How much amount has been spent by Government on GST advertisements?

The European T20 competition set to take place in Ireland, Scotland, and the Netherlands for the first time later this year has been officially named as 'Euro T20 Slam'. The competition which was unveiled earlier in 2019, will consist of six-city based franchises, two from each of the host nations.

ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund launched ICICI Prudential Bharat Consumption Scheme to get advantage from the Indian consumption market, which is considered as one of the fastest growing consumption markets globally. Nifty India Consumption Index is the benchmark for the Scheme. It will be managed by Rajat Chandak, Dharmesh Kakkad and Priyanka Khandelwal will manage the overseas investments. Minimum investment of this scheme is Rs 5,000 and in multiples of one rupee thereafter. Penalty for leaving the scheme is 1 percent if investments are redeemed within 12 months from the date of allotment.

A renowned Marathi writer, novelist and translator Kavita Mahajan, died following pneumonia in Pune, Maharashtra. She was 51 years old. She was born in Nanded, Maharashtra. Some of her popular novels are Brr, Bhinna, etc. She had won Sahitya Akademi translation award in 2011 and Shashikalatai Agashe Award for Children's Literature in 2013.

Government panel recommended lowering GST on under-construction residential properties to 5%. The GST rate for under-construction flats earlier was 12%.The Group of Ministers headed by Nithin Patel was formed to analyse tax rates and issues or challenges being faced by the real estate sector under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.The seven member ministerial panel also favoured lowering GST on affordable housing from 8% earlier to 3%.The move will give relief to homebuyers as the tax rate had lowered sharply with no input tax credit. Any cut in GST should reduce the adverse impact on the land abatement rate also.

The Guwahati Railway Station has become the first station in India to obtain the ISO 14001: 2015 certification for implementation of environment management system by carrying out directives issued by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The station also has amenities such as High-class reserve (VIP) lounge, waiting rooms, AC and non-AC retiring rooms, food courts and sanitation facilities. The certification will be reviewed in 2020 by NF Railway, which mandates stricter environmental norms regarding waste disposal among others to be adhered to Railway Station. ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) is responsible for establishing standard in different areas of activities. There are many types of ISO certification and ISO-14001 is for environment management system as per international norms and was upgraded last in 2015. Hence the certificate is called ISO 14001:2015.

Under the FAME II scheme, the Central Government has made compulsory for Electric Vehicle (EV) manufactures in India to locally source at least 50% components for the provision of receiving subsidies. This step has been taken to encourage local manufacturing and relying less on imports. The conditions under FAME II scheme were decided by the Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee of National Mission for Transformative Mobility headed by Amitabh Kant, (Chief executive Officer) CEO of NITI Aayog.Only the companies that meet the 50% localisation threshold will be eligible for incentives and subsidies under Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME-II) scheme for enhancing electric mobility.

UN's International Labour Organization announced that Qatar is set to abolish its exit visa system for all foreign workers by the end of 2019.The country was committed to labour reform following an Amnesty international report that the 2022 World Cup host was failing to stop widespread labour abuse. Qatar has launched labour reforms since its selection as the 2022 World Cup host, with the event set in motion a huge construction plan employing foreign workers.In 2018, Qatar approved legislation to dismiss the sponsorship system or "kafala", which claimed that foreign workers obtain permission from their employers to leave the country.

The 64th Filmfare Awards 2019 was held at Jio Garden, BKC, Mumbai. The event was hosted by Bollywood's leading Actors, Directors, Musicians, and Singers. Few of the winners of the 64th Filmfare Awards are as below: Category Winner Best Film Raazi Critics Best Film Andhadhun Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) Ranbir Kapoor (Sanju) Critics Best Actor in Leading Role (Male) Ayushmann Khurrana (Andhadhun), Ranveer Singh (Padmaavat) Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female) Alia Bhatt (Raazi) Critics Best Actor in Leading Role (Female) Neena Gupta (Badhaai Ho) Best Director Meghna Gulzar (Raazi) Best Music Album Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Patmaavat) Best Lyrics Gulzar (Raazi) Lifetime Achievement Award Sridevi Best Short Film in Fiction Rogan Josh Best Short Film in Non-Fiction The Soccer City.

Directorate of Indian Defence University (IDU) is organizing a 2-day workshop on Space Warfare and Technology on 2-3 May,19 in New Delhi. It is being held for senior and middle-level officers from the three Services. The workshop intends to cover Weaponisation and Militarisation of Space, preparation for Absorption of High-End Technology for Self-Sustenance in Space Operations, and more.