THE HEADLINES:
- The festival of colors, Holi is being celebrated across the country with vibrant hues, music, and festive joy; President, Vice President, and Prime Minister extend greetings to the countrymen.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin thanks Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump for their efforts to end Russia-Ukraine conflict.
- Centre plans to turn North-east into next saffron hub.
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman criticises MK Stalin for dropping rupee symbol in Tamil Nadu budget logo.
- India top medal tally with 134 medals at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2025.
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The festival of colors, Holi, is being celebrated across the country today with vibrant hues, music, and festive joy. The festival symbolizes the victory of good over evil and marks the arrival of spring.
Holi also conveys a message of equality and fraternity, as people from all sections of society, regardless of caste, creed, age, or gender, come together to celebrate with great enthusiasm.
President, Vice-President and Prime Minister have extended their greetings to the people across the globe celebrating the festival of colors.
In a social media post, President Droupadi Murmu urged the citizens to come together and take a pledge to fill the lives of all the children of Mother India with the colors of continuous progress, prosperity, and happiness.
BJP President and Union Minister J.P. Nadda celebrated Holi festival at his residence in New Delhi today. On the occasion, Party workers and others joined him in the celebrations and extended the greetings to each-other. Delhi BJP chief Virendraa Sachdeva also graced the event.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has also extended her wishes for the Holi festival. In her message, Mrs. Gupta said that this festival is not just a celebration of colours, but a living symbol of victory of truth, strong bond of relationships and mutual brotherhood.
In Uttar Pradesh, the joy of Holi is visible across the state from Braj mandal to Ayodhya Dham. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath flagged off the Bhagwan Nrisinh Vishwa Yatra in Gorakhpur today. Extending greetings to public, the Chief Minister said Holi promotes the message of unity. We have a report:
“In Braj region, people are celebrating holi with joy and enthusiasm. Different types of Holi including lathmar Holi, phoolon ki Holi, laddu maar Holi is part of the month-long Holi celebration in Mathura-Vrindavan. Travellers from all over the world are experiencing the rich cultural heritage, vibrant colors and lively environment of holi in Mathura, Vrindavan and Barsana. In Varanasi and Ayodhya, Gullal was offered to Shri Kashi Vishvanath and Shri Ramlala in the morning. People are celebrating the festival of colours’ with harmony. High security arrangements have been made to maintain law and order situation in the state. Director General of Police Prashant Kumar informed that police units have been deployed in sensitive locations to maintain communal harmony. Exclusive patrolling is underway in high-footfall areas, including festival venues. Om Awasthi, Akashvani News, Lucknow.”
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Holi festivities are in full swing in Madhya Pradesh. City squares, streets and neighborhoods in the state are replete with colors since morning. Braj style Holi was played at the residence of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. Our correspondent has the details.
“In Madhya Pradesh, Lord Mahakal in Ujjain played Holi first in the state. Today at 4 am, Baba Mahakal was smeared with Gulal during the Bhasma Aarti. In Maihar, abir and Gulal were offered at the feet of Maa Sharda. On the occasion of Holi, a Holi Milan ceremony was organized at the Chief Minister’s residence in Bhopal today. BJP State President VD Sharma also participated in this program along with Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav. A Holi procession is being taken out in Bhopal in which hundreds of people are celebrating the festival of colours. In Indore, Holi Milan ceremonies are being organized in more than 100 colonies of the city. At the same time, crowds are also being seen at religious and tourist places like Pachmarhi, Bhedaghat, Maheshwar, Omkareshwar, Hanuwantiya and Patalpani. Sanjeev Sharma, Akashvani News, Bhopal.”
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In Gujarat, the festival of Holi-Dhuleti is being celebrated with great zeal and fervor. Phul Dolotsav and Phaguni Poonam are also being celebrated today in the holy pilgrimage places of the State. Devotees gathered since early morning to participate in the Mangala Aarti of the temple of Raja Ranchhodraiji in Dakor. Devotees travel to Dakor on foot from different parts of the State.
In Dwarka, a large number of devotees are visiting the Dwarkadhish Jagat temple on the occasion of Dhuleti. A special festival darshan and Phul Dol Mahotsav have been organized from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm today.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his gratitude to several world leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump, for their continued attention to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. At a joint press conference with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko last evening, Mr Putin acknowledged the efforts of the world leaders including Prime Minister Modi, and the Presidents of Brazil and South Africa and others for their commitment to seeking peace in the war-torn region, despite the many global challenges they face.
Mr Modi during a meeting with President Trump at the White House last month, stressed that India is not neutral in its stand on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, instead India is siding with peace.
Earlier, the US proposed a 30-day ceasefire, urging Russia to accept the deal without any conditions. President Putin, while expressing support for a ceasefire, acknowledged there are nuances that need to be addressed, adding that he had serious questions about how the proposal would be implemented.
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India has termed the allegations made by Pakistan that India was involved in its train hijacking as baseless. In response to media queries on the remarks made by the Pakistan side, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal said that New Delhi strongly rejects the baseless allegations of Pakistan. He added that the whole world knows where the epicenter of global terrorism lies. Mr. Jaiswal said that Pakistan should look inwards instead of pointing fingers and shifting the blame for its own internal problems and failures on to others.
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Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, Jitendra Singh today said that Northeast is a key driver for India to realise the vision of Viksit Bharat and the region will also become the country’s next saffron hub. While laying the foundation stone for the new permanent campus of the North East Centre for Technology Application and Reach (NECTAR) in Shillong, Dr. Singh stated that since 2021, the government’s Mission Saffron has expanded saffron cultivation across Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, and Meghalaya.
Dr. Singh said that large-scale cultivation is now underway at Menchukha of Arunachal Pradesh and Yuksom of Sikkim, with plans to extend to Nagaland and Manipur. It will turn the Northeast region as India’s next saffron hub after Jammu and Kashmir’s Pampore.
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Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has criticized the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government in Tamil Nadu for replacing the official rupee symbol with a Tamil “Ru” in the logo for the state Budget 2025-26. The logo, released yesterday by the office of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, featured ‘ru’, the first letter of the Tamil word ‘rubaai’ which represents the Indian currency in the vernacular language.
The finance minister accused the DMK government of disrespecting the official rupee symbol, which was designed by the son of one of their own MLAs.
Former Chief Minister and opposition leader E. Palanisamy also accused the DMK Government for evading main issues and adopting silly political games. State BJP Chief K. Annamalai accused the Government for diverting people’s attention and maintaining double standards.
Meanwhile, the Budget session of the Tamilnadu Assembly began today with the presentation of the Budget by Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu. Noisy scenes were witnessed in the Assembly by Opposition leader E.Palanisamy, as his request was denied by Speaker M. Appavu. The BJP members also staged a walk out.
Later speaking to the media outside the Assembly, E. Palanisamy said that they had walked out as his appeal to discuss alleged graft in State run Liquor Corporation as the Enforcement Directorate had held searches related to the State Owned Company. BJP leader Nainar Nagendran said that the ruling party was involved in various mismanagement of funds. Denying the allegations, Minister Senthil Balaji said that there was no mismanagement and said that regulations were followed in procurement of liquor for TASMAC.
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Reserve Bank of India Governor, Sanjay Malhotra has said that India has taken the lead in providing finance to renewable energy projects by including them in ‘priority sector lending’ to accelerate the country’s transition to a low carbon economy in the fight against climate change.
Addressing a policy seminar on Climate Change Risks and Finance in New Delhi yesterday, the RBI Governor said that Central Banks in Advanced Economies have traditionally followed an asset neutral approach. On the other hand, Central Banks in emerging markets and developing economies have adopted directed lending policies to channelise credit to certain sectors of their economies given their individual country circumstances and developmental objectives.
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Union Home Minister Amit Shah will begin his three-day visit to Assam this evening. During his stay, he is scheduled to attend multiple programs. Mr Shah will travel to Golaghat from Jorhat Airport to spend the night at the Lachit Barphukan Police Academy at Dergaon. More from our Correspondent:
Tomorrow morning, the Union Minister Amit Shah will inaugurate the state-of-the-art Lachit Barphukan Police Academy and lay foundation stone for housing projects of the Police Academy in presence of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal at Dergaon before departing for Mizoram. The Union Minister will attend a programme of Assam Rifles at Aizawl in the afternoon and later return to Guwahati for an overnight stay. The Home Minister on Sunday will address the 57th Annual Conference of All Bodo Students Union at Dotma in Kokrajhar district and later in the day, Mr. Shah will review the Implementation of New Criminal Laws for North-Eastern States in Guwahati with the Chief Ministers of North Eastern states before returning to New Delhi in the evening. Aminul Haque Jwadder, AKASHVANI Guwahati.”
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An earthquake of magnitude 5.2 jolted Ladakh’s Kargil early this morning, according to the National Center for Seismology, with tremors felt in Jammu and Kashmir. The earthquake occurred at 2.50 AM at a depth of 15 km. There have been no reports of any damage or casualties.
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India wrapped up a remarkable campaign at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2025 in Delhi, finishing atop the medals table with an impressive total of 134 medals, including 45 gold, 40 silver, and 49 bronze. With outstanding performances across track and field events, the host nation showcased its growing strength, depth, and determination in para-athletics on the global stage. We have a report:
“The final day of the Grand Prix featured several thrilling moments, adding to India’s dominant run in the competition.
In the men’s shot put F11-F20 category, India swept all the medals, as Sagar clinched gold with a throw of 11.47 metre, followed by Janka Singh with silver with 9.91 metre and Balaji Rajendran with bronze with 9.89 metre.
The men’s 200 metre T35 event saw Dmitrii Safronov, a Neutral Paralympic Athlete, taking gold with a time of 24.20 seconds. India’s Vinay claimed silver while compatriot Abhishek Babasaheb Jadhav bagged the bronze.
In the Women’s 200m T35-T38 event, Australia’s Rhiannon Clarke won the gold medal, while Margarita Goncharova, representing the Neutral Para Athletes contingent, claimed silver. India’s Preeti Pal secured the bronze with a time of 31.50 seconds. Earlier, Preeti had also won a silver medal in the 100m race. JIGYASA PANDEY, AKASHVANI NEWS, DELHI.”
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:
- The festival of colors, Holi isbeing celebrated across the country with vibrant hues, music, and festive joy; President, Vice President, and Prime Minister extend greetings to the countrymen.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin thanks Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump for their efforts to end Russia-Ukraine conflict.
- Centre plans to turn North-east into next saffron hub.
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman criticises MK Stalin for dropping rupee symbol in Tamil Nadu budget logo.
- India top medal tally with 134 medals at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2025.
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