Page 47 - Centre

Advertisement disclosures should be displayed prominently, says govt

The Centre on Monday said disclosures in advertisements should be displayed prominently and not in the form of hashtags or links, in the interest of consumers. Virtually delivering a keynote address at an event organised by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) in Mumbai on Monday, Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh also stressed the importance of conducting social media advertising responsibly at a time when there are 50 crore social media users in India. There is a need for influencers and celebrities to disclose any material connections with advertisers that may affect the credibility of their representation, Singh said. "Disclosures must be hard to miss and not mixed with a group of hashtags or links," he noted. For endorsements in pictures, the secretary said disclosures should be superimposed over the image, and for endorsements in videos, disclosures should be made in both audio and video formats. In live streams, disclosures should be continuously ...

Keeping tabs: Centre mulls cybersecurity test for public CCTV buys

Railways seeks Niti Aayog intervention, citing national security

Vedanta-Hindustan Zinc deal worry may hit divestment plan for FY23

Centre's opposition to the Vedanta-HZL deal is on account of valuation and the deal being a related-party transaction

Bengal govt to get Rs 2,400 cr from Centre under Samagra Shiksha Mission

Sources from the state education department said after every Union budget the Centre discusses with the state governments on the allocations under different centrally-sponsored schemes

Development of Karnataka top priority of Centre, state govt, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday that the development of Karnataka has been a top priority of the ruling BJP whereas those running the previous dispensations in the state used to divert its money outside. He also said his government has worked for India's progress by taking along traditions as well as technology. "There was a time when people after forming government in Karnataka would take its money outside. Today, the country's money and resources are honestly directed towards Karnataka's development," he said after inaugurating the "Barisu Kannada Dim Dimava" cultural festival here. Today the development of Karnataka is a top priority for the country and for the government of Karnataka, he said. The prime minister said the state annually got Rs 11,000 crore between 2009 and 2014 when the Congress-led UPA was in power, while it has risen to Rs 30,000 crore under his government. While the state received a total of only Rs 4,000 crore for railway projects in the five

Centre releases Rs 22.20 cr for treatment of patients with rare diseases

The Union Health ministry has released Rs 22.20 crore for 134 patients undergoing treatment for rare diseases at eight designated hospitals since the guidelines for providing financial aid to such patients were issued last August. On May 19, the ministry increased the financial support from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 50 lakh for patients belonging to all categories of rare diseases, and on August 11 issued guidelines to grant financial aid to such patients under the National Policy for Rare Diseases, 2021. According to officials, the number of Centres of Excellence (CoEs) designated for treating those with rare diseases like Gaucher Disease, Tyrosinemia, Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) and others have also been increased from eight to eleven. The 11 CoEs are AIIMS, New Delhi, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, Centre for DNA Fingerprinting an

Centre's wheat procurement to be normal next season: FCI chairman

According to FCI data, the corporation has so far managed to sell roughly 1.8 mt of wheat, of the earmarked 3 mt, in the first three auctions that are about 60 per cent of the allocated quantity

Centre approves order for mandatory certification of cotton bale

The government on Wednesday said it has approved the Quality Control Order for mandatory certification of cotton bales to augment the supply of good quality cotton to the textile industry. The decision was taken at the fifth interactive meeting with the Textile Advisory Group here on Tuesday evening to review the progress of initiatives for cotton value chain. Minister for Textiles and Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal presided over the meeting. He pointed out that the quality of Indian cotton fibre is beneficial for farmers and industry both. He approved the Quality Control Order (QCO) for mandatory certification of cotton bales under specification No. IS12171: 2019-Cotton Bales to augment supply of good quality cotton to the textile industry, an official statement said. The minister stressed that branding of Indian cotton will add great value to the entire cotton value chain from farmers to end users. The Cotton Corporation of India and TEXPROCIL signed an MoU on December 15, ...

Centre to auction lithium reserves found in Jammu by June: Report

The discovery of 5.9 million tonnes of the metal in Reasi in Jammu and Kashmir has made India the seventh-largest holder of lithium reserves

Punjab govt to ask Centre to regulate prices of non-scheduled medicines

The Punjab government will soon write a letter to the Centre to bring the prices of non-scheduled medicines under control, according to a decision taken at a meeting convened by Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan on Tuesday. The move is aimed at stopping the fleecing of the public due to the exorbitant rates of medicines, an official statement said. Sandhwan said that drug price fixing is the central government subject and "licensed loot of patients has been legalized in the current system". "Finding an immediate solution to this very sensitive issue of the people's lives is the need of the hour. The Union government should immediately look into this matter and amend the law so that patients' loot could be stopped at once," he said, as per the statement. During the meeting, MLAs, health experts, doctors and representatives of various NGOs spoke about the actual rate and maximum retail prices of the medicines, showing the difference in prices of up to 90 per cent along with

Govt to offload 2 million tonnes more wheat in open market to cool prices

The proposal to add wheat stocks in the open market was taken by a group of ministers, sources said

Centre opposes Vedanta's $3-bn zinc asset sale over concerns of valuation

In a setback to billionaire Anil Agarwal's mining group, the government has opposed Vedanta Ltd's proposal to sell its international zinc business to Hindustan Zinc Ltd for USD 2.98 billion over concerns of valuation. The government has threatened to take legal action to stop the sale of the Africa-based assets to HZL, in which it holds a 29.54 per cent stake. In a letter to HZL, posted by the company to stock exchanges, the Ministry of Mines said the deal is a "related party transaction" and the government would "like to reiterate'' its dissent. HZL in January agreed to buy THL Zinc Ltd Mauritius from its parent, Vedanta Ltd, for USD 2.98 billion in phases over 18 months. Vedanta holds a 64.92 per cent equity share of Hindustan Zinc ltd (HZL), which is an integrated producer of zinc, lead and silver. HZL in a separate filing said it would place the ministry's letter before the board and that a meeting of the shareholders to approve the deal was yet to be called. The Rajasthan-ba

Centre appoints B Subrahmanyam as NITI Aayog CEO; lyer moves to World Bank

Subrahmanyam earlier served as the chief secretary of Jammu and Kashmir and played a key role in the state's bureaucracy

Farm to fork: Going in favour of the grain ahead of Assembly elections

MP, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan go to polls in less than a year. They produce important agri-commodities. Centre in dilemma: higher prices will be inflationary, lower prices will trigger farmer wrath

Govt boosts PMAY budget while previous targets only partially met

Centre has increased budget for housing scheme, although older targets haven't been met

Centre making roads worth Rs 3 trn in NE to help eradicate poverty: Gadkari

The Government of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is making roads valued at Rs 3 lakh crore in the North East to help eradicate poverty and reduce the suffering of the people, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Saturday. The Union minister for roads, transport and highways said road projects worth over Rs 25,000 crore are being implemented in Meghalaya. Addressing election rallies in South Garo Hills and West Khasi Hills districts, Gadkari said, To eradicate poverty and reduce the suffering of people, we have to make good roads and in NE, the Modi government is making roads worth 3 lakh crore which will be completed by 2024. The minister said that the network of road connectivity in NE has increased by 25 per cent since 2014. National Highway projects worth Rs 4000 crore are going on in 351 projects in NE, he said, listing out a number of projects which are nearing completion and also those which are in the pipeline. Gadkari also named various road projects undertaken i

Centre allows sale of excess tobacco produced by registered growers

The government on Saturday said it has allowed sale of excess tobacco produced by registered growers on auction platforms for the crop season 2022-23. It has also permitted sale of unauthorized tobacco produced by unregistered growers without any penalty on the platforms in Karnataka for the crop season 2022-23. "Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal has considered to allow the sale of the excess flue cured Virginia tobacco produced by registered growers and unauthorized flue cured Virginia tobacco produced by unregistered growers without any penalty considering the low production during the 2022-2023 Karnataka Crop season," it said. In Karnataka, during this crop season, 40,207 farmers cultivated FCV tobacco in an area of 60,782 hectares. The total production of FCV tobacco in Karnataka remained at 59.78 million kgs against the crop size of 100.00 million kgs fixed by Tobacco Board , due to continuous rains during months of June and July 2022. The decision of imposi

Issue of alleged non-functional statutory panels in J-K under consideration

The Centre on Friday told the Supreme Court that the issue of allegedly non-functional statutory panels in Jammu and Kashmir, including the human rights commission, is under consideration and sought three weeks to apprise it of developments. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala took note of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's submissions that the issue raised in the PIL is being considered at an appropriate level. The top court also directed petitioner, Pune-based lawyer Asim Suhas Sarode, to also make the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh parties to the PIL. List after three weeks, the CJI said. He added that the Centre will apprise the bench about developments in the matter on the next date of hearing. On November 28 last year, the top court had taken note of Sarode's PIL, which alleged the statutory panels were not functional in the union territory after the abrogation of Article 370 in the then state, and

Centre using J-K to divert attention from Adani issue, says Mehbooba Mufti

Criticising the ongoing anti-encroachment drive, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday accused the BJP-led Centre of using Jammu and Kashmir to divert attention of the country from pressing issues such as unemployment and the Adani row. "To divert the attention from the Adani issue and the damage it has done to the economy of the country, they (BJP) don't get anything better than Jammu and Kashmir, like demolition drive," Mehbooba told reporters here. Asked about Union Home Minister Amit Shah's comments about the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, the former chief minister said, "They do not make statements, they make jumlas." "He himself said the promises of two crore jobs and Rs 15 lakh in every bank account were election jumla (rhetoric)," she said. Mehbooba said Shah was the first home minister in the history of independent India who turned a state into a Union territory. On the demolition drive, she said the BJP earlier used to brand the people of Jammu and ..

Issue of FCA, FRA clearances to be taken up with Union govt: Himachal CM

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Tuesday said his government would take up with the Centre the issue of delay in obtaining Forest Conservation Act (FCA) and Forests Rights Act( FRA) clearances so that developmental projects in the state do not get delayed. Presiding over a forest department meeting here on Tuesday, he said the state government is committed to maintain a balance between development and environment. But development projects of utmost importance like heliports, electric vehicle charging stations and day-boarding schools are affected by the delay in getting FCA and FRA approvals, a statement issued here said. Directing the forest officers to expedite FCA and FRA cases, he said officers will also be held accountable for delays. Earlier, presiding over the 11th meeting of the Himachal Pradesh State Board for Wildlife, Sukhu urged the department to explore tourism potential of activities like water sports and hot air balloon operations in Pong Dam