With the UP Assembly polls just a year and a half away, former minister Swami Prasad Maurya is trying to shake up the political landscape. A prominent OBC figure, he has announced the launch of a new political front, Lok Morcha, made up of nine small and little-known parties. What’s more? It will be helmed mostly by leaders belonging to backward communities. But that’s not all. Maurya plans to run for CM. And as the Lok Morcha’s candidate, his campaign will be focused on unseating the BJP government. He has already rustled up a slogan for his run — ‘UP Bachao, BJP Hatao’. It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?
The taste of state in every sip of this wine
Do you enjoy a nice glass of wine? You have much to celebrate! In a first, a winery producing alcoholic beverages through a variety of local fruits, including mangoes, has come up in Malihabad. And why not? It is known as a mango belt of the state. Sprawling across 100 acres of a mango orchard, the winery has been set up at an outlay of around `10 crore. The wine bottles, available in various sizes, would be priced between `300 and 1,200. The wine produced here is made using only natural ingredients. No chemicals, sugar or ethanol. What’s more? This ‘Made in UP’ wine is free from any excise duty.
Darshan of Ram Darbar open for devotees
The long wait of devotees of Lord Rama is finally over! The Ram Darbar, situated on the first floor of Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir, is now open to the public for darshan. However, in this initial phase, only a limited number of passes are being issued to visitors for two slots — 5–7 pm and 7–9 pm. More slots have been planned throughout the day. A total of 300 passes will be available for each two-hour time slot. The district administration and the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra have been allocated 150 passes each. Of these, 100 are meant for special darshan and 50 for easy access.
Namita bajpai
Our correspondent in Uttar Pradesh
namita.bajpai@newindianexpress.com