Page 2 - Modi Govt

PM Modi to visit Assam, honour Bhupen Hazarika, unveil ₹19,000 cr projects

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to arrive here on a two-day visit to Assam on Saturday to pay tribute to Bharat Ratna awardee Bhupen Hazarika and unveil projects worth over Rs 19,000 crore in the state, officials said. During his visit, the PM will also release a commemorative coin of Rs 100 to honour the legendary singer and a biography of the maestro titled 'Bharat Ratna Bhupen Hazarika', they said. The celebrations will include an 18-minute musical tribute by 1200 artistes who will render 14 evergreen songs of Hazarika in a medley. The prime minister will arrive here on Saturday at 4.20 pm and attend the meeting of Hazarika's birth centenary celebrations at 5.15 pm, the officials said. Modi will stay the night at a state guest house here. On Sunday, Modi will leave for Mangaldoi in Darrang district, where he will lay the foundation stone for Darrang Medical College along with a nursing and a GNM school, in the morning, the officials said. The combined investment for

India hoped for 'big' GST reform, received only a revised rate card

India's long-overdue GST cut is hailed by PM Modi as the nation's 'biggest reform', with carmakers cutting prices and asset managers calling it a 'landmark reset', yet markets stay muted

Oppn states demand compensation for revenue loss due to GST reform proposal

Opposition-ruled states on Friday said the Centre's proposal for GST rate rejig could result in a revenue loss of about Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 2 lakh crore and demanded compensation for the losses incurred by them. Finance ministers from eight states -- Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and West Bengal -- decided to present their proposal to the GST Council at the next meeting on September 3 and 4. Their proposal for balancing rate rationalisation and revenue neutrality suggests levying an additional duty on sin and luxury goods in addition to the proposed 40 per cent rate to maintain the current tax incidence. The proceeds from this levy should be distributed among states, the opposition-ruled states demanded. Briefing reporters after a meeting of the eight states, Karnataka Finance Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said each state is expected to lose 15-20 per cent from its current Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue. "The 20 per cent GST reven

PM Modi's Independence Day speech: Deep tech, nuclear energy, and more

The PM's address focused on several areas, including artificial intelligence and deep tech, energy independence, nuclear power, and national security

Need 2nd gen economic reforms but inertia set in past 11 yrs: Cong on govt

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday referred to the 1991 landmark liberalisation budget to say India urgently needed an impactful second-generation economic reforms, but an "inherent inertia" has set in the Narendra Modi government in the past 11 years. He alleged that due to the "disastrous economic policies" of the Modi dispensation, "which lacks both vision and action", the economy is reeling at a sub-par growth rate. "Inequality has widened, wage growth has miserably stagnated, household savings are getting depleted, youth do not have jobs, the middle class and poor are being robbed to help cronies, and we are facing a trade war, which would hurt both our agriculture and manufacturing sectors," Kharge alleged. "Thanks to the disastrous economic policies of the Modi government, which lacks both vision and action," he said. On the 34th anniversary of the presentation of the budget by then finance minister Manmohan Singh that ushered in economic liberalisation, Kharge sa

PM Modi awarded Brazil's highest civilian honour by President Lula

President Lula conferred Brazil's highest civilian honour, the 'Grand Collar of the National Order of the Southern Cross', on PM Narendra Modi

Opportunist govt destroyed law and order in Bihar: Kharge takes dig at NDA

Taking to X, Kharge highlighted the rising crime in the state, noting yesterday's Purnia witchcraft murder case and the murders of businessmen in the state

Congress slams govt assertion on India being among 'most equal' countries

The Congress on Monday termed as "fraudulent" and "intellectually dishonest" the government's assertion that India is among the world's most equal countries, and said the Modi government cannot simply wish away the stark reality of deepening inequalities by "doctoring data". The opposition party's attack came after an official release, citing World Bank data, said inequality in India has come down significantly between 2011-12 and 2022-23, making it the fourth-most equal country globally. The Congress demanded that the Press Information Bureau (PIB) must clarify as to the origins of this press release and retract it immediately. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said, "Aap chronology samajhiye. The World Bank released its Poverty and Equity Brief for India in April 2025. Immediately after, the Congress released a statement identifying the several warning signs that the World Bank had flashed for poverty and inequality in India - including warnings abo

Trinidad & Tobago says will back India's bid for permanent UNSC seat

India and Trinidad and Tobago on Friday inked six agreements to shore up their cooperation in several sectors, including infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and culture following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his counterpart Kamla Persad-Bissessar. The two leaders also explored potential collaboration in sectors such as agriculture, healthcare and digital transformation, unified payments interface (UPI), capacity building and people-to-people exchanges. Modi landed in Port of Spain on Thursday in the second leg of his five-nation tour. It is the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister to this Caribbean island nation since 1999. In her remarks during the delegation-level talks, Bissesar noted that Prime Minister Modi's "landmark visit" to Trinidad and Tobago will reinvigorate the deep-rooted bilateral ties between the two countries. On his part, Prime Minister Modi expressed appreciation for Trinidad and Tobago's strong support and solidarity to the people of

All-party meetings just formality, no outcome from talks: Jairam Ramesh

Jairam Ramesh said Congress has consistently been asking for a discussion on the strategic challenges, economic challenges, diplomatic challenges being posed by China

Parliament is not museum: Cong's Manickam Tagore slams govt over nameplate

The upcoming Monsoon session will be the first Parliament session following Operation Sindoor, which was launched by India on May 7 in response to a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam

Farmers sinking deeper into debt: Rahul Gandhi criticises Modi govt

In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi cited a media report that claimed 767 farmers in Maharashtra have taken their own lives in just three months

Cong slams Modi govt over rise in per capita debt of individual borrowers

The Congress on Wednesday slammed the Centre over the rise in the per capita debt of individual borrowers and said the government is constantly trying to hide the real shortcomings by taking the help of statistics and experts, but the debt burden on the country is at its peak in "Modi Raj". Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared screenshots of media reports to attack the government. One media report stated that the average debt of every person in the country has increased by Rs 90,000 in the last two years and the per capita debt of individual borrowers increased to Rs 4.8 lakh in March 2025 from Rs 3.9 lakh in March 2023. The other report shared by Ramesh said 25.7 per cent of the common man's disposable income is going towards paying EMIs of loans which are non-productive for him in the future. "Debt of 'Achhe Din'! The Modi government has ruined the country's economy in the last eleven years. No effort was made to improve the lives of the people

Investment depression result of Modi govt's policies of suppression: Cong

The Congress on Saturday said the country's economic and investment growth is sluggish due to the Narendra Modi government's "policies of suppression and oppression". In a post on X, Congress general secretary, communications, Jairam Ramesh said India's economic growth "stubbornly refuses" to accelerate at the desired and perfectly feasible rate. The most important reason for this failure, he said, is that private corporate investment continues to remain sluggish in spite of the generous tax cuts in September 2019 and the PLI (production-linked incentive) cash handouts. Ramesh said the Modi Government's own survey indicates that private sector capital expenditure may well be 25 per cent lower in 2025-26 as compared to the previous year. "Informed analysts have opined that while banks are willing to lend, companies are unwilling to borrow since the investment environment is not seen to be conducive to expansion. "Growing demand creates a climate for investment. There are undoubtedl

India ancient living civilisation due to immortal ideas of seers: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday India is the most ancient living civilisation of the world due to the immortal ideas and philosophies of its saints and seers. Speaking at the centenary celebrations of Jain spiritual figure Acharya Vidyanand Maharaj's birth anniversary here, PM Modi paid rich tributes to his contribution in different fields and asserted that his ideas have inspired the government's welfare schemes. Be it providing house, drinking water or health insurance, the government is ensuring saturation coverage of its welfare measures so that no one is left behind, he said. PM Modi also referred to the preceding speech of a Jain seer, noting that he was apparently blessing Operation Sindoor. The prime minister's mere mention of "Jo humein chhedega" brought massive cheers from the audience but he did not dwell any further on the issue. He said India introduced the world to the strength of "ahimsa" (non-violence) when it used violence to quell violence for thous

Centre to hold meeting of state, UT cooperation ministers on June 30

The Centre will hold a meeting of Cooperation Ministers of all states and Union Territories on June 30 to discuss ways to strengthen the cooperative sector in the country. The 'Manthan Baithak' at Bharat Mandapam here will be chaired by Union Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah. The meeting would discuss all major initiatives of the government, including establishment of 2 lakh new Multi-purpose Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), dairy and fisheries cooperative societies to strengthen last-mile rural service delivery. A key highlight will be the deliberation on the world's largest grain storage scheme in the cooperative sector. The meeting will serve as a platform to review progress, exchange views and chart the way forward to achieve the collective goal of strengthening the cooperative sector in the country, an official statement said. It aims to foster a shared understanding and develop a coordinated endeavour to advance the Prime Minister's vision of 'Sahkar Se Samrid

Cong slams BJP, says Modi govt left no stones unturned in ruining economy

The Congress on Tuesday attacked the Centre over interest rates on savings accounts reportedly reaching the lowest level in 25 years, alleging that the Modi government has in the last 11 years left no stone unturned in "ruining" the country's rapidly growing economy. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared a media report on X which claimed that the 1% cut in repo rate by the RBI has forced banks to reduce their deposit rates, pushing savings account interest rates to a 25-year low. "In the last 11 years, the Modi government has left no stone unturned in ruining the country's rapidly growing economy. Starting with demonetization, new experiments are being conducted on the people of the country every year, they are being tortured in new ways everyday," Ramesh said in a post on X in Hindi. The interest rates on savings accounts have reached the lowest level in 25 years, which is directly hitting the pockets of the elderly and the common citizens, he ...

Govt using tech to deny social welfare to vulnerable sections: Congress

The Congress on Monday attacked the Modi government over the Women and Child Development Ministry ordering face recognition authentication to be made mandatory for anganwadi beneficiaries, alleging that it is systematically using technology to exclude the most vulnerable sections of society from social welfare entitlements. The opposition party also said Digital India must enable, not disempower, and it must not remain a "Preach Inclusion Practice Exclusion (PIPE) dream". The ministry has directed all states and Union territories to implement a mandatory face recognition system for take-home ration distribution and child attendance monitoring at anganwadi centres. According to a letter issued by the ministry last month, the face recognition feature will now be accessible within the beneficiary profiles on the Poshan tracker application. Beneficiaries will also have the option to self-register using the citizen module of the tracker for e-KYC and photo capture. Reacting to the ...

PM Modi has mastered 'art of slogans', not solutions: Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has mastered the "art of slogans" but offers no solutions, and claimed that India's manufacturing was at a record low despite the 'Make in India' initiative. "'Make in India' promised a factory boom. So why is manufacturing at record lows, youth unemployment at record highs, and why have imports from China more than doubled? "Modi ji has mastered the art of slogans, not solutions. Since 2014, manufacturing has fallen to 14 per cent of our economy," he said in a post on X. Gandhi, the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, said Modi has "no new ideas" and has "surrendered". "Even the much-hyped PLI scheme is now being quietly rolled back," he alleged. Gandhi said India needs a fundamental shift, one that empowers lakhs of producers through honest reforms and financial support. "We must stop being a market for others. If we don't build here, we'll keep buying from those who do. The clock is ticking," he said. G

Sonia slams govt's silence on Gaza, Iran, calls it 'surrender of values'

Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Saturday strongly criticised India's silence on Israel's devastation in Gaza and Iran as "not just a loss of its voice, but also a surrender of values". In an article - "It is still not too late for India's voice to be heard", she accused the Narendra Modi government of abandoning India's long-standing and principled commitment to a peaceful two-nation solution envisioning an independent Palestine along with Israel. Gandhi, in the article, was also critical of US President Donald Trump for following a "destructive path" in West Asia, after having spoken against America's endless wars. "New Delhi's silence on the devastation in Gaza and now on the unprovoked escalation against Iran reflects a disturbing departure from our moral and diplomatic traditions. This represents not just a loss of voice but also a surrender of values," the Congress leader said in her article in 'The Hindu'. "It is still not too late. India must speak .