Page 42 - Centre

Delhi HC asks Centre to respond to plea for linking property with Aadhaar

The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the Centre to file reply on a plea seeking linking of immovable and movable property documents of citizens with their Aadhaar numbers to curb corruption, black money generation, and 'benami' transactions. A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Yashwant Varma granted four weeks to the ministries of Finance, Law, Housing and Urban Affairs and Rural Development to file their responses to the petition. The bench, which orally observed that it a good matter and let replies come, listed the matter for further hearing on July 18. During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma along with Central government standing counsel Manish Mohan, representing the Centre, termed the issue as an important one. Petitioner and lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay said it is the duty of the state to take appropriate steps to curb corruption and seize 'benami' properties amassed by illegal means to give a strong message that the government is ...

Delhi CM Kejriwal claims Centre targeting him for public welfare schemes

A day after he was questioned by the CBI in the excise policy case, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday accused the Centre of targeting him and his government for providing several welfare schemes, including free electricity and good health facilities, to the people of the capital. Speaking at the one-day session of the Assembly, Kejriwal again questioned the education qualification of the prime minister without naming him. The session passed a resolution attacking the prime minister and the BJP. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP have long tried to contain the fast rise and expansion of the Aam Aadmi Party and growing popularity of its national convener Arvind Kejriwal," the resolution stated. Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena had earlier flagged "procedural lapses" in calling of the session in a note to the chief minister and suggested against doing so. During his speech, Kejriwal alleged that demonetisation was implemented to end corruption and terrorism, but the .

Fill vacancy in National Commission for Scheduled Castes expeditiously: SC

The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to ensure that vacancy in the National Commission for Scheduled Castes is filled on an expeditious basis. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala noted the submission of the Centre that there is one vacancy in the Commission. "The Union of India shall take appropriate steps to ensure that the composition of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes is completed on an expeditious basis," the bench said. The top court was hearing a plea filed by Ambedkar Association for Development seeking to fill appointments to the post of Chairperson/Vice-Chairperson and Member of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes within a stipulated period. BJP leader and former Union minister Vijay Sampla is the chairperson of the Commission. The National Commission for Scheduled Castes is an Indian constitutional body established with a view to provide safeguards against the exploitation of Schedule

CBI summon was a conspiracy to arrest CM Arvind Kejriwal, says AAP MP

The AAP on Friday alleged that the CBI summoned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as he spoke about the Adani issue and asserted that such notices will not deter their fight against corruption. Addressing a press conference, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said the CBI summon was a conspiracy to arrest CM Kejriwal. The CBI has summoned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with the excise policy scam case on April 16, officials said on Friday. Kejriwal has been asked to be present at the agency headquarters at 11 AM to answer queries of the investigating team, they said. "Delhi chief minister had spoken about the Adani issue in Delhi Vidhan Sabha. That same day, I had told him that you will be next. Narendra Modi-led Centre is corrupt from head to toe and Kejriwal's fight against corruption won't stop due to such notices," Singh said. The senior leader said Kejriwal will appear before CBI on April 16. "This notice is a conspiracy to arrest CM Kejriwal. This notice

Will not beg in front of Centre for clearance of Bengal's dues: Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday claimed that the Centre's huge dues to the state will not be released till 2024, but asserted she would not beg in front of the Union government for clearance of the amount. "We have a lot of dues, which are yet to be released by Delhi. I have heard that funds will not be released till 2024. But, despite that I will not beg in front of them. I will try to move forward with the blessings of people," she said. The CM was speaking at the inauguration of the Dhanadhanyo' auditorium, a modern Rs 440-crore indoor facility in the southern part of the city's Alipore area. Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have been pressing for the immediate release of dues to the state under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and other centrally sponsored projects. She had recently taken part in a two-day demonstration here, demanding the central government release the dues. TMC national general secretary Abhishek

Would rather beg to common people than Centre for funds: Mamata Banerjee

Banerjee said that although recently the Union government has released some funds under different centrally-sponsored projects, the released funds are negligible compared to the requirement

Centre appoints nodal officers for 150 water stressed districts: Officials

The Centre has appointed nodal officers for 150 water stressed districts across the country to take stock of the work under the 'catch the rain' programme, officials said on Thursday. These officers would visit respective districts coordinating implementation of various rain water harvesting, conservation measures and source sustainability aspects, etc., they said citing an official order in this regard. Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain (JSA:CTR) - 2023 with the theme "source sustainability for drinking water" was launched by President Droupadi Murmu on March 4. In this regard, officers of the government of India are hereby appointed as Central Nodal Officers (CNOs) for the identified 150 water stressed districts to take stock of the progress of the works under JSA:CTR-2023 with the directions to visit their districts, said the order issued by the Personnel Ministry. The Central Nodal Officers will be working with a team of Technical officers (ground water scientists and engineer

Take action against traders not making disclosure of tur dal stocks: Govt

The Centre on Wednesday directed state governments to take strict action against traders, millers and importers and stockists, who have not provided full disclosure about their tur dal stocks. In a review meeting on status of stock disclosure of tur and urad with major pulses producing and consuming states, Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh said that the quantity of tur dal stocks disclosed as compared to its production and consumption has also been found to be "low" in certain states. While the number of entities registered in the stock disclosure portal has increased, it was observed that the actual number of stakeholders in certain states could be higher, he said in a statement. "The states were directed to conduct verification of stocks held by various entities and take strict action on undisclosed stocks under relevant sections of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, and the Prevention of Blackmarketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential Commodities Act, 1980,"

Odisha seeks 50,000 vaccines from Centre as Covid cases rise: Official

With more than 100 cases of coronavirus being reported in Odisha for four days now, the state government Tuesday requested the Centre for at least an additional 50,000 doses of vaccine in the first phase to cover people who have not received the booster dose yet, an official said. The state director of family welfare Bijay Panigrahi, who is also its nodal officer for immunization, has in his letter to the ministry of health and family welfare sought CorBEvax vaccine for Odisha. Presently there is a rise in Covid cases in Odisha. Also there is a demand from public for precaution dose vaccination at government facilities, Panigrahi said in the letter. The state does not have any vaccine left since February this, he wrote and requested for at least 50,000 doses of CorBEvax vaccine with long expiry as early as possible. The state on Tuesday reported 141 fresh infections and the number of active cases in the state has increased to 731. It has been reporting more than 100 new cases for

New data protection bill to be introduced in Monsoon session: Centre to SC

The Centre on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that a new data protection bill is ready and will be introduced in the Monsoon session of Parliament. Attorney General R Venkatramani told a Constitution bench headed by Justice KM Joseph that the bill is ready. The bench also comprising justices Ajay Rastogi, Aniruddha Bose, Hrishikesh Roy, and C T Ravikumar took note of the submission. They directed that the matter be placed before Chief Justice DY Chandrachud so that a new bench can be constituted as Justice Joseph is set to retire on June 16. The matter has been posted for hearing in the first week of August 2023. Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioners, submitted that the court should not link the court hearings to the legislative process. The legislative process is complex and it may be again referred to some committees, he said. The apex court was hearing a plea filed by two students -- Karmanya Singh Sareen and Shreya Sethi -- challenging the contract entere

Centre aims for low premium, coverage with new livestock insurance scheme

According to the parliamentary panel's reports, not even a single livestock was insured during 2022-23, whereas in 2021-22, 174,061 animals were insured

TN adopts resolution urging Centre to fix timeline for Guv to approve bills

The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday adopted a resolution to urge the Centre and the President to fix a timeframe for State Governors to approve Bills adopted by the respective Houses. The bill, moved by Chief Minister M K Stalin and adopted by the House also sought the President and the Centre to 'advise' Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi to give his assent to the Bills passed by the state Assembly in a time-bound manner. The government's move came in the wake of bills including the ones seeking exemption to Tamil Nadu from the NEET ambit and banning online gambling pending with the Raj Bhavan for the Governor's assent. While moving the Bill, Stalin launched a tirade against the Governor, saying Ravi was not approving certain bills due to his "whims and fancies." He also charged Ravi with converting the Raj Bhavan into a "political Bhavan" and accused him of being against the welfare of the people of Tamil Nadu. The resolution "regretfully" recorded that by keeping the Bills pending, the

Govt to set up 16th Finance Comm in 2023 for Centre-state tax devolution

The government is likely to set up the 16th finance commission this year to suggest, among other things, the ratio in which tax is to be divided between the Centre and states for five years, beginning April 1, 2026, an official said. The members of the commission and its Terms of Reference (ToR) are being worked out, the official added. Finance Commission is a constitutional body that gives suggestions on Centre-state financial relations. The previous Finance Commission submitted its report on November 9, 2020, for the 5 fiscals -- 2021-22 to 2025-26 -- to the President. The 15th Commission under NK Singh had kept the tax devolution ratio at 42 per cent -- at the same level suggested by the 14th Commission. The central government accepted the report of the commission, and accordingly, the states are being given 42 per cent of the divisible tax pool of the Centre during the period 2021-22 to 2025-26. The 15th finance commission's recommendations include the fiscal deficit, debt pa

Bihar CM Nitish urges Centre to provide fresh Covid-19 vaccine stocks

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday urged the Centre to provide fresh stocks of COVID vaccine vials so that administering of jabs, which is currently on hold, could be resumed. Talking to reporters here on the sidelines of a function, he also asserted that his government was "alert" in view of rising incidence of COVID cases in some parts of the country, though Bihar was not one of them. "Our testing rate is much higher than the national average, which is six lakh tests per one million people. We are conducting eight lakh tests. Bihar accounts for about one fourth of the total number of tests conducted across the country", claimed Kumar. He underscored that the current spike was noticed in those parts of the country which were the worst affected when the coronavirus had caused a global pandemic. "In Bihar cases are very few but we are alert, nonetheless. In places like hospitals wearing of masks is being reinforced. We were also carrying out vaccination till our supply drie

Decoded: Centre's plan to identify, take down 'fake' or 'misleading' news

The latest notification by the Centre regarding new IT rules provides for appointing a fact-checking body for online content

Critical views can't be termed anti-establishment: SC lifts ban on MediaOne

The Supreme Court on Wednesday quashed the Centre's denial of security clearance to Malayalam news channel MediaOne, and pulled up the Ministry of Home Affairs for raising national security claims in "thin air" without facts. A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud set aside the Kerala High Court order which had upheld the Centre's decision to ban the channel's telecast on security grounds. The top court said critical views of the channel against government policies cannot be termed as anti-establishment as an independent press is necessary for robust democracy. "National security claims cannot be made out of thin air, there must be material facts backing it," the bench said. The top court was hearing the plea of the news channel against the Kerala High Court's order which had upheld the Centre's decision to ban its telecast on security grounds.

DMRC writes to Centre on Reliance arbitral award high court order: Sources

Delhi Metro has asked the Centre and the city government for "further directions" on a Delhi High Court order that directed the two to help it pay dues of an arbitral award passed in favour of Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited, sources on Tuesday said. The DMRC sought directions in a letter dated March 28 addressed to the secretary, Union Ministry of Urban and Housing Affairs, and chief secretary, Delhi government, in separate copies, they said. DMRC officials, when contacted, did not comment on the issue. The Delhi High Court had on March 17 directed the Centre and the city government to attend to DMRC's request for extension of sovereign guarantees or subordinate debt to enable it to make payment of dues of an arbitral award passed in favour of DAMEPL, saying the governments cannot shirk from their liability to abide by judgements and decrees. The high court's verdict had come on an execution petition filed by Reliance Infrastructure-owned DAMEPL against the Delhi Metro

Centre releases over Rs 22 cr as grant under PMGSY to Arunachal Pradesh

In a push towards strengthening rural road connectivity in Arunachal Pradesh, the Centre has released Rs 22.74 crore to the northeastern state under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) as grant-in-aid, an official statement said on Tuesday. The incentive has been given for the "best performance" of the state in the implementation of the rural road development scheme during the 2022-23 financial year. The fund would be used for periodic maintenance of rural roads already constructed under PMGSY, the statement said. During FY'23, roads covering 1096.24 km, including 61 bridges, were constructed in the state under the PMGSY scheme. Efforts of the state government to improve quality with new technology and fund spent on the maintenance of roads are considered for the financial incentives, the statement said. Chief Minister Pema Khandu thanked the Centre and assured that the grant would be "optimally and judiciously utilised". He said rural connectivity is a top priority of t

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127,999 regular tourist visas issued from Oct 2021 to Mar 2022: Centre

The government issued 1,27,999 regular tourist visas and 2,27,225 e-tourist visas from October 6, 2021 to March 31, 2022, the Parliament was informed on Monday. Union Minister for Tourism G Kishan Reddy said this in a written response to a query in Lok Sabha. In response to another query, he said the government has promoted green initiatives to advocate responsible tourism in the country during G20 meetings in partnership with states and industry. "The venues hosting G20 meetings adopt various green initiatives, including non-use of single use plastic, conservation of water and energy apart from other initiatives," Reddy said. The ministry had also launched Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme which will focus on sustainable and responsible development of tourist destinations. Greening of tourism sector for a sustainable, responsible and resilient tourism sector is one of the five key priorities of the Tourism Working Group. Asked if after the pandemic of COVID-19, the government has star