2nd OCTOBER 2014

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch a five-year “Clean India” campaign, or Swachh Bharat Mission, on Thursday morning, most likely by wielding the broom himself. The campaign will culminate on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi in 2019.

ISRO will launch its third regional navigation satellite on October 10.

Indian Space Research Organisation, fresh from the success of its Mars mission, has unveiled its next mundane campaign starting with the launch of the third regional navigation satellite on Oct. 10. IRNSS-1C will be the third piece in the Indian navigation fleet dubbed the “Indian GPS”. It will be flown on the indigenous PSLV-C26 rocket from Sriharikota at 1.56 a.m., according to an ISRO update on Wednesday.

Though the “Clean India” campaign is being formally launched only on Thursday, several Ministers sought to make a head start by symbolically sweeping spaces around their offices turn by turn over the past week. Wednesday was no different with Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan carrying out a surprise check in his Ministry and picking up litter from the corridors, while Minister of State for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh launched the campaign in his Ministry.

After solid, half-day of parleys on economic policy, counterterrorism cooperation and much more, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to have felt relief during lunch with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Vice-President Joseph Biden.

Crowds of protesters continued to gather in strength in Hong Kong’s financial district, but demands for the resignation of the Chief Executive (CE) of the territory seemed to overtake calls for full-fledged democracy in the 2017 elections.

At a time of daunting geopolitical crises, NATO is undergoing its own version of regime change, with the arrival of a new chief official who has the blessing, at least temporarily, of one of the West’s biggest adversaries — Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Pakistan has decided to introduce electronic voting machines (EVMs) in two years before the next general elections due in 2018, an election commission official has said. Legal barriers should be removed during the next two months so that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) can start its work on the pilot project next year, ECP Secretary Ishtiak Ahmad Khan said on Tuesday.

The government’s move to appoint a Chairman-cum-Managing Director at Coal India Ltd. (CIL) may run into problem with trade unions opposing the plan to rope in someone from the private sector. Although the Public Enterprises Selection Board will be involved in the entire process, some of the criteria, which had been set for the selection process, leave the scope wide open for private sector participants, it is felt.

Jet Airways (India) said it had received approval from the Ministry of Civil Aviation for the appointment of Cramer Ball as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO). An Australian national, Mr. Ball was appointed CEO (Designate) in June. He will lead an extensive three-year business plan to turnaround the airline.

For the last couple of years, there has been talk that Tintu Luka does not have it in her to win big medals. She seemed to be very consistent in messing up races, either by getting trapped in a box or by the lack of a strong kick at the finish. Despite being very talented and with potential to clock impressive timings, Tintu did not have the medals to match that. It was bronze or nothing at all.

Reliance, Air India and Food Corporation of India (FCI) registered emphatic victories in their respective matches of the 21st All-India J.P. Atray Memorial cricket tournament here on Wednesday. Reliance registered its second win, beating Bengal by 77 runs at the PCA Stadium (Mohali) for four points. Smit Patel, who top-scored with 64, put on 81 runs for the second wicket with Rakesh Solanki. The side finished on 280 in 50 overs. In reply, Bengal was bowled out for 203 in 46.2 overs, despite an impressive century by Sudeep Chatterjee. In another game at the Sector 16 stadium, MPCA made short work of ONGC, winning by 173 runs.