THE HEADLINES:
- President Droupadi Murmu highlights priorities of government during her address to joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament; Says, agro, dairy and fishery based industries are being expanded in villages.
- President assures that government is working to make North Eastern region a strategic gateway under its Act East Policy.
- CBI arrests two persons in connection with alleged irregularities in NEET-UG exam.
- Southwest Monsoon further advances into remaining parts of North Arabian Sea in Gujarat and Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
- In Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup, rain delays start of second semifinal between India and England in Guyana.
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President Droupadi Murmu today highlighted priorities of government during her address to joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament. The President said that agro, dairy, and fishery based industries are being expanded in villages. She added that a major problem of small farmers is related to storage and the centre has commenced work on a scheme to create the world’s largest storage capacity in the cooperative sector.
In her nearly hour-long address, President Murmu also highlighted the government initiatives for infrastructure development, saying that over three lakh 80 thousand kilometres of village roads have been constructed in the last ten years under the Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana.
On the development of North Eastern States, the President said the government is working to make this region a strategic gateway under its Act East Policy. The President added that a semiconductor plant is being established in Assam at a cost of 27 thousand crore rupees. She asserted that the North-East will also be a hub of Made in India chips. The President observed that the Centre is working for lasting peace in the region and several problems related to the area have been addressed in the last ten years.
In her address, the President said that Jammu and Kashmir has given a befitting reply to India’s enemies as the Union Territory registered record voter turnout in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls.
President Murmu said the new government is going to present its first General Budget in this Parliament Session, which will be an effective document of its far-reaching policies and futuristic vision and reforms will be fast-tracked. She said that the country has risen from the 11th position to become the fifth largest economy in ten years.
On women empowerment, the President said, a new era of women-led development has started citing the enactment of Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam for reservation of women in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. She said, the majority of the four crore PM Awas houses have been allotted to women beneficiaries during the last 10 years.
Talking about the modernization of Armed Forces, President Murmu said many reforms have been introduced in the defence sector in the last 10 years.
The President asserted that the government is fully committed to fair investigation into the recent incidents of paper leaks and ensured that strict punishment will be given to the culprits. She said, it is important to rise above the party politics and undertake concrete measures nationwide to check such incidents.
President Murmu said, the government is working towards major reforms in examination-related bodies, their functioning, and all aspects of the examination process. She said her government is working to create an environment to enable youth of the country to dream big and achieve them.
Talking about the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, which will come into force from the first of next month, the President emphasized that now justice will get priority over punishment, which also conforms to the spirit of the Constitution.
Pointing towards the responsibility of the Members of Parliament, the President highlighted that opposition to policies and obstruction of parliamentary functioning are two different things.
During the President’s address some opposition MPs created noisy scenes over the issues related to NEET examination, Manipur violence and other issues.
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A copy of President Droupadi Murmu’s address to the joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament was tabled in the Lok Sabha today. When the House assembled this afternoon after the President’s address, the copy was tabled in the House. Speaker Om Birla announced that Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has been recognized as Leader of Opposition in the Lower House. Later, the House was adjourned for the day. A copy of the President’s address was also tabled in the Rajya Sabha. Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced to the Upper House the members of the newly constituted Union Council of Ministers. Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar announced that Union Minister JP Nadda has been appointed as Leader of the House. Later, the House was adjourned for the day.
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Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar today announced that the suspension of AAP MP Sanjay Singh from the Upper House of Parliament has been revoked. Making an announcement in the House today, Mr Dhankhar said, Sanjay Singh was suspended from the House on 24th July last year till the Committee of Privileges submits its findings.
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A delegation of Janata Dal (United) MPs from Bihar today met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Parliament House. In a social media post, Mr Modi said, BJP and JD(U) have a long history of working together and fighting poor governance, corruption and criminalisation in Bihar. He said, the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has taken Bihar on the path of development. The Prime Minister said, both parties will keep working together for good governance.
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Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr. L. Murugan today condemned the remarks of Samajwadi Party MP RK Chaudhary on the Sengol. Talking to the media in New Delhi, Dr. Murugan said that the Sengol is a symbol of justice for all. The Sengol reflects an equal and fair government. Hitting out at the opposition, the minister said that I.N.D.I.A. bloc leaders have no respect for the Sengol and their attitude is condemnable.
Earlier, Samajwadi Party MP RK Chaudhary had questioned the presence of the Sengol in Parliament.
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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested two persons in connection with the alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG exam. Official sources said that the two accused have been arrested from Patna in Bihar. The CBI , which formally took over the investigation into the NEET-UG paper leak case, visited the office of the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar Police on Monday and started an investigation in this regard.
“The Economic Offence Unit (EOU) who busted the alleged scam has said that question papers were leaked from Hazaribagh centre and distributed to the suspected candidates at different places by an inter-state organized gang. The EOU had conducted the raid on the 5th May at Khemnichak school in Patna and seized some half burnt question papers of NEET UG examination. Later on it was matched with question papers of an examination centre of Hazaribagh school. The CBI has also taken two accused Baldev alias Chintu and Mukesh Kumar on remand for interrogation in the case. So far 17 arrestings have taken place in the case in Bihar including 15 by the EOU. “
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In Jharkhand, the Ranchi Special PMLA Court today extended the judicial custody of jailed former Chief Minister Hemant Soren by 14 days. Soren is lodged in Birsa Munda Central Jail in Ranchi on charges of money laundering through a land scam. Mr Soren, along with 11 other accused persons, was produced before the special court via video conferencing. The next court appearance for all the accused is scheduled for July 11.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will share his thoughts with the people of the country and abroad in the ‘Mann Ki Baat’ programme on Akashvani on Sunday at 11 AM. It will be the 111th episode of the monthly radio programme. It will also be the first episode after Mr Modi assumed charge of the Prime Minister for the third consecutive time.
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Domestic Equity Benchmark Indices, Sensex and Nifty rose more than half a percent and closed at record highs today. In the broader market at the BSE, Mid-Cap index up by 0.17 percent while the Small-cap index down by 0.57 percent. A report from the business desk:
“The Sensex advanced 569 points, or 0.72 percent, to close at historic 79,243. Nifty climbed 176 points, or 0.74 percent, to settle at 24,045. Continued bullish momentum is anticipated, despite potential FII selling amid rising US bond yields. In the Forex market today, the Indian rupee closed at 83 rupee and 46 paisa against US dollar. In the Multi Commodity Exchange, Gold for August contract, was trading at 71,288 rupees per 10 Grams, Silver for July Contract, was trading at 86,937 per kilogram.”
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The Southwest Monsoon has further advanced into the remaining parts of the North Arabian Sea in Gujarat, some more parts of Rajasthan and Western Uttar Pradesh, most parts of Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jammu-Kashmir-Ladakh-Gilgit-Baltistan-Muzaffarabad, some parts of Punjab and Eastern Uttar Pradesh.
In Kerala, heavy rain continues to cause widespread damage across the state. Severe waterlogging is reported in many areas, and hectares of crops and plantains have been destroyed. Landslides and sea erosion have been reported in various places. NDRF teams are being deployed in the nine severely affected districts, and special funds have been released for disaster management. Fishermen are warned not to venture into the sea along the Kerala, Karnataka, and Lakshadweep coasts.
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In the ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup, rain delayed start of second semifinal between India and England in Guyana this evening. England won the toss and elected to field.
Eariler, South Africa thrashed Afganistan by 9 wickets in the first semi-final in Trinidad this morning.
The summit clash of the tournament will be played on Saturday, at Kensington Oval in Barbados.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN :
- President Droupadi Murmu highlights priorities of government during her address to joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament; Says, agro, dairy and fishery based industries are being expanded in villages.
- President assures that government is working to make North Eastern region a strategic gateway under its Act East Policy.
- CBI arrests two persons in connection with alleged irregularities in NEET-UG exam.
- Southwest Monsoon further advances into remaining parts of North Arabian Sea in Gujarat and Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
- In Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup, rain delays start of second semifinal between India and England in Guyana.
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