President Kovind pitches for simultaneous elections

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS): Appealing for simultaneous parliamentary and Assembly elections, President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday outlined the new Modi government’s roadmap, saying it was determined to crush terrorism and Maoism. Addressing a joint sitting of Parliament, Kovind also said that India was on its way to becoming the world’s fifth largest economy in terms of GDP and said the government’s aim was to make women equal stakeholders in economic development. Making a strong case for ‘one nation, one election’ concept, the President said simultaneous elections were the need of the hour to accelerate development. “With such a system in place, all political parties... will be able to better utilize their energy towards development and public welfare. “Therefore, I urge all MPs to seriously ponder over this development-oriented proposal of ‘one nation - simultaneous elections’.” The President’s remarks came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi presided over an all-party meeting here to pitch for simultaneous parliamentary and state Assembly elections -- an issue that has divided political parties. Saying economic prosperity was linked to nation’s security, Kovind said that effective steps had been taken to tackle terrorism and Maoism. “India has amply demonstrated both her intent and capabilities, first through surgical strikes and then through air strikes after the Pulwama attack at terrorist hideouts across the border. In future too, all possible steps will be taken to ensure our security. “The area affected by Naxalism is reducing continuously.” He said that illegal infiltrators posed a major threat to internal security, leading to social imbalance in many parts of the country. “My government will make the zero tolerance policy against corruption more comprehensive and effective. The mission to eliminate corruption from public life and government services will be implemented with greater zeal.” He said India was now getting information about economic offenders from 146 countries including Switzerland. “We are now receiving information about all those who have stashed black money abroad.” India, he said, was among the fastest growing economies in the world today and was set to become the world’s fifth largest economy in terms of GDP. As part of economic development, the Modi government was committed to make women equal stakeholders. “Priority will be given to those enterprises where women’s participation in the workforce is more than the prescribed limit.” The President said it was imperative to eradicate social evils like ‘triple talaq’ and ‘nikah-halala’. Kovind said that after assessing the performance of the Modi government during the first tenure, the people of the country have given “even stronger support for the second term”. Underlining the need for a strong rural economy, he said that the government will double the income of farmers by 2022. The President also spoke about the water crisis and the government’s determination to clean up the Ganga river. “On the lines of river Ganga, the government will also endeavour to clean up other rivers such as Kaveri, Periyar, Narmada, Yamuna, Mahanadi and Godavari.” He said that India had acquired a new image today “and its relations with other countries have become stronger”. “The world community supports India’s position on various issues... Today the whole world stands with India on the issue of terrorism.” Special focus to improve connectivity in NE The Narendra Modi government is giving special focus on improving connectivity in the Northeast and make life easy for the people of the region, President Ram Nath Kovind said on Thursday. Kovind said tourism, agriculture and other allied sectors will also benefit from better connectivity in the Northeast. “Special emphasis is being accorded to improving connectivity in the North-East, hilly and tribal areas,” he said in his customary address after the formation of the 17th Lok Sabha. Kovind said in addition to increasing the ease of living of citizens in the Northeast, tourism, agriculture and other allied sectors will also benefit from better connectivity. Effective steps are being taken to expand organic farming in the Northeast, he added.

NRC on priority in areas affected by infiltration

New Delhi, June 20 (PTI): The central government has decided to implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC), currently being updated in Assam, on priority basis in areas affected by infiltration, President Ram Nath Kovind said on Thursday. “My government has decided to implement the process of National Register of Citizens on priority basis in areas affected by infiltration,” he said in his customary address after the formation of the 17th Lok Sabha. The President, however, did not specify in which areas the NRC will be implemented. Apart from Assam, West Bengal, Tripura and some other parts of the Northeast are reportedly affected by the problem of illegal immigration. Kovind said security along the border will be further strengthened to prevent infiltration. The President said while on the one hand, the government is working to identify infiltrators, on the other, it is also fully committed to protecting those who are victims of persecution due to their faith in neighbouring countries. “In this regard, efforts will be made to amend the Citizenship Act while protecting the linguistic, cultural and social identities,” he said. The Supreme Court-monitored NRC exercise, aimed at identifying illegal immigrants in the state that borders Bangladesh, was carried out only in Assam, which faced an influx of people from Bangladesh since the early 20th century. When the draft NRC was published on July 30, 2018, there was a huge controversy over the exclusion of 40.7 lakh people from it. The draft NRC included the names of 2.9 crore people out of the total 3.29 crore applications. The final list of the NRC will be published on July 31, 2019. When the NRC was first prepared in Assam way back in 1951, the state had 80 lakh citizens. According to the 2011 census, Assam’s total population is over 3.11 crore. The process of identification of illegal immigrants in the state has been widely debated and is a contentious issue in state politics. There were huge protests in the Northeast, particularly in Assam, early this year over the move to amend the Citizenship Act as it intends to give citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist and Christian illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The main objection of the people of the Northeast was to the proposed amendment to the Citizenship Act will negate a provision of the 1985 Assam Accord, which provides for declaration anyone, irrespective of religion, who had entered India after 1971 as foreigner. The BJP has maintained that the Citizenship Amendment Bill is aimed to give Indian nationality to those people who have been facing persecution in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan for their religion.