Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal-United on Monday announced its low-profile top office-bearer Anil Hegde as its candidate for the by-election to a Rajya Sabha seat which has been necessitated by the death of multiple-term MP, 'King Mahendra'. According to a statement issued by JD-U national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan, the party has ”decided to field Shri Anil Hegde as a candidate for the by-election to the council of states from Bihar, left vacant due to the untimely death of our party MP Dr Mahendra Prasad”. Hegde has for long been the JD-U's national election officer, responsible for coordination between the party and the Election Commission during assembly and parliamentary polls. Known to keep a low profile, he has been closely associated with the Bihar chief minister, the party's de facto leader, for more than two decades. The last date for nomination for the by-election is Wednesday, and voting, if required, will take place on May 30.Besides Hegde, others who were speculated to be in the race were the party's voluble national secretary general K C Tyagi, the deceased MP's brother Bhola Sharma and another national secretary general Afaque Ahmed Khan who has often been credited with making JD-U visible in the north-east. Mahendra Prasad, better known as ”King Mahendra” in political and social circles, had died in December last year at the ripe age of 81 years.He was widely regarded as one of the richest parliamentarians in the country who had a humble beginning as a school teacher but rose in the world of pharmaceutical business and came to own three companies.—PTI

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal-United on Monday announced its low-profile top office-bearer Anil Hegde as its candidate for the by-election to a Rajya Sabha seat which has been necessitated by the death of multiple-term MP, 'King Mahendra'.

JD-U nominates Nitish Kumar's trusted aide Anil Hegde to RS

Bihar

Patna:&nbsp;Grewia asiatica, which goes by the name Phalsa, and Hardwickia binata, better known as Anjan' in Hindi, are almost on the verge of extinction in Bihar and the state government has decided to carry out a survey to find out the reason.Phalsa was first sighted in Gaya and then taken by Buddhist scholars to Varanasi and the rest of the world, D K Shukla, Chairman, Bihar State Biodiversity Board, said.It is a shrub growing up to a height of 8 metre and the flowers are produced in cymes.Purple in colour when ripe, Phalsa berries are small, measuring about one to two centimeter in size. The fruit is a powerhouse of vitamins, and trace minerals and is easily digestible, Shukla said.During the summer months, the fruit and its juice are said to have a cooling effect.The decreasing number of Anjan' trees, is also a matter of serious concern, Shukla said.The Hardwickia binata tree, with drooping branches, grows up to a height of 25-30 metre and was found in abundance in the forests of Kaimur district.The Bihar government has decided to carry out a state-wide survey to find out the exact reason behind the disappearance of these two trees in the state. During the survey, experts will also prepare a list of other endangered tree species in Bihar , Additional Chief Secretary of the Bihar Environment, Forest and Climate Change department, Dipak Kumar Singh, told PTI.Explaining the possible reasons behind the disappearance of these two trees, Shukla, told PTI, one cannot deny that habitat destruction, caused by human activities such as deforestation and increasing pollution, is leading to the loss of many plants in the state .Noting that it is a matter of concern, the Bihar State Biodiversity chief said a detailed survey will soon be conducted to ascertain the reason behind the disappearance of these two trees at an alarming rate in the state, he said.When plants or animals become extinct, the flora and fauna that are dependent on it also tend to disappear, Shukla said.Endangered plant and animal species can be saved by adopting methods that do not disturb their environment. We need to protect the habitats in which they survive , said Shukla.Expressing his concern over the disappearance of these two trees, he said, In Bihar, you may see a particular flower in one district in abundance, while it is missing in another.There are 38 districts in the state and people will find each region has some particular form of vegetation that is missing in others. There is no dearth of fertile land as the area is traversed by the Ganges river, along with three of her tributaries. The deposition of silt makes this part ideal for agricultural and natural growth of plants, which are indigenous to this area," Shukla said.—PTI

 Grewia asiatica, which goes by the name Phalsa, and Hardwickia binata, better known as Anjan' in Hindi, are almost on the verge of extinction in Bihar and the state government has decided to carry out a survey to find out the reason.

Two trees on verge of extinction in Bihar

 Grewia asiatica, which goes by the name Phalsa, and Hardwickia binata, better known as Anjan' in Hindi, are almost on the verge of extinction in Bihar and the state government has decided to carry out a survey to find out the reason.



Patna: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Monday expressed outrage over the leak of question papers for civil services (preliminary) examinations conducted by Bihar Public Service Commission on the previous day.The leader of the opposition said the Commission deserved to be renamed as a leak aayog and demanded that the Nitish Kumar government in the state pay compensation to candidates who had travelled long distances to reach their examination centres.That the BPSC has been in a mess is no great news. But after yesterday's incident nothing more remains to be said. It is high time that the lok seva aayog was renamed leak aayog. Examinations are seldom held on time and even when these are conducted, more delays take place on account of irregularities , he told reporters.Yadav claimed that he has been raising the issue of the BPSC's style of functioning whenever the assembly is in session and demanded Rs 5 lakh compensation to all such candidates whose examination centres were far away from their home towns They have suffered the most .Screenshots of the question papers had gone viral minutes before the commencement of exams around noon and though the tests were not immediately called off, the Commission announced cancellation in the evening after it was convinced that the paper was leaked.Yadav alleged that the leak could not have taken place without complicity of some big fish in the Commission and demanded a speedy investigation to bring the guilty to book.He also took potshots at Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, alleging that the latter always seemed blissfully unaware of what was going on right under his nose—PTI

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Monday expressed outrage over the leak of question papers for civil services (preliminary) examinations conducted by Bihar Public Service Commission on the previous day.

Rename BPSC as leak commission: Tejashwi fumes

Patna: &nbsp;Special Vigilance Unit (SVU) of Bihar raided the office and residence of jail superintendent of Saharsa on Friday morning.The SVU official claimed that the action was taken against Saharsa jail superintendent Suresh Chaudhary following an FIR of disproportionate assets registered against him at the police station in Patna."During the raid, we have obtained proof of more than Rs 1.5 crore worth of properties, cash and jewellery in his name," an official of SVU said."At present, two separate teams are raiding his official residence in Saharsa and native place in Brahmpur in Muzaffarpur district.In another incident, the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) conducted raids at the residence of a former SHO of the Bihta police station in Patna and native place in Muzaffarpur district.Former Bihta SHO Awadhesh Kumar Jha is facing charges of having relations with sand mafias and having amassed crores of Rupees. The raids are currently underway at a rented accommodation of Jha in the Kurji locality in Patna and the Sakra village in Muzaffarpur district—IANS

 Special Vigilance Unit (SVU) of Bihar raided the office and residence of jail superintendent of Saharsa on Friday morning.

Raids on premises of jail official in Bihar’s Saharsa

Patna: Political strategist Prashant Kishor on Thursday ruled out the caste factor as the key one deciding the fate of a political party in Bihar. Giving the example of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said: "At present, Narendra Modi is achieving the highest number of votes in Bihar but how many people belong to his caste staying in Bihar? I believe there are not many people of his caste staying in Bihar. That means, caste is not the only factor on which people can vote here." "In every caste and community, some people vote above caste and community. Besides, if I form a political party, I would not be the only one to contest the election. People of every caste and community contest elections from my party," he added. PK, as Kishor is known, also slammed the current Nitish Kumar government and the previous RJD regime. "Bihar is extremely backward compared to other states and current and previous governments are responsible for it," he said. Giving an example of 'Saat Nishchay Yojana' (seven point policies) which is a pet project of the Nitish Kumar government, Kishor said: "I was the one who prepared the Saat Nischay Yojana part 1 and 2 for Nitish Kumar government after he came in power in 2015. Now, critics are putting question marks on this Yojana but it is not my fault. My job was to prepare that policy and the execution would be done by the state government. If they failed to execute the policy, they will be answerable for the non-execution of the Saat Nishchay Yojana on ground. Please ask questions to the Chief Minister and cabinet ministers of his government." —IANS

Political strategist Prashant Kishor on Thursday ruled out the caste factor as the key one deciding the fate of a political party in Bihar.