Latest news with #Cabinet
The Hindu
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
SCoR Mazdoor Union seeks swift action on operationalisation of railway zone
A delegation from the South Coast Railway Mazdoor Union, led by DRUCC Member Chalasani Gandhi and General Secretary Ch. Sankara Rao, met Visakhapatnam MP M. Sribharat and submitted a memorandum urging swift action on the long-pending operationalisation of the South Coast Railway (SCoR) Zone. The union noted that although the SCoR was sanctioned in 2019 under the A.P. Reorganisation Act, a formal Gazette Notification is still awaited, delaying the full-fledged functioning of the zone headquartered in Visakhapatnam. Despite the Cabinet's approval in February 2019 and submission of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) by August that year, no significant progress has followed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the zonal headquarters on January 8, 2025. While a General Manager was appointed on June 5, 2025, the post remains ineffective due to the absence of administrative powers, as the Gazette Notification is still pending. The constituent divisions — Vijayawada, Guntakal, Guntur, and Waltair (to be bifurcated into Rayagada and Visakhapatnam) — continue under their previous zones. The union pointed out that other zones like ECoR, NCR, SECR, and SWR began operations soon after their formation via Gazette Notifications, even without permanent infrastructure. The leaders urged Mr. Sribharat to press the Prime Minister, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and other top officials to ensure the Gazette Notification is issued by August 15, 2025. Mr. Sribharat assured them that he would take up the issue with the concerned ministries in Delhi.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Raskin: Not releasing Epstein files ‘dangerous to public health and safety'
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) on Monday doubled down on his push for the Trump administration to release all of the files and names associated with late financier Jeffrey Epstein's case, saying failing to do so is 'dangerous' to the public. 'If there are literally other people on this list who are somehow implicated in these actions, it is dangerous to public health and safety not to release the names publicly,' Raskin said during an appearance on MSNBC's 'Deadline: White House.' His request comes after Attorney General Pam Bondi released binders earlier this year to conservative influencers called 'The Epstein Files: Phase 1.' She later signaled more information would be released, as the binders included details that were previously released. She also suggested during an interview with Fox News in February that a full client list was sitting on her desk for a review. Bondi sought to clarify those comments last week during a Cabinet meeting, saying she was referring to the files — not a list of names. Criticism of the administration's handling of the case came into full view earlier this month after the Justice Department and FBI issued a joint memo concluding Epstein committed suicide in his jail cell in 2019 and that there was no evidence pointing to a client list. Democrats and some MAGA supporters have lashed out over the memo, urging the administration to release the files in full. In his comments Monday, Raskin pressed for more transparency. 'If all of it is a concoction and an invention, then I think they need to come clean about that and say they don't have such a list or it's made up or what have you,' the Maryland Democrat told host Nicolle Wallace. 'But I think it's very dangerous just to leave these things hanging out there.' He also suggested President Trump is the one who made the decision to withhold files. 'Clearly, it's Donald Trump who's making the call here for whatever reason,' Raskin said. 'He said he was going to release it, and now he's saying there's nothing to see here and appears to be wanting to sweep the whole thing under the rug.' 'And I think that's an irresponsible way to proceed after having inflamed millions and millions of people in the country and raised all kinds of doubts about our law enforcement commitment to prosecuting child sex abuse,' he added. Trump has defended his administration in light of the controversy. During Tuesday's Cabinet meeting the president reprimanded a reporter who asked questions around the Epstein files and on Saturday, he said Bondi was doing a 'fantastic job.' The Hill reached out to the White House for comment. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Middle East
2 hours ago
- Business
- Middle East
OPEN// PM follows up on real estate export strategy, digital property platform
CAIRO, July 15 (MENA) – Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said the government is moving forward with implementing recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Urban Development and Real Estate Export, highlighting the strategic importance of the sector. Speaking during a meeting on Tuesday in New Alamein City, Madbouly said Egypt aims to simplify property acquisition procedures for foreigners and streamline real estate registration, while promoting Egyptian property abroad through embassies and consulates. Cabinet spokesman Mohamed El-Homsany said the meeting reviewed progress on launching a digital platform for real estate exports, including coordination with relevant agencies, technical aspects, and regulatory frameworks. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology reported it has issued property identification numbers for over 18 million residential units. The Justice Ministry is preparing legal frameworks for issuing ownership and transaction certificates. The platform will launch its pilot phase in September 2025 in New Alamein City, expanding to Sheikh Zayed City in December 2025, before rolling out nationwide by mid-2026. The platform will offer listings from both public and private developers, and include a digital registry to facilitate ownership transfer and boost transparency, officials said. (MENA) R E E/
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
ELI scheme set create jobs, enhance social security
Vadodara: The Employment-Linked Incentive (ELI) scheme, approved by the Cabinet under Prime Minister Narendra Modi , will boost employment generation, improve employability and extend social security coverage. Mitesh Rajmane, Regional PF Commissioner Grade 2, Vadodara, said on Tuesday. The ELI scheme has a total outlay of Rs 99,446 crore and aims to incentivize the creation of 3.5 crore jobs over two years. "The scheme, set to take off from Aug 1, will provide incentives to employees and employers to boost job creation. The benefits of the scheme will be applicable to jobs created between Aug 1, 2025, and July 31, 2027," Rajmane said, while addressing mediapersons. The Vadodara regional office of the Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has jurisdiction over five districts — Vadodara, Panchmahals, Dahod, Mahisagar and Chhota Udepur — and covers 23,500 establishments with 8,75,000 Universal Account Numbers (UANs) and 90,000 pensioners. "Under Part 1, first-time employees registered with EPFO will get one month's EPFO wage, that is up to Rs 15,000 in two instalments. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Struggling With Belly Fat? Try This at Home Home Fitness Hack Shop Now Undo The first instalment will be given on the completion of six months' employment and the second after a year, on successful completion of a financial literacy programme," he said. "Under Part 2 of the scheme, the govt will provide an incentive of up to Rs 3,000 per employee per month to employers for a duration of two years for appointing additional employees with a minimum of six months' continuous employment," he said.
Newsroom
2 hours ago
- Business
- Newsroom
NZ's AI strategy: ‘light touch' regulation and business opportunities
The Government's AI strategy confirms the country is taking a light-touch approach to AI regulation. This will provide reassurance to businesses looking to embrace the benefits of AI, while also reminding businesses of their governance responsibilities and the need to ensure compliance with existing legal frameworks. The AI strategy follows recent guidance for the public sector, discussed in our previous article. Alongside the AI strategy, the Government has also issued a note entitled 'Responsible AI Guidance for Businesses'. In this article, we explore the key takeaways for New Zealand businesses and next steps. Key takeaways The AI strategy has been developed following a Cabinet decision in July 2024 committing to a strategic approach. The paper recognised a clear strategic direction would 'clear the path for AI to deliver better outcomes for people in New Zealand'. The new strategy seeks to achieve this in various ways: Regulatory clarity and light touch legislation The strategy notes uncertainty about how existing laws apply to AI may result in 'a cautious approach to AI implementation until regulatory clarity improves'. As a result, it confirms New Zealand is taking a light touch and 'principles-based' approach to AI policy. It helpfully identifies New Zealand has existing regulatory frameworks (e.g., privacy, consumer protection, human rights) which are largely principles-based and technology-neutral, and which can be updated if needed to enable AI innovation. This is a pragmatic and positive approach we expect will provide reassurance to businesses exploring the adoption of AI, and will avoid some of the challenges created by detailed standalone legislation such as the EU's AI Act (as discussed in our prior commentary here). Adoption focus The strategy outlines New Zealand's deliberate focus on AI adoption rather than development. That recognises the economic challenge and significant investment required for creating foundational AI. This approach is intended to 'more rapidly realise productivity benefits across the economy without waiting for local AI development to mature'. Upskilling the workforce It identifies that New Zealand faces a shortage of AI expertise across several sectors. The paper notes New Zealand universities are helping to bridge the gap by building a 'future-ready' workforce through specialised programmes, and notes the Government's investment in tuition, STEM, and youth support to boost enrolment and career pathways. In addition, the new 'Responsible AI Guidance' offers a valuable framework to help businesses adopt AI responsibly and effectively. The guidance encourages organisations to clearly define their purpose for using AI, prepare thorough stakeholder engagement and safe testing, and align AI objectives with internal policies. It also recommends building strong governance structures and ensuring compliance with existing regulations. The guidance emphasises the importance of high-quality, unbiased data and cautions against using AI in areas where human judgment is essential. What does this mean for your business? The strategy will provide reassurance to businesses seeking to adopt AI systems, and the Responsible AI Guidance offers a helpful consolidated roadmap. In practice, however, the application of the recommendations can be complex and businesses should start thinking early about the implications of the Government's announcement and how they can respond to the new guidance. We summarise below what we see as the key takeaways and next steps: Clarify your AI purpose: Define what you want AI to achieve in your organisation and ensure the intended use is lawful and aligned with your business goals. Prepare for adoption: This should include identifying current processes that are inefficient and could benefit from AI, engaging with stakeholders for input, and testing solutions in controlled environments like AI sandboxes. Build internal capability: Set up dedicated teams to identify the business's AI objectives and values, develop internal principles to guide the responsible and ethical use of AI, and develop consistent principles and terminology across the business. Establish governance frameworks: Form a governance team to oversee risk, compliance, and regulatory alignment, and maintain transparent communication with stakeholders to build trust. Ensure data quality and ethical use: Use clean, unbiased data to train AI systems, and avoid deploying AI in areas where human judgment is critical to protect individuals' rights and wellbeing. In addition, given the Government's light-touch regulatory approach and preference for relying on existing legal frameworks, it will be critical for businesses to ensure they are familiar with how current laws will apply to the new technology. That should include in particular ensuring that:
