Delhi

New Delhi, Jan 2 (PTI) As part of its programme to mobilise support for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the BJP has launched a toll-free number for people to give missed calls to register their endorsement of the law ahead of the party's 10-day mass contact drive from January 5.

New Delhi, Jan 1 (PTI) All 20 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) have requested the HRD Ministry to exempt them from reserving positions in the teaching staff for Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS).

The premier business schools, which currently do not offer reservation in teaching positions, have been asked by the Ministry to provide quota in faculty positions for SC, ST, OBC and EWS candidates.

New Delhi/Islamabad, Jan 1 (PTI) India and Pakistan on Wednesday exchanged details of civilian prisoners and fishermen lodged in each other's jails.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said India handed over to Pakistan lists of 267 Pakistani civilian prisoners and 99 fishermen in its custody.

NEW DELHI, Jan 2 (NNN-PTI) – Several people, including firefighters, were trapped inside a factory that collapsed today (Thursday), during a devastating fire, officials said.

The fire broke out in west Delhi’s Peera Garhi area.

According to officials, an explosion during the fire caused collapse of the factory structure, trapping people under the debris.

Authorities rushed 35 fire tenders to the spot to contain the blaze.

“The firefighting operation is underway and we are trying to rescue the people stuck in the burning building,” a police official said.

New Delhi, Jan 1 (PTI) Continuing a 29-year unbroken practice, India and Pakistan on Wednesday exchanged a list of their nuclear installations under a bilateral arrangement that prohibits them from attacking each other's atomic facilities.

The two countries exchanged the list of nuclear installations and facilities covered under the Agreement on the Prohibition of Attack against Nuclear Installations between India and Pakistan, the External Affairs Ministry said. This was done simultaneously through diplomatic channels in New Delhi and Islamabad.

New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) The country's fiscal deficit hit 114.8 per cent of 2019-20 Budget Estimate at Rs 8.07 lakh crore at the end of November, official data showed on Tuesday.

The fiscal deficit or the gap between expenditure and revenue was at Rs 8,07,834 crore as on November 30, 2019, according to the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA).

The deficit was at 114.8 per cent of 2018-19 Budget Estimate (BE) in the corresponding month a year ago.

New Delhi, Jan 1 (PTI) Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday accused the BJP of being against "good and cheap" education and demanded an explanation from it over the hike in CBSE examination fees that "burdened six lakh families" in the city.

Talking to reporters, he claimed that the Delhi BJP leaders asked the Centre to increase Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) exam fees after the city government decided to pay the fees of the students.

New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) Contracting for the fourth consecutive month, the output of eight core infrastructure industries shrank by 1.5 per cent in November 2019 as five of the eight sectors witnessed negative growth, according to official data released on Tuesday.

The eight core sectors had expanded by 3.3 per cent in November 2018.

Production of coal, crude oil, natural gas, steel, and electricity contracted in the month under review.

New Delhi, Dec 30 (PTI) The Delhi High Court has directed the AAP government and prison authorities to ensure that rights, especially human rights, of inmates are not violated during surprise searches in jail wards.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar ordered the Delhi government and prison authorities to "strictly follow" the prison rules and standard operating procedures during such searches of jails, including the high security wards.

Shimla, Dec 30 (PTI) Congress national spokesperson Pawan Khera on Monday said on coming to power his party would change the recent amendments in the citizenship law and include Muslim refugees too from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan among the beneficiaries of law.

While talking to media persons here, Khera said if Congress comes to power, it would remove non-muslims word from the Citizenship Amendment Act from the newly changed law.