Martin Luther King had a dream. Nitin Gadkari had a dream. King's dream remains a dream. Gadkari's dream is realised.
Martin Luther King tried to shake America to wake up to the reality and see that all men are born equal.
Gadkari tried to shake India to wake up to the reality and see that all petrol have ethanol.
King climbed to the mountaintop. Gadkari climbed to the distillery.
And lo, the dream is law. Our cars sip neat ethanol or 20 percent v/v, which is the chemistry teacher's polite word for sharaab.
A nation that lectures its sons about drink and drive has cars that drink so the son can drive. Stone cold sober driver. Gloriously sloshed engine.
We were promised the farmer would rise from annadata to urjadata. Nobody warned us the Wagon R would slide from petrol to peg. Fill her up, and the hatchback hiccups awake, humming, happy, faintly hungover.
Critics carp about mileage. Small minds. So what if the car covers less ground. It covers it in higher spirits. You are not losing kilometres. You are gaining a designated driver, and he is the chassis.
They laughed at the dream, Gadkari reminded us. They are not laughing now. They are at the petrol pump, which is no longer a pump but a theka, wondering whether to refuel the bike or befriend it.
King asked that men be judged by the content of their character. Gadkari asks that cars be judged by the content of their alcohol.
The dream is realised.
Bottoms up, Bharat.
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics.
this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
In the view of US strikes on commercial shipping killing 3 Indians, and the failure of the US to even express regret, India should call off this meeting between @narendramodi and Trump at the G7.
“This is the dead body of our second officer. He died two days ago and his body is decomposing. We reached out to the Indian Embassy but haven’t got a positive response. Our company is hiding from us,” says Indian captain of MT Celestial anchored in Oman
A US Navy F/A-18 crashed near Rimrock Lake, pilot ejected and walked out with medics according to reports. This is along the famous VR-1355 low level route in Washington State.
🎥509Media
Marco Rubio’s remarks widely criticised in India as Delhi-Washington DC ties face worst phase in decades in the aftermath of US attacks on vessels off Oman coast that killed 3 Indian sailors.
#WATCH | Nagpur, Maharashtra: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari says, “Last night at 8 PM, I signed the file, finalising the regulations to legally authorise the use of 100% ethanol. I am delighted to share that I, along with Hardeep Singh Puri, had the opportunity to launch the 100% ethanol-compatible version of the WagonR—Maruti Suzuki’s best-selling car. Regarding motorcycles, Hero MotoCorp—which accounts for three out of every five motorcycles sold—has launched two flex-fuel models capable of running on 100% ethanol. Following this, companies like Toyota, Suzuki, MG, and Hyundai will launch 100% ethanol-compatible vehicles within the next month and a half. Thus, ethanol will serve as a viable alternative to petrol. People used to laugh when I spoke of this dream, and some friends even criticised it...Soon, we will launch a pilot project in Nagpur featuring a hydrogen pump and two hydrogen-powered buses. The public will be able to ride these hydrogen buses, which will be powered by green hydrogen extracted from water using an electrolyser. That day is now near.”
Deeply shocking to read this official US statement, which contains absolutely no expression of regret or condolence for the loss of innocent Indian lives. How can a “friend” and strategic partner be so deeply insensitive?
Why couldn’t a non-compliant commercial vessel have been stopped using other, non-lethal means? Is it not possible to disable a ship's propulsion or steering without firing missiles targeted to kill civilian crew members?
Practically every merchant ship navigating these crucial waters has Indian crew on board. Are they all considered fair game for US missiles now?
This approach is unacceptable and I hope @DrSJaishankar had said so to @marcorubio.
Yet another #AN32 crash. Replacement of aging fleet planned since mid-2000s could see movement soon
In 2009, India decided to go in for upgrade of AN32, a process that has not been completed even now because of Russia-Ukraine conflict
https://t.co/qsVKTwL3J7
BREAKING: America refuses to apologise for U.S. Navy strikes that killed 3 Indian sailors
“The Secretary stressed that all commercial vessels should immediately comply with orders from U.S. forces..Violations of the U.S. blockade and illicit transport of Iranian oil with not be tolerated”
The Indian Air Force deeply regrets the loss of five personnel in the An-32 accident at Jorhat, Assam.
Sqn Ldr Prashant Singh, Flt Lt Shubham Kumar, Sgt Jitendra Sharma, Agniveervayu Khemaram Kumawat and Agniveervayu Danish Alam made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty.
IAF extends its deepest condolences to the bereaved families and stands firmly with them in this hour of grief.
@DefenceMinIndia@SpokespersonMoD@HQ_IDS_India@adgpi@IndiannavyMedia@indiannavy
#WATCH | Kolkata | Over his comments on Abhishek Banerjee, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee says, "He is like my son. It is the work of the father to forgive all faults made by a son. Democracy is under threat in the country. West Bengal never faced a situation where the opposition was wiped out. This CM is vindictive. This is danger for democracy."