Fire Erupts in Ujjain’s Mahakal Temple, 13 Priests Injured During ‘Bhasma Aarti’

New Delhi, Dec 12 (IANS) As Rahul Gandhi’s allegations about the poor condition of Indian banks, especially public sector banks (PSBs), fizzled out, Dinesh Khara, former Chairman of State Bank of India (SBI), said on Thursday that the country’s banking sector is performing professionally on all parameters like capitalisation and asset quality.

Speaking to IANS, Khara said the banking sector in the country is working in a very professional and efficient manner and the health of the sector remains robust.

Khara further stated that all the banks have been well capitalised and due to this, “the capital adequacy is as per the criteria”.

“Due to improvement in the asset quality of the banks, the health of the entire sector remains good and through this, the country’s economic development is also being supported well,” he told IANS.

Khara said that the perception about India remains good at the global level and under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the acceptance of the country has increased all over the world.

“After the G20 Summit, it has improved further. India is being considered a responsible leader in South Asia,” he noted.

On the question of morale of the employees being lowered due to politically-heated statements, Khara said the morale of the bank employees is determined by the sector leadership.

“Also, all the bank employees understand that in a democracy, everyone has the right to express their opinion,” he added.

“It is understood that those working in the bank are fully aware of the bank’s situation. Therefore, I believe they do not need any additional information to understand the state of the banking sector and the current position of the bank,” he added.

His comments came as Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman issued a strong rebuttal of allegations made by Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on the performance of India’s banking sector, especially Public Sector Banks (PSBs), stressing that during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) tenure, PSBs were treated as ‘ATMs’ for their ‘cronies and shady businessmen’.

Rajiv Kumar Bakshi, former Chairman at Bank of Baroda, told IANS that the condition of the banking sector is very good right now.

“The banking sector is in a very good shape right now and the credit cost has also reduced. The risk towards banking has also reduced. This is a very good time for banking,” he mentioned.

“The government’s banking policy is working very well, and the economy has also improved. Despite Covid-19 pandemic when many businesses were shut, the government handled the overall situation very well. The government took some concrete steps which have boosted the sector,” he added.

–IANS

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New Delhi, Dec 16 (IANS) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to the Rajasthan government after taking suo motu cognisance of a media report about the death of a five-year-old boy on December 11 after being trapped in a 150-feet-deep bore-well for nearly 56 hours in Dausa district.

The boy allegedly fell in the bore-well while playing in a field, the Commission said while seeking details of the action taken against the lax public authorities.

The Commission observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of human rights.

“It seems that the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court and the Centre are not being followed by the authorities to prevent such unfortunate incidents/fatal accidents of small children falling into open/abandoned bore-wells and tube-wells. This apparent negligence not only amounts to dereliction of duty on their part but also tantamount to violation of the people’s right to life,” said the NHRC.

The Commission has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Rajasthan, calling for a detailed report in the matter within two weeks.

The NHRC said the report from the Chief Secretary and the police chief should include the status of the FIR registered in the matter, action taken against the responsible public authorities and compensation, if any, provided to the next of kin of the deceased.

According to the media report, carried on December 12, the minor was pulled out of the borewell with a rope in an unconscious state. He was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared him dead.

In another case, the Commission took suo motu cognisance of a media report that a 10-year-old child was transfused with the wrong blood type while undergoing treatment at the JK Lone Hospital of the Sawai Man Singh Medical College (SMS), Jaipur.

The Commission has sought a report from the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Rajasthan, within two weeks. “It is expected to include the status of health of the victim child, FIR, action taken against the responsible persons and compensation, if any, provided to the aggrieved by the authorities,” the notice said.

The child is reported to be in a critical condition with ventilator support. Allegedly, the boy was transfused with two different blood types on December 5, 2024 and December 7, 2024.

The Commission has observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of the human rights of the boy.

Reportedly, a 23-year-old patient lost his life at the SMS hospital, Jaipur only a few months back. Two reported cases of negligence in blood transfusion at the same government-run medical facilities are indeed shocking and are a matter of concern for the Commission, said the notice.

–IANS

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New Delhi, Dec 14 (IANS) Movable and immovable properties amounting to Rs 4.56 crore were provisionally attached by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Dehradun, in the BTC Fund Scam that allegedly involved illegal sale of cryptocurrency, an official said on Saturday.

The seized assets, including four immovable properties and bank balances, belong to accused Hemant Sharma and others who allegedly cheated people through a website named ‘BTCFUND.in’.

The properties were seized under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. These belong to Hemant Sharma, son of Ishwar Sharma, resident of Rajpur Road, Dehradun, as per a statement.

The ED-initiated investigation on the basis of a First Information Report registered by Police Station Rajpur, Dehradun, and registered by Police Station Dineshpur, District Udham Singh Nagar, Uttarakhand, under penal provisions related to cheating against Hemant Sharma and others.

ED investigation revealed that Hemant Sharma had fraudulently received substantial amounts from sale of cryptocurrency, which were invested by multiple people on the site named BTCFUND.in, controlled by Hemant Sharma and other co-accused.

Hemant Sharma has lured various persons on the pretext of high return and claimed that many foreign nationals were also associated with the company and people from all over India had invested in the site.

The ED investigation revealed that the proceeds of crime generated by committing the offence, of cheating various people, were further utilised for acquiring four immovable properties by Hemant Sharma and a part of these was deposited in his bank account.

In 2019, the Uttarakhand capital was rocked by another Bitcoin scam allegedly involving Rs 485 crore. The scam revolved around two cryptocurrency companies – BITZEX and BTC BITZ COIN SHUKKOR – which lured investors with high returns.

The mastermind of the scam was murdered and police arrested seven people, including three from Mallapuram in Kerala. The three accused were taken into custody from Mandowala in Dehradun just before they were planning to surrender in court.

–IANS

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