Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday assumed charge as the Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister for the second consecutive term and is slated to soon present the final Budget for FY '25 that is going to set the tone for the Modi 3.0 government's priorities and direction for Viksit Bharat. Upon her reaching the North Block office, Sitharaman was greeted by Finance Secretary T V Somanathan and other top officials. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary was also present. Chaudhary assumed charge on Tuesday evening.
It dropped sitting MP from Guna, Krishnapal Singh Yadav, to field Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia from the seat.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday met former Bangladesh President Hussain Ershad's wife and opposition Jatiya Party leader Roshan Ershad before leaving for Delhi at the end of her three-day visit to Dhaka.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday met her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow and raised several issues.
This is her first visit to Beijing after she took over the office last year.
India reaffirmed its commitment to the landmark Paris climate change agreement.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday received External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj
Gurpreet alleged that she and her seven-year-old daughter had been kept in a refugee camp in Germany by her husband's family.
Hazare in a statement accused Kejriwal of betraying the trust of crores of countrymen and rued that political ambitions destroyed the 2011 anti-corruption movement.
The Supreme Court on Monday described the violence perpetrated against women in strife-torn Manipur as of "unprecedented magnitude" and refused to consider a plea on similar alleged incidents in opposition-ruled states, such as West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Kerala.
"There is no dearth of talent in my ministry. I have the assistance of very able secretaries," she said in a curt tweet.
Swift intervention by Ministry of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj ensured shooting ace Abhinav Bindra was accompanied by his coach, whose passport got stolen in Germany while the duo were travelling to Rio de Janeiro for the ISSF World Cup, a test event for the upcoming Olympics.
Sources said a 100-day agenda for immediate steps to be taken after a new government is formed in May was deliberated upon during the meeting for its quick implementation.
Swaraj on Sunday briefed family members of the abducted men, who are mostly from Punjab, about information gathered by the Minister of State for External Affairs, V K Singh, who was sent to the Gulf nation after its prime minister announced the liberation of Mosul from the dreaded terror group Islamic State.
Seeking to enhance strategic cooperation and help Afghanistan deal with key challenges of security and stability, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj arrived on Wednesday on a crucial visit as the trouble-torn country approaches the first democratic transition of power after fall of the Taliban in 2001.
Those joining Prime Minister Narendra Modi's council of ministers for the first time include three former chief ministers -- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Madhya Pradesh), Manohar Lal Khattar (Haryana) and H D Kumaraswamy (Karnataka).
'The minister said we should stop fishing near the shore and start going for deep sea fishing.'
She said no government can declare anyone dead without proof and her government does not believe in the theory of 'missing, believed to be killed'.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to Islamabad on Tuesday on a two-day visit during which she will hold talks with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz and attend a multilateral conference on Afghanistan.
Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar were also present at Sushma Swaraj's residence.
Swaraj said the focus of the government is growth with eye on manufacturing, infrastructure and trade
The external affairs minister said that the dreaded terror outfit Islamic State had killed all the Indian nationals.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi heaped praise on External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, saying she and her ministry have set an example of effectively using social media to deliver good governance and help Indians in distress in any corner of the world.
"If this is not done forthwith, we will not grant Indian visa to any Amazon official. We will also rescind the Visas issued earlier," Swaraj warned.
She said there was no bigger global challenge than "state-sponsored" and "state-protected terrorism, asserting those supporting terror networks must be made to pay the cost.
Nearly 800 Indian workers are reportedly starving for the last three days in Saudi city of Jeddah after losing their jobs
'These are sexual harassment allegations. You are a woman minister in charge. Will there be a probe on the allegations?'
Swaraj saluted "brave Indian soldiers who gave up their lives protecting the cause of peace in Sri Lanka".
Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com decodes why Modi has decided to retain her in the Union Cabinet despite this controversy and their many internal differences.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday sought to play down the row over inclusion of Reddy brothers in Yedduyurappa government in Karnataka and blamed the media for the controversy.
However, the minister took it on the chin and retweeted some of the tweets that were even abusive and communal in nature.
Mourning the demise "as a personal loss", Naidu expressed hope that the words and deeds of this exemplary leader will continue to inspire all those in public life.
She, however, preferred not to use the word 'Rohingya' and said 'we have urged that the situation be handled with restraint, keeping in mind the welfare of the population'.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday flagged off the first batch of pilgrims for Kailash Mansarovar yatra in Tibetan Autonomous Region of China through a new route via Nathu La pass.
Quoting diplomatic sources, The Express Tribune reported that India and Pakistan were exploring the possibility of a meeting between Swaraj and Aziz and also between the foreign secretaries of the two countries in the Nepalese tourist city of Pokhara.
Contact could not be established with the Indian Air Force flight IFC 31 after it left Male ATC for Mauritius airspace on Saturday, the Airports Authority of India said in a statement.
Swaraj was responding to 'SOS' message on twitter from a person claiming to be chief officer of Indian vessel Jag Prabha which was stuck in Aden.
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday accused Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj of making thoughtless allegations and "tying herself in knots" by levelling the charge that he had misled the panel which selected P V Thomas as the Central Vigilance Commissioner.
Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after Indian fighter jets bombed terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed's biggest training camp near Balakot deep inside Pakistan on February 26.
Criticising Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his "half-empty" glass remark about the economy, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said that it was not because of the NDA, but due to rampant corruption of the UPA government.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances