Kejriwal's party: Nobody can 'hijack' relationship between us and 'aam aadmi', Congress says

New Delhi, Jun 4: India's Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, following which the defence ministry carried out a massive contact-tracing exercise, official sources said.

Kumar's condition is stable and he is currently under home-quarantine, they said.

At least 35 officials working at the ministry's headquarters in South Block in the Raisina Hills have been sent on home quarantine after reports of Kumar testing positive for the infection emerged on Wednesday morning.

There was no official comment on Kumar's health condition. The defence ministry spokesperson refused to comment on the issue.

It is learnt that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh did not attend office as part of a precautionary measure.

The offices of the defence minister, the defence secretary, the Army Chief and the Navy Chief are on the first floor of the South Block.

The sources said all laid down protocols on contact-tracing and quarantining of people are being scrupulously followed.

New Delhi, Jul 19: Blaming the BJP for the political drama in Rajasthan, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Sunday asked Sachin Pilot not to leave the grand old party.

In an interview to news agency, the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister said Pilot should not follow Jyotiraditya Scindia into the BJP, as he has bright future in Congress.

His remarks follow Pilot's open rebellion against the Ashok Gehlot government, which has been on shaky ground with at least 18 legislators backing the rebel leader.

Pilot was sacked as Rajasthan deputy chief minister and the state Congress chief recently and the Congress has accused the BJP of making efforts to topple the Gehlot-led government by indulging in horse-trading.

"The BJP is behind the crisis in Rajasthan," Singh said.

The Congress veteran said he tried to call Pilot but his calls and text messages went unanswered.

"Age is on your side. Ashok (Gehlot) may have offended you, but all such issues are best resolved amicably. Dont make the mistake that Scindia made. BJP is unreliable. Nobody who joined it from any other party has succeeded there," Singh said.

He said this is the first time that Pilot hasn't responded to him.

"Sachin is like my son. He respects me and I also like him. I called him three-four times and also texted him. He didn't revert. He used to respond immediately earlier," he said.

"It is good to be ambitious. How can one move forward without having ambitions, but along with ambition, one must also have commitment to your organisation, ideology and the nation," Singh said.

For latest updates on the Rajathan Political Crisis, click here

"I heard that he (Pilot) may form a new party. But what is the need for it. Has Congress not given him anything? He was made an MP at 26, a Union minister at 32, the state Congress president at 34 and deputy chief minister at 38. What else does he want? Time is on his side," Singh said.

If Pilot had any issue, then as the state party unit president, he should have called a meeting and discussed the matter, he said. Pilot could have involved Congress national general secretary and Rajasthan in-charge Avinash Pande in talks with Gehlot to resolve differences, he added.

"If you have faith in your legislators, why have you have confined 18-19 of them in ITC Grand hotel at Manesar in Haryana," Singh said.

This is the same hotel where the BJP kept MLAs from Maharashtra, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh (during political dramas in those states), he said.

Pilot should forget whatever has happened, come back and sit across the table to discuss how Congress could be strengthened, he said

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 9: The Kerala government has set up five COVID-19 helpdesks for non-resident Keralites in countries which have a substantial number of Pravasi Malayalis.

Addressing a press conference here Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said: "In order to address the concerns and issues faced by the non-resident Keralites, we have set up five dedicated COVID helpdesks in countries where we have a substantial number of Pravasi Malayalis."

The helpdesks started by Norka Roots will be managed locally by persons and voluntary organisations active among non-resident Keralites. The Kerala government has requested the Indian Ambassadors in various places to cooperate with these helpdesks.

The Chief Minister also informed that online medical services would be made available to the non-resident Keralites through the Norka Roots website.

"Pravasi Malayalis can consult prominent doctors in Kerala by audio or video calls through the website, with prior registration. The services of various speciality doctors will be available from 2 pm to 6 pm IST," he said.

Currently, registration for the Norka Pravasi ID card is only available for the Malayali expatriates residing or working abroad for a period of not less than six months. "Now students from Kerala studying abroad can also avail this facility. The overseas student registration service would enable them to get Insurance benefits and discounts on flight tickets. This registration will be mandatory for all students presently studying abroad as well as for those going abroad, from now on," Vijayan said.

The Pravasi ID card is a multi-purpose photo identity card that entitles every non-resident Keralite to avail all services and facilities offered by Norka Root. The card comes with an add-on Personal Accident Insurance (PAI) coverage. Two prominent airlines are offering a discount on the base fare for air tickets booked by Norka Id card holders.