Page 2821 - Politics
Protesting farmers not 'satisfied' with govt assurance: Tikait
As thousands of farmers tried to enter the national capital in a massive protest march, the government Tuesday announced that a committee of chief ministers will look into their demands, even as the protesters stayed put saying they were not "satisfied" with the assurance. After meeting the protesting farmers at the Delhi-UP border here, Union Minister of State for Agriculture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said the government was assuring the farmers to take forward their cause. "I assure you all this. We will move court over the NGT order (to ban tractor and vehicles which are more than 10 years old)," he said. On another problem faced by the farmers about farm labour, the minister said the government would look at bringing in some changes to the minimum wage rules for rural areas to solve this problem. "The government has formed a committee of six chief ministers to look into this issue of labour for farm. The committee is in talks to connect MNREGA with agriculture," Shekhawat ...
Gandhi worked to unite India, Modi dividing country: Rahul
Mahatma Gandhi aimed to unite the country but Prime Minister Narendra Modi was working to divide it, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said at Wardha in Maharashtra on Tuesday. Addressing a rally marking his party's programmes on the commencement of Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary year, the Congress president also asked the prime minister to talk about the Rafale fighter jet controversy. Modi should explain to the country why Anil Ambani's Reliance Defence was chosen over State-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) as the offset partner of French firm Dassault Aviation, he said. Modi "avoided eye contact" when he asked questions about the deal in Parliament, because the prime minister had "lied" to the country on the issue, Rahul Gandhi alleged. "Mahatma Gandhi talked about uniting India, Modiji is dividing India....(he) pitched one community against another," he said. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government waived loans worth Rs 3.20 lakh crore of capitalists who ..
Need new 'freedom struggle' against Modi government: Congress
The Congress on Tuesday called for a "new freedom struggle" to combat the Modi governments politics of threat and intimidation as well as politics of polarization and divisiveness.
Assam CM pays tributes to Gandhiji, installs tallest flag pole
Assam on Tuesday paid rich tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on his 149th birth anniversary, with Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal dedicating one of India's tallest flag poles to mark the occasion at Gandhi Mandap in Guwahati.
13 killed in Afghan poll rally suicide bombing
At least 13 people were killed and 30 others were wounded after a suicide bombing ripped through an election rally in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province on Tuesday, officials said.
Akhilesh Yadav extends support to protesting farmers
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav Tuesday extended his party's support to the farmers protesting under the aegis of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) in support of various demands ranging from farm loan waiver to cut in fuel prices. As thousands of farmers tried to enter the national capital in a massive protest march, the government Tuesday announced that a committee of chief ministers will look into their demands, even as the protesters stayed put saying they were not "satisfied" with the assurance. Farmers marching towards Delhi under BKU's protest call were stopped at the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border, as they tried to run through the border, surmounting the barricades. 'The farmers have come out in support of their various demands... If we look at things, in the past over four years, almost 50,000 farmers have committed suicide, mostly in BJP-ruled states, including Uttar Pradesh," Akhilesh Yadav said. "The BJP government had decided that a package will be prepared for clearing ...
IAEA fends off Israel pressure over Iran
The UN's nuclear watchdog Tuesday refused to "take at face value" Israel's claims that Iran is harbouring a secret atomic warehouse, fending off pressure to inspect the allegedly suspect site. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the claim in front of the UN General Assembly last week. Without explicitly referring to Netanyahu's claim, IAEA chief Yukiya Amano insisted that the agency's independence was "of paramount importance" for its work. The IAEA "uses all safeguards-relevant information available to it but it does not take any information at face value," Amano said in a statement. Netanyahu accused Iran of operating a "secret atomic warehouse for storing massive amounts of equipment and material from Iran's secret nuclear weapons programme." He urged the IAEA to inspect the site. Amano said the IAEA would not be told how to do its work. "All information obtained, including from third parties, is subject to rigorous review," he said. He said the IAEA's work "must always .
Sanitation coverage in rural India increased rapidly after 2014: PM Modi
While addressing the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the sanitation coverage in rural areas has increased rapidly after his government came to power in 2014.He also added that until now as many as 25 states of the country have declared themselves open defecation free (ODF)."The result of this "Janbhavna" is that the radius of rural sanitation before 2014 was approximately 38 per cent but today it is 94 per cent. The number of ODF villages has surpassed five lakhs. Twenty-five states of India have declared themselves free from open defecation," he said.The event was organised by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation to mark the beginning of the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi.Elaborating further on the issue, the Prime Minister said, "Four years ago, 60 per cent of the global population defecating in open was in India, it has been reduced to 20 per cent today. In these four years, not ...
Germany welcomes U.S., Canada and Mexico trade pact
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany welcomes a trade agreement between the United States, Canada and Mexico, a spokeswoman for the German foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
Cong calls for 'second freedom struggle' against Modi govt at CWC meeting
The Congress Working Committee (CWC) Tuesday called for a "second freedom struggle" against the Modi government to combat the ideology of "hate and violence", saying the same reason had led to the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. Holding its meeting at Mahadev Bhavan, Sevagram Ashram, in Wardha district of Maharashtra on the 149th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the CWC also condemned the use of force against protesting farmers on their way to the national capital. Addressing a press conference, party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said the CWC has passed two resolutions recalling the contribution of Mahatma Gandhi to the "Indian thought process, its soul and body". "(Former prime minister) Lal Bahadur Shastri's call of 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan' is not just a slogan but a way of life. We will continue to fight for farmers' rights," he said. Surjewala said the second freedom struggle will be against the Modi government for practising politics of "hatred, divisiveness, fear, ...
Odisha CM slams Centre, says empty vessels make most noise
In a scathing attack on the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said Tuesday the saffron party reminds him of the proverb "empty vessels make the most noise". Patnaik, who is the president of the ruling BJD in the state, said the NDA government has not been able to live up to the expectations of people. Flagging off the BJD's month-long 'Jana Sampark Padayatra' from Jharna Basti here, the chief minister said, "In its poll manifesto, the BJP had promised to accord Special Category status to Odisha, but nothing has been done so far. As we know, empty vessels make the most noise." The month-long programme of the ruling party comes days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah visited the state on separate occasions, seeking its ouster in 2019 elections. During this period, the BJD leaders will create awareness on the state government's achievements and flagship programmes such as 'Ama Gaon Ama Vikash', 'Ama Sahara
Cong Jat leader demands withdrawal of quota stir cases, courts arrest
Congress MLA Vishvendra Singh courted arrest Tuesday demanding withdrawal of cases lodged against Jat community members during their June 2017 stir for reservation in state jobs and educational institutions. Singh, a Jat community leader, courted arrest along with his supporters in Bharatpur near here, demanding either withdrawal of cases or filing of chargesheets in them within three days. Maintaining that a political decision by the chief minister can resolve the issue, Singh gave an ultimatum of three days to the government and said he would launch another agitation if no progress was made. 72 cases were lodged during the agitation which was held to demand reservation for Jat community in Dholpur and Bharatpur districts. The government had assured to withdraw the cases but no progress has taken place in one year, Singh said. The cases should be either withdrawn or challans be filed in them, he said. The Congress MLA reached the police superintendent's office along with his ...
Rahul leads foot march on Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary
Congress chief Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday led a foot march here to mark the start of Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary celebrations and to give a message against what the party called the "atmosphere of fear" in the country. Congress leaders like K C Venugopal, R P N Singh, state unit president Ashok Chavan, Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil and others joined Rahul Gandhi as he began the march after garlanding a statue of the Father of the Nation near the district collector's office here. The march culminated at the Circus Ground (in Ramnagar locality) here, where the Congress president was set to address a rally. Rahul Gandhi walked for around 50 minutes before reaching the rally venue, a Congress leader said. The party leadership has converged at the Sevagram village, located around 10 km from Wardha district headquarters, to attend the meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the highest decision-making body of the party. The ...
US accuses Chinese naval ship of conducting unsafe manoeuvres in South China Sea
The US has accused a Chinese naval ship of conducting "unsafe and unprofessional" manoeuvres when one of its warships entered the waters of the disputed South China Sea. China on Tuesday expressed its strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the US warship sailing near the islands and reefs claimed by it in the South China Sea (SCS). "On September 30, without permission of the Chinese government, the US destroyer Decatur entered neighbouring waters of islands and reefs of China's Nansha Islands," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement on Tuesday. The Chinese naval ship identified the US vessel, warned and expelled it, Hua said, stressing that China has indisputable sovereignty of the Nansha islands (Spratly Islands) and its adjacent waters. An official US statement described the move by the Chinese destroyer as "unsafe" because it moved within 41 metres of the US warship. US Pacific Fleet deputy spokesman Nate Christensen said the Chinese destroyer
T'gana polls: KCR to address meetings from tomorrow
The campaign for the coming Assembly elections in Telangana is likely to heat up with Telangana Rashtra Samithi president and Caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao scheduled to address a series of public meetings from Wednesday. Rao will address a public meeting at Nizamabad Wednesday, followed by meetings at Nalgonda on October 4, at Vanaparthi (near Mahabubnagar) on October 5 and at Warangal and Khammam on October 7 and 8, as per the schedule announced. Rao had kicked off the party's campaign for the coming Legislative Assembly polls by addressing a public meeting at Husnabad near Karimnagar on September 7, a day after the dissolution of the Legislative Assembly in the state. Rao's son and minister in the Caretaker government K T Rama Rao and other party leaders have been active in the campaign since then. Rao is expected to highlight the achievements of his goverment during the last over four years after the formation of Telangana, during the campaign. Rama Rao
CPI-M mouthpiece shut in Tripura, BJP blamed
A 40-year-old CPI-M newspaper in Tripura, "Daily Deshar Katha", has been ordered closed by the government on technical grounds, leading the Marxists to accuse the state's BJP government of committing an "illegal" act.
Yasin Malik detained in Srinagar
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chairman Yasin Malik was detained in Srinagar on Tuesday to prevent an anti-poll campaign.
AP: Unemployed youths will now get monthly allowance
The Andhra Pradesh government headed by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday launched a unique scheme named 'Mukhyamantri Yuvanestham' under which unemployed youth aged between 25-35 will receive a monthly allowance of Rs. 1000, along with other benefits.The scheme is aimed at helping young minds hone their skills in their respective fields and to reduce the burden on their families while they are unemployed. Apart from the allowance, beneficiaries will be provided with skill development, apprenticeship chance in companies and coaching for competitive exams. The criteria for availing the scheme has been laid down by the state administration.Elaborating further about the new initiative undertaken by his government, Naidu clarified that the move was not aimed at garnering votes in the upcoming polls."Some states tried to give unemployment allowance, but could not implement. We have designed the scheme in a meticulous manner. This is not intended for votes in elections. I wanted
UN chief hails Gandhi's principle of non-violence, denounces terrorism
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Tuesday paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at his memorial here and hailed him as a "great soul" and humanity's "guide in our troubled world". Guterres, later in an interaction with PTI, denounced terrorism as a "plague" that affects the world, and highlighted the significance of the principle of non-violence espoused by Gandhi. "I feel extremely honoured to pay tribute to this great figure in world history. Today (October 2) also marks the International Day of Non-violence. And, as we continue our work to advance peace, the way to realise the objectives is through non-violence," he said. Guterres, currently on a visit to India, his first as the UN Secretary-General, also laid a wreath on the 'samadhi' of the father of the nation at Rajghat. "I pay tribute to this greatest soul that has ever lived. Our guide... in our troubled world," he wrote in the visitor's book. According to the UN General Assembly resolution of June 15, 2007, which ...
US accuses Chinese naval ship of holding unsafe manoeuvres in South China Sea
The US has accused a Chinese naval ship of conducting "unsafe and unprofessional" manoeuvres when one of its warship entered the waters of the disputed South China Sea. China on Tuesday expressed its strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the US warship sailing near the islands and reefs claimed by it in the South China Sea (SCS). "On September 30, without permission of the Chinese government, the US destroyer Decatur entered neighbouring waters of islands and reefs of China's Nansha Islands," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement on Tuesday. The Chinese naval ship identified the US vessel, warned and expelled it, Hua said, stressing that China has indisputable sovereignty of the Nansha islands (Spratly Islands) and its adjacent waters. An official US statement described the move by the Chinese destroyer as "unsafe" because it moved within 41 metres of the US warship. US Pacific Fleet deputy spokesman Nate Christensen said the Chinese destroyer .