Page 6 - Central Government

FinMin may bring cheques, credit cards, higher overdrafts in PMJDY 2.0

The official said that the government believes that these upgrades will also help reduce the number of inoperative accounts

Biggest govt staff relocation begins at new Central Vista buildings

In a historic reshuffle, ministries set to leave Raj-era buildings for new spaces rising along Kartavya Path

Centre likely to relax the board regulations for foreign insurers

The official stressed that while the reforms are not intended to open the floodgates to foreign control, they signal a more welcoming approach to global participation in leadership roles

Govt restricts import of liquid precious metals to curb gold misuse

The government has imposed import curbs on certain colloidal precious metals, with an aim to check the illegal inflow of gold into India in liquid form. Colloidal precious metals are suspensions of gold or silver nanoparticles dispersed in a liquid. According to industry experts, some importers were using this route for imports from countries like Thailand. "The import policy of items covered under CTH 2843 is revised from free to restricted with immediate effect," the directorate general of foreign trade said in a notification. Goods under this number include colloidal precious metals; inorganic or organic compounds of precious metals. In a separate notification, the Directorate said that the import of Palladium, Rhodium and Iridium alloy consisting of gold more than one per cent by weight is restricted. Gold imports in April-May this fiscal year dipped by 3.82 per cent to USD 5.64 billion.

Centre to launch gender budgeting portal to aid inclusive governance

The Central government will launch on Thursday a dedicated portal to support policymakers and stakeholders with data, resources and tools to strengthen gender budgeting practices. According to an official statement, the Ministry of Women and Child Development will hold wider consultations, bringing together key stakeholders from across the country to reinforce the government's commitment to gender-responsive governance. Union Minister for Women and Child Development Annpurna Devi will kickstart the consultations and also launch the Gender Budgeting Knowledge Hub, which will be a dedicated portal providing data, resources and tools to strengthen gender budgeting practices. The day-long event will see participation from 45 Central ministries and departments, 20 states, representatives from international organisations such as UN Women and the Asian Development Bank, as well as leading national institutions. The consultation aims to foster dialogue and promote innovative approaches to

Calcutta HC orders Centre to rollout MGNREGA in West Bengal from August 1

The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday directed the Centre to implement the MGNREGA scheme prospectively in West Bengal from August 1. The HC said the Centre is empowered to impose special conditions, restrictions and regulations, which have not been imposed in other states of the country, so as to ensure that no illegality or irregularity occurs when the scheme is being implemented in the state. Allowing the Centre to continue its enquiry into the allegations of irregularities in some districts of the state, a division bench presided by Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam directed that the scheme be implemented prospectively with effect from August 1. The court directed that the authorities in charge of the implementation of the scheme are entitled to impose special conditions to ensure that whatever had occurred three years prior should not recur. The court said that it is not in dispute that certain irregularities have been pointed out by the Centre in the disbursement of wages under the

G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant steps down after 45 years of public service

Amitabh Kant steps down after four decades in public service, reflecting on his G20 role and development contributions while hinting at future work in innovation and industry

India scuppered 200,000 cyberattacks during Operation Sindoor: Khattar

India foiled around two lakh cyberattacks targeting its power infrastructure in over the week during the Operation Sindoor, Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said here on Thursday. "Since the advancement in technology, new dangers have emerged -- cyberattacks or cybercrimes. There has been an increase in these, but the government has worked on it, and our cybersecurity has almost stopped all such dangers," Khattar told reporters here. He was addressing a press conference on the completion of 11 years of the BJP-led Central government. "There have been many cyberattacks on the country. As far as the Power department is concerned, around two lakh cyberattacks were attempted, but our cyber department foiled each one of them, and there were no losses," the minister said. Khattar said these attempts were made in "eight to ten days" around the time Operation Sindoor went underway. Asked whether the attacks were made from within the country or outside it, the minister said these .

AMR crisis: Centre asks states to monitor antibiotic use in animals

Joint working group with CDSCO, state regulators and animal husbandry dept to develop framework for monitoring veterinary antibiotic use amid rising AMR threat

Centre approves ₹25 cr additional aid for homes hit by Pak shelling in J&K

The Centre on Monday approved an additional amount of Rs 25 crore as compensation for houses damaged in the border areas of Jammu and Kashmir due to Pakistani shelling during Operation Sindoor. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently announced the additional compensation amount for the houses damaged by Pakistani shelling. As a special case, Modi said an additional compensation amount of Rs 2 lakh will be given for each fully-damaged house and Rs 1 lakh for each partially-damaged house. Following the prime minister's announcement, Union Home Minister Amit Shah ensured swift action by facilitating an additional provision of Rs 25 crore from the Ministry of Home Affairs for 2,060 houses, an official statement said. A similar compensation amount will also be provided in the border areas of Punjab, it added. The home minister visited the border district of Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir on May 29-30. During the visit, he handed over appointment letters on compassionate grounds to the fami

Mutual understanding among political class should continue: RSS chief

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday said the mutual understanding shown by the political class following the Pahalgam terror attack and action taken by India later should continue and become a permanent feature. The society also gave a message of unity, Bhagwat said, addressing the concluding event of the Karyakarta Vikas Varg for RSS volunteers. After the heinous terror attack, people were sad and angry and wanted the culprits to be punished. Action was taken and punishment was meted out, Bhagwat said. Everyone saw the grit of our country's decision makers in the action taken after the Pahalgam terror attack, he said. Action was taken after the heinous terror attack in Pahalgam. The valour of our army shone once again in it. The firmness of the administration was also seen. The political class also showed mutual understanding. The society also gave the message of its unity. This should remain continue and be a permanent feature, he said. India should be self-dependent in matters

Govt extends tenure of Punjab & Sind Bank MD S K Saha till Feb 2027

According to an official notification issued by the Department of Financial Services under the Ministry of Finance, Saha's current term was set to end on June 2, 2025

Bihar has tremendous potential for agricultural development, says Shivraj

Maintaining that Bihar has tremendous potential for agricultural development, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday said for a "developed India, agriculture must develop and farmers must also prosper". Chouhan said this on Monday when he visited Motihari, the district headquarters town of East Champaran district and interacted with farmers as part of his nationwide tour under the VKSA campaign. "I have come to Bihar to support and serve the farmers here and help increase agricultural productivity. For me, serving farmers is like worshipping God... 'Ek Rashtra, Ek Krishi, Ek Team' (one nation, one agriculture, one team) is the motto of this campaign," he said. "The Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan (VKSA) of the Central government is a landmark initiative aimed at transforming Indian agriculture. For a developed India, agriculture must develop and farmers must also prosper.....Bihar has tremendous potential for agricultural development.....and

PM Modi says no goal is impossible if Centre, states work together

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said if the Union government and states work together like Team India, no goal is impossible. Modi is chairing the 10th Governing Council meeting of Niti Aayog. There is a need to increase the speed of development, he said. "We have to increase the speed of development. If the Centre and all the States come together and work together like Team India, no goal is impossible," Niti Aayog in a post on X quoted the Prime Minister as saying. The theme of the Governing Council meeting is 'Viksit Rajya for Viksit Bharat@2047'. "Viksit Bharat is the goal of every Indian. When every state is Viksit, then Bharat will be Viksit. This is the aspiration of its 140 crore citizens," Modi said. The council, the apex body of Niti Aayog, includes all state chief ministers, lieutenant governors of Union Territories, and several Union ministers. Prime Minister Modi is the chairman of Niti Aayog. "We should have the aim of making each state viksit, each city v

No one can claim government land as Waqf, Centre tells Supreme Court

Centre defends Waqf (Amendment) Act in Supreme Court, says even land used for religious activity cannot override state ownership if it's government property

Stalin, Left oppose move on Centre's Presidential reference to SC

Tamil Nadu CM Stalin says Centre's Presidential reference undermines Supreme Court ruling on Governor deadlines and poses a threat to opposition-led state autonomy

SC directs Centre to set up special POCSO court on priority basis

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Centre to set up on "top priority basis" dedicated POCSO courts to exclusively deal with cases of sexual offences against children. A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and P B Varale said due to the inadequacy of the number of exclusive courts for the Protection of Children against Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act cases, the timelines mandated under the law for completion of trials weren't adhered to. "It is therefore expected that the union of India and the state governments shall take appropriate steps to sensitise the officials associated with the investigation of POCSO cases, and also to create dedicated courts to try POCSO cases on top priority basis," the bench said. The top court further directed filing of chargesheets within the mandatory period stipulated in law besides completing trials within the prescribed time frame. The apex court noted while majority states, with the funding from the Centre, complied with the directions for settin

Govt plans 360 kW charging points along highways for heavy-duty EVs

According to the latest guidelines from the power ministry, minimum charger capacities are 12 kW for e2w and e3w, 60 kW for e4w, and 240 kW for e-buses and e-trucks

Entry barriers for shipbuilding cluster bids likely to be lowered

Gujarat's Deendayal Port is one of the 12 ports owned by the central government

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann calls Centre for special financial package

Asserting that Punjab is the sword arm of nation, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday said the Centre should give special package to the border state. Mann put forth his views during an all-party meeting convened by Punjab Governor and UT Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria. Interacting with reporters later along with Governor Kataria, the chief minister said whether it is war or any other exigency Punjab and Punjabis are always on the forefront. Punjab always faces the first brunt during every war and escalations, said Mann, adding the state needs special treatment for its enormous contribution. He said that Punjab besides being the food bowl of the country has always been its sword arm but its contribution has been hitherto ignored. Mann said that special package should be given to Punjab on lines of one given to Jammu and Kashmir and some hill states. The state government will also raise the demand of border area allowance for doctors, teachers, Anganwadi and oth