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NEW DELHI : Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday announced that the Centre has constituted a high-level committee under retired Supreme Court judge Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar to assess demographic changes across India due to “illegal immigration and other unnatural causes”. In a message on ‘X’ in Hindi, he said infiltration and other reasons are causing “unnatural” demographic change, which poses a significant challenge to the present and future of any nation. “To address this very challenge, on August 15, 2025, Prime Minister @narendramodi ji had announced the ‘high-level committee on demographic change’. I am delighted to inform you that the government has now constituted this committee,” Shah said. The home minister said the committee will be chaired by Justice Naolekar (retd) and will also include the census commissioner, along with retired IAS officer Durga Shankar Mishra, ex-IPS officer Balaji Srivastava and Dr Shamika Ravi as members. “The joint secretary (foreigners-l), Ministry of Home Affairs, will serve as the member secretary of this committee,” he said. Shah emphasised that demographic change is a serious issue linked not only to the country’s sovereignty but also to national security, law and order, profound changes in social structure and the preservation of tribal society. “This committee will conduct a comprehensive assessment of demographic changes occurring across India due to illegal immigration and other unnatural causes, analyse patterns of abnormal population shifts at the levels of religious and social communities, and present a planned and time-bound solution for the same,” he said. The high-level committee will conduct a scientific evaluation of the demographic changes taking place in different regions of the country due to illegal immigration and other unusual factors, examine their causes, and suggest suitable policy, legislative, and administrative interventions, a government statement said. According to the Terms of Reference of the committee, it will comprehensively deliberate upon the challenges arising from demographic changes, including illegal immigration. It will study the possible causes of demographic changes, such as cross-border activities (including illegal immigration), economic opportunities, and other socio-environmental factors, the statement said. The panel will also identify the underlying factors behind these changes, which include illegal immigration, abnormal settlement patterns, and orchestrated migration, it said. Further, the committee will analyse structural population changes at the level of religious or social communities, particularly where they deviate from broader trends. It will recommend a streamlined and permanent operational mechanism for the legal, fair, and time-bound identification, detention, and deportation of illegal immigrants already residing in the country, the statement said. The committee will also suggest an appropriate institutional mechanism to strengthen border management, population stabilization, and identification systems for the continuous monitoring of such trends, it said. In addition, it will propose a comprehensive policy framework to enhance coordination between the central and state governments on matters related to illegal immigration and the resulting demographic imbalances. The committee may also suggest any additional measures it considers necessary to address the challenges resulting from demographic changes, including illegal immigration. Speaking from the ramparts of the Red Fort in his Independence Day speech last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a high-powered demographic mission to tackle the problem. Modi had said there was a “pre-meditated conspiracy” to change the country’s demography through illegal infiltration. “Today I want to alert the country about a concern, a challenge. Under a well-thought out conspiracy, the demography of the country is being changed. Seeds of a new crisis are being sown. These ‘ghuspaithiye’ (infiltrators) are snatching the livelihood of the youth of my country, these ‘ghuspaithiye’ are targeting the sisters and daughters of my country, this will not be tolerated,” he had said. The prime minister had also said that ‘ghuspaithiye’ are misleading the innocent tribals and grabbing their land. Modi had warned that when demographic changes take place, especially in the border areas, they create a national security crisis. (Source: PTI)      

NEW DELHI : The overall particulate matter pollution in the Indo-Gangetic Plain, the Himalayan region, and North-East India increased by more than 20 per cent during the 2010-2019 period compared to the 2000-2009 baseline, according to a new study. It also revealed that in the eastern Indo-Gangetic Plain, carbonaceous aerosols, particles from the burning of crop residue, wood, and other organic material, showed strong and increasing trends between 2000 and 2024 (the period the study analysed). According to the study, the sharp rise in particulate matter (PM) in North-East India is attributed to intensified slash-and-burn agricultural practices and extensive use of biomass for domestic energy in rural households during this period. The study, “Decadal shifts in aerosol hotspots and source attribution over IGP, north-east India and Himalayas: A 25-year (2000-2024) study”, was published in the journal Atmospheric Environment and released on Monday. In a statement, Abhijit Chatterjee, co-author of the study and professor at the Bose Institute in Kolkata, said, “The eastern Indo-Gangetic Plain, and increasingly North-East India, are carrying a disproportionate pollution burden and it is being driven almost entirely by biomass burning. That is the signal that stands out most clearly across 25 years of data.” The analysis also found that IGP emissions are reaching the Himalayas. While pollution from Punjab and Delhi affects the western ranges, emissions from Bihar and West Bengal influence the eastern Himalayas. Soumen Raul, a senior research fellow at the Bose Institute, in a statement, said, “Our trajectory analysis shows that what is emitted in Punjab or Bihar does not stay there. It travels into the mountains. These are ecologically and climatically sensitive zones, and they are currently outside the scope of any structured clean air intervention in India.” (Source: PTI)      

NEW DELHI :  The Supreme Court on Monday said it was sad that NTA has not learn lessons from the earlier NEET paper leak as it sought response from the Centre, NTA and CBI on pleas for replacement of the testing agency with a robust and autonomous body to conduct the medical entrance exam. A bench of Justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe directed that copy of petitions be served to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta besides other parties and asked the National Testing Agency (NTA), which is responsible for conducting the NEET exam, to file an affidavit by Thursday on compliance of directions issued by the court in 2024. “It’s sad that they have not learnt their lessons. The matter travelled to this court earlier also. There was a committee, a monitoring committee which made some recommendations and they were accepted. We want NTA to file an affidavit on the steps taken for compliance of recommendations suggested by the committee,” the bench said. The top court, which issued notice on a plea filed by the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), through lawyer Tanvi Dubey said it is tagging all the similar matters together. It directed the Centre-appointed committee led by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Radhakrishnan for overhaul of the functioning of the NTA to detail the steps taken for compliance of its directions. The medical body has urged the top court for direct restructuring or replacement of NTA with a robust and autonomous system to conduct NEET-UG, citing a “direct assault” on the fundamental rights of over 22.7 lakh students through recurring paper leaks. It has also sought a direction to appoint a high-powered monitoring committee until a fresh body is formally constituted to oversee the re-examination. It further said the committee should comprise a retired Supreme Court judge as the chair, along with a cybersecurity expert and a forensic scientist, to ensure that no further leaks occur. The undergraduate-level National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) held on May 3 by the NTA for admissions to medical education programmes was cancelled on May 12 amid allegations of paper leak, which are now being probed by the CBI. (Source: PTI)          

NEW DELHI : The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Sunday said it will issue refunds to students who were overcharged during the class 12 post-result process due to technical issues. This comes a day after Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan sought a detailed report from the CBSE over complaints of technical glitches faced by students during the re-evaluation process. In a notice, the CBSE said that on May 21 and 22, certain technical issues led to incorrect fee deductions in some cases while students were applying for scanned copies of evaluated answer books, it said. “In some instances, excess payment was deducted, while in others, lesser amounts were charged,” it said. The CBSE said that in all cases of excess payment, the “exact excess amounts shall be refunded to the same payment method which was used for payment”. “Similarly, in cases where lesser payment was deducted, candidates shall be informed separately regarding payment of the balance amount, if required,” it said. “Scanned copies of the evaluated answer books shall be provided in all such cases, without candidates being required to submit fresh requests,” it added. On Wednesday, Pradhan took serious cognisance of issues related to server downtime, payment gateway glitches and operational lapses reported during the process, sources said. In a statement issued on Saturday, the CBSE had said that it was monitoring all reported issues and taking corrective measures, including extension of timelines and technical interventions. “Parents and students are requested not to feel anxious if they have encountered such issues. The very purpose of the verification and re-evaluation mechanism is to address genuine concerns in a structured and fair manner,” the statement said. It had said that due to exceptionally high traffic on the portal, some technical disruptions were experienced during peak periods. (Source: PTI)      

NEW DELHI : The Congress on Sunday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s remarks that India has committed to purchasing USD 500 billion worth of American goods over the next five years, alleging that the “compromised PM” was going the extra mile to appease his “good friend”. Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, also asked why the Modi government had not shown the courage to renounce what he termed an “anti-people” and “dangerous” India-US trade deal, as countries such as Malaysia had done. He also questioned why the Modi government had agreed to record imports from the US when the prime minister had on record asked citizens to cut down on domestic fuel consumption and overseas travel to save foreign exchange. Will this surge in imports not further cause the rupee to depreciate, he further asked. “At 5:37 PM IST on May 10 2025, it was US Secretary of State Marco Rubio who first made the announcement of the ceasefire that brought Operation Sindoor to an unexpected halt. He had claimed that it was intervention by President Trump that made the ceasefire possible,” Ramesh said on X. On May 21, 2026, Rubio was again the very first to announce that the President of Venezuela would be visiting India next week, he said, adding that this was even before India and Venezuela had even hinted or confirmed the news. “Today, Mr. Rubio has once again shocked the country by making a statement on X that the Modi Government has committed to purchasing USD 500 billion in U.S. goods over the next five years, focusing on energy, technology, and agriculture,” Ramesh said. India’s current yearly imports are USD 52.9 billion as of FY26, and Rubio’s statement implies that India will have to double its annual imports from the US, he said. “We have five straight questions for the Prime Minister on this new development — Countries like Malaysia have declared their trade agreements with the US ‘null and void’ after the US Supreme Court ruling, which struck down the Trump tariffs that formed the backdrop to these agreements. “The Indo-US trade deal, signed in a hurry by the PM while he was under pressure from Rahul Gandhi’s expose in Parliament, saw the Modi Government unilaterally make enormous concessions that threaten our farmers and industries,” he said. “The logic of this deal has now collapsed after the US Supreme Court’s verdict striking down the tariffs. Why has the Modi Government not had the courage to renounce this anti-people, dangerous trade deal like Malaysia and other countries have?” Ramesh said. He pointed out that the prime minister himself urged citizens to reduce fuel consumption and overseas travel to save foreign exchange. “Why has the Modi Government simultaneously agreed to record imports from the US at the same time?” he asked. Ramesh said the Indian rupee has lost 12 per cent of its value against the US dollar over the past 12 months. Will this surge in imports from the US not further cause the rupee to depreciate, he asked. “Last week, the Trump administration dismissed the criminal fraud charges against Mr Adani in the solar energy scam where Mr. Adani reportedly paid bribes for USD 265 million. Is Mr. Modi’s capitulation to the US on imports linked to the relief provided to the Modani empire by Mr. Trump?” he said. “Why is all the communication on Indian foreign policy — from the Operation Sindoor ceasefire and the halting of Russian oil and gas imports, to the Indo-US trade deal and the visit of the Venezuelan President — now coming first from Washington DC instead of New Delhi?” Ramesh said. Why have the prime minister and Foreign Affairs Minister S Jaishanka renounced their responsibility to communicate to the Indian people and to the world the foreign policy of our sovereign state, Ramesh asked. “It appears that the compromised Prime Minister is keen on going the extra mile to appease and please his good friend,” the Congress leader said, taking a swipe at the PM. Ramesh’s remarks came hours after Rubio, in a post on X, said, “Huge thanks to @USAmbIndia Sergio Gor and our American diplomats for their efforts. Because of their great work, India has committed to purchasing $500 billion in U.S. goods over the next five years, focusing on energy, technology, and agriculture.” “They’re doing terrific work on behalf of President Trump and the American people!” Rubio said. Prime Minister Modi on Saturday said India and the US will continue to work closely for the global good. Rubio, who met Modi shortly after landing in New Delhi, invited the prime minister on behalf of President Donald Trump to visit the White House in the “near future”, as the top American diplomat described India as the “cornerstone” of Washington’s approach towards the Indo-Pacific. On Sunday, Rubio held talks with Jaishankar here and said that relations between India and the US have not lost momentum. (Source: PTI)            

NEW DELHI :  The Centre on Saturday published draft rules under the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025 (VB–G RAM G) for public consultation, following the notification of the law’s implementation across all states and Union Territories from July 1. Framed under Section 33 and other relevant provisions of the Act, the draft rules have been placed in the public domain to facilitate wider stakeholder consultation before they are finalised. The proposed rules cover transitional provisions, the National Level Steering Committee, the Central Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Council, administrative expenses, grievance redressal, payment of wages and unemployment allowance, and expenditure incurred in excess of normative allocations, including expenses for Union Territories without legislatures. Officials in the Ministry of Rural Development said the rules are aimed at establishing the institutional, administrative, financial, and governance framework for implementation of the Act across the country. They said the consultation process seeks to ensure participatory governance and enable constructive feedback from states, institutions, experts, civil society organisations, and the public. The draft Transitional Provisions Rules outline the framework for shifting from MGNREGA to VB–G RAM G, the new rural employment guarantee scheme that will replace the existing programme. These provisions ensure ongoing work, settlement of liabilities, transfer of records, the validity of e-KYC-verified job cards, and the continuation of workers’ rights during the transition period until States notify the new scheme. (Source: PTI)