Headlines at a Glance – 3rd Mar 2020
Centre declares National Chambal Sanctuary in MP as eco-sensitive zone (ESZ)
The Centre on Monday declared the National Chambal Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh, home to Gangetic dolphins and 75 per cent population of critically endangered species gharial, as eco-sensitive zone (ESZ). The ministry has also directed the Madhya Pradesh government to prepare a Zonal Master Plan, which shall provide for restoration of denuded areas, conservation of existing water bodies, management of catchment areas, watershed management, groundwater management, soil and moisture conservation, needs of local community and such other aspects of the ecology and environment that need attention. Spread over 435 square kilometres, the National Chambal Sanctuary lies across Sheopur, Morena and Bhind districts of Madhya Pradesh with a length of more than 400 kilometers.
SOURCE: Business Standard
City Chowk, Circular Chowk in Jammu named as Bharat Mata Chowk, Atal Ji Chowk
The historic City Chowk, the commercial hub in old Jammu, was renamed as ‘Bharat Mata Chowk’ following the passage of a resolution by the general house of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC), officials said on Sunday. The renaming of the Chowk drew mixed reactions from the people with most of them welcoming the decision but urged the JMC to focus more on development and cleanliness rather than changing names. The BJP swept the JMC polls winning 43 of the 75 wards after the urban local bodies elections were held in the erstwhile state in four phases from October 8 to 16 in 2018 after a gap of 13 years. A board with the new name was seen erected by the JMC in the chowk, which connects four busy markets, including the famous Raghunath Temple, Super Market, Shalimar and Kanak Mandi.
SOURCE: India Today
OECD lowers its India’s GDP growth forecast for 2020-21 to 5.1% from 6.2%
Global agency OECD on Monday lowered India’s GDP growth forecast to 5.1 per cent, from its earlier projection of 6.2 per cent, for 2020 on concerns over the impact of deadly coronavirus on the domestic as well as the global economy. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said the adverse impact on confidence, financial markets, travel sector and disruption to supply chains contributes to the downward revisions in all the G20 economies in 2020, particularly ones strongly interconnected to China. India is a member of G20, a grouping of developed and developing economies. According to the latest OECD Interim Economic Outlook Forecasts, India’s real GDP growth is expected at 5.1 per cent during the fiscal year starting April 1, 2020, and improves to 5.6 per cent in the following year. The latest projection for 2020-21 is 1.1 percentage point lower than the November 2019 forecast.
SOURCE: Economic Times
Labour Minister launches Humsafar mobile app for doorstep diesel delivery
Housing societies, hotels and hospitals in the national capital region will soon be able to get diesel delivered at their doorsteps, with the launch of mobile application ‘Humsafar’ on Monday. “The oil and gas sector remains strategically important for the country and is ripe for disruption. Innovative tech ideas like ‘Humsafar’ will bring new technology and know-how to the market as well as generate employment that will positively impact the economy as well as the bulk consumers of diesel,” Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar said at the app launch event. The app will be used for the fuel delivery services to housing societies, hotels, hospitals, malls, construction sites, industries, banquets and other bulk buyers of diesel in various NCR cities, including Gurugram, Ghaziabad, Noida, Faridabad, Hapur, Kundli, Manesar, and Bahadurgarh.
SOURCE: The Hindu
Government allows export of onions from March 15
Five months after prohibiting export of onions, the commerce ministry on Monday said the curbs will be lifted from 15 March. The government on 29 September banned exports and imposed countrywide stock limits on onion to bring down prices of the key cooking ingredient that had soared ahead of state elections in Maharashtra and Haryana. The crackdown followed retail onion prices touching ₹80 a kg in Delhi due to supply disruptions after floods in some states. In December last year, the prices hit ₹160 per kg in certain parts of the country. Onion price inflation as per the Wholesale Price Index peaked in December at 455.8% and decelerated to 293.4% in January. Retail price in Delhi on 29 February stood at Rs40 against ₹50 on 1 February, as per the daily price report by National Horticulture Board. The shortage in onion supply due to excess rain and flood hitting the Kharif crop last year is set to pass with arrival of Rabi crop which has begun slowly.
SOURCE: The New Indian Express
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