PM appeals for symbolic 'Kumbh Mela' to strengthen fight against Covid

by Argus News

New Delhi, April 17: With reports of huge number of Covid positive cases from 'Kumbh Mela' area in Haridwar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday appealed to observe the event "symbolic" to strengthen fight against the deadly virus.

The Prime Minister's appeal comes as the annual event has sparked nationwide concern amid alarming second wave of Covid-19 pandemic as tens of thousands of devotees have gathered along the banks of the Ganga in Uttarakhand's Haridwar.

Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said that he spoke to top seer-- Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha president Swami Avdheshanand Giri Ji Maharaj-- over phone and made an appeal about the event.

"I spoke to Acharya Mahamandaleshwar Swami Awadheshanand Giri on the phone on Saturday morning and get details about the health of all saints. I have prayed that two royal baths have taken place and that the Kumbh should be kept symbolic due to the crisis in Corona. This will give the fight strength from this crisis," the Prime Minister said.

Modi thanked all the saints for giving all kinds of support to the administration.

Following this, Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha president tweeted: "We respect Prime Minister's appeal. I request the people to not come for snan in large numbers, in the wake of Covid-19 situation, and follow all rules."

The Prime Minister's appeal came after a Hindu seer is reportedly lost his life after Covid-19 infection and nearly 100 other holy men have tested positive after attending a vast Indian religious festival where millions of pilgrims have been ignoring Covid-19 advice despite a national surge in infections.

India reported 2,34,692 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the biggest single-day spike ever, taking the overall tally to 14,526,609 cases on Saturday, according to the Health Ministry data.
(IANS)

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Big B Shares Cryptic Tweet Amid Abhishek, Aishwarya Separation Rumours

by Swati Sucharita

Mumbai, Dec 10: Veteran Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan has shared a cryptic message on his social media amid separation rumours of his son Abhishek Bachchan and his daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

The actor recently took to his X, formerly Twitter and shared his monochromatic picture along with a cryptic tweet.

In the photo, Amitabh appeared to be lost in thoughts.

The actor wrote: “T 4854 - everything said everything done .. so do the done and done the do.”

This comes amid the reportedly brewing tensions in the Bachchan family. This comes after it was reported that Big B unfollowed Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

The senior actor follows a total number of 74 people on Instagram including Salman Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Katrina Kaif, Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt, Virat Kohli, Shweta Bachchan Nanda and Navya Naveli Nanda among others. Aishwarya, on the other hand, only follows husband Abhishek on Instagram.

A trending Reddit post stirred the pot, questioning if Amitabh Bachchan unfollowed Aishwarya Rai Bachchan on Instagram.

Read more Entertainment News

However, a section of users have said that the two never followed each other on the social media platform, a few others speculated that it could be Big B’s privacy settings on his account that restricted people from seeing whom he follows.

(IANS)

Anish Shah Takes Over As FICCI President For 2023-24

by Manisha Das

New Delhi, Dec 10: Anish Shah, Group CEO of Mahindra Group and Managing Director, M&M has taken over as President of industry body FICCI for 2023-2024, from Subhrakant Panda, at the apex Chamber's 96th Annual Convention held here in the national capital.

Shah's primary focus is on nurturing a purpose-driven organization, establishing tech leadership in each industry, and enabling value creation across businesses.

The Mahindra Group employs over 260,000 associates in 100+ countries. It is a global leader in Farm Equipment and Technology Services and India's largest SUV, light commercial vehicle and electric three-wheeler manufacturer. It has a meaningful presence in 20 industries, including Financial Services, Renewable Energy, Hospitality, Logistics and Real Estate.

In addition to being a FICCI National Executive Committee office-bearer, Shah is also a member of the UK Investment Council, Chair of the Automotive Governors Council (World Economic Forum), co-chair of the India Alliance of CEOs for Climate Change (World Economic Forum) and co-Chair of the India-Australia CEO Council, the FICCI release said.

Before Mahindra Group, FICCI president Shah was president and CEO of GE Capital India from 2009-14.

His career at GE spanned 14 years, during which he held several leadership positions at GE Capital's US and global units. He has also led the Bank of America's US Debit Products business and worked with Bain and Company in Boston and Citibank in Mumbai.

Anish Shah holds a PhD from Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

(ANI)

Also Read: National News

‘Bigg Boss 17’: Sana Says Vicky Jain Isn’t ‘Mastermind’, He’s ‘Masterblind’

by Manisha Das

Mumbai, Dec 10: ‘Bigg Boss 17’ evicted contestant Sana Raees Khan spoke about her stay in the show and even decoded misconceptions about her ex-housemates there.

When speaking about the ‘footage game’ of the Bigg Boss contestants, Sana shared: “Anurag bohot bada gadha hai. Woh kuch karta nai hai aur apne ‘Brosena’ ke bharose baitha hai. Woh sochta hai ke woh unke help se aage badh jaega. Woh Mannara ke wajah se show mai tika hai."

She added: “Arun mere saath footage ke liye jhagda karta tha. Maybe he thought I was someone who would take his comments. Maine unhe sidha bol diya, ‘I know aap nominated ho aur footage chahiye apko but mujhe baksh do!’ Rinku ji mujhe kehti thi ke mai Vicky ke wajah se tikki thi jabki woh khud Munawar ke footage se aage badhi hai.”

She also added on Vicky’s game, saying: “Vicky mastermind nahi masterblind hai. If he was a mastermind, he would not have revealed his game this early. Woh gharwalon aur janta ke saamne galat lag rahe hai. Unhe thoda aacha banna chahiye.”