The director of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, V Kamakoti, has sparked controversy after making a remark about the "medicinal value" of cow urine, or "gomutra." Kamakoti, while speaking at an event celebrating Maatu Pongal (a festival dedicated to cows and bulls), cited an anecdote about a sanyasi who was cured of a fever by consuming gomutra. He also claimed that gomutra has "anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and digestive properties." The remark has been widely condemned by rationalist organizations, political leaders, and medical professionals who have criticized Kamakoti's statements as "pseudoscience" and "regressive." The controversy highlights the ongoing debate in India around traditional beliefs and scientific evidence.
Union labour minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday said employment in the country has increased by 36 per cent to 64.33 crore in 2023-24 from 47.15 crore in 2014-15, which shows improvement in job creation during NDA period.
American President Donald Trump has announced imposing reciprocal tariffs on its major trading partners including China that levy higher import duties on goods shipped from the United States. He has already announced a 25 per cent duty on steel and aluminium imports, which will come into effect from March 12.
Prospects of a bumper kharif harvest are expected to lower food inflation in the coming months, making the country's inflation outlook benign, the Union Ministry of Finance (FinMin) said in its monthly economic report for October released on Monday.
The Centre has, perhaps for the first time, decided to provide funding support to farmer-producer organisations, krishi vigyan kendras, custom hiring centres, and individuals for purchasing them.
He said that as compared to global models costing 2.5 to 3 US dollars per hour usage, India's AI model will cost less than less than Rs 100 per hour (1.16 US dollars per hour) after 40 percent government subsidy.
The Indian Space Research Organisation will open 2025 scoring a century orbiting the country's navigation satellite 2,250 kg NVS-02 with its rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV)-F15.
In 2025, India's tech job market is thriving, with tech professionals seeing a 9.5% salary increase and roles like AI/ML architects earning up to Rs 95 lakh annually.
In the months immediately following the 2024 tragedy, reporting on the landslide per se had been a straightforward affair. On one side was death and destruction. On the other side, survivors and the business of survival. It was black and white. What direction to take was clear. Rehabilitation in comparison, felt like a complex situation. One that is fraught with shades of grey. As grey as human life, explains Shyam G Menon.
Of Trump's reciprocal tariffs and trade deals
'Binary fission will happen -- startups will lead to more startups.'
Overall profitability in the agriculture sector is expected to be marginally higher at the pan-India level in the 2024-25 kharif season, driven largely by higher production and low input cost, but offset by the declining price of some produce, according to a report released by Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd on Wednesday. The report said that region-wise farm profitability in the northern belt was expected to be relatively better than in the southern belt, while the eastern and western belts presented a mixed bag.
Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Tuesday said the fiscal-monetary coordination was at its best during the last six years even as he thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving the opportunity to head the monetary authority of the country. Das, in a series of posts on X, on his last day of his six-year term as RBI Governor, also thanked the Finance Minister, various stakeholders and his colleagues at the central bank.
At 6.23 am on 29.1.2025, the 50.9 metre tall and weighing 420.7 ton Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-F15 (GSLV-F15) is slated to blast off from the second launch pad carrying the 2,250 kg NVS-02 navigation satellite.
The Indian Diaspora has been able to carve a niche in their adopted countries as a result of their talent, perseverance and hardworking nature, asserts Rup Narayan Das.
High nitrate levels have been found in groundwater of 440 districts across India, with 20 per cent of the samples collected exceeding the permissible nitrate concentration, the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has said in a report.
'There is a difference between a politician and leader.' 'A politician will have his pound of flesh first and do everything else later.' 'A leader will sacrifice everything to help people.'
President Donald Trump is expected to sign a series of executive orders fulfilling campaign promises, including declaring an emergency at the southern border, addressing a national energy crisis, and defining sex-related policies. The orders aim to address immigration, national security, and energy independence, with a focus on reversing policies implemented by the previous administration.
Inaugurating the Grameen Bharat Mahotsav, the Prime Minister exuded confidence that villages will play a key role in pushing forward the dream of Viksit Bharat by 2047.
Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar MLA Rohit Pawar's mother Sunanda has emphasised the need for party factions led by veteran politician Sharad Pawar and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to come together as voices for unity emerged from both rival camps.
'We pressurised him (to accept the deputy chief ministership).' 'Being out of power would have made him weaker.'
"If any dispute ends by apologising to the Bishnoi community, then what is wrong in it? If a mistake has been made knowingly or unknowingly, then what does Salman Khan lose in apologising?" the farmer leader asked.
'Agri reforms need to go beyond the limited concerns of these three laws in improving agriculture productivity in cereal and crop diversification and production patterns.'
Forty-five specialists will soon be joining key posts of joint secretaries, directors and deputy secretaries in different central ministries as part of the Modi government's ambitious plan to infuse fresh talent to further improve ease of governance.
'Generating employment requires a shift in policy.' 'If not, the country will face economic, social and political challenges in the coming years.'
Intern-Zip will teach 'technical savviness', soft skills and professional development. It would skill individuals in Microsoft Office and ChatGPT. It will include communication, problem-solving, time management, professional grooming, and networking.
Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Jiang Zaidong urged that the government should launch a crackdown against all anti-China terrorist groups after two deadly attacks took place in Pakistan within only six months, The Express Tribune reported.
The escalation of conflict in the West Asian region is expected to push already high logistics costs besides hurting trade in sectors such as oil, electronics and agriculture, according to exporters. They said that insurance costs for exports to the countries directly involved in the war could also go up, which will impact Indian exporters' working capital. Think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) stated that the conflict is already hurting India's trade with countries like Israel, Jordan, and Lebanon.
India's merchandise exports in October rose by 17.25 per cent to $39.2 billion against $33.43 billion a year ago, according to government data released on Thursday. Imports increased by 3.9 per cent to $66.34 billion in October compared to $63.86 billion in the year-ago period.
The National Informatics Centre uses AI to automate document analysis and detect fraud in government departments.
Between 2001 and 2022, it said, forests in India emitted 51 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent a year and removed 141 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent a year. This represents a net carbon sink of 89.9 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent a year.
Singh said the farmers opted for 'unusual deeds' to draw media attention as they belong to organisations with only a few thousand members.
India should encourage the second coming of SAARC with climate change as an urgent agenda and keeping Indian security concerns in mind as the subtext, suggest Lieutenant General Ashok Joshi (retd) and Colonel Anil Athale (retd).
A delegation of farmers will meet Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Thursday, said the spokesperson of Bharatiya Kisan Union.
The challenge for politicians is that the continuous electoral cycle favours short-termism and the loan waiver type of policy, whereas prosperity requires hard decisions where commonly held perceptions must be disrupted and over-turned, says Dhiraj Nayyar.
An increase in the farmer income support scheme PM Kisan Nidhi, the introduction of a 'robot tax' to fund reskilling of people who lose their jobs to artificial intelligence (AI), and a reduced income-tax (I-T) to bring relief to the middle classes - these are some of the items in the Budget wish list submitted by Sangh Parivar affiliates to Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman. Representatives of the affiliates of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), such as the farmer organisation Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS); trade union Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS); Laghu Udyog Bharati, which works for micro and small industries; and Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), which works on economic and policy issues, met the FM and other officials over the last couple of weeks as part of the pre-Budget consultations.
What stood out in his 15-year journey as a member of the political executive at the Centre was his glowing record as India's most successful and effective finance minister. Both as prime minister and finance minister, he understood the importance of gradualism, except when the economy or the polity was in a crisis.
Ahead of the upcoming budget, eminent economists during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday urged the government to take steps to accelerate economic growth and improve infrastructure, sources said. The meeting was organised by the NITI Aayog on Thursday to elicit views and suggestions of economists for the first budget of the Modi 3.0 government. "Earlier today, interacted with eminent economists and heard their insightful views on issues pertaining to furthering growth," Modi said in a post on X.
Apart from the human body, human food will bear direct repercussions. From staples such as wheat, to coffee, dairy, and even the great Hilsa face the threat of reduced supply due to the extreme heat.
'The government is plucking leaves and not destroying the plant.'
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