Page 28 - Central Government

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 .

Govt cuts windfall tax on crude oil to Rs 1,300 from Rs 5,000 per tonne

The government on Monday cut the windfall profit tax on crude oil produced in the country and on exports of diesel. The tax, levied in the form of Special Additional Excise Duty or SAED, on domestically produced crude oil has been reduced to Rs 1,300 from Rs 5,000 per tonne, according to an official notification. SAED on the export of diesel has been reduced to Rs 0.50 a litre from Rs 1 per litre. However, the levy on export of jet fuel or ATF has been hiked to Rs 1 per litre from nil earlier. SAED on petrol will continue to be zero. The new tax rates will come into effect from Tuesday. India first imposed windfall profit taxes on July 1 last year, joining a growing number of nations that tax supernormal profits of energy companies. The tax rates are reviewed every fortnight based on average oil prices in the previous two weeks.

Musk gets an edge over Ambani in Centre's satellite internet battle

The proposal was included in a new draft bill for the telecommunications sector, which seeks to replace the 138-year old Indian Telegraph Act that currently governs the sector

India on alert as JN.1 Covid variant emerges, active cases surge to 1,828

MoH issues advisories to states. Karnataka brings back mask rule for senior citizens after Kerala sees spike in cases

BCCI denied tax exemption under Section 11 of I-T Act, says FinMin

The government on Monday said the Income Tax department has denied tax exemption to BCCI under Section 11 of I-T Act, and the matter is now sub judice. Section 11 of I-T Act deals with charitable institutions. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary made the remarks while responding to a question on whether the BCCI, despite being one of the richest sports bodies in the world, is enjoying tax exemption in the name of promoting cricket. "BCCI is claiming exemption under Section 11 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. However, during assessment proceedings the exemption is being disallowed by the Income Tax department. The matter pertaining to tax exemption of BCCI is sub judice," Chaudhary said.

Centre says likely to achieve fiscal deficit target of 5.9% of GDP in FY24

India's fiscal deficit in the first seven months of the financial year ending on March 31, 2024 was 8.04 trillion Indian rupees ($96.86 billion), or 45% of the estimate for the whole year

Google has removed 2,500 fraudulent loan apps from its Play Store, says FM

The government on Monday informed Parliament that Google has suspended or removed over 2,500 fraudulent loan apps from its Play Store between April 2021 and July 2022. The government is constantly engaged with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and other regulators and stakeholders concerned to control fraudulent loan apps, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. The matter is also regularly discussed and monitored in the meetings of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC), an inter-regulatory forum under the chairpersonship of the Finance Minister. The objective is to remain proactive, maintain cyber security preparedness with constant vigilance, and take appropriate and timely action to mitigate any such vulnerabilities in the Indian financial system, she said. As part of steps taken to control fraudulent loan apps, she said, the RBI has shared a 'whitelist' of legal apps with the government of India, and this list was shared by t

Govt hospitals set up transgender centers in push for equitable healthcare

Doctors hail move, activists suggest more needs to be done

US, Canada issues not same: Jaishankar on allegations over Khalistan row

Pointing to the US indictment of Nikhil Gupta in connection with a foiled plot to assassinate a US citizen in New York City, Jaishankar said India is looking into the details shared by the US

Govt likely to table Telecommunications Bill 2023 in Lok Sabha on Monday

The government is likely to table the Telecommunications Bill 2023 in Lok Sabha on Monday, according to sources. The Telecommunications Bill 2023 aims to replace the 138 years old Indian Telegraph Act that governs the telecom sector. "The President has been informed about the Telecommunications Bill 2023. It is likely to be introduced in Lok Sabha on Monday, December 18," a source told PTI. The Cabinet had cleared the bill in August. The draft Telecommunications Bill released in 2023 had proposed to bring over-the-top or the internet based calling and messaging apps under the definition of telecommunications to enhance users' safety. The bill had also proposed to curb the power of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), on which industry players had raised concern. According to government officials, the issues around over-the-top players and Trai were resolved before it was cleared by the Cabinet. The draft had proposed to ease some of the rules like refund of fees for

Govt to help exporters maintain documentation to deal with US duty cases

The commerce ministry has started an exercise to help Indian exporters keep proper documentation to deal with US countervailing duty cases on domestic products, an official said. As part of the exercise, teams of the directorate general of foreign trade (DGTR) and directorate general of trade remedies (DGTR) are working on a roadmap to work on the kind of documentation that needs to be maintained by Indian exporters. Before imposing countervailing or anti-subsidy duty (CVD), a country carries out detailed investigations on products which it believes that its trading partner is subsidising for export purposes. Subsidising exports is a kind of unfair trade practice. Countervailing duties can only be imposed if the investigating agency of the importing country determines that the imports of the product in question are subsidized and are injuring a domestic industry. Imposition of this duty does not prohibit or restrict imports. World Trade Organisation (WTO) allows its member countrie

India's G20 presidency was its diplomatic achievement of 2023: Jaishankar

EAM Jaishankar said that through its G20 Presidency, India was able to get the most powerful countries of the world to show a new commitment to sustainable development and promoting green growth

Govt improving people's health with holistic approach, campaigns: Amit Shah

The Centre has taken up the mission to improve the health of people with a holistic approach by increasing the budget for it and launching various schemes and campaigns in the last one decade, Union Minister Amit Shah has said. Addressing the 6th Advancements in Endourology Conference here on Saturday, Shah also thanked doctors and paramedical staff for working with dedication in the fight against COVID-19. "The Union as well as state governments and doctors across the country are working together with a holistic approach to improve the health of the people through the implementation of schemes prepared minutely during the last 10 years," he said. "The biggest work was to increase the health budget from Rs 33,000 crore to Rs 1.33 lakh crore. The government worked to improve the health infrastructure and increase human resources required for modern medical science," he added. Campaigns such as the Swachh Bharat Yojana launched for prevention of diseases as well as initiatives to tak

Govt asks steel makers to enhance use of artificial intelligence in plants

The government on Friday asked steelmakers to enhance the application of artificial intelligence (AI) at their respective plants, as its usage can improve the value chain and energy management, according to an official statement. As the world looks at data-driven decision-making, the Indian steel industry needs to be at the forefront in implementing artificial intelligence technology in their operations, Union Steel Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said, addressing a Chintan Shivir event here. The minister urged the stakeholders in the steel sector to enhance the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in their respective steel plants, the steel ministry said in a statement. "We in the steel sector need to understand that it is our responsibility to safeguard Mother Earth by embracing the concept of green steel and the latest technologies," Scindia said. Minister of State (MoS) for Steel Faggan Singh Kulaste said the usage of AI and automation can strengthen the value chain system