Page 8 - President

President Droupadi Murmu arrives in Serbian capital on state visit

President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday arrived here in the Serbian capital on a state visit and was received by her Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic. The visit is the first by an Indian President to Serbia. "President Droupadi Murmu was given a warm welcome on arrival in Belgrade. This is the first visit by an Indian President to Serbia. As a special gesture, President @avucic of Serbia received President Murmu at the airport. She was accorded a guard of honour on her arrival," her office tweeted. She is on the second and final leg of her six-day visit to Suriname and Serbia to bolster India's bilateral engagement with the two countries. She is in Serbia from June 7 to 9. "She will be on a state visit to Serbia on the invitation of the Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic," Secretary (West) in the MEA Sanjay Verma said on June 2 in New Delhi. The President will have a bilateral meeting with President Vucic, and meet Prime Minister Ana Brnabic, and Speaker of the National Assembl

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President Murmu holds delegation level talks with Surinamese counterpart

President Murmu had arrived in Paramaribo on Sunday on her first state visit as President. She will there till June 6

President Droupadi Murmu to embark on 6-day visit to Suriname and Serbia

President Droupadi Murmu will embark on a six-day visit to Suriname and Serbia beginning Sunday to bolster India's bilateral engagement with the two countries. In the first leg of her trip, the President will visit the South American country of Suriname from June 4 to 6. From Surinam, she will travel to Serbia in Europe for the second and final leg of her visit from June 7 to 9. "The President will be in Suriname on a state visit from June 4 to 6 at the invitation of President of Suriname Chan Santokhi. This will be her maiden state visit after she assumed the office of the President," said Saurabh Kumar, Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs. "The visit assumes historical significance as the President will be the chief guest at the 150th anniversary celebrations of the arrival of Indians in Suriname," he said at a media briefing. The celebrations are on June 5. Kumar said the President would be accompanied by Union minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti,Minister and Rama

Home Minister Amit Shah meets President Murmu after Manipur visit

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday called on President Droupadi Murmu here and described the meeting as a courtesy call. Shah met the president a day after his return from Manipur where he spent four days to take stock of the situation in the wake of ethnic violence. He also met a cross section of people in the northeastern state. "Today, I paid a courtesy call on honourable President Droupadi Murmu," he tweeted in Hindi. The Rashtrapati Bhavan also tweeted: "Union Minister for Home Affairs and Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah, called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan".

Committed to enhancing development partnership with Nepal: President Murmu

President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday asserted that Nepal is a priority for India and emphasized the country's commitment to enhancing the development partnership with the neighbouring nation, including prompt completion of vital projects. Welcoming the Prime Minister of Nepal Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here, Murmu also said India-Nepal bilateral cooperation has gone from strength to strength in recent years. "Trade between the two countries was maintained even during the difficult times of the COVID-19 pandemic," she highlighted. Prime Minister Prachanda also called on Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar at his official residence here. Sharing pictures of the meeting on Twitter, the Vice President's Secretariat said, "Age-old cultural ties between India and Nepal continue to be the bedrock of our relationship as we make good progress in other areas of our engagement." During her meeting with the prime minister of the neighbouring country, Murmu said the o

Khap Mahapanchayat: Delegation to meet Prez to seek justice for wrestlers

Naresh Tikait is the head of the Balyan Khap. The mahapanchayat was attended by khap leaders from Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi

Kharge-led Cong delegation meets President, seeks intervention in Manipur

After meeting President, Cong chief Kharge said that party has submitted a memorandum demanding her intervention in Manipur so that normalcy can be brought urgently

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SC refuses to entertain PIL for inauguration of new Parl building by Prez

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a PIL seeking a direction to the Lok Sabha Secretariat for inauguration of the new Parliament building by President Droupadi Murmu. A bench of justices JK Maheshwari and PS Narasimha told petitioner in-person advocate Jaya Sukin that the court understands why and how this petition was filed and it is not inclined to entertain this petition under Article 32 of the Constitution. Sukin said under Article 79, the president is the executive head of the country and she should have been invited. He, however, said if the court does not wish to entertain the petition, he be allowed to withdraw it. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, said if the petition is allowed to be withdrawn, then it will be filed in the high court. The bench then dismissed the petition as withdrawn. The petition said the respondents -- the Lok Sabha Secretariat and the Union of India -- are "humiliating" the president by not inviting her for the .

Parliament opening: Congress to protest for overlooking President Murmu

Cong once again targeted BJP for not inviting then President Ram Nath Kovind for laying the foundation for new Parliament, while now his successor Droupadi Murmu has not been invited to inaugurate

India's digital economy an example for entire world: President Murmu

President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday said India's digital ecomony has become an example for the globe and urged young IT professionals to come forward to use technology for the welfare of people including vulnerable sections such as handicapped and senior citizens. She was addressing the second convocation of Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT Ranchi). "India's digital economy has become an example for the entire world, who could have imagined street vendors using digital means to sell fruits, vegetables," President Murmu said. She said that more than one lakh startups were registered in India, making it the third largest global tech-startup ecosystem. "I urge IT students to come forward for best use of Artificial Intelligence to aid 'Divyang' (handicapped) and senior citizens," the President said. She said that IT sector's importance could be understood from the fact that its contribution to GDP rose to 9 per cent at present from 2 per cent in 1998.

Modi govt's arrogance has destroyed parliamentary system: Congress

The Congress on Thursday stepped up its attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the inauguration of the new Parliament building, saying "one man's ego and desire for self-promotion" has denied the first tribal woman president her constitutional privilege to inaugurate the complex. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the "arrogance" of the Modi government has "destroyed" the parliamentary system. "Mr Modi, Parliament is the temple of democracy established by the people. The office of the President is the first part of Parliament. The arrogance of your government has destroyed the parliamentary system," Kharge said in a tweet in Hindi. "140 crore Indians want to know what do you want to show by taking away the right of the President of India to inaugurate the Parliament House?" the Congress chief said. The All India Adivasi Congress too accused the Modi government of "insulting" tribals by not getting Droupadi Murmu, the country's first tribal president, to ...

Need to preserve cultural identity of Scheduled Tribe: President Murmu

President Droupadi Murmu, who is on a three-day visit to Jharkhand, on Thursday said there is a need to preserve the cultural identity of the Scheduled Tribe community. The tribal society presents ideal examples in many fields, and "one of these is the non-prevalence of the dowry system", she said. Murmu urged tribal women to come forward and reap the benefits of government schemes. "Come forward and take the benefits of government schemes which are run for your welfare. Tribal women of Jharkhand are ahead of those in other states when it comes to women empowerment," Murmu said, while addressing self-help groups at an event in Khunti. The President stressed on the need for preserving the distinct cultural identity of tribals and said their society is "free of evil practices such as dowry". "There is a need to preserve the cultural identity of the Scheduled Tribe community," Murmu said. She pointed out that many people in society, even the well-educated ones, have not been able to

President Droupadi Murmu inaugurates new Jharkhand High Court building

President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday inaugurated the new building of the Jharkhand High Court in Ranchi, built at a cost of about Rs 550 crore. The 165-acre compound of the new high court is one of the largest in the country in terms of area. Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, Jharkhand Governor CP Radhakrishnan, Union Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court Justice Sanjaya Kumar Mishra, Chief Minister Hemant Soren and other dignitaries were present on the occasion. The new High Court building has 25 air-conditioned courtrooms and two halls for lawyers with a sitting capacity of 1,200 people each, along with 540 chambers, an official said.

President delivers speech in darkness, BJP seeks Odisha CM's apology

Lights went off as President Droupadi Murmu addressed the convocation of a university in her home district of Mayurbhanj in Odisha on Saturday, leading to a political row in the state. Murmu was addressing the 12th convocation of the Maharaja Shri Ramchandra Bhanjadeo University. Four minutes into the speech, lights went off due to a power snag, plunging the venue into darkness. Murmu continued her speech in the darkness, which lasted for nine minutes from 11.56 am to 12.05 pm before the power supply was restored. Terming it a major security lapse, state BJP president Manmohan Samal demanded an apology from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. "It is a shame for the entire state. Though the state government claims that Odisha is a power-surplus state, it cannot provide lights at the place where the country's first citizen is present. We demand an apology from the chief minister," he said. BJD vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra said an inquiry would be done to find the persons responsible

President Murmu to embark on a 3-day visit to Odisha's Mayurbhanj district

President Droupadi Murmu will visit Odisha's Mayurbhanj district from May 4 to 6, a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said on Wednesday. The President will lay the foundation stone for the Skill Training Hub and Community Centre at Pahadpur on Thursday. Subsequently, she will visit Brahma Kumaris Centre, Hatbadra to launch the Addiction Free Odisha' campaign of the centre, the statement said. On the same evening, President Murmu will attend a civic reception to be hosted in her honour by the Rairangpur Municipality at Rairangpur Stadium, it said. On May 5, the President will pay her tributes to Pt Raghunath Murmu on his birth anniversary. Later, she will visit Similipal Sanctuary. The President will grace the 12th convocation of Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University at Baripada on May 6, the statement added.

President Droupadi Murmu to visit Haryana's Karnal, Hisar on Monday

President Droupadi Murmu will visit Karnal and Hisar in Haryana on Monday, an official statement said on Sunday. At Karnal, the president will grace the 19th convocation of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research National Dairy Research Institute. While at Hisar, she will grace the 25th convocation of Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, said the statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

President declares Rashtrapati Niwas in Shimla open for general public

Amid a heavy hailstorm, President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday officially declared the Rashtrapati Niwas here open for the general public, and said people will be allowed to visit from April 23. Murmu announced this during the 'At Home' ceremony hosted by her at the 173-year-old heritage building located at Chhabra in Mashobra block of Shimla district. Key attractions for tourists include the main building, official dining halls and artifacts. Other highlights include nature trails and the orchards at the Rashtrapati Niwas. People will be able to visit the retreat by paying a nominal fee Rs 50 per person for Indian nationals and Rs 250 per person for foreign nationals, officials said. Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and cabinet colleagues, MLAs, senior civil and police officers of the state, senior military officers and other prominent people of the town attended the 'At Home' function. Earlier in the day, the President visited th