Prime Minister Narendra Modi pay his respects to former President Pranab Mukherjee, who passed away at 84 in Delhi on August 31

National flags at Rashtrapati Bhavan and Parliament were at half-mast on Tuesday as the country observes a 7-day State mourning following the demise of former President Pranab Mukherjee. &amp;nbsp; The state mourning is being observed throughout the country from August 31 to September 6 as a mark of respect to the former President, who passed away on Monday.

National flag flies at half mast as India declares 7-day state mourning for Pranab Mukherjee

President Ram Nath Kovind, paid his respects to Pranab Mukherjee, at the late politician&amp;#39;s his residence 10, Rajaji Marg, in New Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi consoles a family member of Pranab Mukherjee

Congress party members pay homage to Mukherjee at Bidhan Bhavan in Kolkata

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal pays his last respects to former President Pranab Mukherjee

Mortal remains of former President Pranab Mukherjee being taken from his residence to Lodhi Crematorium, in New Delhi

Congress party members pay homage to the late former President Pranab Mukherjee, in Kolkata

Members of a puja committee pay homage to the late former President Pranab Mukherjee, in Kolkata

Security personnel marches out of the residence of late Pranab Mukherjee as they escort an ambulance carrying his body ahead of his funeral, in New Delhi

Security personnel pay tributes as mortal remains of Pranab Mukherjee being taken to Lodhi Crematorium

Former President Pranab Mukherjee was cremated with full state honours at the Lodhi road electric crematorium on Tuesday afternoon. His son performed his last rites. Mukherjee&amp;#39;s family and relatives paid their last respects clad in PPE kits while conforming to Covid-19 safeguards. An Army contingent gave a guard of honour and a gun salute to the former president.

Former President Pranab Mukherjee cremated with full state honours

Former President Pranab Mukherjee was cremated with full state honours at the Lodhi road electric crematorium on Tuesday afternoon

Prime Minister Narendra Modi consoles a family member of the former President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, at his residence, in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Pranab Mukherjee

Pranab Mukherjee cremated with full state honours, India in 7-day mourning

Business Standard

Pranab Mukherjee cremated with full state honours, India in 7-day mourning | Current Affairs News National - Business Standard

Shares of the Gujarat-headquartered company surged over 10,000 per cent in the 12-month period ending November as it announced forays into market-fancied sectors

The funds will be used for capex expansion and drive growth initiatives by enhancing production capabilities, accelerating new product development, and expanding presence across the country.

A new Centre of Excellence on Classical and Quantum Communications for 6G has been inaugurated this year at the IITM Research Park in Chennai to spearhead research and development in 6G technologies

Reportedly, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Slim will not launch alongside the other three models. Instead, it is expected to debut separately in the second quarter of calendar year 2025

Pollution in east, north and central Indian cities primarily comes from residential and transportation sectors, while in western India, industry and energy are the main contributors to local PM2.5 pollution, a study has found.
Published in the journal Modeling Earth Systems and Environment, the study also found that PM2.5 pollution in cities in south India majorly comes from the industry and residential sectors.
Researchers from the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Maharashtra, and the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, analysed pollution levels in 53 cities, having more than a million population during the winter of 2015-2016.
Residential emissions -- from burning biomass for cooking and heating -- were found to be the leading contributor to local PM2.5 pollution in Srinagar (68 per cent), Varanasi (37 per cent), Allahabad (34 per cent) and Kanpur (33 per cent).
The transportation sector's contribution to local PM2.5 pollution was found to be higher in north Indian .

Published in the journal Modeling Earth Systems and Environment, the study also found that PM2.5 pollution in cities in south India majorly comes from the industry and residential sectors

The production could fall to around 27 million metric tons from the last year's 32 million tons and below annual consumption of more than 29 million tons, said India head of a global trade house

The CII pointed out that despite being successful, the PSL framework required recalibration to stay relevant

The GST Council, in its meeting on Saturday, is likely to decide on reducing tax rates on life and health insurance premiums, but a decision on big-ticket rate rationalisation, including a higher tax on sin goods, may be deferred.
The GoM on GST rate rationalisation had proposed rate rejigs in 148 items in its recommendations, but sources said that consensus is needed to be built on some of the tax changes that the panel has suggested and some more time may be needed for that.
The 55th meeting of the GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and comprising state counterparts, is also likely to deliberate on bringing Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), a major component for airline industry's operation cost, in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) fold.
The GST rate is also proposed to be cut on food delivery platforms like Swiggy and Zomato, to 5 per cent (without input tax credit), from the current 18 per cent (with ITC).
However, the Fitment Committee (comprising tax

Also, the Group of Ministers (GoM) on GST compensation cess is likely to get a six month extension till June, 2025, to submit its report. The compensation cess regime comes to an end in March, 2026

Russia-Ukraine War

The year 2022 is coming to an end and a lot has happened that shaped the world in the year. Let's have a look at some of these significant events

In February 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine&amp;#39;s capital, Kyiv, from the north in an attempt to overthrow President Volodymyr Zelensky&amp;#39;s government. In the months following, artillery bombardment and street fighting continued, with Russia seizing multiple cities.

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After a slew of scandals in his term spanning three years, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigned from office in July. Johnson was succeeded by Liz Truss, who took over the office in September.
						
						But after 45 days in the office, she resigned, becoming the shortest-serving PM in UK history. Her budgetary plans, at the centre of which were tax cut plans, had crashed the markets, making her lose the confidence of almost all her own MPs.
						
						In the days that followed, Rishi Sunak took over as Britain&amp;#39;s 57th prime minister and vowed to fix the mistakes made by his predecessor, Liz Truss.

Russia Invades Ukraine

In April, protests began in the nation following a sharp rise in food and fuel costs. Thousands demanded the resignation of now-ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The people faced long power cuts daily and shortages of basics, including fuel and food. Sri Lanka&amp;#39;s doctors said they were nearly out of life-saving medicines.
						
						Rajapaksa&amp;#39;s government was being blamed for the chronic mismanagement of the country&amp;#39;s finances. In July, protestors stormed Rajapaksa&amp;#39;s home, pushing him to flee the nation before resigning from office.

UK&amp;#39;s political crisis

In September, 22-year-old Iranian girl Mahsa Amini died after being detained for allegedly violating Iran&amp;#39;s laws requiring women to wear a headscarf. Authorities said she died of illness, but her family claimed she fell into a coma after being mistreated by the police. Sources said the police beat Amini with a baton and banged her head against a vehicle. At her funeral on September 17 in Saqez, women protested by ripping off their hijabs. Protests sparked by her demise have since roped in ethnic minorities and even school children. Thousands of women since then have been showing solidarity by cutting their hair and burning their hijabs in public.
						
						Now, the unrest has spread beyond a women&amp;#39;s right to a movement that is calling for an end to theocratic rule. The protests are now the most broadly supported movement in Iran in over four decades.

Sri Lanka economic crisis

In October, Chinese President Xi Jinping was handed a historic third term in office. He became the first leader of the ruling Communist Party after party founder Mao Zedong to get a third term in power.
						
						This came as China&amp;#39;s economy was running out of steam after decades of high growth. Many expect Xi&amp;#39;s third term may see China revert to more old-school economic management, focusing on shoring up the heavy industry and continuing a crackdown on big tech.

Uprising mounts again in Iran

In a historic first, rich countries agreed to pay for losses and damages caused by climate change. For 30 years, developing nations have been calling for developed countries to compensate for the costs of climate disasters caused by climate change. And rich nations that caused the pollution resisted the demand. But this changed in 2022.

Chinese President Xi Jinping starts record third term in power

In 2022, inflation was rising worldwide, with food and energy prices hitting record highs. The hike was mainly driven by pent-up consumer demand after the pandemic and Russia&amp;#39;s invasion of Ukraine. As the pandemic waned, people wanted to return to normalcy and spend more. This led to companies demanding higher prices. Companies also hired more to serve the pent-up demand. They had to increase wages to attract workers and raise prices to compensate for that.

A landmark deal UN Climate Change Conference (COP27)

In September, Queen Elizabeth II, Britain&amp;#39;s longest-serving monarch, died at 96 after reigning for 70 years. Many said her death would mark a turning point for commonwealth nations as many may disassociate themselves.

The global economy at crossroads

In October, Brazil&amp;#39;s former president, Luiz In&amp;aacute;cio Lula da Silva beat Jair Bolsonaro in the country&amp;#39;s closest presidential race in history. Silva&amp;#39;s win marked Latin America&amp;#39;s shift to the left and pointed to an extraordinary comeback for a man in jail for corruption three years ago.

Queen Elizabeth II dies

In October, billionaire Elon Musk closed his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter after months of dilly-dallying, drama and a lawsuit. The Tesla owner&amp;#39;s Twitter takeover is also one of the biggest tech acquisitions of all time. May fear that Musk&amp;#39;s takeover may turn the social media giant into a hotbed of hate speech.
					
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Brazil elections

Google Messages

In January, Google rolled out end-to-end encryption in group chats for messages app users enrolled in the beta programme

Blend launches Blend Studio: AI tool for ecommerce photography

New Delhi [India], March 16 (ANI/PNN): Blend, an AI-powered design and photography application for DTC brands and ecommerce sellers, recently launched Blend Studio - the Chat GPT for product photos.

Celebrity and Travel Photographer Rahul Lokare from Flamingo Productions creates waves of change in the world of photography.

Xiaomi 13 Pro

Priced at Rs 79,999 for the 12GB RAM and 256GB on-board storage, the Xiaomi 13 Pro offers a novel imaging experience on top of a premium package

Pranab Mukherjee cremated with full state honours, India in 7-day mourning

Former President Pranab Mukherjee was cremated with full state honours at the Lodhi road electric crematorium on Tuesday afternoon

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