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India celebrates its 74th Republic Day on 26 January this year. The day is observed to honour the day when the Constitution of India was enacted in 1950. A plethora of events will be organised on this day with the centre of attraction being the annual parade held at the Kartavya Path (formerly Rajpath) near the Rashtrapati Bhavan. During the official ceremony, the President of India acknowledges and pays tribute to the courageous officers of the police department and armed forces for their exceptional bravery in the field. Additionally, several awards are given to citizens who have displayed courage in various circumstances. Here, let’s take a look at the awards given out on the occasion of Republic Day: Bharat Ratna Bharat Ratna is the nation’s highest civilian award. It is given in honour of great work or accomplishment of the highest order in any area of human endeavour. The Prime Minister recommends candidates for Bharat Ratna to the President of India. There is no requirement fo

The reports about mass layoffs don’t seem to be dying down anytime soon. The internet is abuzz after these layoffs, which began last year and appears to be continuing in 2023, have become the talk of the town. What is more surprising is the fact that we are barely a month into the New Year, and as per news agency IANS , in the first 15 days of January, 91 companies have laid off more than 24,000 tech employees. Well, this is not all, the news agency also reported that on average more than 1,600 tech employees are being laid off in 2023 across the globe. Just a few days after e-commerce giant Amazon announced that it will be laying off more than 18,000 employees worldwide, Microsoft sent the tech world into a frenzy after it confirmed cutting 10,000 jobs by the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2023. Well, there is no denying the fact that it hasn’t been a great beginning for some of the IT pros in the year 2023. In every corner of the world, the technology industry has been ravaged b

Republic Day, celebrated on 26 January, holds a special place for all Indians. The day honours a momentous occasion in the country’s history, as it was on this day in 1950 that our Constitution was enacted. There is a lot that goes in to prepare for the great parade at the Kartavya Path (formerly Rajpath) in New Delhi, where the Chief Guest of the function witnesses the celebrations with other dignitaries. This year, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi will grace the event. The guest is usually the head of state of another country. But how is the Chief Guest decided for the Republic Day celebrations? Here is all that you need to know : How is the Chief Guest chosen? The government gives the invitation to a head of state or government after carefully taking a number of factors into consideration. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) keeps in mind a number of issues, the most important being the nature of India’s relationship with the concerned country. Other factors consist of

Republic Day is commemorated every year across India to mark the adoption of the Indian Constitution. The annual parade of the Republic Day starts at Kartavya Path, Delhi and ends at the India Gate. The events conducted during the day showcases the cultural and social heritage of India. Air shows are also held by the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force on Republic Day. India’s President hoists the national flag at Kartavya Path on this occasion. The preparations for the Republic Day Parade commenced in July of the previous year. The participants practice the parade at their related regiment centres till August and reach Delhi by December. They practice 600 hours before performing officially on 26 January. As the rehearsals for the Republic Day Parade are already underway, the Delhi Traffic Police has released guidelines for this period. The Traffic Police has announced alternative routes for avoiding congestion due to the Republic Day parade rehearsals. The traffic restrict

New Delhi: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi will be the first chief guest from his country at India’s Republic Day celebrations beginning next week, the Centre announced on Friday. He is the fifth leader from the West Asian and Arab world to be the chief guest at the Republic Day Parade and subsequent celebrations. President el-Sisi is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on 24 January and will be received by Minister of State for External Affairs, Rajkumar Ranjan Singh. The next day, he will hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as well as meet Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar. Later, he will attend a banquet hosted by President Droupadi Murmu. On 26 January, he will preside as the chief guest at the Republic Day Parade. Accompanying President el-Sisi, will be a 180-member strong contingent from Egypt which will participate in the parade. A number of agreements are also expected to be signed between the two countries. Additionally, a commemorative stamp marki

Goddess Saraswati is worshipped by people for knowledge and to get rid of ignorance, lethargy, and sluggishness on Basant Panchami or Vasant Panchami. The whole day is dedicated to the Goddess and this auspicious Hindu festival is observed with full fervour by her devotees. Saraswati is known as the Goddess of music, knowledge, arts, science, and technology. According to Drik Panchang, many astrologers consider Basant Panchami as Abujha day, which is auspicious for starting all the good work. During this day, the yellow colour holds a great significance. People wear yellow dresses on this day for worshipping the Goddess. The colour yellow symbolises both knowledge and the fields of mustard, which indicates the start of spring. Date and Timing The auspicious festival of Basant Panchami is observed each year on the fifth day of Lunar Eclipse in the month of Magh (spring) according to the Hindu Calendar. This day usually falls in the month of January or February. According to Drik Panch

It’s not just you who is not feeling a nip in the air anymore. As cold wave conditions abated over northwest India on Thursday (19 January), citizens have got some respite from the bone-chilling weather. The minimum temperature in Delhi rose to 10.6 degrees Celsius today (20 January), over 3.6 notches above normal. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted the maximum temperature to settle at 22 degrees Celsius in the National Capital today. The weather agency has attributed the relief from the intense cold wave to fresh western disturbances affecting the western Himalayan region. What is a western disturbance and how it impacts mercury? What is the IMD forecast for north India for the coming days? Let’s take a closer look. Western Disturbance Western disturbances are storms that form in the Caspian or Mediterranean Sea and bring unseasonal rainfall to northwest India, as per the IMD. These extratropical storms carry moisture as they traverse from the Mediterranea

New Delhi/Davos : In a major push to the Digital India initiative, the digital payment transactions of India in 2022 were more than the combined digital payments of UK, Germany, France and the US. This was stated by Union Minister Of Railways, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw at World Economic Forum in Davos. “India’s digital payments transactions last year were more than the combined digital payments of four big economies- US, UK, Germany, France,” Vaishnaw said. #WATCH | India's digital payments transactions last year were more than the combined digital payments of four big economies- US, UK, Germany, France: Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at World Economic Forum in Davos pic.twitter.com/jAi5y7M92K — ANI (@ANI) January 20, 2023 Recently, it was reported that the volume of Unified Payment Interface (UPI) transactions jumped by over 90 per cent and the value by 76 per cent between 2021 and 2022. In the third quarter of FY23, India

India decriminalised homosexuality on 6 September 2018. But more than four years on, does the country’s LGBTQ+ community enjoy equal rights? No, if you ask, senior advocate Saurabh Kirpal, an openly gay person, whose appointment as judge of the Delhi high court continues to be delayed. He alleges that his sexual orientation is the reason he has been facing rejection from the government. Who is Saurabh Kirpal? Kirpal is an openly gay senior advocate who has been practising for more than two decades. He was designated senior advocate by 31 judges of the Delhi High Court in March 2021. He was part of a team of lawyers that represented Sunil Mehra and Navtej Singh Johar , the now well-known petitioners in the historic case in which the Supreme Court (SC) struck down the colonial-era Sec 377, which criminalised homosexuality. The advocate has penned the book Sex and the Supreme Court: How the Law is Upholding the Dignity of the Indian Citizen, which carries writings by former Attorney

An incident involving the chief of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has once again prompted questions on the safety of women in the National Capital. Swati Maliwal was allegedly accosted and dragged by a “drunk” man in the wee hours of Thursday (19 January). Harish Chandra, a 47-year-old resident of Sangam Vihar, has been nabbed by the Delhi Police in connection with the case. What has Swati Maliwal said about the incident? How has the Delhi Police responded? We explain. Swati Maliwal narrates ordeal Swati Maliwal was allegedly molested and dragged for nearly 15 metres by an inebriated driver on the road outside AIIMS hospital when she was out to assess the safety of women on Delhi roads. Maliwal alleged the man, who was in a Baleno, stopped when she was standing on the pavement outside AIIMS gate number 2 at around 3.11 am last night. The driver allegedly pressed her to get inside, PTI reported. After she refused, he drove past her but soon made a U-turn and returned. Acc

Annually, India celebrates Republic Day on 26 January. The occasion marks the enactment of the Constitution of India as well as the country’s transition to a republic on this very day in 1950. A grand military and cultural parade showcase the cultural diversity and military might of the nation. The Republic Day parade has floats representing different states, cultural groups, and organisations. It even displays military equipment and a march-past by various regiments of the paramilitary and Indian Armed Forces. To make it easy for the public to become a part of the celebration, the Centre has started an online Invitation Management Portal to send e-invitations to the guests and dignitaries. The general public can buy tickets online to watch the Republic Day events. To watch the grand Republic Day parade 2023 on 26 January, people can now book tickets online on the official web portal launched by the Centre. Here are the steps to purchase the Republic Day 2023 tickets online: Step 1:

New Delhi: Pharmaceutical industry bodies has demanded the government take measures to promote innovation and R&D while simplifying regulations for the sector in the upcoming Union Budget. Outlining the wishlist for the sector in the upcoming Union Budget, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) Secretary General Sudarshan Jain said the domestic pharma industry is currently around USD 50 billion in size and aspires to grow to around USD 130 billion by 2030 and USD 450 billion by 2047. “To achieve this vision, the Union Budget 2023-2024 should help fuel innovation and R&D, which will set the pace for propelling the pharmaceutical industry forward,” he told PTI. The budget should outline supportive policies, simplified regulations, and simple GST norms to aid in the development of the pharmaceutical industry, he added. IPA is an alliance of 24 leading domestic pharma companies, including Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Aurobindo Pharma, Cipla, Lupin and Glenmark. Organisat

New Delhi: With an aim to extend the provide accessible and affordable healthcare facilities to the more people, the BJP ruled Centre may announce an expansion in the coverage of world’s largest government funded healthcare program ‘Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana’ (PM-JAY) during the upcoming union budget. According to sources familiar with the matter, “The proposal to extend the benefits to cover section of people without health insurance, will be sent to the Centre by ‘National Health Authority’ (NHA), the apex body responsible for implementing the scheme. According to a report published by the NITI Aayog, India’s top policy body advising the government, in October 2021, around 40 crore Indians do not have any health insurance. This makes about 30% of the country’s population is out of the ambit of any health protection scheme, the NITI Aayog stated. This report, therefore, defines the “missing middle” of population devoid of financial protection despite the ability to pay. “T

The X’mas New Year Bumper BR-89 draw results will be announced by the Kerala Lottery Department today, 19 January at 2 pm. Once the X’mas New Year Bumper BR-89 result is announced, participants can check the result on the official web portal of the Kerala lottery department. In order to make it easy for the BR-89 ticket holders, the Bumper lottery results will also be published in the Kerala Government Gazette. The detailed results of the BR-89 Bumper lottery will be declared on the official web portal from 4 pm onwards. The winner of the X’mas New Year Bumper BR-89 lottery first prize will take home a prize of Rs 16 crore. The second prize winner of the Bumper lottery draw will receive Rs 1 crore and the third prize winner will receive Rs 1 lakh. A consolation prize of Rs 3 lakh is also there in the BR-89 lottery draw. The X’mas New Year Bumper BR-89 lottery draw will be conducted at the Gorky Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram, near Bakery Junction. The BR-89 lottery ticket holders should

First there was a mid-air brawl, then came the news of Pee-gate and now there’s exit-gate. Indian flyers are becoming more difficult to handle , it seems, in recent times. On 17 January, IndiGo Airlines released a statement that a passenger had “accidentally opened the emergency exit during the boarding process” aboard a flight from Chennai to Tiruchirapalli on 10 December 2022. However, the airline did not mention the passenger’s name. The unnamed passenger’s action caused the flight to be delayed by over two hours and only took off for its destination, Tiruchirapalli, after stringent engineering checks. The passenger’s name has now come to the fore and it was none other than Tejasvi Surya, national president of the BJP Yuva Morcha and the party’s Bengaluru South MP. Surya’s name has been confirmed by Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, who said: “It is important to look at the facts. The door was opened by him by mistake when the flight was on the ground and after a

There is much to cheer for female students in Kerala. The Pinarayi Vijayan-led government is mulling granting menstrual leave to students enrolled at state universities falling under the Department of Higher Education. Kerala higher education minister, R Bindu, said on Monday (16 January), “Taking into consideration the mental and physical difficulties faced by female students during menstruation, necessary steps will be taken to implement menstrual leave in all universities”, reported PTI. Noting that menstrual days are an “emotional roller coaster” for many, the minister said, “Let the girls relax during the difficult days of their menstrual cycle”. This comes in the wake of a similar decision implemented by the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT). Lauding the varsity, Bindu said it was for the first time in Kerala that an education centre has taken the call to provide menstrual leaves to female students. What is a menstrual leave? How will CUSAT extend menstrual

There is much to cheer for female students in Kerala. The Pinarayi Vijayan-led government is mulling granting menstrual leave to students enrolled at state universities falling under the Department of Higher Education. Kerala higher education minister, R Bindu, said on Monday (16 January), “Taking into consideration the mental and physical difficulties faced by female students during menstruation, necessary steps will be taken to implement menstrual leave in all universities”, reported PTI. Noting that menstrual days are an “emotional roller coaster” for many, the minister said, “Let the girls relax during the difficult days of their menstrual cycle”. This comes in the wake of a similar decision implemented by the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT). Lauding the varsity, Bindu said it was for the first time in Kerala that an education centre has taken the call to provide menstrual leaves to female students. What is a menstrual leave? How will CUSAT extend menstrual

Mumbai : Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s wedding festivities kick-started with a ‘Mehendi’ ceremony on Tuesday. Photographs from the celebration are going viral on social media. Anant Ambani, 27, is the son of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani, while Radhika Merchant is the daughter of Encore Healthcare chief Viren Merchant. The two will soon get married in a lavish wedding. The bride-to-be Radhika looked resplendent in a custom Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla lehenga for her mehendi ceremony. She paired the pink lehenga with polki jewellery and wore her hair pulled back into a braid. Radhika Merchant's mehendi first pics are out. Future Ambani bahu looks splendid in a pink lehenga #RadhikaMerchant #AnantAmbani #mukeshamnani #ambani #mehendi #wedding #amabaniwedding #anantradhika pic.twitter.com/p76TQyBSQu — News18 (@CNNnews18) January 18, 2023 While sharing an image of her on Instagram, Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla wrote, “Radhika Merchant is the picture o