Will work as ‘local guardian’: Delhi’s new L-G
NEW DELHI: Vinai Kumar Saxena, former Chairperson of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission, took oath as the national Capital’s 22nd Lieutenant- Governor (L-G) on May 26, over a week after his predecessor Anil Baijal resigned. Saxena, 64, is the first from a non-bureaucratic and non-Defence background to be appointed Delhi L-G. After the swearing-in, Saxena said he will work as the “local guardian (LG)” for every resident of Delhi rather than the Lieutenant-Governor. “You will find me more in the field than in Raj Niwas,” he said
Delhi to give incentive to e-cycle buyers
NEW DELHI: Delhi government announced the first 10,000 e-cycle buyers will get a purchase incentive of 25% with a cap of a maximum of ₹5,500 per unit. An additional incentive of ₹2,000 will be given to the first 1,000 buyers, it added. Cargo e-cycles will be eligible for an incentive of 33% of the selling price up to ₹1,500, Delhi government stated. The incentive will be credited to the buyer’s bank account within seven working days after the application is submitted through the OEM or the manufacturer
India plea to WTO on food export norms
NEW DELHI: India wants the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to allow exports of foodgrain from public stocks for international food aid and for humanitarian purposes, especially on Government-to-Government basis, an official said on May 23. India is also not in favour of giving binding commitment under the WTO on supply of foodgrain to the UN’s World Food Programme as it would restrict its policy space to deal with domestic food security concerns, the official added.
GST monthly payment form may be modified
NEW DELHI: The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council is expected to propose modifying the summary return and monthly tax payment form, GSTR-3B, at its meeting in June – with the goal of detecting bogus input tax credit (ITC) claims and expediting the settlement of real ones, according to an official. The updated form will clarify the gross ITC due to the taxpayer, the amount claimed in a given month, and the net amount remaining in the taxpayer’s ledger.
J&K pace sensation picked for India team
MUMBAI: The Board of Control for Cricket in India on May 22 announced the T20I squad for the upcoming five-match series against South Africa. IPL 2022’s fastest bowler Umran Malik, who hails from Jammu & Kashmir, received his maiden call-up after a terrific season in the cash-rich league. Malik has gathered 21 wickets in 13 matches so far at an economy rate of 8.94. Umran also became the youngest bowler to claim more than 20 wickets in one IPL season.
Call to focus on vision defects among kids
NEW DELHI: Dr VK Raju, Founder President of the Eye Foundation of America and renowned ophthalmologist, has said that it is important to prevent blindness and vision defects in children and to make everyone aware of eye care. He was speaking at the Paediatric Ophthalmology Conference 2022 conducted at GSL Medical College Rajahmundry where over 110 ophthalmologists participated. It was organised by Goutami Eye Institute along with Eye Foundation of America under the aegis of IMA Rajahmundry
RBI panel to review customer services
MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank of India under the chairmanship of former deputy governor BP Kanungo has constituted a committee for review of customer service standards in RBI regulated entities (REs) and for examining and reviewing the state of customer service in the REs and adequacy of customer service regulations. The mandate of the committee is also to suggest measures to improve customer service.
Ghebreyesus re-elected WHO chief
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND: WHO Member States on May 24 re-elected Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to serve a second five-year term as Director-General of the world’s leading public health agency. He was first elected in 2017. His re-election was confirmed during the 75th World Health Assembly in Geneva. He was the sole candidate. “I am humbled by the opportunity provided by Member States to serve a second term as WHO DirectorGeneral,” said Dr Tedros. “This honour, though, comes with great responsibility and I am committed to working with all countries, my colleagues around the world, and our valued partners, to ensure WHO delivers on its mission to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable.”
The vote was the culmination of an election process that began in April 2021 when Member States were invited to submit proposals for candidates for the post of DirectorGeneral. The WHO Executive Board, meeting in January 2022, nominated Dr Tedros to stand for a second term. Dr Tedros’s new mandate officially commences on August 16, 2022. A Director-General can be reappointed once, in accordance with World Health Assembly rules and procedures.
Infinity Learn buys startup Wizklub
NEW DELHI: Sri Chaitanya-backed ed-tech startup Infinity Learn announced that it has acquired Wizklub, a startup that builds skills for children aged 6-14 with High Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) and SmarTech programmes, for $10 million. Named ‘Infinity Futurz’, this vertical aims to help children develop active learning, critical thinking, innovation and the ability to use technology to solve real-world problems.
India opposes WTO process on fisheries
NEW DELHI: India has objected to a process followed by the chair of the fisheries subsidies negotiations at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) wherein information on ways to achieve a possible outcome was collected through a questionnaire from ambassadors of 50 countries in their personal capacities. Terming the process “grossly erroneous” that “lacks credibility”, New Delhi told the WTO that it was unclear how the samplings were done, which members were called for and the criteria used to select them.
Parekh reappointed as Infosys CEO & MD
BENGALURU: IT giant Infosys has announced that Salil Parekh has been reappointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) by the Board of Directors. His new term will be effective from July 1 this year. The reappointment is subject to approval by shareholders. Parekh has been the CEO and MD of Infosys since January 2018 and has led the company over the last four years. He has over 30 years of global experience in the IT services industry