After a seven‑year legal battle, the Calcutta High Court has finally ordered the opening of a creche on its premises. The division bench of Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen directed the court registry to make the facility operational within 30 days, marking a significant victory for working parents and legal professionals in Kolkata. Background and Context The demand for a dedicated childcare facility at the Calcutta High Court dates back to 2019, when three senior advocates filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a creche for employees, advocates, and their families. The court’s administration had earmarked…
Author: Map of Netherlands
In the early hours of Wednesday, a Bangladeshi barge carrying a cargo of fly ash, the MV Tamjid Nasir, suffered a mechanical failure and nearly sank in the Muriganga channel near Ghoramara Island, sparking immediate fears of a serious fly ash barge pollution event that could threaten the river’s ecosystem and the livelihoods of thousands of residents along the Hooghly‑Bengal delta. Background / Context Fly ash, a by‑product of coal combustion, is often stored in large quantities on barges for transport to power plants and industrial sites. While it is considered a waste material, it contains heavy metals such as lead, arsenic,…
Bangladesh’s MV Tamjid Nasir, a barge carrying 30 tons of fly ash, has partially sunk in the Muriganga River near Ghoramara Island, sparking urgent concerns over fly ash barge pollution in the Kolkata‑Bengal region. The incident, which occurred on Wednesday afternoon, left 11 crew members safe but raised alarms about heavy‑metal contamination in the river and the surrounding aquatic ecosystem. Background and Context Fly ash, a by‑product of coal combustion, is often transported in bulk on barges to power plants and industrial sites. While it can be recycled as a construction material, the ash frequently contains hazardous heavy metals such as lead, arsenic,…
The Election Commission has issued summons to roughly 30 lakh voters across the country, calling them to attend hearings over unmapped and logical discrepancies in the electoral roll. The move follows a wave of objections lodged through Form 7, prompting the Commission to scrutinise the eligibility of a large segment of the electorate before the next general elections. Background/Context India’s electoral roll is a living document that must reflect the current demographic reality. In the run‑up to the 2026 general elections, the Election Commission (EC) has been busy cleaning up the roll, removing names of deceased or permanently shifted voters and…
Election Commission orders FIR against TMC MLA Monirul Islam over vandalism at Farakka BDO office – In a decisive move, the Election Commission of India (EC) has directed the Murshidabad district administration to register a First Information Report (FIR) against Trinamool Congress (TMC) Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Monirul Islam for alleged vandalism at the Farakka Block Development Office (BDO) on June 14. The order, issued on Thursday, follows a series of protests and clashes that disrupted the Scheduled Induction of Registration (SIR) exercise, raising concerns about electoral integrity and public safety. Background/Context The Farakka BDO office, located in Murshidabad…
In a decisive move that could reshape the political landscape of West Bengal, the state government has formally informed the Calcutta High Court that it will refrain from taking any coercive action against opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari until January 28. The court has set a hearing for January 27 to review the case, marking a critical juncture in the ongoing legal and political tussle between the ruling Trinamool Congress and the opposition. Background and Context Suven Adhikari, a former minister in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a prominent figure in West Bengal politics, has been at the center of a high‑profile legal…
Bengal government has pledged not to take any coercive action against opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari until January 28, ahead of the Calcutta High Court’s hearing on the matter. The decision comes after the state filed criminal charges against Adhikari a day after he staged a protest at Chandrakona police station following an attack on his convoy. The court has directed both the central and state governments to submit detailed reports before the next hearing on January 27. Background and Context In early January, Suvendu Adhikari, the former Chief Minister of West Bengal and a prominent opposition figure, was attacked by a mob…
In a high‑stakes move that has captured the attention of political analysts and law‑enforcement observers alike, Enforcement Directorate (ED) Director Rahul Naveen is set to arrive in Kolkata on Thursday for a three‑day visit aimed at reviewing the agency’s operations amid the ongoing I‑PAC controversy. The trip, dubbed the ED director Kolkata visit, comes as the ED seeks to address allegations of obstruction by state police during its January 8 search operations at the office of Indian PAC Consulting Private Limited (I‑PAC) and the residence of its director, Pratik Jain. Background and Context The I‑PAC saga erupted when ED officials…
In a sharp political retort, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has fired back at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with a biting “BJP‑B” jibe after ISF MLA Nawsad Siddique hinted at a non‑BJP alliance aimed at ousting Mamata Banerjee’s government. The exchange, unfolding just weeks before the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections, has reignited the debate over coalition politics and vote‑splitting tactics in the state. Background and Context West Bengal’s political landscape has been dominated by the TMC since 2011, but the BJP has steadily increased its foothold, securing 77 seats in the 2021 assembly elections. The BJP’s strategy, often described…
After 37 days of sub‑normal temperatures, Kolkata’s winter is finally easing as both daytime and nighttime temperatures rise above the long‑term average. The city’s meteorological centre reports a record‑breaking cold spell has ended, with the mercury climbing to 26.8 °C during the day and 15.4 °C at night on Wednesday, a full 1.3 °C above the normal minimum and 0.4 °C above the normal maximum. Background / Context Winter 2025‑26 in the eastern metropolis was marked by a persistent chill that broke records across the region. From early December, the city’s temperatures dipped below the climatological norm, culminating in the coldest New Year’s Eve…