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“Armed force selection is open for all without discrimination”, says MoS Nityanand Rai

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ANI
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"Armed force selection is open for all without discrimination", says MoS Nityanand Rai 2

The selection process in the armed forces is open to all citizens without any discrimination on the basis of caste, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai told the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.

The recruitment in Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Assam Rifles is not made on the basis of caste, Rai added while responding to the query of YSRCP MP V Vijay Sai Reddy.

However, Rai categorized, reservation is provided for Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Class (OBC) and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) category in accordance with the extant policy of the government.

“Vacancies reserved for SC category are filled up from the candidates belonging to SC category only,” said Rai.

As per the reservation policy of the government, the MoS said, unfilled vacancies of SC quota are carried forward to the subsequent recruitment cycles.

The reply came when Reddy asked “whether it is a fact that armed forces do not recruit on the basis of the caste of candidates”; “whether it is also a fact that recruitment in Central Para Military Force (CPMFs) is done on the basis of castes and reservation”; and “whether it is also a fact that if there is SC vacancy in any CPMF, it has to be filled only with the SC candidate otherwise it will upset the entire quota system”.

Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) refers to the uniform nomenclature of seven central armed police organizations under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Their role is to defend the national interest mainly against internal threats. They are the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), National Security Guard (NSG) and Special Protection Group (SPG).

A day ago, the Minister informed the Lok Sabha that there were a total of 84,659 vacancies in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Assam Rifles till July 31, 2022, and the government had decided to fill up existing vacancies by December 2023.

Of the total, a maximum of 27, 510 vacancies are noted in the CRPF followed by 23,435 vacancies in BSF, 11,765 in CISF, 11,143 in SSB, and 6,044 in Assam Rifles and 4,762 in ITBP.

As per the instructions of the Department of Personnel and Training issued vide notification dated October 4, 2012, Rai said “10 per cent vacancies in Central Armed Police Forces and Assam Rifles are reserved for ex-servicemen up to the level of Assistant Commandant to be filled by direct recruitment”.

Further, Rai had also said, in-principle approval has been given for reservation of 10 per cent of vacancies for ex-Agniveers in the recruitment to the post of Constable (General Duty) and Rifleman in the CAPF and Assam Rifles when the first batch of ex-Agniveers is available for recruitment after completing engagement period of four years in defence forces.

He further stated that the examination for filling up 25,271 posts of Constable (General Duty) has already been conducted. To fill up the vacancies expeditiously in CAPFs and Assam Rifles, the Minister said the government has taken several steps like yearly recruitment for the post of Constable (General Duty) for which a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with the Staff Selection Commission (SSC).

For coordinating recruitment to General Duty posts, a Nodal Force each for recruitment in the rank of Constable (General Duty), Sub-Inspector (GD) and Assistant Commandant (General Duty) has been nominated on a long-term basis, Rai had said.

He then said that directions were issued to all CAPFs and Assam Rifles to undertake recruitment against vacant posts in Non-General Duty cadres in a time-bound manner. It is also directed for conducting a timely meeting of the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) for filling up promotional vacancies, the Minister added.

No plans to regulate e-commerce, government inform parliament

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ANI
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E commerce
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The central government has no proposal under consideration for constituting an independent regulating authority for e-commerce platforms, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash informed Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

This was in reply to a question on whether the government proposes to constitute an independent regulator for e-commerce platforms. Currently, the e-commerce sector is governed by a comprehensive legal and policy framework including Consumer Protection Act, 2019; Competition Act, 2002; Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017; Information Technology Act, 2000; Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007; Companies Act, 2013; Copyright Act, 1957 etc.

FDI Policy and Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 contain provisions related to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Department of Consumer Affairs 2020 notified the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020.

These rules specify the duties and liabilities of sellers on marketplace-based e-commerce entities and inventory-based e-commerce entities, including consumer grievance redressal related to it. It includes no e-commerce entity shall adopt any unfair trade practice, whether in the course of business on its platform or otherwise.

Every e-commerce entity shall establish an adequate grievance redressal mechanism having regard to the number of grievances ordinarily received by such entity from India, shall appoint a grievance officer for consumer grievance redressal, and shall display the name, contact details, and designation of such officer on its platform, the gazette notification had said.

Further, an e-commerce entity offering imported goods or services for sale must mention the name and details of any importer from whom it has purchased such goods or services, or who may be a seller on its platform.

Notably, no e-commerce entity shall manipulate the price of the goods or services offered on its platform in such a manner as to gain unreasonable profits, the gazette read.

Pakistan might have given up Zawahiri for money, suggests a report

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ANI
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Ayman al Zawahiri 1
Image: Agencies

Following the killing of Al- Qaeda chief Ayman-al- Zawahiri in the heart of Kabul despite a United States-Taliban deal laid out before the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, questions are being raised about whether Pakistan played a role in providing the location details of the terrorist to the US.

Last week, Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa sought help from the US to secure an early loan disbursal from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Furthermore, sources revealed that Bajwa held a telephonic conversation with US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman in a highly unusual move. Bajwa’s appeal to the US came as he is making efforts to pull Pakistan out of its economic mess.

As dwindling foreign reserves sparked a scramble in Islamabad Bajwa reached out to the US to avoid a default.

Experts believe that the White House may have used pressure tactics and sought a trade-off, with the country – the US backing Pakistan’s emergency loan in exchange for Pakistan disclosing the whereabouts of the Al Qaeda terrorists mentioned a publication in the Times of Israel.

It further raises questions if the United States felt comfortable forcing Bajwa to hand over Zawahiri, while not holding Pakistan accountable for its involvement. Likewise, it also raises concerns about what the Pakistan military will be willing to do in future if it has agreed to this trade-off.

Michael Rubin, a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), writing for the Times of Israel notes it is uncertain from where the drone that fired two missiles into Zawahiri’s residence flew.

If the American drone flew from Pakistan, it would be much more obvious that Bajwa was involved in Zawahiri’s killing, but it would also imply that Biden is giving Pakistan a de facto veto over American over-the-horizon counter-terrorism efforts in Afghanistan.

Michael further wrote that the Biden administration should exercise caution while permitting Pakistan to make money off its ongoing support for terrorism, and added that it’s time to warn Pakistan to deliver all of Al Qaeda’s assets immediately, follow all FATF counterterrorism recommendations, or risk being labelled a terror sponsor and going bankrupt.

At the FATF, Pakistan is due to be assessed in October 2022 in Paris.

However, when it comes to counter-terrorism, Pakistan made limited progress on the most difficult aspects of its 2015 National Action Plan, specifically in its pledge to dismantle all terrorist organizations without delay or discrimination Pakistan has been on the Paris-based global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog’s grey list for deficiencies in its counter-terror financing and anti-money laundering regimes since June 2018.

This greylisting has adversely impacted its imports, exports, remittances, and limited access to international lending. In June 2021, the country was given three months to fulfil the remaining conditions by October.

However, Pakistan was retained on the FATF’s grey list for failing to effectively implement the global FATF standards and for its lack of progress in the investigation and prosecution of senior leaders and commanders of UN-designated terror groups.

Indian mixed 4×400 relay team wins a silver medal in World U-20 athletics championships

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PTI
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World U 20 athletics championships
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The Indian mixed 4×400 relay team clinched a silver medal by bettering its own Asian record time in the final of the World U-20 Athletics Championships here.

The Indian quartet of Barath Sridhar, Priya Mohan, Kapil and Rupal Chaudhary clocked 3 minutes and 17.67 seconds to finish behind the USA (3:17.69) on Tuesday night.

The Indian team bettered its own earlier Asian record of 3:19.62 set here a day earlier during the heats. The new timing of 3:17.67 is the second best (in juniors) in the all-time list in the event, behind USA’s.

The Indian team had also qualified for the final as second overall across the three heat races behind the USA.

This was India’s second consecutive medal in the mixed 4x400m relay at the World U-20 Athletics Championships after the bronze at the last edition in Nairobi in 2021, where the event was introduced for the first time.

Rupal is the only new member of the quartet that had won bronze last year while Sridhar, Priya and Kapil were there in that team.

The silver medal-winning performance was all the more impressive as most of the Indians reached here just a day before the start of the event after an onerous journey due to visa issues.

Jamaica took the bronze in 3:19.98.

India had won two silver and one bronze in the last edition.

On Tuesday, Rupal and Priya had also made it to the 400m semifinals after strong performances in the first-round heats.

Rupal won the heat in 52.50s, while Priya clocked 52.56s to finish second in heat number 5. Rupal was second overall across five heats, while Priya was fourth. Priya had finished fourth in the 400m final in the last edition in Nairobi in 2021.

The 15-year-old Ashakiran Barla failed to make it to the women’s 800m finals after finishing fifth in heat 3 and 15th overall in the semifinals with a time of 2:06.86. The top two in each heat and the next two fastest across the three semifinal heats qualify for the finals.

Pune Shiv Sena chief from Hingoli and four others arrested for attacking rebel MLA Samant’s car

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PTI
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Uday Samants
Image: Agencies

Police have arrested Shiv Sena’s Pune city unit president, its office-bearer from Hingoli and four others in connection with the alleged attack on rebel MLA and former Maharashtra minister Uday Samant’s car here, an official said on Wednesday.

While five accused were held in Pune, the Hingoli-based Sena leader – Baban Thorat – was detained from Mumbai and was brought to Pune, where he was placed under arrest. Thorat is accused of inciting Shiv Sena workers to attack the vehicles of Sena’s rebel legislators, police said.

All of them were produced in a local court, which remanded them in police custody till August 6.

A group of unidentified persons had attacked Samant’s car at a signal in the Katraj area of the city around 9 pm on Tuesday. A video of a mob trying to surround Samant’s vehicle and shouting slogans circulated on social media.

A case had been registered against over 15 persons under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including an attempt to murder, at the Bharti Vidyapeeth police station late Tuesday night.

Samant, one of the 40 Sena MLAs who support Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, was here to attend Shinde’s programmes in the district, a source close to him had said.

“Shiv Sena’s city unit president Sanjay More is among the five persons arrested in connection with the attack on Samant’s car,” assistant commissioner of police (Swargate division), Sushama Chavan, said.

“We have registered an offence against more than 15 people under IPC sections 307 (attempt to murder), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and sections related to rioting,” she added.

Mumbai police detained Shiv Sena leader from Hingoli district, Baban Thorat, for allegedly giving a provocative speech in which he had asked the party workers to attack the vehicles of the party’s rebel MLAs, an official said.

“Mumbai police detained Thorat, who is Hingoli district’s ‘sampark pramukh’ (liaison chief), from his residence in Kalachowki late on Tuesday night, and handed him over to Pune police early on Wednesday,” he said.

Saman’t close aide had said that a windowpane of the car, in which the former minister was travelling, was damaged in the incident.

Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray’s public meeting was held in the vicinity around the same time on Tuesday.

Samant had later told reporters that the attack on his car was done in a pre-meditated manner.

Thane Shiv Sena chief Kedar Dighe, a friend booked for criminal intimidation, rape

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ANI
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Kedar Dighe
Image: Agencies

Mumbai Police has registered an FIR against Shiv Sena’s new Thane district chief Kedar Dighe and his friend Rohit Kapoor for alleged criminal intimidation and rape.

The N M Joshi Marg police in Mumbai registered a case under section 506 of the Indian Penal Code (criminal intimidation) against Dighe. A case was also filed under section 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code against Kapoor, who police said is a friend of Dighe.

Eknath Shinde govt issued 751 GRs in one month

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PTI
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Eknath Shinde, Maharashtra CM, Police housing plan, Cabinet, expansion, Devendra Fadnavis, Health department grant, Maharashtra government
Image: Agencies

The Maharashtra government has issued 751 government resolutions (GRs) ever since Eknath Shinde took over as chief minister on June 30, and over a hundred of these orders are related to the health department alone.

These resolutions are uploaded on the government’s official website.

Yes Bank- DHFL fraud case: ED attaches assets worth Rs 415 cr

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ANI
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Yes bank, DHFL, ED, Enforcement directorate
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Enforcement Directorate has attached assets totalling Rs 415 crore in Yes Bank- DHFL Fraud case.

Of the total, Rs 251 crore assets were of Sanjay Chhabria and Rs 164 crore of Avinash Bhosale. ED issued two provisional attachment orders under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) against the duo. With this latest attachment, the total goes up to Rs 1,827 crore, the enforcement agency said.

The attached assets of Sanjay Chhabria are in the form of a land parcel located in Santacruz, Mumbai worth Rs 116.5 crore, 25 per cent equity shares of Chhabria’s company held in the land parcel, located at Bengaluru worth Rs 115 Crore, a flat located at Santacruz, Mumbai worth Rs 3 crore, profit receivable from hotel belonging to Chhabria located at Delhi Airport worth Rs 13.67 crore and three high-end luxury cars worth Rs 3.10 crore.

Further, attached assets of Avinash Bhosale were in the form of a duplex flat belonging to Bhosale, located in Mumbai worth Rs 102.8 crore, one land parcel located at Pune worth Rs 14.65 crore, one more land parcel located at Pune worth Rs 29.24 crore, a land parcel located at Nagpur worth Rs 15.52 crore and another portion of land located at Nagpur to the extent of Rs 1.45 crore.

ED has initiated an investigation against Rana Kapoor of Yes Bank and Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan Promoters of DHFL on the basis of an FIR registered under relevant sections alleging that Rana Kapoor had entered into a criminal conspiracy with Kapil Wadhawan, Promoter Director of M/s DHFL and others for extending financial assistance to M/s DHFL by Yes Bank Ltd. in lieu of substantial undue benefit to himself and his family members through the companies held by them.

Rana Kapoor through M/s Yes Bank Ltd invested Rs 3,700 crore in the short-term non-convertible debentures of DHFL and Rs 283 crore in Masala Bonds of DHFL. Simultaneous to this investment made by Yes Bank in DHFL, Kapil Wadhawan through DHFL paid a kickback of Rs 600 crore, in the garb of a loan, to one of Rana Kapoor’s beneficially owned companies namely M/s DOIT Urban Ventures (India) Pvt. Ltd.

The investigation further revealed that immediately after the said transfer of funds to the tune of Rs 3,983 crore by Yes Bank to DHFL appraised and sanctioned loans to Radius Group of Sanjay Chhabria and received funds to the tune of Rs 2317 crore as loan from DHFL in the name of development of his project “Avenue 54” at Santacruz, Mumbai and then Sanjay Chhabria diverted the same without using it for the declared purpose.

Further, it was revealed that Sanjay Chhabria further connived with Avinash Bhosale and diverted funds to Avinash Bhosale in his various beneficially owned companies.

Apart from this, Bhosale had connived with Kapil Wadhawan of DHFL and received approximately Rs 71.82 crore from DHFL in the garb of providing certain services to DHFL and other entities. However, the said so-called services have never been provided and the same was utilized by Avinash Bhosale for his beneficial use.

ED had earlier attached properties worth Rs 1,412 Crore, seized 5 high-end vehicles of Wadhawans having an approximate value of Rs 12.59 crore of Wadhawans and also attached properties worth Rs 600 crore of Rana Kapoor in Yes bank -DHFL fraud case and has arrested Kapil Wadhawan on Dheeraj Wadhawan, Rana Kapoor earlier this year who are still in judicial custody.

ED has also arrested Sanjay Chhabria and Avinash Bhosale in June and both are in judicial custody.

CNG price goes up by Rs 6 per kg, piped cooking gas by Rs 4 per unit in Mumbai

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Web Team
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CNG gas
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The price of CNG in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) will rise by Rs 6 per kg from Wednesday, pushing it to an all-time high of Rs 86 per kg.

The price of piped cooking gas will go up by Rs 4 per unit, also reaching a record level at Rs 52.50 per unit, impacting over 19 lakh households across MMR.

Netizens react to price hike

Jobless man in Borivali blackmailed neighbours with sex videos

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Web Team
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Sextortion Representative Image
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In Borivali’s plush housing complex numerous residents were targeted in a sextortion case by a jobless person who contacted them on Facebook by posing as a woman.

The person sent lewd images and videos to them and had sex chats for a few days.

Later on, threatened to circulate screenshots of the conversations on social media. A police investigation revealed the accused was a man living in the same building and looking to earn a quick buck as he was unemployed.

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