Administrative shake-up
The Lok Sabha poll debacle in Madhya Pradesh seems to have prompted the Kamal Nath government to go for a major administrative and police department shake-up in the state. Just four days after the poll results gave 28 seats to BJP and just one seat to Congress in the state, over a dozen senior IAS officers were transferred. Just a few days later on Saturday evening, the state government transferred 37 IPS officers and 33 IAS officers, including SPs and collectors of many districts. Bhopal SP Sudam Khade and IG Jaideep Prasad were both transferred, possibly in the wake of the humiliating defeat of former chief minister Digvijaya Singh at the hands of BJP’s Pragya Singh Thakur.
What’s in store for powerful losers?
At a time when there is a clamour among the Congress circles in Madhya Pradesh for change in state party leadership, another point of discussion in the ruling party circles is what has fate in store for the powerful leaders, who lost the recent Lok Sabha polls. Such leaders, include former MP minister Ramniwas Rawat who lost from Morena seat, ex-Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh who lost from Sidhi and former union minister Kantilal Bhuria who lost from his pocket-borough Ratlam. The names of these three leaders are doing the rounds for the post of state Congress president. Bhuria, a five-time MP, has previously served as the president of Madhya Pradesh Congress. The drubbing in the LS polls was a shock for the Congress, coming as it did barely months after it wrested the state from the BJP.
Sunset point in the offing at Van Vihar
The management of the Van Vihar National Park in Bhopal is planning on developing a sunset point within the park. The officials are working at developing grasslands for the herbivores on the barren plateau land. The area, earlier dedicated to ‘Pahadi Baba’ (revered by villagers), is also being developed into a tourist attraction, as it makes for a beautiful sunset point for visitors in summer. According to senior officials, a large part of the area in the park has also been reserved for planting leafy and fruit-bearing trees along with local species of grasses.
Skeet shooter poised for glory
Arjun Thakur, an 18-year-old promising skeet shooter who spent some years in a shelter-home in Itarsi town of Hoshangabad district, has made it to the Indian Skeet Team which will take part in the World Shooting Championship in Lonato (Italy) and World Cup in Schule (Germany). He took refuge at a shelter home after being separated from his family at the age of five. The skeet shooting sensation, who played softball before turning into a shooter, has been honing his skills at the MP Shooting Academy since 2016.
anuraag singh
Our correspondent in Madhya Pradesh
singhanuraag.journo@gmail.com