Union minister Nitin Gadkari today said the people of Tripura were to be blamed for the state's 'backwardness' as they did not vote for a change in the last 25 years.

Gadkari addressed three public rallies in Gomati and West Tripura districts of the state today.

"I will not hold Chief Minister Manik Sarkar or his cabinet colleagues responsible for your backwardness. Rather, I will hold you responsible, because you did not change the government in 25 years," he said at one of those rallies in Gomati district.

Tripura is set to go to the polls on February 18 and the results will be declared on March 3.

The poor condition of roads, education and the healthcare system across the state were a proof that the Left Front government had not done anything for the welfare of the state, the Union minister for road transport, highways and shipping said.

"There are hospitals here, but no doctors. You will find schools, but no teachers. There is not a single good industry in the state and the issue of employment generation remains neglected," he added.

The natural resources available in the north-eastern state, such as bamboo and rubber, were not used for its development and the 'Left hooliganism' had destroyed industrial prospects, Gadkari alleged.

"If voted to power, the BJP will take initiatives to bring investments to the state and generate jobs for the youth," he added.  -- PTI

M I Khan reports from Patna:

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday said that the RSS is ready to fight on the border against the country's enemies if required.

"If Constitution allowed us or grants permission to us, the RSS is ready to fight on border against the country's enemy," Bhagwat said in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district.

Bhagwat said if required, the RSS will form a large army in three days to fight against the enemy.

"The RSS is not a military organisation but we have discipline like the military. If the country requires and the Constitution allows us, the RSS will be ready to fight on the border," Bhagwat said.

He said the RSS had fought against China in Sikkim during Sino-India skirmishes.

The RSS chief is in Bihar on a 10-day visit.

He visited Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga in the past one week and arrived in Patna on Sunday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived in Muscat on a two-day visit on the last leg of histour of three West Asian countries during which he would hold talks with the Sultan of Oman and other key leaders.

Modi, who arrived in Muscat from Dubai, will also meet Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said and Deputy Prime Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Affairs Sayyid Asa'ad bin Tariq AlSaid.

Noting that Oman was a close maritime neighbour with whom India enjoys excellent relations, Modi had said ahead of his visit, "I shall also interact with leading businesspersons of Oman on developing stronger economic and business links with India."

India and Oman have thriving links rooted in centuriesold people-to-people exchanges, Modi had said.

More than nine million Indians work and live in the Gulf region.

In Oman, they constitute the largest expatriate community.

On the first leg of his trip, Modi had travelled to Ramallah, becoming the Indian prime minister to make anofficial visit to Palestine.

From there he visited the United Arab Emirates, Modi will travel to Oman. -- PTI

IMAGE: PM Narendra Modi received by the deputy PM of Oman on his arrival in Muscat. Photograph:Courtesy  @MEAIndia/Twitter

Government teachers in Madhya Pradesh will have to follow a uniform dress code -- maroon jacket for women and navy blue for men -- from the next academic session, according to an order of the education department.

The order said how the teachers dress is important as the directive is to bring uniformity and check their personality differences.

In the order issued last week, the state school education department has issued directives to the commissioner of the Directorate of Public Instructions and the director of the Rajya Shiksha Kendra to implement the dress code for teachers across the state.

In addition to the dress code, the teachers will have to put a name tag on their jacket with 'Rashtra Nirmata' (maker of the nation) written on it, said the order signed by school education department's deputy secretary K K Dwivedi.

Citing the Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Adhyapak Sambarg (Service Conduct Conditions) Rules 2008, the order said it is expected from women teachers to wear a maroon jacket, and men a navy blue jacket.

The order stated that teachers play an important role in shaping the future of the country, and how they dress is significant.

"For this, the dress plays an important role. The dress not only brings uniformity but also ends personality differences," it said.

MP's Minister of State for School Education Deepak Joshi said the decision was taken by his senior cabinet colleague Kunwar Vijay Shah, the school education minister, last year.

"Shah had issued directives in this regard last year. Now, the school education department has started its implementation. From the next session, the women teachers will have to wear a maroon jacket and the men a navy blue jacket," he said.

"The teachers would have to wear the jackets on their clothes so that their identity and uniformity could be ensured.

The aim of this move is to give the teachers an identity of being the 'Rashtra Nirmata'," Joshi said.  -- PTI

A Russian plane with 71 people on board crashed on the outskirts of Moscow on Sunday.

The flight was taking off from Moscow's Domodedovo airport when the incident took place, reports Sputnik.

All 71 people aboard a Saratov Airlines plane died, reported CNN.

An Antonov An-148 operated by Saratov Airlines was carrying 65 passengers and six crew members, it reported.

The aircraft was heading towards Orsk from Moscow's Domodedovo airport. -- ANI

Image used only for representation.

Herald's tribute to Pakistani activist Asma Jahangir, who passed away on Sunday. Read

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board's member on Sunday informed that the committee has decided to remove Moulana Salman Hasni Nadvi's from the board.

"The board reiterated its uncompromising stand on Babri Masjid issue. Salman Nadvi is still speaking against the Board stand. So the board was left with no other option. The committee has unanimously decided to remove him," said Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas, AIMPLB member.

Earlier, AIMPLB Chairman Zafayb Jilani had said they have handed over the Nadvi case to the committee.

Sunday was the last day of the plenary meeting and will end after the big public meet in the evening.

Earlier, talking to the media, Nadvi had threatened to remove Jilani from Sunni Waqf Board's lawyer.

Jilani, to this, said, "He can do whatever he wants. We have been fighting since 1986, the time when he (Nadvi) was not included in the fight (Babri Masjid)."

On February 9, Maulana Salman Husaini Nadvi spoke to ANI about his meeting with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar where he extended support to the construction of Ram temple and said that their priority is to join hearts of people.

He also hinted at an out of court settlement by saying, "The courts do not join people's heart as the verdict is always in favour of one and against the other."

Referring to Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's issue, Jilani said however said that they cannot give the mosque to anyone.

The Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute is a century-old issue between Hindus and Muslims over a piece of land, which is claimed by the former to be the birthplace of Hindu Lord Ram and thus entitled for construction of a Ram Temple.

The Babri Masjid, built in 1528-29 CE, was demolished by Hindu Karsevaks on December 6, 1992 in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, which caused massive riots across the country.

The case is now pending in the Supreme Court.

On Thursday, the three-judge Supreme Court bench fixed March 14 as the next date of hearing in Ayodhya case as some of the documents and translations were yet to be filed before the apex court. -- ANI

A pregnant woman, who was injured in the attack by armed terrorists on the family quarters at the Sunjuwan military camp in Jammu, delivered a baby girl in the hospital today.

Rifleman Nazir Ahmed and his pregnant wife were injured in the firing by the terrorists and were shifted to the Military Hospital at Satwari in Jammu, an army official said.

"The army doctors worked all night to save the life of the severely injured pregnant woman with gunshots wounds and helped her deliver a baby girl, following a caesarean section operation," Jammu-based army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand told PTI.

"Both the mother and the baby are stable," he added.

Lt Col Anand said the condition of a 14-year-old boy, who was admitted to the hospital with a gunshot wound in his head, however remained critical. -- PTI

IMAGE: Security personnel take position at the site of the encounter on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo

Hitting back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his Ramayana jibe at her in Parliament, Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury today said there was no GST on laughter and that she did not need anyone's permission to laugh.

She also said that Modi's remarks against her showed his mindset towards women.

The former Union minister said she received a huge support from women across the country after Modi's remarks over her laughter.

"There were hashtags like #LaughlikeSurpankha, #Lolisapasse and #LaughLikeRenukaChowdhury.

"I am a five-time MP and the prime minister draws a parallel of me with a negative character. But he forgets that the women today have changed and they know how to speak for themselves. This shows his mindset towards women," she told reporters.

Chowdhury was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the 'Difficult Dialogues' conference on gender in Panaji.

The MP said people's support had been her base throughout her public life.

"If you are right, it resonates all over. That's what is happening now...There is no rule on how and when. You laugh...and there is no GST on laughter. I don't require permission to laugh after being a five-time MP. I have shattered the myth of being stereotyped," she added.

On a lighter note, Chowdhury said her laughter had always been spontaneous but now, she had become conscious about it.

"I had challenged the authority with my laughter. Parliament makes laws, but we need to educate the lawmakers on how to treat women as their equals and that they are here in their own rights. Parliament is a reflection of what our society is," she said.

Chowdhury added that she had challenged the authorities years ago by performing her father's last rites.

"My father had raised me as a citizen of this country and not as a boy or a girl," she said.

Last week, the prime minister had taken a dig at Chowdhury in the Rajya Sabha, saying her laughter reminded him of television serial 'Ramayana'.

As Chowdhury laughed loudly during the prime minister's speech, prompting Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu to chide her, Modi had urged Naidu not to act against her as he had the privilege of hearing such a laughter after the popular television serial, which was first aired in the 80s.  -- PTI

Four fire tenders rushed to Sunjwan Army Camp as a precautionary measure. Photograph: ANI

Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah on Sunday said that his party will change 'politics of violence' with development in poll-bound Tripura.

"We want to change politics of violence in Tripura to politics of development. Bring BJP government in the state and within five years we will make it a model state," he said, while addressing elections rally in Mohanpur.

He further said that people in the state are being pressurised and are not allowed to vote.

Shah, who is on a two-day visit to the state which will go to the polls on February 18, is also scheduled to address election rallies in Chawmanu and Teliamura.

Earlier today, he also held a roadshow while travelling from Bamutia to Mohanpur, where he addressed a public meeting. -- ANI

The Jammu and Kashmir Police today appealed to the public to avoid thronging the Sunjwan Army camp area where an encounter between the Army and terrorists was underway.

"I appeal to the public here not to throng the encounter sites. Several people had gathered here," Superintendent of Police, Jammu (South), Sandeep Chaudhary said while speaking to reporters in Jammu.

He said the gathering of people at the site created problems for the security personnel engaged in the encounter.

It had to be ensured that people are not harmed and kept away, he said.

Please avoid coming to encounter sites, he said.

Chaudhary also appealed to people to maintain communal harmony.

"If some miscreants are engaged in creating communal tension, they will be taken to task," he said. -- PTI

IMAGE: Security personnel deployed at Sunjuwan Military Station in Jammu on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses World Government Summit in Dubai. Excerpts:

- It is a matter of pride for not only me but also the 125 crore people of India that I have been called as the Chief Guest at the World Government Summit.

- In terms of technology, a desert has been transformed... It's a miracle, he said, citing Dubai as an example for the world.

-Technology is changing at the speed of thoughts. Technology has empowered the common man. We must make technology a means of development, not a means of destruction.

- We need to follow the six R s that stand for reduce, reuse, recycle, recover, redesign and re-manufacture, this will lead to rejoice meaning 'Anand'.

- Even after all the development, poverty and malnutrition have still not been eliminated. On the other side we're investing large portion of money, time and resources on missiles and bombs.

- We will have to be alert and use technology as a means to development and not destruction.

Photograph: ANI

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today exuded confidence that the ongoing operation against terrorists, who attacked an Army camp in Jammu, would be concluded successfully soon.

"Operation is still undergoing," he told reporters on the sidelines of a function in New Delhi.

"I think it is not proper for me to comment on when the operation is still on. I'm sure that our jawans, who are in the operation, will successfully conclude it," he said.  -- PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends the World Government Summit in Dubai.

He earlier met the Vice President, and prime minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

The PM also called on Kyrgyzstan PM Sapar Isakov.

Modi also attended a meeting with GCC Business Leaders in Dubai. -- ANI

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Sunday arrived in Srinagar and reviewed the security situation, a day after terrorists attacked the Sunjwan army camp.

The army chief was also briefed about the attack by the senior commanders.

A team of the National Investigation Agency has also reached the Sunjwan Army Camp.

In the attack, five security personnel and one civilian lost their lives.

The Army has successfully neutralised four Jaish-e-Mohammed Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorists in the ongoing operation.

The state Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh lashed out at Pakistan and called the attack an 'act of cowardice'.

He further informed that the Army was taking precaution in cordoning the area as there were family quarters around the camp.  -- ANI

Photograph: Umar Ganie/Rediff.com

The country's largest lender State Bank of India wrote off bad loans worth Rs 20,339 crore in 2016-17, the highest among all the public sector banks, which had a collective write off of Rs 81,683 crore for the fiscal.

The data pertains to the period when the associate banks of State Bank of India (SBI) were not merged with it.

Public sector banks' (PSBs) write-off stood at Rs 27,231crore in 2012-13, government data showed.

The figure has jumped nearly three-fold in five years.

In 2013-14, the state-owned banks wrote off bad loans worth Rs 34,409 crore; Rs 49,018 crore in 2014-15; Rs 57,585 crore in 2015-16 and hitting Rs 81,683 in the fiscal ended March 2017.

Besides SBI, Punjab National Bank had a write-off of Rs 9,205 crore in 2016-17, followed by Bank of India (Rs 7,346 crore), Canara Bank (Rs 5,545 crore) and Bank of Baroda (Rs 4,348 crore).

In the current financial year, PSBs have written off loans worth Rs 53,625 crore in the six months to September.

As per data from the Reserve Bank, nine public sector banks, out of the total 21, had gross non-performing asset ratio of above 15 per cent (the percentage of bad loans in terms of total loans outstanding) as of September 30, 2017.

Fourteen PSBs have gross non-performing asset ratio of over 12 per cent.

PSBs are faced with mounting non-performing assets or bad loans, putting the financial sector under stress.

The government has unveiled a Rs 2.11 lakh crore capital infusion plan for the PSBs, including via bonds, in the next two years. -- PTI

The Trump administration has come out in strong support of the Israeli action against Iranian targets in Syria, saying the United States backs its 'staunch' ally's right to 'defend' itself.

The Israeli military yesterday shot down an Iranian drone that infiltrated the country before launching a 'large-scale attack' on at least a dozen Iranian and Syrian targets in Syria.

Israel called it a 'severe and irregular violation of Israeli sovereignty' and warned of further action against the unprecedented Iranian aggression.

The White House came out in strong support of Israel, warning Iran to cease its provocative actions.

'Israel is a staunch ally of the United States, and we support its right to defend itself from the Iranian-backed Syrian and militia forces in southern Syria,' the White House said in a statement.

"We call on Iran and its allies to cease provocative actions and work toward regional peace," the White House said.

Earlier, the State Department said it is deeply concerned about today's escalation of violence over Israel's border and strongly supports Israel's sovereign right to defend itself.

"Iran's calculated escalation of threat and its ambition to project its power and dominance, places all the people of the? region - from Yemen to Lebanon - at risk," the State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said.

The US continues to push back on the totality of Iran's malign activities in the region and calls for an end to Iranian behaviour that threatens peace and stability, she said.  -- PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today officially launched the foundation stone-laying ceremony for the first Hindu temple in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, home to over three million people of Indian origin.

Modi witnessed the groundbreaking ceremony which was live-streamed to the Dubai Opera House where the prime minister was interacting with the Indian community.

He thanked Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on behalf of 125 crore Indians for the construction of the grand temple.

"I believe this temple will not be only unique in terms of architecture and splendour, but will also give a message of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' to people across the world," he said.

Temple Committee members had presented the temple literature to Modi and Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan last evening in Abu Dhabi.

This is the first stone temple to be built in Abu Dhabi off Dubai-Abu Dhabi highway.

Modi is visiting the United Arab Emirates for the second time after his 2015 trip to the country.

The first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi will come up on 55,000 square metres of land.

The temple will be hand-carved by Indian temple artisans and assembled in the UAE.

It will be completed by 2020, and open to people of all religious backgrounds.

It will be the first traditional Hindu stone temple in the Middle East, said a spokesperson from the BAPS.

Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), is a socio-spiritual Hindu organisation set up in 1907 that runs more than 1,100 temples and cultural compounds around the world.

The temple will incorporate all aspects and features of a traditional Hindu temple as part of a fully functional, social, cultural and spiritual complex.

It will replicate the BAPS temple in New Delhi and the one under construction in New Jersey.  -- PTI

Photograph: Courtesy @MEAIndia/Twitter

The Reserve Bank of India has said that Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, returned to banks when the government demonetised high value currency 15 months ago, are still being 'processed for their arithmetical accuracy and genuineness'.

This is being done in an 'expedited manner', the central bank said.

'Specific bank notes are being processed for their arithmetical accuracy and genuineness and the reconciliation for the same is ongoing. This information can, therefore, be shared on completion of the process and reconciliation,' the RBI said in reply to an Right to Information application filed by a PTI correspondent.

To a query on the number of demonetised notes, it said, '...subject to future corrections if any, arising in the course of verification process, the estimated value of specified bank notes received as on June 30, 2017 is Rs 15.28 trillion (lakh crore)'.

Asked to provide the details of the deadline for finishing the counting of demonetised notes, the RBI said, 'specified bank notes are being processed in an expedited manner'.

As on date, 59 sophisticated Currency Verification and Processing (CVPS) machines are in operation in RBI for the purpose, it said.

The reply did not specify the location of the machines.

'Besides, eight CVPS machines available with commercial banks are also being used. In addition to this, seven more CVPS machines on lease basis have been installed at RBI regional offices,' the RTI reply said.

The government had on November 8, 2016 banned the use of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and allowed the holders of these currency bills to deposit them with banks or use them at certain notified utilities.

In its annual report for 2016-17 released on August 30 last year, the RBI said Rs 15.28 lakh crore, or 99 per cent of the demonetised notes, had returned to the banking system.

The central bank said in the report, for the year ended June 30, 2017, that only Rs 16,050 crore of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore in old high denomination notes had not returned.

As on November 8, 2016, there were 1,716.5 crore pieces of Rs 500 and 685.8 crore pieces of Rs 1,000 notes in circulation, totalling Rs 15.44 lakh crore, it had said.  -- Ashwini Shrivastava/PTI

As the operation to flush out Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists who stormed an Army camp in Sunjwan entered the second day, local residents have been frequenting the area to serve meals and snacks to police and paramilitary personnel camped there.

The admiring gesture by residents of Sainik Colony have also been well-received by the mediapersons stationed there.

The residents pooled their resources and have been serving meals, tea, snacks and water to hundreds of people, mostly police and paramilitary personnel and scribes, camping outside the main gate of the sprawling military station since yesterday.

"It's a small effort on our part... We want to contribute to the nation and decided to provide tea and snacks to the security forces deployed outside and to the mediapersons," Sanjeev Manmotra, who is leading the initiative, told PTI.

He said their effort was also aimed at sending a message to the misguided youth in the Kashmir Valley who target security forces with stones during anti-terrorist operations. -- PTI

Photograph: Umar Ganie/Rediff.com

Sunjwan Attack Update: Fourth terrorist gunned down by security personnel.

Operation continues.