'The pace of disbursement and project recommendation picks up as the tenure of the House draws near and usually all amount is released.'
Voting was underway on Friday in 102 Lok Sabha seats spread across 21 states and Union territories in the first of the seven phases of the world's largest electoral exercise, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging voters to exercise their franchise in record numbers.
The government on Wednesday issued a gazette notification announcing a slew of amendments to 138 Acts of Jammu and Kashmir that included protecting jobs up to Group-4 for only those who are domiciles of the Union territory. The notification said among the laws amended is the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Decentralisation and Recruitment) Act.
With the completion of this third extension, Rajiv Gauba will become the longest serving cabinet secretary of the country. Till now, B D Pande had been the longest serving cabinet secretary from November 2, 1972, to March 31, 1977.
Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd made a number of electoral bond purchases close to the date of bagging crucial projects, including the all-weather Zojila tunnel that is being constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 4,500 crore in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Union health ministry has advised states to immediately review public health preparedness in view of recent reports indicating a surge in respiratory illness in children in northern China.
In its election manifesto -- 'Sankalp Patra' -- the Bharatiya Janata Party has vowed to implement the Union Civil Code (UCC), maintain peace in the Northeast, among other key poll promises.
'If Modi is re-elected again, we can forget these things for a long time.'
The action, announced by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, is a response to the group's involvement in fomenting terrorism and spreading anti-India sentiment within the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
On the Opposition's poll promise of statehood restoration, Shah said, "I want to ask Farooq Abdullah and Rahul Gandhi, who is going to restore the statehood. You cannot give it back. Why are you misleading the public?"
The interim budget 2024-25 on Thursday allocated Rs 202868.70 crore to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with the highest share of funds going to the paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Industrial Secular Force (CISF), showing priority on internal security and border guarding.
'This bitterness will be more in Jammu area than in Kashmir.'
'People will teach a lesson to those who are compromising it for the sake of power and money.'
Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded on Monday in 49 constituencies in six states and two Union territories in the fifth phase of Lok Sabha elections, with Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir recording its highest-ever voting percentage.
36 Union ministers will visit different districts in both the divisions of the Union Territory starting from January 18 to January 24 and the home ministry is coordinating it, the sources said.
Gauba is said to be the key architect of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act under which Jammu and Kashmir was divided into two Union territories following the abrogation of the special status given to the erstwhile state under Article 370 of the Constitution.
The government has approved the 'Terms of Reference' for the 16 Finance Commission, which makes recommendations on sharing of tax revenues between the Centre and states. The recommendations would cover a five-year period commencing April 1, 2026, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said on Wednesday, giving details about the decisions taken at the Cabinet meeting last evening. The commission would submit its report by October 31, 2025, Thakur said.
Syed Abdul Mueed is the third son of the Hizb chief to have been sacked from the government job.
His government's decision to host G-20 events across the country is an investment in capacity-building among people, cities and institutions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, as he took a jibe at previous governments asserting they lacked confidence in people's abilities to hold mega events outside the capital, in smaller places.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has proposed to allow conversion of regular vehicle registrations into Bharat Series (BH) numbers as part of measures to widen the scope of the BH series ecosystem. At present, only new vehicles can opt for BH series mark. In a draft notification, the MoRTH informed about the proposed amendments in the rules governing Bharat (BH) series registration mark which was launched for people who are in transferable jobs.
Over 6,900 corruption cases probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation were pending trials in different courts, 361 for more than 20 years, according to the latest annual report of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). Besides, as many as 658 corruption cases were pending CBI investigation, 48 for more than five years.
A parliamentary committee has recommended that the medium of instruction in technical and non-technical higher education institutes such as IITs in Hindi-speaking states should be Hindi and in other parts of India their respective local language. It said the use of English should be made optional.
Megha Engineering and Infrastructure, the little-known Hyderabad-based firm that in recent years won the prestigious Zojila tunnel deal among other projects, forayed into city gas and acquired a media group, was the second largest donor to political parties using electoral bonds.
'It would be reasonable to assume that Modi 3.0 would be more focused on projects and schemes which do not require any legislative change or which have the support of its coalition partners,' asserts A K Bhattacharya.
Of the 26 seats for which elections were held on October 4, results of 20 seats have been declared so far, they said.
After inaugurating development projects worth nearly Rs 5,000 crore for boosting the agri-economy in the Union territory, Modi said he was "elated to be among the wonderful people of Srinagar".
A maximum of 92,000 personnel of CAPFs are likely to be deployed in politically volatile West Bengal, where elections will be held in seven phases, followed by 63,500 personnel in militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmir, where polling will be held in five phases.
A voter turnout of 10.82 per cent was recorded till 9 am on Saturday in 58 constituencies in six states and two Union territories where polling is underway in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's decision to nominate Ananta Rai 'Maharaj', who has been demanding a separate state of 'Greater Cooch Behar' to be carved out of West Bengal, as its candidate for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections from the state, has kicked off a fresh storm with the ruling Trinamool Congress accusing the saffron party of fanning separatism in the state.
In a letter to the states and union territories, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan advised implementing strategic interventions for containment like imposition of night curfew, strict regulation of large gatherings, curtailing numbers in marriages and funerals besides increasing testing and surveillance.
The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister alleged that government employees were 'forcibly mobilised' and ferried to Modi's rally to paint a 'pretty picture that all is well' post 2019, when the Centre abrogated the provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution and bifurcated the erstwhile state into Union territories.
In a statement, the ministry of defence said the official winners were picked by panels of judges.
High-speed mobile internet services had been restored in two districts -- Ganderbal in Kashmir region and Udhampur in Jammu region -- in August last year.
The government views dropout as a barrier to achieving the new National Education Policy's aim of 100 per cent gross enrolment rate at the school level by 2030, according to officials.
The leader also said the Congress would also intensify its protests against the Lakshadweep administration's move to permit liquor outlets in the archipelago.
He also alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party wanted to create a Delhi-like situation in Puducherry and take power away from an elected government.
Uttar Pradesh's tableau at this year's Republic Day parade was adjudged the best and awarded by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday, said the Defence Ministry.
Amid a rise in monkey pox cases globally, the Centre on Thursday asked states to ensure screening and testing of all suspect cases at points of entry and in the community as part of India's preparedness against the disease.
Binil T B, an electrician from Thrissur, left for Russia seven months ago, hoping to secure a better job and higher wages while his wife was expecting their first child.
Campaigning for May 13 elections in 96 Lok Sabha constituencies across 10 states and Union territories including all seats in Andhra Pradesh, where assembly elections are also being held concurrently, and Telangana concluded on Saturday evening.
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