LIVE: 47th meeting of GST Council to be held on June 28-29 in Srinagar

The panel of ministers on GST rate rationalisation is scheduled to meet on June 17 to discuss possible tweaking in tax rates

5:26 PM

PM Modi to visit Gujarat on June 17 for two days, launch projects worth Rs 21,000 cr

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a two-day visit to Gujarat from June 17 to attend a number of programmes, including inauguration and foundation-laying ceremony of projects worth over Rs 21,000 crore, his office said on Thursday.

 

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement that Modi will inaugurate the redeveloped temple of Shree Kalika Mata at Pavagadh Hill on June 18, followed by his visit to Virasat Van.

 

He will also participate in Gujarat Gaurav Abhiyan at Vadodara, where he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of projects worth over Rs 21,000 crore, it added.

 

Incidentally, Modi's mother's birthday also falls on June 18. He is likely to meet her to seek her blessings as she enters 100th year of her life, sources said.

 

The PMO said beneficiaries of various schemes of the government will participate in Gujarat Gaurav Abhiyan at Vadodara.

4:59 PM

Agnipath: Oppn steps up attack on govt amid protests, seeks scrapping of scheme

The Opposition on Thursday stepped up its attack on the government over the Agnipath scheme amid protests against it in several parts of the country and demanded that it be scrapped, even as official sources asserted that no change is being done to the Army's regimental system under the new initiative.

 

While Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to listen to the voice of unemployed youths and not take 'agnipareeksha (trial by fire)' of their patience by making them walk on Agnipath, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav called the move "negligent" and potentially "fatal" for the country's future.

 

Trains were set afire, window panes of buses smashed and passersby, including a ruling BJP MLA, pelted with stones in Bihar by Army job aspirants whose protest against the short-term recruitment scheme continued for the second consecutive day.

 

Protests against the scheme also took place in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

 

Hundreds of young people took to the streets in Haryana's Gurugram, Rewari and Palwal while scores of youngsters in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr and Ballia districts staged protests against it.

4:47 PM

47th meeting of GST Council to be held on June 28-29 in Srinagar

4:09 PM

Follow zero-tolerance policy on honking, modified silencers in Delhi: NGT panel on noise pollution

A committee set up by the National Green Tribunal to monitor compliance of noise rules in Delhi has suggested the city government to follow a zero-tolerance policy against unnecessary honking and the use of modified silencers.

 

In a report submitted to the green court, the panel said the incessant traffic noise, relentless honking, pressure horns and modified silencers are a major contributors to noise pollution.

 

"Alternative measures such as planting of trees, awareness with respect to no-honking, quieter vehicles, quieter tires, speed reduction, home insulation, smooth road surface etc., could be adhered to reduce vehicular noise. The better option is to increase awareness just like in case of firecrackers and to increase prosecution.

 

"A zero-tolerance policy should be followed in case of unnecessary honking and use of modified silencers," the report read.

 

The panel told the court that the Delhi Traffic Police issued 331 challans against the use of pressure horns, 30 against honking in silent zones, 773 against modified exhausts/silencers and 59 for playing loud music in vehicles between January 1 to March 31.

3:46 PM

Contactless cards account for 16% of face-to-face transactions in Dec 2021: Visa

The share of contactless cards, which help a customer pay at a merchant by tapping the card on a device, grew to 16 per cent in December 2021, global payments major Visa said on Thursday.

 

The number of usage of contactless cards during face-to-face transactions at merchants' end was less than 2.5 per cent in December 2018, the company, which commands a big share of the market, said.

 

It can be noted that the RBI regulations now allow users to pay up to Rs 5,000 per transaction through the contactless alternative, which does not require a four-digit PIN code. The maximum limit has been capped keeping security concerns in mind, wherein just the presence of a card can result in losses to the user.

 

Visa's head of products and solutions for India and South Asia Ramakrishnan Gopalan said that availability, convenience, utility, and security are the key drivers of growth in contactless cards.

3:33 PM

Govt aims to build 40 MT coal stock at power plants to ensure supplies during monsoon

The government is gearing up to increase the stock of coal at power plants to 40 million tonne (MT) during the monsoon season, Union power minister R K Singh said.

 

Speaking to PTI, the minister said right now, there are reserves of around 22.9 MT at the power plants.

 

"On April 1, our reserve stock at power plants was at 24 MT. On April 30, it came down to 19 MT and on May 15, it came down to 15 MT. However, because of (coal) imports, it has gone up to about 22.9 MT again," the minister said, replying to a question related to coal availability.

 

When asked if the government is planning to increase the buffer stock of coal anticipating production and supply issues during the approaching rainy season, he replied in affirmative.

3:00 PM

Chidambaram resigns from Maharashtra seat following election to RS from Tamil Nadu

Senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP P Chidambaram resigned from his seat in Maharashtra on Thursday, following his election to the Rajya Sabha from the state of Tamil Nadu.

"Following my election to the Rajya Sabha from the state of Tamil Nadu, I am required to resign my seat from the state of Maharashtra. Accordingly, today I tendered my resignation from the seat from the state of Maharashtra," tweeted the Congress leader today.

The tweet further read, "The Hon'ble Chairman of the Rajya Sabha has accepted my resignation. I was honoured to represent the state of Maharashtra. I wish the people of Maharashtra the very best in the future, peace and prosperity."

2:55 PM

89 per cent of India's adult population fully vaccinated against COVID-19: Mandaviya

Eighty-nine per cent of the country's adult population has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 while over 75 per cent of children in the 12-14 age group have received the first dose, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Thursday.

The cumulative vaccine doses administered in the country have exceeded 195.67 crore, according to the Health Ministry's provisional reports till 7 am on Thursday.

This has been achieved through 2,51,69,966 sessions.

2:44 PM

Wives of Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, ex-PM Imran Khan richer than husbands

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and former premier Imran Khan's wives have financial assets worth more than their husbands, the media reported on Thursday.

According to a statement of assets filed for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020 with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Nusrat Shehbaz, the first wife of the prime minister, is richer than her husband and owns wealth worth Rs 230.29 million.

The prime minister's wife also owns nine agricultural properties and one house each in Lahore and Hazara divisions.

Apart from the assets, Shehbaz Sharif's wife has significant investments in various sectors, but does not own a vehicle, the Dawn newspaper reported.

2:43 PM

BJP wants to erase memories of Pt Nehru, Indira Gandhi: Shiv Sena

The Shiv Sena on Thursday claimed the BJP not only wants to erase the memories of late Congress leaders Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, but it also wants to "destroy" prospects of the Nehru-Gandhi lineage.

An editorial in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' lashed out at the Centre over the questioning of senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case.

By questioning Gandhi, the BJP is trying to show that it can grab anyone's collar, however powerful the person is, the Marathi daily said and dubbed this as arrogance of power.

"The BJP not only wants to erase the memories of Pandit Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, but it also wants to destroy prospects of the Nehru-Gandhi lineage," it claimed.