Just a few weeks ago, Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw did some tough talking with the senior managers of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd, the ailing state-owned telecom service provider. The message was clear: They had to perform, quit by taking the voluntary retirement package or be compulsorily retired from service. The terse message from an otherwise polite and soft-spoken minister came just days after he announced a second and bigger package of Rs 1.64 trillion as part of a four-year turnaround plan for BSNL.
The first 100 beneficiaries of such foreign vaccines shall be assessed for seven days for safety outcomes before it is rolled out for further immunisation programme within the country, the Union health ministry said.
That AAP managed a sizeable vote share in Gujarat is creditable. The BJP can no longer ignore AAP's growing presence in its strongest bastion, explains Ramesh Menon, long-time observer of Gujarat politics.
Kumar said the Commission will follow the time-tested methods of consultations and consensus building in bringing about any reforms and will not shy away from tough decisions, according to an Election Commission (EC) statement.
Addressing a press briefing, Niti Aayog member (health) VK Paul said that though there has been an overall decline in case burden but the positivity rate is still over 10 per cent in 382 districts.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked NITI Aayog to frame policies to propel India into the next century.
Ajit Balakrishnan on how to arrest a worldwide decline.
The total number of doses administered in the country has crossed 78.68 crore.
The teams will visit the districts reporting high number of COVID cases and support the state's efforts towards strengthening containment, surveillance, testing, infection prevention and control measures, and efficient clinical management of positive cases.
The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar came under fresh attack on Monday from state Bharatiya Janata Party president Sanjay Jaiswal whose party seems annoyed with junior ally Janata Dal-United's shrill demands for special assistance from the Centre.
The Union Cabinet has approved amendments to the General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Act, paving the way for privatisation of government-owned insurers. The amendments, approved by Cabinet, will remove the clause for the Centre to hold at least 51 per cent in public sector insurance companies at any given time. It will also have an enabling provision for the transfer of management control from the government to the potential buyer of the public sector insurance company. The finance ministry will move amendments to the insurance Act in the ongoing Parliament session.
In the trial, the vaccine will be given by the intramuscular route in two doses on day 0 and day 28.
These could include strengthening the public-private partnership (PPP) dispute resolution mechanism, uniform PPP institutional framework, easier terms for infrastructure companies accessing bond markets, and tax sops, Business Standard has learnt. Investment in infrastructure projects with high multiplier effect has been the Centre's main plank to revive the economy, create employment and boost consumption.
The surge in wheat export from India owing to the Ukraine crisis has once again demonstrated how farmers in states that have flexible marketing frameworks and low taxes benefit more from an emerging situation. The bulk of the wheat exported from India, trade and industry sources say, is being sourced at rates significantly higher than the state-mandated price of Rs 2,015 per quintal in Madhya Pradesh (MP), Uttar Pradesh (UP), and Gujarat - states which have low mandi taxes compared to Punjab and Haryana. This is not only benefiting farmers there but could also lead to significant savings for the states in procurement costs in the months to come.
"First dose (of Covishield) and then, after 12 weeks, the second dose. There is absolutely no change. Covaxin also has a two-dose schedule. First dose and then second dose after 4-6 weeks. This schedule is being followed to take our vaccination schedule forward and no confusion must be created on this," he said.
The Union health ministry on Tuesday said that aid received from other countries has been distributed in different states to help deal with the rising number of COVID-19 cases.
The development comes after Prakash Kumar Singh, the Director, Government and Regulatory Affairs at SII, informed the Union health ministry that the firm would be able to supply 20.29 crore doses of Covishied in the month of September.
Minister of state for personnel Jitendra Singh said it is a major step to place the right talent for the right role.
With the world's worst outbreak of COVID pandemic stalling a nascent economic recovery, the government has begun assessing the impact of the second wave of infections on different sectors and may look at providing support at an appropriate time to segments requiring fiscal help. Some of the economic indicators, including the Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections, still provide confidence and incoming data will throw some more light on the state of the economy, sources said. Services sectors like hospitality, tourism and aviation which had just started recovering were hit hard by the second wave of COVID, the sources said, adding these segments might need some support on an urgent basis from the government.
It will be unfair to put a date for any COVID wave as the behaviour of coronavirus is unpredictable and a disciplined and effective pandemic response can help the country get away from any significant outbreak, COVID Task Force chief V K Paul said.
Across the country, the number of patients in ICU beds is 4,88,861 while 1,70,841 patients were on ventilators and 9,02,291 patients were on oxygen support.
If Sebi and RBI remain quiet about this brazenly illegal activity, will someone in the finance ministry or the NITI Aayog take a closer look, asks Debashis Basu.
'We are worried for the workers because in the private sector, jobs are not secure, there is no decent work condition and there is no social security.' 'That's why we are opposing the economic policies of this government.'
'The government is just laying foundation stones everywhere.' 'It has hardly inaugurated anything.'
Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba chaired a high-level meet with representatives of states/UTs to also review and discussed the COVID-19 management and response strategy through video conference.
Tuesday's meeting at the PM's residence, attended by all the five secretaries in the finance ministry besides top officials of other economic ministries and NITI Aayog, cleared a five-year vision plan for the government to make India a $5-trillion economy by 2024.
Addressing a press briefing, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said vaccine effectiveness will be seen only after 14 days.
'We have to ensure the European situation does not occur in India and we don't see a spread like theirs.'
In spite of a massive jump in the number of the uber rich and rich becoming richer, their contributions to charity continued to decline during the COVID-19 pandemic when a whopping 200 million-plus were forced into poverty, says a report. While CSR (corporate social responsibility) spends have increased from 12 per cent in FY15 (two years into mandatory CSR spends) to 23 per cent in FY21, charity by the uber rich slipped from 18 per cent of the total funding in FY15 to a paltry 11 per cent in FY21, says global consultancy Bain & Company and charity-focused domestic consultancy Dasra in their India Philanthropy Report 2022. The report said that donation from private foreign companies has contracted from around 26 per cent in overall private giving in FY15 to around 15 per cent in FY21.
Ola Electric became the latest among electric scooter (e-scooter) makers to have started the exercise of recalling a specific batch of its model after a rap on the knuckles by the government. Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday advised electric vehicle (EV) companies to act responsibly by identifying and recalling defective batches without waiting for orders or guidelines from the ministry. The Bengaluru-based start-up is conducting pre-emptive diagnostics and health check on 1,441 scooters, it said in a statement on Sunday.
Addressing a press conference, Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said 63.7 per cent vaccine doses have been administered in rural areas and 35.4 per cent in urban areas.
The change in stance follows a strong opposition by automakers of the proposed government plan to ban two-wheelers (below 150cc) and three-wheelers by 2023 and 2025, respectively
The trial is being conducted in three phases by segregating children into categories according to their age. The first trial was started in the age group of 12 to 18 years followed by the age group of 6 to 12. Trials for children between the ages of and 2-6 years are currently undergoing trials.
The committee has been tasked to come up with policy measures to boost agriculture exports, raise growth in food processing, attract investments in modern market infrastructure, value chains and logistics.
Sources said the pandemic and the response of the government is likely to be discussed in the virtual meet.
"We are very worried about the rise in cases in Maharashtra. Don't take this virus for granted. It can come up unexpectedly. If we have to remain free of this virus, COVID-appropriate behaviour, containment strategy as well as vaccination has to be brought in," Paul said.
Why eat simple when you can try something royal?
'Just because there is some misunderstanding, you cannot recall the chief secretary.' 'This is not a good development. This is an assault on federalism.'
'It will impact the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.'
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