CURRENT AFFAIRS
02 December 2020
NATIONAL NEWS:
A) Talks between farmers’ groups and govt. remain inconclusive.
The government on Tuesday offered to set up a committee to look into the issues raised by farmers protesting against new farm laws, but it was rejected by the representatives of the 35 agitating organisations who met with three union ministers. The Centre then asked farmers’ bodies to identify specific issues related to the three new farm laws and submit those by Wednesday for consideration and discussion in the next round of talks on Thursday, an official statement said. At the nearly three-hour-long meeting at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar was accompanied by Railways and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and Minister of State for Commerce Som Parkash, also an MP from Punjab. The meeting remained inconclusive and the government has called for another round of discussions on December 3, union leaders said. Government officials said the dialogue would continue and the next round of talks has been scheduled for Thursday. The protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that the Centre’s farm laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates. The government has maintained that the new laws will bring farmers better opportunities and usher in new technologies in agriculture. Sources said the ministers were of the view that it was difficult to reach a decision while interacting with such large groups and therefore they suggested meeting with a smaller group, but the farmer leaders were firm that they would meet collectively only. Union leaders said they feared the government might be trying to break their unity and the momentum of their protest.
B) MEA decries Justin Trudeau’s comments on farmers protests.
The Canadian leadership’s comments on the ongoing agitation by farmers are “ill-formed”, an official of the Ministry of External Affairs said on Tuesday. The Indian response came hours after Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country has contacted Indian authorities through multiple means to express concern about the protesting farmers. They have seen some ill-informed comments by Canadian leaders relating to farmers in India. Such comments are unwarranted, especially when pertaining to the internal affairs of a democratic country, said Official Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava in response to a media query. Trudeau had earlier said in a video message that the news about the protest unfolding around Delhi is concerning. They are all very worried about family and friends. Canada will always be there to defend the rights of peaceful protesters, he said, announcing that Canada has reached out to the Government of India regarding the protests. Canada has a sizeable and influential diaspora of migrants from Punjab. In response, to the Canadian Prime Minister’s comments, Srivastava said that it is also best that diplomatic conversations are not misrepresented for political purposes. In some sections of social media, the MEA’s response drew comparisons with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s sloganeering of Abki baar, Trump sarkar at an event in Houston September 2019, which may also be construed as a foreign leader interfering in another country’s internal affairs. Lawyer and activist Prashant Bhushan tweeted that he is happy that Canadian PM Trudeau has spoken out for Right to Protest in a democracy & for our farmers’ rights. It is important for all leaders worldwide to stand up for democratic rights of people in all nations. Those saying that this is an internal matter have got it all wrong.
C) All-party meet on vaccines: Parties with less than 10 MPs won’t be allowed to speak.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits a facility of biotech firm Bharat Biotech on the outskirts of Hyderabad on November 28, 2020 to review development of indigenous COVID-19 vaccine candidate Covaxin. During the all-party meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 4 on the subject of Covid-19 and distribution of vaccines, only parties with more than 10 members in Parliament will be allowed to speak. The smaller parties have to be silent participants. The meeting was called after Modi’s Saturday visit to three vaccine-manufacturing facilities Zydus Cadila in Ahmedabad, Serum Institute of India in Pune, and Bharat Biotech in Hyderabad. Earlier too, for the several videoconference meetings with chief ministers, the Prime Minister’s Office had drafted the schedule in such a way that different states got to speak on different dates, instead of opting for an open discussion on the subject. With the 10-MP criteria, many regional parties will not get an opportunity to air their opinion, including Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party, the Shiromani Akali Dal, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party, and the two Left parties, the CPI (M) and the CPI. CPI Parliamentary Party leader Binoy Viswam has written a letter to Modi urging him to reconsider this decision of not allowing those with less than 10 MPs to speak in the meeting. The NCP, which has five members in the Lok Sabha and four in the Rajya Sabha, falls short of the PMO’s criteria by one member.
D) China and Pakistan sign military deal amid tensions with India.
China and Pakistan on Monday signed a new memorandum of understanding to boost their already close military relations, as China’s Defence Minister and People’s Liberation Army (PLA) General Wei Fenghe visited the headquarters of the Pakistani army in Rawalpindi. Gen. Wei called on Pakistan’s Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the General Headquarters, and both discussed matters of mutual interest, regional security and enhanced bilateral defence collaboration, Pakistani media reported. The two sides also discussed on-going projects under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), in which the Pakistani military is playing an increasingly prominent role. Prior to Gen. Wei’s visit, recently appointed Chinese envoy to Pakistan Nong Rong conducted a comprehensive review of the CPEC projects along with former Pakistan Army Lt. Gen. Asim Saleem Bajwa, who is heading the CPEC Authority. While details of the new MoU signed by the two militaries were not immediately available, it follows another agreement signed last year, when China’s Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) General Xu Qiliang visited Rawalpindi for defence cooperation and capacity building of the Pakistan Army Gen. Wei’s visit followed his day-long visit to Nepal, where he was the highest ranking Chinese official to visit since President Xi Jinping’s visit in October last year.
E) Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments.
The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 94,83,073 with the death toll at 1,79,818. With the entire country waiting anxiously for a vaccine, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan today said the government has never spoken about vaccinating the entire country. He just want to make this clear that the government has never spoken about vaccinating the entire country. It’s important that they discuss such scientific issues, based on factual information only, Bhushan said, in response to a question about vaccine access for everyone in the country. Vaccination would depend on the efficacy of the vaccine and our purpose is to break the chain of virus transmission. If they are able to vaccinate a critical mass of people and break virus transmission, then they may not have to vaccinate the entire population, said Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Balram Bhargava, who was also present at the presser. Bhushan also clarified that the initial findings into an adverse event allegedly suffered by an Oxford Covid-19 vaccine trial participant in Chennai did not necessitate halting of the trials and that the vaccine timelines will not be affected.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS:
A) Arizona, Wisconsin certify Biden’s victory over Trump.
Arizona and Wisconsin officials on Monday certified Democrat Joe Biden as the winner of their respective States in the November 3 presidential elections, further formalizing his win against incumbent U.S. President Donald Trump. Mr. Trump had won both the States in 2016 and sought to reverse Mr. Biden’s win via legal challenges and vote recounts. Arizona’s Secretary of State Katie Hobbs (Democrat) certified the election results on Monday. with (Republican) Governor Doug Ducey signing the results, confirming Mr. Biden’s win in the State, giving the Democrat Il electoral votes. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, was also confirmed the winner of the State’s race for the U.S. Senate, defeating incumbent Martha McSally, a Republican. Turning blue Democrats performed well in the highly populated Maricopa County, flipping it for the first time in decades in a presidential race. The State has been turning blue on the back of demographic shifts — Krysten Sinema, a Democratic Senator, won Maricopa County in the 2018 midterm election. Protest in Phoenix Supporters of Mr. Trump gathered in downtown Phoenix. as per reports, to protest against Monday’s confirmation of the results. The President has made sweeping claims of a fraudulent election without backing those claims with adequate evidence. Members of Mr.Trump’s campaign, including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, met Arizona State legislators to discuss these claims. In Wisconsin, Chairman of the Elections Commission, Ann Jacobs, signed the determination of the election results, where Mr. Trump’s campaign had requested a recount in Dane and Milwaukee counties. Mr. Biden’s tally went up by 87 votes, confirming his win in the State and giving him 10 electoral votes. Democratic Governor Tony Evers signed the certification later on Monday.
B) Facebook News to launch in U.K. next year.
Facebook said on Tuesday it will launch its news tab feature in Britain from next year, paying publishers for stories delivered through the world’s leading social network. The arrival of Facebook News in January comes after the service was rolled out in the U.S. in late 2019 and is part of plans to extend it worldwide, the company said. With Facebook News, they will pay publishers for content that is not already on the platform, help drive new audiences, and bring publishers greater monetization opportunities, it added. Titles covered in the first wave of deals include The Economist, The Guardian, The Independent and the Mirror, and local newspapers the London Evening Standard, the Manchester Evening News and the Scotsman. Lifestyle magazines such as Cosmopolitan, GQ, Vogue and Tatler have also signed up, while there is a video partnership with Channel 4 News. Facebook’s director of news partnerships Jesper Doub said the company was in active negotiations to bring the feature to France and Germany. They will continue to work with publishers in countries where market conditions and regulatory environments invite this kind of investment and innovation, he added.
C) Pak. protesters call for Imran’s resignation at Multan rally.
Despite a government ban and arrests of hundreds of activists, Pakistani Opposition supporters rallied in a central city on Monday. calling on Prime Minister Imran Khan to resign over alleged bad governance and incompetence. The rally in Multan by the Pakistan Democratic Movement, an alliance Of Opposition parties, was held a day after the police, on orders from the government, carried out the arrests and banned the gathering, defending the move as necessary to combat the coronavirus pandemic. The police acknowledged arresting more than 370 people, while Opposition groups put the number at more than 1,800. Authorities also switched off the mobile phone network. Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of former Minister Nawaz Sharif, attended the rally. There is no doubt that the government will no more be in power in the coming days, God willing, and she have no doubt about it, she said. Also in attendance and marking her political debut was Assefa Bhutto Zardari, the daughter Of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in 2007.
