Politics seeps into Navratra’s spiritual fervour
As Navratra began, former chief minister Rabri Devi was joined in an puja by her younger son and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav. “I am praying to Mother Durga that good sense prevails among the misguided youths… May the Goddess give me more strength to fight the people who are harassing and raping the sisters and daughters of Bihar,” said Tejashwi. His words were viewed by the ruling JD(U) and BJP as a veiled jibe. “Tejashwi should pray to the Goddess to give him good sense and culture,” JD(U) leader Sanjay Singh said.
Medical negligence: Probe first, arrest later
Doctors, who have been facing flak from kin of patients, can no longer be immediately arrested on complaints of medical negligence. The rules approved by the government under the Bihar Medical Institution and Person Protection Act have come as a relief for medicos. Doctors getting beaten by irate crowds in government hospitals are not new in the eastern state. Earlier, the police used to arrest doctors when the attendants or relatives of a patient lodged a complaint. From now on, aggrieved relatives of patients will have to first fill up a form at the police station to register their complaint. The complaint will be then forwarded to the district magistrate, who will form a team to probe the case. Police action will depend on the report of this team.
No respite from stray cattle on roads
Stray cattle roaming on the streets of Patna have become a menace for vehicle drivers and traffic police. Some areas on Ashok Rajpath, Patna Market, and Digha-Ashiana road often become tough for driving for these bovines. But, the Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) is hardly bothered to tackle the crisis. The civic body has only two cattle catchers for the entire city. PMC deputy municipal commissioner Vishal Anand said at least four more members are required to tackle the problem. Patna has only one shelter to keep stray cattle. In 2016, the PMC planned to open four more shelters, but the plan was shelved.
Fear of snakes
Officials of the planning and development department at the Secretariat in Patna are fearful of snakes secretly slithering on old files and furniture. Ever since a snakeskin was found from among the files some weeks ago, many officials fear that serpents are hiding in office rooms of the 101-year-old Secretariat building. It is another thing that no one has seen any snake so far. The department has contacted the Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park, urging the park officials to send a rescue team to safely take away serpents. But after a thorough search by the wildlife team for two hours, there was no trace of any snake. Still, officials remain on their guard at their duty hours at the Secretariat.
anandstdas@gmail.com