Joe Biden: From being one of the youngest senators to oldest US president
Washington: Third time lucky is an apt phrase to describe the remarkable rise of Joe Biden, a veteran in US politics for around five decades, from being one of the youngest senators in history to the oldest American president.
The 77-year-old six-term Democratic senator, who triumphed over incumbent Republican President Donald Trump in Tuesday's presidential election, ran twice unsuccessfully for president - in 1988 and 2008.
The presidential dreams that the veteran leader from Delaware had harbored since childhood seemed all but over for a third time until he won South Carolina's Democratic Party primary on February 29, forcing most rivals out of the race and making one of the most dramatic comebacks in American political history.
Biden, a familiar face to many Americans who has spent five decades in Washington and served two terms in the White House as former president Barack Obama's vice president, capitalized on that experience to portray himself as a tested leader and a better alternative to Republican incumbent President Donald Trump.
While accepting the Democratic presidential nomination in August, Biden pledged to restore the soul of America, and be an ally of the light, not the darkness.
The current president has cloaked America in darkness for much too long. Too much anger. Too much fear. Too much division. If you entrust me with the presidency, I will draw on the best of us, not the worst. I will be an ally of the light, not of the darkness, he said.
Biden defeated 74-year-old Trump in the bitterly fought presidential election, becoming the oldest person ever to occupy the White House.
He has a strong track record of being an ardent advocate of a strong India-US relationship both as a Senator from Delaware for over three decades and then as deputy of President Obama for eight years.
From playing a key role in the passage of the India-US civil nuclear deal during a Republican administration to setting up the goal of a USD 500 billion in bilateral trade, Biden has strong ties with the Indian leadership across the aisle and has a large number of Indian-Americans within his close circuit.
At a fundraiser in July, Biden had said that India and the United States were natural partners. "That partnership, a strategic partnership, is necessary and important in our security," he said when asked whether India is critical to the US' national security.
Referring to his eight years as the vice president, Biden said that he was proud to have played a role in securing Congressional approval for the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement, which he said was a "big deal".
"Helping open the door to great progress in our relationship and strengthening our strategic partnership with India was a high priority in the Obama-Biden administration and will be a high priority if I'm elected president," Biden had said.
Born in Pennsylvania in 1942 to a Catholic family, Joe Robinette Biden Jr studied at the University of Delaware and then earned a law degree from Syracuse University in 1968.
He was first elected in 1972 and served six terms as a senator for the state of Delaware.
Aged 29, he was one of the youngest people ever elected to the US Senate, and his age at his first election contributed to him being consistently ranked as one of the least wealthy members in the Senate.
Biden unsuccessfully sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988 and 2008 before finally securing his party's backing this year with strong support among Black voters.
Known for blunt talk, Biden speaks openly about his family's tragedies including the 1972 car crash that killed his first wife Neilia, and their 13-month-old daughter Naomi, while his sons Beau and Hunter were critically injured in the accident.
Biden met his second wife Jill Jacobs in 1975, and they married in June 1977. They had a daughter, Ashley, in 1981.
In 2015, Beau, an Iraq war veteran who had served as Delaware's attorney general, died of a brain tumor aged 46. Biden's son Hunter struggled with drug issues as an adult.
Biden himself had a health scare in 1988 when he suffered two brain aneurysms. He has referred to his personal losses on the campaign trail and declared: Healthcare is personal to me.
In October, Biden pointed to his son's terminal diagnosis and said: I can't fathom what would have happened if the insurance companies had the power to say last few months, you're on your own.
He secured the Democratic nomination when his last competitor Senator Bernie Sanders dropped out in April 2020.
Biden faced allegations from former staffer Tara Reade in 2019, who said she felt uncomfortable with Biden during her time in his Senate office in the 90s.
In March 2020, she also accused him of sexual assault in 1993. Biden and his campaign team have strongly denied the allegation.
During his tenure, Biden voiced support for LGBT rights, calling himself absolutely comfortable with the idea of same-sex marriage.
He also led the Gun Violence Task Force in the wake of the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in 2012.
His loyalty to the first African American President was rewarded with the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction, presented by Obama days before he left office in 2017.
Obama officially endorsed Biden in April. He has praised him, saying, "Biden is my brother. I love Joe Biden. And he will be a great president and he treats everyone with dignity and with respect".
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4 children test HIV positive in MP govt hospital; contaminated blood transfusion suspected
Satna/Bhopal (PTI): Four children suffering from thalassemia have tested HIV positive at Satna District Hospital in Madhya Pradesh allegedly due to contaminated blood transfusions, officials said on Tuesday.
The case is four months old and an investigation is underway into it, an official said.
Officials suspect the use of contaminated needles or blood transfusions for the spread of infection to the children.
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MP Health Minister Rajendra Shukla told reporters in Bhopal that he has ordered a probe into the matter and sought a report.
“It is also being investigated whether the blood transfusion took place in other hospitals also or only in the government hospital,” he said.
The affected children, aged between 12 and 15 years, received blood transfusions from the hospital's blood bank, as per an official.
Devendra Patel, in-charge of the blood bank at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel District Hospital in Satna, said four children have tested HIV positive and an investigation is underway to determine how they got infected.
"Either an infected needle was used or a blood transfusion occurred. These are the two main reasons I believe. Blood transfusion seems to be the most likely cause," he told PTI Videos.
All these children suffer from thalassemia, and some have received 80 or 100 blood transfusions, he said.
A family member of one of the affected children said that their child was found to be HIV positive during a routine checkup about four months back, and he has been receiving medication, but it had proven to be of no use.
After taking the medication for HIV, the child starts vomiting, feels low and becomes ill, he said.
After the four children were detected with HIV infection, their family members were also tested and the results came out negative, he added.
The Opposition Congress targeted the government over the matter and demanded the resignation of Health Minister Shukla.
Speaking to reporters in Bhopal, Congress MLA and former minister Sachin Yadav claimed such incidents were continuously occurring in Madhya Pradesh.
Earlier, a case of toxic cough syrup came to light in Chhindwara, followed by incidents of rat bites at hospitals in Indore and Satna, and now children have been given HIV-infected blood, he said.
"The health minister is unable to manage the department. He should resign. A murder case should be filed against those responsible for the Satna incident," Yadav said.
Senior Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma termed it a failure of the government. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's government has no connection with ground realities, he charged.
"Somewhere rats are roaming in hospitals, somewhere children are being given HIV-infected blood. Instead of preventing HIV, you are spreading it. Mohan Yadav should wake up from his slumber. Children are the nation's heritage and should be taken care of," he added.
