New Delhi, March 21 (IANS) Around 22,500 Indian nationals have returned from Ukraine to India from February 1 to March 11, the Parliament was informed on Monday.
"(A total of) 90 evacuation flights were operated under 'Operation Ganga' including 14 Indian Air Force flights," Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Gen V.K. Singh (retd) told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply.
He said that the government had coordinated with the Indian carriers for the operation of evacuation flights.
"The government has coordinated with six private airlines... for evacuation of Indian nationals from countries adjoining Ukraine viz. Romania, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia under Operation Ganga.
"Air India and Air India Express together have operated 23 evacuation flights under Operation Ganga," he said, adding that the air fare for all the flights operated under 'Operation Ganga' has been borne by the Centre.
Welcoming the leaders in the party, Shekhawat said that the BJP will be strengthened in Punjab. "They have faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and they will strengthen the organisation in the state. BJP is moving ahead in Punjab and will create a new history," he said, noting all the new joinees are prominent names in their respective fields.
Sharing details, Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota said keeping in view the recent recoveries of RDX, hand grenades and pistols from the border district, strong barricading has been done.
The BJP, which is likely to contest the Punjab assembly polls on its own for the first time after its ally Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) walked away, will be banking on leaders from the opposition parties and prominent personalities to make its electoral presence felt in the state. In the last assembly polls in 2017, the BJP had won only three out of the 23 seats it contested.
Slamming Amarinder Singh for his "myopic" mindset towards the poor, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said on Friday that the former CM targeted him because he had raised issues of the common man.
Accepting a farm activist's revocation application to revoke the varietal registration of Pepsico India Holding on potato variety FL-2027, The Protection of Plant Varieties & Farmers' Rights (PPV&FR) Authority on Friday revoked the registration, the multinational had. Even at the global level, this is the first time that the multinational had to face such a defeat.
Days after the Parliament repealed the three contentious farm laws, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) will be holding a crucial meeting on Saturday to discuss whether to end the over-an-year- old agitation, among other issues. The meeting will be held at the Singhu Border camp site, which acted as the headquarters for the SKM.
