Author: newshens

INDIA-INSURANCE/HEALTH:India plans to tighten oversight of claims portal to curb rising healthcare costs, source says. India plans to bring an existing health insurance claims portal under the finance ministry and insurance regulator to curb overcharging by healthcare providers, a government source said. Healthcare costs in India are projected to rise by 13% in 2025, exceeding the global average of 10%, and up from 12% recorded a year earlier, according to professional services firm Aon’s Global Medical Trend Rates Report. An analysis by the government and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India found that hospitals are inflating treatment costs…

Govt has limitations, private sector should step in to fund R&D: Jitendra Singh. Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh on Thursday made a strong pitch for a greater role for the private sector in funding research initiatives, contending that the government has its limitations and should be a facilitator. Singh was speaking at a function to release a NITI Aayog report on ‘Roadmap for Strengthening State S&T Councils’. The report said that about 67 per cent of India’s research publications are contributed by 450 centrally-funded institutions. “We need to have a change in mindset. The question is not 67…

Rishi Raj Singh was aboard the Jaguar trainer aircraft with Squadron Leader Lokender Singh Sindhu, who became a father just a month ago. The tragic crash of a Jaguar trainer aircraft of the Indian Air Force during a routine training mission in Rajasthan’s Churu district resulted in the death of both pilots on board. Flight Lieutenant Rishi Raj Singh and Squadron Leader Lokender Singh Sindhu lost their lives in the crash, which took place in an agricultural field near Bhanoda village around 1:25 pm on Wednesday. The Indian Air Force later said in a statement that no damage to any…

The incident took place late on Wednesday when Yadav, the leader of opposition in the state assembly, was passing through J P Ganga Path. A man has been arrested for taking his car into the motorcade of RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav under the influence of alcohol in Patna district of dry Bihar, police said on Thursday. The incident took place late on Wednesday when Yadav, the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, was passing through J P Ganga Path, Sultanganj police station SHO Manoj Kumar said. “When the vehicle suddenly entered the convoy, it was promptly stopped by…

While questioning the timing of the move, the Supreme Court did not pause the voters list revision exercise, citing practical and legal grounds. The Supreme Court on Thursday raised pointed questions over the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, urging the poll body to consider including Aadhaar cards, voter ID cards, and ration cards as valid documents for voter enumeration under the ongoing drive. The court has agreed to examine a batch of petitions challenging the timing and manner of the SIR, with the next hearing scheduled for July 28. The Election…

Kailash Yatra to commence from July 15 in Himachal’s Kinnaur; registration mandatory. Shimla, The Kailash Yatra is set to commence from July 15 in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district, officials on Wednesday said. The district administration has mandated registration forms and medical certificates for all pilgrims for the yatra, which will continue till August 30, they said. A meeting was held under the chairmanship of Kalpa Sub-Divisional Magistrate Amit Kaltaik during which he reviewed the preparations for the yatra. Kaltaik said that the yatra would commence from Tangling village, while the alternative Purbani Kanda route will be considered only after evaluating…

Mamata Banerjee sought NITI Aayog’s apology for the incorrect map, insisting that this was a grave lapse and an affront to West Bengal’s identity and dignity. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday launched a scathing attack against the NITI Aayog for incorrectly labelling Bihar as Bengal in a map used as the cover page for the panel’s summary report on the state. In a letter to NITI Aayog vice chairman Suman K Bery, Banerjee sought an apology from the government’s think tank, insisting that this was a grave lapse and an affront to the state’s identity and dignity.…

An initial investigation report on Air India plane crash was due within 30 days of the June 12 incident. Nearly a month after the deadly Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, India’s top air accident investigation body told a parliamentary panel that it has yet to submit a preliminary report on the incident. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism, and Culture that although an initial report was due within 30 days of the June 12 incident, no report has been submitted yet. The report by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau will provide…

China is not a signatory to international water-sharing treaties and this limits India’s ability to legally restrain Beijing from altering the flow. China greenlit the construction of what is slated to be the world’s largest hydropower project on the Yarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet last December, raising serious alarm bells across the Indian subcontinent.  Officials have expressed apprehensions that the proposed dam would give Beijing significant power to regulate or even divert the flow of the trans-border river, which enters India through Arunachal Pradesh before flowing into Assam and Bangladesh. Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu warned of the dangers…

Delhi CM Rekha Gupta had been allotted two bungalows on Raj Niwas Marg by PWD – one for her residence and one for a camp office. The Delhi government scrapped a ₹60 lakh renovation tender for chief minister Rekha Gupta’s official residence due to some “administrative reasons”, an official document said. CM Gupta was allotted two bungalows on Raj Niwas Marg by PWD–one for her residence and one for a camp office. She inaugurated her camp office last week. The proposed revamp, which has been shelved, included extensive electrical fittings–among them 14 air conditioners, multiple televisions, and other electrical fixtures…