Delhi HC issues notice on plea alleging irregularities in national-level test

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Delhi HC issues notice on plea alleging irregularities in national-level test

The Delhi High Court has issued notice on a plea alleging discrepancies in the examinations of Diplomate of National Board (DNB) post-graduation degree courses conducted by the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS).

A bench of Justice Rekha Palli, in the recently passed order, issued the notice on the plea filed through Adv Puneet Yadav for the petitioner Association of Diplomate of National Board Doctors.

The Central government counsel Kirtiman Singh accepted the notice and requested the court to grant four weeks’ time to file a counter-affidavit.

National Board of Examination and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) are among the respondents.

“Petitioner’s counsel submitted that he does not press the application for interim relief, at this stage and the application, accordingly, dismissed as withdrawn,” the order said.

Further, the court listed the petition for April 25.

As per the plea, the DNB Orthopedics exam was conducted in March 2021, and the result was declared on July 30, 2021.

It further said on August 10 last year, after the declaration of the result, one of the candidates namely Jitender Kumar applied for the release of Xerox copies of answer sheets under the provision of the failed candidates.

It was noticed that the Paper IV answer sheet of Dr. Jitender was of a different candidate.

He was also shocked to see that there were no marking on the answer papers, no sign of evaluation or correction by the examiners, and no comments by the examiners and that it was just a tabulation of marks on a separate sheet, the plea said.

“Though he informed this to the respondent, it failed to inform candidates or the public by large, the details of any committee or subcommittee constituted to investigate the decoding error and the immense possibility of any malpractice by any employee of the Respondent or any other agency involved in the evaluation of the answer sheets,” the plea read.

The valuation of each of the papers by four different examiners reduces the arbitrariness and the importing of two external examiners makes the system foolproof beyond any internal interference, it added.

The valuation procedure followed by the Respondent is contrary to the norms laid down by the MCI, the plea alleged.

IPL: Riyan Parag hopes to excel in ‘toughest role in T20 cricket’

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IPL: Riyan Parag hopes to excel in ‘toughest role in T20 cricket’

Rajasthan Royals’ youngster Riyan Parag will be taking part in his fourth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) when his team starts their campaign in Pune against Sunrisers Hyderabad in March 29.

The 20-year-old all-rounder from Guwahati, who has 30 IPL matches under his belt, hopes to make the most of his fourth season in the league.

“I started my IPL journey at the Royals, and I’m delighted that I was bought back. I know there were four teams involved in the bidding and it was nice to see that because that means I’ve been doing something right. But I was always rooting to come back here. Why this team means so much to me is because of the very family vibe, where everyone takes care of you, everyone is very friendly and approachable. It’s just a very positive set-up which can help you develop and excel, and that is what I intend to do,” expressed Riyan as he spends time in quarantine ahead of the season.

Reflecting on his domestic season so far, Riyan said it has been “average” for the standards he’s set for himself.

“I recently played the Ranji Trophy, and even if I like missed a few 100s, I think I was in good nick and was batting well. In terms of bowling too, I got my first five-for. So yes, there is still huge scope for improvement. The focus now is on prepping up for the IPL as I’ve played less white-ball cricket in the last month or so, but a few sessions of good practice should help in preparing,” Riyan who has recently appeared in his graduation exams said.

Talking about the Royals’ squad for the 2022 season, Riyan feels his team has managed to “plug in the gaps”.

“I think we have a really strong line-up this year. We’ve covered all aspects. I think the management has done a really good job to put all the players together,” he said.

Asked who he’s most looking forward to working with, Riyan had a clear answer, “That will definitely be Ashwin. If not the best ever, he’s like one of the best off-spinners going around in the world, and I’ll definitely try to carry a red ball with me in the tournament so that I can get a few tips.”

“But even with the white ball, I think if I can pick his brains on the varieties and all the mysteries, I think my white-ball bowling is going to be much better after the season,” added the all-rounder.

The youngster also reflected on his ambitions for the season. “I think it’s about having a simple goal of winning matches for the team whenever I’m given the opportunity, and at the end of the day, being very consistent. I think a lot of people will tell you this, the role that I play is the toughest one in T20 cricket, batting at 6 or 7, finishing off games,” he said.

“I know I haven’t produced as many performances as I would have liked, but I think now I understand myself much better as a player and understand what my strengths are. So, I hope it’s going to be my year,” he signed off.

Bumrah jumps six spots to fourth in ICC Test Rankings; Kohli drops to ninth

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Bumrah jumps six spots to fourth in ICC Test Rankings; Kohli drops to ninth

India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who bagged eight wickets, including his maiden Test five-wicket haul at home in second India versus Sri Lanka Test at Bengaluru, has jumped six spots to attain fourth ranking in the latest ICC Test Rankings for bowlers released on Wednesday.

The 28-year-old speedster leapfrogged Pakistan’s Shaheen Afridi, New Zealand’s Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee, England’s James Anderson, South Africa-born Kiwi cricketer Neil Wagner and Australia’s Josh Hazlewood in the table.

On the other hand, former India skipper Virat Kohli has slipped from fifth to ninth among batters.

India’s pace bowling stalwart Mohammed Shami has climbed a spot to displace fellow countryman Ravindra Jadeja to 17th, while Sri Lanka’s Lasith Embuldeniya and Praveen Jayawickrama jumped five positions each to 32nd and 45th slot respectively.

Australia Test skipper Pat Cummins, India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, and South African pace bowler Kagiso Rabada have retained the top three spots.

Sri Lankan batter Dimuth Karunaratne to has made significant gains in the latest Test Rankings, breaking into the top-5. Karunaratne jumped to a career-best No.3 after his fighting 107 in the second innings in Bengaluru.

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam has advanced to No.8 in the table led by Australian batter Marnus Labuschagne, followed by England’s Joe Root, Australia’s Steve Smith, and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson respectively.

West Indies’ Nkrumah Bonner and India’s Shreyas Iyer took giant leaps, advancing a staggering 22 and 40 spots respectively to 22nd and 37th position. While Bonner scored 123 and gritty, unbeaten 38 in the first drawn Test against England in Antigua last week, Iyer was rewarded for his match-winning 92 and 67 against Sri Lanka.

England batter Zak Crawley’s 121 in the second innings against West Indies saw him jump 13 spots to 49th.

In the all-rounders’ table, West Indies’ Jason Holder has reclaimed the top spot, replacing Ravindra Jadeja, who had risen to No.1 after his unbeaten 175 and nine wickets in the Mohali Test earlier this month. Ashwin, Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan, and England’s Ben Stokes round off the top-five all-rounders.

Andhra disburses Rs 708 crore towards fee reimbursement

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Andhra disburses Rs 708 crore towards fee reimbursement

The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday disbursed Rs 708 crore to 10.82 lakh students as fee reimbursement under its flagship scheme Jagananna Vidya Deevena.

The amount was credited to the bank accounts of beneficiaries towards fee reimbursement for the October – December 2021 quarter.

Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who transferred the money, reiterated that poverty should not be a hindrance to pursuing higher education

The government had also decided to disburse regular payments on a quarterly basis.

Education is the only solution to eradicate poverty. If a child in a village is educated, the entire village can benefit from it. Further, the government is ensuring to reduce college dropouts across the state. Debt settlement can make a huge difference to lead to successful completion of course/education,” he said.

Under the government’s flagship Jagananna Vidya Deevena, the total fee reimbursement would be directly transferred to the accounts of mothers of the students.

Jagan Mohan Reddy recalled an incident during his padayatra wherein a father narrated how his son committed suicide as the fees could not be paid.

The Chief Minister said that full fee reimbursement was brought in to make education accessible to the poor, especially fulfilling the dream of pursuing higher education without burdening their families.

The government has so far provided assistance of Rs 9,274 crore under Jagananna Vidya Deevena and Jaganna Vasathi Deevena (Lodging and boarding charges). This includes the fee reimbursement arrears of Rs 1,778 crore kept by the previous government, Rs 6969 crore for Jagananna Vidya Deevena, and Rs 2305 crore for Jaganna Vasathi Deevena.

The Chief Minister also noted that there is a significant increase in gross enrollment in schools with the implementation of Amma Vodi. Under this scheme, the government is providing Rs 15,000 assistance to all the mothers who send their children to school.

“We are also making significant changes to the higher education syllabus and taking steps towards job creation,” the Chief Minister added.

The government has not only been providing assistance to the students on fee reimbursement but to their lodging and boarding charges too under Jagananna Vasathi Deevena. The scheme would give assistance of Rs 20,000 to all eligible students pursuing degrees, engineering, and medicine while Rs 15000 for polytechnic students and Rs 10,000 for ITI students in two installments every year.

He said that the second tranche of Vasati Deevena will be credited on April 5 at a public event.

As part of the reforms in the education sector, bilingual textbooks have been introduced, English medium schools with CBSE curriculum are made available, and students are given Vidya Kanuka kits with uniforms, workbooks, notebooks, along with nutritious mid-day meals under Jagananna Gorumuddha.

He said that the admissions in government schools were increased by 6.5 lakh as students from private schools were shifting to government schools.

Ministers Adimulapu Suresh, Pinepe Viswaroop, Chief Secretary Dr. Sameer Sharma, APSCHE Chairman K. Hemachandrareddy, Minority Welfare Special Secretary Gandham Chandradu, and other senior officials were present.

Raashi Khanna: My family was shocked to see me in ‘Rudra’

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Raashi Khanna: My family was shocked to see me in ‘Rudra’

Actress Raashi Khanna recently made her OTT debut with ‘Rudra: The edge of darkness’, where she played the role of Dr. Aliyah Choksi, a sociopath. She says her family was shocked to see her in the series but in a good way.

Talking about her role, Raashi said, “Pulling off an eccentric character like Aliyah was the only thing that mattered to me, I guess I had always been looking for something that threw me out of my comfort zone and this character did just that. I gave it my best and was selected and that’s how I got on board.

She adds, ‘It was a wonderful experience working with all the actors in the series. Especially Ajay sir and Atul sir. Ajay sir was a pillar of support from day one. He is such a good actor and I learned a lot from him. Atul sir also is a brilliant actor and working with him was a blessing too.

Raashi received all kinds of praises for her role, people on the sets feared seeing her in the character, her family was surprised too when they saw her in Rudra.

“My family and friends were shocked but yes, in a good way. The way I am, they must have never thought I could pull a character like this off. Come to think of it, I never thought I could pull it off! But, They are all happy and proud” adds Raashi

Produced by Applause Entertainment in association with BBC Studios India, Rudra – The Edge of Darkness is now streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.

S. Korea reports record high of over 400,000 new COVID-19 cases

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S. Korea reports record high of over 400,000 new COVID-19 cases

South Korea reported a record high of 4,00,741 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, raising the total number of infections to 7,629,275, the health authorities said on Wednesday.

The daily caseload was sharply up from 362,329 in the previous day, topping 400,000 for the first time, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The recent resurgence was driven by infections in the Seoul metropolitan area amid the Omicron variant spread, Xinhua news agency reported.

Of the new cases, 81,395 were Seoul residents. The number of newly infected people living in Gyeonggi province and the western port city of Incheon was 94,806 and 28,453 respectively.

The virus spread also raged in the non-metropolitan region. The number of new infections in the non-capital areas was 204,654, or 51.1 percent of the total local transmission.

Among the new cases, 117 were imported from overseas, lifting the total to 30,475.

The number of infected people who were in a serious condition stood at 1,244, up 48 from the previous day.

A total of 164 more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 11,052. The total fatality rate was 0.14 percent.

The country has administered Covid vaccines to 44,914,731 people, or 87.5 percent of the total population, and the number of fully inoculated people was 44,443,726, or 86.6 percent of the population.

The number of those who received booster jabs was 32,185,393 people or 62.7 percent of the population.

Chief ministers of Goa and Manipur meet PM Modi

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Chief ministers of Goa and Manipur meet PM Modi

Caretaker chief ministers of Goa Pramod Sawant and Manipur N Biren Singh met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday.

Party insider said that the chief ministers discussed the formation of the BJP government in their respective states.

The BJP has won the Assembly polls in Goa for the third time in a row and for the first time got the majority on its own in Manipur.

In a tweet after meeting Sawant, Prime Minister Modi said: “Met @DrPramodPSawant and the team of @BJP4Goa. Our party is grateful to the people of Goa for blessing us yet again with the mandate to serve the state. We will keep working for Goa’s progress in the times to come.”

“Met Shri @NBirenSingh Ji and congratulated him on @BJP4Manipur’s stupendous victory in the recently concluded Assembly Polls. Our Party is committed to working even harder to fulfill the aspirations of the people of Manipur,” Prime Minister Modi tweeted.

Sawant expected to meet Union home minister Amit Shah, BJP chief J.P. Nadda and party national general secretary (organization) B.L. Santhosh, and others to discuss the formation of the new BJP government in Goa.

Goa BJP president Sadanand Shet Tanavade was also expected to join the meeting.

While incumbent Sawant is a front runner for the post, many other aspirants are also trying their luck to become chief minister in the coastal state. “With extra time everyone is trying to become chief minister and pushing their candidature before seniors,” a party leader in Goa said.

On Tuesday, BJP chief Nadda and Santhosh met Manipur caretaker chief minister Singh, state election in-charge Bhupender Yadav, in-charge Sambit Patra held a discussion about the formation of a new government in the North-Eastern state.

Late Monday evening, top BJP leadership met at Prime Minister Modi’s residence to discuss the formation of the party’s government in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, and Manipur.

Availability of ESG experts major roadblock for India to realise its Net-Zero goals by 2050: Experts at Think Change Forum roundtable

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Availability of ESG experts major roadblock for India to realise its Net-Zero goals by 2050: Experts at Think Change Forum roundtable

Think Change Forum (TCF), an independent think tank dedicated to generating new ideas and finding solutions for navigating the post-pandemic world, on Wednesday organized a virtual roundtable on ‘ESG Capacity Development in India – Challenges, Progress and Pathways’.

The event was moderated by Kumar Subramanian, Founding Partner and Managing Director, Sculpt Partners, and had three eminent panelists: Dr. Pradeep Panigarhi, Head Corporate Sustainability, Larsen & Toubro Ltd.; Shailendra Singh, Founder, and CEO, SustainMantra; and Prof Purnamita Dasgupta, Chair Professor, and Head, Environmental and Resource Economics Unit, Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi University.

The panelists converged on their view that the global climate crisis coupled with rising socioeconomic inequality and rapidly depleting natural resources and biodiversity poses existential challenges to mankind. By incorporating ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) considerations in the way business is done, organizations can not only mitigate the negative impact of these challenges but also create and benefit from business opportunities. That’s why, the call for ESG compliances, reporting, and the transition has been growing louder around the world, including in India.

Globally, about $35 trillion worth of assets is managed by investors who incorporate the ESG agenda into their investment strategies. In India, the size of ESG investments ranges from around $30 billion to $40 billion and is growing rapidly. To make quick all-round progress, ESG adopters in

India needs the right financial resources (investments), technical resources (cutting-edge technology and equipment), and human resources (ESG professionals and experts). While progress has been made on the first two aspects, challenges with respect to a pipeline of ESG experts and human resources need urgent attention.

Considering the urgency of the matter, it is imperative that in the short term, we find creative solutions that can equip existing professionals to work on the ESG agenda, and in the long term, industries and academia work in close collaboration to develop a pool of ESG talent that is industry absorbable. For instance, the clean energy sector alone would require more than 100 million professionals globally over the next 10-20 years. The number constitutes more than 3 percent of the total global employable workforce that we have today. So, a mix of immediate and long-term measures is required to address the acute shortage of ESG professionals.

The availability of skilled and trained ESG professionals in India will also lead to a large number of small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), which play an important role in employment generation and the overall economy, having access to the required talent, and set and achieving ESG targets. The current set of consultants in the field is untested and does not have a standardized skillset. Further, expert agencies operating in the space offer their services at very high rates, making it impossible for small business entities to afford them.

“India seems to be on track towards achieving its target of reducing the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33-35 percent by 2030 (now enhanced to 45 percent). Try and marry this with the idea of Net Zero by 2070. If you consider it from the industry perspective and try to place it within the context of ESG, I think there are some tremendous opportunities at hand. Of course, there are challenges in the way different business entities operate in the broader business environment. For example, it may be easier for large-cap companies to progress in certain areas like ESG but may not be possible for smaller enterprises to do so.

“The key question is, how do MSMEs cope with the situation, and how do we really bring them into the ESG fold? While there are a lot of opportunities, opportunities become important when we are able to place them in context,” said Prof Purnamita Dasgupta, Chair Professor, and Head, Environmental and Resource Economics Unit, Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi University, while highlighting the key issues of trackability and comparability of ESG-related initiatives within companies and the need to generate awareness among the financial institutions on investing in the ESG area for better portfolio returns, among other benefits.

“As far as ESG targets are concerned, you need to have the right expertise within the team. You need to build real expertise; just giving training or introducing another capacity-building program doesn’t help. You need to understand the nitty-gritty of the business. Then only things work. The moment you commit something publicly, you have to deliver, and deliver in a way that you pass all kinds of scrutiny,” said Dr. Pradeep Panigarhi, Head Corporate Sustainability, Larsen & Toubro Ltd.

“Sustainability is a complex subject. There are a few things that we need to keep in mind. The first one is building awareness, right from the board level down to the bottom of small and large companies. Then we need skills for the operationalization of sustainability within these companies. Persuasion plays a very important role in this process as it helps in getting interdisciplinary folks onto the same page. Lastly, it is a long process and so we have to be consistent and patient. Unless we invest in our schools and universities and start producing professionals other than doctors and engineers, we will not be able to fill the huge number of jobs that are going to come up in India in the coming years,” said Mr. Shailendra Singh, Founder, and CEO, SustainMantra.

Even today, we have this idea in India that environmental, social or governance issues have to do something with the public sector. So, the funds for such initiatives have to come out of the public exchequer. This approach needs to change. One way of doing it is to generate awareness among the financial institutions about how investing in the ESG area can lead to better portfolio returns, among many other benefits.

Currently, only about 150-200 companies are dedicatedly following ESG compliances and reporting. To increase this number, and to have smaller organizations, the regulator can step in to ease implementation and ease access to finance for doing a good job of ESG. Meanwhile, the government can step in and introduce incentives for companies working in this direction.

India logs 2,876 fresh Covid-19 cases, 98 deaths

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India logs 2,876 fresh Covid-19 cases, 98 deaths

India registered 2,876 fresh Covid-19 infections in the last 24 hours, a marginal rise from 2,568 cases reported on the previous day, the Union Health Ministry said on Wednesday.

In the same period, 98 deaths have also been reported, taking the total number of deaths to 5,16,072.

Meanwhile, following a continuous downward trend, India’s active caseload has declined to 32,811 today. Active cases constitute 0.08 percent of the country’s total positive cases.

A total of 3,884 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours and the cumulative tally of recovered patients since the beginning of the pandemic is now at 4,24,50,055. Consequently, India’s recovery rate stands at 98.72 percent.

Also in the same period, a total of 7,52, 818 tests were conducted across the country. India has so far conducted over 78.05 crore cumulative tests.

There has been a sustained fall in the weekly and daily positivity rates too. The weekly positivity rate in the country currently stands at 0.44 percent and the daily positivity rate is reported to be 0.38 percent.

On the vaccination front, India’s Covid-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 180.60 crores as per provisional reports till 7 a.m. on Wednesday morning. This has been achieved through 2,11,93,183 sessions.

More than 17.25 crore balance and unutilized Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states and UTs to be administered, according to the health ministry as of Wednesday morning.

Equity indices in green; Sensex, Nifty up over 1% each

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Equity indices in green; Sensex, Nifty up over 1% each

India’s key equity indices — Sensex and Nifty — traded in the green in the opening session on Wednesday.

At 9.54 a.m., Sensex was 1.4 per cent or 777 points up at 56,554 points, whereas Nifty was 1.3 percent or 220 points up at 16,883 points.

Among the specific stocks, Indusind Bank, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Grasim Industries, and Bajaj Finserv were the top five gainers among the Nifty 50 companies, rising 3.7 percent, 3.5 per cent, 3.0 percent, 2.8 percent, and 2.7 percent, respectively.

Cipla, Sun Pharma, and Tata Consumers, on the other hand, were the only shares that declined among the Nifty 50 companies in the opening session.

Hijab order is discriminatory: AIMPLB

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Hijab order is discriminatory: AIMPLB

All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) general secretary Maulana Khalid Saifullah Rahmani has expressed ‘regret and disappointment’ on the Karnataka High Court order upholding the ban on hijab in educational institutions.

The cleric told reporters that the board will be holding an online meeting soon to discuss the way forward on the issue apart from tabling the matter in an offline meeting to be held at the end of March.

AIMPLB has previously expressed intent to move SC in the matter.

Rahmani called Tuesday’s order a ‘discriminatory one towards Muslims’, making comparisons with certain governments altering aviation laws to appease a community and governments allowing some groups and communities to use their religious symbols.

He also refuted the claim that the hijab is not essential to Islam and said banning it is an intrusion in the constitutional rights of Muslim citizens.

“Islam and Shariat have made certain things farz (duty) and wajib (obligatory) on Muslims and it is lazim (pre-requisite) that they are followed. Hijab is one such obligation that is a pre-requisite. If certain Muslims in their ignorance and laziness do not perform namaz or Roza, they cannot be eliminated from Islam but they do commit a sin. Similarly, if certain Muslims don’t follow the hijab, it does not make the act non-essential to Islam,” he explained.

He further said: “It is the constitutional right of every individual to wear what he deems fit. There are religions which use religious symbols and certain governments go all out to bear expenses and alert aviation laws for their display.”

In that context, the order is discriminatory. “Schools have the right to decide upon a uniform but it has come to our notice that the case that went in court was not related to schools but was for colleges, where the coercion of uniforms cannot be made,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband has also said that it ‘disagreed’ with the decision of the Karnataka High Court regarding the hijab ban in educational institutions.

It urged Muslim societies and NGOs to approach the Supreme Court to challenge the verdict.

Maulana Mufti Abul Qasim Nomani, the vice-chancellor of Darul Uloom Deoband, said: “Not just Muslims but all religions have freedom in India. In a democratic setup, no government or government-recognized organization should make any law that is against the spirit of the Constitution. No such code of conduct should be enforced that is against any religion.”

Apple Car team must be restructured to meet 2025 production goal

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Apple Car team must be restructured to meet 2025 production goal

Apple’s team working on the company’s long-rumored electric vehicle has been dissolved for some time and it needs to be restructured within the next three to six months to achieve the goal of mass production by 2025.

“The Apple Car project team has been dissolved for some time. The reorganization within the next three to six months is necessary to achieve the goal,” Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a tweet.

Apple’s EV plans have reportedly faced numerous setbacks since the project was approved in 2014.

According to AppleInsider, in September 2021, Apple Watch executive Kevin Lynch was said to have been reassigned to manage the “Apple Car” team. In 2020, it was reported that Apple’s AI and Siri head, John Giannandrea, was overseeing development.

Apple has partnered with a South Korean outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) company to develop its car’s autopilot technology.

The project is led by Apple’s South Korean offices. It was initiated in 2021 and is expected to last till next year.

Apple is reportedly taking a similar route to Tesla. The Elon Musk-owned EV firm, while developing its autopilot chip, used Samsung memory and gave assembly work to JCET STATSChipPAC Korea.

Apple Car is also expected to use LED screens all over the vehicle to inform other drivers what the self-driving system is doing.

The display would show braking information, the speed of the car and other messages in the form of graphics as well as video.

La Liga-led group proposes new Brazilian football league

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La Liga-led group proposes new Brazilian football league

A group led by Spain’s La Liga has proposed the creation of a new league in Brazil that would operate independently of the national football confederation.

La Liga president Javier Tebas presented the plan to representatives of clubs in the top two divisions during a three-hour meeting in Sao Paulo on Tuesday.

The proposal, which has the backing of commercial partners XP Investments and Alvarez & Marsal, would see Brazil adopt a European-style league model promising greater transparency and financial gains for clubs, Tebas said, Xinhua reports.

“Our goal is to help develop football and its industry,” Tebas said in a statement. “We want to offer all the knowledge we have gained over the years to propose a business model that is financially and administratively the most adequate for the growth of football in Brazil.”

Unlike the top leagues in Spain, Germany, and England, Brazil’s professional leagues and the national team are controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation.

During the meeting, the clubs were shown the benefits of La Liga’s business model for financial stability and best practices.

Tebas assumed La Liga’s presidency in 2013, improving the league’s finances and the balance sheets of clubs through the implementation of rigorous fair play rules.

The 59-year-old lawyer was also responsible for a new television deal that guaranteed a fairer distribution of revenue to clubs.

Encounter breaks out at Nowgam in Srinagar

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Encounter breaks out at Nowgam in Srinagar

An encounter has started between terrorists and security forces at the Nowgam area in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar district, officials said on Wednesday.

“Encounter has started at Nowgam area of Srinagar. Police and security forces are on the job,” police said.

The firefight between terrorists and security forces took place after a joint team of the police and the security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about the presence of terrorists.

As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.

Biden signs $1.5 trln omnibus spending bill into law

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Biden signs $1.5 trln omnibus spending bill into law

US President Joe Biden has signed into law a $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill for the fiscal year 2022 to fund the federal government through the end of September.

“With this bill, we’re going to send a message to the American people, a strong message that Democrats, Republicans can actually come together and get something done,” Biden said on Tuesday at the White House, adding the bill will “fulfill our most basic responsibilities” to keep the government open, Xinhua news agency reported.

The bill, which was approved by US Congress last week, includes $730 billion in non-defense funding and $782 billion in defense funding.

The legislation also provides $13.6 billion in supplemental funding to boost humanitarian, security, and economic assistance related to the Ukraine conflict.

However, the bill does not include additional Covid-19 funding that the White House had asked Congress for to support the federal government’s response to the pandemic.

“As we enter a new moment in the pandemic, Congress has not provided us with the funding we need to continue the Covid-19 response and minimize the pandemic’s impact to the Nation and our economy,” the White House said on Tuesday in a fact sheet.

“As the administration has warned, failure to fund these efforts now will have severe consequences as we will not be equipped to deal with a future surge. Waiting to provide funding once we’re in a surge will be too late,” said the White House.

‘Overuse of chemical fertilisers deleterious for soil, crop yields’

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‘Overuse of chemical fertilisers deleterious for soil, crop yields’

Continuous/overuse of nitrogenous fertilizer alone has a deleterious effect on soil health and crop productivity, the Parliament was told on Tuesday.

“There is no harmful effect of chemical fertilizers on soil health with balanced and judicious use but, investigations carried out under All India Coordinated Research Project on ‘Long Term Fertiliser Experiments’ over five decades at fixed sites have indicated that continuous/overuse of nitrogenous fertilizer alone had a deleterious effect on soil health and crop productivity showing deficiencies of other major and micronutrients,” Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar told the Lok Sabha in a written reply.

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research is recommending soil test-based balanced and integrated nutrient management through conjunctive use of both inorganic and organic sources (manure, bio-fertilizers, etc.) of plant nutrients for judicious use of chemical fertilizers to improve soil health, he said.

In addition, growing leguminous crops and use of Resource Conservation Technologies (RCTs) are also advocated.

ICAR imparts training and organizes front-line demonstrations (FLDs) to educate farmers on all these aspects.

Tomar said the Government is promoting non-chemical farming under the names of organic and natural farming through the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana and Bharatiya Prakratik Krishi Padhati along the river Ganga.

The PKVY scheme is implemented in all the states across the country. Under this scheme, farmers are provided financial assistance of Rs 31,000 per hectare for three years for organic inputs such as seeds, biofertilizers, bio-pesticides, organic manure, compost/vermi-compost, botanical extracts, etc.

In addition, support is also provided for group/Farmers Producer’s Organisation (FPO) formation, training, certification, value addition, and marketing of their organic produce.

Under the Namami Gange Programme, a total of Rs 120.49 crore has been released for 6,181 clusters and 123,620 ha area covered.

The government is also promoting Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) which includes soil test-based balanced and integrated use of chemical fertilizers in conjunction with organic sources of nutrients like Farm Yard Manure (FYM), city compost, vermi-compost, and bio-fertilizers that leads to saving in the use of chemical fertilizers, the Minister said.

I-League: Late comeback leads Aizawl FC to win over Sudeva Delhi

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I-League: Late comeback leads Aizawl FC to win over Sudeva Delhi

A dramatic finish to the encounter between Sudeva Delhi FC and Aizawl FC saw the side from Mizoram emerge with their first win of Hero I-League 2021-22, here on Tuesday.

After falling behind to an early Nishchal Chandan’s goal, Aizawl FC scored two goals in injury time of the second half through substitute Lalliansanga to win the match 2-1.

Sudeva Delhi FC struck early through Nishchal Chandan in the 4th minute. The unlikely center-back pairing of Ruatkima and Nishchal Chandan combined to give Sudeva the lead, as Ruatkima showed composure to deliver a measured cross to his defensive partner Nishchal in the Aizawl FC box. Nishchal saw off the attention from the Aizawl FC defenders and sent a towering header back across the goal that left Aizawl goalkeeper Anuj Kumar with no chance.

The early setback piled further pressure onto bottom side Aizawl FC, who were yet to open their account on the points table in this season of the Hero I-League. With their backs to the wall, Aizawl FC showed signs of a spirited fightback, led by the efforts of striker Dipanda Dicka.

In the 14th minute, Aizawl FC strung together a few neat passes in a progressive passage of play which ended with Dipanda Dicka laying the ball off to Ayush Chhetri to strike from outside the box. Chhetri’s effort packed plenty of power, but not enough accuracy to trouble Sachin Jha in the Sudeva Delhi goal.

Aizawl had another opportunity to equalize in the 41st minute when a long pass aimed at Ayush Chhetri brought Sudeva keeper Sachin Jha off his line. After setting out to sweep away the attack, Sachin got nowhere near the ball and got caught in no man’s land outside his box. The ball fell to the youngster Ramhlunchhunga, but he could not make it two goals in two games for himself as the chance went begging.

The halftime whistle brought respite to the players on a sweltering afternoon at the Naihati Stadium.

In the second half, neither team took full control of the game, but the onus lay on Aizawl FC to force the issue and level the contest. They had a chance again in the 56th minute from a set play, which was taken by MS Tluanga. His cross was a good one, but Robert Primus couldn’t find a convincing finish to level the score.

The game was characterized by several breaks in play and half chances falling sporadically to either side, with neither able to capitalize on them just yet.

However, there was to be plenty of late drama in the tie as Lalliansanga came off the bench for Aizawl FC to play the role of super-sub to full effect. In the 91st minute, Aizawl FC displayed intricate interplay and laid the ball off to Lalliansanga, who was patiently waiting at the edge of the box. Using defender Ruatkima as a screen, he bent the ball around him to slot his finish into the top corner. This was a strike worthy of gracing any game in world football.

With the wind in their sails, Aizawl FC completed the turn-around a minute later. It was Lalliansanga again, this time capitalizing by pouncing onto a deflected shot that broke loose inside the box. Lalliansanga slid the ball into the back of the net to give Aizawl FC their first win of the Hero I-League season and take them out of the bottom spot in the league table.

No plan to introduce cryptocurrency, says Govt

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No plan to introduce cryptocurrency, says Govt

There is no plan by the government to introduce cryptocurrency, the Parliament was told on Tuesday.

There is no plan to introduce a cryptocurrency and currently, it is unregulated in India, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary told Rajya Sabha in a written reply.

“Reserve Bank of India (RBI) does not issue a cryptocurrency. Traditional paper currency is legal tender and is issued by RBI in terms of provisions of the RBI Act, 1994. A digital version of traditional paper currency is called Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC),” the minister said.

In reply to another question, the minister informed the upper house that the RBI is currently working towards a phased implementation strategy for the introduction of CBDC and examining use cases that could be implemented with little or no disruption.

He stated that the introduction of CBDC has the potential to provide significant benefits such as reduced dependency on cash, higher seigniorage due to lower transaction costs, etc

The minister further informed the house that the printing of notes has declined over a period of time. “During 2019-20 notes worth Rs 4,378 crore were printed, while in 2020-21, notes worth Rs 4,012 crore were printed. In 2016-17, notes worth Rs 7,965 crore were printed,” he said.

Sonia asks state party chiefs to resign after poll debacle

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Sonia asks state party chiefs to resign after poll debacle

Heads have started to roll after the poll Debacle in five states as Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi has asked state party presidents to put in their papers. The party suffered massive defeats in five states which went to the polls in February and March.

Randeep Surjewala, General Secretary of the party said, “Congress President, Sonia Gandhi has asked the PCC Presidents of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa & Manipur to put in their resignations in order to facilitate the reorganization of PCCs.”

Those who have been asked to resign include Navjot Sidhu (Punjab), Ganesh Godiyal (Uttarakhand), Nameirakpam Loken Singh (Manipur), Ajay Kumar Lallu (UP), and Girish Chodankar (Goa).

The decision comes two days after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meet, which authorized Sonia Gandhi to undertake “necessary and comprehensive” organizational changes.

“The CWC unanimously reaffirms its faith in the leadership of Sonia Gandhi and requests the Congress President to lead from the front, address the organizational weaknesses, effect necessary and comprehensive organizational changes in order to take on the political challenges,” the CWC resolution had said.

The CWC statement said that the recent Assembly election results of five states are a cause of serious concern for the Indian National Congress. The party accepts that due to shortcomings in our strategy, we could not effectively expose the misrule of BJP state governments in four states and overcome the anti-incumbency in the state of Punjab in a short time after effecting a change of leadership.

Vijayan seeks to placate CPI with Rajya Sabha seat

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Vijayan seeks to placate CPI with Rajya Sabha seat

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday sprang a surprise when he offered one Rajya Sabha seat to the CPI – the second-biggest constituent of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) – while his CPI-M keeps the other that they are sure to win.

Of late, the CPI, especially its state Secretary Kanam Rajendran, has been vocal on a few decisions taken by Vijayan and had minced no words about them. It is seen that with this unexpected offer, Vijayan will be able to keep them quiet.

The CPI was quick to announce its candidate will be its Kannur district party Secretary P. Santhosh Kumar.

PDF Convenor A. Vijayaraghavan, soon after the LDF meeting, informed the media that the CPI-M and CPI will share the two seats and the respective parties will decide on who their candidates would be.

On Tuesday when CPI-M state Secretary opened the topic of the two Rajya Sabha seats at the LDF meeting, alliance partners including the CPI, the NCP, and also outgoing member M.V. Shreyams Kumar’s LJD also raised their wish to get one seat, but Vijayan put the issue to rest when he said that this time, it is essential that a CPI member should be there in the Upper House and soon everyone agreed to this.

The two seats are out of the three that will fall vacant next month as sitting members – Congress veteran A.K.Antony, CPI-M’s K. Somaprasad, and Shreyams Kumar – retire.

The third seat will be won by the Congress-led opposition and if a need arises for an election, it will happen on March 31.

With the CPI getting the seat, their tally in the upper house will go up to two as former state Minister Binoy Viswam is already a member.

Now all eyes are on the CPI-M nominee as there are quite a few hopefuls. But, here too, it would be Vijayan who will take the call as he did it last year when he chose top journalist John Brittas, who headed the party-backed TV channel, and V. Sivadasan, who was heading the social media campaign team of the CPI-M.

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