PM Modi flags off nine Vande Bharat Express trains
The nine Vande Bharat Express trains flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 24 have a host of new features incorporated after passengers’ feedback. From improvising the seat reclining angle to incorporating deep wash basins to avoid water from splashing out, the coach manufacturers have paid attention to minute details. The railways also rolled out its first orange coloured Vande Bharat Express from Kasargod to Thiruvananthapuram, a high demand route which now operates two such trains, a senior Indian Railways official said.
Mann Ki Baat | PM Modi hails Chandrayaan landing, G20 summit
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the landing of Chandrayaan-3 and the organisation of the recent G20 Summit in New Delhi in his 105th episode of Mann ki Baat on September 24. “More than 80 lakh people watched [Chandrayaan-3’s landing] on ISRO’s YouTube channel, which is a record in itself,” Mr. Modi said. “India has proven the mettle of its leadership by making the African Union a full member of the G20,” Mr. Modi said in his monthly radio show. He invoked the Silk Road to emphasise the significance of the proposed India-Middle East-Europe Economic corridor.
Asian Games | Indian shooters, rowers win medals for India; women’s football team bows out
The experienced trio of Mehuli Ghosh, Ramita Jindal and Ashi Chouksey bagged the women’s team silver while Ramita also clinched an individual bronze in the 10m air rifle event as Indian shooters made an impressive start to their Asian Games campaign, on September 24. Indian rowers powered their way to two silver and a bronze medal. The silver was just the preview of the things to come as the gruelling men’s coxed eight event saw a keen tussle between China and India before the latter finished second with a time of 5:43.01s, which was 2.84s behind the host team, which clocked 5:40.17. Lekh Ram and Babu Lal Yadav clinched India’s third medal and second rowing medal. Meanwhile, the Indian women’s football team failed to qualify for the knockout stage after their 0-1 defeat to Thailand. A 52nd minute goal from Thongrong Parichat helped Thailand to emerge winner in their Group B match.
China denying visas to three Indian athletes from Arunachal Pradesh is “discriminatory” and against the Olympic Charter which is not acceptable to India, Union Minister Anurag Thakur has said. The northeastern State is an integral part of India and would continue to remain so, he said in Coimbatore, adding that he had cancelled his visit to China while standing with the players.
India’s G-20 Presidency was “challenging” as it came amid “a very sharp” East-West polarisation and “very deep” North-South divide, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said. The remarks by Mr. Jaishankar came at a special ‘India-UN for Global South: Delivering for Development’ side event he hosted in New York on September 24 on the margins of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly.
Exuding confidence about a good showing in the upcoming Assembly polls, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on September 24 said that as of now the Congress is certainly winning Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, probably winning Telangana, and there is a “very close” contest in Rajasthan which the party believes it will emerge victorious in. He asserted that the Opposition is adapting and working together and the BJP is “in for a surprise in 2024” general elections.
Govt has ‘mismanaged’ economy across all sectors: Congress
The Congress on September 24 alleged that the government has mismanaged the economy across all sectors and since it is “too inept” in fixing issues such as unemployment and price rise, it is distorting the data instead. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said RBI’s latest bulletin in September 2023 showed the “complete failure” of the Modi government to execute a recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Navies of India, U.S. explore ways to expand cooperation
Ways to expand bilateral maritime security cooperation in sync with fast-expanding India-U.S. strategic partnership figured prominently during Navy Chief Admiral R. Hari Kumar’s four-day visit to the U.S., officials said on September 24. The Chief of Naval Staff visited the U.S. from September 19 to 22 primarily to attend the 25th International Seapower Symposium. “The visit of the Navy Chief to the U.S. provided a significant opportunity for apex level navy-to-navy engagements for deepening bilateral cooperation as well as engaging with diverse partners across the Indo-Pacific,” Indian Navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said.
Russian airstrikes kill 2 and wound 3 in southern Ukraine as war enters 20th month
Russian airstrikes on September 24 killed two people and wounded three others in southern Ukraine’s Kherson province, the region’s governor reported on Sunday as the war in Ukraine entered a 20th month. According to Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin, Russian forces struck the city of Beryslav, destroying an unspecified number of private houses. A woman was killed and three people were wounded, including a police officer, he said.
Israeli military raid kills two Palestinians in West Bank
Two Palestinians were killed during an Israeli military raid on September 24 in the northern West Bank, Palestinian health officials said, the latest bloodshed in a surge of violence during a sensitive Jewish holiday period. The Israeli military said it moved into the Nour Shams refugee camp, near the town of Tulkarem, to destroy what it described as a militant command center and bomb-storage facility in a building.
Death toll in Taiwan golf ball factory fire rises; Four of the victims were firefighters
Search teams found the bodies of the last three missing people on Sunday at the site of a golf ball factory fire in southern Taiwan, bringing the death toll to 10, according to Taiwanese media reports. Launch Technologies, the operator of the plant, is a major global supplier of golf balls. Four of the victims were firefighters. Taiwan’s Central News Agency, quoting a Pingtung County fire official, said an explosion caused part of the building to collapse about 6:10 pm on Friday, trapping firefighters and workers under rubble, A second explosion followed 20 minutes later.
As many as 412 infra projects show cost overruns of ₹4.77 lakh crore in August: Report
As many as 412 infrastructure projects, each entailing an investment of ₹150 crore or more, have been hit by cost overruns of more than ₹4.77 lakh crore in August this year, an official report said. According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, which monitors infrastructure projects worth ₹150 crore and above, out of 1,762 projects, 412 reported cost overruns and as many as 830 projects were delayed.
