Page 28 - Lok Sabha

Rural literacy rate up by 10 percentage points in last 10 yrs: Govt in LS

The literacy rate in rural India recorded a jump of more than 10 percentage points in the past decade, the Lok Sabha was informed on Monday. It was also told that the literacy rate among women rose 14.50 percentage points during this period. The information was shared by Union Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary in response to a written question about government efforts, challenges and strategies in achieving 100 per cent rural literacy. According to the statistics shared by Chaudhary, rural India's literacy rate rose from 67.77 per cent in 2011 to 77.50 per cent in 2023-24 among individuals aged seven and above. Female literacy rose from 57.93 per cent to 70.40 per cent during this period. Male literacy improved from 77.15 per cent to 84.7 per cent. "In order to improve the literacy rate, including rural literacy among adults, the government of India has launched several centrally-sponsored schemes and programmes, such as the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, Saakshar Bharat

Opposition protests disrupt Lok Sabha; House adjourned for the day

Lok Sabha proceedings were on Monday adjourned for the day after the opposition's protests over allegations of George Soros-Congress link and Adani issue led to repeated disruptions. When the House met at 11 am after the weekend, the opposition members were on their feet, trying to raise their issues. A visibly agitated Speaker Om Birla asked the MPs to go back to their seats and allow the House to function. "Question Hour is significant. Allow the House to function properly. But you don't want to allow the House to run. The country wants the House to run. You are disrupting the proceedings of the House," he told the protesting members and adjourned the House till 12 noon. The noisy protests again forced an adjournment till 2 pm and then till 3 pm, before the proceedings were wrapped for the day. As soon as the House re-convened at noon, Congress members trooped into the well of the Lok Sabha raising slogans against the government. They were soon joined by Samajwadi Party ...

Lok Sabha adjourned till 2 pm amid Opposition protest over Adani issue

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday adjourned the House till 12 noon after opposition members, mostly Congress MPs, persisted on raising their issues. When the House met at 11 am, the opposition members were on their feet trying to raise their issues. A visibly agitated Birla asked the MPs to go back to their seats and allow the House to function. "Question Hour is significant. Allow the House to function properly. But you don't want to allow the House to run. The country wants the House to run. You are disrupting the proceedings of the House," he told the protesting members and adjourned the House till 12 noon. The adjournment came within a minute of the House resuming business after the weekend break. The proceedings of the House were washed out in the first week of the winter session starting November 25 due to protests by opposition members demanding that they be allowed to raise issues like the indictment of industrialist Gautam Adani in a US court and Sambhal violence. Las

Will question in LS: Nishikant Dubey targets Rahul over George Soros link

Notwithstanding the US' dismissal of BJP's allegations that it is backing attempts to destabilise India, party MP Nishikant Dubey on Sunday said he will ask Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi 10 questions in the Lok Sabha on the issue. In a post on X, Dubey alleged that media portal Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and Hungarian-American businessman George Soros have colluded with the opposition to ruin India's economy and defame the Modi government. The US on Saturday rejected BJP's allegations that organisations funded by its State Department and elements in the American "deep state" were behind attempts to destabilise India through targeted attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and business tycoon Gautam Adani. A spokesperson at the US embassy described the allegations as "disappointing" and asserted that the US government has been a champion of media freedom around the world. Reacting to the US embassy's statement, Dubey said, "Yesterday I read the ...

Rajnath Singh, Rahul Gandhi extend greetings on Armed Forces Flag Day

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also extended greetings on the occasion and praised their courage and determination

BFSI news wrap: RBI holds rates, cuts CRR, LS passes Banking Amendment Bill, Axis Finance options, RBI lifts ban on Navi Finserv, and more

RBI holds rates, cuts CRR Lok Sabha passes Banking Amendment Bill Axis Finance options RBI lifts ban on Navi Finserv Banks urged to activate dormant accounts

Political business: Fadnavis' Maha return, Sukhbir Badal dodges death

Devendra Fadnavis' return to Maharashtra throne, assassination attempt on Sukhbir Singh Badal in Punjab and more in this week's political news wrap

Parliament Winter Session: Lok Sabha adjourned till 11 am of December 9

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla made a fervent appeal for order and cooperation during the winter session

Manickam Tagore gives adjournment motion to discuss Adani's indictment

Tagore alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government are prioritising Adani's profits over the welfare of the Indian people

The Railways Amendment Bill 2024 seeks to simplify legal framework

Opposition fears privatisation

Cricket, Lok Sabha elections among the top YouTube trends in 2024

YouTube Report 2024 also says videos with the words 'Moye Moye' in the title received more than 4.5 billion views this year

LS adjourned for day amid protest as BJP links Oppn to foreign investor

Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned for the day on Thursday over BJP member Nishikant Dubey's remarks targeting Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi and seeking to link him to a US-based multi-billionaire. After two earlier adjournments, the House resumed at 3 pm to pass the the Railways (Amendment) Bill, 2024, amid noisy protests by members of the opposition. Jagdambika Pal, who was in the Chair, tried to calm the opposition and asked Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to reply to the debate on the Bill. However, the protest by the opposition did not allow the House to function. As the uproar continued, Pal adjourned the House for the day. During Zero Hour at noon, Dubey claimed the Congress-led opposition had tried to derail Parliament proceedings following reports in a publication based on findings of the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) which had alleged links to the billionaire investor. Congress members strongly objected to Dubey's remarks leading to

PM Modi can't get Adani investigated, says Rahul as Oppn protests in Parl

Opposition MPs wore jackets symbolising their protest over the Adani issue which mentioned: 'Modi Adani Ek Hai, Adani safe hai'

Venugopal files adjournment motion over stopping Rahul's Sambhal visit

Earlier today, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi also moved an adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha to discuss the stopping of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi

Gaurav Gogoi seeks LS adjournment over stopping of Rahul's Sambhal visit

In his notice, Gogoi stated that by preventing LoP Gandhi from visiting Sambhal, the government "disregarded" the right of opposition to hold the government responsible

Parliament session highlights: Congress lead Opposition walkout in RS over farmers issue

Parliament winter session news updates: Catch all the latest news developments related to the proceedings in the Parliament here

Changes in Whistle Blowers Protection Act not part of current session: Govt

The changes proposed in the Whistle Blowers Protection Act are not part of the approved legislative business of the current session of Parliament, the government said on Wednesday. The Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2014 was notified on May 12, 2014. In terms of provision of sub-section (3) of section 1 of the law, the provisions of the Act shall come into force on such date as the central government may, by notification in the official gazette, appoint, the government said. No such notification has been made by the government for the reason that the Act requires amendments aimed at safeguarding against disclosures affecting sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the state, etc., before it is brought into force, Union Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a written reply. To make these amendments to the Act, the government introduced the Whistle Blowers Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2015 in the Lok Sabha on May 11, 2015 which was passed by Lok Sabha on Ma

Explained: Banking Reforms Amendment Bill 2024. What is in it for you?

The Lok Sabha has approved the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which amends multiple laws, including the Banking Regulation Act and RBI Act. Watch the video to know why it matters

Members should refrain from interjecting till permitted: LS speaker

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday said ministers should give up the habit of responding to members during the Question Hour till permitted by the Chair. This came after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav made a comment while Union minister Pralhad Joshi was replying to a question on solar energy and Union minister Piyush Goyal responded to the Kannauj MP. Goyal earlier served as power minister. Joshi, who holds the New and Renewable Energy portfolio, was responding to supplementaries related to Pradhan Mantri-Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana (PM-SGMBY). Birla said ministers should not reply to members till they are allowed by the Chair. Later, the speaker also asked members to keep their questions and answers short. He made the comments when Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia was responding to questions about BSNL. Scindia was also asked to keep his reply short. Members and ministers should keep their questions and answers crisp and to the point so that more members

Railways gives Rs 56,993 cr subsidy on tickets every year: Ashwini Vaishnaw

A total subsidy of Rs 56,993 crore is given every year by the Indian Railways to all categories of passengers, with a 46 per cent rebate on every ticket, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Wednesday. Replying to multiple questions in the Lok Sabha on restoring discounts given to various categories of train passengers, he said if the price of a ticket is Rs 100, then the railways charges just Rs 54 for it -- a discount of 46 per cent. "A total of Rs 56,993 crore subsidy is given every year by the Indian Railways to all classes of passengers," Vaishnaw said during the Question Hour. Replying to another question on rapid train service, he said the railways has already started such a service -- Namo Bharat Rapid Rail -- between Bhuj and Ahmedabad and the satisfaction level of passengers is extremely high due to its superior service. Officials said Namo Bharat Rapid Rail has improved intercity connectivity by covering the 359-kilometre distance between Bhuj and Ahmedabad in 5 hou