Latest news with #FoodandConsumerAffairs
New Indian Express
17-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Minister Nadendla Manohar slams YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy for anti-government narratives
VIJAYAWADA: Minister for Civil Supplies, Food and Consumer Affairs Nadendla Manohar accused YSRCP chief and former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy of speaking irresponsibly, and misleading the public. Addressing the media on Wednesday, he questioned Jagan's record on farmer welfare, and development during the YSRCP regime. 'Jagan, who could not even fill potholes, is now questioning the coalition government's performance. Is he ready to discuss what he actually did for farmers?' Manohar asked. Highlighting the success of the Deepam 2.0 scheme, he said 97 lakh beneficiaries received three free gas cylinders under Phase 1. Under Phase 2, Rs 846 crore was released for it benefiting 91.10 lakh people. Manohar alleged that Jagan, now operating from Bengaluru, was inciting unrest in the name of district tours, and attempting to divide society.
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Business Standard
11-07-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Edible oil body SEA urges govt to allow coconut oil imports as prices surge
Solvent Extractors Association (SEA) on Friday urged the government to allow short-term imports of coconut oil and copra to tackle domestic price volatility, as coconut oil prices have tripled in the past year. The industry body requested that the government take urgent action by permitting imports for an interim period of 6-12 months to manage the current crisis and retain consumer interest in coconut oil. "We request the government to take urgent actions to address this situation by allowing the import of copra and coconut oil for the interim period," SEA said in a representation to concerned ministries. Coconut oil prices have surged to over Rs 400 per kg at the wholesale level from around Rs 130 a year ago, prompting consumers to shift to alternative oils like palm and sunflower. The association said India's coconut production has been under stress for two years due to pest attacks, resulting in a 40 per cent drop in yields. "This demand for coconut oil may shift permanently," SEA warned, noting that consumer movement away from coconut oil could adversely impact prices of other edible oils and increase import dependency. The body flagged concerns to Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi. SEA said the measure would not adversely impact farmers but would stabilise prices and support them long-term. It noted that imported oil with duties would still cost the same as domestic prices, but increased availability would ease supply stress. Kerala, a prime consumer market, is showing signs of turning away from coconut oil due to soaring prices. The association also warned that adulteration is becoming rampant due to higher prices, eroding trust in coconut oil. "Once consumers move out of a particular oil, it is known to be difficult to get the demand back, and this has been witnessed in the past in other indigenous oils like groundnut oil," SEA said. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Govt to shortly notify rules for mandatory use of Indian Standard Time: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi
New Delhi: The government has decided to make mandatory the use of Indian Standard Time for all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities, Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday. This initiative will translate into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication. Presently, several systems rely on foreign sources of time. To make Indian Standard Time (IST) mandatory, the government will shortly notify Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025. The draft rules were issued in January 2025 for stakeholders' feedback. On Wednesday, the Department of Consumer Affairs organized a round table conference on Time Dissemination here. Joshi emphasized on the strategic significance of the Time Dissemination Project being implemented by the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO. He said the upcoming rules will mandate synchronization of all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities with IST, "prohibiting the use of alternative time references unless explicitly authorised". "We are notifying the rules. In that, we are now One Nation One Time... These rules will be mandated very shortly. Exact date will be decided at a later stage," Joshi told reporters here. "In today's data-driven world, the un-synchronised clocks lead to digital mismatches, investigation challenges and network inefficiencies. Several systems currently rely on foreign timing sources like GPS, posing the risk of cyber attacks, inconsistency and non-traceable time stamps," he said. This project addresses a long-standing gap of institutionalising the IST as the official legal time of India, the minister said. "Since we have decided to implement and notify these that is going to be mandatory, we had a round table conference of all stakeholders...," the minister said adding that "very shortly, IST will be a reality. We will have our own time". The conference witnessed active participation from over 100 stakeholders representing sectors, including telecom, financial services and railways. "For the common man, this initiative translates into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication, ensuring fairness, transparency, and trust in day-to-day services," an official statement said. The minister underscored that precise and uniform dissemination of IST across sectors such as financial markets, power grids, telecommunications, transportation and others are essential to ensuring fairness, accuracy and national security. "The initiative aims to deliver IST with millisecond to microsecond accuracy through five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization protocols like NTP and PTP," it added. Nidhi Khare, secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, said " So far we were dependent on external sources for time dissemination. We have Indianised the entire ecosystem of time and the department is now ready with the dissemination process." She stressed on the need for accurate, secure and legally mandated dissemination of IST to ensure uniformity across strategic and non-strategic sectors. She explained that under the Time Dissemination Project, the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO is establishing an advanced infrastructure comprising five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Faridabad, and Guwahati. These centres are being equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization systems using Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP) to ensure millisecond to microsecond accuracy. The secretary's presentation outlined the risks posed by current reliance on foreign time sources, including cybersecurity vulnerabilities like spoofing and jamming. She stated that the implementation of these rules would be a crucial step toward ensuring traceability, enhancing operational reliability, and fostering national time sovereignty. The initiative is a major step in building a trusted and standardized digital ecosystem across the country. The Time Dissemination initiative is the result of sustained inter-ministerial coordination and technical consultations since 2018. Participating stakeholders supported the government's plan to notify the rules, the statement said.
The Print
18-06-2025
- Business
- The Print
Govt to shortly notify rules for mandatory use of Indian Standard Time: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi
To make Indian Standard Time (IST) mandatory, the government will shortly notify Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025. The draft rules were issued in January 2025 for stakeholders' feedback. This initiative will translate into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication. Presently, several systems rely on foreign sources of time. New Delhi, Jun 18 (PTI) The government has decided to make mandatory the use of Indian Standard Time for all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities, Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday. On Wednesday, the Department of Consumer Affairs organized a round table conference on Time Dissemination here. Joshi emphasized on the strategic significance of the Time Dissemination Project being implemented by the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO. He said the upcoming rules will mandate synchronization of all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities with IST, 'prohibiting the use of alternative time references unless explicitly authorised'. 'We are notifying the rules. In that, we are now One Nation One Time… These rules will be mandated very shortly. Exact date will be decided at a later stage,' Joshi told reporters here. 'In today's data-driven world, the un-synchronised clocks lead to digital mismatches, investigation challenges and network inefficiencies. Several systems currently rely on foreign timing sources like GPS, posing the risk of cyber attacks, inconsistency and non-traceable time stamps,' he said. This project addresses a long-standing gap of institutionalising the IST as the official legal time of India, the minister said. 'Since we have decided to implement and notify these rules…and that is going to be mandatory, we had a round table conference of all stakeholders…,' the minister said adding that 'very shortly, IST will be a reality. We will have our own time'. The conference witnessed active participation from over 100 stakeholders representing sectors, including telecom, financial services and railways. 'For the common man, this initiative translates into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication, ensuring fairness, transparency, and trust in day-to-day services,' an official statement said. The minister underscored that precise and uniform dissemination of IST across sectors such as financial markets, power grids, telecommunications, transportation and others are essential to ensuring fairness, accuracy and national security. 'The initiative aims to deliver IST with millisecond to microsecond accuracy through five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization protocols like NTP and PTP,' it added. Nidhi Khare, secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, said ' So far we were dependent on external sources for time dissemination. We have Indianised the entire ecosystem of time and the department is now ready with the dissemination process.' She stressed on the need for accurate, secure and legally mandated dissemination of IST to ensure uniformity across strategic and non-strategic sectors. She explained that under the Time Dissemination Project, the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO is establishing an advanced infrastructure comprising five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Faridabad, and Guwahati. These centres are being equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization systems using Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP) to ensure millisecond to microsecond accuracy. The secretary's presentation outlined the risks posed by current reliance on foreign time sources, including cybersecurity vulnerabilities like spoofing and jamming. She stated that the implementation of these rules would be a crucial step toward ensuring traceability, enhancing operational reliability, and fostering national time sovereignty. The initiative is a major step in building a trusted and standardized digital ecosystem across the country. The Time Dissemination initiative is the result of sustained inter-ministerial coordination and technical consultations since 2018. Participating stakeholders supported the government's plan to notify the rules, the statement said. PTI MJH ANU This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Time of India
18-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Govt to shortly notify rules for mandatory use of Indian Standard Time: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi
New Delhi: The government has decided to make mandatory the use of Indian Standard Time for all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities, Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday. This initiative will translate into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication. Presently, several systems rely on foreign sources of time. To make Indian Standard Time (IST) mandatory, the government will shortly notify Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025. The draft rules were issued in January 2025 for stakeholders' feedback. On Wednesday, the Department of Consumer Affairs organized a round table conference on Time Dissemination here. Joshi emphasized on the strategic significance of the Time Dissemination Project being implemented by the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO. Live Events He said the upcoming rules will mandate synchronization of all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities with IST, "prohibiting the use of alternative time references unless explicitly authorised". "We are notifying the rules. In that, we are now One Nation One Time... These rules will be mandated very shortly. Exact date will be decided at a later stage," Joshi told reporters here. "In today's data-driven world, the un-synchronised clocks lead to digital mismatches, investigation challenges and network inefficiencies. Several systems currently rely on foreign timing sources like GPS, posing the risk of cyber attacks, inconsistency and non-traceable time stamps," he said. This project addresses a long-standing gap of institutionalising the IST as the official legal time of India, the minister said. "Since we have decided to implement and notify these that is going to be mandatory, we had a round table conference of all stakeholders...," the minister said adding that "very shortly, IST will be a reality. We will have our own time". The conference witnessed active participation from over 100 stakeholders representing sectors, including telecom, financial services and railways. "For the common man, this initiative translates into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication, ensuring fairness, transparency, and trust in day-to-day services," an official statement said. The minister underscored that precise and uniform dissemination of IST across sectors such as financial markets, power grids, telecommunications, transportation and others are essential to ensuring fairness, accuracy and national security. "The initiative aims to deliver IST with millisecond to microsecond accuracy through five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization protocols like NTP and PTP," it added. Nidhi Khare, secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, said " So far we were dependent on external sources for time dissemination. We have Indianised the entire ecosystem of time and the department is now ready with the dissemination process." She stressed on the need for accurate, secure and legally mandated dissemination of IST to ensure uniformity across strategic and non-strategic sectors. She explained that under the Time Dissemination Project, the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO is establishing an advanced infrastructure comprising five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Faridabad, and Guwahati. These centres are being equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization systems using Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP) to ensure millisecond to microsecond accuracy. The secretary's presentation outlined the risks posed by current reliance on foreign time sources, including cybersecurity vulnerabilities like spoofing and jamming. She stated that the implementation of these rules would be a crucial step toward ensuring traceability, enhancing operational reliability, and fostering national time sovereignty. The initiative is a major step in building a trusted and standardized digital ecosystem across the country. The Time Dissemination initiative is the result of sustained inter-ministerial coordination and technical consultations since 2018. Participating stakeholders supported the government's plan to notify the rules, the statement said.
