Month: April 2025

Source: Government of India

India’s Coal Sector has Crossed the One Billion Tonne Milestone in Cumulative Production for the Financial Year 2024-25

Coal Dispatch has also Demonstrated Remarkable Progress

Posted On: 01 APR 2025 4:13PM by PIB Delhi

In a remarkable achievement, India’s coal sector has crossed the One Billion Tonne (BT) milestone in cumulative production for the financial year 2024-25. This unprecedented feat underscores the Ministry of Coal’s relentless efforts to enhance production, streamline dispatches, and strengthen the nation’s energy security.

The cumulative coal production in FY 2024-25 has now crossed the One Billion Tonne (BT) mark, reaching1047.57 (Provisional), compared to 997.83 MT in FY 2023-24, recording a substantial growth of 4.99%. Commercial & Captive, and other entities have also recorded a stupendous coal production of 197.50 MT (Provisional), reflecting a growth of 28.11% over the same period last year recorded at154.16 MT.

Similarly, coal dispatch has also demonstrated remarkable progress, The cumulative coal dispatch in FY 2024-25 has also exceeded the One BT milestone, reaching 1024.99MT (Provisional), as compared to 973.01 MT in FY 2023-24, reflecting a significant increase of 5.34%. Dispatch from Commercial, Captive, and other entities also witnessed a significant rise, reaching 196.83MT (provisional), with a growth of 31.39% compared to the corresponding period of previous year which was recorded at 149.81 MT.

This milestone highlights India’s progress in ramping up domestic coal production while ensuring efficient distribution to meet growing energy demands. The Ministry of Coal remains committed to fostering self-reliance, reducing import dependency, and driving sustainable mining practices to bolster the nation’s energy security and economic resilience.

****

Sunil Kumar Tiwari

(Release ID: 2117280) Visitor Counter : 53

Source: Government of India

ECI’s biggest engagement drive with political parties

4,719 meetings conducted at CEOs, DEOs, and EROs level nationwide engaging over 28,000 party representatives

Posted On: 01 APR 2025 4:05PM by PIB Delhi

The Election Commission of India (ECI) conducted a series of structured engagements with political parties at the level of Electoral Registration Officer (ERO), District Election Officer (DEO), and Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) across the country. In a span of 25 days and as of 31st March 2025, a total of 4,719 meetings were conducted, with 40 meetings by CEOs, 800 by DEOs, and 3,879 by EROs, engaging over 28,000 representatives of political parties nationwide.

These meetings were held in accordance with the directives issued by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Shri Gyanesh Kumar along with ECs Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr Vivek Joshi, during the Chief Electoral Officers’ conference held on March 4-5 2025, at IIIDEM, New Delhi.

The engagements are aimed to resolve any pending issues by the concerned competent authority i.e. ERO or DEO or CEO within the existing legal framework of the Representation of the People Act 1950 and 1951; the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960; the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 and the manuals, guidelines, and instructions issued by ECI from time to time. An action taken report has been sought from all State/UT CEOs for further assessment and any issue, if unresolved within the existing legal framework, will be taken up by the Commission.

These engagements have been well-received by political parties, with active and enthusiastic participation across Assembly Constituencies, districts, and States/UTs. Photos from nationwide meetings can be viewed on ECI’s official social media handle:

https://x.com/ECISVEEP?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

******

PK/GDH/RP

(Release ID: 2117277) Visitor Counter : 70

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Following is the speech by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, at International Water Pioneers Summit today (April 1):
 
Honourable Li Guoying, Minister of Ministry of Water Resources, Honourable Wang Weizhong, Governor of Guangdong Province, Honourable Zheng Yanxiong, Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Honourable Xiang Bin, Member of the Office Leadership of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
 
Good morning. I am pleased to join you today for the opening of the International Water Pioneers Summit. Gathered here are nearly 400 high-profile professionals and senior government officials from Hong Kong, Mainland China, Asia and around the world. Present here to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Dongjiang’s water supply to Hong Kong, and to work together to ensure a sustainable water supply for us all.
 
Hong Kong’s water story is one of transformation, illustrating how a city with limited water resource, can turn geographic and resource limitations, into engineering triumphs.
 
Hong Kong’s water story is also one of deep and abiding ties. Because without the strong bonds and blood relation between Hong Kong and the Mainland, the engineering, and the water it made possible, would not have taken place. Certainly not in the 1960s.
 
As for the engineering, the main challenge was geography. Dongjiang is more than 50 kilometres away from Hong Kong. That meant building an 83-kilometre water channel, crossing half a dozen mountains. The water had to be lifted, via multi-stage pumping stations, from two metres above sea level to 46 metres at the highest point.
 
And the project was completed in less than one year. At 4pm on the 1st of March 60 years ago, the supply of Dongjiang water to Hong Kong began.
 
For the past six decades, Dongjiang has provided 70 to 80 per cent of the water needed by Hong Kong.
 
And the engineering feats continued. Because of our increasing demand for water, the Dongjiang-Shenzhen Water Supply Scheme, as it is presently known, was expanded three times from the 1970s to the 1990s. It was improved again in the early 2000s. These raised Hong Kong’s annual water supply ceiling from the original 68.2 million cubic metres, to today’s 820 million cubic metres, a rise of 12 times.
 
We are eternally grateful for the enormous commitment, and technical ingenuity, by the country and all our compatriots involved.
 
We like Dongjiang water. For good reasons. It meets the highest national standard for surface water used for human consumption. No less essential, it continues to flow, fuelling Hong Kong’s economic miracle, supporting our economy and community, while helping to ensure our city’s sustainable development and long-term prosperity.

The theme of this Summit is “Smart Water, High-Quality Development”. That tells me that if we want to ensure a sustainable water supply, we need to invest in its future, and do it innovatively.
 
Hong Kong has long been recognised for its infrastructure prowess. Indeed, Hong Kong’s infrastructure was ranked among the top 10, globally, in the World Competitiveness Yearbook last year.
 
Our major water supply projects include High Island Reservoir, Hong Kong’s largest reservoir, and the Tseung Kwan O Desalination Plant, the first waterworks in Hong Kong to adopt advanced reverse osmosis desalination technology.
 
As an international centre of innovation and technology, we are keen on applying I&T to water management. Last year, we set up a Digital Water Office to drive the digitalisation of our water supply services.
 
The Office promotes the use of smart devices, digital twin technology and artificial intelligence, to gradually gain full automation of operations in our waterworks installations.
 
Innovation in infrastructure development will power our water-secure future. Our goal is to establish Hong Kong as an international infrastructure centre, that serves our city and China, our country.
 
Speaking of our country, let me add that it has built numerous water conservancy projects. And I’m sure you’ll hear more about them in today’s Summit.
 
I am grateful to the organisers of today’s International Water Pioneers Summit. Grateful, too, to our distinguished speakers and moderators, here in Hong Kong from all over the world.
 
While you’re here, I invite you to take full advantage of all that Hong Kong has to offer, in arts and culture. You can start right here, in West Kowloon Cultural District, Hong Kong’s largest arts development.
 
Ladies and gentlemen, I wish you all a rewarding summit and an enjoyable and memorable stay in Hong Kong.
 
Thank you.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:

Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (April 1) that due to big waves, the red flag has been hoisted at Silverstrand Beach in Sai Kung District. Beachgoers are advised not to swim at the beach.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

A spokesman for the Development Bureau said today (April 1) that two new sections of the GreenWay in the Kai Tak Development are open to the public. Located at Shing Fung Road Park and the Kai Tak Promenade adjacent to the To Kwa Wan Typhoon Shelter respectively (please refer to the location map), each section is approximately 1 kilometre long, offering the public scenic views of the harbour along the Greenway.

The newly opened sections are about 6 metres wide, with ground markings, signs and speed-reducing rumble strips in place to ensure safe use for both pedestrians and cyclists. Moreover, bicycle parking spaces are available, and there is a barrier-free walkway running alongside the GreenWay for pedestrians, offering an additional option for the public. Banners listing relevant rules have also been placed on-site. At the initial stage after the opening, ambassadors will be present at the GreenWay to provide appropriate reminders to users.

​The GreenWay was planned and designed by the Civil Engineering and Development Department, while the sections opened today are managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The remaining sections of the Greenway will be opened progressively in alignment with the implementation programme of infrastructure projects and open spaces in the area. For more details about the opened sections and the GreenWay, please refer to the location map and thematic website (www.kaitakgreenway.hk/en).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     A man who went missing in Yau Ma Tei has been located.

     Law Ah-cheung, aged 70, went missing after he was last seen at an elderly home on Man Ying Street on March 28 afternoon. Staff of the caring home then made a report to Police.

     The man was located in a park at the junction of Canton Road and Jordan Road yesterday afternoon (March 31). He sustained no injuries and no suspicious circumstances were detected.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

​The Home Affairs Department (HAD) announced today (April 1) that the Director of Home Affairs had respectively appointed 464 persons and 476 persons (940 persons in total) as members of District Youth Community Building Committees and District Youth Development and Civic Education Committees for a new term of office of two years starting from April 1, 2025.
 
Comprising district personalities and self-nominated young people as members, the two Committees provide fora for discussion on various matters such as district works projects, youth development and civic education, and for participation in district activities.  Each Committee is composed of 20 to 30 members for its new term. The average age of all members is below 35. Forty per cent of them (375 persons in total) are young people aged between 16 and 35 selected through the Member Self-recommendation Scheme for Youth Phase 8, an increase of over 10 per cent from around 330 self-nominated seats in the previous term. Among the self-nominated young people selected as members, a total of 21 are under the age of 18, an increase of over 20 per cent compared to the total of 17 recorded in the previous term.
 
The Chief Executive announced in the 2022 Policy Address the launch of a Youth Participation Initiative, with a view to engaging more young people in public affairs and enhancing their interaction and trust with the Government. One of the initiatives was for the HAD to designate two committees on district affairs for young people to nominate themselves as members. At the end of the same year, the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau published the Youth Development Blueprint, striving to strengthen the sense of ownership and responsibility of young people, and to enable more young people to take part in community building and district affairs through the establishment of the two Committees. In this regard, the HAD established in April 2023 the above-mentioned two Committees in the 18 districts, opening up seats for young people to nominate themselves as members.
 
The membership lists of the two Committees in the 18 districts have been uploaded to the website of the HAD (www.had.gov.hk/en/public_services/youth_participation_initiative/index.htm).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Global Coalition to Fight Financial Crime (GCFFC) co-hosted the APAC Fighting Financial Crime Conference 2025 today (April 1), under the theme of “Fighting Financial Crime in a More Complex World”.

The event gathered leading global and regional anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-financing of terrorism (CFT) experts together with participants from across Hong Kong’s AML/CFT ecosystem, including representation from banks, government agencies, financial regulators, and law enforcement agencies. Participants shared insights on how to improve the fight against fraud and financial crime with keynotes, panels and interactive discussions.
 
Welcoming the participants, Mr Raymond Chan, Executive Director (Enforcement and AML) of the HKMA, said, “Criminality has evolved on the back of the digitalisation of financial services and we must respond quicker and with the same level of innovation, including how we collaborate to share information and leverage artificial intelligence to deliver step changes in the results achieved.”
 
Mr Keith Yip, Director of Crime and Security of the Hong Kong Police Force, said, “Through relentless collaboration and cutting-edge strategies, we shall prevail in the fight against financial crimes — from cyber-enabled fraud to transnational money laundering. Harnessing data-driven intelligence and global partnerships, we reaffirm our pledge to protect vulnerable communities and disrupt criminal networks, securing a resilient future for all.”
 
Mr John Cusack, Chair of the GCFFC, thanked the HKMA for bringing leading experts together and said, “We invited leading financial crime fighters from the public, private and third sectors to meet and discuss critical topical and emerging issues under the theme ‘Fighting Financial Crime in a More Complex World’ and we had a lively discussion which helped everyone better understand threats and the best practices and evolving initiatives.”
 
In a series of panels and breakout sessions, participants shared experience and expertise in maximising opportunities to enhance industry efforts to combat money laundering and financial crime, strengthening protection for customers, and improving the outcomes achieved by the global AML system.
 
Some of the highlights included:
 

• a call to action to strengthen efforts to tackle high levels of frauds and scams based on international best practices and the latest developments in the use of technology;
• the changes banking supervisors have made to AML supervision to improve the outcomes achieved by banks to combat fraud and financial crime;
• how Hong Kong has been at the forefront of international AML standard setting, in a conversation with Mrs Clarie Lo, former President of the Financial Action Task Force; and
• how public and private collaboration in the Asia Pacific region is driving a stronger response to fraud and financial crime, for example, the latest development being legislative changes introduced by the HKMA to support information sharing between banks.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, met with Deputy Commissioner of the National Medical Products Administration Dr Xu Jinghe today (April 1) to have an in-depth exchange on the regulatory regime and reform of drugs and medical devices.  

Professor Lo said, “The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has been ushering in immense opportunities for medical and biotechnological developments in recent years. The National 14th Five-Year Plan has expressed clear support to develop Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology hub. Biomedicine and medical innovation are directly related to people’s life and health and also represent immense new quality productive forces. The Resolution of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Modernization adopted by the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee also pointed out the need to deepen medical and healthcare reform and to support the development mechanisms for innovative drugs and medical devices.

     “The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government strenuously works in line with the national objective of deepening medical and healthcare reform by pursuing innovation in the medical field. While integrating into the national development, the HKSAR will capitalise on its unique advantages of international influence and professions to the fullest to develop the city into an international health and medical innovation hub, thereby enabling the innovative medical technologies to go global and attract foreign investment and developing new quality productive forces in biomedicine. Hong Kong will strive to give full play to our strengths to serve the country’s needs amid the comprehensive deepening of reform.”

While introducing the approval mechanism for drugs and medical devices, Professor Lo emphasised, “The HKSAR Government will expedite the reform of the approval mechanism for drugs and medical devices to meet the institutional requirement necessary for the health and medical innovation development, such as extending the ‘1+’ mechanism to cover all new drugs, including vaccines and advanced therapy products, since November 1 last year; preparing for the establishment of the Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation (CMPR) to progress towards the ‘primary evaluation’ approach, with a view to fully strengthening the drug approval capability of the HKSAR; and taking forward preparatory work for legislating for the statutory regulation of medical devices to dovetail with the timetable for the establishment of the CMPR.”

The Director of Health, Dr Ronald Lam, and representatives from the Health Bureau and the Department of Health also attended the meeting today.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) announced today (April 1) that open auctions for a total of 642 stalls in 46 public markets will be held in April. Market stalls not taken at open auctions will be available to the public for renting at their upset prices on April 22 on a first-come, first-served basis.

1. Open auctions

The types of stalls to be auctioned this time cover cooked food, frozen meat, fresh meat, fresh fish, frozen (chilled) poultry, fruits, vegetables, ready-to-eat food, food-related dry goods and wet goods, non-food related dry goods and wet goods, service trades, siu mei and lo mei, mobile phones/mobile phone accessories/electronic products/electronic parts, pet goods and pet food, hardware/locksmith, etc. The tenancy agreement is a three-year fixed term from May 1, with no right of renewal upon expiry of the tenancy agreement. The upset prices of the monthly rent of the stalls vary depending on the sizes, locations and vacancy periods of the individual stalls. The upset prices for the stalls in an open auction will be initially fixed at 80 per cent of the open market rent (OMR) if the stalls have been vacant for over six months, and at 60 per cent of the OMR if the vacant period has been over eight months. Relevant information is available on the FEHD website.

The date and venue of the auctions and the number of stalls are as follows:

Kowloon (except Lai Wan Market) (1)
—————————————–
Auction date: April 8 (Tuesday) (am)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 101

Lai Wan Market
—————–
Auction date: April 8 (Tuesday) (pm)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: two

Kowloon (except Lai Wan Market) (2)
—————————————–
Auction date: April 9 (Wednesday) (am)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 46

Kowloon (except Lai Wan Market) (3)
—————————————–
Auction date: April 9 (Wednesday) (pm)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 28

New Territories (1)
———————
Auction date: April 10 (Thursday) (am)
Auction venue: Tseng Choi Street Community Hall, 27 Tseng Choi Street, Tuen Mun, New Territories
Number of stalls: 126

Hong Kong Island and Islands District (except Aberdeen Market) (1)
—————————————————————————-
Auction date: April 11 (Friday) (am)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 118

Aberdeen Market
——————-
Auction date: April 11 (Friday) (pm)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 21

Hong Kong Island and Islands District (except Aberdeen Market) (2)
—————————————————————————-
Auction date: April 14 (Monday) (am)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 81

Hong Kong Island and Islands District (except Aberdeen Market) (3)
—————————————————————————-
Auction date: April 14 (Monday) (pm)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 63

New Territories (2)
———————
Auction date: April 15 (Tuesday) (am)
Auction venue: Room 410, 4/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Number of stalls: 56

Limited seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. The admission tickets will be issued 30 minutes prior to the commencement of each auction. Persons who want to attend the auctions must wait at the waiting area of the auction venue and produce their Hong Kong identity card or passport for registration. The registered person will then be provided with an admission ticket for the auctions. In addition, eligible bidders after verification will be issued with a bidding paddle for the auction. The FEHD has also invited representatives of the Police and the Independent Commission Against Corruption to monitor the auctions at the auction venue in order to ensure that the open auctions are conducted in an orderly and fair manner.

2. Renting at upset prices on first-come, first-served basis

The tenancy agreement of market stalls renting on a first-come, first-served basis is a three-year fixed term from June 1, with no right of renewal upon expiry of the tenancy agreement. The upset prices of the monthly rent of the stalls vary depending on their sizes, locations, vacancy periods and the reduced upset prices from the last open auction of the individual stalls. Relevant information is available on the FEHD website after open auctions.

Members of the public who are interested in renting a market stall at its upset price should approach the following FEHD offices, as appropriate, to apply in person from 9.30am to 12.30pm or 2.30pm to 4.30pm on April 22:
 

Districts in which the market stalls are located	Venues for selection of market stalls
Hong Kong Island and Islands District	Hawkers and Markets Section (Hong Kong and Islands) Office, 8/F, Lockhart Road Municipal Services Building, 225 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Kowloon	Hawkers and Markets Section (Kowloon) Office, Room 301-302, 3/F, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, 87 Yen Chow Street West, Kowloon
Kwai Tsing District	Kwai Tsing District Environmental Hygiene Office, 9/F, Kwai Hing Government Offices, 166-174 Hing Fong Road, Kwai Chung, New Territories
North District	North District Environmental Hygiene Office, 4/F, Shek Wu Hui Municipal Services Building, 13 Chi Cheong Road, Sheung Shui, New Territories
Sai Kung District	Sai Kung District Environmental Hygiene Office, 7/F, Sai Kung Tseung Kwan O Government Complex, 38 Pui Shing Road, Tseung Kwan O, New Territories
Sha Tin District	Sha Tin District Environmental Hygiene Office, Units 1201-1207 and 1220-1221, 12/F, Tower 1, Grand Central Plaza, 138 Sha Tin Rural Committee Road, Sha Tin, New Territories
Tai Po District	Tai Po District Environmental Hygiene Office, 3/F, Tai Po Complex, 8 Heung Sze Wui Street, Tai Po, New Territories
Tsuen Wan District	Tsuen Wan District Environmental Hygiene Office, 3/F, Yeung Uk Road Municipal Services Building, 45 Yeung Uk Road, Tsuen Wan, New Territories
Tuen Mun District	Tuen Mun District Environmental Hygiene Office, 1/F, Tuen Mun Government Offices Building, 1 Tuen Hi Road, Tuen Mun, New Territories
Yuen Long District	Yuen Long District Environmental Hygiene Office, 2/F, Yuen Long Government Offices, 2 Kiu Lok Square, Yuen Long, New Territories

 
     A spokesman for the FEHD said, “Bidders or applicants for the market stalls must be at least 18 years old and ordinarily reside in Hong Kong. To allow more people to bid for or select the stalls and increase customer choices by enhancing the diversity in terms of the variety of stalls, there will be a restriction on the number of stalls to be rented in the same market by a single tenant. Any person who is currently a stall tenant is not allowed to bid in the first round of auction for any stall in the same market, and will only be allowed to bid for one stall in the second round of auction or to select one stall in the same market on a first-come, first-served basis. The existing tenants under the new three-year fixed term tenancy scheme (i.e. those persons who became stall tenants through the market open auctions after August 2022) are allowed to bid for a stall in the auction or select a stall on a first-come, first-served basis in the same market, but shall vacate the current stall and return it to the FEHD before the effective date of commencement of the new tenancy agreement.”

​Details of the open auctions and the public market stalls concerned (including stalls for open auction at reduced upset prices) have been uploaded to the FEHD website (www.fehd.gov.hk/english/pleasant_environment/tidy_market/open_auction_coming.html). Details on renting public market stalls on a first-come, first-served basis will be uploaded to the FEHD website after open auctions (www.fehd.gov.hk/english/pleasant_environment/tidy_market/FCFS/index.html). Interested bidders or applicants may visit the department website or contact the respective District Environmental Hygiene Office.