Category: NATIONAL NEWS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday announced that India would raise its target for restoring degraded land from 21 million hectares to 26 million hectares by 2030. Speaking at the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Modi said between 2015 and 2017, India’s tree and forest cover increased by 0.8 million hectares. “I would like to announce that India would raise its ambition of the total area that would be restored from its land degradation status, from twenty one…

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The third round of meeting between delegates of India and Pakistan to discuss and finalise the draft agreement for the operationalistaion of the Kartarpur corridor for Sikh pilgrims was underway here on Wednesday, officials said. A 20-member Pakistani delegation crossed over to India for the joint secretary-level meeting at Attari in Amritsar, they said.The corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district of Punjab and facilitate visa-free movement of Indian pilgrims, who will have to just obtain a permit to visit Kartarpur Sahib,…

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 In the biggest consolidation exercise in the banking space, the government on Friday announced four major mergers of public sector banks, bringing down their total number to 12 from 27 in 2017, a move aimed at making state-owned lenders global sized banks.United Bank of India and Oriental Bank of Commerce will be merged with Punjab National Bank, making the proposed entity the second largest public sector bank (PSB).Making the announcements, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said Syndicate Bank will be merged with Canara Bank, while Allahabad Bank will be amalgamated with…

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Union Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank on Wednesday launched a web portal ‘Shagun’, which links over 15 lakh schools across the country, to provide all information on school education. The schools have been geo-tagged and all the data provided by them can be accessed through this portal. “The progress of the country is dependent on education and the foundation of education needs to be solid. Shagun is an important initiative and through this portal, more than 2.3 lakh educational websites can be integrated,” the minister said. According to…

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The Sikkim government has urged the Centre to withdraw its notification which opened up 24 peaks of the state to mountaineers, a top official said.The Centre has recently allowed mountaineering and trekking in 137 peaks across the country, including 24 peaks in Sikkim, in a bid to boost tourism.The state government has sent a letter to the Centre stating that the opening up of the peaks in Sikkim to mountaineers is a “matter of grave concern” for the state and sought immediate withdrawal of the notification, Chief Secretary Alok Kumar…

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The expanded cabinet of the Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa’s government in Karnataka that met for the first time here on Tuesday decided to send all the newly appointed Ministers to flood-ravaged districts of the state to assess the relief and rehabilitation being undertaken there.More than three weeks after he was sworn in as the Chief Minister, Yediyurappa on Tuesday expanded his ministry by inducting 17 ministers into his Cabinet.”In today’s cabinet meeting, it has been decided that the Ministers who were sworn in will visit the flood-hit areas on…

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A flood-like situation prevailed in many parts of Punjab and Haryana where the Indian Air Force on Monday rescued nine persons stuck in Karnal district due to sudden rise of water in the River Yamuna.While the Meteorological Department said no heavy rainfall was reported in most parts of the two states on Monday morning, the two states had received heavy rains during the past three days.Assisted by the Karnal Police, the Indian Air Force rescued nine persons including women and children who had got stuck in Karnal.The rescue operation was…

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From dawn to dusk, and sometimes from dusk to dawn as well, the hours pass by in wakeful alertness for paramilitary troopers tasked with ensuring law and order in a land that is many hundred miles from home.In the long hours of the night, as others try to get some sleep, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans can be heard stomping through the silent streets, armed with lathis and alert to any signs of trouble that might break out in Kashmir’s main city. The days go in maintaining law and…

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Former finance minister Arun Jaitley has been put on life support system at AIIMS here, sources said, as several leaders including Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Union minister Piyush Goyal visited the hospital.The 66-year-old leader, who was admitted at the hospital on August 9, has been put on life support system and a multidisciplinary team of doctors is monitoring his condition, the sources said.The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has not issued any bulletin on Jaitley’s health condition since August 10. Several leaders visited the hospital to enquire…

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 The BJP-led NDA government is working to meet people’s aspirations in its second term after addressing their needs in the last five years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday, asserting it has prepared a blueprint for India in the 21st century.Addressing the nation on its 73rd Independence Day, he cited a number of major decisions, including revocation of Article 370, strengthening anti-terror laws, reforming medical education and legislation against triple talaq, taken by his government since its return to power to emphasise that it is working towards meeting this…

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