The Delhi government suffered a major setback Wednesday after the Supreme Court cleared the centre’s proposal to extend the tenure of Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar. Mr Kumar was due to retire in 24 hours but is now set to receive a six-month extension.

The Delhi government had opposed this on grounds the ordinance that gives the ruling BJP control of bureaucrats posted to the national capital is currently being challenged in the top court. The Delhi government had argued this means the centre cannot make appointments, particularly to senior posts, without consultation.

A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud ruled a six-month extension could not be viewed as a violation of any law. The court accepted the centre’s argument – that it has the right to transfer and appoint bureaucrats in the Delhi government since its ordinance has not yet been reversed.

The centre had submitted its proposal to extend Mr Kumar’s tenure on Tuesday. The court, however, wanted to know why the centre seemed to be “stuck with only one person”.

“You want to make the appointment, make it (but) don’t you have any officer who can be Chief Secretary…  are you stuck?” the bench, also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

It was suggested Mr Kumar be allowed to superannuate and a fresh appointment be made. “This man is superannuating. Let this man superannuate. You make a fresh appointment,” the bench led by the Chief Justice had said, before relenting and directing the centre to return today with reasons for its choice.

READ | “Don’t You Have…”: Court To Centre On Delhi Chief Secretary Row

“Show us the power to extend and show us what is the ground on which you want to extend…”

Last week – amid squabbles between both sides – the Supreme Court directed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, the centre’s representative in the city, to sit down and amicably discuss a shortlist of candidates to be provided by the union government.

READ | “Why Don’t CM, LG…”: Supreme Court On Delhi Top Official Row

“So… why doesn’t LG and centre propose a panel of names? Ultimate choice will be from a panel made by you. You suggest a panel. Then they (the Delhi government) will pick up one name,” the Chief Justice proposed.

This is the latest flashpoint between Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP that is in power at the centre. The two have also collided over corruption allegations surrounding Mr Kumar, whose son was linked to an alleged real estate scam in a news report published on November 9.

However, last week the Delhi High Court gave Mr Kumar relief, directing the news website to take down the article that was said to be defamatory of the current Delhi Chief Secretary.

READ | Delhi Chief Secretary Gets Court Relief Over Article On Corruption Case

Earlier today, Delhi Vigilance Minister Atishi submitted a report to Mr Kejriwal reiterating her recommendation that Mr Kumar be suspended. The report also urged Mr Saxena to review his position vis-a-vis his refusal to consider an earlier (preliminary) report in the matter, sources said.

READ | Delhi Minister Sends New Report To Kejriwal On Land Corruption Case

Naresh Kumar has denied any wrongdoing and alleged that people with “vested interests” – against whom vigilance action had been taken for corruption – were indulging in “mudslinging”.

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The first bullet train section in India – a 50km stretch between Bilimora and Surat in Gujarat – will be completed in August 2026, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said Wednesday, as he announced multiple plans to overhaul the country’s rail network and services. Mr Vaishnaw also spoke about the Kavach system – an indigenously developed warning system to guard against on-track collisions that made headlines after a horrific accident in Odisha’s Balasore in June killed nearly 300 people.

Mr Vaishnaw also provided updates on technology – the Gajraj system – to stop collisions between elephants and trains, and building more tracks to better connect different parts of the country.

The Railways Minister also said the number of new trains in India had increased from before the pandemic – from 1,768 mail/express services to 2,124 now, and from 5,626 suburban services to 5,774 now. Passenger trains, he said had increased from 2,792 to 2,856 in the same period.

Overall, the Railways served 640 crore passengers in 2022/23 and the target for 23/24 is 750 crore.

On the bullet train front, Mr Vaishnaw’s statement follows from his update last week, in which he said a significant step – completion of 100 km of viaducts and 230 km of pier work – had been taken for the larger Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor, of which the Bilimora-Surat section is a part.

READ | Railway Minister Shares Major Update On Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train

Viaducts, or extended bridge-like structures supported by piers or towers, play a crucial role in carrying roads or railway tracks over valleys or gorges.

Mr Vaishnaw posted a video on X (formerly Twitter) showing completed viaducts across the Valsad, Navsari, Surat, Vadodara, and Anand districts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state.

Progress of Bullet Train project:

Till date: 21.11.2023
Pillars: 251.40 Km
Elevated super-structure: 103.24 Km pic.twitter.com/SKc8xmGnq2

— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) November 23, 2023

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor has been making steady progress since work began in November 2021. The first kilometre of the viaduct was built in six months and the 50th by April this year.

READ | Trains To Zip Through Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Corridor At 350 Km Per Hour

In addition, bridges are being built over six rivers – the Par and Auranga in Valsad district, and the Purna, Mindhola, Ambika, and Venganiya in Navsari – as part of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad corridor.

The NHSRCL, or National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited, shared drone videos of these bridges, some of which have already been built, with the caption “… bullet speed”.

#MAHSR River Bridges are in various stages of construction. Have a look at bullet speed. pic.twitter.com/qZW8EYb1JD

— NHSRCL (@nhsrcl) November 22, 2023

The projected cost is an estimated Rs 1.08 lakh crore, of which the centre is committed to providing Rs 10,000 crore, while Gujarat and Maharashtra will contribute Rs 5,000 crore each. The remaining funding will be secured through a loan from Japan – at a minimal 0.1 per cent interest rate.

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