Railways Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday asserted that Indian Railways will never be privatised but said private investment should be encouraged for more efficient functioning. Replying to a discussion on Demands for Grants for Railways, Goyal said there has been no death of any passenger due to a rail accident in two years and the railways has been putting enormous focus on passenger safety. He said the country can progress towards high growth and create more employment opportunities only when the public and private sectors work together.
'Currently, 81 per cent of all reserved tickets are booked through e-ticketing.'
The crucial, neck-to-neck contest was necessitated as the Bharatiya Janata Party fielded three candidates while Shiv Sena put up two and Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party one each.
Differences of opinion are a part of democracy and there are ways to find solutions to that, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said on Thursday in Rajya Sabha on whether there exists differences between the judiciary and the executive on the issue of appointment of judges.
About 24 or 31 per cent ministers have declared serious criminal cases including cases related to murder, attempt to murder, robbery etc.
The political discourse hit a new low on Monday with Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri making disparaging remarks targeting Rahul Gandhi and the Congress paying him back in the same coin.
The BJP's challenge is whether it can again deflate a Congress, which now looks reinvigorated and has adopted sharper messaging around its 'guarantees', and several regional parties, especially in Bihar, Maharashtra and West Bengal.
'They are fighting it out, but they have deeply traumatised; they are alive and they are carrying on in life.'
The Uttarakhand assembly poll result has presented the Bharatiya Janata Party with a dilemma of sorts as it weighs various options after outgoing chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami who was tipped to continue in the post lost the election even as the party stormed back to power.
Wielding a broom, the prime minister took part in the drive along with fitness influencer Ankit Baiyanpuriya.
Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar sought views of leaders of various political parties on ways to curb disruptions in the House at a meeting held on Sunday on the eve of the start of the second phase of the Budget session.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on how the migrants's plight has been aggravated by the erratic management of Shramik trains by the Indian Railways, headed by Railways Minister Piyush Goyal.
The Manipur violence issue rocked both houses of Parliament on the opening day of the Monsoon session on Thursday with opposition members creating uproar, demanding a discussion on the situation in the Northeastern state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is in the United States for a three-day state visit, has gifted an eco-friendly lab-grown 7.5 carat diamond, placed in Kashmir's exquisite Papier mache box, to First Lady Jill Biden.
He underlined the need for patience in political life and said those seeking a change of guard should go back to the people to achieve it.
His reaction comes in the backdrop of Shiv Sena candidate Sanjay Pawar losing the sixth seat in the Rajya Sabha polls from Maharashtra held on Friday, a contest which had become a high-prestige battle between the ruling Sena and the opposition BJP in the state.
All legislators of the Sena have been summoned to Mumbai and they will stay together till the polls on June 10.
From referencing "josh" of Bollywood flick 'Uri', to chants of "Modi, Modi" from the Bharatiya Janata Party, there were varied reactions in Lok Sabha as Finance Minister Piyush Goyal gave his interim budget speech on Friday.
Kalita, whose term in Rajya Sabha was till April 9, 2020, is the second Congress Rajya Sabha member after Sanjay Sinh, a member of the erstwhile Amethi royal family, who has joined the BJP.
He said the prime minister has received global recognition and India was rising under his leadership.
What do you, dear readers, think of Modi's reshuffle of his ministers?
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday advised all the MPs to wear masks and follow the Covid protocol completely, in view of the increasing cases of COVID-19 in many countries across the world.
The meeting is believed to be called to chalk out the strategy of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha on Monday.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party received over Rs 785 crore in contributions from individuals, electoral trusts and corporates in 2019-20, which is over five times more than what the Congress received during the same period.
The poll panel also referred to the instances of "inappropriate vocabulary and language" used during the ongoing campaign by persons, "in particular, by those invested with the statutory status of star campaigner".
Congress president and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday claimed he was 'insulted' as his mic was turned off while he was speaking in the House the previous day.
The BJP's effort comes in the wake of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal set to attend the eighth RCEP ministerial meeting in Bangkok from October 10 to 12.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah after a Cabinet meeting here on Wednesday said that the government has decided to go for open market tender to procure rice, whose process will start from Thursday.
The government on Monday said that matters regarding Chinese intrusion can't be discussed in Parliament as it concerns the security of the country.
Elections will be held on June 10 to fill 57 Rajya Sabha seats from 15 states falling vacant due to the retirement of members on different dates between June and August, the Election Commission said on Thursday.
In a major development, India and the US have agreed to end six trade disputes at the WTO through mutually agreed solutions, while New Delhi will remove retaliatory customs duties on certain American products such as almonds, walnuts, and apples.
The BJP on Wednesday rejected as 'unfounded' the opposition's demand for the resignation of Union minister Ajay Mishra 'Teni' and all but ruled out a discussion on the Lakhimpur Kheri issue as the matter is sub-judice.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge used poetry and humour to take swipes at the government on Monday, saying nothing will be accomplished by changing names, and went on to recall how first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's 'inclusive' approach of involving opposition parties had led to the laying of a strong foundation for the Constitution.
Maha Vikas Aghadi, comprising the Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Congress, has called a meeting of its MLAs in Mumbai on June 7.
Jaitley, who was the finance minister before a medical procedure led to the charge being temporarily taken away from him, missed presenting the sixth and final Budget of the Narendra Modi government before the general elections. In his absence, the charge of the ministry was given to Railways Minister Piyush Goyal.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday used her trademark 'bahi-khata', a ledger wrapped in a red-coloured cloth, to carry Budget documents as she arrived in Parliament House to present her third straight Budget. Sitharaman, India's first full-time woman finance minister, had in July 2019 ditched the colonial legacy of a Budget briefcase for the traditional 'bahi-khata' to carry Union Budget papers. She used the same last year and again on Monday.
Amid a massive ruckus after the suspension order, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned.
The government has no plans to import wheat as it has sufficient stocks to meet the country's requirements, official sources said. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) has enough stock for public distribution, they added. "There are no plans to import wheat into India. "The country has sufficient stocks to meet our domestic requirements," a source said.
Ten Union ministers will be the permanent invitees to the Inter-State Council, according to an official notification.
She posed for the traditional 'briefcase' picture outside her office along with her team of officials before heading to meet the President. She, however, was holding a tablet instead of a briefcase to present the Budget in a digital format.
