Member of Parliament in Lok Sabha and senior Bhartiya Janata Party leader Girish Bapat passed away in Pune today after suffering from a prolonged illness. He was 73.

Girish Bapat was critically ill and had been on life support. He was suffering from breathing problems for the past few months and had been undergoing dialysis at the hospital.

In Uttrakhand, the first meeting of the G20  roundtable conference of Chief Science Advisors was held on the second day of the G20 summit in Ramnagar in the Nainital district on Wednesday. In the meeting held at Dhikuli resort of Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve around 54 chief science advisors from 18 countries participated including America, Argentina, China, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy and Japan.

Addressing the media on Wednesday Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood said that in the meeting four agendas-The One Health opportunity to tackle the pandemic and disease control, Coordination in global efforts enhancing reach to scientific knowledge, diversity, equity inclusiveness and accessibility in the field of science and technology, and inclusive, incessant and action-oriented global policy in regard to science and technology. He said, on One Health topic,  a plan should be made to coordinate work on Human Health, Livestock Health, and Wildlife Health so that we should know in advance which pandemic is coming. He noted that in India a lot of work has been done in this direction.

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar has said that today, India is on the rise, inspired by the surge of aspirations and innovations and validated by the achievements of the citizens.

Addressing the 69th Founders’ Day ceremony of the Indian Institute of Public Administration in New Delhi on Wednesday, Mr Dhankhar said, the next 25 years are going to be crucial for the country. He said, the civil servants who are joining today, will be the Warriors of 2047. The Vice President said, Governance is a dynamic concept and Public administrators have to remain in tune with the changing expectations and requirements of citizens. He said, young talent from remote villages, humble families, from marginalised communities joining the Civil Services.  
Mr Dhankhar expressed happiness that more and more talented young girls are joining Civil Services and are ready to face the challenges of public administration.

Government has identified 1275 railway stations under the Amrit Bharat Station scheme for development of Railway stations. Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said this in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha yesterday. He said, this scheme envisages development of stations on a continuous basis with a long-term approach.
 
It involves preparation of Master Plans and their implementation in phases to improve the amenities at the stations like improvement of station access, waiting halls, toilets, free Wi-Fi, better passenger information systems and executive lounges. The scheme also envisages improvement of building, integrating the station with both sides of the city, multimodal integration, amenities for Divyangjans and creation of city centres at the station in the long term.

The Defence Ministry has signed three contracts at a total cost of nearly 5400 crore rupees with domestic producers to bolster the defence capabilities of the country. The first contract has been signed with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and pertains to the procurement of Automated Air Defence Control and Reporting System Project Akashteer worth 1982 crore rupees for the Indian Army.
 
The second contract with BEL relates to the acquisition of Sarang Electronic Support Measure systems at an overall cost of 412 crore rupees for the Indian Navy. Sarang is an advanced Electronic Support Measure system for helicopters of the Indian Navy. Both will empower the Air Defence units of the Indian Army to effectively operate in an integrated manner.

Ram Navami is being celebrated with religious fervor and enthusiasm in several parts of the country today. The festival marks the birth of Lord Rama, the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Ram Navami is celebrated on the ninth day of the Chaitra month.
 
President Droupadi Murmu has extended her greetings to the fellow citizens on the occasion of Ram Navami. In a message, the President said that celebrated as the birth anniversary Lord Ram, the festival teaches the message of selfless service.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has paid tributes to freedom fighter Shyamji Krishna Varma on his death anniversary. In a tweet, Mr Modi said, a devout nationalist and courageous personality, Shyamji Krishna Varma was at the forefront of India’s struggle against injustice and colonial rule. Prime Minister said, inspired by his ideals, we will keep working for the people of the nation.

The first batch of Agniveers from INS Chilika in Odisha is all set to be inducted into the Indian Navy. About 2600 freshly recruited Agniveers took part in the passing out parade in Chilika in Odisha.

The first batch of the Agniveers which include 273 women, underwent 16 weeks of rigorous training at INS Chilika. The Passing out Parade was attended as chief guest by the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R Harikumar. The function was graced by renowned athlete and presently the President of the Indian Olympics Association P T Usha and the former captain of the Indian Women Cricket Team Mithali Raj. A large number of defence personnel, special invitees and the parents and guardians of the Agniveers were present on the occasion.

Centre has sanctioned eight hundred crore rupees under FAME Scheme Phase -2 for setting up seven thousand 432 public fast charging stations across the country.

The government has formulated Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) India Scheme in 2015 to improve the infrastructure required for the large-scale use of electric vehicles. Heavy Industries Minister, Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey said, a wide network of electric vehicle charging stations will be soon deployed across the country by Oil Marketing Companies.

The last date for linking PAN and Aadhaar has been extended to 30th June this year to provide some more time to the taxpayers. In a statement, Central Board of Direct Taxes, CBDT said, from 1st July, the PAN of taxpayers who have failed to intimate their Aadhaar will become inoperative. The CBDT said, if Aadhaar and PAN are not linked before last date, no refund shall be made against such PANs and interest shall not be payable on such refund for the period during which PAN remains inoperative. The PAN can be made operative again in 30 days, upon intimation of Aadhaar to the prescribed authority after payment of fee of one thousand rupees.