The first batch of five Rafale jets will arrive in Ambala today. The fleet, comprising three single seater and two twin seater aircraft, will be inducted into the Indian Air Force at the Ambala airbase in Haryana. The fighter jets, built by French aviation firm Dassault, took off from the Merignac airbase in southern France’s Bordeaux on Monday.
The five aircraft are part of 36 planes bought by India from France in a 59,000-crore rupees inter-governmental deal in 2016. The aircraft is covering a distance of nearly 7,000 km from France to India with mid-air refuelling and a single stop at a French airbase in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Indian Embassy in France in a statement said, delivery of 10 aircraft has been completed on schedule but five will stay back in France for training Mission. The delivery of all thirty six aircraft will be completed on schedule by the end of 2021.
The Rafale fighter jets had mid-air refuelling before reaching the Al-Dhafra air base in UAE. After the layover, the jets will embark on the their final leg of journey to India. The Indian Air Force, appreciated the support provided by French Air Force for the Rafale journey back home. The fighter jets are capable of carrying a range of highly effective weapons, including the Keter air to air missile and scalp cruise missile.
The Rafale jets will come with various India specific modifications, including Israeli helmet mounted displays, radar warning receivers, low band jammers and 10 hour flight data recording. The Air Force has readied the required infrastructure to welcome the jets in its line up.
Day: July 29, 2020
PM Modi to discuss vision, roadmap for Banks, NBFCs with all stakeholders this evening
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will today join stakeholders from Banks and NBFCs to discuss and deliberate on vision and roadmap for the future. The topics on agenda include credit products and efficient models for delivery, financial empowerment through technology, prudential practices for stability and sustainability of financial sector.
Banking sector plays an important role in contributing to India’s economic growth through financing infrastructure, agriculture, local manufacturing including MSMEs. Financial inclusion can play a big role in financial empowerment through technology. Senior officers from Government will also be a part of the interaction.
Finance Commission
What is the Finance Commission?
The Finance Commission is a constitutional body formed every five years to give suggestions on centre-state financial relations. Each Finance Commission is required to make recommendations on: (i) sharing of central taxes with states, (ii) distribution of central grants to states, (iii) measures to improve the finances of states to supplement the resources of panchayats and municipalities, and (iv) any other matter referred to it.
Composition of transfers:
The central taxes devolved to states are untied funds, and states can spend them according to their discretion. Over the years, tax devolved to states has constituted over 80% of the total central transfers to states. The centre also provides grants to states and local bodies which must be used for specified purposes. These grants have ranged between 12% to 19% of the total transfers.
Over the years the core mandate of the Commission has remained unchanged, though it has been given the additional responsibility of examining various issues. For instance, the 12th Finance Commission evaluated the fiscal position of states and offered relief to those that enacted their Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management laws. The 13th and the 14th Finance Commission assessed the impact of GST on the economy. The 13th Finance Commission also incentivised states to increase forest cover by providing additional grants.
15th Finance Commission: The 15th Finance Commission constituted in November 2017 will recommend central transfers to states. It has also been mandated to: (i) review the impact of the 14th Finance Commission recommendations on the fiscal position of the centre; (ii) review the debt level of the centre and states, and recommend a roadmap; (iii) study the impact of GST on the economy; and (iv) recommend performance-based incentives for states based on their efforts to control population, promote ease of doing business, and control expenditure on populist measures, among others.
Why is there a need for a Finance Commission?
The Indian federal system allows for the division of power and responsibilities between the centre and states. Correspondingly, the taxation powers are also broadly divided between the centre and states. State legislatures may devolve some of their taxation powers to local bodies.
The centre collects majority of the tax revenue as it enjoys scale economies in the collection of certain taxes. States have the responsibility of delivering public goods in their areas due to their proximity to local issues and needs.
Sometimes, this leads to states incurring expenditures higher than the revenue generated by them. Further, due to vast regional disparities some states are unable to raise adequate resources as compared to others. To address these imbalances, the Finance Commission recommends the extent of central funds to be shared with states. Prior to 2000, only revenue income tax and union excise duty on certain goods was shared by the centre with states. A Constitution amendment in 2000 allowed for all central taxes to be shared with states.
Several other federal countries, such as Pakistan, Malaysia, and Australia have similar bodies which recommend the manner in which central funds will be shared with states.
Commission considerably increased the devolution of taxes from the centre to states from 32% to 42%. The Commission had recommended that tax devolution should be the primary source of transfer of funds to states. This would increase the flow of unconditional transfers and give states more flexibility in their spending.
The share in central taxes is distributed among states based on a formula. Previous Finance Commissions have considered various factors to determine the criteria such as the population and income needs of states, their area and infrastructure, etc. Further, the weightage assigned to each criterion has varied with each Finance Commission.
with the weight assigned to them.
• Population is an indicator of the expenditure needs of a state. Over the years, Finance Commissions have used population data of the 1971 Census. The 14th Finance Commission used the 2011 population data, in addition to the 1971 data. The 15th Finance Commission has been mandated to use data from the 2011 Census.
• Area is used as a criterion as a state with larger area has to incur additional administrative costs to deliver services.
• Income distance is the difference between the per capita income of a state with the average per capita income of all states. States with lower per capita income may be given a higher share to maintain equity among states.
• Forest cover indicates that states with large forest covers bear the cost of not having area available for other economic activities. Therefore, the rationale is that these states may be given a higher share.
Grants-in-Aid
Besides the taxes devolved to states, another source of transfers from the centre to states is grants-in-aid. As per the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission, grants-in-aid constitute 12% of the central transfers to states. The 14th Finance Commission had recommended grants to states for three purposes: (i) disaster relief, (ii) local bodies, and (iii) revenue deficit.
The Biggest Misconception of Africa – BUSTED
“Most people write me off when they see me.
They do not know my story.
They say I am just an African.
They judge me before they get to know me.
What they do not know is
The pride I have in the blood that runs through my veins;
The pride I have in my rich culture and the history of my people;
The pride I have in my strong family ties and the deep connection to my community;
The pride I have in the African music, African art, and African dance;
The pride I have in my name and the meaning behind it.
Just as my name has meaning, I too will live my life with meaning.
So you think I am nothing?
Don’t worry about what I am now,
For what I will be, I am gradually becoming.
I will raise my head high wherever I go
Because of my African pride,
And nobody will take that away from me.”
Idowu Koyenikan
Africa is a beautiful continent. Yes, a continent!
Africa is a continent. NOT A COUNTRY.
It is amazing to see so many people unaware of such a small fact. So here below is a list of all the 54 countries and 4 dependencies of Africa organized according to location in an alphabetical order.
Northern Africa
- Algeria
- Egypt
- Libya
- Morocco
- Sudan
- Tunisia
Eastern Africa
- Burundi
- Comoros
- Djibouti
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Kenya
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mauritius
- Mozambique
- Rwanda
- Seychelles
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Tanzania
- Uganda
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Western Africa
- Benin
- Burkina Faso
- Cabo Verde
- Côte d’Ivoire
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Liberia
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Nigeria
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Togo
Southern Africa
- Botswana
- Eswatini
- Lesotho
- Nambia
- South Africa
Middle Africa
- Angola
- Cameroon
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Congo
- DR Congo
- Equatorial Guinea
- Gabon
- Sao Tome & Principe
Dependencies of other Countries:
- Réunion – France
- Western Sahara – (disputed)
- Mayotte – France
- Saint Helena – UK
There are so many myths about Africa, none of them true. Africa is a beautiful continent and is much more than what the news and documentaries show us. Below, I will attempt to bust as many myths as I can.
- Environment: Thanks to movies like Blood Diamond, we think of Africa as unsafe, poor and completely backward. NOT TRUE. Travel through the beautiful continent to experience how complex, multi-layered and breath-taking it actually is.
- Business: Africa has huge businesses and great employment opportunities. Some of the self-made millionaires owe it to their start in Africa.
- Africa is a relatively expensive place to travel to.
- Africa is safer than prominent tourist spots like Paris and New York
- African leaders are no more corrupt than any developed and developing country.
- Africa is just as advanced technologically and culturally as any other. They have access to 4G and WiFi!
- Africa has a lot of poverty stricken places, but as a whole is a not a poor country.
- The continent is not a dessert! They have mountains and beaches.
- Africa is home to a huge Art Industry
- Africa is not an illiterate country
- Most Africans speak English
- Africa is a huge continent!
- Not Everyone in Africa has AIDS – Africans might be most affected. But this is simply not true and is racist and offensive.
Facts about Africa:
- Africa is the oldest populated continent
- It’s the second largest continent
- Most of the European continent’s ancestors are local to Africa – Many African countries gained independence from the European continent post the WWII.
- South Africa has some of the finest beaches
- Wildlife is only part of all that you could experience in Africa.
- There are over 2000 native languages spoken across the continent
- All of the African cultures and parties and traditions are beautiful and festive.
Africa is a continent like any other. For centuries, and even now, just judging by the colour of their skins, we assume the worst about Black people. They are no better than us, nor are we better them. We are all people living on the Earth. No one reserves the right to make another feel like they don’t belong. Africa and Africans are beautiful and are just as human as the rest of us!
Time waits for no one
Time can also heal things whether external wounds or feelings. Time is the ultimate thing that we cannot measure. time comes and goes it’s our duty how we utilise that time in what manner time is something which is important for everybody you may delay but time will not wait for anyone Time once lost is lost for ever. It can never be regained. It can never be captured. It is the most potent factor. Even the strongest and powerful monarchs have been helpless before time. Even they could not command time to stop. So, we should be careful about the importance of time. We should never waste it. We are successful in life only when we make the best use of time.
To ensure best use of time in life, one needs to be very punctual. Punctuality avoids inconvenience and tension. It offers great opportunity, which, if struck properly brings big results. Opportunity once lost is hardly regained. Proper use of time brings success and achievements. Doing everything in time should be the guiding principle of life.
Man has limited years to live, but there is lots of work to do. So, he should live a purposeful life. He should make maximum use of each and every moment. Time is precious. It should be valued. We should make use of it in best possible way.
Farmers have to keep a close watch of time because they follow strict schedules for planting and harvesting. Their farming schedules are based on the weather and if they delay their planting or harvesting time by even a day, it will spell disaster for them because time will not wait for them. We should have respect for time and not misuse it. You may have heard of this famous saying, “To realize the value of one year, ask a student who failed an examination. To realize the value of one month, ask a mother who gave birth to a premature baby. To realize the value of one minute, ask a person who just missed his train.
To realize the value of one second, ask someone who just avoided an accident”. Time is precious; even one second of your life is valuable. So, do not waste it. Let us have respect for time and time will show the same respect to us.
Time is measured by the hours, days, years and so on. Time helps us to make a good habit of organizing and structuring our daily activities. No one can escape the passing of time. We all subjected to aging and mortality.
Time plays a significant role in our lives. If we better understand the time value, then it can gain experience and develop skills over time. Time can also heal things whether external wounds or feelings.
Everyone has to realize the value of time and spend it unwisely. Such people waste their time and keep unnecessary thinking can backward to them and lost their future. Everyone has to do focus on their important task every day. we should always focus on time once it goes never come again fix your goal just work on it and achieve before time goes.
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