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A tiger and tigress from Madhya Pradesh are set to make their way to the Ramgarh Visdhari Tiger Reserve in Bundi in Rajasthan’s first inter-state transfer and authorities are making preparations to receive their new residents.

While the exact date of the transfer – which is supposed to happen from the Pench Tiger Reserve and has been approved by the National Tiger Conservation Authority – is yet to be finalised and the tiger and tigress pair is in the process of being identified, the tiger reserve has already built two soft enclosures for them. Once the pair arrives, the tiger population in the reserve will increase to nine, including cubs.

They will also serve another very important purpose, said Deputy Conservator of Forests Arvind Kumar.

“Tigers within the state are from one gene pool, in the sense that they have same ancestors. Once the male and female come from Pench, there will be a new gene pool and new cubs born in Rajasthan from the mixed gene pool will be healthier,” said Mr Kumar.

He said officials are in the process of identifying the tigers that will be transferred.

The forests of Bundi offer approximately 150 caves suitable for tiger cubs, making itthe ideal location for the first tiger transfer into Rajasthan. The sanctuary is spread over 800 sq. kilometres, adjoining the Ranthambore National Park and Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve, and has a strong base of prey, including deer.

Rajasthan has also seen an intra-state relocation effort before, when tigers were wiped out from the Sariska Tiger Reserve because of poaching and some were relocated from the Rathambore national park in 2018At Bundi, a third enclosure is also being built, because authorities are hopeful they will get a tiger from Maharashtra in the near future.

“We believe that a tiger may be moved here from Maharashtra. We need to have a new gene pool of tigers in Rajasthan and Bundi is aptly suited for this translocation,” said wildlife lover Vithal Kumar.

“Soon, Bundi will be among the best reserves in Rajasthan,” he added.

Congress legislators continued their sit-in protest inside the Assembly while the party held protests at all district headquarters on Saturday against the suspension of six party MLAs.

Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully said that the MLAs spent Friday night in the assembly and the dharna will continue.

He said that three ministers held talks with the senior MLAs last night but it remained inconclusive and the ‘dharna’ continued.We demand that the minister withdraw his remark. There have been precedents that words have been expunged but the government itself does not want to run the House, and therefore, the issue has been created,” Jully told reporters on Saturday.

He said that the party MLAs have been holding the ‘dharna’ in the House after the Speaker adjourned it on Friday after suspending six MLAs.

During the Question Hour on Friday, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Avinash Gehlot pointed to the opposition and said, “In the 2023-24 budget also, like always, you named the scheme (on working women’s hostels) after your ‘Dadi’ (grandmother) Indira Gandhi.” This remark led to a heavy uproar in the House, which led to three adjournments. MLA Jogeshwar Garg moved a proposal to suspend Congress MLAs Govind Singh Dotasara, Ramkesh Meena, Amin Kagzi, Jakir Hussain, Hakam Ali and Sanjay Kumar, which was passed by voice vote.After the proposal was passed, the Speaker adjourned the House till 11 am on Monday. Following the adjournment, the Congress MLAs started their sit-in protest in the House and spent the night there.

Meanwhile, Congress district units held protests at all the district headquarters against the suspension and demanded an apology from the minister.

PCC general secretary Swarnim Chaturvedi said that District Congress Committee presidents led the protests in the respective districts.

“Demanding an apology from the minister and to revoke the suspension of Congress MLAs, protests were held at all the district headquarters in which a large number of Congress workers and leaders participated,” he said.

“The minister’s comments show that they have no regard for stalwart leaders like Indira Gandhi. Such comments cannot be tolerated. The suspension of six MLAs was an arbitrary move by the government,” he said.

The Rajasthan government has revoked the allocation of a government bungalow to Cabinet minister Kirori Lal Meena, sources said on Monday.

Kirori Lal Meena has been vocal about his dissatisfaction with the Bhajanlal Sharma-led BJP government.

According to the sources, Mr Meena himself had requested the General Administration Department (GAD) to cancel the allocation of bungalow number 3 on Hospital Road here.

He had not taken possession of the bungalow which was allocated to him in February last year.

“The bungalow allotment has been cancelled by the GAD,” a source said.Following the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, where he claimed the party did not secure the results he had promised, Meena resigned from his ministerial position. However, his resignation is yet to be accepted.

Additionally, citing health reasons, he has not attended the assembly session.

Mr Meena has also accused the state government of tapping his phones, an allegation refuted by the minister of state for home Jawahar Singh Bedham in the assembly.Following the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, where he claimed the party did not secure the results he had promised, Meena resigned from his ministerial position. However, his resignation is yet to be accepted.

Additionally, citing health reasons, he has not attended the assembly session.

Mr Meena has also accused the state government of tapping his phones, an allegation refuted by the minister of state for home Jawahar Singh Bedham in the assembly.

Around 50 people, who had gathered for a funeral here, were injured in a bee attack on Monday, police said.

The incident occurred in Peeli ki Talai of Amber area when during the cremation of a person bees came out of the hive due to the heat of the fire and attacked the group of people, Station House Officer (SHO) Antim Sharma said.

He said around 50 people were injured and they were taken to the nearest first aid centre from where some people were referred to Sawai Mansingh Hospital in Jaipur.

Most of the people were sent home after first aid, the officer added.Around 50 people, who had gathered for a funeral here, were injured in a bee attack on Monday, police said.

The incident occurred in Peeli ki Talai of Amber area when during the cremation of a person bees came out of the hive due to the heat of the fire and attacked the group of people, Station House Officer (SHO) Antim Sharma said.

He said around 50 people were injured and they were taken to the nearest first aid centre from where some people were referred to Sawai Mansingh Hospital in Jaipur.

Most of the people were sent home after first aid, the officer added.The woman, Jyoti, was alone at the time of the incident that took place on Monday evening, police said, adding her husband Devendra was on a business trip and son Shailesh was at their shop in New Aatish Market.

Devendra had recently hired the two helps — Indrajit and Ashok — who were in their mid-twenties, police said.

The duo called their accomplice, Radhe, to the house, gagged Jyoti with a towel and tied her hands and legs. They stabbed her when she resisted and decamped with jewellery, police said.

Hearing Jyoti’s cries for help, her brother-in-law, who lives nearby, reached the spot and freed her.

The ruling BJP in Rajasthan on Sunday expelled its former MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja, who was recently at the centre of temple “purification” controversy, from primary membership of the party.

The action has been taken against Mr Ahuja following a probe by BJP’s disciplinary committee, a party order said.

BJP state president Madan Rathore has given orders to terminate Mr Ahuja’s primary membership of the party for “indiscipline”, it said.

Mr Ahuja had sparked a controversy earlier this month after he sprinkled Ganga water at a Ram temple in Alwar to “purify” it following Congress leader Tikaram Jully attended a consecration ceremony there. Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot had termed Mr Ahuja’s act an “insult” to a Dalit.Earlier on Sunday, Mr Ahuja appeared before the BJP’s disciplinary committee to present his side.

Later, talking to reporters, he said, “I have not done anything anti-Dalit.” He claimed that the BJP has made a mistake by expelling him by falling prey to the propaganda of the Congress.After the temple “purification” act, Mr Ahuja had said that Congress leaders have “no moral authority” to attend such ceremonies as the party’s leadership had questioned the existence of Lord Ram and “boycotted” the consecration ceremony in Ayodhya last year.

He claimed that there was no “Dalit” angle to his act.

The consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in a residential society of Alwar was held about 20 days ago on the occasion of Ram Navami and Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly Tikaram Jully was in attendance.

Mr Ahuja said that he took the step because of Congress leaders’ view and approach towards lord Ram and not because of Mr Jully being a Dalit.

Mr Jully had earlier said that it (Ahuja’s act) was indicative of BJP’s mentality towards Dalits.

Mr Gehlot had said that the incident reflects the BJP’s “narrow mindedness” towards Dalits.

Amid India-Pakistan tensions, the shops in Rajasthan’s Jaipur have renamed various sweets, including the famous ‘Mysore Pak‘.

A shopkeeper said they have removed the word ‘Pak’ from all their sweets’ names and replaced it with ‘Shree’.

“We have removed the word ‘Pak’ from our sweets’ names. We have renamed ‘Moti Pak’ as ‘Moti Shree’, ‘Gond Pak’ as ‘Gond Shree’, ‘Mysore Pak’ as ‘Mysore Shree’,” a shopkeeper told NDTV.

The ‘pak’ word in sweets, however, doesn’t refer to Pakistan, but means sweet in Kannada. 

In ‘Mysore Pak’, a dry sweet with condensed milk that is named after Karnataka’s Mysore (now Mysuru), it refers to the sugar syrup used in the recipe.The move comes in the wake of increasing tensions between India and Pakistan following a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam last month.

India, after finding cross-border links to the April 22 attack, which left 26 people dead, launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 to strike terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Pakistan then launched a massive missile and drone attack, but the threats were thwarted. In retaliation, Indian forces struck airfields in Pakistan. A ceasefire on May 10 ended the hostilities.The move comes in the wake of increasing tensions between India and Pakistan following a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam last month.

India, after finding cross-border links to the April 22 attack, which left 26 people dead, launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 to strike terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Pakistan then launched a massive missile and drone attack, but the threats were thwarted. In retaliation, Indian forces struck airfields in Pakistan. A ceasefire on May 10 ended the hostilities.

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