The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh being greeted by Shri L.K. Advani, the former Vice President, Shri Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and the former Prime Minister, Shri I.K. Gujral, at a Swearing-in Ceremony, at Rashtrapati Bhavan

Mr Singh is taking charge for a second time, only the second PM after Jawaharlal Nehru to be returned to power following a full five-year term. The Congress party won a decisive mandate in the recent polls and Mr Singh has emerged politically stronger. Congress has made tackling the effects of the global economic crisis and ensuring growth its key priorities. When votes were counted last weekend after India's marathon five-phase general election, Congress and its allies had 262 seats in parliament, compared to the BJP-led alliance's 158. The President of India has appointed Dr. Manmohan Singh as the Prime Minister of India. Further, as advised by the Prime Minister, has appointed the Council of Ministers:.

They trudged through sand dunes in the searing heat, climbed icy peaks and crossed treacherous waters to reach that one goal — a polling station. From mountainous Lahaul and Spiti in the north to Lakshadweep islands in the south, officials and voters ensured that the great Indian election of 2009 was truly remarkable.

The polling officials got there and then the voters, in the world’s greatest democratic exercise that started April 16 and ended May 13, with most of the electorate of 714 million voting for a new Lok Sabha. More than 700 parties vied for power in an exercise conducted through 1.36 million electronic voting machines (EVM) in 828,000 polling stations spread across 28 states and seven union territories. Around 1.2 million security personnel were on hand to ensure that the five-phase election went off peacefully. More on Page 2

Statement by External Affairs Minister Shri S.M. Krishna on assumption of office

II am deeply honoured to assume charge of the high office of the Minister of External Affairs. We are at a moment in history when the world situation is rapidly changing and India, as a responsible power, must engage actively with the world. I am deeply conscious of the opportunities available to us and the difficulties that we face as we continue to pursue our independent foreign policy of peace and development, and strengthen our strategic autonomy.

In the coming years under the stewardship of PM Shri Manmohan Singh, it will be my endeavour to further advance our interest in the international arena. Our primary objective is to sustain high rates of economic growth in the range of 9 to 10% during the coming decades. For that, we require peace and tranquility in our extended neighbourhood and a supportive international environment. I accord highest priority to strengthen our political, economic and cultural relations with our neighbours and look forward to visiting them soon.

To strengthen our policy and developmental options we will consolidate further our existing strategic partnership with major powers like USA, Russia, China, Japan and EU. Our strong and traditional ties with countries in Africa, West Asia and Latin America will be furthered and our Look East Policy strengthened. I look forward to these  challenging task in the pursuit of India's non-aligned foreign policy.

President Obama Congratulates PM

United States President Mr. Barack Obama called Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh today to congratulate him on being sworn in as Prime Minister for a second term. President Obama said that the verdict was a welcome endorsement of the policies pursued by the previous government. The two leaders discussed cooperation between the two countries in various sectors while stressing the importance of strengthening the Indo- US partnership.