Morning Brief: ED Attaches Jagan’s Properties; Malls, Shops Can Stay Open 24x7; Women Can Now Work Night Shifts

Good Morning, Swarajya Readers! Here’s What You Need To Know Today.

SEVENTH PAY COMMISSION

The Union Cabinet has accepted the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission for pay and pension increases ranging from 14 percent to 23.5 percent for 47 lakh employees and 53 lakh pensioners.

Entry-level basic pay will jump from Rs 7,000 to Rs 18,000 per month and at the level of cabinet secretary will rise to Rs 2.5 lakh from Rs 90,000. The pay and pension hikes will cost the exchequer more than Rs 1 lakh crore. The arrears of last six months will be disposed of by the end of this year.

The salaries at the lower end of wage pyramid are now much higher compared to the private sector. This will further tighten the competition for low-end government jobs. So, brace yourselves for more news like “23 lakh candidates, including 2.22 lakh engineers and 255 PhD holders apply for 368 peon posts.”

CABINET DECISIONS

The Union Cabinet approved the ‘Model Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Bill’ yesterday. This will allow malls, shops, restaurants, banks and cinemas to stay open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. However, the centre has left it to states to implement it. The bill also lifts the restriction on the women to work night shifts. According to the industry executives, flexibility to open retail establishments 24x7 will add thousands of jobs and make retail markets more vibrant.

The Cabinet also approved a policy to introduce competition and private participation in the exploration and production of minerals such as gold, diamond, limestone and iron ore. The central government will soon invite bids for 100 blocks and the state governments will conduct the auction.

The revised cost estimates for setting up eight new IITs at Bhubaneswar, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Indore, Jodhpur, Mandi, Patna and Ropar were also approved by the union cabinet. The revised estimate is Rs 13,990 crore to be spent over a period of 11 years from 2008-09 to 2018-19. The original project cost was Rs 6,080 crore.

ED IN ACTION

The Enforcement Directorate has attached properties of YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy and his wife Bharathi worth Rs 749 crore in connection with its probe in a money laundering case. The total attachment of properties in the case now stands at Rs 2,500 crore.

Most of the investments that Jagan Reddy received in his companies were during the 2004-2009 period when his father was the Chief Minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh.

VADRA LAND DEAL

Haryana government appointed Justice SN Dhingra commission has completed its probe into DLF-Robert Vadra Gurgaon land deal. The commission examined about 250 files related to commercial licences and heard 26 officials. The panel had also summoned the state’s ex-Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda whose lawyer then appeared on his behalf. Justice Dhingra will soon submit his report to the government.

Meanwhile, the Congress party is getting all riled up. BS Hooda has called for scrapping the commission, terming the probe vendetta politics.

ISIS CELL BUSTED IN HYDERABAD

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday busted an Islamic State module in Hyderabad, detaining 11 youths who were allegedly plotting powerful bomb blasts to target VVIPs and crowded places in the city and intended to trigger communal riots by placing cow and buffalo meat at the Bhagyalakshmi temple at the base of the iconic Charminar, according to The Times Of India.

Almost all suspects are said to be in their 20s and 30s, graduates and hold jobs, including some who are computer engineers. They hail from well-to-do families.

These suspected terrorists were on NIA radar for the past 4-5 months. Their telephonic conversation about inciting communal riots by planting cow meat in city temples prompted the NIA to act.

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SWARAJYA SPECIAL

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We hope you enjoyed reading our morning brief. Have a great day ahead!

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