February 2023 - Page 3 of 50 - Lokmarg

Cong To Stage Nationwide Protests Over Adani-Hindenburg Row From March 6

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

The Congress has announced block-level agitations across the country from March 6 to April against the BJP government over the Adani-Hindenburg row.

Congress general secretary in-charge organisation K C Venugopal said the party has decided to intensify its agitation and will hold ‘PARDAFASH’ rallies in March and April against Adani and organise agitational activities at various levels in the country to take the issue directly to the people.
The party has directed all Pradesh Congress Committees (PCCs) to arrange press conferences in all districts which will be addressed by senior state leaders, and subsequently, all state units will organise the agitational activities at various levels, Venugopal said.

Venugopal said the report of Hinderburg and said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been selling the country’s important infrastructure to the Adani group.

“The recent Hindenburg report has exposed Prime Minister Modi and the BJP government’s policy of crony capitalism in favour of Adani. During deep economic distress, PM Modi has been selling the Nation’s critical infrastructure to the Adani group, bending India’s foreign policy and forcing public institutions like SBI and LIC to invest in the Adani group. The recent revelations have shown that crores of rupees of poor and middle-class people’s savings are at risk,” the Congress statement said.

“The Congress Party has been raising this issue at all levels – in Parliament, in media and social media, and in front of the people. Most recently, press conferences were held in 23 cities on 17th February. The Congress Party has decided to intensify its agitation and take the issue directly to the people, Venugopal’s statement added.

Highlighting various agitational activities to be organized by All Pradesh Congress Committees, Venugopal in his statement said, “All Pradesh Congress Committees have been asked to arrange press conferences in all districts, where senior state leaders will address the media. Subsequently, all state units will organise the agitational activities at various levels.”

“Block-level agitations will be organised in front of offices of public banks and LIC between 6th and 10th March 2023 all over the country. PARDAFASH rallies will be organised at all the district headquarters in the month of March. A massive “Chalo Raj Bhavan” march will be organised at the state headquarters on March 13, 2023,” he added.

Focusing on the PARDAFASH Maharallies’s participants scheduled to be organised in state capitals, Venugopal said, “Massive PARDAFASH Maharallies will be organised in all state capitals in the month of April, and these will be addressed by Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, former Congress President Shri Rahul Gandhi and other national-level leaders”.

“All the state-level senior leaders, MPs, MLAs/MLCs and other elected representatives, leaders of frontal organisations, departments & cells and party workers have been asked to participate in all of these agitational programmes”, his statement read further. (ANI)

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Rumoured lovers Aditi, Siddharth Groove To ‘Tum Tum’

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Rumoured lovebirds Aditi Rao Hydari and South actor Siddharth danced to the tune of viral ‘Tum Tum’, which took Instagram lovers by storm.

Taking to social media on Monday, Aditi dropped the video with a caption, “Dance monkeys – The Reel deal.” In the video, Siddharth was dressed in a blue tee and denim, while Aditi wore a floral kurta with sharara pants. The couple were seen recreating the exact hook steps which many celebs had tried earlier.
Fans loved the video of their dance. Actor Konkona Sen Sharma wrote put heart emojis on the post.

The Tamil track ‘Tum Tum’, sung by Aditi Bhavaraju, Yamini, Tejaswini, Sri Vardhini, and composed by S. Thaman with lyrics by Roshini.

As per reports, Siddharth and Aditi have been dating for quite a long time after they first met on the sets of their romantic action film ‘Maha Samudram’.

They have neither denied nor confirmed the rumours of their dating.

Last year, the duo was seen attending actors Rajkummar Rao and Patralekha’s wedding in Chandigarh. Siddharth wished Aditi a happy birthday with a romantic picture last year.

On the acting front, Aditi will be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s web series ‘Heeramandi’. The first look of the series has been unveiled recently.

Apart from this, she will be next seen in an A.R Rahman musical, the silent film ‘Gandhi Talks’. Helmed by Kishor Pandurang Belekar the film also stars Vijay Sethupathi, Arvind Swami, and Siddharth Jadhav in the lead roles.

Siddharth, on the other hand, was last seen in the web series ‘Escaype’ which streamed on Disney+ Hotstar. Helmed by Siddharth Kumar Tewary, the series also starred Javed Jaaferi and Shweta Tripathi in prominent roles.

He will be next seen in an upcoming Tamil action film ‘Indian 2’ alongside Kamal Hassan, Gulshan Grover, Kajal Aggarwal and Rakul Preet Singh in the lead roles. (ANI)

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Pak’s Industries Bracing For Cut In Production, Layoffs

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Amid the economic crisis, Pakistan’s industry is bracing itself for cuts in production and layoffs, especially in the textile sector, The News International reported.

As per the news outlet, Pakistan witnessed at least a 14.8 percent decline in textile exports, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
Secretary General of the National Trade Union Federation Pakistan (NTUF) Nasir Mansoor said that as many as 1 million informal workers, mostly from the textile sectors, will lose their job.

Pakistan’s export stood at USD 1.3 billion in January 2023, which was less as compared to January 2021’s USD 1.5 billion. On a month-over-month (MoM) basis, the country reported a decline of 2.5 percent.

“The 2022 floods washed away at least 45 percent of our cotton crop, leaving textile mills without an essential raw material. The other solution is to import raw material, but delays in LCs [letters of credit] opening have brought all operations to a halt,” Mansoor explains why Pakistan is lagging behind, reported The News International.

Earlier this year, during a joint press conference held by the textile associations in January 2023, representatives of the associations revealed that around 7 million workers in the textile sector and textile-related industries had been laid off since last summer. Officials from the industry also blamed the government regulations, including delays in LCs opening for the serious situation.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers also shared that around 25,000-30,000 workers in the auto sector had lost their jobs due to an unabated drop in annual sales.

A management-level official from an investment company in Pakistan said that the current macroeconomic conditions have affected sectors in a different manner. “Sectors that are more likely to get affected by the current economic conditions are those which depend heavily on import; import of raw materials or other products, like autos. Rising interest rates have allowed the banking sector to perform really well. But since this policy leads to demand compression, more mainstream companies are expected to default. And this assumption can be backed by the fact that almost all banks are taking more provisions for loan losses,” the management-level official said.

“Floods have already affected the agriculture sector. Companies that are not planning layoffs are likely to, at least, impose an unofficial freeze on hiring,” the official said.

Pakistan’s unemployment rate is a little over 6 percent. And the problem has remained consistent for the country for years, according to The News International. (ANI)

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Harmanpreet, Chhetri Honoured For Sporting Performances

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Indian cricket team skipper and batter Harmanpreet Kaur, who had a memorable 2022, and football star Sunil Chhetri got ‘Sportswoman of the Year’ and ‘Sportsman of the Year’ awards respectively at an event here.

Harmanpreet had a year to remember in 2022. As a skipper, she led her team to a historic silver medal in Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham in August. Team India lost to Australia narrowly by nine runs in the final.
Then later during the tour of England, she led the team to a historic 3-0 whitewash against the hosts in a three-match series in September.

Under her leadership, Team India also clinched its seventh Women’s Asia Cup title, defeating Sri Lanka in the final by eight wickets.

Harmanpreet, the batter, was also in top form. In 17 ODIs and 16 innings, she scored 754 runs at an average of 58.00, with two hundreds and five fifties and the best score of 143*.

In 22 T20Is and across 20 innings, she scored 524 runs at an average of 32.75, with two half-centuries and a best score of 65.

Chhetri also had a solid year. The 38-year-old fired four goals to help Team India secure qualification to the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, their second straight qualification for the tournament after 2019.

He also has 84 goals in 131 international matches, which makes him the player with third highest goals among active players, behind FIFA World Cup winner Lionel Messi of Argentina (98) and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (118). Chhetri is also the fifth-highest goal scorer of all time in international football.

The awards event was hosted by Sportstar, a monthly English sports magazine. (ANI)

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Chouhan Lashes Out At Cong For Using Photos Of Freedom Fighters In Its Advt

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has lashed out at the Congress party over using photographs of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr B R Ambedkar, Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and other prominent leaders in the advertisement of Congress’ 85th plenary session.

The three-day 85th plenary session of the Congress Party was held in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur and it ended on February 26.
Addressing the media persons in the state capital Bhopal, Chouhan on Monday said, “I was surprised that the Congress party used the photo of Mahatma Gandhi in the advertisements of its national convention. Gandhi had said to dissolve the Congress after independence and make the Congress a Lok Sevak Sangh. He was not in favour of keeping the Congress (as a political party).”

The Congress put up the photo of Dr B R Ambedkar. They (Congress) used a photo of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, who had left the Congress, he said, adding that Netaji formed Forward Bloc (All India Forward Bloc) and then later formed the Azad Hind Fauj.

Chouhan further added that they put a photo of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who was always humiliated by Congress. The Congress used the photo of P V Narasimha Rao whom they did not not even allow to be cremated properly.

The Congress put the photos of those whom they never respected. They have no right to put their photos only for political gains, Chouhan added.

CM Chouhan further attacked the Congress party over twitter as well. He wrote, “To humiliate is the culture of Congress. Former Prime Minister late Indira Gandhi threw out the former PM Late Lal Bahadur Shastri out of Teen Murti Bhawan. The insulting words were ‘it is bigger than you (Shastri) think’. Today, they are not ashamed of using Shastri’s photo.”

Look at the act of the Congress to humiliate, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi themselves took the Bharat Ratna, bypassing the dignitaries dedicated to the country’s innovation, he wrote, elaborating that using the portraits of the people whom they insulted for political gains shows the moral decline of the Congress.

“Rahul Gandhi, whose ‘intellect, discretion and understanding’ is known to the whole country, tore the copies of the ordinance brought by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Insulting the government of their own party and the Prime Minister of the country is not new in the Congress. The country has seen the humiliation of Sitaram Kesari,” Chouhan further wrote in the tweet. (ANI)

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K’taka: Modi Holds Roadshow In Belagavi

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was on a visit to poll-bound Karnataka, held a roadshow in Belagavi on Monday.

People queued up on both sides of the road through which the Prime Minister’s cavalcade passed and cheered for him. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers welcomed PM Modi showering petals on his convoy. Cultural dance performances were also organised alongside the road.
After the roadshow, Prime Minister Modi held a public rally where he laid the foundation stone and inaugurated multiple development projects worth more than Rs 2,700 crore in Belagavi.

He released the 13th installment amounting to about Rs 16,000 crore under PM-KISAN. The Prime Minister dedicated the redeveloped Belagavi Railway Station building to the nation. He also laid the foundation stone of six multi-village scheme projects under Jal Jeevan Mission.

While addressing the rally, PM Modi came down heavily on Congress and said the people of the country would give a befitting reply to the party which curses him to death.

Addressing the rally here, PM Modi said, “Congress thinks until Modi is alive their motives will not survive and that is why they all are saying ‘mar ja Modi, mar ja Modi’. And, some are saying ‘Modi teri kabad khudegi’ but the country is saying ‘Modi tera Kamal khilega’.

Taking a dig at the Congress, PM said that Mallikarjun Kharge is only a namesake president of the party as the world is aware who has the “remote control” of the party.

“I respect Mallikarjun Kharge ji a lot… Congress session was going on now. He is the most senior. Mallikarjun Kharge has served the public in whatever way possible. It was sunny, but Kharge ji did not get an umbrella as it was meant for someone else. I was disheartened to see how the most senior leader, the president of Congress has been disrespected by them. The world knows who has the remote control,” he said.

Since 2014, Prime Minister said the country is continuously moving towards a meaningful change in agriculture. “We are connecting agriculture with modernity,” he said.

PM Modi said, “We have transferred Rs 16,000 crore to farmers across the country and eliminated the middlemen. Had it been congress’ rule, over Rs 12,000-13,000 crore would have been lost out of Rs 16,000 crore.”

In 2014, PM Modi said India’s budget for agriculture was Rs 25,000 crore. He said the government have increased it to Rs 1.25 lakh crore in this year’s budget.

He said small farmers who were neglected for decades, are the priority of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. Rs 2.5 lakh crore has been deposited through PM Kisan Samman Nidhi in the accounts of farmers.

Earlier on Monday, PM Modi laid the foundation stone and inaugurated multiple development projects worth more than Rs 3,600 crore at Shivamogga. He also inaugurated the Shivamogga Airport and took a walk-through of the facilities.

The Prime Minister further laid the foundation stone for two railway projects in Shivamogga which include Shivamogga – Shikaripura – Ranebennur new Railway line and Koteganguru Railway coaching depot.

He also laid the foundation stone for multiple road development projects to be developed at a cumulative cost of more than Rs 215 crore. He also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of multi-village schemes worth more than Rs 950 crore under the Jal Jeevan Mission. He also inaugurated 44 Smart City Projects worth more than Rs 895 Crores in Shivamogga city.

Assembly polls in Karnataka is slated for later this year. (ANI)

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Over 84% Polling in Nagaland, 76.66% In Meghalaya

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Meghalaya recorded a voting percentage of over 76 per cent and Nagaland saw a voter turnout of over 84 per cent in the polling for assembly elections in the two northeastern states on Monday.

According to the latest data from Election Commission, Meghalaya recorded 76.66 per cent polling while it was 84.66 per cent in Nagaland.
Meghalaya saw a voter turnout of 63.91 per cent till 3 pm in 59 assembly constituencies for which polling was held. The polling started at 7 am and ended at 4 pm.

The voting percentage picked up momentum as the day progressed. It was 44.73 per cent till 1 pm, 26.70 per cent till 11 am and 12.06 per cent till 9 am.

Polling was held at 3,419 polling stations across 59 Assembly constituencies in the state.

Of the 60 Assembly constituencies in Meghalaya, 36 constituencies are in Khasi, Jaintia Hills region while 24 are in Garo Hills region.

Polling for the Sohiong Assembly constituency was postponed following the demise of the state’s former Home Minister and United Democratic Party (UDP) candidate HDR Lyngdoh.

Over 21 lakh voters were eligible to cast votes including 10.99 lakh are women and 10.68 lakh male voters.

In Nagaland, the voter turnout was 75.49 per cent till 3 pm. The electoral fate of 183 candidates has been sealed with the conclusion of the election for 59 seats.

The state saw brisk polling with voter 60.51 per cent voter turnout till 1 pm and 38.68 per cent till 11 am.

The BJP contested the polls in alliance with the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), its partner in the 2018 Assembly polls as well.

A total of 13,17,632 voters were eligible to cast their vote in the state in 2,351 polling stations.

The counting of votes in Nagaland and Meghalaya along with that in Tripura, which went to the polls on February 16, will be taken up on March 2. (ANI)
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RS Adjourned On 5th Consecutive Day Amid Oppn's Disruptions

RS Privilege Committee Seeks Response From Rajani Patil

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

The Privilege Committee of the Rajya Sabha has sought a written response from suspended Congress MPs, Rajani Patil and the others who have been named for creating a ruckus in the Upper house of Parliament in the recently concluded first part of the Budget session.
The committee which is chaired by Deputy Rajya Sabha chairman Harivansh has ordered the same in its meeting on Monday.

“It is part of the procedure that those against whom the complaint is filed is given a chance to respond first before any further steps or action,” a source told ANI.

A week or so ago this matter was referred to the panel by Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar.

Continuing the action against unruly MPs in the Rajya Sabha following the suspension of Rajani Patil for the entire Budget Session, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar had given his consent for the privilege committee to examine the conduct of 12 MPs from the opposition.

“Members are informed that the Chairman, Rajya Sabha has referred a question of the alleged breach of privilege arising out of gross disorderly conduct displayed by the Rajya Sabha MPs in violation of rules and etiquette of Rajya Saha by repeatedly entering the well of the Council, shouting slogans and persistently and wilfully obstructing the proceedings of the Council, compelling the Chair to repeatedly adjourn the sittings of the Council, under rule 203 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) to the committee of Privileges for examination, investigation and report,” said a Rajya Sabha bulletin.

The names of the Rajya Sabha MPs include those from the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in particular. These 12 MPs are Sanjay Singh, Shaktisinh Gohil, Sushil Kumar Gupta, Sandeep Kumar Pathak, Naranbhai J Rathwa, Syed Nasir Hussain, Kumar Ketkar, Imran Pratapgarhi, L Hanumanthaiah, Phulo Devi Netam, Jebi Mather Hisham and Ranjeet Ranjan.

In addition to this, there has been another privilege notice against AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh for repeatedly submitting a notice for suspension of the Zero Hour in Parliament to discuss the Adani stock issue. In fact, during the first part of the session, the Rajya Sabha chairman had pulled up Sanjay Singh for giving identical notices.

“Members are informed that the Chairman, Rajya Saba has referred a question of an alleged breach of privilege arising out of non-adherence to the directions of the Chair vis-a-vis repeated submission of identical notices under rule 267 by Sanjay Singh, Member, Rajya Sabha, under rule 203 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) to the Committee of Privileges for examination, investigation and report, the Rajya Sabha bulletin further elaborated.

With the opposition parties demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the Adani stock matter, the Upper House of Parliament witnessed a massive ruckus in the recently concluded first half of the session. Ruckus and sloganeering took place in the middle of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech for the Reply to the Motion of Thanks to the President address.

After repeated warnings to the opposition members, the Rajya Sabha chairman had suspended congress MP Rajani Patil for recording mobile videos of the ruckus.

After the recess, the second part of the Budget Session will resume on March 13 and will continue till April 6. (ANI)

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We Are Interested In Developing Businesses In India: Danish Climate Min

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

Denmark Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities Lars Aagaard during his visit to India said that when it comes to the green strategic partnership between the two countries, Green energy remains the focus and that Danish companies would like to develop their businesses in India.

Denmark Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities Lars Aagaard also met with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday, where issues related to climate and energy were discussed.
“It’s mainly Green energy, we have a partnership, and we have some Danish Companies that are interested in developing their business in India and hopefully also eager to learn more about the challenges”, said the Minister said while speaking to ANI.

The Green Strategic partnership between India and Denmark consolidates the existing agreement establishing a Joint Commission for Cooperation between the two countries. The partnership is a mutually beneficial arrangement to advance political cooperation, expand economic relations and green growth, create jobs and strengthen cooperation on addressing global challenges and opportunities; with a focus on an ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Speaking further about the partnership, the minister said that when it comes to green, all the countries in the world need affordable, secure renewables.

“I think it’s a very important partnership for both countries. All the countries in the world need affordable, secure and green renewables in the electricity sector and it has to become cost-effective because we all need that. Denmark for many years has worked on how we can integrate very large numbers in our energy system and we are so happy to share that insight with the Indian society,” said the minister.

Stressing upon the climate challenge, the minister said that each other has something to offer.

“Climate change is a global challenge for all of us. Everybody has something to bring to the table. No country can do exactly the same. But India is such a high economy, that India must go green as well. Denmark will move a little ahead as well. We have been working on our electricity sector and I am so pleased that both countries can work together”, said the minister.

The minister is part of the Denmark delegation led by Denmark’s royal couple who are on an India visit. The couple who is on a visit to India will address the opening session of the India-Denmark: Partners for Green & Sustainable Progress organized by CII. He also met President Draupadi Murmu, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

During the visit, the Danish royal couple will visit Chennai. (ANI)

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Milind, Ankita Celebrate 9th Anniv With Double Medals

By LokMarg 27th February 2023

He defies age and inspires his fans across age groups to strive for the best.

Model-Actor and fitness expert Milind Soman and his wife Ankita Konwar completed nine years of togetherness and celebrated it the way they wanted. Any guesses how?
Taking to Instagram on Monday, Milind posted a picture with Ankita showing their medals. He wrote in the caption, “The first time I won a medal in an age group competition was 1976 at the age group national swimming championship when I was 10 years old and yesterday was the latest, gold in my age group in the 10km run in 54min in Gandhidham, so much fun !!!! @ankita_earthy won silver in her age group. Celebrated 9 years of togetherness the only way we know how.”

Fans showed their love for the couple. “U guys are truly couple goals. Pushing each other to their best version,” wrote one. Another one wrote, “Good going guys. Keep running. Keep smiling!”

Milind and Ankita tied the knot in 2018 in an intimate ceremony in Alibaug. Due to the age gap, Milind and Ankita faced flaks on social media.

But it did not stop them from setting couple goals. The duo often treats their fans with mushy and fitness goals pictures. (ANI)

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