- 4 hours ago
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is set to face a major political challenge from Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP in the Bhabanipur constituency in south Kolkata, a seat considered her political stronghold. The contest follows Adhikari’s narrow 2021 victory over Banerjee in Nandigram by about 1,900 votes.
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00:00While the war in West Asia doesn't seem any sign of ending, the real political battlefield
00:06seems to be getting set up in West Bengal. It's time for Khela Hobe, quite literally.
00:11The battle lines are drawn in West Bengal and this is no ordinary contest. It's a high-voltage
00:16face-off between two of Bengal's biggest political heavyweights in the state.
00:22Now, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is said to take on her once-trusted aide,
00:26now BJP strongman, Suvendu Adhikari. The battlefield is not what we thought,
00:31it's actually Babanipur, Didi's fortress, a seat she has dominated for decades now.
00:37But this is more than just an election. It's a grudge match of sorts. Round two of a bitter rivalry
00:43that exploded when Suvendu walked out of the TMC, crossed over to the BJP as well,
00:48and then came the final bout in 2021. He stunned the state, defeating his mentor by a razor,
00:56thin margin of just 1,900 votes. Now, Mamata Banerjee is out for revenge
01:02and the stakes could not be higher. Both the parties have almost released
01:07most of their candidates. Here's what Mamata Banerjee said just moments ago.
01:53this is the fourth one. This is the fourth one. This is the first one. The committee has been
02:05Preeti Chaudhary joins us now for more on this story.
02:08Preeti, it's an interesting one.
02:09Just yesterday on the program, we were talking about round one.
02:12BJP came out with the list set.
02:13Okay, these are the two seats on which Subendu Adhikari would be fighting.
02:18Today was the time when TMC had to play its bout
02:21and it's played a very interesting strategy on both the seats
02:24of Nandi Gram and also on Babanipur.
02:27Take us through what makes these two seats so very interesting.
02:32The sheer fact that you have the incumbent Chief Minister
02:35standing from one seat and from the other,
02:37she lost two, her loyalist Subendu Adhikari in the last election.
02:42So, you know, in terms of why these two seats are interesting is very clear.
02:46But what comes off now?
02:47The BJP's game plan is very simple,
02:49which was to limit Mamata Banerjee to the constituency of Babanipur.
02:54So, she faces off with Subendu Adhikari.
02:57The TMC has tried to, in their, you know, thinking,
03:01to outsmart the BJP.
03:03Now, well, if that reaches fruition to what the TMC thinks it will,
03:07we'll only know when that last vote is counted.
03:09But TMC now has taken a leaf of the BJP playbook.
03:12What the BJP did in 2021 was practically
03:15take away Mamata's right-hand man on the eve of election
03:18and then pitch him against Mamata Banerjee from the seat of Nandigram.
03:23Now, the TMC has done exactly that
03:25because they've taken Pabitra Akar,
03:27who is Subendu Adhikari's right-hand man,
03:30in his constituency of Nandigram,
03:32and pitched him against Subendu Adhikari on the eve of election.
03:35So, while the BJP wanted to limit Mamata to the seat of Babanipur
03:41so that she doesn't, you know, campaign,
03:43and Mamata Banerjee campaigns across West Bengal.
03:46Her campaign has already started many weeks ago.
03:49But what the TMC now has done is
03:52that you, where Subendu Adhikari is concerned,
03:55will need to split his time between two seats.
03:57On one account, he cannot let go of Nandigram
04:00because that's his stronghold.
04:01That's where he's, you know, cut his teeth,
04:04earned his purse, defeated Mamata Banerjee.
04:07But now, he's facing off against his own loyalists.
04:11So, it's a bit of a deja vu
04:12of what happened in 21 with Didi.
04:15On the other account,
04:16the TMC has also played into,
04:19once again, taking a leap from the Congress's playbook
04:22of 2020 for general elections.
04:24I still remember when the name of KL Sharma
04:27was announced from the seat of AMETI,
04:28all of us, or all political analysts were,
04:31arre, Rahul Gandhi should have fought
04:33and taken Smiti Irani head-on.
04:35In retrospect, if you look at it,
04:36that was a great move by the Congress
04:38because you had KL Sharma
04:40who came out to defeat Smiti Irani
04:42from a margin of 3 lakh votes.
04:44So, is this what the TMC is trying to do
04:49where Nandigram is concerned?
04:51Well, that remains to be seen.
04:52But Sonal, ultimately,
04:55if Shavendu Adhikari can pull off a win
04:57in Bhawanipur,
04:59Mamata Banerjee has already won that seat
05:01three times over.
05:02This would be her fourth bid.
05:03If he manages to pull a victory off.
05:06Last time, Mamata Banerjee was facing off
05:08against Priyanka Tebrewal.
05:10She won from a margin of over 53,000 votes.
05:13Again, to stress on,
05:15if Shavendu Adhikari pulls this off
05:17and defeats Mamata Banerjee,
05:18this is not just a massive victory
05:20or a giant killer anymore.
05:22He will change the course of...
05:24It will be a tectonic shift
05:25in the politics of West Bengal.
05:28But there's a big if attached to it.
05:30For now, it's game on.
05:32Mamata Banerjee versus
05:33Suvendu Adhikari in Bhawanipur.
05:35While Suvendu Adhikari also needs
05:37to mind his turf in Nandigram.
05:39All right.
05:40Game on, match on,
05:41as they say here in the battlefield,
05:44the political battlefield of West Bengal.
05:46This election is only getting started
05:49with that one.
05:49Thanks, Preeti, for joining us
05:50with the very latest.
05:53All right.
05:54Let's shift now back to all the updates
05:56that we are getting in in the war
05:58that has broken out in the Middle East.
06:01It is day 18 of the Middle East war
06:03and there is no sign of de-escalation
06:05between U.S.-Israel alliance and Iran.
06:07U.S. President Donald Trump
06:08has vowed to reopen the Strait of Hormoz,
06:11a critical global energy lifeline
06:14that remains shut, triggering a wider crisis.
06:17Iran, however, on the other hand,
06:18has made its position clear.
06:20No vessel will pass through
06:22except those of their allied nations.
06:26India is one of them.
06:27They call us the friends of Iran.
06:30Now, back-channel diplomacy,
06:32long-standing ties between New Delhi and Tehran
06:34are now paying off.
06:35In the last 24 hours,
06:36two LPG tankers,
06:38which are Shivalik and Nandadevi,
06:40have already reached Indian shores,
06:42carrying about 93,000 metric tons of fuel
06:45at a time of surging demand.
06:47Another vessel, Jagladki,
06:50also loaded with over 80,000 metric tons of crude oil,
06:55this time is expected to dock shortly.
06:57The government insiders say
06:58that there is no fuel or LPG shortage
07:01that has earth citizens into a panic.
07:03It also says that it is closely tracking
07:05Indian vessels navigating the Strait of Hormoz,
07:08stranded in the conflict zone.
07:10On reality, what you actually see on ground
07:13is that though on the domestic front,
07:16there doesn't seem to be a crisis just yet,
07:19commercially, there is one
07:21that the industry owners, hotels, restaurants, etc.
07:25are fighting.
07:30Meanwhile, how exactly are Indian vessels doing
07:34and in the middle of this crossfire
07:36and this diplomatic win that we've had,
07:38is it been only for these three vessels?
07:40What about the rest of them?
07:42Our team, Osind,
07:43along with my colleague Ankit,
07:45broke down where exactly the 22 vessels
07:49that were en route and stuck at Hormoz
07:52are exactly this is a live update.
07:59A lot of people,
08:00including journalists and analysts,
08:02are using vessel tracking platforms
08:05to track the movement of LPG tankers,
08:10the crude oil tankers
08:12from the West Asia to India.
08:14We are going to try the same,
08:16but before that, an important caveat.
08:18What you see on platforms like
08:20marine traffic or vessel finder
08:22may not necessarily be true.
08:25Here is one sample.
08:28This marine traffic snapshot
08:30shows 10 vessels,
08:33including oil tankers,
08:34positioned at this particular point.
08:37Now, if you geolocate
08:39this particular geographical point on a map,
08:41this is a dry piece of land.
08:44In United Arab Emirates,
08:46there is nothing here.
08:47There is a tunnel
08:48and all the mountains and desert.
08:50Here is the second exhibit.
08:52You can see at least
08:53three different kind of vessels
08:57right in the middle of a desert
08:59and there is also an airstrip.
09:01There is no way vessels can reach here.
09:03So, with that caveat in,
09:05you have to rely on multiple sources,
09:08not just AIS tracking data.
09:09There is remote sensing data,
09:11there is satellite tracking data
09:12and if you merge them all together,
09:15you will get this picture.
09:16Now, what this shows is
09:19a group of Indian vessels
09:21which have managed to pass through
09:23straight-off Hormuz
09:24in past four or five days.
09:26We are not counting the ones
09:27that have already reached here.
09:29So, you have
09:31Jagprakash and Deshvibor.
09:33These are oil tankers.
09:34So, two oil tankers
09:36have passed through straight-off Hormuz.
09:38As we know,
09:39Jagprakash managed to pass through
09:40on March 12.
09:41Deshvibor managed to pass through
09:43the Hormuz on March 16.
09:45Apart from this,
09:45you can also see
09:47MSVs, multi-support vessels.
09:49These are cargo ships
09:51but not carrying LPG or crude oil.
09:54So, none of the LPG tankers
09:57have managed to pass through
09:59the straight-off Hormuz.
10:00Now, this picture shows
10:01the status of Indian LPG
10:03vessels, tankers.
10:06They are stuck
10:07on the west side
10:09of the straight-off Hormuz.
10:10Now, you have movement
10:12in only one.
10:13It's BWELM.
10:15As you can see,
10:16it is not sailing east
10:18towards India.
10:19It has sailed west
10:21as of March 17,
10:23855 UTC.
10:24That is,
10:25plus 530 Indian standard time.
10:28Apart from that,
10:29no movement
10:30in any of the LPG tankers
10:32towards east.
10:34So, we have only
10:35six or seven LPG tankers
10:38still stuck
10:39on the west side
10:40of the straight.
10:42Now, this is the overall picture.
10:43Roughly 22 vessels
10:45currently seen
10:46on these tracking platforms.
10:49All of the red,
10:50the red triangles
10:52that you see,
10:53these red denote
10:55the LPG tankers.
10:56Others are,
10:58you have oil tankers,
11:00you have containers,
11:01you have bulk carriers,
11:02you have tug,
11:03and you have bridges.
11:04Now,
11:05this picture shows
11:06what has managed
11:08to cross through
11:08and reach India.
11:09So,
11:10Shivalik and Nanda Devi
11:11already have reached.
11:12You also have one
11:13oil tanker,
11:15Jagladki,
11:16but it has not
11:17come through the straight.
11:19It has come from UAE.
11:20So,
11:20this particular
11:21oil tanker
11:22did not have to cross
11:24the Hormuz.
11:25Now,
11:26another interesting
11:26picture is this.
11:28Indian vessels
11:28are not the only vessels
11:30which have managed
11:31to come
11:31to cross the Hormuz.
11:32today,
11:33we saw
11:34a Pakistan flag
11:36vessel named Karachi
11:37passing through
11:39the straight of Hormuz.
11:41This was earlier today.
11:43So,
11:44this
11:45currently shows
11:46that there is
11:47no significant
11:49development
11:50as far as
11:50the LPG tankers
11:52are concerned.
11:52One interesting nugget
11:53to end this off,
11:55maritime intelligence
11:56today,
11:57which means
11:57the industry
11:58which tracks
11:59all these vessels,
12:00notes all
12:01the supplies,
12:03the material
12:03that is being
12:04transferred
12:04from one port
12:05to another,
12:07today,
12:07that industry
12:08is valued
12:08at roughly
12:09$3 billion
12:10globally.
12:13Interesting details
12:14over there.
12:15Now,
12:15talking about
12:15the LPG crisis,
12:16there is another
12:17fallout of that.
12:18You'll remember
12:19that we've been
12:19talking about
12:20how commercial
12:21LPG prices
12:22are hit.
12:22It's impacting
12:23restaurants,
12:24it's impacting
12:24so many other
12:25places as well.
12:26a lot of people
12:27domestically
12:27also shifting
12:28to alternate
12:29or alternative
12:30fuels for that matter.
12:32That has raised
12:33one more concern,
12:34that of pollutions.
12:36That seems to be
12:37rising in parts
12:38of UP as well
12:38amid the ongoing
12:39LPG crisis.
12:40In Lucknow,
12:41several tea sellers
12:42and street vendors
12:43have been forced
12:43to switch
12:44to wood and coal.
12:46All of this means
12:47thick fumes
12:49in the air.
12:57An LPG supply
12:59crisis in parts
13:00of Uttar Pradesh
13:01is forcing small
13:02vendors to return
13:03to traditional
13:04cooking methods.
13:05Tea sellers
13:06and street vendors
13:07in Lucknow
13:07have begun using
13:08wood and coal-fired
13:09butties to keep
13:10their businesses
13:11running.
13:15Vendors say
13:16commercial LPG
13:16cylinders are not
13:17available for several
13:19days and with no
13:20option left,
13:21they have switched
13:21to wood and coal
13:22furnaces despite
13:24the extra time
13:25and effort required.
13:26Tea sellers say
13:27this is their
13:28only option for now.
13:29I'm doing this for a long time
13:31Do you want to make it a time?
13:32Yes, it seems
13:34If there will be pollution, there will be pollution
13:37Yes, many people think that there will be pollution
13:42So, I need to make it a little early in the morning
13:44I need to make it a little
13:45But as the street vendors, do you have any other option?
13:50Yes, there is no option
13:52Do you want to make it a time?
13:53Yes
13:58Locals say the situation could worsen the pollution problem in the city
14:15Experts warned that the growing use of wood-fired furnaces
14:18Could worsen air pollution and exposure to indoor smoke
14:21This could increase respiratory risks such as obstructive lung disease
14:25And also push up the air quality index in urban areas
14:28Residents claim the ground reality is very different from government assurances
14:33Look at this, I have booked a 11-year-old cylinder
14:37Today, it's 17 years old
14:39And I've been going to four times in the cylinder
14:43It will come, it will come, it will come, it will come, it will come
14:46It's the same thing
14:47Experts say that if there will be pollution, there will be pollution
14:50The AQI will increase
14:51The AQI will increase, there will be a problem for everyone
14:54What is the problem?
14:54What is the problem in Delhi?
14:55What is the problem in Delhi?
14:5760% of people are the problem of asthma
14:59It will also be in Nakhlov
15:03Some vendors are trying alternative arrangements to keep the shops running
15:07One shopkeeper has even brought a microwave from home
15:11After his gas cylinder nearly ran out
15:13LPG crises are hitting India badly
15:16And that's why to ensure that this cylinder must remain full
15:21They are using it just for the cooking purpose
15:23You could be shocked to see these microwaves here
15:26In a street tea shop
15:28As you can see some pakodi inside this particular microwave
15:32And that clearly tells the story
15:34Of what actually is happening on the ground
15:36At a time of LPG crisis
15:40While the LPG shortage continues to struggle small vendors
15:43The growing use of traditional furnaces
15:45Is raising concerns about pollution
15:47And public health in the city
15:50With Samad from Lucknow
15:51Bureau Report, India Today
15:58Alright, so that was all about
16:01How exactly is
16:03You know
16:04Cities tackling with all of this
16:06But let's also now
16:08Talk about the larger impact
16:10Winter was supposed to be
16:12Delhi's worst pollution season
16:13But even when Delhi is touching
16:1535 degrees Celsius
16:16The air remains toxic
16:18That means
16:19Summer pollution
16:21Is officially here
16:22What exactly is summer pollution
16:24How does it impact us
16:26And why is it still in the air
16:28Why are we still looking at over 300 AQI
16:31With 35 degrees Celsius
16:33This is the reason
16:37Delhi's touching 35 degrees Celsius
16:40Summer has clearly arrived
16:41But the air
16:42That is still toxic
16:45In the middle of March
16:46Noida AQI has hit 355
16:50Severe pollution
16:51Right in the middle of summer
16:54Winter was supposed to take the smog away
16:56Right?
16:56But that didn't happen
16:58So the big question now
16:59Why is Delhi still choking?
17:02Even after the winter is over
17:04Let's start with the biggest myth
17:06That pollution is only a winter problem
17:10Now in winter
17:11A weather phenomena
17:12Called temperature inversion
17:13Traps pollution
17:15Near the ground
17:15It's like a lid on a pot
17:18Smoke, dust, vehicle emissions
17:20All get stuck close to the surface
17:22We've done a previous video about this
17:23So you can go and watch that
17:24But in summer
17:26That lid disappears
17:29The air should clear out
17:31Yet pollution remains
17:33Because the source
17:34That never stops
17:36Cars are still running
17:38Industries keep operating
17:39Coal plants keep burning
17:40Meaning
17:41Crop burning
17:43And dropping of temperature
17:45Does not create pollution
17:47Human activity
17:48Your and my activity does
17:50Summer also brings
17:52A new pollutant
17:53Ground level ozone
17:55Now this forms
17:57When nitrogen oxide
17:58From vehicle
17:59Actually reacts
17:59With chemicals in the air
18:01And under strong sunlight
18:02The hotter the day
18:03The more ozone forms
18:05The ozone exposure
18:07Can trigger
18:08Things like asthma
18:09Bronchitis
18:10Even lung damage
18:11And then add to that
18:13The dust problem
18:14In winter
18:15Construction is restricted
18:17Remember
18:17Or we would like to believe
18:19That it is curtailed
18:20But in summer
18:21Those restrictions are lifted
18:23Construction resumes
18:24Road dust rises
18:26And PM10
18:27That is really
18:28What is causing
18:30The spike in pollution
18:31But this year
18:322026
18:33There is another factor
18:34That is making things worse
18:36North India saw
18:38Very little
18:38Winter
18:39Rain
18:40Or even snowfall
18:41Leaving
18:42Huge amounts
18:43Of loose dust
18:44Across the region
18:45Strong winds
18:46Lifted that dust
18:47Into the air
18:48And when wind slowed
18:49That particle
18:51That particulate matter
18:52Actually
18:53It remained suspended
18:54And if you thought
18:56It was just Delhi NCR
18:57Think again
18:58Because the phenomenon
18:59Remains the same
19:00Even in Mumbai
19:02A coastal city
19:03Next to the Arabian sea
19:04Has seen pollution
19:05Spiking
19:06AQI touching 394
19:08Earlier this month
19:10Tall buildings
19:11Near the coast
19:12Are blocking
19:13What is called
19:13The sea breeze
19:14Preventing pollution
19:15From dispersing
19:17Now
19:17Just for perspective
19:19Even Tehran
19:20After the recent
19:22Oil depot
19:22Literally on fire
19:23Is reporting
19:25AQI
19:25Below 100
19:27A country at war
19:29In midst of
19:30Bombing fumes
19:31Missile debris
19:32Even acid rain
19:33Is still cleaner
19:35Than many Indian cities
19:37So
19:37Here is the
19:38Uncomfortable truth
19:39India's pollution
19:41Problem is no longer
19:42Seasonal
19:43Winter may trap
19:44The smog
19:45Summer
19:46May change
19:47The pollutants
19:48But the sources
19:49Vehicles
19:50Industries
19:51Coal
19:52Dust
19:52That never really stops
19:54Which means
19:55The season may change
19:57But pollution stays
19:59And the real war
20:01You and I
20:02Are fighting
20:02Every day
20:03Is actually
20:04With pollution
20:05From the Health
20:06Wealth team
20:07Sonal Mayrothra Kapoor
20:10All right
20:10That's all you could
20:11Back in this edition
20:11Of Five Live
20:12Stay tuned
20:13Lots more coming up
20:14On the other side
20:14We'll see you tomorrow
20:15Bye bye
20:15I named
20:15Ituary
20:15And you
20:16I remember
20:16ItOL화
20:16It联ich
20:16Itfter
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