Drug firm Cipla on Monday said that it has received final nod from the US health regulator for its Medroxyprogesterone injectable for prevention of pregnancy.
The company has received final approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) for Medroxyprogesterone injectable 150mg/mL.
The product is a generic version of Pfizer’s Depo-Provera. Depo-Provera and its generic equivalents had US sales of around USD 159 million for the 12-month period ending November 2018, Cipla said.
The injection is indicated only for the prevention of pregnancy. Shares of Cipla on Monday were trading at Rs 493.70 per scrip on the BSE, down 2.60 per cent from its previous close.
A Delhi court on Monday granted bail to RJD chief Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi and son Tejashwi Yadav in a money laundering case related to the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) scam.
Special Judge Arun Bhardwaj granted relief to each of the accused persons on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and surety of like amounts. The court had on January 19 extended the interim bail granted to them which ended on Monday. The case relates to alleged money laundering in granting the operational contract of two IRCTC hotels to a private firm. The court had earlier granted bail to them in the IRCTC scam case filed by the CBI. According to the charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), between 2004 and 2014, a conspiracy was hatched in pursuance of which BNR hotels of the Indian Railways, located in Puri and Ranchi, were first transferred to IRCTC and later, for its operations, maintenance and upkeep, given on lease to Sujata Hotels Private Limited, which is based in Patna, Bihar.
It is alleged that the tender process was rigged and manipulated and the conditions were tweaked to help the private party – Sujata Hotels. Based on the CBI case, the ED had also lodged a case of money laundering against Prasad, Devi, Yadav and others. Among others named in the chargesheet are – then group general managers of IRCTC V K Asthana and R K Goyal and Vijay Kochhar, Vinay Kochhar, both directors of Sujata Hotels and owners of Chanakya Hotel. However, Delight Marketing Company, now known as Lara Projects, and Sujata Hotels Private Limited have also been named as accused firms in the chargesheet.
In 2001, it was decided to handover the management of catering services of the Indian Railways, including of its hotels, to the IRCTC. Two such hotels BNR Hotels in Ranchi and Puri were also identified and a memorandum of understanding was signed between the railways and the IRCTC on March 19, 2004. According to an FIR filed by the CBI, Prasad, the then railway minister, entered into criminal conspiracy with the owner of Sujata Hotels, Sarla Gupta, wife of his close associate Prem Chand Gupta, a Rashtriya Janata Dal MP in Rajya Sabha, and IRCTC officials for “undue pecuniary advantage to himself and others”.
The probe agency also alleged that BNR hotels were transferred to Sujata Hotels through a “rigged and manipulated” tender process managed by P K Goyal, the then managing director of IRCTC. The CBI inquiry shows that the railways sought bids for developing, operating and maintaining Rail Ratna Hotels on September 16, 2006.
The probe agency has alleged that Prasad was aware about the whole process and was keeping a track of the tender proceedings. It surfaced that while over 15 bid documents were received for both the hotels, IRCTC had no records of bidders other than Sujata Hotels. It was also alleged that with an intention to render undue pecuniary gains to Sujata Hotels, the bid of another hotel was deliberately and unreasonably given low marks under technical evaluation.
Prasad became Bihar’s chief minister in 1990, but had to resign in 1997 following corruption charges in the multi-crore rupees fodder scam. From 1997 to 2005 his wife Devi was the chief minister of the state and was replaced by JD(U) president Nitish Kumar. Prasad also served as railway minister from 2004 to 2009. The RJD again came back to power after forging an alliance with its bitter rival Janata Dal (United), led by Kumar, in 2015, and Tejashwi Yadav became the deputy chief minister. However, Kumar parted ways from the RJD in July last year.
The RJD chief has been serving sentence in Ranchi jail since December 2017 following his conviction in fodder scam cases. Earlier this month, the Jharkhand High court had rejected the bail plea of Prasad in three fodder scam cases.
India is a strong proponent of peace but it will not hesitate to take steps to ensure its national security, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday.
Addressing National Cadet Corps cadets, the Prime Minister said that in the last four years, the government has taken several decisions keeping the security of the nation a priority.
“We are strong proponents of peace but we will not hesitate to take any step for national security. The armed forces have given a clear signal that we don’t instigate but if instigated, we don’t leave them (enemies of the country),” Modi said.
Referring to completion of the nuclear triad, he said that India was one of the few nations who could launch nuclear weapons from land, sea and water.
The acrimony between the Congress and the JDS in Karnataka reached a new high with Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Monday threatening to step down, saying he never “craved” for power.
His comments a day after a ruling Congress MLA demanded that Siddaramaiah be made the chief minister again.
At an event in the city on Sunday, ST Somashekhar had claimed that development works had come to a grinding halt here and other parts of the state.
Strongly reacting to the comments, Kumaraswamy said, “If my way of functioning is not acceptable, I am ready to resign. I don’t crave for position.
“Our government has taken up projects worth Rs one lakh crore including suburban train, elevated corridor and peripheral ring road,” the chief minister told reporters after dedicating six-coach metro rail on ‘Green Line’ at the Mantri Square Metro Station.
A red-faced Karnataka Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao, who too was present there, said such statements by the Congress MLAs were not acceptable and a showcause notice would be issued to them.
“Today Rs 8,000 crore worth work is happening. I condemn such public statements and will issue a showcause notice to them,” Rao told reporters.
“Morning I saw S T Somashekhar’s statement. It breaches the disciplinary line. The coalition government has done lots of development work in Bengaluru.”
The works sanctioned by the previous Siddaramaiah government were also being taken up, he said.
Noting that Somashekhar was chairperson of the Bengaluru Development Authority, he said, “His public statement is inappropriate. I condemn it and I will issue a show-cause notice to him.”
“If there are any shortcomings in our government, they should discuss straightaway with chief minister or Deputy chief minister G Parameshwara, who is in charge minister of Bengaluru… We cannot tolerate indiscipline,” he said.
AICC general secretary and Karnataka in charge K V Venugopal said in a tweet, “Instructed Karnataka PCC to send a showcause notice to Somashekhar MLA seeking clarification on his controversial remarks.
“If the explanation is not satisfactory, party will take strong disciplinary action.@INCIndia will not tolerate any such indiscipline statements and actions,” he said.
Somashekhar had Sunday said, “The coalition government is in power for the past seven months but not a single work has taken place. It is Siddaramaiah who set up the Kempegowda Development Authority after the founder of Bengaluru city.”
Rubbishing the MLA’s demand, Siddaramaiah said the coalition government is for five years and there was no question of him becoming Chief Minister.
“There is no question of my becoming chief minister again. This government is for five years,” Siddaramaiah said.
Taking a potshot at the chief minister, BJP spokesperson Tejaswini Gowda said, “Kumaraswamy must practice what he says.He must step down.
The Bombay High Court on Monday directed the Maharashtra government to give copies of the entire report of the Backward Class Commission on Maratha reservation to petitioners challenging the quota decision. A division bench of Justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre quelled fears of the state government that certain portions of the report would create communal tension and law and order problems, saying “there is nothing worrisome”.
In November 2018, the commission had submitted an exhaustive report on the issue of Maratha reservation. On the basis of the report, the state legislature had on November 30 passed a Bill proposing 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education for Marathas, declared as a socially and educationally backward class by the government. However, several petitions were then filed in the HC challenging the reservation and the petitioners had sought a copy of the backward class commission’s report.
On previous hearings, Maharashtra’s Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni had told the court that the state was ready to submit the entire report to the court but would give a truncated version to petitioners. Around 20 pages of the report will have to be masked before giving to the petitioners. These pages are about the history of the Maratha community and the state feels that it may create communal tension and law and order problems.
Last week, the government submitted the entire report to the bench which said it would peruse and decide.
“We have gone through the entire report. We feel everything should be given to the petitioners without any masking or deletion. There is nothing worrisome according to us,” Justice More said on Monday.
The bench then directed the government to give copies of the entire report to the petitioners on Tuesday. The court said that it would commence final hearing in the petitions on February 6. While few of the petitions challenged the government’s decision to provide 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and educational institutions to the Maratha community, several others were filed in support of it. However, the government had earlier this month filed its affidavit in the petitions and justified its decision to grant reservation to Marathas, saying that it was meant to alleviate the community from its social and economic backwardness.
Marathas, a politically-influential community constituting around 30 per cent of the state’s population, have been demanding reservation in jobs and education.
Gold prices rose by Rs 165 to Rs 32,508 per 10 gram in futures trade on Friday as speculators raised their bets, taking positive cues from the global markets. However, in the domestic market, the prices were up on increase in demand from local jewellers because of the ongoing wedding season.
At the Multi Commodity Exchange, gold for delivery in February was trading higher by Rs 165, or 0.51 per cent, at Rs 32,508 per 10 gram in a business turnover of 13,435 lots.
Similarly, gold for delivery in April was trading up by Rs 169, or 0.52 per cent, at Rs 32,600 per 10 gram. Globally, gold was trading 1.77 per cent higher at USD 1,301 an ounce in Singapore.
Ambati Rayudu was suspended on Monday from bowling in international cricket by the ICC after the Indian player opted against getting his suspect action tested within the stipulated 14-day period.
“Rayudu was reported for a suspect action during the first ODI against Australia on January 13. The player elected not to submit to a test of his bowling action within the stipulated period of 14 days of being reported for a suspect action, and therefore he has been suspended with immediate effect. The suspension will remain in place until he is tested, and can demonstrate he is able to bowl with a legal action,” the ICC said in a statement.
The suspension was done in accordance with clause 4.2 of the ICC regulations which deals with the legality of bowling actions. However, according to Article 11.5 of the ICC regulations and with the consent of the BCCI, the 33-year-old is free to bowl in domestic cricket played under the auspices of the Indian Board.
The Andhra Pradesh cricketer is primarily a middle-order batsman and has a mere three wickets from the 121 ODI deliveries he has bowled in his 49-match ODI career so far. However, he has been handed the ball on only nine occasions in the 50-over format and has never bowled in T20 Internationals.
Actor Nicholas Hoult says that he considers ex-girlfriend Jennifer Lawrence a part of his “X-Men” “family”. Hoult, 29, and Lawrence, 28, started dating after meeting on the sets of “X-Men: First Class”. The couple split after four years in 2014. However, during a recent interview with Evening Standard, Hoult carefully addressed the on-set situation with him and Lawrence as he insisted that there is no awkwardness between them.
“It’s pretty similar to ‘Skins’, we’re a big family, and we’ve been doing those movies since we were 20 years old. As much as the ‘Skins’ crowd grew up together, the ‘X-Men’ crowd really grew up together. It’s been a good eight, nine years making those movies. We’ve all got to get along, we’ve all got to have fun. The really beautiful thing about this last film is that (writer and director) Kim Berger has given me somewhere nice and new to experiment and go with the character. Which is cool,” he said.
Hoult is currently dating model Bryana Holly. The couple has a son, who was born in April, 2018. However, Lawrence is rumoured to be dating gallery director Cooke Maroney. Furthermore the two stars will once again feature together in the latest installment of the franchise called “Dark Phoenix” which is set to release on June 9 this year.
Retail inflation dropped to 18 months low at 2.19 per cent. Due to deflation in December 2018, pulses and its products -7.1 per cent, vegetables -16.1 per cent, sugar, and confectionery -9.2 per cent, egg -4.3 per cent etc. were in negative territories. In economics, the decline in the level of the general value of commodities and services is called deflation. Deflation occurs only when the rate of annual inflation falls below zero per cent, which in turn leads to an increase in the real value of the currency so that the buyer can buy more items in the same amount. In this case, inflation reduces the real value of the currency, while deflation increases the real value of the currency.
In December 2018, fuel inflation remained confined to 4.5 per cent due to a lessening of the price of crude oil in the international market. Due to a surge of 9.0 per cent in health and 8.4 per cent in education, core retail inflation increased to 5.73 per cent in December 2018. Core inflation means the change in the price of commodities involved in the basket. It does not include high fluctuations in prices such as food and fuel.
The most amazing aspect of inflation data is the increase in rural health and education inflation, as there is a decline in rural demand in the present time. This may be due to the change in the procedure of collection of data and the upgradation of health services due to the implementation of the Ayushman Bharat Scheme. One reason may be an increase in the prices of medicines. Another surprising aspect of the case is that the cost of education in rural areas has also increased. In such a situation, the Central Statistics Organisation (CSO) should disclose the real reasons by examining the increase in the cost of service in the rural area from October 2018.
Service inflation is increasing faster than commodity inflation
When analysing economic activities, it is common to differentiate between services and commodity. Globally, the inflation of services increases faster than inflation of commodities. Now even in India, such a situation is being seen. Inflation is rising with respect to housing since March 2018 and the commodity remains above the inflation. In December 2018, the difference was 60 BPS. The difference in inflation between goods and services is continuously rising and it has reached 212 BPS.
Differences in retail and wholesale inflation
Wholesale and retail inflation was running simultaneously until October 2017. After that, the difference between the two series was 205 BPS in January 2018. The difference between the two decreased to 9 BPS in May 2018. Later, the difference between these two started to increase again and by December 2018 this increased to 161 BPS. A big reason for this is that the immature market, which is present in all over the country. Prices are declining in the wholesale market, but this trend is not visible in the retail market. The decline in prices in the wholesale market is much faster than the retail market. Demand for goods and services are not increasing
In the second half of the financial year (FY) 2019, the story of demand cannot be called satisfactory. The growth rate of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the third quarter was 6.7 per cent, which is not encouraging at all. Automobile sales declined 23 per cent in the fourth quarter of FY 2018. From the fourth quarter of FY 2018 to third quarter of FY 2019, growth was at the rate of 6.7 per cent on the year-on-year basis. In the December quarter of the current financial year, demand for heavy commercial vehicles was also not encouraging. There is also a slow increase in the consumption of oil products. It saw an increase of 9 per cent in the fourth quarter of FY 2018; while in the third quarter of FY 2019, increase in the volume of petroleum products has decreased to 1.8 per cent The GDP figures show a slow increase in personal consumption expenditure. In the second quarter of FY 2019, the private financing expenditure (PFCE) decreased to 5.2 per cent, which was 7.8 per cent in the first half of FY 2019. In this context government spending, expenditure is also not expected too much increase. It is notable that it is natural to see the negative impact of the decline in PFCE on the GDP.
Investment data is also not positive. According to the quarter on quarter (QOQ) figures, there is Degrowth of 13 per cent in investment. Degrowth means to reduce consumption, but not to cut welfare activities. In this context, a significant decline in the investment in electricity and water sector has also been recorded. Pradhan Mantri Asha Scheme has been launched to give fair value to the farmers produce, but under this, the procurement is not being increased. At present, the performance of this scheme is very weak. To help the farmers in this light, there is a need to consider other options.
In order to solve problems of lessee farmers, the NITI Aayog, brought the Model Agricultural Land Act, 2016, which aims to legalize the process of leasing agricultural land, so that banks and financial institutions can provide agricultural loans to lessee farmers. Now in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, this Act has been given legal form. However, the benefits of this law are still to be seen.
Economic activities are at low level in the third quarter of FY19
According to the Composite Leading Indicator (CLI), the economic activity in the third quarter of FY 2019 has slowed down and the GDP growth in the second half of the fiscal year 2019 is estimated to be below 7 per cent. Significantly, CLI works on 32 leading indicators. The slowdown is seen in the sale of the public vehicle, which is an indicator of urban demand, and sales of commercial vehicles are also low in November 2018. Domestic air passenger traffic has also seen a decline in November 2018.
The cement production is an indicator in the manufacturing activity has increased by 8 per cent in the month of November 2018, which was 18 per cent in the previous month. This is 12 months low on the basis of year-on-year. Further, during the month of November 2018, the Degrowth of 0.4 per cent was seen in IIP manufacturing activity, which is a sign that demand for both consumption and investment in the economy has slowed down.
By-Satish Singh
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of AFTERNOON VOICE and AFTERNOON VOICE does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
The 100th Incarnation day of 2nd Master of Dera Sacha Sauda, Shah Satnam Ji, was organised at Shah Satnam Ji Dham, Dera Sacha Sauda, Sirsa on Friday, 25th January. Followers from both, near and far-flung areas from Haryana visited the Ashram to celebrate the birthday of the 2nd Master. This day, is in fact the most awaited event of the year for the followers. A Naamcharcha was organised in the campus to mark this occasion where recordings of Satsangs by Dera chief were played. A new welfare work was added to the list of 133 welfare activities, taking the count to 134. As part of this welfare activity, followers pledged ‘will not resort to activities that add to pollution and will take every effort to curb pollution.’
Followers also distributed stationery, ration, blankets, and warm clothes to the needy. Distribution of these essential items was also undertaken by Dera followers across the globe. Dera has been trying its best to move on the path of humanity and raise awareness regarding the same in the masses, since its inception in 1948, as per Senior Vice-Chairperson of the Dera, Shobha Insan, Dera followers across the globe are involved in the welfare of the Society, and are doing a remarkable job as per the teachings of Saint Dr. Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Ji Insan. Lakhs of volunteers celebrated 100th Incarnation Day of 2nd Master Shah Satnam Ji Maharaj at various locations Including Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and UP.
It is worth noting, that in addition to India, Dera followers in Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand, U.K. and various other parts, participated in the Naamcharcha program, through live telecast on Facebook Live. Although the day was celebrated around the globe, few locations including Salabatpura, Mansa, Patiala, Malout, Rajpura, Nabha, Khaga, Fazilka, Budharwali and Ferozpur in Punjab.Whereas, in places like Kota, Jaipur, Hanumangarh, Bikaner, Ghadsana, Anupgarh and Tara Nagar in Rajasthan and Barnawa in Uttar Pradesh had a large number of devotees at each location, showcasing devotion of the followers who visited the Ashrams, at such short notice. Blankets and Ration were also distributed to hundreds of needy across these locations.
Shah Satnam Ji was born on 25th January 1919 in Jalalana Sahib, in distt. Sirsa, Haryana to Mother Aas Kaur, and Father Sardar Variyam Singh. Shah Satnam Ji graced the throne of Dera Sacha Sauda from 1960 -1990 and imparted the method of meditation to lacs, emancipating them from the cycle of birth and death. An OPD was also organised by Shah Satnam Ji Specialty Hospital commemorating the occasion, in which thousands of patients were provided free consultation.
Dera Sacha Sauda is a Social Welfare and Spiritual Organization that preaches and practices humanitarianism and selfless services to others. The main centre of the ashram is located in Sirsa (northern India). More than 60 million people around the world are faithful followers of the organization. Spiritual seekers learn to meditate and follow the principles laid down by Revered Guruji.
Drug firm Cipla on Monday said that it has received final nod from the US health regulator for its Medroxyprogesterone injectable for prevention of pregnancy.
The Bombay High Court on Monday directed the Maharashtra government to give copies of the entire report of the Backward Class Commission on Maratha reservation to petitioners challenging the quota decision. A division bench of Justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre quelled fears of the state government that certain portions of the report would create communal tension and law and order problems, saying “there is nothing worrisome”.
Gold prices rose by Rs 165 to Rs 32,508 per 10 gram in futures trade on Friday as speculators raised their bets, taking positive cues from the global markets. However, in the domestic market, the prices were up on increase in demand from local jewellers because of the ongoing wedding season.
Retail inflation at 18-month low
