The Congress on Tuesday denied reports that Finance Ministers from Opposition-ruled States at the GST Council had objected to recently announced reduction in tax rates of several items. “An impression has been sought to be conveyed that the BJP was trying to reduce the taxes while the Congress or Opposition …

Senior Superintendent of Police, Noida, Ajay Pal said on Tuesday that the notice to private firms in Noida Sector 58 was issued by the SHO of the area police station, Pankaj Rai. The SHO told the media that the notice was issued to 23 companies as over the past few …

An estimated 30 million newborns require specialised care in hospital every year without which many either die or develop preventable health conditions and disabilities that affect them for life, according to a recent study by a global coalition that includes UNICEF and WHO. The report urges countries to invest in …

The Enforcement Directorate, which is now questioning AgustaWestland accused Christian Michel, has so far been able to unearth the money trail allegedly establishing a link between the other two alleged middlemen in the deal and cousins of former Air Chief Marshal S.P. Tyagi. However, all those who are suspected to …

India is not ruling out retaliatory measures in response to the Pakistan government’s delays in sanctioning gas connections to the residential complex at its High Commission in Islamabad. The delay, officials said, were part of a series of measures aimed at “making life difficult” for Indian diplomats in Pakistan. This …

At least 260 leopards were poached in the country between 2015 and 2018, with Uttarakhand accounting for 60 cases and Himachal Pradesh reporting another 49, according to information given to Parliament by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC). Of this, 64 cases of leopard poaching were recorded …

Authorities in tourist hotspot Leh have put 65 tonnes of waste to productive use after the ecologically sensitive region’s garbage output went up drastically following the release of 3 Idiots on Christmas day nine years ago, drawing tourists in hordes. “The 65,000 kg of waste was first collected from the …

The draft rules proposed by the government to curb “unlawful content” on social media that make it mandatory for intermediaries to trace the “originator” of such content have drawn strong criticism from the Opposition. The latter contend that the state is expanding the scope for surveillance of citizens. However, a …

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday underlined the NDA government’s focus on improving connectivity in the northeastern region while inaugurating the 4.94 km Bogibeel Bridge, India’s longest rail-cum-road span, across the Brahmaputra. The strategic bridge, which connects Dibrugarh district on the river’s south bank in Assam to Dhemaji district on …

The U.S. Apollo 8 astronauts to-day [December 24] beamed a television broadcast to earth from their spacecraft skimming the surface of the moon. The first picture came about two and a half hours after the moonship swooped into lunar orbit. It showed a brightly-lit stretch of the moon’s surface, including …

Recently, while covering Cyclone Gaja, I stayed in Thiruvarur, the birthplace of the Carnatic Trinity (Thyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Shyama Shastri) and of many other famous musicians. Thiruvarur V. Namasivayam, flautist N. Ramani, nagaswaram player T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai and mridhangam player Thiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam were born and trained in this temple …

While the string of high-profile departures from the Donald Trump White House is longer than in the case of any of its recent predecessors, last week’s announcement by the President that Defence Secretary James Mattis would step down by the end of February 2019 set alarm bells ringing in Washington …

Under attack on how the indirect tax regime has panned out, the Goods and Services Tax Council on Saturday announced a set of feel-good moves to reassure diverse stakeholders. For consumers, the peak tax rate of 28% levied on cinema tickets above Rs. 100, large screen television sets or monitors, …

In People’s Union For Civil Liberties v. Union Of India (September 27, 2013), the Supreme Court had ruled that a None of the Above (NOTA) option “may be provided in EVMs” so that voters are able to exercise their “right not to vote while maintaining their right of secrecy”. On …

Last week, in its report, ‘Strategy for New India@75’, the NITI Aayog mooted the creation of an All India Judicial Service (AIJS) for making appointments to the lower judiciary through an all India judicial services examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) in order to maintain “high standards” …