Page 7 - Indian Government

Govt approves renaming of national institute on water after SP Mookerjee

The National Centre for Drinking Water, Sanitation and Quality in Kolkata has been renamed as Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee National Institution of Water and Sanitation, the government announced on Wednesday. The Union Cabinet, at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave ex-post facto approval to the proposal to rename the institute set up on 8.72 acres of land in Joka, Diamond Harbour Road, Kolkata. The prime minister inaugurated the institute last month. It is envisaged as a premier institute to develop capacities in states and Union territories in the field of public health engineering, drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene through training programmes. Such capacities are envisaged for not only the frontline workforce engaged in implementation of the Swachh Bharat Mission and the Jal Jeevan Mission, but also for the representatives of local bodies, both rural and urban, an official statement said. Accordingly, suitable infrastructure has been developed, including

Prime minister to address 'Voice of Global South' summit on Thursday

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the inaugural leaders' session at the two-day 'Voice of Global South' summit on Thursday

Insaan should remain Insaan': Kapil Sibal's dig at Bhagwat's remarks

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Wednesday took a swipe at RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's "Hindusthan should remain Hindusthan" remark, saying he agreed with that but "Insaan (human beings) should remain Insaan". Bhagwat has said Muslims have nothing to fear in India, but they must abandon their "boisterous rhetoric of supremacy". In an interview to Organiser and Panchjanya, Bhagwat said, "The simple truth is this, Hindusthan should remain Hindusthan. There is no harm to the Muslims living today in Bharat... Islam has nothing to fear. But at the same time, Muslims must abandon their boisterous rhetoric of supremacy." "We are of an exalted race; we once ruled over this land, and shall rule it again; only our path is right, rest everyone is wrong; we are different, therefore we will continue to be so; we cannot live together; they (Muslims) must abandon this narrative. In fact, all those who live here whether a Hindu or a communist must give up this logic," the RSS chief said. Reacting to th

Investors summit will be a milestone for state, says MP CM Chouhan

MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that the Global Investors Summit which is being organised in Indore on January 11 and 12 will prove to be a milestone for the state's $550 billion economy

Proposed UP power hike will hit common man: Akhilesh slams UP govt

Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav has slammed Uttar Pradesh government's proposal for a 23 per cent hike in power tariff

HC pulls up Maha govt for uncertainty over policy for permitting bike taxis

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday rapped the Maharashtra government for its uncertainty on framing a policy permitting bike taxis in the state, and said it has to clarify its stand one way or the other. A division bench of Justices Gautam Patel and S G Dige said the state government cannot keep the issue hanging over the fire and has to take a decision immediately. The bench was hearing a petition filed by Roppen Transportation Services Private Limited, operator of Rapido bike taxi services in Pune and Mumbai, against a communication issued to it by the state government on December 29, 2022, refusing to allow them a bike taxi aggregator licence. Appearing for the government, Advocate General Birendra Saraf on Tuesday told the court that as on date, bike taxis are not allowed to ply, as the government has not issued any no policy or guidelines for the same. The government has in fact issued a show cause notice to one such aggregator company for plying bike taxis without licence. A ..

Sasikala urges DMK govt to buy sugarcane of all sizes for Pongal hampers

AIADMK former interim general secretary, V.K. Sasikala has urged the Tamil Nadu government to buy Sugarcane of all sizes for the Pongal gift hampers

Municipal bond fund-raising trebles in 5 years; over Rs 6,000 cr mopped up

Total amount raised crossed Rs 6,000 crore since inception in 2022

Pravasi Bharatiyas are 'brand ambassadors' of India on foreign soil: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described Pravasi Bhartiyas as the "brand ambassadors" of India on foreign soil and said they have a significant place in the journey of the country as it enters the 'Amrit kaal' of the next 25 years. He was speaking after inaugurating the 17th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city. "I consider Pravasi Bharatiyas as brand ambassadors of India on foreign soil. Your role is diverse. You are the brand ambassador for yoga, Ayurveda, cottage industry, handicrafts and also millets," Modi said. "The GenNext Pravasis are also curious to know about the country of their parents' origin," he said. The PM asked universities in India to document contributions made by the diaspora in their respective nations for the benefit of students. Modi also said Madhya Pradesh has a number of natural sites, including the Narmada river, and the recently developed Mahakal Lok at the famous Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain, and

Century-old railway track in Sri Lanka being rebuilt with Indian assistance

The reconstruction work of a century-old railway track in northern Sri Lanka, which will be completed under India's assistance, was officially inaugurated here on Monday, a move aimed at enhancing mobility of goods and services and boosting economic activity in the cash-strapped island nation. The 43-km long reconstructed railway track between Medawachchiya and Madhu Road represents the first phase of the project to reconstruct the Northern Railway Line, covering 252 km. IRCON International, an Indian company that has contributed to several railway reconstruction projects in Sri Lanka, is headlining this project. Additionally, ancillary works from Maho to Omanthai 128 km is also being undertaken by IRCON, under an existing line of credit (LoC) of USD 318 million, at a cost of USD 91.27 million. As a long-standing development partner of Sri Lanka, the Government of India executed several projects in Sri Lanka under its concessional loans and grant schemes. Of the different sectors o

Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra resumes today in Haryana's Khanpur Kolian

Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi resumed on Monday morning from Khanpur Kolian in the Kurukshetra district of Haryana

Centre creating ecosystem to benefit each of 140 crore Indians: NCGG chief

The Centre is creating an ecosystem where each of 140 crore Indians can take benefit of government policies, chief of National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) Bharat Lal said on Sunday. He said any public policy in the absence of the right kind of governance is not going to achieve its objective and in today's era if it is not mixed with innovation, it is next to impossible to meet the intended goal. Lal said, in public policy, one has to be very clear about the goal, objective, and collaterals and "we have to see that everybody is benefited". "And today, the Government of India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is creating this kind of ecosystem and opportunities, where each of 140 crore Indians can take benefit," he said. Delivering the keynote address on 'Public Policy, Governance & Innovation' at the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad, Lal said in the last eight and half years, attempts for universalisation of various services like drinking water, .

MoRTH confident of achieving highway construction target of 12k km in FY23

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) is confident of achieving the highways construction target of 12,000 kilometres for the current fiscal as the pace of construction has increased, its secretary Alka Upadhyaya said on Sunday. Upadhyaya further said the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has already realised around Rs 2,850 crore through Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) mode in phase 2, and phase 3 is in the advanced stage to realise the target by the end of the current financial year. "Extended monsoon has dampened the pace of National Highway construction. "However, the pace of construction has increased, and we are sure that the given targets shall be met by March 2023," she told PTI in an interview. The ministry has constructed 4,766 km of National Highways up to November 2022-23 compared to 5,1.18 km constructed till November 2021-22. The award figure is 5,382 km till November 2022-23 compared to 5,578 km a year ago. The ministry has construct

PMO to hold high-level meeting today over crisis in Uttarakhand's Joshimath

The Prime Minister's Office will hold a high-level meeting on the Joshimath crisis on Sunday afternoon amid alarm in the Uttarakhand region due to sinking of land and cracks in houses at several places. P K Mishra, the principal secretary to the prime minister, will hold the review meeting with the cabinet secretary, other senior officials of the central government and members of the National Disaster Management Authority, an official statement said. District officials of Joshimath besides senior officials of Uttarakhand will also attend the review meeting through video-conferencing. Uttrakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had visited Joshimath on Saturday to assess the situation on the ground, a day after he directed immediate evacuation of around 600 affected families. Dhami said Joshimath is an important place from the cultural, religious and tourism point of view and all efforts will be made to save it. Joshimath, the gateway to famous pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and

Scindia assures speedy action over urinating incident on Air India flight

Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has said speedy action will be taken in the case where a man allegedly urinated on a woman co-passenger on a New York-Mumbai flight last November. Delhi Police on Saturday arrested the 34-year-old accused, Shankar Mishra. He allegedly urinated on the woman, a senior citizen, in an inebriated condition in the business class of the Air India flight from New York to Delhi on November 26 last year. "Further action will be taken speedily after the completion of the ongoing proceedings, Scindia told reporters here on Saturday without elaborating. The carrier's CEO on Saturday issued an apology over handling of the incident and said four cabin crew and a pilot have been de-rostered and the policy of serving alcohol on flights is being reviewed. The Delhi Police arrested Mishra from Bengaluru after he was traced to that city through technical surveillance, officials earlier said. A Delhi court on Saturday sent Mishra to judicial remand f

Two-day national executive meeting of BJP to be held from Jan 16-17

The two-day national executive meeting of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is scheduled on January 16-17 at the NDMC convention centre in New Delhi

Paid most of $1 bn tax for PhonePe shifting base to India, confirms Walmart

The company said last month it had completed the separation of PhonePe from Flipkart, adding that it would remain a majority stakeholder in both the companies

Bharat Jodo Yatra resumes in UP, to enter Haryana in the evening

The Congress' Bharat Jodo Yatra resumed its journey around 6 am on Thursday after halting for the night at Ailum village here, with scores of people carrying the Tricolour marching through the hinterland, despite bitting cold. Former party chief Rahul Gandhi reached the village from Delhi ahead of the resumption of the march, Congress Uttar Pradesh unit spokesperson Anshu Awasthi said. The march is expected to enter into Panipat in Haryana by Thursday evening, ending its journey in the politically crucial state that sends 80 members to Lok Sabha. Gandhi, who was again seen wearing a white T-shirt that he has sported for much of the journey, was accompanied by senior Congress leaders such as former Union minister Jairam Ramesh and the party's state chief Brijlal Khabri Scores of people carrying the Tricolour joined the yatra as it made its way through Shamli district. The Bharat Jodo Yatra, which started from Kanyakumari on September 7, will end with the hoisting of the national fl

India identifies copper and lithium mines in Argentina; to acquire soon

In November 2022, the Indian government sent a team of geologists to South America to "assess potential lithium deposits"

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