In the State-wide crackdown on the oil mafia that followed the horrific murder of Additional Collector Yashwant Sonawane, the government registered 105 offences related to oil between Tuesday and Friday, according to the data given by the State Home Department. The largest number of 22 offences was registered in Nanded district, followed by 16 in Wardha. In the period of four days, 83 cases were registered against the Sand mafia and none...

A survey has confirmed apprehensions among health experts that school canteens in India’s metros expose kids overwhelmingly to junk food, while healthy options are largely absent from the menu. The survey of canteens in 20 private schools across the National Capital Region suggests that burgers, patties, and packaged foods such as chips are among the most sold in canteens, and fresh cooked food the least popular. Nutrition specialists say the findings, although...

Introduction of sugarcane harvesters in Punjab may be the answer to the acute shortage of agricultural labour in the state. The Punjab government has decided to promote harvester use in a big way and has offered a subsidy of 25 per cent on the Rs 1-crore harvester. The sugarcane harvester imported from Australia is useful on all types of landholdings, including small and medium sized landholdings, and is capable of...

Lone absconding accused arrested Co-accused produced in juvenile court As 15 lakh State government employees and gazetted officers went on strike on Thursday to protest the gruesome killing of Additional Collector of Nashik Yashwant Sonawane, the State government cracked the whip on the oil, Sand and milk mafia in the State. “In the last 36 hours, we have arrested 170 persons in raids conducted across the State,” K.P. Raghuvanshi, Additional Director-General of Police,...

Societies formed to give jobs in Sandmining hitherto handled by non-tribals and contractors A small intervention from kind-hearted bureaucrats made a life-changing impact on scores of tribal families who eke out a primitive mode of life in these agency tracts of Warangal district. Vast stretches of dry beds of the Godavari are worth more than a gold mine and these had been exploited by non-tribals and wealthy contractors quarrying the Sand. The...