FirstUp: Modi’s 3-state visit, elections to 4 Rajya Sabha seats… The headlines of the day

It’s the last day of the week and there’s a whole lot of headline-generating events waiting to happen.From Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s three-state visit to elections being held for four Rajya Sabha seats, here’s a guide to all the big events that will take place today, on 19 January.PM Modi to visit Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, KarnatakaPrime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on 19 January and launch multiple development projects in the three different states.According to an official release, PM Modi will visit Maharashtra around 10.45 am and inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of a few projects in Solapur. From Maharashtra, he will travel to Bengaluru in Karnataka.In Bengaluru, PM Modi will inaugurate the new state-of-the-art Boeing India Engineering & Technology Center (BIETC) campus at Aerospace Park in Devanahalli, near Kempegowda International Airport. Built with an investment of Rs 1,600 crore, the 43-acre campus is Boeing’s largest such investment outside the US.In the evening, around 6 pm, the PM will participate in the opening ceremony of Khelo India Youth Games 2023 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.Elections to 4 Rajya Sabha seatsElections to four Rajya Sabha seats — three from Delhi and one from Sikkim — will be held on 19 January. The six-year term of Sanjay Singh, Sushil Kumar Gupta and Narain Dass Gupta (all from the Aam Aadmi Party) ends on 27 January.The term of Hishey Lachungpa (Sikkim Democratic Front) ends on 23 February.As per established practice, the polling will take place from 9 am to 4 pm and the counting of votes will commence from 5 pm.[caption id="attachment_13629102" align="alignnone" width="640"]

Ahead of the pran pratishtha ceremony on 22 January, a helicopter service between Lucknow and Ayodhya will begin today. Fancy a ride? File image/PTI[/caption]Helicopter services from Lucknow to Ayodhya to commenceAhead of the Pran Pratishtha programme on 22 January, helicopter services from Lucknow to Ayodhya will commence today.According to the Ayodhya Information Department, a total of six helicopters have been arranged from Lucknow to Ayodhya out of which three helicopters will be flown from Ayodhya and three helicopters from Lucknow."The service will start from 19 January from Ramabai Maidan in Lucknow. These helicopters will have the capacity to carry eight to 18 passengers and the devotees will have to pre-book the helicopter ride," a statement issued by the Department said.Amit Shah to chair NEC plenary in Shillong Union Home Minister Amit Shah will visit Shillong to chair the North Eastern Council plenary on 19 January. Shah is also the chairman of the Council.Governors and chief ministers of all eight northeast states are likely to attend the plenary. The minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) G Kishan Reddy and his deputy BL Verma are also scheduled to be present there, an NEC spokesperson was quoted as telling news agency PTI.The NEC consists of eight states of the region – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.Non-Aligned Movement summit in UgandaExternal Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will lead the Indian delegation at the 19th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to be held in Kampala, Uganda on 19-20 January.The 19th NAM Summit under the leadership of Uganda is being held under the theme ‘Deepening Cooperation for Shared Global Affluence’ and brings together more than 120 developing countries on a platform of crucial historic significance.On the sidelines of the NAM Summit, Jaishankar is expected to meet with the Ugandan leadership and counterparts from NAM member states.