No LTC in case of posting in hometown: Government

"Government employees whose headquarters or place of posting and hometown are one and the same are not eligible for hometown LTC," it said.

Besides, these employees cannot convert hometown LTC to avail special concession scheme to travel to North-East region, Jammu and Kashmir, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Department of Personnel and Training said in an order.

However, government employees whose headquarters are Delhi and reside in cities or towns outside the national capital and falling in other states of National Capital Region (NCR) are eligible for hometown concession, the order said.

Every new recruit in government service is required to declare his or her hometown to avail the benefits of LTC.

The LTC allows grant of leave and ticket reimbursement to eligible Central government employees to travel to their hometowns.

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Government sanctions two new battalions to NDRF

A decision in this regard was on Wednesday cleared by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as it approved the "conversion of two additional battalions of the border guarding Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) for strengthening of the existing National Disaster Response Force units."

The NDRF, which is undertaking salvage operations at present in quake-hit Nepal and some affected states of the country, currently has 10 battalions. The two new battalions will be based in Varanasi and Arunachal Pradesh.   

"The objective of the conversion of these two additional battalions of SSB into NDRF battalions is to provide response to the area of Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh during any natural and man-made disaster and to enhance the capability of the existing NDRF battalions.

"The placement of two NDRF Battalions at Varanasi and Arunachal Pradesh will fill up the vast gap of deployment of the NDRF," an official release said.

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Government working out details on increasing pictorial warning on tobacco products

"Government is working on increasing the size of the pictorial warning from 40 to 85 percent as the date for its implementation has been extended. But nothing can be said on its ban as it is a policy matter," said Health Secretary BP Sharma after inaugurating a health screening camp on the occasion of World Health Day.
  
The Centre had stayed the decision to increase the size of pictorial warnings on tobacco products, which was to come into effect from April 1, after a parliamentary panel, looking into the guidelines for sale of tobacco, said that it needs more time to deliberate on the issue.

Comments of some of the members of the panel including BJP MPs Shyam Charan Gupta, a beedi baron, and Dilip Gandhi, that there was no Indian scientific evidence that links smoking with cancer had triggered outrage.

Health Minister J P Nadda, however, had insisted that the government was committed to its stand on increasing the size of pictorial warning and curbing tobacco consumption in all its forms and have informed the panel on the same.    

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Make India energy sufficient, cut imports: PM Modi

Speaking at the first 'Urja Sangam' conference, he said plans are afoot to provide piped gas connection to 1 crore households in the next four years from 27 lakh presently.   

Modi said if imports, which account for a staggering 77 percent of the demand, are cut by 10 percent by 2022, the country to look to halving it by 2030. India spent Rs 189,238 crore on import of crude oil in 2013-14.

He also said that Rs 100 crore in subsidy has been saved by 2.8 lakh people giving up the use of below market price LPG. "This money could be used for schools and providing medical facilities. I appeal to those who can buy LPG at market price, to please do not take subsidised LPG."

Since the government started the new scheme of direct benefit transfer (DBT) for cooking gas, many more people have opted out of the subsidy scheme.

Modi said that 12 crore bank accounts opened under the Jan Dhan scheme are being used for transferring subsidies directly to the consumers which has helped in plugging the leakages and effectively fighting corruption.

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Atrocities against women on the rise: Government in Rajya Sabha

In 2011, cases of atrocities reported against women were 2,28,650, going up to 2,44,270 in 2012 and 3,09,546 in 2013, Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi said in a written reply, citing National Crime Records Bureau data.

"...the figures shows an increasing trend (of crime against women)," she said.

To a related question on plans to build residential hostels for working women who in particular are victims of such atrocities, the Minister informed the House that her Ministry was financially supporting a scheme for construction and running of hostel in rented premises for the working women who may be single, widowed, divorced or separated or married.
  
Since the inception of the programme in 1972-73, 916 hostels have been sanctioned under the scheme across the country, she said.

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