Page 10 - Centre

PM SVANidhi scheme has restored dignity of street vendors: Hardeep Puri

Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday said the PM SVANidhi scheme has restored the dignity of street vendors who are no longer solely dependent on informal credit channels where they were forced to pay "exorbitant interest rates". The scheme has extended more than 80.42 lakh loans to 60.94 lakh street vendors amounting to Rs 10,678 crore by facilitating collateral-free first working capital loan up to Rs 10,000 in the first tranche, and Rs 20,000 and Rs 50,000 in the second and third tranches respectively, Puri said. The Union housing and urban affairs minister was speaking at a PM SVANidhi (PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi) mega camp here. Puri said the PM SVANidhi scheme was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic when India's street vendors were among the worst affected. "The aim of the SVANidhi Yojana was to restore the swarozgar, svavlamban, swabhimaan of street vendors," he said, adding that it has not only resulted in financial inclusion of street vendors but has als

Govt starts centralised processing of filings under companies law, LLP Act

The government has operationalised the central processing centre for processing filings under the companies law and LLP Act in a "time-bound and faceless manner" as part of efforts to further improve the ease of doing business. Initially, 12 forms and applications under the companies law will be processed at the Central Processing Centre (CPC). From April 1 onwards, other forms and applications will be processed through the centre. "As of now, 4,910 forms have been received by CPC after commencing operations. The forms shall be processed a time-bound and faceless manner," the corporate affairs ministry said in a release on Friday. Later, forms/applications filed under Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) Act are also proposed to be centralised. Based on filing trends, the ministry said it is expected that about 2.50 lakh forms will be processed through CPC annually, once it is fully operational. With the establishment of CPC, the ministry noted that jurisdictional Registrar of ...

Discussions between Union ministers, farmer leaders 'positive': Munda

A marathon meeting between three Union ministers and leaders of protesting farmer unions concluded without a resolution here late Thursday with Union Minister Arjun Munda asserting that the discussion was "positive and another round of talks would be held on Sunday. The farmer leaders said they will continue to stay put at the two border points between Punjab and Haryana. Union Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Munda, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai represented the Centre at the meeting over the farmer unions' various demands, including a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also joined the meeting at the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration in Sector 26 here. The meeting started at around 8:45 pm on Thursday and lasted for around five hours. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Munda said the talks took place in a good atmosphere an

Govt-farmer leaders meeting ends, next round of talks on Sunday

Three Union ministers held talks with the leaders of protesting farmer unions here for more than five hours on Thursday night, amid a standoff between the protesters and security personnel at two points on the Punjab-Haryana border. Both sides have agreed to hold another round of talks on Sunday. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also joined the meeting at the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration in Sector 26 here. Union Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Arjun Munda, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai represented the Centre at the meeting over the farmer unions' various demands, including a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. The talks that lasted for more than five hours ended early Friday. The discussions will continue and another round of talks will be held at 6 pm on Sunday, Munda said after the meeting, terming the talks as positive. The Punjab chief minister said th

Fiscal federalism: No breakthrough in talks with Centre, says Kerala FM

Kerala Finance Minister KN Balagopal on Thursday said there was no "breakthrough" in the meeting between the state officials and Centre over the issues of fiscal federalism. A four-member group, headed by Balagopal, held a meeting with central government officials, including the Union Finance Secretary. The Kerala government has approached the Supreme Court, accusing the Centre of interfering in the exercise of its "exclusive, autonomous and plenary powers" to regulate the state's finances by imposing a ceiling on net borrowing. "There was no positive outcome at today's meeting... there was no breakthrough. We submitted the most feasible options (to the Centre)," Balagopal said at a press briefing in the national capital. The meeting was convened after the Centre on February 13 told the apex court that it is open to discussions with Kerala to resolve the dispute. Apart from Balagopal, other members of the group are Chief Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister KM Abraham, Financ

Panel of 3 Union ministers hold talks with farmer leaders in Chandigarh

Meanwhile, there was no report of any clash between farmers and the Haryana security personnel at the two Punjab and Haryana border points - Shambhu and Khanauri - on Thursday

Why Modi govt running away from giving legal guarantee of MSP: Congress

Hitting out at the Centre over the farmers' protests, the Congress on Wednesday asked why it is "running away" from giving legal guarantee on MSP despite repeated promises and claimed the farmers have "lost faith" in the Modi government. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also spoke with a farmer injured in police action during a protest march and accused the Modi government of having a "dictatorial attitude" towards the country's food providers. In a post in Hindi on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh asked why the Modi government is "running away" from giving legal guarantee on Minimum Support Price for crops despite repeated promises. "In 2011, Narendra Modi, as Gujarat chief minister and chairman of a working group, had submitted a report to the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, which said that 'In order to protect the interest of the farmers, we must ensure through legal provisions that no transaction between farmer and trader should be done below MSP'," he said. In many

Farmers' Protest: Opposition tears into Centre, BJP appeals for peace

The Congress slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Centre stating that the "dictatorial Modi government" is hell-bent on curbing the voice of farmers"

Return 50% of tax amount paid by Maharashtra: Uddhav Thackeray to Centre

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray has said the Centre should return 50 per cent of the funds collected from Maharashtra as taxes for the development of the state. Speaking at a local event in Mumbai on Sunday, the former Maharashtra chief minister also referred to the recent protest rallies held in New Delhi by southern states like Karnataka and Kerala over similar demands. Thackeray claimed that when Maharashtra sends Re 1 to the Centre as tax, it gets back only seven paise (Re 1= 100 paise). "What happens to the remaining amount? What kind of revadis (freebies) you distribute?" he asked. "I am stating that when Maharashtra gives you Re 1, give us half of it back to develop the state. You are looting our state. When we (opposition INDIA bloc) come to power, I will assert on changing the current tax-sharing formula to increase Maharashtra's share," Thackeray said. The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader also took a dig at "Modi ki Guarantee" commitment of the central government, claim

White Paper presented by Centre exposed Congress, says Anurag Thakur

Anurag Thakur, during a visit to Dharamshala, said "The White Paper has exposed the Congress...Family was important for Congress. The policies of Congress have caused great harm to the country...

Centre can't help if states empty coffers via tall poll promises: Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said the central government can't help the states which empty their treasuries after making unrealistic election promises. All states should prepare their budget taking into account development programmes and social welfare commitments, he said at an event here when asked about the allegation of discrimination against some states in the release funds by the Centre. The governments of West Bengal, Kerala and Karnataka recently held protests in the national capital alleging that they were not given their due share of funds, a charge refuted by the finance minister. Shah said in the white paper, tabled in Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has given details about the funds given to the states. "The white paper has details of how much funds we have given to the states, how much more funds we have given than what Congress used to give to every state - be it BJP or opposition ruled," he said at the ET NOW Global Business Summit 2024.

Govt to announce national creators' awards for new-age influencers: Report

The government is set to announce the national creators' awards to recognise new-age influencers and creators, official sources said on Friday. They said the first-of-its-kind awards will be targeted at "Gen Z", a reference to the young generation hooked to the internet and social media, and will be given in nearly 20 categories. Social media influencers, such as those on YouTube and Instagram, will be in contention for the awards as well, the sources said. One of the categories will be for those who have helped spread the country's soft power and culture internationally, they added. Other categories may include "green champions", "swachhta ambassadors", "agro creators" and "tech creators", the sources said. They said the awards will be on the lines of the national film awards, which recognise films in different languages and categories.

Govt push puts spotlight on cervical cancer, experts hope for turning point

Cervical cancer is at the centrestage of public health concern with the government's push for vaccinations in the Union interim budget, a move that is a potential game changer for the disease that kills more than 77,000 women in India each year. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman last week said in her speech that the government will encourage vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV), which leads to cervical cancer, among girls aged 9-14. A day later, model-actor Poonam Pandey grabbed social media attention - and some headlines -- with claims she had died of the disease. It was a hoax, a stunt purportedly attributed to raising awareness about cervical cancer. The fake claim raised some buzz about cervical cancer. But it is the government's proactive stance to promote vaccinations that will raise awareness, foster early immunisation practices and marks a significant step towards preventing unnecessary fatalities, said scientists. The battle is complex and tough, they ...

Centre tightens wheat stock limit for wholesalers, big chain retailers

The government on Thursday tightened wheat stock holding norms for wholesalers, big chain retailers and processors to curb hoarding and check price rises. According to the food ministry, traders and wholesalers are now allowed to maintain wheat stock of up to 500 tonnes instead of 1,000 tonnes, while big chain retailers can hold 5 tonnes in each outlet and total 500 tonnes at all their depots instead of 1,000 tonnes. Processors will be allowed to maintain 60 per cent instead of 70 per cent of their monthly installed capacity multiplied by the remaining months till April 2024, the ministry said in a statement. The stock limits on wheat were imposed on June 12, 2023, applicable till March this year in order to manage the overall food security and to prevent hoarding and unscrupulous speculation. The ministry said all wheat stocking entities are required to register on the wheat stock limit portal (https://evegoils.nic.in/wsp/login) and update the stock position on every Friday. Any

Karnataka CM, Congress leaders protest against Centre at Jantar Mantar

Led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, top Congress leaders from Karnataka on Wednesday staged a protest at Jantar Mantar here against the Centre over "injustice" meted out to the state in devolution of taxes. Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, several MPs, ministers and MLAs from the state took part in the protest. The Congress alleges that "injustice" has been meted out to Karnataka in tax devolution and grants-in-aid over the past few years. The protesters demanded that the Centre set right the losses to the tune of Rs 1.87 lakh crore allegedly incurred by Karnataka under the 15th Finance Commission. Siddaramaiah said this protest is not against the BJP but the discrimination against Karnataka. Dismissing the BJP's allegation that the protest was aimed at raking up the North-South divide, the chief minister said the Congress wants the country to be united but there should be no discrimination against the southern states. The chief minister said the formula used to devolve taxe

Aluminium, Bauxite industries: Govt extends 'public utility' tag deadline

A public utility service refers to an industry or service considered essential for the community's well-being and functioning

GTRI suggests criteria to simplify granting incentives under PLI schemes

Economic think tank GTRI has flagged the slow progress in disbursement of sops under production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes and suggested the government to simplify the criteria so as to expedite grant of incentives and push domestic manufacturing. The Rs 4,415 crore disbursement is only 2.25 per cent of the total outlay of Rs 1.97 lakh crore of incentives over five years under the PLI schemes announced in 2020, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said on Sunday. "This slow fund spend is unsurprising, considering that setting up greenfield or new manufacturing operations takes time," it said. "PLI criteria for various sectors include thresholds on investments, production, sales, degree of localization, inputs used and many more. Manufacturers may not be able to tick on all boxes," GTRI Co-Founder Ajay Srivastava said. Citing an example, he said in one of the cases, the government suspected the invoice value and disallowed the incentive of a few hundred crore. "In most .

Kerala Budget aims to increase revenue amid Centre's curbs: State FM

Kerala Finance Minister K N Balagopal on Saturday said the public will appreciate the upcoming 2024-25 budget which is aimed at increasing the revenue of the southern state that has been grappling with alleged financial restrictions by the Centre. Addressing the media here, Balagopal said the Left government has got its limitations due to financial strangulation by the union government, but the budget will be aimed at carrying forward the achievements and development of Kerala. "The public will appreciate the upcoming budget which is aimed at increasing the revenue of the state. However, the government has got its limitations. But the people have faith in the government that we will do everything for them and the state," he said. The Kerala budget will be presented on February 5. The Left leader continued his attack on the Opposition Congress-led UDF in Kerala, which on Friday boycotted the assembly just before the House passed a unanimous resolution against the union government ..

At Rs 200K, Centre to provide 67% more to build rural homes in plains

Budget documents also showed that for houses that will be being built in hilly and north-eastern states, the per unit allocation has now been enhanced to Rs 220,000 as against the earlier Rs 130,000

CM Mamata Banerjee to stage dharna in Kolkata today over West Bengal's dues

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will stage a dharna here from Friday to protest against alleged withholding of the state's dues by the Centre. The issue of the Centre withholding the dues, particularly under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), has snowballed into a significant political controversy in the state. "The dharna will start at 1 pm in Red Road area in Maidan. Our party supremo Mamata Banerjee will lead the agitation. Other senior leaders of the party will also be present," a senior TMC leader said. Earlier demonstrations by TMC's national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, along with a cohort of party legislators, MPs, ministers, and MGNREGA workers at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, followed by a five-day sit-in outside Raj Bhavan here, have underscored the gravity of the situation. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005, aims at enhancing the livelihood security of households in rural areas by providin