A view of new Parliament House Complex in New Delhi
| Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

MPs to move to new Parliament on Tuesday, Opposition asks for Women’s Bill

More than three months after the new Parliament House was inaugurated, Members of Parliament will move into the building on Tuesday, the second day of the special session. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi informed floor leaders of various political parties about the move at an all-party meeting convened by the governmenton the eve of the Special Session of Parliament, which is to be held between September 18 and 22.

Army jawan on leave abducted and murdered in Manipur

An Indian Army jawan was abducted and killed while he was on leave in Manipur. A Defence source said that the body of Serto Thangthang Kom, 41, was found on September 17 morning at Khuningthek Village East of Mongjam under Sogolmang police station in Imphal East.

Congress is ready to fight, Mallikarjun Kharge tells party leaders

The people of the country want change and the Congress will be ready for the battle, the extended Congress Working Committee (CWC) said in a resolution on Sunday after two days of extensive deliberations in Hyderabad. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge stressed on unity and organisational discipline, and urged his party colleagues to set aside personal differences to take on their adversaries with full might in the upcoming Assembly as well as Lok Sabha elections.

Santiniketan finds a place on UNESCO’s World Heritage list

Santiniketan, a town located in West Bengal’s Birbhum district, set up by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore on September 17 made it to the UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Santiniketan which means ‘abode of peace’ started taking shape in 1901, and it was this place Tagore later put up the foundations of Visva Bharati University.

Heavy rain in Gujarat, 10,000 people shifted

More than 200 people were rescued and around 10,000 shifted to safer locations, as heavy rains lashed several parts of Gujarat on Sunday, flooding low-lying areas and cutting off several villages. The Narmada and other rivers are in full spate in south and central regions of the State. 

Activists raise concern over Election Commissioners appointment Bill

On the eve of the Special Session of Parliament which will take up the contentious Bill relating to appointment of Election Commissioners (ECs), activists and civil society members raised questions over autonomy of the poll body, if the legislation is passed.

Army likely to complete inducting 114 Dhanush guns by 2026

The Army which has ordered 114 Dhanush artillery guns, and has one regiment operational already, is expecting to receive all the guns by 2026, according to defence sources. With focus on long-range and augmented firepower, the Army is also looking at vastly increasing the range of the Pinaka Multi-Rocket Launch Systems (MRLS) and the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) is working on it. The Pralay surface-to-surface quasi-ballistic missile too is in advanced stages of induction, sources said.

Vivek Ramaswamy wants to end H-1B visa programme, calls it ‘indentured servitude’

Calling the H-1B visa programme “indentured servitude”, Indian-American Republican presidential aspirant Vivek Ramaswamy has vowed to “gut” the lottery-based system and replace it with meritocratic admission if he wins the race to the White House in 2024.

EU chief pledges migrant action plan in Italy’s Lampedusa

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday visited the Italian island of Lampedusa, which is struggling with a surge in migrant arrivals, and promised a 10-point EU action plan to help Italy deal with the situation.

Asia Cup 2023 Final | Got a message from trainer to stop Siraj, says Rohit Sharma

Moments after Mohammed Siraj finished his sixth over during the Asia Cup final, captain Rohit Sharma walked up to him on the bowler’s way to third-man, had a chat with him and he persisted with Siraj for another over.

Sainz wins thrilling Singapore Grand Prix as Verstappen and Red Bull’s streaks end

Runaway Fomula One leader Max Verstappen’s winning run ended at 10 races and Red Bull’s at 15 — both F1 records — as Carlos Sainz Jr. won the Singapore Grand Prix for Ferrari on Sunday. Red Bull dreamed of winning every race this year but had Verstappen fifth and Perez eighth after struggling all weekend in Singapore.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, left, and Italy’s Premier Giorgia Meloni, right, address the media during a joint press conference following a visit of the island of Lampedusa in Italy, Sunday, Sept. 17, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday visited the Italian island of Lampedusa, which is struggling with a surge in migrant arrivals, and promised a 10-point EU action plan to help Italy deal with the situation.

Nearly 1,26,000 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, almost double the figure by the same date in 2022. The small island of Lampedusa has recently seen a sharp rise in the number of people arriving by boat, with more than 7,000 landing this week, more than the island’s permanent population.

Ms. Von der Leyen was accompanied by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the car carrying them to Lampedusa’s migrant reception centre was briefly blocked by locals protesting over the burden facing the island.

“We’re working on it … we are doing our best,” Ms. Meloni told the protesters.

Following the visit to the centre, Ms. von der Leyen, who is expected to run for a second term when her mandate expires next year, set out a 10-point “action plan” to relieve pressure on Italy, where most migrants arrive from North Africa’s shores by boat.

“Irregular migration is a European challenge and it needs a European response, we are in this together,” she said at a joint news conference with Ms. Meloni. “You can count on the EU,” she added in Italian.

The plan includes using the EU’s external borders agency Frontex to identify migrants arriving in Italy and repatriate those not eligible for asylum.

Frontex would also step up sea and aerial surveillance of migrant boats and help crack down on people-smugglers, Ms. von der Leyen said, adding that she had already spoken to several EU leaders about the plan and was confident of their support.

She promised to speed up the supply of equipment to the coastguard of Tunisia, currently the main departure point for sea migrants, and accelerate the transfer of funds to Tunis under a deal struck in July aimed at curbing migration.

Ms. Von der Leyen also vowed to increase access to legal channels for the migrants, saying “the better we are with legal migration the stricter we can be with irregular migration,” while committing to a sustained battle against traffickers.

The surge in migrant crossings is a major political headache for Ms. Meloni, who took office in October last year and has made fighting illegal immigration a cornerstone of her rise to power.

She reiterated on Sunday that the right approach is to prevent people leaving for Europe, not redistributing migrants around the bloc.

On Monday her Cabinet will meet to approve tough measures, including building new detention and repatriation centres and extending the maximum time migrants can be held for.