11:08 AMCongress mukt Bharat not possible: Sharad Pawar
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday, during his visit to the Congress office in Pune on the party's foundation day celebrations, said, "Congress mukt Bharat is not possible" as no one can ignore the ideology and contribution of the party.
"This place has witnessed several historical moments. Amost all veterans of congress Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi have visited this place. Earlier, the Pune Congress office was the head office of the state," Pawar said while addressing Congress workers at the premises of Congress Bhawan.
He added that the contribution and history of the Congress cannoit be ignored.
"Some people say that we will make Congress mukt Bharat (congress free India) but it is not possible to make Bharat Congress mukt. In fact, if we want to take India forward we have to take congress forward, one cannot ignore the ideology of the Congress. We cannot forget the contribution and history of congress," he said.
11:07 AMIndia extends policy to import refined palm oil at lower duty
India extended a policy to import refined palm oil at a lower duty and allowed imports of 51,000 tonnes of cotton at nil duty in 2023, the government said in a notification late on Thursday.
The concessional duty structure for the refined palm oil had been due to expire on December 31. It has been extended "until further orders," the government said.
In December 2021, India cut basic import tax on refined palm oil and brought down the total taxes on their imports to 13.75% from 19.25% earlier.
10:47 AMLack of info on China's COVID outbreak stirs global concerns
Moves by the US, Japan and others to mandate COVID-19 tests for passengers arriving from China reflect global concern that new variants could emerge in its ongoing explosive outbreak and the government may not inform the rest of the world quickly enough.
There have been no reports of new variants to date. But given the country's track record, the worry is that China may not be sharing data on any signs of evolving strains that could spark fresh outbreaks elsewhere.
The US, in announcing a negative test requirement on Wednesday for passengers from China, cited both the surge in infections and what it said was a lack of information, including the genomic sequencing of the virus strains in the country.
10:46 AMAlways work for those in need: Dalai Lama in Bodh Gaya
Urging people to work for those in need, the Dalai Lama on Thursday said if a person is a believer he needs to think of others.
Addressing a gathering at Bodh Gaya in Bihar, the Dalai Lama said he has no ill will against those who provoke anger in him.
"If you are a believer, you need to think of others. If you only think of yourself that is not what is expected of you, always work for those who are in need," he said.
"We are born human beings, and wherever I may be, I will continue to work for humanity," he added.
10:44 AMShah on 3-day visit to K'taka, BJP plans to strengthen base in south
Union Minister for Home and Cooperation Amit Shah is arriving in Karnataka on Thursday for a three-day visit.
Shah is arriving in Bengaluru at 10.20 p.m. at the Yelahanka Air Base. Mandya University has announced a holiday for two days in the backdrop of Shah's visit. He will participate in Jan Spandan Yatra convention on December 30 in Mandya University grounds.
Through the visit of Shah, the party hopes to strengthen its base in southern parts of the state.
10:38 AMChina starts work on huge $11 bn desert renewables project
China broke ground on an 80 billion yuan ($11 billion) renewables project in Inner Mongolia, part of a massive clean-power rollout to achieve the nation’s ambitious climate targets.
The project, located in the Kubuqi Desert, will have 16 gigawatts of power capacity when completed, according to a statement by China Three Gorges Group, one of the two builders. It will be able to transmit 40 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province annually, with more than half from clean power, according to a report by state media Xinhua News.
The facility is set to become the world’s largest renewable project in a desert region, the company said. It ultimately will include 8 gigawatts of solar and 4 gigawatts of wind energy, plus 4 gigawatts of upgraded coal power to adjust for peak demand, according to Xinhua.
10:29 AMTN retains investment destination tag in 2022 with Rs 1 trn investments
Often billed as a favoured investment destination, Tamil Nadu managed to garner over Rs 1 lakh crore investments committed by various companies in 2022, a year that brought both challenges and opportunities to the southern state.It faced the challenge arising out of various issues like Russia-Ukraine conflict or the suspension of the production at US automaker Ford near here among others.
This year, Tamil Nadu signed memoranda of understanding with over 60 companies which committed investments of Rs 1.25 trillion that would generate around 75,000 new jobs.
Chief Minister M K Stalin has been reaching out to investors at various platforms to make Tamil Nadu become the most attractive investment destination in South Asia and endeavour towards 'Made in Tamil Nadu' products reaching all parts of the world.
10:29 AMNaxalite movement in Gadchiroli slowed down due to Surajgarh mines project: Maha CM
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has said the Naxalite movement in Gadchiroli district has slowed down since the Surjagarh iron ore mines project became operational.
Speaking during Question Hour in the state Legislative Council here on Wednesday, the chief minister assured that local people would be given jobs in the project on a priority basis.
"Since the project was operationalised, the Naxalite movement in the district has slowed down," he said, replying to a question by Jayant Patil, Ramdas Ambatkar and Abhijeet Wanjari.
10:28 AMCongress demands action against Uzbekistan's cough syrup deaths claim
The Congress on Thursday slammed the Centre and demanded the "strictest" action against the Uzbekistan government's claim that 18 children died in the Central Asian nation after consuming cough syrup made by an Indian manufacturer.
Taking to Twitter, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said: "Made in India cough syrups seem to be deadly. First it was the deaths of 70 kids in Gambia & now it is that of 18 children in Uzbekistan. Modi Sarkar must stop boasting about India being a pharmacy to the world & take strictest action."
In a statement, the Uzbek Health Ministry had said that "18 out of 21 children with acute respiratory disease have died as a result of taking Doc-1 Max syrup manufactured by the Indian company Marion Biotech Pvt Ltd".
10:20 AMSecurity alert in Bodh Gaya amid Dalai Lama's visit
A security alert was issued in Bodh Gaya in Bihar on Thursday morning amid the visit of the Dalai Lama with the police searching for a Chinese woman, an official said.
Police issued a sketch of the woman, identified as Song Xiaolan, besides sharing her passport and visa details with the press, he said.
However, it was not immediately clear why the police were looking for the woman.
10:17 AMPM Modi pays tributes to Guru Gobind Singh
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday paid tributes to 10th Sikh Guru Gobind Singh on his birth anniversary.
His unparalleled courage will continue to motivate people for years to come, Modi tweeted, and posted a previous clip of his speech lauding the guru.
He tweeted, "On the sacred occasion of his Parkash Purab, I bow to Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji and recall his contribution towards serving humanity. His unparalleled courage will continue to motivate people for years to come."
10:17 AMMCC expresses interest in hosting Indo-Pak Test after T20 WC clash success
The Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) has expressed interest in hosting a Test match between arch-rivals India and Pakistan after successfully organising the marquee T20 World Cup clash between the two sides earlier this year.
MCC, which manages the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and the Victoria government have recently inquired with Cricket Australia (CA) about the possibility of hosting the high-profile Test.
MCC chief executive Stuart Fox has revealed his intentions to host the Test following the tremendous success of the T20 World Cup clash in October, which was attended by over 90,000 spectators.
10:15 AMNIA raids multiple locations linked to PFI in Kerala
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials on Thursday carried out raids at multiple locations including residences of second-rung leaders across of the banned Islamist outfit Popular Front of India in Kerala.
The raids, which started late last night are still underway, sources in the Kerala police said.
Multi-agency teams spearheaded by the NIA had arrested several functionaries including top leaders of the radical Islamic outfit in September in near simultaneous raids at multiple locations in 15 states for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country.
10:15 AMRT-PCR report of passengers from China, 4 other nations must: Official
With the next month expected to be crucial for India’s Covid-19 situation, passengers arriving from China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Singapore would have to carry a negative RT-PCR report from next week onwards, official sources have said.
The Covid-19 spike in these countries has sent alarm bells ringing in India as well, with states gearing up to prepare for any emergencies and taking stock of health infrastructure.
A PTI report quoted an official saying, “Previously, it has been noticed that a new wave of Covid-19 hits India around 30-35 days after it hits East Asia.... This has been a trend.”
10:13 AMPrez Zelenskyy discusses Ukraine's reconstruction with BlackRock CEO
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky discussed his country's post-conflict reconstruction with Larry Fink, Chief Executive Officer of BlackRock, one of the world's leading investment managers, the presidential press service reported.
During a conversation through video link, Zelensky thanked Fink for the work of a BlackRock team that had prepared a project to advise the Ukrainian government on how to structure Ukraine's reconstruction funds, the report said on Wednesday.
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