Smriti Irani removed from I&B Minister post as PM Modi reshuffles cabinet

News Network
May 15, 2018

New Delhi, May 15: After a string of controversies involving the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B), Prime Minister Narendra Modi late on Monday evening divested Smriti Irani of the high-profile portfolio and elevated junior minister under her, Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. He is the new Minister of State with independent charge of the Ministry.

Change at the I&B is part of a mini-reshuffle in the Cabinet effected by the PM, who has assigned the vital Ministry of Finance to Railways Minister Piyush Goyal, who will be at the helm of the Ministry of Finance till Arun Jaitley fully recovers after his successful kidney transplant surgery on Monday.

Ms. Irani helmed the Ministry for fewer than 10 months. She had replaced Venkaiah Naidu who resigned after he was elected to the post of Vice-President of India. This is the second time that Ms. Irani has been divested of an important portfolio. She was appointed Minister for Human Resource and Development in May 2014. After a little over two years, she was replaced by Prakash Javedkar. She remained away from the limelight handling the relatively obscure Ministry of Textiles for over a year before getting I&B in July last year.

Ms. Irani’s stint at the I&B was controversial — from fighting with the Prasar Bharti Board to issuing a notification on “fake news”, which was eventually withdrawn at the behest of the PMO. The latest row involved the President of India regarding the National Film Awards ceremony.

“The government was fed up with constant controversies generated by her,” a top functionary in the government told The Hindu, adding that “the government felt embarrassed at every controversy she created.” After the awards function row, the Rashtrapati Bhavan conveyed to the PMO its unhappiness at the manner in which the office of the President was dragged into a controversy.

Earlier in April this year, Prime Minister Modi had directed that the press release on ‘fake news’ be withdrawn, and that the matter should be addressed only in the Press Council of India. The press release was issued by the I&B Ministry, which had amended guidelines and sought to punish journalists by cancelling their accreditation if found circulating fake news.

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News Network
March 28,2020

Mumbai, Mar 28: Industrialist Ratan Tata on Saturday announced that Tata Trusts has committed Rs 500 crore for the medical supplies and equipments which will help combat the coronavirus outbreak.

"The COVID-19 crisis is one of the toughest challenges we will face as a race. The Tata Trusts and the Tata group companies have in the past risen to the needs of the nation. At this moment, the need of the hour is greater than any other time," said Ratan Tata, in an official release.

"Tata is committing Rs 500 crore for: personal protective equipment for the medical personnel on the frontlines; respiratory systems for treating increasing cases; testing kits to increase per capita testing; setting up modular treatment facilities for infected patients and knowledge management and training of health workers and the general public," Tata added.
Tata Chairman also expressed his deep gratitude for the members of all the organizations who are fighting coronavirus at the frontline, puting their life at risk.

"The Tata Trusts, Tata Sons and the Tata group companies are joined by committed local and global partners as well as the government to fight this crisis on a united public health collaboration platform which will strive to reach out to sections that are underprivileged and deprived," he added.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), there are 873 confirmed cases of coronavirus cases in the country and 19 fatalities have been reported.

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News Network
March 26,2020

Srinagar, Mar 25: A 65-year-old man hailing from Hyderpora area of the city died on Thursday, becoming the first fatality in Jammu and Kashmir due to coronavirus.
"As we share the sad news of our first #Covid19 fatality, my heart goes out to the family of the deceased. We stand with you and share your grief," Mayor of Srinagar Junaid Azim Mattu tweeted.
Government spokesperson Rohit Kansal also confirmed the death via Twitter.
"First death due to Coronavirus- 65 years old Male from Hyderpora Srinagar. Four of his contacts also tested positive yesterday," Kansal said.
Four people had tested positive for coronavirus in J-K on Wednesday, taking the total number of cases to 11.
Authorities in Kashmir have expressed apprehensions that the cases could be more than reported in the Valley as a significant number of people appeared to have concealed their travel history.
As per a government bulletin on Wednesday in Jammu and Kashmir, as many as 5,124 travellers and people who came in contact with suspected and positive cases have been put under surveillance.

Among them 3,061 are in home quarantine (including facilities operated by the government), 80 in hospital quarantine and 1,477 in home surveillance.
Restrictions on movement imposed in Kashmir to prevent the spread of coronavirus were tightened on Wednesday.

 

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News Network
July 12,2020

New Delhi, Jul 12: With the highest single-day spike of 28,637 new cases and 551 deaths being reported in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 count reached 8,49,553 on Sunday.

According to the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry, this includes 2,92,258 active cases, and 5,34,621 cured and discharged or migrated patients. The toll due to the disease has reached 22,674 in the country.

Maharashtra with 2,46,600 cases continues to be the worst affected state by COVID-19 in the country. The state has 99,499 active cases while 1,36,985 patients have been cured and discharged so far. The death toll due to the disease now stands at 10,116.

Tamil Nadu with 1,34,226 cases, including 46,413 active ones, is the next worst affected in the country. While the number of cured and discharged patients is at 85,915 in the state, the toll due to the disease is at 1,898.

The national capital has recorded 1,10,921 confirmed cases so far. However, the number of active cases in Delhi is at 19,895 and 87,692 patients have been cured and discharged so far. With 3,334 deaths being reported due to COVID-19 in the city. 

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