Day 16 of CJP protest: Sonam Wangchuk loses six kg as fast enters eighth day

Residents received plants during the area sabha meeting of Yadavagiri Residents Association in Mysuru on Monday. | At the association’s weekly Sunday meeting, attended by 32 members, the Green Group distributed snake plants to residents, encouraging them to plant the hardy, air-purifying species at spots where garbage is frequently dumped.The initiative is aimed at discouraging littering while improving the local environment. The residents were also advised to grow the plants in their homes to enhance indoor air quality.The members stressed that the city needs “plant nurturers” rather than merely tree planters, emphasising that the survival and maintenance of saplings are as important as planting them.As part of its greening agenda, the association resolved to seek an appointment with the Divisional Railway Manager to propose plantation drives on vacant railway land in and around Yadavagiri. The members observed that several unused railway properties could be converted into green spaces for the benefit of the community.The association also decided to identify encroachments on conservancy land and bring them to the notice of Regional Commissioner Nitesh Patil, who has assured action against illegal occupation of public land.To tackle persistent roadside littering, the YRA plans to install warning boards along Vivekananda Road, cautioning that those found dumping garbage illegally would face prosecution.The members appreciated volunteers who regularly clean public spaces in the neighbourhood, noting that their efforts not only keep the area clean but also create awareness against irresponsible waste disposal.The association further resolved to organise an awareness programme for domestic workers and housekeeping staff to promote proper waste segregation and disposal practices and discourage dumping of waste in open spaces.On civic issues, members expressed concern over the continued absence of the Assistant Commissioner, Jigani, from civic meetings, stating that it was contrary to the Regional Commissioner’s directions. The association decided to consider submitting a formal complaint.Residents from other localities interested in forming similar associations have been invited to seek guidance from the YRA’s Bhamy V. Shenoy who can be contacted on 8861096205. The next area sabha has been scheduled for July 26 at the park on 6th Main Road, where residents will discuss poor park maintenance. Published - June 29, 2026 07:57 pm IST

Abhijeet Dipke has in the past appealed to farmers, students and organisations to join the protest and support the call for accountability over alleged irregularities in the examination system, including the medical entrance test NEET. Photo: X/@abhijeet_dipke Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk on Sunday (June 28, 2026) began a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar, where the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) has been holding a protest since June 20, seeking the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities in examinations. Wangchuk began his fast. Several farmer leaders were also present at the protest site. The protest began with a two-minute silence.Before starting the hunger strike, Mr. Wangchuk and CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke visited Rajghat and paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi.Dipke has in the past appealed to farmers, students and organisations to join the protest and support the call for accountability over alleged irregularities in the examination system, including medical entrance test NEET.Sonam Wangchuk has begun his hunger strike to seek justice for students and demand the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. pic.twitter.com/VE3oZt1YrE— Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) June 28, 2026On Sunday (June 28) morning, he said on X that several farmers' leaders from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab were being placed under house arrest to prevent them from reaching Jantar Mantar.The CJP had started its protest at Jantar Mantar on June 20, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.During the course of the protest, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke had alleged that the issue was not limited to a single examination but reflected wider concerns over transparency and trust in the education system. The protest has also seen participation from students and civil society members. Published - June 28, 2026 02:50 pm IST

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann speaks in the State Assembly. File | In December 2025, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s government had convened a special session of the Punjab Assembly, which had unanimously passed a resolution against the VB-G RAM G Act. On December 30, 2025, the Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution against the VB-G RAM G Act, accusing the BJP-led Central government of “taking away” the livelihood of poor and Dalit labourers by scrapping the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) under a “deliberate conspiracy”. The House had recommended that the Punjab government urge the Centre to immediately restore MGNREGA to its original rights-based form.The June 26, 2026 gazette notification presented a U-turn from that position. “In order to align the rural development framework with the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 by providing an enhanced statutory wage employment guarantee of one hundred and twenty five (125) days in each financial year to such rural households whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work...And to focus on employment, growth, convergence and saturation, the government of Punjab is pleased to notify the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) [VB-G RAM G] Scheme, Punjab 2026, under the provisions of the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025,” the notification, issued by the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats, read.Congress slams AAPThe Opposition Congress slammed the AAP government, asking under what “deal and compromise” with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had it implemented this scheme in Punjab.The timing of the scheme’s implementation in Punjab was as important as it was surprising, Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said. “Does the sudden implementation of the scheme have something to do with the ongoing controversy related to the Chief Minister?” he said, referring to the recent sacrilege video controversy linked to Mr. Mann. Published - June 27, 2026 09:25 pm IST

Residents living along Punjab’s State boundary with Himachal Pradesh, including traders, truck operators and taxi drivers, have united under the banner of the ‘Sangarsh Morcha’ to oppose Himachal Pradesh’s vehicle entry tax. A faction of Nihang Sikhs has also renewed its threat to revive its agitation against the levy, which they say continues to affect daily life in the region.The Himachal Pradesh government, under the provisions of the Himachal Pradesh Tolls Act, 1975, collects a tax on vehicles from other States entering Himachal Pradesh. Toll barriers have been set up at various locations, including Parwanoo, Gara-Maura, Mehatpur, Kala Amb, Kandwal and Baddi, along the Punjab and Haryana borders. The latest vehicle entry tax ranges from ₹100 to ₹900, depending on the category of vehicle.Opposing the vehicle entry tax, members of the Sangharsh Morcha have been holding intermittent demonstrations over the past few months near Gara-Maura, twin villages on the Punjab-Himachal Pradesh border where a toll barrier is situated on the Kiratpur Sahib-Manali National Highway, demanding a complete rollback of the levy on out-of-State vehicles entering Himachal Pradesh. The agitation has drawn the support of Nihangs (Sikh warriors), who, as part of a symbolic protest earlier this month, collected what they termed ‘Khalsa tax’ from Himachal Pradesh-registered vehicles entering Punjab through the Kiratpur Sahib-Manali highway. The collection was, however, voluntary and not coercive.For Pradeep Singh Sekhpuria, a taxi operator from Kiratpur Sahib in Punjab’s Rupnagar district, taking his passenger cab across the State boundary into Himachal Pradesh has become economically unviable. Citing the example of a trip from Kiratpur Sahib to Swarghat in Himachal Pradesh, a distance of barely 25 kilometres, he said, “The vehicle entry tax keeps rising year after year. It has made it very difficult for us to work freely. While the road tax and NHAI toll apply universally, it is the ₹100 entry charge, valid for only 24 hours, singled out for out-of-State vehicles, which hurts the most. The taxi operator having a Himachal-registered cab doesn’t have to pay the entry tax, allowing them to offer lower fares, resulting in Punjab-based operators like me struggling to stay competitive in their own backyard. We want it rolled back completely.”Vir Singh, a resident of Nurpur Bedi and a local leader of the Kirti Kisan Morcha in Rupnagar district, said: “Most of our relatives stay in the adjoining Bilaspur district of Himachal. I often travel to neighbouring villages of the hill State in my private car, at times three to four times a week, and every fresh day I have to pay the entry toll. If someone is visiting Himachal once or twice in a year, then it is not a big issue for them to pay entry tax, but for people like me, the entry tax makes a deep hole in the pocket.”As the entry tax continues to disrupt their daily routine, locals, including traders, taxi and truck operators, farmers and others, have formed the ‘Sangharsh Committee’ to raise their voice against what they term an unjustified tax.“We had been intermittently staging protests for the past few months near the entry toll barrier situated at Gara-Maura villages on the Punjab-Himachal inter-State boundary on the Kiratpur Sahib-Manali highway. People living along the border depend on cross-State movement for their daily livelihoods. Traders, transporters, farmers and ordinary citizens are all being hurt by this tax. We want it withdrawn. Locals in border districts, not just in Punjab but Haryana as well, are all affected by Himachal’s entry tax,” Gaurav Rana, convener of the committee, told The Hindu.“We will again re-launch our agitation in the next few days. We are planning to hold a meeting of members in the first week of July, in which the next course of action will be decided if the demand is not met,” he said.The agitation has also drawn the support of Nihangs, who have declared that they will r