GOVT APPROVES CONSTRUCTION OF OVER 52,000 MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSES

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation has approved construction of over 52,000more affordable houses with an investment of around 3,000 crore rupees.

With this, the Ministry has so far approved construction of a total of around 13 lakh 43 thousand houses for urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban).

An official release said, Madhya Pradesh will get over 25 thousand houses, Chattisgarh around nine thousand, Maharashtra 3 thousand 800, Nagaland around two thousand 500, Puducherry 720 and Daman 48 houses.

PM MODI TO INAUGURATE VARIOUS PROJECTS IN VARANASI TOMORROW

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation of Mahamana Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya Cancer Hospital and a Centenary Super Specialty Hospital at BHU campus in Varanasi tomorrow. During his day-long visit to the city, Prime Minister will also lay the foundation of an ESI hospital for Varanasi.

The new ESI hospital will have 150 beds. He will also lay the foundation of a BRS health and Research Centre. Prime Minister will also take part in the ongoing Rashtriya Sankriti Mahotasava being organized at BHU campus by the Ministry of Culture. According to official sources, he may witness a theatrical show on historical figure “Chanakya”.

Prime Minister will also visit Kabir nagar area and will inspect the work of underground electric cabling. The project is being implemented in the city under Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS). Prime Minister will also inaugurate Trade Facility Centre and Craft Museum. Later, in the afternoon Mr. Modi will meet party workers and address BJP booth level workers meet at DLW ground.

The meeting is going to be significant in view of forthcoming UP assembly elections. In view of Prime Minister’s visit to his constituency elaborate security arrangements have been made in the city.

CABINET APPROVES CREATION OF ÍNDIAN ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES

The Cabinet today gave its approval to the Cadre review and formation of a new service in the name of Índian Enterprise Development Services (IEDS) in the Office of Development Commissioner (MSME), Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). The creation of the new cadre and change in structure will not only strengthen the organization but will also help to achieve the vision of Startup India, Stand-up India and Make in India.

The measure will enhance the capacity and efficiency of the organization and also help in achieving growth in MSME sector through a focused and dedicated cadre of technical officers.

The Cabinet also approved the Cadre Review of Indian Telecommunications Service (ITS), Group A. The proposal has the following salient features: The number of Duty posts has been fixed as 853. One apex level post of Director General of Telecom will be created.

A special diminishing reserve has been provided for posting of ITS officers in BSNL and MTNL. The approval would result in strengthening of the cadre structure both at the DoT headquarters and in the field units on the basis of functional requirement. It will also meet the requirement of skilled manpower in BSNL/MTNL. This will reduce the existing stagnation of ITS officers

The Cabinet also cleared sale of part of surplus and vacant land at Pimpri in Pune, Maharashtra for meeting the liabilities of Hindustan Anti-biotics Ltd (HAL). The proposal includes, sale of surplus and vacant land of about 87.70 acres of HAL to meet the net liabilities of 821.17 crore rupees. Sale of HAL land at Pimpri in Pune, Maharashtra will facilitate mitigation of sufferings and critical condition of the employees.

RS 50,000 FINE ON AIRLINES IF THEIR PLANES EMPTY HUMAN WASTE IN AIR: NGT

National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered to impose a fine of 50,000 rupees on airlines whose aircraft empty toilet tanks in air while landing and splattering human waste on houses. The NGT directed aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation, DGCA to issue a circular to all airlines, whose planes are involved in the act, to pay 50 thousand rupees as environmental compensation.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Swatanter Kumar passed a number of directions on a plea of a retired army officer alleging dumping of human excreta by aircraft over residential areas near the IGI Airport in New Delhi.

The tribunal asked the DGCA to issue circular to all ground handling services and airlines to ensure that they do not release waste from human waste tanks while landing or anywhere near the terminals of the IGI Airport.

It asked DGCA to also issue directions that aircraft on landing shall be subjected to surprise inspection to see that human waste tanks are not empty. Normally, the waste in the aircraft tanks are disposed of by ground handling personnel once the plane lands.

GOVT ANNOUNCES RS 207 CRORE PROJECT FOR PROTECTION OF MAJULI ISLAND

Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region Dr Jitendra Singh has announced to provide 207 crore rupees for protection and development of the world heritage island Majuli located along river Brahmaputra in Assam. Mr Singh said yesterday, this is a serious effort by the Ministry for the upliftment of the world famous scenic island. Dr Singh said, the amount will be spent primarily for safeguarding the land loss due to erosion and to protect the 80 kilometer length of the bank line on the right bank of river Brahmaputra along Majuli island.

Largest river island of the world, Majuli district , covers an area of around 340 miles. Nearly 1 lakh 60 thousand people reside at the Majuli river island which is one of the prime tourists destination of North East. The island is also the hub of neo-Vaishnavite cultures initiated by Srimanta Shankardeva. Chief Minister Sarbanand Sonowal already decided to promote Majuli as a spiritual, cultural and heritage centre in the world stage. It is also trying to get a place in UNESCO’s world cultural heritage site. 207 crore rupees allocated by the DoNER ministry would be spent for safeguarding the land loss due to erosion. This is an effort by the Centre for the upliftment of the island.

YRGYZSTAN INVITES INVESTMENT FROM INDIA

Describing Kyrgyzstan as a heaven for investments its President Almazbek Atambayev invited Indian businesses to invest in the country, saying it could serve as a gateway to the entire Central Asian region.

Atambayev promised protection to those investing in Kyrgyzstan, observing that businesses in the country will be protected irrespective of whoever becomes the President. The President also said that it is a small country but is the key to the gate of Central Asia.

India and Kyrgyzstan yesterday firmed up broad contours of pacts covering a range of areas to combat the challenge of terrorism, extremism and radicalism.

In their comprehensive talks, Modi and Atambayev also decided to strengthen ties in areas of defence, security, mining, IT, agriculture and energy.

MOLTEN JET STREAM DISCOVERED IN EARTH’S CORE

Scientists have discovered molten jet stream within the Earth’s molten iron core

Data obtained from three European satellites called Swarm

The satellites launched in 2013 with the goal of studying Earth’s magnetic field

The molten jet stream, an accelerating band of molten iron circling North Pole

It moves about 40 km per year, currently in a westward direction

Speed is three times faster than normal outer-core speeds

Thousands of times faster than rate at which Earth’s tectonic plates move

INDIA RANKS 4TH IN GLOBAL WIND POWER INSTALLED CAPACITY INDEX

India ranked 4th with cumulative installed wind power generation capacity of 28,279 MW in 2016,in the Global Wind Power Installed Capacity index

Top 3 positions : China, USA and Germany

Government is aimed to increase share of clean energy through new and renewable energy in India to meet Energy security, Electricity shortages, Energy access and Climate change

INDIA SIGNS OPEN SKIES AGREEMENT WITH SIX COUNTRIES

Open Skies Agreement signed by India with six countries at the International Civil Aviation Negotiations (ICAN), 2016

ICAN held in Nassau, Bahamas from December 5-9, 2016

6 countries that signed Open Skies Agreement was Jamaica, Guyana, Czech Republic, Finland, Spain and Sri Lanka

To allow unlimited number of flights to six metro airports namely Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai

Shri R.N. Choubey, Secretary, Civil Aviation led the Indian Delegations at the negotiation

India agreed with Oman to increase the entitlements with 6,258 seats and with Saudi Arabia to increase the capacity by 8000 seats per week

India signed New Air Service Agreement with the Jamaica and Guyana belonging

TATA CLIQ LAUNCHES TATA CLIQ LUXURY

Tata Group’s e-commerce platform Tata CLiQ today said it has launched a premium and luxury fashion and lifestyle destination, Tata CLiQ Luxury.

luxury.tatacliq.com, will house a wide range of apparel and accessories for men and women by luxury and bridge-to-luxury brands like Hugo Boss, Armani Jeans, Coach, Furla, Tumi, G-Star, Michael Kors and EA-UG to begin with, a statement said here.

“Tata CLiQ Luxury will for the first time provide luxury customers across the country, access to authentic merchandise directly from top international bridge-to-luxury and luxury brands,” Ashutosh Pandey, CEO of Tata CLiQ, said.

“We aim to leverage the legacy of the Tata Group, which has set the standard for luxury and sterling service with marquee names, to create a gateway to high-end fashion, exquisite products and a great experience,” he added.

He indicated that access to luxury brands is scarce due to the limited availability of premium retail real-estate. With the launch of this luxury platform, Tata CLiQ aims to provide consumers with a curated assortment of the best brands with the most authentic brand experience, the statement said.

The ecosystem will be complimented by robust delivery network across 6,000 pin codes in India, original warranties and guarantees, superlative service support, and no-questions-asked return policy, it added.

JUBILANT RECALLS 1.5K BOTTLES OF METHYLPREDNISOLONE TABS IN US

Jubilant Cadista Pharmaceuticals Inc, part of the Jubilant Group, is recalling over 1,500 bottles of glucocorticoid Methylprednisolone tablets in the US market due to incorrect labelling.

Jubilant Cadista Pharmaceuticals Inc is recalling 1,512 bottles of Methylprednisolone tablets USP 16 mg, 50-count bottles on account of incorrect labelling, latest Enforcement Report by the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has said.

The reason for the recall is, “Labelling: Incorrect or Missing Lot and/or Exp Date: incorrect expiration date of 02/0218 is printed on the container label instead of the correct expiration date of 02/2018,” it added.

The voluntary ongoing nationwide and Puerto Rico recall is a class III recall, the report said. As per the FDA, a class III recall is initiated in “a situation in which use of or exposure to a violative product is not likely to cause adverse health consequences”.

Glucocorticoid is a hormone that predominantly affects the metabolism of carbohydrates and to a lesser extent, fats and proteins.

AIBOC TO PROTEST INVESTIGATIVE ROLE BEING THRUSTED ON BANKS

All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC) has registered a protest to RBI on bank officers being assigned investigative role for customers depositing in excess of Rs 5,000, and demanded complete withdrawal of the order as the staff are facing public wrath.

Even as RBI partially modified its deposit guidelines, the union will be holding demonstrations all over the country in front of Reserve Bank of India offices later today to press for withdrawal of the notification.

The RBI today modified guidelines saying KYC compliant account holders can deposits more than Rs 5,000 in old currency notes without being questioned by bank officials.

Earlier this week, the RBI issued a notification directing banks to conduct due diligence of customers who wish to deposit more than Rs 5,000 in old currency till December 30.

“The credit in such cases shall be afforded only after questioning tenderer, on record, in the presence of at least two officials of the bank, as to why this could not be deposited earlier and receiving a satisfactory explanation,” RBI had said.

“The instructions issued vide the RBI communication dated December 19 must be withdrawn forthwith as the banker shall not carry out the duties of CBI/ED/IB at the busy counters,” AIBOC General Secretary Harvinder Singh said in a representation to RBI Governor.

RINL LOGS INTO SOLAR SPACE WITH VISHAKHAPATNAM PLANT

The government today announced inauguration of 5-mw solar power plant by RINL at a cost of Rs 33 crore, a move seen as the state-owned company’s foray into the solar sector.

Steel Secretary Aruna Sharma inaugurated the solar plant in presence of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd CMD P Madhusudan, Steel Joint Secretary Urvilla Khati and directors of the company in Vishakhapatnam yesterday, the steel ministry said in a statement.

“RINL has joined other major corporates in harnessing solar power with this 5-mw Ground Waste Solar Power Plant on its premises,” the statement said.

Sharma commended the RINL management for foraying into solar energy in tune with the government’s thrust to tap renewable sources.

She said the role of renewable power has been assuming increasing significance in recent times towards the country’s energy security, the statement said.

INDIA’S IRAN OIL IMPORTS SLIDE 19% IN NOVEMBER, SAUDI REGAINS TOP SUPPLIER SLOT

India’s oil imports from Iran fell 19 per cent in November from a record high the previous month after regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iraq raised sales to the world’s third-biggest oil consumer, regaining their positions as the top two suppliers.

Shipments from Tehran were about 620,000 barrels per day (bpd) oil in November, according to ship tracking data and a report compiled by Thomson Reuters Oil Research and Forecasts. That was down from 765,500 bpd in October, but well above 138,100 bpd in November 2016.

The November drop came before OPEC members and other global producers agreed to cut output in a bid to bolster weak oil prices. Iran, a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), had been initially hesitant to cut production, but as Saudi Arabia — OPEC’s largest producer — agreed to bear the lion’s share of reductions, the landmark deal was agreed at the end of last month.

Supplies from Iran to India more than doubled in January-November to 468,900 bpd from 205,900 bpd in the same period last year, the data showed.

Overall, India imported an average 4.28 million bpd of crude in the January-November period of 2016, up 7.6 per cent from 3.98 million bpd a year ago.

RELIANCE COMMUNICATION SIGNS BINDING PACT WITH BROOKFIELD FOR $1.6 BN TOWER STAKE SALE

Anil Ambani led Reliance Communications on Wednesday signed a deal with Brookfield Group to sell a 51% stake in the telecom company’s tower unit, Reliance Infratel, for Rs 11,000 crore.

The all cash deal will be used to reduce the firm’s debt. RCom’s previously announced wireless business merger with Aircel and the latest deal with Brookfield infrastructure will together reduce the company’s overall debt by Rs. 31,000 crore.

RCom’s telecom towers will be demerged into a separate new company that will be 100% owned and independently managed by Brookfield Infrastructure. This will make the new firm the second largest independent and operator-neutral towers company in India after Indus Towers.

ET reported this deal on Wednesday. RCom is selling the assets as part of its efforts to reduce debt, which on a net basis was Rs 42,071 crore at the end of June. According to the statement, RCom will also receive Class B non-voting shares in the new tower company, providing 49% future economic upside in the towers business based on certain conditions, which means that the telco will enjoy certain information and other rights, but will not be involved directly or indirectly in the management and operations of the new company.

The firm expects ‘significant future value creation from the B Class shares, based on growth in tenancies arising from increasing 4G rollout by all telecom operators and fast accelerating data consumption’, as per the official statement.

AFTER JET AIRWAYS, INDIGO ANNOUNCES DISCOUNT

After Jet AirwaysBSE -0.47 %, IndiGo has too launched discount sale on domestic routes. IndiGo Sale, which was announced today and will continue till December 25, 2016, is offering fares as low as Rs 999 one way. Passengers can book for travel between January 9,2017, and April 15, 2017.

IndiGo discount sale comes after Jet launched a three-day sale announcements on domestic flights for tickets booked starting December 20, 2016. Other airlines are also expected to announce discount sales, post these discounts.

STATE-RUN BANKS WANT HIGHER CAPITAL SUPPORT FROM GOVERNMENT IN FY18

State-run lenders on Tuesday made a case for higher capital support from the government in FY18, stating that there may be an increase in bad loans. The demand was supported by the Reserve Bank of India.

Banks and other financial institutions further sought an extension of the 60-day period given by RBI for repayment of housing, car, farm and other loans worth up to Rs 1 crore before classifying them as substandard. The relaxation was provided in view of the cash crunch due to demonetisation. “Normal business has been impacted due to demonetisation and mostly lending towards small businesses.

There can be loan defaults,” said one of the members who attended the pre-budget meeting of heads of banks and financial institutions with finance minister Arun Jaitley. The loan classification relaxation is also available to entities running working capital accounts with any bank with the sanctioned limit of Rs 1crore or less.

In a statement, the finance ministry said finance minister Jaitley noted that the current financial year is not a conventional one as many major reform decisions have been taken. Jaitley said that he doesn’t see any serious challenges as far as structural changes are concerned.

“It was suggested that there is need for recapitalization of banks in the current financial year 2016-17 as well as in the next financial year 2017-18. There is need for full tax exemption for NPA (non-performing assets) provisioning by the banks keeping in view their profitability,” the finance ministry noted in its statement.

Gross NPAs for public and private sector banks were at around Rs 6 lakh crore as of June 2016. Under the Indradhanush roadmap announced last year, the government will infuse Rs 10,000 crore in staterun lenders in 2017-18. In this fiscal, the government has allocatedRs 22,915 crore for 13 state-owned banks. Of this, 75% has already been released to these banks.

CARLYLE, TWO OTHERS EMERGE FINAL BIDDERS FOR GE STAKE IN SBI CARD

Global buyout funds Warburg Pincus, Carlyle and Japan’s financial services group Credit Saison are the final bidders for GE’s stakes in SBI Card, the credit card joint venture between the US-based conglomerate and India’s largest lender State Bank of India. The business which is majority owned by GE is being valued at about $800 million, said three people with direct knowledge of the matter. “The final bids have been submitted and a decision will be taken soon. The announcement of stake sale is likely to be made in January,” said one of the persons involved in the deal.

According to sources, the deal that was pursued by many domestic and global suitors, values the credit card business at about $800-850 million. The business is divided into two parts —one that deals with marketing and distribution, SBI Cards and Payments, and the back office and technology arm GE CapitalBSE 0.18 % Business Processes Management Services. While GE holds 40% stake in the first entity, it holds 60% in the latter.

“Going by the ask (valuation expection), GE is expected to make about $300-350 million from the deal,” said another person involved in the matter. After it recalibrated its global strategy, GE decided to sell its non-core financial services businesses it has worldwide and focus on its core strengths. Global investment bank Morgan Stanley is advising GE on the process while Barclays is advising SBI.

Emails sent to the spokespersons of Carlyle, Warburg Pincus and Credit Saison did not elicit any response till the time of going to press. A spokesperson for GE in an emailed response said, “GE Capital and SBI are jointly engaged to identify the buyer of GE Capital’s stake in the credit card JV entities. The process is ongoing and there are multiple parties shortlisted. We will share details when the process concludes.”

Started in 1998, SBI Card has more than 4 million users and is expected to add another million by next year, news reports say. Growing at around 30% every year, SBI Card now commands around 15-18% of market share in India. There are around 24 million credit card users in India as on March 31, 2016.

NASA ORBITER DETECTS INFANT VERSIONS OF MARTIAN ‘SPIDERS’

Using NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) data, researchers have detected cumulative growth of erosion-carved troughs that may be infant versions of larger features known as Martian “spiders,” which are radially patterned channels found only in the south polar region of the Red Planet.

The troughs are resulting from the same thawing-carbon-dioxide process believed to form the spider-like features, the researchers said.

DEFENCE MINISTER MANOHAR PARRIKAR COMMISSIONS INS CHENNAI INTO INDIAN NAVY

Marking the completion of the crucial Project 15A of the Indian Navy, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar commissioned the newest indigenously-built destroyer INS Chennai into the force on Monday.

“This is a historic day for the Indian Navy,” Parrikar said, lauding the indigenously designed and constructed, Kolkata-class guided missile destroyer built by Mazagaon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd. (MDL) in Mumbai.

Present on the occasion was Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba, as also top officers of Western Naval Command and other dignitaries.

While INS Kolkata was the first ship in this class commissioned on 16 August, 2014, the second, INS Kochi, was commissioned on 30 September, 2015.

After the commissioning, INS Chennai will be under the operational and administrative control of Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command.

PATHANKOT ATTACK WAS CODE-NAMED ‘NIKAAH’

The National Investigation Agency filed a charge sheet on Monday against Jaishe-Mohammed founder Masood Azhar and three others for the January 1 attack on Air The Force Station Pathankot, detailing the conspiracy hatched in Pakistan.

The NIA charge sheet says that the conspiracy was “not limited to Masood Azhar”, hinting at the hand of Pakistani authorities.

It also named his brother and his deputy, Abdul Rauf Asghar, Shahid Latif of Gujranwala, Pakistan, and Kashif Jan, the main handler of the four killers. Training camps in Pakistan and POK were set up for recruit ment and training of terror ists, who underwent extensive motivational, physical, military and tactical training regimen before they were radicalised and prepared for jihad,” says the NIA charge sheet on the attack on the Pathankot airbase.

US NAVY TEST FIRES RAYTHEON BUILT SM-6 MISSILE

US Navy has test-fired Raytheon developed two Standard Missile-6 Dual I guided missiles, intercepting a medium-range ballistic missile target at sea in its final seconds of flight.

The SM-6 is the new Sea-Based Terminal variant of the company’s versatile missile portfolio. It was tested from the USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53) during a recent test event,

The SM-6 Dual I achieved initial operating capability in 2016, and is on track to achieve final operating capability. It was first tested in a successful flight test mission in August 2015.

“This test showcased the flexibility of SM-6 by providing both anti-air warfare and ballistic missile defense from sea,” said Dr. Taylor W. Lawrence, president of Raytheon Missile Systems. “Combined with its anti-surface warfare capabilities, the SM-6 will play a significant role in protecting U.S. and Allied forces at sea and ashore.”

INDIA, KYRGYZSTAN TO HAVE JOINT MOUNTAIN TRAINING CENTER

After having a joint High Altitude Bio-Medical Research Centre, India and Kyrgyzstan are constructing a Kyrgyz-Indian Mountain Training center.

While the former was used for identifying markers for screening of people for high altitude resistance, the latter would be hosting joint mountain training exercises.

India has been operating from one of the highest battlefields in the World – the Siachen Glacier and Nathu La in Sikkim – and has been keen to augment the capability of its troops based on research.

The Centre has been used by India to study acclimatization at heights above 10,000 feet.

The Mountain Training Centre was announced on Tuesday in a joint statement issued during the state visit of Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev to India.

This is the second visit from a Central Asian country within a span of a week. “India and Kyrgyzstan are jointly constructing the Kyrgyz-Indian Mountain Training Centre in the city of Balykchi, in Issyk-Kul District of Kyrgyzstan.

This Centre will provide instruction and training for personnel of the Armed Forces of the Kyrgyz Republic as well as host Kyrgyz-Indian joint mountain training exercises,”

INDO-US JOINT WORKING GROUP ON JET ENGINE MEETS

The US have held yet another round of talks on possible collaboration in jet engine technology as both sides inch closer on the issue of defence cooperation.

The Joint Working Group on Jet Engine Technology met last week at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base at Ohio.

American Ambassador here Richard Verma said both sides had “productive discussions” for future collaboration.

However, sources said that India, which has not been able to get requisite power from its indigenous Kaveri engine for fighter aircraft, is seeking “hot engine” technology which the US considers as the crown jewel in the jet engine technology.

The sources said that the US is willing to help with the “cold engine” technology.

The new engine is likely to be for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) which is a single-seater, twin-engine fifth-generation stealth multi-role fighter planned by DRDO.

APOLLO MUNICH HEALTH INSURANCE PICKS UP ‘BEST HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY’ AWARD

The forum recognises the efforts taken by Apollo Munich Health Insurance to take the nation closer to the vision of a healthy India.

Speaking about this recent award, Antony Jacob, CEO, Apollo Munich Health Insurance said, “The India Health and Wellness Summit and Awards is a forum that brings together decision-makers, community leaders, innovators, and influencers from the government and the industry to honour the efforts of those organizations that work towards improving people’s health in India.”

“We are privileged and thrilled to receive this award from an eminent jury.

This recognition not only corroborates our efforts in creating an industry benchmark, but also encourages us to continue our endeavour to uncomplicate and simplify the insurance business to benefit the larger population,”

ANDY MURRAY NAMED BBC SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR 2016 IN RECORD-BREAKING THIRD TRIUMPH

The British world number one, the overwhelming favourite before the event, won the public vote ahead of 15 other candidates after a year in which he reached the pinnacle of the tennis ranking, winning at Wimbledon for the second time and becoming the first person in his sport to win two gold medals.

Alistair Brownlee finished second in the public vote whilst Nick Skelton came third.

Victory for Murray makes him the first person to ever win the award three times – only Henry Cooper, Nigel Mansell and Damon Hill had also done so twice.

RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD CONFERS THE DIGITAL INDIA AWARDS 2016

Minister for Communications and Information Technology and Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday presented Digital India Awards to the winners.

Digital innovation along with E-Governance initiatives of Government Ministries and Departments across India were evaluated under various categories.

Three awards Platinum, Gold and Silver were presented in each category to the winners shortlisted from the nominations received under each category.

The categories included Exemplary Online Service, Open Data Champion, Most Innovative Citizen Engagement, Outstanding Digital Initiative by Local body, Best Mobile App, Web Ratna Ministry/ Department, Web Ratna State/ UT, Web Ratna-District.

RAVINDRA JADEJA PROPELLED TO NO 2 ON ICC’S TEST BOWLER RANKINGS AFTER MAIDEN 10-WICKET HAUL

Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja made it a rare instance of two India bowlers topping the ICC Test rankings after the left-arm spinner’s maiden 10-wicket match haul against England in the Chennai Test propelled him to the second position.Jadeja’s performance has earned him 66 points and brought him within eight points of star off-spinner Ashwin, who has already been occupying the number one position.This is just the second time the top two spots in the bowlers chart is occupied by India players, with the pair emulating left-arm spinner Bishan Singh Bedi and leg-spinner Bhagwath Chandrasekhar, who were ranked one and two in 1974.Jadeja grabbed 10 for 154 in the fifth and final Test and finished with 26 wickets in the five-match series, while Ashwin ended with 28 wickets as India completed a 4-0 series victory over England, culminating with an innings and 75 runs win in ChennaiJadeja, who leapfrogged Josh Hazlewood, James Anderson, Dale Steyn and Rangana Herath, has also gained a place to reach his career-best third rank in the list of all-rounders, which is also headed by Ashwin.

JOLLY ROVERS IN SEMIFINALS

Jolly Rovers CC edged out Modamamba CC by five runs, with an all-round show by G. Anil Reddy in the quarterfinals of the D. Sekhar Rao Memorial cricket tournament here on Tuesday.olly Rovers CC 190 for six in 20 overs (G. Anil Reddy 62, Ch. Krishna 38, M. Kanaka Raju 33) bt Modamamba CC 185 for six in 20 overs (S. Vinay Kumar 39, A. Appala Raju three for 41, G. Anil Reddy three for 41); BMCC 156 for seven in 20 overs (T. Raju 51 n.o., M. Pundarikaksha 30) lost to Robin CC 157 for four in 18 overs (Md. Taheer Hussain 57, K. Krishna Murthy 42 n.o.); Sarada CC 170 for seven in 20 overs (M. Bhanu Prakash 38, P. Gowri Shankar 34, K. Bhanu Chandra three for 27) bt Solos CC 136 in 18.3 overs (G. Vijaysekhar 43, K. Atchibabu three for 25); Royal CC 151 for eight in 20 overs (K.L. Bhaskar 68) bt Classic CC 147 for seven in 20 overs (P. Pavan Sai 49, P. Varun 49).

VIMALA WOMEN SET RELAY RECORD

Vimala, Thrissur, set a new meet record in the women’s 4x100m relay on the second day of the Calicut University inter-collegiate athletics meet here on Tuesday.M.V. Jilna, M. Sugina, Amala Mathew and Sruthi Lakshmi broke the record with a time of 47.28s. The previous mark — 47.50s —was also in the name of Vimala, set in 2010-11.1. Jithin Vijayan (Christ), 2. A.G. Rakhil (Sree Krishna), 3. A.K. Unais (Christ), (10.90s). 400m: 1. Vishnu N. Nair (Sree Krishna), 2. N.H. Muhammed Fayis (EMEA), 3. V. Arun (St. Thomas), (48.19s). 1500m: 1. P.R. Rahul (VTB), 2. R. Ranjith (Govt., Kozhinjapara), 3. Amal Thomas (Govt., Kodencheri), (4:09.2). 10,000m: 1. P.M. Sanjay (Govt. Arts, Pathiripala), 2. Bijay (Christ), 3. C. P. Ajeesh (Sree Krishna), (33:10.30). High jump: 1. V.V. Ashwan (Christ), 2. P.K. Abdul Latheef (Sree Krishna), 3. P.S. Devanand (Christ), (1.96m).