Modi chairs 1st in-person Cabinet meet in over a year

With the Monsoon session of Parliament round the corner, the first in-person meeting of the Union Cabinet was held at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's official residence on Wednesday.

The Union Cabinet held its first physical meeting in over a year on Wednesday. Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held the first meeting with the Council of Ministers virtually after the Union Cabinet reshuffle on July 7.

A day after the expansion of the Union Cabinet, the PM had back-to-back meetings with the union cabinet and council of ministers on Thursday.

In the meeting, sources had said that PM had cautioned ministers against any complacency in the fight against COVID-19, saying that over the past few days there have been pictures and videos of crowded places and people roaming about without masks or social distancing and "it should instill a sense of fear in us".

The sources said that Modi noted that people not following COVID-19 protocols was not a "pleasant sight".

Wednesday’s meeting comes two days after the Cabinet Committees were reconstituted by the Central Government on Monday.

Ministers including Bhupender Yadav, Sarbananda Sonowal, Mansukh Mandaviya, Giriraj Singh and Smiriti Irani were named in the all-important Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs.

The Monsoon session of Parliament is set to commence from July 19 and will conclude on August 13.