Referring to frequently occurring natural disasters like devastating floods, he said, there was no provision for it. He pointed out how devastating floods had taken place in Himachal Pradesh, Uttrakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala and Maharashtra. He asked what special steps have been taken for it?

Having assumed charge of the ministry last week, Rijiju emphasized the importance of collaboration between the government and the opposition, stating that there was no need for either side to undermine the other based on numerical strength.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will be attending the swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi as prime minister on Sunday evening, sources close to him said.

The fervent campaigning for the second phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections wrapped up on Wednesday, signalling the start of a 48-hour silence period. Top leaders from both the BJP-led NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc made a final push to sway voters ahead of polling day on April 26.

"If you miss your vote this time (if you don't vote for the Congress candidate), I will think that I don’t have any place here for me and I could not win your heart," said Kharge, who won the Lok Sabha elections here in 2009 and 2014, but lost in 2019.

While the grand old party is yet to announce the candidates, other parties in the mentioned states have already started their election campaigning for the approaching Lok Sabha polls.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has claimed a strong, although not directly observable, support for the opposition INDIA bloc in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

BJP gears up for Foundation Day celebrations statewide on April 6, while PM Modi headlines an election rally in Pushkar. Simultaneously, Congress leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, and Rahul Gandhi are set to lead a major rally in Jaipur.

The Congress party is yet to start its campaign for the 2024 General Elections. Compared to that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the regional parties like the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, the DMK in Tamil Nadu, YSR Congress in Andhra Pradesh, and Biju Janata Dal in Odisha, just to name a few, have already launched their full-fledged campaigns.

"Kharge's hands are full. In addition to managing party affairs at the national level, he has to coordinate with the INDIA bloc partners. Also, his term in the Rajya Sabha is not yet over," a senior Congress leader said.

Ramesh alleged, "PM Modi’s CLEAN CHIT to China after Galwan Valley has emboldened the expansionist nature of China at our strategic borders." He raised concerns about Chinese influence in India's neighbourhood and its impact on India's strategic position as well.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has expressed dissatisfaction with the decision to conduct the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in seven phases, suggesting that it indicates Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intention to tour extensively across the country.