25 persons arrested for issuance of fake invoices

Twenty five persons have been arrested in the last four days for issuance of fake invoices. Sources in the Directorate General of GST Intelligence, DGGI said, the actual amount of fake Input Tax Credit, ITC involved is being ascertained. It said, search and investigation are on to identify and apprehend the other persons who were involved in the racket and also the beneficiaries who have used the fake invoices to evade GST, Income Tax, and do money laundering.Major Goods involved in these cases include Iron and Steel, Copper wire, plastic granules, Readymade Garments, Gold and Silver, Agro Products, Milk Product and mobile. DGGI said, that the drive against the GST evaders and ITC fraudsters is expected to further intensify in days to come and many more arrests will be done.

-In a first of its kind, Diwali celebrations at Indian Embassy in Beijing this year saw a huge participation from diplomatic corps in Beijing. Ambassador Vikram Misri hosted over hundred members from the diplomatic community, heads of multilateral institutions and foreign media to celebrate the Festival of Lights, Diwali. Around three dozen Heads of the Missions based in Beijing attended the colorful event which became a great occasion for India’s diplomatic outreach with India’s soft power at display. Misri highlighted the global outreach of Diwali, including Ramayana, the main epic related to Diwali which has multiple variants in India’s ASEAN neighborhood also. The festival is celebrated in different parts of the world, especially in South and South-East Asian countries. In India, it is celebrated by people of various faiths and religions and it acquires different colors and forms spanning across the length and breadth of the country. Scintillating performances by Chinese and Indian artists showcasing classical and folk-dance forms of India kept the audience spellbound. Besides a cultural program, a fireworks display was the highlight of the event. Diplomats from different countries also showed keen interest in Indian Mehndi art. The event culminated with a dinner with a wide variety of Indian delicacies.

-In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, for the first time in history, West Pakistani Refugees and Valmikis can now vote and contest elections as they were not entitled to the same since 1947. According to experts abrogation of Article 370 and new domicile laws have empowered the WPRs and Valmikis for voting right and contesting elections in the Union Territory. Pertinently, the west Pakistan refugees were settled mainly in border areas of Jammu and were not considered as permanent citizens. About 5764 Hindu and Sikh families popularly known as West Pakistan Refugees (WPRs) entered India in 1947 and settled down in various parts of Jammu. Presently, the number of WPRs has increased to over 20 thousand families or 4 lakh persons. After the scraping of article 370, they are allowed to purchase land and apply for jobs in J&K besides they can also contest elections. Apart from WPRs, the Valmikis (Dalits) who were brought to J&K in 1975 from Punjab by the then state government and  given permanent resident certificates had to abide by the condition that their future generations could stay only in J&K if they continue to be scavengers and Safai Karamcharis. Now the Valmikis can also apply for any jobs, purchase land, vote, contest elections besides they can now change the occupation being carried out by their forefathers. At present, around 10 thousand people belong to this community are in J&K.

-The Odisha police on Sunday registered a case against the district magistrate-cum- collector of Malkangiri and three other staff members of his office in connection with the mysterious death of his former personal assistant (PA) last year.Following an order of the sub-divisional judicial magistrate's coure, a case was filed against Collector Manish Agarwal and three staff of his office on charges of murdering his PA and destroying evidence. The body of the collector's PA, Deb Narayan Panda, was found in a reservoir near Malkanigi town on December 28 last year, a day after he had gone missing.Initially, it was suspected that Panda died by suicide. However, around six months after the incident, his wife alleged that he was murdered by the Malkangiri collector and some of his office staff. After Panda's family moved the Odisha Human Rights Commission, it directed the state director general of police to investigate the matter. Accordingly, the DIG southern western range undertook spot visits and inquired about the PA's death.

- The Odisha government has decided to set up a startup hub with common facilities by March next year to create employment opportunities for youth in the state, an official said on Sunday.The government has also given its in-principle approval to provide financial assistance to five startups and four incubators, he said."With the completion of the new startup hub by March 2021, it would be a centre of excellence with co-working space, laboratory and common services under one roof," the official said. The number of startup ventures in Odisha has gone up to 774, which created 6,000 employment opportunities. Financial assistance of over Rs 15 crore has been provided to 196 startups and incubators, he added.