Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed would be the new chief of Pakistan's powerful spy agency Inter-State Intelligence, the Army announced on Sunday.

The Pakistan Army on Sunday announced a number of changes to postings of its top generals.

Hameed was appointed as the Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (DG ISI) in place of Lt Gen Asim Munir, who was transferred and appointed as Corps Commander Gujranwala.

Gen Munir was appointed as ISI chief in October last year after the retirement of his predecessor Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar.

On April 12, the Pakistan Army promoted then-Major General Hameed to the rank of lieutenant general and appointed him Adjutant General at the General Headquarters (GHQ) later that month.

He was previously serving as the head of the Counter Intelligence wing in the ISI, Geo News reported.  -- PTI

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday held its parliamentary party meet in New Delhi with Prime Minister Narendra Modi assuring Indians that his government will be at the forefront of facilitating legislation that manifests the spirit of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas'.

A day before the first session of the newly-constituted 17th Lok Sabha, a meeting of the National Democratic Alliance was also held in New Delhi.

'The BJP is grateful for people's blessings. We assure our fellow Indians that we will be at the forefront of pro-people governance and facilitating legislation that manifests the spirit of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas',' Modi tweeted after the meeting.

After securing a massive mandate in the general elections, the prime minister had said in a speech, "Our mantra should be 'sabka saath, sabka vikas and sabka vishwas' (with all, for everybody's development and having everyone's trust)."

After the ruling coalition's meet on Sunday, he said the 'NDA family' looks forward to fulfilling the dreams of 130 crore Indians, who have reposed 'unparalleled faith' in the alliance.

"We shall fulfil regional aspirations and work untiringly for national progress," Modi said and posted pictures of both the meetings.

Earlier, chairing an all-party meeting on the eve of the first session of the new Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Modi invited heads of all parties to a meeting on June 19 to discuss the 'one nation, one election' issue and other important matters.  -- PTI

Jammu and Kashmir Police inspector Arshad Ahmed Khan, who suffered injures in Wednesday's terrorist attack in Anantnag, died at the premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi on Sunday, officials said.

40-year-old Khan was flown to Delhi earlier in the day after his condition deteriorated.

Five Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed in the terror attack, in which a lone Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist targeted a patrol team of the paramilitary force.

Khan, the SHO of Saddar Police station in Anantnag, reached the site soon after.

The moment he stepped out of his official bulletproof vehicle, along with his service rifle, a barrage of bullets were fired by the terrorist. One ricocheted from the butt of his service rifle and hit his liver and duodenum, the officials said.

He was admitted to the AIIMS this afternoon, but died soon after, they added.  -- PTI

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the cabinet expansion carried out Sunday was for regional balance and to create an opportunity for other party workers to serve, and no one was dropped for 'poor performance'.

Thirteen ministers were inducted into the state government Sunday, and six serving ministers tendered their resignations to the CM, all of which were accepted.

Speaking on the eve of the monsoon session of the Maharashtra legislature, Fadnavis said, "We wanted to present new faces as well as create a regional balance. No one in the cabinet was removed because of poor performance. The new team will perform better."

Commenting on a Lokayukta report related to outgoing Housing Minister Prakash Mehta's alleged land deal, Fadnavis said, "The report is going to be presented in the House. I cannot comment on it now."

Speaking on former Congressman Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil's induction into the cabinet, the Maharashtra CM claimed, "I have been doing developmental work and that is why new people are joining the BJP."

With Sunday's expansion, the Fandavis government now has 41 ministers   -- PTI

The armies of India and Myanmar carried out a three-week-long coordinated operation from May 16 in their respective border areas, targeting several militant groups operating in Manipur, Nagaland and Assam, defence sources said on Sunday.

The first phase of 'Operation Sunrise' was conducted three months ago along the Indo-Myanmar border, during which a number of camps of north-east-based militant groups were busted.

Myanmar is one of the strategic neighbours of India and shares a 1,640-km border with a number of north-eastern states, including the militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur.

India has been pushing for a deeper coordination between the armies of the two countries while guarding the border.

Sources said during 'Operation Sunrise 2', the armies coordinated with each other to bust camps of militant outfits, including the Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO), the NSCN (Khaplang), the United Liberation Front of Assam (I) and the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB).

They said at least six dozen militants belonging to these groups were nabbed and several of their camps destroyed during the operation.

The sources said the two sides might launch the third phase of the operation, depending on intelligence inputs and the ground situation.        Besides the Indian Army, troops from the Assam Rifles were also part of the operation.

In June 2015, the Indian Army had carried out an operation against NSCN(K) militants in areas near the Indo-Myanmar border, days after militants killed 18 armymen in Manipur.

In the first phase of 'Operation Sunrise', the Indian Army targeted members of the Arakan Army, an insurgent group in Myanmar, who were opposed to the Kaladan multi-modal transit transport project.

The Kaladan multi-modal transit transport project is viewed as India's gateway to Southeast Asia.

India entered into a framework agreement with Myanmar in April, 2008 to facilitate the implementation of the project. On completion, the project will help connect the north-eastern state of Mizoram with the Sittwe Port in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

On the Indian side, work is on to extend the Aizawl-Saiha National Highway by 90 km to the international border at Zorinpui.

According to security agencies, there were over 50 camps of insurgent groups from the north-east in Myanmar till last year.  -- PTI

Mumbai Police, known for frequent usage of funny and smart one-liners, has once again invoked some humour in their post ahead of nailbiting India vs Pakistan ICC Cricket World Cup match.

The tweet posted by Mumbai Police for Team India reads, 'India, see green? Accelerate. Like you always do. #INDvsPAK #CWC19 #IndiavsPakistan'.

The post also has a picture of a 'green signal'.

The green colour signifies the jersey of Pakistan.  -- ANI

Monsoon is expected to advance further up north as Cyclone Vayu loses intensity paving the way for the wind system to move towards the Arabian Sea, the weatherman said Sunday.

By now, monsoon should have reached the central India, including parts of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, eastern Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, but it is yet to reach Maharashtra.

It still remains over Mangalore, Mysore, Cuddalore over the southern peninsula and Passighat, Agartala in the northeast, according to the India Meteorological Department.

The western coast -- from Maharashtra to Gujarat -- has been receiving rainfall due to the cyclone.

Only coastal Karnataka and Kerala have received rains due to monsoon. Vayu is expected to cross the Gujarat coast on Monday evening as a depression.

This will pave the way for monsoon winds to move up towards the Arabian Sea. Monsoon made an onset over Kerala on June 8, nearly a week after its usual onset date.

"The progress of monsoon was halted due to Cyclone Vayu. As its intensity decreases, we expect monsoon to progress in the next 2-3 days," said Devendra Pradhan, additional director general, IMD.

In its monsoon bulletin, IMD said conditions are becoming favourable for further advance of the southwest monsoon to more parts of central Arabian Sea, Karnataka and remaining parts of Tamil Nadu.

It is expected to cover more parts of central, north and south Bay, northeast India, north Bengal and Sikkim in 1-2 days. The overall monsoon deficiency in the country has reached 43 per cent due to its sluggish pace.

IMD's central division -- which covers Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Goa -- has recorded 59 per cent of rainfall deficiency while east and northeast India has recorded 47 per cent deficiency.

Rainfall deficiency in meteorological subdivisions west and east Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh was 75, 70 and 72 per cent, respectively.

Deficiency in Vidarbha is 87 per cent.

According to the Central Water Commission, the water level in reservoirs of south Indian states and Maharashtra is lesser than the average of last ten years.

Several parts of the country are reeling under intense heatwave, especially the east Indian states of Jharkhand, Bihar and Odisha.  -- PTI

 should be held in open Kolkata, Jun 16 (PTI)

Agitating junior doctors in West Bengal softened their stand on Sunday and asserted that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was free to decide the venue of the meeting with them, but stressed that it should be held in open.

Banerjee had on Saturday invited the agitators for closed-door talks, but the offer was turned down by them.

Talking to the media after a two-and-half-hour-long meeting of their governing body, a spokesperson of the joint forum of junior doctors said, "We are keen to end this impasse. We are ready to hold talks with the chief minister at a venue of her choice, provided it is held in the open, in the presence of media persons, and not behind closed doors."

The spokesperson said the venue should be spacious enough to accommodate representatives from all medical colleges and hospitals in the state.

Earlier, the agitators had insisted that Banerjee visit the NRS Medical College and Hospital, the epicentre of the agitation.

"We want to join our duties as early as possible in the best interests of the common people once all our demands are met with adequately and logically through a discussion.

"We are hopeful that the chief minister will be considerate enough to solve the problems," he said, adding that the strike would continue till a solution was worked out.

Junior doctors across the state are observing a strike in protest against an assault on two of their colleagues at the NRS, allegedly by the family members of a patient who died on Monday night.

Services continued to remain affected for the sixth day on Sunday in the emergency wards, outdoor facilities and pathological units of many state-run hospitals and private medical facilities in the state, leaving several patients in the lurch.  -- PTI

In a bid to infuse fresh energy in the party organisation and with the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls in mind, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will increase the frequency of her tours to the state and meet party workers at least twice a week, sources said on Sunday.

The All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh is ready to hit the ground in the state, following the Congress's debacle in the recent Lok Sabha election, in order to strengthen the party organisation in time for the 2022 assembly polls.

In a bid to ensure a direct communication with the party workers, Priyanka Gandhi will meet them twice a week without prior appointments, the sources said.

"It emerged from the review meetings held after the Lok Sabha polls that there should be a greater coordination and communication between the leaders and the workers.

"For this, it has been decided that Priyanka Gandhi will meet the party workers at least twice a week," a Congress leader said on the condition of anonymity.

"The frequency of her tours to Uttar Pradesh will also increase in the near future," he added.

The plan to step up her Uttar Pradesh tours and establish a direct communication with the party workers comes days after Priyanka Gandhi, during a visit to Raebareli, told the workers that they had let down the grand old party in the Lok Sabha polls.

Accompanied by her mother and United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who visited her parliamentary constituency last Wednesday, Priyanka Gandhi pulled up the party workers for failing to work for the Congress during the polls.

"I will find out the names of the workers who did not work for the party in the election," she had said, adding that those who had toiled honestly and sincerely for the party knew that from the core of their hearts.

"But those who did not, I will find out their names," she had said.

Priyanka Gandhi, who was appointed as the party general secretary just ahead of the parliamentary polls, had campaigned vigorously for Congress candidates in Uttar Pradesh, especially in Rae Bareli and Amethi.

But of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state, the Congress could manage to win only Rae Bareli.

Even party president Rahul Gandhi lost to Union minister Smriti Irani from his family stronghold of Amethi.

Priyanka Gandhi and AICC in-charge of western Uttar Pradesh Jyotiraditya Scindia held review meetings following the party's debacle in the Lok Sabha polls, in which it managed to win 52 seats nationally.

Bypolls are due for 11 assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh after the respective MLAs were elected to Parliament.  -- PTI

JUST IN: Indian Medical Association to hold a 24-hour-long nationwide protest tomorrow.

All Non-Essential Services including OPDs will be closed starting from 6 am.

IMA will also stage a 'dharna' at IMA headquarters in Delhi starting 10 am tomorrow.  -- ANI

Faced with a crisis of sorts after the merger of 12 of its MLAs with the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti, the Congress in Telangana might suffer a fresh setback with another party MLA hinting that he might switch over to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Congress MLA from Munugode near Nalgonda, Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy, expressed disappointment with the party affairs, alleging it was not able to effectively take on TRS.

"The Congress is in a difficult position, not only in Telangana, but the whole of India. The country will progress under BJP. The youth are with BJP. The party is the alternative to counter KCR (Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao)," he told PTI.

The country's interests should also be kept in mind, he said.

Reddy said Congress does not have an effective leadership and the party was not able to take 'right and timely decisions' though people like him are fighting against TRS.

The MLA said he was not after any post. He blamed state Congress president N Uttam Kumar Reddy and All India Congress Committee in charge of party affairs in Telangana R C Khuntia for not being able to provide effective leadership to fight TRS.

Asked about reports that he might join BJP, Reddy said he would meet his supporters and activists to take a decision on the matter.

Rajagopal Reddy is an influential leader from Nalgonda district.

His elder brother Venkat Reddy is the Congress Lok Sabha member from Bhongir.

If the MLA leaves the party, the Congress is expected to suffer a setback in Nalgonda district Congress faced a crisis after 12 party MLAs merged with the TRS recently, bringing down the party's strength in the assembly to six.

If Rajagopal Reddy quits the party, Congress would be left with five MLAs, two less than All India Mjalis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen.  -- PTI

Ahead of the highly-anticipated World Cup match with India, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday advised team skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed to opt for batting first if they win the toss.

In a series of tweets on Sunday, Khan, who led Pakistan to a Cricket world cup victory in 1992, suggested Sarfaraz to pick only specialist bowlers and batsman, in consideration to the intensity of the match.

'Sarfaraz must go in with specialist batsmen and bowlers because 'Raillu Kattas' rarely perform under pressure -- especially the intense kind that will be generated today. 2. Unless pitch is damp, Sarfaraz must win the toss & bat,' Khan wrote.

The cricket legend recalled how the game has transformed over the years, especially considering the mental pressure that the players face today.

'When I started my cricketing career I assumed success was 70% talent & 30% mind. By the time I finished playing cricket, I felt it was 50-50 ratio. But now I tend to agree with my friend Gavaskar it's 60% mental strength & 40 % talent. Today role of mind will be more than 60%,' his tweet read.

'Today, given the intensity of the match, both teams will come under great mental pressure and the power of the mind will decide the outcome of the match today. In Sarfaraz we are fortunate to have a bold captain & today he will have to be at his daring best.'

Khan advised the skipper to 'banish all fears of losing' against their arch-rival, who are being considered as world cup favourites.

'All fears of losing should be banished from the mind as the mind can only process one thought at a time. Fear of losing leads to a negative & defensive strategy & crucially mistakes by opponents are not pounced upon. So here are my suggestions for Sarfaraz & Pakistan team,' wrote Khan.

'Finally, even though India may be the favourites, banish all fear of losing. Just give your best and fight till the last ball. Then accept whatever the result like true sportsmen. The nation's prayers are with all of you. Good Luck,' he added.

India will take on Pakistan later in the day at 3 pm in Manchester with the prediction of rain at the venue adding more suspense to the nail-biting encounter.  -- ANI

Government should bring an ordinance to construct Ram temple, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said on Sunday in Ayodhya, asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the courage to do so and there would be no one to stop it.

Thackeray offered prayers at the makeshift Ram Lalla temple along with his son Aditya and 18 newly-elected lawmakers of his party. The Shiv Sena has said the visit was to fulfil the promise Thackeray made last November to come to Ayodhya again after the elections.

"The case is in the court for many years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the courage. If government takes the decision, there is no one to stop it. Not only Shiv Sena, Hindus of the whole world are with this," Uddhav said, while addressing a press conference after his visit to the Ram Lalla (or infant Ram) temple.

"The government should bring an ordinance for construction of Ram temple. The issue concerns all Hindus and the temple has to be constructed at the earliest," he said, raising the slogan of 'kanoon banao, mandir banao (formulate law and construct temple)'.

Maharashtra will be going to polls later this year and the visit is being seen as an attempt by the Shiv Sena to put pressure on ally Bharatiya Janata Party on the Ram temple issue. But Sena has maintained that Thackeray's visit should not be seen through the electoral lens.

"For us Ram temple is a matter of faith and not politics," Thackeray said.

"Whether it be Shiv Sena or BJP, we are working to make Hindutva strong. After understanding this, the government (of Narendra Modi) returned to power with more MPs. This means we have to respect people's feelings," he added.

When asked whether the Shiv Sena would risk its alliance with the BJP to put pressure on the government over construction of the Ram temple, he quipped, "For a good work, thoughts also need to be good."

The title suit over the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site is being heard by the Supreme Court.  -- PTI

IMAGE: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray addresses a press conference after offering prayers at the makeshift Ram Lalla temple along with 18 newly-elected MPs of his party, in Ayodhya, on Sunday. Photograph: PTI Photo

An all-party meeting began at the Parliament on Sunday, ahead of the first Parliament session of the 17th Lok Sabha on June 17 (Monday).

Among those who arrived for the meeting were Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Prahlad Joshi and leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Rajya Sabha Thawar Chand Gehlot.

Other leaders cutting across party lines such as -- V Vijayasai Reddy of Yuvajana Shramika Rythu Congress Party, Derek O'Brien of Trinamool Congress, Farooq Abdullah of National Conference, Nationalist Congress Party's Supriya Sule, Anupriya Patel of Apna Dal (Sonelal), Aam Aadmi Party's Sanjay Singh and Jayadev Galla of Telugu Desam Party, arrived for the meeting convened by the government.

After the all-party meet, a meeting of National Democratic Alliance leaders will take place in the Parliament later in the evening to discuss strategies for the upcoming session.

BJP parliamentary party executive committee meeting is also scheduled to be held today evening.

On Friday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had held a pre-budget consultation meeting with leading economists ahead of the forthcoming general Budget 2019-20.

This was her sixth pre-Budget consultation meeting with officials and representatives of social sector groups.

The first session of the 17th Lok Sabha will be convened from June 17 to July 26 during which the Union Budget will be presented by the new government on July 5.

On the first two days, new MPs will take oath. The election for the Speaker of the 17th Lok Sabha is scheduled to be held on June 19. -- ANI

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan and MoS Health Ashwini Choubey meet patients and their families at Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital in Muzaffarpur.

So far, 84 people have died due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Muzaffarpur.  -- ANI

Former Leader of Opposition of Maharashtra Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, who had quit the Congress recently, sworn in as state minister.

Mumbai Bharatiya Janata Party chief Ashish Shelar also took oath as minister in presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai.

A CMO official said that six Maharashtra ministers, including housing minister Prakash Mehta, have resigned.  -- PTI/ANI

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray offered prayers at the makeshift Ram Lalla temple in Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday along with 18 newly-elected MPs of his party.

Thackeray reached  Ayodhya this morning along with his son Aditya and met party MPs who are in the town since Saturday evening.

He then paid obeisance at the makeshift temple.

He is scheduled to address a press conference later in the day and will then leave for Mumbai.

Maharashtra will be going to polls later this year and the visit is being seen as an attempt by the Shiv Sena to put pressure on ally Bharatiya Janata Party on the Ram temple issue.  -- PTI

With three more deaths reported from Muzaffarpur due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, the death toll in the district mounted to 80 on Sunday as Bihar continues to grapple with the deadly disease.

Sunil Kumar Shahi, Superintendent at the government hospital Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH) today confirmed three more deaths due to Encephalitis Syndrome in the hospital.

Doctors claim that the deaths, due to AES, are being caused due to excessive heat and humidity. Scorching heat on Saturday claimed the lives of least 25 people from various districts of the state on Saturday.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan arrived in the state capital today to review public health measures for containment and management of the AES.

Vardhan had previously said that the Centre was constantly monitoring the situation and supporting state health authorities to manage the encephalitis cases.

The minister was greeted here with black flags displayed by workers of the Jan Adhikar Party Loktantrik who shouted slogans against him.

Meanwhile, on Sunday attendants of patients admitted to the SKMCH alleged that there were no doctors on call during the night.

"My daughter is in the ICU room of SKMCH. The death toll is increasing day by day. There were no doctors after 12 in the night and only nurses are here. There are four bodies inside ICU," Mohammad Aftab told ANI.

Another attendant, Sunil Ram said, "My four-year-old daughter was admitted to hospital on Saturday. She was declared dead today. There is no facility in SKMCH."

In the wake of the fatalities, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to families of the children who died due to AES in Muzaffarpur. He also gave directions to the health department, district administration and doctors to take necessary measures to fight the disease. -- ANI

The government has decided to demolish 400 old flats and construct new ones in their place in Lutyens' Delhi for Members of Parliament using construction waste.

 

The flats which will be coming up in North Avenue and South Avenue, located on either sides of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, will replace the old ones built nearly 60 years ago, officials of the Central Public Works Department said.

"All old MP flats, which were built in North and South Avenues after Independence, will be demolished," CPWD's Director General Prabhakar Singh told PTI.

"We will use construction & demolition (C&D) waste in building the new flats for MPs in North and South Avenues, an area which has many old flats," he added.

The waste from the demolition site of the old flats are likely to be used for the construction of the new ones after being processed at a facility.

CPWD, the prime construction agency of the central government, recently constructed 36 duplex flats, at a cost of Rs 80 crore, which are ready to be allotted for the newly-elected parliamentarians.

"The new MP flats will be constructed in a phased manner in North Avenue and South Avenue so that there in no chaos after demolition of the old ones," he said.

The swanky low-rise buildings will have solar power panels and designated car parking spots, among a host of other facilities, the official said.

The new Lok Sabha has around 300 first-time members, including cricketer-turned-politician Gautam Gambhir, Union ministers Ravi Shankar Prasad and Smriti Irani, Sufi singer Hans Raj Hans and Bengali actresses Mimi Chakraborty and Nusrat Jahan Ruhi.

The government has made temporary arrangements to accommodate 350 MPs till the time they are allotted full-time official residences in Lutyens' Delhi, an area in the national capital named after British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens, who was responsible for much of the architectural design and building of the high-security zone prior to Independence.

In the past, newly-elected MPs used to stay in five-star hotels, but the practice has been dropped following the Lok Sabha Secretariat's cost-cutting measures. 

The BJP-led NDA government started its second term as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the other ministers of his council took the oath of office on May 30. -- PTI  

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray arrives in Ayodhya.

Uddhav with party's 18 newly elected MPs will offer prayers at the makeshift Ram Lalla temple in Ayodhya.

This will be Thackeray's first visit to Ayodhya after the Lok Sabha results last month. 

He had visited Ayodhya in November last year.

 

The Shiv Sena had earlier announced that Thackeray and the newly elected MPs would visit Ayodhya before the beginning of the Parliament session on Monday.

 

However, the party's state unit chief Anil Singh said the visit should not been seen from the electoral lens and it was "a matter of devotion and faith".

 

Maharashtra will be going to the polls later in the year.

 

When asked about the purpose of the visit, Singh said, "Before the Lok Sabha elections, Uddhavji went to a number of religious places for darshan. Now, after the party performed well in the polls and is a part of the NDA government, he is going there to offer prayers."

 

Singh termed Thackeray's proposed visit as "thanksgiving to Lord Ram" for the party's performance in the Lok Sabha elections and to affirm its "commitment" for a Ram temple in Ayodhya".

 

"The newly elected Shiv Sena MPs will be reaching Ayodhya Saturday while party chief Uddhav Thackeray is likely to be there the next day," Anil Singh told PTI on Friday.

The impasse in West Bengal showed signs of easing as agitating doctors said Saturday night that they were open for talks with West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee to end their stir, but they would decide on the venue of the meeting later.

   

They had earlier in the evening turned down an invite for a closed-door meeting with Banerjee at the state secretariat and had instead asked her to visit the NRS Medical College and Hospital for an open discussion to resolve the impasse.

 

Late on Saturday night, the joint forum of junior doctors held a press conference their meeting.

 

"We are open for dialogue always. If the chief minister extends one hand we will extend 10 of ours... we are eagerly waiting to break the deadlock," the spokesperson said.

 

The agitating doctors said they would wait for their governing body to decide on the proposed venue for the meeting.

 

The agitating doctors had also turned down Banerjee's request saying there was no honest effort on her part to break the deadlock.

 

"We are eagerly waiting to start our duty, but from the chief minister's side there is no such honest initiative to find a solution (of the ongoing problem)," he had said earlier in the night.

 

The agitating junior doctors also rubbished her claims that a few of their colleagues visited her at the state secretariat.

 

Banerjee, during a press conference at the state secretariat, had urged the agitators to resume work and said her government has accepted all their demands.

The ministry of home affairs issued an advisory seeking a report on the stir. But she reacted sharply to it and said such advisory should be "sent to states like Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat where several murders are reported since the last couple of years".

 

Bengal Governor K N Tripathi wrote to Banerjee advising her to take immediate steps to provide security to the medicos and find out a solution to the impasse.

Banerjee later said that she has spoken to the governor and apprised him about the steps taken by the state government to resolve the impasse. -- PTI