Pranab Mukherjee appears set to be the next President with his candidature announced on Friday by the ruling UPA and endorsed swiftly by supporting parties Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party amid indications that he will gather more support ahead.
Ending months of speculation, the ruling coalition met on Friday evening at the residence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh where its Chairperson Sonia Gandhi put forward the name of the 77-year-old veteran Congressman from West Bengal as its candidate, which was unanimously approved by the leaders of the constituent parties
Corporate Affairs Minister Veerappa Moily on Tuesday lashed out at global credit rating agency Standard and Poor's (S&P) for describing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as "unelected" leader and saying the comment "smacked of politics".
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee declined to attend the dinner being hosted by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on the eve of Presidential elections.
Yesteryear actor Waheeda Rahman, singer S P Balasubrahmanyam, music composer Khayyam, former diplomat Brajesh Mishra and pioneer of the test tube baby in India Indira Hinduja were among a host of distinguished people conferred with the coveted Padma awards in New Delhi on Thursday evening.
Feels assured by FM's promise that givt will consider their demands.
Slamming Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi for stating that poverty was just a "state of mind," Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the Congress leadership and Planning Commission should immediately stop making fun of poverty.
Late cartoonist Mario Miranda, actors Dharmendra and Shabana Azmi, top mathematician M S Raghunathan, former Chief Vigilance Commissioner N Vittal and industry leader B Muthuraman were among those conferred the Padma awards by President Pratibha Patil in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Gandhi was served a notice to vacate the government bungalow allotted to him by April 22
The Congress President says that corporate strategy should have social investments.
The government has assured that all suggestions such as raising the land ceiling limit for the waiver will be considered. The loan waiver scheme would also cover all agricultural loans disbursed by private scheduled commercial banks as well. Congress MP Mohsina Kidwai wanted to know whether the government would raise the land ceiling for the waiver to farmers from the existing limit and whether it would come out with a package for the farmers to pay off money lender loans.
The new Hyderabad international airport, which was inaugurated by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on March 14, will become operational from March 23. The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamsabad near Hyderabad was to become operational on March 16. However, the process was delayed due to "operational" reasons including shifting of equipments from the old Hyderabad airport, which will be closed down for commercial operations.
With UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi pushing for increased wages for labourers, the government on Thursday came out with a new structure for payment of wages under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) that will be linked to inflation.
Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck will be the chief guest at India's Republic Day parade this year. An official release stated that the King and Queen of Bhutan will pay a state visit to India from January 23 to 30. The King has been invited by President Pranab Mukherjee.
In a telephonic talk with DMK parliamentary party leader and Union Minister T R Baalu on Sunday night, Sonia said, "Let us continue to concentrate on pubic service without being cowed down by such threats."
The mortal remains of Assamese litterateur Indira Raisom Goswami were consigned to flames in Guwahati on Wednesday with full state honours.
National Advisory Committee-pushed plan might be part of Budget 2013-14.
Hours after United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, accompanied by her son Rahul Gandhi, started their five-day China visit, the Bhartiya Janata Party slammed the Communist country for staking its claim over Arunachal Pradesh. Addressing newsmen at the party headquarters, BJP leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy accused the Chinese of infiltrating the Arunachal Pradesh border 140 times and encroaching on 40,000 sq kilometers of land.
A stalemate continued over the BHEL disinvestment issue with Left parties ruling out any dilution of their opposition to it, after their meeting with United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday on a visit to India after a gap of nearly four decades as part of New Delhi's ongoing engagement with democratic and multi-party polity in that country.
After nearly a gap of 40 years, Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi will travel to India on November 13 at the invitation of United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh summoned Governor of Andhra Pradesh ESL Narasimhan to New Delhi on Saturday to discuss the political situation in Andhra Pradesh, including the ongoing agitation on Telangana.
210 millionth Aadhaar number to be handed over UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi to also be present.
Even as the deadline set by agitating All Bodo Students' Union and All-Koch-Rajbongshi Students' Union for announcement of dates for tripartite talks by the Centre over their demand for separate state almost comes to an end, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi to apprise them of the situation back home.
Sonia Gandhi was on Saturday re-elected chairperson of Congress Parliamentary Party and asked party men not to bicker in public amid a fierce blame game in the party over its worst electoral defeat which has seen Team Rahul Gandhi coming under attack from a number of leaders.
Trinamool Congress sources on Wednesday claimed the Congress delayed the talks and made unreasonable demands on seat-sharing without acknowledging the ground reality.
Sushilkumar Shinde on Wednesday assumed charge as the new home minister and promised to work closely with the states in dealing with internal security challenges and contentious issues like setting up of National Counterterrorism Centre.
EPS' acceptance of Amit Shah's proposal for an electoral alliance with the BJP is being interpreted to mean how the AIADMK has signed up the NDA national leader as a junior partner. Not many have appreciated EPS for this strategic move that has now forced the BJP to play second fiddle to the AIADMK. This has meant that the BJP has buried its ambitions of capturing power in Tamil Nadu now, and is willing to wait until after the 2029 Lok Sabha polls, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Scripting a new chapter in his illustrious career, Pranab Mukherjee will on Wednesday take over as India's 13th President. Watch the momentous ceremony LIVE on rediff.com
Scripting a new chapter in his illustrious career, Pranab Mukherjee will on Wednesday take over as India's 13th President.
The NCP on Friday sought to push the Congress leadership into a corner with its two senior leaders Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel believed to have resigned from the Union cabinet aggrieved over a variety of issues including no 2 slot for Pawar and Congress' treatment of its allies.
An amused former Air Force chief of Pakistan Tanvir Mahmood Ahmed on Sunday reacted with surprise over appearance of his photograph in an Indian government advertisement along with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh but described it as an "innocent mistake".
Incumbent Hamid Ansari is the United Progressive Alliance's candidate for the Vice President's post and he is all set to get a second consecutive term.
He drew the roadmap of India's economic reform, unshackled it from the licence raj and pulled it back from the brink when even its gold reserve was pledged.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Home Minister Shivraj Patil arrived in Purnea in Bihar on Thursday for a visit to the flood-hit districts. Dr Singh, Gandhi and Patil will undertake an aerial survey of the flood-affected districts in an Indian Air Force helicopter.Dr Singh is scheduled to review the relief and rescue measures at a high-level meeting with senior officials of the state government, before returning to Delhi.
In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh, the activists expressed concerns over the negative impact of the project.
Called 'Swabhiman', the programme, to be launched by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, was to be introduced earlier, but put off twice.
United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to implement the commitments made by the previous Congress-led government to Seemandhra, which include grant of special category status to it and execution of Polavaram multi-purpose irrigation project.
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