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Congress accused the Centre on Wednesday of collecting more than Rs 36 lakh crore from people's pockets through petroleum products in the last five years. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that instead of increasing funds for welfare schemes, the Narendra Modi government has continuously reduced allocation by «manipulating data and tampering with facts». «By imposing excessive taxes, duties and cess on petrol and diesel, the Modi government has looted lakhs and crores of rupees from the common people. According to the answer to a question asked in Parliament, the government has collected more than Rs 36 lakh crore from people's pockets in the last 5 years,» Kharge said in a post on X. «This government is an expert in closing down old schemes, sometimes changing the names of Congress schemes and calling them new and sometimes trying to garner accolades by changing the names of its own schemes repeatedly.

unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology domain on Wednesday announced the successful delivery of a «one-of-its-kind» logistics drone to the Indian Army, aimed at enhancing its capabilities in challenging terrains. The Sabal 20 logistics drone has been manufactured by EndureAir Systems. The firm announced the «successful delivery of one-of-its-kind Sabal 20 Logistics Drone to the Indian Army», saying it marks a «significant milestone» in enhancing the logistics capabilities of the defence forces operating in challenging terrains, according to a statement issued by the company. The aviation technology company was incubated on the corridors of IIT-Kanpur in 2018, with the objective to provide world-class drone technology that is best suited for both defence and civilian applications, it said.

International Space Station (ISS) reported a rancid odor when they opened the hatch of Russia's Progress cargo ship, which had just eventually docked, reported Futurism. Kelly O. Humphries from NASA stated that inquiries about the smell should be directed to Roscosmos which is the Russian space agency, though; Roscosmos has not commented anything on the issue. According to Futurism, several initial assessments suggested that the odor might be due to ‘outgassing’ from the cargo, while, on the other hand, Russian sources pointed to potential contamination from the Poisk docking mechanism. Also Read: Queer on streaming: Is the Daniel Craig movie available to watch on OTT?

tariffs once Donald Trump takes office, the question remains on if the federal government would issue retaliatory tariffs like they did during the previous trade spat between the two countries.In 2018, Trump imposed a 25-per cent tariff on steel and 10-per cent tariff on aluminum products amid ongoing negotiations of a new North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).In response, Canada released a list of retaliatory tariffs on items imported from the U.S.

P Chidambaram on Wednesday moved the Delhi High Court challenging the cognisance of money laundering charges against him by a trial court in the INX Media case and argued the mandatory sanction to prosecute him wasn't obtained. Senior counsel N Hariharan appearing for the Congress leader argued that in 2021, when the trial court took cognisance of the offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) following the filing of a chargesheet, requisite sanction was not been obtained by the ED for prosecuting him in the case. It was argued that since Chidambaram was a public servant at the time when the alleged offence took place, the agency was bound to have obtained sanction in terms of the provisions of the CrPC and the PMLA. The ED counsel said in the money laundering case, the allegations against the accused could not be part of discharge of any official duty.

Indian Railways has taken up the mammoth task of screening 22.5 lakh applicants at 346 centres across the country to recruit 18,799 assistant loco pilots. The examination began last Monday and will continue till Friday. It is being held in 15 shifts and 18 languages. «Of the total candidates, 13.5 lakh have already appeared for the exam. In the next two days, nine lakh candidates are expected to appear for the exam,» said a senior official from the Railway Board. The Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) holds examinations for recruitment for various posts in the Indian Railways.

Air India Express will start flights to Bangkok from Surat and Pune from December 20, making Thailand's capital its 15th international destination. Besides, the Tata Group carrier will commence services to Dimapur (Nagaland) and Patna (Bihar). With these new cities, the airline will be connecting a total of 51 cities across India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. «Operations to Bangkok will commence on 20th December 2024, with direct flights connecting Surat and Pune to the vibrant capital of Thailand. Additionally, the airline strengthens its domestic network with the launch of services to Dimapur and Patna, offering daily direct connectivity between Dimapur and Guwahati, and Patna and Bengaluru and Hyderabad,» the airline said in a release on Wednesday.

Do air purifiers actually work? Separating fact from fiction with expert insights and top air purifier recommendationsHumidifiers come in various types, each functioning differently. For instance, ultrasonic humidifiers use high-frequency vibrations to produce a fine mist, while evaporative models rely on a fan to blow air through a wet wick.

To clarify the taxpayers doubt, the income tax department has released the FAQs on PAN 2.0 project. The FAQs are released by the PIB on November 26, 2024. One of the FAQs talk about taxpayers having more than one PAN, how they can identify and get it cancelled to avoid any penal consequences. Income tax dept issues FAQs on PAN 2.0 project: Check details about applying for new PAN, change PAN number

A host of incriminating materials, including mobiles/digital devices, banking transactions and property-related documents, were seized during the searches, the statement issued by the probe agency said. «In a massive crackdown in the terror-gangster nexus case, the NIA on Wednesday conducted extensive searches at premises linked with associates of Davinder Bambiha syndicate at nine locations in the states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh,» it said.

Axis Bank on Wednesday said the asset book of its IFSC Banking Unit (IBU) at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) in Gandhinagar has doubled to USD 4 billion from USD 2 billion in 2019. The bank unveiled a spacious IBU office at GIFT City here that spans nearly 8,000 square feet and is nearly three times bigger than the previous facility located here. «In terms of size, today our asset book here is a little over USD 4 billion, which is among the largest in GIFT City. Similarly, on the liability side, we have a USD 1 billion deposit, which once again makes us among the highest in terms of deposits as well...from USD 2 billion in 2019, we have doubled our asset book,» its Deputy Managing Director Rajiv Anand told mediapersons. «The office is an expression of our ambition aligned with the ambition for GIFT City to serve our customers. We continue to show very solid growth on multiple fronts,» said Axis Bank's President and Head of Wholesale Banking Products Vivek Gupta.

Financial Action Task Force's recommendations to tackle money laundering and terror financing, a central government official said on Wednesday. India is among the few countries that are working on FATF recommendations to regulate the fintech industry, said Vivek Agrawal, additional secretary (department of revenue), ministry of finance, during the ongoing 41st plenary meeting of the Eurasian Group in Indore. FATF leads global action to tackle money laundering, terrorist and proliferation financing. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has also issued separate guidelines to regulate payment aggregators and payment gateways, he said.

bribery scandal involving the Adani Group that has come to light in the U.S. According to sources, the state government is not in favor of canceling the deal due to the legal complexities it would entail. Instead, it is considering the possibility of setting up the solar power plant within Andhra Pradesh, which would significantly lower transmission costs. A senior minister in the state government highlighted that if the power were available locally with minimal transmission costs, the rate of Rs 2.49 per unit would be reasonable.

Leonardo DiCaprio engaged to his model girlfriend Vittoria Ceretti? Is Hollywood's most eligible bachelor DiCaprio finally off the market? The 50-year-old actor has ignited speculation that he may have finally popped the question to his 26-year-old model girlfriend, Vittoria Ceretti. Rumours and whispers of a hush-hush engagement began to surface online after gossip site DeuxMoi revealed that they received an email suggesting that the Oscar-winning actor might just be ready to settle down. The actor, who built up quite the reputation for his bachelor lifestyle and dating supermodels under 25, had many running a search to check Ceretti's age on hearing the surprising news.

Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand. Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan said the central empowered committee (CEC), which has recommended against the plying of private buses on the Pakhro-Moreghatti-Kalagarh-Ramnagar Forest road, should also think about the people residing there. «You (CEC) have to take a very balanced view. You can't think only about the animals. You also have to think a bit about human beings also,» the bench said. The top court was hearing a petition against the national park's decision to allow a privately operated buses to ply within the core area of the tiger reserve.

Best Honeywell car air purifiers: Top 5 picks to keep your vehicle fresh and clean from unwanted pollutantsUV-C Light: Some purifiers use UV-C light to kill bacteria and viruses. Although this sounds impressive, its effectiveness depends heavily on how long particles are exposed to the light and how close they are to the UV source.Check out desk air purifiers on AmazonPortable air purifiers come with their fair share of pros and cons, and it’s important to weigh them out before deciding if they’re worth your money.

e-Daakhil portal' — an inexpensive, speedy and hassle-free mechanism for filing consumer complaints — has been rolled out successfully in all states and union territories. The government is also working for launch of e-Jagriti, which will further streamline case filing, tracking, and management, ensuring a hassle-free experience for consumers and other stakeholders, it said. In a statement, the consumer affairs ministry said with the recent launch of e-Daakhil portal in Ladakh, the online platform is now accessible to consumers pan-India.

Adani Wilmar Ltd.(up 8.37%), LT Foods Ltd.(up 5.29%), JHS Svendgaard Laboratories Ltd.(up 4.96%), Bikaji Foods International Ltd.(up 3.82%), Marico Ltd.(up 3.43%), Zydus Wellness Ltd.(up 2.82%), Euro India Fresh Foods Ltd.(up 2.72%), Hindustan Foods Ltd.(up 2.52%), Colgate-Palmolive(India)Ltd.(up 2.20%) and Heritage Foods Ltd.(up 2.14%) stood among the top gainers.

Goldman Sachs expects gold prices to jump to $3150 per troy ounce, an increase of 19 per cent from the current level, if concerns over US fiscal sustainability grow. The yellow metal acts as a good hedge against inflation and rising geopolitical tension. Gold was trading at $2647 per troy ounce on Tuesday in the international market and at Rs 76,470per 10 gm in the domestic market. Rising fears of inflation and fiscal risks could drive speculative positioning and ETF flows higher, while US debt sustainability concerns may push central banks, especially those holding large US Treasury reserves, to buy more gold. A Goldman Sachs report on commodity outlook for 2025 released today says that the unusually wide range of potential US policy shifts in 2025 strengthens the diversifying role of commodities in portfolios. In particular, long positions in gold and oil positions can act as critical inflation and geopolitical hedges in tail scenarios, including tariff escalation, geopolitical oil supply disruptions, and debt fears.

On the BSE, Nova Pub(down 14.68 per cent), WABCO India(down 13.73 per cent), Inani Marbles(down 10.00 per cent), 3P Land Holdings(down 9.99 per cent) and Amanaya Ventures(down 9.96 per cent) stood among the top losers in today's trade.

Vodafone Idea (Vi) will be the main beneficiary of the bank guarantees (BG) waiver cleared by the Cabinet, and the move will hasten the telco’s pending Rs 25,000 crore debt raise, analysts said. Earlier this month, Vi’s CEO Akshaya Moondra had said that the telco’s lenders wanted clarity from the government on any potential relief on the company’s substantial AGR (adjusted gross revenue) dues as well as prospects of a waiver of BGs before lending. “Vi is the biggest beneficiary of the reported BG waiver. One impediment to the debt raise is now behind,” Axis Capital said in a research note seen by ET.