Major News and Events of 16 September 2015

The now polluted Yamuna river will be cleaned within the next three years, asserted Delhi Water Minister Kapil Mishra while conducting a boat-ride inspection of the national capital's lifeline. "The Yamuna river which has now been reduced to a dark grey-coloured lifeless river will be cleaned within the next three years," Mishra told IANS while on the fact-finding survey of the river. "The oxygen level in the river has also gone way below what is required. We'll make the river so clean that people will be able to bathe in it," he said. Source: IANS

Bharti Airtel, a leading telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa, announced the launch of its Platinum 3G network in Odisha. Airtel's Platinum 3G will deliver faster Internet speeds, enhanced voice clarity and offer a superior network experience for customers in the circle, said a company release. It will also help optimise the back-end engagement between the network and mobile devices, thus allowing customers to enjoy extended battery life on their phones. Source: IANS

Godavari and Krishna rivers in Andhra Pradesh were formally linked with the commissioning of Pattiseema lift irrigation project in Krishna district. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu unveiled a pylon at Ferry village near Ibrahimpatnam to formally launch the project, linking the two major rivers.Amid the chanting of Vedic hymns by the priests, Naidu performed puja at the confluence of the two rivers. His cabinet colleagues and a large number of local people were present. Source: IANS

A benchmark index of Indian equities markets, the 30-scrip BSE Sensitive Index (Sensex), surged 271.21 points or 1.06 percent during the afternoon session. The wider 50-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) also surged 75.95 points or 0.97 percent and was trading at 7,905.05 points. The Sensex of the S&P Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 25,884.05 points, was trading at 25,977.14 points (at 1.12 p.m.) in the afternoon session, up 271.21 points or 1.06 percent from the previous day's close at 25,705.93 points. Source: IANS

President Pranab Mukherjee greeted the people on Ganesh Chaturthi. "On the joyous occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, I extend warm greetings and good wishes to all my fellow citizens in India and abroad," the president said in a statement. "The celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi marks the birth of Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles and the God of wisdom and good fortune. Let us re-affirm our faith in all that is good, noble and virtuous." Source: IANS

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has released its first list of candidates for Bihar assembly polls with 43 names. The list, announced after a meeting of party's central election committee which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has 19 candidates for the first phase, 15 candidates for the second phase and nine candidates for other phases. Bihar will go for five-phased election from October 12 to November 5. The notification for the first phase of polls will be issued soon. Source: IANS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged people to record voice messages for 'Mann Ki Baat', his programme to reach out to people on All India Radio. According to a release from the Prime Minister's Office, the "My Gov" platform earlier invited people to record messages in either Hindi or English for "Mann ki Baat" on the toll-free number 1800 3000 7800. Source: IANS

Pakistan army has resorted to unprovoked shelling and firing at Indian positions on the line of control (LoC) in Poonch district of Jammu region, police said. "In the early hours of morning today (Wednesday), Pakistan army used 82 mm mortars and automatic weapons to target Indian positions on the LoC in Krishna Ghati sector of Poonch district," a senior police officer said in Jammu. Source: IANS