LIVE: Congress only party that wants everyone included, says Tharoor

LIVE news updates: Doesn't matter if Kharge Sahab wins or I win - Congress should win as it's a party of inclusive India, said Shashi Tharoor

11:57 PM

Mulayam Singh's ashes to be immersed in Ganga in Haridwar on Monday

Samajwadi Party (SP) founder and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's ashes will be immersed in the Ganga river in Haridwar on Monday.

Acharya Radha Mohan Mishra, from Mathura-Vrindavan, who is reciting the Garuda Purana, said the former chief minister's family will go to Haridwar on Sunday and immerse the ashes in the holy river as per Vedic rituals the next day.

11:02 PM

India stands for rules-based maritime borders in Indo-Pacific: Rajnath

India stands for rules-based maritime boundaries in the Indo-Pacific in which no nation, howsoever big, may be allowed to exclude others from its fair use, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Saturday, amid China's increasing assertiveness in the region.

In his address to the heads of Asian Coast Guard agencies, the defence minister also called for effective collaboration among maritime nations to deal with challenges to maritime safety.

10:41 PM

Insurgency brought down in NE, law and order improved significantly: Rajnath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said the law and order situation in the Northeast improved significantly after the insurgency in the region was brought under control by the Modi government.

Singh said this after inaugurating 'The Conclave 2022', a two-day interactive session jointly organised by the 'Asomiya Pratidin', a popular Assamese daily, and 'Pratidin Time', an Assamese channel based in Guwahati.

10:03 PM

50 BJP women cadres arrested for trying to show black flags to DMK MP Raja

Over 50 BJP cadres, mostly women, were arrested on Saturday for attempting to show black flags to DMK MP A Raja for his alleged remarks against Hindu religion and women, police said.

Raja was scheduled to arrive at the airport here this evening and the BJP Women's wing members and a few others assembled at Kalapatti near the airport to show black flags to him.

9:25 PM

Govt notifies 12% wage hike for employees of PSU general insurers; links next with performance

The Finance Ministry has notified an average 12 per cent wage hike for employees of four public sector general insurance companies effective from August 2017.

"This Scheme may be called the General Insurance (Rationalisation of Pay Scales and other Conditions of Service of Officers) Amendment Scheme, 2022," a gazette notification dated October 14, 2022 said.

8:46 PM

Pak with N-weapons without cohesion is 'one of the most dangerous nations in the world': President Biden

US President Joe Biden has said Pakistan is one of the most dangerous nations in the world as it has nuclear weapons without cohesion.

He made the remarks while addressing a Democratic Party congressional campaign committee reception on Thursday.

And what I think is maybe one of the most dangerous nations in the world: Pakistan. Nuclear weapons without any cohesion," Biden said.

7:56 PM

Doesn't matter if Kharge Sahab wins or I win - Congress should win: Tharoor

Doesn't matter if Kharge Sahab wins or I win - Congress should win as it's a party of inclusive India. We are the only party that wants everyone to be with us, irrespective of religion, gender, language, region or state, said Congress presidential candidate Shashi Tharoor, in Guwahati on Saturday.

 

If you are an Indian citizen, you are ours and we are for you. Unlike a different party that says that this is a Hindu nation or this is a party of one section, we will work for everyone, in the interest of India, he added.

7:33 PM

Jaishankar discusses Ukraine conflict, Indo-Pacific with his Egyptian counterpart

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry here on Saturday and the two leaders discussed regional developments and exchanged views on the Ukraine conflict and the Indo-Pacific.

Jaishankar is in Egypt on a two-day visit at the invitation of his Egyptian counterpart Shoukry.

4:57 PM

Key RSS meeting in Prayagraj from Sunday

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and its top functionaries will attend the four-day national executive board meeting in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh beginning Sunday.

Briefing reporters about the meeting here, RSS publicity in-charge Sunil Ambekar said the meeting will discuss various issues raised by Bhagwat in his speech on the occasion of Vijaya Dashami.

4:34 PM

SIT to investigate gang-rape charge against senior officials in Andaman and Nicobar

A Special Investigating Team has been constituted to probe allegations of a 21-year-old woman in Andaman and Nicobar Islands that she was gang-raped by officials there including a former chief secretary.

The police registered a case earlier this month on the complaint filed by the woman alleging that she was sexually abused by Narain, a 1990 batch IAS officer, and Labour commissioner R L Rishi at the latter's official residence on two occasions.

4:04 PM

Akasa Air QP-1103 suffered a bird hit on its way to Bangalore today

Akasa Air flight QP 1103 flying from Mumbai to Bengaluru on Oct 14 diverted back to Mumbai due to odour in the cabin resulting from a bird hit. The aircraft landed safely in Mumbai & all passengers were deboarded. Aircraft was positioned for a detailed inspection: Akasa Air spox

4:02 PM

Delhi: CAQM advises strict implementation of air pollution norms, warns of legal action

Intensifying its actions in the battle against air pollution in Delhi-NCR in the coming days, the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) urged all concerned including Industries and Project Proponents of Construction and Demolition (C & D) sites to strictly follow the statutory directions issued by the Commission, said the officials on Saturday.

The general masses have also been advised to strictly follow the steps highlighted in the Citizen Charter in each stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in the coming days.

3:06 PM

IMF chief warns of risk of geopolitical fragmentation

There is a risk of geopolitical fragmentation, as geopolitics turn into geo-economics with negative impacts, warns International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.

"Emerging markets and developing countries have stressed that for them, it is paramount that they have the opportunity to drive growth and employment on the basis of a more integrated global economy," Georgieva said at a press conference during the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in response to a question from Xinhua news agency.

That was also a message coming from small advanced economies, Georgieva noted, referring to the meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC), the policy advisory committee of the IMF Board of Governors.

3:03 PM

Udayanidhi Stalin leads DMK protest across TN against imposition of Hindi

The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu on Saturday organised a state-wide protest, led by party's youth wing secretary and MLA, Udhayanidhi Stalin, against imposion of Hindi. Udayanidhi Stalin is the son of Chief Minister, M.K. Stalin, and wields considerable influence in the DMK.

Across the state, the party conducted protest marches against a recommendation of the Union Government's Parliamentary panel headed by Home Minister Amit Shah to make Hindi a medium of instruction in Central educational institutions in Tamil Nadu.

During the anti-Hindi agitation in Coimbatore, DMK leader and Urban District Secretary of the party, N. Karthik said that in 2024 Lok sabha elections, BJP would be wiped out from Tamil Nadu.

3:00 PM

U'khand: Pension of those jailed during Emergency increased

The BJP government in Uttarakhand has increased from Rs 16,000 to Rs 20,000 the monthly pension given to people who were jailed under two Acts used to quell political dissent during the Emergency.

People who were imprisoned under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act and the Defence of India Act during the Emergency from June 25, 1975, to March 21, 1977, were being paid Rs 16,000 since January 17, 2018.

However, the amount given as Loktantra Sainani Samman pension was increased to Rs 20,000 a month by an order, dated October 14, issued by Additional Chief Secretary Radha Raturi.

2:55 PM

Amul Gold and buffalo milk prices rise by Rs 2 per litre

GCMMF, which sells milk under the Amul brand, has hiked the prices of Amul Gold and buffalo milk by Rs 2 per litre each across all markets except Gujarat.

"Prices have been increased by Rs 2 per litre for Amul Gold and buffalo milk due to increase in fat prices," Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) managing director R S Sodhi told PTI.

Prices have been raised for all markets except Gujarat, he added.

2:54 PM

40 flying squads to rigorously monitor enforcement, compliance of air pollution norms

Keeping in view the air quality of Delhi and NCR which has already started deteriorating, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in NCR and adjoining areas has urged all concerned including industries and construction agencies to strictly follow the statutory directions issued by the Commission.

The 40 inspection teams and flying squads constituted by the Commission are under directions to intensify inspections, supervise and rigorously monitor enforcement and compliance of statutory directions issued by the Commission to ameliorate the air quality of Delhi-NCR. These flying squads will conduct surprise inspections and field level incognito checks at industrial units, C&D sites, commercial/residential units, air pollution hotspots, etc. These flying squads will widely cover all parts of Delhi-NCR to track down violators and report the details to the Commission for stringent actions against them.

As on October 14, 2022, more than 8,580 sites were inspected by the CAQM flying squads and closure directions have been issued to 491 defaulters flouting the statutory directions of the Commission, 110 in Delhi; 118 in Haryana (NCR); 211 in Uttar Pradesh (NCR); and 52 in Rajasthan (NCR).

2:52 PM

Death toll rises to 40 in Turkey coal mine explosion

The death toll from a coal mine explosion in northern Turkey rose to at least 40 people Saturday, officials said.

Desperate relatives had waited all night in the cold outside the state-owned TTK Amasra Muessese Mudurlugu mine in the town of Amasra, in the Black Sea coastal province of Bartin, hoping for news. There were 110 miners working in the shaft when the explosion occurred Friday evening.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said Saturday that 40 miners were confirmed dead. Eleven were injured and hospitalised, while 58 others managed to get out of the mine on their own or were rescued unharmed. The status of one remaining miner was unclear.

2:45 PM

Congress' job is to create quarrels among people: Amit Shah in Himachal

In the run-up to the upcoming Himachal Pradesh Assembly polls, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday launched an attack on Congress saying that the party's job is to create quarrels among people.

Shah launched the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) election campaign song 'Himachal Ki Pukaar Phir BJP sarkar' at a public rally in Sirmaur on Saturday.

Addressing the rally, Shah said, "Himachal Pradesh is going to set a new custom that is 'ek baar BJP, baar baar BJP'. In Uttarakhand, Congressmen used to talk about the change of rule in alternative terms. But such customs were not followed and the BJP government was formed with a two-thirds majority."

2:28 PM

Modi to open PM Kisan Samman Sammelan on Oct 17; to release funds worth Rs 16,000 cr

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate "PM Kisan Samman Sammelan 2022" on October 17 at Indian Agricultural Research Institute in the national capital.

During the event, the PM will release the 12th installment amount of Rs 16,000 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) through Direct Benefit Transfer.

More than 13,500 farmers from across the country and around 1500 agri startups will assemble to witness the event.

2:18 PM

Congress re-launching a 'failed Missile' through Bharat Jodo Yatra: K'taka CM

Ahead of the Congress 's mega rally in Ballari, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday dubbed the ongoing 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' as another attempt to relaunch a 'failed missile' called Rahul Gandhi.

As a galaxy of Congress leaders from across the country descended on Ballari to celebrate Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' reaching a milestone, covering 1,000 kms, Bommai said it is meaningless as the country is united and has full faith in federalism. There is no meaning to this Bharat Jodo Yatra when the country is strong enough. As I have said in the past, the missile called Rahul Gandhi had failed earlier. Now, he is being relaunched. Apart from this, there is no meaning to the Yatra, Bommai told reporters. He sought to know the purpose behind the yatra, when the nation is unitedly progressing with faith in federalism. There is no occasion now for uniting India' when the country is marching ahead globally in a robust way. At a time when all the countries including the G-7 nations are facing economic slowdown, India is going ahead with seven per cent growth.

Recalling that Congress president Sonia Gandhi had contested from Ballari Lok Sabha constituency in 1999 and promised to continue contesting from the segment, he alleged that she left Ballari and went back to Rae Bareily in UP, without even conveying her gratitude to the voters. The Congress had announced a package of Rs 3,500 crore, but it did not allot even a penny, he claimed.

2:15 PM

Aadhaar enrolment for newborns with birth certificates to be expanded to all states in few months

Aadhaar enrolment for newborns along with birth certificates is expected to be available in all states in the next few months, expanding beyond 16 states currently offering the facility, government sources said.

At present, 16 states have Aadhaar Linked Birth Registration. The process began more than one year ago, with various states getting added over time.

Work is on in remaining states and Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) -- the government agency that issues Aadhaar numbers -- expects that over the next few months all states will be able to offer the facility, bringing added convenience to new parents.

2:02 PM

Rajasthan CM Gehlot approves Rs 35 crore for gyms, fitness centres in all districts

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has approved Rs 35 crore to set up state-of-the-art gyms and fitness centres at all divisional headquarter cities/towns, the state government said in a statement.

Open gyms will also be set up at each district headquarter city, it said.

As per the proposal, state-of-the-art gyms and fitness centres will be opened in the state's seven divisional headquarter cities -- Jaipur (Sawai Mansingh Stadium), Jodhpur (Barkatullah Khan Stadium), Ajmer, Bikaner, Udaipur, Bharatpur and Kota at a cost of Rs 32.50 crore.

1:54 PM

Delay in justice delivery big challenge, says PM Modi; bats for use of regional languages in legal system

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said delay in getting justice is one of the major challenges faced by the people of the country, and added that a sensitive judicial system is essential for a capable nation and a harmonious society.

Since obscurity of law creates complexity, new laws should be written in lucid manner and in regional languages to bring in "ease of justice" so that even the poor can easily understand them, he said, noting that legal language should not become a hurdle for citizens.

In his video message aired at the inaugural session of the two-day 'All India Conference of Law Ministers and Law Secretaries' at Ekta Nagar in Kevadia near the 'Statue of Unity' in Gujarat, Modi also said that in the last eight years, his government has scrapped more than 1,500 old, obsolete and irrelevant laws, many of which continued from the time of British rule.

1:47 PM

K Vijay Kumar resigns as security advisor of MHA, cites personal reasons

Decorated police officer K Vijay Kumar, who was credited for eliminating forest brigand Veerappan, has resigned as the senior security advisor in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

Kumar, who put in his papers sometimes ago due to personal reasons, has vacated his accommodation in Delhi and relocated to Chennai.

"I am now based in Chennai after I decided to end my stint with the MHA due to personal reasons," he told PTI over the phone.

1:37 PM

Rahul has avoided poll campaigns for fear of losing, says BJP

Even as Rahul Gandhi is leading the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' to create an atmosphere against the BJP, the saffron party is claiming that the former Congress President is doing this "stunt" to avoid campaigns for the Assembly polls fearing defeat.

During the Yatra, Rahul Gandhi is continuously hitting out at the BJP government via tweets and statements, while the saffron party is also counter-attacking the Grand Old Party.

The BJP is saying that it is not a "Bharat Jodo Yatra but a Bharat Todo Yatra (not a Yatra to unite India but divide it).

Instead of trying to unite India, Rahul Gandhi should concentrate on uniting the Congress as frustrated and disappointed senior leaders of the grand-old party are quitting it one after another, the saffron party said.

1:33 PM

Kashmiri Pandit shot dead by militants in J&K's Shopian

A Kashmiri Pandit was shot dead by militants in the Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday, officials said.

Puran Krishan was attacked near his residence in the Chowdhary Gund area of south Kashmir district, they said, adding that doctors declared Krishan brought dead after he was shifted to Shopian hospital.

The area has been cordoned off and a hunt has been launched to nab the assailants, they added.

1:25 PM

Pakistan with N-weapons without cohesion is 'one of the most dangerous nations in the world': President Biden

US President Joe Biden has said Pakistan is one of the most dangerous nations in the world as it has nuclear weapons without cohesion.

He made the remarks while addressing a Democratic Party congressional campaign committee reception on Thursday.

And what I think is maybe one of the most dangerous nations in the world: Pakistan. Nuclear weapons without any cohesion," Biden said.

The US president's remarks at the reception of the governing party were made in the context of the changing geopolitical situation globally.

The West has expressed concern over the safety and security of Pakistan's nuclear weapons. Many in the West are worried that Pakistan's nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of terrorists or jihadi elements.

1:24 PM

AirAsia commemorates 90th anniversary of JRD Tata's first commercial flight

AirAsia India is celebrating the 90th anniversary of JRD Tata's first commercial flight by hosting a series of digital, on ground, and in-flight engagement activities.

An ardent aviator, JRD Tata was the longest-serving chairman of the Tata group and is regarded as the father of civil aviation in India. In addition to being a recipient of the Bharat Ratna, he was also conferred the rank of honorary Air Vice Marshal of the Indian Air Force.

JRD Tata piloted the inaugural flight of Tata Air Services, from Karachi to Bombay via Ahmedabad on October 15, 1932, in a single-engine de Havilland Puss Moth, paving the path for civil aviation in India. The inaugural flight is commemorated in the livery commissioned by AirAsia India on its aircraft VT-JRT, dubbed "The Pioneer".

1:04 PM

Stay on release of ex-DU Prof Saibaba, SC suspends Bombay HC's order

The Supreme Court on Saturday suspended the October 14 order of the Bombay High Court discharging former Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba and five others in an alleged Maoist links case.

A bench comprising Justices M.R. Shah and Bela M. Trivedi suspended the high court's judgment.

The Maharashtra government had moved the apex court questioning the validity of the Bombay High Court's judgment discharging Saibaba and the five others in the case of having links with banned Maoists organisations due to absence of sanction.