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An average 50 days of employment per household was provided to workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in the last five years, Minister of State for Rural Development Kamlesh Paswan informed the Rajya Sabha on Friday. The flagship rural employment scheme guarantees up to 100 days of wage employment in every financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. In a written reply in the Upper House, Paswan said in 2024-25, average days of employment provided per household under MGNREGS was 50.24. The figures for previous years were similar. In 2023-24, the average number of workdays per household was 52.07, in 2022-23 it was 47.84, in 2021-22 it was 50.07, and in 2020-21 it was 51.54. Altogether, the average number of days of employment per household during the last five years comes to 50.35. In his reply, Paswan also said the responsibility for implementation of the MGNREGS at ground level lies with th
The government has launched a nationwide campaign 'Your Money, Your Right' to facilitate the settlement of unclaimed financial assets, and Rs 2,000 crore have been claimed by their rightful owners in October and November this year. The government launched the campaign on October 4 to facilitate the settlement of unclaimed financial assets, including bank deposits, insurance, dividends, shares, mutual funds and pensions, to their legitimate claimants. From October to December 5, 2025, camps have been held in 477 districts with participation of public representatives, district administration, and officials from financial institutions, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha. To maximise outreach during the campaign, standard operating procedures (SOPs), frequently asked questions (FAQs), and awareness material in major regional languages, along with short video messages, have been widely disseminated. District-level camps are organised
Union minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday shared that the government has earned nearly Rs 4100 crore in the last five years from the disposal of scrap, including electronic items, from various central government offices as part of its cleanliness campaign. Singh, the union minister of state for personnel, explained that at the end of the special Swachhata (cleanliness) campaign 4.0 last year, nearly Rs 3,300 crore had been earned, to which Rs 788.53 crore was added through this year's special campaign 5.0 lasting from October 2 to October 31 2025. As a result, the total amount earned, so far, is over Rs 4088.53 crore. "Total revenue of Rs 4088.53 crore has been earned through five dedicated annual cleanliness campaigns lasting one month each since 2021, through disposal of scrap, including electronic scrap, from different central government offices as part of the special Swachhata campaign," he said. The minister recalled that during his first Independence Day address, Prime Minister
The government on Wednesday said the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has agreed to do away with the green clearance for pilot projects for underground coal gasification. The development assumes significance as government targets to gasify 100 million tonnes of coal by 2030. "Any underground coal gasification (UCG) project before it actually takes off means to have a pilot study done. Since it's a new technology or it will be done for the first time in the country, a pilot phase is necessary. "It is part of the framework and for that pilot phase MoEFCC has kind of agreed to not have an EC (environment clearance) for the pilot phase only," Coal Secretary Vikram Dev Dutt told reporters on the sidelines of the launch of the 14th round of commercial coal mine auctions. He further said of the 41 coal blocks that are being put out for sale, 21 are suitable for UCG because generally they are deep seated and are uneconomical to extract. UCG gasifies deep, unmine
The Uttarakhand government will provide free pre-recruitment training to young men and women interested in serving the country as Agniveers in the Army. Officials here said that on the instructions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, the Sports and Youth Welfare Department has prepared an SOP for this purpose. The training will be provided in all 13 districts of the state. The chief minister recently directed the department to provide training to the state's youth for Agniveer recruitment. It is mandatory to be a native or permanent resident of Uttarakhand or to be studying or serving in an institute in the state to be eligible for the free training. Furthermore, passing the high school examination with at least 45 per cent marks and a minimum of 33 per cent in each subject is mandatory. To receive the training, one must be over 16 years of age. Dhami said that in view of Uttarakhand's glorious military tradition, the government is providing pre-recruitment training to Agniveer
Soybean Processors Association (SOPA) on Thursday urged the commerce ministry to reject any proposal to allow imports of genetically modified soybean meal from the United States, saying the country has sufficient domestic supplies and such a move would hurt farmers. In a letter to Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal, the industry body said India currently holds more than adequate stocks of soybean meal to meet entire domestic demand for the marketing year 2025-26 running from October to September. "Permitting GM Soybean Meal imports at this juncture will have devastating consequences for India's agricultural sector," the association said in the letter. The association warned that allowing such imports would severely harm Indian soybean farmers already grappling with prices below the government's minimum support price, and further depress market rates due to oversupply. It also said the move would threaten the viability of India's domestic soybean processing industry and undermine the
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday directed officials to make an online portal for registration of homestay units in the state within 10 days. Chairing a meeting here to review the tourism projects in the state, he said it should be ensured that payments be made online in all Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) hotels, General Administrative Department guesthouses and rest houses of various departments. According to an official statement, the chief minister ordered preparation of an online portal for registration of homestay units within 10 days. He also instructed to issue tenders for hiring competent software firms for preparation of user friendly online portals across all departments. Sukhu also issued directions for empanelling professional architects both for preparation of project designs for Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Tourism Development Board projects, the statement said. "I want to ensure that there should be no ..
The government on Thursday initiated the process to appoint the next chief justice of India as incumbent B R Gavai demits office on November 23, sources said. The letter asking Justice Gavai to name his successor is set to be delivered either this evening or on Friday, people aware of the procedure to appoint Supreme Court and high court judges told PTI. According to the memorandum of procedure, a set of documents which guide the appointment, transfer and elevation of SC and HC judges states that appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the seniormost judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office. The Union law minister would, "at the appropriate time", seek the recommendation of the outgoing Chief Justice of India for the appointment of his successor. Conventionally, the letter is sent a month before the incumbent CJI retires on attaining the age of 65 years. Justice Surya Kant is the seniormost judge after the CJI and is next in line to
The government on Wednesday said it will launch inspection drives to verify compliance with new edible oil regulations as it seeks to tighten oversight of a sector vital to the country's food security. The Food Ministry said the field checks are aimed at enforcing stricter reporting requirements under an amended order that mandates all edible oil manufacturers, processors and distributors to register with authorities and submit monthly production data. The inspections will target non-compliant units and are intended to "reinforce the seriousness of compliance and maintain the integrity of the national data ecosystem for the edible oil sector," the ministry said in a statement. Under the amended Vegetable Oil Products, Production and Availability (Regulation) Order, 2025, firms across the edible oil supply chain must register through the National Single Window System at https://www.nsws.gov.in and file monthly returns via https://www.edibleoilindia.in. Companies failing to comply fa
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on Wednesday signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with three universities to establish new Dr Ambedkar Chairs, aimed at promoting research and academic engagement on the vision and philosophy of Dr B R Ambedkar. The MoUs were signed with the University of Mumbai, Jaipur National University, and G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology at a ceremony, according to an official statement. Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Dr Virendra Kumar, who presided over the event, said the initiative would help strengthen policy-oriented research and foster public awareness on issues of social justice, equality, and empowerment of marginalised communities. "Education, social awareness, and institutional collaboration are the most powerful means to build an equitable and inclusive society as envisioned by Dr Ambedkar," the minister said. Secretary in the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Amit Yadav, underlined t
The unemployment rate for those aged 15 and above increased marginally to 5.2 per cent in September, according to a government survey released on Wednesday. The unemployment rate (UR) was 5.1 per cent in August, 5.2 per cent in July and 5.6 per cent in May and June, as per the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). The UR was 5.1 per cent in April as per the first PLFS bulletin released in May 2025. "The UR among persons of age 15 years and above increased marginally to 5.2 per cent in September 2025 from 5.1 per cent recorded in August 2025 after declining during the past two successive months," an official statement said. The latest data collected in the current weekly status (CWS) showed that the unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and above stood at 5.2 per cent in September. The rise in UR in rural areas (from 4.3 per cent in August 2025 to 4.6 per cent in September 2025) and a marginal increase
An attempted coup is underway in the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar, the country's president said on Sunday. A statement from President Andry Rajoelina's office said it wishes to inform the nation and the international community that an attempt to seize power illegally and by force has been initiated. The statement did not immediately identify who was attempting to overthrow the government, but members of the armed forces joined youth-led protests against Rajoelina on Saturday. The protests against service failures and alleged government corruption and nepotism have been going on since Sept. 25.
Results of 7,650 Grade III posts in Assam government were declared on Friday, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma claiming that nearly two lakh appointments are being given under his regime. Along with the results of the Grade III posts for 50 departments conducted under Assam Direct Recruitment Examinations (ADRE), selection list for more than 600 posts was also declared separately. "Once again, we have delivered on our promise of clean, transparent, and merit-based recruitment. With the declaration of ADRE and other results today, Assam stands tall setting a new benchmark for honesty, fairness, and opportunity in public appointments," Sarma said in a post on X. "We have also set a new record delivering more than what we promised," he said, adding that, "We had pledged 1 lakh appointments, and today we are well on our way to achieving nearly 2 lakh appointments a true testament to our commitment to the youth of Assam." The future of the young generation is secure, and their
The government on Tuesday stressed on the need for a corporate social responsibility framework for companies operating in the coal sector to serve as a guide to promote responsible and sustainable practices. The move also aims at reducing environmental impact and enhancing stakeholder engagement among private as well as public sector coal companies. "Given the growing presence of private players in the sector, a need has been felt for a sector-specific CSR framework for coal companies," the coal ministry said in a statement. The corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies of coal PSUs have been formulated within the policy directives provided under the Companies Act, 2013, the Companies (CSR Policy) Rules, 2014 and guidelines of Department of Public Enterprises (DPE). Over the years, coal PSUs have taken remarkable initiatives in the areas of health, education, environment, sanitation, sports, etc. The coal ministry organised a stakeholders' consultation to deliberate upon CSR