LIVE
Sun, 26 September 2021
Naval ships, aircraft on standby: Cyclone Gulab

Timeline  Refresh

Representational pic
Representational pic
20:25   Naval ships, aircraft on standby: Cyclone Gulab
The Indian Navy said on Sunday that it was closely monitoring the movement of Cyclone Gulab and kept naval ships and aircraft on standby for rescue and relief operations.

Gulab is likely to cross between Gopalpur in Odisha's Ganjam district and Kalingapatnam in Andhra Pradesh around midnight, the India Meteorological Department said.

The Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam and naval officers in charge of Odisha have carried out preparatory activities to combat the effects of the cyclone, according to an official statement.

The Navy is in constant liaison with the state administrations for rendering assistance as required and closely monitoring the movement of the cyclonic storm, it said.

As part of the preparedness, flood relief teams and diving teams are prepositioned in Odisha and ready at Visakhapatnam to render immediate assistance, it added.

Two naval ships are at sea with humanitarian assistance and disaster relief material, and medical teams will render assistance in the most-affected areas.

Aircraft are kept ready at naval air stations INS Dega in Visakhapatnam and INS Rajali near Chennai to undertake an aerial survey of the most-affected areas, casualty evacuation and airdrop of relief material, the statement said.

Meanwhile, the East Coast Railway has cancelled 34 pairs of trains due to Cyclone Gulab.

The ECoR has also rescheduled 13 trains and diverted at least 17 trains so far, according to its bulletins.

"In view of forecast of heavy rain with cyclonic wind, all necessary precautions have been taken by ECoR," it said.

The Railways is conducting extensive patrolling in areas that are likely to be affected.

Bridges are kept under watch, and appropriate steps have been taken for electrical and signaling operations.
image
19:46   Kerala reports 15,951 fresh COVID cases, 165 deaths
Kerala on Sunday registered 15,951 fresh COVID-19 cases and 165 deaths, which took the caseload to 46,29,915 and toll to 24,603.

The number of people who recovered from the infection since Saturday was 17,658 which brought the total recoveries to 44,41,430 and the number of active cases to 1,63,280, an official press release said.

As many as 1,03,484 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, the release said.

Among the 14 districts, Ernakulam recorded the highest number of cases in 2,572, followed by Thiruvananthapuram 1,861, Thrissur 1,855, Kottayam 1,486, Kozhikode 1,379, Malappuram 1,211, Palakkad 1,008, Alappuzha 985 and Kollam 954.

Of the new cases, 73 were health workers, 70 from outside the state and 15,191 infected through contact, with the source of it not clear in 617.

There are currently 4,74,901 people under surveillance in various districts, of whom 4,53,119 are in home or institutional quarantine and 21,781 in hospitals. 
image
19:07   EAM Jaishankar on 3-day visit in Mexico to boost bilateral trade
External affairs minister S Jaishankar is paying a three-day visit to Mexico beginning Sunday with an aim to boost bilateral cooperation in trade and investment as well as other areas.

It is Jaishankar's first visit to Mexico as the external affairs minister.

At present, Mexico is India's second-largest trade partner in Latin America and a member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) alongside India for the 2021-22 period.

Announcing Jaishankar's visit, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said he is scheduled to participate in the commemorative events of the 200th anniversary of the consolidation of Mexican Independence, along with other world leaders.

"In addition to his meeting with Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon, he will also call on the President of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The external affairs minister will also interact with the leading CEOs and the business community in Mexico," it said.

The two-way trade in 2018 was USD 10.155 billion, comprising of exports worth USD 5.231 billion and imports valued at USD 4.923 billion, according to official data.

India's exports comprise mainly of vehicles and auto parts, chemicals, aluminium products, electrical machinery and electronic equipment, steel, gems and ceramic product.

India imports crude oil, electrical goods and machinery from Mexico. 
image
18:38   Channi's Cabinet: 15 ministers, two deputies
Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi carried out his first cabinet expansion on Sunday, inducting 15 Cabinet ministers which included seven new entrants.

The new faces in the Channi ministry are Randeep Singh Nabha, Raj Kumar Verka, Sangat Singh Gilzian, Pargat Singh, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Gurkirat Singh Kotli.

Rana Gurjit Singh has made a comeback after resigning in 2018 from the Amrinder Singh ministry.

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of office and secrecy to the legislators.

Brahm Mohindra, Manpreet Singh Badal, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Aruna Chaudhary, Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Razia Sultana, Vijay Inder Singla and Bharat Bhushan Ashu, who were ministers in the previous Amarinder Singh led cabinet, were retained as Cabinet Ministers.

Channi had taken oath as the chief minister following the unceremonious exit of Congress veteran Amarinder Singh after a prolonged power tussle with state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu.

Rana Gurjit Singh, Mohindra and Singla are considered close to Amarinder Singh.

A total of 18 MLAs, including the chief minister, can be included in the cabinet.

Channi's two deputies Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and OP Soni were sworn in on Monday.

Earlier, a section of Congress leaders from the state had written to the party's Punjab unit chief Sidhu against the induction of former minister Rana Gurjit Singh, alleging he was "corrupt and tainted".

The leaders had also demanded that the cabinet berth may instead be filled up "by giving representation to a clean Dalit leader".

A copy of the letter was also sent to the chief minister.

Rana Gurjit Singh, after facing flak from the Opposition over allegations of impropriety in the auction of sand mining contracts, had to resign from the previous Amarinder Singh cabinet in 2018. At that time, he had held Irrigation and Power portfolios.
Representational pic
Representational pic
18:16   Operation launched to trap man eater tiger in Nilgiris dist
The Tamil Nadu forest department has launched an operation to trap a man-eater tiger in Devar Solar area in Nilgiris district following the death of three people in the last few days.

District Collector Innocent Divya on Sunday appealed to the people to remain indoors as their movement may prevent the big cat from emerging from the bushes.

The tiger had killed a shepherd two days ago, triggering protests by locals in the area seeking immediate action.

The forest department officials have placed cages with baits at four places to trap the animal and also installed cameras to closely monitor its movement. 
Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com
Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com
17:50   FPIs invest Rs 13,536 cr in Indian stocks in Sep
Remaining positive about the long-term outlook of Indian markets, foreign portfolio investors (FPI) were net buyers so far in September with an investment of Rs 21,875 crore.

According to data from depositories, FPIs pumped in Rs 13,536 crore into equities and Rs 8,339 crore into the debt segment during September 1-23, taking the total net investment to Rs 21,875 crore.

FPIs were net buyers at Rs 16,459 crore in August.

"Rally in the Indian equity markets, positive long-term outlook, the expectation of economic rebound and improvement in corporate earnings has led foreign investors to re-invest in Indian equities," said Himanshu Srivastava, associate director (research), Morningstar India.

Besides, he added that the turmoil in China has also benefitted India, making it an attractive investment destination among foreign investors from a long-term perspective.

However, higher valuations and US Fed signalling reversing of pandemic stimulus programmes in November did limit the flow of assets to some extent, he noted.

"The renewed FPI interest in India is partly because of Nifty's impressive outperformance vis-a-vis MSCI World Index and MSCI EM Index this year," said V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

With respect to other emerging markets, Shrikant Chouhan, executive vice-president (equity technical research) at Kotak Securities, said Taiwan reported a total FPI inflow of USD 1,482 million.

FPI inflows in South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines during the period under review stood at USD 1,223 million, USD 358 million, USD 268 million and USD 38 million, respectively, he added.

"FPI flows are expected to remain volatile in the emerging markets, once the US Federal Reserve increase the rate. After the rate hike, FPIs will start exiting emerging markets, as they considered it is riskier compare to the developed economies," Chouhan said. 
image
17:18   Why need cinema when BJP's entertaining people, asks MP Sanjay Raut
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday took a swipe at the BJP, claiming it was providing "entertainment" to people, and questioned the need for opening cinema halls and drama auditoriums during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notably, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has said cinema halls and drama theatres in the state will be permitted to operate from October 22 on the condition that they follow all the protocols required to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

In his weekly column 'Rokhthok' in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana, Raut, who is the executive editor of the Marathi daily, said the opposition party (BJP) in Maharashtra has "crossed all limits".

"Every day, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya levels new allegations against different state ministers and visits their constituencies. I feel the state government shouldn't stop his tours. His allegations are like soap bubbles.  Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil has a different style," he quipped.

"Even though the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions continue, political entertainment programmes are on in the country. In all, there is fun everywhere...there is mystery and comedy in the entertainment that is being provided by the opposition party. Is there a need to open cinema halls and drama auditoriums?" he wondered.

Raut, whose party shares power with the NCP and Congress in Maharashtra, claimed that the state BJP unit has made a "mockery" of central probe agencies.

He said Maharashtra had a rich tradition of illustrious opposition leaders like Madhu Dandavate, Madhu Limaye, George Fernandes and Hiren Mukherjee, who launched fierce agitations against the then governments and exposed corruption. Indira Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi also bore the brunt, he said.

In Maharashtra, leaders like Datta Patil, Mrunal Gore, Keshavrao Dhondge, Krushnarao Dhulap and Gopinath Munde kept various state governments on tenterhooks, but there was no viciousness as in the present times, the Shiv Sena's chief spokesperson said.

Chief ministers like Shivajirao Nilangekar, A R Antulay and Vilasrao Deshmukh had to quit because of the opposition attack, he noted.

"Today, the opposition is a just a comedy show. It is doing nothing, but threatening of ED inquiries and indulging in character assassination," he claimed.
image
17:01   LIVE! Modi's Digital Health Mission launch on Sep 27
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the Pradhan Mantri Digital Health Mission on Monday via video conference, his office said.

The pilot project of National Digital Health Mission had been announced by the prime minister from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15, 2020.

Currently, the Pradhan Mantri Digital Health Mission (PM-DHM) is being implemented in pilot phase in six Union Territories.

In a historic initiative, Prime Minister Modi will launch the PM-DHM on September 27, 2021 at 11 AM via video conferencing, which will be followed by his address on the occasion, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement.

The nationwide rollout of PM-DHM coincides with National Health Authority (NHA) celebrating the third anniversary of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), the statement said.

Union health minister Mansukh Madaviya will be present on the occasion.

Based on the foundations laid down in the form of Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and Mobile (JAM) trinity and other digital initiatives of the government, PM-DHM will create a seamless online platform through the provision of a wide-range of data, information and infrastructure services, duly leveraging open, interoperable, standards-based digital systems while ensuring the security, confidentiality and privacy of health-related personal information, the PMO said.

The mission will enable access and exchange of longitudinal health records of citizens with their consent, it said.

The key components of PM-DHM include a health ID for every citizen that will also work as their health account, to which personal health records can be linked and viewed with the help of a mobile application, a Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR) and Healthcare Facilities Registries (HFR) that will act as a repository of all healthcare providers across both modern and traditional systems of medicine.

This will ensure ease of doing business for doctors and hospitals and healthcare service providers, the statement said.

PM-DHM Sandbox, created as a part of the mission, will act as a framework for technology and product testing that will help organizations, including private players, intending to be a part of National Digital Health Ecosystem become a Health Information Provider or Health Information User or efficiently link with building blocks of PM-DHM.

This mission will create interoperability within the digital health ecosystem, similar to the role played by the Unified Payments Interface in revolutionizing payments, the PMO said.

Citizens will only be a click-away from accessing healthcare facilities, it said.
image
16:13   India's COVID-19 snapshot
India's COVID-19 count increased by 28,326 cases as on Sep 26 according to data released by ministry of health and family welfare and ICMR
image
15:51   India-Canada direct flights to resume from Sep 27
Beginning Monday Canada will allow direct flights from India, lifting the ban on them after a gap of more than five months.

Announcing the decision, Transport Canada on Saturday in a tweet said: "Beginning at 00:01 EDT on September 27, direct flights from India can land in Canada with additional public health measures in place."

"Travellers must have proof of a negative COVID-19 molecular test from the approved Genestrings Laboratory at the Delhi airport taken within 18 hours of the scheduled departure of their direct flight to Canada," it added.

In April, Canada banned all direct flights to and from India when the second Covid wave hit India. The date of reopening has been postponed many times.

Welcoming the decision, India's high commissioner to Canada Ajay Bisaria described it as a "decisive step towards normalising air mobility" between the two nations.

"@airindiain and @AirCanada are now set to run daily flights between Delhi and Toronto/Vancouver from 27 September. Working with Canadian partners to further ease travel," he tweeted.

Passengers who travel from India to Canada via an indirect route still need to provide a pre-departure negative COVID-19 molecular test result from a third country before continuing their journey to Canada. 
image
14:44   India's Mangalyaan completes 7 years in space
India's Mars Orbiter spacecraft has completed seven years in its orbit, well beyond its designed mission life of six months.

"Indeed, a satisfying feeling," K Radhakrishnan who as the then Chairman of Indian Space Research Oranisation (ISRO) led the Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan) team told PTI on the milestone.

MOM is the maiden interplanetary mission of ISRO. Launched on November 5, 2013, the probe was successfully inserted into Martian orbit on September 24, 2014 in its first attempt.

MOM is primarily a technology demonstration venture and all the mission objectives were successfully met, according to officials of Bengaluru-headquartered India's national space agency.

The main lessons learnt were in the field of design and realisation of systems and subsystems, launch for interplanetary mission, insertion into other planet's orbit, operation of the spacecraft and scientific instruments around Mars orbit, they said.

The lessons learnt have raised the confidence of ISRO scientists for taking up future interplanetary missions.

ISRO has been continuously monitoring the spacecraft and its five scientific instruments, and officials said scientific analysis of the data being received from MOM spacecraft is in progress.

On the health of the spacecraft, M Annadurai, who was the Programme Director of MOM, said the spacecraft's "moving elements are facing some issues and some of the redundancies we have to switch over."

"The spacecraft's health is reasonably good considering that we are in the seventh year," Annadurai told PTI.

He expects the spacecraft to have a mission life of probably another one year.

On the reasons for the long mission life, Annadurai said ISRO had done corrections after learning lessons from the Chandrayaan-1 venture, in terms of reconfiguring the spacecraft and optimisation of fuel management, among others.

Noting that Earth remote-sensing satellites typically have a mission life of seven to nine years, he said it was a very satisfying moment that India could establish that around Mars also, a spacecraft can be in operation for such a long period.

On some criticism in some quarters that scientific output of the MOM was "low", Annadurai said it was more of a technology-demonstration mission.

He pointed out that the spacecraft was launched by PSLV as GSLV was not in operational condition then. ISRO could apportion only about 15 kg for scientific instruments, and the time available for scientists to develop them was only 18-19 months.

"I don't think we could have done better than what we have done," Annadurai said.

ISRO officials said the spacecraft has already covered three Martian years (one Martian year is about two earth years).

"We have seen how changes happen on the Mars from one season to another, one Martian year to another Martian year," they said.

Annadurai said: "We have good inputs on seasonal affects on Mars atmosphere...surface. The mission has provided meaningful data also".
image
14:25   Why Chhattisgarh CM skipped Amit Shahs meet on Left Wing Extremism
Chhattisgarh dhief minister Bhupesh on Sunday skipped a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Left Wing Extremism (LWE).

The chief ministers of 10 Naxal-hit states, including Chhattisgarh, were invited to the meeting during which Shah was to take stock of the ongoing operations against the ultras and development activities undertaken at the ground level, officials said.

"Chhattisgarh's Chief Secretary Amitabh Jain and Director General of Police D M Awasthi have gone to the national capital on the CM's behalf to attend the meeting," a public relations department official said.

Baghel was scheduled to attend a convention of Chandranahu Kurmi Samaj in the state's Mahasamund district on Sunday afternoon, he said.

The CM has skipped the crucial meeting at a time when the LWE situation in Chhattisgarh could be a key agenda of discussion as the state has witnessed several deadly attacks on security forces by Naxals in the last few years.

Senior state officials said the issue of setting up camps of security forces in Bastar, particularly in its southern part that comprises Sukma, Bijapur and Dantewada, was likely to be discussed in Shah's meeting in Delhi on Sunday.

Construction of roads and other development works in the strife-torn areas of the state were also likely to be discussed, they said.

Chhattisgarh recorded the highest number of crimes committed by Maoists in 2020, according to the National Crime Records Bureau's (NCRB) annual report released recently.

As per data of the Chhattisgarh police, the Naxal violence has claimed lives of 1,237 security personnel, mostly belonging to paramilitary forces, and 1,615 civilians from 2001 to June this year in the state.

During the same period, bodies of 1,027 Naxals were also recovered following encounters with security forces, while 4,552 ultras surrendered.

The state's eight districts -, Bastar, Kanker, Kondagaon, Narayanpur, Dantewada, Bijapur, Sukma (all in Bastar region) and Rajnandgaon - are among most Naxal-hit districts in the country, and have been battling the menace for over three decades.

After assuming charge as the Union home minister, Shah had for the first time visited the insurgency-hit Bastar division in April this year, after 22 security personnel were killed and 31 others injured in a Maoist ambush along the border of the region's Sukma and Bijapur districts.

Shah had then held a high-level meeting in Jagdalpur on the Left Wing Extremism (LWE) situation with dhief minister Bhupesh Baghel and senior officials of the state police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

In January this year, Baghel had chaired a meeting of unified command here to review the security situation and development works in Naxal-affected areas of the state.

The CM had then said his government's three-pronged strategy of trust, development and security helped in pushing Naxals on the back foot, and success will be achieved in cornering ultras in the coming days.
image
14:05   Diesel price hiked in Delhi, Mumbai; petrol steady
Diesel price on Sunday was hiked by 25 paise per litre -- the second increase in rates after the state-owned oil firms ended a three-week hiatus in rates following international oil prices surging to their highest since 2018.

Price of diesel was hiked to Rs 89.07 per litre in Delhi and to Rs 96.68 in Mumbai, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers.

Petrol price was not changed. It costs Rs 101.19 a litre in Delhi and Rs 107.26 in Mumbai.

State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) had on September 24 resumed daily price revision, ending the pause in rates hit since September 5.

On September 24, diesel rates were hiked by 20 paise a litre. On that day too petrol price had remained unchanged.

Global benchmark Brent crude has risen to USD 77.50 a barrel as crude inventories shrunk from Europe to the US. Oil rates are up 2 per cent for the week and this is the fifth weekly gain.

The price of petrol and diesel in the international market has risen by around USD 6-7 per barrel this month as compared to average prices during August.

But oil companies, which are supposed to revise prices daily in line with the cost, did not change rates for almost three weeks. They have now started to pass on the increase to customers.

Average international crude oil prices had fallen by more than USD 3 per barrel in August as compared to the previous month. This came against the backdrop of mixed economic data from the US and China and mobility restrictions in Asia fuelled by the fast-spreading Delta variant of Covid.

Accordingly, retail prices of petrol and diesel in the Delhi market were reduced by Rs 0.65 a litre and Rs 1.25 per litre by oil marketing companies from July 18 onwards. The last downward revision was on September 5.

Prior to that, the petrol price was increased by Rs 11.44 a litre between May 4 and July 17. Diesel rate had gone up by Rs 9.14 during this period.

The price hike during this period pushed petrol prices above the Rs 100-a-litre mark in more than half of the country, while diesel crossed that level in at least three states.

India is dependent on imports to meet nearly 85 per cent of its oil needs and so benchmarks local fuel rates to international oil prices.
image
13:35   Modi greets Dr Manmohan Singh on his 89th birthday
Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted his predecessor Manmohan Singh on his birthday on Sunday, wishing him a long and healthy life.

Singh, who headed the UPA coalition government between 2004 and 2014, turned 89 on Sunday. He is credited with playing a key role in ushering in economic reforms as the finance minister in the P V Narasimha Rao government during 1991-96.

"Birthday greetings to our former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh Ji. I pray for his long life and wonderful health," Modi tweeted. 
ANI Photo/Twitter
ANI Photo/Twitter
13:30   After 65-hour stay in US, Modi returns to India
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-day trip to the United States was packed with meetings as he attended 20 of them during the around 65 hours he spent in the country, government sources said on Sunday.

He also had four long meetings in flights with officials on the way to and back from the US, they added.

Sharing details, sources said Modi had two meetings in flight on Wednesday on the way to the US and three in the hotel upon his arrival.

On September 23, he had five meetings with as many CEOs followed by talks with US Vice President Kamala Harris and bilateral interactions with his Japanese and Australian counterparts Yoshihide Suga and Scott Morrison respectively. He also chaired three internal meetings.

He had a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden the next day and then attended the Quad meet. Sources said Modi also held four internal meetings on September 24.

As Modi left the US for India on September 25, he held two meetings in the flight back, sources said.

The prime minister is known to keep a busy schedule on his overseas trips, packing his stay with important meetings.
image
12:47   Amit Shah reviews meeting of 'Left-Wing Extremism' affected states, Baghel stays away
A review meeting on 'Left-Wing extremism' under the chairmanship of Union home minister Amit Shah has commenced at Vigyan Bhawan in Delhi on Sunday.

Chief ministers of several Naxal-hit states including, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan are present at the meeting. However, Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel is not attending the meeting, sources said.

The state is being represented by Chhattisgarh Chief Secretary Amitabh Jain and Director General of Police (DGP) DM Awasthi.

Chief Ministers or their representatives would be apprising the Union Home Minister about the current situation in their states and the progress of developmental projects.

According to sources, the meeting is being convened to discuss the Naxal affected areas and their problems.

The Union Home Minister will also review the ongoing operations against in Naxal-affected states.
Representational pic
Representational pic
12:24   2 terrorists killed in J-K's Bandipora encounter
Two unidentified terrorists were Sunday killed in an encounter with security forces in Bandipora district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Watrina area of Bandipora in north Kashmir following inputs about the presence of terrorists there, a police official said.

He said the search operation turned into an encounter after the terrorists fired upon the forces, who retaliated.

"In the ensuing encounter, two unidentified terrorists were killed," the official said.

He said incriminating material, including arms and ammunition, was recovered from the site of the encounter.

The search operation is on in the area, he added.
image
12:03   Tisca Chopra's Instagram account hacked, cautions her followers
Actor Tisca Chopra on Sunday said her Instagram account has been hacked and asked her followers to not respond to any suspicious links sent from her page.

The 47-year-old actor took to Instagram and posted a note informing that many of her pictures and videos have been "deleted".

Chopra said she has filed a case with the cyber crime cell and the officials are looking into the matter.

"You guys must know how much I love interacting with you all here on the gram. I love sharing my life, work and fun content with you. Sadly my account has been hacked, a lot of posts deleted and my account messed with.

"The lovely peeps at @instagram along with the cyber crime cell assure me that this will be dealt with very fast.. and with strong consequences for the hacker(s)," she wrote.

The actor, who has more than a million followers on the social media platform, asked her fans to "not click on any links or DMs" from her account.

"Commenting on posts and liking them is safe," she added.

Chopra was last seen on the Disney+Hotstar series Hostages and the 2019 feature Good Newwz.
image
11:41   Celebrate 'river festival': Modi on World River Day
Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people to celebrate the "river festival" on the occasion of "World River Day" on Sunday to connect with the traditions which are associated with rivers for centuries in our country.

Addressing the 81st episode of his monthly radio programme 'Mann Ki Baat', PM Modi said, "We mark so many days, but there is one more day we should celebrate. It is 'World River Day'. This day is such which is very consistent with the traditions of India." He called September an important month, a month when we celebrate World River Day, and said it is a day to remember the contribution of our rivers that selflessly provide us with water.

The Prime Minister said for Indian rivers are not a "physical thing, but a living entity".

"As we celebrate World River Day today, I urge the people across the country to mark a 'river festival' at least once a year," he said.

"In our scriptures, even a little pollution in the rivers is said to be wrong," he said and urged the people to follow the principles of Mahatma Gandhi "who had done the work of making cleanliness a mass movement" and keep the rivers clean.

The radio programme comes after his recently-concluded visit to the United States where he addressed the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
image
11:31   Much to learn from 'fearless', 'brilliant' Dr Manmohan Singh: Rahul on ex-PM's 89th birthday
Senior Congress leaders greeted former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his birthday on Sunday, with former party chief Rahul Gandhi saying he has a great understanding of issues facing the country and there is much to learn from him.

Singh, a Rajya Sabha member and one of the Congress's top leaders, turned 89 on Sunday.

The Congress, on its official Twitter handle, posted, "A visionary. A devoted patriot. A man of his words. Dr Manmohan Singh, you are the leader India truly deserves."

"#HappyBirthdayDrMMS, the Congress party & the entire nation cherishes you & your immense contributions- today & everyday. Thank you for everything you've done," the party tweeted.

The Congress said Singh's unbridled commitment to India's progress -- right from the time of being the finance minister to the prime minister to even today -- has benefitted every Indian to a scale unimaginable.

In a Facebook post, Gandhi said, "Happy birthday to Dr Manmohan Singh ji. He is fearless and brilliant with a great understanding of the issues our country has been facing. There is much to learn from him."

"I wish him good health and happiness," he said.

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, senior leaders Sachin Pilot, Mukul Wasnik, Salman Khurshid, among others, wished Singh on his birthday.

The renowned economist, credited with bringing in sweeping reforms in the 1990s, was prime minister for 10 years until the Congress was defeated by the BJP in the 2014 polls and PM Narendra Modi took power for the first time.
image
10:59   39 inmates of Mumbai jail test Covid positive
In a test conducted by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on 120 people (prisoners and staff) of Byculla Women's Jail, 39 inmates were reported COVID-19 positive.

Over a period of 10 days, 39 inmates were found affected with COVID-19 which includes six children.

According to a BMC official, affected people have been shifted from jail to an isolation camp of a BMC school and their condition is stable.

"A female prisoner, who is pregnant, has been admitted to a nearby municipal hospital. Her condition is also stable but as a precautionary measure, she has been kept under the supervision of doctors," the official stated. -- ANI
image
10:11   India reports 28,326 new Covid cases, 260 deaths
India reports 28,326 new COVID-19 cases, 26,032 recoveries, and 260 deaths in the past 24 hours.

Of  these, 16,671 cases and 120 deaths were reported in Kerala, yesterday.

Active cases: 3,03,476
Total recoveries: 3,29,02,351
Death toll: 4,46,918
Vaccination: 85,60,81,527 (68,42,786 in the last 24 hours)

IMAGE: A beneficiary receives a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination centre in Patna on Saturday. Photograph: Pappi Sharma/ANI Photo
image
09:39   BJP plans grand welcome for Modi after US visit
The Bharatiya Janata Party is set to accord a grand welcome to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital on Sunday after his return from a successful visit to the US.

Prime Minister Modi, who is returning from his three-day landmark visit to the US, will be greeted in the national capital by thousands of his supporters and workers from the party with dhols and nagadas.

To welcome the prime minister, Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta, seven members of the Parliament from Delhi, mayors of three BJP ruled municipal corporations, members of North Delhi Municipal Corporation and senior party functionaries will also be present.

Speaking to ANI, the Delhi BJP president Gupta said that all MPs have been asked to reach the technical area of the airport where a stage has been set up.

"A big stage has been set up for the prime minister to come and accept the welcome from people. The garland to welcome his successful visit is specially curated with flowers from different regions of the country. There would be close to 100 dhols and nagaras from different states to welcome PM Modi," stated Gupta.

A stretch of 1.5 kilometres has been decked up for the prime minister's arrival.

Modi is expected to arrive in the national capital around 10 am today after his visit to the US.

Through the welcome meet, the party aims to thank the prime minister for his successful visit to the US to keep India's strategic and national interest in front of the world.

The prime minister, during his three days visit to the US, held a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden and participated in the first-ever in-person Quad leaders summit after the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also addressed the UNGA during the visit.   -- ANI
image
09:31   Videos of verbal spat between two J-K BJP leaders go viral
A verbal duel broke out between two Bharatiya Janata Party leaders at a party meeting in Srinagar shortly before Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia's arrival on Saturday.

Videos of the verbal spat, some recorded by reporters present at the BJP's office in Jawahar Nagar, went viral on social media.

Minutes before the Union minister's arrival, an argument broke out between BJP leaders Ali Mohammad and Mohammad Ashraf.

The argument became intense and two leaders were stopped by others present there from getting into a fistfight, according to the videos.

Media personnel present at the venue filmed the duel on their smartphones and the videos of the incident were posted on several social media platforms.

A party leader said there was an argument over a non-issue which turned into an altercation, but the other party leaders promptly resolved the matter before the Union minister's arrival.

Scindia addressed party workers at the BJP office.  -- PTI
image
08:30   Cyclone Gulab to hit Bengal coast on Sept 29
The cyclonic storm Gulab is likely to reach the West Bengal coast around September 29, director of India Meteorological Department Kolkata G K Das informed on Saturday.

"South Bengal is likely to have enhanced weather activity particularly in terms of heavy rainfall and wind on September 28-29. Heavy rainfall is expected over Kolkata, North 24 Parganas, East and West Medinipur, Jhargram, Howrah, Hooghly on September 28," Das told ANI.

"A cyclonic circulation is likely to form over the northeast and adjoining the East-central Bay of Bengal. In the subsequent 24 hours, it will be a low-pressure area and likely to reach the West Bengal coast around September 29," he said.

Warnings have been issued in parts of southern Odisha that are likely to be heavily affected by the cyclonic storm Gulab.

Yesterday, the IMD informed that the deep depression over northwest and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal has moved nearly westwards and has intensified into Cyclonic Storm Gulab.

According to the National Disaster Response Force, 13 teams (24 sub-teams) have been deployed in Odisha and five in Andhra Pradesh. -- ANI

TOP STORIES