THE HEADLINES::
- Filing of nominations for second phase of Lok Sabha elections to end tomorrow; Several prominent leaders submit papers today.
- Top leaders of major political parties hold public meetings and road shows in various parts of the country.
- Election Commission directs States and Union Territories to ensure peaceful and inducement-free General Elections.
- Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya reviews preparedness in view of anticipated heatwave; Stresses on proactive measures to prevent illnesses.
- Death toll in massive earthquake in Taiwan reaches nine while over 900 injured; Rescue operations underway.
- In IPL Cricket, match between Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders underway in Visakhapatnam.
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Filing of nominations for the second phase of Lok Sabha elections will end tomorrow. 88 Lok Sabha seats in 12 States and Union Territories along with the remaining part of the Outer Manipur Lok Sabha constituency will go to polls in this phase on the 26th of this month. Scrutiny of nominations across all States and Union Territories will take place on Friday except in Jammu and Kashmir. Scrutiny in Jammu and Kashmir will be held on Saturday. The last date for the withdrawal of candidature is the 8th of this month.
Several prominent leaders including Om Birla and Mahesh Sharma from BJP and Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor filed their nomination papers today.
In Uttar Pradesh, BJP candidate Mahesh Sharma submitted papers from the Gautam Budh Nagar seat.
In Rajasthan, several senior leaders from BJP and Congress filed their nominations today. Senior BJP leader Om Birla filed his nomination from Kota parliamentary seat. From the Congress, Bhilwara candidate and senior leader CP Joshi, Barmer nominee Ummeda Ram Beniwal and Jhalawar-Baran candidate Urmila Jain Bhaya submitted their papers.
In Kerala, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Left Democratic Front candidate, Annie Raja of the Communist Party of India filed their papers from the Wayanad Parliamentary constituency. Sitting Congress MP Shashi Tharoor also filed nomination from Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency.
“UDF supporters lined up the streets of Kalpetta town to have a glimpse of their leader, Rahul Gandhi, who is seeking re-election from Wayanad for the second consecutive term, where voters gave him a thumping majority of over 4 lakh 31,000 votes, in the 2019 general elections. Tomorrow, the NDA candidate and the State BJP President K Surendran who is also contesting from Wayanad, will file his nomination papers. With the increasing instances of human-animal conflicts, agrarian distress, and issues like inadequate medical facilities in the region hogging the limelight, Wayanad will be one of the most keenly watched electoral battles in the country. Raj Mohan, AKASHAVANI NEWS, Kochi.”
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Campaigning is gaining momentum for the Lok Sabha elections. Top leaders of major political parties held public meetings and road shows across the country today.
Prime Minister and Senior BJP leader Narendra Modi addressed a digital rally of Uttar Pradesh BJP workers through the NaMo app. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Modi asked BJP workers to work with a resolve to break all old poll records. He expressed confidence that BJP workers in the state are working hard to ensure victory on every seat and at every polling booth.
Senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party and Home Minister Amit Shah addressed a public meeting at Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh. Speaking at the rally, Mr Shah said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done a lot of work for the upliftment of poor and farmers.
Senior BJP leader and Union Minister Rajnath Singh held an election rally at Ghaziabad.
On the other hand, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge today launched the Ghar Ghar Guarantee Abhiyan from North East Delhi Parliamentary Constituency. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Kharge claimed that if the Congress comes to power, government job vacancies will be filled up immediately
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Boxer Vijender Singh quit Congress and joined the BJP in New Delhi today.
In Rajasthan, over 100 leaders from different political parties, including several veterans from Congress and Jannayak Janta Party joined the BJP today.
Meanwhile in Maharashtra, BJP MP from Jalgaon, Unmesh Patil joined the Shiv Sena (UBT).
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The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has released the third list of 12 candidates for the Lok Sabha elections. In the new list, Suresh Singh has been named as the party candidate from Mathura in place of Kamal Kant Upmanyu. From Lucknow, the party has given the ticket to Sarwar Malik against Raksha Mantri and BJP leader Rajnath Singh. With this, BSP has declared its candidates for 37 seats out of a total of 80 Parliamentary seats in Uttar Pradesh.
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In our series covering profiles of key constituencies across States and Union Territories during the Lok Sabha elections, today we bring a report on the Gaya Parliamentary seat in Bihar. The state will witness seven phase polling. The Gaya Lok Sabha constituency is going to polls in the first phase on the 19th of this month. 14 candidates including seven Independents are in the fray from the seat.
“In the high-profile Gaya Lok Sabha constituency more than 18 lakh voters will decide the electoral fate of 14 candidates. The seat is represented by JD(U) but in a seat sharing agreement in the NDA Gaya Lok Sabha seat has been allocated to Hindustani Awam Morcha. In 2019 Vijay Manjhi was elected MP from here on JD(U) ticket. Jitan Ram Manjhi of Hindustani Awam Morcha is trying his electoral luck third time from this seat after losing twice in 2014 and 2019. RJD nominee Kumar Sarvjeet is present MLA from Bodhgaya and he was agriculture minister in the previous government. Sushma Kumari from BSP is also in the fray. Several areas of this parliamentary constituency are naxal affected. Lack of development, poverty and unemployment and are major issues of Gaya Lok Sabha constituency. Dharmendra Kumar Rai , Akashvani News, Patna.”
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The Election Commission of India has directed Chief Secretaries and Director General of Police of all States and Union Territories to keep a strict vigil along interstate and international borders to plug the inflow of illicit liquor, cash, drugs, arms and freebies. The Commission has also directed them to ensure peaceful and inducement-free General Elections in 2024. The Election Commission today held a meeting with all States and Union Territories in New Delhi to assess the law and order situation. In a statement, the Commission said, the purpose of the combined review meeting was to bring all concerned stakeholders together for seamless coordination and cooperation amongst officials along with central agencies guarding the borders. The meeting was chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar along with Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu.
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The Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya today chaired a meeting to review the preparedness for the management of heat wave-related illness in the summer season. During the meeting, the Minister stressed on proactive measures to prevent illnesses. Highlighting the lack of accurate data from the ground, Dr Mandaviya noted the importance of creating a central database with inputs from States to share field-level data on heatwaves, including on deaths and cases, so that a realistic assessment of the situation can be made.
Later addressing media in New Delhi, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya said that farmers, construction workers and people including those deployed in election duties and engaged in the poll campaign are advised to take an adequate quantity of water to beat the impact of heat waves and stroke.
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Secretary in Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Apurva Chandra today launched the myCGHS app for the iOS ecosystem of devices in New Delhi. The app is designed to enhance access to Electronic Health Records, information, and resources for Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) beneficiaries. The App was already available for the Android system. Talking to reporters, Mr Chandra said that the myCGHS app facilitates a wide range of services.
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The Government has said that media reports claiming significant hike in prices of medicines are false and misleading. The Union Health Ministry said, there will be no change in prevailing ceiling prices for 782 medicines while 54 medicines will have a minuscule increase of one paisa.
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A Delhi Court has directed Aam Aadmi Party leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh not to tamper with the evidence or influence witnesses in the Liquor Policy Excise scam case. The directions by the Special Judge, Kaveri Baweja were given today before passing an order to release him from Tihar Central jail. The AAP leader was granted bail by the Supreme Court yesterday. He was arrested in October last year. The Judge directed the accused to submit a personal bond of two lakh rupees and one surety of same amount.
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In Taiwan, the death toll has reached nine while scores of people were missing or trapped in rubble after a massive 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck east coast of the country this morning, triggering tsunami warnings in the region. The tremors have severely affected the Hualien region with mountainous terrain which was the epicentre of the quake and Capital Taipei. Officials said over 900 people are injured in the most powerful earthquake to rock the country in 25 years. Rescuers are searching for more than 100 people who are still trapped including 77 people inside the Jinwen and Qingshui mountain tunnels in Hualien county.
Meanwhile, some of the tsunami warnings in neighbouring countries including in Japan have been retracted. Japan has also lifted flight restrictions but people have been asked to remain vigilant.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed grief over the loss of lives due to the earthquake in Taiwan. In a social media post, Mr Modi said, India stands in solidarity with the resilient people of Taiwan as they endure the aftermath and recover from it.
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The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heatwave conditions over parts of east and peninsular India during the next five days. Heatwave conditions are likely over North Interior Karnataka, Odisha, Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand, Telangana and Coastal Andhra Pradesh.
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In IPL Cricket, the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals is underway in Visakhapatnam. Opting to bat first, Kolkata Knight Riders were 237 for 4 in 17.4 overs, when reports last came in.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN
- Filing of nominations for second phase of Lok Sabha elections to end tomorrow; Several prominent leaders submit papers today.
- Top leaders of major political parties hold public meetings and road shows in various parts of the country.
- Election Commission directs States and Union Territories to ensure peaceful and inducement-free General Elections.
- Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya reviews preparedness in view of anticipated heatwave; Stresses on proactive measures to prevent illnesses.
- Death toll in massive earthquake in Taiwan reaches nine while over 900 injured; Rescue operations underway.
- In IPL Cricket, match between Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders underway in Visakhapatnam.
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