NATIONAL NEWS
Centre agrees to grant permanent commission to 11 women Army officers.
The Central government on Friday agreed to grant permanent commission (PC) to 11 women Army officers who meet the eligibility criteria, after the Supreme Court threatened to initiate contempt proceedings. The Centre, which was initially reluctant, conveyed its acquiescence to a Bench led by Justice D.Y. Chandrachud to grant PC to the officers within 10 days. Short Service Commission (SSC) women officers, who have not approached the court but nonetheless meet the various eligibility criteria, would be granted PC in three weeks, the government informed the court. In October, the court similarly intervened with the government in favour of granting PC to 39 other SSC women officers. We appreciate the fair stand of the Army authority in putting at rest all outstanding issues pertaining to women SSC officers, the court recorded at the end. The Bench, also comprising Justice A.S. Bopanna, was hearing a contempt petition filed by the 11 officers, who alleged they were denied PC despite crossing the eligibility threshold. However, the court said that by way of abundant caution, it is clarified that those officers who have disciplinary and vigilance clearance will be eligible to grant of PC, subject to their meeting of other conditions.
PM to inaugurate Kashi temple corridor on December 13
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Kashi Vishwanath Temple Corridor project on December 13 in Varanasi, his parliamentary constituency, alongside families of those who had been displaced due to the project. The project inauguration comes with just a few months to spare for Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls and has significance in terms of cultural politics for the State. According to senior sources in the BJP, at least 400 families were asked to vacate the area, many of the encroachments around the historic temple cleared to make way for the project that encapsulates the vision of the Holkar queen of Indore, Ahalya Bai Holkar, who created a series of temples and vistas leading up to the Ganga ghat. The project connects the temple with the ghats of the Ganga, with a paved walkway around 320 metres long and 20 metres wide. It will also have facilities for a museum, library, a facilitation centre for pilgrims, and a Mumuksha Bhawan (salvation house). According to Shashi Kumar, head of U.P. BJP’s social media cell, the function would see the presence of the main ‘archakas’ of the 12 ‘Jyotirlingas’ (of which Kashi is one), with water from all major rivers of the country being brought in for the ‘abhishek’ of main deity Baba Vishwanath (Lord Shiva). The project is an important one for Modi and was pegged at ₹600 crore (approximately) after it was launched in March 2018. An estimated ₹300 crore was spent on purchasing land and buildings around the temple complex, and for resettlement compensation alone.
Battle of ideologies is most important in today’s India: Rahul Gandhi
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that the battle of ideologies has become one of the most important ones in today’s India, while accepting that the ideology of his party had been overshadowed by the hate-filled orientation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It is important to understand why we find ourselves in the situation where we find ourselves. Today, whether we like it or not, we have to accept that the divisive ideology of the RSS and the BJP has overshadowed the loving, affectionate and nationalistic ideology of the Congress. Our ideology is alive and vibrant but it is overshadowed, Gandhi said. He was speaking at the inaugural session of a four-day national orientation camp for organisation training at Sewagram Ashram in Wardha district of Maharashtra. The moment we crystallise ours’ [ideology], we will envelope them [the BJP-RSS]. Just like Lord Shiva used to consume poison, Congress ideology will make the BJP’s ideology, [of] hate disappear, he said. Commenting on the training, Gandhi said that spreading the Congress’ ideology was only one part of it. Our ideology spreads only when fear and pain within an individual is overcome. We must focus on strengthening our workers to make them fearless and pain-less. We are countering the ideology which thrives on fear and pain. We stand with smile, love and respect to others crossing the boundaries of caste, religion and region, against those who offer nothing but hate, anger and abuse, he said.
Covaxin safe, shows 77.8% efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19: Lancet study
Two doses of Covaxin, India’s indigenous COVID-19 vaccine, offer 77.8% protection against symptomatic disease and present no serious safety concerns, according to an interim analysis of its phase 3 trial published in The Lancet on Friday. Covaxin, an inactivated whole virus vaccine developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech, recently received emergency use approval from the World Health Organization (WHO) for people aged 18 and above. The phase-3 trial findings indicate that Covaxin induces a robust antibody response with no severe vaccine-related adverse events or deaths reported among the trial participants, the authors of the study said. The phase 3 trial findings indicate that Covaxin induces a robust antibody response with no severe vaccine-related adverse events or deaths reported among the trial participants. File image. The majority of the adverse events, including headache, fatigue, fever, and pain at the injection site, were mild and occurred within seven days of vaccination, they explained. The vaccine is administered in a two-dose regimen, 28 days apart, and can be stored and transported between 2-8 degrees Celsius. The trial took place from November 16 to May 17 this year, with participants aged 18 and older randomly assigned to receive two doses of the vaccine or a placebo. The researchers recorded 24 positive cases among 8,471 people in the vaccine group and 106 positive cases among 8,502 people in the placebo group, suggesting an overall vaccine efficacy of 77.8 per cent, the authors said.
HC expresses displeasure against targeting of Manika Batra by TTFI
The Delhi High Court Friday expressed strong displeasure that star table tennis player Manika Batra was being allegedly targeted by the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) for dragging the sports body to the court by raising her grievances. Justice Rekha Palli said the player cannot be targeted and if she was being targeted, then it was a serious problem. The high court was hearing a petition by Batra seeking quashing of rules mandating compulsory attendance at the National Coaching Camp for selection in international events. It directed the TTFI to place before it the communications with the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) regarding Batra, who made a complaint against the national sports body. The court’s order came after Batra, the country’s top-ranked women’s table tennis player, claimed that she was being targeted by the national federation for raising her grievances in the court and now the international federation was also treating her like an accused. The averment was vehemently denied by the counsel for TTFI. The high court had on September 23 stayed the TTFI’s rule mandating compulsory attendance at the National Coaching Camp for selection in international events and had asked the Centre to conduct an inquiry into Batra’s complaint against the sports body. On Friday, the court was informed by the Centre’s counsel Apoorv Kurup that the enquiry report was ready and the judge asked them to file it in a sealed cover before it. In the petition, the Commonwealth Games gold medallist and Khel Ratna awardee has alleged that the federation was carrying out its selection processes in a non-transparent manner, targeting certain individuals such as herself. She has asserted that the national coach, in a clear conflict of interest, was running a private table tennis academy simultaneously and on one occasion, pressurised the petitioner to throw away a match only with a view to help one of his trainees at his private academy to qualify for the Olympics, 2020. The plea stated that Table Tennis is an individual sport, which requires specialised training with support staff and thus the rule against personal coaching is arbitrary, irrational, absurd, and has no nexus with achieving excellence in an individualised sport.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
India’s Bimal Patel elected to UN’s International Law Commission
Professor Bimal Patel from India has been elected to the International Law Commission for a 5-year-term starting January 1, 2023, by topping the Asia-Pacific group for the election at the United Nations on November 12, 2021. Patel is a Vice-Chancellor at Rashtriya Raksha University and a Member of the National Security Advisory Board of India. Patel topped the Asia-Pacific group with 163 votes in the UN General Assembly out of 192 members present and voting. TheThe Asia-Pacific group saw 11 very strong candidates contesting for 8 seats. The 11 candidates by nationality included candidates from India, Japan, China, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, Cyprus, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Mongolia, and Lebanon. India topped the Asia-Pacific group with 163 votes on the account of Bimal Patel, followed by 162 votes for Thailand, 154 votes for Japan, 145 votes for Vietnam, 142 votes for China, 140 votes for South Korea, 139 votes for Cyprus, and 123 votes for Mongolia.
UN Climate conference to continue till afternoon of November 13
The President of the ongoing United Nations Climate Change Conference in Scotland, Alok Sharma has said that he expected the negotiations for a deal will continue into the afternoon of November 13, 2021. The President of the COP26 said that he envisages the formal plenary meetings in the afternoon to adopt the decisions and close it on Saturday. The two-week COP26 was originally scheduled to end on November 12, 2021.
US President to virtually meet Chinese President on Nov 15
The President of the United States Joe Biden will virtually meet the President of China Xi Jinping on November 15, 2021. The leaders will discuss the ways to responsibly manage the competition between US and China. Biden will make clear of US’s intention and be clear about its concerns with China.
Johnson & Johnson to separate company’s Consumer Health Business
Johnson & Johnson has decided to separate the consumer health business of the company and to create a new public traded company. The separation will create two global leaders that will be better positioned for delivering improved health outcomes for the patients and consumers through innovations.
