Thursday, 6 June 2019
RBI cuts repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.75%
BI governor Shaktikanta Das told reporters that "the accommodative stance would basically mean that a rate increase is off the table" but refused to confirm that the central bank would cut rates further."There is room for a further rate cut," said Ficci president Sandip Somany. "The third consecutive rate cut will encourage banks to lower their lending rates for both retail and corporate credit."Governor Das hoped that the transmission of the policy rate cut would be "higher and faster" from now on.Banks have been slow to respond to the earlier rate cuts. The RBI said the two earlier rate cuts had cut the repo by 50 basis points (half of a percentage point) but the banks had trimmed their weighted average lending rate by only 21 basis points.Growth rate cutThe central bank lowered its growth forecast to 7 per cent in 2019-20, down from the 7.2 per cent projection made in April.It also marginally revised the inflation forecast upward in the first half of the year (April-September) to 3-3.1 per cent from 2.9-3 per cent earlier. However, it cut the inflation forecast for the second half (October-March) to 3.4-3.7 per cent from 3.5-3.8 per cent.The markets were deeply disappointed with the monetary policy largely because the central bank had failed to adequately address liquidity concerns and prepare an action plan to tackle a snowballing NBFC crisis. The Sensex sank 553.82 points, or 1.38 per cent, to close at 39,529.72.Das said the liquidity in the system had gone into a surplus mode, putting the average daily surplus at Rs 66,000 crore in early June against a deficit in the previous two months. DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: The Telegraphhttp://www.boxboardproducts.com/UserProfile/tabid/61/userId/400314/Default.aspx
Google: Users prefer 'keep data' settings, quicker deletion will erode user experience
If we reduce it, then product experience will be eroded.' Speaking in a video interaction with journalists, he explained that longer retention helps provide more personalised approach for users. At this year's I/O 2019 conference, Google put the focus on privacy, announcing new simplified settings for users. CEO Sundar Pichai then wrote an op-ed in the New York Times , arguing that Google did not view privacy as a luxury good, in what was seen as a dig at Apple and its expensive products. Google is now letting users delete their Web & App Activity after a certain period. The three options right now are keep the data until I delete manually, delete after three months and delete after 18 months. But the default option is the data should be kept indefinitely. Google plans to extend this option for deleting data to one's location history as well. Asked whether why they didn't opt for a more pro-privacy approach by making the option to store less data as default, rather than leaving the onus on the user to do this, Enright said their approach was to work in a manner consistent with user expectations. 'Many internet services require data to do the kind of things that a user expects. For example we cannot offer Gmail with zero retention.We try to understand user expectation, what kinds of retention and processing is needed to give a good experience. Of course, we are always open to improving and updating to the best of our user's requirements,' he said. What Google is promising for greater privacy According to him, Google was also trying to balance user experience with privacy. 'Whenever we are contemplating new privacy features, there are a number of considerations that we keep in mind. How is it going to affect user experience in generally? If you were to ask for consent for every individual data processing, that could be extremely disruptive for the user,' he added. Enright also denied that Google was not trying to deliberately hide privacy settings from users. 'Some people wrongly believe that we don't want users to optimise their Google account for privacy. Users have higher level of confidence when they visit these settings, and it builds their trust,' Google chief privacy officer said. 'We promote privacy checkups on the Google homepage, which is some of the most expensive real-estate on the web,' he added. Google's big privacy push still puts the onus on you, the user Enright did not confirm a rollout date for Incognito mode to come to Search and Maps, announced at I/O 2019. The Incognito mode ensures that a user's data is not tracked and stored by the company when the setting is turned on in Chrome or YouTube. The company refused to confirm whether this would be available by end of 2019 for Search and Maps as well. He also highlighted that Google was moving towards innovating with privacy by working on Federated Learning, wherein data for AI and machine learning models is processed on the device itself, rather than being sent to the cloud as is the current approach. Google has not yet confirmed how soon the Federated Learning approach will be applied to its products. DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: The Indian Expresshttp://actionangler.net/ActivityFeed/tabid/61/userId/173004/Default.aspx
No MCI admission nod for Jharkhand's 3 new medical colleges this year
While state's health secretary Nitin Madan Kulkarni was available for comment, Dr Arun Kumar, superintendent of MGMMCH, who is the acting principal of Hazaribagh Medical College, said the permission was not granted for 2019 session due to 100% faculty deficiency. 'The college has all the infrastructure to begin operations, but no teachers. Appointment of faculty members is under progress,' he said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated buildings of these three colleges constructed at a cost of Rs 885 crore on February 17 from Hazaribagh and the state government had promised that all three institutions would begin functioning from this July. The then union minister Jayant Sinha and chief minister Raghubar Das were also present on the occasion. The Prime Minister had also laid foundation of four 500-bed hospitals at Palamu, Dumka, Jamshedpur and Hazaribagh. But even after four months of inauguration by Prime Minister, the state government has failed to appoint even a single teacher in all three medical colleges. A senior official of state health department said that due to imposition of model code of conduct for parliamentary elections, the government's hands were tied for three months from March to May, due to which appointment of faculty members in these medical colleges could not be done. 'By the time model code was lifted, the MCI deadline had ended,' the official said, requesting anonymity as the health secretary is himself dealing with the MCI on the issue. The official said reluctance of doctors to join medical colleges of state had emerged as major hurdle in appointing teachers. On June 3, government had organised walk-in interviews for senior residents at Ranchi, but only 30% candidates turned up. DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: Hindustan Timeshttps://www.aeriagames.com/user/ameetasarvan/
28 years on, Delhi man acquitted of charge of taking Rs 250 bribe
Ram had complained that Jagannath had demanded the bribe to release a cow which the MCD (then a single body) officials had impounded. Jagannath was employed as a munshi in the department. According to the ACB-CBI, the team found him reiterating the demand and accepting the amount. They also claimed that the money was later recovered from his pocket. Jagannath was suspended for three years. His family, including his handicapped son, had a hard time. Ravi, Jagannath's fifth child, narrated how he along with his other siblings had to study and work at the same time to make the ends meet. 'I was just 16 at the time. My father told us that now we will have to fend for ourselves. We studied and worked to earn our bread,' Ravi said, adding that things improved only after his father was reinstated. Jagannath, who now hardly walks, pleaded not guilty and faced trial. A trial court, in 2002, found him guilty of accepting the bribe and awarded him a one-year sentence and a fine. He appealed in the Delhi High Court in 2002 following which his sentence was suspended on April 9, 2002. Appearing for him in the high court, advocate Sumer Kumar Sethi, contended that his client was old and has been fighting for justice from a long time. Seventeen years after he was convicted, on May 23, justice R K Gauba acquitted Jagannath extending him the benefit of doubt. The court said there was a lot of confusion with the recovery of the bribe. 'It appears unnatural that the first search would reveal possession of only the bribe money and after such recovery had been effected, the personal search would bring out a larger amount of money,' the court said, adding that the 'sequence of events, as set out in the prosecution case, evoke uneasy feeling as to its credibility, particularly when two crucial witnesses are not very sure about the two separate recoveries'. The court also noted that the trial court seems to have proceeded on the assumption that the detention of the cow was itself illegal. 'If so, the appellant (Jagannath) cannot be held responsible for such an act as it would be the municipal official who had brought the cow to the cattle pound who would be accountable,' justice Gauba said in a seven-page judgment. The court set aside the sentence and fine imposed on Jagannath, who now is relieved to have his name cleared of the charge. 'I am happy that after my struggle of 28 years, I have finally got justice. I was framed and now I am cleared of all charges. I would have been happy if the vigilance department also clears my name and I'm able to get my gratuity,' he said. 'The last 28 years have been challenging. About 10 years ago, I have developed a kind of blood infection that leads to the formation of blisters on my body. But I continued to attended the hearings on a wheelchair with my son,' Jagannath said. DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: Hindustan Timeshttp://www.subzerotyler.com/UserProfile/tabid/61/userId/108092/Default.aspx
Being Baba: When to introduce your kids to superhero comic books
It was Asterix back then. My dad used to read out the stories to me and I'd know everything that happened in each of the books even before I could read. I've been eternally grateful to him for getting me into reading because even today, I can't go to sleep unless I read at least one page. Now the reading is on an iPad but back when I was a kid, it was good old paper comic books for me. From everything I've said so far, I think you already know that I'm going to advocate reading, specifically comic books for your kids. Well, you're partly right about that. I'll tell you why I said partly. When I was a kid, I'd say about 30 years ago, the comics available in the libraries back then were even older than that. The older superhero stories were very simplistic, good vs evil stories that were meant for kids to consume. I'd say about the mid-80s, that all changed. I read everything today but what I read more than anything else is comic books, because the ones today are NOT meant for kids. At least not the ones you thought were meant for kids about 30 years ago. Characters like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Flash, Spider-man, Captain America, Iron Man and all the others you've seen in the movies are even more complex and beautiful to read in the comic books. They've been at it for years. Just this year Detective Comics, home of Batman, completed 80 years and last year, Action Comics, home of Superman completed 80 years as well. Most of your favourite characters have been around for over 50 years at least and now, the writing is meant for a more mature audience. An audience that is not easily influenced or moulded by what they read. And I say that because I truly believe that when you are a kid, the books you read, the music you listen, the content you watch (TV or movies) and the company you keep have a major influence on how you turn out. So here's the partly right part. Before you introduce your kids to superheroes, educate yourself. Do not say stupid stuff like Superman and Spiderman are for kids. Avengers Endgame is going to hit three billion dollars. It is almost inevitable. That DID NOT happen because kids went to watch a superhero movie. The movies, TV shows and comics today are meant for adults and you have to be really careful when you're introducing your really young children to them. So what is the solution? Pretty much all superhero characters have kid-friendly versions of their stories. You have to look for them specifically. DC Comics for instance has imprints called DC Kids meant for very young kids, DC Zoom for middle grade readers and DC Ink for young adults. Find the right comics for your kids and you are good to go. You'll keep them occupied for hours, increase their vocabulary and help grow their imagination in ways you could not possibly imagine. One of the reasons adults are loving the Marvel Cinematic Universe so much is because everything they read and imagined as kids is coming to life in these movies. I still remember when I first saw Superman featuring Christopher Reeve in the 1978 movie and then more recently Henry Cavill in Man of Steel; I was absolutely blown away. The 1978 movie just made you believe the magic of the Superman folklore and the 2013 movie, thanks to modern technology, made everything you could have imagined about Superman come to life. I'll tell you what I learnt from comic books and why I love them and why I definitely want to get my son, Neil, into them very soon. While I love a ton of superheroes, my favourite was always Superman and that was not because of his amazing powers. Sure, the powers were amazing as a kid but as I started growing up and reading the books, I fell in love with the man behind the superhero. The principles he lived his life by, the generosity and kindness he showed everyone and just the desire to be a good human being became the fundamental building blocks of my life. I began to identify with the character, and I learnt a lot from the man. While he took me on amazing journeys to planets unknown and showed me feats that no ordinary man could do through the stories, what always spoke to me was the inherent humanity. As is evident, this did not happen as a kid, but it would have never happened at all if I hadn't started reading comics and stuck to reading comics as I grew up. I would have missed out on an incredible role model for me and I'm so glad that I found the comics when I did. For you, you may find something similarly inspirational in Spiderman or Batman or Iron Man or Captain America.and you'll have your own story to tell, but to be able to do that, you need to read comics. And get your kids into them too. I'll end it by reiterating what I've written already. Be responsible in what you give your kids. Read the books before you give it to them. And once you know that you've found age-appropriate reading, go ahead! The world of superheroes is wonderful and inspirational. And you can continue being in love with that world no matter how old you get. Start them young and I guarantee, when they're older, they'll thank you like I thank my dad for starting me off, before I could even read! (The writer is a singer-his debut album Mumbai Blues won the GIMA Award for Best Rock Album in 2015-hosts his own talk show-The MJ Show and does live Hindi commentary for WWE. Follow him on twitter @mihirjoshimusic) DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: The Indian Expresshttp://knowledge.thinkingstorm.com/UserProfile/tabid/57/userId/292336/Default.aspx
China shadow on local steel prices
However, the sentiment will be weak.In fact, JSW had raised steel prices on Monday but the market is not responding, an official of the company, said. The global headwind comes at a time demand appears to be floundering because of a slowdown in the auto industry and general election, which tempered construction related activities. Moreover, input costs continue to remain high for integrated large players such as Tata Steel, SAIL and JSW among others, who depend on imported coking coal. A combination of these factors will keep margins of Indian steel mills under check."It is hard to predict how the year will pan out as yet since we are just two months into it. Industry will watch budget numbers closely to see if there is any uptick in capital expenditure, which will be positive for steel demand. The impact of US-China trade war will be another key determinant as far as prices are concerned," Jayanta Roy, senior vice-president & group head, corporate sector ratings, ICRA, said.Demand from the auto sector may also revive in the second half if consumers rush to beat the BS-VI deadline of April 2020. Since prices of personal vehicles are expected to go up to meet the new emission norms, there may be a pre buying, leading to demand for flat steel products.The ICRA report notes that there has been a contraction in gross contribution levels of a domestic blast furnace operator by Rs 3,000 a tonne last quarter. In the current quarter, with coking coal prices remaining firm and steel prices under pressure, there may be a further contraction in gross contribution levels by around Rs 400-500 per tonnes more.Domestic steel consumption growth eased to 7.5 per cent in 2018-19 from 7.9 per cent a year ago. The demand growth moderated to 6.4 per cent in April 2019 and is likely to remain lower than last fiscal. DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: The Telegraphhttp://echometer.com/UserProfile/tabid/61/userId/538400/Default.aspx
English classes, legal services cut for immigrant kids under US government care
It's now up to the various non-profit and private organizations that care for the children to cover the cost of teachers, supplies, legal services and even recreational activities and equipment — if they can, or choose to. Health and Human Services says it currently has 13,200 children in its care, and more are coming. The Border Patrol said Wednesday that 11,500 children without a parent crossed the border just last month. The kids are transferred to the care of Health and Human Services after the Border Patrol processes them. Health and Human Services contracts out their care and housing to nonprofits and private companies. 'As we have said, we have a humanitarian crisis at the border brought on by a broken immigration system that is putting tremendous strain (on the agency),' Health and Human Services spokeswoman Evelyn Stauffer said. 'Additional resources are urgently required to meet the humanitarian needs created by this influx - to both sustain critical child welfare and release operations and increase capacity.' Health and Human Services is seeking nearly USD 3 million in emergency funding to cover more beds and provide basic care. An official at one of the shelter providers said the government notified them on May 30 that they wouldn't be reimbursing costs of providing education and other activities. The providers pay for things like teacher salary upfront and are then reimbursed by the government. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the matter, said his employer was scrambling to figure out how it would cover the cost of teachers. The provider hasn't laid anyone off, but worries about children who desperately need to learn English and be intellectually stimulated. Advocates are also worried about the ramifications of cutting recreational activities. Funding cuts may result in physical education coordinators from being let go and in a lack of adults who can supervise children playing outside. 'The kids are inside 23 hours, and the hour they spend outside is a real lifeline for them,' said J.J. Mulligan, an attorney at the Immigration Law Clinic at University of California, Davis, who has visited and spoken to many of the children at the facilities. 'Most of them come from Latin American countries where soccer is king, so the ability to play with their friends really brings them joy in dark circumstances.' In a memo to staff obtained by The Associated Press, Southwest Key interim CEO Joella Brooks said she was working with the government to figure out why the funding had ended and how it can continue to offer the services. Southwest Key is a nonprofit and the largest provider of shelters for immigrant children. 'In the meantime, remember the service, encouragement and compassion you provide to these youth every day matters a great deal. Please continue to stay focused on taking good care of them,' Brooks wrote. US Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona, was critical of the cuts. 'By eliminating English classes and legal aid that are critical to ensuring children successfully navigate the asylum process, the Trump Administration is essentially condemning children to prison and throwing away the key until their imminent deportation,' Grijalva, who represents a district on the border, said in a statement. ... DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: Deccan Chroniclehttps://www.vox.com/users/ruheenasazzu/
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