Kolkata: &nbsp;A mini Defence Expo will be held for the first time in Kolkata from July 6 to 9, Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen RP Kalita said here on Tuesday.The event will give an opportunity to the start-ups and MSMEs to showcase their products, he said. "From July 6 to 9, we are planning to hold a mini Defence Expo in Kolkata," GOC-in-C, Eastern Command, Kalita said at a programme here. He asked industry members to join the three-day expo to be held in the city for the first time. "It will give the MSMEs and start-ups in the Defence sector a good opportunity to showcase their products," he said. The Eastern Army Commander said that the armed forces are in touch with premier educational institutions for research and development of new products and that he had recently visited IIT Guwahati. Kalita said that the Russia-Ukraine war has taught that a nation has to fight its war alone and that this signifies the importance of self-reliance.—PTI

 A mini Defence Expo will be held for the first time in Kolkata from July 6 to 9, Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen RP Kalita said here on Tuesday.

Mini Defence Expo in Kolkata from July 6-9

West Bengal

Kolkata: &nbsp;Bringing an end to all speculations and in another jolt to the BJP, BJP's Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh rejoined West Bengal's Trinamool Congress on Sunday evening. He was greeted back into the party by Trinamool General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee at the party office at Camac Street in central Kolkata. Other top Trinamool leaders, MLAs, and ministers from the North 24 Parganas district were present on the occasion.The development comes as another setback for the BJP against the backdrop of the West Bengal Panchayat polls in 2023 and the Lok Sabha polls in 2024, as Singh was an important pillar in expanding its organisational base in North 24 Parganas district, especially in the Barrackpore, area since 2019. Speculations were rife for quite some time that Singh might come back to Trinamool as he continued with his salvos against the Union government on the issue of fixing the price of jute. Recently Singh also became vocal against the state leadership of BJP claiming that the latter has become social media-oriented instead of focusing on grassroots level organisation.Union Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal and BJP's national President J.P. Nadda even had separate meetings with Singh in New Delhi to address his grievances. However, as the latest developments show, those did not prove to be fruitful. After rejoining, Singh said that he had switched over the BJP in 2019 after misunderstandings with Trinamool leadership. "But after joining BJP, I faced hurdles in acting independently as an elected Lok Sabha member from the state. I tried hard to settle the jute price issue and there too I faced hurdles. So, I decided to join back...," he said.Asked whether he would resign as a Lok Sabha member on moral grounds, Singh said that currently there are two Lok Sabha members from Bengal, who are officially Trinamool MPs, but are actually with the BJP."The day these two MPs resign on moral grounds, I will also resign within an hour and face fresh elections," he said. His clear hints were towards the Leader of Opposition in Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari's father, Sisir Adhikari, the Trinamool MP from Kanthi and brother, Dibyendu Adhikari, the Trinamool MP from Tamluk. Both these constituencies are in East Midnapore district. Reacting to Arjun Singh's exit, BJP's national Vice President, Dilip Ghosh said that Singh was unable to bear the administrative and police pressure on him since the time he was elected on behalf of the BJP from Barrackpore. "Previously some of our elected MLAs joined Trinamool Congress because of the same pressure," he claimed.Arjun Singh was a four-time Trinamool MLA from Bhatpara Assembly constituency in North 24 Parganas district from 2011 to 2019. However, as he was denied the Lok Sabha nomination from Barrackpore Lok Sabha constituency by the Trinamool leadership in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, he joined the saffron camp. The BJP fielded him as its candidate from Barrackpore Lok Sabha in 2019 and Singh got elected defeating Trinamool' sitting member, Dinesh Trivedi by a margin of little less than 15,000 votes.—IANS

Bringing an end to all speculations and in another jolt to the BJP, BJP's Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh rejoined West Bengal's Trinamool Congress on Sunday evening.

BJP Lok Sabha member Arjun Singh rejoins Trinamool Congress

Kolkata: At least four people were killed when a nor'wester packing wind speed of 90 km per hour an hour and accompanied by rains struck the southern part of West Bengal on Saturday evening, a state disaster management official said. One man was killed after a brick wall collapsed on him in Purba Bardhaman district, while another died in a lightning strike in Nadia district, the official told PTI. Two boys died when the boat they were rowing in Kolkata's Rabindra Sarobar Lake capsized during the nor'wester, the police said.Disaster Management Minister Javed Ahmed Khan told PTI that several trees fell in different parts of the metropolis causing traffic disruption. The nor'wester hit North and South 24 Parganas, Hooghly and Purba Bardhaman districts, besides Kolkata, a Met Office spokesperson said. The squall brought relief from the sweltering heat of the past few days but also inconvenienced commuters as fewer public vehicles plied after it. A tree fell on the Metro Rail track between Mahanayak Uttam Kumar and Netaji railway stations in Kolkata disrupting services in a section of the city's lifeline for around 50 minutes, an official said. “The services were affected between 4.40 pm and 5.30 pm," he said.Flight services at the NSC Bose International Airport was halted for about one and half hours due to the nor'wester, Airport Authority sources said. While five flights had to hover in the sky before they could land, the routes of two others were changed. The Agartala-Kolkata Indigo flight made emergency landing at the Biju Patnaik Airport in Bhubaneswar, as did the Imphal-Kolkata Air India flight, the sources added—PTI

At least four people were killed when a nor'wester packing wind speed of 90 km per hour an hour and accompanied by rains struck the southern part of West Bengal on Saturday evening, a state disaster management official said.

Thunderstorm kills at least 4 in Bengal

Kolkata: Popular Bengali TV actress Pallabi Dey was found hanging at her rented apartment in South Kolkata on Sunday, a senior police officer said.Dey, 21, was declared "brought dead" on being taken to a nearby hospital, the officer said.According to the officer, Dey had rented the apartment in Garfa area of south Kolkata in April.She apparently shared the apartment with her "live in partner".Talking to reporters, the caretaker of the apartment said that her partner called him aloud after "finding out that she had hung herself" in the bedroom.The caretaker also said that he, along with other housekeeping staff, brought down her body, and informed the police immediately.The 21-year-old actor has played the female lead in several Bengali soaps such as 'Kunja Chhaya', 'Resham Jhapi' and most recently 'Mon Mane Na'."We are exploring the case from all angles. As of now, we are talking to her partner to understand the sequence of incidents. More details will be available only after the post-mortem report arrives," the police officer added.—PTI

Popular Bengali TV actress Pallabi Dey was found hanging at her rented apartment in South Kolkata on Sunday, a senior police officer said.

TV actress found hanging at rented home in Kolkata

Baruipur:&nbsp;Five people were arrested with arms and ammunition in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, police said on Friday.Acting on a tip-off, a raid was conducted at Taldi's Biswaspara Choumatha in Canning police station area on Thursday night and the five people were caught, they said.An improvised firearm, one 8 mm cartridge, one 7mm cartridge, a crowbar, a hacksaw and three lock-breaking equipment were seized from them.It is suspected that they had gathered to commit robbery, police said.In another incident, a man was arrested in Bharatgarh in Basanti police station area with arms.A few men had gathered in the area with arms and ammunition. On seeing the police, they fled but one of them got caught.—PTI

 Five people were arrested with arms and ammunition in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, police said on Friday.