Here is Rediff.com's selection of some stories from Thursday that you may not have read in the morning newspaper.
"The Union Budget represents the aspirations of 130 crore Indians and lays out the path towards India's development. I invite you all to share your ideas and suggestions for this year's Budget on MyGov," the PM said according to a statement posted on his official website on Thursday.
The project worth about Rs 5,000 crore is underway with assistance from the World Bank.
India also went on an overdrive in expanding its military engagement with like-minded countries in its neighbourhood and beyond in the face of China's relentless attempts to become a regional hegemon and establish its primacy in South Asia.
Lack of infrastructure development in Jammu and Kashmir for decades post Independence was one of the reasons behind the rise of terrorism in the Union territory, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday after unveiling 75 new projects including bridges, roads and helipads in border areas.
In an interesting development, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee who is very much in the news these days would be travelling by a special plane to Udaipur, Rajsamand and Nathdwara temple in Rajasthan, accompanied by Union Road and Transport Minister C P Joshi for a one-day trip to the state on Saturday.
The central government's highway award and construction target for the current fiscal is dominated by the Bharatmala scheme.
Once the scheme is implemented 70-80 per cent of the freight would move along national highways as against the current 40 per cent, says Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday said the media needs to remain vigilant and flag shortcomings of the government with a view to improve the effectiveness of governance.
About 200 employees were detained across the state in connection with incidents related to strike
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday urged the Centre to intervene to ensure that levels of the Yamuna, flowing at an all-time high of 207.55 metres, don't rise further.
The Hyderabad Union Cabinet's surprise and sudden move to take up the Telangana note for consideration has inflamed the passions of people in Seemandhra regions and several organisations have called for a 72-hour strike in 13 districts of two regions from Friday.
Finance Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday asked various ministries to try to spend more than their capital expenditure targets as well as explore public private partnerships for viable projects. During a meeting with senior government officials to discuss the infrastructure roadmap, she also urged the ministries and their CPSEs to ensure clearance of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) dues at the earliest. This was the fifth review meeting by the finance minister with ministries and departments on the infrastructure roadmap.
The government on Wednesday favoured a levy of a minimum 6 per cent of the sale price of the vehicle as a lifetime tax by various states.
Of these, about 100 projects are likely to be completed by December 2018.
A railway station and a police vehicle were torched and several law enforcers injured in stone-pelting incidents on the fourth consecutive day of protests against Agnipath scheme on Saturday when a bandh was also called to press for the demand for rollback of the new scheme for recruitment in armed forces.
Delegates of all G20 countries, barring China, arrived in Srinagar on Monday for the third working group meeting on tourism -- a much-anticipated event for which authorities have made extensive security arrangements and spruced up the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.
Candidates will be short-listed for interview on the basis of the information provided by them in their online application, the statement said.
The past few weeks have been rough for both Ola and Uber companies, dodging fire from almost all corners.
'The package is for the distressed farmers who are committing suicide due to the severe drought,' Nitin Gadkari tells Arup Roy Choudhury and Sanjeeb Mukherjee.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday announced a Rs 11.11 lakh crore spending on infrastructure and vowed to continue reforms as she resisted resorting to populist measures in Modi government's last Budget before general elections, instead choosing to stay on the path of cutting deficit while bolstering measures for focus groups.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Monday said American electric car major Tesla is set to start its operations in India next year and would also look at setting up of a manufacturing unit based on demand. The Road, Transport and Highways minister has been pushing for green fuel and electric vehicles for cutting India's huge Rs 8 lakh crore crude imports. Tesla Inc. co-founder and chief executive Elon Musk had in October said the company will enter the Indian market in 2021.
Cabinet to take up proposal to extend operation & maintenance contracts from 9 to 29 years
With cases hitting a new peak in several parts of the country, the demand for medical oxygen has increased as it is a critical component in the treatment of COVID-19-affected patients.
Minister of state for personnel Jitendra Singh said it is a major step to place the right talent for the right role.
With Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget presentation lasting for about one hour 31 minutes on Tuesday, the finance minister's budget speech this year became the shortest ever since 2019.
Li also had a difficult meeting with some of the Western leaders on the sidelines, especially Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has signalled Italy's resolve to quit China's famed Belt and Road Initiative for its failure to bring the expected results to Rome.
The apex court, which passed interim directions, said all migrant workers who are stranded at various places shall be provided food by concerned states and Union Territories (UTs) at places which shall be publicised and notified to them for the period they are waiting for their turn to board a train or a bus.
Reddy directed the officials to treat the storm as a major challenge to avoid loss of life and property as the winds are expected to blow gales reaching speeds of up to 110 kilometres per hour.
Following suggestion from Minister for Roads Nitin Gadkari, Centre seeks ideas from IRDAI and General Insurance Council on feasibility of providing insurance cover for retrenchment.
Majuli -- the seat of neo-Vaishnavite Bhakti renaissance -- on Thursday became India's first island district with Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurating it as the 35th district of Assam.
The chief minister also put forth the demand to stop hydrocarbon extraction project in Neduvasal in Pudukkottai district that has attracted large-scale protests recently.
'This committee underscores the Indian State's longstanding conventional approach to leverage top-down conflict management in North East India in general and Manipur in particular.' 'Trying to 'manage' violent conflicts top-down has not worked in the past, and apparently does not seem to work this time either.'
The flight, carrying 216 passengers and 16 crew, landed safely, the Tata Group-owned private carrier said in a statement Tuesday evening.
The main Opposition party Communist Party of Nepal-(Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN-UML) disrupted the National Assembly meeting on Wednesday, demanding the prime minister's resignation. The meeting has been postponed to 1 pm Thursday.
Speaking on the occasion, Gadkari, the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, said the history of Kashmiri Pandits have a great and rich history.
Amar Singh and Ram Dev, sons of Arjun Gopal alias Tshidawa, said their father had suggested the construction of the tunnel to the former prime minister.
Maharashtra ministers Chandrakant Patil and Shambhuraj Desai, appointed for coordinating the state's border dispute with Karnataka, are unlikely to visit Belagavi on Tuesday as both have various meetings scheduled in Maharashtra during the day.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was in element at the Gateway of India.
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