A meeting chaired by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba reviewed India's preparedness to deal with the virus amid mounting global concern over increasing number of cases in China and several other countries.
Lalu Prasad Yadav weighing in on the cheating scandal, said, "If you can't clear exams, why don't you just fail and retake them till you pass?"
Counting's underway and the fate of the candidates is awaited. As we wait for the results with bated breath, here's how your heavyweights are faring for now.
Lalu said the Centre was trying to 'frame' him and his family in 'false cases' out of political vendetta.
'Pressing sedition charges against students for activism within the campus shows the failure of the administration.'
Defence aircraft as also a couple of civilian ones ferried people to Delhi and Hyderabad since morning even as the Indian air Force flew sorties to bring more people to the naval base that has played a critical role in the overall operations.
'The Modi government must create conditions to integrate millions into the rural economy as many migrants are certainly not going to return to live an undignified life,' notes Ramesh Menon.
According to a study by the medical journal, the Lancet, air pollution has emerged as the deadliest form of pollution and the fourth leading risk factor for premature deaths worldwide.
'They must take the bull of conservatism within their own ranks by its horns as much as they need to speak out against the fallacies of the non-Hindutva (or 'Muslim-friendly') political forces as well,' argues Mohammad Sajjad.
The terror group, which suffered a major blow after the arrest of its founder Yasin Bhatkal, is all set to make a comeback with a 'sticky' bomb usually used to target government officials. Vicky Nanjappa reports
India's Muslims need to assert their educational and economic upliftment and political empowerment rather than be provoked by communal remarks, says Mohammad Sajjad, reflecting on the Malda riot.
'The general idea is to unite all the anti-Modi parties into an alliance, to dent the PM's image as a vote-winner, and then stymie him in Parliament -- particularly in the Rajya Sabha -- in order to ruin his credentials as a reformer,' says T V R Shenoy.
'It is to be fervently hoped that a person as rational and brilliant as Hamid Ansari will not be allowed to wilt and simply wither away.'
'Every parent knows his or her child's potential. The problem is that they are not ready to accept it. They think they can push the child beyond his capacity.'
'I have a high-paying job so there's no monetary reason for the suit.' 'It just hurt so much that I couldn't ignore it anymore.'
A round-up of Ranji matches played on Wednesday
Let Bihar be damned under its contradictions of having gone 'dry' and then having been submerged under flood, which is a recurrent phenomena? After all it is a godforsaken land, having lost its promises of overcoming its problems, says Mohammad Sajjad.
'A class antagonism of rich versus poor took the colouring of a communal confrontation,' says Sunil Sethi.
'The majority of transmission will be via people who are within two metres of one another.' 'The closer you are, the more likely that you'll be infected.'
'The effect of demonetisation has been largely to drive black money above ground. But there are several interesting side-effects. One is the uncomfortable realisation that this can happen again, which is a deterrent to future sinners,' says Rajeev Srinivasan.
Greetings from all quarters, including his political rivals, poured in on Monday for Prime Minister Narendra Modi who celebrated his 68th birthday in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi.
The terror attack on Parliament 12 years ago, on this very day, had evoked nation-wide outrage and botched India's fragile ties with Pakistan further.
'It is the RJD, otherwise known for misgovernance, which has offered a candidate of clean and performing credentials, rather than the NDA,' points out Mohammad Sajjad.
Even the well heeled in metros find it difficult to go completely digital. Cash withdrawals from ATMs are back at the same level as they were before demonetisation
In its bid to grab eyeballs in the regional space, Big Magic rebrands channel, sets up production unit in Patna
Charles 'Biharilal' Thomson, an Australian who speaks fluent Hindi, on how India has bewitched him.
'The attack on Kanhaiya was an attempt to silence his voice and send a warning to all those who are supporting him.'
While Raju and Brijesh Saroj have found help from the Uttar Pradesh government as well as the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Zahid Qureshi is struggling to make ends meet.
'It is very hard to get the police to file a report against someone from an upper caste.' 'Things are so bad that sometimes we have to sit on a dharna with the body of a Dalit victim to get the police to file a complaint.'
Experts believe adoption of AI in developing countries will be much faster than in developed nations, as the magnitude of change it will bring will be far larger.
Shubham Kumar Gautam, son of a farmer and a Super 30 student, recounts how, in a journey laced with perseverance, grit and determination, he achieved what seemed impossible.
The various meat bans across the country are an attempt to attack civil liberties, says civil rights activist Kavita Srivastava.
'Communalism and communal riots happened in India only during and due to colonialism. Pre-colonial India didn't have this problem of communal conflicts and religious strife.'
'On her birthday, I decided to meet her and dressed up for it.' 'Then I saw her walking towards me with a boy. I thought it could be her brother.' 'But when she came close, she asked, "Have you met my boyfriend?"' 'That day I realised the value of sad songs in India.' 'That was the first time I was heartbroken.'
'I have nothing more to lose. My three sons were killed. I am not going to sit silent.'
Rescue and relief operations continued in full swing in Chennai with over a hundred people taken to safety by teams of Army, IAF and NDRF, including a seven-month pregnant woman who was airlifted on Thursday from one of the worst-affected areas in the flooded city.
We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
All international passengers will henceforth be screened at airports, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said at a press conference. Earlier, travellers from only 12 countries were screened at airports for the disease that has claimed over 3,000 lives and infected more than 90,000 worldwide.
'In the name of pluralism-secularism, the kind of politics that was pursued revealed to many that it was basically a favour to Muslim conservatism and communalism -- a politics of minority-ism, rather than of secularism.' 'This is how significant sections of Hindus have been made to loathe the very idea of Indian secularism by now,' says Mohammad Sajjad.
Kota, Rajasthan, is both a beacon for the educationally deprived and a cynical place in which 16-year-olds live in Dickensian boarding houses, while teachers drive Audis.
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