Jharkhand denies pensions to non-imprisoned statehood fighters

The Jharkhand government has announced that individuals who participated in the movement for a separate state but were not imprisoned will not receive monthly pensions. This decision was confirmed by Minister Yogeshwar Mahto during a session with the state's assembly. Currently, there are 13,460 individuals identified as part of the movement who were not jailed. JMM MLA Mathura Prasad Mahto expressed concern that those who were imprisoned are benefiting from pensions, while others sharing the same case do not receive support. Additionally, MLA Hemlal Murmu inquired whether the state would provide a 10% reservation for the dependents of these revolutionaries. Education Minister Ramdas Soren stated that those named in police charge sheets should indeed receive pensions. Minister Sudviya Kumar discussed the issue of forest fires, highlighting that the main cause is the burning of leaves after clearing ground for mahua fruits. He mentioned that while villagers were given nets for collecting mahua flowers, they found them inconvenient. Plans are in place to clean nearby areas to prevent villagers from having to burn waste. MLA Jairam Mahto raised questions about private industries providing 75% job reservations to locals before a High Court ruling put a halt to this. The government stated that it intends to fully implement the reservation policy over a three-year period, despite the court's intervention.