Need for relook at differential rates structure to help MSME: Experts
Experts have underlined the need for a relook at the differential rates structure with a view to helping the COVID-19-hit MSME sector entities and small corporates which often fail to obtain loan at better and competitive interest rates from banks and lending institutions.
Lower interest rates, the experts said, will make the MSMEs more competitive and help tide over the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Under the differential rates structure, the companies with high credit rate get loans from lending institutions at low rates, while those not having good ratings have to pay higher rates. The differential, according to experts, should be low at this juncture to enable the companies to come out of the crisis situation.
11:12 PM
Centre has right to summon officers: Amit Shah
Slamming West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the recent attack on BJP chief J P Nadda's convoy, Union Home Minister Shah on Sunday asserted the Centre has the right to summon state IPS officers responsible for providing him security for central deputation, and asked the TMC to go through the rules before pointing fingers at the union government.
He also said that rules for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act are yet to be framed because of the pandemic situation and the matter will be considered once the COVID-19 vaccination starts and the corona chain breaks.
Addressing a press conference here, Shah claimed that Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress raked up the "outsider- insider" issue to divert public attention from the failures of the state government and said that a "son of the soil" would lead the state if the BJP is voted to power.
10:46 PM
Direct your quest for brilliance towards making country proud: Punjab FM to youth
Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal on Sunday called on the youngsters to direct their quest for individual brilliance towards making the country proud.
Bringing down the curtains on the fourth Military Literature Festival (MLF) through a virtual ceremony, he underlined the role played by it in reigniting the craze for the defence forces amongst the Punjabi youth.
Elaborating on the reasons for coming up with the MLF in 2016, Badal expressed his gratitude towards Chief Minister Amarinder Singh for his guidance and direction, according to a government release.
10:18 PM
Triumphant Shah marches through Bolpur denouncing Mamata's "fiefdom" politics
Having dented Mamata Banerjee's citadel a day before, a triumphant Amit Shah drove through the Bolpur city centre on Sunday like a victor amid showers of marigold petals and chants of "Jai Shri Ram".
The architect of BJP's resurgence in the state once considered a Left bastion and then Mamata Banerjee's fiefdom, asserted the saffron party will form the next government with over 200 seats. West Bengal has a 294-member state assembly.
He repeatedly attacked the Banerjee government over "corruption, extortion, and Bangladeshi infiltration" patronised by "bhatija", a reference to TMC MP and Mamata's nephew Abhishek Banerjee. And the crowds roared in approval.
10:06 PM
EU-UK trade talks floundering over fish as cutoff day nears
Deep into a crucial weekend of negotiations, a breakthrough on fishing rights remained elusive for the European Union and Britain, leaving both without a trade agreement that would dull the edge of a chaotic, costly economic break on New Years Day.
With hundreds of thousands of jobs at stake throughout the economy, the tiny sector of fisheries continued to drive a wedge between the 27-nation bloc and the U.K., highlighting the animosity that drove them to a Brexit divorce over the past four years. Britain left the bloc in January, but a 11-month economic transition period ends on Dec. 31.
We continue to work hard," EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said in a statement as light faded over EU headquarters on Sunday.
9:41 PM
Pak's allegations on attacks by Indian troops on UN vehicle found false following probe: India
India on Sunday said Pakistan's allegations that Indian troops deliberately targeted a vehicle of the United Nations along the Line of Control were investigated in detail and found to be factually "incorrect and false".
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said Pakistan should responsibly investigate its "lapses" instead of repeating "baseless and fabricated" allegations against India to cover up its own "failure" in ensuring the safety and security of UN personnel in territory under its control.
Pakistan on Friday alleged that Indian troops targeted a vehicle of United Nations Military Observers (UNMO) in the Chirikot sector along the LoC. Indian government sources rejected the allegations that day itself.
8:48 PM
No more ‘Ma, Mati, Manush’, TMC is a family party now, says Amit Shah
In the concluding leg of his two-day tour of West Bengal, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that Trinamool Congress’ (TMC) ‘Ma, Mati aur Manush’ slogan is non-existent now and it is limited to being a family party today.
“Instead of being concerned about the 10 crore people of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee is concerned about making her nephew (Abhishek Banerjee) the chief minister of West Bengal,” he added.
8:30 PM
North India reels under cold wave, Delhi sees season’s lowest at 3.4 deg C
Cold wave conditions continued across north India on Sunday, with most places in Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh experiencing sub-zero temperatures and Delhi recording the season’s lowest temperature so far.
The national capital recorded the coldest morning of the season so far at 3.4 degrees Celsius, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
On Saturday, the minimum temperature at the Safdarjung Observatory, which provides representative data for the city, had settled at 3.9 degrees Celsius.
7:21 PM
Amit Shah blasts Mamata govt over attack on Nadda's convoy
Home Minister Amit Shah slammed the Mamata Banerjee government over the recent attack on BJP chief JP Nadda's convoy, and asserted the Centre had the right to summon state IPS officers responsible for providing him security for central deputation.
He alleged Banerjee had failed to control the law and order situation in the state, which was rapidly falling on all development indices.
Shah, while addressing a press conference here, said Banerjee and the ruling TMC were raking up the "outsider- insider" issue to divert public attention from the failures of the state government.
5:54 PM
People of West Bengal are ‘angry’ with Mamata Banerjee, says Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that the turnout of a sizeable number of people in his roadshow at Birbhum indicated that people of West Bengal are “angry” with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and want a change.
Accompanying Shah at the roadshow here was state BJP chief Dilip Ghosh and other party leaders.
5:29 PM
Amit Shah pays homage to Rabindranath Tagore at Bengal's Vishva-Bharati
Union Minister Amit Shah paid homage to Rabindranath Tagore during a visit to the Vishva-Bharati on Sunday, crediting the Nobel laureate for turning Shantiniketan into a centre for cultural exchanges.
He said that as the Vishva-Bharati nears its centenary year, Tagore's teachings should spread across the world, helping Indian knowledge and culture achieve international acclaim through his works.
"Tagore has not only enriched the philosophy and literature of India, but also made Shantiniketan a base for connecting Indian culture with that of many other countries," Shah told reporters at the end of his two-hour-long visit to the central university.
4:53 PM
People of Bengal want to get rid of ‘Bangladeshi infiltration’: Shah
People of West Bengal are yearning for change as they want to get rid of political violence, corruption, extortion and Bangladeshi infiltration, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday, attacking the Mamata Banerjee government.
Addressing people during a roadshow in this town associated with Bengali cultural and literary icon Rabindranath Tagore, Shah vowed to restore the state to its old glory when it was called “sonar Bangla” (Bengal of gold) if the BJP is voted to power.
4:28 PM
Raghav Chadha named co-incharge of Aam Aadmi Party’s Punjab unit
Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday congratulated Raghav Chadha on being appointed as co-incharge of party’s Punjab unit.
Earlier in the day, party’s Punjab unit tweeted, “AAP MLA from Rajinder Nagar and vice-chairman of Delhi Jal Board Raghav Chadha has been appointed as co-incharge of Aam Aadmi Party, Punjab.
4:04 PM
Defections will not have any impact on TMC's poll prospects: Bengal minister
The TMC on Sunday said there was no need to raise a hue and cry over the recent defections from the party, as "traitors and backstabbers have existed since time immemorial".
Addressing a press meet here, state panchayat minister and TMC MLA Subrata Mukherjee said his party is neither shocked nor crestfallen, as such desertions "wouldn't have any impact" on assembly polls, likely to be held in April-May.
The TMC does not attach much importance to such developments, he said, and pooh-poohed BJP's "absurd claims" of winning 250 of 294 assembly seats.
3:45 PM
BJP focusing on social, religious bodies to breach Mamata’s Bengal bastion
With Assembly elections just a few months away in West Bengal, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is now focussing on 10,000 social and religious organisations in the state to breach Mamata Banerjee’s bastion.
The organisations are believed to have great influence among Hindu voters in Bengal.
The BJP has started PR campaigns across the state to woo these social and religious groups. It has formed committees to make a connect with these organisations in every district, working under the directions of BJP National Secretary Anupam Hazra.
Latest news live updates: Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli recommended dissolution of Parliament at an emergency Cabinet meeting on Sunday, according to media reports. Oli has summoned an emergency meeting of the Council of Ministers after a series of meetings with the ruling Nepal Communist Party's top leadership and ministers on Saturday, the Himalayan Times reported.
Reacting to Suvendu Adhikari's move of joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee called the saffron brigade 'the most corrupt party in the world.' "Suvendu Adhikari has joined the biggest extortionist party. His personal wealth has increased manifold. He should explain how," Banerjee told reporters.
An arcane battle over emergency Federal Reserve powers foiled efforts on Saturday to lock down an agreement on an almost $1 trillion Covid-19 economic relief package. Saturday's deadlock was just the latest stumble in a partisan, months-long fight over pandemic relief and the lack of progress is backing lawmakers once again up against a government shutdown deadline Sunday night.
 "Latest News LIVE: People of Bengal 'angry' with Mamata Banerjee, says Shah")
