2 women enter Sabarimala temple, shrine shut for ‘purification’ ritual

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January 2, 2019

Scripting history, two women in their 40s entered the Lord Ayyappa temple in Kerala on early Wednesday and offered prayers. Speaking to media, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said “it is a fact that the women have entered the temple”.

Following the entry of two women at the shrine, the chief priest has decided to close the sanctum sanctorum of the temple in order to perform the ‘purification’ ceremony.

The temple which opened at 3 am was closed at 10.30 am for performing the ritual. Normally, the shrine closes at 12.30 pm. As the purification ceremony was on, devotees were asked to move out of the shrine.

Despite the Supreme Court’s historic ruling on September 28 last year, permitting women in the 10-50 age group, no children or young women in the ‘barred’ group were able to offer prayers at the shrine following frenzied protests by devotees and right-wing outfits.

The women trekked to the hill a day after the state-sponsored 620 km-long human wall of women was formed Tuesday from Kasargode in the northern part of the state till the southernmost district of Thiruvananthapuram.

The two women, identified as Kanakadurga (42) and Bindu (42), wearing the traditional black dress, with their head covered, are said to have climbed the hill shrine at 3.38 am Wednesday.

Police have provided security to the homes of the two women fearing possible protests.

On December 24 last year, the two women had unsuccessfully tried to offer prayers at the shrine.

The Lord Ayyappa temple had opened for the 22-day “Makaravilakku” festival on December 30, three days after the conclusion of the 41-day “mandala puja”.

Following the top court verdict allowing women of all ages to offer prayers at the shrine, the CPI(M)-led LDF government had decided to implement the verdict, which was strongly opposed by the main opposition Congress and the BJP.

SC to hear plea on trapped Meghalaya miners on Thursday

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January 2, 2019

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a petition seeking adequate manpower and equipment for rescuing miners on Thursday, who are trapped in an illegal flooded coal mine in Meghalaya’s East Jaintia Hills since December 13 last year.

A two-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul has agreed to hear the matter on Thursday.

The petition was filed by lawyer Aditya N Prasad, seeking a direction from the Central government and other authorities to prepare a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the rescue operations.

Senior lawyer Anand Grover, who raised the issue in the Apex Court on Wednesday, expressed concerns over the fact the SOP and other apparatus are missing during the search operation.

As many as 15 miners have been trapped in a 370-feet deep illegal mine in Lumthari village since December 13, when the water from the nearby river Lytein flooded the mine.

Since then, more than a fortnight has passed and rescuers are struggling hard to pump out water from the inundated mine.

Last week, the divers of Indian Navy, who went inside the inundated mine, in search of the 15 trapped miners returned disappointed after diving up to 70 feet deep.

Along with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), 20-member team of Odisha Fire Service is engaged in rescue operations.

The Odisha Fire Service team is equipped with 15 high-pressure pumps to drain out water from the mine in which the miners are trapped.

Rahul attacks PM on Rafale; Jaitley accuses him of lying

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January 2, 2019

High drama was witnessed in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launching a tirade on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale deal and alleging he did not have the “guts” to face Parliament and “was hiding in his room”.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hit back to accuse Gandhi of having a “legacy of lying” and “repeating falsehood” and alleged that “conspirators” of past defence scams are now raising fingers at others.

Gandhi cited a purported audio tape of a Goa minister on the Rafale deal which he refused to authenticate, but sought a JPC probe into the issue.

The Congress leader was disallowed from playing the purported audio tape by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, after Jaitley objected to the same unless Gandhi authenticated it and faced expulsion in case it is found to be false and fabricated.

“Why did you give this contract to your dear friend Mr AA and cost the exchequer Rs 30,000 crore….”

“It is very clear that the Prime Minister does not have the guts to come to Parliament and confront questions. The Defence Minister hides behind AIADMK members, the Prime Minister hides in his room,” Gandhi alleged in the Lok Sabha.

Jaitley hit back alleging that “conspirators” of past defence scams are now raising fingers at the Narendra Modi government and quoted the Supreme Court judgement to say that all charges have been negated.

“There are some people who have a natural dislike for truth. Every word spoken for the last six months on this subject, including in this House (by them) are false….He has a legacy of speaking falsehood,” Jaitley said.

He said that Gandhi has a “natural dislike for truth” and had earlier “manufactured” his conversation with the former French President, which was denied by the French government.

“We are all utterly disappointed because every word he has said has been denied by the Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court speaks on an issue, it is the last word,” the Finance Minister said.

123 crore Aadhaar cards issued to people: Govt tells Rajya Sabha

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January 2, 2019

Nearly 123 crore Aadhaar cards have been issued to people, Union Minister Hansraj Ahir said in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. Replying to a written question, Ahir said that as per the 2011 census, the population of India is 121,08,54,977.

The UIDAI has issued a total of 122.90 crore Aadhaar cards as on November 30, 2018, he said, adding that 6.71 crore cards were issued to children below five years of age and 29.02 crore cards were given to people in the age-group of 5 to 18 years.

Ahir said that the number of children born within last one year of the 2011 census is 2,08,98,228.

According to latest data available of the Sample Registration System (SRS), birth rate for 2016 was 20.4 and death rate was 6.4, he said.

The SRS is carried out on a continuous basis in randomly selected villages and urban blocks throughout the country.

Over 33.5 lakh people trained in electronics, IT, ITeS in 4 years: Ahluwalia

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January 2, 2019

Over 33.5 lakh people have been provided skill training in electronics, IT and IT-enabled services sectors between 2014-15 and 2017-18, Parliament was informed on Wednesday.

These people were provided training by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) through Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna (PMKVY), and two schemes being run by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Minister of State for Electronics and IT S S Ahluwalia said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

He added that more than 5.41 lakh people were trained by MSDE and MeitY in 2014-15, 8.10 lakh in 2015-16, 9.51 lakh in 2016-17 and over 10.48 lakh people in 2017-18.

Of these, MSDE facilitated training for 16.34 lakh people, while MeitY provided skill training for the remaining 17.18 lakh people, he added.

A total of Rs 30.44 crore has been received as grant between 2016-17 and 2018-19, under PMKVY of MSDE, of which Rs 29.09 crore has been utilised, the Minister said.

He added that a total grant of Rs 154.13 crore was released between 2014-15 and 2017-18 under the two schemes for skill development in electronic system design and manufacturing (ESDM) sector by MeitY.

Pennar Group bags orders worth Rs 309 crore

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January 2, 2019

Pennar Group, a leading value-added engineering products and solutions company, has bagged orders worth Rs 309 crores across its various business verticals and the subsidiary, PEBS Pennar.

The Group’s flagship company Pennar Industries Limited (PIL) received multiple orders aggregating Rs 124 crore across its business verticals such as railways from Integrated Coach Factory, Modern Coach Factory, etc.; for Hydraulics and industrial components from customers like Emerson, Endurance, Firestone, etc. and the solar and building components division received orders from L&T, PES Engineers, IFB, LG Balakrishnan, Wahi Sons, Bimetal Bearings, etc.

Pennar Engineered Building Systems (PEBS Pennar), a leader in pre-engineered buildings and a PIL subsidiary, received orders aggregating Rs 125 crore. The company is witnessing significant demand for pre-engineered warehouses, Hi-Rise buildings, factory buildings and structural steel works from customers such as Natco Pharma, Baranagar Jute, Allcargo Logistics, Phoenix, Renaissance Infra, Lakshmi Automotive and Gemini Edibles. With the recent wins, the order book of PEBS Pennar stands at Rs 480 crore.

Pennar Enviro has bagged orders worth Rs 60 crores for design and supply of water treatment plants from Reliance, JSW and an upcoming green field project from a cement major.

Commenting on the recent wins, Mr. K M Sunil, Vice President – Corporate Strategy, Pennar Industries Limited, said, “We continue to find good traction across our business verticals and subsidiaries. While the Railways division received large orders, we are particularly excited to have received orders worth Rs 60 crore for water treatment plants and a single large order worth Rs 62 crore for Structural Steel. The recent orders are from our existing as well as new customers which are industry leaders in their respective businesses. We expect steady order inflow during this last quarter of FY2019.”

Air India working to improve services, expand networks: CMD Pradeep Kharola

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January 2, 2019

Air India, which is going through an extremely difficult financial situation, is working to improve services as well as expand domestic and international routes, its chief Pradeep Singh Kharola said.

In a New Year message to employees, he urged them to work as a team with dedication and enthusiasm to take the national carrier to new heights.

The government has prepared a revival plan, that includes a comprehensive financial package for Air India, which is estimated to have debt worth over Rs 55,000 crore.

Air India is passing through a period of extremely difficult financial situation and is facing tough competition, Kharola said, adding that efforts are on to improve the functioning of the carrier.

Noting that the airline has a proud legacy, the Chairman and managing director also said that it is already working on improving services as well as expanding domestic and international networks.

Last week, the Civil Aviation Ministry told the Lok Sabha that the government has prepared a revival plan for Air India that provides for a comprehensive financial package, differentiated strategies for each of the airline’s core businesses and robust organisational reforms.

In an interview, Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu had said that the government plans to rope in professionals for top positions at Air India through a global search process.

Various initiatives to turnaround the national carrier, which is staying afloat on a bailout package extended by the previous government, including monetisation of real estate assets are progressing. The proposed strategic disinvestment of the airline failed to take off in 2018.

The Air India Specific Alternative Mechanism (AISAM) has directed to separately decide the contours of the mode of disposal of the subsidiaries — Air India Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL), Air India Air Transport Services Ltd (AIATSL) and Airline Allied Services Ltd (AASL).

Govt releases 6-croreth LPG connections under PMUY

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January 2, 2019

The government on Wednesday gave out the 6-croreth free cooking gas (LPG) connection as the scheme to make available cleaner fuel in every household kitchens runs ahead of schedule.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu handed over papers for an LPG connection under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) – which was launched on May 1, 2016, with a target to give 5 crore connections by March 2019 – to a Muslim lady Jasmina Khatoon from Shivpark, Khanpur in the national capital.

The target was later raised to 8 crore connections by 2021 and now envisages giving all households a connection.

Speaking on the occasion, Naidu termed the scheme as revolutionary and “possibly the world’s biggest poverty alleviation programme.”

The scheme together with a government push to replace polluting firewood in kitchens has led to LPG coverage rising to almost 90 per cent of the population from 55 per cent in May 2014, he said.

Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that as many as 23 crore refills or about 4 cylinders of 14.2-kg each have been bought by PMUY beneficiaries in a year, thereby rejecting criticism of the scheme that households reverted to firewood and other mediums of cooking once the initial free LPG cylinder was exhausted.

Under the scheme, the government provides a subsidy of Rs 1,600 to state-owned fuel retailers for every free LPG gas connection that they give to poor households. This subsidy is intended to cover the security fee for the cylinder and the fitting charges.

The beneficiary has to buy her own cooking stove. To reduce the burden, the scheme allows beneficiaries to pay for the stove and the first refill in monthly installments. However, the cost of all subsequent refills has to be borne by the beneficiary household.

Last month, the government extended PMUY to all poor households. The scheme originally targeted giving free LPG connections to mostly rural women members of below the poverty line (BPL) households. The list was later expanded to include all SC/ST households, forest dwellers, most backward classes, inhabitants of islands, nomadic tribes and tea estates among others.

The step will further increase penetration of LPG to 100 per cent households, he said.

The World Health Organisation hailed PMUY as decisive intervention by the government to facilitate the switch to clean household energy use, thereby addressing the problems associated with Indoor Household Pollution.

Direct tax-GDP ratio of 5.98% during FY18 best in 10 years: Finance Ministry

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January 2, 2019

The direct tax-to-GDP ratio of 5.98 per cent achieved during 2017-18 fiscal is the best in the last 10 years, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday. It was 5.57 per cent in 2016-17 and 5.47 per cent in 2015-16.

The Ministry said that the larger purpose of demonetisation was to move India from a tax non-compliant society to a compliant society and the impact of note ban has been felt on collection of personal income tax.

In its 2018 review, the Ministry said, “There is a constant growth in direct tax-GDP ratio over last three years and the ratio of 5.98 per cent in Fiscal Year 2017-18 is the best DT-GDP ratio in last 10 years”.

It further said that there is a growth of over 80 per cent in the number of returns filed in the last four financial years from 3.79 crore in 2013-14 to 6.85 crore in 2017-18.

The number of individuals filing return of income has also increased by about 65 percent during this period from 3.31 crore in 2013-14 to 5.44 crore in 2017-18, the Ministry added.

It also said that there has been a continuous increase in the amount of income declared in the returns filed by all categories of taxpayers over the last three assessment years (AYs).

Refunds amounting to Rs 1.23 lakh crore have been issued during the April-November 2018 period, which is 20.8 per cent higher than refunds issued during the corresponding period in the preceding year.

Growth rate for Corporate Income Tax (CIT) and Personal Income Tax (PIT) stood at 17.7 per cent and 18.3 per cent, respectively.

Demonetisation led to formalisation of the economy and was a blow to the black money, the Ministry added.

Advanced brain simulator to help understand neurological disorder

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January 2, 2019

In a bid to improve understanding of neurological disorders, researchers have created a fast and energy-efficient simulation of part of a rat brain by using computer chip manufacturer NVIDIA’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) compute platform.

Developing faster and more efficient simulators could increase the level of understanding the brain function and identify how damage to a particular structure in neurons can lead to deficits in brain function.

For creating the simulator, the researchers used computer hardware designed for 3D games, according to the study published in the journal Frontiers in Neuroscience.

The study showed that a single Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) was able to achieve processing speeds up to 10 per cent faster than is currently possible using either a supercomputer or the SpiNNaker neuromorphic system, a custom-built machine.

The team was also able to achieve energy savings of 10 times compared to either the SpiNNaker or supercomputer simulations.

The academics hope that the flexibility and power of GPUs means that they could play a key role in creating simulators capable of running models that begin to approach the complexity of the human brain.

“Our work shows that, in the near term, they (GPUs) are a competitive design for high performance computing and have the potential to make advances far beyond where CPUs have brought us to so far,” said Thomas Nowotny Professor of Informatics at the University of Sussex in Britain.

“We are very impressed by the use of the NVIDIA AI compute platform for brain simulations spear-headed at the University of Sussex and are glad we are able to support research at the leading edge of computational neuroscience as well as AI,” Chris Emerson, Head of Higher-Education and Research Sales in UK and Ireland at NVIDIA, said in a statement.