Veteran photo journalist @PraveenJain2622 , my longtime professional colleague and friend, was at Red Fort on 15 August to chronicle Prime Minister @narendramodi 's 12th consecutive Independence Day address to the nation. Here's a thread of some of the photographs: Raksha Mantri @rajnathsingh receives Prime Minister @narendramodi at Red Fort on Independence Day.

CAG report on Public Health Infrastructure and Management of Health Services says about @ArvindKejriwal ’s much touted ‘Kejriwal Health Model’:

Dire status of Mohalla clinics — 21 Aam Admi Mohalla Clinics did not have toilets, 15 did not have a power backup, 6 did not have any table for check-up and 12 did not have accessibility for the physically disabled.

Similar was the situation of the AYUSH dispensaries, with 17 of the 49 inspected dispensaries having no power backup, 7 having no toilets and 14 having no facility for drinking water.

Kejri Model 1

#KejriwalRuinedDelhi Under utilisation of funds received under Emergency #Covid19 Response Plan, showing apathy towards public in crisis.

‼️Gross mismanagement during COVID19 despite availability of funds — Only Rs 582.84 crore of the total Rs 787.91 crore released by the Centre for tackling COVID19 were utilised.

‼️Significant among the underutilisation of funds released under several heads was the expenditure over Human Resources. Rs 30.52 crore of the total Rs 52 crore released for the same remained unutilised, demonstrating under-payment to health staffs and lower deployment of health workers for this purpose.

‼️Also, Rs 83.14 crore of the released Rs 119.85 crore for drugs and supplies including PPE and masks remained unutilised, which clearly illustrates a deliberate inaction towards a severe shortage of medical infrastructure during the COVID19 period, tantamount to criminal negligence.

Kejriwal Model 2

#KejriwalRuinedDelhi

“राम मंदिर निर्माण की यह प्रक्रिया राष्ट्र को जोड़ने का उपक्रम है। यह महोत्सव है… नर को नारायण से जोड़ने का, लोगों को आस्था से जोड़ने का, अतीत को वर्तमान से जोड़ने का, और, स्व को संस्कार से जोड़ने का।”
~ प्रधान मंत्री @narendramodi One of the phrases used by some of us ESP during the #Ayodhya Movement was:

‘Past imperfect, future tense.’

What is the real nature of the recovery of #India 's economy laid low by the #COVID19 pandemic? Where does #Bharat stand in the post-pandemic world? Are carping critics and Cassandras right? Or should they simply zip their lips and sit tight?
Here is a🧵on the latest State Bank of India Research Report, Debunking K-Shaped Recovery, released on 8 January 2024.
[Text is directly quoted from the report.}
E1 >Consumption of the bottom 90% of the population has increased by Rs 8.2 trillion post-pandemic;

>Income inequality has declined significantly from 0.472 TO 0.402 during FY14-FY22;

>36.3% of taxpayers has moved from lower income to higher income tax bracket;

>This has resulted in 21.3% additional income;

>19.5% of small firms have transitioned into larger firms through MSME value chain integration;

>15% are women taxpayers:

>20 million urban family members are consuming food through Zomato from semi-urban area.

E2.

A 🧵on twenty-three special 'Modi Moments' from 2023 which has been a great year for #India helmed by Prime Minister @narendramodi and inspired by his extraordinary leadership.

PM Modi hugs ISRO Chairman S Somanath after the successful landing of #Chandrayaan3
#ModiMoment 1 Prime Minister Modi takes a selfie with a divyang karyakarta of the BJP in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

#ModiMoment 2

“I take all my decisions through the
prism of Nation First… When I start something, I know the end point, but I never announce the blueprint. I work on a big canvas.”

~ Prime Minister @narendramodi in his interview to @IndiaToday

🧵10 Big Things Modi Ji said:
n1 “India’s rapid ascent in 2023 has been very important as it sets the tone in our journey to Viksit Bharat. We’ve unleashed the latent potential of our nation.“

~ Prime Minister @narendramodi in his interview to @IndiaToday
n2

𝐅𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝟐𝟎 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐁𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐦!

Various exhibitions are being set up at Bharat Mandapam for the #G20Summit to showcase #India ’s technological prowess and innovation. These exhibitions will offer a multitude of unique experiences for visitors to Bharat.

Read on for details…

n1
Culture Corridor

Bharat Mandapam, the venue for the G20 summit, will showcase a unique international project - ‘Culture Corridor - G20 Digital Museum’. The culture corridor will represent and celebrate the shared heritage of G20 members and invitee countries. It will incorporate iconic and notable cultural objects and heritage of the G20 members and 9 invitee countries.

This Culture Corridor will serve as a powerful platform for promoting understanding and appreciation of diverse cultural expressions, for knowledge sharing, inclusivity, and equality, and for fostering a sense of shared identity.

n2

Thread.
It was stupid of Congress to think its terrible record of handling issues pertaining to North-East would not be recalled during Opposition’s #NoConfidenceMotion against Modi Government.
Unless, of course, Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee, et al were blissfully ignorant.
n1 For example, PM @narendramodi , in his reply to the #NoConfidenceMotion mentioned how Indira Gandhi had ordered IAF to strafe and bomb Mizo villages in undivided Assam in March 1966. The ostensible reason was to put down a Mizo ‘rebellion’. That was only a quarter story.
n2

The #India Infra story as it has unfolded ever since Prime Minister @narendramodi came to office is well known. As is his determination to make connectivity the cornerstone of development.
What is less known is the emphasis to factor in wildlife while planning infra.
A thread:
n1 PM Modi will be in #Chhattisgarh on 7 July to lay the foundation stone for 3 National Highway projects for Chhattisgarh Section of 6-lane greenfield Raipur - Visakhapatnam corridor.
This includes a tunnel, 27 animal passes and 17 monkey canopies in Udanti Wildlife Sanctuary.
n2

On @IndianExpress story about NCERT textbooks, Dinesh Prasad Saklani, Director of NCERT, has said today:
“It's a lie. (Chapters on) Mughals have not been dropped. There was a rationalisation process last year because due to COVID, there was pressure on students everywhere...”
n1

https://twitter.com/karan_singhs/status/1643479438175408129

“Expert committees examined the books from std 6-12. They recommended that if this chapter is dropped, it won't affect the knowledge of the children and an unnecessary burden can be removed...”
~ Dinesh Prasad Saklani, Director of NCERT.
n2

Shauchalay ki Story in 4 takes:
In 2014 PM @narendramodi initiated his #SwachhBharat programme, transforming rural life in #India like never before. Individual household toilets have ensured hygiene and dignity. More than 11 crore toilets have been built. Work continues.
n1 In 2013 CM Modi raised the issue of how rural India has cellphones but lacks shauchalayas (toilets).
I recall Congress worthies mocking him — ‘Modi has only toilets to offer’.
It was lost on them that 6 decades after independence, our villages were not open defecation free.
n2

Why Congress MP Rahul Gandhi faces 'immediate disqualification' as per landmark Supreme Court judgement of 10 July 2013:
Trial court has held Rahul Gandhi guilty of criminal defamation; sentenced him to 2 years jail. SC has said this should lead to immediate disqualification.
n1 In Lily Thomas vs Union of India judgement of 10 July 2013, Supreme Court of India ruled that 'any MP, MLA or MLC who is convicted of a crime and given a minimum of 2 years' jail, loses membership of the House with immediate effect'.
n2

PM @narendramodi to visit #Varanasi on 24 March.
He will:
* Address One World TB Summit;
*Launch TB-Mukt Panchayat initiative; rollout a shorter TB Preventive Treatment model;
*Dedicate and lay foundation stone of various development projects worth more than Rs 1780 crore.
n1 PM Modi will address the One World TB Summit at Rudrakash Convention Centre, #Varanasi, at 10:30 am, 24 March — World Tuberculosis Day.
The summit is being organised by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Stop TB Partnership. Founded in 2001, the Stop TB Partnership.
n2

In a departure from the usual formal meeting between two heads of government, Prime Minister @narendramodi and Prime Minister @kishida230 of Japan went for a stroll in Buddha Jayanti Park, New Delhi, Monday afternoon.
n1 PM Modi and PM Kishida stopped at a gol-gappa stall which had all the trappings of Delhi’s famous pani puris — including the ‘green pani’ and ‘imli chatni’.
n2

'Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing in the Art and Antiquities Market' report by Financial Action Task Force, global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, cites case of Yes Bank CMD Rana Kapoor purchasing painting from Priyanka Gandhi at inflated price.
n1 Here is how #FATF presents ED's case on Kapoor buying painting from Priyanka Gandhi as an example of 'Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing':
"The below case, for example, takes advantage of the price volatility of some cultural objects."
n2

Hello @Independent your correspondent @miss_rai1 has no clue which piece in @nytimes elicited the sharp response from I&B Minister @ianuragthakur Yet she has peddled a false report reeking of bias and you’ve published it without fact-checking.
White West media is truly shameless. Among agenda-driven White West media @Independent outshines others in peddling fiction out of #India
This leftie paper once (in)famously reported Indian Army jawans were draping themselves in white sheets and descending on Kashmir villages at night as ‘ghosts’ to scare Kashmiris.

As recently as 14 Feb 2023 @Forbes was promoting #SiliconValleyBank as one of America’s “best banks”.
This is just one of innumerable examples of how White West media wilfully cuts corners with the truth and brazenly collaborates with scamsters to shield and protect them.
n1 Now compare @Forbes promoting a failing, collapsing American bank #SiliconVallyBank as one of the ‘Best American Banks”, with their report on #India economy over New Year’s weekend. Trillion became billion and world’s fastest growing big economy became an object of ridicule.
n2

Rahul Gandhi’s baseless claim that Opposition is silenced in India’s Parliament is to cover his own tardy performance as MP and exceptionally low participation in proceedings.
His attendance is way lower than Kerala average; way way lower than national average.
n1 There have been entire sessions of Parliament of India when Congress leader and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi has scored Zero Attendance.
n2

Important
On account of Pakistan’s intransigence,
India has issued notice to Pakistan for modification of the Indus Waters Treaty of September 1960. Notice was conveyed on January 25 through respective Commissioners for Indus Waters. This is as per Article XII (3) of IWT.
n1 India has been a steadfast supporter and a responsible partner in implementing IWT in letter and spirit. But Pakistan’s actions have adversely impinged on the provisions of IWT and their implementation, and forced India to issue an appropriate notice for modification of IWT.
n2

Takeaways from @WorldBank 's
'India Development Update: Navigating the Storm' (06.11.22):
World Bank has revised its India GDP forecast for from 6.5% to 6.9% in 2022-23.
"The Indian economy has been remarkably resilient to the deteriorating external environment."~ WB report.
n1 "The persistent headwinds from the global economy are expected to weigh on growth forecasts. Growth in first half of FY22/23 was supported by solid domestic demand and despite a challenging external environment the exports performed better than expected." ~ WB report.
n2

PM @narendramodi chaired an all-party meeting to discuss and plan year-long #G20 events.
PM stressed 3 points:
G20 Presidency belongs to entire nation;
G20 Presidency opportunity to showcase #India🇮🇳
G20 Presidency can boost tourism and the local economy.
n1 PM @narendramodi listened to various views on G20 shared by HD Deve Gowda, JP Nadda, Mallikarjun Kharge, Mamata Banerjee, Naveen Patnaik, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, Sitaram Yechury, Chandrababu Naidu, MK Stalin, EK Palaniswami, Eknath Shinde, KM Kader Mohideen, Arvind Kejriwal.
n2