30% of the 6,500 scientist posts in India’s premier agricultural research body is lying vacant, according to minister of state for agriculture Harish Rawat. Nearly 1,960 scientist posts, mostly at the level of ‘Senior Scientists’ are lying vacant in the Indian Council for Agircultural Research (ICAR), the minister said in response to a query by […]
The Budget 2012-13 envisions total tax income in excess of Rs 10.7 lakh crore, while expenditure of more than Rs 14.9 lakh crore. Gross Tax Receipts estimated at `10,77,612 crore. Net Tax to Centre estimated at `7,71,071 crore. Non-tax Revenue Receipts estimated at `1,64,614 crore. Non-debt Capital Receipts estimated at `41,650 […]
The following are the highlights of the Union Budget proposals with regard to all indirect taxes — including service tax, custom duties, excise and all other central taxes. Standard rate of excise duty to be raised from 10 per cent to 12 per cent, merit rate from 5 per cent to 6 per cent […]
The following are the main proposals in the Union Budget for 2012-13 that relate to Agriculture: Plan Outlay for Department of Agriculture and Co-operation increased by 18 percent. Outlay for Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) increased to `9,217 crore in 2012-13. Initiative of Bringing Green Revolution to Eastern India (BGREI) – Allocation […]
The following are the proposals related to the development of infrastructure and industry, contained in the Union Budget 2012-13 presented today. Infrastructure Government has approved guidelines for establishing joint venture companies by defence PSUs in PPP mode. First Infrastructure Debt Fund with an initial size of `8,000 crore launched earlier this month. […]
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has suggested putting a limit of 6 minutes per hour for advertisements on pay channels. The Authority, which issued a consultation paper in this regard today, also suggested putting a cap of 12 minutes per hour on ads in free-to-air channels, like Doordarshan. In live sports events, it […]
Prices are again on the upward spiral, going by the latest consumer price index (CPI) numbers released by the Central Government today. The CPI is calculated on the basis of country-wide surveys by the National Sample Survey, the government survey agency, and is now being released on a per-state basis as well. Consumer prices rose […]
Reliance Communications has introduced the ‘Reliance CDMA Tab’ — the CDMA high-speed version of its Reliance 3g tab. The CDMA Tab has very similar, almost the same, features as the Reliance 3g tab. Like the 3g version, it has a 7-inch capacitive touch screen with Android 2.3 OS. Loaded with 512 MB RAM and a […]
If you thought being a member of the legislative assembly, with a salary between Rs 5,000 to 50,000 a month, is bad for your financial health, think again. Every month, the MLAs increased their assets by 3 to 6 lakhs on average, according to a comparison of asset declarations made by MLAs at the time […]
Corruption and financial or political scandals are the biggest worries for 71 percent Indians, according to a global poll by Ipsos – a leading global market research company. Terrorism (38%) is the 2nd biggest worry followed by Crime and Violence (34%); Poverty and Social Inequality (31%); Unemployment and jobs (28%); high tax rate (15%); and […]
In just three months, a total of 112 websites belonging to various government bodies, including that of BSNL, were hacked, the ministry of communications and IT, headed by Kapil Sibal, told the Lok Sabha today. The ministry, currently on an ambitious project to build an organization to monitor online traffic, was replying to a question […]
Even as global revenues from server computers, used for heavy work by companies, slipped 5.4% in the final quarter of 2011, they were up 2.4% in the Asia Pacific, led by strong sales in China. Similarly, while number of servers shipped in the quarter increased only 4.5% globally, they were up 15.7%, technology market research […]
Wipro Technologies, the number four IT Indian IT services firm, said it has been granted a US ‘business process’ patent for innovation in warranty management and insights into product quality in the automotive manufacturing sector. Wipro’s product helps manufacturers to gain insights on product design and resolve problems by analyzing data such as the number […]
Government is exploring making the biometric UID (Aadhar) mandatory for carrying out stock-market transactions, according to junior Finance Minister Namo Narain Meena. The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), headed by former Infosys CEO Nandan Nilekani, has suggested constituting a joint working group of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Authority to […]
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which routinely grabs headlines in the West with ads showing provocatively dressed (or undressed) actors or activists, is all set to bring its campaign to India. Activists from the organization, known for its provocative campaigns against animal cruelty, will hold up banners outside the Byculla Zoo at […]
The early seat trends — with BJP overtaking Congress by 2:1 — seem to indicate that the Congress Party’s strategy of trying to play to the Muslim population has misfired. While the Congress was widely expected to come third in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, going by the early trends, it is turning up as […]
India pushed Indonesia to allow Indian banking and healthcare professionals, such as nurses, into the South East Asian country, according to a statement from the Indian commerce and industry ministry. The statement, made on the occasion of the Indian trade minister Anand Sharma’s visit to Jakarta, said the minister raised the issue in a meeting […]
People standing in a queue in front of a liquor shop in Kerala beat up a man and his wife, objecting to the presence of a woman in the queue. The incident, which happened in Parappanangadi in the Muslim-dominated Malappuram district, has led to alarm among liberals and women’s rights activists in the state. It […]
India is likely to miss its export target this year, according to the latest numbers released by the government. At the same time, India’s goods-trade deficit is likely to be 50% over its target of $120 billion. According to the latest numbers, exports in February were US $24.6 billion, up just 4.3%. With one month […]
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPIM has alleged that the Congress bribed its legislator, R Selvaraj to get him to resign as a member of the state legislature and protect the Congress led government in Kerala. The allegations have been leveled in the context of the upcoming Piravom by-poll on Saturday. The poll […]
