? The Government has reduced TDS/TCS rates by 25 percent till March 31, 2020. This will apply to all payments- contracts, dividends, brokerage etc. The move will release Rs 50,000 crores in the hands of the people.
? Indian Railways begins restoration of passenger train services; will have only AC classes. Indian Railways makes Aarogya Setu mobile app compulsory for passengers.
? A Non Invasive BiPAP Ventilator “SwasthVayu” has been developed by CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories, Bangalore to treat COVID-19 patients.
? Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced that emergency liquidity worth Rs 90000 crore to be infused in discoms against their receivables. This will be done with state issuing guarantees. With the infusion of the money, the power distribution firms will pay the power generation companies. The rebate will be given to those discoms, which will pass it on again back to the consumers.
? FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in India postponed from 2-21, November, 2020 to February 17-March 7, 2021.
? “CHAMPIONS” portal has been launched by the Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
? Manoj Ahuja was appointed as the new Chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on May 12, 2020. He will be replacing IAS officer Anita Karwal, who has been appointed as the Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy under Human Resource Development Ministry.
? INR-USD Futures and Options contracts have been launched on International Exchanges viz. BSE’s India INX and NSE’s NSE-IFSC, at GIFT International Financial Services Centre, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
? Telangana has become the first state to regulate the cultivation of crops by telling farmers what to grow as a part of its pilot project. Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao issued a statement on May 12, 2020 saying that the state will limit growing of paddy to 50 lakh acres.
? Union HRD Minister has launched Central University of Odisha Helpline “Bharosa” with an objective of relieving the student community from the distress caused during the troubled time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
? India will be participating in a meeting of foreign ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on May 13, 2020. The External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar will represent India at the meet which will see the participation of foreign ministers from eight countries. The meeting has been called to discuss ways to cooperate in the fight against COVID-19.
? The Election Commission has formed a 3-member committee to examine Gujarat High Court’s judgement on an election petition concerning Dholka assembly constituency.
? Russia stated announced that it will oppose any attempts by the United States to extend the arms embargo on Iran and reimpose UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
? Twitter said in a statement recently that it has announced a new policy that will allow all of its employees to work from home, not only currently in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic but also indefinitely afterward if they wish to.