Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge vowed to fight for the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, asserting that he would remain active in politics until Prime Minister Narendra Modi is ousted from power.
Opposition parties in India have demanded the resignation of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw after a stampede at New Delhi railway station killed 18 people. They blamed the government for "gross mismanagement" and accused them of "covering up" the death toll. The stampede occurred on Saturday night as passengers rushed to board trains for the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj. The Congress, the Left, Trinamool Congress, and the Rashtriya Janata Dal have all criticized the government's handling of the situation, while BJP leaders have defended the government. The incident has highlighted the failure of the Railways and the government to make adequate arrangements for the large number of devotees travelling to Prayagraj.
'Investors are now getting clarity on policies.'
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday said the address of the President to the two Houses was similar to the one made last year, and claimed that it was the same 'laundry list' of things the government has done.
Though the NDA government had been trying to privatise 20 companies, a decision for which was taken in 2017, and included national carrier Air India, the investor community evinced little enthusiasm for any of them. Now, with an in-principle approval for privatisation of BPCL, CCI and SCI, the government has taken the plunge again.
The price of the Indian basket of crude oil jumped as much as 78 per cent to cross $50 a barrel last week, from a multi-year low of $28 in January.
A government that confuses PowerPoints for policy is delaying structural change too much.
'Just last month alone, 28 Indians have been killed in lynchings'
The Finance Ministry's annual report has revealed that the US Agency for International Development (USAID) funded seven projects worth USD 750 million in India during the 2023-24 fiscal year. The projects, implemented in partnership with the Indian government, cover areas like agriculture and food security, water and sanitation, renewable energy, disaster management, health, sustainable forests, and climate adaptation. This disclosure comes amidst controversy over USAID's alleged role in influencing Indian elections, with claims that the agency allocated USD 21 million to India for 'voter turnout'. However, the report clarifies that no funds were dedicated to enhancing voter turnout.
As many as 37 ministers have been dropped from the government in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third term and these include seven with cabinet rank -- prominent among them being Smriti Irani, Anurag Thakur and Narayan Rane.
There is talk of a fresh approach to a new labour code as well as reforming land acquisition laws in such a way as to be politically.
Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar on Monday trained her guns on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and slammed his government for "committing excesses" on tribals, who have lost their land to the Sardar Sarovar Project in the state.
According to new proposal for amendements in the labour law, a worker will be allowed to object to being laid off within three years, against no clear period specified in the law now.
'It has taken 7-and-a-half years for this government to understand the fundamentals of economics.' 'If the prime minister wants to leave an imprint, he has to see to it that this succeeds.'
'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'
Ushering in reforms, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed to open up the nuclear power sector for private players and announced a Rs 20,000 crore Nuclear Energy Mission for research in the field, with an aim to set up five small and modular reactors by 2033.
A panel will examine the merits and demerits of various dates for the commencement of the financial year.
Any NGO critical of the government is unlikely to receive a green signal. The new amendment will leave NGOs vulnerable to harassment. It was the NGO sector that helped provide compassion and food to millions of people during the lockdown. The new Bill will render such cooperation and camaraderie impossible in future, observes Rashme Sehgal.
'The Union government does not have much of a governance function other than to send orders.' 'But even the sending down of orders it cannot do properly,' observes Aakar Patel.
The lawyer defending the Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team, which gave a clean chit to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 post-Godhra riots case on the complaint by Zakia Jafri, Friday said that "her complaint contains nothing but all irrelevant things".
Although there is no context to the picture, many on social media implied that the picture was posted to win back Modi fans after his previous post (now deleted but retweeted several times) where he raised his concern to Prime Minister Narendra D Modi questioning him over the loss of money in the share market, did not go well with some of them.
The government has neither the mental model nor the political courage to effect real change, point out Ashoka Mody & Michael Walton.
The Devendra Fadnavis-led ministry in Maharashtra has successfully passed a trust vote in the state assembly, securing a commanding majority of 230 seats in the 288-member house. The BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP 'Mahayuti' coalition, with a majority mark of 144, had a comfortable win with the support of smaller parties and independent MLAs. The trust motion was tabled by Shiv Sena MLA Uday Samant and others, and was passed by a voice vote. The 15th legislative assembly began its tenure on December 7, and the floor test was considered a mere formality. Fadnavis was sworn in as the chief minister for the third time on December 5, with Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar as deputy chief ministers.
'The government has used the current macro situation to its advantage.'
A tensions escalated with fresh ceasefire violations by Pakistan, the Congress on Saturday said India's Pakistan policy under Narendra Modi dispensation has become an "international joke".
President Droupadi Murmu addressed both Houses of Parliament, highlighting the government's achievements in various sectors, including economic growth, social welfare, and infrastructure development. She emphasized the government's efforts to lift the economy out of "policy paralysis" and create a more inclusive society. Murmu also acknowledged the challenges posed by digital fraud and cybercrime and stressed the need for a social infrastructure revolution. The President's speech is considered a policy statement, outlining the government's vision and roadmap for the future.
It is odd how governments don't learn from their predecessors' mistakes, says T N Ninan.
In a big win for the Narendra Modi government, the Supreme Court in a 4:1 majority verdict on Monday gave its stamp of approval to the Centre's 2016 decision to demonetise the Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denomination currency notes, saying the decision-making process was neither flawed nor hasty.
The price at which mills buy sugarcane is fixed by the Uttar Pradesh government.
The government plans to raise resources to finance capital spending beyond the Rs 3.10 lakh crore budgeted for 2017-18 through higher borrowing or divestment receipts.
India and China have implemented a pact on patrolling in Depsang and Demchok along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, as per agreed modalities and timelines. The agreement was reached on October 21 and includes provisions for disengagement and patrolling in the last two friction points in the region. The pact has been effected and implemented as agreed, with both sides resuming patrolling activities and grazing, where applicable, as per longstanding practice before the friction began. The terms of the disengagement agreements reached prior to the latest pact continue to hold in relevant areas in eastern Ladakh. The agreement applies mutually to both sides and is without prejudice to India's positions on the LAC or boundary lines. India and China are each carrying out one round of patrolling in Depsang and Demchok, but they have maintained their deployment of troops along the LAC. The focus now is on de-escalation of the overall situation. The agreement was endorsed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in a meeting in Kazan, Russia, signaling attempts to normalize ties.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the government will extend for five years the free ration scheme, Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, covering 80 crore poor people.
Banerjee said the prime minister will now have to move around the country and also abroad with two crutches.
Ashoka Univeristy associate professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad has been arrested for his social media post on Operation Sindoor, police said in Sonipat on Sunday.
Adani Group said it was only an operator of the coal mine, which was allocated to Rajasthan government when Congress was in power both at the Centre and the state and Ramesh as environment minister had given the forest clearance.
Sensex up just 6.5% while the best returns were during Manmohan Singh, with the Sensex soaring nearly 167.5%.
He described the contagious disease as a "huge problem" and said ignoring it was a "non-solution".
There is a need for tax reforms in the country in a bolder way, Singh said.
About 78 per cent respondents said they were also satisfied with the steps taken by their own state government, according to the findings of the survey.
The Gujarat government on Wednesday said it has not accepted the resignation of fake encounter cases accused Indian Police Service officer D G Vanzara, who quit after indicting Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
