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[ad_1] The department of telecommunications (DoT) is not likely to return bank guarantees (BGs) related to spectrum auctions to Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel anytime soon as it needs to first finalise a mechanism for securing the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues of the two firms. However, spectrum auction related BGs of Reliance Jio will be returned as it does not have any AGR related dues as per the Supreme Court order. According to estimates, Vodafone Idea has spectrum related BGs worth Rs 15,000 crore while for Bharti Airtel the same is of around Rs 8,000 crore. The DoT has already started returning BGs related to licence fees and so far returned BGs worth Rs 9,000 crore to the companies. But since the DoT has not securitised AGR related dues, it is considering to hold back spectrum auction related BGs till a final decision is taken in this regard, sources said. The government is treading cautiously because of the Supreme Court order which states that telecom operators have to pay the AGR dues along with interest and penalty as calculated by the DoT. In September 2020, the Supreme Court had ordered that the companies need to pay their dues over a 10-year period, after paying 10% of the dues upfront by March 31, 2021. Thereafter, the deferred payment cycle would run till 2031 with the 10% amount to be paid by March 31 every year. As per DoT’s calculations, total AGR dues of Bharti Airtel stood at Rs 43,980 crore, of which the company had paid Rs 18,004 crore. Vodafone Idea dues stood at Rs 58,254 crore, of which the firm had paid Rs 7,854 crore. After the telecom relief package, requirement of BGs has been lowered by 80%. It also meant that past BGs related to deferred spectrum installments as well as licence fees etc will be returned to operators. But since, there is no clarity regarding the AGR dues and how to secure the amount, the DoT has not yet started to return auction related BGs. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] One of the kids woke up really frustrated recently. In all honesty, I wanted to respond back in frustration… because it felt like a really “silly” thing for them to be upset by. But if I’ve learned anything in over 17 years of mothering, it’s this: responding in frustrating to a child who is frustrated never ends well. Just trust me on this. So instead, I took a deep breath, leaned on the Holy Spirit, and asked them to share what was wrong. They had a lot to vent out right then & I purposely just listened. I wanted to try to come up with some quick fixes or solutions, but I could tell that’s not what they needed. They just needed a listening ear that said: “I care. You are valued. What matters to you, matters to me.” After they had poured out their big feelings, I asked how I could help. There wasn’t much I could do, but I could tell that just that simple question brought some relief to them. It communicated that they weren’t alone. That I was *with* them. That they didn’t have to shoulder this all on their own. And then I asked them what they could do about it. Instead of me trying to swoop in and fix things, I wanted to let them process through what they were feeling and come up with next steps. We didn’t tie everything up with a neat bow, but my posture of leaning in and loving and seeking to walk beside de-escalated the situation so that by the time they walked out the door to leave for school, they were feeling much calmer and less stressed. Mamas: we set the tone for our home. We can’t fix all our kids’ struggles. We can’t solve all our kids’ problems, but we can walk with them. We can communicate to them, “I’m here. I love you. I’m FOR you. And I’m not going anywhere.” There might need to be some hard conversations or consequences or addressing heart issues in days to come — after a child/teen is in a better headspace — but in the moment when our kids are feeling overwhelmed and frustrated, they just need to know we are there. They don’t need our lectures; they just need our presence. “What’s wrong?” “How can I help?” These two questions and the willingness to listen well can make a huge difference in our relationship with our kids. In this week’s episode of The Crystal Paine Show, Jesse and I share more about how to respond when our kids (or anyone in our life!) is frustrated. Plus, I share a crazy travel story from my recent trip, and we talk about books and reading. In This Episode [00:34] – Welcome to another episode of The Crystal Paine Show. [01:15] – What to do when your child is frustrated. [02:00] – I have a travel “horror” story to share today. [04:02] – While I was stuck in Charlotte for four hours, my phone was starting to run out of battery. [07:46] – Word to the wise: if there is wet carpet in the airport don’t assume that it’s water spilled. [08:41] – What I recently finished listening to. [09:57] – A letter from a listener about Jesse’s advice on reading. [12:05] – Are you making progress over who you were yesterday? [12:35] – Jesse shares his book update. [13:49] – How to help a child who is frustrated… [16:02] – Ever been frustrated at someone for being frustrated (oh! the irony!) [17:52] – Instead, stepping back and asking for God’s help [19:13] – Question #1: “What is wrong?” [21:23] – Question #2: “How can I help you?” [22:39] – Question #3: “What can you do about it?” [23:53] – Practice the art of asking questions versus telling someone how they should feel or respond. Links & Resources Books The Masterpiece by Francine Rivers Other Links Love-Centered Parenting 10 Days to Be a Happier Mom Sign up for the Hot Deals Email List MoneySavingMom.com My Instagram account (I’d love for you to follow me there! I usually hop on at least a few times per day and share behind-the-scenes photos and videos, my grocery store hauls, funny stories, or just anything I’m pondering or would like your advice or feedback on!) Have feedback on the show or suggestions for future episodes or topics? Send me an email: crystal @ moneysavingmom.com [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Ottawa mayor declares state of emergency to deal with trucking blockade [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] The Union Budget FY23 has allocated Rs 1,04,278 crore for the education sector—an increase of 11.86% compared to the revised 2021-22 gross allocation of Rs 93,223 crore. While it is still lower than the NEP-recommended 6% of GDP, it is a positive sign and an acknowledgement that this sector needs more focus. If we look at the Budget from a sub-sector perspective, it is interesting to see the allocation and hence the trend. In school education, acknowledging learning losses due to closure of schools, the ‘one class-one TV channel’ programme of PM eVIDYA will be expanded from 12 to 200 TV channels. I am sure the Rs 1,00,000 allocation is an oversight—the scheme obviously needs a lot more funding. This will help state governments to provide supplementary education in regional languages for classes 1 to 12. It is a big step in providing high-quality e-content in all spoken languages for delivery via the Internet, mobile phones, TV and radio through digital teachers. A competitive mechanism for development of quality e-content by teachers has been mentioned and I am sure it will empower and equip them with digital tools of teaching and facilitate better learning outcomes. The allocation for Samagra Shiksha went up to Rs 37,383 crore in 2022-23, from Rs 29,999 crore in 2021-22. Similarly, the allocation for Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) went up from Rs 340 crore to Rs 550 crore. Thrust is given on programmes such as Accelerating State Education Program to Improve Results (ASPIRE) and Exemplar Schools through an allocation of Rs 600 crore and Rs 1,800 crore, respectively, for 2022-23. These initiatives will put states at the forefront of improving learning outcomes. While these are good measures, a separate allocation for enhancing digital infrastructure—particularly in rural India, which would have been crucial for the development of the sector—is missing. On the higher education front, there is a welcome announcement of a digital university, which will be established to provide access to students, across the country, world-class quality universal education with personalised learning experience at their doorsteps. This will be made available in different Indian languages and information and communication technology (ICT) formats. The university will be built on a networked hub-spoke model, with the hub building cutting-edge ICT expertise. The best public universities and institutions in the country will collaborate as a network of hub-spokes. It’s a forward-looking move. KPMG had suggested a blueprint for a similar digital university for skill development: the ‘Skill-Tech Varsity’. It is heartening to see the Budget having a clear focus on leveraging digital technologies. In a fillip to smart city and other initiatives, under the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), five academic institutions on urban planning are to be made centres of excellence. The institutions will get endowment of Rs 250 crore each. Apart from this, agricultural universities will be funded to revise syllabi to meet the needs of modern-day farming. In a welcome move, World Class Institutions have been allocated Rs 1,700 crore for 2022-23—an increase from Rs 1,200 crore in 2021-22. This could be effectively used for bringing our education in select areas such as financial services and technology to compete with best-in-class globally. The Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan has been allocated Rs 2,042 crore for 2022-23, up from Rs 793 crore in 2021-22. Also, the National Mission on Education through ICT has been allocated Rs 400 crore and the Programme for Apprentice Training Rs 500 crore for 2022-23. However, lack of announcements on financing higher education and research, the Higher Education Commission of India Bill, etc, make me feel some of the important elements of the NEP have been missed out in Budget considerations. In skilling and vocational education, the Digital Ecosystem for Skilling and Livelihood (the DESH-Stack e-portal) will be launched with an aim to empower citizens to skill, reskill or upskill through online training. It will also provide API-based trusted skill credentials, payment and discovery layers to find relevant jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities. To promote critical thinking skills and to give space for creativity, 750 virtual labs in science and mathematics, and 75 skilling e-labs for simulated learning environment, will be set up in 2022-23. The National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) has been allocated Rs 170 crore in 2022-23 as against no allocation in the last Budget. The budget for Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP) has gone up from Rs 193.47 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 300 crore in 2022-23. Overall, there are some laudable initiatives especially the big push for digital across school, skill development and higher education and an increased Budget allocation across initiatives. In my view, there are three initiatives that could be game-changers in the Indian education scenario: —The central digital university with a hub-and-spoke arrangement could well serve the need for remote learning in the digital space. I am sure if this is well-planned and leveraged, this could be a boon for those who cannot have access to formal university education system and change the higher education landscape in India;—The DESH portal could bring about a similar revolution in the upskilling and life-long skilling space. With the rapidly changing skill requirement across job functions, the ease of creating, learning and recognition could change the skilling landscape for many sectors—particularly for small and medium organisations;—The convergence of digital channels and vernacular push in school education will be a model for many countries with large, dispersed learners. I expect a lot of innovation to happen on this platform once it is established. Apart from this, proper utilisation of allocations this year would mark the beginning of changes mentioned in the NEP 2020. The author is national head, Education and Skill Development, KPMG in India [ad_2] Source link

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[ad_1] UK's Truss vows to 'raise the cost' if Russia takes further action [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday said if voted to power, his government will relax the age limit in state police recruitment to facilitate those who had turned overage during the Covid pandemic. Addressing a public meeting here, Yadav said, “Many youngsters have become overage for recruitment in the Army and police during the COVID-19 pandemic. We will send a special request to the Army to recruit the youth of Uttar Pradesh for the service of the nation. If needed, we will also relax the age limit in police recruitment.” The SP chief also said, “I have come to know that the (market) share of vodka has gone up in the last few years after BJP came to power. I want to assure you that we will provide a subsidy of Rs 100-200 crore for setting up industries to process potatoes in the region and make chips and snacks. If needed, we will even set up a plant to manufacture vodka to prevent the wastage of potatoes grown by the farmers of this region.” “This region is famous for its potato crop but the produce is wasted due to lack of support from the government. As a mark of protest, Samajwadis had dumped their potato produce outside the residence of the chief minister in Lucknow (in January 2018).” “The government had assured to buy potatoes from the farmers but they did not do so,” the SP chief claimed. When Yadav was the chief minister in 2015, he had announced to set up at least one vodka brewing factory in Kannauj and Farrukhabad districts each to ensure remunerative prices to farmers. [ad_2] Source link

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[ad_1] Russia invasion of Ukraine could be soon but talks still an option, U.S. official says [ad_2] Source link

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