Kolkata:

The TMC government of West Bengal on Wednesday tabled a Rs 3.89-lakh crore budget for 2025-26, increased dearness allowance (DA) by four per cent state government employees, and focused on rural development, prioritising infrastructure and welfare ahead of next year’s assembly elections.

The government unveiled a series of infrastructure and agricultural development projects in its budget, allocating significant funds for rural connectivity, river erosion control, and agrarian support initiatives.

In the last full-fledged budget of the Mamata Banerjee government before the 2026 Assembly elections, Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya tabled in the assembly a Rs 3.89 lakh crore budget.

In the previous budget, the state saw an allocation of Rs 3.67 lakh crore, marking an 8 per cent increase from the previous year 2023-24.

Bhattacharya announced that the state government would increase the Dearness Allowance (DA) by four per cent from April 1, 2025.

This would bring the total DA to 18 per cent for over 10 lakh state government employees and pensioners.

The move is aimed at addressing ongoing concerns raised by the employees who have been agitating for better compensation.

“With this four per cent increase in DA, we are reaffirming our commitment to the welfare of our employees,” Bhattacharya said, underlining the state’s focus on the well-being of its workforce.

In the budget speech, Bhattacharya said a total of Rs 44,139.65 crore has been allocated for rural development, surpassing allocations for all other sectors in this year’s budget.

Additionally, Rs 13,381.68 crore has been earmarked for the Urban and Municipal Development Department.

In the 294-seat West Bengal Assembly, rural constituencies dominate, with around 170 to 180 seats in rural areas often proving decisive in elections.

Bhattacharya highlighted an increase in funding for multiple rural-centric initiatives, including the road construction scheme ‘Pathashree’ and housing programme ‘Banglar Bari’.

Rs 1,500 crore has been allocated for the Pathashree project in the upcoming fiscal year, while the Bangla’r Bari scheme has seen an increase of Rs 9,600 crore.

This year, 12 lakh families have been provided funds for constructing permanent homes, and another 16 lakh families will benefit from the same assistance in the next fiscal year.

After the budget presentation, Bhattacharya emphasised the integration of rural and urban economies, saying, “Employment opportunities for rural people will be created, which will also nourish the urban economy. We aim to create this synergy.” In a bid to address the persistent issue of river erosion, the government set aside Rs 200 crore, which would provide much-needed relief to vulnerable riverine communities.

Further strengthening its focus on infrastructure, the government sanctioned Rs 500 crore for the construction of a 4.75 km-long bridge over the Ganga river at Gangasagar, which is expected to facilitate smooth access for pilgrims and boost local economies.

For the ‘Ghatal Master Plan’, a mega project to dredge riverbeds and strengthen embankments of at least 10 major rivers in the state, the government has allocated Rs 500 crore this year. The total cost of the project is Rs 1,500 crore.

A new project called ‘Nadi Bandhan’ was announced for river-centric areas in the state. The project has been allocated Rs 200 crore, and it will focus on measures to prevent riverbank erosion.

Bhattacharya announced that 70,000 ASHA workers will be provided with smartphones as part of the budget’s welfare measures.

There was no announcement regarding the ‘Lakshmir Bhandar’, a financial assistance scheme for women, in the budget.

Speaking at a press conference after the budget was presented, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, “Lakshmir Bhandar is a popular scheme. Altogether 2.21 crore women benefit from it. The state government spends Rs 50,000 crore on this. Other states, especially the BJP-ruled states, are copying the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme.” She said the state budget has a vision to create employment opportunities.

Expressing dissatisfaction with the budget, BJP lawmakers staged a walkout after the finance minister ended her speech.

They raised slogans against the government, highlighting the difference between the DA given by the central government and the state. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Kolkata:

Several videos purportedly showing a professor getting married to a college student inside the classroom in West Bengal have gone viral, complete with wedding rituals like ‘haldi‘ and the exchange of garlands, putting the university officials on alert.

An official said the purported incident occurred at the Psychology Department of the Haringhata Technology College in Nadia, about 150 km from Kolkata. The college functions under the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology (MAKAUT).

The professor, identified as Payal Banerjee, is seen in the videos wearing a bridal outfit and garlands. She, however, denied that it was a real wedding and said the act was part of an academic exercise meant for internal use.

She has been sent on leave pending a probe, for which the authorities have formed a three-member panel. We cannot take any stern action without proper investigation, the official said.

Among the videos circulating on social media, one showed ‘haldi‘ being smeared on the student – as per the Hindu wedding rituals, and in another, the two are seen exchanging garlands and taking seven steps around a candle denoting the sacred fire. 

The student is also seen putting sindoor on her hair partings and offering her a rose.

A university letterhead with the signatures of the professor and the student, accepting each other as their spouse, has also gone viral. It also carries the signatures of three witnesses from each side.

Ms Banerjee, who has been teaching psychology for years, claimed that the act was part of a “psychological drama” that she used to explain concepts in her class. The video was leaked to malign her, she alleged.

The student was not reachable for comment.

Jhargram:

65-year-old woman died of shock after seeing the hanging body of her grandson who allegedly died by suicide in their home in West Bengal’s Jhargram district allegedly after a heated argument with his girlfriend, police said on Monday.

The incident occurred after Shubhankar Mahato (25), who worked under a contractor, returned to his Parulia village home in Jhargram block on Sunday night.

He had then an argument with his girlfriend over the phone during which he entered a room and locked the door from inside, police said.

Despite repeated calls, he did not open the door. When the door was broken open, it was found that he was hanging.

“Unable to bear the pain, his grandmother Kamala Mahato also died,” a police officer said.

After conducting postmortem examinations, both bodies were handed over to the family on Monday.

The police started an investigation into the matter, the officer said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

The Bangladeshi national, who has been arrested on charges of stabbing actor Saif Ali Khan after breaking into his residence, entered India through Meghalaya seven months ago and stayed in West Bengal for a few weeks before he moved to Mumbai in search of a job, police sources have revealed.

Mumbai Police officers involved in the interrogation of the accused, Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad, said the 30-year-old crossed the Dawki river, along the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya, to illegally enter India. He then changed his name to Bijoy Das and began living in the country, they added. 

Police had earlier said that Shehzad is a native of Jhalokathi district in Bangladesh. 

According to a police official, Shehzad said that during his stay in Bengal, he used a local resident’s Aadhaar card to procure a mobile phone SIM card before moving to Mumbai.

The SIM card was registered in the name of one Khukumoni Jahangir Sekha of Bengal, the official said.

After reaching Mumbai, the officer added, the accused chose to work in places where he was not required to furnish any documents. “He studied till Class 12 in Bangladesh and had come to India in search of a job,” the officer said. 

Saif Ali Khan suffered grievous injuries after he was stabbed six times, reportedly by Shehzad during a failed burglary attempt at the actor’s 12th-floor residence in “Satguru Sharan” building in upscale Bandra in the early hours of January 16. The doctors who performed an emergency surgery had removed a 2.5-inch piece of a broken knife from his spine afterwards. 

If the knife had pierced 2 mm deeper, it could have caused a severe injury, the doctors had noted. The actor was discharged from hospital and returned home on Tuesday.

Shehzad, sources earlier said, told police that he stabbed the actor in his back multiple times in an attempt to free himself after he had grabbed hold of him. He also said that he hid in the garden of the building housing Mr Khan flat for around two hours before fleeing the area.

In her statement to the police, Mr Khan’s wife and actor Kareena Kapoor Khan recalled the attack on her husband and said she saw the intruder stab him repeatedly. “The attacker was aggressive. I saw him attack Saif repeatedly…Our priority was to take Saif to the hospital,” she said. 

A nurse caring for the couple’s younger son Jehangir (Jeh), Eliyama Philips – who first encountered the intruder – said the accused had demanded Rs 1 crore. 

Multiple teams of the police and the crime branch worked on several inputs and analysed footage from several CCTV cameras to track down Mr Khan’s attacker. 

After over 70 hours of an intense manhunt, Shehzad was arrested from near Hiranandani Estate in Kasarvadavali in Thane, about 35 kilometres from Mr Khan’s house in Bandra, on Sunday. He was subsequently remanded in police custody for five days.

New Delhi:

The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the West Bengal government why it had created supernumerary posts of teachers and non-teaching staff instead of weeding out persons who were allegedly appointed illegally. “Why did you create supernumerary posts? What was the purpose of creating that?” a bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar asked the West Bengal counsel.

Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the West Bengal government, informed the bench about a report by a committee appointed for a thorough investigation into the selection process.

The bench observed the committee’s report and noted some irregularities.

Mr Dwivedi argued the committee found some irregularities but not as extensive as the CBI’s report.

“So, they found there were irregularities committed. So, in order to deal with that situation, instead of weeding out the persons who have been appointed illegally, you say, okay create supernumerary posts?” asked the bench.

“Mr Dwivedi, tell me one thing, if you find the irregularity committed, will you not throw them out first?” the CJI asked further.

Mr Dwivedi said the order had specifically mentioned it was for the appointment of the wait-listed candidates.

“Correct. The reason is this, that you don’t want to throw out the tainted candidates,” the CJI said.

The top court was hearing arguments on a batch of pleas challenging the Calcutta High Court’s April 22 decision invalidating the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in state-run and state-aided schools of West Bengal.

On May 7, the top court stayed the high court’s order over the appointments made by the state’s School Service Commission (SSC). The top court, however, permitted the CBI to continue with its probe into the matter.

In its May 7 order, the Supreme Court noted that on May 19, 2022, the state government issued an order creating 6,861 supernumerary posts of teachers and non-teaching staff to absorb the wait-listed candidates.

The top court further noted it was directed that appointment letters to such wait-listed candidates should be issued in terms of the recommendation of the SSC subject to the outcome of the pending litigation before the high court.

During the hearing on Thursday, the bench asked, “Is the state of West Bengal supporting the proposition that it is not possible to segregate the tainted from the untainted?” Mr Dwivedi however said the state was supporting the segregation.

He argued the division bench of the high court “went too far ahead” and passed a “blanket direction” that the CBI should investigate everybody and undertake custodial interrogation, if necessary.

The bench also wondered why the original OMR sheets were not available.

“The original paper is the OMR sheet. That is the primary evidence. If any manipulation is done on the main evidence or the main paper, it will be only visible in the OMR sheets,” it said.

“The issue would be, because the originals are not available, so there is no way we can authenticate whether the original OMR sheets were identical to the scanned OMR sheets which are available on the server,” the bench said.

The top court asked the CBI’s counsel whether the probe agency was able to ascertain the date on which the OMR data was captured.

“One thing is very strange that people who are not even recommended and who have not qualified… they were issued letters,” the bench observed, “it was a very serious thing”.

During the day-long hearing, the bench heard submissions from senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Shyam Divan, Jaideep Gupta, Sanjay Hegde and others.

The hearing would continue in January, 2025.

On May 7, the top court had said the CBI’s investigation, which was ordered by the high court, would continue but no coercive steps would be taken.

The top court, however, had made it clear that the teachers and non-teaching staff of the state, whose appointments were cancelled by the high court, would have to refund their salaries and other emoluments if their recruitment was found illegal.

Over 23 lakh candidates had appeared for the state-level selection test-2016 for 24,640 vacant posts. A total of 25,753 appointment letters were issued against 24,640 vacancies.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Kolkata:

West Bengal BJP’s Murshidabad unit has announced plans to construct a Ram temple in Berhampore, days after TMC MLA Humayun Kabir proposed to set up a mosque modelled after the Babri Masjid at Beldanga in the same district.

The BJP said the temple’s construction will begin on January 22, 2025, exactly one year after the inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

BJP’s Berhampore organisational district president, Shakharav Sarkar, said land for the temple has already been identified, and the project is estimated to cost Rs 10 crore.

“We have already identified a land in Beharampore area and the construction work for the Ram Temple based on the design of the temple on Ayodhya will begin soon,” he told reporters.

Kabir, the TMC MLA from Beldanga, had on Tuesday announced plans for the mosque, which he said would honour the sentiments of the region’s significant minority population.

His remarks have sparked political controversy, with opposition parties accusing him of attempting to polarise communities for political gain.

The BJP’s counterproposal to build a Ram temple is seen as a strategic move to strengthen its presence among the Hindu community in Murshidabad, a district where minorities make up around 75 per cent of the population.

Responding to the controversy, the TMC distanced itself from Kabir’s remarks, describing them as his personal opinion.

“The TMC has nothing to do with this statement of Kabir,” a senior party leader said.

Kabir’s announcement has also drawn criticism from the Congress, which accused him of playing divisive politics in a sensitive region. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Kolkata:

A mentally disturbed woman, now in her fifties and currently lodged in West Bengal’s Midnapore Central Correctional Home, will finally get to meet her family after eight years, thanks to the efforts of HAM radio enthusiasts.

Members of the West Bengal Radio Club, also known as HAM radio, on Tuesday managed to locate the woman’s family in Jharkhand’s Palamu district. After completing official procedures, she will soon be handed over to her family, they said.

It all started in 2017 when police arrested the woman for illegally entering a prohibited area in Kalaikunda defence land. She was later granted bail by a court, but trouble brewed when no one came to take her home.

“She could not explain properly where she was from, and there was no response from the address that was mentioned by police during her arrest,” explained Ambarish Nag Biswas, secretary of the West Bengal Radio Club. “She remained in the correctional facility as no legal authority could be found to take responsibility,” he added.

On November 6 this year, Aniruddha Ghosh, the correctional home’s welfare officer, contacted the HAM radio club for help.

“Ghosh contacted us after learning that the woman was actually from Jharkhand’s Palamu district, not Uttar Pradesh as mentioned by police,” Biswas told PTI.

Ghosh contacted the radio club after Shahid Parvez, the secretary of the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) of Paschim Medinipur, spoke to the woman himself. After listening to her dialect, he suggested that she might be from Jharkhand rather than Uttar Pradesh. Parvez joined as the DLSA here about one-and-a-half months ago.

“Once he raised the doubt about her place of origin, the radio club was contacted and they swung into action,” he said.

After almost a month of searching, the woman’s family was finally traced to Jharkhand’s Palamu. Her husband, Lalji Chowdhury, had filed a missing person report with the local police in 2017, stating that his wife had gone missing.

The couple has a daughter and two sons, and they live in a village under the jurisdiction of Chainpur police station, Biswas said.

Her husband told the authorities, “She was not very stable mentally, but we never imagined she would leave the house and go missing.” He said they are now making arrangements to travel to West Bengal to meet his wife and bring her home once all formalities are completed.

The local police in Palamu will verify all the details and inform the authorities in West Bengal to ensure that the woman is indeed going back to her family, sources said.

“The mistake happened when police registered the case. They mentioned that she was from Uttar Pradesh. She was granted bail in 2018, but she had to remain here all these years because the authorities were trying to contact her family in Uttar Pradesh, while she was actually from Jharkhand,” Parvez told PTI over the phone.

“I’m happy that we could locate her family,” Parvez added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Jalpaiguri:

Four members of a family were electrocuted in West Bengal’s Jalpaiguri district on Friday after coming into contact with a live wire while trying to save their cow, police said.

The incident happened at Takimari in the evening, police said.

The family members were identified as Paresh Das (60), his wife Dipali, son Mithun (30) and grandson Suman (2), they added.

Mithun was taking back the cow from the field when the animal came in contact with the livewire that lay submerged in the water that accumulated outside the shed. As he tried to save the cow, he was electrocuted.

Hearing his screams, Paresh and Dipali rushed to his aid and both were electrocuted. Suman was with Dipali and he also died on the spot, police said.

Mithun’s wife was not at home when the tragedy struck, they said.

The bodies were sent for post-mortem examinations, they added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:
The BJP has called for a 6 am to 6 pm bandh (strike) in West Bengal to protest against the police action on those who took part in the march to the state secretariat ‘Nabbana’ over the rape and murder of a 31-year-old doctor in Kolkata.

Here Are Top Points On West Bengal Bandh:

Kolkata:

The Kanchanjunga Express was travelling from Agartala in Tripura to Sealdah in Kolkata when a goods train hit it from behind near Rangapani station, close to New Jalpaiguri Monday morning, resulting in the deaths of nine people and injuries to 41. Preliminary findings point to a combination of human error and signal failure as contributing factors.

The Railway Board’s initial report on Monday revealed that the goods train, operating under a defective automatic signalling system, was travelling above speed limits when it crashed into the Kanchanjunga Express. The railways have not commented on this issue.

When the automated system fails, railway protocol mandates a written authority known as TA 912. This document authorises train drivers to pass all red signals due to the signalling defect, provided they adhere to stringent safety measures. Both the Kanchanjunga Express and the goods train had been issued TA 912 (pictured below).

According to railway procedures, under TA 912, drivers must stop for one minute at each defective signal and proceed at a maximum speed of 10 kmph. Additionally, they must maintain a 150-metre gap from the preceding train to ensure adequate stopping distance if the previous train has not cleared the signal. However, in this incident, the goods train driver violated these critical conditions.

The Kanchanjunga Express had cleared nine automatic signals with TA 912 and had stopped after crossing the nine signals awaiting fresh clearance to proceed further.

Authorisation To Cross Red Signals

The Railway Board said that the driver of the goods train had been authorised to cross all red signals between Rangapani and Chattarhat railway stations due to the defective automatic signalling system. However, the train’s speed exceeded the permissible limit set for such situations. The goods train driver was given a TA 912, by the station master of Rangapani, permitting the train to pass nine red signals. This authorisation was crucial because the automatic signalling system had been malfunctioning since 5:50 am on the day of the accident.

The goods train, GFCJ, departed from Rangapani at 8:42 am and collided with the stationary Kanchanjunga Express at 8:55 am. The impact resulted in the derailment of the guard’s coach, two parcel coaches, and a general seating coach of the passenger train. The driver of the goods train, who was among the dead, was found to have not followed the mandatory speed restrictions, leading to the crash.

The driver of the Kanchanjunga Express adhered to the safety norms required during a signalling defect. He stopped at all red signals for one minute and proceeded at a speed of 10 kmph. In contrast, the goods train’s driver proceeded at higher than permissible limits and rammed the passenger train.

Automatic Signalling System Failure

The TA 912 authority letter mentioned that the automatic signalling system had failed and authorised the driver to pass all automatic signals between Rangapani and Chattarhat, regardless of whether they were red or caution signals. The Railway Board said that under normal circumstances, a train encountering a red signal should stop for one minute during the day and two minutes at night, proceeding with extreme caution at speed not exceeding 15 kmph in good visibility conditions and 10 kmph in poor visibility.

Despite these regulations, the goods train exceeded the permissible speed, leading to the catastrophic collision. The exact speed at which the goods train was travelling has not been disclosed by the Railway Board.

Rescue operations concluded by late afternoon, but efforts to clear the derailed coaches and restore rail services continued. The North Bengal Medical College and Hospital treated several injured passengers, with 41 remaining hospitalized, including nine in critical condition.

Official Response

The Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) initiated a probe into the cause of the accident. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw visited the site, overseeing relief operations and announcing compensation for the victims’ families. Rs 10 lakh will be provided to the families of those who died, Rs 2.5 lakh to the grievously injured, and Rs 50,000 to those with minor injuries.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to the victims and prayed for the recovery of those who were injured. 

“The railway accident in West Bengal is saddening. Condolences to those who lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. Spoke to officials and took stock of the situation. Rescue operations are underway to assist the affected. The Railways Minister Shri @AshwiniVaishnaw Ji is on the way to the site of the mishap as well,” PM Modi posted on X. 

The railway accident in West Bengal is saddening. Condolences to those who lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. Spoke to officials and took stock of the situation. Rescue operations are underway to assist the affected. The Railways Minister Shri…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 17, 2024

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticised the Railway Ministry for neglecting passenger safety and failing to implement the anti-collision system effectively. She alleged that the railways focused more on fare hikes than improving safety measures. 

“The railways have become totally parentless. Though the ministry is there, the old glory is missing. Only beautification is being done, but they do not care about passenger amenities. They are only keen on hiking fares,” she said. “You will only see them talk big. They also do not take care of the railway officers, technical, safety, and security personnel. I am with the railway employees and officers.” 

Governor CV Ananda Bose urged the prioritisation of treating the victims rather than engaging in blame games.