NATIONAL NEWS
Amit Shah on his first visit to the Valley post abrogation of Article 370
On his first visit to Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370, bifurcating the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories on August 5, 2019, and divesting the Valley of its statehood, Union Home Minister Amit Shah reviewed the security situation and steps taken to combat terrorism in the Valley in the wake of a spate of attacks on civilians, particularly non-local labourers and minorities. Post-civilian killings and in the days running up to Mr Shah’s visit to Srinagar on Saturday, around 700 people have been detained in Jammu and Kashmir, including a few under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA). The detentions have been made particularly in South Kashmir, a senior government official said, adding that many over ground workers of terrorist groups were among those picked up by the police. Under the PSA, unique to J&K, an individual can be detained on the basis of an executive order for a maximum of two years, without trial, if their act is prejudicial to the security of the State or the maintenance of public order. The crackdown comes ahead of Mr. Shah’s three-day visit to Srinagar-Jammu beginning Saturday. Mr Shah reviewed the security scenario at a meeting held at the Raj Bhawan here attended by top civil administration officials, including Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, and senior security officials from the Army, CRPF, police and other agencies, officials said. The Home Minister was briefed about the steps taken to eliminate terrorism from Jammu and Kashmir and counter-infiltration measures taken by the forces, the officials said. Mr Shah’s visit to Kashmir comes in the backdrop of 11 civilian killings in the valley in October alone. Five of those killed were labourers from Bihar, while three, including two teachers, belonged to minority communities in Kashmir. Official sources said that 50 companies of additional paramilitary forces are being inducted into the valley in the wake of the recent spate of civilian killings.
Deadly Indian fragrance
An exclusive report by Deputy Editor Jacob Koshy, published in The Hindu today, showed that fragrances too can hide a deadly secret in them. A made-in-India aromatherapy spray has been taken off retail giant Walmart’s shelves in the United States after a medical investigation linked it to melioidosis, a rare disease that has sickened at least four, and may have caused two deaths, in the country. The spray was reported to contain a bacterium, Burkholderia pseudomallei, that causes a rare but deadly disease called melioidosis, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said in a statement on Friday. Melioidosis is a rare but serious disease in the United States with 12 cases reported annually. The causative bacterium is extremely elusive and hard to detect and the disease symptoms it manifests are frequently mistaken for other diseases. The true burden of the disease is unknown in India but a 2016 modelling study by scientists at the University of Oxford predicted a global incidence of around 165,000 cases worldwide with an estimated case fatality of 89,000 (54%). This study suggested melioidosis to be endemic to India with an annual incidence of close to 52,500 cases. Treatment usually involves a long intensive course of intravenously delivered anti-microbial therapy. This undated photo provided by Walmart and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a bottle of Better Homes & Gardens aromatherapy lavender & chamomile essential oil and semiprecious stone-infused room spray. The spray, Better Homes and Gardens Lavender & Chamomile Essential Oil Infused Aromatherapy Room Spray with Gemstones, was found on October 6 in the home of a Georgia resident who became ill with melioidosis in late July. Other than mentioning that the spray was manufactured in India, no other details on the spray’s origins have been disclosed. The contaminated spray was sold at 55 Walmart stores on the company’s website from February to October 21 of this year, when Walmart pulled the remaining bottles of the spray and related products from its store shelves. A sample of the Better Homes & Gardens spray tested positive for the bacterium this week and genetic analysis revealed that it was similar to the strains found in South Asia, the CDC statement noted. It may be recalled that candy giant Mars Wrigley had recalled several batches of its Crispy M&Ms across Europe as the one main ingredient, rice flour originating from India, was detected with genetically modified contamination.
Double-engine government
With Assembly polls due in February next year in Goa, Prime Minister recalled the need for a double-engine government in order to make the state truly self-sufficient. He said this while interacting with the beneficiaries and stakeholders of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat Swayampurna Goa programme’ via video-conferencing. His ‘double engine’ reference was to the importance of having a BJP government at the Centre as well as in the State.Goa can become ‘swayampurna’ (self-sufficient) only when it makes cent per cent use of the developmental avenues and possibilities, Mr. Modi said, adding that ‘Swayampurna Goa’ is a means to fulfil the aspirations of common people. Swayampurna Goa is an assurance of well-being and health of our mothers and sisters. Swayampurna Goa will provide employment and self-employment opportunities to youths and unemployed people, he added. Mr. Modi said that it is not just a programme of five months or five years, but it is a first phase of the vision for next 25 years. That is why, Goa needs continuation of development by double engine government. Goa needs clear policies like the way they are today and a stable government, he said. The Prime Minister said that the coastal State needs energetic leadership like today. With the blessings of entire Goa, we can make the state swayampurna, he said.
Tamil film Koozhangal is India’s official entry to Oscars
Debutant director P.S. Vinothraj’s Tamil film Koozhangal (Pebbles) has been announced as India’s official entry to the Oscars 2022. Presented by Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan’s Rowdy Pictures, Koozhangal is about the journey of an alcoholic father Ganapathy and his son Velu who are on their way to bring back their wife-mother, who has left their home. Through their eyes, we get an unflinching look at life in a drought-hit village in Madurai. Vignesh Shivan took to Twitter to share and celebrate the news, posting, There’s a chance to hear this! And the Oscars goes to…. Two steps away from a dream come true moment in our lives. #Pebbles #Nayanthara @PsVinothraj @thisisysr @AmudhavanKar @Rowdy_Pictures Can’t be prouder, happier & content. If selected, the film will compete for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film next year. Shaji N Karun, the chairperson of the 15-member selection committee, set up by the Film Federation of India, made the announcement. The 94th Academy Awards will be held on March 27, 2022, in Los Angeles. Earlier this year, Koozhangal also won the prestigious Tiger Award, the top honour at the 50th edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2021. The other films in consideration to be India’s official Oscars 2022 entry included Amit Masurkar’s Sherni and Shoojit Sircar’s biopic Sardar UUdham India’s submissions to the Oscars in recent years include Lijo Jose Pellissery’s Jallikattu and Zoya Akhtar’s Gully Boy. No Indian film has ever won an Oscar thus far. The last Indian film that made it to the final list of nominations in the Best International Feature category was Ashutosh Gowariker’s Lagaan in 2001. Mother India (1958) and Salaam Bombay(1989) are the other Indian films to have made it to the final nominations.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Russian, Chinese warships hold first joint patrols in the Pacific
Russian and Chinese warships held their first joint patrols in the western Pacific Ocean over the past week, Russia’s defence ministry said on Saturday, a move Japan said it was monitoring. Moscow and Beijing, which staged naval cooperation drills in the Sea of Japan earlier in October, have cultivated closer military and diplomatic ties in recent years at a time when their relations with the West have soured. The naval manoeuvres, which Russia said ran from Sunday through Saturday, have been closely watched by Japan, which said earlier in the week that a group of 10 vessels from China and Russia sailed through the Tsugaru Strait separating Japan’s main island and its northern island of Hokkaido. The group of ships passed through the Tsugaru Strait for the first time as part of the patrol, Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement. The strait is regarded as international waters. The tasks of the patrols were the demonstration of the Russian and Chinese state flags, maintaining of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region and guardianship of the subjects of maritime economic activities of the two countries, the ministry added. China’s defence ministry said on Sunday the joint exercise aimed to further develop the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era, enhance the joint action capabilities of both parties and jointly maintain international and regional strategic stability. A report on the ministry website said the operation was part of annual cooperation between the two nations and not targeted at third parties. Japanese defence officials said on Sunday the Russian and Chinese vessels had also passed through the Osumi Strait off the southern Japanese prefecture Kagoshima, public broadcaster NHK reported. Foreign ships are allowed to navigate through the Osumi and Tsugaru straits as they are international waterways, but Japan’s defence ministry said it will monitor the two navies, characterising the recent moves as unusual, NHK reported. Japanese officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Reporting by Polina Devitt in Moscow; Additional reporting by Dominique Patton in Beijing and Ritsuko Ando in Tokyo; Editing by Peter Graff and William Mallard.
Rising trade, tensions point to India’s China conundrum.
India’s trade with China rising to record levels in 2021 and set to cross the $100-billion mark for the first time has underlined the challenge New Delhi faces as it looks to recalibrate relations amid a more than year-long border crisis while remaining locked in a deep commercial embrace. The two seemingly contradictory trends in relations have come into sharp focus this month when, three days after the 13th round of talks between military commanders ended in a deadlock with both sides trading accusations, New Delhi hailed a breakthrough for the Indian pharmaceutical industry in China with Hyderabad-based Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories set for a potential windfall, becoming the first Indian pharmaceutical company permitted to launch an anti-cancer drug in the lucrative China market. Huge potential yet to be realized. Both Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla and Ambassador to China Vikram Misri this week highlighted the potential of trade ties. Mr. Misri highlighted pharmaceuticals as particularly having huge potential yet to be realised. He said, in an interview to the Global Times in Beijing, discussions were on-going on the boundary crisis and we hope that both sides can resolve this [border] issue, because it is casting a shadow on bilateral relations. Mr. Shringla also linked the border standoff to overall relations noting in a seminar this week that it was against the backdrop of both sides developing a broad-based relationship that was clearly predicated on ensuring that peace and tranquillity were not disturbed that ties, including trade, took off since the normalisation of relations in 1988. Trade ties have boomed to record levels during the past year — a period which officials in New Delhi acknowledge has marked the lowest point since 1988, in the wake of the crisis along the Line of Actual Control which erupted last summer with China’s unprecedented mobilisation of troops.
