Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday approved the interim general budget which will be presented in the Lok Sabha by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday. Singh went through the interim budget related papers and after formally signing them, forwarded them to President Pratibha Patil, a Prime Minister's Office spokesman said."The Prime Minister also approved the interim budget speech," the spokesman added.
Leader of Opposition L K Advani on Sunday turned 83 with President Pratibha Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh being among the first to wish him on the occasion.
President Pratibha Patil cancelled the appointment of P J Thomas on Monday as Central Vigilance Commissioner, 11 days after the Supreme Court quashed his selection by a high-power committee headed by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.
The Samajwadi Party on Tuesday said it would give a fresh letter of support for the government to President Pratibha Patil on Wednesday.
Fifty-seven-year-old Kamat, a five-time MP from Mumbai, who held the portfolio of Minister of State for Home and Communications, wrote to the Prime Minister soon after Tuesday's reshuffle, saying that he wanted to be relieved of his ministerial responsibility.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi was on Sunday greeted by a host of dignitaries, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on her 62nd birthday.
Sports Minister M S Gill on Thursday flayed the 'casualness' of India's cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh for skipping the Padma Shri awards function and said the Ministry would soon issue a circular to ensure sportspersons treat national awards with utmost respect. Dhoni and Harbhajan were conspicuous by their absence at the Rashtrapati Bhavan ceremony, where they were expected to receive the award from President Pratibha Patil.
The Election Commission is unlikely to press further against Law Minister Salman Khurshid after he expressed regret over his comments which were seen as "defiance" of the poll body and led to complaint against him to President Pratibha Patil.
President Pratibha Patil on Wednesday unfurled a national flag being touted as the tallest in the country at famous holy Brahamsarovar area of Kurukshetra.
Union Steel minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife have been booked in a two-year- old corruption case by the Himachal Pradesh vigilance bureau, triggering an angry response from the veteran Congress leader who saw it as an act of political vendetta by the Bharatiya Janata Party regime.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday briefed President Pratibha Patil on the situation in Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of the Amarnath land row. During the 45-minute meeting, Dr Singh apprised her of the steps taken by the Centre to restore normalcy in the state, official sources said.
President Pratibha Patil, Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and several other leaders greeted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who turned 75 on Wednesday.
According to a senior source in the Intelligence Bureau, when a minor blast occurred outside the Delhi high court on May 25, an intelligence input was received that a Sikh militant group may try to do something in New Delhi to bring attention to Professor Davinderpal Singh Bhullar's mercy please before President Pratibha Patil.
Ram Jethmalani, Hema Malini, Dara Singh and four other nominated members of the Rajya Sabha will complete their term on August 26, enabling the United Progressive Alliance government to get own choice of persons of eminence nominated by President Pratibha Patil.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday called on President Pratibha Patil and briefed her about the consensus resolution passed in Parliament on Lokpal Bill.
After having prioritised the United Progressive Alliance government's programmes for its second term, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is asking his ministerial colleagues to stick to the agenda listed for the first 100 days in office.Dr Singh is writing a letter to his colleagues in the Union Council of Ministers to focus on the priorities and programmes outlined in President Pratibha Patil's address to the joint sitting of Parliament.
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.
The legend passed away in the early hours of December 4.
Political heavyweights on Sunday kept away from a Buddhist meet which led to diplomatic tensions between India and China and an indefinite postponement of their border talks.
The Himachal Pradesh government has decided to honour World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler Daleep Singh Rana alias Khali. "The state will honour Khali, a native of Sirmaur district," Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal's office told PTI on Tuesday.
Amid speculation of a reshuffle in the Union Council of Ministers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday met President Pratibha Patil and discussed the upcoming budget session of Parliament. A Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson said the meeting lasted 45 minutes, during which the two leaders discussed the current economic situation and various other issues. The issues included price rise, internal security and the budget session.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will have a packed programme when she arrives in New Delhi on a one-day visit on May 31 accompanied by a high-powered delegation.
Both Houses of Parliament will mark the 60th anniversary of their first sitting by holding a special sittings on Sunday.
Terrorism, left-wing extremism and cyber crime will be the subject of discussions at the three-day director general of police conference that commences on Thursday.
President Pratibha Patil, who is on a ten-day vacation in Hyderabad, is expected to meet Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and Bharatiya Janata Party leaders when she returns to New Delhi.
In the midst of continued stand-off between the government and civil society activists on the proposed Lokpal bill, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday met President Pratibha Patil and briefed her about the efforts being made to resolve the issue.
President Pratibha Patil has asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to meet her on Thursday in the wake of Left parties withdrawing support to the United Progressive Alliance government. A Rashtrapati Bhavan communique issued on Wednesday, hours after the four Left parties submitted letters snapping ties with the UPA government, said, "Keeping in mind these political developments, the President has requested the Prime Minister to meet her tomorrow to have his views."
Prince Charles will represent Queen Elizabeth II, ceremonial head of the Commonwealth, at the Opening Ceremony of the Games on Sunday.
Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh along with Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banjeree met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pratibha Patil on Tuesday and apprised them of how farmers faced a tough time in Singur because of anti-farmer policies of the West Bengal government. He accused the Tatas of ditching people of West Bengal, especially Singur, over their failure to honour the terms of the agreement and leaving the state for Gujarat.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday met President Pratibha Patil and discussed various issues of national and international importance, including the forthcoming SAARC summit.
Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh on Friday accused Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal of being behind the lodging of FIR against him and his wife in a graft case.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni became only the second cricketer, a decade after Sachin Tendulkar, to be conferred the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, the country's highest sporting honour, at a glittering function at Rashtrapati Bhawan, Delhi, on Friday. India's ODI captain could not attend the function as he was leading the team in the fifth and final One-Day International against Sri Lanka in Colombo. His father Paan Singh received the award on his behalf.
President Pratibha Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh congratulated Abhinav Bindra on his "golden performance" in bagging India's first-ever individual gold medal at the Beijing Olympics. In separate messages, Patil and Singh lauded the achievement of 25-year-old Indian shooter, with the Prime Minister describing the feat as a "golden performance".
With the Left deciding to snap ties with the United Progressive Alliance, President Pratibha Patil will face her first real test on whether to ask Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to seek a trust vote in Parliament or not.Patil, 72, will find herself in the spotlight at the end of a fortnight-long political manoeuvering and intense speculation on whether the Manmohan Singh government will have the numbers to survive a floor test.
"Mercy petition filed by Tabassum, wife of the Parliament House attack convict Afzal Guru, should be rejected. Nature of the crime committed is heinous and he deserves no mercy," a ministry note said. Guru was awarded the death sentence by a Delhi court on December 18, 2002 after being convicted of conspiracy to attack Parliament on December 13, 2001, waging war against the country and murder.
US President Barack Obama has had a busy Monday -- from having being ceremonially welcomed at the Rashtrapati Bhawan to meeting leaders from across the spectrum. We recall his day in PHOTOS
A ceremonial reception was accorded to United States President Barack Obama at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi on Monday morning. At 9:45 am, Obama's cavalcade arrived on the red clay path outside the Rashtrapati Bhavan, flanked by horses. Obama and First Lady Michelle were welcomed warmly at the presidential palace forecourt by President Pratibha Patil and her husband Devisingh Patil.They were then greeted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur.
Union Sports minister Ajay Maken will not be going to Rachi to take part in the closing ceremony of the National Games.
Senior Indian Administrative Service officer P J Thomas was on Tuesday sworn in as the new Central Vigilance Commissioner amid a boycott by main Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which has been objecting to his appointment to the post in view of his alleged tainted background.
President Pratibha Patil on Saturday condoled the death of Sabarimala pilgrims in a stampede at Pullumedu in Kerala's Idukki district.In a letter to the Kerala chief minister and governor, she expressed grief over the tragedy.Patil wished a speedy recovery to all those injured in the incident that took place on Friday night. Over 100 pilgrims returning from the shrine were killed and 50 others injured in the stampede.
