LIVE: I-T refunds worth Rs 1.36 trn issued to 4 mn taxpayers till Nov 17

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The Income Tax department on Wednesday issued refunds worth over Rs 1.36 trillion to over 4 million taxpayers so far this financial year. This includes Personal income tax (PIT) refunds amounting to Rs 35,750 crore and corporate tax refunds of over Rs 1 trillion during this period.

The Supreme Court today deferred the hearing of petitions seeking an extension of loan moratorium and waiver of interest on interest on term loans during the six-month Covid-19 moratorium period. On November 5, a three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan deferred the hearing to November 18, after the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Venkatraman sought adjournment in the hearing, stating that the Solicitor General (SG), Tushar Mehta, was arguing in Central Vista case in another bench.

Amid the rise in Covid-19 cases in the NCR, particularly in the national capital, authorities in Noida have decided that people coming from Delhi to Noida will be randomly tested for the virus from today onwards.

Delhi University's new academic session commenced today.

Stay tuned for the latest news of the day.

2:18 AM

Canada's Intact, Denmark's Tryg agree to buy British insurer RSA for $9.6 billion

Canada's Intact Financial and Denmark's Tryg on Wednesday said they had reached an agreement to buy British insurance group RSA for 7.2 billion pounds ($9.6 billion) in cash in one of Europe's biggest financial takeovers this year.

Insurers have become an attractive proposition since the coronavirus crisis despite reputational damage from disputes over business interruption claims, industry sources say. Home-working has led to fewer claims on home and motor insurance while commercial insurance rates have risen sharply.

RSA's directors backed the Intact-Tryg bid unanimously and recommended shareholders vote in favour of the consortium's offer, the company said on Wednesday, having first flagged the approach early this month.

1:55 AM

Ericsson takes issue with Swedish ban on Huawei : Report

Sweden's decision to ban China's Huawei from its 5G networks restricts free competition and trade, the head of rival telecoms equipment supplier Ericsson told the Financial Times. Swedish telecoms regulator PTS this month halted 5G spectrum auctions after a court suspended parts of its decision that had excluded Huawei from 5G networks over national security risks.

"I belong in that category that believes competition makes us longer term a better company. It may be painful shorter term but longer term it drives us to be more innovative and make better products for our customers," Ericsson CEO Borje Ekholm told the newspaper. Sweden's Ericsson has won contracts from all three major operators in China to supply radio equipment for 5G networks, while Finnish rival Nokia has not won any 5G radio contracts in the highly competitive market.

Huawei denies being a national security risk and has appealed against Sweden's decision.

1:38 AM

Delhi govt may introduce new tax reforms, enforcement measures in near future: Sisodia

The Delhi government may introduce new tax reforms and enforcement measures in the near future, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said on Wednesday after signing of an MoU with the Centre for Effective Governance of Indian States (CEGIS) for a study on measures to augment state revenue.

The study aims to help improve governance and public service delivery in Delhi while making tax compliance easy, Sisodia, who is also the finance minister, said.

11:49 PM

Kerala Government to approach the Supreme Court challenging the high fee structure set by self-financing medical colleges

11:05 PM

IndiGo resumes over 650 weekly flights to and from Uttar Pradesh

IndiGo on Wednesday said it has resumed more than 650 weekly flights to and from Uttar Pradesh. The low-cost carrier has resumed operations from four cities in Uttar Pradesh -- Lucknow, Varanasi, Prayagraj and Gorakhpur, it said in a release. "The airline witnessed highest air travel demand from Lucknow which is directly connected to 13 domestic destinations, including new direct flights to Indore and Raipur.

"In addition, IndiGo also operated approximately 300 Vande Bharat and Air Bubble flights connecting UP with Dubai, Doha, Sharjah, Jeddah, Kuwait, Dammam, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi," it said. According to the release, the airline is currently operating over 650 weekly flights, including the regional connectivity scheme routes, to and from the cities of Lucknow, Varanasi, Prayagraj and Gorakhpur.

8:57 PM

Delhi's air quality deteriorates to 'poor', no significant change likely

Delhi's air quality deteriorated marginally and was recorded in the "poor" category on Wednesday as a change in the wind direction increased the share of stubble burning in the city's pollution slightly.

 

The city's air quality index (AQI) was recorded in the "moderate" category in the morning. However, pollution levels increased by a bit as the day progressed. The 24-hour average AQI stood at 211. It was 171 on Tuesday.

 

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe". Weather experts and government agencies said no significant change was likely in the next three to four days. READ ON...

8:44 PM

Bengaluru riots: NIA conducts searches at 43 locations, including at SDPI offices

The NIA conducted searches here on Wednesday, including at offices of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political wing of the Popular Front of India (PFI), in connection with the rioting and violent attacks on police stations in the city in August, an official said.

 

The searches were carried out at 43 locations in Bengaluru, including at four offices of the SDPI, in relation to the rioting and violent attacks on the D J Halli and K G Halli police stations in Bengaluru on August 11, a National Investigation Agency (NIA) spokesperson said.

 

The cases pertain to large-scale rioting, causing injuries to police personnel, destruction of public and private property, including the police stations' buildings and public and private vehicles, he said, adding that the rioters were armed with lethal weapons.

8:37 PM

NGT raps Haryana govt for using forest land to build police training centre

The National Green Tribunal Wednesday rapped the Haryana government for using forest land todevelop a police training centre at Bhondsi in Gurgaon. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel directedChief Secretary of Haryana to take appropriate remedial action in accordance with law within three months, including meaningful legal action against the erring officers and ensuring that such illegalities are not repeated.

 

There is blatant violation of law in using forest land for non-forest purposes without requisite prior clearance. No State governed by rule of law ought to shut its eyes to such patent illegalities, the bench said.

 

The tribunal was perusing a report filed byPrincipal Chief Conservator of Foreststhat there is no negligence on the part of the forest officers as correspondence was pending on the subject at different levels. READ ON...

8:25 PM

98% rape accused in Delhi close relatives, acquaintances of victims: Police to parliamentary panel

Almost all of those accused of rape knew their victims, Delhi police told a parliamentary panel on Wednesday. Making a presentation before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs on the heinous crime and the relationship between victims and accused, police said 98 per cent of rape victims in the national capital were either close relatives or acquaintances of the accused.

 

Along with the Delhi Police, officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Women and Child Development deposed before the panel, headed by Congress MP Anand Sharma, sources said.

 

The agenda of the panel's meeting was rising crime against women. In 44 per cent of the total rape cases in Delhi, the accused were from victim's family or a family friend, 13 per cent were relatives and 12 per cent neighbours, Delhi Police said.

8:14 PM

Sasikala pays Rs 10 crore fine, release expected; TN CM says AIADMK will be away from her

A fine of over Rs 10 crore imposed on late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's aide V K Sasikala in a disproportionate assets case was on Wednesday deposited in a Bengaluru court and her release is expected soon, her lawyer said.

 

Chief Minister K Palaniswami, meanwhile, asserted that the anticipated release of Sasikala would not alter the stand of AIADMK to keep her and her kin at bay, both from the party and the government.

 

There shall be no change in the party stand as regards Sasikala, he told reporters at Coimbatore. The fine amount of Rs 10,00,10,000 was remitted to the 34th City Civil Court, Bengaluru, by way of demand drafts, Sasikala's counsel N Raja Senthoor Pandian said.

8:02 PM

Tata-Mistry tussle: SC to hear final arguments on December 2

The Supreme Court Wednesday listed for final hearing on December 2 the cross appeals filed by Tata Sons and Cyrus Investments against appellate tribunal NCLAT's order which had restored Cyrus Mistry as the executive chairman of the over USD 100 billion salt-to-software Tata conglomerate.

 

A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde questioned senior advocate C A Sundaram, appearing for Cyrus Mistry and his firms, for filing applications repeatedly when the case was already listed for final hearing.

 

Why are you filing IAs (interlocutory applications)after IAs when the matter is already listed for final hearing, said the bench, also comprising Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian, asked Sundaram. When Sundaram said they want to bring something new to the apex court's notice, the bench said, Won't these issues be covered in the final hearing? All the issues which you are raising in these IAs can be taken up during the final hearing. READ ON...

7:46 PM

Forest Rights Act being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir

The Forest Rights Act is being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir as efforts are afoot to grant and safeguard the rights of forest dwellers and communities as per the Act of 2006. The deadline for completing 'Record of Forest Rights' has been set for March 31, 2021, officials said on Wednesday.

 

An official statement said Chief Secretary B.V.R. Subrahmanyam chaired a meeting earlier on Wednesday to review the implementation of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, and Rules in Jammu and Kashmir which have been made applicable post enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019.

 

"Work on this had already begun by the Departments of Tribal Affairs, and Forest, Ecology and Environment in October, 2020," the statement said.

7:35 PM

Latest News LIVE: Stubble burning continues in parts of Punjab

Several farmers continue to burn stubble near Jalandhar's Phillaur area in Punjab, on Wednesday.

 

"We are helpless, we don't have any option. The government doesn't help us or provide any kind of subsidy," says a farmer.

 

Stubble burning is a process of setting on fire the straw stubble, left after harvesting of grains, like paddy, wheat etc takes place.

 

The process of burning farm residue is one of the major causes of air pollution in parts of north India, deteriorating the air quality around this time of the year. Combing with vehicular emission, it adversely affects the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital, keeping it between 'very poor' to 'severe' category.

7:22 PM

Air quality 'poor' in Noida, Ghaziabad, 'moderate' in Gurgaon, Faridabad

The air quality in Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad slipped into the "poor" zone on Wednesday, while it was recorded in the "moderate" category in Faridabad and Gurgaon in the National Capital Region (NCR), a government agency said. The concentration of major air pollutants, PM 2.5 and PM 10, remained high in the five immediate neighbours of Delhi, according to the air quality index (AQI) maintained by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

 

According to the index, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.

 

The average 24-hour AQI at 4 pm on Wednesday was 236 in Ghaziabad, 207 in Noida, 228 in Greater Noida, 172 in Faridabad and 141 in Gurgaon, according to CPCB's Sameer app. The average AQI on Tuesday was 166 in Ghaziabad, 172 in Faridabad, 178 in Noida, 186 in Greater Noida and 204 in Gurgaon.

7:06 PM

Uttar Pradesh rape victim who attempted self-immolation dies in Delhi hospital

A rape survivor who allegedly attempted self-immolation after being pressurized by the accused's family to withdraw her complaint in Uttar Pradesh's Jahangirabad, passed away at a hospital in Delhi on Wednesday.

 

"We have collected all evidence from the scene. Five of the seven accused have been arrested. Efforts are on to nab the other accused," said Santosh K Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP).

 

A local court has sent the five accused to 14-day judicial custody, after they were arrested earlier today. The woman on Tuesday attempted to set herself on fire here after she was allegedly pressurized to withdraw her complaint against a man who was arrested for allegedly raping her.