Infosys chief mentor N R Narayan Murthy and renowned hotelier P R S Oberoi were also conferred with the award. The first man to step on the world's highest peak, Mount Everest, Sir Edmund Hillary was conferred the Padma Vibhushan posthumously.
Taking a tough stance, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday said that Pakistan had been given enough evidence regarding the Mumbai terror attacks and 'Islamabad must act'."We can deal only with the government of the day. Therefore, all arguments which are coming from the other side (Pakistan) are not really convincing," Mukherjee said.
In a statement issued in New Delhi, he said United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi will announce the name of the Congress candidate after consultations with allies and supporting parties.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who arrived in Kabul on Wednesday on a two-day visit, discussed cooperation in the field of security and developmental projects with President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Rangin Dafdar Spanta.
Rubbishing reports that he had made a threatening phone call to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari after Mumbai strikes, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee today regretted Islamabad giving credibility to a "hoax" call and said it was a bid to divert attention from the fact that Pakistani elements had launched "attack on India".
"The Narendra Modi government has not properly utilised funds for the construction of roads under the Gramya Sadak Yojna and the National Employment Guarantee Scheme," Mukherjee said. Speaking to reporters, Mukherjee said that though the Centre had allocated funds to Gujarat for the construction of 1,100 kms of roads under the Yojana, only 179 km roads had been laid.
Ridiculing the Left for opposing the Indo-US nuclear deal, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday said the parties were suffering from 'Americaphobia just like some people have hydrophobia.' "They have Americaphobia, just like some people have hydrophobia. They may have it, but they must understand that the the US is technologically advanced and we need that advanced technology," Mukherjee told a seminar in Kolkata on the N-deal.
Congress sources have told rediff.com that Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram or External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will replace Shivraj Patil, who resigned on Sunday, as home minister. The announcement is likely to be made in the next couple of hours after the all-party meeting called to discuss the Mumbai terror attacks.
Russia enjoys a very unique place in India's foreign relations with their strategic partnership covering the entire spectrum of the bilateral cooperation, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Moscow.
'If they do not have this minimum self-respect, I can only feel sympathy for them. I was quoting President Bush about the Hyde Act, the Leader of the Opposition was quoting the under secretary of the US administration. What can I do?' External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on the NSG waiver, the Chinese stand and the domestic opposition to the nuclear deal.
Mukherjee said he was well and hoped to be back at work after 48 hours.
China illegally claims approximately 90,000 square kilometres of Indian territory including Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Wednesday.
"There is a need to sustain foreign trade, revive foreign investments and generate domestic demand in order to maintain our growth rates," said External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is also holding the finance portfolio. Boosting the economy was also necessary to "uplift multitudes living below the poverty line." Noting that India cannot remain immune to global crisis, he said, "India faces special challenges from the international financial crisis."
The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has said it is satisfied with the positive dialogue its delegation had with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and hoped it will pave the way for early tripartite talks on the Gorkhaland issue."We are expecting tripartite talks on the Gorkhaland issue soon as the dialogue with Mukherjee was positive," GJM press secretary Benoy Tamang said.
The dialogue is intended to enhance all-round cooperation and contribute to greater regional peace and stability.
The essential dispute is over China's refusal to acknowledge the McMohan Line as the border between the two nations, and staking claim to large tracts of land as a contiguous part of Tibet.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday called for close cooperation between India and Bangladesh for building mutual trust to combat the threat of terrorism.
The visiting Indian minister also met his Sri Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday briefed his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the Indo-US nuclear deal and raised the issues of delay in the delivery of Gorshkov aircraft carrier.
Their parleys, which staved off a breakdown between the Left and the ruling coalition for the time being, followed a series of meetings between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, United Progressive Alliance chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi and top leaders of the party till late Thursday night.
Elements in Pakistan responsible for Mumbai attacks according to preliminary information with us, says External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to talk to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday on the Mumbai attacks, Mukherjee added.
PM taken out of ICU, likely to attend the last day of the Parliament session.
India-China ties have developed rapidly and the exchanges of high-level visits have forcefully promoted bilateral ties and cooperation for mutual benefit, said Pranab Mukherjee. He met his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi over the weekend in New York.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee arrived in Harbin early on Wednesday for the third standalone meeting of the foreign ministers of India-Russia-China scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
Communist Party of India Marxist General Secretary Prakash Karat on Wednesday met External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in an effort to break the logjam over the India-United States nuclear agreement.Karat went to Mukherjee's residence early in the morning to hold discussions on the issue that has created a stand-off between the government and the Left allies.The meeting assumes significance as it comes hours ahead of the crucial UPA-Left committee meeting.
In a stern warning to Pakistan, India on Wednesday said it was 'determined to take strongest' possible steps to ensure that there is no repetition of incidents like the Mumbai terror attacks.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday held discussions with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and National Security Adviser M K Narayanan on the deliberations in the Nuclear Suppliers Group where a consensus on a waiver for India is still elusive.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee met Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha L K Advani on Wednesday amidst speculations that the present monsoon session may be curtailed.
The Mumbai attacks came up for discussion when UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday, with the Indian side apprising him about Pakistani linkages to the terror strikes and urging him to press Islamabad to cooperate.
Terrorism, trade and port transit issues are likely to dominate the bilateral talks as External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee becomes the first high-level Indian dignitary to visit Bangladesh since the assumption of office by Sheikh Hasina.
During the two-day visit, Mukherjee will meet President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama and discuss the latest situation in the northern part of the island nation, sources said. Mukherjee is expected to impress upon Rajapaksa government the need for finding a political solution to the ethnic problem to ensure lasting peace.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee met Communist Party of India - Marxist General Secretary Prakash Karat on Tuesday to discuss the India-United States civilian nuclear agreement. Mukherjee asked the Left Front to allow the United Progressive Alliance government to go ahead with the safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The US has shared with Pakistan "strong evidence" about involvement of Lashkar-e-Tayiba in the Mumbai attacks, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Thursday and asked Islamabad to hand over the perpetrators for which an extradition treaty is not required.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee was re-nominated on Sunday by the Congress from the Jangipur seat in West Bengal for the coming Lok Sabha polls
Kasuri will call on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday evening.
The minister handed over to Sichuan Province Vice Governor Huang Xiaoxiang the supplies brought by an Indian Air Force aircraft to Chengdu as part of the $5 million aid announced by India. Huang said the provincial government and the people were grateful to India for offering help during difficult times, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Mukherjee, who held the External Affairs portfolio in the P V Narasimha Rao government till May 1996, said he was happy to be back.
Earlier, the minister visited the site of the Indian National Army memorial and described it as a "poignant moment".
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met in New York and reviewed bilateral relations across "a gamut of items of cooperation." "It was a "good meeting," Rice said.
Leader of the Opposition Lal Kishenchand Advani raised the issue of the Chinese envoy's remark.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances