In a highly ironic matter, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has been asked to direct state governments to fill the large number of vacant posts in the Medical Teaching Service in a time-bound manner, while three-fourth of the posts in the four autonomous boards of the NMC are lying vacant.The Board of Undergraduate Medical Education, the Board of Postgraduate Medical Education and the Board of Ethics and Medical Registration each have only one part-time member. Each board should have five members including the chairman. The Medical Assessment and Rating Board alone has a Chairman and a part-time member, while the remaining three posts are vacant.When contacted, NMC president Dr Abhijat Sheth, while confirming that the process to fill the vacancies in the board is currently under consideration by the government, told TOI that the NMC is fully functional, with 28 out of 33 members currently serving. “All statutory requirements, including quorum, are being duly met, and the functioning of the Commission and its boards is unaffected,” he said.Dr Sheth said, “Policy-level decisions continue to be taken at the Commission level. For matters related to autonomous boards, the Chairman is empowered to constitute expert committees under the Act, and all work is being done through these duly constituted mechanisms.”Even though the NMC boards are full of vacancies, the Patna High Court has asked the Commission to direct the states to fill the teaching vacancies within six months. The court asked the NMC to “take appropriate action in directing the state government to initiate appointment/recruitment drive to fill the large number of vacant posts in the medical teaching service within a time bound period.” The court was hearing a plea challenging the Aadhaar-enabled biometric attendance system in medical colleges.Keeping the order in mind, NMC has directed all the states and union territories to take necessary steps.

New Delhi: Indian space company Agnikul Cosmos on Wednesday announced that it has successfully tested its 3D-printed booster engine, ‘Egnite’, which can reduce production complexity and turnaround time for missions.The engine, which is a single-piece architecture, can be completely printed within a week, unlike traditional booster engines which contain thousands of parts and can take months to build.“Humbled to announce the successful firing of our single piece Agnite engine. Agnite engines power the booster stage of Agnibaan. These engine chambers are a full meter long, completely 3D printed as a single piece of hardware and made of Enal. The Agnite engines are powered by pumps that are controlled and driven by electric motors. Thank you to ISRO and INSPACE for their continued support and to IIT Madras Thank you for being our home region from where such technology is created,” Agnikul posted. Wednesday at X.This milestone is significant as it completes an end-to-end cycle of design, manufacturing, assembly and testing of our large engines, the company said. With the successful testing of Egnite, the company will now focus on manufacturing more such engines by setting up a production line.

New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah He is leading an informal group of ministers (GoM) dealing with “overall strategic issues” arising from the ongoing conflict in West Asia, including the decline in the supply of LPG and LNG, the primary feedstock for urea production.Shah has already held a meeting with other ministers, including Fertilizer Minister JP Nadda and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, to assess the situation of fertilizer and petroleum gas supplies.TOI has learned that another informal GoM has been constituted under the chairmanship of power and urban affairs minister Manohar Lal to deal with matters related to energy supply. The group held a meeting on Wednesday in which issues related to “piped gas supply to households” were discussed in detail. Food and Renewable Energy Minister Pralhad Joshi, Heavy Industries Minister HD Kumaraswamy and Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri participated in it. This is important as the government is focusing on using PNG in place of LPG in more and more households.While presiding over the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security on Saturday. PM Modi Had directed that a group of ministers and secretaries be formed to work dedicatedly with a whole of government approach. He also called for regional groups to work in consultation with all stakeholders.On Tuesday, Modi announced the setting up of seven empowered groups of secretaries to deal with various issues arising from the crisis; Some groups held their first round of meetings on Wednesday. “There will be more clarity on the course of action in the next few days,” an official said.

New Delhi: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) on Wednesday warned of action if hotels and restaurants are found charging extra under heads like “LPG charges,” “Gas surcharge” and “fuel cost recovery” in food bills.The authority issued an advisory invoking the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, stating that such charges are being levied by default to circumvent the existing guidelines on service charges. It added that any such charges would not be imposed automatically, and warned that violations could be subject to “stringent action” as it amounts to “unfair trade practice”.CCPA said complaints received on the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) and media reports revealed that some hotels and restaurants were charging such charges by default in consumer bills in addition to the price of food and beverages displayed in the menu and applicable taxes. The authority said input costs such as fuel, LPG, electricity and other operating expenses are part of the cost of running a business and should be included in the pricing of menu items. It states that the price displayed in the menu will be the final price, exclusive of applicable taxes. Consumers should not be misled or forced to pay any additional charges that are not voluntary in nature. The CCPA said consumers who encounter such practices can request the hotel or restaurant to remove the charge from the bill; Register a complaint by calling 1915 or through its app and can also file a complaint before the appropriate consumer commission through the e-Jagruti portal.

New Delhi: Mumbai-based Raza Academy Chairman Muhammad Saeed Noori on Wednesday challenged Supreme Court The Centre’s recent order is that all schools can start the day’s work with community singing of the full version of the national anthem.Vande Mataram‘, which invokes the motherland as Hindu deities, because it hurts the constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom and secularism of Muslims.Senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, appearing for Noori, told a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul M Pancholi that India is a multi-religious country where the Constitution guarantees freedom to practice any religion, and those who do not want to sing the national anthem cannot be forced to do so. “The effect of the impugned instructions is to place citizens, particularly those belonging to minority religions or monotheistic beliefs, in an untenable position at the risk of participating in expressions contrary to their conscience/belief/religion or showing disrespect to the national symbol,” he said.The bench asked Hegde to show any part of the direction which made it mandatory for schools to sing the national anthem in its full version and asked whether there was a provision for consequential penalty for violating it.Hegde said that the Supreme Court had given a similar direction in 2018, in which singing of the national anthem in films was made mandatory. “Because of that directive, I and like-minded people stopped watching films. Patriotism cannot be forced. If the Constitution is to have any meaning for an individual, individual conscience must be protected.”The bench said the plea was premature as the instructions stated that the day’s work in school “may commence” with the singing of the national anthem. “It does not violate the right to speak because it does not force anyone. When you are forced (to sing the national anthem) you can approach the court,” it said.

New Delhi: In an effort to wean consumers away from LPG, the government has decided to stop supply of cylinders after three months to households that have access to piped natural gas but are reluctant to take connections. India imports about 60% of its LPG requirement, of which about 90% comes through the Strait of Hormuz. Although about half the requirement of LNG – which is converted into PNG and CNG and also used by industries and power plants – is also imported, officials said its supply remains comfortable. Even in rented houses where tenants currently use LPG, they will have to switch, a senior official said. If the authorized body issues NOC stating that it is not technically possible to provide PNG connection, LPG supply will not be stopped. Officials said city gas distribution (CGD) companies will send messages to LPG consumers who can switch to PNG. Timeline has been set for granting right of way or permission to CGD firmsWith an eye on the rapid expansion of piped gas network, the government has made it mandatory for officials to grant right of way or permission to CGD companies within the prescribed timeline, failing which the approval will be deemed to have been granted. The order, issued under the Essential Commodities Act, focuses on reforms to ensure fast-track approvals and time-bound permissions for laying pipeline infrastructure.

Jammu: Border Security Force (BSF) troops on Wednesday detained a Pakistani infiltrator along the International Border in Ramgarh sector of Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir. Later in the day, Kathua SSP Mohita Sharma conducted a comprehensive security review and inspection of the border areas of Kathua.BSF personnel patrolling the border spotted a suspect near Bhaller border post in Ramgarh, officials said. “The Pakistani national surrendered after being challenged and preliminary inquiry revealed that he had crossed the border unknowingly,” an official said. He said that nothing objectionable was found from him.Officials said that the matter is being investigated for further action.Meanwhile, Kathua SSP Mohita Sharma conducted a comprehensive review of the border areas to strengthen security and increase policing in the district. He along with top police officials inspected the Border Police outposts, nurseries and surrounding areas in Kathua.The SSP reviewed the existing security grid and assessed the ground preparedness to ensure effective coordination between various agencies deployed at the border. Sharma stressed on strengthening the surveillance mechanism and directed to install CCTV cameras at all border police posts and naka points to increase real-time surveillance.After this the officers patrolled Hariya Chak Nursery area, which is considered sensitive from security point of view. On-the-spot instructions were issued to conduct frequent, thorough searches of nursery areas to detect the presence or movement of suspects. The SSP also stressed the need to maintain close coordination with the residents to ensure timely flow of information.