Facing accusations of delay in placing orders for vaccines, the government on Thursday defended its vaccine procurement policy saying it has been pursuing Pfizer, J&J and Moderna since mid-2020 for the earliest possible imports, and has even waived local trials for well-established foreign vaccine makers.
Just a few weeks ago, Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw did some tough talking with the senior managers of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd, the ailing state-owned telecom service provider. The message was clear: They had to perform, quit by taking the voluntary retirement package or be compulsorily retired from service. The terse message from an otherwise polite and soft-spoken minister came just days after he announced a second and bigger package of Rs 1.64 trillion as part of a four-year turnaround plan for BSNL.
There are clear signs that the party is re-starting its journey to relevance by going back to its core Panthic agenda, on the basis of which it was founded over a century ago, reports Sai Manish.
Addressing the party's national executive, Nadda also reached out to Sikhs, who are in majority in poll-bound Punjab, by listing a number of measures the Modi government has taken for the community, including expediting action against 1984 riots accused, facilitating foreign grants to gurudwaras and keeping langars outside the review of the Goods and Services Tax.
A round-up of Sunday's action in the Premier League.
Dhubri is the worst hit with over 8.72 lakh people affected, followed by Barpeta with more than 4.78 lakh people and Goalpara with around 4.28 lakh population.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who arrived Bahraich on Thursday to meet the families of two farmers killed in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, said by allowing Union minister Ajay Kumar Mishra to continue on the post, the Centre is giving the message that those in power can do anything.
As many as 721,469 appointments were made through the national booking service on Friday -- the day of the announcement -- at an average of more than eight every second. To cope with demand, the NHS said it is using stadiums and football grounds as giant vaccination centres.
What does Udhayanidhi's induction as minister mean? For the DMK, it indicates the future course, direction and leadership. It is continuity with change, and change with continuity, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Congress chief accused Modi of instead posing for cameras and strutting on the Bogibeel bridge on the mighty Brahmaputra river in neighbouring Assam after inaugurating it on Tuesday.
People spent a sleepless night as a series of aftershocks shook Assam after a strong 6.4 magnitude earthquake caused extensive damage to buildings.
With the privatisation of BPCL appearing inevitable, there are worries that the new promoter would soon move to lower wages.
The next 10 images prove that we live in a wonderfully weird world.
'After greeting Prince Charles with a traditional bow, moving away from protocol, I also did a namaste, which HRH reciprocated twice -- once before the award presentation and the second time just before I left him.'
Inundation caused by monsoon rains continued to trouble people here and in other parts of the state, while Chief Minister M K Stalin on Tuesday inspected rain battered areas and distributed assistance to the affected people.
Proactive measures adopted by BMC reduced COVID-19 growth rate to 4.3 per cent in May 2020 & further to 1.02 per cent in June. These measures also ensured an improved case doubling time to 43 days in May 2020 and 78 days in June 2020.
The government will set up a centre of excellence for visual effects and gaming with help from the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay.
Modi said that unlike other parties that believe in keeping people weak so that their dependence on them never ends and their "crown" remains intact, the BJP believes in empowering them and making them independent.
The powerful image of the distraught man, struggling to reach home in Begusarai, almost 1,200 km away during the nationwide lockdown, was widely shared across all media, becoming a defining image of the trauma of lakhs of migrant labourers stranded away from home.
Taking strong exception to former West Bengal chief secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay skipping a meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, government sources on Wednesday said his conduct has made a severe dent to Indian Administrative Service and it could lead to anarchy.
Two more died in the state today. With this, the total number of people losing their lives in this year's flood and landslide has gone up to 115 across the state -- 89 were killed in flood-related incidents and 26 in landslides.
A summary of Saturday's action in the Premier League.
Many villages were cut off as several roads connecting them were inundated.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
The district administration has instructed tourists to postpone their visit to Dharamshala in view of the heavy rains.
Madhya Pradesh minister P C Sharma said the rain-affected roads in the state would be repaired by November 30.
The Indian Navy has a big role to play in support of our strategic objectives in the Indian Ocean. The increasing Chinese presence in the Indian Ocean is a matter of concern and need to be factored. Hence, the requirement of an Aircraft Carrier is a foregone conclusion, asserts Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
With two more deaths, the fatalities due to flood this year has gone up to 18.
Thackeray also claimed that the Maharashtra government is yet to receive a total of around Rs 38,000 crore from the Centre.
The Chinese authorities have been rapidly building defence infrastructure along the Line of Actual Control, indicating that they are preparing for a long period of tension with India, points out Jayadeva Ranade, the former senior RA&W officer and China expert.
'Some are doing one vaccination with one mobile number and the second with another.' 'Creating more accounts will not multiply the number of slots.'
'I urged the chief minister even before she took her oath requesting her to send a tough message to the police and the administration that any violent activity, any destruction of property, any arson, loot in your area, they will be held accountable.' 'Her silence on this speaks volumes.'
'We pulled out 2 ministers from the Union cabinet and then quit the NDA. We also moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government. Yet, the Centre remains unmoved'
Though there was no clear roadmap, the farmers, belonging to multiple groups, including 30 from Punjab, appeared clear in their resolve, some saying that they would not disperse till the laws were repealed and others that would ensure their voices are heard.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Sunday.
Currently, the country is using two 'made-in India' jabs -- Covishield and Covaxin -- to inoculate its billion-plus population and has administered 20 crore doses since launching the world's largest vaccination drive in mid-January. A third vaccine, Russian-made Sputnik V, has been approved by the government and is being used on a smaller scale at present.
We must resist the temptation to look at the absolute numbers being vaccinated, and focus instead on the percentage of the population vaccinated, he said in his letter.
Keep your tweets informative and entertaining such that it stands out from the rest, says Dr Ranjit Nair.
