BJP’s Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha for a second consecutive term by a voice vote. He recognized Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of the Opposition.

BJP's Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha for a second consecutive term by a voice vote. He recognized Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of the Opposition.

Om Birla elected as Lok sabha speaker, Arvind Kejriwal arrested by CBI & more

The government has decided to infuse Rs 500 crore capital in state-owned IFCI to improve its financial health ahead of the company's proposed restructuring and consolidation into a group.
With the infusion, the government of India's holding in the company is expected to further increase from existing 71.72 per cent as on September 2024.
The capital infusion plan for IFCI was approved through the passage of the first Supplementary Demand for Grants for 2024-25 in Lok Sabha last week.
The Supplementary Demand for Grants for 2024-25 made an allocation for an additional amount of Rs 499.99 crore for 'Subscription to the Share Capital of Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI).
"Taking into account savings of Rs 50.07 crore available in the same section of the grant, the remaining amount of Rs 449.92 crore will be met from surrender of savings available in the capital section of Demand No.30-DEA and it will not entail any additional cash outgo," the Supplementary Demand for Grant

With the infusion, the government of India's holding in the company is expected to further increase from existing 71.72 per cent as on September 2024

Tamil Nadu has achieved a milestone by registering over 10,000 startups with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the state government said on Sunday
StartupTN has played a crucial role in nurturing the ecosystem by implementing various schemes and initiatives like funding programmes, mentorship opportunities and incubation support, StartupTN Mission Director and CEO Shivaraja Ramanathan said.
The state's startup ecosystem has been 'thriving' with 9 regional hubs and a metro hub in Chennai, providing a robust infrastructure for budding entrepreneurs to grow, he said.
"Tamil Nadu has achieved a remarkable milestone of 10,000 DPIIT registered startups, a significant jump from 2,300 in March 2021. This exponential growth can be attributed to the revival of StartupTN under the leadership of Chief Minister M K Stalin focusing on supporting startups and fostering innovation," Ramanathan said in a social med

The state's startup ecosystem has been 'thriving' with 9 regional hubs and a metro hub in Chennai, providing a robust infrastructure for budding entrepreneurs to grow

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Albania's prime minister said on Saturday the government will shut down the video service TikTok for one year, blaming it for inciting violence and bullying, especially among children.
Albanian authorities held 1,300 meetings with teachers and parents following the stabbing death of a teenager in mid-November by another teen after a quarrel that started on TikTok.
Prime Minister Edi Rama, speaking at a meeting with teachers and parents, said TikTok "would be fully closed for all.... There will be no TikTok in the Republic of Albania". Rama said the shutdown would begin sometime next year.
It was not immediately clear if TikTok has a contact in Albania.
TikTok, in an email response on Saturday to a request for comment, asked for "urgent clarity from the Albanian government" on the case of the stabbed teenager. The company said it had "found no evidence that the perpetrator or victim had TikTok accounts, and multiple reports have in fact confirmed videos leading up to this incident w

There has been increasing concern from Albanian parents after reports of children taking knives and other objects to school to use in quarrels or cases of bullying promoted by stories on TikTok

Against the backdrop of Parliament witnessing poor productivity due to disruptions, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Sunday called for accountability of lawmakers and said people would force them to think why they were sent to Parliament.
He also said that for any democracy to succeed, expression and dialogue must go hand in hand with great responsibility on both sides.
Dhankhar is the Rajya Sabha's ex-officio chairman.
Calling for accountability among parliamentarians, he said, "... Make no mistake, I am referring to parliamentarians. People have learned to take disorder as order. There is no sense of revulsion."
Hopefully, people will write and their thoughts will move, the vice-president said, according to an official statement.
"People will force you to think, why did you go there (Parliament)?" he said.
Addressing awardees of the Chaudhary Charan Singh Awards - 2024, the vice-president said agriculture was the spine of rural development.
"Unless agriculture develops, the 

He also said that for any democracy to succeed, expression and dialogue must go hand in hand with great responsibility on both sides

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday hit out at Left parties for turning Tripura into a "backward" state during their 35-year rule and said it could witness progress only after the BJP assumed power in 2018.
Addressing a public meeting here after visiting a village where displaced Bru tribals were rehabilitated, Shah said that Tripura remained behind on all parameters of development during the communist rule but is now moving forward on the path of progress.
"For 35 years, the communists ruled Tripura. The communists claimed that they worked for the welfare of the poor. The Congress also ruled Tripura for a considerable time. But the people of the state always remained poor. It was when the BJP came to power that Tripura could witness development," he said.
Shah said when he visited Tripura in 2017 as BJP president and stayed for five days, only 11 people took party membership.  "Gradually we started our work. We worked hard and could oust the communists from power" after toiling

Addressing a public meeting here after visiting a village where displaced Bru tribals were rehabilitated, Shah said that Tripura remained behind on all parameters of development during communist rule

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

Funds devolved to states under the 15th Finance Commission (2021-2024) is more than what was devolved under the 14th Finance Commission (2015-20), finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday.
In a pre-budget meeting with states, Sitharaman remarked that because of healthy macroeconomic environment, buoyancy and efficiency in the tax collections, the devolution has increased.
"The funds devolved to the states in the last 45 months (April 2021 to December 2024) under the 15th Finance Commission is more than what was devolved in 60 months under the 14th Finance Commission (2015-20)," an official statement quoting Sitharaman said.
The Union finance minister also referred to the Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI), which was first announced in the Union Budget 2020-21, and acknowledged that it has received a very good response from states.
States have been requesting the Central government to enhance the outlay under the scheme as it is leading

In addition to this, the Union finance minister stated that the Centre has created an additional dispensation under SASCI for the states affected by disaster of a severe nature as assessed by the Inte

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Om Birla elected as Lok sabha speaker, Arvind Kejriwal arrested by CBI & more

BJP’s Om Birla was elected as the Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha for a second consecutive term by a voice vote. He recognized Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of the Opposition.

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