Page 3 - Government

L'affaire Adani and the colonial mindset in our approach to governance

All regulatory institutions should be made constitutional authorities, suggests T C A Srinivasa Raghavan

Karnataka hijab ban: Girls move SC for permission to take exam in headscarf

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will take a call on listing a plea to allow girls to sit for exams in Karnataka government schools while wearing the hijab. Following the apex court's split verdict on the issue of the ban on wearing the headscarf, girls in hijab are not being permitted to take the exams scheduled to begin from March 9, a bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud was told. They are wearing headscarf. If they are wearing headscarf they are not allowed inside the examination hall. Only on that limited aspect, the court may consider listing it on Monday or Friday, said lawyer Shadan Farasat. He told the bench, also comprising Justice P S Narasimha, that a few girls have moved to private institutions because of the prohibition on wearing hijabs but have to take their exams in government institutions. They risk losing another year if not permitted, he said. I will take a call, the CJI said. Due to the split verdict, the high court's judgement still holds the ..

Godhra train burning case: Gujarat govt seeks death penalty for 11 in SC

The Gujarat government on Monday told the Supreme Court that it will press for the death penalty to 11 convicts in the 2002 Godhra train burning case, as it was a 'rarest of the rare and grave offence

Govt boosts PMAY budget while previous targets only partially met

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

Govt working on introducing curriculum on organ donation to raise awareness

The government is working on introducing a curriculum on organ donation mostly likely in Class 9 or 11 in order to raise awareness among schoolchildren about the issue, sources said. They said India has a very low rate of deceased organ donation compared to Western countries and an estimated five lakh lives could be saved annually by timely organ transplant. India's organ donation rate, which is the number of deceased donors per million population, continues be less than 1 per million in comparison to countries like Spain, USA, Australia, Croatia. "The numbers highlight the huge gap between the number of organs required and the organs available for transplantation. The reason being lack of awareness and myths associated with organ donation. To counter all these, the Union Health Ministry is working on introducing a curriculum on organ donation mostly likely in Class 9 or 11 in order to raise awareness about the issue,: an official source said. The ministry is also working on a 'One

Govt to spend 75% defence outlay for procurement from Indian firms: Rajnath

In a significant announcement, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said the government will spend 75 per cent of the total defence capital outlay for procurement from domestic defence manufacturers from 2023-24. The decision will mean setting aside of around Rs 100,000 crore for procurement of military platforms and equipment from the Indian manufacturers, he said. Singh made the announcement at an event where several agreements and technology transfer agreements were firmed up among large number of defence companies which participated in Aero India 2023. "It is a very significant decision which will further strengthen the domestic defence manufacturing sector," Singh said. He also said that Aero India 2023 has shown that the Indian defence sector is ready to march ahead along with top global defence companies. The MoUs and technology transfer agreements signed during Aero India will facilitate a new beginning for defence manufacturing in India, he said. A new chapter in

Higher govt capex help infra companies clock 17-20% revenue growth: Report

Higher government spending on infrastructure in FY24 will propel engineering, procurement, and construction companies to hit revenue growth of 17-20 per cent, taking their profit to the pre-Covid level, a report said on Tuesday. In the Budget 2023-24, the government has increased the outlay for capital expenditure (capex) on infrastructure sector by 33 per cent from Rs 7.5 lakh crore to Rs 10 lakh crore. Forecasting higher revenue and thicker bottom-line, rating agency Crisil in a report also placed their credit outlook positive citing improving debt metrics. The optimism is supported by the expected strong order inflows due to the government thrust on infrastructure in the latest budget. Profitability of large EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) companies is seen improving and reaching pre-pandemic levels of 10-10.5 per cent next fiscal compared to 9-9.5 per cent this fiscal, with commodity prices easing. With healthy order books and recovery in profitability, debt .

We condemn 'intimidation tactics', shows govt scared of criticism: Congress

The Congress on Tuesday termed as "intimidation tactics" the Income Tax survey operation at the BBC offices and alleged that the action shows that the Modi government is scared of criticism. The Income Tax Department on Tuesday conducted a survey operation at the BBC's offices in Delhi and Mumbai as part of an investigation into alleged tax evasion, officials said. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said that while the party is demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe on the Adani issue, the "government is after the BBC". He also used a Hindi idiom to attack the government, saying "Vinash Kale, Vipreet Buddhi" (When doom approaches, a person's intellect works against his interest). "Here we are demanding JPC on the Adani issue but the government is after the BBC. Vinash Kale Viprit Buddhi," Ramesh said. Reacting to the development, Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal said the IT raid at BBC's offices "reeks of desperation and shows that the Modi ..

Govt begins consultations with sector experts on road safety standards

Safety index for highways on the cards; key focus is on four Es--engineering, education, enforcement and emergency care

Kerala govt to raise Rs 400 cr for Adani Ports as part of Vizhinjam pact

Kerala will have to provide Adani Ports Rs 400 crore when 30 per cent of the breakwater is completed and they have been knocking on the doors of the government for a while

MoRTH amends norms to ease vehicle purchase by differently abled people

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has proposed allowing conversion of fully built vehicles into adapted vehicles through temporary registration to facilitate buying of motor vehicles by differently abled people. Adaptation of motor vehicles, as per the specific needs of Divyangajan (differently abled people), is often required to facilitate their mobility. Currently, such adaptation could either be carried out prior to registration of vehicle, by the manufacturer or his authorised dealer. It can also be done after the registration of vehicle in as-is form on the basis of permission received from registering authority. "To simplify this process, MoRTH has proposed amendments in rules 53A and 53B, to extend the facility of temporary registration for adaptation of motor vehicles," the ministry said in a statement on Friday. According to the draft notification, in rule 53A, the grounds for applying for temporary registration has been expanded to include cases of fully

BJP promises greater autonomy to tribals, rise in farmers aid in Tripura

Ruling BJP on Thursday promised greater autonomy to tribals, increase in farmers' financial assistance and setting up of bamboo and agar-based industries to make 'Unnato Tripura, Sreshtho Tripura'.

Domestic airlines reported 2,613 technical snags in last 5 years: Singh

Domestic airlines reported 2,613 significant technical snags in their planes in the last five years, Union minister V K Singh told the Lok Sabha on Thursday. The Minister of State for Civil Aviation said the regulations require occurrences relating to system and component failure to be reported to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). "These occurrences, based on their severity are investigated either by the concerned airlines under the supervision of the DGCA or by the DGCA under Rule 13(1) of the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017," he said in a written reply. Giving details, Singh said there were a total of 2,613 "significant technical snags" reported by various airlines in the country during the 2018-2022 period. In this period, IndiGo reported 885 snags, SpiceJet (691), Vistara (444), Air India (399), AirAsia (India) Ltd (79), Go Air (54), TruJet (30), Alliance Air (13), Blue Dart Aviation (7), Akasa Air (6) and Fly Big (5), as per the

Govt to bring anti-copying law soon; youths shouldn't be misled: CM Dhami

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday appealed to the youth not to let themselves be misled by anyone saying efforts are on to ensure that recruitment examinations are held in the state in a transparent way. "We are soon going to bring the strictest anti-coyping law in the country. It will be ensured that use of unfair means in recruitment examinations stops completely and they are held in a transparent manner. We will see to it that no injustice is done to the youth," Dhami said. Unemployed youths had staged a dharna and demonstration here on Wednesday demanding a CBI probe into irregularities in different recruitment examinations held by the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission. "Our government is making decisions in favour of the youth. We have granted reservation to our sisters and daughters in government jobs. Everyone's interest will be protected. My request to the youth is that they should not allow themselves to be misled by anyone," he said. The state

Delays in 835 projects cost govt over Rs 4.5 trn, Railways' overrun highest

Reasons relate to land acquisition, obtaining forest/environment clearances, lack of infra support

Amit Shah to dedicate 25 Addiction Treatment Facilities to country on Thu

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will organise a function of Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan to dedicate the Addiction Treatment Facilities (ATFs) to the nation on Thursday.Th function will take place at 11:00 AM at Ambedkar International Centre in the national capitalUnion Minister of Home Affairs and Cooperation, Amit Shah will confer 25 Addiction Treatment Facilities (ATFs) to the nation in the function.Union Home minister Amit Shah in December 2022 speaking in parliament that the drug menace is a serious problem which is destroying generations and the profits being made from drugs are utilised for terrorism as well.Shah was replying to the debate in Lok Sabha under rule 193 on the "Problem of drug abuse in the country and steps taken by the government."He said that Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) can conduct probes across the country. Shah also reiterated the Centre's zero-tolerance policy against drug abuse. "Our govt policy is very clear: those consuming drugs are ...

Vivad se Vishwas-II: Govt aims to settle 500 cases involving about Rs 1 trn

The Budget has proposed the Vivad se Vishwas-2 scheme to settle long-pending litigation in cases where an arbitration order has been challenged in any Indian court

Rs 1.45 trillion extra resources for FCI's capital needs, says govt

The IEBR of FCI for FY24 - in line with the Budget documents - is projected to jump a staggering 164 per cent to nearly Rs 1.45 trillion, from the 2022-23 (FY23) Revised Estimates (RE) of Rs 55,000 cr

Regulations strictly followed while making investments: LIC tells govt

Amid concerns in certain quarters over LIC's exposure to Adani group companies, the government on Tuesday said the insurer has informed that it strictly follows the statutory framework and regulations while making investments. Last week, state-owned Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) said it has investments of Rs 35,917.31 crore in Adani group's debt and equity securities. The amount is 0.975 per cent of the insurer's total assets under management of more than Rs 41.66 lakh crore. The total purchase value of equity, purchased over the last many years, under all the Adani group companies is Rs 30,127 crore and the market value for the same as at close of market hours on January 27, 2023, was Rs 56,142 crore, as per LIC. "LIC has informed that all investments of LIC are carried out strictly as per the statutory framework of the Insurance Act, 1938 and the IRDAI Investment Regulations, 2016 and are guided by a detailed governance mechanism," Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad to

Centre appoints K Satyanarayana Raju as new MD & CEO of Canara Bank

State-owned Canara Bank on Tuesday said the Union Government has appointed K Satyanarayana Raju as its Managing Director and CEO, with immediate effect. He will be replacing L V Prabhakar who demitted office on December 31, 2022. Raju, who is a Physics Graduate, Post Graduate in Business Administration (Banking and Finance) and CAIIB (Certified Associate of Indian Institute of Bankers), had earlier served Canara Bank as Executive Director since March 10, 2021. He has a very rich and vast experience in all segments of banking including Branch Banking, Corporate Credit, Retail Credit, Agri Financing, Credit Monitoring, Credit Recovery, Compliance etc. Also his rich experience and exposure led to digital transformation of banking products and services, the bank said in a release.