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ISRO launches internships, student project trainee schemes: Details

Embark on an interstellar journey with ISRO’s internships and student project trainee schemes, offering hands-on space research experiences to students. Check out the eligibility, duration, and other details here.

In Short

  • ISRO offers Internship and Student Project Trainee Schemes to nurture talent and foster innovation
  • Eligible students engage in space research and exploration endeavors, gaining invaluable hands-on experience
  • Trainees receive certificates upon satisfactory completion of their projects or internships, contributing to India’s space odyssey.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is offering internship and student project trainee schemes to provide invaluable opportunities to engage in space research and exploration endeavours.

If you are planning to build your skills for the fast-growing space industry, check out the details below.

ISRO INTERNSHIP 2024

Eligibility criteria: Undergraduate (UG), Postgraduate (PG), and PhD students, Indian citizens pursuing or completing their studies from recognised Indian or foreign universities/institutions in Science/Technology fields are eligible. Interns must possess a minimum aggregate of 60% or a CGPA of 6.32 on a scale of 10.

Duration: The internship duration spans a maximum of 45 days, offering a glimpse into ISRO’s dynamic environment.

Selection criteria: Allocation of internship projects is based on expertise, project availability, and course relevance to ISRO’s work.

ISRO STUDENT PROJECT TRAINEE SCHEMES 2024

Duration for different education levels: This scheme caters to various student categories, offline, with specified educational criteria:

  • Engineering (BE/BTech) students, post 6th semester, with a minimum 45-day tenure.
  • ME/MTech students, post 1st semester, engaging for a minimum of 120 days.
  • BSc/Diploma students in their final year, embarking on a 45-day journey.
  • MSc students, after completing the 1st semester, for a minimum of 120 days.
  • PhD scholars, post coursework, for a duration of at least 30 months.

Eligibility:All participants must maintain a minimum aggregate of 60% or CGPA 6.32. Traineeships are granted based on project availability and student suitability.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS

ISRO emphasises the significance of hands-on experience and provides essential guidelines for interns and trainees:

  • No stipend or financial assistance is provided.
  • Accommodation facilities are not provided, but guest house/hostel accommodations may be available at a charge.
  • Certificates are awarded upon satisfactory completion of projects/internships.
  • Access is limited to UNCLASSIFIED areas of ISRO labs/establishments.
  • Clearance is necessary for publishing papers/reports regarding ISRO work.

ISRO’s internship and student project trainee schemes stand as pillars of educational outreach and technological advancement, paving the way for aspiring space enthusiasts to contribute to India’s space odyssey.

This article was originally published on India Today.

Also read: Snatchers target encounter specialist cop in Delhi. This happened next

IPL 2024: Online ticket sales for the CSK vs. RCB match will start on March 18.

On March 18, 2024, tickets for the first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) match between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Chennai Super Kings would go on sale online. This is part of the Tata IPL 2024.

Tickets for the match scheduled for March 22, 2024, at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai, will go on sale on Monday, March 18, 2024, at 9:30 AM via the insider.in website and the Paytm app.

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Points to note regarding the IPL opener

  • MA Chidambaram stadium is plastic free zone and no plastic bags or any other plastic related items will be allowed inside the premises.
  • RO treated Free drinking water facility is available for public in all stands.
  • Patrons buying online tickets will be allowed entry by scanning e-tickets with barcode/ QR code at the gate. Patrons will be denied entry if scanners find them to be duplicate
  • Entry gates will be opened at 4.30pm for the inaugural game on 22nd of March

The season’s first match

The opening game of the season will match RCB against the reigning champions CSK.

The reigning champion Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will square off against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on March 22 to kick off the Indian Premier League IPL 2024.
The second big opening-day match of the season will be a match between Hardik Pandya former and present teams, with Gujarat Titans hosting Mumbai Indians on March 24 at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium.

IPL Schedule 2024

The 2024 Indian Premier League is scheduled to begin on March 22, 2024, and run through April 7, 2024. This year, with 74 exciting contests spanning over six weeks, looks to be even larger and better.

The 17th season of the Indian Premier League, which is organized annually by the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India), will include ten clubs this year. On December 19, 2023, the franchises bid on players at the IPL 2024 Auction.

The season is set to begin with a bang at Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium on March 23rd when the powerful Gujarat Titans take on the perennially popular Chennai Super Kings.

Match NoFixtureDateVenueTime
1.CSK vs RCBMarch 22Chennai7:30 PM IST
2.PBKS vs DCMarch 23Mohali3:30 PM IST
3.KKR vs SRHMarch 23Kolkata7:30 PM IST
4.RR vs LSGMarch 24Jaipur3:30 PM IST
5.GT vs MIMarch 24Ahmedabad7:30 PM IST
6.RCB vs PBKSMarch 25Bengaluru7:30 PM IST
7.CSK vs GTMarch 26Chennai7:30 PM IST
8.SRH vs MIMarch 27Hyderabad7:30 PM IST
9.RR vs DCMarch 28Jaipur7:30 PM IST
10.RCB vs KKRMarch 29Bengaluru7:30 PM IST
11.LSG vs PBKSMarch 30Lucknow7:30 PM IST
12.GT vs SRHMarch 31Ahmedabad3:30 PM IST
13.DC vs CSKMarch 31Visakhapatnam7:30 PM IST
14.MI vs RRApril 1Mumbai7:30 PM IST
15.RCB vs LSGApril 2Bengaluru7:30 PM IST
16.DC vs KKRApril 3Visakhapatnam7:30 PM IST
17.GT vs PBKSApril 4Ahmedabad7:30 PM IST
18.SRH vs CSKApril 5Hyderabad7:30 PM IST
19.RR vs RCBApril 6Jaipur7:30 PM IST
20.MI vs DCApril 7Mumbai3:30 PM IST
21.LSG vs GTApril 7Lucknow7:30 PM IST

IPL 2024 Teams updated: complete teams, players list following replacements and withdrawal!

IPL 2024: After taking into consideration player changes and withdrawals, the following are the modified squads for each of the ten clubs competing in the upcoming Indian Premier League season.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season will be begin at the M.A. Gandhi Stadium in Chennai on March 22, when the defending champion Chennai Super Kings will play Royal Challengers Bangalore.A total of 10 teams will take part in the T20 extravaganza, which will be held in the home-and-away format.

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Here are the team-wise Teams for IPL 2024

  • Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (c), Moeen Ali, Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Shivam Dube, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajay Mandal, Mukesh Choudhary, Matheesha Pathirana, Ajinkya Rahane, Shaik Rasheed, Mitchell Santner, Simarjeet Singh, Nishant Sindhu, Prashant Solanki, Maheesh Theekshana, Rachin Ravindra, Shardul Thakur, Daryl Mitchell, Sameer Rizvi, Mustafizur Rahman, Avanish Rao Aravelly. 

Players injured/withdrawn: Devon Conway.

  • Mumbai Indians: Hardik Pandya (c), Rohit Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, N. Tilak Varma, Tim David, Vishnu Vinod, Arjun Tendulkar, Shams Mulani, Nehal Wadhera, Jasprit Bumrah, Kumar Kartikeya, Piyush Chawla, Akash Madhwal, Jason Behrendorff, Romario Shepherd, Gerald Coetzee, Dilshan Madushanka, Shreyas Gopal, Nuwan Thushara, Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Mohammad Nabi, Shivalik Sharma. 
  • Royal Challengers Bangalore: Faf du Plessis (c), Glenn Maxwell, Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Anuj Rawat, Dinesh Karthik, Suyash Prabhudessai, Will Jacks, Mahipal Lomror, Karn Sharma, Manoj Bhandage, Mayank Dagar, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, Reece Topley, Himanshu Sharma, Rajan Kumar, Cameron Green, Alzarri Joseph, Yash Dayal, Tom Curran, Lockie Ferguson, Swapnil Singh, Saurav Chauhan. 
  • Kolkata Knight Riders: Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Phil Salt, Sunil Narine, Suyash Sharma, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, Venkatesh Iyer, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy, KS Bharat, Chetan Sakariya, Mitchell Starc, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ramandeep Singh, Sherfane Rutherford, Manish Pandey, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Dushmantha Chameera, Sakib Hussain.

 Players injured/withdrawn: Jason Roy, Gus Atkinson.

  • Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (c), David Miller, Matthew Wade, Wriddhiman Saha, Kane Williamson, Abhinav Manohar, B. Sai Sudharsan, Darshan Nalkande, Vijay Shankar, Jayant Yadav, Rahul Tewatia, Noor Ahmad, Sai Kishore, Rashid Khan, Joshua Little, Mohit Sharma, Azmatullah Omarzai, Umesh Yadav, Shahrukh Khan, Sushant Mishra, Kartik Tyagi, Manav Suthar, Spencer Johnson. 

Players injured/withdrawn: Mohammed Shami, Robin Minz.

  • Lucknow Super Giants: KL Rahul (c), Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravi Bishnoi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Krunal Pandya, Yudhvir Singh, Prerak Mankad, Yash Thakur, Amit Mishra, Shamar Joseph, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, K. Gowtham, Shivam Mavi, Arshin Kulkarni, M. Siddharth, Ashton Turner, David Willey, Mohd. Arshad Khan.  

Players injured/withdrawn: Mark Wood.

  • Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (c), Jos Buttler, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Donovan Ferreira, Kunal Rathore, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Sen, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Adam Zampa, Avesh Khan, Rovman Powell, Shubham Dubey, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Abid Mushtaq, Nandre Burger.  

Players injured/withdrawn: Prasidh Krishna.

  • Delhi Capitals: Rishabh Pant (c), Pravin Dubey, David Warner, Vicky Ostwal, Prithvi Shaw, Anrich Nortje, Abishek Porel, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Lalit Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, Mitchell Marsh, Ishant Sharma, Yash Dhull, Mukesh Kumar, Tristan Stubbs, Ricky Bhui, Kumar Kushagra, Rasikh Dar, Jhye Richardson, Sumit Kumar, Shai Hope, Swastik Chhikara.  

Players injured/withdrawn: Harry Brook, Lungi Ngidi.

  • Punjab Kings: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Matthew Short, Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Sikandar Raza, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Arshdeep Singh, Nathan Ellis, Sam Curran, Kagiso Rabada, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Bhatia, Vidwath Kaverappa, Shivam Singh, Harshal Patel, Chris Woakes, Ashutosh Sharma, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Shashank Singh, Tanay Thyagarajann, Prince Choudhary, Rilee Rossouw. 
  • Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abdul Samad, Abhishek Sharma, Aiden Markram (c), Marco Jansen, Rahul Tripathi, Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Sanvir Singh, Heinrich Klaasen, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mayank Agarwal, T. Natarajan, Anmolpreet Singh, Mayank Markande, Upendra Singh Yadav, Umran Malik, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Shahbaz Ahmed , Travis Head, Wanindu Hasaranga, Pat Cummins, Jaydev Unadkat, Akash Singh, Jhathavedh Subramanyan. 

Ludhiana’s 47th Vice-Chancellors’ Convention focuses on food security and farmer welfare!

Dr. Paroda discussed the developmental impact of the green, white, blue, and rainbow revolutions in India, and offered measures for farmers’ security, such as healthy soils and adequate water, timely supply of inputs.

Ludhiana's 47th Vice-Chancellors

On Sunday, the 47th Vice-Chancellors’ Convention began at Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University in Ludhiana with the topic “Food and nutritional security and farmers’ welfare: Vision India-2047 and beyond”.

The three-day convention, organized by the Indian Agricultural University Association (IAUA), will include a panel discussion on food security, climate change, and farmer welfare.

Dr. RS Paroda, chairman of the Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS), New Delhi, attended the inauguration function as principal guest, as did former director general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Dr. GS Khush, known as the “Father of the Rice Revolution,” and a World Food Prize winner, attended as a special guest.

Dr. Paroda discussed the developmental impact of India’s green, white, blue, and rainbow revolutions and proposed strategies for farmers’ security, such as healthy soils and good water, timely input supply, good knowledge and efficient extension services, access to low-interest credit, linking to markets for better income, and respect and dignity for farming communities.

Dr. Khush advocated for bringing in professionals with strong leadership characteristics and morals to help establish world-class institutions.

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Dr. RC Agrawal, Deputy Director General (Agricultural Education), ICAR, New Delhi, stated that the trend of pursuing higher education in agriculture is on the rise, and the majority of start-ups in India come from the agriculture and livestock sectors. He also underlined the need of digital initiatives in agricultural education.

Earlier, Dr. Inderjeet Singh, vice-chancellor of the vet varsity, invited dignitaries to the dais, as well as vice-chancellors and other officials from major agricultural universities in India. He stated that this convention would act as a platform for developing proposals and strategies to benefit the agriculture and livestock farming communities across the country.

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Sidhu Moosewala’s Parents welcome a second son two years after the singer’s death; admirers claim ‘the king is back’

Sidhu Moosewala, who was killed two years ago in Mansa, has finally found a brother. Charan Kaur, his mother, gave birth to a son on Saturday.

Balkaur Singh, the late Punjabi artist Sidhu Moosewala’s father, and Charan Kaur, his mother, have welcomed a son two years after his murder. Balkaur took to Instagram on Sunday and shared images that gave a glimpse of the newborn.

In a recent video, Balkaur held his son and grinned as hospital workers gathered around him. Charan smiled as she lay on a bed, looking at her baby. In the video, Balkaur feeds his son milk with a spoon before praising the staff. He also cut a cake with them and served a piece to one of the employees. Balkaur also posed with his baby for the camera.

Also Read Sidhu Moosewala Biography!


He had previously published a photo of himself and the infant. In the background of the photo, there was a photo frame of Sidhu. Balkaur, clothed in a blue shirt and jeans, was holding the baby in his arms. A cake was stored on a nearby table.

Balkaur captioned the post in Punjabi: “With the blessings of millions of souls who love Shubdeep, the Almighty has placed Shubh’s younger brother in our laps. The family is healthy thanks to Waheguru’s blessings, and I’m grateful to all of the well-wishers for their love.

What Balkaur had stated regarding Charan’s pregnancy.
Last week, Balkaur spoke about the rumors going about his family and asked everyone not to accept them. On his official Facebook page, he said in Punjabi, “We are grateful to Sidhu’s fans who are concerned about our family.” But, please, there are so many rumors about the family that they are not to be trusted. The family will share any fresh information with you all.”

In February, family sources revealed to Tribune that Sidhu’s mother, Charan Kaur, underwent IVF (In vitro fertilisation) therapy and was successful in having a child expected in March. According to the story, Sidhu Moosewala’s uncle Chamkaur Singh has confirmed Charan’s pregnancy.

Sidhu Moosewala, 28, was shot and killed on May 29, 2022, in Mansa. He was certified dead upon arrival at the Mansa Civil Hospital. Locals spotted him collapsed in the driver’s seat after the intruders fired more than 30 shots at him.

The incident occurred a day after his security cover was revoked as part of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s campaign to combat VIP culture in the state. Sidhu ran for the Mansa Assembly seat on a Congress ticket in the previous election, but was defeated by Vijay Singla of the AAP.

Also Read : The central government has banned 18 OTT applications for broadcasting ‘vulgar and filthy’ content. Check the complete list here!

Mamata Banerjee’s head injury: Doctor Clarifies His ‘push from behind’ Statement!

The West Bengal Chief Minister bled from her forehead and suffered a cut on the nose after falling at her Kalighat residence on Thursday.

The doctor, whose statement sparked speculation that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was “pushed from behind” at her south Kolkata residence on Thursday evening, resulting in a head injury, sought to clear the air today, claiming that her fall was caused by a “sensation of being pushed from behind.”

Banerjee bled from her forehead and had a cut on her nose after collapsing at her Kalighat home, her brother Kartick Banerjee told reporters. She was brought to the state-run SSKM Hospital around 7.30pm and released at 9.30pm, with three stitches on her forehead and one on her nose. A battery of tests determined that her status was stable.

Dr. Manimoy Bandopadhyay, head of the Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research at SSKM Hospital, briefed the media late Thursday night, according to the medical bulletin. “West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reported to our hospital today about 7.30 p.m. with a history of falling near her home due to a push from behind. She had a severe concussion and a deep cut on her forehead that was bleeding profusely…”

On Friday, Dr. Bandopadhyay stated, “This is not an issue.” Perhaps our statement was misconstrued. It felt like I was being shoved from behind, which caused me to tumble. It occurs when an individual falls.”

Kajari Banerjee, a Trinamool Congress councillor and Kartick’s wife, told reporters something similar. “We don’t know what exactly happened, but we heard that someone pushed from behind,” she went on to say.

The statements sparked speculation of a scheme to attack the chief minister before of the Lok Sabha elections, similar to the 2021 West Bengal assembly elections, when she fractured her leg.

Despite the fact that the chief minister is protected by Z-Plus security, the Kolkata Police Department has remained silent on the issue.

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Google Core Update for March 2024 Will Reduce 40% of “Unhelpful” Content!

Google’s extensive Google March Core Update 2024 tackles low-quality content and introduces new spam policies targeting manipulative practices.


Key Points

  • Google’s March 2024 Core Update includes algorithm changes to improve search result quality and new spam policies.
  • The update aims to reduce low-quality, unoriginal content in search results by 40%.
  • New spam policies target scaled content abuse, site reputation abuse, and expired domain abuse.

Google Core Update

Google’s technological changes and deindexation of many websites from Google Search in March 2024 are a game-changer.

Google has made major changes to its search regulations and engines in an effort to curb low-quality and spam content on the search engine.

The March 2024 Core Update is now being released. According to the company, it is more comprehensive than its previous core upgrades.

The algorithm has been adjusted in this version to decrease spam and enhance the quality of search results.

Google’s March 2024 core update: 5 things you need to know

Google Core Update

Click here https://seotoolswp.com/blog/google-new-core-update-2024

Here are all the information:

  • Google is removing all links from its index.

Imagine that when you wake up, Google has removed your website from its list of results. Many websites saw exactly that following the release of the March 2024 update.

Google stressed in its announcement on March 5th that it wanted to remove unoriginal, irrelevant, and useless content from search results.

Up to 40% of low-quality websites that offer pointless information and a bad user experience—pages built specifically to match search queries—are expected to be removed as part of this cleanup effort.

Websites that are discovered to be abusing Google’s policies or using dubious SEO techniques may not only face penalties but also be entirely erased from the index and search results.

The world of SEO went completely upside down in the days that followed the news.

Here’s a tweet from Jeff Coyle:

Google Core Update

Please be aware that totally deindexing a website is typically the result of a Google manual action; this is typically not the case when a Google core update occurs.

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  • Penalties are swift

What’s notable about this update is that the penalties were hard and fast, with site owners scrambling for answers. 

Let’s look at a whopping 10 websites deindexed:

Google Core Update

Try searching for your website using “site:website.com” to see if you appear in the search results to see if it was affected by the Google upgrade.

It’s significant to remember that, as Barry Schwartz said, websites impacted by the spam or core updates of March 2024 “would not get notified of a ranking decline through Google Search Console’s manual action viewer.”

“Google does not notify the site owner when a site is negatively (or positively) impacted by an algorithm update. Algorithmic updates are automated,” explains Schwartz.

  • Websites that survived previous updates are not immune

Furthermore, older websites are not exempt. There are now effects on those who were not affected by earlier algorithm changes.

Some people are supporting, stating that after years of abusing the system to remain in SERPs, it’s about time such poor websites were removed.

One instance of a “link building agency” that was expelled is this one.

In a discussion within the private Affiliate SEO Mastermind group, a member shared the unfortunate experience of a publisher whose entire network crumbled.

According to the post, the publisher’s eight affected sites, all established within the last two years, covered various niche topics. The author emphasized that the content was primarily human-written with minimal assistance from AI. 

The broad range of topics these sites covered indicates a lack of deep topical knowledge – experience and expertise – which Google prioritizes when ranking websites.

  • Outdated, error-filled sites are vulnerable

Speaking of E-E-A-T, look at how Google has now added another factor when considering content to be untrustworthy and with the lowest E-E-A-T:

Content is generated by AI, it’s outdated and it’s not error-free.

Google Core Update

Also Read: Explained: Why Paytm shares hit the 5% upper circuit today

  • Even small AI content sites were affected 

The way these micro AI content websites are being investigated is an intriguing trend. Google has improved its detection algorithms for AI-generated content, which can now result in penalties even for smaller companies in the market.

According to Craig Griffiths, a website’s frequency of content publication is the most important indicator of artificial intelligence.

Let’s get one thing straight: Google is not going after AI content. What Google wants to clean up from its search results is useless, repetitive, unoriginal content, whether it’s written by humans or AI or both.

The latest update aims to remove bad websites that do nothing for people while bringing good websites with valuable content to the surface. 

This is a wake-up call for website owners who thought their legacy would keep them safe. It proves again that adaptation is key to survival in the digital world.

If you’re managing one of these older, smaller domains, don’t panic yet. Start by conducting a comprehensive site audit and fix these issues immediately.

Quality comes first

Google has always placed a strong focus on readability, depth, and innovation. Websites that were taken down and deindexed frequently had a lot of shallow or replicated content that lacked original ideas or viewpoints.

In order to address this problem head-on, E-E-A-T must be improved. The E-E-A-T guidelines demonstrate to Google—and, more significantly, to your readers—that you are a reliable source. This entails highlighting author skills on your website and mentioning reliable sources relevant to your niche.

User experience also takes center stage with the latest algorithm changes. Your site should look good and be easy and intuitive for visitors. Websites focusing solely on keyword optimization instead of holistic UX design principles will be penalized.

Paying attention to page speed, mobile-friendliness and clear calls to action will help keep users engaged longer, sending positive signals back up the SEO food chain.

Remember, by making these adjustments, you’re not just playing nice with search engines; you’re building a better online space for everyone who visits.

Timeline

The March 2024 Core Update is starting to roll out now.

Websites have a two-month window to comply with the new site reputation policy. The other changes come into effect this week.

Google’s announcement emphasizes the company’s ongoing commitment to improving the quality of its search results.

“Search helps people with billions of questions every day, but there will always be areas where we can improve,” Tucker stated. “We’ll continue to work hard at keeping low-quality content on Search to low levels and showing more information created to help people.”

Explained: Why Paytm shares hit the 5% upper circuit today

At the start of the trading session, Paytm’s shares rose by 5 per cent to 370.70 rupees, marking its most prominent gain in two weeks.

Paytm

In Short

  • Paytm shares rose 5% after NPCI approval to operate as UPI service provider
  • Paytm to offer digital payment services in partnership with 4 banks
  • Paytm users and merchants assured of seamless transition.

Shares of Paytm surged by 5 per cent, reaching the upper circuit limit on Friday, March 15, after securing approval from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to operate as a third-party application provider for Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services.

This development came in the wake of Paytm Payments Bank facing regulatory actions leading to the termination of its operations on March 15 due to non-compliance, as directed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The approval granted by NPCI to One97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, allows it to offer digital payment services under a multi-bank model in partnership with four major banks; Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, and Yes Bank.

Under this new arrangement, existing users and merchants will experience uninterrupted service continuity as the “@Paytm” handle will be redirected to YES Bank.

The company, in an exchange filing, assured a seamless transition for users and merchants, urging them to migrate to the new payment service provider banks as required.

At the start of the trading session, Paytm’s shares rose by 5 per cent to 370.70 rupees, marking its most prominent gain in two weeks. Despite this positive momentum, the stock has witnessed a decline in value since late January when regulatory measures compelled Paytm Payments Bank to halt fresh deposits.

Analysts from brokerage firms like UBS and Jefferies weighed in on the implications of the third-party app provider licence for Paytm. While UBS noted that Paytm would now operate similarly to its competitors like Google Pay and PhonePe, Jefferies highlighted the potential necessity for Paytm to utilise its cash reserves to retain customers and merchants, pegged at 85 billion rupees ($1.02 billion).

Global brokerage firms view NPCI’s approval as a positive step, removing the regulatory hurdles for Paytm’s smooth transition. However, uncertainties remain regarding customer and merchant retention and the normalisation process for its lending business.

Despite these challenges, Jefferies remains optimistic about Paytm’s prospects, predicting a modest increase in payment value and app usage, and suggesting that the company is likely to tap into its cash reserves for retention purposes.

“The company’s business model is moving to a pure payment company. Paytm is likely to dip into less than $1 billion cash reserve for merchant/customer retention,” said Jefferies.

This article was published on India today.

Also read: Electoral Bonds: Decoding Congress’s little pockets of resistance

Electoral Bonds: Decoding Congress’s little pockets of resistance

While the BJP maintained a stark dominance in electoral bond encashments overall, data reviewed by India Today shows the Congress performed comparatively better in small pockets where its chances of winning elections were higher.

Electoral Bonds

In Short

  • BJP received Rs 6,060 crore through electoral bonds, Congress got Rs 1,422 crore
  • Congress drew more money in phases 15 and 17, coinciding with Tamil Nadu polls
  • Congress’s highest encashment in October 2023 before assembly polls in 5 states.

The prominence of a Tamil Nadu-based lottery company and a Hyderabad-based business conglomerate as top donors, alongside the ruling BJP emerging as the primary beneficiary of electoral bonds, is not the only takeaway from the electoral bonds data published by the Election Commission.

Since April 2019, the BJP has garnered a significant Rs 6,060 crore through electoral bonds, compared to the Congress’s Rs 1,422 crore. But notable exceptions occurred when the Congress had a higher chance of winning elections.

On average, the BJP encashed 42.7% of the total encashment against Congress’ 9.1% between phases 9 and 30, data for which was released on Thursday. However, little pockets of resistance from the Congress were seen in some phases.

For instance, Congress managed to draw more money than BJP in phases 15 and 17 corresponding to January 2021 and July 2021 respectively, as per data released by the Election Commission and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). Interestingly, these instances coincide with the assembly elections in states like Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Kerala, where the Congress’s position was notably firm.

In phase 15, Congress encashed Rs 7.1 crore against BJP’s Rs 1.5 crore, whereas in phase 17 it redeemed bonds worth Rs 24.7 crore against Rs 18 crore by the BJP. Interestingly, Congress party’s highest numbers were reported around October 2023, when it encashed Rs 401.9 crore against BJP’s Rs 359 crore in the same phase.

States expecting polls during this period were Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram, where the party was either in power or was expected to make a comeback.

Congress’s second highest encashment during a single phase was reported in April 2023, before the Karnataka polls with Rs 190.6 crore. The incumbent BJP redeemed Rs 334 crore in the same phase, but lost the southern state. Another small phase that saw the grand old party outstripping the BJP was in July 2022, when it encashed Rs 57.5 crore against the latter’s Rs 12.5 crore.

The BJP, on the other hand, scored its highest in the run-up to the previous Lok Sabha elections, encashing Rs 1,064 crore against Congress’s Rs 118 crore in April 2019, corresponding to phase 9 of the electoral bonds.

The saffron party went on to redeem bonds worth Rs 707 crore in the next month against Congress’s Rs 50 crore during that phase. The data released after the Supreme Court’s order only covers details of electoral bonds sold and encashed since April 12, 2019, although phase 9 started on April 1, 2019, as per ADR.

This article was published on India Today.

Also read: Check The Latest Update: Petrol, diesel price cut in Delhi , Mumbai & Kolkata!

Check The Latest Update: Petrol, diesel price cut in Delhi , Mumbai & Kolkata!

The Center declared on Thursday that the national price of gasoline and diesel has been reduced by ₹2. Here is a link to the updated fuel prices for your city.

Petrol price

On Thursday, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Puri declared that the country’s gasoline and diesel rates have been slashed by ₹2. The fuel price reduction occurs just a few days before the Lok Sabha election declaration.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas declared that the new fuel rates will take effect nationwide on March 15 at six in the morning when it published the updated prices on its official X account. “Price reductions for gasoline and diesel will increase consumer spending and lower operating costs for over 58 lakh heavy goods vehicles running on diesel, 6 crore cars, and 27 crore two-wheelers,” the ministry tweeted.

“The country’s illustrious Prime Minister Modi has once again proved that the welfare and convenience of his family of crores of Indians is always his goal,” Puri wrote on X, praising the national government’s decision.

The central government added that the lower prices for gasoline and diesel will help Indians in numerous ways, including as increased travel and tourism, increased discretionary income, lower costs for farmers using tractors, and many more.

In addition, Hardeep Puri stated that when compared to other significant European countries, India now has some of the lowest fuel prices due to rate reductions. “On March 14, 2024, petrol costs, in rupee terms, ₹94 per litre in India, but ₹168.01, or 79% more, in Italy; ₹166.87, or 78% more, in France; ₹159.57, or 70% more; and ₹145.13, or 54% more, in Germany,” he stated.

Petrol, diesel prices on March 15: City-wise rates

CityPetrol price per litreDiesel price per litre
Delhi₹94.72₹87.62
Mumbai₹104.21₹92.15
Kolkata₹103.94₹90.76
Chennai₹100.75₹92.34


There were rumors in January of this year that the union administration intended to significantly lower the price of gasoline and diesel. Puri, however, dispelled these rumors, stating that with the current high price of crude oil, there will not be any gasoline rate reductions anytime soon.

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