Page 38 - Centre

Centre's ordinance 'unconstitutional', to snatch power from Delhi govt: AAP

The AAP on Saturday said the Centre's ordinance on the transfer of bureaucrats in Delhi is "unconstitutional" and a move to snatch the power given to the Delhi government by the Supreme Court in services matters. Addressing a press conference, Delhi minister Atishi said the Centre deliberately chose to bring the ordinance at a time when the Supreme Court has closed for summer vacation. The Centre promulgated an ordinance on Friday to create a National Capital Civil Service Authority for transfer of and disciplinary proceedings against Group-A officers from the DANICS cadre. This came a week after the Supreme Court handed over the control of services, excluding those related to police, public order and land, in Delhi to the elected government. Atishi said the Centre's ordinance shows that "Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scared of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal" and the power of honest politics. "They are scared that if he (Kejriwal) gets power, he will do extraordinary work for De

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State's performance good, despite Centre's unfavourable approach: Kerala FM

Kerala has demonstrated remarkable success in managing its finances during the last fiscal year, despite the adverse global situation and the central government's unfavourable approach towards the state, Finance Minister K N Balagopal has said. He said despite numerous obstacles, the financial performance of the Kerala government during the 202223 fiscal year was "impressive." "The state managed to fund critical development and welfare projects, demonstrating the efficiency of its revenue collection systems. Amidst global economic challenges, Kerala's resilience serves as a beacon of hope for overcoming future hurdles," the minister added. Balagopal said this in an article titled "Rising to the Challenges" published in the latest issue of "Kerala Calling", an official magazine of the state government. He noted that in March 2023, the Kerala government spent Rs 22,000 crore from the Treasury to fund various governmental activities, allowing for unhindered developmental and welfare .

RBI dividends to Centre may double due to gains, aiding fiscal gap

The RBI board is set to meet on Friday as early signs of slowing growth emerge with elevated interest rates and falling global demand

None of the officials have any cheetah management experience: Centre to SC

The Centre Thursday told the Supreme Court that no officials including members of the court-appointed committee have any experience in cheetah management in India as the animal went extinct from the country in 1947-48. It said the Centre and state governments through exchange visits, study tours, capacity building and training programs with African countries have trained significant number of forest officials and veterinarians who have experience of working with African wildlife species including cheetahs. Some of these officials and veterinarians are actively involved in implementation of Project Cheetah in India, it added. "It is noteworthy to mention that cheetah went extinct from India in year 1947-48 and because of the absence of species from the country none of the officials including the members of the expert committee (contrary to their claim of being an expert in Cheetah) appointed by this court had management experience in Cheetah in India," the Centre said in its ...

Cheetahs' death: SC asks Centre to consider shifting them to Rajasthan

The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed serious concern over the death of three cheetahs translocated from South Africa and Namibia to Kuno National Park (KNP) of Madhya Pradesh in less than two months and asked the Centre to rise above politics and consider shifting them to Rajasthan. A bench of justices BR Gavai and Sanjay Karol told the Centre that from reports of experts and articles, it appears that KNP does not seem to be sufficient for such large number of cheetahs and the Union government may consider shifting them to other sanctuaries. "Three deaths (of cheetahs) in less than two months is a matter of serious concern. There are opinions of experts and articles in media. It appears that Kuno is not sufficient for so many cheetahs. There is too much concentration of cheetahs at one place. Why don't you look for suitable place in Rajasthan? Merely because Rajasthan is ruled by opposition party does not mean, you will not consider it," the bench said. Additional Solicitor Gener

HC seeks Centre's response on plea asking banks to pay interest on FASTag

The Delhi High Court has sought response of the NHAI and the Centre on a plea seeking to direct banks to pay interest to the authorities on the money collected by them with the issue of FASTag and minimum balance requirement on the card. A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad issued notices to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRT&H) on an application which pleads that with the issuing of FASTag, thousands of crores of rupees have entered the banking system without any corresponding benefit either to the commuter community or to NHAI or MoRT&H. The court granted four weeks time to the authorities to file their replies to the application and listed the matter for further hearing on August 10. The application was filed in a pending petition that challenges a rule which compels vehicles without FASTag to pay double the toll tax. The petition contended that the rule was ...

Centre's approval sought to appoint PK Gupta as Delhi's new chief secretary

The AAP government has sought the Centre's approval to appoint 1989 batch IAS officer PK Gupta as the new chief secretary of Delhi, officials said on Thursday. Gupta is currently serving as additional chief secretary at the General Administration Department (GAD) of the Delhi government. The present Chief Secretary of Delhi Naresh Kumar is due to retire later this year, they said. The proposal regarding appointment of Gupta was sent from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to LG VK Saxena for concurrence of the Centre. The move comes days after the Delhi government was given executive power in services matters, including transfer and posting of officers, in an important verdict by the Supreme Court.

Govt expects Reserve Bank surplus to easily surpass Budget targets

Arora pegged the government's budgeted expectation just from the RBI dividend at Rs 38,000-40,000 crore for FY24, which is set to be easily crossed now

Advocate K V Viswanathan's name recommended by Collegium to become 58th CJI

Justice MR Shah and Justice Dinesh Maheshwari demitted office within a span of last two days, bringing the strength of the top court to 32 judges

Jharkhand BJP to campaign from May 30 to showcase Centre's achievements

The BJP in Jharkhand on Tuesday decided to organise a month-long mega public outreach campaign from May 30 on the occasion of completion of nine years of the NDA's rule at the Centre. The decision to launch 'Mahasampark Abhiyan' was taken at a working committee meeting of the state BJP here in Ranchi. The BJP-led central government, in the last nine years, transformed the country into a self-reliant one and helped flourish its economy, the party's state president and MP Deepak Prakash said. BJP workers will undertake the campaign to reach out to the people to make them aware of the achievements of the Centre ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he said. They are gearing up to ensure that BJP candidates win all the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, Prakash said. People of Jharkhand want to "get rid of corruption and appeasement policies of the state government", he said. BJP's Jharkhand in-charge and MP Laxmikant Vajpayee urged workers to go to the doorstep of every house and con

Centre, state tax officers launch drive to identify fake GST registration

With GST evasion crossing over Rs 1 lakh crore in 2022-23, Centre and state tax officers have initiated a two-month long special drive to identify fake GST registration and nab offenders. The GST Policy Wing had earlier this month written to Principal Chief Commissioners of Central Tax highlighting that fake/ non-genuine registrations are being used to fraudulently pass on input tax credit to unscrupulous recipients by issuing invoices without any underlying supply of goods or services or both. "This menace of fake registrations and issuance of bogus invoices for passing of fake ITC has become a serious problem, wherein fraudulent people engage in dubious and complex transactions, causing revenue loss to the government," the Central Board of Indirect Taxes (CBIC) had said. Currently, there are 1.39 crore businesses registered under Goods and Services Tax (GST), which was implemented on July 1, 2017. The government has been using robust data analytics and artificial intelligence to

Centre, state govts working towards taking technology to farmers: Tomar

Highlighting the importance of technology in the farm sector, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Monday said the Centre and various state governments are working towards taking technology to small farmers. Speaking after inaugurating EEI Golden Jubilee auditorium at Extension Education Institute (EEI) here, he said, "It is also needed today as to how do we link technology in agriculture sector in a big way." While big farmers in the country have access to resources, including technology and Krishi Vignan Kendras, it is the responsibility of the Central and state governments to reach the small farmers who do not have access to technology and others. "That's why the Central and state governments are working towards how digitalisation of agriculture can be increased and how to reach common farmers through digital activities," he said and added that the need of the hour is to see how every useful technology reaches the farmers. Tomar, who cited the examples of PM-Kisan

Need to promote innovations useful for defence, civil sectors: Rajnath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said that institutions need to promote innovation which is not only useful for the defence industry but also for civilian purposes

Centre to monitor progress of startups funded by it: Jitendra Singh

The government has proposed the setting up of a mechanism to oversee the nurturing and progress of startups as their numbers have risen to more than a lakh, Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said on Sunday. He said such a mechanism will closely follow the growth of Startups, see how to sustain them so that they do not lose out, especially those that have received technical and financial support from the Government. Singh was addressing the valedictory function and Awards Ceremony of the National Technology Week Exposition at Pragati Maidan here. The minister said over the years start-ups have witnessed a shift from IT to Biotech and Earth Sciences as new opportunities have opened in Oceanography. He also debunked myths surrounding startups. "One is age factor, I have seen a scientist setting up a startup after retirement; second is higher qualification, you just need to be an innovator, having an inherent quest for creativity," Singh said. Principal Scientific Adviso

10 Kuki MLAs from NDA coalition ask Centre for separation from Manipur

Ten tribal MLAs belonging to the Chin-Kuki-Mizo-Zomi group in Manipur have urged the Centre to give their region a separate administration in the wake of recent violent clashes between the Meiteis and tribals. Of the 10 legislators, 7 belong to the BJP, two are from Kuki People's Alliance (KPA) and one is an Independent. The two KPA and independent MLAs are also part of the NDA led by the BJP. As the state of Manipur has miserably failed to protect us, we seek from the Union of India a separate administration under the Constitution of India and live peacefully as neighbours with the state of Manipur, the MLAs said in a statement on Friday. The legislators alleged that violence was perpetrated by the majority Meitei community and was tacitly supported by the BJP-run state government. "The unabated violence that began on May 3, 2023, in Manipur perpetrated by majority Meiteis tacitly supported by the Manipur Government against the Chin-Kuki-Mizo-Zorni hill tribals has already ...

Central govt should increase import duty on Apple from 50 to 100%: Rathore

Himachal Congress president Kuldeep Singh Rathore on Friday said the central government should increase the import duty on Apple from 50 to 100 per cent to protect farmers. The statement came days after the government banned the import of apples if their imported price is less than Rs 50 per Kg. Rathore, in a statement, maintained that the apple growers are not getting remunerative prices because apple is being imported in large quantities from other countries. "BJP leaders should...urge him (the Prime Minister) to increase the import duty from 50 to 100 per cent," he added. The Himachal Pradesh BJP on Tuesday hailed the central government's decision to ban the import of apples if their imported price is less than Rs 50 per kilogram, saying it will benefit the apple growers in the state. The state BJP had raised the issue with the Centre many times, and finally, the government has accepted the suggestion, former chief minister and BJP leader Jai Ram Thakur said in a statement. Th

Delhi govt moves SC saying Centre not initiating transfer of services secy

The Kejriwal government removed the Secretary of the Delhi government's Services department on Thursday evening

Centre, Delhi government need to cooperate with each other, says SC

The Centre and the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCTD) government share a unique federal relationship and they need to cooperate with each other to enhance the spirit of federalism and democracy, the Supreme Court said on Thursday. Observing that NCTD is not subsumed in the unit of the Union merely because it is not a State', a five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said principles of federalism and democracy are interlinked and work together in synergy to secure to all citizens justice, liberty, equality and dignity and to promote fraternity among them. The people's choice of government is linked with the capability of that government to make decisions for their welfare, it said. "In the spirit of cooperative federalism, the Union of India must exercise its powers within the boundaries created by the Constitution. NCTD, having a sui generis (unique) federal model, must be allowed to function in the domain charted for it by the Constitution. "T

Several states oppose validation for same-sex marriage: Centre tells SC

The Centre Wednesday told the Supreme Court it has received responses from seven states on the issue of same-sex marriage and the governments of Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Assam have opposed the petitioners' contention seeking legal validation for such wedlock. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, told a five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud that states like Manipur, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Sikkim have said the issue needed a "very intense and expansive debate" and they would not be able to submit their responses immediately. The Centre had, in an affidavit filed in the apex court earlier, said it had issued a letter on April 18 to all states inviting comments and views on the "seminal issue" raised in these petitions. "At the outset, I had said that we have written letters to the state governments. There are seven responses, I am not reading them, from Manipur, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Assam, Sikkim