Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], March 7 (ANI): The State Cabinet meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday have resolved 16 major decisions adding the approval of a proposal to create a new department called Mission Shakti in a bid to strengthen the SHG (Self Help Group) movement across the state.
According to a press release, the decision was taken in the Cabinet meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
The cabinet has resolved 16 major decisions including the decisions pertaining to the departments of Energy, Agriculture, and Farmer’s Welfare, Social security, and empowerment of persons with a disability, Excise, General administration and public grievance, Panchayati Raj and drinking water, Revenue and disaster management, and Steel and mines.
The major decisions include the creation of a new department named Mission Shakti; construction of ten mega rural pipe water supply schemes in Aul, Rajkanika, Chilika, Tangi, Banpur, Khordha, Jatani, Gondia, Bhubana, Golaminda, Jajpur, and Binjharpur blocks.
The constitution of the rural piped water scheme for 26 Gram Panchayats of Sambalpur district and 2 Gram Panchayats of Jharsuguda district has also been sanctioned in the cabinet.
Besides, the cabinet has sanctioned the lease of 25 acres land for construction of one satellite centre of AIIMS in Remuna Tehsil of Balasore district, the release reads. (ANI)

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], March 7 (ANI): Ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls, the DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) has offered its ally, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK), six seats as part of a seat-sharing deal.
MDMK chief Vaiko signed the agreement with DMK president M K Stalin on Saturday.
Speaking to ANI, Vaiko said, “MDMK has joined hands with DMK. The talks went well. DMK president MK Stalin has signed an agreement in which six Assembly constituencies have been allotted to MDMK.”
With this, Vaiko, who created the MDMK after he quit the DMK in 1994, will contest in an Assembly election as part of the DMK-led front for the first time.
The 234-members Tamil Nadu assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 6 and the counting of votes will be done on May 2.
Ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) is contesting the polls in a pre-poll alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). DMK has joined hands with Congress. This time actor-turned-politician Kamal Hassan’s party Makkal Neethi Maiam (MNM) is also in the fray. (ANI)

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], March 7 (ANI): Indian Army has expressed grief and condolence on the demise of a candidate of recruitment rally in Kerala on Saturday.
According to Army officials, a recruitment rally for the seven Northern Districts of Kerala commenced on Saturday at Greenfield Stadium in the Karyavattom area of Trivandrum city.
Sachin, a 23-year-old candidate from Neelashwaram, Kasargod, fell down while participating in the requisite selection run and complained about the pain in his leg. He was attending the army recruitment rally for Soldier Technical trade. The immediate medical assistance provided to the candidate by the medical team present at the rally site. The medical team examined the candidate and did not find signs and symptoms of any other serious ailments.
As the candidate could not complete the race of 1.6 kilometers in the qualifying time, after the medical check-up he returned to the staging area arranged at Chanthavila Lower Primary School, Kazhakootam by the KSRTC (Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation) bus arranged by the army.
At the staging area, he had lunch around 12:30 pm and had a few episodes of vomiting. His friends admitted him to the CSI Missionary Hospital, Kazhakootam.
On examination, doctors identified a feeble pulse and later declared him dead around 2:30 pm due to cardiac arrest.
An FIR (First Information Report) has been generated by Kazhakootam Police and the post-mortem will be held on Sunday morning at Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram.
The parents of the candidate have been informed. The Army has expressed deep condolence in the unfortunate incident. (ANI)

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], March 7 (ANI): Telangana Chief Minister Chandrashekar Rao has hinted that the 2021-2022 state annual Budget would be promising while adding that Budget Session of the Telangana Legislature might take place in the middle of this month.
The Chief Minister held a high-level review meeting here at Pragati Bhavan on the preparation of estimates of Budget proposals. Rao took into consideration and examined the department wise Budget estimates and the financial reports prepared by the officials, according to a press release.
He said several welfare and development programmes would continue including the present sheep distribution programme.
The CM said the families of Kuruma and Yadav communities have been benefitted under the scheme and as an extension of 3.7 lakh sheep units, which are already distributed, another 3 lakh Sheep units would be distributed. And proposals to this effect would be made in the coming Budget, Rao said.
The CM said the Centre appreciated the Sheep distribution policy and it also recognized that the Telangana state is progressing to become the most Sheep populated state and against this backdrop, the scheme would be continued. Similarly, the fish distribution programmes would also be continued as it proved to be a successful programme and it was also benefitting the fishing community in the State.
The CM said due to the Corona pandemic, the state had incurred a loss of Rs 50,000 crore and its impact reached to Rupees one lakh crore. However, the CM pointed out that in the post-corona period, the state’s economic activities are revived and the income increased in various forms. He said there is a possibility of more allocations in the coming Budget compared to the last financial year Budget.
The CM said guidelines for the preparation of Budget estimates have been finalized in today’s high-level review meeting and Finance Minister Harish Rao from tomorrow will have meetings with R&B, Panchayat Raj, Municipal Administration, Education, Irrigation and with coordination of Finance department officials. After the exercise with all the departments done on the Budget, CM will give the final touches to the Budget.
The Finance Minister Harish Rao, Government’s Chief Advisor Rajiv Sharma, Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar, CM Principal Secretary S Narsing Rao, Financial Advisor GR Reddy, Principal Secretary Finance Ramakrishna Rao, Secretary Ronald Ross, CMO officials Bhoopal Reddy, Ms Smitha Sabharwal and others participated. (ANI)

Begusarai (Bihar) [India], March 7 (ANI): Union Minister Giriraj Singh on Saturday advised the people of Begusarai, his Lok Sabha constituency in Bihar to “beat up with bamboo sticks” those officials who appeared insensitive to their concerns.
“If someone (any government official) doesn’t listen to your grievances, hit them with a bamboo stick. Neither we ask them to do any illegitimate job, nor will we tolerate illegitimate ‘nanga nritya’ by any official,” he made this statement while addressing a public gathering here.
“Members of Parliament, Members of Legislative Assembly, village mukhiyas, District Magistrates, Sub-Divisional Magistrates… these are all under obligation to serve the people,” said the minister who holds fisheries, animal husbandry and dairy farming portfolios. (ANI)

Nagpur (Maharashtra) [India], March 7 (ANI): Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat was administered the COVID-19 vaccine here on Saturday.
Along with Bhagwat, the General Secretary of RSS Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi also received his first dose of the vaccine against novel coronavirus at Nagpur’s National Cancer Institute.
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi and appealed to all those who are eligible to get inoculated.
Several other union ministers, including Amit Shah, S Jaishakar, Jitendra Singh and politicians have also received their first dose of the vaccine in the second phase of the world’s largest vaccination drive.
The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16, 2021, and the vaccination of the Frontline Workers (FLWs) started on February 2. The next phase of Covid-19 vaccination commenced on March 1 for those who are over 60 years of age and for people aged 45 and above with specified co-morbid conditions.
The cumulative number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed 2.06 crore on Saturday, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.
A total of 11,64,422vaccine doses were given till 7 pm today, the fiftieth day of nationwide COVID19 vaccination, they added. (ANI)