Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is expected to file on June 28 his nomination papers for the Presidential election.
As Mukherjee prepares to return to North Block after a gap of 24 years -- he was last there in January 1985 -- and becomes the first minister to sit simultaneously in both North and South Block, it is learnt that Mukherjee would be using the North Block office of the finance minister, which till recently had been used by P Chidambaram. He is expected to shuffle between the office of the finance minister and the external affairs minister.
Certification of Election of Pranab Mukherjee as President of India has been handed over to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday.
"The system covering all central government departments and ministries is expected to eliminate almost two crore cheques. When it becomes fully operational in civil ministries, defence and railways, it is expected to cover a total payment of over Rs 6 lakh crore," Pranab said...
Earlier in the day, the White House said that it would be monitoring the progress on the Chinese assurance that it would be making its currency more flexible. It also said that currency, indeed, would be one of the topics of discussions during upcoming G-20 Summit in Toronto.
In a special gesture, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday visited cyclone-ravaged areas in Bangladesh and assured that India will extend all possible assistance to the neighbouring country in their hour of crisis.
The Trinamool Congress on Wednesday accused Pranab Mukherjee of trying to break the party by directly approaching some members of Parliament for their support in the run up to the Presidential poll, a charge denied by the Congress.
The two major changes include: keeping an option open for supplying more than 3 kg of subsidised foodgrains to general households and widening its reach to include lactating women, destitute and aged people and providing nutritious food to children.
In 2017, a retired R&AW officer conveyed that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was keen to get monarchy restored in Nepal and suggested that I support these efforts.
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee arrived in Washington, DC on Monday to participate in the India-US economic partnership dialogue, during which he is expected to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday said Indian markets cannot remain immune to the Eurozone debt problems and will feel the impact if the $1 trillion bailout package by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund does not inspire confidence.
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.
Food inflation for the week ending January 1 slipped to 16.91 per cent from the year's high of 18.32 per cent a year ago during the previous week.
In a move which could further rock the United Progressive Alliance and create fresh fissures at the highest level in the government, union Home Minister P Chidambaram has fired a salvo against Finance Minister Pranab mukherjee on the issue of price rise saying that inflation is the biggest tax which the people have to face.
Backing for Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee got further boost with United Progressive Alliance constituent Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam endorsing his name for the post of President over which the Congress hopes to build a consensus across the political spectrum.
Ahead of crucial Indo-Pak talks, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday said his trip to Pakistan was a 'goodwill visit" and that he is not going with any fixed agenda or "any expectation".
The Rashtrapati Bhavan is looking for fresh graduates from various streams to take up the position of interns. As per a new plan drawn up by President Pranab Mukherjee and implemented by his Secretariat, these graduates can now undergo a three-month internship at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Even undergraduate students are eligible to apply.
Justifying the government's austerity drive, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Tuesday the restrictions on foreign visits and other expenses are aimed at curbing wasteful expenditure and containing fiscal deficit.
He noted that some areas were in adverse possession of Bangladesh.
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
A day after India handed over answers to the 30 questions asked by Pakistan, on the terror attack in Mumbai last November, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday said he expected Islamabad to follow up its commitment with 'tangible action'."Words and commitments should be followed by tangible action," he told reporters when asked whether he was satisfied with Pakistan's handling of the investigation into the Mumbai attacks.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee has arrived in Washington as part of his maiden bilateral visit to the United States, during which the civil nuclear deal is expected to dominate the parleys.Mukherjee is scheduled to meet Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice tomorrow at 8:45 am (6:15 pm IST). The minister will go to the White House in the afternoon to meet President George W Bush as well as National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley.
The finance minister along with his cabinet colleague and Defence Minister A K Antony have been asked by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to submit a report on the scam.
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.
Having declared his party's support for Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential poll, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Saturday described him as a "super power" in Congress and said the Opposition should be happy as with his election, the government will become a "lame duck".
"Soon I will not be a political entity," Pranab Mukherjee remarked hours before he resigns as finance minister to contest Presidential poll, but promised to deliver his "last message" before he bids adieu.
The road to Raisina Hills appears to be smooth for United Progressive Alliance Presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee with the veteran Congress leader assured of support from parties, which have a vote value of at least 6.29 lakh, much above the requisite figure.
Mukherjee had stitches in the head at Bethuadahari Primary Hospital and his condition was stable.
Notwithstanding the clear edge for Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential race, the opposition National Democratic Alliance on Saturday appeared keen on ensuring a contest even if it means supporting P A Sangma in a bid to gain new allies ahead of 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said Indian diplomacy needed to acquire an economic perspective to its thinking and strategic approach, for furthering the country's interests in the changing global order.
The Left parties were on Tuesday subjected to ridicule by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee who suggested that they were not keeping pace with the "moving" world and contended that the UPA would have met its Waterloo if it had followed economic prescription of erstwhile allies.
India and China will hold a new round of negotiations on the vexed border issue which is an area of 'differences and divergences' despite bilateral relations having witnessed 'visible improvement', External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Tuesday. He said both countries have an established mechanism at the level of special representatives to deal with the border issue at the political level. "They have completed 12 rounds of talks," he said.
Agriculture output has been reduced due to adverse impact of shortfall in rain or floods in some parts of the country.
Pranab Mukherjee and P Chidambaram on Thursday sought to put an end to the raging controversy over the finance ministry note on 2G spectrum with the finance minister distancing himself from the statement that sought to blame the home minister.
Shocked and anguished at the rape of a five-year-old girl here, President Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday called for urgent introspection to identify causes behind repeated failure of society to ensure security of women and children.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Monday stepped into the 2G spectrum row that has engulfed the government by meeting Home Minister P Chidambaram and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee amid unconfirmed reports that the former had offered to quit.
The economic environment is a matter of concern but there is no reason to be pessimistic, said President Pranab Mukherjee during his first visit to Chennai.
While noting that 'many unforeseen things happen' in coalition politics, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said, "But the things you have referred to are not unforeseen because the position of Left parties is well known to us."
Russia is a perfect partner for defence co-operation and both countries could exploit opportunities for mutual benefit, Defence minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Saturday.