The government wants to complete the operations rapidly, including the actual counting of people, by February next year, reports Subhomoy Bhattacharjee.
This is the seventh consecutive day that COVID-19 cases have increased by more than 50,000.
The recovery rate among COVID-19 patients was recorded at 64.53 per cent, while the fatality rate further dropped to 2.15 per cent, the data stated.
With this latest spike, the total cases in the country stand at 16,38,871.
The recovery rate among COVID-19 patients was recorded at 64.44 per cent, while the fatality rate was at 2.21 per cent.
The MoD did not reveal the number of missiles procured through the latest contract.
However, this information was inadvertently revealed through an official MoD photograph that accompanied the announcement.
Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Punjab, Manipur and Telangana report the most wastage.
Hidden in the fine print of the information dished out by the Election Commission of India is the fact that the 2009 general elections is not a 5-phase one as is generally reported but a 6-phase one
The notification for the Congress president's election will be out on September 22 by when all the PCC delegates will be finalised and electoral roll published and the election, if required, will be held on October 17.
Shivraj Patil will visit AP, TN and Andaman and Nicobar islands, while Mani Shankar Aiyar and Dayanidhi Maran will go to TN.
"Our armed forces represent India's diversity and the collective spirit of 130 crore Indians. Our forces are not only known for their utmost professionalism but also they are at the forefront helping people in times of crisis. Our forces are synonymous with trust," Modi said.
Bitten by the travel bug? Here's where you should be heading to. Now!
The death toll from the pathogen climbed to 95,542 with 1,039 more deaths. There are 9,62,640 active cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), comprising 15.85 per cent of the caseload, according to the ministry data.
This map shows the districts of India with their encroachment levels.
The total coronavirus cases mounted to 40,23,179, while the death toll climbed to 69,561 with 1,089 people succumbing to the disease in a span of 24 hours, data updated at 8 am showed.
There are 8,15,538 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country.
The total coronavirus cases rose to 35,42,733, while the death toll climbed to 63,498 with 948 people succumbing to the disease in a span of 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am showed.
Indian authorities continue to distinguish domestic from foreign travellers.
'Wanting to see the bright side of things, we always told ourselves, 'It could have been worse!', when the situation got tough.' Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd), who helped rebuild the IAF's Car Nicobar air base after the 2004 tsunami, recalls the devastation on United Nations World Tsunami Awareness Day.
With 1,73,195 cases, Maharashtra has the highest number of active cases.
The recovery rate among COVID-19 patients has risen to 66.31 per cent.
Six teams of the National Disaster Response Force have been kept ready at Chennai and an equal number have been moved to the Hindon airport to deal with any eventuality in the wake of Wednesday's massive temblors off the western coast of northern Sumatra in Indonesia. A home ministry spokesperson said the Andaman administration has moved people from Nicobar side to safer areas as a precautionary measure.
The Union cabinet has given its nod for the revision of salary and allowances of lieutenant governors of Union Territories and it will be on a par with that of the secretary to the government of India, an official statement said.
The ministries of defence, civil aviation and shipping and the three services of the armed forces will coordinate the operations with Chennai being the main hub.
Rediff readers share their best travel photographs of India.
Rediff readers shared these pictures from their travels.
Ten states including Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Kerala and Punjab have shown a steep rise in the daily COVID-19 cases accounting for 84.21 per cent of the 1,26,789 new infections, the health ministry said on Thursday.
Replying to a question in Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Mullappally Ramachandran said that an officer has been designated as Nodal officer in-charge to monitor all activities on a day-to-day basis on the Andaman Trunk Road passing through the Jarawa Reserve.
The administration's attempts to explain that there was no scientific basis to the fear fell on deaf ears.
3 teams have already been dispatched to Port Blair and have started identifiying representatives of various voluntary agencies there who can be trained, said NIMHANS
The Sports Ministry is set to establish 1000 Khelo India Centres (KIC) at the district level across the country with the help of sporting champions, who will be remunerated for providing their expertise. The centres will either be run by a past champion or have them as a coach.
The highest number of vaccines were administered in UP at 21,291 followed by Andhra Pradesh at 18,412, Maharashtra at 18,328, Bihar at 18,169, Odisha at 13,746, Karnataka at 13,594, Gujarat at 10,787, Rajasthan at 9,279, West Bengal at 9,730, Madhya Pradesh at 9,219, Kerala at 8,062.
Gujarat and Karnataka have been ranked as the best performers in developing startup ecosystem for budding entrepreneurs, according to the ranking of states and Union territories by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). Among smaller states having population of less than one crore, Meghalaya has been adjudged as the best performer. The rankings are based on the initiatives taken to develop the startup ecosystem for promoting budding entrepreneurs.
India is the third worst-hit nation by the pandemic after the US and Brazil in terms of cases and deaths.
Former Union Minister Najma Heptulla was on Wednesday made Governor of Manipur while ex-Rajya Sabha MP V P Singh Badnore goes to Punjab in new gubernatorial appointments announced for four states with all of them being associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party.
This would be the prime minister's sixth round of consultation with the chief ministers, the last being on May 11.
With the addition of two new UTs, its total number will go up to nine -- J&K, Ladakh, Delhi, Puducherry, Diu and Daman, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
"To make sure there isn't a Covid surge in the country, PM Modi has asked us to be careful. The government is also preparing if at the Covid cases increase. Today, mock drills are conducted across Covid hospitals in the country to make sure people get proper treatment," Mandaviya said.
'The Germans acknowledged the Holocaust. I would like to see the British coming to terms with their colonial past and acknowledge the harm they have done,' author Madhusree Mukerjee tells Arthur J Pais.