12-13.12.21

Tripura govt gives nod for Buddhist university

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The Tripura government has given its approval for setting up a Buddhist university in Manu Bankul in Sabroom, officials said on Saturday.

The gave a Letter of Intent to Bahujana Hitaya Education Trust for setting up the university, they said. Students from 31 countries will get a chance to study as well as research Buddhist Literature, culture and tradition in the proposed varsity. Besides, there is also a plan to establish medical, technical and general degree colleges on the campus, they added.

Now, the organisation will have to prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for building necessary infrastructures at the proposed site at the earliest, he said. The government will bring a bill in the assembly for setting up the university once necessary facilities are built, he said. Sabroom MLA Sankar Roy said that a plot measuring 25 acres has been given to the Buddhist organisation to set up the varsity.

“If everything falls in the right place, the foundation stone of the project will be laid within a month or two,” he said.

At present, Tripura has three varsities — Tripura University, which is a central varsity, state-run MBB University and privately-owned ICFAI University.

Assam CM launches online civic service, distributes cesspool cleaners

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People of the state will now be able to avail municipal Services sitting at Home. Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday launched a host of online services including, procuring instant trade license, property tax assessment and payment and building permission.

He also distributed super sucker machines for the Guwahati under the Guwahati Smart City Project and truck-mounted cesspool cleaners. The CM also presented certificates, cash Awards and sanction letters to nine Urban Local Bodies, which had received awards under the Swachh Survekshan programme recently.

The State Government has been persistently working to enable people to enjoy government services 24 hours.

Govt nod to check dams on bridges

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The has approved Rs 60 crore for a new scheme to construct check Dams-cum-weirs on bridges and culverts built over various rivers to store adequate water during monsoon.

The works and rural development departments will build around 100 such check dams-cum-weirs across the state primarily on small bridges resting on raft foundations.

While provision for the scheme has already been made in the recent supplementary budget for 2021-22, the works and rural development departments have been asked to prepare the guidelines for its implementation.

Both the departments have been asked to submit the proposed location and drawing of check dams-cum-weirs to the Resources“>Water Resources department for more technical consultation.

Tamil Nadu government to name social media nodal officers to fact check all info

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With Social Media redefining dissemination of news, theDMK governmentproposed the nomination of social media nodal officers who will fact check messages, news, photos and visuals pertaining to every department on social media platforms likeTwitter,Instagram,Facebook,YouTubeandWhatAppgroups.

A communique in this regard has been sent to all secretaries, heads of departments and district collectors on Wednesday. Each department has been told to nominate three nodal officers. The move comes in the wake of instructions from the chief secretary to enhance the performance of the government. There was a meeting scheduled to take place under principal secretary I to the chief minister with these nodal officers on Friday, which has been put off, said a senior official. Each nodal officer will have to provide their WhatsApp number, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter account IDs to the information department.

The reference and press release sections of the information and public relations department will have to go through all print and visual media and make a note of criticism and negative news published or telecast regarding the government and forward the same to the respective secretary, head of the department and collector everyday.

Kerala: Tetrapod seawall project registers little progress

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The tendering oftetrapodseawall project at Chellanam has reached nowhere as the decision to award the contract to Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society (ULCCS), the only eligible bidder, is pending.

The estimated cost proposed by ULCCS in its bid was 13% higher than the tender estimate and the government is yet to approve it.
The delay in awarding the contract would delay the works, which is expected to be completed before the monsoon.

Earlier there were reports that ULCCS would bag the multi-crore project as the only other bidder, Thrissur District Labour Contract Cooperative Society (TDLCCS), got disqualified as they did not meet the eligibility criteria. Sources withKeralaIrrigation Development Corporation Ltd (KIIDC), which floated the tender, said that the estimated project cost proposed by ULCCS was around Rs 30 crore higher than the KIIDCs tender estimate of Rs 254.2 crore.

Amid the protests by the residents and allegations of delay in implementing a comprehensive solution to the sea erosion issues at Chellanam coastal village, KIIDC floated the tenders for the reformation of damaged sunken seawall using tetrapods by the end of October.

New-age tech to track govt contract vendors

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Amid the kickbacks controversy, the government has decided to use new-age technology to ensure transparency in the tendering process. This is to track every authenticated vendor/contractor before allocating new projects.

Over the years, incomplete or pending public projects have resulted in several private firms being blacklisted from applying for government tenders. Yet, the same companies shift their base to other states to apply afresh for new projects and co

ntinue to misuse public funds without adequate expertise or track record, sources say.
Using crypto technology, theCentre for Smart Governancehas developed a vendor blockchain that will keep a chronological record of every vendor/contractor who has registered on theKarnatakae-procurement portal or in any other state, and intends to bid for a project.

The CSG will try to get on board other state governments and tender-inviting agencies across the country, so that more stakeholders will utilise the blockchain.

Divi’s Labs Telangana’s most valuable company; 29 from state in top 500 list

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As many as 29 companies from , led by pharma major Divi’s Labs, have made their way to the first edition of theBurgundy Private Hurun India500 list of the most valuable companies in India.

Divi’s Labs, which has scored 33rd rank all-India with a value of Rs 1,36,699 crore, is followed by metals and mining player Hindustan Zinc at second spot among Telangana companies (35th all-India) with a value of Rs 1,31,598 crore and pharma major Dr Reddy’s Laboratories at third position (56th all-India) with a value of Rs 77,540 crore.

Interestingly, with a combined value of over Rs 3.45 lakh crore, these three companies alone accounted for more than half the cumulative Rs 6.9 lakh crore value of the 29 companies from the state to have made the cut. Of these 29 companies, 15 are from the healthcare sector.

When it comes to companies with the highest net profits, two Hyderabad-based companies have made it to the list of top 20 – Hindustan Zinc at 13th spot with net profit of Rs 7,980 crore and Aurobindo Pharma at 19th spot with Rs 5,389 crore.

Covid-19: Andhra Pradesh crosses 95% first dose vaccine milestone

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Andhra Pradeshachieved another milestone on Sunday by administering the first dose of theCovid-19vaccine to at least 95% of the eligible beneficiaries in the state. The state gave about 6.43 crore vaccine doses by 6 pm on Sunday, including 2.67 crore second dose recipients.

The first dose coverage has exceeded 95% as the state inoculated 3.76 crore people with at least one dose out of the estimated 3.95 crore eligible Population. The second dose coverage currently stands at about 67%.

Meanwhile, the state reported 160 newCovid-19cases on Sunday, taking the cumulative caseload to 20,74,868. The toll increased to 14,466 as one more patient succumbed to the pandemic in Krishna district. Altogether, 201 patients were declared cured on Sunday.
Andhra Pradesh conducted 30,859 Covid-19 tests on Sunday and detected 160 new cases. This translates to a daily case positivity rate of 0.5%.

CII prods Goan companies to promote quality control

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The Confederation of Indian (CII) has stressed on the need for Goan manufacturing firms to focus on quality control and problem-solving skills among employees. Location head at Siemens Ltd, Goa, Mahendra Wani, said that widespread use of quality tools among companies in Goa will ultimately help them to manufacture quality products.

Circles are formed of employees working together in an operation who meet at intervals to discuss problems of quality and to devise solutions for improvements. Employees who participate in Quality Circle usually receive training in formal problem-solving methodssuch as brain-storming, Pareto principle and cause-and-effect diagramsand are then encouraged to apply these methods either to specific or general company problems.

Minister to launch MEMU trains from Chalisgaon to Dhule in Maharashtra

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Minister of state for railways Raosaheb DadaraoPatil Danvewill flag offChalisgaon Dhule MEMU train service from Chalisgaon RAILWAY station through video link.

Salient features of Chalisgaon Dhule MEMU Train include bench-type cushioned seats to enhance ease of journey, each MEMU coach with double-leaf sliding doors and LED lighting, eco-friendly bio toilets have been provided in each MEMU coach, energy efficient LED Light fittings have been provided in each coach, the eight-coach rake has higher acceleration and deceleration which saves time and it has energy-efficient electric traction propulsion system.

Amid the festive sales last month, traders and experts noticed a greater demand for smart appliances, Artificial Intelligence-incorporated household gadgets and virtual assistants.
A leading air-conditioner brand initiated a nationwide poll recently to gauge the shift in the preferences of Indian consumers triggered by the pandemic. It revealed that in the Home appliance segment, comfort, convenience, cooling, Health and technology are priorities.
Around 82% of the respondents felt smart home appliances can save time while preparing for festivities at home, while 55% said they considered buying these appliances during this festive season to manage household chores.