French warships call at Kochi
The Hindu
Ships set to depart on April 1 for Indo-French naval exercise
French Naval Ships Tonnerre, an amphibious assault ship, and Surcouf, a frigate, are on a two-day goodwill visit to Kochi. Senior officers of the Southern Naval Command received the ships at the Cochin Port Trust on Tuesday. As part of the visit, a French delegation comprising Ambassador Emmanuel Lenain, Rear Admiral Jacques Fayard, French Joint Forces Commander in the Indian Ocean (ALINDIEN); and Lise Talbot Barre, Consul General of France in Puducherry, also reached Kochi.The Shakti Scheme in Karnataka has completed its first year, yet the smart cards intended for the beneficiaries remain undistributed. According to Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy, while the smart cards have been prepared, their issuance has been stalled due to the absence of electronic ticketing machines (ETMs) in all buses, making them impractical.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R. Ashok were engaged in war of words over the Lok Sabha election results on Tuesday, with the former calling the latter “ignorant and entertaining people”. In response, Mr. Ashok said the Chief Minister “sometimes wakes up from deep slumber to exhibit his arrogance and anger”.