Giuseppe Conte Sworn In As Italian Prime Minister
ROME: Giuseppe Conte was sworn in on Friday as Italy's prime minister, heading western Europe's first anti-establishment government bent on overhauling European Union rules on budgets and immigration.
Conte, a little-known 53-year-old law professor, is backed by the 5-Star Movement which grew out of a grassroots protest network, and the right-wing League who have issued a budget-busting agenda of sweeping tax cuts and higher welfare spending.
The government was formed after three months of political deadlock following inconclusive March 4 elections, with the pre-election rivals striking a last-minute deal on Thursday to avert a fresh vote in high summer amid growing market turmoil.
Widespread voter disenchantment has seen anti-establishment parties upset mainstream politics across the continent, including Germany and France, but it is the first time they will run the government of a major western European country.
Italy reaches a deal on a new government, ending a crisis that rattled global markets
ROME — Italy appeared Thursday to step back from the brink of a continent-rattling political crisis , with officials agreeing to a deal that averts the threat of fresh elections and puts two populist parties in charge of the euro zone’s third-largest economy.
The agreement was the latest twist in a topsy-turvy week for Italian politics, one that on Tuesday had sent global markets tumbling amid jitters that the country was careening toward a new vote and a possible euro exit. Investors feared an even greater populist surge if a fresh election were held.
But negotiations Wednesday and Thursday yielded an unexpected breakthrough, culminating in a presidential announcement late Thursday night that the country’s new government will be sworn in Friday.
Patanjali withdraws its messaging app ‘Kimbho’, will be launched later
While the world is crazy about the messaging app Whatsapp, Yoga guru Ramdev decided to give it a competition with its Swadeshi app called Kimbho. On Wednesday, Baba Ramdev launched a new messaging application called Kimbho under his flagship company Patanjali. However, a fresh update says that Patanjali has withdrawn its Messaging App saying "Technical Work In Progress". The company said it was just a "one-day trial", Ramdev's Patanjali said messaging app Kimbho will be officially launched soon.
Yesterday, Patanjali's spokesperson SK Tijarawala tweeted, "Now Bharat will speak. After launching sim cards, Baba Ramdev has launched a new messaging application called Kimbho. Now Whats App will be given a competition. Our own #SwadeshiMessagingplatform. Download it directly from Google Play store." Kimbho application is touted to be a competitor of the messaging app WhatsApp. The tagline of Kimbho is kept as "Ab Bharat Bolega".
Mariano Rajoy: Spanish PM forced out of office
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has been forced out of office by a no-confidence vote in parliament.
Socialist leader Pedro Sánchez, who filed the motion after Mr Rajoy's party was implicated in a corruption scandal, will become prime minister.
"We're going to sign a new page in the history of democracy in our country," Mr Sánchez said ahead of Friday's vote.
Mr Rajoy is the first prime minister in modern Spanish history to be defeated in a no-confidence motion.
The leader of the conservative People's Party has been prime minister since 2011.
Government Launches Online Tool To Monitor Foreign Contributions
New Delhi: The Centre on Friday launched a web-based analytical tool to closely monitor the flow and utilisation of foreign contributions received by different organisations registered or permitted under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).
"The tool enables decision-makers in various government departments/Ministries to scrutinise the sources of foreign funds and their actual use in India. It gives them the capacity to take data-driven and evidence-based decisions regarding compliance with the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010," Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said while launching the tool.
Shri Amit Khare assumes charge as Secretary I&B
New Delhi : Shri Amit Khare, IAS (Jharkhand: 1985) today assumed charge as Secretary in the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting on superannuation of Shri Narendra Kumar Sinha, IAS. Prior to his appointment, Shri Khare was Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Jharkhand.
During a career span of more than 33 years, Shri Khare has held various field postings and has worked from grassroots to the higher levels of governance in both State and Central Governments. Prior to being Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Jharkhand Shri Khare served as Principal Secretary, Finance & Planning Department, Government of Jharkhand.
He has served as Member Secretary in the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Government of India and Joint Secretary to the Government of India in the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Grounded: Govt’s ambitious Air India stake sale fails to take off
The government has drawn a blank on the 76% stake sale in Air India (AI) with not a single player putting in an expression of interest (EoI) to buy the state-owned carrier before the deadline ended on Thursday.
There is no plan to extend the deadline and a spokesperson for the government said on Thursday a “further course of action will be decided appropriately”.
Industry watchers said those interested in buying AI were probably spooked by the government’s insistence on retaining a 24% stake despite suggestions it should exit the airline completely. Although this was a minority holding, buyers feared a lot of interference.
Press Council of India reconstituted
The government has reconstituted the Press Council of India for a three-year term but the names under medium newspaper category have not been announced as the matter related to it is sub judice.
According to a gazette notification, members of the newly reconstituted body under the category of ‘Working Journalists-Editors’ are Chandramani Raghuvanshi, Uttam Chandra Sharma, Pradeep Kumar Jain, Om Prakash Khemkarni, Sayed Razza Husain Rizvi and Baldev Raj Gupta.
In the category of ‘Working journalists-Other than Editors’, the nominated members are Amar Devulapalli, Balwinder Singh Jammu, Sarat Chandra Behera, Pravat Kumar Dash, M A Majid, Kamal Nain Narang and Chhayakanta Nayak. Mr. Uttam Chandra Sharma, Mr. Dash and Mr. Nayak were nominated for the second term in the revamped PCI, the notification said.
Facebook ties up with NCW to train Indian women on safe use of internet
Facebook on Wednesday said it entered into a partnership with National Commission for Women (NCW) to launch a digital literacy programme aimed at training 60,000 women in universities across India on safe use of the Internet, social media and email in a year.
Launched in collaboration with Cyber Peace Foundation, the pilot programme will enable trainees to differentiate between credible and questionable information, Facebook said.
The training will be conducted in vernacular languages.
“With more women going online, NCW has witnessed a surge in cyber crime related complaints registered at the Commission in the past three years. This trend is worrying. We have to ensure that while online, they feel safe and secure on the Internet,” Rekha Sharma, acting NCW Chairperson, said in a statement.
Denmark Parliament bans wearing of face veils in public
Denmark's parliament banned the wearing of face coverings in public spaces Thursday in a move that critics say will criminalize Muslim women who choose to wear the niqab or burqa.
The measure will come into force on August 1, Reuters news agency reported. Fines will range from 1,000 Danish crowns ($160) for a first offense to 10,000 crowns for a fourth violation, the news agency said.
The ban is the latest in a series to be approved by European lawmakers. A ban on wearing the full-face veil in public went into force in France in 2011. Restrictions on full-face veils are also in place in Belgium, Austria and parts of Switzerland, while other European countries have debated the issue.
Lawmakers in Quebec, Canada, passed a bill last October that would require public workers and citizens seeking government services to have their faces uncovered.