This Week Chhattisgarh: Scandals cloud festivities

Scandals cloud festivities

Chhattisgarh is marking the anniversary of its formation with a five-day Rajyotsava from November 1 in Raipur,where artistes from across the country have been invited to perform. The festive mood in Mantralaya has,however,been dampened by a series of setbacks the government has suffered the recent Lokayukta report indicting the administration of corruption; the suspension of additional chief secretary T Radhakrishnan over irregularities; the loss of an eye each of at least 65 persons after botched cataract operations at camps in various districts. The Congress boycotted the inaugural ceremony of the Rajyotsava,the first time in 11 years; around 1,80,000 shiksha karmis too boycotted it and have gone on strike; and thousands of tribals across the state staged a dharna outside the CMs house on the festivals first day. The turnout was lower than in earlier years.

An award turned down

Following protests by tribals,Raipur-based activist Binayak Sen has turned down the Gandhi International Peace Award for which he had been selected. The award,given for outstanding work for tribal welfare in the country,was announced for Dr Sen around two months ago and was to be given on November 9,in London. Convicted of alleged Naxal links,Sen is at present out on bail. Collecting the award would not have been a problem,with the court having given Sen permission to go abroad to receive it. But some tribals of Jharkhand protested the selection,saying that Sen did not represent the tribals of India. Subsequently,Sen wrote to the organisers informing them he would not accept the award.

Medical admission racket

Fifteen students recently cleared the pre-medical test before it was found that some proxy candidates had taken the exam on their behalf. These students have since been admitted to medical colleges of Raipur and Jagdalpur. The incident has brought the focus on a bigger racket engaged in getting ineligible students admitted to medical courses. This year the PMT was cancelled twice after the paper had been leaked at the last moment. Those involved,arrested later,were traced to UP and Bihar. The police had taken the fingerprints of students and some did not match those of the candidates who actually appeared in the PMT. The CID has registered a case and a team has been formed to arrest these students.

Sugarcane across border

In a step to make sugarcane farming more worthwhile,the BJP government has allowed farmers to sell their produce in the Vidharbha region of neighbouring Maharashtra. The government will also give them a transport allowance of Rs 50 per quintal. Due to shortage of sugar mills in the Kawardha region of Chhattisgarh,cane farmers are often left with a surplus and forced to undertake distress sale. In Maharashtra,by contrast,Nagpur and Bhandra have a number of private and cooperative sugar mills and these are offering good prices to Chhattisgarh farmers. It is being estimated that around 1 lakh tonnes cane from the state will be sold following the move.