Top stories on 20 June in a capsule

Delhi schools to welcome ‘Happiness Curriculum’ from July

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesdayannounced that all of the government schools in the national capital would be introducing ‘happiness curriculum’ for students of nursery to Class 8, starting July this year. The initiative started by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will be launched by Nobel Peace Prize laureate and spiritual leader Dalai Lama on July, Sisodia added. “The curriculum will include meditation, moral values and mental exercises and its core idea is to produce "sarvagun sampann" (versatile) "professionals and human beings who could serve the society with happiness,” Sisodia said while addressing a press conference. The framework of the curriculum had been complied by a team of experts, including school teachers.
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Rohit Sharma clears fitness test, slams critics

After much speculation, batsman Rohit Sharma on Wednesday cleared the fitness and endurance test, Yo-Yo and slammed his critics for raising doubts over his absence from the Test against Afghanistan team held in Bengaluru in June 15. Taking to microblogging site Twitter, Sharma wrote “to a few channels,I had just 1 chance to clear my yo-yo that was today. Verification before reporting is always a good idea.” The skipper’s capability had been in question since he failed the fitness test during Indian Premier League this year, where he captained the Mumbai Indians team and was slammed for his poor performance.
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BJP-PDP fallout: Chhatisgarh IAS appointed Chief Secretary of J&K

Jammu and Kashmir Governor Narendra Nath Vohra appointed former Additional Chief Secretary (Home) in Chhattisgarh, BVR Subrahmanyam on Wednesday evening, hours after Governor’s rule was applied in the state. The 1987 cadre IAS officer had served former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as his personal secretary from 2002 to 2007. Retires IPS officer Vijay and former Chief Secretary BB Vyas were taken in as the advisors to the Governor. Meanwhile, this will be the fourth time that Vohra will be exercising his powers in the state, in a career spanning 10 years. The 82-year-old diplomat who was set to relived in 5 days from his term, will now to have handle operations till the 60-day pilgrimage phase of Amarnath yatra, starting June 28.

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Jail or direct encounter for you: BJP leader’s threat to TMC

The West Bengal BJP unit got itself into trouble after the state party President Dilip Ghosh in an scathing remark against the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) said that it’s leaders should either be jailed or killed in encounters. Addressing a gathering of workers in Jalpaiguri district, Ghosh said, “The day will soon come when we will count the bullets as well as the bodies. We have not signed a bond where it is written that we will offer them rasgullas if they beat us up,” while also making personal remarks on TMC leader Anubrata Mondal. As per report by India Today, Ghosh has been has been booked under sections of the Indian Penal Code, charging him of ‘criminal intimidation’ in a public gathering, as a public servant.
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Vedanta says gas leak major in Sterlite, district admin denies

Controversy hit Vedanta Ltd company on Wednesday approached the Madras High Court to inform that the gas leak in one of its smelter at the Sterlite plant in Tamil Nadu’s Tuticorin is severe and not stopping it would lead to serous environmental consequences. Filing a petition in the apex body, Vendanta said, “There is a grave risk and danger as there are other tanks and there are flammable chemicals and materials within the plant area," as per news reports. The district administration however denied the charges saying the leak is minor. Vedanta has come under a scanner after 13 people were dead in police firing during the public protest in Tuticorin against the pollution emitted by its Sterlite plant.

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Arvind Subramanian resigns as Chief Economic Adviser

Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian will be leaving the finance ministry after nearly 4 years because of "pressing family commitments" and return to the US, Union Minister Arun Jaitley said in a Facebook blog on Wednesday. Mr Subramanian, in a tweet, referred to "personal reasons, researching and writing" for quitting before his term ends in October. He also described "the best job I ever had, not without controversies sometimes." Subramanian, 59, a Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, became Chief Economic Adviser on October 16, 2014, for a period of three years, which was extended. He took over the job when his predecessor Raghuram Rajan moved on to become RBI governor.

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Delhi CM Kejriwal 'unwell' after 9-day Dharna

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday cancelled all his meetings after his health deteriorated following the nine-day long protest he held at Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal's residence. He will be leaving for Bengaluru tomorrow for treatment as reported by News Agency ANI.  As per news reports, Kejriwal who is a diabetic patient was taken in ill after his blood sugar levels went down since he skipped meals and also didn’t go for the routine his morning and evening walks. Kejriwal along with Deputy CM Manish Sisodia along to two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had staged ‘dharna’ in L-G’s house on June 11, against the IAS officers not attending their offices. The CM is expected to be back in the city by Thursday and also scheduled to hold a meeting with the IAS Association.

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Will double farmers income by 2022: PM Modi via NaMo app

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said his government has doubled the budget for agriculture to Rs 2.12 lakh crore to achieve its objective of doubling farm income by 2022. Interacting with farmers from over 600 districts via video conferencing through his official mobile application 'NaMo', Modi said the four cornerstones of the government policy for raising farm income are cutting input cost, fair price for the crop, preventing the produce from rotting and creating alternate sources of income. He said the budget for the agriculture sector has been doubled to Rs 2.12 lakh crore during first four years of his government compared to the previous five years of the UPA regime. “We are working towards ensuring that the income of our hardworking farmers doubles by 2022. For that, we are facilitating proper assistance wherever required. We have faith in the farmers of India," he said.
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31 Afghan soldiers killed by Taliban after Eid ceasefire

Global terrorism group, Taliban on Wednesday killed 30 Afghan soldiers and captured a military base in Afghanistan’s Badghis province, in a fresh set of violence since the Eid ceasefire which ended on Sunday. The Taliban members who launched the ‘ambushed’ style attack on Tuesday, fired at two checkpoints and carried on till Wednesday, Abdul Aziz Bek, head of the provincial council in Badghis was quoted by several news agencies. “They (Taliban) came from all directions and fired,” Bek said adding that 15 insurgents were dead. Afghanistan had extended the ceasefire unilaterally by 10 days, due to end on Wednesday but the Taliban had rejected the proposition.
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Bank of Maharashtra CEO arrested for 3,000 crore loan fraud

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Pune Police on Wednesday arrested Ravindra P Marathe, Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive (CEO) of Bank of Maharashtra along with five others in the multi-crore DS Kulkarni default case. Marathe was arrested for allegedly misusing his power in sanctioning loans to shell companies. The bank had given a loan on the same property three to four times, sources said. In February, Kulkarni and his wife Hemanti were booked by the Pune Police for allegedly cheating over 2,500 investors to the tune of Rs 230 crore. RTI activist Vijay Kumbhar, who has been fighting against the developer on behalf of investors, called for the reactions between banks and DSK to be thoroughly probed.
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