International Conference on Strategic Management and Business Strategy

Gujarat: RO plants where water is scarce, hostel 35 km from school, irregularities CAG found in border areas programme In its audit of the BADP for the period 2016-17 to 2021-22, CAG found that not a single village out of 185 border villages were saturated with basic amenities (archive) Constructing a 1.5 km road between villages that are 3.5 km apart, setting up RO plants where there is scarcity of water, approving tube wells where ground water is saline, building a hostel on private land 35 km away from the nearest school, and conducting public outreach programmes without allocation of specific funding: These are some of the major examples of irregularities in the Border Areas Development Programme (BADP) unearthed by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India whose report was tabled in the Gujarat Assembly Friday. In Gujarat, the BADP is implemented in seven border blocks of three districts — Banaskantha, Kutch and Patan. Overall, 328 works out of 958 works in 35 villages in...

  Only 102 of over 200k wetlands notified in country, shows data Wetlands comprise approximately 4.8% of the total geographical area of the country; and 6% of the world’s surface at the global level. Of the country’s estimated over 200,000 wetlands, only 102 have been notified and even these are concentrated in three states and one Union territory, data from the environment ministry has revealed. While Rajasthan has notified 75 wetlands and Goa 25, both Uttar Pradesh and Chandigarh have notified one each, the ministry’s data, shared in response to an RTI and available on ministry’s Wetlands of India Portal, showed. The lack of protection for wetlands, a “common” resource in India which are biodiversity hotspots under extreme threat from climate crisis, perhaps stems from the resource being a state subject, the ministry said separately in response to queries seeking details on the ownership of the resource. Wetlands comprise approximately 4.8% of the total geographical area of the c...

Astronomers Stunned by Abundant Oxygen in Earliest Known Galaxy A galaxy gleaming in the Cosmic Dawn, just 300 million years after the  Big Bang , has just been spotted harboring something it oughtn't. JADES-GS-z14-0 , new observations reveal, is rich with oxygen – which is an absolute banger of a surprise, since scientists had thought elements heavier than hydrogen and helium weren't around in significant quantities until much later in time. It's  yet another clue  that the  early Universe matured  much more quickly  than we thought possible . "It is like finding an adolescent where you would only expect babies,"   says cosmologist Sander Schouws   of Leiden Observatory in the Netherlands. "The results show the galaxy has formed very rapidly and is also maturing rapidly, adding to a growing body of evidence that the formation of galaxies happens much faster than was expected." The mere existence of JADES-GS-z14-0 was problematic enough for our co...

  Liqvd Asia acquires AdLift for ₹50 crore to strengthen digital marketing play The acquisition will enable Liqvd Asia to offer a more integrated approach to branding, content, SEO, and AI-driven performance marketing. Gaurav Laghate Published 20 Mar 2025, 03:32 PM IST Liqvd Asia expands its marketing capabilities with AdLift acquisition for ₹50 crore. Digital-first advertising agency Liqvd Asia has acquired performance marketing and SEO agency AdLift for  ₹ 50 crore in a two-phase deal, structured in two parts with a maximum 18-month gap between the tranches. The acquisition bolsters Liqvd Asia’s AI-driven, full-funnel marketing capabilities, positioning it as a key player in India’s digital ecosystem.  Founded in 2013, Liqvd Asia has built a strong reputation for content-driven campaigns, while AdLift is recognised for its expertise in data-led performance marketing and SEO.  Also read:  Leo seeks to preserve creative legacy while adapting to advertising’s dig...