Kolkata Apr 20 PTI The West Bengal government on Wednesday said the Centre should give due respect to the eminent academicians who have been included in the 10-member committee recently formed by the state to give recommendations about the New Education Policy 2020 draftEducation Minister Bratya Basu told reporters here that the state has not closed its mind about the entire NEP 2020 draft and its good aspects and is awaiting the recommendations of the panel of renowned educationistsBasu was responding to queries regarding recent comments by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan that the Trinamool Congress government was politicising the issue of basic education concerning the future of childrenOn Pradhans regret that the Mamata Banerjee government had no apparent respect for a personality like space scientist K Kasturirangan who had helmed the committee formed by the Centre to draft the NEP 2020 Basu said We have high regards for those in the central panel But Dharmendra Pradhanji should also tell us if the honorary members of the state-formed committee some of them considered the best brains of the world hailing from Bengal can be insulted if the Centre finds fault with the panel Everyone should wait for their recommendations Basu saidGayatri Chakravorty Spivak of Columbia University Suranjan Das of Jadavpur University Sugata Bose of Harvard University and Anupam Basu of NIT Durgapur are among the members of the committee formed by the state government on April 8Pradhan had on Monday flayed the states opposition to NEP wondering whether it was against the clauses that enhance employability of students and if the objections stemmed from political reasonsThe NEP which replaced the National Policy on Education 1986 is aimed at paving the way for transformational reforms in schools and the higher education system to make India a global knowledge superpowerTo another question about delay in recruitment of SSC candidates and their protests Basu said The matter is sub-judice It is now under the domain of the judiciary Once there is a solution to the legal issue we will ensure fair transparent and total recruitment of all eligible SSC candidates The minister was talking to media persons on the sidelines of an interactive session at the Science City auditorium hereHe also added that the number of schools in the state has shot up to 63794 in 2020-21 from 60837 in 2010-11All government pre-primary schools are attached with primary schools Special initiatives on foundational learnings have been operational for many years he said PTI SUS RBT RBT

Kolkata Apr 19 PTI Asserting that the jute industry is on the verge of collapse endangering the livelihood of three crore people engaged in this sector Trinamool Congress Chief Whip in the Rajya Sabha Sukhendu Sekhar Ray sought the intervention of the Centre to resolve the crisisFor this situation Ray blamed the Jute Commissioners Office which looks after orderly development and promotion of the industry in IndiaThe Rajya Sabha MP wrote separate letters to Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and Textile Minister Piyush Goyal seeking their help to resolve the problemHe claimed that 60000 workers have lost their jobs following the closure of 15 jute mills owing to raw jute crisis allegedly due to government diktat on pricingFrom November 2021 the Jute Commissioners Office is engaged in an unhealthy battle with Bengals jute industry on the capping of raw jute price at Rs 6500 per quintal while the industry demand is Rs 7200 per quintal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has publicly opposed the cap imposed by the Jute Commissioner on 30 September 2021 but it has not been removed Ray said in the letters The state government had also requested the Commissioner to raise the ceiling to Rs 7200 a quintal he saidInstead of searching for a solution the Jute Commissioner for the past few months is engaged in a legal battle with the jute industry the TMC MP saidRay highlighted that the 2022-23 report of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices also painted a gloomy picture saying acreage of jute has been declining for the last three years and supply has been reduced by 11 per centThe stock to user ratio SUR has also fallen by 84 per cent and jute yield is stagnant for the last five years There is a 70 per cent shortage of credible jute seeds needed for robust cultivation he saidRay urged both the ministers to intervene and save cultivators workers and the jute industry as a whole in public interest PTI BSM NN NN

Kolkata Feb 23 PTI CPIM general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Wednesday condemned the alleged killing of student leader Anis Khan whose death has sparked protests in various parts of West Bengal claiming that this is a reflection of the law and order situation in the state He said that the delay in arresting the culprits is raising suspicion as to what is the motive behind the killing I strongly condemn the incident This is a reflection of law and order in the state he told reporters on the sidelines of a programme here Khans family members have alleged that he was pushed off the third floor of their residence at Amta in Howrah district on Friday night by four persons with one donning a police uniform and the others wearing the dress of civic volunteers Even though Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has formed a special investigation team SIT and promised an impartial probe the father of the deceased has stuck to his demand for a CBI investigation The government should take a call on the fathers demand for a CBI probe Yechury said The SIT on Wednesday arrested a homeguard and a civic volunteer in connection with the case PTI AMR NN NN

Kolkata Jan 20 PTI Leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Thursday hit out at the TMC alleging that the party was trying to divide anti-BJP votes in states and its claims of organising a united front against the saffron camp was nothing short of a well-scripted drama Chowdhury also said that the Bengals ruling party in a tacit understanding with the BJP was trying to finish off the Congress The TMC recently announced its first list of candidates for Goa Assembly polls scheduled next month The Mamata Banerjee-led camp is fighting the elections to the 40-member Goa Assembly in alliance with Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MGP The TMCs main role is to fracture non-BJP votes in Goa The TMC using money power has bought a few leaders In a tacit understanding with the BJP it is trying to hurt the prospects of the Congress and that is a proven fact The party is venturing into states where the Congress is the main opposition of the BJP It is giving states such as Uttar Pradesh a miss as there are other regional forces Chowdhury stated If you go through TMCs political history you will see that the party always tried to bite the hand that helped the senior Congress leader noted Staring at a humiliating defeat it is now staging a drama of trying to organise a united fight against the BJP The TMC is not a trustworthy ally As it did in Bengal the party is trying to finish off the Congress in other states too he contended Responding to Chowdhurys remarks TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said the Congress should not blame the TMC for its losses in Bengal If the Congress cant fight the BJP it isnt our fault Nationally the Congress has failed to counter the BJP People are now looking up to the TMC to fight the saffron party he said The TMC which is trying to make inroads in the political landscapes of other states has been up in arms against the grand-old party over its alleged failure to confront the BJP The ties between the Congress and the TMC got strained after the Bengals ruling party in its mouthpiece Jago Bangla asserted that Banerjee and not Rahul Gandhi has emerged as the face of the opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi PTI PNT RMS RMS