'Unfortunately, some ill-informed's would rather take swipes at Dr Manmohan Singh-led UPA govt than fight NDA/BJP'
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has called for more stringent laws to curb vulgar content on social media platforms. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the Information and Broadcasting Minister suggested that the Parliamentary Standing Committee should address the issue and emphasized the need for consensus on stricter legislation. Vaishnaw highlighted the lack of editorial checks on social media, leading to uncontrolled dissemination of vulgar content. He argued that while social media platforms provide a platform for press freedom, they require stricter regulations to address the proliferation of inappropriate content.
Comedian Kunal Kamra continues to face backlash for his jokes targeting Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde. The Legislative Council admitted a breach of privilege notice against him, while a state minister demanded his arrest. The controversy stems from Kamra's stand-up performance where he made satirical remarks about Shinde, leading to protests and vandalism by Shiv Sena supporters. The comedian has been summoned by the police and faces legal trouble, with even Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw justifying the action, emphasizing the need to uphold legal safeguards. Amid the controversy, Kamra lashed out at the mainstream media, calling it a "miscommunication arm" of the ruling party.
In a bid to pitch India as an uplinking hub, the government on Tuesday announced relaxation in guidelines for compliance for television channels and also made a 30-minute daily public interest broadcast mandatory, mainly for entertainment channels.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had earlier called out the remarks made by Zuckerberg on the Joe Rogan podcast. "Mr. Zuckerberg's claim that most incumbent governments, including India in 2024 elections, lost post-COVID is factually incorrect," Vaishnaw had said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on January 13.
The National Pension System is applicable for government employees joining the service after April 1, 2004. It was based on the premise of contribution rather than defined benefit applicable for employees prior to the NPS.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved restoration and continuation of the Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS), which was suspended in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Indian government has approved the construction of a third launch pad at Sriharikota, capable of sending heavier spacecraft into orbit. This new facility will support India's ambitious space program, including the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission and a lunar landing. The launch pad will be built at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre and is expected to be operational within four years.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe met Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and Primer Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Monday and discussed India's intent to host the 2036 Olympics and development of athletics in the country.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday said it has detected alleged irregularities after it conducted raids in a money laundering case to probe 'black marketing' of tickets for two 'highly anticipated' music concerts by British rock band Coldplay and actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh.
On September 20, a single bench of Justice A S Chandurkar held that the amended rules being vague and broad had the potential of causing a chilling effect not only on an individual, but also on the social media intermediary.
The government on Wednesday increased the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for wheat by Rs 150 to Rs 2,425 per quintal for the 2025-26 marketing season, a move that comes ahead of key state elections. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved price hikes for six rabi crops, with increases ranging from Rs 130 to Rs 300 per quintal for the 2025-26 marketing season beginning April 2025. "Like for kharif crops, there is a significant increase in the MSP for rabi crops," Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in a media briefing after the Cabinet meeting.
The BJP leader said the Congress wants to divide the country on the basis of religion and region.
The state broadcasters have started the practice, but private news channels may follow suit, a ministry source said.
The Bombay high court on Friday quashed the amended Information Technology rules aimed at identifying through a fact checking unit "fake and false" content against the government on social media platforms, holding it as unconstitutional.
Forty-five specialists will soon be joining key posts of joint secretaries, directors and deputy secretaries in different central ministries as part of the Modi government's ambitious plan to infuse fresh talent to further improve ease of governance.
In a boost to the space programme, the government on Wednesday approved the Chandrayaan-4 mission to bring back moon rocks to earth, to send a spacecraft to orbit planet Venus and to expand the Gaganyaan project to build an Indian space station.
Thakur said no expenditure was incurred on advertisements in foreign media through the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved conferring the status of classical language on Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese and Bengali languages.
The government may have to move 18 amendments to the Constitution to implement the concept of simultaneous elections as recommended by a high-level committee chaired by former president Ram Nath Kovind.
FHe is the only one among 17 ministers from the outgoing council of ministers who lost the Lok Sabha polls to be reappointed minister.
Hearing PILs about "media trial" in the case, the court remarked that the media has become "polarised".
The senior BJP leader said voters have always rejected coalition politics as the political parties forming such an alliance don't have any policy or leadership.
The government on Wednesday raised the minimum support price (MSP) for paddy by 5.35 per cent to Rs 2,300 per quintal for the 2024-25 kharif marketing season. The hike in paddy support price comes despite the government sitting on surplus rice stocks, but it is significant ahead of elections in states like Haryana, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Delhi.
Opposition parties on Wednesday opposed the 'one nation, one election' proposal by calling it impractical and a 'cheap stunt' by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
The two channels -- Media One and Asianet News TV -- were earlier issued a show cause notice and after they filed their replies, the ministry found them to be in violation of the Programme Code prescribed under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995.
The SP said Chopra is the kingpin of drugs in Hamirpur and added that this is the seventh case registered against him under the NDPS Act.
The 'deliberate attack' on a Hindu temple in Canada sparked strong condemnation in India on Monday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking the Canadian government to ensure justice and uphold the rule of law.
Netflix India's content head Monika Shergill on Tuesday met Information and Broadcasting Secretary Sanjay Jaju in New Delhi, amid a row over the web series IC-814: The Kandahar Hijack.
It is for the first time in the history of Independent India that not a single Muslim is part of the Union Cabinet.
Signalling both change and continuity, India's new government, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a third consecutive term, got into work gear on Tuesday with cabinet ministers and ministers of state filing into their respective offices to assume charge.
The opposition parties on Sunday slammed the move to hire public servants through lateral entry, claiming it will snatch reservations from SCs, STs and OBCs, but the Bharatiya Janata Party hit back stating the National Democratic Alliance government was bringing transparency to this mode of recruitment started by the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance.
Among the new entrants to the Union cabinet, former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has been given the agriculture and rural development portfolios, Bharatiya Janata Party president J P Nadda the health portfolio and former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar the power portfolio.
Broadcasters, including TV Today, Zee Telefilms, BBC World, Star and Discovery, on Wednesday met Chief Election Commissioner T S Krishna Murthy on the Commission's decision to ban political advertising on private TV channels.
Saturday's voting will mark the end to the marathon polling process that began on April 19 month and has already covered 486 Lok Sabha seats in 28 states and Union territories.
The Congress hit out at the government, alleging that it was treating the EC as its "subservient tool".
Rajeev Chandrasekhar said in a post on X that his 18-year-long stint in public service has come to an end.
The move to resume work in ministries comes nearly a month after the government issued work from home protocols in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
A purported video of three monks being attacked by a mob in West Bengal's Purulia over suspicion that they were 'kidnappers in disguise' has triggered a political row, with opposition Bharatiya Janata Party alleging collapse of law and order in the state.
Bomman and Bellie, who starred in the Oscar-winning documentary The Elephant Whisperers met President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday, July 18, 2023.
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