The Centre has released the first instalment of the 15th Finance Commission grants for FY 2024-25 to the rural local bodies (RLBs) in Karnataka, the Union Panchayati Raj Ministry said in a statement.

The funds are meant for all the 5,949 eligible gram panchayats in the state, it added.

"The Government of India through the Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Ministry of Jal Shakti recommends the release of XV-FC grants to the Rural Local Bodies which are then released by the Ministry of Finance. The allocated grants are recommended and released in two installments in a financial year," the statement said.

Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh launched the Rashtraparv website and mobile app on December 25, 2024, marking Good Governance Day and commemorating the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

The new platform will provide comprehensive information about national events such as Republic Day, Beating Retreat, and Independence Day. It features live-streaming, ticket purchasing options, seating arrangement details, and route maps for attendees.

Defence Secretary Singh highlighted that the website and app, developed by the Ministry of Defence, include a Tableau Management Portal. This tool will help states, union territories, ministries, and departments in designing and finalising their tableaux for the Republic Day parade.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Department of Personnel and Training appointed Arunish Chawla as the new Revenue Secretary, Ministry of Finance, according to an official order on Wednesday, December 25.

Chawla is currently serving India as the Secretary of the Department of Pharmaceuticals under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.

According to the order, Chawla will continue to hold his additional charge appointment of the Culture Secretary under the Ministry of Culture till a replacement or further orders are given.

“Shri Arunish Chawla, IAS (BH:92), Secretary. Department of Secretary. Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers as Secretary, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance. He will continue to hold the additional charge of Secretary, Ministry of Culture till the appointment of a regular incumbent or until further orders whicheverisearlier,” said the order.

India’s telecom sector witnessed a decline in its subscriber base in October 2024, as per data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The report highlighted a decrease of 33 lakh active subscribers, with the total subscriber count—comprising wireless and wireline connections—falling to 1,188.20 million as of October 31, reflecting a monthly decline rate of 0.21 percent.

Both urban and rural regions experienced a dip in subscriptions. Urban subscribers dropped to 660.42 million, while rural subscriptions fell to 527.79 million. The broadband segment also recorded a marginal decline, with total subscribers reducing from 944.40 million in September to 941.47 million in October, marking a 0.31 percent drop.

Despite the overall decline, wired broadband connections saw an uptick, growing by 2.37 percent to 44.66 million subscribers from 43.63 million in the previous month. However, fixed wireless connections such as Wi-Fi and Wi-Max registered a sharp decline of 22.72 percent, and mobile broadband users decreased by 0.42 percent to 896.05 million.

Evidence to support an older age for the formation of the Moon, around 4.51 billion years ago, as per a paper published in the journal Nature. This new analysis suggests that a ‘remelting’ of the Moon’s surface around 4.35 billion years ago may have masked a far older history.

The Moon is thought to have been formed through a collision between the early Earth and a Mars-sized protoplanet, the last giant impact in our planet’s history. The timing of this event has been estimated by dating lunar rock samples presumed to have crystallised from the lunar magma ocean that existed post-impact, placing the Moon’s age at approximately 4.35 billion years old, as per a Nature release. However, this age fails to account for several discrepancies with thermal models and other pieces of evidence, such as the number of craters on the Moon and the age of some zircon minerals on the Moon’s surface, which suggest that the Moon could be up to 4.51 billion years old.

India has made significant progress in technology and innovation, securing the 49th rank in the Network Readiness Index 2024 (NRI 2024), an improvement of 11 places compared to last year. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in a social media post on Saturday stated that the Index, published by the Washington DC-based Portulans Institute, evaluates countries on their use of technology to enhance governance, citizen engagement, and overall impact.

It said, "India has improved its position by eleven slots and is now placed at 49th rank as per the Network Readiness Index 2024 (NRI 2024) published by Portulans Institute, an independent non-profit research and educational institute based in Washington DC on technology, citizens, governance and impact. "The ministry noted that the place of India has improved 11 places, in 2023, India was ranked 60th with a score of 49.93. This year, the country not only climbed the rankings but also improved its overall score to 53.63, reflecting its consistent efforts in advancing technology, research, and digital infrastructure.

Researchers in Siberia are conducting tests on a juvenile mammoth whose remarkably well-preserved remains were discovered in thawing permafrost after more than 50,000 years.

The creature, resembling a small elephant with a trunk, was recovered from the Batagaika crater, a huge depression more than 80 metres (260 feet) deep which is widening as a result of climate change.

The carcass, weighing more than 110 kg (240 pounds), was brought to the surface on an improvised stretcher, said Maxim Cherpasov, head of the Lazarev Mammoth Museum Laboratory in the city of Yakutsk.

He said the mammoth was probably a little over a year old when it died, but tests would enable the scientists to confirm this more accurately. The fact that its head and trunk had survived was particularly unusual.

Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population has imported Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines administered against cervical cancer with the assistance of the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunization (GAVI). GAVI will provide only 1.77 million vaccines to Nepal. 460,940 doses of the vaccine have been received now, the vaccines have been kept in a storage room at Teku in Kathmandu Valley and will be sent to all the provinces gradually.

The government of Nepal has declared a vaccination drive from February 5 to protect adolescent girls from cancer from an early age. As part of the 15-day campaign, 1,688,900 girls aged 10 to 14 years from class 6 to 10 and out of school will be vaccinated, Child Health and Vaccination Section chief Dr Abhiyan Gautam informed. Human papillomavirus infection is the main cause of increasing the risk of cervical cancer. Human papillomavirus infection is caused by premature marriage, early child delivery, giving birth to more children, having children at short intervals and having sex with multiple people, excessive smoking and drinking, and not paying attention to genital hygiene.

President of India on Monday (December 23, 2024) appointed retired Supreme Court Justice V. Ramasubramanian as the Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission. The post of NHRC chief was lying vacant since June this year.

President also appointed Priyank Kanoongo and retired Justice Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi as the Members of the NHRC-India.

A high-power committee led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi met on December 18 to select the next chairperson of NHRC. Both Leaders of the Opposition (LoPs), Mallikarjun Kharge in the Rajya Sabha and Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha also attended the meeting.

Acclaimed film director Shyam Benegal passed away in Mumbai today. He was 90 years old. Shyam Benegal breathed his last at a private hospital in Mumbai, where he had been undergoing treatment for chronic kidney disease.

The legendary director won several National Awards for movies including, Manthan (1976), Bhumika: The Role (1977), Junoon (1978), Arohan (1982), Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero (2004), and Well Done Abba (2010).

Widely regarded as one of the greatest visionaries in Indian cinema, Shyam Benegal is a name that evokes memories of iconic, socially-reflective films like Ankur, Bhumika, Nishant, Manthan, Sardaari Begum and Zubeidaa. Born on the 14th of December in 1934, in Hyderabad, Shyam Benegal began his journey with advertising films, but soon, his artistic vision led him to redefine Indian cinema. Shyam Benegal was a pioneer of the New Wave movement, a master who brought rural struggles and social realities to the silver screen. His contributions went beyond cinema – from his iconic TV series Bharat Ek Khoj to mentoring generations of artists. With awards like Dadasaheb Phalke, Padma Shri, and Padma Bhushan, Shyam Benegal remains a beacon of creativity and courage. His demise leaves behind a legacy of six decades that transformed Indian storytelling.