Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir Department of Excise today said that the New Excise Policy is an attempt to implement law of the land and Judgments of the High Court and it will ensure Transparency, Equity Inclusiveness in allotment of Retail Liquor vends (JKEL – 2).

Giving details about the New Policy, the Excise Commissioner said that it is completely transparent and no functionary in UT can favour or disfavor any prospective bidder.

“The Policy will end favouritism. The e-bidding for liquor licenses has been confined to domiciles of J&K only and it will therefore, provide employment to locals only. It ends monopoly,” he added.

Explaining the auction, he said equal opportunity to all has been provided to participate in e-auction process for allotment of liquor licenses and to stop perpetual transfers within family. One individual-one vend will restrict practice of monopoly.   Policy does not allow participation of persons with criminal antecedents. Discovery of fair price of each location/vend will be possible through e-auction.

Constraints of Force-Majeure are also being addressed.

Solvency certificate of immovable property equivalent to bid amount provides due safeguard that only residents of J&K can participate, the Commissioner informed adding , it will also check proxy and speculative bidding.

“Online e-auction shall ensure anonymous participation without any fear from any pressure group.

Digitization of inventory will lead to minimum human interface and cleaner system of administration” the commissioner said.

The Commissioner said that the auction of liquor vends only on existing locations which have been functioning for past many years ensures that public sentiments are fully taken into account.

He said ‘Minimum Guarantee Revenue (MGR)’ has been fixed to check sale of spurious liquor.

“The Minimum Guarantee Revenue is with reference to the sale of 2019-20, even though revenue during the year 2020-21 was higher than that in 2019-20. It is an attempt to ensure reasonability” he added and said “For first time MRP formulae and profit margins have been declared.

For the first time draft policy was put in public domain for seeking suggestions from the common people. This has enabled selection of licensees on fair and transparent competition without any interference / influence.

Meanwhile, in view of huge participation in the pre bid meetings and number of queries being received by the help desk of the Excise Department a vibrant participation is expected in the e auction process.

In view of this, the Excise Department has cancelled all kinds of leaves and all offices of the Department shall work on Sundays and Holidays as well.

Besides, the helpdesk of the department shall also function for the guidance of bidders. The Department has advised the general Public to beware of fraudsters and rely on Official website of the department i.e www.jkexcise.nic.in and the helpline numbers.

The department has advised the stakeholders to beware of any misleading information being floated in public domain. “For factual and reliable information/clarification, they can log on to official websites:  i)   www.jkexcise.nic.in ii) https://jkexcisedept.auctiontiger.net and contact  Help Desk Nos: 0191-2475686 and 9796081001

The Excise department has also informed that No Digital signatures are required for registration/e-bidding.

It has also been informed that Excise Department is not making any calls to prospective bidders, asking for any information. All such fraudster calls should not be entertained. For any clarification/confirmation, call the helpline numbers given above.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said that Babasaheb Dr BR Ambedkar had laid a strong foundation to move forward and strengthening India’s democratic heritage.

Addressing the Association of Indian Universities’ 95th Annual Meet and National Seminar of Vice-Chancellors today via video-conferencing, he stressed that India has been the mother of democracy in the world and democracy has been an integral part of our civilization and our way of life.

Talking about the philosophy of Babasaheb, the Prime Minister said that Dr Ambedkar considered knowledge, self-respect and politeness as his three revered deities. “Self-respect comes with knowledge and makes a person aware of his or her rights and our education system and universities have this responsibility to carry the country forward on the path shown by Babasaheb’, he added.

PM Modi also said that the National Education Policy has been aimed at fulfilling Dr Radhakrishnan’s vision of education that frees and empowers the student to participate in national development. Education management should be undertaken keeping whole world as a unit but also, focussing on Indian character of education, he added.

Talking about the growing demand for skills in the emerging Aatmnirbhar Bharat, he said that India is being looked upon as future centre of Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Big data, 3D printing, Virtual Reality and robotics, mobile technology, geo-informatics, smart healthcare and defence sector. To meet the requirement of skills, Indian Institutes of skills are being set up in three big metropolitans of the country, he informed.

The Prime Minister also informed that the first batch of Indian Institute of Skills has already started in Mumbai. “In 2018, Future Skills Initiative was launched with NASSCOM and we want that all universities should be multi-disciplinary as we want to give students flexibility. He called upon the Vice Chancellors to work for this goal.

Elaborating the Babasaheb Ambedkar’s conviction of equal rights and equal opportunity for all, Mr Modi reiterated country’s vow to take the message of Babasaheb to each and every person and measures like Jal Jeevan Mission, free housing, free electricity, support during pandemic and initiatives for women empowerment are taking forward the dreams of Babasaheb.

New Delhi: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Wednesday cancelled grade X exams and postponed grade XII exams amid alarming rise in Corona cases.

A decision to this effect was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to review the examinations to be held at various levels in view of the developing Corona situation.

Earlier, the CBSE Classes 10 and 12 board exams were scheduled to commence from May 4.

Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister,

Cabinet Secretary, School and Higher Education Secretaries and other top officials attended the meeting.

The Prime Minister reiterated that the well being of the students has to be the government’s topmost priority.

He also stated that the Centre would keep in mind the best interests of the students and ensure that

their health is taken care of without harming their academic interests.

The pandemic situation in the country is seeing a resurgence of COVID-19 positive cases in many states, with a few states having been affected more than others. In this situation, schools have been shut down in 11 states, the Education Ministry said in a statement.

Unlike State Boards, CBSE has an all-India character, and therefore, it is essential to hold exams simultaneously throughout the country.

Looking to the present situation of the pandemic and school closures, and also taking in account the safety and well-being of the students, it is decided that the Board Exams for Class XIIth to be held from May 4 to June 14 are hereby postponed, the statement read.

The situation will be reviewed on June 1 by the Board, and details will be shared subsequently.

A notice of at least 15 days will be given before the start of the examinations, the Ministry said.

Results of Class Xth Board will be prepared on the basis of an objective criterion to be developed by the Board. Any candidate who is not satisfied with the marks allocated to him/her on this basis will be given an opportunity to sit in an exam as and when the conditions are conducive to hold the exams, it added.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal welcomed the Union government’s decision to cancel CBSE class 10 board exams and postpone class 12 exams amid Covid-19 surge, saying it will provide a great relief to lakhs of students and their parents.

In a tweet, Kejriwal said, “I am glad that the exams have been cancelled/postponed. This is a great relief for lakhs of students & their parents.”

The Delhi Chief Minister on Tuesday had appealed to the Central government to cancel CBSE board

exams and introduce alternatives, to ensure the safety of the children in the country, since these examination centres can become COVID-19 hotspots.

New Delhi/Washington: Even as US President Joe Biden has announced that the US will completely withdraw all its forces from Afghanistan by September this year, American intelligence agencies are sceptical of the future of peace in the war-torn country.

In its annual report, Office of the Director of National Intelligence of the US said that it assesses that prospects for a peace deal will remain low during the next year. “The Taliban is likely to make gains on the battlefield, and the Afghan Government will struggle to hold the Taliban at bay if the coalition withdraws support.”

Kabul, the report said, continues to face setbacks on the battlefield, and the Taliban is confident it can achieve military victory. Afghan forces continue to secure major cities and other government strongholds, but they remain tied down in defensive missions and have struggled to hold recaptured territory or re-establish a presence in areas abandoned in 2020, the intelligence analysis said.

Interestingly, the US intelligence report said that although, in the Afghanistan neighbourhood, a general war between India and Pakistan is unlikely, crises between the two are likely to become more intense, risking an escalatory cycle.

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is more likely than in the past to respond with military force to perceived or real Pakistani provocations, and heightened tensions raise the risk of conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, with violent unrest in Kashmir or a militant attack in India being potential flashpoints,” the report predicted.

The US intelligence said that internal and interstate conflict and instability will continue to pose direct and indirect threats to US persons and interests during the next year. Competition for power and resources, ethnic strife, and ideology will drive insurgency and civil war in many countries. For example, the fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria has direct bearing on US forces, while tensions between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan remain a concern for the world.

Interstate conflicts will also flare, ranging from border sparring, such as that between China and India, to potentially more sustained violent confrontations, the US intelligence assessed. As per the report, China-India border tensions remain high, despite some force pullbacks this year.

“China’s occupation since May 2020 of contested border areas is the most serious escalation in decades and led to the first lethal border clash between the two countries since 1975. As of mid-February, after multiple rounds of talks, both sides were pulling back forces and equipment from some sites along the disputed border.”