- According to a circular issued by the National Payments Corporation of India, beginning April 1, a fee will be levied on transactions conducted by merchants via the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) using prepaid payment instruments (PPIs) (NPCI). According to a circular issued by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), merchants transacting through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) using Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) will be charged for transactions exceeding Rs 2,000. The amount will be subject to a 1.1% interchange fee.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered the keynote address at the One World TB Summit at the Rudraksha Convention Center in Varanasi. He also announced the Short TB Preventive Treatment (TPT), the official pan-India launch of TB-free panchayats, a family-centered TB care model, and the publication of India’s Annual TB Report 2023. He also stated that India has set a goal of eliminating tuberculosis by 2025.
- A 70-foot-tall statue of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar will be unveiled in Maharashtra’s Latur city on April 13. The unveiling will be attended by Union Ministers Kiren Rijiju and Ramdas Athawale, as well as other dignitaries such as former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and state minister Sanjay Bansode. The statue has been installed at Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Park, and the ceremony will take place the day before his 131st birthday. On this occasion, on April 14, flowers will be dropped from a helicopter onto the statue. A team of 35 artists is working tirelessly to create the statue of Dr. Ambedkar using fibre as the primary material. According to the lead artist, Akshay Halke, this is the first statue of Dr. Ambedkar in the world to be built in just 20 days, as well as the first of its kind in the state.
- Without debate, the Lok Sabha passed the Finance Bill 2023, which implements the tax department’s proposals for the upcoming fiscal year. There was a growing voice of opposition at the time of the bill’s passage, fueled by the Adani controversy. A total of 64 official amendments to the bill have been proposed, including one that seeks to end long-term tax breaks for specific types of debt mutual funds and another that calls for the establishment of a GST Appellate Tribunal.
- Corona cases have begun to rise again in the country. 2151 new patients have been discovered in the last 24 hours. Seven infected people died. At the same time, the number of active cases has risen to 11903, the highest in the last five months. On November 12, the active case number was 11084. The daily positivity rate has risen to 1.51%. According to Health Ministry data, the number of new cases increased by 18% on Wednesday. Earlier on Tuesday, 1573 infected people were discovered, and four patients died. In the last nine days, the number of new cases in the country has tripled. On March 20, a total of 646 positive patients were discovered.
- Akanksha Dubey, a Bhojpuri actress, committed suicide on Sunday in a hotel in Sarnath, Varanasi. His body was discovered hanging from the ceiling fan in hotel room 105. The dead body has been taken into custody by police. The reason for Akanksha’s suicide remains unknown. Akanksha lived in Parsipur village, which was part of the Chauri police station area of the Bhadohi district. She went to the hotel after shooting on Friday night, and her body was discovered hanging the next morning.
- Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been barred from running for office after being convicted in a defamation case and sentenced to two years in prison. According to law and legal experts, Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification took effect “immediately and automatically” following his conviction and sentencing, despite the grant of bail. A Gujarat court found Gandhi guilty of insulting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He was granted bail and given 30 days to file an appeal.
- The disturbed area’tag’ has been extended to Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Charaideo, Sivasagar, Jorhat, Golaghat, Karbi Anglong, and Dima Hasao, according to a notification issued by the state Home and Political Department on Wednesday. However, the ‘disturbed area’ label will be removed from Lakhipur sub-division of Cachar district on April 1 after a review of the state’s law and order and security situation. The Center had previously announced that AFSPA would be repealed on April 1, 2022, in all of Assam except nine districts and a sub-division of Cachar district.
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- The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi has been named one of the top 50 engineering schools in the world. Quacquarelli Symonds has published the ‘World University Rankings by Subject 2023.’ (QS). 44 courses in various disciplines offered by Indian higher education institutions have been named among the top 100 courses in the world. This list included 35 courses last year.
- Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh has brought good news to the country. Siaya, a Namibian female cheetah, has given birth to four cubs. The female cheetah and her four young companions are in perfect health at the moment. A special team is looking after the new visitors and the female cheetah. Cheetahs died out in the country in 1952. This is the first time in 70 years that cheetahs have been born on the country’s land.