INDIA leaders slam Modi, BJP in Ranchi
In a show of strength in Ranchi on Sunday, the Opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) slammed the Narendra Modi government and pledged to protect the Constitution and democracy. The leaders of the bloc expressed con dence that in the Lok Sabha election, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government would be ousted from power.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Sunita Kejriwal, wife of jailed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and Kalpana Soren, wife of jailed JMM leader Hemant Soren, were present at the Ulgulan Nyay Maharally.
JMM chief Shibu Soren, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, National Conference president Farooq
Abdullah, CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh were also present.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had to skip the rally as he was not well. Mr. Kharge slammed Mr. Modi and held him responsible for the arrest of two Chief Ministers — Arvind Kejriwal and Hemant Soren.
He asserted that there should be democracy in the country.
“These people get votes by lying and later destroy the public, “Mr. Kharge said.
The rally was called Ulgulan Nyay Maharally as in the local language any major revolution is called Ulgulan.
Ms. Kejriwal accused the Union government for hatching the conspiracy to kill her husband.
Mr. Yadav also slammed Prime Minister Modi claiming that the BJP would be uprooted.
The famous Hazratbal dargah in Srinagar is attracting people for a rare spectacle this week — the washing and clipping of the largest carpet woven in Kashmir by far. The intricate marvel is 72 ft in length and 40 ft in width, weighs 1,685 kg, and features over three crore knots.
The rare attempt pits Kashmiri artisans for the
rst time against their traditional Iranian rivals, who have already woven a carpet the size of a soccer
eld at 60,468 sq. ft. The dargah provides a safe and large enough space for clipping and washing the huge and valuable carpet, which has taken eight years to complete and is likely to embellish a palace in the Middle East.
“At least 30 people are required to unroll the carpet. It would take 30-35 professional washers to deal with the carpet on a daily basis,” Zahoor Ahmad Shah, owner of Shah Qadir and Sons, told The Hindu.
Samples of water from the nearby Dal lake have been sent for testing to the Indian Institute of Carpet Technology, Srinagar. “We await the report to ensure the water will not harm the carpet,” Mr. Shah said. the large carpet.
Mr. Shah’s company received the order in 2014 and began working on it in 2015. “It was not an easy task. In between, we were hit by several challenges, including the 2014 ©oods, the dilution of Article 370 and the pandemic,” he said. The carpet is woven in the Kashan style, a historic design of the Iranian city of Kashan.
The company had to hire engineers to remake a carpet loom at the Vailoo-Kunzar village in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district as Kashmir had no loom to match the task. Cranes lifted the carpet on to large trawlers for its transportation from Baramulla to Srinagar. “Each day, 25-30 artisans spent hours upon hours to accomplish the feat,” Mr. Shah said.
He said that around 200 artisans who had switched to other professions returned to the trade for this project. “The carpet industry is waning in Kashmir and poor wages are pushing artisans to other professions. I believe that projects like this can rekindle hope,” Mr. Shah said.
Kashmir, despite being among the leading carpet-producing States in India, has seen only slow growth in the sector due to the falling numbers of artisans. Over one lakh artisans are employed by the carpet industry here.
“Kashmiris have been weaving carpets for centuries. However, size has always remained a constraint. The oldest and the largest carpet from Kashmir continues to embellish the Darbar Hall of the Grand Lalit Hotel in Srinagar. This is a watershed revival moment for Kashmir’s carpet industry,” Mahmood Ahmed Shah, Director, Handicrafts and
Handloom Industries, Kashmir, said.