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The counting of votes cast by 64.2 crore hopeful Indian voters during the six-week-long 18th <keyword id="19923279" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lok-Sabha-elections" source="keywords">Lok Sabha elections</keyword> officially began at 8 AM today and it is suffice to say that the air is crackling with equal parts excitement and trepidation. Over 700 aspiring parties participated in the world’s largest democratic exercise. But the main duelling parties remain consistent with previous trends: the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (<keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BJP" source="keywords">BJP</keyword>) led by Prime Minister <keyword id="19895781" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi" source="keywords">Narendra Modi</keyword> and the opposition bloc led by the <keyword id="19964138" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-National-Congress" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Indian National Congress" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Indian National Congress">Indian National Congress</keyword> (INC). Modi is shooting for a third, historic win after spending the last ten years in office, but the road ahead does not seem as smooth as anticipated. A political party in India requires at least 272 seats to cross the majority mark in the 543-member lower house of the Indian parliament, the Lok Sabha. The PM has audaciously declared that he is expecting a huge win exceeding 400 seats, the slogan ab ki baar 400 paar is stuck in every Indian’s head — irrespective of their political inclination. The Congress-led India bloc, on the other hand, is aiming for a relatively modest 295. On Saturday, most exit poll surveys predicted 350-370 seats for the BJP and between 107-140 seats for the opposition. However, the early trends are showing a very different picture with the INDIA bloc exceeding expectations in many states. Polls have been off the mark a few times before, but as NDA looks poised to win a third term, albeit with a few last-minute struggles, here’s a look back at the previous elections responsible for Mr Narendra Modi’s unmatchable dominance over <keyword id="20184421" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-politics" source="keywords">Indian politics</keyword>. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Inside BJP’s decade-long winning streak" comment="subhead" text="Inside BJP’s decade-long winning streak">Inside BJP’s decade-long winning streak </cmsannotation>The BJP has come a long way since 1984 when the party won just two seats. Its pro-Hindutva stance pushed it to prominence over the decades, especially in the 1990s. The BJP was in power for a considerable amount of time under Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s leadership at the turn of the century. But the kind of support that Narendra Modi has received since 2014 has been unmatched in the history of modern Indian politics. In 2014, the BJP saw a surprising landslide victory with 282 of the 543 seats. But what factors contributed to its sweeping win with a 31.3% majority? Throughout its campaigning ahead of the general elections that year, the BJP kept stressing its interest in fixing the economy and combating corruption allegedly caused by the Congress party’s rather inept governing. Modi, who called himself a chowkidar or watchman, vowed to set the government and bureaucracy to rights. He promised more jobs for young Indians and even launched a social media campaign to appeal to the younger generation. Many experts suggested that Modi created the brand “NaMo'' for himself through relentless media campaigning, something that <keyword id="19895780" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="rahul-gandhi" source="keywords">Rahul Gandhi</keyword> and other major political leaders could not do at the time. Additionally, he is also said to have had the support of the 45,000 country-wide RSS branches — the Hindu cultural nationalist parent of the BJP. However, after the leader had managed to comfortably settle into his new role as the Prime Minister of India, he announced the demonetisation of all ₹500 and ₹1,000 banknotes of the Mahatma Gandhi Series on 8 November 2016. As per a 2018 report from the Reserve Bank of India said that “the effort had failed to remove black money from the economy”. Modi was widely criticised for the way this move impacted the middle-class people of India. Despite this setback as well as criticism against his economic reforms like GST, he continued to implement bold policy changes to strengthen the core economy. His tilt towards a digital economy and seemingly tough actions against corrupt practices received widespread acclaim. He also successfully invoked a strong sense of nationalism and security in the people through the Balakot airstrike, a bombing raid conducted by Indian warplanes in February 2019. And it worked! BJP came to power again in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, this victory being bigger than the last. The BJP won a whopping 37.36% of the vote — the highest by a political party since the 1989 general elections with 303 seats. However, similar to 2019, towards the end of his second term in 2024, joblessness appears to be on the rise and incomes of farmers continue to plummet. Amid major issues like food inflation and the threat of AI to the job market, the ruling party relied on not-so-subtle religious polarisation and a ton of welfare programmes. From being chowkidar in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been depicted to be a saint today by many of his followers. While past leaders in India have tried to hold on to their secular image, Mr Modi has been seen flouting this convention on multiple occasions, expressing that he takes pride in his religion. With crores of followers still supporting him, the PM seems to be already on a path to victory. Only time will tell if the struggles during the last phases of this year’s election will come back to haunt him. In the meantime, stay tuned to Business Insider India for <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/elections/lok-sabha-election-results-2024-live-counting-begins-at-8-am-as-bjp-led-nda-hopes-for-a-historic-third-term/articleshow/110685785.cms">more updates on the Lok Sabha elections 2024</a>.

As PM Modi awaits his third big win, here’s how BJP created history during the 2014 & 2019 Lok Sabha elections

55-year old Imran is a watchman in one of the residential buildings in suburban Mumbai. He sleeps on the same chair he sits on to guard the building and uses the common toilet in the parking lot to clean up. He works two shifts a day of 12 hours each, for a total salary of ₹13,500. If he had worked one shift a day, he would have got ₹7,000 a month and would have had to find himself an accommodation. He would rather send nearly all his earnings to his family in a village in Uttar Pradesh than rent a room in Mumbai. Imran was blissfully unaware of the ongoing trend on Twitter where leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and their supporters have prefixed the word 'chowkidar' to their profile names. Chowkidar is the Hindi word for watchman or security guard and it has since become a buzzword on social media. When told about his humble job being at the centre of the country's political discourse ahead of the elections, Imran's first reaction was that of amusement. "Wasn't it chaiwala the last time?" he asked with a smirk and thinly veiled sarcasm. 'Chaiwala' is what Indians call the local tea vendor in Hindi. Modi's claim to fame in the run up to the 2014 elections was that he had worked in his father's tea stall in Gujarat as a child. He used his humble origins effectively as he challenged the country's political royalty-- the Gandhi family which has sent three Prime Ministers in the past-- and caught the fancy of an aspiring voter base. At the same time, a series of corruption charges against the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) tilted the scale further in Modi's favour and the BJP swept the elections with a majority in Lok Sabha, the lower house of Indian Parliament. This was the first time any party had managed to score a full majority in India's Parliamentary elections since 1984. Modi is banking once again on a strategy that worked for him five years ago. The word 'chowkidar' has been bandied around by BJP leaders pitching Modi as a man of strength but someone who lacks political pedigree. That can hardly be true for a person who has been a politician for over two decades, a chief minister for three terms, and currently, the prime minister seeking re-election. The playbook-- underdog versus the entitled-- is as old as time but no one has claimed the 'underdog' tag effectively after the first surprise. But Modi is giving it another shot And in this battle of catchphrases, Modi may have an upper hand over his rivals. First of all, the move has either distracted or diluted the debate on more pressing issues like the economy, policies, and unemployment. Modi's rivals are essentially talking about things that he wants them to talk about. While charging the government with corruption, senior Congress leaders have tweeted '<keyword id="6895071" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chowkidar-chor-hai">chowkidar chor hai</keyword>' or 'the watchman is the thief'. However, by referring to Modi as the watchman repeatedly, even in slander, the opposition is unwittingly fortifying the image he wants: a strongman of a humble background who is guarding the country not just from adversaries across the borders but also keeping a watch on home-grown muggers looking for a way out to safety. For example, the opposition is mocking Modi citing the government's failure to stop billionaire fugitives like Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Mehul Choksi with unpaid loans and alleged bank frauds to their name from leaving the country. However, even if one of the three are nabbed ahead of the elections, it will be forgotten that each of the three businessmen, with close ties to the BJP in the past, did mysteriously escape from the country. The time spent on countering the chowkidar claim could have been used to question the government on its economic blunders like demonetisation, the troubles of the small enterprises, and the rise in unemployment in the last five years. In the run up to the 2014 elections as well as in every state election thereafter wherever the BJP was the challenger, Modi had, in no uncertain terms, demanded an account of the incumbent government's performance. He would set the agenda and let the party in power respond. The strategy has been so successful that BJP is now in power in 17 out 29 Indian states. Instead of holding him to account for the last five years, his rivals are following Modi's lead in political rhetoric. This hollow, partisan, inconsequential, farcical political debate is a lost opportunity for the opposition. Over a 1,300 kilometres away from Mumbai in Gurgaon, Kabir (name changed on request), gets paid ₹15,000 for a 12-hour shift as a watchman. That's more than twice that of Imran, but it's still not enough for him to run a family comfortably. Kabir had seen the rhetoric around watchmen in India on news television and he saw hope. "The PM is one of us and he will improve our working conditions after he wins the elections," he said. In the words of Emily Dickinson, hope is the thing with feathers. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/elections-2019-latest-opinion-poll-pegs-unemployment-as-the-biggest-issue/articleshow/68475510.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">Modi may not take the fall for rising unemployment in India, latest opinion poll shows</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/general-elections-2019-vvpat-how-to-verify-vote/articleshow/68475130.cms">Here’s how you can verify your vote using VVPAT</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/is-indias-2019-election-really-a-foregone-conclusion/articleshow/68423465.cms">Is India's 2019 election really a foregone conclusion?</a>

The humble security guard at the centre of India’s election debate is a sign that Modi is still setting the agenda

<ul><li>The Supreme Court clears <keyword id="5268" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rahul-Gandhi">Rahul Gandhi</keyword> defamation case. </li><li>The top court asked Gandhi to be extremely careful when making political speeches against large audiences, in the judgment. </li><li>The Congress party had to suffer an embarrassing defeat after it's party president went on the ‘Chowkidaar Chor hai’ offensive on Prime Minister Modi.</li></ul>The Supreme Court clears Rahul Gandhi defamation case. The top court asked Gandhi to be extremely careful when making political speeches against large audiences, in the judgment. <div type="image" title="Rahul-twit" msid="72050686" hostid="261"></div>

 It is bad enough that the Congress party had to suffer an embarrassing defeat after it's party president went on the ‘Chowkidaar Chor hai’ offensive on Prime Minister Modi. As if that is not enough, Rahul Gandhi also had to face a ‘criminal contempt’ proceedings over it. The Supreme Court bench has announced its verdict on a plea by BJP MP <keyword id="6431260" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Meenakshi-Lekhi">Meenakshi Lekhi</keyword> over the Congress party’s campaign slogan. Gandhi had made a statement attributing the slogan to the Apex court. Gandhi used the slogan to attack Modi over the Rafale deal. He was hoping to bring to light -- discrepancies on the deal to purchase fighter jets from the French company In March when the Supreme Court agreed to hear review petitions in the Rafale deal matter, Gandhi said that the top court also said "<keyword id="6895071" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chowkidar-chor-hai">chowkidar chor hai</keyword>". The Supreme Court took strong objection to this, asserting that it never said so. A bench comprising Chief Justice <keyword id="245445" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ranjan-Gogoi">Ranjan Gogoi</keyword> and Justices S K Kaul and K M Joseph had reserved judgement on the matter, on May 10 Gandhi, who was then the President of the Congress Party, had told the bench that he has tendered unconditional apology for wrongly attributing the remarks relating to the Prime Minister — to the apex court. Added to that, he also admitted that going on the offensive on corruption charges on the government was a wrong political move, soon after the election results came in.

Supreme Court lets off Rahul Gandhi with a warning over 'Chowkidaar Chor Hai'

(Image Credit- IANS) <ul><li><keyword id="6375119" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="urjit-patel">Urjit Patel</keyword>, the governor of the Reserve Bank of India, has resigned from his post on the central bank’s board. </li><li>Reactions from officials range from ‘I told you so’ to commending the governor’s tenure in office. </li></ul>Twitter exploded with reactions within minutes of Urjit Patel, the governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), announcing his resignation from his post on the board, citing ‘personal reasons’. Urjit Patel had earlier threatened to resign from the RBI with the widening rift between the government and the Reserve Bank of India — especially over the question of the central bank’s autonomy — it was reported that both parties had ultimately reached a ‘truce’. While some had speculated that the governor would resign, nobody had the exact date on their cards and the decision rolled in a little earlier than expected. With the general elections around the corner, reactions from politicians and fellow academicians flew in — ranging from support over Patel’s decision to how the current government is creating a hostile environment that’s not conducive for efficient decision-making. <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword>: ‘Urjit Patel leaves a great legacy, under his leadership, the RBI brought financial stability’ 
	
	
	
	
	
	
	
	
	<div type="twitter" handle="narendramodi" handlename="Narendra Modi" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/718314968102367232/ypY1GPCQ_normal.jpg" favoritecount="10119" retweetcount="2356" status="Dr Urjit Patel is an economist of a very high calibre with a deep and insightful understanding of macro-economic is… https://t.co/DyZUxKIXPv" createdat="1544444710000" id="1072104938908508161"></div>



















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 <keyword id="42575" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arun-Jaitley">Arun Jaitley</keyword>: ‘Wish Dr. Patel all the very best’ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 Congress: ‘Another one bites the dust’ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 Subramanian Swamy: ‘It is a direct consequence of FM blaming him publicly yesterday for NPAs.’ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 AAP: ‘Demonetisation was just a move to benefit cronies.’ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 P. <keyword id="6362104" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="chidambaram">Chidambaram</keyword>: ‘Saddened, not surprised’ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/reserve-bank-of-india-governor-urjit-patel-resigns-citing-personal-reasons/articleshow/67026294.cms">Reserve Bank Of India Governor Urjit Patel Resigns Citing ‘Personal Reasons’</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/question-of-autonomy-as-the-indian-government-tries-to-strong-arm-the-countrys-central-bank-its-governor-threatens-to-resign/articleshow/66446649.cms">Question of autonomy — As the Indian government tries to strong arm the country’s central bank, its governor threatens to resign</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/after-weeks-of-tension-the-reserve-bank-of-india-gives-in-to-some-of-the-central-governments-demands-while-retaining-its-independence/articleshow/66705908.cms">After weeks of tension, the Reserve Bank of India gives in to some of the central government's demands while retaining its independence</a>

Twitter erupts with reactions on Urjit Patel’s resignation from the Reserve Bank of India

<ul><li>Hair stylist <keyword id="412368" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jawed-Habib">Jawed Habib</keyword> has joined the BJP in Delhi. </li><li>Habib joined the party and used the party’s current election slogan to say he’s now a “chowkidar.” </li></ul> Jawed Habib, a name synonymous with salons and hair styling in India, has now <a href="https://www.news18.com/news/politics/from-hair-chowkidar-to-countrys-chowkidar-jawed-habib-after-joining-bjp-2112787.html">joined</a> the Bharatiya Janata Party in the national capital Delhi. "I am happy to join the BJP as I have seen the changes brought in the country by Prime Minister Modi in the last five years. I think nobody should be ashamed of their background, when the prime minister is proud to state that he was a 'chaiwala' then why should I be ashamed of calling myself a 'nai' (barber),” Habib told the news agency, ANI, soon after his appointment. Calling himself a barber is a political statement, coming from 55-year old Habib. He studied French literature in Delhi and went on to build a salon empire in the country with outlets in over 24 states and 110 cities in India – a total of <a href="https://jawedhabib.co.in/company-profile/">846 </a>shops if those in Singapore and London are counted. On the other hand, being a barber in India allows at best a humble life for most. In India, the Nai community, whose members have traditionally been barbers, are members of the ‘Other Backward Class’. A striking history Jawed Habib’s political connections are way older than his candidature with the BJP. Habib’s grandfather used to work at the President’s office as a barber. He was also the official barber for Lord Mountbatten and Jawaharlal Nehru, the country’s first Prime Minister. His father, too, was the official stylist at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the President’s residence. Habib’s fame and success ensured that the family’s clout goes beyond its profession. Now, his political debut may enhance it further.

India’s most famous ‘barber’ with a striking family history joins team Modi

<ul><li>Over 290 have been killed as multiple explosions that targeted churches and hotels in the country’s capital, Colombo. </li><li>The US embassy has asked travellers to exercise extreme caution, while the UK has issued a travel advisory for <keyword id="7551301" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tourists-in-Sri-Lanka">tourists in Sri Lanka</keyword>.</li></ul>The US embassy in Colombo has asked travellers to follow instructions from local authorities and advised them saying “Please shelter in place and exercise extreme caution.” The United Kingdom, too, has issued a travel advisory for tourists travelling to <keyword id="6355572" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sri-lanka">Sri Lanka</keyword>. "There have been a number of explosions in Sri Lanka, including Colombo, on Sunday 21 April. Please follow the instructions of local security officials and follow travel advice for updates," the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, UK <a href="https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/uk-issues-travel-advisory-after-series-blasts-sri-lanka-easter-sunday-100424">said</a> while issuing a notice for people travelling to and from Sri Lanka. Over 290 have been killed as multiple explosions that targeted churches and hotels in the country’s capital, Colombo. Hundreds of worshipers gathered at the St. Anthony's Church in Kochchikade, Kotahena, St. Sebastian's Church in Katuwapitiya in Katana, and the Zion church in Batticaloa to commemorate Easter Sunday, at the time of the explosions. The other three blasts where reported at the Shangri-La, Cinnamon Grand and Kingsbury five-star hotels in Colombo. The Indian High Commission has issued helpline numbers for Indians stranded in Sri Lanka. Sushma Swaraj, Minister of External Affairs, Government of India, also tweeted “ I am in constant touch with Indian High Commissioner in Colombo. We are keeping a close watch on the situation.” 
 
 
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 The security at the Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport has also been increased with travellers being <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/travel/sri-lanka-extra-security-means-travellers-should-reach-colombo-airport-four-hours-before-flights-1.851690">told </a>to reach the airport at least four hours prior to departure time.

Find shelter and exercise extreme caution, says US’ travel advisory after multiple blasts in Colombo, Sri Lanka

<ul><li>Panaki Chandra Ghose was just appointed as the chairman of India’s first anti-corruption ombudsman or Lokpal. </li><li>The Lokpal will look into incidents of corruption within the Indian government. </li><li>But the scope of its investigation is limited since it’s not allowed to investigate cases related to foreign affairs, space and defence.</li></ul>India’s first chairman of the Lokpal or anti-corruption ombudsman, Pinaki Chandra Ghose, is going to have his hands full as he takes on his new role. He’s already served as a former Supreme Court judge and is currently a member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). Corruption has been a burgeoning topic in India — especially with Modi’s recent #chowkidar campaign on Twitter — but there’s little to suggest to actual on-ground improvement. According to Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI), India’s score only improved by one point between 2017 and 2018. In fact, the global watchdog pegs India as one of the worst <a href="https://www.transparency.org/cpi2018">offenders</a> in the Asia-Pacific region. It’s <a href="https://www.prsindia.org/media/articles-by-prs-team/lokpal-act-3095">unclear</a> whether the Lokpal will be looking into petty corruption or big-ticket corruption as its primary mandate. Deterring the problem from both ends is important in a country like India where, on the one hand, more than 62% of Indians have paid off a public official for a job and, on the other hand, you have the big-ticket scams like the allocation of funds during the Commonwealth Games in 2010. To probe or not to probe? While finally having a Lokpal in place might be good for the general public, one of sectors most vulnerable to corruption — is aerospace and defense and one that the ombudsman can’t touch. According to an Ernst and Young report, aerospace and defence is perceived to be the third most vulnerable sector to corruption. This means that incidents like the Rafale Deal or the BOFORS case — some of the most contentious armed deals in the country — won’t come under the Lokpal’s purview. But, on the other hand, the 2G spectrum case or ‘Coalgate’ — where the allocation of resources came into question — would be incidents that the Lokpal would look into. One of the more recent corruption allegations were actually within India’s Central Bureau of Investigation where Alok Verma, the CBI director and his deputy, Rakesh Asthana both accused the other of being corrupt. Both were, subsequently, asked to resign from their posts at the bureau. The investigation is still pending and several other senior officers have also been put on ‘indefinite leave’ until the matter is sorted. And corruption isn’t limited to India’s borders either. According to the ‘Export Corruption Report’ by Transparency International, India among four countries that has ‘little or no enforcement’ in place to check against against foreign bribery. But, then again, the Lokpal is restricted from looking into incidents of corruption when it comes to foreign affairs. India already has the Central Vigilance Commission to address governmental corruption but even though it’s an autonomous body, it’s not an investigative agency. And, the Prevention of Corruption Act is which aimed at combating corruption in the government has largely been misused due to Section 13(1)d, which allowed honest officials to be prosecuted serving as deterrent to bold decision making.

Here’s what India’s first anti-corruption ombudsman is up against

Introduced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the health insurance scheme with a grand vision is named as <keyword id="6199405" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ayushman-bharat">Ayushman Bharat</keyword> providing the subscribers a medical expenses cover of up to Rs 5 lakh. Here is what you must know about the scheme and the eligibility criteria that will help you benefit from the scheme. Called by other names such as the National Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPM) or Modicare, this government-sponsored health insurance scheme offers free coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year for medical care availed of at any government hospital or an empanelled medical care facility in India. The scheme is meant only for poor families and the economically deprived segments of the society. The scheme aims to cover about 10.74 crore beneficiary families and around 50 crore Indian citizens. Key aspects of <keyword id="6199968" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ayushman-Bharat-scheme">Ayushman Bharat scheme</keyword> The medical insurance cover will provide a maximum of about Rs 5 lakhs per family per year on secondary as well as tertiary medical care availed of from medical facilities. Eligibility is strictly based on the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) database and those that are eligible will be covered by the program automatically without having to register for it. If a person from an eligible family is hospitalized, the family need not spend on the treatment when they visit a government or an empanelled private hospital for treatment. The policy covers all kinds of diseases and the benefit offers coverage both for pre and post hospitalization expenses. Unlike other kinds of medical insurance schemes, there is no waiting period for pre-existing ailments. Though Aadhaar card is not a mandated requirement for availing of the medical care under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, the beneficiaries will have to produce a prescribed ID at the hospital to receive free treatment. Eligibility criteria for Ayushman Bharat scheme in rural areas 1. Families inhabiting a single room or a domicile with “kuchcha walls and kuchcha roof" 2. Families in which there is no adult member in the age group 16 and 59 3. Family headed by a female with no adult male member belonging to the 16-59 age group 4. Families in which there is at least one disabled member and no able-bodied adult member 5. SC/ST households 6. Landless households making a majority of their earnings from manual casual labour 7. Extremely poor and those individuals surviving on alms 8. Families of manual scavengers 9. Families belonging to primitive tribal groups Eligibility criteria for Ayushman Bharat scheme in urban areas As per the guidelines issues as part of the Ayushman Bharat scheme, the following 11 occupational categories of workers are included in the list automatically. 1. <keyword id="6470258" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Domestic-worker">Domestic worker</keyword> 2. Street vendor, cobbler, hawker, and other service providers working on the streets 3. Construction worker, plumber, mason, labour, painter, welder, security guard, coolie and other head-load workers 4. Sweeper, sanitation worker, and gardener 8. Home-based worker, artisan, handicrafts worker, and tailor 9. Transport worker, driver, conductor, helper to drivers and conductors, cart puller, and rickshaw puller 10. Shop worker, assistant, peon in small establishment, helper, delivery assistant, attendant, and waiter 11. Electrician, mechanic, assembler, and repair worker 12. Washer-man, and chowkidar 13. Homeless people

What is Prime Minister health insurance scheme?

<ul><ul class="summary-list "><li>At least 207 people are dead and 450 others have been injured after a series of explosions hit churches and hotels in <keyword id="6355572" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sri-lanka">Sri Lanka</keyword>.</li><li>The churches were bombed as worshippers attended Easter Sunday service.</li><li>The hotels targeted are among the most luxurious in Sri Lanka's capital. 35 foreigners have been killed, <a href="https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/blasts-sri-lanka-hotels-and-churches-kill-156-doc-1ft48d4">AFP cited hospital sources as saying</a>. Eight explosions in various locations have now been reported. </li></ul></ul>At least 207 people were killed in a series of blasts on Easter Sunday Blasts in Sri Lanka, targeting three churches and three hotels. As of 1 pm, more than 400 people were wounded and hospitalized, reported Reuters. 
 
 
 
 
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 AFP news agency quoting Sri Lankan Police said the toll in <keyword id="7550956" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sri-lanka-blasts">Sri Lanka blasts</keyword> had risen to 156, including 35 foreigners. The blasts took place at three churches located at Kochchikade, Negombo and Batticaloa. The three hotels that were targeted are located in Colombo, and include Shangri La Colombo, Cinnamon Grand Colombo, and Kingsbury Hotel, according to media reports. The Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has urged the people to remain strong and united in the tragic time. The Prime Minister is reportedly going to conduct a national security council meeting at his house. 
 
 
 
 
 
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 Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, in a special message read out on local news channels, has requested the people to remain calm and help the authorities in the investigation. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has condemned the attack and said the country stands in solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 Indian President Ram Nath Kovind also condemned the attack. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 St. Sebastian’s church, which was among the target, posted pictures showing destructions and bloodshed after the blast on its Facebook Page and urged people to help. The post read “A bomb attack to our church please come and help if your family members are there” No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks. Several peace messages "Pray For Sri Lanka" were trending on social media. Messages and prayers also poured in from celebrities. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 Former Sri Lankan captain of the cricket team, <keyword id="79577" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Angelo-Mathews">Angelo Mathews</keyword> in a recent tweet has requested people to not to believe in rumors. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 A travel advisory had been issued by the US embassy in Colombo advising citizens to follow local security instructions and “exercise extreme caution.” External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said on Sunday that she was in touch with the Indian High Commissioner in Colombo as six explosions hit churches and hotels in Sri Lanka, killing at least 20 people. "Colombo - I am in constant touch with Indian High Commissioner in Colombo. We are keeping a close watch on the situation," the Minister said in a tweet. 
	
	
	
	
	
	
	<div type="twitter" handle="golrizghahraman" handlename="Golriz Ghahraman" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1035120828780707840/PRgmSRXp_normal.jpg" favoritecount="121" retweetcount="22" status="Devastated for Sri Lanka, especially the targeted Christian community. In a nation who has seen so much violence an… https://t.co/a3297hWuYK" createdat="1555826450000" id="1119843413006774272"></div>
















	
	
	
	
	
	
	<div type="twitter" handle="AJEnglish" handlename="Al Jazeera English" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/875638617606987776/YBOKib96_normal.jpg" favoritecount="595" retweetcount="614" status="BREAKING: Multiple blasts hit Sri Lanka churches and hotels on Easter Sunday https://t.co/3Xn6pRk0kU https://t.co/FHAHmOUr4N" createdat="1555824930000" id="1119837039392899073"></div>















 Helpline numbers for Indian citizens in need of assistance or who seek clarification are: +94777903082, +94112422788, +94112422789, +94777902082 and +94772234176. With IANS

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