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Nirmala Sitharaman presents Budget 2020: Top highlights

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the budget 2020. (Source: @FinMinIndia)

New Delhi (NVI): Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is delivering her second Budget speech amid expectations of relief for taxpayers and stimulus package to revive growth. The Finance Minister said the budget is “to boost the income and purchasing power of people.” She listed three core themes for the Budget — Aspirational India, Economic Development For All and A Caring Society.

Here we breakdown the budget for you as it unfolds:

  • To ease allotment of PAN, new process of instantly allotting PAN through Aadhaar will be brought.
  • FM announces health cess on import of medical equipment.
  • Custom duty raised on footwear and furniture: FM
  • Direct taxes are lowest, simplest and smoothest, says Sitharaman.
  • Tax on Cooperative societies proposed to be reduced to 22 per cent plus surcharge and cess, as against 30 per cent at present, says FM.
  • Govt proposes 100% tax concession to sovereign wealth funds on investment in infra projects
  • Anyone who pays 20 per cent tax for income between Rs 5 to 7.5 lakhs will have to pay only 10 per cent in the new regime, says FM. Those earning up to Rs 5 lakhs will not have to pay any income tax in the old regime as well as the new regime, she added.
  • Rs 30,757 crore for Union Terrritory of Jammu & Kashmir and Rs 5,958 crore for Union Terrritory of Ladakh announced by FM.
  • Govt proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC via IPO.
  • FM unveils new scheme to provide subordinate debt to MSMEs
  • Insurance cover for a depositor will be raised to Rs 5 lakh from Rs 1 lakh.
  • Rs 100 crore to be allocated for G20 preparations.
  • 9. An allocation of Rs 8,000 crore has been set up for the National Mission on Quantum Computing and Technology.
  • National security is the top priority of the government: FM
  • In large cities with population of over 1 million, clean air is a matter of concern. Govt proposes to encourage and incentivize states that are formulating plans for ensuring cleaner air. Rs 4,400 crore allocation for clean air.
  • Task force to be set up to recommend marriageable age for women, says Sitharaman
  • Five archaeological sites to be developed at iconic sites with on-site museums: FM Sitharaman
  • FM Nirmala Sitharaman says India has embraced sharing economy with aggregators displacing regular businesses. Analytics, IoT and AI are changing the world. A policy will bve set up to build data centre parks throughout the country. All public institutions at Gram Panchayat levels will be provided with digital connectivity. Fibre to home through BharatNet will link 100,000 Gram Panchayats in FY21 itself. An allocation of Rs 6,000 crore will be provided for BharatNet.
  • More Tejas-like trains, 100 more airports to be developed, says Nirmala Sitharaman.
  • Have identified suitable technology to eliminate manual cleaning of sewer systems and septic tanks: FM
  • Propose to provide Rs 35,600 crore for nutrition-related programmes in 2020-21: FM
  • FM proposes Rs 8,000 crore outlay over 5 years for National Mission of Quantum Technology and Application.
  • Opportunities for young engineers: Internship with urban local bodies.
  • One lakh gram panchayats will be connected to the optical fibre programme: FM
  •  Data is the new oil. We will soon roll out policy to enable private sector to build data centre parks throughout the country: FM
  • Sitharaman announces the introduction of ‘Ind-SAT’, an exam for Asian and African countries to help make India a higher education destination.
  • FM announces Rs 99,300 crore outlay for education sector in 2020-21 and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development.
  • Govt plans to expand gas grid, says FM
  • Allocation for Swachh Bharat for 2020-21 stands at Rs 12,300 crore
  • Rs 20,000 crore for the renewable energy sector announced by the Finance Minister
  • FM proposes setting up of a large solar-powered capacity alongside rail tracks
  • Delhi-Mumbai expressway and two other projects will be completed by 2023: FM
  • There is a huge demand for teachers, nurses, paramedical staff and care givers abroad. However, their skill-sets do not match standards and needs to be improved, says FM. A total of Rs 3000 crore will be given for skill development, she added.
  • Nirmala Sitharaman says Rs 3.6 lakh crore for Jal Jeevan Mission has been approved. This will look at augmenting local water ressouces, desalination, water harvesting and renewing older sources in FY21.
  • FM says gross enrollment of girls under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao is higher than boys. Here, she says that gross enrollment of girls is 94.32 percent in elementary levels, 81.32 percent in secondary level and 59.7 prercent in higher secondary level. She adds that women are a priority especially pregnant women and lactating women. More than 6 lakh anganwadi workers are equipped to upload status of more than 10 crore households This scale is unprecedented. Overall, FM says there are imperatives to lower maternal mortality rates. FM proposes task-force on six months on this matter. An allocation of Rs 35,600 crore for nutrion-related programmes in FY21. Further, Rs 28,600 crore will be allocated in FY21 by government for women-linked programmes.
  • There are 1 million out of poverty and we should be proud of it: Nirmala Sitharaman
  • Motto of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, and Sabka Vishwas’ implemented new programs: Sitharaman
  • GST has been the most historic reform: Nirmala Sitharaman
  • This Budget is woven around three prominent things – aspirational India to boost the standard of living; economic development for all; and building a humane and compassionate society
  • For every member of the schedule caste and schedule tribe, for every women, for every individual from minority section of the society, this budget aims to give wings to your aspirations.
  • This Budget is to boost the income of people and enhance their purchasing power: FM

Budget 2020 to boost income and purchasing power: Sitharaman

New Delhi (NVI): Presenting her second Budget in the Parliament today, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today said this budget is “to boost the income and purchasing power of people.” While starting her budget speech, Sitharaman also paid homage to late former finance minister Arun Jaitley and hailed him as “GST architect”.

As the budget unfolds, there are expectations of relief for taxpayers and stimulus package to revive growth.  The finance minister listed has three core themes for the Budget — Aspirational India, Economic Development For All and A Caring Society.

During her budget speech, Sitharaman focussed on a 16-point action plan for farmers and education. She said that fundamentals of economy are strong and inflation has been well contained, while banks cleaned up accumulated loans.

She further said during 2014-19, the government brought a paradigm shift in governance. She termed GST as a historic structural reform, saying it integrated the country economically.

Apart from this, the Budget will also highlight the initiatives taken by the government to revive the MSME sector.

Coronavirus: 324 Indians brought back; another AI flight to be sent today

New Delhi (NVI): An Air India flight carrying 324 Indians evacuated from Wuhan arrived in Delhi this morning and they were taken to two quarantine facilities where they will be monitored for any signs of the deadly coronavirus.

The evacuated Indian nationals, most of them students, were taken to Indo-Tibetan Border Police Chhawla camp in Delhi and an army facility at Manesar in Haryana for medical observation.

“Relieved to see AI 1349 return safely to #Delhi with 324 of our fellow citizens from #Wuhan in #China | Grateful to @MFA_China for their assistance as well as local authorities in #Hubei and @Wuhan | Thank you also to #AirIndia and our team in @EOIBeijing | Now for second flight,” said Indian ambassador to China Vikram Misri in a tweet today.

The government officials today said that another flight is being sent today to evacuate more Indians from the hot zone.

With respect to the second evacuation flight, the Indian Embassy also urged all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail the facility, to urgently contact them on hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or mail at [email protected] before 0800 hours today.

The Air Indian flight which departed from Delhi yesterday took off from Wuhan in the early hours of February 1, the Indian Embassy in China said in a tweet, adding that majority of passengers were Indian students.

The first Air India flight departed for Wuhan yesterday, carrying a team of five doctors from Health Ministry and one paramedical staff.

At least 259 people have died and 11,791 people have been infected in China by the new coronavirus, according to new figures from China’s health officials.

Temperature dips in national capital

New Delhi (NVI): Minimum temperature in Delhi today dropped to 5.7 degree celsius from 7.1 degree celsius recorded yesterday.

The maximum temperature today is expected to be around 22.0 degrees celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The weatherman stated that the temperature is expected to dip further over the next few days.

Meanwhile, the overall air quality in national capital today worsened, sliding into “poor” category from “moderate” category.

According to System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR),the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital stood at 215 which falls in the  “poor” category.

Coronavirus: Army sets up quarantine facility in Manesar

New Delhi (NVI): The Indian Army has created a facility near Haryana’s Manesar, on the outskirts of Delhi, where around 300 Indian students will be quarantined after their arrival from Wuhan, the epicenter of coronavirus outbreak in China.

A 423-seater special Air India aircraft has been sent to bring the Indians, especially students, from Wuhan.

At the Manesar facility, the students will be monitored for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members to watch for any signs of infection.

The students to be brought back from Chinese city Wuhan will be first screened at Delhi airport and then quarantined at Manesar.

If any individual is suspected to be infected, he/she will be shifted to the isolation ward at Base Hospital Delhi Cantonment (BHDC).

Screening at the airport will be done by a joint team of Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) and Airport Health Authority (APHO).

During the screening, they will be classified into three groups:

  1. Suspect Case: Individuals with any signs of fever and/or cough and/or respiratory distress will be directly transferred to BHDC.
  2. Close Contact: Any individual without symptoms but having visited a seafood/animal market or a health facility or having come into contact with a Chinese person with symptoms in the last 14 days will be escorted in an earmarked vehicle directly to the quarantine facility.
  3. Non Contact Case: Any individual without any symptom(s) or contact or who does not fit into either (a) or (b) will also be clubbed along with the close contact category and sent to the quarantine facility.

The facility at Manesar consists of accommodation barracks for the students, administrative areas and medical facility area. To prevent mass outbreak, the facility has been divided into sectors, each with a maximum capacity of 50 students. Each barrack has been further subdivided into barracks. The population of sectors will not be allowed to intermingle with each other.

Daily medical examination of all students will be done at the medical facility area and all the staff, health care workers and housekeeping staff must wear their personal protective equipment (PPE) at all times.

PPE consists of mask, eye shield, shoe cover, gown and gloves. Rest of the visitors and all students will wear a three layered mask at all times.

After 14 days, persons with no symptoms will be allowed to go home with their detailed documentation sent to the District/State surveillance units for further surveillance. Those found infected will be shifted to BHDC’s isolation ward for further medical exams and recovery.

Samples for viral confirmation will be sent to NCDC, Delhi and patients will be discharged only after clinical recovery and two successive negative samples tested for n-COV. Apart from playing games, watching TV and having meals together within a barrack, no one will be allowed to interact with the members of another barrack and definitely not another sector.

The facility will be administered by a nominated Officer In Charge (OIC) who will have under his command a Community Medicine Specialist, two Nursing Officers, a Lady Medical Officer and one Nursing Assistant. No civilian or serving personnel detailed to work inside the facility will be allowed to go outside unless compelled by extreme emergency situation.

The death toll due to coronavirus outbreak has mounted to 213 with the number of confirmed cases adding up to 9,692, China’s national authorities announced on Friday.

Nirbhaya: Court stays Feb 1 hangings  

New Delhi (NVI): A Delhi Court today stayed the execution of four convicts in the December 16, 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case until further orders.

The execution of four convicts– Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta– was scheduled to take place at 6 am tomorrow. Multiple petitions have been filed by the four men in their attempts to stall their execution.

The Delhi court’s stay on the execution of convicts comes hours after the Supreme Court dismissed a plea filed by one of the convicts seeking a review of its order dismissing his juvenility claim. The review was filed earlier in the day by Pawan Gupta.

Of the four convicts, Mukesh Kumar Singh has exhausted all his legal remedies, including the clemency plea which was dismissed by President Ram Nath Kovind on January 17 and the appeal against the rejection was thrown out by Supreme Court on Wednesday.

On December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old woman was gang-raped and assaulted inside a moving bus in South Delhi by six persons, before being thrown out on the road. She later died on December 29, 2012, at a hospital in Singapore.

Coronavirus outbreak likely to affect Indian exports to China

New Delhi (NVI) As the Chinese novel coronavirus epidemic spreads to a number of countries in the world, the global health concern has raised business anxieties, with a likely effect on exports and imports around the globe, including India.

Trade Finance firm Drip Capital believes that in the present case scenario the virus outbreak may have a snowball effect on Indian exports to China which have been growing in recent years.

“The country is among the top three countries India exports to. Indian exports to China grew 25.6% to $ 16.75 billion in FY 2018-19 from a year ago and were projected to grow around 4% for FY 2019-20. However, if the spread of the new Wuhan coronavirus 2019-nCoV forces a prolonged lockdown in China, retail consumption and raw material demand are expected to fall,” says Pushkar Mukewar, CO-CEO, Drip Capital.

Seafood exporters in Kerala are already feeling the pinch, and prices of commodities like soybean and cotton are also facing uncertainty, says the Finance firm Drip Capital CEO.

“China is a huge driver of international trade, and an extended lockdown of the country because of the outbreak is likely to cause trouble for exporters in India and elsewhere,” says Pushkar Mukewar.

However, the CEO hopes that this scare is short-lived and business returns to normal with flourishing trade in the long term.

On Thursday, exporters urged the government to review the possible impact of deadly Coronavirus on trade as China is one of the top trading partners for India.
The situation is also likely to impact domestic mobile manufacturers as they import certain components from China.

UNCCD to welcome countries for new Peace Forest Initiative

Representative image

New Delhi (NVI): Cooperation in the management of natural resources can offer countries recovering from violent conflict an opportunity to achieve stability and trust while re-building livelihoods and economies. To meet this need, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Korea Forest Service (KFS) have signed a unique global initiative to promote peace through land restoration.

This initiative will promote cooperation between countries to rehabilitate degraded land and forest in fragile and post-conflict locations while promoting peace and confidence.

Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the UNCCD and Chong-Ho Park, Minister of KFS, Republic of Korea, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish the framework for the new initiative.

Bridging the goals of peace-building and land restoration, KFS and UNCCD have joined forces to realize the common sustainable development targets, including Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN).

“The Initiative will help address some of the most challenging situations of transboundary management of shared natural resources while promoting peace and cooperation. UNCCD is excited to join forces with The Republic of Korea and other key partners to launch this promising new endeavor,” Thiaw said.

“We have now embarked on our journey. The PFI is an effective tool to promote cooperation on the restoration of degraded land and forest in conflict-affected areas. Republic of Korea is committed to making this endeavour a great success. Together with UNCCD and other partners, we will continue to work together for peace and prosperity,” said Chong-Ho Park.

Launched on September 10, 2019, during the 14th Conference of the Parties to the UNCCD in New Delhi, India, the PFI will function as a practical platform to facilitate collaboration on sustainable land and forest management in diverse environments.

The UNCCD Secretariat welcomes the expression of interest from countries willing to work together to make the Peace Forest Initiative a reality and contribute to LDN implementation through partnership building for peace and security.

About Peace Forest Initiative and Land Degradation Neutrality

Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) is a unique approach that balances the expected loss of productive land with the recovery of degraded areas. Today, over 120 countries with various economic and geographical conditions are successfully integrating voluntary LDN targets into their planning systems.

The PFI aims to forge a broad partnership engaging diverse stakeholders, including governments, civil society organizations, local communities, donors, technical experts and international organizations. The UNCCD secretariat will collaborate with partners including UN agencies, institutions and think tanks to deliver the objectives of the new initiative.

Nirbhaya case: Dummy execution held

New Delhi (NVI): Pawan Jallad, a hangman from the Meerut prison, conducted a dummy execution of 2012 Nirbhaya case convivts in Tihar jail today.

The hangman reported to the Tihar jail administration yesterday and is staying at the jail premises. Pawan, a third-generation hangman, tested the strength of ropes which will be used in hanging the four convicts tomorrow (February 1).

The four convicts– Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta– were convicted and sentenced to death for brutally raping a 23-year-old girl Nirbhaya in a moving bus on the intervening night of December 16, 2012 in south Delhi area.

#LATheKapoorWay: Los Angeles tourism partners with the Kapoor siblings

Sonam and Rhea Kapoor in Los Angeles. (Source: Instagram: sonamkapoor)
New Delhi (NVI): From shopping on famed Abbot Kinney in Venice and at Downtown L.A., to dining at world class restaurants like MTN, Los Angeles Tourism’s latest digital marketing campaign showcases the city’s phenomenal cultural, culinary, shopping and wellness offerings through the eyes of power siblings Sonam and Rhea Kapoor.
Building on its successful partnership with Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja in early 2019, the siblings duo are featured in a new collaboration, teasers of which are live on Sonam and Rhea’s social channels.
The multi-part series follows the siblings as they explore the diverse neighborhoods of Los Angeles. The sisters experienced their favorite parts of the city together. The campaign also captures them taking in spectacular sights at Hotel Erwin’s rooftop, discovering the tastes of L.A. at the Original Farmers Market, and indulging themselves at the luxurious Ciel Spa at the SLS Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Beverly Hills.
Content will run on Los Angeles Tourism’s owned channels, on Sonam and Rhea’s social media accounts, and through paid media partnerships.
“There is a natural affinity between Los Angeles and India thanks to our shared love of film. We wanted to utilize this campaign to build on that affinity and show prospective Indian travelers the diverse options they have to eat, play and shop in L.A. through the eyes of our mutual friends, Sonam and Rhea Kapoor,” stated Don Skeoch, Chief Marketing Officer for Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board.
“LA’s become like a second home to us. It’s just everything that I like about the States rolled into one package with sunshine and good weather around it,” said Rhea Kapoor.

“There is an outdoor vibe and so much emphasis on health, fitness, and good food. There is something for everybody,” said Sonam Kapoor.

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