Ending a tense period, 183 Indians stranded in strife-torn Iraq, including 122 nurses - 46 from Kerala freed by Iraqi insurgents, 52 from Telangana and 24 from Andhra Pradesh - arrived home Saturday to a grand welcome while 200 more were on their way.
All 46 Indian women nurses seized by Sunni insurgents in Iraq were freed Friday after intense diplomatic efforts, and were set to return to Kerala Saturday morning.
With Haryana giving clear indications of going ahead to set up a separate Sikh body to manage gurdwaras in the state, Punjab's ruling Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal met union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to seek the central government's intervention in the matter.
Making his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir after assuming office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday vowed to pursue Atal Bihari Vajapyee's dream of restoring peace in the troubled state.
The controversy over a Goa cabinet minister's demand to ban mini-skirts and bikinis in order to "protect Goan culture" refuses to die down, with ace fashion designer Wendell Rodricks asking him to to wear a loin cloth to work, skip chillies, tomatoes, potatoes, and stop using a table and chair at work if he believes in shunning Western influences and culture.
The central government Friday sanctioned enhanced coal linkage for thermal plants in Punjab, a demand pending with the union coal ministry since April 2011, state government officials said.