New Delhi: Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister on Sunday launched his election campaign by supporting DMK candidate TRB Raja in Mannargudi Assembly constituency in Tiruvarur district, as the party intensified its campaign ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.Addressing meetings during the campaign, Udhayanidhi Stalin hit out at anonymous critics, saying, “Some people say that I am not originally from the Delta region. But today I say that I am a native Delta person. The truth is, they are not a native Delhi person.”He also portrayed the election contest as a political fight between rival factions and criticized the AIADMK, saying, “This election is between the Delhi team and the Tamil Nadu team. Our leader is the captain and we will win. The AIADMK led NDA alliance is a slave team. NEET exam was implemented during the AIADMK rule under his leadership. He (Edappadi Palaniswami) failed to raise his voice for the welfare of Tamil Nadu. He is under the central government.”Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin continued his election campaign in Paramakudi area under Kolathur constituency and interacted with members of the public during a morning walk. Alleging that the Bharatiya Janata Party was attempting to enter Tamil Nadu through the AIADMK, he said, “The truth is that the BJP is entering Tamil Nadu wearing the mask of the AIADMK.”Stalin also visited a roadside tea stall and later met members of the weavers community, a significant population in the region.Udhayanidhi Stalin also reiterated welfare promises during the first campaign events in Manachanallur on Saturday, including financial assistance for women, housing expansion under the Kalaignar Housing Scheme and educational assistance for students, news agency ANI reported.Tamil Nadu Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 23, with counting taking place on May 4.

Speaking to reporters at the airport on Saturday, Goyal said the evacuation was carried out following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s instructions with coordinated efforts of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Indian missions abroad to shift the stranded fishermen from Iran to Armenia before bringing them back to India.

Chennai: Union Minister Piyush Goyal Welcomed the second batch of Indian fishermen at Chennai International Airport after their successful evacuation from Iran amid the ongoing conflict situations in the region.Speaking to reporters at the airport on Saturday, Goyal said the evacuation was carried out following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s instructions with coordinated efforts of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Indian missions abroad to shift the stranded fishermen from Iran to Armenia before bringing them back to India.“Our Prime Minister gave instructions to the Foreign Ministry, and he worked very hard to transfer them from Iran to Armenia. From Armenia, we got some good people to help us bring them back because they were very poor fishermen. 345 came in the first batch. More than 300 came today. The Prime Minister has always been concerned about all those people who are stuck in any crisis. This once again shows how much he cares for our fishermen who were unfortunately caught in the middle of the war in Iran. They have been brought out right from inside Iran,” Goyal said.He further informed that so far more than 600 Indian fishermen have been safely brought back from Iran with the assistance of Indian Embassies in Iran and Armenia. The returnees mainly include fishermen Tamil NaduGujarat, Kerala and Puducherry.“We are happy to welcome back our brave fishermen who are in the midst of the war in Iran. They have been able to come back to India with the help of the Embassy in Iran and the Embassy in Armenia. The first flight brought back 345 fishermen, mostly from Tamil Nadu. Today, we have more than 300 fishermen who have returned. Most are from Tamil Nadu, many from Gujarat, and some from Kerala and Puducherry. They had gone to Iran to earn a living, most of whom were from the southern part of the country. They come from various districts like Kanyakumari, Tuticorin, Tirunelveli and Nagapattinam as well as Pudukkottai, Mayiladuthurai and many other districts along the coast. The fishermen from Gujarat are mostly from Valsad in Surat region,” he said.Goyal also praised the coordinated diplomatic efforts of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his team, saying they ensured the safety of Indian citizens right from the beginning of the crisis.“From the first day when the war started, External Affairs Minister, Son of the Soil of Tamil Nadu, Jaishankar and his team were in touch with the fishermen, ensuring that they were safe. The embassy brought them together in Armenia, and we have arranged for flights to bring them to India. They may belong to different parts of India, but what binds them together is ‘Mahabharata’, ‘Tiranga’, our national flag and the love and affection of 140 crore Indians who were eagerly waiting for their brothers to return from the war in Iran,” the Union Minister said.Sylvester, a fisherman from Kanyakumari district who was among those brought back, expressed relief after returning home and said the evacuation had brought him safety and comfort.“Now we feel safe and happy. Our Modi government has helped us a lot. Without them, we would not have reached here. They helped us a lot; they even gave us good, good food,” he told ANI.

New Delhi: Even though India allocates thousands of crores of rupees annually to vaccinate children, RTI data shows that a significant portion of the funds have not been spent, raising questions over implementation in the country’s biggest public health scheme – the National Immunization Programme. Under the program – which provides free vaccines to protect children against several diseases including polio, measles and hepatitis B – the allocation has increased to over Rs 3,400 crore in 2025-26, but spending has consistently lagged. About Rs 2,250 crore was utilized in 2023-24 against the approved Rs 3,232 crore, while the expenditure in 2024-25 dropped to about Rs 1,971 crore against the approved Rs 3,186 crore. For financial year 2025-26, only about Rs 1,060 crore of the sanctioned Rs 3,434 crore was spent – ​​the figures were as of December and marked provisional. The data is based on financial monitoring reports submitted by states and union territories. Despite this, the program continues on a large scale. Government data showed that 2.3 crore to 2.5 crore children were vaccinated annually between 2021-22 and 2024-25. The data shows that full vaccination coverage has increased from 88.2% in 2021-22 to 98.1% in 2024-25, although there has been a slight decline in 2023-24. RTI activist Amit Gupta said the program is important for the safety of children and requires efficient, transparent use of funds with strong accountability. He also urged the government to expand coverage to include influenza, typhoid and hepatitis vaccines, saying these were now essential for comprehensive child protection. However, the RTI response also points to shortcomings in the data system. Gender-wise vaccination figures were not provided and instead relegated to another division, indicating fragmented record keeping. The vaccines are procured from a network of public and private manufacturers, including Serum Institute of India, Bharat Biotech, Biological E and Indian Immunologicals.