According to an official statement, “Hon’ble Member of Parliament Chowdry Mohammad Ramzan, along with other Hon’ble Members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, was accorded a warm welcome by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Puducherry, Shri N. Rangasamy, and the Hon’ble Speaker of the Puducherry Legislative Assembly, Shri Embalam R. Selvam.”

The statement further said that Chowdry Mohammad Ramzan held detailed discussions with the Chief Minister on various issues concerning the Union Territory, with particular emphasis on administrative and functional challenges affecting its effective functioning.

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According to the statement released by the hospital, Sonia Gandhi was admitted around 10 p.m. on Monday after she experienced respiratory discomfort. Following a medical evaluation, doctors found that her bronchial asthma had been mildly exacerbated, largely due to the combined effects of cold weather and prevailing air pollution in the national capital.

Sir Ganga Ram Hospital Chairman, Dr Ajay Swaroop, said that as a precautionary measure, she was admitted for observation and treatment.

“At present, her condition is absolutely stable. She is responding well to treatment and is being managed with antibiotics and other supportive medications,” the statement said.

The hospital further noted that her health parameters are being closely monitored by the medical team.

“A decision regarding her discharge will be taken by the treating physicians based on her clinical progress and is likely within the next day or two,” the statement said.

The update from the hospital is expected to allay concerns among party leaders and supporters, following reports of her hospitalisation late Monday night.

Sonia Gandhi turned 79 last December.

She attended the 140th Foundation Day of the Congress party on December 28, where a flag-hoisting ceremony took place at Indira Bhavan in New Delhi.

A day before, on December 27, Sonia Gandhi attended the Congress Working Committee’s meeting at Indira Bhavan in New Delhi.

The CWC unanimously pledged to fight the “conspiracy to turn rights into charity,” raising slogans of “Jai Samvidhan – Jai Hind.”

She had also issued a statement in December on the government passing the VB-G RAM G bill in parliament, launching a sharp attack on the Central government, accusing it of dismantling the rights-based legislative framework through its proposed changes to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and other key laws.

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PIB said India’s approach to Braille is anchored in a rights-based ecosystem led by the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016, and reinforced through education reforms, assistive schemes, and digital platforms. Government initiatives such as the Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan), the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, and Sugamya Pustakalaya align closely with the United Nations’ disability inclusion framework, reflecting India’s commitment to the principle of “leaving no one behind”.

Observed annually on January 4, World Braille Day highlights Braille not merely as a reading system, but as a gateway to education, dignity and social inclusion. PIB noted that while Braille was introduced in India in 1887, a major milestone came in 1951 with the adoption of Bharati Braille as a single national standard for Indian languages. According to the 2011 Census, India has over 50 lakh persons with visual impairment, many of whom face barriers in accessing education, healthcare and employment. In response, Braille has been embedded into India’s policy and institutional framework as both a literacy tool and a public accessibility norm.

Braille is a tactile reading and writing system based on a six-dot cell arranged in two columns. Different combinations of raised dots represent letters, numbers and symbols, enabling people who are blind or have low vision to read through touch. Named after its inventor Louis Braille, the system is not a language but a code that can be applied across multiple languages.

PIB highlighted that the RPwD Act, 2016 provides the legal backbone for Braille access in India. The Act mandates inclusive education, requires government-funded or recognised institutions to ensure accessible infrastructure, and emphasises education in appropriate modes of communication, including Braille. It also provides for free learning materials and assistive devices for students with benchmark disabilities up to the age of 18.

The National Education Policy 2020 further integrates Braille into mainstream education by calling for accessible teaching-learning materials, including Braille textbooks, and prioritising the participation of children with disabilities. NCERT, under NEP 2020, is responsible for enabling the production of Braille and other accessible-format textbooks.

The government recognises Bharati Braille as the unified Braille script for Indian languages. PIB said that on January 4, 2025, a Standard Bharati Braille Code with Unicode mapping was published under the aegis of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities and the National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities (NIEPVD). The standard, adopted after public consultation, enables digital compatibility, including use in screen readers, Braille displays and software applications.

Building on this, NIEPVD has validated revised Bharati Braille tables for technological integration and prepared Draft Bharati Braille 2.1, which is being placed in the public domain on World Braille Day 2026 for stakeholder feedback. The institute is also conducting regional-language Braille training programmes, including in Tamil, Malayalam and Odia.

PIB said the Accessible India Campaign, launched in 2015, has taken a holistic approach to accessibility by focusing on built environments, transport systems and information and communication technologies. This includes Braille signage at public buildings and railway stations, and national website accessibility guidelines.

In higher education, structured accessibility practices are being strengthened through initiatives such as Sugamya Pustakalaya, a digital library offering books in accessible and digital Braille formats. The platform, developed through collaboration between NIEPVD, Tata Consultancy Services and the Daisy Forum of India, embeds accessible formats into institutional workflows rather than limiting them to disability offices.

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Public Health Director Nilakantha Mishra said one student was diagnosed with jaundice after returning to the residential school, located in Gurujang, from Christmas vacation.

Later, several other students tested positive, he said.

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The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said the operatives at the GDNL terminal, Apapa Port, Lagos, recovered the drugs on Friday, according to Nigerian web portal Punch.  “Those detained in connection with the discovery of the 31.5 kg cocaine in hatch three of the ship, which originated from the Marshall Islands, include the master of the vessel, Sharma Shashi Bhushan, and 21 other crew members,” the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement on Sunday, the report said.

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The commissioning ceremony was held in Goa. With over 60 per cent indigenous content, Samudra Pratap is India’s first indigenously designed pollution control vessel and the largest ship in the Indian Coast Guard fleet so far.

The induction of the vessel is expected to significantly enhance the Coast Guard’s capabilities in pollution response, fire-fighting, maritime safety, environmental protection, and long-range surveillance across India’s maritime zones. Describing the ship as a symbol of India’s mature defence industrial ecosystem, Rajnath Singh said efforts are underway to raise indigenous content in warships to 90 per cent. He noted that although designed primarily for pollution control, the multi-role platform would also strengthen coastal patrols and maritime security due to its integrated capabilities.

The Defence Minister praised the Coast Guard’s multidimensional role, ranging from marine pollution response and search-and-rescue operations to maritime law enforcement. He said the force’s growing strength sends a clear message to adversaries against any misadventure along India’s maritime borders. Equipped with advanced pollution detection systems, dedicated response boats, modern fire-fighting equipment and a helicopter hangar, Samudra Pratap is designed to operate effectively even in rough sea conditions. Rajnath Singh said the vessel would help prevent damage to fragile marine ecosystems such as coral reefs, mangroves and fisheries, while supporting the sustainability of coastal communities and the blue economy. Calling marine environmental protection both a strategic necessity and a moral responsibility, the Defence Minister said the commissioning of Samudra Pratap aligns with India’s broader maritime vision of peace, stability and environmental responsibility in the Indo-Pacific region. He added that India has consistently demonstrated its role as a responsible maritime power amid global maritime uncertainty.mRajnath Singh reiterated the government’s commitment to modernising the Coast Guard, emphasising the need for it to evolve into a proactive, intelligence-driven and integration-centric force. He also highlighted the importance of developing specialised career streams in areas such as maritime law enforcement, environmental protection and maritime cyber security. In a first for the Coast Guard, Samudra Pratap will have two women officers on board. Applauding the move towards a more inclusive and gender-neutral force, the Defence Minister said women officers are increasingly serving in frontline operational roles across the ICG.

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, Director General Coast Guard Paramesh Sivamani, and senior officials from the Centre and the state attended the ceremony. Samudra Pratap, meaning “Majesty of the Seas”, has a displacement of 4,170 tonnes, a length of 114.5 metres and a top speed exceeding 22 knots. The vessel will be based at Kochi under the operational control of the Coast Guard Region (West).

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The initiative aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Sahkar se Samriddhi”, linking the cooperative movement with public welfare and social development. Several Union Ministers, Ministers of State, senior officials from the Ministries of Cooperation, Women and Child Development, and Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, along with NDDB Chairman Dr Meenesh Shah and other dignitaries, will attend the conclave.

During the event, Amit Shah will launch the third phase of the Giftmilk Programme under the CSR initiative of SAIL’s Bhilai Steel Plant, benefiting around 4,000 government school children in mining areas of Chhattisgarh through the supply of vitamin A- and D-fortified flavoured milk via the Chhattisgarh Milk Federation. He will also launch the Shishu Sanjeevani Programme under IDBI Bank’s CSR initiative, providing fortified nutritional supplements to about 3,000 children at anganwadi centres in rural Nagpur, Maharashtra. The conclave will bring together representatives from government ministries, public and private sector companies, dairy cooperatives, research institutions and beneficiary organisations to explore collaborative and sustainable approaches to tackling child malnutrition. Technical sessions will focus on public health interventions and corporate–cooperative collaboration for nutrition security, with around 1200 participants expected to attend.

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China’s foreign ministry said Washington’s actions were a “clear violation of international law and basic norms governing international relations,” adding that Beijing is closely monitoring the security situation in Venezuela, BBC reported.

It urged the US to “cease efforts to subvert the Venezuelan government” and resolve disputes through dialogue and negotiation, reiterating similar appeals made over the weekend. Iran described the detention as an abduction. “It’s nothing to be proud of; it’s an illegal act,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei was quoted by AFP as saying, adding that “as the Venezuelan people have emphasised, their president must be released.” The statements come amid heightened tensions, with Iran itself recently facing warnings from US President Donald Trump over possible American intervention if peaceful protesters are killed.

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BBC reports that speaking to The Atlantic, Trump said that for Venezuela, “regime change, anything you want to call it, is better than what you have right now”.

Rodríguez, who is due to be sworn in later on Monday, struck a contrasting tone at her first cabinet meeting, issuing a direct appeal to Washington.

“Our peoples and our region deserve peace and dialogue, not war,” she said.

Meanwhile, deposed president Nicolás Maduro is expected to appear in a New York court after being seized during US air strikes on Venezuela on Saturday.

He faces drug trafficking-related charges, which he has denied.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States is at war “against drug trafficking organisations”, not Venezuela itself.

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BBC reported that dramatic scenes showed Maduro in handcuffs, escorted by armed officers alongside his wife, as the couple were transferred to the New York courthouse.

They are facing multiple federal charges related to drug trafficking and weapons offences.

The couple is due to appear before 92-year-old Judge Alvin Hellerstein for their first court appearance since their seizure over the weekend, reports the BBC. The arraignment, typically a brief proceeding, is expected to include the formal reading of charges and the entry of pleas. As with previous high-profile cases, a large crowd of journalists and members of the public queued outside the courthouse hours ahead of the hearing. Reacting to the developments, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he wanted to see a “peaceful transition to democracy” in Venezuela. Calling the situation “really important,” Starmer said international law must be the “anchor” for Venezuela’s future, while noting that it was for the US to explain the legal justification for its actions. He stressed that stability and a peaceful democratic transition remained the priority.

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