Lakhpat Butola, the newly elected Congress MLA from Badrinath, Uttarakhand, has announced that he will forgo his increased salary for the next six months. He intends to donate the amount to support relief efforts in Chamoli district, which has recently been affected by a natural disaster. The Uttarakhand assembly had recently approved a hike in MLAs’ salaries to `4 lakh. Butola is the only legislator to have made this pledge. He said while the government and other organisations are offering relief to those affected, the severity of the disaster calls for every elected representative to step up efforts.Uttarakhand govt to revamp old markets The Uttarakhand government is set to revamp the state’s bustling historic markets with a new redevelopment policy, which will soon be presented to the Cabinet. The plan involves redeveloping these markets through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. Many cities, including Dehradun, Haridwar and Nainital, have markets with narrow roads, no vehicle entry, and inadequate parking. A government spokesperson said that the markets will be redeveloped with a modern design, replacing the existing one- or two-storey shops with new complexes with parking facilities. Shake-up after liquor mafia attacks journo In a major shake-up, the Senior Superintendent of Police has transferred 37 policemen from the affected police station, including Kotwali, and dissolved the SOG team, attaching them to headquarters. A journalist was brutally attacked by the liquor mafia in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, while reporting on illegal liquor sales, leaving him critically injured and hospitalised at AIIMS. The police have arrested the accused and taken action against the liquor mafia. This incident has prompted Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to take swift action, highlighting growing concerns about journalist safety and the illicit liquor trade in the state.Narendra sethiOur correspondent in Uttarakhandnarendrasethi@ newindianexpress.com
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