Researchers have uncovered giant "mysterious" jars in India that may have been used for ancient human burial practices.

The 65 sandstone jars were found scattered over four sites in the north-eastern state of Assam.

They vary in shape and size. Some of the jars are tall and cylindrical, while the others are partly or fully buried in the ground.

Similar stone vessels have previously been found in Laos and Indonesia.

The details of the discovery - which involved researchers from three universities in India and Australia - were published in the Journal of Asian Archaeology journal this week. The research was led by Tilok Thakuria from North-Eastern Hill University and Uttam Bathari from Gauhati University.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday participated in the 5th BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) Summit hosted in virtual mode by Sri Lanka, the current chair of BIMSTEC.

Prior to the 5th BIMSTEC Summit, preparatory meetings at the Senior Official and Foreign Minister levels were held in Colombo on 28th and 29th March in the hybrid mode.

The Summit’s theme “Towards a Resilient Region, Prosperous Economies, Healthy People” captures the main current priorities of member states, and the efforts by BIMSTEC to develop cooperation activities that support member state’s programmes to deal with the economic and development consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. The main outcome of the Summit was the adoption and signing of the BIMSTEC Charter, which formalizes the grouping into an organization made up of members states that are littoral to, and dependent upon, the Bay of Bengal.

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved a USD 808 million or Rs 6,062.45 crore, World Bank assisted programme on “Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance” (RAMP).

RAMP is a new scheme and would commence in FY 2022-23.

Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana Thursday launched a software that would enable electronic communication of court orders thereby reducing the time that prisons and other authorities have to spend waiting for them.

Lok Sabha has passed the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022. The Bill seeks to further amend the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 and proposes to unify the three existing Municipal Corporations of Delhi into one Municipal Corporation of Delhi. It envisages bringing about greater transparency, improved governance and more efficient delivery of civic service for the people of Delhi.

At present, the three corporations in Delhi -- North, South and East Delhi Municipal Corporations -- have a total of 272 seats. While North and South corporations have 104 Wards each, the East corporation has 64 Wards. The Bill was moved by Home Minister Amit Shah in the House. Replying to the discussion on the Bill, the Home Minister countered the opposition allegations saying that this Bill has been brought by following all the constitutional norms.

Coal and Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi has launched an auction of 122 Coal and Lignite Mines including 18 New Mines. Addressing the fifth tranche of auction launch in New Delhi, Mr Joshi said that 42 coal mines have already been auctioned successfully. He said, along with ensuring energy security of the nation this will provide employment opportunities to more than one lakh 17 thousand.

Mr Joshi said, the success of these auctions indicate that right steps are being taken by the Government to provide further momentum to the growth of Coal sector. The Minister added that the Ministry of Coal is on the journey to reform the sector and unlock its potential. He said the recent reforms initiated in the coal sector will further strengthen the vision of Aatmnirbhar Bharat. 

Information and Broadcasting Ministry has transferred the mandate of production of documentaries and short films, organization of film festivals and preservation of films to the National Film Development Corporation, NFDC, a Public sector undertaking working under the Ministry.

The Ministry said, the bringing of all these activities under a single
management will reduce the overlap of various activities and ensure better utilization of public resources.

The mandate of production of feature films is already being carried out by NFDC. It will give a strong impetus to the production of films of all genres including feature films, documentaries, children films and animation films, organizing various domestic festivals and preservation of the filmic content.

The ownership of the assets available with these units will remain with the government.

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has launched over one lakh internship opportunities for the youth. The students can access these opportunities on the All India Council For Technical Education's (AICTE) portal. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Pradhan said that the opportunities will open up doors for students to get an understanding of how a particular industry works.

He said, there should be an aim to provide 100 million internship opportunities in the next three years for boosting the employability of youth. Calling the step a welcome beginning, Education Minister said that the industry should aim to provide internship opportunities to all. The Minister encouraged the industry to diversify the internship opportunities. He said the New Education Policy emphasises linking industry with academic institutions to make youth future-ready. 

The High-Level Committee under the Chairmanship of Home Minister Amit Shah has approved additional Central assistance of over one thousand 887 crore rupees to five States under the National Disaster Response Fund. These states are Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Sikkim and West Bengal.

Home Ministry said, more than one thousand crore rupees has been approved for Bihar, over 292 crore rupees for Rajasthan, more than 475 crore rupees for West Bengal, over 59 crore rupees for Sikkim and over 21 crore rupees for Himachal Pradesh. This additional assistance is over and above the funds released by the Centre to the States in the State Disaster Response Fund.

The Ministry said, Central Government had deputed Inter-Ministerial Central Teams to these States immediately after the calamities without waiting for the receipt of the Memorandum from them.

Tata Steel has appointed Noel Naval Tata, a trustee on the boards of Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, its additional director and designated him as the vice-chairman. A decision in this regard was taken by the board of the company at its meeting held on Monday, Tata Steel said in a regulatory filing.

“Based on the recommendations of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee, the Board of Directors (have) considered and unanimously approved the appointment of Noel Naval Tata as an Additional Director (Non-Executive, Non-Independent) effective March 28, 2022. Further, the Board designated Noel Naval Tata as the Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors,” the filing said on Monday.