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January 8, 2025 2:39 PM

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Midday News

THE HEADLINES:

 

  • Eighteenth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention begins at Bhubaneswar in Odisha; External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar hails youth as defining factor of India’s advancement.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate and lay foundation stone of projects worth over 2 lakh crore rupees in Andhra Pradesh this evening.
  • First meeting of JPC on One Nation One Election begins in New Delhi.
  • Bangladesh revokes passport of ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
  • In Badminton, India’s Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto advance to Mixed Doubles of Pre-quarterfinals of Malaysia Open.

 

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External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, today, said India is on the way to address longstanding challenges to build a modern, inclusive and progressive society. He said ‘our quest is unique because the largest nation in the world is developing in that manner in a democratic framework. The Minister stressed that the mantra of that journey is, as Prime Minister Modi says, to advance on the two legs of technology and tradition. Dr Jaishankar also said youth can surely be the defining factor in the pace of that endeavour and the realisation of our goals.

 

Addressing the Youth Pravasi Bhartiya Divas Convention, jointly organised by the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and Odisha Government, at Bhubaneswar this morning, the External Affairs Minister said India has just started a journey towards ‘Viksit Bharat’ in the Amrit Kaal.  

 

The Minister remarked that given the rapidity of changes underway, it is also essential that we step up efforts to keep the diaspora continuously connected. Union Ministers Kirti Vardhan Singh, Pabitra Margherita, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Raksha Nikhil Khadse and Chief Minister of Odisha Mohan Charan Majhi attended the Convention. More from our correspondent:

 

“The 3-day long 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention kicked off this morning at Bhubaneswar in Odisha with more than 6,000 Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) from about 75 countries participating in it. The convention is considered a significant occasion to celebrate India’s relationship with the global Indian community. The event will be formally inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi tomorrow. It will include a wide range of activities that highlight the contributions of the Indian diaspora in shaping India’s development and its global stature. President of Trinidad and Tobago Christine Carla Kangaloo will participate in the convention as the chief guest of this edition, which is being held on the ‘Diaspora’s Contribution on a Vikshit Bharat’. President Droupadi Murmu will preside over the valedictory session on Friday. The President will also confer the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman upon members of the Indian diaspora to recognise their achievements in various fields.  Prakash Dash, Akashvani News, Bhubaneswar.

 

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of projects worth over 2 lakh crore rupees in Andhra Pradesh from Visakhapatnam today. He will lay the foundation stone for the 1 lakh 85 thousand crore rupees state-of-the-art NTPC Green Energy Limited’s Green Hydrogen Hub Project at Pudimadaka (pronounced as पूडिमढाका) near Visakhapatnam. This will be the first Green Hydrogen Hub under the National Green Hydrogen Mission. Our correspondent has filed this report:

 

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Visakhapatnam this evening to lay foundation stones and inaugurate slew of infrastructure projects in Andhra Pradesh with potential to create more than 1 lakh jobs and give boost to regional progress. The Prime Minister will participate in a road show along with Chief Minister N Chandra Babu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan before addressing the public meeting at Andhra University Engineering College ground. This is PM Modi’s first visit to Andhra Pradesh after the NDA alliance won a landslide victory in Andhra Pradesh in June 2024. Along with the NTPC Green Hydrogen Project, the Prime Minister will virtually lay the foundation stone of various railway and road projects worth over Rs. 19,500 crore which includes the South Coast Railway Headquarters at Visakhapatnam and the Bulk Drug Park at Nakkapalli in Anakapalli district. The Prime Minister will also virtually lay the foundation stone of Krishnapatnam Industrial Area (KRIS City) under Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor, in Tirupati District. Sri Sai for Akashvani News, Visakhapatnam.”

 

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The first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on two bills related to One Nation One Election is underway in New Delhi. The Bills are officially named as the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 and Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024.

 

Talking to the media, Committee Chairperson, BJP MP, PP Chaudhary said, as far as the procedure is concerned, the committee will make an effort to listen to all stakeholders be it legal experts, members of civil society or from judiciary, or political parties.

 

During the meeting, the representatives of the Ministry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department) will brief the members on the provisions of the proposed laws. The 39 member committee has 27 Members from the Lok Sabha and 12 Members from the Rajya Sabha.

 

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Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has said that around 1.80 lakh deaths occurred due to road accidents in 2024. Addressing a press conference on road safety meeting with Transport Ministers of all States and Union Territories in New Delhi yesterday, Mr Gadkari mentioned that nearly 30 thousand people died because of not wearing a helmet.

 

He highlighted that a Cashless Treatment scheme for road accident victims was launched during the meeting. Mr Gadkari said that the Government under this scheme will provide maximum of upto 1.5 Lakhs rupees for treatment to accident victims.  Around 2 lakh rupees will be provided for the deceased in hit-and-run cases.

 

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In Assam, 21 Para divers this morning retrieved the body of one of the trapped coal miners from the flooded mine after more than 48 hours. Intensive search and rescue operations are underway to rescue the remaining trapped miners. Army, Navy, NDRF, SDRF and other agencies are working continuously to rescue the trapped coal miners. More from our Correspondent :

 

21 Para divers this morning retrieved one dead body of trapped coal miners from the flooded mine after more than 48 hours. The deceased has been identified as Ganga Bahadur Shrastha of Nepal. Army, Navy, NDRF and SDRF have intensified rescue operations. Indian Navy has deployed highly trained Clearance Divers skilled in deep depth diving and recovery operations and using underwater Remotely Operated Vehicles. Aminul Haque Jwadder, Akashvani News Guwahati.

 

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Political activities are gaining momentum in Delhi with the announcement of the assembly poll schedule. The fight between ruling Aam Aadmi Party and opposition BJP has escalated on the issue of alleged lavish spending on Arvind Kejriwal’s residence as Delhi Chief Minister. Briefing the media, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi alleged that public money has been spent for all kinds of lavish facilities in the CM house.

 

Responding to the allegations, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj said the CM residence and the PM residence, both were constructed using taxpayers’ money and they should be shown to everyone through the media.

 

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The Marathi language has officially been granted the status of a classical language following the issuance of the Government Resolution (GR) today. Maharashtra’s Minister of Marathi Language, Uday Samant, met with Union Minister of Culture, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, in Delhi, where Mr. Shekhawat formally handed over the GR, officially recognising Marathi as a classical language.

 

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The Bangladesh Department of Immigration and Passports has cancelled the passports of 97 people, including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, due to their alleged involvement in enforced disappearances and the July killings. Chief Adviser’s Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad told media in Dakha that the Passports Department cancelled passports of 22 people involved in enforced disappearances while passports of 75 people, including Sheikh Hasina, were revoked due to their involvement in the July killings.

 

Earlier on Monday,  the International Crimes Tribunal issued arrest warrants against 11 people including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her former defence adviser Maj Gen (retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddique and former inspector general of police Benazir Ahmed.

 

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A bilateral meeting was held between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his counterpart of the Maldives Mohammed Ghassan Maumoon in New Delhi today. During the talks, the two Ministers reviewed the various facets of bilateral defence cooperation including training, regular military exercises, and defence projects. Making initial remarks the Defence Minister said India has been offering avenues of capacity building to the Maldives in all fields of defence cooperation to enhance the capability of the Maldives National Defence Forces.

 

The Defence Minister of Maldives is on a three-day visit to India. During his stay, he will also be visiting Goa and Mumbai.

 

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Cold wave conditions continue to sweep entire North India. India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast cold day conditions in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and north Madhya Pradesh till tomorrow. Talking to Akashvani News, Senior IMD Scientist Dr Soma Sen said that dense to very dense fog conditions will prevail during morning and night hours in some parts of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand for the next 2 days.               

 

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In Badminton, India’s Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also entered to the Pre-quarterfinals of Malaysia Open in Kuala Lumpur. The ace duo defeated Sung Hyun Ko and Hye Won Eom of South Korea, this morning. The star Indian duo will next take on Chi Zhang and Xing Cheng of China, in the round of 16 tomorrow.

 

In Mens’ singles Ace Indian shuttler H S Prannoy has advanced to the Men’s Singles Pre-quarterfinals. He defeated Brian Yang of Canada, 21- 12, 17, 21, 21, 15.

 

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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:

 

  • Eighteenth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention begins at Bhubaneswar in Odisha; External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar hails youth as defining factor of India’s advancement.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate and lay foundation stone of projects worth over 2 lakh crore rupees in Andhra Pradesh this evening.
  • First meeting of JPC on One Nation One Election begins in New Delhi.
  • Bangladesh revokes passport of ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
  • In Badminton, India’s Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto advance to Mixed Doubles of Pre-quarterfinals of Malaysia Open.

 

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