India valuable partner for us, want to work with new government: UN Chief

Prime Minister Modi was on Thursday administered the oath of office and secrecy by President Ram Nath Kovind at a glittering ceremony just before sunset at the forecourt of majestic Rashtrapati Bhavan.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said that India is a "very valuable partner" of the United Nations and he looks forward to working with the new government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Prime Minister Modi was on Thursday administered the oath of office and secrecy by President Ram Nath Kovind at a glittering ceremony just before sunset at the forecourt of majestic Rashtrapati Bhavan, capping a landslide win for the BJP which won 303 of the 542 seats.

UN Secretary-General Guterres has worked very closely with Prime Minister Modi, including on the issue of climate change, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General, told PTI on Thursday.

"We will look forward to working with the government as it has now taken office. India is a very valuable partner of the United Nations," Haq said at the daily press briefing on Guterres' message for Modi as he was sworn-in as India's Prime Minister for a second five-year term.

Last week, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the UN chief very much looked forward to working with Modi and the two leaders have a "strong relationship" on issues such as the climate change.

Monica Grayley, the spokeswoman for President of the General Assembly Maria Fernanda Espinosa, said last week that the UNGA President congratulates India and the people of India, as well as all newly-elected representatives in the election.

Espinosa "looks forward to continuing to work with India in the months to come," Grayley said.

Espinosa had met Modi during her visit to India in August 2018 and her interaction and cooperation with India is a "very good one," Grayley had said, adding that Espinosa, if given the opportunity, would definitely congratulate the Prime Minister in person.

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Chandrababu Naidu begins fast over Andhra special status; Opposition to extend support

A TDP delegation led by Chandrababu Naidu will submit a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu began a day-long fast in Delhi on Monday, demanding that the Centre grant special status to the state and fulfil all promises made before its bifurcation in 2014.

A number of Opposition party leaders - including Congress president Rahul Gandhi, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal - are expected to extend their support to the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief's fast at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan.

Before beginning the fast, Naidu offered tributes to Matama Gandhi at Raj Ghat and to B R Ambedkar at Andhra Pradesh Bhavan.

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A TDP delegation led by Naidu will submit a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday.

Naidu has been trying to unite the opposition parties to take on the BJP in the general elections. Over the last three months, he has held a number of meetings with the opposition party leaders on forming an anti-BJP front.

In March last year, the TDP had pulled out of the NDA government over its refusal to grant special status to Andhra Pradesh.

The party has been accusing the Narendra Modi government of not releasing enough funds for the Polavaram irrigation project, the Kadapa steel plant and Amravati, the under-construction ultra-modern state capital.

On June 2, 2014, Andhra Pradesh was split into two, and Hyderabad became the capital of the new state Telangana.

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Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary: President Kovind unveils logo, web portal

The two-year-long celebrations from October 2, 2018, to October 2, 2020, will be held across the country and all over the globe to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

Gandhi Jayanti : President Ram Nath Kovind has launched the logo and the web portal for the commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, at Rashtrapati Bhawan in the national capital.

The logo branding will be done in trains, Air India aircraft, state roadways buses, government websites, government advertisements besides public sector undertakings.

The salient features of the new web portal are to identify visitors from different geography and serve them personalised information.

Besides, information related to Gandhian literature, philosophy, audios, videos, rare photos are available in the portal.

According to an official release, the two-year-long celebrations from October 2, 2018, to October 2, 2020, will be held across the country and all over the globe to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

A meeting of National Committee headed by the President was held in May 2018 to draw out a plan of action for the mega celebration.

Culture Minister Dr Mahesh Sharma and Secretary Culture, Arun Goel was also present on the occasion.

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