Ratan Tata To Be Cremated With Full State Honours: Maharashtra CM

by Pabitra Mohan Senapaty

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

The last rites of illustrious industrialist Ratan Tata, who passed away at a hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday night at the age of 86 age-related health conditions, will be performed with full state honours, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Thursday.

Mumbai, Oct 10: The last rites of illustrious industrialist Ratan Tata, who passed away at a hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday night at the age of 86 age-related health conditions, will be performed with full state honours, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Thursday.

In a post on X, Chief Minister Shinde said Ratan Tata was a unique blend of ethics and entrepreneurship.

"He was a living legend who successfully took over the reins of the Tata Group, which has a tradition of excellence and integrity of nearly 150 years... I pay my heartfelt tribute to him," Chief Minister Shinde said.

"Ratanji Tata was the pride of India, he will always remain a role model for the next generation of entrepreneurs," he added.

Chief Minister Shinde further said that the determination shown by Ratan Tata after the 2008 Mumbai attack as well as his firm decisions, courageous attitude and social commitment will always be remembered.

Known for his genteel demeanour masking a tough and sharp business acumen, Ratan Tata served as the all-powerful Chairman of Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata Group, from 1991 till his retirement on December 28, 2012.

It was during his stewardship that the group's revenues grew manifold, totalling over $100 billion (in 2011-12).

Born in Mumbai on December 28, 1937, Ratan Tata joined the Tata Group as a young executive in 1962, after acquiring his Bachelor of Architecture degree from Cornell University.

IANS

Odisha Govt Issues Guidelines For ‘Shahid Madho Singh Haath Kharcha Yojana’

by Hemanta Pande

Bhubaneswar, Oct 10: The Odisha government has issued operational guidelines for the implementation of Shahid Madho Singh Haath Kharcha Yojana which aimed to check the drop-out rate among the students belonging to the Scheduled Tribes studying in Class 9 and 10 in government and aided schools across the state.

The students belonging to the Scheduled Tribe community in Odisha will be provided with one-time financial assistance of Rs 5,000 under this flagship scheme of the BJP government led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi.

As per the resolution issued by the Odisha SC and ST Development department, a good number of tribal students are getting enrolled at the elementary level in the state.

However, high dropouts are also being noticed among the tribal students after class 8 and class 10 causing less enrollment in Secondary and Higher Secondary levels, respectively.

In order to reduce the dropout rate, and to encourage Scheduled Tribe (ST) students to pursue higher education without any major hindrance, the state government has launched "Shahid Madho Singh Haath Kharcha Yojna".

Under this scheme, ST students passing out from Class 8 and joining in Class 9 and similarly from Class 10 to Class 11, will receive a onetime incentive amount of Rs 5,000, the resolution issued on Wednesday read.

The department also noted that the ST students getting benefits under any other scholarship schemes are also eligible to avail the incentive amount under the Sahid Madho Singh Scheme.

It also asserts that this one-time financial aid will help in increasing the enrollment status in Class 9 and Class 11 in different government and government-aided institutions.

As per the guidelines, "Under the scheme, eligible ST students after completing their Class 8 and Class 10 and soon after taking admission into Class 9 and CIass 12, respectively, will be provided with Rs 5,000 as a one-time incentive amount as Haath Kharcha. The incentive amount will be provided after enrollment in the respective classes, ensuring that student is attending classes regularly after enrollment".

This financial aid will help the tribal students meet expenses for their incidental requirements. (IANS)

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Centre Releases Rs 8068 Crore As Tax Devolution to Odisha; Total Rs 1.78L Crore To States

by Pabitra Mohan Senapaty

New Delhi, Oct 10: In a bid to enable states to boost development and capital spending, the Centre on Thursday said it has released tax devolution of Rs 1,78,173 crore to state governments, as against the normal monthly devolution of Rs 89,086.50 crore. The released tax devolution includes Rs 8,068 crore for Odisha.

It includes one advance instalment, in addition to the regular instalment due in October.

Among the states, Uttar Pradesh (Rs 31,962 crore), Bihar (Rs 17,921 crore), Madhya Pradesh (Rs 13,987 crore), Maharashtra (Rs 11,255 crore), West Bengal (Rs 13,404 crore), Rajasthan (Rs 10,737 crore), Odisha (Rs 8,068 crore), Andhra Pradesh (Rs 7,211 crore) and Telangana (Rs 3,745 crore) were the top receivers.

“This release is in view of the upcoming festive season and to enable states to accelerate capital spending, and also finance their development/welfare related expenditure,” according to a statement by the Union Ministry of Finance.

The central government will transfer Rs 23,48,980 crore to states and union territories in FY 2024-25, an increase of 11.9 per cent over the actuals of 2023-24.

Devolution to states from the Centre's tax revenue is estimated to be Rs 12,47,211 crore in 2024-25, an increase of 10.4 per cent over the actuals of 2023-24.

In FY 2023-24, according to the actuals, devolution to states is estimated to be Rs 1,08,046 crore more than the budget estimate of Rs 10,21,448 crore (an increase of 10.6 per cent).

In June this year, the BJP-led NDA government released an additional instalment of devolution of taxes, cumulatively amounting to Rs 1,39,750 crore. The Centre in February had released Rs 1.42 lakh crore in tax devolution to the states, supplementing the Rs 72,961 crore disbursed earlier in the same month.