The science and technology ministry has written to the prime minister suggesting that the BIS standards for packaged water 'be set up into more precisely defined and quantitative standards,' the Rajya Sabha was informed on Friday.
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Saturday clarified that the provision in the new digital media guidelines to block internet content in a case of emergency nature has been around as a rule since 2009 and was not recently introduced.
The Supreme Court on Monday suggested that Parliament should seriously consider bringing an amendment to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for substituting the term 'child pornography' with 'child sexual exploitative and abuse material' with a view to reflect more accurately the reality of such offences.
New winds are blowing in the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology offices at Sanchar Bhavan.
Ministers' resignation accepted, portfolios farmed out
In a move to deepen manufacturing in electronics in India, the Centre is targeting 35-40 per cent value-addition through the yet-to-be launched production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for electronics components, sources in the government
The government is planning to tweak its procurement policy to give a fillip to domestic manufacturing. The industry department has floated a proposal to raise the minimum local content requirement for public procurement for Class-I and -II suppliers from 50 per cent currently to 70 per cent, and 20 per cent as of now to 50 per cent, respectively.
The Delhi high court on Tuesday directed X Corp and Google Inc to remove prima facie defamatory social media posts against Indian Railway Personnel Service (IRPS) officer and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla's daughter Anjali Birla.
Amid outrage over a plan to give powers to its arm Press Information Bureau to police fake news on social media, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday said that the government will hold discussions next month with stakeholders before the proposal is implemented.
The government has ordered the blocking of 45 videos from 10 YouTube channels that contained fake news and morphed content with the intent to spread hatred amongst religious communities, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said on Monday.
DigiLocker, a government initiative for storing documents and verifying credentials online, is gradually replacing the need for paper.
The Delhi government has announced that vehicles older than 15 years will be denied fuel at petrol pumps starting April 1.
If a citizen chooses not to use Aadhaar as the default unique identity, then other unique identity proofs masked and linked to Aadhaar would be used.
The Centre on Wednesday told the Bombay high court it was extending till July 10 its earlier statement that it won't notify its fact-checking unit to identify fake news against the government on social media, even as two new petitions were filed challenging the recently amended IT Rules.
The high court of Karnataka on Tuesday observed that it would be suitable if an age limit was introduced for using social media akin to the legal age for drinking alcohol.
'Today's situation is unacceptable. It has the potential to affect the IAF's operational capability.'
A note issued by the HRD ministry for clearance of Expenditure Finance Committee has been returned by the finance ministry with the suggestion that the proposal may be considered during the 12th plan, official sources said.
BJP members of the panel who were present in the meeting room didn't sign the attendance register in protest leading to a lack of quorum required for holding the meeting.
The government also wants to ensure that content meant for radicalising youths, from outfits like Islamic State, doesn't find circulation in India.
The ministry of home affairs has requested states and Union Territories (UTs) to direct all police stations under their jurisdiction not to register cases under the repealed Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, a home ministry statement said.
The Budget announcement of zero tax for earnings upto Rs 12 lakh per annum and the rejig of tax slabs across the board should prompt more than 90 per cent of individual taxpayers to embrace the new tax regime as compared to the about 75 per cent as of now, CBDT Chairman Ravi Agrawal said. Agrawal also highlighted the government's focus on "non-intrusive" tax administration through enhanced use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and simplified tax processes for common taxpayers. He emphasized the benefits of the new tax regime (NTR), which offers simple calculations and allows taxpayers to file their ITR without professional help. The CBDT chief stated that the Budget provisions related to income tax payment benefit all income earners, not just those earning Rs 12 lakh per annum, creating a positive sentiment in the economy and propelling growth. The department is also harnessing technology, including AI and data analytics, to widen and deepen the tax base, resulting in increased compliance and tax revenue. Agrawal further highlighted the positive impact of data availability and simplified tax processes on compliance rates, citing examples of taxpayers filing revised returns and paying taxes after being prompted by the department's data analysis.
Signalling both change and continuity, India's new government, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a third consecutive term, got into work gear on Tuesday with cabinet ministers and ministers of state filing into their respective offices to assume charge.
The Gujarat high court has stayed the release of Maharaj, Aamir Khan's son Junaid's debut film, on Netflix after followers of Pushtimarg, a Vaishnava sect of Hinduism, claimed that it would hurt their religious sentiments.
The Mumbai police, who are probing the incident of attack on Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan, on Tuesday said they have 'ample and strong evidence' against the Bangladeshi national arrested in the case.
Under the title of "legal enforcement", states and Union Territories were directed to appoint officers solely responsible for discharging the functions of Child Marriage Prohibition Officers at the district level.
The single-judge bench of Justice Krishna S Dixit which dictated the operative portion of the judgement also imposed a cost of Rs 50 lakh on Twitter and ordered it to be paid to the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority within 45 days.
"Muzzling the Internet and censoring online content through PIB is the Modi government's definition of 'fact checking'," Pawan Khera alleged.
While Paytm (One97 Communications) is not completely past regulatory hurdles, its share price has gained in the last month or two. The Paytm handle migration is complete along with FDI clearance necessary for the Payment Aggregator (PA) license. UPI consumer data indicates stable market share, and expansion in partner networks in financial distribution. All this implies Paytm could be set to meet guidance of turning Adjusted Ebitda breakeven by Q4FY25 (ex of UPI-incentives).
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To boost domestic manufacturing under the Make in India initiative and reduce dependency on imports, the government is expected to announce in the Budget an increase in the minimum local content requirement for public procurement, with certain sectors being granted exceptions. Currently, firms producing goods, services, or works with at least 50 per cent local content are classified as Class-I local suppliers and are preferred the most in government procurement.
The Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment (FACE), the only self-regulatory organisation for financial technology/fintech (SRO-FT) companies, is aiming to secure membership from at least 75 per cent of players across all key fintech categories within the next three years, according to a senior executive. The total number of members in the organisation has increased to 110, up from around 60 when it received approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as an SRO-FT in August.
In two other changes, young MP Milind Deora, MoS in telecommunication and information technology ministry, got additional the portfolio of Shipping in the same rank and Panabaka Laxmi, who was made MoS in textile ministry on Sunday, was reallocated petroleum and gas department.
The commanders' conclave in a forward area in Sikkim, which is close to the Line of Actual Control, comes amid the lingering border row in eastern Ladakh.
A deep fake video of actress Rashmika Mandanna has been circulating on social media platforms. Netizens claimed the video has been morphed and the actual video is of an Indian-origin person living in the United Kingdom.
The 17 related ministries have been combined into seven different groups, including some infrastructure departments, in a bid to ensure synergy and better results.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B ministry) may launch its review of the government's plan to potentially reserve the crucial C-band of radio frequencies for 5G and 6G telecommunication (telecom) use, said officials. While the incumbent broadcasting operators have warned that the plan will leave "precious little spectrum" for broadcasting services, telecom service providers (TSPs) have pressed hard for getting access to the C-band. In multiple letters to the I&B ministry over the past month, the News Broadcasters & Digital Association (NBDA) has said the industry would be left with precious little spectrum for broadcasting services if the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) further allocates the scant C-band for 5G.
The government is expected to outline a policy framework for artificial intelligence (AI) at the annual India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2024, beginning Tuesday, officials said. Apart from industry participation, the four-day event will feature booths from over 15 ministries showcasing how AI is being integrated into their departments.
