A new report on allocation of coal blocks by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India s set to be tabled in parliament.

The report was expected to be tabled on Thursday but it might be postponed as both houses of the parliament are likely to be adjourned as a mark of respect to Union minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who passed away on 15 August.

New Delhi, Aug 25 : Minister of Science and Technology Vilasrao Deshmukh has delivered a letter on behalf of all political parties and parliament to Anna Hazare, urging him to end his 10-day fast, informed sources said.

Deshmukh met the fasting Hazare once and was likely to meet him again, the sources added.

Government sources said they hoped that Deshmukh, who has known Hazare for a long time, would be able to communicate frankly with Hazare. "They have shared a good rapport for decades," an official told IANS.(IANS)

Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said today that it is not compulsory for the PSUs to spend money in sporting events. He also said that sponsorship in commonwealth games is voluntary on the part of PSUs and they should take their own decision. He passes this statement just one day after when PSUs were asked to hold back their sponsorship money for commonwealth games.

However most of the corporate companies have left suddenly in alarm from the games, leaving only one option left for PSUs to jump to the crisis-ridden organizing committee of the Commonwealth games.

Mumbai, Dec 21 : Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh today said no action has been taken against officers responsible for the 26/11 terror attack lapses.

Just hours before the findings of the Ram Pradhan Committee that probed the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks was to be tabled in the Maharashtra Assembly, Deshmukh said that ministers took moral responsibility for the attacks and had resigned, but no action has been taken against officers.

Bhopal, Nov 17 : Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh Tuesday dedicated to the nation a state-of-the-art transformer manufacturing facility here.

The facility, set up by Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), is part of its programme to expand its power generation capacity to 15,000 MW per annum.

"With this, the total installed transformer manufacturing capacity at BHEL's Bhopal unit will go up to 30,000 MVA per annum," Deshmukh told reporters.

With Ashok Chavan now firmly in the saddle, the questions doing the rounds in political circles in the state is: What lies ahead for Vilasrao Deshmukh and Narayan Rane?

A lot is at stake for the two Congress leaders who reportedly did everything they could to prevent Chavan from becoming chief minister again.

Chavan’s second term is not good news for Deshmukh, the maverick Maratha leader who has dominated the Congress in Maharashtra for a decade.

New Delhi, Oct 23 : Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on Friday said that he is not a contender for the Chief Minister’s post in Maharashtra.

Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi here, Deshmukh said he would leave the decision to the party high command.

Deshmukh, who headed the State Government twice earlier, is claiming the support of 50 MLAs. It was also noted that it was Deshmukh who played a major role in the distribution of tickets.

Political circle, however, feel that it would not be easy for the Congress leadership to consider Deshmukh as he has only recently won the Lok Sabha elections and been inducted into the Union Cabinet.

New Delhi, Oct 22 - Senior Congress leader and central minister Vilasrao Deshmukh Thursday refused to give credit to Chief Minister Ashok Chavan for the win in the assembly elections by the Congress-Nationalist Congres Party (NCP) combine.

Chavan "hardly got six months" to govern the state, Deshmukh told NDTV.

The former Maharashtra chief minister, however, said Chavan did well on the foundation that was built during Deshmukh's four-year tenure as chief minister of the state.

Babhalgaon Village/Mumbai, Oct 13 : Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh cast his vote with family members here on Tuesday.

Vilasrao''s son Amit Deshmukh is contesting from Latur on Congress-NCP ticket. Confident Vilasrao said the ruling alliance would easily come to power, as there is no anti-incumbency factor.

"I feel that people are in favour of the ruling alliance (Congress-Nationalist Party Alliance) and don''t see any negative or anti-incumbency factor," Vilasrao said after casting his vote.

New Delhi, Sep 12 : Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said that the decision on alliance with Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly polls would be taken by Sunday.

Speaking to the media after a meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Deshmukh said the party will take a decision on the continuation of alliance by Sunday.

Mumbai. June 9 : Former Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on Tuesday said the Congress Party should go alone in the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly polls.

The above statement came after NCP MP Padamsinh Patil was arrested by the CBI in the case of the murder of Congress leader Pawanraje Nimbalkar.

Patil''s arrest has also increased pressure on NCP leader Sharad Pawar.

Mumbai, May 17 : Triumphed with his party's success in the Lok Sabha elections, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on Sunday said that he wants the Congress party to go alone in the upcoming assembly polls.

"We want to contest assembly elections in Maharashtra without aligning with any other party. We will put up a proposal before the Congress high command to go alone in Maharashtra assembly elections," he told reporters here.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who last month completed four years of his second term in the office, resigned on Thursday.

"I have accepted moral responsibility for Mumbai terror attacks. In a democracy one has to honour people's anguish and anger," he said after submitting his resignation.

The 63-year-old Deshmukh drove to Raj Bhawan and submitted his resignation to Governor S C Jamir, soon after he addressed a press conference.

New Delhi - The chief minister of India's Maharashtra state resigned Thursday, accepting moral responsibility for the Mumbai terror attacks.

"In a democracy one has to honour people's anguish and anger," PTI news agency quoted Vilasrao Deshmukh as saying at a press briefing in Mumbai.

Deshmukh's resignation comes a week after terrorists wrought mayhem in India's financial hub - which is also the capital of Maharashtra state - killing 171 people and injuring over 300.

Opposition parties in Maharashtra have welcomed the exit of Vilasrao Deshmukh as Chief Minister.

They have alleged that he was a non-performer.

"Deshmukh was non-serious and he was also a non-performer. We are not sad to see him go because of the way he handled Mumbai terror attacks," BJP state unit president Nitin Gadkari said.

"Deshmukh's resignation won't do as the entire government had "failed" on all fronts and needed to be dismissed," said Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly and senior Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam.

Mumbai, Dec 4: Senior Congress leaders Pranab Mukherjee and A K Antony will leave for Mumbai today to decide on the new Maharashtra Chief Minister.

The decision is taking place after the Congress party accepted the resignation of Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh late on Wednesday night.

Antony, who looks after party affairs in Maharashtra, has said that Deshmukh has been asked to step down following last week''s terrorist attack in Mumbai.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh will meet Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday evening in the wake of his offer of resignation following the Mumbai terror attacks.

Deshmukh will leave for Delhi after meeting President Prativa Patil, who is currently in Mumbai.

Deshmukh will hold talks with Congress President Sonia Gandhi as well as senior leaders including A K Antony, who is in-charge of party affairs of Maharashtra and also Gandhi's political secretary Ahmed Patel.

The discussions on the issue of successor to Deshmukh have gained momentum after these developments.

R R Patil, who submitted his resignation as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Home portfolio on Monday. As a consequence of this event the Nationalist Congress Party called an emergency meeting of its legislature assembly members on Tuesday to decide his successor.

Maharashtra Chief Minister, Vilasrao Deshmukh, is also expected to resign on Tuesday afternoon after the President leaves for Delhi. "I had already offered to resign at the CWC meeting. It is now for Sonia Gandhi to take a final call," said Deshmukh on Monday.

New Delhi/Mumbai, Dec. 3: Even as the Congress party remains undecided about who will take over the reins of power in Maharashtra in the wake of incumbent Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh submitting his resignation twice to party president Sonia Gandhi, factions within the Congress have started lobbying for their respective candidates.

The Congress has for the time being deferred its decision on the Maharashtra leadership issue, as it is still trying to recover from the public backlash on its ineffectiveness in preventing last week''s terror attack in Mumbai.

New Delhi, Dec 2 : Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh held talks with Congress President Sonia Gandhi and other senior leaders here this evening at her residence following the Mumbai terror attacks.

Senior party leaders Pranab Mukehrjee, Ahamed Patel and A. K. Antony who is also in-charge of Maharashtra attended the meeting.

The meeting comes in the wake of Deshmukh''s offer of resignation following Mumbai terror attacks.

Deshmukh is under pressure from the opposition to resign after last week''s terror attacks.