India

Thiruvananthapuram, May 5 (PTI) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has extended solidarity to the people and the government of Odisha, which was hit by cyclone Fani.

Vijayan, in a letter sent to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Saturday, said Kerala would do everything possible to assist in relief and rehabilitation of the cyclone-affected.

The Kerala chief minister said Kerala and its people "offer all assistance" including provision of medical teams, fire and rescue services and state electricity board personnel if necessary.

New Delhi, May 5 (PTI) The Delhi police on Sunday filed an FIR against the man who allegedly slapped Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal during a roadshow a day ago, officials said.

The accused, Suresh, has been booked under Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 153 (promoting enmity between different groups) of the Indian Penal Code, Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Monika Bhardwaj said.

He was sent to two days of judicial custody, the police said.

New Delhi, May 5 (PTI) The Election Commission Sunday rejected a plea to reschedule the commencement of polls during the last three phases of the Lok Sabha elections to 5 am instead of 7 am due to Ramzan.

Ramzan, the month of fasting in Islam, will begin from May 7 (Tuesday).

The Supreme Court had on Thursday directed the Election Commission to take a call on a plea seeking to advance the voting timing to 5 am for the remaining phases of the Lok Sabha election due to heat waves and Ramzan.

New Delhi, May 5 (PTI) Former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday said India is headed for an economic slowdown and accused the Modi government of leaving the economy in dire straits due to its "lack of economic vision".

Citing the latest economic growth figures to suggest an impending slowdown, the senior Congress leader also said the Indian economy is "over-regulated" and the government controls and interferences are aplenty with even regulators having "morphed into controllers".

Kanpur: It is after the year 2015, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad is going to hold its annual programme at Saraswati Vidya Mandir Inter College from June 7 to 11 at Jajmau here. Every year the Shiksha Varg Manthan is organized in one Prant. 

The Parishad has divided eastern Uttar Pradesh into four different regions like, Awadh, Goraksh, Kashi and Kanpur. This year the Shiksha Varg of all the regions will gather here. 

Deendayal Gaur said as many as 300 workers from 80 districts would get ample training in the 11-day long programmer. 

NEW DELHI, May 5 (Xinhua): Death toll of Cyclone Fani has risen to 33 in Indian eastern state of Odisha, local media reported Sunday.

The extremely severe cyclone wreaked havoc in the coastal part of the state, causing widespread destruction and leaving hundreds grappling with water shortage and power cuts due to uprooting of trees and electricity poles.

"The death toll in the Cyclone Fani has risen to 33," local television channel India Today said on Sunday.

Muzaffarnagar, May 5 (PTI) An accused in the murder case of a man, who had witnessed the killings of his two brothers during the Muzaffarnagar riots, has surrendered, officials said Sunday.

Toni, who was carrying a reward of Rs 25,000, surrendered on Saturday evening and the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Rakesh Gautam has sent him to judicial custody, said public prosecutor Gagan Saran.

New Delhi, May 5 (PTI) State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) has received the green nod to drill six development wells in Assam at an estimated cost of Rs 240 crore.

The Union Environment Ministry has given the environment clearance for six development wells in five mining lease blocks in Jorhat and Golghat districts, according to an official document.

The company had sought permission for drilling 12 development wells but it received clearance for six wells at present.

Mumbai, May 5 (PTI) Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has clarified that the demand for burqa ban made in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana was not that of the Sena or its chief Uddhav Thackeray.

In his weekly column published in Saamana's Sunday edition, Raut, who is the Marathi daily's executive editor, said, "The burqa ban was not the demand of Shiv Sena or Uddhav Thackeray. Saamana just published an analysis of the developments in Sri Lanka."

Mumbai, May 4 (PTI) A 62-year-old man was on Saturday sentenced to ten years rigorous imprisonment for raping a 5-year-old girl in Kurla area in the metropolis in 2018.

Banarasi Gupta was found guilty under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and section 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code by special judge Bharti Kale.

According to the prosecution, the victim and her brother were at their aunt's house in Nehru Nagar in Kurla in February 2018.