LIVE: EC says TMC's letter on Mamata is 'full of insinuations & averments'

The Trinamool Congress chief has a slight fever and has been shifted to a special ward at the hospital's VVIP Woodburn Block soon after the MRI at the Bangur Institute of Neurosciences

7:28 PM

Latest LIVE: Preparations underway at Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, ahead of Dandi yatra inauguration

7:11 PM

Latest LIVE: Return of Sonowal govt in Assam a foregone conclusion, says Jitendra Singh

Union minister Jitendra Singh on Thursday said the return of the Sarbananda Sonowal government in Assam with a decisive mandate is a foregone conclusion due to the all-round development carried out by it in the last five years and restoration of peace in the state.

 

Singh, Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), also said that the BJP-led government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi had successfully pulled out Assam from a long nightmare of insurgency, road blockades, violence and misgovernance.

 

"If you ask the common man in the streets, he will tell you without any doubt that the return of the BJP government is a foregone conclusion," he told reporters here.

7:04 PM

Mamata Banerjee brought back to Woodburn Block of SSKM Hospital after medical tests

6:53 PM

Not to indulge in politics over CM's injuries, want probe: Bengal BJP

A day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was admitted to a facility here after receiving injuries during her Nandigram visit, the Bengal BJP said the party will not indulge in any politics over her injuries but will demand a comprehensive probe into the incident since she had alleged conspiracy behind it.

 

Noting that the fight with the TMC is a political one and on ideological and development issues, BJP spokesman Samik Bhattacharya wished her a speedy recovery and said, the party hoped for her return to the electoral arena as soon as possible.

 

"We will not do any kind of politics over the chief minister's injuries. We pray for her early recovery and return to the political stage," he told a press conference at the BJP headquarters here.

 

According to information received by the BJP state leadership from local party workers and eyewitnesses, it was an accident, but a high-level inquiry is necessary when the chief minister herself has claimed that it was a conspiracy, he said.

6:40 PM

LIVE: Mamata Banerjee being taken to another building of SSKM Hospital for further medical tests

6:39 PM

IAF to induct the second squadron of Rafales at Hashimara Air Force in mid-April

Indian Air Force to induct the 2nd squadron of Rafale fighter aircraft at Hashimara Air Force base in West Bengal in mid-April. The Air Force would be moving fighter aircraft there in May. The training of the fighter pilots in France completing around the same time: IAF officials

6:36 PM

Latest News: European Central Bank to step up pace of stimulus programme

The European Central Bank said Thursday it will step up its bond-buying stimulus in the coming months, a step aimed at halting what is regarded as a premature rise in borrowing costs in the 19 countries that use the euro.

 

The central bank said that over the next quarter the purchases would be conducted at a significantly higher pace than during the first months of the year."

 

ECB officials have expressed concern at the rise in longer-term borrowing rates, regarded as a spillover from the U.S., where the economic recovery is expected to be faster. The eurozone is still in a double-dip recession and is seen by economists as not ready for rising rates.

6:34 PM

Latest News: INS Kulish and INS Sumedha undertook passage exercise with Bangladesh Navy

6:20 PM

Latest News: Farmers withdraw dharna on rail tracks near Amritsar after 169 days

A group of farmers squatting on railway tracks near here to protest the Centre's new farm laws withdrew their agitation on Thursday after 169 days, as suspension of trains caused losses to them and traders.

 

Savinder Singh, a leader of the Kissan Mazdoor Sangarsh Committee which had been spearheading the stir, said they decided to withdraw the rail blockade at Devidaspura on the Amritsar-Delhi route after a meeting of all protesting farmer unions.

 

Devidaspur near Jandiala station is about 25 km from Amritsar railway station.

6:18 PM

Latest News: India likely to block China's Huawei over security fears, says report

India is likely to block its mobile carriers from using telecom equipment made by China's Huawei, two government officials said, under procurement rules due to come into force in June.

 

New Delhi is wary about awarding new technology business to Chinese firms both because of security fears and a desire to get Indian manufacturers to produce more telecoms equipment.

 

A US campaign to curb Huawei has triggered bans or limits on the use of its equipment around the world but the situation in India has been amplified by strained relations between New Delhi and Beijing over their shared border.

6:02 PM

Tamil Nadu elections: AMMK releases its second list of 50 candidates

Tamil Nadu assembly elections: Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam releases its second list of 50 candidates. AMMK general secretary TTV Dinakaran to contest from Kovilpatti assembly constituency

5:49 PM

Latest News: Nominations papers of 284 candidates found valid for first phase of Assam election

Nomination papers of 284 contestants were found valid after scrutiny for the first phase of polling for 47 seats of Assam Assembly on March 27, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) said on Thursday.

 

Altogether 295 contestants had filed their papers for the first phase and upon scrutiny on Wednesday 284 papers were found valid, the CEO office here said.

 

The prominent candidates whose nominations papers were found valid from the ruling BJP are Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal (Majuli), Speaker Hitendra Nath Goswami (Jorhat), ministers Ranjit Dutta (Behali) Naba Kumar Doley (Dhakuakhana-ST) and Sanjoy Kishan (Tinsukia).

 

NDA alliance partner AGP ministers Atul Bora (Bokakhat) and Keshab Mahanta (Kaliabor) papers were also found valid.

5:41 PM

Latest News: Prince William defends UK royal family against racism claims

Prince William has as defended the UK royal family against accusations of racism made by his brother Prince Harry and sister-in-law Meghan, saying the royals are very much not a racist family.

 

In comments made Thursday during a visit to an east London school, William became the first royal to directly address the explosive interview his brother and Meghan gave to Oprah Winfrey.

 

Buckingham Palace's sought to respond to Harry and Meghan's allegations of racism and mistreatment in a 61-word statement, but it has failed to quell the controversy.

5:40 PM

Tamil Nadu election: AIADMK MLA, MSR Rajavarman joins AMMK in the presence of TTV Dhinakaran in Chennai

5:31 PM

Latest News: Maharashtra's state civil service exams postponed again, protests break out

In a huge scare in corona times, thousands of students took to the streets in Pune, Aurangabad, and Nagpur on Thursday afternoon following a state government notification postponing the upcoming prestigious Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) preliminary examinations.

 

The MPSC 2020 prelims exams, scheduled to be conducted on March 14, have been postponed for the 5th time in the past one year owing to the Covid-19 crisis, putting the future of many in jeopardy.

 

An estimated 260,000 plus candidates, including several women, who have traveled from remote parts of the state, were hoping to appear for the prelims exams for two objective-type papers at various centres in the state on Sunday.