Former Kerala Chief Minister and veteran CPI(M) leader V S Achuthanandan, a key figure in Kerala's political history, died on Monday at the age of 101. He was a founding member of the CPI(M) and served as Chief Minister from 2006 to 2011.
Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi was today given additional charge of ministries of science and technology, earth sciences and micro, small and medium enterprises following ill health of Vilasrao Deshmukh.
Many Congress leaders from Andhra Pradesh are up in arms against Union Minister Vayalar Ravi for being rude to them when the Telangana statehood was raised.
Ahead of seven Congress MPs from the Telangana region threatening to quit their posts, Union overseas affairs minister and senior Congress leader Vayalar Ravi has summoned them to New Delhi for a fresh round talks on the issue.
Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi and India's Ambassador to Liberia Shamma Jain have been injured in a minor car accident in Liberia on Thursday, Minister for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor has said..
"If they say that my son should not enter Guruvayur temple, it is not correct. It is not a good approach. Let the people say," Ravi, whose wife is a Christian, told reporters on the sidelines of a function in Kochi.
Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi, who met with an accident in Liberia, will be airlifted to Chennai for further treatment.
'We are not corrupt like the CPM and BJP. The BJP is thoroughly corrupt but somehow you don't write about the BJP and CPM.' Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi speaks out.
Deshmukh, who is Science and Technology Minister, was given additional charge of the Ministry immediately after Virbhadra Singh resigned in the wake of a Himachal Pradesh court framing corruption charges against him in a 23-year-old case in June, this year.
The great literary figure of Malayalam and Jnanpith Award winner M T Vasudevan Nair, who had been undergoing treatment at a private hospital here following heart failure, has died, hospital sources said on Wednesday.
Vayalar Ravi on Tuesday became the fifth person to assume charge as minister for science and technology in three years since United Progressive Alliance returned to power in 2009.
Minister of Overseas Affairs Vayalar Ravi is out of danger after a car accident in Liberia on Thursday, the Indian High Commissioner in Abuja said, even as his visit to Nigeria has been cancelled.
Veteran Communist leader and former chief minister V S Achuthanandan, one of the most popular and crowd-puller leaders in the history of the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist in the state, turned 100 on Friday.
The 79-year old leader, who served as the chief minister of Kerala twice, breathed his last in a private hospital in Bengaluru at 4.25 am. His end came while undergoing treatment for cancer, party sources said.
'Oommen Chandy always had time for his people and valued their voices.' 'There was no rest for him as long as the betterment of his fellow citizens was at stake.' Ambassador Venu Rajamony, who knew the former Kerala chief minister for half a century, salutes a beloved leader who worked tirelessly for the welfare of its people.
Veteran Communist leader and former Chief Minister of Kerala, V S Achuthanandan turned 98 on Wednesday.
Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said the demands of the striking Air India employees could not be accepted.
CPI-M veteran Pinarayi Vijayan, who led the Left Democratic Front (LDF) to an unprecedented consecutive victory in the April 6 assembly polls, on Thursday took oath as chief minister of Kerala for the second time along with 20 ministers.
A roundup of what's happening down South.
'There seems to be a general ignorance of the laws among the lawmakers, Hindu and non-Hindu devotees.'
'Rahul Gandhi wants a group under the name 'new generation'. But look at the people who surround him.'
Mohanlal's Koothara, Anoop Menon's Angry Babies and Indrajith's Naku Penta Naku Taka will release this week.
The young couple got married in Chennai on December 22.
India can diplomatically 'do something' in the alleged child abuse case involving an Indian couple in Norway, Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi said on Monday.
Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag is among the 15 persons and organisations selected for the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awards for this year.
Giving a platform to Keralites in the Gulf to air their grievances, an exclusive session on Non-Resident Indians in that region was held as the 11th Pravasi Divas began in Kochi on Monday.
President Pranab Mukherjee hosted an iftar reception on Friday evening at Rashtrapati Bhavan which was attended among others by Vice-President Hamid Ansari and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.
All those in the Union council of ministers with two portfolios are likely to lose at least one and major administrative changes are expected in a Cabinet reshuffle due on October 28 or 29 on the return of President Pranab Mukherjee from Durga Puja celebrations in West Bengal.
The police on Friday arrested two more people for their alleged involvement in blasts outside the Bharatiya Janata Party's office in the city. Vayalar Hakim and Azghar Ali, who were picked up by the Tamil Nadu police, hail from Coimbatore.
Despite Union Minister for Overseas Indians Vayalar Ravi's intervention, the fate of 29 Indian fishermen, who have been languishing in Iran since October 10 last year, remains uncertain.
The issue of Telangana assumes importance as Andhra Pradesh is the only major state where the party is in power on its own. A spectacular victory in Andhra Pradesh in 2004 and 2009 has helped Congress to come to power at the Centre in 2004 and 2009.
The minister gave an example of how in Kochi, the commercial capital of Kerala, there are shopping complexes and retail stores, but the blooming of such stores had no negative impact on the farmers and traders.
As the tragic death of Indian dentist Savita Halappanavar in Ireland continues to evoke outrage world wide, Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi Sunday said the inquiry ordered by the Irish government should be 'transparent and fair'.
Union Minister Vayalar Ravi on Thursday apologised for his sexist remarks against a woman journalist when he was asked about Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson P J Kurien's role in Suryanelli gang-rape case.
Congress on Friday said consultation process with regard to separate Telangana demand is on at various levels, but refused to set any time-frame for arriving at a decision.
When Mammootty -- one of the superstars of the Malayalam film industry -- took to the dais to talk about how India could use its soft power to its advantage, a sell-out crowd was a certainty.
The Telangana Joint Action Committee which was to complete their protest march at 7 pm on Sunday decided to stay put on Necklace Road in Hyderabad until there was a decision on separate statehood.
The meeting assumes significance as Swedish furniture retailer IKEA, which plans to invest Rs 10,500 crore (Rs 105 billion) to set up its own stores in India, had sought relaxation in certain conditions related to the mandatory 30 per cent sourcing from micro and small enterprises.
Several Congress ministers have reportedly said that they want to be relieved of their ministerial berths. These include Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh, Law Minister Salman Khurshid, Overseas Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi and Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi stated that the focus areas of the PBD in Mauritius would be to deliberate ways and means of further strengthening economic engagement, role of youth in maintaining the vital PIO links and cultural heritage as well as look at mutual areas of exploration where Mauritius could serve as a gateway for doing business with Africa.
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