LIVE news updates: PM Modi lives for the camera: Rahul Gandhi

Congress president Rahul Gandhi said on Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi "lives for the camera" and accused him of ignoring the problems of the sanitation staff in Prayagraj, where he washed their feet during the Kumbh Mela.

"Narendra Modi lives for the camera. Once the cameras were shut, the prime minister did not even hear the problems of the sanitation staff," Gandhi said in a Facebook post along with Modi's picture washing the feet of sanitation workers at the Kumbh Mela.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee: You cannot win elections over jawans' blood. A jawan sheds his blood for the country. They serve the country, they do not indulge in politics.I strongly condemn those who play politics with martyrs.

The Federation of Film Societies of India (FFSI) will celebrate the International Women's Day with the International Women's Film Festival 2019 from March 8 to 10 throughout India.

The fest will be held in Kolkata, Guwahati, Imphal, Hyderabad, Pune, Bengaluru, Puducherry, Jamshedpur, Kohlapur, Madurai, Karimnagar, Mumbai and as well as other cities, showcasing a melange of internationally acclaimed films by woman filmmakers.

In Imphal, the FFSI in collaboration with the Film Society of Manipur and the Manipur State Film Development Society will organise the fest.

Delhi and its adjoining areas are likely to experience dry weather and sky is expected to remain clear, though cold winds from northwest may continue to give the shiver, experts said on Tuesday.

According to private weather agency Skymet, the day temperatures will now increase, while the night temperatures will not see a

For the last two days, moderate to dense fog has been observed in parts of Delhi. But in the coming days, as per the forecast, the intensity of fog will subside and only shallow fog or mist will be there during the early morning hours.

Nearly 1,700 species of amphibians, birds and mammals are likely to lose their natural habitats and face greater extinction risk by 2070 due to increased human land use, researchers have warned.

The species include, 886 amphibians, 436 birds and 376 mammals, all of which are predicted to lose 30-50 per cent of their present habitat ranges by 2070, according to a study published in Nature Climate Change.

A drone was sighted flying over a Naval station here following which an investigation has been launched, police said Tuesday.

The Naval personnel found the drone flying over the INS Adyar campus, in the heart of the city, around 9 PM Monday, police said.

The Navy Tuesday filed a complaint with the police seeking an investigation into the incident.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi will address a meeting of Goa booth committee members on Friday, state Congress President Girish Chodankar said on Tuesday.

Rahul Gandhi will be in Goa for a few hours on March 8. He is also scheduled to meet representatives of NGOs and other social organisations, Chodankar told IANS.

Rahul Gandhi during his visit to the coastal state was not expected to finalise names of party candidates for the Lok Sabha elections and Assembly by-polls, he said.

Senior Congress leader and former defence minister A K Antony Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of sacrificing national interests and urged him to not politicise the armed forces.

Antony also said that BJP president Amit Shah should not be the person giving out operational details of actions taken by the armed forces.

"Even now our soldiers died, that details only Army and CRPF can explain, not BJP spokesman or BJP president. It is very very unfortunate.

Hitting out at the BJP for allegedly politicising the air strike in Pakistan, the TMC Tuesday said it was trying to replace the Ashoka emblem on the uniform of armed forces with party logo.

The BJP should stop taking credit for the preemptive strike on terror camps in Pakistan as armed forces belong to India, not to the saffron party, TMC national spokesperson Derek O'Brien said.

Pakistan on Tuesday arrested 44 members of banned outfits which includes a brother of JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar, said State Minister for Information Shehryar Afiri.

Mufti Abdur Rauf, brother of Maulana Azhar, and Hammad Azhar are among those arrested during the crackdown, reported The News International.

The Calcutta High Court Tuesday extended by eight weeks protection from arrest to BJP leader Mukul Roy in connection with the killing of a Trinamool Congress MLA.

Hearing an anticipatory bail prayer by Roy, who was booked for conspiracy in the killing of Krishnaganj MLA Satyajit Biswas, the court directed that conditions imposed on Roy in the earlier order, including a bar on his entering Nadia district, would continue.

On February 13, when Roy's application was moved before it, the court refused to grant anticipatory bail "at this stage" to the BJP leader, "keeping in mind the gravity of the crime", but granted protection to him from arrest till March 7.

Continuing his attack on Telangana's TRS government over the alleged data theft case, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday said there was no protection to data assets in Hyderabad.

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president said the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government with its "childish" acts was damaging the brand image of Hyderabad

After sulking on the sidelines for nearly 13 years, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray is likely to announce his entry into an opposition alliance on Saturday, marking the 13th anniversary of the party's founding.

The excitement among top, middle and ground-level leaders and activists is almost palpable amidst anticipation that he may make finally opt to join the united opposition front, paving the way for the MNS to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

In 2nd ODI vs Australia Virat Kohli smashes 40th ODI century, 65th across all formats. India’s scored 250/10 in 48.2 overs at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur

India leads the series 1-0

Scientists have recorded thousands of 'ice quakes' in Antarctica at night, a phenomenon that may help track glacier melting and explain the breaking of large ice shelves.

The seismic phenomenon was recorded by a team from the University of Chicago, which placed seismometres for 60 days during the melt season at two locations -- one dry and the other slushier -- near seasonal meltwater lakes on the McMurdo Ice Shelf.

Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot on Tuesday termed it as wrong to question the IAF's bravery but added that it was equally wrong to politicize the IAF bombing of the terrorist camp in Pakistan.

Pilot told the media here: "Indian Army, Navy and Air Force reflect and symbolize the honour and esteem of the nation. We were, are and shall be proud of our forces, always, irrespective of which party controls the government."

Six policemen and two prisoners were injured on Tuesday after a police vehicle turned turtle in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district.

The vehicle was headed to a court in neighbouring Kulgam district when the accident happened at Keribal in Mattan area, injuring all the occupants, police said. All of them were shifted to a hospital.

Jayant Chaudhary said, “Rashtriya Lok Dal will join the BSP-SP alliance in Uttar Pradesh. Our workers will work hard to ensure victory of the alliance on all seats of the state.”

DMK President M.K. Stalin on Tuesday said his party will contest in 20 Lok Sabha constituencies in Tamil Nadu and the remaining 20, including Puducherry's sole seat, had been allocated to allies.

Stalin told reporters here: "We have taken a decision whereby in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, the Congress would get nine seats in Tamil Nadu and the Puducherry seat, MDMK one Lok Sabha seat and one Rajya Sabha seat, CPI, CPI-M, VCK two Lok Sabha seats each and the IUML, IJK and KDMK one Lok Sabha seat each

Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot said on Tuesday that the party will contest all 25 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the upcoming elections.

"Selection of nominees is in the final stage and a lot will be clear after the screening committee meeting on March 8 in New Delhi," Pilot told reporters.

A second member of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Cabinet has resigned, saying she has lost confidence in the government's handling of a corruption inquiry.

Jane Philpott announced her decision to step down as the Treasury Board President on Monday. The Cabinet Minister posted her resignation letter detailing her "serious concerns" with "evidence of efforts by politicians and/or officials to pressure the former Attorney General to intervene in the criminal case involving SNC-Lavalin", the BBC reported.

The Rajasthan government has started registration for wheat procurement at ₹1,840 per quintal minimum support price (MSP) from Tuesday.

Wheat procurement process will start from April 1 in the state except Kota division, where process will start from March 15, state food and civil supplies minister Ramesh Chandra Meena said in a statement.

He said that farmers can get the registration done on Food Corporation of India (FCI) website for selling their wheat produce at MSP of ₹1,840 per quintal.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi extended support to Dalit and tribal groups observing a nationwide shutdown on Tuesday demanding the Modi government to promulgate an ordinances to provide forest rights to tribals and job security for ad-hoc teachers.

In a tweet, Rahul Gandhi blamed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his "false promises" for putting Dalits and tribals in distress and compelling them to hit the streets in protest.

General Officer Commanding of strategic Fire & Fury Corps Lt General YK Joshi visited the forward locations in Siachen glacier in Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir to review the security situation and operational preparedness, a defence spokesman said on Tuesday.

Lt Gen Joshi interacted with the troops deployed on the highest battlefield in the world, in extreme weather and highly challenging terrain conditions for maintaining the sanctity of Indian borders, he said.

Pakistan Punjab's Information Minister Fayyaz ul Hassan Chohan of the ruling PTI has come under severe criticism from members of his party for making derogatory remarks about Hindus.

According to a Samaa TV report on Tuesday, Chohan referred to the Hindu community as "cow urine-drinking people" at a recent press conference.

"We are Muslims and we have a flag, the flag of Maula Ali's bravery, the flag of Hazrat Umar's valour. You (Hindus) don't have that flag, it isn't in your hands," he had said.

At least 25 trains were cancelled and seven others diverted on Tuesday as protesting farmers blocked railway tracks in Punjab's Amritsar, a Northern Railways statement said. The agitation has left scores of passengers moving to and from Amritsar stranded.

Two trains — the New Delhi-Amritsar Shatabdi Express and the New Delhi-Amritsar Shan-E-Punjab Express — were short-terminated in Jalandhar City and Beas town respectively.

The trains which were cancelled include the New Delhi-Jalandhar Intercity Express, Amritsar-Haridwar Jan Shatabdi Express, Haridwar-Amritsar Jan Shatabdi Express, Chandigarh-Amritsar Superfast Express and the Nangaldam-Amritsar Express.

An Election Commission proposal to ban political advertisements in newspapers on election day will not be implemented in the coming Lok Sabha polls as it is pending with the Law Ministry, say sources in the government.

The move will require changes in the Representation of the People Act and it is now up to the next Lok Sabha to take a call, the sources said.

A committee, asked to propose changes in electoral laws dealing with campaigning in the last 48 hours, recommended a ban on advertisements in newspapers on election day.

As of now, only the electronic media is barred from showing election publicity material during the last 48 hours before conclusion of polling. But the committee recommended bringing the print media under the ambit of Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act 1951.

The DMK on Tuesday concluded an electoral pact with the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls whereby the left party will get two seats to contest from.

The DMK has signed electoral alliance pacts with the Congress (nine seats in Tamil Nadu and the lone Puducherry seat); CPI, CPI-M, VCK (two seats each); IUML, IKJ and KDMK (one seat each).

Senior Congress leader and Former Defence Minister AK Antony said, “I salute the army, air force and CRPF for the courage they have shown in last few days. I also salute Wing Commander Abhinandan for his patriotism. At this crucial hour all of us must show solidarity. I congratulate and salute our armed forces for their patriotism, courage and sacrifice. Especially, in last few days, our armed forces are undergoing lot of challenges from across the border but they're facing all these challenges with their might and courage.”

Senior Congress leader and Former Defence Minister AK Antony said at a press conference, “From last few days none other than the Prime Minister is touring the country and spreading misinformation by saying that Congress compromised security over Rafale deal.”

“When UPA govt came to power, we issued RFP (Request for Proposal) for procuring 126 MMRCA on multi-vendor situation. Four years were wasted by NDA govt from 2000 to 2004 on deciding whether to procure aircrafts on single-source basis or commodity tendering.”

Weeks after the Pulwama attack, Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba on Tuesday warned that there are reports about terrorists being trained to carry out operations through the sea.

Addressing a gathering of global experts at the Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue here, Lanba said the Pulwama attack was perpetrated by extremists that were "aided by a State" that seeks to destabilise India.

"We also have reports of terrorists being trained to carry out operations in various modus operandi, including through the medium of the sea," he said.

The 26/11 attack was carried out by 10 sea-borne terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, who hijacked an Indian fishing trawler to reach Mumbai and unleash mayhem. The Navy chief said this part of the world had witnessed multiple forms of terrorism in recent years and few countries in the region had been spared.

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said that she won't run for President in 2020 but will continue to speak out about politics, saying, "I'm not going anywhere".

"I'm not running, but I'm going to keep on working and speaking and standing up for what I believe," CNN quoted 2016 Democratic presidential nominee as saying in a TV interview on Monday.

Following farmer suicides in Kerala amid recovery notices being issued to them in the aftermath of the century's worst flood last year, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday announced fresh sops for farmers, including a moratorium on repayment of loans that will be extended till December 31.

Aiming to aid the distressed Kerala agriculture sector that faced huge losses especially in Idukki and Wayanad districts where thousands of hectares of farm land was damaged, Vijayan said: “From now on in all districts of the state barring Idukki and Wayanad, loans taken by farmers till March 2014 would get the benefit of the moratorium.”

This was earlier fixed for all loans taken till March 2011.

Hundreds of Dalits, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and tribal outfits halted rail and road traffic across Bihar on Tuesday as they joined a nation-wide call for shutdown demanding the Centre to promulgate ordinances to secure forest rights to Advasi’s, job security for ad hoc teachers and protest the anti-reservation policy of the central government.

The protesters stopped over a dozen long-route trains in Ara, Jehanabad, Patna, Darbganga, Bhagalpur, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, and Begusarai railway stations.

Various important arterial roads were blocked as the groups protested against University Grants Commission's new 13-point roster system that will reduce jobs for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and the Other Backward Classes.

Social media users stated that the BJP website was hacked and shared screenshots of an unflattering meme featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The website featured memes poking fun at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP website has gone offline since reports first emerged.

However that IT cell says maintains that they are updating the website

A day after resigning from the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Ferozepur MP Sher Singh Ghubaya joined the Congress on Tuesday in the presence of party president Rahul Gandhi.

Punjab Congress chief Sunil Kumar Jakhar and AICC in-charge of Punjab Congress affairs Asha Kumari were also present during the joining at the residence of the Congress chief.

Ghubaya is considered a strong contender for the Ferozepur Lok Sabha seat.

BSP chief Mayawati on Tuesday tried to put BJP president Amit Shah in the dock over his claim that 250 terrorists were killed in the Indian air strikes in Pakistan, asking him why Prime Minister Narendra Modi was "silent" over it.

At an event in Ahmedabad on Sunday, Shah had said the Indian Air Force (IAF) air strikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camp in Pakistan's Balakot last Tuesday "killed more than 250 terrorists".

Mayawati also hit out at the economic policies of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, saying that benefits of economic growth not reaching to most of the poor, labourer, farmers of 130-crore population of country was a "matter of serious concern".

Supreme Court issues notice to the Union of India and Assam government, seeking their response within 4 weeks, after hearing a petition filed by Assam State Jamait Ulama E Hind challenging MHA's notifications in Citizenship Bill case.

The Shiv Sena on Tuesday said India's citizens have the right to know about the casualties in the air strike on a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) camp in Pakistan and that revealing such information would not lower the morale of armed forces.

Taking a dig at senior ally BJP, the Sena, in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana' said discussions over the air strikes will linger on till the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and "burning issues" raised by the Opposition before the February 14 Pulwama attack have now been side-stepped.

"Citizens of the country have the right to know what and how much harm has been caused to the enemy by the defence forces. We do not think the morale of our forces is being lowered by asking for it," it said.

Fire broke out on the Yesvantapur-Tatanagar Express in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh early on Tuesday. There were no reports of any injuries.

Officials said the pantry car was gutted in the fire that started near the Gollaprolu railway station.

The incident occurred around 2 a.m. on the Rajahmundry-Visakhapatnam section of Vijayawada Division when the train was on its way from Yesvantapur in Karnataka to Tatanagar in Jharkhand.

A gunfight took place on Tuesday between security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Tral town, police said. Two terrorists have been killed in the ongoing encounter.

Upon receiving information about the militants, the security forces started a search operation in Mir Mohalla on Monday evening.
"As the operation continued on Tuesday morning, the militants fired at the security forces triggering the gunfight," the police added. Authorities have suspended mobile Internet services in the town

Former J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti tweets, “Little surprise that with General Elections around the corner, the josh of patriotism hasn't even spared the skies.”

Yesterday, Air India issued a circular to all cabin crew and cockpit crew directing them to say ‘Jai Hind’ after any announcement onboard.

Adivasi rights organisations have called for a nation-wide bandh on Tuesday demanding that the Centre promulgate an ordinance to secure the forest rights of tribals.

The groups have decided to go ahead with the strike despite the Supreme Court staying the implementation of its earlier order evicting more than 10 lakh families of Adivasis and other forest-dwellers from forest lands across 16 states. The Centre and the Gujarat government had moved petitions in the top court seeking a stay on the court’s February 13 order.

Naval Chief Sunil Lanba said, “The Indo-pacific region has witnessed multiple forms of terrorism in recent years and few countries in this part of world have been spared by this cause. Global nature which terrorism has acquired in recent times has further enhanced the scope of this threat.”

“India however faces a far more serious version of this state-sponsored terrorism. We have all witnessed the horrific scale of extremists attack on Indian state of J&K, just 3 weeks ago. This violence was perpetuated by extremists, aided by a state which seeks to destabilise India.”

“We also have reports of terrorists being trained to carry out operations in various modus operandi including through the medium of the sea.”

Reacting sharply over the alleged data theft case, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday warned the Telangana government that if it files one case, he will respond with four cases.

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) President said that he would not keep quiet if raids were conducted in the name of data theft.

Alleging that Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government was stealing the TDP data and passing it on to YSR Congress for misuse in the coming elections, he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao and YSR Congress leader Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy were working together in a conspiracy to damage the TDP.

Five flights were diverted from Delhi airport due to fog on Tuesday morning, an airport official said. "There has been low visibility due to fog since 6.31 am today. Five flights have been diverted till 8.20 am," the official said. At Delhi, the minimum runway visibility required for take off is 125 metres

China, the world's second largest military spender after the US, on Tuesday announced a 7.5 per cent increase in its defence budget for this year, hiking it to a whopping USD 177.61 billion, over three times that of India.

The 2019 defence budget will be 1.19 trillion yuan (about USD 177.61 billion), according to a draft budget report to be submitted at the opening of the annual session of China's Parliament, the National People's Congress (NPC), on Tuesday.