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Govt hikes salaries, allowances and pensions of MPs

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New Delhi, March 24: The Centre has increased the salaries, allowances and pensions of Members of Parliament with effect from April 1, 2023, according to a gazette notification issued by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs on Monday.

The salary of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members has been raised to Rs 1.24 lakh per month from Rs 1 lakh at present, whereas the daily allowance has been raised to Rs 2,500 from Rs 2,000 earlier, the notification states.

The pension paid to former MPs has also been increased to Rs 31,000 per month from Rs 25,000 at present, as per the notification.

The additional pension for every year of service in excess of five years has been increased to Rs 2,500 from Rs 2,000 earlier, the notification states.

The revision in salaries, allowances and pensions for the MPs has been announced amid the ongoing budget session of the Parliament. The earlier revision of the salary and allowances paid to sitting and former MPs was announced in April 2018.

The base pay for an MP announced in the revision in 2018 was Rs 1,00,000 per month. The purpose of setting this amount was to bring their salary into line with the rates of inflation and the growing cost of living.

According to the 2018 revision, MPs receive an allowance of Rs 70,000 as constituency allowance to pay for the costs of keeping their offices up to date and interacting with voters in their respective districts. Apart from this, they receive Rs 60,000 per month as office allowance and Rs 2,000 as a daily allowance during Parliamentary sessions. These allowances will also be increased now.

In addition to this, MPs also get an allowance annually for phone and internet usage. They enjoy 34 free domestic flights per year for themselves and their families, and first class train travel at any time for professional and personal use. They can also claim mileage allowance when they use roads. MPs also enjoy the benefits of 50,000 free units of electricity and 4,000 kilolitres of water annually.

The government takes care of their housing and accommodation too. During their five-year term, MPs are provided with rent-free housing in New Delhi. They could get hostel rooms, apartments, or bungalows based on their seniority. Individuals who opt not to utilise the official accommodations are eligible to receive a monthly housing allowance.

Business

India’s rooftop solar energy capacity to reach 25-30 GW by FY27

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New Delhi, April 15: India’s rooftop solar energy capacity is projected to surge from 17 GW to an estimated 25–30 GW between FY25 and FY27, a report showed on Tuesday.

The expansion is driven by India’s broader energy transition goals, with solar power emerging as a central pillar in the country’s clean energy roadmap.

With a total renewable capacity of 220 GW as of FY25 and a national target of 300 GW solar capacity by 2030, rooftop solar, particularly in the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment, is expected to play a pivotal role in this growth, according to the report by CareEdge Ratings.

As of FY25, India’s rooftop solar capacity stood at 17.02 GW, and increasing awareness among businesses about reducing operating costs and meeting sustainability targets is fuelling adoption.

Government incentives, reducing technology costs, and policy support such as net metering and PLI schemes are expected to further accelerate deployment.

Overall, the FY27 projection underscores a transformative phase for India’s solar industry, setting the foundation for sustained expansion through the end of the decade.

“Rooftop solar installations in India have gained momentum. With the growing C&I demand backed by an improving policy ecosystem, we expect the market to reach nearly 25-30 GW over the next two years,” said Tanvi Shah, Director at CareEdge Advisory and Research.

The PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, aimed at installing rooftop solar in 1 crore households with subsidies up to Rs 78,000, is expected to provide strong support to residential adoption. The scheme not only supports low and middle-income households by reducing their electricity bills but also aims to create nearly 17 lakh jobs, boosting the solar value chain.

Recently, rooftop solar initiative has achieved a historic milestone with 10 lakh installations as of March 10, 2025.

Gujarat remains a leader due to its progressive “Surya Gujarat” programme, while Maharashtra has seen strong commercial and industrial demand, especially from MSMEs and urban commercial hubs.

“The rooftop solar segment which currently holds around 20 per cent share of India’s solar mix is gaining importance due to its distributed nature and direct consumer engagement. This is despite utility-scale solar being the dominant contributor,” said the report.

The growth of rooftop solar market in India has witnessed accelerated growth in the recent years. With strong policy backing, falling costs, and growing consumer interest, it is set to emerge as a key pillar in India’s renewable energy transition, said the report.

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Ghulam Nabi Azad dissolves all committees of his party in J&K

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Srinagar, April 14: Former Chief Minister and Chairman of Democratic Azad Party (DAP), Ghulam Nabi Azad on Monday dissolved all state, province, district and block level committees of his party.

Bashir Arif, secretary to Gulam Nabi Azad, said the DAP chairman has dissolved all state, province, district and block level committees, and the reconstitution will take place in due course.

Ghulam Nabi Azad parted ways with the Congress party, with which he remained associated for over 40 years.

He was the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha as a Congress MP in 2014, and after his term of office ended, he announced that he was parting ways with the Congress that had become a ‘family driven affair’ for the mother and son.

He launched the Democratic Azad Party (DAP) from Jammu and Kashmir on September 26, 2022, saying “it will not be autocratic, but democratic”.

“The DAP will be based on the principles of democracy. It will not be influenced by any outside leader or other party. It will have independent thinking and will stay independent in its decisions. It will not be autocratic and power will not be in one hand,” Azad said on the party’s launch day.

He quit Congress on August 26, 2022, after over four decades of association, following differences with the party high command.

However, none of the leaders from the G23, a rebel group within the Congress, was present at the party launch. He had suggested launching a national-level party rather than a regional party.

DAP fought the J&K Assembly elections last year, but could not manage to win a single seat in the 90-member Legislative Assembly.

After the complete defeat in the Assembly elections, many leaders of Azad’s party left the party to rejoin Congress.

Prominent among them are Taj Mohiuddin and some other former ministers in the Congress rule in J&K.

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Business

SEBI warns of securities market frauds via YouTube, Facebook, X and more

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Mumbai, April 12: Alarmed at frauds related to securities market on various social media platforms, capital markets regulator SEBI has issued an advisory for investors to exercise caution and due diligence to verify the genuineness of social media handles of SEBI-registered entities while accessing them.

SEBI noticed an increase in frauds related to securities market on various social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, X (previously Twitter), WhatsApp, Telegram, Google Play Store and Apple Store, etc.

“With increasing adoption of digital communication platforms, it is observed that scamsters are enticing victims by giving trading calls in the name of providing education. They also provide misleading or deceptive testimonials, promise or guarantee of assured or risk-free return etc. through various social media platforms,” according to a SEBI statement.

SEBI noticed unregistered investment advisory services being provided by entities that falsely claim to be registered intermediaries with SEBI or by showcasing fake certificates purportedly issued by the regulator.

It also observed impersonation of SEBI-registered entities by fraudulent trading platforms, WhatsApp, Telegram channels which deceptively claim or suggest affiliation with SEBI-registered entity claiming to provide assured or risk-free return.

“Scamsters are enticing gullible investors by claiming that they provide exclusive services on their platform (fake trading/advisory apps) facilitating securities trading that allow the subscriber to enjoy preferential services with regard to trade and share price — institutional trading account, IPOs at discounted price, block trade at discounted price and sure shot allocation of IPO,” said SEBI.

Also, misleading and manipulative contents have been designed by scamsters to entice investors to join private chat groups or channels on WhatsApp/Telegram, through fraudulent ads/posts on various social media platforms.

“Investors are advised to exercise caution and due diligence to verify the genuineness of social media handles of SEBI registered entities while accessing them,” the regulator noted.

Further, while investing in securities market, investors are advised to deal with only SEBI-registered intermediaries and authentic trading apps, it added.

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