Riyadh, Dec 19: Saudi Arabia said it intercepted a Yemeni rebel missile over Riyadh on Tuesday.
“Ballistic missile intercepted over Riyadh,” the Coalition battling Yemen’s Houthi rebels said in a statement.
It was the second Houthi missile attack on Riyadh in the past two months.
The missile was supplied to Houthis by Iran.
On Thursday, US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley presented what she called “undeniable” evidence that last month’s missile was “made in Iran”
New Delhi, Mar 14: Excise duty on petrol and diesel was on Saturday hiked by ₹3 per litre as the government looked to mop up gains arising from fall in international oil prices.
Special excise duty on petrol was hiked by ₹2 to ₹8 per litre incase of petrol and to Rs 4 incase of diesel, an official notification said.
Additionally, road cess on petrol was raised by ₹1 per litre each on petrol and diesel to ₹10.
The increase in excise duty would in normal course result in a hike in petrol and diesel prices but most of it would be adjusted against the fall in rates that would have necessitated because of slump in international oil prices.
New Delhi, May 17: Spelling out the government’s fourth tranche of initiatives towards achieving Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced significant structural reforms in eight sectors of the economy — coal, minerals, defense production, aviation, power distribution in Union territories, space and atomic energy.
Addressing her fourth and the second-last press conference, Sitharaman said crucial sectors such as coal production and exploration, defence production and space would see an increased participation from private entities.
Coal sector:
In the realm of coal exploration, the government has decided to liberalise the entry norms for private entities, which would mean that any interested party could bid for a coal block and sell it in the open market. The minister said that the government would do away with all the eligibility conditions at the time of bidding for a coal block, except requiring an “upfront payment with a ceiling.”
Nearly 50 coal blocks would be offered to private players immediately, revealed Sitharaman.
She further said that Rs 50,000 crore would be spent by Centre in creating ‘coal evacuation’ infrastructure, which would expedite the transport of mined product to the destination.
Defence sector:
In defence production, Sitharaman revealed that the government would raise the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in the sector from current 49 per cent to 74 per cent. Further, the government would also work towards corporatising the ordnance factory boards. “Corporatising doesn’t amount to privatization,” added Sitharaman.
In a bid to boost indigenous production of defence products and gave an impetus to Make in India, Sitharaman said that the government was in a process of notifying a list of weapons/platforms for an import ban with year-wise timelines.
These decisions would also help in reducing huge import bills, the finance minister said.
Privatisation of electricity:
In another announcement that could have an effect on electricity charges in the union territories, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Saturday that power departments and utilities in all the centrally administered territories would be privatised.
Sitharaman said that the proposed move would lead to better service to consumers and improvement in operational and financial efficiency in distribution.
The finance minister said that decision was guided by 'sub-optimal' utilisation of performance of power distribution and supply'.
She said that the move to that effect would provide a model for emulation by other utilities across the country, in what could be an indicator of what's in the pipeline for utilities in other states as well.
Sitharaman said that the privation reform was in line with the tariff policy reforms and would help in enhancing consumer rights, promote industry and improve the overall sustainability of the sector.
Space sector:
Sitharaman also announced the opening up of the space exploration sector for private players. Till date, the government-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has held a monopoly on all activities concerning space exploration and satellite launches.
The Indian private sector will be a co-traveller in India's space sector journey, said Sitharaman, while announcing a series of structural reforms in eight crucial areas of the economy. The Union Finance Minister was addressing her fourth press conference in as many days, as a follow-up towards realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'atmanirbhar Bharat', which was spelled out in his video address on May 12.
Sitharaman said that the reforms in the space sector will provide a level-playing field for private companies in satellite launches and space-based services.
She said that the private sector would be allowed to use ISRO facilities and other assets to improve their capacities. Stating that the government would provide predictable policy and regulatory environment to private players, Sitharaman also disclosed that future projects for planetary exploration and outer space travel among others would be opened up for private entities.
New Delhi, Jul 29: The new National Education Policy (NEP) approved by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday is set to usher in a slew of changes with the vision of creating an education system that contributes directly to transforming the country, providing high-quality education to all, and making India a global knowledge superpower.
The draft of the NEP by a panel headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief Kasturirangan and submitted to the Union Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal when he took charge last year. The new NEP replaces the one formulated in 1986.
Some of the key highlights of the New Education Policy are:-
The policy aims to enable an individual to study one or more specialized areas of interest at a deep level, and also develop character, scientific temper, creativity, spirit of service, and 21st century capabilities across a range of disciplines including sciences, social sciences, arts, humanities, among others.
It identified the major problems facing the higher education system in the country and suggested changes such as moving towards multidisciplinary universities and colleges, with more institutions across India that offer medium of instruction in local/Indian languages, a more multidisciplinary undergraduate education, among others.
The governance of such institutions by independent boards having academic and administrative autonomy has also been suggested.
Under the suggestions for institutional restructuring and consolidation, it has suggested that by 2040, all higher education institutions (HEIs) shall aim to become multidisciplinary institutions, each of which will aim to have 3,000 or more students, and by 2030 each or near every district in the country there will be at least one HEI.
The aim will be to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio in HEIs including vocational education from 26.3 per cent (2018) to 50 per cent by 2035.
Single-stream HEIs will be phased out over time, and all will move towards becoming vibrant multidisciplinary institutions or parts of vibrant multidisciplinary HEI clusters.
It also pushes for more holistic and multidisciplinary education to be provided to the students.
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Who knows Missile may b made in America also....!!!!!
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