The Padma Vibhushan for this year has been awarded to a total of seven prominent personalities, while 16 have been given the Padma Bhushan, 118 have been given the Padma Shri on the 71st Republic Day this year, they said.
The deceased, five boys and three girls, were part of a group of 47 students.
The FoBs were constructed by the Army Engineers in a record 117 days.
The mood turned somber at the 35th National Games after a young netball player lost his life in a freak accident.
'The trajectory of the disease will keep increasing because of the population density being very high.'
'How will we pay for their education now?' asks a grandmother about her two grandchildren who lost their father in Mumbai's liquor tragedy.
Thackeray not only attended a meeting of National Democratic Alliance partners on Monday night, but also had separate talks with BJP president Amit Shah during which the two leaders discussed a host of issues, and agreed to meet more often for better coordination, a senior BJP leader, who was present during the confabulations, said.
The number of Indians killed in a stampede at the Hajj rose to 45 on Monday, as authorities identified 10 more bodies among the victims of the worst tragedy in 25 years to hit the annual pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
Kerala's Pinarayi Vijayan is a cut above the rest in Indian politics today, precisely in his remarkable ability to look beyond the horizon. His was probably the only government that began planning for the incoming pandemic as early as in February, notes M K Bhadrakumar.
Do you know firemen who risk their lives every day earn salaries equivalent to clerks?Last week's tragedy where three Mumbai firemen died fighting a fire must wake up the city's rulers, says Neeta Kolhatkar.
The British-era bridge across Savitri river, whose collapse claimed 26 lives, was to be dismantled in December this year as part of Mumbai-Goa highway expansion project.
'The worst affected is the electricity supply. A huge number of poles, some 6,000 to 8,000 poles have been damaged completely. That will take a lot of time for restoration.'
Former AIIMS director Dr S K Kacker discusses the doctors' agitation in Maharashtra and West Bengal's crackdown on private hospitals with Veenu Sandhu.
'The BJP's all-India plans can be expected to become clearer around 2022-2023, particularly if -- as some anticipate -- the senior Congress leadership cracks, broadly as between the Nehru-Gandhi loyalists and those who may be termed 'pro-changers',' observes Arun Bhatnagar, a retired IAS officer.
Delhi's power circles can expect a surprise when a not-so-known officer is appointed to head the CBI.
The death toll in Friday's building collapse in Mazgaon area here has climbed to 61, according to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Asked if the rescue operation has been called off, the BMC said though no formal announcement to this effect has been made so far, "it is as good as being called off".
Fire brigade, Mumbai Police and civic officials rushed to the site to carry out the rescue operation.
Modi invoked Lord Shiva on Mahashivratri and said people, with their third eye, can see what is good for them and what is bad.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday met her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow and raised several issues.
Wearing a seat belt could have saved Rural Development Minister Gopinath Munde, who died in a road accident, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Wednesday and announced a major campaign to spread awareness on observing safety measures while driving.
'Four years ago, when Gadkari was BJP president, Fadnavis was president of the state BJP, I had gone on a fast unto death demanding separate statehood for Vidarbha.' 'They had come to meet me and promised that once the party comes to power at the Centre and in the state, we will get separate statehood.' 'Four years have passed, but no change is seen on the ground.'
Lungi Ngidi was full of praise for the Pune surface where he wrecked Kings XI Punjab on Sunday in a stellar display of pace bowling in the batsman-dominated format.
'No commercial bank will be allowed to fail. There is nothing to worry about.'
Maharashtra government on Wednesday approved a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the victims of landslide at Malin village in Pune district, as the toll in the July 30 disaster has reached 153.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com meets the families of the victims of the stampede at Mumbai's Elphinstone railway station.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday conferred Padma Vibhushan on veteran actor Dilip Kumar at latter's residence in Mumbai.
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said demonetisation left Maoists in many parts of India and separatists in Jammu and Kashmir "fund starved".
'India serves itself poorly with its latter-day discovery of Pakistan as an instrument in domestic politics,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
Political differences blurred as Congress president Sonia Gandhi wrote a personal letter to Union minister Gopinath Munde's family condoling his death and Rahul Gandhi visited the Bharatiya Janata Party office to pay respects to the departed leader.
Girish Karnad lived several lives not only on the stage but also as a scholar, theatre personality, an actor and director in a career spanning over five decades.
'Will the liberals explain if minorities are under such a dire threat in India, how come more and more groups want to separate from the majority and want themselves to be declared a minority?' asks Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Pune architects Dhruvang Hingmire and Priyanka Gunjikar are building houses out of mud and stone, employing local artists and contributing to the village economy.
India is in the midst of its biggest crisis since Independence. It is a national emergency and begs to be dealt with. Politics can wait. Lives need to be saved. We need to vaccinate India at a pace faster than any country in the world, asserts Ramesh Menon.
Two months ago, May 2, Major Anuj Sood made the supreme sacrifice for the motherland in a hostage-rescue mission in J&K. As his grieving family grapples with their immense loss, they graciously share memories of the young major -- a husband, brother and son -- whose only calling was the fauj.
'Some of his decisions were not so good, but his intentions were always guided by a deep national interest.'
'Nationalism has been defined for us. It is what the BJP and Modi bhakts decide, not me, you or Salman Khan. If you don't agree with their view, you are a Pakistani agent and an anti-national. Period. No more argument. The discussion ends there.'
The last session of Parliament started off on a noisy note as pro and anti-Telangana MPs sparred with each other on the floor of the two houses.
Indian rower Dattu Bhokanal has battled adversity to secure Olympic qualification and his journey to Rio has been made even more remarkable following a childhood bout of aquaphobia and fears for his mother's health during his final preparations. Hailing from a drought-hit region in Maharashtra, the daily fight for the treasured commodity led him to develop a fear of water as a youth and it was not until he joined the army in 2012, that he learned to swim. His phobia conquered, the 25-year-old Bhokanal booked his ticket to Rio after winning a silver medal in the men's single sculls event at the Asian and Oceania Olympic Qualification Regatta at Chung-ju in South Korea in April. Bhokanal gave up his studies to support his family after his father died of cancer in 2011 and his qualification can also be regarded as a reward for his ability to perform through another tragedy, which almost derailed his Olympic dreams. Shortly before he was due to depart for South Korea, his mother suffered brain damage in a fall resulting in almost total amnesia.
'What will we drink if we start fearing these wells?'
