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In yet another instance of difference of opinion between the NDA allies in the state, two top functionaries of JD(U) — party president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh and parliamentary board chairman Upendra Kushwaha — on Thursday appealed to the Centre to review Agnipath scheme following protests over it across the country.

Lalan tweeted: “Disappointment, dissatisfaction and fear of unemployment have crept in the minds of youths. The Centre should review the scheme as it is also associated with the security of the country.” Kushwaha, on the other hand, said the violent protests against Agnipath scheme are happening on its own.

A petrol and diesel crisis seem to be hitting the fuel pumps hard in several states of India, though no official estimates have confirmed the same. Petrol pumps in many states including Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh have seen serpentine queues in the last couple of days with vehicle owners thronging to fuel stations for a refill of their tanks.

According to petroleum dealers, Oil Marketing Companies like BPCL and HPCL have restricted the fuel supply and are providing only a quarter of the oil of the total demand which is triggering the fuel crisis. On one hand, while the current crisis seems to be an upshot of rumors of oil shortage, there has still been no word from the government.

PM Narendra Modi will chair the first national conference of chief secretaries of states on May 16 at Dharamshala aimed at strengthening the partnership between the Centre and state governments.

There will be more than 200 participants in the two-day conference, representing the central government, all states, UTs and domain experts. Spread over three days, it will focus on the rapid and sustained economic growth in partnership with the states.

Working as Team India, the conference will lay the ground for collaborative action for higher growth with sustainability, creation of jobs, education, ease of living and "aatma nirbharta" in agriculture.

(With inputs from agencies)

A new name was added to the growing list of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders joining the BJP when AAP's Uttarakhand unit president Deepak Bali was inducted into the saffron fold on Tuesday, June 14. Bali's defection was a huge blow to the AAP, which is trying to gain a foothold in the hill state. He was appointed the party's state president in April only.

Deepak Bali cited his departure as a result of his dissatisfaction with the party's methods. "I was not comfortable working with the AAP under its existing organisational setup," he wrote in a resignation letter to AAP national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Moreover, Bali's exit is the second major setback to the AAP's prospects in Uttarakhand in less than a month. In May, Colonel Ajay Kothiyal (Retd), the party's chief ministerial candidate in the 2022 assembly elections, resigned alleging "organisational problems," and joined the BJP.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit his mother, Heeraben Modi, at her Gandhinagar residence on June 18 to celebrate her 100th birthday.

A puja will also be held at Vadnagar's Hatkeshwar temple on the occasion.

Earlier, on March 11, PM Modi met his mother in Ahmedabad while he was on a two-day visit to Gujarat. He had met her after a gap of two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On June 18, PM Modi is set to address nearly 4 lakh people that will include beneficiaries of various government schemes during his Vadodara visit. The event will take place at Leprosy Hospital near Sardar Estate.