Business

Srinagar, Dec 5: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo today held an in-depth review of the Public Works Department (PWD) and the different schemes of infrastructure building under implementation herein the UT. The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary, PWD Engineer-in-Chief; Director Finance, R&B besides other concerned. During this meeting, Dulloo observed that the road infrastructure is vital for the overall development of any area. He impressed upon the Department to prioritise a few Roads going to newly found tourist destinations in each division for upgradation in order to develop these destinations for a better experience for the visitors going there. He also maintained that the maintenance of road surface should also be monitored by the Department for the quality of ...

Jammu, Dec 5: Commissioner Secretary, Science & Technology, Saurabh Bhagat here today addressed a business opportunity seminar organised by J&K Energy Development Agency (JKEDA) to promote rooftop solar power plants. The event, held by the Science & Technology Department, witnessed participation of vendors from Jammu and was aimed at accelerating the implementation of the Government of India’s Grid-connected Rooftop Solar Scheme, Phase-II, specifically for the residential sector in Jammu and Kashmir. Addressing the participants, Commissioner Secretary expressed the department’s commitment to achieving a target of installing 100 MW rooftop solar power through J&KEDA. He emphasised the collaboration with the Skill Development Department, particularly engaging pri...

New Delhi, Dec 5: The government has detected goods and services tax (GST) evasion to the tune of Rs 1.51 lakh crore between April to October in the current financial year (2023-24), according to data tabled by the Finance Ministry in Parliament on Tuesday. The highest tax evasion of Rs 84, 400 crore was detected in Maharashtra, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary told the Rajya Sabha. There has been an increase in tax evasion in the current financial year as in 2022-23, as tax authorities detected tax evasion of Rs 1.32 lakh crore, according to the data. The tax authorities have also issued 71 notices to online gaming companies for not paying GST of Rs 1.12 lakh crore in financial years 2022-23 and 2023-24, Chaudhary said. In August, the GST Council headed by the ...

Srinagar, Dec 5: To celebrate World Soil Day, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir Tuesday held various functions across campuses and extension stations for the conservation and sustainable use of soil and water resources. The World Soil Day is commemorated every year on December 5 to focus on soil conservation and sustainable use and management of soil resources. The World Soil Day has been designated under the United Nations-backed Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) as a global awareness-raising platform. This year’s theme for the day was ‘Soil and Water, a resource of life’. The main event, which was held at the SKUAST-K’s Directorate of Extension conference hall, commenced with the reading of the special message from the Director...

Srinagar, Dec 5: Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir Tuesday commenced two skill development training programmes at its extension training centre in Malangpora, Pulwama. A statement said that the seven-day training is organised by Krishi Vigyan Kendra in association and sponsorship of SAMETI Jammu and Kashmir and MANAGE Hyderabad. The training programs, ‘Quality Planting Material Production of Temperate Fruit Crops for Livelihood Upliftment of Rural Youth’ and ‘Livelihood Upliftment by Scientific Cultivation and Efficient Utilisation of Fodder Species’ with an aim to impart skill-based learning experience to the rural unemployed youth who are willing to take up entrepreneurship or self-employment in these sectors as a carrier option. Eac...

Srinagar, Dec 5: The Agriculture Department Kashmir today celebrated World Soil Health Day (WSD) 2023 across Kashmir with the main function held at the agriculture complex Lalmandi Srinagar. The function was inaugurated by Director Agriculture Kashmir, Chowdhury Mohammad Iqbal through virtual mode. World Soil Health Day 2023 is celebrated under the theme of ‘Soil & Water, A Source of Life’. Addressing the function, Director Agriculture said that organising soil day provides us with an opportunity to pay attention and address the issues and challenges confronting this finite resource (Soil). He highlighted the importance of soil for human survival and said that World Soil Health Day 2023 and its campaign are focused on raising awareness on the importance of soil among farm...

Chennai, Dec 5: The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is expected to maintain the repo rate at 6.5 per cent and there would be no rate hike this fiscal, said economists at credit rating agencies and Bank of Baroda. They also said RBI’s MPC at its upcoming meeting would revise upward the gross domestic product (GDP) forecast. According to credit rating agency CARE Ratings, the RBI will continue with its cautious pause with the repo rate at 6.5 per cent. The repo rate is the rate at which banks borrow from the RBI. “The economic outlook has improved significantly with a robust expansion of economic output in H1 led by upward surprise in Q2 GDP growth. The RBI may revise its earlier growth projections for FY24 up by about 20-30 bps,” CARE Ratings said. ...

Srinagar, Dec 4:Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir Monday commenced a training programme titled, ‘Recycling of Farm Wastes for Augmenting Organic Farming under Temperate Kashmir’ at Rangreth here. A statement said that the weeklong training was organised by the SKUAST-K’s Dry Land Agriculture Research Station (DARS), under the sponsorship of the Alternate System of Agriculture for Sustainability Project of the Holistic Agriculture Development Program (HADP). Agriculture officers from the twin districts of Srinagar and Budgam are participating in the training program. A series of lectures from different experts within and outside the Kashmir Valley covering different aspects of the training shall be delivered during the programme. The i...

Srinagar, Dec 4:Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir Monday kick-started an Existing-Management Development Programme (E-MDP) on ‘Use of Statistical Softwares in Business Management’ at the Faculty of Forestry (FoF), Benhama campus. A statement said that the seven-day training programme was organised by SKUAST-K’s Division of Social and Basic Sciences, Faculty of Forestry, under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Govt of India with the aim to equip participants with advanced data analysis skills that are crucial in both scientific and business management contexts with respect to statistical packages. In charge Dean, Faculty of Forestry, Prof Parvaiz Ahmad Khan, stressed the necessity of promoting the u...

Srinagar, Dec 4: An online training programme on ‘Food Processing and Development of Cluster for Specific Products of J&K’ conducted by Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir commenced on Monday. A statement said that the training programme is organised by the SKUAST-K’s Directorate of Extension in collaboration with the National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE), Hyderabad. Director Extension, Prof Dil Mohammad Makhdoomi, in the inaugural address, highlighted the scarcity of vegetables in Kashmir during the winter season and said scientists of SKUAST-K provide wonderful technologies for the cultivation of conventional and exotic vegetables. He highlighted the need for improvement in post-harvest practices and incr...