In a move to offer relief to passengers, the fares of AC chair cars and executive classes on all trains, including Vande Bharat, along with Anubhuti and Vistadome coaches, will be reduced by up to 25%, according to a recent order by the Railway Board. The national transporter has also decided to delegate more powers to Zonal Railways in this regard. However, this scheme will not be applicable on special trains such as holiday or festive specials. The new policy will be applicable upto a period of one year. The element of discount shall be upto maximum 25% on the basic fare. Other charges like reservation charge, Super fast surcharge, GST, etc., as applicable, shall be levied separately. The discount may be provided in any or all the classes on the basis of occupancy. According to the order, trains having “classes with occupancy less than 50% (either end-to-end or in some specified legs/sections depending upon the sections where discount is to be provided) during the last 30 days shall be taken into consideration." The fares of competitive modes of transport will be the criteria while deciding the quantum of discount, it added. The discount can be given for the first and/or last leg of the journey and/or intermediate sections and/or end-to-end journey provided the occupancy is less than 50% in that leg/section/end-to-end. Such discount shall be initially implemented for a period as decided by PCCMs of the zones corresponding to the originating station of the train, subject to a maximum of six months for the journey dates from when it is implemented. Discounted fare may be given for the entire duration or part duration or month wise or seasonal or for week days/ weekends based on demand pattern of the aforementioned period. The implementation of the discount will be immediate. However, no fare refunds will be provided for passengers who have already booked their tickets. In cases where flexi fare is applicable in a particular class and the occupancy is low, the scheme can initially be withdrawn to boost occupancy. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #Train #Travel #Railways #Ticket #Price #Discount #Sale #AC #Passenger #Reduce #Fall #Indian #Traveler

Violent deadly clashes and the destruction of ballot boxes were reported in various parts of West Bengal as the state votes for Panchayat elections today under heavy surveillance by central armed forces. Among those killed were seven Trinamool Congress (TMC) members and one worker each of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Congress and several unknowns. Three TMC members and a Congress worker were killed in Murshidabad while two (one each from BJP and TMC) died in Cooch Behar. One CPI(M) worker and a TMC worker were killed in East Burdwan. One from TMC died in Malda while another TMC worker lost his life in South 24 Parganas. Voting began at 7 am in 73,887 seats in the rural areas of the state with 5.67 crore people picking between 2.06 lakh candidates for nearly 928 seats across 22 zilla parishads, 9,730 panchayat samitis, and 63,229 gram panchayats seats. Till 1 pm, 36.66 per cent voter turnout was recorded. The Ministry of Home Affairs on July 3 agreed to the deployment of an additional 485 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) as well State Armed Police Forces for the West Bengal panchayat polls. A communication in this regard was sent to the West Bengal State Election Commission (WBSEC) during the day on Monday. A company of CAPF has 132 soldiers Earlier, the Ministry had directed the deployment of 337 companies of CAPF, of which 224 companies of CAPF have already arrived in the State. Thus, a total of 822 companies of Central forces will be deployed in West Bengal on the day of polling, July 8. The Calcutta High Court had on June 21 directed Central forces that were not less than forces deployed in the 2013 panchayat polls be deployed in the State. Videos are going viral of the brutal violence that is playing out in the eastern state as the panchayat polls are underway. In a video shared by journalist Sudhir Mishra, some workers can be seen open firing at their opponents and trying to take cover. Meanwhile, another video shows a man running away with ballot box in their hand. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #WestBengal #Police #Army #Soldiers #Violence #Clash #Kolkata #Election #Poll

Bollywood Actress Kajol who is known for being straightforward attitude has once again hit headlines for controversial statements while promoting her show 'The Trial'. The 48-year-old actor has said that uneducated leaders are the reason why changes are not coming quickly in India. In an interview with The Quint, Kajol said that "We are ruled by leaders who have no vision and education can be useful to get a different perspective". "A change in a country like India is very slow. We are steeped in our traditions and thought processes and it has to do with education. We have political leaders who do not have an educational background. You are ruled by so many of them who do not have that viewpoint which I think education does gives you at least the chance to look out for a different viewpoint," she said. This statement of hers has triggered a backlash from netizens. Several users on twitter were seen calling her out and stating "Kajol is a school dropout. Her husband sells Guthka. All that didn't stop her from saying, "We are ruled by uneducated leaders...." Aisa confidence kahan se milta hai?" . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #india #Bollywood #Actor #Actress #Education #Educated #Kajol #AjayDevgan #Film #Movie #Series #Politics

Giving a hope of peace, United States has destroyed the last of its declared chemical weapons stockpile, President Joe Biden confirmed, a milestone hailed as completing the elimination around the world of all known stores of the agents of mass death. Workers at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky destroyed rockets filled with GB nerve agent, also known as sarin, on Friday, completing a decades-long campaign to eliminate a stockpile that by the end of the Cold War totalled more than 30,000 tonnes. Fulfilling its commitment under the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, "Today, I am proud to announce that the United States has safely destroyed the final munition in that stockpile -- bringing us one step closer to a world free from the horrors of chemical weapons," Biden said in a statement. The United States was the last of the signatories of the Chemical Weapons Convention, which came into effect in 1997, to complete the task of destroying their "declared" stockpiles, though some states are believed to maintain secret reserves of chemical weapons. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons called the milestone a "historic success" of disarmament, more than one century after the uncontrolled use of chemical gases during World War I produced mass deaths and maiming of troops. The US faces a 30 September deadline to eliminate its remaining chemical weapons under the international Chemical Weapons Convention, which took effect in 1997 and was joined by 193 countries. The munitions being destroyed in Kentucky are the last of 51,000 M55 rockets with GB nerve agent, AKA sarin, that have been stored at the depot since the 1940s. By destroying the munitions, the US is officially underscoring that these types of weapons are no longer acceptable on the battlefield and sending a message to the handful of countries that have not joined the agreement, military experts say. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #US #UnitedStates #America #Weapon #War #Chemical #JoeBiden #Biden #Human #Humanity #Destroy #Milestone #World #Free

Rahul Gandhi will remain disqualified as a Lok Sabha MP after a Gujarat High Court today rejected his request to put on hold his conviction in a defamation case over his 2019 Modi surname remark. The conviction is "just, proper and legal", the High Court said. The Congress leader will now approach the Supreme Court. Since his disqualification stands, he is not likely to make it back into parliament in the monsoon session beginning July 20. If the Supreme Court also rejects his request, Rahul Gandhi cannot contest next year's election. “This is a disappointing and not an unexpected judgment. The jurisprudence found in this judgment is unique and extraordinary. For want of a better word, I will say it has no parallel or precedent in the jurisprudence of the law of defamation,” Congress leader and senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi told a press conference. While dismissing Rahul Gandhi's revision plea, Gujarat High Court today said that Gandhi, in his speech, made a false statement to affect the poll results and further suggested Prime Minister Narendra Modi's name, only to add sensation to it. The court noted that there is no reasonable ground to stay the conviction. In 2019, Rahul Gandhi, at an election rally in Karnataka's Kolar had asked “Why all the thieves, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi, have Modi as the common surname?” A metropolitan magistrate's court in Surat on March 23 had sentenced Gandhi to two years in jail after convicting him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (criminal defamation) in a 2019 case filed by BJP Gujarat MLA Purnesh Modi. However today, Gujarat High Court cited another defamation case filed against Rahul Gandhi by the grandson of Vinayak "Veer" Savarkar. "It is needed to have purity in politics... A complaint has been filed against (Rahul Gandhi) by the grandson of Veer Savarkar in Pune Court after Gandhi used terms against Veer Savarkar at Cambridge," it said. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #RahulGandhi #Gandhi #Modi #NarendraModi #Gujarat #Court #Law #Sue #Election #Congress #HighCourt #SupremeCourt #Lawsuit #Savarkar

An enormous “gravity hole” located deep beneath the Indian Ocean, scientifically called the Indian Ocean Geoid Low (IOGL), was discovered in 1948 during a ship-based survey by Dutch geophysicist Felix Andries Vening Meinesz. Researchers have revealed the secrets of the giant gravity hole that rests in the Indian Ocean. The depression, where gravity is much lower than average, spans nearly 3 million square miles and sits around 600 miles beneath the Earth's crust. The cause of this “gravity hole” has perplexed scientists for decades. However, in a research published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, Debanjan Pal and Attreyee Ghosh, researchers from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru, have unravelled a probable explanation for this. Professor Ghosh, an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Earth Science, said, “The existence of the Indian Ocean geoid low is one of the most outstanding problems in Earth Sciences. It is the lowest geoid/gravity anomaly on Earth and so far no consensus existed regarding its source.” Analysing computer-simulated models of the past 140 million years, the scientists discovered the remains of an ancient ocean about 965 kilometres below the Earth’s crust, just under Africa. The gravity hole could have been caused when the Tethyan slabs “perturbed” the African Large Low Shear Velocity province, which is also known as the “African blob,” leading to plumes beneath the Indian Ocean, the study suggests. The scientists in the study said: “Here we assimilate plate reconstruction in global mantle convection models starting from 140 Ma and show that sinking Tethyan slabs perturbed the African Large Low Shear Velocity province and generated plumes beneath the Indian Ocean, which led to formation of this negative geoid anomaly.” However, researchers expressed that since there is no clear seismographic evidence that the plumes in the simulations are actually present beneath the Indian Ocean, and there are other factors that may account, a conclusion can’t be made. @samarthyasinghh writes. . . . #thetatva #tatvanews #science #india #indianocean #earth #ocean #sea #gravity #research #scientist #mystery #secret

McDonalds India has issued a notice stating that it would not be able to serve its products with tomatoes due to price and quality issues arising in obtaining tomatoes. The increase in vegetable prices is caused by multiple factors, such as extreme heat in areas where tomatoes are grown and heavy rainfall, which has disrupted the transportation of vegetables. Furthermore, tomatoes have a short shelf life, which also affects their availability and drives up their prices. Aditya Saha, a SEBI registered investment adviser, recently tweeted about a notice displayed at a McDonald’s restaurant in Delhi stating that even McDonald’s is facing difficulties in affording tomatoes. Typically, restaurants and quick-service restaurant chains have fixed prices throughout the year and do not account for price fluctuations. The problem is with the supply of tomatoes, which might affect their quality. Tomato prices have gone up significantly in northern regions of India. In places like Gangotri Dham and Uttarkashi district, tomatoes are being sold at around ₹180 to ₹250 per kilogram. Local vegetable sellers have noticed this sudden increase in prices, resulting in a decrease in consumer demand. Similar price hikes have been observed in Gangotri and Yamunotri, where tomatoes are being sold for ₹200 to ₹250 per kilogram. People are finding it difficult to afford tomatoes at these high prices, leading to a decrease in their purchase. Tomato prices have also surged in Karnataka, particularly in Bengaluru, where they range from ₹101 to ₹121 per kilogram. The increase in prices is due to the sudden rise in temperatures during March and April. Higher temperatures have caused pest attacks on tomato crops, resulting in lower yields and subsequently driving up market rates. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #Delhi #Burger #Tomato #Food #McDonalds #FastFood #Vegetable #Inflation #Money #Ban

The word beggar brings up thoughts of people who are not financially stable, wear outdated clothes, and have filthy hair. Aside from that, one thing that might come to mind is that they are poor. However, there are some individuals who have turned begging into a profitable and lucrative profession, taking begging on a new dimension. According to a report by Economic Times, Bharat Jain is the is the wealthiest beggar globally and can be seen begging on the streets of Mumbai. Due to financial instability, Jain was unable to pursue formal education, though he is a married man with a family that includes his wife, two sons, his brother, and his father. Despite his humble beginnings, Jain has accumulated a net worth of ₹7.5 crore ($1 million). His monthly earnings from begging range between ₹60,000 and 75,000. Notably, he owns a valuable two-bedroom flat in Mumbai worth ₹1.2 crore and has ventured into real estate with ownership of two shops in Thane, which yield a monthly rental income of ₹30,000. Bharat Jain can often be spotted begging at prominent locations such as Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus or Azad Maidan. His story is a testament to his entrepreneurial spirit and his ability to overcome adversity. Despite his significant wealth, Bharat Jain continues to engage in begging on the streets of Mumbai. Bharat Jain lives in Parel and his children went to a convent school. Other members of Bharat Jain’s family operate a stationary store. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #World #Richest #Beggar #Mumbai #Street #CST #Maharashtra #Money #Property #Invest

If you have future plans to remain single for the rest of your life, we might have a place where you can move to and get paid for doing nothing! The Manohar Lal Khattar government in Haryana on Thursday announced a monthly pension of ₹2,750 for low-income unmarried people aged between 45 and 60. The government is going to start a pension scheme for such people. We will take a decision within a month,” said the CM in response to a complaint raised by a 60-year-old unmarried man during the Jan Samvad programme held at Kalampura village in the district on Sunday. Chief Minister said unmarried men and women who are in the age group of 45-60 and have an annual income of less than Rs 1.80 lakh will get a pension of Rs 2,750 per month. Similarly, widower in the age bracket of 40-60 who have an annual income of less than Rs 3 lakh will also get Rs 2,750 every month, he said. This move will put an additional burden of Rs 240 crore per annum crore on the state exchequer. Khattar said there are a total of around 65,000 unmarried men and women and 5,687 widowers in the specified age group and income limit. Khattar said that once these beneficiaries attain the age of 60 years, they would automatically start getting the old age pension, provided they fulfill the annual income criteria for the old age pension scheme. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #Haryana #Single #Married #Unmarried #Bachelor #Widow #News #Pension #Scheme

On Sunday, a suspicious white substance was discovered by the Secret Service in the White House during a routine inspection. The discovery of the unknown substance resulted in elevated security and a brief precautionary shutdown of the executive mansion. Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said, “The White House complex was closed as a precaution around 20:45 local time (01:45 BST) on Sunday after Secret Service officers found the white powder ‘inside a work area’ of the West Wing.” The West Wing houses the Oval Officer and offices of the president’s top aides and support staff. Upon the substance’s discovery, a hazmat team was called to the area of 18th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. “The DC Fire Department was called to evaluate and quickly determined the item to be non-hazardous. The item was sent for further evaluation and an investigation into the cause and manner of how it entered the White House is pending,” added Anthony. The preliminary field test of the unknown substance tested positive for cocaine, but proper lab testing is under process for a formal conclusion. According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration, cocaine is a Schedule II drug under the Controlled Substances Act. In a recording of a radio message from a D.C. Fire hazmat personnel at the scene on Sunday night, the crew official said: “We have a yellow bar saying cocaine hydrochloride.” Anthony neither confirmed nor disputed the initial field test that found the powder to be cocaine. The Secret Service will lead a full review to determine the cause and manner of how the substance entered the West Wing of the White House, a senior law enforcement official said. President Joe Biden and his family had left for Camp David on Friday and returned on Tuesday for an event with the National Education Association and Fourth of July festivities. @samarthyasinghh writes. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #US #Washington #WhiteHouse #DC #JoeBiden #Biden #President #Cocaine #Drugs #Law #Police #Investigate

A DGCA report has shown that in the month of May only 61% of SpiceJet’s flights departed on time from India’s four biggest airports, namely Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. This has fallen from the figure of 70% which was reported in April. SpiceJet reportedly operates about 250 flights in a day, Bloomberg reported. India’s second-largest carrier Air India slid from being second in punctuality to fifth, with almost twice as many flight delays in May as compared to April. In all of this, Akasa Air was the most on-time. However, its performance has shown a drop. Akasa Air’s 93% flights departed on time. India’s largest carrier IndiGo saw 90% of its flights depart on time in May. Vistara stood fourth with 89.5% of its flights departing on time, while only 85% of Air Asia’s flights were punctual. The surge in travel during the post-pandemic boom, particularly during May and June school holidays, has led to increased demand for flights, creating challenges for airlines in the fiercely competitive Indian aviation market. Furthermore, the grounding of planes with Pratt & Whitney engines due to a global issue added to the pressure on flight networks. Domestic passenger traffic saw a 15 per cent increase in May compared to the previous month, but airlines faced shortages of workers and planes that were sidelined during the pandemic. The pressure to expand services amid the sudden traffic surge has put strain on airlines' operations. Weather conditions have also contributed to delays, and social media is filled with complaints from frustrated passengers. The combination of these factors led to several instances of lengthy delays and stranded passengers, highlighting the difficulty airlines face in keeping up with the high demand. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #SpiceJet #Flight #Airline #AkasaAir #AirIndia #Airplane #Pilot #Vistara #AirAsia #Indigo #Fly #Travel #Tourist #Time

Clicking selfies near elephants nearly proved fatal for three friends as they were chased off by a herd of wild tuskers in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri district. A viral video of the incident shows the men running for their lives from the feral pachyderms. According to reports, a herd of wild elephants passing through the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in Lakhimpur Kheri district was intercepted by three men as they tried to click selfies with the mastodons. However, things soon took a dark turn as the beasts became irritated by the humans and charged at them. Realising that they are in mortal danger, the men are seen running for their lives to escape from the wild tuskers. One of the men stumbles and falls down on the road but recovers quickly and starts running again, even leaving his mobile phone behind, apparently. . . . #TheTatva #TatvaNews #India #UttarPradesh #UP #Elephant #Wildlife #SocialMedia #Selfie #Photo