Page 24 - Central Government

Why was Brij Bhushan's aide allowed to contest: Opposition on WFI row

Opposition leaders on Sunday said the government's decision to suspend the newly-elected WFI was not enough to give justice to protesting wrestlers and questioned why a loyalist of former WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh was allowed to contest the election to the sports body in the first place. The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) elections were held on December 21 with Sanjay Singh and his panel winning the polls by big margins. The sports ministry on Sunday suspended the WFI till further notice after the wrestling body made a "hasty announcement" of organising the U-15 and U-20 nationals "without following due procedure and not giving sufficient notice to wrestlers" for preparations. "By suspending the committee if BJP-led ministry thinks they are absolving themselves from not helping the women wrestlers, they are mistaken," Sharad Pawar-led NCP's national spokesperson Clyde Crasto said on X. He said the ministry's actions were a "farce". "Medal surrendered by Shakshi

PMO takes stock of relief, rehabilitation efforts in flood-hit Tamil Nadu

The Prime Minister's Office on Sunday held a high-level meeting to take stock of the post-flood situation in Tamil Nadu and deliberated on various measures to support the state. PMO officials have interacted with Tamil Nadu government functionaries to discuss relief and rehabilitation measures in the state, official sources said. The deployment of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) as well and help from armed forces, including helicopters, in case of need was also discussed, they added. A visit of an inter-ministerial central team to assess the damage was also discussed in the meeting. Intense rains and heavy inundation, unseen in the recent times, have hit parts of the southern state. Chief Minister M K Stalin had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss relief initiatives.

Citizens, tourism industry need not panic: Union minister on Covid spike

Union Minister of State for Tourism Shripad Naik on Sunday said citizens and the tourism industry need not worry about the latest wave of COVID-19, as the country has fought the disease in the past. The minister was speaking at the 'Sagar Manthan 2.0' event organised by the weekly magazine 'Panchjanya' in South Goa. Asked if the country will witness another lockdown in case of an outbreak, Naik said, "There is no need to panic. We can fight it even if it occurs again. We have fought it in the past. According to the Union Health Ministry's updated data on Sunday, the country saw a single-day rise of 656 COVID-19 infections while the active cases have increased to 3,742. India reported 22 cases of the JN.1 Covid variant till December 21, of which 21 were traced in Goa and one in Kerala. Naik said the Indian economy bounced back after the COVID-19 pandemic because of the progressive policies of the Central government. The Centre's policies have helped the tourism sector to go beyond

Centre asks state-run banks to review top 20 insolvency cases monthly

The government has asked for reviews of insolvency cases as there are delays in admission of cases in insolvency courts

Traded bond outstanding rises to $2.47 trn in July-Sept quarter: Report

The country's total debt, or the total outstanding bonds which are being traded in the market, rose to USD 2.47 trillion (Rs 205 lakh crore) in the September quarter, according to a report. The total debt amount in the March quarter of the previous fiscal was USD 2.34 trillion (Rs 200 lakh crore). The central government's debt stood at USD 1.34 trillion, or Rs 161.1 lakh crore, in the September quarter, up from USD 1.06 trillion, or Rs 150.4 lakh crore, in the March quarter, Vishal Goenka, Co-Founder of Indiabonds.com, said, quoting data provided by the Reserve bank of India. Indiabonds.com, which was launched in 2021, is a Sebi-registered online bond platform that provides investing solutions. The report is a collation of data from the RBI, Clearing Corporation of India, and the Securities and Exchange Board of India. At Rs 161.1 lakh crore, the central government's debt constitutes the highest 46.04 per cent share of the total amount. State governments' debt share was 24.4 per

Forex reserves jump by $9.11 bn to $615.97 bn for week ending Dec 15: RBI

In October 2021, the country's forex kitty reached an all-time high of $645 billion. The reserves took a hit as the central bank deployed the kitty to defend the rupee

Modi to chair third national conference of chief secretaries from Dec 27-29

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the 'third national conference of chief secretaries' in the national capital next week, a senior government official said on Friday. The third national conference of chief secretaries will be held in Delhi from December 27-29 and it will be a significant step towards further strengthening the partnership between the Centre and state governments, the official told PTI. Several officials, including young district collectors and magistrates, from states and Union Territories as well as several Union ministries are likely to attend the conference.

WB govt employees protest, demand DA at par with central govt employees

An organisation of West Bengal government employees on Friday commenced a three-day sit-in demonstration near the state secretariat 'Nabanna' demanding release of dearness allowance to them at par with their central government counterparts. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday announced an additional four per cent DA to the state government employees from January next. The members of the Sangrami Joutha Mancha sat on the dharna near the 'Nabanna', where the chief minister's office is located, with placards and posters and shouted slogans in support of their demand for release of DA at par with central government employees. The Sangrami Joutha Mancha members claimed that even after the announcement by the chief minister for an additional four per cent DA to state government employees, there would remain a 36 percentage points difference between the DA of state government and central government employees. The Calcutta High Court on Thursday gave conditional permission to the ..

Govt ropes in CISF for Parliament complex's security after recent breach

The government has decided to hand over the "comprehensive" security of the Parliament building complex to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in the wake of the recent breach of the safety ring, official sources said Thursday. The CISF is a central armed police force (CAPF) that currently guards many central government ministry buildings in Delhi apart from installations in the nuclear and aerospace domain, civil airports and the Delhi Metro. The sources told PTI that the Union home ministry on Wednesday directed for a survey of the Parliament building complex so that a "regular deployment of the CISF security and fire wing on a comprehensive pattern" could be done. Experts drawn from the government building security (GBS) unit of the CISF, that guards central government ministries, and fire combat and response officers of the force along with officials from the current Parliament security team will undertake the survey beginning later this week. Both the new and the old

Centre to add 270 mn additional beneficiaries to Ayushman Bharat by Jan 26

To reach its target of including 550 million people, the government plans to cover 270 million additional beneficiaries in just over a month

Gadkari shifts focus: InvITs prevail over TOT for highway monetisation

Aiming to bid out Rs2 trn BOT projects before MCC kicks in

World Bank chief Banga, FM Sitharaman discuss engagement of MDBs in India

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday met World Bank Group President Ajay Banga and discussed engagement of multilateral banks in various sectors in India. Sitharaman also discussed outcomes of G20 India Presidency and strengthening of the World Bank besides issues of mutual interest. "The Union Finance Minister stated that @WorldBank should take the lead in advancing recommendations contained in the Volume-I #TripleAgenda and the recommendations that #MDBs must be bigger, better and bolder as contained in the Volume-II, of the reports of the G20 Independent Experts Group #IEG, prepared under the #G20India Presidency, and added that other #MDBs look up to @WorldBank for such #reform initiatives," the finance ministry said in post on X. Independent Expert Group (IEG), appointed under India G20 Presidency, has recommended a triple agenda to harness the potential of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs). The report suggested adopting a triple mandate of eliminating extreme

Govt bans anti-cold fixed drug combination for under-four children

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has prohibited the use of anti-cold fixed drug combination in children below four years of age. Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) Rajeev Raghuvanshi has asked the drug regulators of all states and Union territories to instruct the manufacturers of fixed drug combination (FDC) of Chlorpheniramine Maleate IP 2mg + Phenylephrine HCL IP 5mg drop/ml to insert warning that "FDC should not be used in children below 4 years of age" on label and package insert/promotional literature of the drug. In the letter, the DCGI stated that the FDC was declared as rational by the Professor Kokate Committee and based on its recommendation, this office had issued NOC for continued manufacturing and marketing of the FDC on July 17, 2015 under the 18-month policy decision. "Subsequently concerns have been raised regarding promotion of unapproved anti-cold drug formulation for infants," he said. The matter was deliberated in the Subject Expert

Unclaimed deposits with banks rise by 28% to Rs 42,270 crore in FY23: Govt

There has been a 28 per cent annual increase in unclaimed deposits with the banks to Rs 42,270 crore as on March 2023, Parliament was informed on Tuesday. As compared to Rs 32,934 crore unclaimed deposits with public and private sector banks in FY22, the amount increased to Rs 42,272 crore at the end of March 2023, an increase of 28 per cent. As much as Rs 36,185 crore unclaimed deposits were with public sector banks while Rs 6,087 crore were with private sector banks at the end of March 2023. Banks send unclaimed deposits of account holders lying in their accounts for 10 or more years to RBI's Depositor Education and Awareness (DEA) Fund. RBI has taken various steps to reduce the quantum of unclaimed deposits and return such deposits to rightful claimants, Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat K Karad said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha. As per the RBI's direction, banks have been advised to display the list of unclaimed deposits in accounts that are inactive or inoperative fo

Govt in process of shaping regulations on Artificial Intelligence: Official

The government has commenced the process of preparing regulations for Artificial Intelligence (AI) to foster development, protection, and innovation in this emerging technology in India, a top government official said on Tuesday. Additionally, the government is considering a second version of the Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS) that would focus on ancillary development for the semiconductor supply ecosystem. The government was working on the preparation of the regulations on AI and it was also evaluating global inputs, Secretary of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) S. Krishnan said on the sidelines of an international conference organised by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), in Kolkata. He also indicated that discussions are underway regarding whether a separate act is needed or if regulations can be incorporated into existing acts. "The government is already engaged in ..

Delhi HC directs Centre, CBI to look into over invoicing of coal imports

The petitioners stated that the erring companies import coal and equipment directly to India but the invoicing is done by a firm abroad, and such firms are controlled by promoters in India

Amid MPs row, Sonia Gandhi-led Congress Parliamentary Party meet on Wed

This comes amid the political tensions escalating between the Opposition and the central government over the demand of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's statement over the Parliament security breach

Suspend, throw out, bulldoze is Modi govt's new policy: Kharge on MPs row

A total of 141 MPs were suspended following a ruckus over the demand by the Opposition for a statement from Union Minister Amit Shah on the Parliament breach incident

Parliament approves additional spending of Rs 58,378 crore in FY24

Parliament on Tuesday gave its approval for a net additional spending of Rs 58,378 crore in the current fiscal ending March 2024, with a large chunk allocated to MGNREGA and fertiliser subsidies. The gross additional spending would be more than Rs 1.29 lakh crore, out of which Rs 70,968 crore would be matched by savings and receipts. On Tuesday, Rajya Sabha returned the two appropriation bills to Lok Sabha after a brief discussion. Most of the members who participated in the discussion were from the Treasury benches as a large number of Opposition members are suspended from the House. Opposition members who were present did not participate in the discussion. Last week, Lok Sabha passed the supplementary demands for grants after a short discussion. Replying to the discussion on Supplementary Demands for Grants in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary on Tuesday highlighted the key aspects of the first batch of demands for grants. According to the demands for

Dropout rate at 27% in Class 10, not 49.9%: Odisha counters Centre

The Odisha government on Tuesday claimed that the dropout rate in Class 10 was 27 per cent in the state in 2021-22 and not 49.9 per cent as stated by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in the Lok Sabha a day before. Odisha School Education Programme Authority Director Anupam Shah asserted that the Centre's data did not include the number of students admitted to various industrial training schools after passing the 10th standard. He also said the school and mass education department will soon clarify its stand on the prevailing dropout rates at the school level. Responding to a question on Odisha registering the highest dropout rate of 49.9 per cent in Class 10 in 2021-22, he said, the data released by the Centre was old. "The data released by the Centre did not include the number of students admitted to different industrial training schools. The overall dropout rate at present (2022-23) in Odisha would be 17 per cent, Shah told PTI. He explained that the dropout rate is .