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<p><strong>BENGAL LOCKDOWN</strong></p><p>On April 20, the standoff between the Centre and the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, over its implementation of the national lockdown, reached snapping point when two inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) arrived in the state for a review at the behest of the ministry of home affairs (MHA). They had come at very short notice, West Bengal chief secretary Rajiva Sinha was reportedly informed an hour before they landed, and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee received an official call from the MHA after the fact. Predictably, the IMCTs received a chilly welcome, with state officials allegedly refusing to cooperate at first.</p><p>The two administrations have been steadily upping the ante since end-March or even earlier, with the Mamata Banerjee government seemingly going out of its way to sidestep or flout central decrees and the Narendra Modi government issuing a series of threatening orders via the MHA. At the heart of the matter is the rivalry between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The BJP is the principal contender against the TMC in the 2021 assembly election, and if the 2019 Lok Sabha result is anything to go by, the two are neck-and-neck in the polls. Neither can afford to look weak or allow the other to be seen as dominant. The worry is that the stakes in this pandemic are simply too high for partisan bickering.</p><p><strong>A STEADY BREW</strong></p><div class="itemcenter"><amp-iframe height="62" title="" width="320" sandbox="allow-forms allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-top-navigation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" allowfullscreen src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014%5Cu0026native%3D1" class="mrBt15 preferred-source-banner"> </amp-iframe></div></p><p>The eye-to-eye &lsquo;disagreement&rsquo; has a context and a build-up over the past few weeks. After the Modi government declared a national lockdown, beginning March 25, Indians across the country saw their social, religious and economic lives brought to an abrupt halt. Stepping out of one&rsquo;s home required an officially approved reason, say, the purchase of groceries or medicines. Religious gatherings were completely prohibited, and stores selling non-essential goods were closed. However, translating this decree from paper to practice was the job of state and local administrations.</p><p>As it turned out, it was a job the West Bengal government stood accused by the opposition of not doing with acceptable sincerity. The Centre&rsquo;s notification came under the Disaster Management Act, and was, therefore, according to the Supreme Court, a legally binding instruction. However, Mamata Banerjee&rsquo;s government, it was alleged, was treating it more like a vague guideline. One example cited was the state government classifying sweet shops as &lsquo;essential for Bengalis&rsquo; on March 30, permitting them to operate between noon and 4 pm, though they were closed in other states.</p><p>Another charge was its lackadaisical implementation of physical distancing norms and the ban on religious gatherings. On April 10, state police had to disperse a crowd of hundreds that had gathered at a mosque for Friday prayers in Murshidabad district, about 200 km away from Kolkata. BJP MP Babul Supriyo tweeted about it: &lsquo;This is bound to happen when [the chief minister] throws a sense of carelessness in the air by throwing open flower and paan markets [and] sweet shops...&rsquo; The same day, Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to the top IAS/ IPS officers in all states and Union territories, reminding them that no religious congregations were allowed, without exception.</p><div class="itgimage"><amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fbodyeditor%2F202004%2FUpfront-1-3-May4-2-x675.jpg%3FWR0SUZJW3nff1HAjV.kQ2qLfvQLl8ifJ%3Fsize%3D750:*" alt="" height="675" width="1200" class="" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
<div class="body_caption">WELL PROTECTED: BJP MPs Dilip Ghosh (orange stole) and Rahul Sinha (blue jacket) at governor House in Kolkata, April 11</div>
</div></p><p>The next day, on April 11, the MHA sent another letter to the West Bengal government, writing: &lsquo;As per reports received from security agencies, [a] gradual dilution of [the] lockdown has been reported from West Bengal.&rsquo; The letter also said that physical-distancing norms were being violated, especially in vegetable, fish and mutton markets in Rajabazaar, Narkel Danga, Topsia, Metiaburz, Garden Reach, Ikbalpur and Maniktala in Kolkata, which, it so happens, are Muslim-dominated districts. Not surprisingly, Banerjee accused the Centre of playing the communal card. &ldquo;The coronavirus is not a communal virus,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It is a human disease.&rdquo; She told journalists that &ldquo;the lockdown will continue with a human face, markets will be open and shops selling essentials will remain open&rdquo;. A reasonable enough line, Banerjee&rsquo;s riposte, however, came under fire for seeming to ignore the point that crowded areas, such as markets for essentials where physical distancing norms are not being enforced, are precisely how this &lsquo;human disease&rsquo; spreads, regardless of community. In either case, a day later, on April 12, the MHA sent yet another letter, describing more violations of the lockdown and physical distancing.</p><p>Perhaps Banerjee&rsquo;s aggression came from the fact that the MHA&rsquo;s April 11 letter had raised another issue, one that cut to the quick. &lsquo;It has been reported that free rations are being distributed by political leaders,&rsquo; read the letter, &lsquo;not through the institutional delivery system. This may have resulted in spread of COVID-19 infection.&rsquo; While reports remain anecdotal, or partisan, since many come from BJP MPs, the accusation is that TMC leaders have been bypassing the official ration-distribution system and &lsquo;acquiring&rsquo; the department&rsquo;s resources of grain to dole out themselves. Whether or not this is true, on April 16, Banerjee&rsquo;s government ordered the replacement of Manoj Agarwal, principal secretary, food and supplies, the top bureaucrat overseeing the distribution of rations. Reportedly, Banerjee explained this with: &ldquo;We are appointing a new secretary because 10 per cent of beneficiaries could not be given (even) half of their monthly allotment despite repeated instructions.&rdquo; State governor Jagdeep Dhankhar has also frequently tweeted about this issue. On April 18, one such read: &lsquo;PDS scam getting bigger by the day. The PDS system is in virtual political hijack, a crime. Free rations are for the needy and not for coffers. Defaulters to be sternly dealt with.&rsquo;</p><div class="itgimage"><amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fbodyeditor%2F202004%2FUpfront-1-3-May4-2_Mos-x847.jpg%3Fp1cyh84LWOeZCWSw0.r4ga_onaBFTbcl%3Fsize%3D750:*" alt="" height="847" width="1200" class="" layout="responsive"></amp-img>
<div class="body_caption"> </div>
</div></p><p><strong>THE STATE OF PLAY</strong></p><p>On April 20, when the Centre&rsquo;s IMCTs arrived in West Bengal, the initial response was a cold shoulder from the Banerjee government. TMC MP Derek O&rsquo;Brien described it as an &lsquo;adventure tour&rsquo;, saying that it was unacceptable for the Centre to inform the chief minister of their arrival after the fact. TMC MP Mahua Moitra asked why the Centre had informed the state chief secretary so late if it really wanted logistical support. And though Union home minister Amit Shah called and briefed her about the teams, Banerjee herself reportedly shot off a letter to the Centre, alleging protocol violations. On Twitter, she said that until PM Modi and home minister Shah &lsquo;share the criterion used to [deploy IMCTs in West Bengal], I am afraid we would not be able to move ahead&rsquo;. The politics continued in that vein, with Banerjee herself seen in an SUV, telling citizens in Rajabazaar via a mic and loudspeaker that a lockdown was being imposed on them by the Centre.</p><p>However, protests were soon quashed, at least in public, after MHA chief secretary Ajay Bhalla reportedly suggested that the Banerjee government&rsquo;s actions could be seen as &lsquo;obstructing the implementation of the orders issued by the central government under the Disaster Management Act... and directions of the Supreme Court.&rsquo; West Bengal chief secretary Sinha soon wrote to Bhalla, assuring him of the state government&rsquo;s full cooperation with the MHA&rsquo;s IMCTs, spinning the cold welcome as a miscommunication: &lsquo;[Since] the teams had arrived without any prior consultation with us, there was no opportunity to provide any logistic support.&rsquo; Since then, the IMCTs, accompanied by West Bengal government officials, have begun field visits of the districts they have been deputed to examine. Reportedly, they have also been questioning officials on a number of critical aspects of pandemic response, protocols for testing, the quantity of equipment available including hospital beds, oxygen supplies, ventilators, essential items and the like.</p><p>Nonetheless, this is unlikely to be the end of this story. The only hope is that the confrontation between the TMC and the BJP ends soon and they recognise their common enemy, the coronavirus.</p><div id="tab-link-wrapper-plugin"><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Iram Ara Ibrahim</div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Apr 25, 2020</div></div></div><div class="sendros">--- ENDS ---</div></div>

up-front

UP Front

<p><strong>BENGAL LOCKDOWN</strong></p><p>On April 20, the standoff between the Centre and the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, over its implementation of the national lockdown, reached snapping point when two inter-ministerial central teams (IMCTs) arrived in the state for a review at the behest of the ministry of home affairs (MHA). They had come at very short notice, West Bengal chief secretary Rajiva Sinha was reportedly informed an hour before they landed, and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee received an official call from the MHA after the fact. Predictably, the IMCTs received a chilly welcome, with state officials allegedly refusing to cooperate at first.</p><p>The two administrations have been steadily upping the ante since end-March or even earlier, with the Mamata Banerjee government seemingly going out of its way to sidestep or flout central decrees and the Narendra Modi government issuing a series of threatening orders via the MHA. At the heart of the matter is the rivalry between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The BJP is the principal contender against the TMC in the 2021 assembly election, and if the 2019 Lok Sabha result is anything to go by, the two are neck-and-neck in the polls. Neither can afford to look weak or allow the other to be seen as dominant. The worry is that the stakes in this pandemic are simply too high for partisan bickering.</p><p><strong>A STEADY BREW</strong></p><div class="itemcenter"><iframe scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="62" awidth="320" aheight="62" amplayout="fixed" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014" class="preferred-source-banner" loading="lazy"></iframe></div><style>.preferred-source-banner{  margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}</style></p><p>The eye-to-eye &lsquo;disagreement&rsquo; has a context and a build-up over the past few weeks. After the Modi government declared a national lockdown, beginning March 25, Indians across the country saw their social, religious and economic lives brought to an abrupt halt. Stepping out of one&rsquo;s home required an officially approved reason, say, the purchase of groceries or medicines. Religious gatherings were completely prohibited, and stores selling non-essential goods were closed. However, translating this decree from paper to practice was the job of state and local administrations.</p><p>As it turned out, it was a job the West Bengal government stood accused by the opposition of not doing with acceptable sincerity. The Centre&rsquo;s notification came under the Disaster Management Act, and was, therefore, according to the Supreme Court, a legally binding instruction. However, Mamata Banerjee&rsquo;s government, it was alleged, was treating it more like a vague guideline. One example cited was the state government classifying sweet shops as &lsquo;essential for Bengalis&rsquo; on March 30, permitting them to operate between noon and 4 pm, though they were closed in other states.</p><p>Another charge was its lackadaisical implementation of physical distancing norms and the ban on religious gatherings. On April 10, state police had to disperse a crowd of hundreds that had gathered at a mosque for Friday prayers in Murshidabad district, about 200 km away from Kolkata. BJP MP Babul Supriyo tweeted about it: &lsquo;This is bound to happen when [the chief minister] throws a sense of carelessness in the air by throwing open flower and paan markets [and] sweet shops...&rsquo; The same day, Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to the top IAS/ IPS officers in all states and Union territories, reminding them that no religious congregations were allowed, without exception.</p><div class="itgimage"><div class="itgimage"><img  height="675"  title=""  width="1200"  class="" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fbodyeditor%2F202004%2FUpfront-1-3-May4-2-x675.jpg%3FWR0SUZJW3nff1HAjV.kQ2qLfvQLl8ifJ%3Fsize%3D750:*" loading="lazy" /></div>
<div class="body_caption">WELL PROTECTED: BJP MPs Dilip Ghosh (orange stole) and Rahul Sinha (blue jacket) at governor House in Kolkata, April 11</div>
</div></p><p>The next day, on April 11, the MHA sent another letter to the West Bengal government, writing: &lsquo;As per reports received from security agencies, [a] gradual dilution of [the] lockdown has been reported from West Bengal.&rsquo; The letter also said that physical-distancing norms were being violated, especially in vegetable, fish and mutton markets in Rajabazaar, Narkel Danga, Topsia, Metiaburz, Garden Reach, Ikbalpur and Maniktala in Kolkata, which, it so happens, are Muslim-dominated districts. Not surprisingly, Banerjee accused the Centre of playing the communal card. &ldquo;The coronavirus is not a communal virus,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It is a human disease.&rdquo; She told journalists that &ldquo;the lockdown will continue with a human face, markets will be open and shops selling essentials will remain open&rdquo;. A reasonable enough line, Banerjee&rsquo;s riposte, however, came under fire for seeming to ignore the point that crowded areas, such as markets for essentials where physical distancing norms are not being enforced, are precisely how this &lsquo;human disease&rsquo; spreads, regardless of community. In either case, a day later, on April 12, the MHA sent yet another letter, describing more violations of the lockdown and physical distancing.</p><p>Perhaps Banerjee&rsquo;s aggression came from the fact that the MHA&rsquo;s April 11 letter had raised another issue, one that cut to the quick. &lsquo;It has been reported that free rations are being distributed by political leaders,&rsquo; read the letter, &lsquo;not through the institutional delivery system. This may have resulted in spread of COVID-19 infection.&rsquo; While reports remain anecdotal, or partisan, since many come from BJP MPs, the accusation is that TMC leaders have been bypassing the official ration-distribution system and &lsquo;acquiring&rsquo; the department&rsquo;s resources of grain to dole out themselves. Whether or not this is true, on April 16, Banerjee&rsquo;s government ordered the replacement of Manoj Agarwal, principal secretary, food and supplies, the top bureaucrat overseeing the distribution of rations. Reportedly, Banerjee explained this with: &ldquo;We are appointing a new secretary because 10 per cent of beneficiaries could not be given (even) half of their monthly allotment despite repeated instructions.&rdquo; State governor Jagdeep Dhankhar has also frequently tweeted about this issue. On April 18, one such read: &lsquo;PDS scam getting bigger by the day. The PDS system is in virtual political hijack, a crime. Free rations are for the needy and not for coffers. Defaulters to be sternly dealt with.&rsquo;</p><div class="itgimage"><div class="itgimage"><img  height="847"  title=""  width="1200"  class="" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fbodyeditor%2F202004%2FUpfront-1-3-May4-2_Mos-x847.jpg%3Fp1cyh84LWOeZCWSw0.r4ga_onaBFTbcl%3Fsize%3D750:*" loading="lazy" /></div>
<div class="body_caption"> </div>
</div></p><p><strong>THE STATE OF PLAY</strong></p><p>On April 20, when the Centre&rsquo;s IMCTs arrived in West Bengal, the initial response was a cold shoulder from the Banerjee government. TMC MP Derek O&rsquo;Brien described it as an &lsquo;adventure tour&rsquo;, saying that it was unacceptable for the Centre to inform the chief minister of their arrival after the fact. TMC MP Mahua Moitra asked why the Centre had informed the state chief secretary so late if it really wanted logistical support. And though Union home minister Amit Shah called and briefed her about the teams, Banerjee herself reportedly shot off a letter to the Centre, alleging protocol violations. On Twitter, she said that until PM Modi and home minister Shah &lsquo;share the criterion used to [deploy IMCTs in West Bengal], I am afraid we would not be able to move ahead&rsquo;. The politics continued in that vein, with Banerjee herself seen in an SUV, telling citizens in Rajabazaar via a mic and loudspeaker that a lockdown was being imposed on them by the Centre.</p><p>However, protests were soon quashed, at least in public, after MHA chief secretary Ajay Bhalla reportedly suggested that the Banerjee government&rsquo;s actions could be seen as &lsquo;obstructing the implementation of the orders issued by the central government under the Disaster Management Act... and directions of the Supreme Court.&rsquo; West Bengal chief secretary Sinha soon wrote to Bhalla, assuring him of the state government&rsquo;s full cooperation with the MHA&rsquo;s IMCTs, spinning the cold welcome as a miscommunication: &lsquo;[Since] the teams had arrived without any prior consultation with us, there was no opportunity to provide any logistic support.&rsquo; Since then, the IMCTs, accompanied by West Bengal government officials, have begun field visits of the districts they have been deputed to examine. Reportedly, they have also been questioning officials on a number of critical aspects of pandemic response, protocols for testing, the quantity of equipment available including hospital beds, oxygen supplies, ventilators, essential items and the like.</p><p>Nonetheless, this is unlikely to be the end of this story. The only hope is that the confrontation between the TMC and the BJP ends soon and they recognise their common enemy, the coronavirus.</p><div id="tab-link-wrapper-plugin"><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Iram Ara Ibrahim</div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Apr 25, 2020</div></div></div><div class="sendros">--- ENDS ---</div></div>

IMCTs received a chilly welcome, with state officials allegedly refusing to cooperate at first.

India Today

Drawing the line

Taken together, the Iranian deliveries to Myanmar’s military have helped shift the dynamic of the five-year civil war, which pits the junta against an array of rebel groups, none of whom have a conventional air force or a ready supply of weapons as powerful as the bombs and missiles launched by fighter jets.

From October 2024 to December 2025, Iran delivered a total of about 175,000 tons of jet fuel to the junta in nine shipments.

shadow fleet

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Karsan Maheshwari reportedly ran out of the house in flames, after which local residents attempted to douse the fire by pouring water on him. An ambulance was called, and he was rushed to a hospital in Bhuj for treatment, but he died during treatment.

Police have arrested three accused, including two women and a man, while one woman remains absconding.

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Scotland have named a 15-man men’s squad led by Richie Berrington, featuring George Munsey, Brandon McMullen and Safyaan Sharif, with travelling and non-travelling reserves added for depth.

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Cricket Scotland

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The incident took place when the elders were inspecting the fields and engaged in conversation; the children were playing nearby with a ball. During the game, the ball fell into a water pit dug for agricultural purposes. When the children went near the pit to retrieve it, they slipped and fell into the water.

3 children drown in Telangana

3 children from same family drown in agricultural water pit in Telangana

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s election rally in poll-bound Kerala on Thursday saw a warm and light-hearted moment when he paused his speech to acknowledge a young child in the crowd holding up his picture, drawing loud applause. Modi asked the boy to hand over the photograph, write his home address on the back, and promised to write to him personally, directing SPG personnel to handle the picture carefully as a token of the child’s affection. 

PM Modi's Kerala  rally.

You’ll get tired beta: PM’s warm moment with child holding his pic at Kerala rally

 Amidst inclement weather and heavy snowfall, a team of Udhampur police rescued 12 individuals, including women and children, who were stranded at Chochru Galla in the upper ridges of the Basantgarh area.

Udhampur Police Rescue 12 People Stranded In Heavy Snow

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Ajith Kumar's fans took the celebrations too seriously as they burst crackers inside a theatre hall during Mankatha screening. The film re-released in South India on January 23.

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In an exclusive interview with India Today TV Consulting Editor Rajdeep Sardesai at Davos, Somalia's Deputy Prime Minister Salah Ahmed Jama spoke in fluent Hindi and slammed Donald Trump for his remarks and recalled his student days in India. 

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Drawing the line

IMCTs received a chilly welcome, with state officials allegedly refusing to cooperate at first.

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