Category: NATIONAL NEWS

Union minister Uma Bharti today said the process for geo-tagging water sources in the Himalayas has been initiated and directions have been issued to identify springs in the region. The Drinking Water and Sanitation minister also said the Centre has decided to give Rs 27 crore to Uttarakhand for the implementation of projects such as Swajal and those related to making villages open defecation free (ODF). In a meeting with Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, she said Uttarakhand should prepare projects to restore ground water levels in the state, and…

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The Centre today opposed in the Supreme Court a PIL seeking an independent probe and deportation of billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi in the over Rs 11,000 crore PNB fraud case, saying an FIR has been lodged and a probe was on. A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud said it would not say anything on the matter now and listed the PIL filed by lawyer Vineet Dhanda for further hearing on March 16. Attorney General K K Venugopal, appearing for the…

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The CBI today started questioning of Rotomac owner Vikram Kothari at its Headquarters here in connection with alleged loan default of Rs 3,695 crore towards a consortium of seven nationalised banks, officials said here. Earlier, Kothari was being questioned in Kanpur where his company and residence is located, they said. He was called here by the agency which started his questioning at its headquarters, they said, without giving any reasons behind the move. Kothari, his wife Sadhana, and son Rahul, all Directors in Rotomac Global pvt Ltd, have allegedly diverted…

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Setting off on his political journey from a ‘simple man’s abode,’ veteran film star Kamal Haasan today paid a visit to the house of former President, the late APJ Abdul Kalam here, before he launches his party later today. Haasan visited House of Kalam in Rameswaram in this district and was received warmly by the ex-president’s family members. However, the actor’s visit could not go according to plans as the local administration denied him the permission to visit the APJ Kalam school, where the former president studied, saying the event…

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Naxals today set ablaze two JCB machines engaged in road construction work in Chhattisgarh’s insurgency-hit Sukma district, police said. No one was reported to be hurt in the incident, they said. The incident took place at Vardeltong village under Polampalli police station limits, a local police official told PTI. A road is being constructed in the area, which is around 500 km from the state capital Raipur, under the Prime Minister’s Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY). Two JCB machines were torched by a group of armed rebels, the official said. Yesterday,…

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will hold a meeting in Amritsar on February 21, officials said today ending long-standing uncertainty. Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh is all set to take Punjab’s close business as well as people-to-people relations with Canada to the next level, with a one-to-one meeting with visiting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Amritsar on Wednesday, said an official spokesperson here. “Look forward to meeting Canadian Prime Minister @JustinTrudeau in Amritsar on Wednesday. I’m hopeful that this meeting will help strengthen…

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The Communist Party of India today blamed the Prime Minister’s Office for diamond merchant Nirav Modi fleeing the country and hit out at Narendra Modi for keeping mum on the Rs 11,400-crore Punjab National Bank scam. The party’s general secretary Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy said the PM’s silence on such a “big scandal is surprising”. “On every issue, the prime minister reacts, tweets and comments. But when such a serious incident takes place, why doesn’t he speak or react? He must reply,” Reddy told reporters here. He claimed that in 2016,…

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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami today declined to comment on his deputy O Panneerselvam’s remarks that the latter acted on a suggestion from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on merging his faction with that of Palaniswami. Palaniswami said he would respond to the issue after going through Panneerselvam’s remarks, made at an AIADMK office-bearers meeting at Theni on Friday. “I don’t know about it. I will comment after going through it (Panneerselvam’s remarks),” he told reporters here. Meanwhile, senior state BJP leader and Union minister Pon Radhakrishnan ruled out the…

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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today started his week-long visit to India with a tour of the iconic Taj Mahal, which he had first seen 35 years ago. Trudeau was accompanied by wife and three kids during the tour of white marble mausoleum on the banks of Ganga river. “I was about Xav’s age when I first visited the Taj Mahal almost 35 years ago… and it’s amazing to be back with him & the family on Day 1 of our trip to India,” he tweeted. The Canadian first family…

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