CURRENT AFFAIRS
22 November 2020
NATIONAL NEWS:
A) Private hospitals charged exorbitant fees, says parliamentary panel report on Covid-19.
Inadequate beds in government hospitals and absence of specific guidelines for Covid-19 treatment resulted in private hospitals charging exorbitant fees, a parliamentary panel on 21 November had said, asserting that a sustainable pricing model could have averted many deaths. Chairperson of the parliamentary standing committee on health Ram Gopal Yadav submitted the report on Outbreak of Pandemic Covid-19 and its Management, to Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu. This is the first report by any parliamentary committee on the government’s handling of the pandemic. Underlining that healthcare spending in the country with a population of 1.3 billion is abysmally low, the panel said the fragility of the Indian health ecosystem posed a big hurdle in generating an effective response against the pandemic. The committee, therefore, strongly recommends the government to increase its investments in the public healthcare system and make consistent efforts to achieve the National Health Policy targets of expenditure up to 2.5 % of GDP within two years as the set time frame of year 2025 is far away and public health cannot be jeopardised till that time schedule, the report stated. The National Health Policy 2017 has set a target of increasing government expenditure on healthcare to 2.5 % of GDP by 2025, from just 1.15 % in 2017. Stating that the public had to undergo trauma and distress due to the absence of a dedicated healthcare system, the committee observed that the number of government hospital beds in the country were not adequate to handle the increasing number of COVID and non-COVID patients. The report also said that the need for effective legislation to counter bio-terrorism was one of the important lessons to be learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic. The adverse effects of Covid-19 pandemic have taught the lesson on the importance of controlling biological agents and the need of strategic partnerships among different nations. The Committee, therefore, feels that the present time is the most appropriate for the Government to formulate effective laws to counter bio-terrorism. The report, however, does not explicitly state that the Covid-19 virus itself was a bio-weapon. The international scientific community has repeatedly debunked the conspiracy theory that Covid-19 virus was developed as a bio-weapon.
B) Ayurvedic doctors can now perform general surgery.
Post Graduate (PG) students of Ayurveda can now perform general surgery, including orthopaedic, ophthalmology, ENT and dental. The Union government, in a gazette notification, has allowed those who have cleared post-graduation in Ayurvedic medicine to receive formal training for such procedures. The training modules for surgical procedures will be added to the curriculum of Ayurvedic studies. The development came after the Central Council of Indian Medicine amended the Indian Medicine Central Council (Post Graduate Ayurveda Education) Regulations, 2016, to allow PG students of Ayurveda to practise general surgery. The Central Council of Indian Medicine, with the previous sanction of the Central Government, hereby makes the following regulations further to amend the Indian Medicine Central Council (Post Graduate Ayurveda Education) Regulations, 2016, the gazette notification read. The Act has been renamed Indian Medicine Central Council (Post Graduate Ayurveda Education) Amendment Regulations, 2020. During the period of study, the PG scholar of Shalya and Shalakya shall be practically trained to acquaint (themselves) with as well as independently perform the following activities so that after completion of his PG degree, he is able to perform the following procedures (list of the procedures) independently, the gazette notification stated. The notification stated that students will be trained in two streams of surgery and would be awarded titles of MS (Ayurved) Shalya Tantra (General Surgery), and MS (Ayurved) Shalakya Tantra (Disease of Eye, Ear, Nose, Throat, Head and Oro-Dentistry). This move by the Union government comes in the wake of other decisions that indicate an increasing emphasis on traditional medicine.
C) NCB arrests comedian Bharti Singh after cannabis seizure from her house.
The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) today arrested comedian Bharti Singh following seizure of ganja (cannabis) from her house in suburban Andheri. The NCB searched Singh’s house and office as part of its probe into alleged drug use in the Hindi film industry. A team led by Sameer Wankhede, the central agency’s zonal director, carried out a search at Singh’s residence at Lokhandwala Complex as well as her production house based on a tip-off, a release said. It recovered 86.5g of ganja during the search, the release added. Both Ms. Bharti Singh and her husband Harsh Limbachiya accepted consumption of ganja. Bharti Singh was placed under arrest under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and examination of Limbachiya is underway, the NCB release added. The quantity allegedly seized from Singh’s possession is considered as small quantity under the act, as against commercial quantity, an NCB official said. Upto 1 kg of ganja is considered small quantity, which attracts a jail term of up to six months and/or fine of ₹10,000. Possession of commercial quantity — 20 kg or more — can attract up to 20 years in jail. For the quantity in between, the punishment can be as much as 10 years in jail.
D) India has set target of cutting carbon footprint by 30-35%: PM Modi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 21 November has said India has set a target of reducing its carbon footprint by 30-35%. He made the statement while addressing the convocation ceremony of Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University (PDPU), Gandhinagar, through video conference. Today, our country is moving ahead with the target of reducing the carbon footprint by 30-35%. When he said this to the world, it expressed surprise and wondered if India can achieve it, he said. Efforts are on to increase the use of natural gas capacity four times during this decade, and work is also on to nearly double the oil refining capacity in the next five years, he said. Modi also said that work is constantly going on to strengthen the start-ups in the energy sector, and a special fund has been allocated for the purpose. If you have any idea, product or a concept that you want to incubate, then this fund will be a good opportunity for you, and a gift from the government, he said.
E) Farooq Abdullah flags issue of selective security measures for candidates fighting local polls.
National Conference (NC) president and Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) chairman Dr. Farooq Abdullah on Saturday wrote to the State Election Commission and raised the issue of selective security measures for candidates fighting the District Development Council (DDC) polls. Security cannot and should not be used as a tool or an excuse to interfere in democratic processes, Dr. Abdullah wrote in a letter to State Election Commissioner K.K. Sharma. He alleged that candidates put up by the PAGD are immediately whisked away to secure locations in the name of security and confined to those secure locations. They are not allowed to canvass, they are completely out of touch with those from whom they are supposed to seek votes, Dr. Abdullah claimed. He said the government had structures in place which ensured security for all contestants irrespective of the ideology they espoused or the parties they represented. The current state of affairs in the realm of security is blatantly oriented towards providing security to a select few and confining others, he added. The three-time Chief Minister said this comes across more as an attempt to interfere in the democratic process than any real concern for the well-being of the contestants. Earlier in the day, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti had tweeted, GOI sabotaging participation of non-BJP parties in DDC polls. Jammu and Kashmir will have its maiden DDC polls from November 28.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
A) On inauguration day, Twitter to give Biden control of @POTUS. Twitter will hand control of the presidential @POTUS account to Joe Biden when he is sworn in on inauguration day, even if President Donald Trump has not conceded his election loss, U.S. media reported on Friday. The social media giant is actively preparing to support the transition of White House institutional Twitter accounts on January 20th, 2021, Twitter spokesperson Nick Pacilio told Politico in an email. The process is being done in consultation with the National Archives, as it was in 2017, he said. The handover will see all existing tweets on @POTUS, as well as @FLOTUS, and other official accounts, archived. The accounts will then be reset to zero tweets and transferred to the incoming Mr. Biden White House that day. Mr. Trump, who still has not conceded his November 3 loss, used Twitter to help build his political brand and, later, wield the power of the presidency though he mainly uses his personal account, @realDonaldTrump, whose 88 million followers dwarf @POTUS’s 32 million. The @POTUS account is largely used to retweet Mr. Trump’s personal account as well as the White House and other accounts.
B) U.S., Taiwan step up economic partnership.
The U.S. and Taiwan are stepping up cooperation in a newly created economic dialogue, in another move from the outgoing Trump administration to increase official exchanges with the self-ruled island. The two sides signed a five-year agreement establishing the U.S.-Taiwan Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue, which is meant to be held annually. The deal falls short of a long-desired bilateral trade agreement, but is a significant step that increases ties between Washington and Taipei. China, which views Taiwan as its own territory to be reunited by force if necessary, has criticized such steps as provocation. The U.S.-Taiwan economic dialogue signifies that not only is the United States-Taiwan economic relationship strong, but it continues to deepen and grow, said Brent Christensen, director of the American Institute in Taipei, the de-facto embassy. Taiwan and the U.S. do not have a free trade agreement. However, Taiwan in August announced the easing of restrictions on imports of American beef and pork, lowering a trade barrier for U.S. businesses that is expected to pave the way for further trade negotiations. U.S. trade with Taiwan totaled an estimated $103.9 billion in 2019, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Trade Representative’s office. The dialogue addressed areas of further cooperation, such as the State Department’s new Clean Network project and 5G security, semiconductors, as well as investment screening and science and technology. Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu called the dialogue an important milestone and the highest level regular economic dialogue between the U.S. and Taiwan.
C) Pompeo meets Taliban, Afghan govt. negotiators.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met negotiators from the Afghan government and the Taliban in Doha on Saturday, amid signs of progress in their talks as Washington speeds up its withdrawal. Mr. Pompeo’s visit comes in the wake of a rocket attack which struck densely populated areas of Kabul, killing at least eight people in the latest outbreak of violence in the Afghan capital. The Taliban denied responsibility and the Islamic State group claimed the deadly strike. Mr. Pompeo met separately with the Afghan government and Taliban negotiation teams in a luxury hotel in the Qatari capital. Mr. Pompeo said as he met the Afghan government side, noting the shared interest in such a scenario. He also met Qatar’s ruler, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, and Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, the foreign minister, on his stop in Doha, which is the Taliban’s base for diplomacy. The outgoing top U.S. diplomat is on a seven-nation tour of Europe and the Middle East, as President Donald Trump shores up late term priorities. Earlier this week, the Pentagon said it would soon pull some 2,000 troops out of Afghanistan, speeding up the timeline established in a February deal between the U.S. and the Taliban.
D) Trump objects to vote counting in Wisconsin.
The recount of the presidential election in Wisconsin’s two most heavily Democratic counties began on Friday with President Donald Trump’s campaign seeking to discard tens of thousands of absentee ballots that it alleged should not have been counted. Mr. Trump’s three objections attempting to discard the ballots were denied by the three-member Dane County Board of Canvassers, twice on bipartisan votes. Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell said he expected the campaign was building a record before filing a lawsuit. Joe Biden won Wisconsin by 20,600 votes and carried Dane and Milwaukee counties by a 2-to-1 margin. Mr. Trump only paid for recounts in those two counties, not in the 70 others, 58 of which he won. Trump attorney Christ Troupis argued that certification envelopes filled out by people who voted absentee in-person do not count under the law as a written application, even though the envelope is identified as such.
