Pegging the cost of the covid-19 lockdown at USD 120 billion (approximately Rs 9 lakh crores) or 4 per cent of the GDP, analysts on Wednesday sharply cut their growth estimates and stressed on the need to announce an economic package. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which is scheduled to announce its first bi-monthly policy review on April 3, is set to deliver a deep rate cuts and it should also be assumed that the fiscal deficit targets will be breached, analysts said.
11 categories of industries will be exempt from the Madhya Pradesh Industrial Relations (MPIR) Act of 1961. This includes textile, leather, cement, iron and steel, electrical goods, sugar, electricity, public motor transport, engineering including manufacture of motor vehicles, among others.
The objective is to ensure the exchange's preparedness in the event of a natural calamity, so that any disruptions should not affect market integrity and investor confidence.
'To prevent large gatherings, BAPS mandirs (temples) will be closed throughout the world, but devotees will be given daily darshan through the websites of each mandir,' the BAPS said in a media release.
'I don't know what greater calamities this year has in store.'
We present our alphabet of 2020, pulling in everything you'll remember about this year we'd rather forget.
Manchester United climbed two places up to second in the Premier League after Marcus Rashford scored deep into stoppage time to give them a fortuitous 1-0 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday.
This is because the bond market has factored in the Rs 4.88-trillion gross borrowing for April-September 2020.
Tejashwi accused the Nitish Kumar-led government of meting out "step-motherly" treatment to migrant labourers.
It was truly heartening to see how the Sikh community had risen to the occasion during the Black Lives Matter peaceful protests and the coronavirus pandemic and selflessly served those looking for nourishment.
In his monthly 'Mann ki Baat' broadcast, Modi said all classes of people have suffered during the pandemic but it is the poor who have suffered the worst.
Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, on his part, gave assurances that normalcy would be restored in a week, as government officials were working round the clock to improve the situation.
These parties also asked the Centre to present a revised comprehensive economic package that will be a 'true stimulus' and sought reversal of all unilateral policy decisions, especially pertaining to labour laws, as they put forth a 11-point demand charter before the government during a virtual meeting, called by the Congress to discuss the situation arising out of the pandemic as well as the lockdown.
'Interns, fresh MBBS graduates, nursing students, young doctors and nurses have brought pride to their degrees and their oath by courageously donning the PPE and caring for patients.' 'They are the foot soldiers of this war.'
"The blood test result of the first patient from Thrissur, from the National Institute of Virology (NIV) testing centre at Alappuzha, shows a negative result. But we need confirmation from the NIV at Pune," a senior medical officer said.
India on Sunday announced temporary suspension of e-visa facility for Chinese travellers and foreigners residing in the neighbouring country and issued a fresh advisory saying anyone with travel history to China since January 15 can be quarantined.
Gandhi also called upon the government to immediately put money into the hands of the poor and provide a financial package to the industry to help revive the economy.
While P Muralidhar Rao, BJP general secretary, says, 'Digital electioneering is here to stay until the elections in 2021,' the BJP's rallies in Bihar will not be confined to cyberspace. Its strategists have devised other ways of getting around the hygiene protocol that Covid-19 has entailed.
Rediff reader Rajiv Aggarwal shared this list of books he wants everyone to read
'There is no shortage of any APIs (active pharmaceutical ingredients) in the country'
With the cyclone set to make landfall on Wednesday, Maharashtra and Gujarat activated their disaster response mechanism, deploying NDRF teams and evacuating people from areas likely to be hit.
Rediff reader Rashmi Pillai, a pharma professional from Mumbai suggests how to stay positive and make the most of the lockdown.
ITC has introduced differentiated cigarettes like Gold Flake Indie Mint, Gold Flake Neo and Classic Rich & Smooth in the premium end. Godfrey, too, introduced flavoured variants like Four Square Clove Crush in the mid-tier segment and has seven variants of the Marlboro brand for India.
South Africa's Anrich Nortje took the vital wickets of captain Joe Root and talisman Ben Stokes as England struggled to 262 for nine at stumps on the first day of the second Test on Friday. Pace bowler Nortje, playing his fourth Test, finished with 2-54 off 17 overs as the home side restricted the tourists on a Newlands wicket that was expected to be full of runs. Images from the opening day of the second Test at Newlands on Friday.
The Congress, Left parties, Trinamool Congress and some others were in the forefront of this attack on the government, which is set to garner around Rs 7,900 crore through the decision.
'Dear PM, INC supports the salary cut for MPs. Please note that MPLAD is meant to execute developmental works in the constituency. Suspending it is a huge disservice to the constituents and will undermine the role and functions of MP,' Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said on Twitter.
Lakhs of people were rendered homeless as cyclone Amphan cut a path of destruction through half a dozen districts of West Bengal, including state capital Kolkata, Wednesday night, blowing away shanties, uprooting thousands of trees besides swamping low-lying areas.
As the pandemic unfolded, the India-China relationship has come under severe stress. To restore normalcy, agreements between the two countries must be respected scrupulously in their entirety. Where the Line of Actual Control is concerned, any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo is unacceptable, declares External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
'When the lockdown grounded a billion people, nothing had been planned well: Testing, masks, face shields, protective gear, medical equipment, contact tracing ... nothing.' 'Before COVID, if you didn't know that the state had neither the money, nor the intent, nor the capacity to govern wisely and humanely, you were simply blind.' 'After COVID, if we continue to look to the State, look forward to a financial package or ask "What is the government doing" when faced with a calamity, the joke is on us, says Debashis Basu.
'One way of doing this could be offering credit guarantee to the banks, say 10 per cent, for fresh loans given to micro, small and medium enterprises,' observes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
As with the Spanish flu, the world must be ready for a second and third wave as this start-stop-start-stop response plays out, recommends Rahul Jacob.
'No one cares about fiscal deficit now. Or for that matter, inflation.' 'The focus is on growth and growth alone.' 'RBI needs to break the risk aversion of banks and infuse adrenaline in their veins', says Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The government has made its flagship crop insurance schemes voluntary for farmers with existing crop loans or those willing to take new ones, as it seeks to address the concerns raised by farmers' body and states in implementation of these programmes. "The Union Cabinet has approved the revamping of 'Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)' and 'Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (RWBCIS)' to address the existing challenges in implementation of crop insurance schemes," an official statement said.
Any NGO critical of the government is unlikely to receive a green signal. The new amendment will leave NGOs vulnerable to harassment. It was the NGO sector that helped provide compassion and food to millions of people during the lockdown. The new Bill will render such cooperation and camaraderie impossible in future, observes Rashme Sehgal.
The top court said the private hospitals including laboratories have an important role to play in containing the scale of the pandemic by extending philanthropic services in the hour of national crisis.
The farmer, Srikant Vishnu Gadale, a resident of Vadmauli in Kej taluka, also wrote that if the administration does not take note of his letter, he would protest through "democratic means".
While the American Club Cool Fresh Taste saw the minimum hike of 10 per cent, from Rs 200 to Rs 220 for a pack of 20 cigarettes, the price of Navy Cut Filter rose by about 16 per cent, at Rs 80 for a pack of 10 sticks. Flake Filter has become costlier by 14 per cent at Rs 80, while prices of Flake Special Filter, Flake Blue Special Filter and Wave Cool Mint rose by 20 per cent.
'Our only request to the Indian government is that they should act fast and send a plane to evacuate us as people around us are dying'
Even with the possible expenditure roll-overs and off-budget financing, the fiscal deficit target will not be met. The FRBM Act, after its amendment in 2018, allows a fiscal deficit slippage of not more than 0.5 per cent for any given year, provided there are justifications. These justifications include war, national security, severe collapse in the agriculture sector, a major natural calamity, big structural economic reforms, or the decline in real output growth of a quarter by at least 3 percentage points below its average of the previous four quarters.
'The prime minister's announcement of a nation-wide shutdown was eloquent, but should have been more clearly phrased to avoid police overreach.' 'Migrant labour should have been allowed adequate notice and transport options to get home,' notes Rahul Jacob.
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