The West Bengal circle has emerged the highest grosser in small savings mobilisation during the ongoing lockdown in the country, an official of the postal department said on Saturday. The West Bengal circle also includes Sikkim and Andaman and Nicobar. "In this country during the lockdown period which is continuing, the West Bengal circle is the highest grosser in terms of small savings mobilisation", acting Chief Post Master General (CPMG) Niraj Kumar said. He said only in one day on May six, the circle grossed Rs 361.25 crore only from post offices (PO) which are run on CBS platform. Kumar said the main reason behind this is post offices having CBS are able to carry out transactions which are centrally monitored by the circle team and ably supported by required technical support. Even last year, the West Bengal circle recorded highest growth in the postal financial services in the country, he told PTI. This performance has also been a result of small savings agents who

The West Bengal government is arranging special trains to bring back over 30,000 residents of the state stranded in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka and Punjab due to the ongoing lockdown, a senior official said on Saturday. The stranded people are mostly migrant workers, patients and their attendants, students, pilgrims and tourists from West Bengal, he said. "Talks are on with officials of other state governments in this regard. Everything has been finalised.... Our nodal officers are monitoring developments," the official told PTI. A total of 31,224 people are stranded in the four states, of whom more than half (17,000) are in Telangana, he said. Three trains carrying around 7,500 people from West Bengal will start their journeys from Bengaluru in Karnataka on Saturday and reach their destinations -- Bankura, Purulia and New Jalpaiguri stations -- in the state on Sunday and Monday, the official said. Two trains with around 2,418 people, mostly patients, will depart Vellore in Tamil

The TCS World 10K Bengaluru run will be held on November 22 as the organisers on Saturday announced the new date for the rescheduled event. The race, the lone Gold Label event in Asia, was earlier scheduled to be held on the third Sunday of May, like the previous years, but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Safety and precaution are paramount for the event. This re-scheduling of the Tata Consultancy Services World 10K, was imminent to regain some form of normalcy, especially for the travel and participation of our international stakeholders," said Vivek Singh, Joint-MD Procam International, the organisers of the run. "The support and co-operation received from all our stakeholders, has been unparalleled. 22nd November 2020, should give us all necessary time to heal, re-energise and deliver the event with our customary zeal," he added. The online registrations for the rescheduled event will commence on September 8. Race Director Hugh Jones said, "Postponing an event of

The West Bengal government on Saturday said it had brought back around 6,000 residents stranded outside the state and ensured safe return of people of other states stuck here due to the lockdown, virtually refuting the claims of non-cooperation made by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The state government is doing its best to ensure that migrant labourers -- those stranded in Bengal and also the state's people stuck outside -- return home, West Bengal Home Secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay said. Bandopadhyay said so far around 6,000 people, including migrant labourers, pilgrims and students of Bengal, stranded in other states have come back. "We have also issued 18,000 passes to small trucks so that those stuck in West Bengal can return to their states," he said. He, however, declined to comment on the letter sent by Shah to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on the issue of migrant labourers and said it is not his subject to comment on. Shah has said the West Bengal government is not allowing .

Eleven more COVID-19 fatalities have been recorded in West Bengal, raising the death toll in the state to 99, Home Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay said on Saturday. At least 108 more people have tested positive for the virus in the state, taking the number of confirmed cases to 1,786, he said. The number of active cases stands at 1,243, the official said. Forty-nine patients have been discharged in the state since Friday following complete recovery from the disease, Bandyopadhyay said.

All the state universities in West Bengal will implement the academic calendar in their respective institutions within a month after the lockdown is lifted, Education Minister Partha Chatterjee said on Saturday. Chatterjee, who earlier in the day held a videoconference with vice-chancellors of all the state universities, told reporters at an online press conference that the VCs have decided on how to conduct the classes and the final semester examinations. "The academic calendar, including examinations, will be put into effect within a month after the lockdown is lifted," he said. Chatterjee said the institutions have also received the University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines in this regard and the issue came up in the meeting held during the day. He had earlier said that the UGC guidelines reflect the recommendations made by the state government on issues such as conducting terminal examinations in the post-lockdown period. "The faculty members of the universities .

A new notification from the ministry lays out a process by which illegal units can be granted clearance and “brought into compliance” within the next six months. Manju Menon and Kanchi Kohli report.

Clearly, there are few states as important as West Bengal with 42 seats, and the all-important question in Kidderpore on Saturday and all other nights in the run-up to May 16 is, will the fabled party machinery of the Left Front hold its 35 seats in the Lok Sabha?

There's more to being elected from Calcutta North than the ability to turn a phrase around different consonants at the same time, and Mohammed Salim is keenly aware of this fact.

The Left party workers are keenly aware that the election for the 15th Lok Sabha is the severest test for the party ever since it took power in Bengal 32 years ago.

Bengal's picture-perfect villages have been home to the hammer-and-sickle for an astounding three decades, but now that the rural idyll is cracking, the Left Front is being forced to confront the sight of the three-petalled symbol of the Trinamool Congress and the sounds of rebel voices rising against its perceptible clout.

He designed the general elections, India’s greatest gift to itself. It is time the Bengali mathematician-turned-civil servant got his due, writes Ramachandra Guha.

Most villagers in U.P.'s Hardoi district, except for a miniscule few associated with social or political organizations, were not aware of the passage of the new Employment Guarantee Law last year. Since then, its coming into force in 22 districts of U.P. has not impressed them either. Sandeep Pandey notes why.

The smart-card driven CORE-PDS system demonstrates the feasibility of introducing portability in social security systems without the use of biometrics. A student team from IIT Delhi surveys Fair Price Shops in Raipur district following the new system to assess how it has been faring.

infraSys, a development-driven enterprise that creates physical, financial, and knowledge infrastructure in rural areas.

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) is being implemented in Orissa in stops and starts. But by pressing for information on NREGA benefits using the sunshine law, citizens are able to hold officials accountable and are able to remedy the situation by themselves in some cases. Pradeep Baisakh has more.

With an eye on the electorate, the UPA government is trying to scale up its Direct Benefits Transfer scheme in a big way, linking it to the Aadhaar project. But given the low levels of financial inclusion and poor financial literacy among beneficiaries, its effectiveness remains suspect.

Legal and procedural lapses as well as disregard of critical public submissions are tarnishing the EIA of the proposed Tadadi Port in Karnataka. Kanchi Kohli reports.

The Mumbai municipal authorities have delivered a draft 20-year development plan for the city, but implementation of many of the proposals therein could well deliver the final blow to a city already gasping for breath, says Darryl D’Monte.

ऑफिस के काम के बीच चाय इंसान के दिमाग को तरोताजा कर देती है. पहले लोग ब्लैक और दूध वाली ही चाय पीते थे, लेकिन वक्त के साथ चाय कई तरह की हो गई है.

मर्सिडीज ने 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe को भारत में लॉन्च कर दिया है. इसकी कीमत 62.70 लाख रुपये (एक्सशोरूम प्राइस) तय किया गया है. फरवरी में हुए ऑटो एक्सपो के दौरान मर्सिडीज ने इसे शोकेस किया था.

इसकी कीमत 40.90 लाख रुपये एक्स-शोरूम से शुरू होती है और 46.54 लाख रुपये तक जाती है.

Assam has been allotted 1.25 lakh MT of rice per month under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) scheme for three months from April to June for free distribution among 2.49 crores beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in the state.

Patrick Benson

Home Minister asks CM Mamata Banerjee to arrange for return of migrant Bengal workers

I Recommend with Sonali Bendre Bahl

Earlier, in a similar gesture, a doctor who had returned home after 20 days of non-stop service to the COVID-19 patients received a warm welcome from her neighbours.

Chance to Shine is a national cricket charity that delivers cricket coaching sessions in a quarter of primary schools in England & Wales every year.

Reckitt Benckiser recorded a 13.3% rise in first quarter like-for-like sales, that was its best performance since the company was formed in 1999.

It further said that although 2020 is a lost year, in terms of trade, India can think long-term and build relations so that it can occupy the space vacated by China.

Under this new product, an additional 30 basis points premium will be payable for senior citizen's retail term deposits with "5 Years & above" tenor only.

Actress Ashley Benson and supermodel Cara Delevigne have reportedly split up after almost 2 years of dating. The duo confirmed their relationship in June 2019.

Amazon has also tied up with mobile game developers to host Prime-only tournaments for its members in India.

England all-rounder Ben Stokes has run his first-ever half marathon to raise money for Britain's National Health Service amid the coronavirus pandemic which has so far claimed more than 30,000 lives in the UK.

When asked if cricket might lose its competitive edge in such an atmosphere Stokes, 28, said that even without fans the players would still be going out to win.

The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) on Wednesday held its first online interactive session for Bengal senior women's team as former India cricketer Deep Dasgupta was present during the session alongside senior Bengal coach Shib Shankar Paul and batting coach Charanjit Singh.

The film is mounted with ace production values. The era is aptly recreated by production designer Jan Roelfs and captured by cinematographer Chung-Hoon Chung.

Vichhoda moves through the bylanes of Kashmir and reaches corruption-ridden small towns of Pakistan to seek humanity in the most unexpected places.

All the foreigners of the two renowned clubs were left stranded after the government enforced a nationwide lockdown to contain the Covid-19 pandemic.

The stranded foreigners of East Bengal and Mohun Bagan will leave for home on Tuesday from Delhi.

JSW CEO Mustafa Ghouse said players of IPL side Delhi Capitals and ISL team Bengaluru FC are being monitored on a regular basis.

A 13-member group of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal coaches and players made a quiet exit from India in the wee hours of Tuesday by a specially-arranged Dutch Airlines flight from New Delhi

Barry Bennell is said to have sexually abused kids when he was working Manchester City as a scout and coach of their 'feeder teams'.

Footballers and cricketers join Formula One regulars for the Formula One Esports Virtual Grand Prix at the rendered Interlagos Circuit.

The Forum has written a letter to Chief Secretary Rajiv Sinha, who assured that the government will do whatever is needed for the safety and security of the doctors and health care workers in Bengal.

The charge of provocation to cause riots has been levelled against the workers allegedly for helping the migrant workers.

The Indian Railways reaction came minutes after the TMC said they planned to run eight trains to ferry migrants from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Telangana over the next three days.