'We have lost 70-80 per cent of our business from foreign guests.'
The Election Commission has defended its Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu in the Supreme Court, refuting allegations of mass deletion of genuine voters as exaggerated and politically motivated.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a video conference with chief ministers of most states to assess their preparedness and strategies in response to the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
The BJP and opposition parties are engaged in a political battle over the implementation of the Women's Reservation Act, with the BJP defending it as historic and the opposition accusing the government of delaying its notification and using it to push an unconstitutional delimitation exercise.
'India cannot speak of a demographic dividend if half its young women are unable to participate in paid work.'
While the DMK depends on a 'silver sieve' of welfare schemes to stay in power, its support is slowly draining away under the weight of poor governance, corruption, and voters who are no longer satisfied with benefits alone and now want basic administration to work, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Announcing relaxations such as allowing shops selling essential commodities to reopen and government offices to resume work, Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday announced extension of lockdown by one week till June 14 to combat COVID-19.
Educational institutions remained closed even as the weather office forecast heavy downpour in the next three days in the state, Puducherry and coastal Andhra Pradesh.
Continuing their protest against the conviction of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo Jayalalithaa for the third day, party workers and sympathisers on Monday observed a fast and staged demonstrations across the state.
Retail inflation stood at 2.75 per cent in January under the new series of All India Consumer Price Index (CPI), with 2024 as the base year, released on Thursday.
Popular Youtuber Savukku Shankar, known for his criticism of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, had his residence targeted by a group of individuals who allegedly dumped sewage and human faeces inside. The incident has sparked outrage with opposition leaders condemning the act and demanding swift action. Shankar alleges the attack was orchestrated by a top Tamil Nadu Congress Committee leader and a police official, citing a prior corruption expose he made. The police are investigating the incident.
The Chhattisgarh government has introduced a bill aimed at preventing religious conversions through force, inducement, or misrepresentation, sparking opposition and debate in the state assembly.
S Padma, a street cleaner in Chennai, found a box full of gold worth more than Rs 45 lakh and returned it. 'I have been sweeping the streets of Chennai for 21 years. Nobody in the street knew me. I was just a faceless, nameless sanitation worker in an orange and blue uniform.'
Several opposition parties on Wednesday decided to jointly oppose the delimitation provisions in the Constitution amendment bill in Parliament, even as they reiterated support for women's reservation, with Mallikarjun Kharge alleging the move is politically motivated.
Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voters' list commenced in nine states and three Union territories on Tuesday, amid objections from several parties with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee leading the anti-SIR offensive in West Bengal with a rally in Kolkata and alleging 'silent, invisible rigging' through the exercise.
Parliament is set to debate the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram and election reforms, with key discussions led by Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Shah.
The BJP has nominated Sanjay Bhatia, its former MP from Karnal, for the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll from Haryana. This decision comes as two Rajya Sabha seats in Haryana are set to fall vacant, prompting elections scheduled for March 16.
A 42-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly killing his wife and three daughters in Delhi due to gambling debts. He was apprehended in Rajasthan after a multi-state manhunt.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju stated the government is open to discussing electoral reforms in the Rajya Sabha, urging the Opposition not to impose a timeline. Opposition parties staged a walkout after demanding an immediate discussion on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
'There is a degree of civility, efficiency, cleanliness and cultural ease here that has all but vanished in the squalid, chaotic and rootless Hindi heartland,' says Sunil Sethi.
The company is planning to invest Rs 1,100 crore in the new mobile phone manufacturing facility.
The Tamil Nadu state unit of the BJP has been alleging that its leaders have been systematically being attacked/murdered in the state. A Ganesh Nadar bring to light five cases where workers of the BJP or its affiliate organisations were attacked to find out if there is any truth in the charges.
Jayalalithaa said that M Sasikala Pushpa was being expelled from all party posts, including primary membership, as she had acted in violation of the party principles and ethics.
'I don't want to be called a new Indian voter when I am an old Indian voter.'
But not for too long, as TTV Dinakaran can still play spoilsport, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused opposition parties of obstructing the passage of the women's reservation bill in Parliament, alleging they have crushed the dreams of women and prioritised selfish politics over national progress.
Delhi Police have arrested a suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) handler, Shabir Ahmed Lone, from the Ghazipur area. He is believed to have links with Pakistan's ISI and was allegedly involved in a terror module planning attacks in India.
The Deepa Thoon controversy, if not allowed to die a natural death, could take the election focus away from the anti-incumbency impacting the DMK and into the secular space. Stalin would love to have it that way, all over again, after the three past elections, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
According to officials, ten men and three women died and 28 head of cattle perished in cyclone related incidents despite authorities evacuating as many as 81,948 people to 471 relief centres in Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Ramanathapuram, Thanjavur, Pudukottai and Tiruvarur districts.
From the Krishna Leela to cricketers, the tradition of doll making for Navratri Kolu has come a long way. Shobha Warrier visits generations of doll makers in Tamil Nadu.
While there is likely no bar on Jayalalithaa meeting with Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and his cabinet colleagues, she may not see senior government officials or see official files.
The last time Tamil Nadu seriously voted on pre-poll promises was in faraway 1967.
The Kerala High Court granted bail to a Sri Lankan refugee suspected of being an LTTE member in a UAPA case, citing prolonged judicial custody without trial commencement.
As Jana Nayagan and Avatar: Aang, The Last Airbender become victims of piracy even before they got an official release, Sreeju Sudhakaran looks back at some of the major Indian movies that were impacted by pre-release leaks.
Delhi Police have arrested a suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) handler, Shabir Ahmed Lone, in Delhi, uncovering a terror module with links to Pakistan's ISI. Lone is accused of running a network involved in pasting anti-national posters and planning terror activities across India.
Award-winning Tamil lyricist Vairamuthu's recent remarks on Lord Ram have sparked controversy, drawing condemnation from the BJP and VHP.
In Tamil Nadu, the alternative to one Dravidian party has been another, and for one actor-politician CM, there is another. Their initial popularity may owe to their filmi charisma, but their continued acceptance owed to their government's policies and programmes targeting the poor and the needy in the state, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Dravida Munetra Kazhagam President M Karunanidhi's daughter Kanimozhi was on Thursday reelected to Rajya Sabha with Congress support from Tamil Nadu after a contest with actor Vijayakanth's Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam candidate.
'More than 90 per cent of the party cadres are with OPS.'
rediffGURU T S Khurana answers readers' personal income tax queries
