivals in India increased by 15.17% last year against the global figure of 5%. Foreign tourists' arrival in 2017 were 10.18 million with a growth of 15.6% over 2016. The scheme of providing free pre-loaded SIM cards to foreign tourists arriving in India on a e- Visa was launched in February 2017. The objective was to provide connectivity to foreign tourists immediately on their arrival. On a pilot basis, two locations were selected namely Delhi and Kochi, A total of 5019 and 3685 SIM cards were at these airports respectively. In SIM cards distribution, private operators were involved.

WIC- Under “Adopt a Heritage: Apni Dharohar, Apni Pehchaan” project, how many monuments would be developed? Will these monuments be developed by private agencies or by the Govt?

KJ Alphons- This project, which was launched in September 2017, aims to effectively promote " responsible tourism". We are encouraging PSUs, RWAs, Pvt Companies, Schools and Individuals to take up responsibilities for making our heritage and tourism more sustainable. This could be achieved through development and maintenance of world class tourist infrastructure and amenities at ASI protected sites and other important tourists' sites across India. ‘Monument Mitras’ has been selected to nourish the sites and look after the operation and maintenance of these amenities. The project focusses on providing basic amenities including cleanliness, public convenience, drinking water, Wi-Fi, illumination, signage and ease of access for tourists and advance amenities like Tourist Facilitation Centres, Souvenir shop, cafeteria etc. Private sectors are being associated to develop facilities and infrastructures but for that they have to take prior permission from ASI. One thing is very clear that conservation of these monuments/ heritage sites shall primarily be carried out by ASI/concern state agencies.

WIC- At how many places Cruise Tourism will be developed?

KJ Alphons-The idea behind Cruise Tourism to attract tourists with specific interest. The important feature of the initiative is to develop India as a destination as well as source market for Cruise Tourism, to increase the number of cruise shipping calls and passenger arrivals and to have a conducive fiscal regime for cruise ships through development of cruise terminals and related developments. This is a joint initiative of Ministries of Shipping and Tourism. The four major ports of the country- Mumbai, Mormugao, Vishakhapattanam and Cochin have been developed with dedicated terminals and Jetties for the purpose. Mumbai port is almost ready and will be operational by the end of this year.

WIC- MoT has plan to appoint trained tourist guides at tourists places. Kindly give progress of this plan?

KJ Alphons- We have liberalized the guidelines. We are making it simple because we required much larger numbers of tourists guides. MoT has chalk out a plan to appoint trained tourists guides at tourists places. We need educated youths who are proficient in foreign languages especially, Japanese and Mandarin.

DEBATE

Donald Trump became the first billionaire president in U.S. history in January 2017

Who could be ‘Donald Trump’ of politics in India from the corporate world ? Top 10 Indian businessmen who could be taken into account in this regard are -