Category: News

Modi Hai Toh Mumkin Hai: Sudan Evacuees

By LokMarg

Under ‘Operation Kaveri’, 328 more Indians landed at the New Delhi International Airport from strife-torn Sudan on Tuesday night. Nearly 3,000 stranded Indians have reached India till now.

“328 more passengers have landed in New Delhi. #OperationKaveri moving steadily forward as around 3000 have reached India now,” External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar tweeted.
Committed to ensuring that no Indian national is left behind in Sudan, India started Operation Kaveri on April 24 and deployed its military planes and warships in the war-torn country.

“Narendra Modi hai toh mumkin hai. I love you Indian government,” one of the evacuees said.

Meanwhile, another evacuee said that the Indian embassy of Sudan, Riyadh and the General Counsel from Jeddah have all coordinated to bring them back.

“I am very happy coming back to India. The situation in Sudan is very critical. Bombing and firing are going on in the entire country. I am thankful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for evacuating us under Operation Kaveri,” another evacuee said.

“Excellent effort was done by the Indian government. It is the governmnet which cares for the people, and responds to the people in their time of need,” Captain Sunil Chaddha said.

Meanwhile, the 20th batch of stranded Indians has departed from Sudan for Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah. “20th batch of evacuees departs from Port Sudan. IAF C-130J flight with 116 passengers is en route to Jeddah,” External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, earlier on Tuesday, another ‘Operation Kaveri’ flight carrying 231 Indian evacuees reached Gujarat’s Ahmedabad on Tuesday from Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah, Jaishankar said.

“Another #OperationKaveri flight lands in Ahmedabad. 231 more passengers have reached home safely,” the EAM tweeted.

Under Operation Kaveri, the 10th flight carrying Indian nationals left Jeddah earlier on Tuesday.

The United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Sudan has warned that the humanitarian crisis in the country is turning into a “full flown catastrophe” and that the risk of spillover into neighbouring countries was worrisome.

“It has been more than two weeks of devastating fighting in Sudan, a conflict that is turning Sudan’s humanitarian crisis into a full-blown catastrophe,” Abdou Dieng, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in the country, told a briefing of member states via video link.

Fighting is underway in Khartoum as the UN warns that Sudan is at a humanitarian “breaking point”.

Rival military forces accuse each other of new violations of a ceasefire that they had just agreed to extend as their devastating conflict enters a third week.

Sudan continues to face bloodshed as a result of clashes between the army and paramilitary forces.

Earlier, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Sunday said that nearly 2300 evacuee Indians have reached the country. (ANI)

TN: Colourful Procession Marks 11th Day Of Chithirai Chariot Festival

By LokMarg

A large number of devotees flooded the four Masi streets in Madurai to witness the chariot festival of the Meenakshi Amman Temple on the 11th day of the annual Chithirai festival in Tamil Nadu’s Madurai on Wednesday.

The procession of the Chariot started in East Masi Street. Amidst chanting the hymns and names of Meenakshi Amman, hundreds of people are pulling the ropes of the Chariot and leading it along the four Masi streets.

Police personnel were also deployed in large numbers to provide security for the chariot and regulate the huge crowd of devotees.

While thousands of people reached the Meenakshi Amman temple of Madurai on the 10th day of the Chithirai festival.

More than 20 transgenders who came with “mulaipari” on their heads attended the Chithirai festival on Tuesday.

Attending the festivities, one of the transgenders said, “Usually we visit the Chithirai festival in Koothandavar temple but this time we wanted to attend Madurai Chithirai festival. We are very happy to have participated in the Madurai Chithirai Festival.”

On the 10th day of the festival, many children participated in the festivities dressed as Murugan, Meenakshi Amman and Sivan. Parents led the street processions by dressing their children as gods.

A 7-year-old girl named Megasai has been participating in the procession for the past 9 days, in various dresses like Kundavai, and Goddess Meenakshi.

A few days ago, Megasai attended the procession dressed as Kundavai (princess of the Chola empire), a character played by actor Trisha in the recently released Maniratnam movie, Ponniyin Selvan 2. It went viral on social media. Trisha saw this photo on social media and congratulated the girl Megasai through social media.

Megasai said, “I dressed up as Princess Kundavai and Goddess Meenakshi and attended the Cithirai festival. The day before yesterday I dressed up as Sundari and actress Trisha praised it.”

“I wanted my child to dress up as a god and participate in the festival. So this year I attended the festival dressing her up as Kundavai and Goddess Meenakshi and actress Trisha praised my child. Today my daughter dressed up as Lord Meenakshi Amman”, Megasai’s mother, Priya said.

Thousands of devotees attended the Thirukalyanam (celestial wedding) held at Meenakshi Amman Temple on the 9th day of the Chithirai festival in Madurai on Monday.

A huge number of devotees who did not get a pass to enter inside watched the rituals broadcast live on the LED screen installed outside the temple.

The Pattabhishekam ceremony also known as the coronation ceremony was held for Goddess Meenakshi Amman on Monday.

The ceremony began with several rites after which ‘Abhishekam’ was performed to the diamond crown of the deity, followed by ‘Deeparadhana’ (lighting of lamps).

This temple’s diamond crown adorning Meenkasi Amman is called ‘Rayar’s Crown’. It is believed that this diamond crown was gifted to Goddess Meenakshi by Appaji Rayar, a minister in the court of King Krishnadevaraya.

The festival marks the transfer of ruling power from Lord Sundareswarar to lord Meenakshi to head the city from the Tamil month of Chitrai to Avani.

The flag hoisting ceremony of the ‘Chithirai’ festival was held at Meenakshi Amman Temple in Tamil Nadu’s Madurai on April 23.

On April 27, on the fourth day of the Chithirai festival, the deities at the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple were adorned in traditional armour, embedded with gems, and taken out for a procession around the streets in a golden palanquin.

The festival concludes on May 4 with the Theerthavari at the Meenakshi Amman temple.

As part of the Chitrai festival, Kallaghar’s descent into the Vaigai River takes place on May 5.

The Madurai district administration has announced a holiday for the district on May 5, in view of Lord Kallazhagar’s entry into the Vaigai River. (ANI)

SpiceJet Operation Kaveri sudan

SpiceJet To Revive 25 Grounded Aircraft

By LokMarg

Budget carrier SpiceJet has mobilised plan to revive its 25 grounded aircraft.

On Wednesday, it said funds for the revival will be drawn from the government’s Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) and better cash accruals. The airline has already mobilised around Rs 400 crore towards getting its grounded fleet back in the air, which will further enhance its top line.
Ajay Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, SpiceJet, said, “We are meticulously working towards return to service of our grounded fleet back in the air soon. Majority of the ECLGS funding received by the airline would be utilised for the same, which will help us capitalise and make the most of the upcoming peak travel season.”

The budget airline expects a stronger balance sheet, post-hive-off of SpiceXpress.

SpiceJet is one of India’s airlines that has made flying affordable for Indians.

The IATA-IOSA certified airline operates a fleet of Boeing 737s and Q-400s and is one of the country’s largest regional players operating multiple daily flights under UDAN or the Regional Connectivity Scheme. The majority of the airline’s fleet offers SpiceMax, the most spacious economy class seating in India.

SpiceJet on April 3 said it has completed the hive-off of its cargo and logistics division ‘SpiceXpress’ into a separate entity — SpiceXpress and Logistics Pvt Ltd. This hive-off was done with an aim to boost growth in the cargo business. It is effective from April. SpiceXpress and Logistics is a subsidiary of SpiceJet.

The hive-off is expected to pave the way for SpiceXpress to raise funds independently, SpiceJet had said in a release.

“The hive-off would strengthen SpiceJet’s balance sheet, wipe out a substantial portion of the Company’s negative net worth and unlock significant value for the Company and its shareholders,” the release said. (ANI)

Rahul Gandhi Gujarat High Court

Gujarat HC Refuses To Grant Interim Relief To Rahul

By LokMarg

The Gujarat High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s plea seeking a stay on his conviction in the 2019 ‘Modi surname’ defamation case.

Justice Hemant Prachchhak will pronounce the verdict after vacations. The court refused to grant any interim relief to Rahul Gandhi.
Rahul Gandhi had moved the Gujarat High Court on April 25 challenging the Surat sessions court order which declined to stay his conviction in the criminal defamation case.

During the hearing on April 29, Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Rahul Gandhi, had sought time to produce certain documents on record after which the court adjourned the hearing to May 2.

The Surat sessions court had on April 20 rejected Rahul Gandhi’s plea seeking a stay on his conviction in the 2019 criminal defamation case.

In his judgement, Additional sessions judge Robin P Mogera had cited Gandhi’s stature as an MP and former chief of the country’s second-largest political party and said he should have been more careful. He cited prima facie evidence and observations of the trial court and said it transpires that Gandhi made certain derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi apart from comparing people with the same surname with thieves.

Mogera said the surname of the complainant in the case, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Purnesh Modi, is also Modi. “…the complainant is [also an] ex-minister and involved in public life and such defamatory remarks would have certainly harmed his reputation and caused him pain and agony in society,” he said.

Mogera cited the disqualification criteria under the Representation of the People Act and added that removal or disqualification as MP could not be termed irreversible or irreparable loss or damage to Gandhi.

Following his conviction by a lower court in the criminal defamation case, Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as Lok Sabha MP. He had been elected to Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala.

The lower court sentenced the Congress leader to two years in jail on March 23 under sections 499 and 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in a case filed by Purnesh Modi.

At a rally in Karnataka’s Kolar in April 2019, Rahul Gandhi, in a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said, “How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?”.

Following the sessions court verdict, Congress had said it will move the Gujarat High Court. (ANI)

Go First

Go First Flights To Remain Cancelled On May 3, 4 Amid Financial Crunch

By LokMarg

Go First Airways on Tuesday informed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that all flights of the airlines will remain cancelled on May 3 and May 4, an official said on Tuesday.

In this regard, Go First Airways said that due to the non-supply of engines by US-based Jet engines manufacturer, operations will remain cancelled.
“Go First is facing financial crunch due to non-supply of engines by US-based jet engines manufacturer Pratt and Whitney (P&W) that has forced grounding more than 50 planes,” Go First official told ANI.

On Tuesday, social media was flooded with complaints from passengers regarding the cancellation of their scheduled Go Air flights. The passengers complained to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and DGCA demanding their refunds on bookings.

“My Go air ticket booking was cancelled without any reason. If flight G8 237 is operational on 03.05.2023 then there is no reason to cancel except to sell tickets at higher prices. Why only booking is cancelled when the flight is operational ?” a passenger asked.

“A flight has been cancelled for tomorrow from Srinagar to Delhi. It was cancelled and rescheduled without informing. Too Bad service GoAir. Please Refund My Money,” another passenger said. (ANI)

vessel

Rajnath Hands Over Fast Patrol Vessel, Landing Craft Assault Ship To Maldives

By LokMarg

On the second day of his 3-day visit to the Maldives, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh handed over a Fast Patrol Vessel and a Landing Craft Assault ship to the Maldives National Defence Forces (MNDF) on Tuesday, according to Ministry of Defence.

The Fast Patrol Vessel, capable of coastal and offshore surveillance at high speeds, was commissioned as the MNDF Coast Guard ship Huravee. President of Maldives Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and Defence Minister Mariya Ahmed Didi were present on the occasion.

Rajnath Singh tweeted, “Delighted to handover a Fast Patrol Vessel and a Landing Craft Assault ship to Maldives today. It is a symbol of our shared commitment towards peace & security in the Indian Ocean Region.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Maldives also took to Twitter and said, “Minister @abdulla_shahid attends the handover ceremony of the Offshore Patrol Vessel Coast Guard Ship Huravee and Landing Craft from the Government of #India. Maldives is committed to further strengthening the relationship between and in defence security cooperation.”

Speaking on the occasion, Rajnath Singh described the handing over of the two ‘Made in India’ platforms as a symbol of the shared commitment of India and the Maldives towards peace and security in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). He stated that India, through a robust defence ecosystem, has significantly enhanced its manufacturing capabilities to further support the capacity building of partner countries, as per an official release of the Ministry of Defence.

“India has emerged as a leading defence exporter in recent years. A defence manufacturing ecosystem has been created which has the advantage of abundant technical manpower. We produce world-class equipment to meet not only our own needs but also for exports. India offers an enhanced defence partnership to friendly foreign countries, that is accommodative of their national priorities and capacities. We wish to create symbiotic relationships where we can learn from each other, grow together and create a win-win situation for all. India’s commitment to support the Maldives will only get stronger with time,” the Defence Minister said.

On India’s strong defence cooperation with the nation, Rajnath Singh asserted that the ties emanate from the twin policies of ‘Neighbourhood First’ and ‘SAGAR’ (Security and Growth for All in the Region). He recalled Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Maldives in June 2019, during which he emphasised that “‘Neighbourhood First’ is our priority and in the neighbourhood, ‘Maldives is priority’.”

The Defence Minister called for enhanced cooperation among nations in the IOR to address the common challenges faced by the region. “The Indian Ocean is our shared space. The primary responsibility for peace, stability and prosperity in the region rests with those who live in the region. Peace and security of a region are best secured with cooperation and collaboration of the regional players,” he said.

Rajnath Singh identified sustainable exploitation of resources and climate change as the most important common challenges faced by the IOR. He called for collaborative efforts towards ensuring that the maritime expanse of the Indian Ocean is peaceful and the resources are optimally harnessed for regional prosperity. Sustainable exploitation of maritime resources is an important means for sustained growth and development of nations across the IOR, he said.

On climate change, the Defence Minister said, it has a huge impact on the maritime environment and its effects can pose challenges for taking forward national and regional aspirations. Pointing out that the Maldives is particularly exposed to the vagaries of climate change, he voiced India’s willingness to work with its neighbour for adaptation and mitigation. “India has been the first responder in a large number of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) requirements in the region in the past many years. We look forward to building upon each other’s expertise by collaborative engagement,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Rajnath Singh called on Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. Discussions were held on ongoing projects and ways to further strengthen defence ties. The Maldivian President expressed gratitude for India’s continued aid and support to the Maldives in various sectors, stating that it is a testament to New Delhi’s special regard for the nation. He also conveyed the Maldives’ commitment towards strengthening this relationship. The Defence Minister spoke about the progress of various developmental projects undertaken by India in the Maldives and assured continued support, as per the Defence Ministry’s release.

Rajnath Singh reached Male on Monday and on the first day of his engagements, he held talks with his Maldivian counterpart and Foreign Minister of Maldives Abdulla Shahid. (ANI)

Maharashtra Fresh Covid Cases

India’s COVID Cases Dip Further

By LokMarg

India recorded 3,325 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, 957 less than the count reported on Monday, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The number of positive cases of Covid has seen a decline over the past few days, the Ministry said Tuesday, adding the total number of active cases in the country stands at 44,175.
The country reported 4,282 cases on Monday while 5,874 cases were recorded on Sunday.

As many as 6,379 Covid patients recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours, taking the total count of recoveries to 4,43,77,257.

The recovery rate stands at 98.72 per cent.

The daily positivity rate presently stands at 2.29 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate is at 3.87 per cent.

A total of 92.69 crore Covid tests have been conducted in the country so far, with 1,45,309 tests undertaken in the last 24 hours, as stated by the Health Ministry.

As per the Ministry, 2,180 doses of vaccine were administered in the last 24 hours.

According to the Union Ministry of Health and Welfare, 220.66 crore total vaccine doses which comprise 95.21 crore second doses and 22.87 crore precaution doses have been administered so far under Nationwide Vaccination Drive.

Earlier on April 20, in the wake of the spike in the number of COVID-19 cases across the country, Dr PK Mishra, the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister chaired a high-level meeting to assess the situation.

During the meeting, a comprehensive presentation was made by Rajesh Bhushan, the Secretary of Health and Family Welfare providing an overview of the global COVID-19 situation.

The presentation also provided an overview of the Genome Sequencing of different variants since January 2023 and noted the proportion of circulating variants in India. The status of vaccination was discussed, followed by drug availability and infrastructure preparedness across the country, the PMO stated.

Bhushan also advised the officials to maintain a strict vigil on the COVID-19 situation and take necessary actions to contain its spread. (ANI)

Alia Stuns In Met Gala Debut

By LokMarg

Actor Alia Bhatt’s Met Gala debut look has received a big thumbs up from fashion police, fans, colleagues and of course her family.

On Tuesday, The ‘Student of the Year’ star hit the iconic red carpet in a dreamy white gown designed by fashion designer Prabal Gurung.
Netizens loved Alia’s look and called her Raha’s “princess.”

Her sister-in-law Riddhima Kapoor Sahni and mother-in-law Neetu Kapoor, too, reacted to her Met Gala look in the most adorable way.

Sharing Alia’s picture from Hollywood’s biggest fashion night, Neetu wrote, “Stunning.” She also added a red heart emoji to it.

Riddhima shared Alia and Natasha Poonawalla’s Met Gala pictures and captioned it, ” wow and wow! Pretty and fierce.”

After hitting the red carpet, Alia shared details about her white outfit. She revealed that it was made using 1 lakh pearls. Also, her white outfit channelled a 1992 bridal look created for Chanel by Karl Lagerfeld and modelled by Claudia Schiffer.

“Met Gala — Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty…I have always been fascinated by the iconic Chanel brides. Season after season, the genius of Karl Lagerfeld shone through in the most innovative and awe-inspiring couture. My look tonight was inspired from this and in particular by supermodel Claudia Schiffer’s 1992 Chanel bridal look.. I wanted to do something that felt authentic (hello, pearls!) and proudly made in India. The embroidery, made with a 100,000 pearls is a labour of love by @prabalgurung. I’m so proud to wear you for my first Met,” she shared.Alia teamed the gown with embellished gloves, matching diamond earrings and rings. For the glam, she opted for centre-parted half-tied ponytail, high heels, subtle smoky eye shadow, kohl-lined eyes, nude lip shade, and a dewy base.

Anaita Shroff, who styled Alia for Met Gala, also shared more details about her overall “princess” look.”Let it reign pearls!! Alia zeroed in on a famous corseted couture ball gown look by Karl Lagerfeld worn by Claudia Schiffer as the final Bridal look for Fall 1992 Couture. We then added around 100,000 pearls as a fiting salute to the genius of Karl Lagerfeld by @prabalgurung ! ewelry designer Alice Cicolini x Malabar Gold and Diamonds worked with me closely to create the ring stack. Creating a modern, fresh interpretation, the knuckle duster is created around a large rose cut, surrounded by tapered, baguette and round diamonds, with a tassel of pearls. While the other hand has rings in our beautiful uncut diamond heritage all the same. Karl famously always liked looking ahead looking at what was next,” she wrote.

Anaita continued, “Cutoff custom made embellished gloves by Outhouse with mini motifs as Karl liked to show in his embroidery and statement earrings. We wanted to highlight Alia’s face by releasing the hair back with a straight and wavy messy look. As our Indian brides always wear flowers in their hair, delicate hand strung jasmine buds, so today we created these with pearls and a few spikes to add the right amount of danger and sweetness in a bow! Pearl encrusted hand embroidered shoes by ASAxSko add the finishing punch.So the objective with makeup was to keep the skin looking really romantic with flushed cheeks but also give it that modern twist with soft ethereal eyes and nude lips.”This appearance of Alia will precede her Hollywood debut in Heart of Stone. Helmed by Tom Harper, Heart of Stone is intended to be the first installmenta series akin to Tom Cruise’s Mission Impossible. (ANI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Cong Has History Of Appeasement Of Terrorists: Modi

By LokMarg

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday lambasted Congress over the issue of security and said that the party has had a “history of appeasement of terrorists”.

The Prime Minister said that unlike Congress which had left Karnataka “at the mercy of terrorists” the Bharatiya Janata Party has “broken the back” of terror and appeasement.
The PM was addressing an election campaign rally in Chitradurga in the run-up to the May 10 Karnataka Assembly elections.

Referring to the 2008 Batla House encounter in which two terrorists were gunned down by a police team in their rented address in Delhi’s Jamia Nagar, the Prime Minister took an apparent jibe at the then Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and said that she had “teary eyes” after hearing about the death of the terrorists.

“Congress has a history of appeasement of terror and terrorists. When the Batla House encounter took place in Delhi, then the biggest leader of Congress had teary eyes after getting the news of the terrorists’ killings. When surgical strike and air strike happened, Congress questioned the capability of the forces of the country.

“You have seen in Karnataka how Congress has promoted terror. Congress had left Karnataka at the mercy of terrorists. It is the BJP which has broken the back of terror and has stopped the game of appeasement,” the prime minister said.

PM Modi also “cautioned” the people of Karnataka against Congress and JD(S), which are contesting the upcoming elections separately, and said that both parties are one by “their heart and deed”.

“I want to caution you. The people of Karnataka have to beware of both Congress and JDS. They are two separate parties only to show, but they are one by their heart and deed. Both are dynastic, both promote corruption, and both do divisive politics to divide society. The development of Karnataka is not the priority of both parties,” he said.

The Prime Minister said there is a need to bring back the “double-engine government” back to power and said that the state has to be made a “driving force” of a developed India.

“We have to make Karnataka a driving force and growth engine of a developed India. For accomplishing this, we need to bring back to power, the Double-Engine Government. The BJP has announced a good vision document which has a roadmap to make Karnataka the number one state in the country. It has a blueprint of modern infrastructure, and has impetus on the women empowerment,” he said.

Meanwhile, the prime minister tried his hands at playing a traditional drum instrument.

Karnataka Assembly polls will be held on May 10 and the counting of votes will take place on May 13. (ANI)

lithium reserves

Lithium Reserves Found In J-K To Be Auctioned By Dec

By LokMarg

Auction of lithium reserves found in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi will be started by December, said Secretary Ministry of Mines Vivek Bharadwaj.

Speaking at an industry event on Tuesday, the secretary said the ministry has written to J&K administration for the transaction advisor for the lithium auction.
“We have completed the consultation process with stakeholders on the amendment of the offshore Mining Act. Hopefully, we will soon bring it in the parliament for discussion,” Bharadwaj said.

“We have been lucky to discover 5.9 million tonnes of Lithium. We were actually looking for limestones which are available in Jammu Kashmir. We found limestone, bauxite and lithium together. There has been renewed interest in exploration in these minerals,” he said.

The central government in February this year said that 5.9 million tonnes of lithium reserves had been found for the first time in the country in Jammu and Kashmir.

Lithium is a non-ferrous metal and is one of the key components in EV batteries, among other industries.

“Geological Survey of India (GSI), an attached office of the Ministry of Mines, carried out a G3 stage mineral exploration project during Field Season 2020-21 and 2021-22 in Salal-Haimna areas of Reasi district, Jammu & Kashmir and estimated an inferred resource (G3) of 5.9 million tonnes of lithium ore and the report has been handed over to the Government of Union Territory of J&K,” the Ministry of Mines earlier said.

The Geological Survey of India proposes more exploration activities in J&K for identifying lithium resources. (ANI)