Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth is currently on his annual spiritual journey to the Himalayas. He arrived in Jammu on Sunday and said that he will not engage in any political conversations or interactions during this period.&nbsp;

&quot;I am a spiritual person. From here I will go to Rishikesh. When I will enter the politics, I will answer all the political questions.&quot; the mega-star told media at Shivkhori, Jammu.&nbsp;

Rajinikanth will later head to Rishikesh. He was also spotted at Mahavtar Baba Ashram meditation centre in a remote village of Kandabari.

&quot;Spiritualism is all about serving \people. I am entering politics to serve people. My politics will basically be spiritual,&quot; Rajinikanth told the media here.

&quot;I have worked for 43 years in the film industry, but basically I am a spiritual person,&quot; he added.

The 67-year-old Thalaivar earlier announced the launch of his political party that would contest all 234 constituencies in the next Tamil Nadu assembly elections in 2021.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth is currently on his annual spiritual journey to the Himalayas. He arrived in Jammu on Sunday and said that he will not engage in any political conversations or interactions during this period. "I am a spiritual person. From here I will go to Rishikesh. When I will enter the politics, I will answer all the political questions." the mega-star told media at Shivkhori, Jammu. Rajinikanth will later head to Rishikesh. He was also spotted at Mahavtar Baba Ashram meditation centre in a remote village of Kandabari. "Spiritualism is all about serving \people. I am entering politics to serve people. My politics will basically be spiritual," Rajinikanth told the media here. "I have worked for 43 years in the film industry, but basically I am a spiritual person," he added. The 67-year-old Thalaivar earlier announced the launch of his political party that would contest all 234 constituencies in the next Tamil Nadu assembly elections in 2021. (With inputs from agencies)

Rajinikanth embarks on 'spiritual journey' to Himalayas

An Indian Air Force helicopter doused the fire at Kurangani hills area in Tamil Nadu that left nine persons dead, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday.

At least 16 Garud Commando Force personnel have been deployed to carry out&nbspsearch and rescue operation at the site, Sitharaman said, adding they were working on moving the dead bodies to a place from where they can be collected.

According to the minister, two helicopters have been engaged in the task of moving the bodies.

At least 27 people have so far been rescued from the site, out of which ten suffered minor injuries and eight were seriously hurt.

Police said the students from Coimbatore and Erode were taking training in Kurangai-Kozhuku Hill area when the fire suddenly broke out around noon.

The operation is underway and further details are awaited.

Nine people have been killed and 27 students rescued so far

An Indian Air Force helicopter doused the fire at Kurangani hills area in Tamil Nadu that left nine persons dead, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday. At least 16 Garud Commando Force personnel have been deployed to carry out&nbspsearch and rescue operation at the site, Sitharaman said, adding they were working on moving the dead bodies to a place from where they can be collected. According to the minister, two helicopters have been engaged in the task of moving the bodies. At least 27 people have so far been rescued from the site, out of which ten suffered minor injuries and eight were seriously hurt. Police said the students from Coimbatore and Erode were taking training in Kurangai-Kozhuku Hill area when the fire suddenly broke out around noon. The operation is underway and further details are awaited.

Tamil Nadu forest fire doused: Defence Minister

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan today slammed the Tamil Nadu government and said that the way women are treated in Tamil Nadu is &#39;&#39;shameful&#39;&#39;.&nbsp;

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They say I&#39;m funded by Christian missionaries &amp; to that all I can do is laugh it off as it&#39;s false. It&#39;s not about actors becoming politicians it&#39;s about concerned citizens getting involved &amp; the way women are treated here currently is shameful: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KamalHaasan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KamalHaasan</a> in Erode, Tamil Nadu <a href="https://t.co/FFrWB50Y4r">pic.twitter.com/FFrWB50Y4r</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/972721538049900546?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Beginning his two-day visit to Erode on Saturday, he addressed party cadre and the public at Perundurai, where he asked a party member to hoist the party flag.

Makkal Needhi Maiam leader said that changes will happen only if everyone comes together.

&#39;&#39;They say I&#39;m funded by Christian missionaries and to that all I can do is laugh it off as it&#39;s false. It&#39;s not about actors becoming politicians it&#39;s about concerned citizens getting involved,&#39;&#39; the actor said.

The way women are treated here currently is &#39;&#39;shameful&#39;&#39;, he added.&nbsp;

The actor, who has been extremely&nbsp;vocal in his criticism of the ruling party in Tamil Nadu even before announcing his entry into politics, has stepped up the attack of late.&nbsp;

Asked what will be his message to the ruling AIADMK and the main opposition DMK, he said yesterday, &quot;Mend your ways or we will step in.&quot;

Makkal Needhi Maiam leader said that changes will happen only if everyone comes together.

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan today slammed the Tamil Nadu government and said that the way women are treated in Tamil Nadu is ''shameful''. They say I'm funded by Christian missionaries & to that all I can do is laugh it off as it's false. It's not about actors becoming politicians it's about concerned citizens getting involved & the way women are treated here currently is shameful: #KamalHaasan in Erode, Tamil Nadu pic.twitter.com/FFrWB50Y4r — ANI (@ANI) March 11, 2018 × Beginning his two-day visit to Erode on Saturday, he addressed party cadre and the public at Perundurai, where he asked a party member to hoist the party flag. Makkal Needhi Maiam leader said that changes will happen only if everyone comes together. ''They say I'm funded by Christian missionaries and to that all I can do is laugh it off as it's false. It's not about actors becoming politicians it's about concerned citizens getting involved,'' the actor said. The way women are treated here currently is ''shameful'', he added. The actor, who has been extremely vocal in his criticism of the ruling party in Tamil Nadu even before announcing his entry into politics, has stepped up the attack of late. Asked what will be his message to the ruling AIADMK and the main opposition DMK, he said yesterday, "Mend your ways or we will step in."

The way women are treated in Tamil Nadu is 'shameful': Kamal Haasan

Protests took over Thiruverumbur city of Tiruchirapalli district, Tamil Nadu after a pregnant woman died by falling off a two-wheeler which was allegedly kicked by a policeman.&nbsp;

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Tamil Nadu: People gather in protest in Thiruverumbur after a pregnant woman died by falling off two-wheeler after it was allegedly kicked by a police inspector in an attempt to stop it during routine checking, husband injured;Police Superintendent says inspector arrested (07.03) <a href="https://t.co/Y79fPHG3lZ">pic.twitter.com/Y79fPHG3lZ</a>
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According to reports, the policeman tried to stop the vehicle during routine checking. The deceased woman&#39;s husband has also been injured. The Police Superintendent here reported that the inspector has already been arrested.&nbsp;

The deceased was travelling with her husband on Wednesday evening. The couple was near the BHEL headquarters and was asked by a police team to stop.

A cop chased them on another bike when the couple did not stop. The inspector then kicked their vehicle which wobbled and lost balance.

The pregnant woman is reported to have died on the spot. The couple was taken to the nearest government hospital where the woman was confirmed dead.&nbsp;

(With inputs from ANI) 
&nbsp;

The deceased was travelling with her husband on Wednesday evening

Protests took over Thiruverumbur city of Tiruchirapalli district, Tamil Nadu after a pregnant woman died by falling off a two-wheeler which was allegedly kicked by a policeman. Tamil Nadu: People gather in protest in Thiruverumbur after a pregnant woman died by falling off two-wheeler after it was allegedly kicked by a police inspector in an attempt to stop it during routine checking, husband injured;Police Superintendent says inspector arrested (07.03) pic.twitter.com/Y79fPHG3lZ — ANI (@ANI) March 8, 2018 × According to reports, the policeman tried to stop the vehicle during routine checking. The deceased woman's husband has also been injured. The Police Superintendent here reported that the inspector has already been arrested. The deceased was travelling with her husband on Wednesday evening. The couple was near the BHEL headquarters and was asked by a police team to stop. A cop chased them on another bike when the couple did not stop. The inspector then kicked their vehicle which wobbled and lost balance. The pregnant woman is reported to have died on the spot. The couple was taken to the nearest government hospital where the woman was confirmed dead. (With inputs from ANI)

Tamil Nadu: Pregnant woman kicked by cop falls off two-wheeler, dies

BJP leader H Raja on Wednesday blamed staff managing his Facebook account for the controversial post on rationalist leader Periyar and expressed regret for the remarks even as the controversy refused to die down with parties and pro-Tamil outfits holding protests against him.

The state government has warned of action against those &quot;disrupting public peace.&quot;

In a Facebook post that was later deleted on Tuesday, Raja had said: &quot;Who is Lenin and what is the connection between Lenin and India? What connection India has with Communists? Today Lenin&#39;s statue removed in Tripura, tomorrow it will be the statue of EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu&quot;.

With the remarks stirring a controversy in Tamil Nadu, Raja initially took to Facebook on Wednesday to issue a clarification and express regret for his comments. 
In his online post, he said his &quot;Facebook admin&quot; had put up a post comparing the razing down of Lenin statue in Tripura to that of Ramaswamy.

&quot;Views should be confronted by views only and not by violence. I have no intentions of hurting anybody. Therefore, if anybody felt hurt by that post, I express my heartfelt regret,&quot; he said.

&quot;It is not acceptable to us to damage any statue of Periyar,&quot; he further said.

Later, speaking to reporters in Delhi, he claimed that his Facebook admin had put up such a post while he was travelling to the national capital for a party event.

&quot;I later removed the post and have also removed the admin,&quot; he said and once again expressed regret.

However, the move failed to cut any ice with political parties and pro-Tamil outfits in Tamil Nadu.

Opposition DMK and various fringe organisations and outfits staged protests in many parts of the state, with Raja&#39;s effigies being burnt in Chennai, Cuddalore and Salem among others.

Police detained scores of protesters, including some who tried to lay siege to the state BJP headquarters here. The protesters wanted the government to initiate legal action against the saffron party leader, known to make controversial remarks.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah have also condemned the vandalisation and warned of strong action against those indulging in such acts. The government warned of action against those affecting public peace.

&quot;Anyone disrupting public peace will be produced before the law,&quot; senior AIADMK leader and state Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar told reporters here.

Using a Tamil phrase, he indicated that the government will not hesitate to take action against anyone affecting public peace.

Opposition DMK said that following the outcry in Tamil Nadu on this issue, none would make such remarks henceforth.

DMK Working President MK Stalin recalled Ramasamy&#39;s contribution in fighting various social evils and striving towards an egalitarian society and said he was a widely respected leader.

Pointing out at the widespread protests and the public outcry against Raja&#39;s comments, Stalin said: &quot;none even in their dreams will now think of removing statues of Periyar.&quot;

&quot;If anyone wanted to do so, let them touch the statues and the DMK, which upholds the Dravidian ideals of Periyar, will show who they are,&quot; he said in a letter to partymen.

President of Makkal Neethi Maiam (MNM), actor Kamal Haasan, said he wondered if the ongoing controversy was aimed at diverting attention from the Cauvery issue. He said it came at a time when there were strong demands in the state urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Water Management Board (CMB), as per Supreme Court guidelines.

Asked if the BJP should take action against Raja, Haasan said: &quot;that would be the proper, decent thing to do.&quot;

Following the vandalism of a Periyar statue in Vellore, statues of the leader in different parts of the state were given police protection. Armed police security was also posted at Raja&#39;s residence in Karaikudi.

Meanwhile, in an apparent fallout of the incident, the BJP office in Coimbatore came under attack, after miscreants hurled petrol bombs at it.

The men, who came in an auto-rickshaw, hurled the bombs at the office in Siddapudur at around 4 am, they said, adding that the bombs fell short of the BJP office building.

A special police team has been formed to track down the culprits, based on CCTV camera footage, they added.&nbsp;

"Views can be debated only by countering it and not through violence. I don't want to hurt anyone. Therefore, if anyone has been hurt due to the post, I really regret the action," wrote Raja.

BJP leader H Raja on Wednesday blamed staff managing his Facebook account for the controversial post on rationalist leader Periyar and expressed regret for the remarks even as the controversy refused to die down with parties and pro-Tamil outfits holding protests against him. The state government has warned of action against those "disrupting public peace." In a Facebook post that was later deleted on Tuesday, Raja had said: "Who is Lenin and what is the connection between Lenin and India? What connection India has with Communists? Today Lenin's statue removed in Tripura, tomorrow it will be the statue of EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu". With the remarks stirring a controversy in Tamil Nadu, Raja initially took to Facebook on Wednesday to issue a clarification and express regret for his comments. In his online post, he said his "Facebook admin" had put up a post comparing the razing down of Lenin statue in Tripura to that of Ramaswamy. "Views should be confronted by views only and not by violence. I have no intentions of hurting anybody. Therefore, if anybody felt hurt by that post, I express my heartfelt regret," he said. "It is not acceptable to us to damage any statue of Periyar," he further said. Later, speaking to reporters in Delhi, he claimed that his Facebook admin had put up such a post while he was travelling to the national capital for a party event. "I later removed the post and have also removed the admin," he said and once again expressed regret. However, the move failed to cut any ice with political parties and pro-Tamil outfits in Tamil Nadu. Opposition DMK and various fringe organisations and outfits staged protests in many parts of the state, with Raja's effigies being burnt in Chennai, Cuddalore and Salem among others. Police detained scores of protesters, including some who tried to lay siege to the state BJP headquarters here. The protesters wanted the government to initiate legal action against the saffron party leader, known to make controversial remarks. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah have also condemned the vandalisation and warned of strong action against those indulging in such acts. The government warned of action against those affecting public peace. "Anyone disrupting public peace will be produced before the law," senior AIADMK leader and state Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar told reporters here. Using a Tamil phrase, he indicated that the government will not hesitate to take action against anyone affecting public peace. Opposition DMK said that following the outcry in Tamil Nadu on this issue, none would make such remarks henceforth. DMK Working President MK Stalin recalled Ramasamy's contribution in fighting various social evils and striving towards an egalitarian society and said he was a widely respected leader. Pointing out at the widespread protests and the public outcry against Raja's comments, Stalin said: "none even in their dreams will now think of removing statues of Periyar." "If anyone wanted to do so, let them touch the statues and the DMK, which upholds the Dravidian ideals of Periyar, will show who they are," he said in a letter to partymen. President of Makkal Neethi Maiam (MNM), actor Kamal Haasan, said he wondered if the ongoing controversy was aimed at diverting attention from the Cauvery issue. He said it came at a time when there were strong demands in the state urging the Centre to constitute the Cauvery Water Management Board (CMB), as per Supreme Court guidelines. Asked if the BJP should take action against Raja, Haasan said: "that would be the proper, decent thing to do." Following the vandalism of a Periyar statue in Vellore, statues of the leader in different parts of the state were given police protection. Armed police security was also posted at Raja's residence in Karaikudi. Meanwhile, in an apparent fallout of the incident, the BJP office in Coimbatore came under attack, after miscreants hurled petrol bombs at it. The men, who came in an auto-rickshaw, hurled the bombs at the office in Siddapudur at around 4 am, they said, adding that the bombs fell short of the BJP office building. A special police team has been formed to track down the culprits, based on CCTV camera footage, they added.

Periyar statue row: BJP leader H Raja expresses regrets, blames 'FB page admin'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday strongly condemned the<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/fall-of-lenin-in-tripura-and-its-cascading-effect-34968" target="_blank"> vandalism of statues</a> in many states of the country and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the matter.

The Home Ministry said it has taken serious note of such<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/now-ambedkar-statue-vandalised-in-meerut-34983" target="_blank"> incidents of vandalism </a>and has directed state governments to take strong action.

In an advisory to all states and union territories, the Home Ministry said incidents of the toppling of statues have been reported from certain parts of the country and it has taken serious note of such incidents of vandalism.

Opinion: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/opinion-why-indians-are-waging-war-over-statues-of-lenin-periyar-shyamaprasad-34991" target="_blank">Why Indians are waging war over statues of Lenin, Periyar, and Syama Prasad</a>

&quot;The MHA has asked the states that they must take all necessary measures to prevent such incidents,&quot; it said.

The ministry said the state governments were told that persons indulging in such acts must be sternly dealt with and booked under relevant provisions of law.

The statement said Modi spoke Home Minister Rajnath Singh and sought &quot;stern action&quot; against those who resorted to vandalism of statues.

Following the demolition of Lenin statue in Tripura, a statue of the Dravidian icon and social reformer EVR Ramasamy, popularly known as Periyar, was vandalised in Tamil Nadu`s Vellore on Tuesday night.

A bust of BJP icon Shyama Prasad Mookerjee was blackened and smashed with a hammer in Kolkata&#39;s Keoratola crematorium.

(With inputs from Agencies)

The Home Ministry said it has taken serious note of such incidents of vandalism and has directed state governments to take strong action

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday strongly condemned the vandalism of statues in many states of the country and spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh on the matter. The Home Ministry said it has taken serious note of such incidents of vandalism and has directed state governments to take strong action. In an advisory to all states and union territories, the Home Ministry said incidents of the toppling of statues have been reported from certain parts of the country and it has taken serious note of such incidents of vandalism. Opinion: Why Indians are waging war over statues of Lenin, Periyar, and Syama Prasad "The MHA has asked the states that they must take all necessary measures to prevent such incidents," it said. The ministry said the state governments were told that persons indulging in such acts must be sternly dealt with and booked under relevant provisions of law. The statement said Modi spoke Home Minister Rajnath Singh and sought "stern action" against those who resorted to vandalism of statues. Following the demolition of Lenin statue in Tripura, a statue of the Dravidian icon and social reformer EVR Ramasamy, popularly known as Periyar, was vandalised in Tamil Nadu`s Vellore on Tuesday night. A bust of BJP icon Shyama Prasad Mookerjee was blackened and smashed with a hammer in Kolkata's Keoratola crematorium. (With inputs from Agencies)

Vandalism of statues: PM Modi condemns incidents; Centre asks states to take strong action

On Tuesday, the legacy of the Soviet leader in India received a disturbing jolt when a statue of his in Belonia town of Tripura was razed by an enthusiastic crowd of BJP supporters amid cries of &ldquo;Bharat mata ki jai.&rdquo;&nbsp;

Three people have been arrested over the last 48 hours in Tripura, for what the police has described, as &quot;post-poll&#39; violence.

The incident resulted in widespread condemnation from all corners of the country.&nbsp;

The violent act by the BJP workers which swept to power in the Communist citadel resulted in sporadic incidents of violence and statues of several leaders being vandalised. &nbsp;

A statue of Periyar was vandalised hours after a BJP leader suggested it in a controversial Facebook post responding to anger over Lenin statues being razed in Tripura.

Amid tension and protest, BJP&#39;s Tamil Nadu president Tamilisai Soundararajan expelled R Muthuraman, party functionary who was arrested for damaging Periyar statue in Thirupathur in Vellore district.&nbsp;

Today morning a Syama Prasad Mookerjee bust was blackened and its features smashed with a hammer in Kolkata, allegedly by six Jadavpur University students who are part of an ultra-left group. Syama Prasad Mookerjee was the founder of the BJP&#39;s predecessor Jana Sangh.

Six people have been detained in connection with the desecration of Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mukherjee&#39;s bust in Kolkata&#39;s Kalighat

&#39;&#39;One incident of vandalism cannot be replied with another similar incident, we condemn both. We have arrested six people and we will repair it(SP Mukherjee&#39;s bust in Kalighat) as well,&#39;&#39; said Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, the chief whip, &nbsp;Trinamool Congress.&nbsp;

Syama Prasad Mukherjee is a patriot who laid his life for the nation. He is the son of West Bengal. Those guilty should be arrested immediately. CM Mamata Banerjee should punish those who vandalised his statue, said Sidharth Nath Singh, West Bengal BJP in-charge. &#39;&#39;We strongly condemn this incident,&#39;&#39; he added. &nbsp;

Meanwhile, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in Madras High Court by advocate Surya Prakasam in wake of BJP leader H Raja&#39;s FB post on Periyar&#39;s statue. Court has agreed to hear the case in the afternoon.&nbsp;

&#39;&#39;I have removed that admin who posted the comment about Periyar and have deleted the post. I totally condemn vandalizing statues and violence. I express heartfelt regret for my Facebook post,&#39;&#39;H Raja said.&nbsp;

BJP president Amit Shah also condemned such incidents.&nbsp;

The recent issue of destroying of statues is extremely unfortunate. We as a party do not support the bringing down of anybody&rsquo;s statue, he tweeted from his official Twitter handle.&nbsp;

Shah also promised severe action against those involved in such hooliganism.&nbsp;

&#39;&#39;I have spoken to the party units in both Tamil Nadu and Tripura. Any person associated with the BJP found to be involved with destroying any statue will face severe action from the party,&#39;&#39; Shah stated in another tweet.&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

Three people have been arrested over the last 48 hours in Tripura, for what the police has described, as "post-poll' violence.

On Tuesday, the legacy of the Soviet leader in India received a disturbing jolt when a statue of his in Belonia town of Tripura was razed by an enthusiastic crowd of BJP supporters amid cries of “Bharat mata ki jai.” Three people have been arrested over the last 48 hours in Tripura, for what the police has described, as "post-poll' violence. The incident resulted in widespread condemnation from all corners of the country. The violent act by the BJP workers which swept to power in the Communist citadel resulted in sporadic incidents of violence and statues of several leaders being vandalised. A statue of Periyar was vandalised hours after a BJP leader suggested it in a controversial Facebook post responding to anger over Lenin statues being razed in Tripura. Amid tension and protest, BJP's Tamil Nadu president Tamilisai Soundararajan expelled R Muthuraman, party functionary who was arrested for damaging Periyar statue in Thirupathur in Vellore district. Today morning a Syama Prasad Mookerjee bust was blackened and its features smashed with a hammer in Kolkata, allegedly by six Jadavpur University students who are part of an ultra-left group. Syama Prasad Mookerjee was the founder of the BJP's predecessor Jana Sangh. Six people have been detained in connection with the desecration of Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mukherjee's bust in Kolkata's Kalighat ''One incident of vandalism cannot be replied with another similar incident, we condemn both. We have arrested six people and we will repair it(SP Mukherjee's bust in Kalighat) as well,'' said Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, the chief whip, Trinamool Congress. Syama Prasad Mukherjee is a patriot who laid his life for the nation. He is the son of West Bengal. Those guilty should be arrested immediately. CM Mamata Banerjee should punish those who vandalised his statue, said Sidharth Nath Singh, West Bengal BJP in-charge. ''We strongly condemn this incident,'' he added. Meanwhile, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in Madras High Court by advocate Surya Prakasam in wake of BJP leader H Raja's FB post on Periyar's statue. Court has agreed to hear the case in the afternoon. ''I have removed that admin who posted the comment about Periyar and have deleted the post. I totally condemn vandalizing statues and violence. I express heartfelt regret for my Facebook post,''H Raja said. BJP president Amit Shah also condemned such incidents. The recent issue of destroying of statues is extremely unfortunate. We as a party do not support the bringing down of anybody’s statue, he tweeted from his official Twitter handle. Shah also promised severe action against those involved in such hooliganism. ''I have spoken to the party units in both Tamil Nadu and Tripura. Any person associated with the BJP found to be involved with destroying any statue will face severe action from the party,'' Shah stated in another tweet.

SP Mukherjee statue vandalised in Kolkata, BJP expels TN party worker arrested for damaging Periyar statue

A petrol bomb was allegedly hurled at BJP office in Tamil Nadu&rsquo;s Coimbatore early today.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> Coimbatore: A petrol bomb was hurled at BJP office earlier today <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TamilNadu?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TamilNadu</a> <a href="https://t.co/hl3WRO0aB7">pic.twitter.com/hl3WRO0aB7</a>
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A video released by news agency ANI shows that a few men throwing the bomb at the BJP office. The men managed to flee the spot after carrying out the attack. The attack on the BJP office comes against the backdrop of widespread violence in Tripura where state Assembly election results were declared recently.

A statue of Dravidian icon Periyar was allegedly vandalised in Vellore last night. The police have arrested two men. &quot;One man is a BJP member and another a CPI worker,&quot; the police said.

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Coimbatore: A petrol bomb was hurled at BJP office earlier today <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TamilNadu?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TamilNadu</a> <a href="https://t.co/79x0FrjAZo">pic.twitter.com/79x0FrjAZo</a>
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According to the police, the act of vandalism occurred at around 9.15 pm in Tirupattur in Vellore district. The two men involved in the act were allegedly drunk. The statue was reportedly in front a government building.

This came after a BJP leader had hinted that statues of E V Ramasamy Periyar could be the next to be pulled down. A statute of Communist icon Lenin was allegedly bulledozed by suspected BJP workers in Tripura. Police have arrested two persons. The accused have been identified as Muthuraman and Francis. While Muthuraman was reportedly a BJP worker, Francis is suspected to be a CPI activist.

Yesterday BJP leader H Raja posted in Facebook in Tamil saying, &ldquo;Who is Lenin and what is the connection between Lenin and India? What connection India has with Communists? Today Lenin&rsquo;s statue removed in Tripura, tomorrow it will be the statue of EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu.&rdquo;

The attack on the BJP office comes against the backdrop of widespread violence in Tripura where state Assembly election results were declared recently.

A petrol bomb was allegedly hurled at BJP office in Tamil Nadu’s Coimbatore early today. #WATCH Coimbatore: A petrol bomb was hurled at BJP office earlier today #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/hl3WRO0aB7 — ANI (@ANI) March 7, 2018 × A video released by news agency ANI shows that a few men throwing the bomb at the BJP office. The men managed to flee the spot after carrying out the attack. The attack on the BJP office comes against the backdrop of widespread violence in Tripura where state Assembly election results were declared recently. A statue of Dravidian icon Periyar was allegedly vandalised in Vellore last night. The police have arrested two men. "One man is a BJP member and another a CPI worker," the police said. Coimbatore: A petrol bomb was hurled at BJP office earlier today #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/79x0FrjAZo — ANI (@ANI) March 7, 2018 × According to the police, the act of vandalism occurred at around 9.15 pm in Tirupattur in Vellore district. The two men involved in the act were allegedly drunk. The statue was reportedly in front a government building. This came after a BJP leader had hinted that statues of E V Ramasamy Periyar could be the next to be pulled down. A statute of Communist icon Lenin was allegedly bulledozed by suspected BJP workers in Tripura. Police have arrested two persons. The accused have been identified as Muthuraman and Francis. While Muthuraman was reportedly a BJP worker, Francis is suspected to be a CPI activist. Yesterday BJP leader H Raja posted in Facebook in Tamil saying, “Who is Lenin and what is the connection between Lenin and India? What connection India has with Communists? Today Lenin’s statue removed in Tripura, tomorrow it will be the statue of EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu.”

Watch: Petrol bomb hurled at BJP office in Coimbatore

Two men vandalised a Periyar statue, located near a government office building in Tamil Nadu&#39;s Vellore.

The police have arrested two men. &quot;One man is a BJP member and another a CPI worker,&quot; the police said.

According to the police, the act of vandalism occurred at around 9.15 pm in Tirupattur in Vellore district.&nbsp;

The two men&nbsp;involved in the act were allegedly drunk. The statue was reportedly in front a government building.

&quot;They are friends and were drunk. The two men damaged the glasses and the nose of the statue. They were arrested immediately,&quot; says police official.

Earlier, BJP national secretary H Raja threatened to take down statues of &#39;Periyar&#39; EV Ramasamy soon, like the Lenin statue that was vandalised and razed in Tripura after the BJP&#39;s poll victory in the state. Raja&#39;s threat has sparked angry reactions from Tamil Nadu&#39;s political class.

Raja&#39;s threat came in a post on his verified Facebook page. &quot;Who is Lenin? How is he connected to India? How is communism connected to India? The Lenin statue was razed in Tripura. Today it is a Lenin statue in Tripura. Tomorrow, it will be the statue of caste-crazed EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu,&quot; read his post, that was deleted after the fiery backlash.

The post attracted immediate reaction. &quot;They are not even fit to touch a statue of Periyar. H Raja is a prominent leader of the BJP, and has often made these sort of statements, which are aimed at inciting violence,&quot; said DMK working president MK Stalin. &quot;Going by the law, H Raja should be arrested under the Goondas Act and thrown in jail,&quot; he added.

Police said the statue was vandalised around 9.15 pm in Tirupattur in Vellore district

Two men vandalised a Periyar statue, located near a government office building in Tamil Nadu's Vellore. The police have arrested two men. "One man is a BJP member and another a CPI worker," the police said. According to the police, the act of vandalism occurred at around 9.15 pm in Tirupattur in Vellore district. The two men involved in the act were allegedly drunk. The statue was reportedly in front a government building. "They are friends and were drunk. The two men damaged the glasses and the nose of the statue. They were arrested immediately," says police official. Earlier, BJP national secretary H Raja threatened to take down statues of 'Periyar' EV Ramasamy soon, like the Lenin statue that was vandalised and razed in Tripura after the BJP's poll victory in the state. Raja's threat has sparked angry reactions from Tamil Nadu's political class. Raja's threat came in a post on his verified Facebook page. "Who is Lenin? How is he connected to India? How is communism connected to India? The Lenin statue was razed in Tripura. Today it is a Lenin statue in Tripura. Tomorrow, it will be the statue of caste-crazed EV Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu," read his post, that was deleted after the fiery backlash. The post attracted immediate reaction. "They are not even fit to touch a statue of Periyar. H Raja is a prominent leader of the BJP, and has often made these sort of statements, which are aimed at inciting violence," said DMK working president MK Stalin. "Going by the law, H Raja should be arrested under the Goondas Act and thrown in jail," he added.

Periyar statue vandalised in Tamil Nadu; BJP, CPI worker arrested

Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth&nbsp;on Monday unveiled a statue of Tamil Nadu&#39;s former chief minister and actor MG Ramachandran&#39;s at the&nbsp;Dr&nbsp;MGR Educational and Research Institute in Chennai.&nbsp;

Rajinikanth addressed the students at the institute and said god is on his side and he can give governance to the people of Tamil Nadu amidst the struggle and hurdles.&nbsp;

This was his first public address since his political entry in December last year.&nbsp;

Lamenting the lacunae in leadership in Tamil Nadu, Rajinikanth said&nbsp;that he was bound to enter politics because of the lack of strong leadership.&nbsp;

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The present government and politicians are asking why are actors leaving their makeup and coming to take over their jobs as politicians. I am 67 years now, since you are not doing your duty I am stepping in: Rajinikanth in Chennai <a href="https://t.co/a6fbBguwfX">pic.twitter.com/a6fbBguwfX</a>
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&quot;People ask me why are you entering politics now? Why not when Jayalalithaa was alive. Everybody knows what happened in 1996, nobody needs to be reminded. I can stand on my own. Yes, I&#39;m coming now because there is a leadership vacuum in Tamilnadu. Jayalalithaa is not there and Karunanidhi has advanced in years. There is vacuum now. That&#39;s why I&#39;m coming. To give leadership,&quot; Rajinikanth said.&nbsp;

Reminiscing about his interactions with the late leader MGR, Rajinikanth recalled he was fond of the poorest of the poor people and was always a philanthropist even when he wasn&#39;t in politics. He said he has learnt about politics from MGR. He praised MGR while promising to fill the vacuum created by his and Jayalalithaa&#39;s demise at the same time.&nbsp;

Rajinikanth said that he knows that this political journey will not be easy for him as criticism has already begun to pour in, just like how people criticise films at their release. He also said that he is ready to work with like-minded people to give the best-possible version of governance to the poor people of Tamil Nadu.&nbsp;

He said that he doesn&#39;t expect people to roll out a red carpet for him and is ready to make the journey.&nbsp;

There are speculations that he will reveal his plans for his party after Kamal Haasan held a huge show while he announced his party symbol and name last month.

Actor-turned-politician Rajinikanth on Monday unveiled a statue of Tamil Nadu's former chief minister and actor MG Ramachandran's at the Dr MGR Educational and Research Institute in Chennai. Rajinikanth addressed the students at the institute and said god is on his side and he can give governance to the people of Tamil Nadu amidst the struggle and hurdles. This was his first public address since his political entry in December last year. Lamenting the lacunae in leadership in Tamil Nadu, Rajinikanth said that he was bound to enter politics because of the lack of strong leadership. The present government and politicians are asking why are actors leaving their makeup and coming to take over their jobs as politicians. I am 67 years now, since you are not doing your duty I am stepping in: Rajinikanth in Chennai pic.twitter.com/a6fbBguwfX — ANI (@ANI) March 5, 2018 × "People ask me why are you entering politics now? Why not when Jayalalithaa was alive. Everybody knows what happened in 1996, nobody needs to be reminded. I can stand on my own. Yes, I'm coming now because there is a leadership vacuum in Tamilnadu. Jayalalithaa is not there and Karunanidhi has advanced in years. There is vacuum now. That's why I'm coming. To give leadership," Rajinikanth said. Reminiscing about his interactions with the late leader MGR, Rajinikanth recalled he was fond of the poorest of the poor people and was always a philanthropist even when he wasn't in politics. He said he has learnt about politics from MGR. He praised MGR while promising to fill the vacuum created by his and Jayalalithaa's demise at the same time. Rajinikanth said that he knows that this political journey will not be easy for him as criticism has already begun to pour in, just like how people criticise films at their release. He also said that he is ready to work with like-minded people to give the best-possible version of governance to the poor people of Tamil Nadu. He said that he doesn't expect people to roll out a red carpet for him and is ready to make the journey.

Jayalalithaa is dead and Karunanidhi is ill; I will fill the vacuum in TN politics: Rajinikanth

At times watching the Barcelona star Lionel Messi, you get the feeling that real sporting genius lies in being able to do the outlandishly good every day, to be routinely out of the ordinary.&nbsp;

Messi shrugging off the defenders in conventional fashion, leaving them whirling and stumbling and evading the opponents&#39; attack with a jink, proved repeatedly that he is the best club footballer of his generation still reinventing the elite attacking football.&nbsp;

Ever since the death of the charismatic leader and former AIADMK Supremo Jayalalithaa, there has been a void in Tamil Nadu politics which everyone in the state hoping for a &#39;&#39;Messiah like Messi&#39;&#39; to fill that. &nbsp;

Tamil Nadu has plunged into full-blown crisis following the untimely death of &nbsp;Puratchi Thalaivi (revolutionary leader), J Jayalalithaa. What followed was crisis after crisis which left everyone bewildered.&nbsp;

Now, with actor Kamal Haasan sowing the seed for his political party at a public meeting in Madurai on Wednesday and Superstar Rajinikanth tossing his hat into the ring in a high-profile fan meet not long ago, there is a glimmer of hope. &nbsp;

Actor Kamal Haasan, who began his political journey from the birthplace of former president A P J Abdul Kalam has never dabbled in politics, unlike the other superstars who have been in and out politics for the last 20 years. &nbsp;

The two superstars of Tamil filmdom kickstarting their respective political journey, there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel for Tamil Nadu. Though there have always been rumours swirling around Rajinikanth entering politics, both the actors clearly stated that it&#39;s &#39;&#39;compulsion of time&rdquo; that made them enter politics.&nbsp;

Kamal Haasan, like Rajinikanth, has a mass. He is a superstar like Messi in their own domain. The major advantage for an actor like Kamal Haasan is that when you are a superstar with a mass appeal, half of your job is done. But the toughest task for the Makkal Needi Maiam (MNM) and Kamal Haasan is how he and his party play their part in the second half.&nbsp;

Kamal Haasan has his task cut out. The actor has to dribble and often take the ball and shimmy past some strong defenders such as DMK and AIADMK to score. Not an easy task. The actor-turned-politician may or may not succeed. But to leave the Dravidaian stalwarts flailing as he glides past them, the actor-turned-politician needs to be unstoppable and has to be outlandishly good every day if he wants to succeed in the mission he is set out to achieve.&nbsp;

Only time will tell whether Kamal Haasan will turn out to be&nbsp;Messi-the-Messiah that Tamil Nadu needs.

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Ever since the death of the charismatic leader Jayalalithaa, what Tamil Nadu needs is a saviour. Will Kamal Haasan be the one?

At times watching the Barcelona star Lionel Messi, you get the feeling that real sporting genius lies in being able to do the outlandishly good every day, to be routinely out of the ordinary. Messi shrugging off the defenders in conventional fashion, leaving them whirling and stumbling and evading the opponents' attack with a jink, proved repeatedly that he is the best club footballer of his generation still reinventing the elite attacking football. Ever since the death of the charismatic leader and former AIADMK Supremo Jayalalithaa, there has been a void in Tamil Nadu politics which everyone in the state hoping for a ''Messiah like Messi'' to fill that. Tamil Nadu has plunged into full-blown crisis following the untimely death of Puratchi Thalaivi (revolutionary leader), J Jayalalithaa. What followed was crisis after crisis which left everyone bewildered. Now, with actor Kamal Haasan sowing the seed for his political party at a public meeting in Madurai on Wednesday and Superstar Rajinikanth tossing his hat into the ring in a high-profile fan meet not long ago, there is a glimmer of hope. Actor Kamal Haasan, who began his political journey from the birthplace of former president A P J Abdul Kalam has never dabbled in politics, unlike the other superstars who have been in and out politics for the last 20 years. The two superstars of Tamil filmdom kickstarting their respective political journey, there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel for Tamil Nadu. Though there have always been rumours swirling around Rajinikanth entering politics, both the actors clearly stated that it's ''compulsion of time” that made them enter politics. Kamal Haasan, like Rajinikanth, has a mass. He is a superstar like Messi in their own domain. The major advantage for an actor like Kamal Haasan is that when you are a superstar with a mass appeal, half of your job is done. But the toughest task for the Makkal Needi Maiam (MNM) and Kamal Haasan is how he and his party play their part in the second half. Kamal Haasan has his task cut out. The actor has to dribble and often take the ball and shimmy past some strong defenders such as DMK and AIADMK to score. Not an easy task. The actor-turned-politician may or may not succeed. But to leave the Dravidaian stalwarts flailing as he glides past them, the actor-turned-politician needs to be unstoppable and has to be outlandishly good every day if he wants to succeed in the mission he is set out to achieve. Only time will tell whether Kamal Haasan will turn out to be Messi-the-Messiah that Tamil Nadu needs. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Will Kamal Haasan be 'Messi-the-Messiah' for Tamil Nadu?

Tamil Nadu chief minister &nbsp;Edappadi K Palaniswami and deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam unveiled the statue of former Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa at the AIADMK office on the occasion of late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa`s birth anniversary.

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Chennai: Tamil Nadu CM E Palaniswami and Deputy CM O Panneerselvam unveiled statue of former TN CM <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Jayalalithaa?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Jayalalithaa</a> at AIADMK office on her birth anniversary. <a href="https://t.co/33NMG8cpbR">pic.twitter.com/33NMG8cpbR</a>
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Later in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the Tamil Nadu government`s Amma Two-wheeler Scheme here.

The scheme, which aims at providing 50 percent subsidy to all the working women to buy two-wheelers, was a pet project of Jayalalithaa.

On Sunday, Prime Minister will be visiting Puducherry. He will offer floral tributes to Shri Aurobindo at Aurobindo Ashram and interact with students of Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education. He will also visit Auroville to release a commemorative postage stamp on the golden jubilee celebrations of Auroville followed by addressing a public meeting in Puducherry.

Later in the evening, the Prime Minister will be in Surat for the flagging off of the `Run for New India Marathon`. &nbsp;

Later in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the Tamil Nadu government`s Amma Two-wheeler Scheme here

Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam unveiled the statue of former Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa at the AIADMK office on the occasion of late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa`s birth anniversary. Chennai: Tamil Nadu CM E Palaniswami and Deputy CM O Panneerselvam unveiled statue of former TN CM #Jayalalithaa at AIADMK office on her birth anniversary. pic.twitter.com/33NMG8cpbR — ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2018 × Later in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the Tamil Nadu government`s Amma Two-wheeler Scheme here. The scheme, which aims at providing 50 percent subsidy to all the working women to buy two-wheelers, was a pet project of Jayalalithaa. On Sunday, Prime Minister will be visiting Puducherry. He will offer floral tributes to Shri Aurobindo at Aurobindo Ashram and interact with students of Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education. He will also visit Auroville to release a commemorative postage stamp on the golden jubilee celebrations of Auroville followed by addressing a public meeting in Puducherry. Later in the evening, the Prime Minister will be in Surat for the flagging off of the `Run for New India Marathon`.

Tamil Nadu CM, deputy unveil Jayalalithaa's statue at party office

Amidst allegations by the opposition that Edappadi K Palaniswami led Tamil Nadu government is remote-controlled by the BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to visit the state today to launch the scheme for Rs. 25,000 subsidy for women to buy two-wheelers.

Modi&#39;s visit comes days after Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam confirmed speculation that the BJP&#39;s top leadership, particularly PM Modi, had a role to play in the merger of the AIADMK&#39;s two factions; one led by him and another by Chief Minister E Palaniswami.

Panneerselvam, or OPS as he is called, last week told his supporters that it was the nudge from PM Modi that led him to agree to the merger of the two factions created after J Jayalalithaa&#39;s death in December 2016.

&quot;He (PM Modi) said that you (Panneerselvam) could join (merge the faction) to save the party and under the present circumstances, the two [factions] should merge to save the party,&quot; Panneerselvam had said.

According to reports, AIADMK Spokesperson C Ponnaiyan denied criticism that the ruling AIADMK has surrendered to the ruling BJP at the centre to escape from corruption allegations. &quot;We need friendly ties with the centre and even our Amma had she been alive would have felt happy,&quot; he added.

According to AIADMK officials, a statue of Jayalalithaa will be unveiled at the party headquarters here, followed by the launch of Tamil daily `Nammadhu Amma`.

In the evening, the state government will launch the scooter subsidy scheme wherein the government will provide 50 per cent subsidy subject to a maximum of Rs 25,000 for the purchase of scooters by working women

The launch of the scheme - Amma Two-wheeler Scheme - has been timed to coincide with the birth anniversary of J Jayalalithaa who had first promised the 50 per cent subsidy scheme in the run-up to the 2016 assembly elections.

&nbsp;

A statue of Jayalalithaa will be unveiled at the party headquarters here, followed by the launch of Tamil daily `Nammadhu Amma`.

Amidst allegations by the opposition that Edappadi K Palaniswami led Tamil Nadu government is remote-controlled by the BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to visit the state today to launch the scheme for Rs. 25,000 subsidy for women to buy two-wheelers. Modi's visit comes days after Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam confirmed speculation that the BJP's top leadership, particularly PM Modi, had a role to play in the merger of the AIADMK's two factions; one led by him and another by Chief Minister E Palaniswami. Panneerselvam, or OPS as he is called, last week told his supporters that it was the nudge from PM Modi that led him to agree to the merger of the two factions created after J Jayalalithaa's death in December 2016. "He (PM Modi) said that you (Panneerselvam) could join (merge the faction) to save the party and under the present circumstances, the two [factions] should merge to save the party," Panneerselvam had said. According to reports, AIADMK Spokesperson C Ponnaiyan denied criticism that the ruling AIADMK has surrendered to the ruling BJP at the centre to escape from corruption allegations. "We need friendly ties with the centre and even our Amma had she been alive would have felt happy," he added. According to AIADMK officials, a statue of Jayalalithaa will be unveiled at the party headquarters here, followed by the launch of Tamil daily `Nammadhu Amma`. In the evening, the state government will launch the scooter subsidy scheme wherein the government will provide 50 per cent subsidy subject to a maximum of Rs 25,000 for the purchase of scooters by working women The launch of the scheme - Amma Two-wheeler Scheme - has been timed to coincide with the birth anniversary of J Jayalalithaa who had first promised the 50 per cent subsidy scheme in the run-up to the 2016 assembly elections.

Tamil Nadu: Modi to launch subsidy two-wheeler scheme for women amidst alliance rumour

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan on Wednesday said the six &#39;enjoining hands&#39; symbol of his new political party &#39;Makkal Needhi Maiam&#39; represents six southern states.

While speaking at the launch of the party, for which Haasan has &quot;picked ideologies from everyone&quot;, the actor-turned-politician said he had kept his party&#39;s name &#39;Maiam&#39; (Centre) because he did not belong to either Left or Right.

The six southern states Haasan was referring to are Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and one Union Territory Andeman and Nicobar Islands.

&quot;People ask me what is Maiam, and if I am a Left or a Right. This is why I have kept my party&#39;s name &#39;Maiam&#39;, which means centre. The six hands in my party symbol represent six states and the star in the middle represents people,&quot; Haasan said.

He said his party would work on providing quality education to all and diminishing caste and religion difference in the society.

&quot;We will work on many issues including these. We will set an example; fight corruption together. People have unfortunately sold their votes for merely Rs 6,000. People ask me if I will give them money. My answer is no, I will not. If you accept money, you cannot ask your representative for anything,&quot; he said.

Haasan said that all these years he was in people&#39;s heart and now he wants to be a part of their residence, &quot;I am the lamp in your house, which does not flicker in winds of corruption.&quot;

When asked who his inspiration is -- Bhim Rao Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi or Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, the former actor said he liked and was inspired from all, including Arvind Kejriwal, N. Chandrababu Naidu, Pinarayi Vijayan, and Barack Obama.

Haasan said he wanted to start his party silently and move slowly towards campaigning.

&quot;There is no starvation for money, but for good-hearted people.&quot;

On the Supreme Court&#39;s verdict on the Cauvery dispute, Haasan said Tamil Nadu could get water if there was good dialogue with Karnataka. &quot;I can even get blood (donated blood, not violence).&quot;

He said his two daughters - Shruti Haasan and Akshara Haasan, who were present at the launch event, were free to decide whether to join him in this new journey or not.

The six southern states Haasan was talking about are Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and one union territory, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan on Wednesday said the six 'enjoining hands' symbol of his new political party 'Makkal Needhi Maiam' represents six southern states. While speaking at the launch of the party, for which Haasan has "picked ideologies from everyone", the actor-turned-politician said he had kept his party's name 'Maiam' (Centre) because he did not belong to either Left or Right. The six southern states Haasan was referring to are Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and one Union Territory Andeman and Nicobar Islands. "People ask me what is Maiam, and if I am a Left or a Right. This is why I have kept my party's name 'Maiam', which means centre. The six hands in my party symbol represent six states and the star in the middle represents people," Haasan said. He said his party would work on providing quality education to all and diminishing caste and religion difference in the society. "We will work on many issues including these. We will set an example; fight corruption together. People have unfortunately sold their votes for merely Rs 6,000. People ask me if I will give them money. My answer is no, I will not. If you accept money, you cannot ask your representative for anything," he said. Haasan said that all these years he was in people's heart and now he wants to be a part of their residence, "I am the lamp in your house, which does not flicker in winds of corruption." When asked who his inspiration is -- Bhim Rao Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi or Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, the former actor said he liked and was inspired from all, including Arvind Kejriwal, N. Chandrababu Naidu, Pinarayi Vijayan, and Barack Obama. Haasan said he wanted to start his party silently and move slowly towards campaigning. "There is no starvation for money, but for good-hearted people." On the Supreme Court's verdict on the Cauvery dispute, Haasan said Tamil Nadu could get water if there was good dialogue with Karnataka. "I can even get blood (donated blood, not violence)." He said his two daughters - Shruti Haasan and Akshara Haasan, who were present at the launch event, were free to decide whether to join him in this new journey or not.

Kamal Haasan's Makkal Needhi Maiam party symbol explained

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/live-updates-kamal-haasan-gears-up-for-political-debut-33564">Kamal Haasan</a>, 62, is all set to announce his political party in Madurai today.&nbsp;

&quot;I will start my rally from Rameswaram and will announce party flag and ideology in Madurai. All are invited,&quot; the actor was quoted as saying ahead of his trip to Madurai on Tuesday. He picked Madurai as it is the cultural and political capital of the state.&nbsp;

Hassan said that he will address the crowd in his hometown in Paramakudi in Ramanathapuram and in Sivaganga on the way.&nbsp;

Several posters were put up along the route in&nbsp;Rameswaram. The one that caught everyone&#39;s attention was that of former president APJ Abdul Kalam. The posters tried to depict Haasan as the &quot;second Dr Kalam&quot;, as he aims to fulfill the dream of his &quot;hero&quot;. The posters around the city say&nbsp;&quot;Kamal is a second Kalam.&quot;

&quot;Kalam is an inspirational figure for me,&quot; Haasan was quoted saying earlier as he plans to start his political journey by evoking the legacy of Dr Kalam as they both belonged to the same district - Ramanathapuram. Kalam is still considered a political icon, known as the &quot;rocket man&quot; for many, Hassan clearly is trying to associate himself with Kalam as he begins his political journey. Haasan also seeks to attract the young generation who were tied to Kalam&#39;s ideas.

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Several posters were put up along the route from Rameswaram. (Others)
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Posters of him were also seen with other iconic leaders including rationalist leader Periyar and BR Ambedkar plastered across the streets of Madurai and Rameswaram.

Also, another poster showed him following Mahatma Gandhi&#39;s footsteps. He has always been vocal about his admiration towards Mahatma Gandhi. &quot;I am a big fan of Gandhiji,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

Hassan visited late president A P J Abdul Kalam&#39;s residence in Ramanathapuram and met&nbsp;the former president&#39;s brother and sister-in-law. He also visited&nbsp;Dr Kalam&#39;s memorial after the meeting.&nbsp;

On visiting the late President A P J Abdul Kalam&#39;s residence, Haasan said, &quot;Glad to start my journey from a great man&#39;s simple abode.&quot;

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Greatness can come from simple beginnings. Actually it will come only from simplicity. Glad to start my journey from a great man&rsquo;s simple abode. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/maiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#maiam</a>
&mdash; Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) <a href="https://twitter.com/ikamalhaasan/status/966153339397222400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Several posters inspired by memorable roles the actor has played in films. &quot;Nammavar&quot; or &quot;our man&quot;, released in 1994, were&nbsp;most used.&nbsp;

Haasan said the colour of his politics is &quot;black&quot; and he is concerned about saffron colour. He said black in his politics reflects a Dravidian tone and the dark skin.

Haasan plans to start his political journey by evoking the legacy of Dr Kalam as they both belonged to the same district - Ramanathapuram

Kamal Haasan, 62, is all set to announce his political party in Madurai today. "I will start my rally from Rameswaram and will announce party flag and ideology in Madurai. All are invited," the actor was quoted as saying ahead of his trip to Madurai on Tuesday. He picked Madurai as it is the cultural and political capital of the state. Hassan said that he will address the crowd in his hometown in Paramakudi in Ramanathapuram and in Sivaganga on the way. Several posters were put up along the route in Rameswaram. The one that caught everyone's attention was that of former president APJ Abdul Kalam. The posters tried to depict Haasan as the "second Dr Kalam", as he aims to fulfill the dream of his "hero". The posters around the city say "Kamal is a second Kalam." "Kalam is an inspirational figure for me," Haasan was quoted saying earlier as he plans to start his political journey by evoking the legacy of Dr Kalam as they both belonged to the same district - Ramanathapuram. Kalam is still considered a political icon, known as the "rocket man" for many, Hassan clearly is trying to associate himself with Kalam as he begins his political journey. Haasan also seeks to attract the young generation who were tied to Kalam's ideas. Several posters were put up along the route from Rameswaram. (Others) × Posters of him were also seen with other iconic leaders including rationalist leader Periyar and BR Ambedkar plastered across the streets of Madurai and Rameswaram. Also, another poster showed him following Mahatma Gandhi's footsteps. He has always been vocal about his admiration towards Mahatma Gandhi. "I am a big fan of Gandhiji," he said. Hassan visited late president A P J Abdul Kalam's residence in Ramanathapuram and met the former president's brother and sister-in-law. He also visited Dr Kalam's memorial after the meeting. On visiting the late President A P J Abdul Kalam's residence, Haasan said, "Glad to start my journey from a great man's simple abode." Greatness can come from simple beginnings. Actually it will come only from simplicity. Glad to start my journey from a great man’s simple abode. #maiam — Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) February 21, 2018 × Several posters inspired by memorable roles the actor has played in films. "Nammavar" or "our man", released in 1994, were most used. Haasan said the colour of his politics is "black" and he is concerned about saffron colour. He said black in his politics reflects a Dravidian tone and the dark skin.

Ignited Minds: 'Kamal is a second Kalam' posters hit Madurai streets

On Wednesday, the South Indian film star Kamal Haasan symbolically launches his new political party; he started a march from the memorial of the former president of India, late Abdul Kalaam in the southern fishing town of Rameswaram. The march is named as NaalaiNamadhey (Tomorrow is Ours) -- a phrase borrowed from the title of a blockbuster movie of the former chief minister and the late leader of the AIADMK party M.G. Ramachandran, fondly remembered by the people of Tamilnadu as M.G.R.

&nbsp;

Before launching his campaign, Kamal Haasan has met the Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarai Vijayan, Chief Minister of Delhi and Aam aadmi leader Arvind Kejriwal, and other political leaders of Tamilnadu. A couple of days ago, he met and sought the blessings of Karunanidhi, the president of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhakam. Karunanidhi is 94 and is totally inactive, unable to speak or move which means that he has almost disappeared from the political scenario of the state giving the reins of the party to his son and heir apparent, M.K. Stalin. He also met the superstar of the Tamil films Rajnikanth who has also announced his intention to start a political party of his own. He also sought the blessings of the former chief election commissioner T.N Seshan who ushered electoral reforms in India.

&nbsp;

Though there had been speculations that Rajnikanth would be plunging into politics since 1996, Kamal Haasan has entered the fray only a few months ago. Following the death of Jayalalitha and the illness of Karunanidhi, there indeed is a political vacuum in the state which both these starters hope to fill. They seem to think that people of Tamilnadu are fed up with the two Dravidian parties and are looking for an alternative.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

On Sunday, Kamal Haasan met Rajnikanth, giving rise to the speculation that they may join to form a common endeavour. But Rajnikanth made it clear that he had no such idea while Kamal Haasan termed it as just a meeting between friends.

&nbsp;

Rajnikanth&rsquo;s fan base is much larger than that of Kamal Haasan and the fans of both the stars have been told to enroll membership for their respective political parties whose names, flags and even policies are yet to be pronounced.It is also too much to expect that all the fans will be voting for their matinee idols who are past their prime in the film industry.

&nbsp;

Kamal Haasan appears quite confused. He claims to be a rationalist and an atheist but is quick to deny he is anti-Hindu, saying that his family members, including his daughter Sruthi Hasan are strong believers in God. He says he is against Hindutva but says he may not hesitate to align with the BJP if it is in the interests of the people. He once donned the black shirt and called himself a follower of Periyar and was seen hugging Mr. Veeramani, the leader of the Dravidar Kazhakam. But now, Veeramani has strong words against him after he made his political ambitions clear.

&nbsp;

Kamal Haasan&rsquo;s brother Charu Haasan, in a recent television interview, said that Kamal Haasan can never win elections as the people of Tamilnadu would not vote for a Brahmin chief minister. Kamal Haasan looks too much of an elitist to attract rural voters. He lacks the oratorical skills and some times it becomes difficult to decipher his utterances. He says he is planning to collect 30 crores from his fans to run the party. Will his fans oblige?

&nbsp;

While Rajnikanth has declared that he would contest elections without aligning with any party, Kamal Haasan has not said anything about his leanings. However, the DMK believes he will not cut into their vote bank but, eventually, he may align with them at least post elections. This explains the warm welcome accorded to him by Stalin when he went to seek the blessings of Karunanidhi in contrast to the coldness that prevailed during&nbsp; Rajnikanth&rsquo;s visit.

&nbsp;

These days screen image is not enough to win votes. Telugu star Siranjivi in Andhra, Vijayakanth and Saratkumar in Tamilnadu have learned bitter lessons in politics. Both the Dravidian parties have specialised in the art of bribing voters of Tamilnadu. Reality is both Rajinikanth and Kamalhasan will find it difficult to maintain their idealism.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

These days screen image is not enough to win votes and Dravidian parties have specialised in the art of bribing voters.

On Wednesday, the South Indian film star Kamal Haasan symbolically launches his new political party; he started a march from the memorial of the former president of India, late Abdul Kalaam in the southern fishing town of Rameswaram. The march is named as NaalaiNamadhey (Tomorrow is Ours) -- a phrase borrowed from the title of a blockbuster movie of the former chief minister and the late leader of the AIADMK party M.G. Ramachandran, fondly remembered by the people of Tamilnadu as M.G.R. Before launching his campaign, Kamal Haasan has met the Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarai Vijayan, Chief Minister of Delhi and Aam aadmi leader Arvind Kejriwal, and other political leaders of Tamilnadu. A couple of days ago, he met and sought the blessings of Karunanidhi, the president of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhakam. Karunanidhi is 94 and is totally inactive, unable to speak or move which means that he has almost disappeared from the political scenario of the state giving the reins of the party to his son and heir apparent, M.K. Stalin. He also met the superstar of the Tamil films Rajnikanth who has also announced his intention to start a political party of his own. He also sought the blessings of the former chief election commissioner T.N Seshan who ushered electoral reforms in India. Though there had been speculations that Rajnikanth would be plunging into politics since 1996, Kamal Haasan has entered the fray only a few months ago. Following the death of Jayalalitha and the illness of Karunanidhi, there indeed is a political vacuum in the state which both these starters hope to fill. They seem to think that people of Tamilnadu are fed up with the two Dravidian parties and are looking for an alternative. On Sunday, Kamal Haasan met Rajnikanth, giving rise to the speculation that they may join to form a common endeavour. But Rajnikanth made it clear that he had no such idea while Kamal Haasan termed it as just a meeting between friends. Rajnikanth’s fan base is much larger than that of Kamal Haasan and the fans of both the stars have been told to enroll membership for their respective political parties whose names, flags and even policies are yet to be pronounced.It is also too much to expect that all the fans will be voting for their matinee idols who are past their prime in the film industry. Kamal Haasan appears quite confused. He claims to be a rationalist and an atheist but is quick to deny he is anti-Hindu, saying that his family members, including his daughter Sruthi Hasan are strong believers in God. He says he is against Hindutva but says he may not hesitate to align with the BJP if it is in the interests of the people. He once donned the black shirt and called himself a follower of Periyar and was seen hugging Mr. Veeramani, the leader of the Dravidar Kazhakam. But now, Veeramani has strong words against him after he made his political ambitions clear. Kamal Haasan’s brother Charu Haasan, in a recent television interview, said that Kamal Haasan can never win elections as the people of Tamilnadu would not vote for a Brahmin chief minister. Kamal Haasan looks too much of an elitist to attract rural voters. He lacks the oratorical skills and some times it becomes difficult to decipher his utterances. He says he is planning to collect 30 crores from his fans to run the party. Will his fans oblige? While Rajnikanth has declared that he would contest elections without aligning with any party, Kamal Haasan has not said anything about his leanings. However, the DMK believes he will not cut into their vote bank but, eventually, he may align with them at least post elections. This explains the warm welcome accorded to him by Stalin when he went to seek the blessings of Karunanidhi in contrast to the coldness that prevailed during Rajnikanth’s visit. These days screen image is not enough to win votes. Telugu star Siranjivi in Andhra, Vijayakanth and Saratkumar in Tamilnadu have learned bitter lessons in politics. Both the Dravidian parties have specialised in the art of bribing voters of Tamilnadu. Reality is both Rajinikanth and Kamalhasan will find it difficult to maintain their idealism. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Kamal Haasan launching new party but can he keep the idealism?

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan has invited people to &#39;create a new era&#39; even as he gears up to launch his political party on Wednesday in Madurai.&nbsp;

Haasan began his political journey from the house of former President APJ Abdul Kalam. Hours before launching his political party, he visited the residence of Kalam&nbsp;and interacted with his family members.

Haasan was warmly received by the family members of the former President.&nbsp;The actor slightly tweaked his schedule for the day, cancelling his visit to a school, after the local administration reportedly denied him permission to visit it.

The actor will take out a rally from the house of&nbsp;Kalam&nbsp;at Rameswaram, culminating in Madurai where he will address a rally to announce the party&rsquo;s name and launch its flag. According to sources close to the actor Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to attend the rally; Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar too have been invited, however, they could send video messages as they could not reach Madurai.

People in Tamil Nadu are waiting for to know who are the other party key members and whether the actor will announce their names at the meeting in Madurai today. While some source said that the actor will announce the list of office bearers including party&rsquo;s district committees at the rally in Madurai, other reports suggested that the actor likely to follow the path of late chief minister J Jayalalithaa, who was the single power centre in the party she ran until her death and unlikely project anyone. &nbsp;

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Tamil Nadu: Kamal Haasan visits APJ Abdul Kalam&#39;s house in Rameswaram. <a href="https://t.co/fp10vi4atL">pic.twitter.com/fp10vi4atL</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/966135845685288960?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&ldquo;There are intellectuals, activists and anti-corruption groups guiding and advising him, but he is unlikely to project a second leader next to him in the initial stages,&rdquo; reports said quoting a source. The party will be in the line of &nbsp; Aam Aadmi Party and similar anti-corruption movements in Tamil Nadu. The party&#39;s name may not include words such as &lsquo;Dravida&rsquo; or &lsquo;Kazhagam&rsquo;. Some of the final designs selected for the flag are simple ones in two or three colours.&rdquo;

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Tamil Nadu: Kamal Haasan leaves after visiting APJ Abdul Kalam&#39;s house in Rameswaram. <a href="https://t.co/m8NxR8V8he">pic.twitter.com/m8NxR8V8he</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/966141648366440448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Hassan is expected to Ramanathapuram, his hometown, where he will address a gathering that is expected to be of 2,000 or more people

He will meet people at two more places on the way to Madurai, in Paramakudi and Manamadurai. Organisers expect a few hundred people in both places and he may also deliver speeches.

On the eve of the party launch, DMK working president M K Stalin ridiculed the actor&rsquo;s political venture. Taking a veiled dig once again at top actors Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan for their political ambitions, DMK Working President M K Stalin likened them to &#39;glamorous paper flowers&#39; which do not spread fragrance.

&quot;Owing to seasonal changes some flowers may suddenly bloom and later wither. Similarly, in Tamil Nadu&#39;s political arena too glamorous paper flowers may bloom,&quot; he said in an apparent reference to top actors Rajinikanth and Haasan&#39;s political entry.

The Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, in a letter to party cadres said though &quot;such flowers may bloom, they do not spread fragrance,&quot; which is seen as an indication that the duo could not succeed and shine in politics though they could enter the fray.

Kamal Haasan was quick to retort to Stalin&#39;s jibe, telling reporters at Madurai that &quot;I am not a flower, I am a seed, sow me, I will grow.&quot;

Kamal Haasan, who has been meeting senior politicians in the last one week, including DMK&rsquo;s M Karunanidhi and CPI&rsquo;s R Nallakannu, besides Rajinikanth, has also visited Vijayakanth, the film-star who turned politician in 2005.&nbsp;

Asked why he did not meet any leaders of the ruling AIADMK, Kamal Haasan said he does not like this government. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to meet them.&rdquo;

On the eve of the party launch, DMK working president M K Stalin ridiculed the actor’s political venture.

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan has invited people to 'create a new era' even as he gears up to launch his political party on Wednesday in Madurai. Haasan began his political journey from the house of former President APJ Abdul Kalam. Hours before launching his political party, he visited the residence of Kalam and interacted with his family members. Haasan was warmly received by the family members of the former President. The actor slightly tweaked his schedule for the day, cancelling his visit to a school, after the local administration reportedly denied him permission to visit it. The actor will take out a rally from the house of Kalam at Rameswaram, culminating in Madurai where he will address a rally to announce the party’s name and launch its flag. According to sources close to the actor Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to attend the rally; Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar too have been invited, however, they could send video messages as they could not reach Madurai. People in Tamil Nadu are waiting for to know who are the other party key members and whether the actor will announce their names at the meeting in Madurai today. While some source said that the actor will announce the list of office bearers including party’s district committees at the rally in Madurai, other reports suggested that the actor likely to follow the path of late chief minister J Jayalalithaa, who was the single power centre in the party she ran until her death and unlikely project anyone. Tamil Nadu: Kamal Haasan visits APJ Abdul Kalam's house in Rameswaram. pic.twitter.com/fp10vi4atL — ANI (@ANI) February 21, 2018 × “There are intellectuals, activists and anti-corruption groups guiding and advising him, but he is unlikely to project a second leader next to him in the initial stages,” reports said quoting a source. The party will be in the line of Aam Aadmi Party and similar anti-corruption movements in Tamil Nadu. The party's name may not include words such as ‘Dravida’ or ‘Kazhagam’. Some of the final designs selected for the flag are simple ones in two or three colours.” Tamil Nadu: Kamal Haasan leaves after visiting APJ Abdul Kalam's house in Rameswaram. pic.twitter.com/m8NxR8V8he — ANI (@ANI) February 21, 2018 × Hassan is expected to Ramanathapuram, his hometown, where he will address a gathering that is expected to be of 2,000 or more people He will meet people at two more places on the way to Madurai, in Paramakudi and Manamadurai. Organisers expect a few hundred people in both places and he may also deliver speeches. On the eve of the party launch, DMK working president M K Stalin ridiculed the actor’s political venture. Taking a veiled dig once again at top actors Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan for their political ambitions, DMK Working President M K Stalin likened them to 'glamorous paper flowers' which do not spread fragrance. "Owing to seasonal changes some flowers may suddenly bloom and later wither. Similarly, in Tamil Nadu's political arena too glamorous paper flowers may bloom," he said in an apparent reference to top actors Rajinikanth and Haasan's political entry. The Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, in a letter to party cadres said though "such flowers may bloom, they do not spread fragrance," which is seen as an indication that the duo could not succeed and shine in politics though they could enter the fray. Kamal Haasan was quick to retort to Stalin's jibe, telling reporters at Madurai that "I am not a flower, I am a seed, sow me, I will grow." Kamal Haasan, who has been meeting senior politicians in the last one week, including DMK’s M Karunanidhi and CPI’s R Nallakannu, besides Rajinikanth, has also visited Vijayakanth, the film-star who turned politician in 2005. Asked why he did not meet any leaders of the ruling AIADMK, Kamal Haasan said he does not like this government. “I don’t want to meet them.”

Kamal Haasan to launch political party today, invites people to 'create a new era'

Leading actor Kamal Haasan today formally entered politics by launching a party named <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/kamal-haasan-takes-political-plunge-launches-peoples-justice-party-in-madurai-33638">Makkal Needhi </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/kamal-haasan-takes-political-plunge-launches-peoples-justice-party-in-madurai-33638">Maiam</a> (People&#39;s Justice Party) at a public meeting in Madurai.&nbsp;

&quot;I am not a leader, I am among the people. You are the crowd of leaders. Memorise the name. We have a responsibility from now one. This is not a one day thing. It is going to be a way of life,&quot; Haasan said.&nbsp;

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was also present at the meeting where the actor said he is &quot;going to create a people&#39;s government&quot; amid much fanfare.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He also launched the party&#39;s website as well as Twitter and Facebook pages which have already become active.

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Kamal Haasan&#39;s party - Makkal Needhi Maiam (Others)
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&quot;A prosperous Thamizh Nadu is my vision&quot; read the message on the party&#39;s new website. In perhaps an indication of where the party will stand on language politics, the website spelled the name of the state as &#39;Thamizh Nadu&#39;. That is significant since it is a departure from the formal spelling of &#39;Tamil Nadu&#39;, and underlines the syllable considered unique to the Tamil language, which is usually rendered in English as &#39;zh&#39;.

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Welcome to the official twitter handle of Makkal Needhi Maiam 
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/maiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#maiam</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/makkalneedhimaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#makkalneedhimaiam</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/isupportkamal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#isupportkamal</a>
&mdash; Makkal Needhi Maiam (@maiamofficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/maiamofficial/status/966314986556411904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The leader of Makkal Needhi Maiam, a party with the people at it&#39;s core! 
Join us at <a href="https://t.co/s6zHqHUNdQ">https://t.co/s6zHqHUNdQ</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/maiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#maiam</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/isupportkamal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#isupportkamal</a> <a href="https://t.co/NNH99IeDgG">pic.twitter.com/NNH99IeDgG</a>
&mdash; Makkal Needhi Maiam (@maiamofficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/maiamofficial/status/966320555417743360?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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#MakkalNeedhiMaiam soon started trending on Twitter as thousands of people took to the social media portal to express their thoughts on the major announcement.

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. <a href="https://twitter.com/ikamalhaasan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ikamalhaasan</a> is a real life hero. He is not only honest, he has a great vision. Kamal has the courage to speak against communal injustice in the country - <a href="https://twitter.com/ArvindKejriwal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ArvindKejriwal</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KamalPartyLaunch?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KamalPartyLaunch</a>
&mdash; Rajasekar (@sekartweets) <a href="https://twitter.com/sekartweets/status/966327003195453440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

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ICONIC picture . Three legends sharing a stage at Kamal hassan political party launch. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a> will surely bring change in Tamil Nadu under guidance of Shri Shri <a href="https://twitter.com/ArvindKejriwal?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ArvindKejriwal</a> ji. <a href="https://t.co/1vduLQc2Hq">pic.twitter.com/1vduLQc2Hq</a>
&mdash; Sumit kadel (@SumitkadeI) <a href="https://twitter.com/SumitkadeI/status/966317763802222592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

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No shawls! I will hug you, because I am one among you! No special thrones, just the chair! 
 
You and me, against the evil! I am just a tool! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a>
&mdash; S Abishek (@cinemapayyan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cinemapayyan/status/966318964228804608?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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To the man who survived 34 accidents in real life..i hope you will survive this one too <a href="https://twitter.com/ikamalhaasan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ikamalhaasan</a> ???????? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a> <a href="https://t.co/AUFRFxojwt">pic.twitter.com/AUFRFxojwt</a>
&mdash; TrivikramFan (@4ever_PK) <a href="https://twitter.com/4ever_PK/status/966318738885705728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Welcoming Dr Kamal Hassan to TN Politics. Its indeed a welcoming moment for TN political as we finally see an intellectual addition to this insane crowd . With that said , Its a a huge loss to Indian Film Industry <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a>
&mdash; Deepan Chakravarthy (@RDeepan_Chakr) <a href="https://twitter.com/RDeepan_Chakr/status/966313715413987330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Excellent time to start a new political party when there is a political instability in the state. Will see how his political career goes. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KamalPartyLaunch?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KamalPartyLaunch</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MakkalNeedhiMaiam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MakkalNeedhiMaiam</a>
&mdash; Mohd Ibrahim Ahmed (@IbrahimAhmed455) <a href="https://twitter.com/IbrahimAhmed455/status/966317374860271618?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2018</a></blockquote>
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#MakkalNeedhiMaiam soon started trending on Twitter as thousands of people took to the social media portal to express their thoughts on the major announcement

Leading actor Kamal Haasan today formally entered politics by launching a party named Makkal Needhi Maiam (People's Justice Party) at a public meeting in Madurai. "I am not a leader, I am among the people. You are the crowd of leaders. Memorise the name. We have a responsibility from now one. This is not a one day thing. It is going to be a way of life," Haasan said. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was also present at the meeting where the actor said he is "going to create a people's government" amid much fanfare. He also launched the party's website as well as Twitter and Facebook pages which have already become active. Kamal Haasan's party - Makkal Needhi Maiam (Others) × "A prosperous Thamizh Nadu is my vision" read the message on the party's new website. In perhaps an indication of where the party will stand on language politics, the website spelled the name of the state as 'Thamizh Nadu'. That is significant since it is a departure from the formal spelling of 'Tamil Nadu', and underlines the syllable considered unique to the Tamil language, which is usually rendered in English as 'zh'. Welcome to the official twitter handle of Makkal Needhi Maiam #maiam #makkalneedhimaiam #isupportkamal — Makkal Needhi Maiam (@maiamofficial) February 21, 2018 × The leader of Makkal Needhi Maiam, a party with the people at it's core! Join us at https://t.co/s6zHqHUNdQ #MakkalNeedhiMaiam #maiam #isupportkamal pic.twitter.com/NNH99IeDgG — Makkal Needhi Maiam (@maiamofficial) February 21, 2018 × #MakkalNeedhiMaiam soon started trending on Twitter as thousands of people took to the social media portal to express their thoughts on the major announcement. . @ikamalhaasan is a real life hero. He is not only honest, he has a great vision. Kamal has the courage to speak against communal injustice in the country - @ArvindKejriwal #MakkalNeedhiMaiam #KamalPartyLaunch — Rajasekar (@sekartweets) February 21, 2018 × ICONIC picture . Three legends sharing a stage at Kamal hassan political party launch. #MakkalNeedhiMaiam will surely bring change in Tamil Nadu under guidance of Shri Shri @ArvindKejriwal ji. pic.twitter.com/1vduLQc2Hq — Sumit kadel (@SumitkadeI) February 21, 2018 × No shawls! I will hug you, because I am one among you! No special thrones, just the chair! You and me, against the evil! I am just a tool! #MakkalNeedhiMaiam — S Abishek (@cinemapayyan) February 21, 2018 × To the man who survived 34 accidents in real life..i hope you will survive this one too @ikamalhaasan ???????? #MakkalNeedhiMaiam pic.twitter.com/AUFRFxojwt — TrivikramFan (@4ever_PK) February 21, 2018 × Welcoming Dr Kamal Hassan to TN Politics. Its indeed a welcoming moment for TN political as we finally see an intellectual addition to this insane crowd . With that said , Its a a huge loss to Indian Film Industry #MakkalNeedhiMaiam — Deepan Chakravarthy (@RDeepan_Chakr) February 21, 2018 × Excellent time to start a new political party when there is a political instability in the state. Will see how his political career goes. #KamalPartyLaunch #MakkalNeedhiMaiam — Mohd Ibrahim Ahmed (@IbrahimAhmed455) February 21, 2018 ×

Haasan's Makkal Needhi Maiam aims to build progressive 'Thamizh Nadu'

The Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/cauvery-verdict-bus-services-between-karnataka-tamil-nadu-curtailed-33040">today delivered its verdict on</a>&nbsp;the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala.

The Supreme Court<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/siddaramaiah-refuses-to-release-cauvery-water-to-tamil-nadu-29432">&nbsp;judge directed Karnataka to</a>&nbsp;get additional 14.75&nbsp; thousand million cubic&nbsp;(TMC) water and Tamil Nadu to now get 177.25 TMC&nbsp;water instead of 192 TMC.

Following is the chronology of events in the decades-old Cauvery water dispute matter in which the Supreme Court today held that Karnataka will get 284.75 tmcft and Tamil Nadu 404.25 tmcft Cauvery water:

The original agreement, which was signed between the Madras Presidency and the princely State of Mysore in 1924, had lapsed in 1974.

*May 1990: SC directs Centre to constitute Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT), a demand made by Tamil Nadu since 1970.

*June 2: Centre notifies CWDT.

*Jan 1991: CWDT rejects TN government&#39;s plea for interim relief. TN appeals the rejection in SC.

*April : SC directs the CWDT to entertain TN&#39;s petition for interim relief.

*June: CWDT announces interim award. Karnataka ordered to release 205 tmcft. Karnataka passes an Ordinance to nullify the order. SC intervenes, strikes down Karnataka&#39;s ordinance and upholds the interim award of the CWDT. Karnataka refuses to oblige.

*Dec 11: Interim award is published in the Government of India gazette.

*Aug 1998: Centre constitutes Cauvery River Authority (CRA) to ensure implementation of CWDT interim award.

*Sep 8, 2002: CRA, chaired by the then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee, directs Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs (0.8 tmcft) of Cauvery water to TN.

*Feb 5, 2007: CWDT gives final award after 17 years. Tribunal holds as valid the two agreements of 1892 and 1924 executed between the Madras Presidency and the princely State of Mysore on the apportionment of water to TN.

*Sep 19, 2012: At the seventh CRA, then PM Manmohan Singh directs Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to TN at Biligundlu dam.

*Sep 28: SC slams Karnataka government for not complying with PM&#39;s direction at the CRA.

*March 19, 2013: TN moves SC to give directions to Water Ministry for constitution of Cauvery Management Board (CMB).

*May 10: SC directs Centre to set up panel to supervise Cauvery water release.

*May 28: TN moves SC, seeks Rs 2,480 cr damages from Karnataka for not following orders of the CWDT.

*June 12: Cauvery Supervisory Committee (CSC) terms the TN&#39;s plea for directions to Karnataka for release of Cauvery water as per the CWDT award as not &ldquo;feasible&rdquo;.

*June 14: TN decides to file contempt plea against Karnataka for its stand on the Cauvery Supervisory Committee.

*June 26: TN moves SC for constitution of CMB.

*June 28: TN files contempt petition in the SC against Karnataka.

*Nov 18, 2015: Karnataka objects to TN&rsquo;s plea to release Cauvery water. Karnataka government tells SC that TN&rsquo;s demand for release of 45.32 tmcft of Cauvery water proceeds from a wholly erroneous premise that the water year of 2015-16 in the Cauvery basin is a &ldquo;normal year&rdquo; and not a &ldquo;distress year&rdquo;.

*Sep 2, 2016: SC asks Karnataka to consider taking steps to release Cauvery water to TN.

*Sep 5: SC directs Karnataka to release 15,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to TN for next 10 days.

*Sep 7: Karnataka begins releasing Cauvery water to TN as per SC order. *Sep 11: Karnataka files plea to modify SC order directing it to share water with TN.

*Sep 12: SC refuses plea by Karnataka to freeze the September 5 order. SC, however, reduces the quantum of daily water release ordered earlier, from 15,000 cusecs to 12,000 cusecs.

*Sep 19: CSC orders Karnataka to release 3,000 cubic feet of water per second (cusecs) for the rest of the month.

*July 14, 2017: SC says it would take a balanced view, keeping in mind the interests of the people of both the States. Karnataka sought a reduction in the quantum of Cauvery water it should release to TN from 192 tmcft to 132 tmcft.

*Sep 20: SC reserves verdict.

* Feb 16, 2018: SC pronounces final verdict, directs Karnataka to release 404.25 tmcft annually to TN which was earlier awarded 419 tmcft water by CWDT. Karnataka to now get enhanced 14.75 tmcft, i.E. 284.75 tmcft water. SC says its verdict on Cauvery water allocation will continue for next 15 years.&nbsp;

The Supreme Court today delivered its verdict on the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala

The Supreme Court today delivered its verdict on the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. The Supreme Court judge directed Karnataka to get additional 14.75 thousand million cubic (TMC) water and Tamil Nadu to now get 177.25 TMC water instead of 192 TMC. Following is the chronology of events in the decades-old Cauvery water dispute matter in which the Supreme Court today held that Karnataka will get 284.75 tmcft and Tamil Nadu 404.25 tmcft Cauvery water: The original agreement, which was signed between the Madras Presidency and the princely State of Mysore in 1924, had lapsed in 1974. *May 1990: SC directs Centre to constitute Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT), a demand made by Tamil Nadu since 1970. *June 2: Centre notifies CWDT. *Jan 1991: CWDT rejects TN government's plea for interim relief. TN appeals the rejection in SC. *April : SC directs the CWDT to entertain TN's petition for interim relief. *June: CWDT announces interim award. Karnataka ordered to release 205 tmcft. Karnataka passes an Ordinance to nullify the order. SC intervenes, strikes down Karnataka's ordinance and upholds the interim award of the CWDT. Karnataka refuses to oblige. *Dec 11: Interim award is published in the Government of India gazette. *Aug 1998: Centre constitutes Cauvery River Authority (CRA) to ensure implementation of CWDT interim award. *Sep 8, 2002: CRA, chaired by the then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee, directs Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs (0.8 tmcft) of Cauvery water to TN. *Feb 5, 2007: CWDT gives final award after 17 years. Tribunal holds as valid the two agreements of 1892 and 1924 executed between the Madras Presidency and the princely State of Mysore on the apportionment of water to TN. *Sep 19, 2012: At the seventh CRA, then PM Manmohan Singh directs Karnataka to release 9,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to TN at Biligundlu dam. *Sep 28: SC slams Karnataka government for not complying with PM's direction at the CRA. *March 19, 2013: TN moves SC to give directions to Water Ministry for constitution of Cauvery Management Board (CMB). *May 10: SC directs Centre to set up panel to supervise Cauvery water release. *May 28: TN moves SC, seeks Rs 2,480 cr damages from Karnataka for not following orders of the CWDT. *June 12: Cauvery Supervisory Committee (CSC) terms the TN's plea for directions to Karnataka for release of Cauvery water as per the CWDT award as not “feasible”. *June 14: TN decides to file contempt plea against Karnataka for its stand on the Cauvery Supervisory Committee. *June 26: TN moves SC for constitution of CMB. *June 28: TN files contempt petition in the SC against Karnataka. *Nov 18, 2015: Karnataka objects to TN’s plea to release Cauvery water. Karnataka government tells SC that TN’s demand for release of 45.32 tmcft of Cauvery water proceeds from a wholly erroneous premise that the water year of 2015-16 in the Cauvery basin is a “normal year” and not a “distress year”. *Sep 2, 2016: SC asks Karnataka to consider taking steps to release Cauvery water to TN. *Sep 5: SC directs Karnataka to release 15,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to TN for next 10 days. *Sep 7: Karnataka begins releasing Cauvery water to TN as per SC order. *Sep 11: Karnataka files plea to modify SC order directing it to share water with TN. *Sep 12: SC refuses plea by Karnataka to freeze the September 5 order. SC, however, reduces the quantum of daily water release ordered earlier, from 15,000 cusecs to 12,000 cusecs. *Sep 19: CSC orders Karnataka to release 3,000 cubic feet of water per second (cusecs) for the rest of the month. *July 14, 2017: SC says it would take a balanced view, keeping in mind the interests of the people of both the States. Karnataka sought a reduction in the quantum of Cauvery water it should release to TN from 192 tmcft to 132 tmcft. *Sep 20: SC reserves verdict. * Feb 16, 2018: SC pronounces final verdict, directs Karnataka to release 404.25 tmcft annually to TN which was earlier awarded 419 tmcft water by CWDT. Karnataka to now get enhanced 14.75 tmcft, i.E. 284.75 tmcft water. SC says its verdict on Cauvery water allocation will continue for next 15 years.

1990-2018: How Supreme Court, state governments handled Cauvery water dispute

The Supreme Court <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/cauvery-verdict-bus-services-between-karnataka-tamil-nadu-curtailed-33040">today delivered its verdict on</a> the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala.

The Supreme Court<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/siddaramaiah-refuses-to-release-cauvery-water-to-tamil-nadu-29432"> judge directed Karnataka to</a> get additional 14.75&nbsp; thousand million cubic(TMC) water and Tamil Nadu to now get 177.25 TMC&nbsp;water instead of 192 TMC.

SC directed Karnataka to release 177.25 TMC&nbsp;of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu from its inter-state Biligundlu dam.

Bengaluru will get additional 4.2 TMC&nbsp;water, India&#39;s highest court said. There is no change in allocation for Kerala and Puducherry, the court declared.

The apex court also allowed Tami Nadu to draw an additional 10 TMC&nbsp;&#39;groundwater&#39; from a total of 20 TMC&nbsp;beneath the Cauvery basin.

It said the increase in share of Cauvery water for Karnataka by 14.75 tmcft is because of the 10 tmcft groundwater and 4.75 tmcft drinking water requirement for Bengaluru residents.

The pre-Independence verdict is valid, the top court said in its verdict, adding that no state can claim&nbsp;&quot;exclusivity&nbsp;over rivers.&quot;&nbsp;

The court said there should be &quot;no deviance&quot;&nbsp;of the order by any state.

The Court also directed the Cauvery water dispute management to be set up. The Supreme Court order will remain in force for the next 15 years.

Tamil Nadu, represented by senior advocate Shekhar Naphade had urged the court to initiate a &ldquo;fundamental change&rdquo; in the water sharing arrangement.&nbsp;

The Cauvery water dispute was decided unanimously by CWDT in 2007, after determining the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (tmc) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site, including 14 tmcft for environmental protection.

The Supreme Court today delivered its verdict on the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala.

The Supreme Court today delivered its verdict on the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. The Supreme Court judge directed Karnataka to get additional 14.75 thousand million cubic(TMC) water and Tamil Nadu to now get 177.25 TMC water instead of 192 TMC. SC directed Karnataka to release 177.25 TMC of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu from its inter-state Biligundlu dam. Bengaluru will get additional 4.2 TMC water, India's highest court said. There is no change in allocation for Kerala and Puducherry, the court declared. The apex court also allowed Tami Nadu to draw an additional 10 TMC 'groundwater' from a total of 20 TMC beneath the Cauvery basin. It said the increase in share of Cauvery water for Karnataka by 14.75 tmcft is because of the 10 tmcft groundwater and 4.75 tmcft drinking water requirement for Bengaluru residents. The pre-Independence verdict is valid, the top court said in its verdict, adding that no state can claim "exclusivity over rivers." The court said there should be "no deviance" of the order by any state. The Court also directed the Cauvery water dispute management to be set up. The Supreme Court order will remain in force for the next 15 years. Tamil Nadu, represented by senior advocate Shekhar Naphade had urged the court to initiate a “fundamental change” in the water sharing arrangement. The Cauvery water dispute was decided unanimously by CWDT in 2007, after determining the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (tmc) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site, including 14 tmcft for environmental protection.

Supreme Court verdict on Cauvery dispute: Karnataka to get additional water, no change for Kerala

After the Supreme Court verdict on Cauvery river,&nbsp; Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has hinted at introducing plans to resolve water issue in Tamil Nadu.&nbsp;

He said their government was planning to introduce two river connectivity projects which they have researched upon.&nbsp;

He said their project for interlinking rivers would help in resolving the water issues in Tamil Nadu.&nbsp;

Gadkari said &quot; The 3000 TMC water from the Godavari flows to the rivers. We are trying to introduce two projects in river connectivity, that we have researched upon.&quot;

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Godavari ka 3,000 TMC paani samundra mein chala jaata hai. Hum koshish kar rahe hain ki 2 aise project laayein river connectivity mein, jiska adhyaan humne kiya hai: Nitin Gadkari <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CauveryVerdict?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CauveryVerdict</a> <a href="https://t.co/I4nau1paLb">pic.twitter.com/I4nau1paLb</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964412729778880512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

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Ye (Godavari) paani ko rok kar humlog Indravati ke paas Kaleshwar, Telangana ka dam le jaayenge. Uske baad Indravati ka paani Maharashtra or Chhattisgarh sarkaar ki anumati lekar, ye paani hum phir se 2 dam me daal kar Cauvery ke tail end tak Tamil Nadu le jaayenge: Nitin Gadkari <a href="https://t.co/F3kGeNSeJv">pic.twitter.com/F3kGeNSeJv</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964412733557915649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Aur Polavaram ka back water jo hai, wo bhi wahan se lekar, Godavari ka paani Krishna mein, Krishna ka paani Penna mein, aur Penna ka phir Godavari mein le jaayenge. Is surplus water se hum ye samasya jald se jald suljhane ki koshish karenge: Nitin Gadkari <a href="https://t.co/MfoDyOFbpW">pic.twitter.com/MfoDyOFbpW</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/964412737395683330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/cauvery-verdict-bus-services-between-karnataka-tamil-nadu-curtailed-33040">today delivered its verdict on</a>&nbsp;the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala.

The Supreme Court<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/siddaramaiah-refuses-to-release-cauvery-water-to-tamil-nadu-29432">&nbsp;judge directed Karnataka to</a>&nbsp;get additional 14.75&nbsp; thousand million cubic (TMC) water and Tamil Nadu to now get 177.25 TMC&nbsp;water instead of 192 TMC.

Gadkari said 'The 3000 TMC water from the Godavari flows to the rivers. We are trying to introduce two projects in river connectivity, that we have researched upon'

After the Supreme Court verdict on Cauvery river, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has hinted at introducing plans to resolve water issue in Tamil Nadu. He said their government was planning to introduce two river connectivity projects which they have researched upon. He said their project for interlinking rivers would help in resolving the water issues in Tamil Nadu. Gadkari said " The 3000 TMC water from the Godavari flows to the rivers. We are trying to introduce two projects in river connectivity, that we have researched upon." Godavari ka 3,000 TMC paani samundra mein chala jaata hai. Hum koshish kar rahe hain ki 2 aise project laayein river connectivity mein, jiska adhyaan humne kiya hai: Nitin Gadkari #CauveryVerdict pic.twitter.com/I4nau1paLb — ANI (@ANI) February 16, 2018 × Ye (Godavari) paani ko rok kar humlog Indravati ke paas Kaleshwar, Telangana ka dam le jaayenge. Uske baad Indravati ka paani Maharashtra or Chhattisgarh sarkaar ki anumati lekar, ye paani hum phir se 2 dam me daal kar Cauvery ke tail end tak Tamil Nadu le jaayenge: Nitin Gadkari pic.twitter.com/F3kGeNSeJv — ANI (@ANI) February 16, 2018 × Aur Polavaram ka back water jo hai, wo bhi wahan se lekar, Godavari ka paani Krishna mein, Krishna ka paani Penna mein, aur Penna ka phir Godavari mein le jaayenge. Is surplus water se hum ye samasya jald se jald suljhane ki koshish karenge: Nitin Gadkari pic.twitter.com/MfoDyOFbpW — ANI (@ANI) February 16, 2018 × The Supreme Court today delivered its verdict on the decades-old Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala. The Supreme Court judge directed Karnataka to get additional 14.75 thousand million cubic (TMC) water and Tamil Nadu to now get 177.25 TMC water instead of 192 TMC.

Govt plans to link rivers to resolve Tamil Nadu water issues: Nitin Gadkari

&#39;Superstar&#39; Rajinikanth on Friday said the Supreme Court verdict reducing the quantum of water to Tamil Nadu from Cauvery river was &quot;very disappointing&quot; and urged the state government to file a review petition.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/kamal-haasan-shocked-with-cauvery-dispute-verdict-33065">Kamal Haasan &#39;shocked&#39; with Cauvery dispute verdict</a>

&quot;Since the final verdict by the Supreme Court on the Cauvery water sharing amounts to further affecting the livelihood of the farmers in Tamil Nadu, it is very disappointing,&quot; the actor said in a tweet in Tamil.&nbsp;

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காவிரி நீர் பங்கீட்டில் உச்சநீதிமன்றத்தின் இறுதி தீர்ப்பு தமிழக விவசாயிகளின் வாழ்வாதாரத்தை மேலும் பாதிப்பதாக உள்ளதால் மிகுந்த ஏமாற்றமளிக்கிறது.மறு பரிசீலனை மனு தாக்கல் செய்ய தமிழகஅரசு நடவடிக்கை எடுக்க வேண்டும்.
&mdash; Rajinikanth (@superstarrajini) <a href="https://twitter.com/superstarrajini/status/964482122906976257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The actor, who recently announced his&nbsp;political plunge, said that the Tamil Nadu government should take steps to file a review petition on the matter.

The Supreme Court directed Karnataka would get additional 14.75 &nbsp;thousand million cubic &nbsp;(TMC) water and Tamil Nadu would now get 177.25 TMC water instead of 192 TMC in its verdict on the 120-year-old dispute between the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

The court said the issue of drinking water has to be placed on a &quot;higher pedestal&quot;.&nbsp;

Earlier, reacting to the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/cauvery-dispute-supreme-court-verdict-33045">Supreme Court verdict&nbsp;</a>in the Cauvery dispute, actor Kamal Haasan said he was shocked at the reduction in the supply of water for Tamil Nadu.

(With PTI inputs)&nbsp;

The Supreme Court on Friday raised the 270 tmcft share of Cauvery water for Karnataka by 14.75 tmcft and reduced Tamil Nadu's share while compensating it by allowing extraction of 10 tmcft groundwater from the river basin

'Superstar' Rajinikanth on Friday said the Supreme Court verdict reducing the quantum of water to Tamil Nadu from Cauvery river was "very disappointing" and urged the state government to file a review petition. Also read: Kamal Haasan 'shocked' with Cauvery dispute verdict "Since the final verdict by the Supreme Court on the Cauvery water sharing amounts to further affecting the livelihood of the farmers in Tamil Nadu, it is very disappointing," the actor said in a tweet in Tamil. காவிரி நீர் பங்கீட்டில் உச்சநீதிமன்றத்தின் இறுதி தீர்ப்பு தமிழக விவசாயிகளின் வாழ்வாதாரத்தை மேலும் பாதிப்பதாக உள்ளதால் மிகுந்த ஏமாற்றமளிக்கிறது.மறு பரிசீலனை மனு தாக்கல் செய்ய தமிழகஅரசு நடவடிக்கை எடுக்க வேண்டும். — Rajinikanth (@superstarrajini) February 16, 2018 × The actor, who recently announced his political plunge, said that the Tamil Nadu government should take steps to file a review petition on the matter. The Supreme Court directed Karnataka would get additional 14.75 thousand million cubic (TMC) water and Tamil Nadu would now get 177.25 TMC water instead of 192 TMC in its verdict on the 120-year-old dispute between the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The court said the issue of drinking water has to be placed on a "higher pedestal". Earlier, reacting to the Supreme Court verdict in the Cauvery dispute, actor Kamal Haasan said he was shocked at the reduction in the supply of water for Tamil Nadu. (With PTI inputs)

Rajinikanth disappointed with Supreme Court verdict reducing water to Tamil Nadu

In a landmark verdict today, the Supreme Court has reduced the allocation of the Cauvery Waters for Tamil Nadu from 192 TMC, as allocated by the Cauvery Water Tribunal Award in 2007, to 177.25 TMC annually.&nbsp; This thousand million cubic feet of water is to be released from Billigundulu, the last measuring station in Karnataka on the Cauvery, to Mettur Dam, which is the first measuring station in Tamil Nadu on the Cauvery river. It is a historic judgment.&nbsp;

The judgment is historical on two counts: first, it marks the culmination of the centuries-old inter-state water dispute that has been an epitome of hostile hydropolitics. Second, it sent a signal to the agricultural economy to efficiently use water and practise crop diversification. The principle followed here, though apparently seems like &ldquo;robbing Peter to pay Paul&rdquo; (by reducing 14.75 TMC water for Tamil Nadu and providing the same to Karnataka for its burgeoning urban water use), recognises a bigger global phenomenon of intersectoral water conflicts: agriculture versus urban water demand.&nbsp;

In a 2009 paper co-authored with Jayanta Bandyopadhyay in Water Policy, I argued that around 85% of the waters of the Cauvery basin go for agriculture, with paddy emerging as the most dominant crop in the basin. While the Tamil Nadu delta has been historically cultivating paddy, Karnataka started developing their irrigation potential in the 1960s onwards.&nbsp;

The minimum support prices (MSP) of rice between the 80s and 90s were increasing at a faster rate vis-&agrave;-vis the drier alternative crop, namely, Ragi. Farmers, therefore, were incentivised to shift to water-consuming crop, for instance, from Ragi to paddy. However, the data over the last 10 years reveals that there has been an overall decline in acreage in the basin, and more so in the Karnataka part, in response to a reversal in the MSP movement. But, the traditional sugarcane agriculture in the delta regions still continues.&nbsp;

Who owns the Cauvery water?

There are three extreme principles of water allocation based on divergent definitions of property rights: Harmon, History and Hobbes. The Harmon doctrine states the primary rights of water are bestowed on those who own land at the source of the water. History confers primary rights to historical users of water irrespective of their geographical location. Hobbes identifies rights as the final result of awards obtained through negotiations.&nbsp;

Tamil Nadu, given the long history of water use especially in the delta regions, has been advocating its position in terms of History. While the basin area&#39;s contribution to the river flow should also be an important variable to be taken into consideration, the principle of prescriptive rights given in the 1924 agreement between the Madras Presidency and the Princely State of Mysore also translates to the principle of prior appropriation or the doctrine of history as the basis of property rights definition.

On the other hand, Karnataka has always maintained that a downstream state cannot make a claim when there is a scarcity of water and inadequacy in the upstream areas. At the same time, upstream development should not be compromised because of downstream concerns. This implies that Karnataka has been exercising the Harmon doctrine for its property rights.

The divergent definitions of property rights are amplified by the fact that the subject of water falls in the State list, subject to the provisions of 56 (i) of the Indian Constitution. Even the provisions of the Interstate Water Dispute (ISWD) Act of 1956 and its subsequent amendment in 2002 merely talk of setting up tribunals for adjudications and declaring awards. In view of global standards on water governance, this is insufficient. One can perceive that Hobbesian modes of negotiations are failing. Besides, it has exposed the failings of a state-led, &lsquo;decentralised&rsquo; approach.

Interestingly, much in departure to this existing thinking of water being State subject, thereby, leading to divergent definitions of property rights, the Supreme Court has observed that water of the Cauvery river was a &ldquo;national asset and no single state could claim ownership over it&rdquo;.

A holistic understanding is needed

The verdict, therefore, presents an unprecedented benchmark in Indian water governance by seeking a departure from age-old policies. There are many solutions for managing agricultural water, such as crop-diversification through minimum support price, regime change in favour of drier crops, promoting water-use-efficiency through technical and institutional measures, imports of agricultural crops from water-rich regions, among others. But, the basic human needs should be met first.&nbsp;

However, there is one more thing that remains to be taken care of, i.e. the cause of the ecosystems. The CWT award in 2007 was thoroughly based on reductionist &ldquo;arithmetic hydrology&rdquo;, and not on holistic eco-hydrology. The arithmetic by way of which this 50% dependability of water is arrived at depends on past precedence of estimates conducted by engineers like K.L. Rao.&nbsp;

The CWT seemed to be oblivious to the challenges by possible impacts of global warming and climate change that can result in variability in water availability. That award reserved the &ldquo;quantity &hellip; for environmental protection&rdquo; and &ldquo;quantity determined for inevitable escapages to the sea&rdquo; as 10 TMC and 4 TMC respectively, none of which adhere to any scientific assessment of the ecosystem-based water usages in the basin.&nbsp;

The present verdict does not have the cause of the ecosystem in its scope. But, ecological scientists must advocate for a more scientific approach for the cause of the ecosystems for life in the basin. The resolution mechanism worked out by the Cauvery Water Tribunal has been based on myopic number-games for sharing the waters, without much consideration about the broader institutions, economics, ecology, hydrology, and holistic understanding of the conflicts. There is a need to correct that.

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Much in departure to this existing thinking of water being State subject, thereby, leading to divergent definitions of property rights, the Supreme Court has observed that water of the Cauvery river was a “national asset and no single state could claim ownership over it”.

In a landmark verdict today, the Supreme Court has reduced the allocation of the Cauvery Waters for Tamil Nadu from 192 TMC, as allocated by the Cauvery Water Tribunal Award in 2007, to 177.25 TMC annually. This thousand million cubic feet of water is to be released from Billigundulu, the last measuring station in Karnataka on the Cauvery, to Mettur Dam, which is the first measuring station in Tamil Nadu on the Cauvery river. It is a historic judgment. The judgment is historical on two counts: first, it marks the culmination of the centuries-old inter-state water dispute that has been an epitome of hostile hydropolitics. Second, it sent a signal to the agricultural economy to efficiently use water and practise crop diversification. The principle followed here, though apparently seems like “robbing Peter to pay Paul” (by reducing 14.75 TMC water for Tamil Nadu and providing the same to Karnataka for its burgeoning urban water use), recognises a bigger global phenomenon of intersectoral water conflicts: agriculture versus urban water demand. In a 2009 paper co-authored with Jayanta Bandyopadhyay in Water Policy, I argued that around 85% of the waters of the Cauvery basin go for agriculture, with paddy emerging as the most dominant crop in the basin. While the Tamil Nadu delta has been historically cultivating paddy, Karnataka started developing their irrigation potential in the 1960s onwards. The minimum support prices (MSP) of rice between the 80s and 90s were increasing at a faster rate vis-à-vis the drier alternative crop, namely, Ragi. Farmers, therefore, were incentivised to shift to water-consuming crop, for instance, from Ragi to paddy. However, the data over the last 10 years reveals that there has been an overall decline in acreage in the basin, and more so in the Karnataka part, in response to a reversal in the MSP movement. But, the traditional sugarcane agriculture in the delta regions still continues. Who owns the Cauvery water? There are three extreme principles of water allocation based on divergent definitions of property rights: Harmon, History and Hobbes. The Harmon doctrine states the primary rights of water are bestowed on those who own land at the source of the water. History confers primary rights to historical users of water irrespective of their geographical location. Hobbes identifies rights as the final result of awards obtained through negotiations. Tamil Nadu, given the long history of water use especially in the delta regions, has been advocating its position in terms of History. While the basin area's contribution to the river flow should also be an important variable to be taken into consideration, the principle of prescriptive rights given in the 1924 agreement between the Madras Presidency and the Princely State of Mysore also translates to the principle of prior appropriation or the doctrine of history as the basis of property rights definition. On the other hand, Karnataka has always maintained that a downstream state cannot make a claim when there is a scarcity of water and inadequacy in the upstream areas. At the same time, upstream development should not be compromised because of downstream concerns. This implies that Karnataka has been exercising the Harmon doctrine for its property rights. The divergent definitions of property rights are amplified by the fact that the subject of water falls in the State list, subject to the provisions of 56 (i) of the Indian Constitution. Even the provisions of the Interstate Water Dispute (ISWD) Act of 1956 and its subsequent amendment in 2002 merely talk of setting up tribunals for adjudications and declaring awards. In view of global standards on water governance, this is insufficient. One can perceive that Hobbesian modes of negotiations are failing. Besides, it has exposed the failings of a state-led, ‘decentralised’ approach. Interestingly, much in departure to this existing thinking of water being State subject, thereby, leading to divergent definitions of property rights, the Supreme Court has observed that water of the Cauvery river was a “national asset and no single state could claim ownership over it”. A holistic understanding is needed The verdict, therefore, presents an unprecedented benchmark in Indian water governance by seeking a departure from age-old policies. There are many solutions for managing agricultural water, such as crop-diversification through minimum support price, regime change in favour of drier crops, promoting water-use-efficiency through technical and institutional measures, imports of agricultural crops from water-rich regions, among others. But, the basic human needs should be met first. However, there is one more thing that remains to be taken care of, i.e. the cause of the ecosystems. The CWT award in 2007 was thoroughly based on reductionist “arithmetic hydrology”, and not on holistic eco-hydrology. The arithmetic by way of which this 50% dependability of water is arrived at depends on past precedence of estimates conducted by engineers like K.L. Rao. The CWT seemed to be oblivious to the challenges by possible impacts of global warming and climate change that can result in variability in water availability. That award reserved the “quantity … for environmental protection” and “quantity determined for inevitable escapages to the sea” as 10 TMC and 4 TMC respectively, none of which adhere to any scientific assessment of the ecosystem-based water usages in the basin. The present verdict does not have the cause of the ecosystem in its scope. But, ecological scientists must advocate for a more scientific approach for the cause of the ecosystems for life in the basin. The resolution mechanism worked out by the Cauvery Water Tribunal has been based on myopic number-games for sharing the waters, without much consideration about the broader institutions, economics, ecology, hydrology, and holistic understanding of the conflicts. There is a need to correct that. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Cauvery is a national river, no state owns it

The Supreme Court is likely to deliver the verdict&nbsp;on decades-old Cauvery water dispute between south Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala.

On September 20, 2017, the final day of the hearings in the appeals, Tamil Nadu appealed to the Bench &mdash; comprising Justices Amitava Roy and A.M. Khanwilkar &mdash; to not reduce it to the state of a beggar before Karnataka.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud then reserved the verdict on the appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT) on sharing of water.

Tamil Nadu, represented by senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, urged the court to initiate a &ldquo;fundamental change&rdquo; in the water sharing arrangement. &ldquo;Several years have gone by... the river is perennial, but the litigation should not be,&rdquo; it submitted.

Naphade made it a point to express scepticism about the Central government&#39;s initiative in resolving the decades-long Cauvery dispute. Tamil Nadu said it wanted a judicial order and did not want to depend on a Centre that took six years to publish the Tribunal award in the gazette in 2013.

The decades-old Cauvery water dispute was decided unanimously by CWDT in 2007, after determining the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (tmc) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site, including 14 tmcft for environmental protection.

The final award makes a yearly allocation of 419 tmcft to Tamil Nadu in the entire Cauvery basin, 270 tmcft to Karnataka, 30 tmcft to Kerala and 7 tmcft to Puducherry.

The top court had earlier clarified that any other forum could touch the matter relating to the Cauvery river basin only after it gives its verdict.

The apex court had in January said the verdict would be pronounced within a month, adding that the matter has already created enough confusion for decades.

The top court during the course of pendency of appeals of the neighbouring states against the arbitral award of 2007, had passed several orders directing Karnataka to release Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.

On September 30, 2016, the Supreme Court had pulled up Karnataka for its repeated &quot;defiance&quot; in flouting its orders for releasing Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu and said no one would know when the &quot;wrath of the law&quot; would fall on it.

Later, Karnataka had moved a review petition in the apex court against its three orders on on the issue and direction to the Centre to create the Cauvery Water Management Board (CWMB), saying &quot;grave miscarriage of justice&quot; had been caused to it following the three apex court orders of September 20, 27 and 30, by which it was directed to release water.

Tamil Nadu had earlier also alleged that Kerala was drawing water in excess of what has been allocated to it by the tribunal.

The apex court had on December 9, 2016 upheld the maintainability of appeals filed by the riparian states saying it has the &quot;jurisdiction to decide the parameters, scope, authority and jurisdiction of the tribunal&quot;.

The Court had rejected the Centre&#39;s objection that the CWDT award amounted to a final decree and it had no jurisdiction to hear the appeals against the award.

(With PTI inputs)

The top court had earlier clarified that any other forum could touch the matter relating to the Cauvery river basin only after it gives its verdict.

The Supreme Court is likely to deliver the verdict on decades-old Cauvery water dispute between south Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. On September 20, 2017, the final day of the hearings in the appeals, Tamil Nadu appealed to the Bench — comprising Justices Amitava Roy and A.M. Khanwilkar — to not reduce it to the state of a beggar before Karnataka. A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud then reserved the verdict on the appeals filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT) on sharing of water. Tamil Nadu, represented by senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, urged the court to initiate a “fundamental change” in the water sharing arrangement. “Several years have gone by... the river is perennial, but the litigation should not be,” it submitted. Naphade made it a point to express scepticism about the Central government's initiative in resolving the decades-long Cauvery dispute. Tamil Nadu said it wanted a judicial order and did not want to depend on a Centre that took six years to publish the Tribunal award in the gazette in 2013. The decades-old Cauvery water dispute was decided unanimously by CWDT in 2007, after determining the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (tmc) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site, including 14 tmcft for environmental protection. The final award makes a yearly allocation of 419 tmcft to Tamil Nadu in the entire Cauvery basin, 270 tmcft to Karnataka, 30 tmcft to Kerala and 7 tmcft to Puducherry. The top court had earlier clarified that any other forum could touch the matter relating to the Cauvery river basin only after it gives its verdict. The apex court had in January said the verdict would be pronounced within a month, adding that the matter has already created enough confusion for decades. The top court during the course of pendency of appeals of the neighbouring states against the arbitral award of 2007, had passed several orders directing Karnataka to release Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu. On September 30, 2016, the Supreme Court had pulled up Karnataka for its repeated "defiance" in flouting its orders for releasing Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu and said no one would know when the "wrath of the law" would fall on it. Later, Karnataka had moved a review petition in the apex court against its three orders on on the issue and direction to the Centre to create the Cauvery Water Management Board (CWMB), saying "grave miscarriage of justice" had been caused to it following the three apex court orders of September 20, 27 and 30, by which it was directed to release water. Tamil Nadu had earlier also alleged that Kerala was drawing water in excess of what has been allocated to it by the tribunal. The apex court had on December 9, 2016 upheld the maintainability of appeals filed by the riparian states saying it has the "jurisdiction to decide the parameters, scope, authority and jurisdiction of the tribunal". The Court had rejected the Centre's objection that the CWDT award amounted to a final decree and it had no jurisdiction to hear the appeals against the award. (With PTI inputs)

Cauvery water dispute: Supreme Court likely to pronounce verdict today

After over six years, Tamil Nadu government today hiked the fares of buses under State-run transport corporations and private entities approximately by 20 to 54.54 per cent, saying it was inevitable.

Significantly, the government also announced a fund for accident compensation and prevention, besides a panel to go into restructuring of bus fares in future.

Effective from tomorrow, the fare has been hiked for buses across categories viz moffusil, city, ordinary, express, deluxe, bypass-non-stop, ultra deluxe, airconditioned and Volvo modes, an official release said.

While the minimum hike is in the ordinary category, where the fare of Rs&nbsp;5 for 10 km would now be Rs&nbsp;6 (20 per cent hike), the highest is in Volvo buses, where the fare of Rs&nbsp;33 for 30 km will now go up to Rs&nbsp;51 (54.54 per cent hike).

In town buses, the fare has been hiked from a minimum of Rs&nbsp;3 to Rs&nbsp;5 and the maximum from Rs&nbsp;12 to Rs&nbsp;19.

The government cited a host of factors for the hike, including an increase in fuel price and maintenance, annual increment in salaries, pension and purchase of new buses to increase efficiency.

Defending the hike, it said the last time fares were increased was on November 18, 2011, when diesel cost Rs&nbsp;43.10, whereas the price now was Rs&nbsp;65.83.

The government also cited data to claim that the fares, despite the increase, was lesser than in neighbouring states, including Andhra Pradesh.

A recent interim direction of the Madras High Court in a transport-related petition was also cited to support the decision to effect a hike in fares.

The government quoted the interim order as saying, &quot;data furnished in the supporting affidavit shows that the present bus fare is inadequate to meet, even the operational cost.&quot;

The court had also said, &quot;with the existing funds and resources, maintenance cost, debt, loss and such other economic factors ...the need to revise bus fare, appears to be inevitable, though it may cause inconvenience.&quot;

The government said that since 2000 to date, Karnataka had hiked the fare 16 times, while Andhra Pradesh and Kerala had done so eight times.

In the past seven years, the Tamil Nadu government gave Rs&nbsp;12,059.17 crore subsidy to State-run transport corporations to help them tackle the fund crunch.

These corporations have so far incurred a recurring loss of Rs&nbsp;20,488 crore, the government said.

&quot;Though the increase in fare was avoided so far, it is now inevitable so as to tackle the fund crunch and to continue to give the people a good transport service,&quot; the release said.

In a significant step, the government said an integrated &#39;Accident prevention, compensation and toll fee fund&#39; would be set up, under which speed governors would be installed in long-distance express buses as part of accident prevention efforts.

Private transport entities will be permitted to establish similar funds.

Unlike neighbouring states, the fare in Tamil Nadu presently does not cover insurance and toll fee components.

Henceforth, the fare will cover an integrated component of accident insurance and toll fee as well, it said.

From a minimum of Rs&nbsp;1 (up to Rs&nbsp;25 fare) a maximum of Rs&nbsp;10 will be levied (for fares above Rs&nbsp;501) for this purpose.

Defending its decision, the government said since timely compensation for accidents was not provided, as many as 652 State-run transport corporation buses were under court attachment proceedings. Also, the state transport corporations spent an average of Rs&nbsp;12 crore per month towards toll fee.

A new accident compensation fund will ensure that victims (or their kin in case of death) would be provided compensation ranging between Rs&nbsp;2.5 to Rs&nbsp;five lakh immediately, it said.

For those injured, it would be between Rs&nbsp;10,000 to Rs&nbsp;two lakh depending upon the nature of injuries and duration of hospitalisation. For those who suffer permanent disability or head injury, the compensation will be Rs&nbsp;five lakh, it said.

The government said restructuring of fares in future would be done by a committee of senior government officials based on a computation involving indices covering fuel price hike, changes in maintenance and repair cost and increment in salaries.

There are eight State-run transport corporations in Tamil Nadu with 22,509 buses, employing 1,40,615 personnel.

Workers of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) owing allegiance to 17 trade unions, including those affiliated to DMK and Left parties, had gone strike on January 4 after failure of talks with the government on wage revision.

While unions wanted a 2.57 times hike, the government offered only 2.44, resulting in a stalemate.

The strike severely crippled public sector bus services, causing immense hardship to the public, including office-goers in cities though the government tried to maintain services by roping in temporary drivers and private buses.

The AIADMK backed union, besides some others, had not participated in the protests.

The unions had called off the strike on January 11 after the Madras High Court appointed an arbitrator to settle their wage dispute with the government.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

In town buses the fare has been hiked from a minimum of Rs 3 to Rs 5 and the maximum from Rs 12 to Rs 19

After over six years, Tamil Nadu government today hiked the fares of buses under State-run transport corporations and private entities approximately by 20 to 54.54 per cent, saying it was inevitable. Significantly, the government also announced a fund for accident compensation and prevention, besides a panel to go into restructuring of bus fares in future. Effective from tomorrow, the fare has been hiked for buses across categories viz moffusil, city, ordinary, express, deluxe, bypass-non-stop, ultra deluxe, airconditioned and Volvo modes, an official release said. While the minimum hike is in the ordinary category, where the fare of Rs 5 for 10 km would now be Rs 6 (20 per cent hike), the highest is in Volvo buses, where the fare of Rs 33 for 30 km will now go up to Rs 51 (54.54 per cent hike). In town buses, the fare has been hiked from a minimum of Rs 3 to Rs 5 and the maximum from Rs 12 to Rs 19. The government cited a host of factors for the hike, including an increase in fuel price and maintenance, annual increment in salaries, pension and purchase of new buses to increase efficiency. Defending the hike, it said the last time fares were increased was on November 18, 2011, when diesel cost Rs 43.10, whereas the price now was Rs 65.83. The government also cited data to claim that the fares, despite the increase, was lesser than in neighbouring states, including Andhra Pradesh. A recent interim direction of the Madras High Court in a transport-related petition was also cited to support the decision to effect a hike in fares. The government quoted the interim order as saying, "data furnished in the supporting affidavit shows that the present bus fare is inadequate to meet, even the operational cost." The court had also said, "with the existing funds and resources, maintenance cost, debt, loss and such other economic factors ...the need to revise bus fare, appears to be inevitable, though it may cause inconvenience." The government said that since 2000 to date, Karnataka had hiked the fare 16 times, while Andhra Pradesh and Kerala had done so eight times. In the past seven years, the Tamil Nadu government gave Rs 12,059.17 crore subsidy to State-run transport corporations to help them tackle the fund crunch. These corporations have so far incurred a recurring loss of Rs 20,488 crore, the government said. "Though the increase in fare was avoided so far, it is now inevitable so as to tackle the fund crunch and to continue to give the people a good transport service," the release said. In a significant step, the government said an integrated 'Accident prevention, compensation and toll fee fund' would be set up, under which speed governors would be installed in long-distance express buses as part of accident prevention efforts. Private transport entities will be permitted to establish similar funds. Unlike neighbouring states, the fare in Tamil Nadu presently does not cover insurance and toll fee components. Henceforth, the fare will cover an integrated component of accident insurance and toll fee as well, it said. From a minimum of Rs 1 (up to Rs 25 fare) a maximum of Rs 10 will be levied (for fares above Rs 501) for this purpose. Defending its decision, the government said since timely compensation for accidents was not provided, as many as 652 State-run transport corporation buses were under court attachment proceedings. Also, the state transport corporations spent an average of Rs 12 crore per month towards toll fee. A new accident compensation fund will ensure that victims (or their kin in case of death) would be provided compensation ranging between Rs 2.5 to Rs five lakh immediately, it said. For those injured, it would be between Rs 10,000 to Rs two lakh depending upon the nature of injuries and duration of hospitalisation. For those who suffer permanent disability or head injury, the compensation will be Rs five lakh, it said. The government said restructuring of fares in future would be done by a committee of senior government officials based on a computation involving indices covering fuel price hike, changes in maintenance and repair cost and increment in salaries. There are eight State-run transport corporations in Tamil Nadu with 22,509 buses, employing 1,40,615 personnel. Workers of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) owing allegiance to 17 trade unions, including those affiliated to DMK and Left parties, had gone strike on January 4 after failure of talks with the government on wage revision. While unions wanted a 2.57 times hike, the government offered only 2.44, resulting in a stalemate. The strike severely crippled public sector bus services, causing immense hardship to the public, including office-goers in cities though the government tried to maintain services by roping in temporary drivers and private buses. The AIADMK backed union, besides some others, had not participated in the protests. The unions had called off the strike on January 11 after the Madras High Court appointed an arbitrator to settle their wage dispute with the government.

Tamil Nadu hikes bus fares after six years

The opposition parties in Tamil Nadu have unanimously decided to go for a protest tomorrow against bus fare hike in the state.&nbsp;

A decision in this connection was taken in an all-party meeting chaired by Opposition leader MK Stalin at DMK headquarters.

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Opposition parties in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TamilNadu?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TamilNadu</a> unanimously decided to go for protest tomorrow against bus fare hike in the state; the decision was taken in an all party meeting chaired by Opposition leader MK Stalin at DMK headquarters
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/957512884048637952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The opposition&#39;s announcement comes amid Tamil Nadu government&#39;s decision to partially roll back the price hike.

Under the revised structure, the minimum ticket fare in MTC buses would be Rs 4 against the previous rate of Rs 5 and the maximum fare would be Rs 22 against the old rate of Rs 23. &nbsp;

The government on Sunday announced a partial rollback of bus fares after it came under attack from the opposition and commuters over the January 19 steep hike in fares.

The government on Sunday announced a partial rollback of bus fares after it came under attack from the opposition and commuters over the January 19 steep hike in fares.

The opposition parties in Tamil Nadu have unanimously decided to go for a protest tomorrow against bus fare hike in the state. A decision in this connection was taken in an all-party meeting chaired by Opposition leader MK Stalin at DMK headquarters. Opposition parties in #TamilNadu unanimously decided to go for protest tomorrow against bus fare hike in the state; the decision was taken in an all party meeting chaired by Opposition leader MK Stalin at DMK headquarters — ANI (@ANI) January 28, 2018 × The opposition's announcement comes amid Tamil Nadu government's decision to partially roll back the price hike. Under the revised structure, the minimum ticket fare in MTC buses would be Rs 4 against the previous rate of Rs 5 and the maximum fare would be Rs 22 against the old rate of Rs 23. The government on Sunday announced a partial rollback of bus fares after it came under attack from the opposition and commuters over the January 19 steep hike in fares.

Tamil Nadu: Opposition parties to protest bus fare hike tomorrow

Shortly after late J Jayalalithaa&#39;s portrait was unveiled on Monday in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, the opposition DMK moved the Madras High Court seeking its removal.&nbsp;

DMK leaders sought the removal of the portrait stating that the late AIADMK supremo was found guilty on corruption charges.

When the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose commenced proceedings on Monday at about 10.30 am, DMK&#39;s counsel P Wilson made an urgent mention and requested the court to take up the plea.

According to the petitioner, Jayalalithaa was convicted by a special court on graft charges. Later the same was set aside by the Karnataka high court while the Supreme Court found all the accused guilty of the charges. In view of her demise, appeals against Jayalalithaa were treated as abated, the petitioner said.

Members from the DMK have already filed a plea in the high court seeking removal of Jayalalithaa&#39;s photos. The plea also seeks to remove her name displayed or mentioned in government offices, buildings, public sector undertakings and government schemes.

The plea alleged that the Speaker, P Dhanapal,&nbsp;&quot;arbitrarily&quot; took a decision on February 10 to unveil a portrait of Jayalalithaa in the assembly hall in the presence of the chief minister and the deputy chief minister.

The plea called the speaker&#39;s decision unconstitutional, tainted with illegality, highly arbitrary and unreasonable.

&quot;It is antithetical to standards of morality and probity enshrined in our Constitution and expounded by the Supreme Court of India from time to time,&quot; the counsel said.

&quot;The intention of the then Speakers to display photographs.. inside the Assembly was to serve as an example and reminder to all the members of the august assembly that the elected representatives should live and conduct themselves like these leaders whose life is an example of the highest standards of public life,&quot; the petitioner submitted.

&quot;It could never have been the intention of the then speakers to hang portraits of convicts, culprits or persons convicted of offences involving moral turpitude like corruption,&quot; the petitioner said.

The petitioner has urged the court to direct the authorities to remove the portrait of Jayalalithaa from the precincts of the assembly.

(With inputs from agencies)

The seven-ft high portrait was successfully unveiled this morning

Shortly after late J Jayalalithaa's portrait was unveiled on Monday in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, the opposition DMK moved the Madras High Court seeking its removal. DMK leaders sought the removal of the portrait stating that the late AIADMK supremo was found guilty on corruption charges. When the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose commenced proceedings on Monday at about 10.30 am, DMK's counsel P Wilson made an urgent mention and requested the court to take up the plea. According to the petitioner, Jayalalithaa was convicted by a special court on graft charges. Later the same was set aside by the Karnataka high court while the Supreme Court found all the accused guilty of the charges. In view of her demise, appeals against Jayalalithaa were treated as abated, the petitioner said. Members from the DMK have already filed a plea in the high court seeking removal of Jayalalithaa's photos. The plea also seeks to remove her name displayed or mentioned in government offices, buildings, public sector undertakings and government schemes. The plea alleged that the Speaker, P Dhanapal, "arbitrarily" took a decision on February 10 to unveil a portrait of Jayalalithaa in the assembly hall in the presence of the chief minister and the deputy chief minister. The plea called the speaker's decision unconstitutional, tainted with illegality, highly arbitrary and unreasonable. "It is antithetical to standards of morality and probity enshrined in our Constitution and expounded by the Supreme Court of India from time to time," the counsel said. "The intention of the then Speakers to display photographs.. inside the Assembly was to serve as an example and reminder to all the members of the august assembly that the elected representatives should live and conduct themselves like these leaders whose life is an example of the highest standards of public life," the petitioner submitted. "It could never have been the intention of the then speakers to hang portraits of convicts, culprits or persons convicted of offences involving moral turpitude like corruption," the petitioner said. The petitioner has urged the court to direct the authorities to remove the portrait of Jayalalithaa from the precincts of the assembly. (With inputs from agencies)

DMK moves HC after Jaya portrait unveiled in TN assembly

The Twitterati in Pakistan are furious about the movie being banned.&nbsp;News reports on Saturday said the country&#39;s Censor Board had refused to clear the movie.&nbsp;

The board reportedly said the movie was against the country&#39;s culture and tradition.&nbsp;

A number of people have slammed the decision:&nbsp;&nbsp;

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Yes, Pakistani Women menstruate too. I support <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Padman?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Padman</a> and menstrual hygiene. Ban on <a href="https://twitter.com/PadManTheFilm?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PadManTheFilm</a> in Pakistan is senseless. Release it now. <a href="https://t.co/KpsTL6Rc3a">pic.twitter.com/KpsTL6Rc3a</a>
&mdash; Ammara Ahmad (@ammarawrites) <a href="https://twitter.com/ammarawrites/status/962294732918489088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&quot;Against our traditions &amp; culture&quot; Oh well, coz women don&#39;t menstruate here... What stupid people sitting at Censor Board ! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PadMan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PadMan</a> must be allowed in Pakistan ! <a href="https://t.co/S7PUfBV9ak">https://t.co/S7PUfBV9ak</a>
&mdash; Gharidah Farooqi (@GFarooqi) <a href="https://twitter.com/GFarooqi/status/962412837321805824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Banning PadMan in Pakistan is another one of those illogical things that simply affect the business of cinemas in Pakistan. 
Menstruation is a fact of life, and bringing it to mainstream consciousness is neither immoral nor un-Islamic.
&mdash; Mehr Tarar (@MehrTarar) <a href="https://twitter.com/MehrTarar/status/962353264074338304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Insecurity, illiteracy &amp; double standards of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pakistani?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pakistani</a> filmmakers who&#39;re okay with dirty raunchy item numbers but consider &quot;unislamic&quot; to film a social awareness topic of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/menstruation?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#menstruation</a> on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WomenEmpowerment?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WomenEmpowerment</a> 
Censor board, ????move<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Padman?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Padman</a> banned in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pakistan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pakistan</a> <a href="https://t.co/MHfDx1zVys">https://t.co/MHfDx1zVys</a>
&mdash; Mona Alam (@MonaAlamm) <a href="https://twitter.com/MonaAlamm/status/962294395033870336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Banning padman in Pakistan just shows how we havent mentally progressed as a nation. Utterly disappointing.
&mdash; Amna Mazhar (@ozilinaa) <a href="https://twitter.com/ozilinaa/status/962365366440792064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Meanwhile, the Pakistan Government wrote on its official&nbsp; Twitter handle, &quot;The decision to issue a NOC by the Ministry of Information Broadcasting National History and Literary Heritage is yet to be taken on the release of a foreign feature film &quot;Padman&quot; as the film has not yet been previewed by the Central Board of Film Censors.&quot;

Pakistani filmmaker Syed Noor, reacting to the incident, said that &quot;not only PadMan but I think even Padmaavat should not have been released as it portrays Muslims in a very negative light&quot;, PTI reported.

Directed by R Balki, PadMan is a biographical comedy-drama based on the life of a social activist Arunachalam Muruganantham of Tamil Nadu.

Muruganantham invented a low-cost, sanitary pad-making machine and is credited with generating awareness about menstrual hygiene in rural India.

PadMan was released in India on February 9.

Pakistan's Censor Board has reportedly banned the movie saying it goes against the country's culture and tradition

The Twitterati in Pakistan are furious about the movie being banned. News reports on Saturday said the country's Censor Board had refused to clear the movie. The board reportedly said the movie was against the country's culture and tradition. A number of people have slammed the decision: Yes, Pakistani Women menstruate too. I support #Padman and menstrual hygiene. Ban on @PadManTheFilm in Pakistan is senseless. Release it now. pic.twitter.com/KpsTL6Rc3a — Ammara Ahmad (@ammarawrites) February 10, 2018 × "Against our traditions & culture" Oh well, coz women don't menstruate here... What stupid people sitting at Censor Board ! #PadMan must be allowed in Pakistan ! https://t.co/S7PUfBV9ak — Gharidah Farooqi (@GFarooqi) February 10, 2018 × Banning PadMan in Pakistan is another one of those illogical things that simply affect the business of cinemas in Pakistan. Menstruation is a fact of life, and bringing it to mainstream consciousness is neither immoral nor un-Islamic. — Mehr Tarar (@MehrTarar) February 10, 2018 × Insecurity, illiteracy & double standards of #Pakistani filmmakers who're okay with dirty raunchy item numbers but consider "unislamic" to film a social awareness topic of #menstruation on #WomenEmpowerment Censor board, ????move#Padman banned in #Pakistan https://t.co/MHfDx1zVys — Mona Alam (@MonaAlamm) February 10, 2018 × Banning padman in Pakistan just shows how we havent mentally progressed as a nation. Utterly disappointing. — Amna Mazhar (@ozilinaa) February 10, 2018 × Meanwhile, the Pakistan Government wrote on its official Twitter handle, "The decision to issue a NOC by the Ministry of Information Broadcasting National History and Literary Heritage is yet to be taken on the release of a foreign feature film "Padman" as the film has not yet been previewed by the Central Board of Film Censors." Pakistani filmmaker Syed Noor, reacting to the incident, said that "not only PadMan but I think even Padmaavat should not have been released as it portrays Muslims in a very negative light", PTI reported. Directed by R Balki, PadMan is a biographical comedy-drama based on the life of a social activist Arunachalam Muruganantham of Tamil Nadu. Muruganantham invented a low-cost, sanitary pad-making machine and is credited with generating awareness about menstrual hygiene in rural India. PadMan was released in India on February 9.

Pakistan Twitterati furious over PadMan ban

In the wake of loss faced in the December&#39;s RK Nagar bypoll, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has expelled over 150 office-bearers.

Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Panneerselvam and Chief Minister Palaniswami issued a joint statement stating that the move was taken against the party members who acted in &quot;contravention to the party&#39;s policies and ideals,&quot; and for &quot;bringing disrepute&quot; to it.

Former Minister G Senthamizhan and senior leader Parithi Ilamvazhuthi were also among those expelled. The expelled office-bearers belonged to the party&rsquo;s South Chennai (South) and Cuddalore West units.

Both Senthamizhan and Ilamvazhuthi are the supporters of TTV Dhinakaran who won the December 21 RK Nagar bypoll.

The members have been expelled from their present posts and have also lost AIADMK&rsquo;s primary membership.

Palaniswami and Panneerselvam merged their respective factions in August 2017. The leaders also warned of action against those who would go against the party.&nbsp;

The members have been expelled from their present posts and have also lost AIADMK’s primary membership.

In the wake of loss faced in the December's RK Nagar bypoll, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has expelled over 150 office-bearers. Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Panneerselvam and Chief Minister Palaniswami issued a joint statement stating that the move was taken against the party members who acted in "contravention to the party's policies and ideals," and for "bringing disrepute" to it. Former Minister G Senthamizhan and senior leader Parithi Ilamvazhuthi were also among those expelled. The expelled office-bearers belonged to the party’s South Chennai (South) and Cuddalore West units. Both Senthamizhan and Ilamvazhuthi are the supporters of TTV Dhinakaran who won the December 21 RK Nagar bypoll. The members have been expelled from their present posts and have also lost AIADMK’s primary membership. Palaniswami and Panneerselvam merged their respective factions in August 2017. The leaders also warned of action against those who would go against the party.

AIADMK expels over 150 office-bearers

Tamil Nadu MLA TTV Dhinakaran&#39;s recent remark has sparked a controversy. Dhinakaran on Friday claimed that he can get the Tamil Nadu government dissolved.

&quot;If I want, I can get TN government dissolved but many MLAs are sending me feelers asking me not to do it yet. They said they will throw out those anti-Amma people from the government soon,&quot; Dhinakaran noted.&nbsp;

Dhinakaran also blamed the state government for not taking up the Cauvery issue properly with the central government due to political reasons.

&quot;The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is at the Centre and is going to fight elections in Karnataka, so this Tamil Nadu Government does not want any problems to be created due to the Cauvery issue for BJP in Karnataka. And, that is why they (TN Government) have not taken up this issue properly with the Centre,&quot; Dhinakaran alleged.

Meanwhile, the ruling AIADMK on Friday <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/aiadmk-expels-over-150-office-bearers-32323">expelled over 150 office-bearers</a> in the wake of its loss in the RK Nagar Assembly bypoll.

Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Panneerselvam and Chief Minister Palaniswami issued a joint statement stating that the move was taken against the party members who acted in &quot;contravention to the party&#39;s policies and ideals,&quot; and for &quot;bringing disrepute&quot; to it.

The members have been expelled from their present posts and have also lost AIADMK&rsquo;s primary membership.

(With inputs from ANI)

Meanwhile, the ruling AIADMK on Friday expelled over 150 office-bearers

Tamil Nadu MLA TTV Dhinakaran's recent remark has sparked a controversy. Dhinakaran on Friday claimed that he can get the Tamil Nadu government dissolved. "If I want, I can get TN government dissolved but many MLAs are sending me feelers asking me not to do it yet. They said they will throw out those anti-Amma people from the government soon," Dhinakaran noted. Dhinakaran also blamed the state government for not taking up the Cauvery issue properly with the central government due to political reasons. "The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is at the Centre and is going to fight elections in Karnataka, so this Tamil Nadu Government does not want any problems to be created due to the Cauvery issue for BJP in Karnataka. And, that is why they (TN Government) have not taken up this issue properly with the Centre," Dhinakaran alleged. Meanwhile, the ruling AIADMK on Friday expelled over 150 office-bearers in the wake of its loss in the RK Nagar Assembly bypoll. Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Panneerselvam and Chief Minister Palaniswami issued a joint statement stating that the move was taken against the party members who acted in "contravention to the party's policies and ideals," and for "bringing disrepute" to it. The members have been expelled from their present posts and have also lost AIADMK’s primary membership. (With inputs from ANI)

I can get Tamil Nadu government dissolved: TTV Dhinakaran

Internet giant Google will support Tamil Nadu government&#39;s digitisation efforts.

The government of Tamil Nadu aims to make all government websites mobile-friendly and plans to provide cloud credits for startups in the state.

Google Indis&#39;s Public Policy Director, Chetan Krishnaswamy noted at an event that Google would be pleased to work with the Tamil Nadu government and help it become a digitally empowered state.&nbsp;

The Tamil Nadu government launched the &#39;Internet Saathi&#39; programme today to promote &#39;digital literacy for women.&#39; State Information Technology Minister M Manikandan was also present at the launch.

Krishnaswamy also noted that the expansion of the &#39;Internet Saathi&#39;&nbsp;model would benefit over 600,000 women in the first phase of the programme.

The Tamil Nadu government launched the 'Internet Saathi' programme today to promote 'digital literacy for women'

Internet giant Google will support Tamil Nadu government's digitisation efforts. The government of Tamil Nadu aims to make all government websites mobile-friendly and plans to provide cloud credits for startups in the state. Google Indis's Public Policy Director, Chetan Krishnaswamy noted at an event that Google would be pleased to work with the Tamil Nadu government and help it become a digitally empowered state. The Tamil Nadu government launched the 'Internet Saathi' programme today to promote 'digital literacy for women.' State Information Technology Minister M Manikandan was also present at the launch. Krishnaswamy also noted that the expansion of the 'Internet Saathi' model would benefit over 600,000 women in the first phase of the programme.

Google to support Tamil Nadu's digitisation initiatives

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