Tag: CLAT

NATIONAL NEWS 

India rejects China’s opposition to Venkaiah Naidu’s Arunachal trip

Amid continuing tensions between them in Ladakh, India and China on Wednesday exchanged sharp statements on Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh. New Delhi said it rejected a Chinese statement firmly opposing the visit. On Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement in response to a Chinese state media question on the visit, asking India to stop taking actions that would complicate and expand the boundary issue. Naidu, on a tour of the Northeast, was in Arunachal over the weekend. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) responded that it reject[s] such comments. Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India, its spokesperson Arindam Bagchi stated. Indian leaders routinely travel to the state of Arunachal Pradesh as they do to any other state of India. Objecting to the visit of Indian leaders to a state of India does not stand to reason and understanding of Indian people, he noted. Neither China issuing a statement on an Indian leader visiting Arunachal nor India responding to it was unusual in and of itself; what was new was the sharpness of the exchange, underlining the current state of ties, the lowest since 1988, with an 18 month-long LAC crisis still unresolved. Bagchi also rejected China’s contention that the visit would complicate boundary issues, amid ongoing tensions in Ladakh. As we have mentioned earlier, he said, the current situation along the LAC in the Western Sector of the India-China border areas has been caused by unilateral attempts of Chinese side to alter the status quo in violation of the bilateral agreements. Therefore, we expect the Chinese side to work towards early resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols rather than trying to link unrelated issues. China’s statement came days after the latest round of military talks ended in a stalemate. The question to the foreign office on Naidu’s visit was posed by a state media outlet, in this case Xinjiang Television, suggesting the authorities wanted to make a statement on the issue. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said in response,The Chinese government never recognises the so-called Arunachal Pradesh established unilaterally and illegally by the Indian side, and is firmly opposed to the Indian leaders’ visits to the area concerned. We urge the Indian side to earnestly respect China’s major concerns, stop taking any action that would complicate and expand the boundary issue, and refrain from undermining mutual trust and bilateral relations. It should instead take real concrete actions to maintain peace and stability in the China-India border areas and help bring the bilateral relations back on to the track of sound and steady development. China claims up to 90,000 sq km in Arunachal in the eastern sector, while India sees China as illegally occupying 38,000 sq km in Aksai Chin in the western sector.

Lakhimpur Kheri violence: Ashish Mishra denied bail 

Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra, was denied bail by a court in Lakhimpur Kheri on Wednesday in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case. Senior prosecution officer (SPO) S.P. Yadav told PTI that Chief Judicial Magistrate Chinta Ram rejected the bail applications of Ashish Mishra and his alleged accomplice Ashish Pandey. Ashish Mishra, who was arrested on October 9 by the special investigation team after 12 hours of questioning, had been sent to three days in police custody from Tuesday. The court also remanded Shekhar Bharti, arrested on Tuesday, in police custody for three days. Police have so far arrested four people in connection with the case — Ashish Mishra, Luvkush, Ashish Pandey and Bharti. One Ankit Das, who is said to be a close friend of Ashish Mishra, appeared before the SIT at the crime branch office in Lakhimpur earlier in the day. The investigators had summoned Ankit Das for questioning in connection with the October 3 violence that had left eight people, including four farmers, dead. Das is the nephew of former Minister Akhilesh Das, and the black SUV which allegedly knocked down the four farmers is said to be owned by him. At around 11 a.m., Das along with a team of lawyers arrived at the crime branch office in the reserved police lines area, the police said. On Tuesday, Ankit Das and one other identified as Latif had moved an application for surrender before the chief judicial magistrate.

Congress demands dismissal of Ajay Mishra in meeting with President 

A Congress delegation, led by former party president Rahul Gandhi, met President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday and demanded the dismissal of Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs, Ajay Mishra Teni, over the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, and called for an impartial probe by two sitting judges of the Supreme Court. Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was part of the delegation, claimed that President Kovind had assured them that he would talk to the government about it today itself. Though the Congress had written to the President, seeking time for a seven-member delegation, a five-member delegation eventually called on him. The delegation included former Defence Minister A. K. Antony, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, former Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, besides Gandhi and Vadra. They also presented a memorandum of facts about the Lakhimpur Kheri incident to the President. Demanding an inquiry by two sitting Supreme Court judges, Gandhi said, There cannot be an impartial inquiry and justice cannot be given till the time the MoS Home is sacked. This is the voice of not just the families of those killed but of all the farmers and this voice is being suppressed. The families want that the person who committed these murders should be punished, he added. Vadra told reporters that the demands raised by her party reflect what every right-thinking person would want the Central Government to do. The message that this government seems to be sending is that you will not get justice if you are a poor person, Dalit, farmer or a woman. There is no justice or the rule of law for them. And if you are a leader of the ruling party, then the law doesn’t apply on you, she told reporters after meeting the President. In the memorandum, the Congress said, It is important to note that on September 27th, 2021, the day of the Bharat Bandh called by protesting farmers against the three black laws, Shri Ajay Mishra Teni, MoS Home Affairs, in a public function openly threatened the agitating farmers and even boasted about his dubious antecedents. The Congress also noted that given that BJP leaders, including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, were making conciliatory statements towards the MoS Home, the situation will not change without intervention. Further, no police official would dare to fairly investigate the son if the father continued in his post as a Minister. In these difficult circumstances, we call upon you as the custodian of our Constitution and the moral compass to this Government to immediately dismiss Union MOS Home Affairs, Sh. Ajay Mishra Teni; to direct an independent judicial investigation by a Commission comprising of two sitting judges of the Supreme Court of India or the High Court, the memorandum said.

Supreme Court notice on plea for mechanism to examine bills of ‘overcharged’ COVID-19 patients

The Supreme Court has decided to intervene in a plea for a mechanism to probe whether private hospitals fleeced desperate COVID-19 patients and their families, dragging them into financial ruin at the time of their dire need for medical care during the pandemic. A Bench led by Justice D.Y. Chandrachud has admitted a petition to direct the government to set up a mechanism to examine if private hospitals overcharged COVID-19 patients, preferring profit over public health. The court has issued notice to the Union of India, through the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, on a plea by Abhinav Thapar to set up an audit and scrutiny mechanism of the bills of COVID-19 patients who have accused hospitals of swindling them. The issue which has been raised in the petition concerns a wide strata of society consisting of patients and their relatives who have been overcharged during the COVID-19 pandemic and the issue which has been raised would merit serious attention, the Supreme Court underscored in its order. It said the complaints made include those by families of COVID-19 patients who died. We will set up some mechanism, the Bench, also comprising, Justice B.V. Nagarathna orally observed. Noting that the petition was filed in public interest, the court said the specific aspect canvassed in the petition is that during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, patients had to take recourse to seeking medical facilities in private hospitals as a result of the inadequacy of the public health infrastructure and there were widespread complaints of overcharging of hapless patients. Families, including of those who did not survive the pandemic, have been brought to economic ruin, as a result, the order said. The Bench highlighted Thapar’s reference to how local bodies like the Pune Municipal Corporation have already issued notice to private hospitals for overcharging patients and ensured refund of excess amounts charged. A writ of mandamus is sought to the Centre and the State Governments to set up a mechanism for scrutinising and auditing the bills of COVID-19 patients who have complaints of being overcharged… Issue notice to the Union of India for the present, returnable in four weeks, the court ordered.

Prioritise children who need COVID-19 vaccination the most, says expert

Children are extremely unlikely to develop complications, severe disease or death due to COVID-19, unlike even the youngest adult, and panic created by any bad outcomes in children can in fact be counter-productive for the entire paediatric vaccination process, according to experts. Speaking about balancing benefits and risks of COVID-19 vaccination in children in India, Dr. Rajeev Jayadevan, vice chairman, research cell, Indian Medical Association (IMA), Kerala, said age was the most significant risk factor for COVID-19 complications. The important question was, is vaccination of crores of healthy children worth it just to prevent a few asymptomatic and mild infections for the first few months alone? The short period of protection makes paediatric COVID-19 vaccination unattractive – when done for the purpose of preventing infection. The concept of ‘herd immunity’ is not valid any more for the virus, as sterilising immunity does not occur and reinfection/breakthrough infections are common, he stated. It did not make sense to vaccinate enormous numbers of children to prevent one rare complication. We should prioritise children who need vaccines the most. These will be children with comorbidities, who are more likely to develop complications. An additional subgroup will be children who live with people with cancer and immunosuppressed or elderly relatives – these children also may be considered for vaccination on a case by case basis, he noted. There was need to keep a careful watch for any vaccine-related complications that may arise in the sub-group. Vaccines produce different complications in different age groups and we should watch this carefully, he stressed.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India, Iran discuss ways to fight drug trafficking from Afghanistan

Illegal production of drugs in Afghanistan has impacted Iran severely for several decades, the Embassy of Iran has said. The statement came after Indian and Iranian officials held a virtual meeting on Wednesday following the largest seizure of heroin at the Mundra port in Gujarat on September 15. We discussed and examined ways and means of mutual cooperation in fighting drug trafficking which accordingly resulted in some positive outcomes. It is for many decades that narcotic drugs production and organised drug trafficking from Afghanistan has posed a major threat to Iran, our region and to the world, said the Embassy of Iran after the meeting. The discussion is important because of the seizure of around 3,000 kg heroin in the Mundra port managed by the Adani Ports, on September 15. The operation led to the largest drug haul in the history of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). Initial reports had indicated that the containers carrying the substance originated from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. The National Investigation Agency has been probing the incident over the last several days. The drug haul also impacted Iran’s trade as the Adani Group declared that containers from Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan will not be handled at the port from November 15. As an immediate neighbour to Afghanistan, Iran has also been significantly impacted by other developments in that country, said the Embassy without elaborating. Analysts and commentators however have pointed out that a large amount of narcotic substances that were with various narcotic producing groups in Afghanistan were made to disappear from the country as the Taliban took control of Kabul on August 15. It is yet to be investigated if the discovered drugs in the Mundra port were part of such a consignment that was sent out by active Afghan syndicates to prevent the Taliban from gaining access to them.

 

Taliban Threatens US, EU With Refugees Influx If Sanctions on Afghanistan Continue

European countries are concerned that if the Afghan economy collapses, large numbers of migrants will set off for the continent. United States and European Union envoys have been warned by Afghanistan’s new Taliban government against attempts to pressure them through sanctions. The new government noted that the sanctions will undermine security and could trigger a wave of economic refugees. According to a statement published on Tuesday, the Taliban’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told Western diplomats at talks in Doha that weakening the Afghan government is not in the interest of anyone because its negative effects will directly affect the world in (the) security sector and economic migration from the country, We urge world countries to end existing sanctions and let banks operate normally so that charity groups, organisations and the government can pay salaries to their staff with their own reserves and international financial assistance, the statement said, as reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP). According to Daily Sabah, the European countries, in particular, are concerned that if the Afghan economy collapses, large numbers of migrants will set off for the continent, piling pressure on neighboring states such as Pakistan and Iran and eventually on EU borders. Washington and the EU have said they are ready to back humanitarian initiatives in Afghanistan, but are wary of providing direct support to the Taliban without guarantees it will respect human rights, in particular women’s rights. Qatar’s Foreign Minister Mohammad bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, on Wednesday told a conference that Taliban government was not currently a priority, but the international engagement was important. There is no clear path for unfreezing Afghan government funds, highlighting the economic challenges Afghanistan faces under its new Taliban rulers. According to Reuters, Al Thani reiterated Qatar’s position that recognizing the Taliban government was not currently a priority, but the international engagement was important. Taliban overthrew Afghanistan’s former US-backed government in August after a two-decade-long conflict, and have declared a new rule under the movement’s hardline interpretation of religious law. But efforts to stabilise the country, still facing attacks from the rival extremist group the Daesh-Khorasan Province (Daesh-K) group, have been undermined by international sanctions; banks are running out of cash and civil servants are going unpaid.

 

NATIONAL NEWS

Expert panel recommends Covaxin for 2-18-year-olds

Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin (BBV152) has been recommended for Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) for 2-18- year-olds by the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) of the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO). Covaxin is the country’s first indigenous, whole-virion, inactivated vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Medical Research Council (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV). If given the green signal, it will emerge as the first COVID-19 vaccine globally to be used for vaccinating children as young as 2 years. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the company said it had submitted data from clinical trials in the 2-18 age group to the CDSCO. The positive recommendations, after due review by the SEC, were submitted to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI). A senior Central Government official stated that the Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech had completed Phase-2 and Phase-3 trials of Covaxin on children below 18 in September and submitted the trial data. The trials were done on the age groups of 2-6, 6-12 and 12 -18. Children peep inside a tent where people receive a dose of Covaxin, during a vaccination drive organised by an NGO at an under-construction flyover in New Delhi on August 31, 2021. An expert panel on October 12, 2021 recommended emergency use authorisation for Covaxin in the 2 to 18 age group.  Experts maintained that two doses of Covaxin could be administered to children within a gap of 28 days. For adults, the government has set 4-6 weeks between the two shots. This represents one of the first approvals worldwide for COVID-19 vaccines for the 2-18 age group, the Bharat Biotech statement claimed. The company was awaiting further regulatory approvals from the CDSCO prior to product launch and market availability of the vaccine for children. Dr. Shuchin Bajaj, founder and director, Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals, highlighted, India has always been known as a vaccine and a medicine drug producer but never a medicine or a drug developer. This is the first time that a vaccine has been entirely developed and produced in India and its efficacy and safety have been proven to be high so much so that it is now being trialled in children. The vaccine would lead to protection of children. Currently, adults have been vaccinated, but children have been left exposed to the virus. This vaccine will bring about a positive change, he stressed. The World Health Organisation is expected to take a call on Bharat Biotech’s Emergency Use Listing (EUL) application for Covaxin soon.

Five militants killed in Shopian, two anti-militancy operations continue in J&K 

Five militants, including three affiliates of The Resistance Front (TRF) that was behind the recent civilian killings in the Valley, were killed and two multi-storey houses were damaged in multiple anti-militancy operations in south Kashmir’s Shopian on Tuesday, taking the death toll in militancy-related incidents to 12, including five soldiers, in the past 24 hours. Three militants were killed in Shopian’s Tulran area where an anti-militancy operation was launched on Monday evening. The militants were trapped inside a residential house and refused to surrender despite repeated offers by the security forces. Out of three killed terrorists, one terrorist has been identified as Mukhtar Shah of Ganderbal, who shifted to Shopian after killing one street hawker, Virendra Paswan of Bihar [last week], Inspector General of Police Vijay Kumar said. Two multi-storey residential houses were damaged after security forces used explosives to flush out the militants. Three cowsheds and apple boxes were also destroyed in the fire. Hours later, two more militants were killed in an encounter at Shopian’s Feripora area. The identity of the slain militants was being ascertained. The operation is on in the area, a police spokesman said. In the Jammu province’s Pir Panjal valley, an anti-militancy operation entered the second day on Tuesday to nab the armed militants who killed five soldiers, including a Junior Commissioned Officer, in the Poonch-Rajouri belt. A total of 12 persons, including seven militants and five soldiers, were killed in five separate encounters in Jammu and Kashmir since Monday. Jammu and Kashmir saw a spurt in anti-militancy operations days after militants killed seven civilians in multiple targeted attacks in the Valley.

Lakhimpur Kheri violence case: Police arrests one more person 

Police in Lakhimpur Kheri on October 12 arrested one more person in connection with the Lakhimpuri Kheri violence case and produced him in a court, which sent him to 14-day judicial custody. Senior Prosecution Officer S.P. Yadav said they have sought 14-day police custody of Shekhar Bharti and the hearing in this regard will take place on October 13. He was sent to 14-day judicial custody, the officer said. With Bharti’s arrest, police so far have arrested four people. Earlier, they had arrested Union Minister Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra, Luvkush and Ashish Pandey in connection with the violence, in which eight people, including four farmers, were killed. S.P. Yadav said two people — Ankit Das and Latif — moved applications for surrender at the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court. Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra joined a large gathering of farmers from various States in Tikonia village in Lakhimpur Kheri on October 12 as part of last prayers in honour of the four farmers and a journalist, who were killed in the recent violence. Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) and BKU leaders, including Rakesh Tikait, Darshan Singh Pal, Joginder Singh Ugrahan, and Dharmendra Malik, besides local farm union leaders, also arrived in the village to pay tributes during the ‘antim ardas’ to the deceased, who were mowed down by speeding vehicles on October 3 during a protest.

PM Modi warns against ‘selective’ interpretation of human rights’ issues 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday noted that the biggest infringement of human rights occurred when seen through a political prism, and warned against a selective interpretation of rights’ issues. Addressing the 28th foundation day of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) virtually, he cautioned against the selective interpretation of human rights and using human rights to diminish the image of the country, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office. Modi stated that some people were interpreting human rights from their own perspective as per their selfish interests. Human rights were being damaged due to the tendency of some to see violation of rights in some situations and not in other, similar, situations. This selective behaviour is equally damaging for democracy too. Duties were as important as rights and that these two should not be discussed separately. The government had worked to ensure the dignity of the poor as that was linked closely to the concept of human rights, he pointed out.

Modi too scared to call China out: Congress 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scared to call out China as an aggressor, the Congress alleged on Tuesday as the 13th round of senior military commander talks between India and China ended in a stalemate on Sunday last. It also questioned Modi’s ‘continued’ silence in spite of fresh incursions by Chinese forces in Barahoti, Uttarakhand and upper reaches of Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. At a press conference at the party headquarters, its spokesperson Pawan Khera stated that the Ministry of External Affairs’ statement released on Monday raised some elementary questions. The Ministry had maintained that the situation along the Line of Actual Control ( LAC) had been caused by unilateral attempts of the Chinese side to alter the status quo and in violation of bilateral agreements. Khera asked, Why did PM Modi lie to the country when he said that no one transgressed in the Indian territory. Pointing to the August 30 incident, when reportedly 100 Chinese army personnel entered five km into Indian sovereign territory near Barahoti crossing in the Tun Jun La pass in Uttarakhand and stayed on for nearly three hours, he observed that it was a clear failure by the government and its agencies in guarding India’s security and sovereignty. Chinese incursions over the past couple of years had happened in almost all sectors – from Ladakh to Uttarakhand to Sikkim to Arunachal Pradesh and the Chinese have been consolidating their infrastructure along the LAC. The implications of the Chinese incursions are extremely critical, especially when the PLA isn’t even open to discussing de-escalation in two extremely strategic and critical sectors for India, Depsang and Daulat Beg Oldi sectors. After the 12th round of Military talks in August, it was mutually agreed that there would be a mutual troop pullback from the Gogra area. But instead what happened? There has been a massive troop consolidation by China along the Daulat Beg Oldi Sector. The PLA has also upgraded its weapons system in the region. It has been reported that at least in one location along the Demchok sector, they have the advanced S-400 air defence missile system that poses a threat to aircraft within a 400 km vicinity, he remarked. These sectors, he noted, had seen similar tension during the UPA years too, but then Prime Minister Mr Manmohan Singh was able to diffuse the situation within 21 days. Today, almost a year and a half later too, the issue is far from resolved. India lost out military advantage to China because of the Prime Minister’s lie to the nation. For him national security doesn’t seem to be as important as maintaining his image, which was created on the premise of a lie. Because of this strategy of denying that PLA had taken control of parts of Indian territory, we today face unfavourable settlements across Galwan, Gogra and Hot Spring; we cheaply had to give away our gains at Pangong Tso south. The government hadn’t even succeeded in putting PLA encroachments at Depsang during the talks, he added.

Modi government responsible for current shortage of coal in country: NCP 

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Tuesday alleged that the Modi government was responsible for the current shortage of coal in the country, which has caused a shortfall of the fuel supply to several power plants. Talking to reporters, the NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik said many power plants are not operational due to the shortage of coal. Despite importing the fuel, the shortfall remains. This is also leading to spending the foreign exchange, he said. During the tenure of the erstwhile UPA government, the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had come up with a coal policy keeping in mind the electricity requirements of the country in the future, he said. But the BJP, then in the Opposition, alleged a coal scam and the policy had to be rolled back, said Malik, a senior Minister in the Maharashtra government. Eventually, coal mines were given to some entities, but mining has not yet started there, he said, adding that despite the availability of coal, it is not being mined, the NCP leader said. The Modi government is responsible for the shortage of coal, he said. As per the government data, the number of non-pit head plants with less than four days of dry fuel stock (supercritical stock) increased to 70 this Sunday compared to 64 a week ago on October 3. According to the latest coal-stock data of the 135 plants with over 165 GW of installed generation capacity monitored by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), as many as 70 plants are categorised as super-critical stock or having less than four days of fuel on October 10, 2021, compared to 64 a week ago on October 3, 2021. The Central government has asked State-owned Coal India Limited (CIL) to augment the coal supply to power producers to 1.55-1.6 million tonnes (MT) per day around the Durga Puja period and to further scale it to 1.7 MT per day after October 20. The Coal Ministry on Sunday assured that sufficient dry fuel is available in the country to meet the demand of electricity generating plants and stressed that any fear of disruption in the power supply is entirely misplaced. Officials had attributed the shortage of coal to the disruption of transport due to heavy rains in mining areas.

India’s industrial production rose 11.9% in August

India’s industrial production rose 11.9% in August, according to official data released on Tuesday. As per the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the manufacturing sector’s output surged 9.7% in August 2021. In August, the mining output climbed 23.6%, and power generation increased 16%. The IIP had contracted 7.1% in August 2020. During April-August this year, the IIP grew 28.6% against a 25% contraction in the same period last year. Industrial production has been hit due to the coronavirus pandemic since March last year when it had contracted 18.7%. Former bureaucrat Amit Khare, who last month retired as higher education secretary, has been appointed as advisor to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for two years on contract basis, a personnel ministry order issued on Tuesday said. Khare, a 1985 batch (retired) IAS officer of Jharkhand cadre, had superannuated on September 30. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Khare as advisor to the prime minister in Prime Minister’s Office, in the rank and scale of secretary to government of India, on contract basis, initially for a period of two years, it said.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Exercise Malabar could expand, up to Quad partners to decide: US Admiral

The scope of the multi-nation Malabar exercise, in terms of more like-minded navies taking part in the drills, could expand in future, Chief of US Naval Operations Admiral Michael Gilday said on Tuesday, adding that it was for the Quad partners to discuss the possibility of an expansion. His comments came on a day India, the US, Japan and l Australia kicked off the second phase of this year’s Malabar naval drills in the Bay of Bengal, with the exercise seeking to build on the synergy and interoperability developed during the first phase held in August. In future, that exercise could expand. It is for the partners inside the Quad to discuss that. But remember, there are many exercises that go on in the Indo-Pacific and globally which bring like-minded navies and partners together, Gilday said, in response to a question on the possibility of more navies coming together under the Malabar banner. He is in India on a five-day official visit. The second phase of the Malabar exercise is being conducted from October 12 to 15. Gilday said the cyber domain is one area that the Quad navies would continue to refine in terms of working together as well as high-end operations in the air, on and under the sea. The Quad navies conducted the first phase of the exercise off the Pacific Ocean island of Guam from August 26-29. It involved destroyers, frigates, corvettes, submarines, helicopters, long-range maritime patrol aircraft and elite special forces elements, including the US Navy SEALs and the Indian Navy’s marine commandos (MARCOS). The Indian Navy is taking part in the exercise’s second phase with INS Ranvijay, INS Satpura, P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft and a submarine. The US Navy is represented by the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson along with USS Lake Champlain and USS Stockdale while Japan is taking part with JS Kaga and JS Murasame. The Royal Australian Navy has sent HMAS Ballarat and HMAS Sirius for the drills. Malabar began as an annual bilateral naval exercise between India and the US in 1992. It has increased in scope and complexity over the years. It was in the 2005 edition of the drills that the aircraft carriers from the Indian and the US Navy operated together for the first time. In 2014, the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) became a permanent participant in the drills followed by Australia in 2020. The Quad navies earlier carried out complex naval drills under the Malabar banner in November 2020 in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. Wary of the Quad, China has been monitoring its activities closely. The Quad was revived in late 2017 by India, the US, Australia and Japan, increasing Beijing’s suspicions as the four countries upgraded the forum to the ministerial level in 2019. From carrying out naval drills with like-minded countries to reaching out to states in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), the Indian Navy is focusing on checking China’s rising ambitions in the region and sending out a strong message that Beijing’s power play in the South China Sea cannot be replicated in the Indian Ocean.

France’s Macron Unveils $35 Billion Plan For Industrial Revival

French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled a 30-billion-euro ($35 billion) plan to create the high-tech champions of the future and reverse years of industrial decline in the euro area’s second-largest economy. The plan, dubbed France 2030, foresees investing the funds over five years in sectors including nuclear and renewable energy sources, electric cars, semiconductors and robotics. I want us to look ahead and see our weaknesses and strengths, Macron said in a speech at the Elysee Palace on Tuesday. We need the country to produce more. France 2030 is the latest in the country’s long history of pumping public money into a hoped-for industrial renaissance. After the global financial crisis, then President Nicolas Sarkozy launched a 35-billion future investment program, which has been replenished three times. Macron said this plan was different because it would take greater risks and not rely on well-established industrial firms. Despite the various efforts by successive governments, the share of industry in the French economy has declined almost without interruption and France hasn’t recorded a goods trade surplus since 2002. Six months before the presidential election, Macron is under pressure to show he can reverse those fortunes, particularly in former industrial heartlands, where he struggled to win votes in 2017.  

NATIONAL NEWS 

Lakhimpur Kheri violence: Ashish Mishra sent to 3-day police custody

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Monday got a three-day remand of Union minister Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case. Eight people, including four farmers, were killed in the violence on October 3. Police had demanded a 14-day remand of Ashish. They have got three-day remand from October 12 to 15, senior prosecution officer SP Yadav told reporters. The remand will end on October 15 morning. The police remand was granted by Chief Judicial Magistrate Chintaram, with the condition that Ashish Mishra will not be harassed and his lawyer will remain present during interrogation, Yadav said. Earlier, a court had sent Ashish Mishra to 14-day judicial custody. Meanwhile, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha’s (SKM) deadline for its demands that Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra be sacked and arrested for his alleged involvement in the deaths of farmers at Lakhimpur Kheri ran out on Monday. As hundreds of farmers pour into the region for the last rites of the victims on Tuesday, the protesting unions plan to go ahead with an intensified agitation, including kalash yatra, rail roko and mass rally in Lucknow later this month. Minister’s son Ashish Mishra was arrested over the weekend and remanded to three days police custody on Monday, but no action has been taken against the Minister himself. The SKM accused the Minister of seeking to promote enmity, hatred and disharmony against minority Sikhs of the Terai region in a speech on September 25. His speech was of intimidation and threat, in a public meeting at that, where he was also proudly alluding to his criminal antecedents, and on the basis of this, stern action should have taken place by now, which could have prevented the entire episode of Lakhimpur Kheri massacre, said an SKM statement, adding that Mishra owned the vehicles which ran over the farmers and had attempted to protect his son from arrest. It is clear that his continuation as a Minister in the Union Council of Ministers can be construed only as Narendra Modi’s harbouring of criminals, it added. 

Five Army personnel, including JCO, killed in Poonch encounter 

Five Army personnel, including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO), who were critically injured in an ongoing encounter in the Pir Panjal valley’s Poonch on Monday, succumbed to their injuries. The Army spokesman said all the critically injured were evacuated to a nearest medical facility but succumbed to their injuries. Based on intelligence inputs, the Indian Army on Monday launched a cordon and search operation in villages close to DKG (Dera Ki Gali) in Surankote area of Poonch. In the ensuing firefight, one JCO and four jawans suffered critical injuries, Jammu-based Army spokesman Lt. Col. Devender Anand said. The anti-militancy operation in Surankote, which falls in the frontier district with a long Line of Control with Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, is still on. Preliminary reports suggested three to four militants may be hiding in the area. Earlier in the day, security forces killed two militants, including a The Resistance Front (TRF) militant behind a civilian killing, in two separate operations. Imtiyaz Ahmad Dar, a TRF militant, was killed in Gund Jahangeer village of Hajin area of north Kashmir’s Bandipora. The slain militant was involved in the recent civilian killing at Shahgund, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Kumar said. 

Uttarakhand Minister Yashpal Arya and his son quit BJP, join Congress 

Transport Minister in the BJP-led Uttarakhand Government Yashpal Arya and his son Sanjeev Arya, who is a legislator from Nainital, joined the Congress on Monday. Uttarakhand Assembly poll is scheduled early next year. This is a ‘ghar wapasi’ (home-coming) of sorts for Yashpal Arya, who had been the Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee president for seven years before joining the BJP. A prominent Dalit face in the State, he is a six-time MLA. Speaking at his induction, Congress general secretary (Communications) Randeep Surjewala, said that Yashpal Arya forwarded his resignation to the Governor on Monday morning, following which he met former Congress president Rahul Gandhi to formally join the party. Yashpal Arya said that he felt relieved to be back in his home — the Congress. Congress has a history of sacrifice, a legacy that we are proud to carry forward. Democracy in the country can be strengthened only if the Congress is strengthened, he said. Senior Congress leader K.C. Venugopal said the father-son duo’s return to the party in a way showed which way the wind was blowing in the State. Today is a home-coming for both of them. When they met Gandhi this morning, he told them that their return to the party will strengthen the party in the State, Venugopal said. Senior party leader Harish Rawat also indicated that more BJP leaders were likely to join the party. Mr. Gandhi asked Mr. Arya, what is the difference between the BJP and the Congress. Mr. Arya said that the Congress has inner party democracy, which is completely absent in the BJP, Rawat said.

National Green Tribunal needn’t wait for ‘Godot’ to save environment: Supreme Cosaid

The Supreme Court has declared that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) is a unique forum endowed with suo motu powers to take up environmental issues across the country. The court said the NGT need not wait for the metaphorical Godot to knock on its portal to flex its considerable muscles to save the environment. The exercise of power by the NGT is not circumscribed by the receipt of applications. When substantial questions relating to the environment arise and the issue is civil in nature and those relate to the Act, the NGT, in our opinion, even in the absence of an application, can self-ignite action either towards amelioration or towards prevention of harm, a three-judge Bench of Justices A.M. Khanwilkar, Hrishikesh Roy and C.T. Ravikumar held in a judgment. Justice Roy, who authored the 77-page judgment for the Bench, dismissed objections from the Centre, legal experts and even the court’s own amicus curiae who all argued against the NGT clothed with suo motu powers. The court, speaking through Justice Roy, explained that the role of the NGT was not simply adjudicatory in nature. The Tribunal has to perform equally vital roles that were preventative, ameliorative or remedial in nature. The functional capacity of the NGT was intended to leverage wide powers to do full justice in its environmental mandate, Justice Roy observed. The judgment described the NGT as a complimentary, competent, specialised forum to deal with all environmental multidisciplinary issues both as original and also as an appellate authority, which complex issues were hitherto dealt with by the High Courts and the Supreme Court. The NGT embodied the international obligation India owed to the environment. The NGT has been recognised as one of the most progressive Tribunals in the world. This jurisprudential leap has allowed our country to enter a rather exclusive group of nations which have set up such institutions with broad powers, Justice Roy pointed out. The legislative history of the NGT traced its objective to address societal concerns. Hence, the legislature had given it a wide berth to craft its own procedure to entertain oral and documentary evidence. No rules shackled the good work the Tribunal was intended to perform. Unlike the civil courts, which cannot travel beyond the relief sought by the parties, the NGT is conferred with power of moulding any relief, the court stated.

 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Three share Economics Nobel for research on ‘natural experiment’ to study cause and effect 

A U.S.-based economist has won the Nobel prize for economics for pioneering research that showed an increase in minimum wage does not lead to less hiring, and immigrants do not lower pay for native-born workers, challenging commonly held ideas. Two others shared the award for creating a way to study these types of societal issues. Canadian-born David Card of the University of California, Berkeley, was awarded one half of the prize for his research on how minimum wage, immigration and education affect the labour market, while the other half was shared by Joshua Angrist from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Dutch-born Guido Imbens from Stanford University for their framework for studying issues that can’t rely on traditional scientific methods. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said the three have completely reshaped empirical work in the economic sciences. Card’s studies of core questions for society and Angrist and Imbens’ methodological contributions have shown that natural experiments are a rich source of knowledge, said Peter Fredriksson, chair of the Economic Sciences Committee. Their research has substantially improved our ability to answer key causal questions, which has been of great benefit for society. Card worked on research that used restaurants in New Jersey and in eastern Pennsylvania to measure the effects of increasing the minimum wage. He studied what happened when New Jersey raised its minimum wage from $4.25 to $5.05, using restaurants in bordering eastern Pennsylvania as a comparison group. Contrary to previous studies, he and his late research partner Alan Krueger found that an increase in the minimum wage had no effect on the number of employees. Card later did further work on the issue. Overall, the work concluded that the negative effects of increasing the minimum wage are small and significantly smaller than believed 30 years ago, the Nobel committee said. Card also found that incomes of those who are native-born in a country can benefit from new immigrants, while immigrants who arrived earlier are the ones at risk of being negatively affected. Angrist and Imbens won their half of the award for working out the methodological issues that allow economists to draw solid conclusions about cause and effect even where they cannot carry out studies according to strict scientific methods. Speaking by phone from his home in Massachusetts, Imbens told reporters that he had been asleep when the call came. I was just absolutely stunned then to get a telephone call, he said. And then I was just absolutely thrilled to hear the news, a particular kind of hearing that I got to share this with Josh Angrist and and David Card were both very good friends of mine. The award comes with a gold medal and 10 million Swedish kronor (over $1.14 million). Unlike the other Nobel prizes, the economics award wasn’t established in the will of Alfred Nobel but by the Swedish central bank in his memory in 1968, with the first winner selected a year later. It is the last prize announced each year.

 

LAC talks stalemate: Made ‘constructive suggestions’ says India, ‘unreasonable demands’ says China 

The 13th round of senior military commander talks between India and China ended in a stalemate with both sides holding the other responsible for it. The Army, in a statement, said the Indian side made constructive suggestions for resolving the remaining areas while the Chinese military in a statement said India had made unreasonable and unrealistic demands. During the meeting, the Indian side therefore made constructive suggestions for resolving the remaining areas but the Chinese side was not agreeable and also could not provide any forward-looking proposals. The meeting thus did not result in resolution of the remaining areas, the Army said in a statement issued on Monday morning. India and China held the 13th round of Corps Commander talks on Sunday at Moldo on the Chinese side with a focus on working out the third phase of disengagement from Patrolling Point 15 in Hot Springs as part of overall disengagement and de-escalation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The talks began around 10.30 a.m. at Moldo and concluded at about 7 p.m., a defence official said. The Army further said on the meeting, The Indian side pointed out that the situation along the LAC had been caused by unilateral attempts of Chinese side to alter the status quo and in violation of the bilateral agreements. It was therefore necessary that the Chinese side take appropriate steps in the remaining areas so as to restore peace and tranquility along the LAC in the Western Sector. The Chinese military’s statement on Sunday night came not from China’s Defence Ministry in Beijing, as was the case in some of the earlier rounds, but from the PLA Western Theatre Command in Chengdu, which has in recent rounds appeared to have taken over the responsibility for putting out statements on the LAC situation, seen by some observers as Beijing placing less importance on the slow-moving negotiations. The PLA statement did not suggest any agreement reached on either disengaging or on new protocols. PLA Senior Colonel Long Shaohua, spokesperson for the Western Theatre Command, said China had made great efforts to promote the easing and cooling of the border situation and fully demonstrated its sincerity in order to maintain the overall situation of the relations between the two militaries. However, India still insisted on the unreasonable and unrealistic demands, which made the negotiations more difficult, he said, adding that China’s resolve to safeguard national sovereignty is firm. He called on India to not misjudge the situation and to cherish the hard-won situation in the China-India border areas and abide by relevant agreements and consensus between the two countries and the two militaries. The PLA’s comment on India making unrealistic demands stands in stark contrast to India’s view on the LAC crisis, which began in April 2020 when the PLA massed thousands of troops along the LAC, carried out multiple transgressions in eastern Ladakh, and disregarded the many previously agreed upon border agreements aimed at keeping the peace. While negotiations have led to disengagement in some of the areas, thousands of PLA troops remain in forward areas.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Allegations of Modi being dictatorial baseless, says Amit Shah

Home Minister Amit Shah has said in an interview that an illiterate person is a burden to the country and cannot be a good citizen. He made this observation while speaking to the government channel Sansad to mark 20 years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding a public office. Mr. Shah, while speaking on Mr. Modi’s focus on increasing primary school enrolment while he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, said: You can understand what contribution this had on the development of the country and Gujarat. An illiterate person becomes a big burden on the country. Neither does he know his Constitutional rights, nor the duties asked of us by the Constitution. How can he be a good citizen? In the interview, he dismissed the charge that Mr. Modi’s decision-making process was dictatorial, and emphasised the public support for the PM. While Mr. Shah has been Mr. Modi’s right-hand man from before he became the Gujarat CM and has been a de-facto spokesperson for the PM, he is now first and foremost the Home Minister of India. In that light, his characterisation of an illiterate person as not being good enough to be citizen of India is problematic.

After protests over delay, Ashish Mishra arrested

Ashish Mishra, the son of Union Minister Ajay Mishra, has been arrested and remanded to 14-day judicial custody over the Lakhimpur Kheri incident. Mr. Mishra was arrested based on the FIR in a case which alleges that he was at the wheel of one of the cars that mowed down protesting farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri in U.P. The chain of events left eight people dead. While both the Minister Mr. Mishra and his son deny that the latter was even at the location of the incident, the farmers allege that Ashish Mishra, in fact, shot one of the dead farmers. Union Minister Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra is escorted out of the crime branch office in Lakhimpur Kheri late on October 9, 2021 to be produced before a magistrate.  The arrest, which happened late on October 9, comes a week after the events of October 3. The delay in Ashish Mishra being detained had led to massive protests from farmers, and the U.P. government had come under pressure from the Supreme Court itself. While the arrest might lift some pressure on the Yogi Adityanath government in U.P., the political implications for the BJP in the poll bound State, as well as at the Centre, remain.

COVID-19 vaccine: Govt allows export of Russia’s Sputnik Light made in India

The government has permitted the export of Russia’s single-dose COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik Light domestically produced here as the jab has not yet been approved for emergency use in India, sources said on Sunday. Indian drug firm Hetero Biopharma Limited has been allowed to export 40 lakh doses of Sputnik Light to Russia, sources in the know of the developments told PTI. Sputnik Light is the same as component-1 of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V which is being used in India’s anti-COVID inoculation programme after getting emergency use authorisation from India’s Drug Regulator in April. The Russian ambassador had urged the Indian government to allow the export of  Sputnik Light produced by Hetero Biopharma, one of the partners of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) in the production of the jab, to his country till the vaccine gets emergency use authorisation from India’s drug regulator. In a communication to the Centre, Russian Ambassador Nicholay Kudashev had stated that Hetero Biopharma Limited already has manufactured one million doses of Component 1 of the Sputnik V and two million doses of the Sputnik Light but the six-month shelf life of the vaccine may expire before its registration which will result in the wastage of vaccine doses, sources said. The government has permitted Indian drug firm Hetero Biopharma to export 40 lakh doses of Sputnik Light to Russia. The decision was taken this week following detailed deliberations, a source said. Over the past months, the RDIF has been working closely with Indian pharmaceutical companies to ramp up the production of Sputnik vaccine in India that could be used in the local and global markets, the ambassador had stated in his communication last month. At the moment RDIF together with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories is working with authorities concerned on the registration of the Sputnik Light in India. We would like to note that Indian manufacturers of the Russian vaccine are discouraged by the current ban that prevents the use of the produced Sputnik Light vaccine in India and its export to other countries, stated the communication from the ambassador to V K Paul, chair of the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC).

 

Centre rebuts fears of power blackouts

Terming any fear of disruption in power supply in the country due to coal shortages ‘misplaced’, the Government on Sunday said coal stocks at power plants would ‘gradually improve’ and were currently sufficient for 24 days. At a review meeting of the coal stocks at thermal power plants attended by Power Minister R.K. Singh and Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi, the Coal Ministry and Coal India assured that there is ample coal available to meet the demand of power plants. The Coal Ministry also said coal supplies were set to hit a ‘record high’ in 2021-22 and blamed extended monsoons for constraints in dispatches from mines. Coal India, the Ministry said, was supplying more than 2.5 lakh tonnes daily to non-power industries such as aluminium, steel and cement, which reflected the ‘comfortable coal position in the country’. The daily average coal requirement at power plants is about 18.5 lakh tonnes whereas the daily coal supply has been around 17.5 lakh tonnes per day. Citing the heavy rains in coal field areas, the Ministry said the CIL was now supplying over 14 lakh tonnes a day to power plants which would increase to over 16 lakh tonnes by the end of October as the rains recede. The Power Ministry said in a separate statement that domestic coal supply had sustained the power plant operations despite heavy rains in August and September, steep hike in power demand due to economic recovery and increase in imported coal prices. All out efforts are being made to ensure full power supply to the DISCOMs as per requirements, the Ministry added. Taking special note of concerns raised by Delhi about the prospect of power supply disruptions in the capital, Mr. Singh had directed that distribution companies of Delhi would get ‘as much as power as requisitioned by them as per their demand’. The Minister had directed the NTPC and the DVC to give full availability of power as per the needs of distribution companies, and advised GAIL India to provide gas from all sources to gas-based power plants in Delhi. If any DISCOM is found to resort to load-shedding despite being power available as per the PPA, action would be initiated against them, the Power Ministry warned.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

13th edition of ground-level India-China talks

The 13th round of the Corps Commander level talks between India and China were held on Sunday at Moldo on the Chinese side. The aim of the meeting was to figure out disengagement at patrolling point 15 at Hot Springs in Eastern Ladakh, as part of the larger de-escalation along the Line of Actual Control in the region. There have been many engagements at various levels between the two sides since the standoff began in May last year, with Defence Ministers and Foreign Ministers from both sides meeting to reduce tensions. The Corp Commander level talks is the most consistent engagement between the two sides, ensuring cooperation at the ground level in an area filled with disputed areas and points of friction. While the talks may help in avoiding direct engagement, India’s concerns about Chinese build-up in the region remains.

Father of Pakistan’s nuclear programme dead

A.Q. Khan, known as the father of Pakistan’s nuclear programme, has died at the age of 85. Khan was born in 1936 in Bhopal and migrated to Pakistan after the Partition in 1947. Dr. Khan was put under house arrest in early 2004 after he admitted to running a clandestine nuclear proliferation ring. He later recanted that confession, saying it was made under pressure from the regime of the former military ruler, Pervez Musharraf.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Diesel breaches the ₹100 mark!

Diesel prices breached the ₹100 per litre mark in Mumbai on Saturday after fuel prices were hiked again —fifth day in a row. Petrol prices were hiked by 30 paise per litre and diesel by 35 paise a litre, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. The increase is likely to have a cascading effect on the price of essential commodities, vegetables fruits and milk with consumers bearing the brunt of the price rise. In Mumbai, diesel costs ₹100.29 a litre; while in Delhi, it costs ₹92.47. The price of petrol in Delhi soared to another high of ₹103.84 a litre and ₹109.83 per litre in Mumbai, the notification said. The prices of fuel vary from state to state according to the local taxes levied on them. As for price rise in gas, an explainer in The Hindu, has attributed this to a host of reasons from economic recovery to geopolitics, attributed to the price rise. Global energy demand fell last year when economies slipped into COVID-induced lockdowns When growth returned this year, especially to Asian economies, demand shot up and energy producers struggled to meet the growing demand, pushing up prices, The Hindu said. Being a net importer of oil, India prices petrol and diesel at rates equivalent to international prices. With state-owned fuel retailers passing on the price of the cost to consumers, prices of petrol, gas and diesel have been reaching new highs for four days in a row; the price of petrol has been hiked by 30 paise a litre and diesel by 35 paise, the biggest rally in rates. Fuel rates are linked to international price of crude as USD was 82 per barrel after the decision by OPEC not to increase output more than 0.4 million barrels per day; fuel rates are being increased by a larger proportion. India imports oil and hence the oil prices swing with international prices. 

Ashish Mishra appears before SIT

Reports of the arrest of Ashish Mishra,  son of Union Minister of State for Home, Ajay Mishra, continued to do the rounds as he finally appeared before the Special Investigation Team, after days of dodging summons issued by the police in connection with the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case. Police officials refused to comment on the ongoing interrogation. Official confirmation on Mishra’s arrest is awaited. A nine-member team headed by D.I.G. Upendra Agarwal has been formed to investigate the FIR lodged against the minister’s son and others. Ashish Mishra was supposed to appear before police on Friday, but he did not do so. The Uttar Pradesh Police then issued a fresh notice asking him to appear before it by 11 a.m. on Saturday. The state police then had pasted a notice outside Ashish Mishra’s house asking him to appear before it in connection with the violence that claimed eight lives. Four of the eight people who died in the violence on Sunday were farmers, allegedly knocked down by a vehicle carrying BJP workers. Angry farmers then allegedly lynched some people in the vehicles. The other dead included two BJP workers and their driver. Farmers have claimed that Ashish Mishra was in one of the vehicles, an allegation denied by him and his father. 

Samyukt Kisan Morcha blames the BJP for fomenting violence

The Samyukt Kisan Morcha, the umbrella body of farmer unions spearheading the ongoing farmers’ protests against Centre’s farm laws on Saturday has accused the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) of attempting to dislodge the current agitation by resorting to violent measures; their intent  exposed in the backdrop of Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri incident. Senior SKM leader Darshan Pal said that the Lakhimpur Kheri violence should not been seen in isolation as the incident is a part of larger conspiracy against farmers’ and the ongoing struggle. The Lakhimpur incident is an attempt to create an atmosphere to terrorise people and to shut people’s voice. The SKM has stood firmly against this approach and will continue to raise the voice, he said at a press conference in New Delhi. Joginder Singh, president of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan), one of the SKM constituent said that ongoing farmer’s agitation is going on peacefully, but BJP governments – be it at the Centre or in Uttar Pradesh have been attempting various tactics to dislodge the movement.  Even though the BJP is involving in violence, we will reply in a peaceful manner, which is strength of our movement. Our agitation will continue until our demands are fulfilled. There’s no question of relenting now, he added. We will observe October 12 as ‘Shaheed Kisan Diwas’ and we appealed to the farmers all over the country to join the ‘antim ardas’ (final rites) of the farmers, who died in Lakhimpur Kheri at Tikonia, he said.

India, China talks tomorrow

India and China will hold their 13th round of talks on Sunday to address the ongoing military stand-off between the two countries, according to Army sources. The mediations are likely to be held at Moldo (Chusul) on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC). A resolution to the friction at Hot Springs is likely to figure in the talks. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday had said that it expected China to work towards early resolution of the remaining issue along the Line of Control (LoC) in Eastern Ladakh by fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols. Addressing a weekly media briefing, the MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, It is our expectation that China will work towards early resolution of the remaining issue along the Line of Control in Eastern Ladakh while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols. Earlier, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, met Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and the two leaders discussed the border tensions and disengagement along the LAC. Soldiers of India and China clashed last year resulting in the loss of several lives on both sides. The clashes erupted after the transgression by Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) in Galwan Valley. More than a year has passed since the incident, but tensions have not abated between the two countries. So far, 12 rounds of military talks and a series of diplomatic parleys were held between India and China, but tensions remain.  India insists that only full disengagement will result in de-escalation. 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

If China There to Stay, We are Too’: Army Chief Naravane on LAC Build-up at Eastern Ladakh

The military build-up by China in the eastern Ladakh region and new infrastructure development to sustain the large-scale deployment are matters of concern and India has been keeping a close watch on all the activities by the Chinese PLA, Chief of Army Staff Gen MM Naravane said on Saturday. He said if the Chinese military maintains the deployment through the second winter, it may lead to an LoC-like situation (Line of Control) though not an active LoC as is there on the western front with Pakistan The Chief of Army Staff said if the Chinese military continues with its deployment, the Indian Army too will maintain its presence on its side which is as good as what the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) has done. Indian and Chinese militaries have been on a standoff in several areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh for nearly 17 months though both sides disengaged from a number of friction points this year following a series of talks. Yes, it is a matter of concern that the large-scale build-up has occurred and continues to be in place, and to sustain that kind of a build-up, there has been an equal amount of infrastructure development on the Chinese side, Gen Naravane said at the Indian Today conclave. So, it means that they (PLA) are there to stay. We are keeping a close watch on all these developments, but if they are there to stay, we are there to stay too, he said. Gen Naravane said the build-up and the infrastructure development on the Indian side are as good as what PLA has done. But what this would, especially if they continue to stay there through the second winter, definitely mean that we will be in a kind of LC (Line of Control) situation though not an active LC as is there on the western front, he said. But definitely, we will have to keep a close eye on all the troop build-up and deployments to see that they do not get into any misadventure once again, the Army Chief said.

 

China’s Xi vows ‘reunification’ with Taiwan

Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed on Saturday to achieve peaceful reunification with Taiwan, and did not directly mention the use of force after a week of tensions with the Chinese-claimed island that sparked international concern. Taiwan responded to Xi by calling on Beijing to abandon its coercion, reiterating that only Taiwan’s people could decide their future. Democratically ruled Taiwan has come under increased military and political pressure from Beijing to accept its sovereignty, but Taipei has pledged to defend its freedom. Speaking at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Xi said the Chinese people have a glorious tradition of opposing separatism. Taiwan independence separatism is the biggest obstacle to achieving the reunification of the motherland, and the most serious hidden danger to national rejuvenation, he said on the anniversary of the revolution that overthrew the last imperial dynasty in 1911. Peaceful reunification best meets the overall interests of the Taiwanese people, but China will protect its sovereignty and unity, he added. No one should underestimate the Chinese people’s staunch determination, firm will, and strong ability to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Xi said. The historical task of the complete reunification of the motherland must be fulfilled, and will definitely be fulfilled. He struck a slightly softer tone than in July, his last major speech mentioning Taiwan, in which he vowed to smash any attempts at formal independence. In 2019, he directly threatened to use force to bring the island under Beijing’s control. The presidential office said they were a sovereign independent country, not part of the People’s Republic of China, and had clearly rejected China’s offer of one country, two systems to rule the island. The nation’s future rests in the hands of Taiwan’s people, the office said. In a separate statement, Taiwan’s China-policy making Mainland Affairs Council called on Beijing to abandon its provocative steps of intrusion, harassment and destruction and return to talks. A U.S. State Department spokesperson reiterated Washington’s rock-solid commitment to Taiwan and said the United States will continue to support a peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues, consistent with the wishes and best interests of the people on Taiwan.

NATIONAL NEWS 

Lakhimpur Kheri violence | Supreme Court dissatisfied with U.P. government’s status report

The Supreme Court on Friday said the Uttar Pradesh Government’s resolve to fairly investigate the Lakhimpur Kheri violence and deaths, including allegations of murder against a Union Minister’s son, seemed just all talk and no action. Your seriousness is only in words and not in your actions, Chief Justice of India (CJI) N.V. Ramana addressed the government. Justice Hima Kohli told the State, There is an old adage which rings true in this situation the proof of the pudding is in the eating. The State is represented by senior advocate Harish Salve and State Additional Advocate General Garima Parshad. Justice Surya Kant, on the Bench, told the State, It is a case of brutal murder of eight persons, law must take its course against all the accused. The court stated that it was dissatisfied with the government’s status report on the investigation. Chief Justice Ramana pointed out how even a special investigation team formed by the State was made of local police officers, inspectors, police superintendents and a DIG. The court asked whether the State has yet made a request to the CBI to take over the case. Salve replied in the negative. After a pause, the court itself went on to express doubts about transferring the case to the CBI. The CBI is not a solution for reason of the persons involved…, Chief Justice Ramana told Salve. The persons involved may have been a reference to the case’s link to a Central Minister. Salve began his submissions, saying a young man, ostensibly Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra, was being targeted. Ashish is accused of shooting dead a farmer while trying to escape agitated farmers after vehicles in the Minister’s convoy rammed into them. The charges are serious, Chief Justice Ramana addressed Salve. The latter said a notice had been issued to Ashish, asking him to appear before the police by 11 a.m. tomorrow. If the person does not come, the rigour of law will take its course, he assured. The CJI asked sharply, Is it the same way you treat other accused too? Like sending notices, etc.? Salve said he was instructed by the State that the postmortem report on the victim did not show bullet injuries. That is why notice was issued. If the allegations are true, it is certainly a Section 302 IPC [murder] case, he stated. After conferring for a moment, the CJI addressed Salve, This is the opinion of the Bench. As a responsible State government with a system and police, when there is a serious allegation of death or gunshot injury, will any other accused in this country be treated the same way? Salve remarked that the investigators had found two cartridges and may be he had bad aim. Chief Justice Ramana told Salve, It is an extremely serious issue, you are not proceeding in the way you should be… Imagine, what is the message we are sending out? In normal circumstances, a case of Section 302 IPC will be registered. The police will go out and arrest that person. The senior lawyer urged the court to give some more time to the State to repair the shortfalls in the investigation. He said everything would fall in place in a day or two. He would talk to the Home Secretary and the DGP. They [State] should have done the needful. They have to make another pudding and make it palatable, Salve agreed with the court. He said the court could list the case immediately on reopening after the Dussehra holidays. The Bench posted the case for October 20 as the first item on the list. We have respect for you, Salve. We hope the State will take the necessary steps, the CJI observed.

Will gherao PM’s residence if culprits not arrested in 7 days, says Chandrashekhar Azad.

Azad Samaj Party (ASP) chief and Dalit leader Chandrashekhar Azad on Friday said he and his supporters will gherao the residence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi if the culprits of the Lakhimpur Kheri incident are not arrested within seven days. The Prime Msinister tweets on every issue but he is yet to react on the killing of the farmers. The culprits are roaming free. We will gherao the PM’s residence if the culprits are not arrested within seven days, Azad said at a press conference. PM Modi was celebrating ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ in Lucknow when the families of farmers were in mourning, he said.  Those who are mum on the killing of farmers cannot be loyal to the country. The Prime Minister should talk to farmers, go to Lakhimpur Kheri and meet family members of slain farmers, he said. The Dalit leader compared the October 3 incident to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and said it will have huge repercussions in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections next year. Azad alleged there is no law and order in Uttar Pradesh and demanded that the CM tender his resignation.

My son is innocent, will appear before police on October 9, says Ajay Mishra 

Union Minister Ajay Mishra, whose son faces a murder case in connection with the October 3 violence in Lakhimpur Kheri on Friday said his son was innocent and will appear before the Uttar Pradesh police on Saturday to record his statement. He said Ashish missed the police summons for Friday 10 am as he was not well. We have full faith in the law. My son is innocent. He got a notice on Thursday but he said he was not well. He will appear before the police tomorrow and give his statement and evidence as he is innocent, the Union Minister of State for Home told reporters at Chowdhury Charan Singh airport here. The Minister’s son is named in the FIR in the Lakhimpur violence that took place on October 3 in which eight persons including four farmers and a journalist were killed. Ashish was asked by the police to appear before it at 10 am Friday, but he skipped the summons.

 

Tata Sons wins bid to acquire Air India 

The government on Friday announced Tata Sons subsidiary Talace Pvt Ltd as the winning bidder for Air India. Talace has quoted an enterprise value of ₹18,000 crore. Of this, ₹15,300 is towards debt component of Air India, and the remaining will be cash paid to the government, DIPAM Secretary, Tuhin Kanta Pandey said at a press briefing. Total Air India debt as on August 31, 2021 is ₹61,562 crore. Of this, the winning bidder takes on ₹15,300 crore and the balance ₹45,263 crore will be repaid by the government to the lenders. The second highest bidder was a consortium led by SpiceJet’s Ajay Singh, which had cited an enterprise value of ₹15,100 crore. The reserve price determined by the government was ₹12,000 crore. The government aims to conclude the transaction by December, 2021, when the government shares will be transferred to the Tata subsidiary.

Mumbai court refuses bail to Aryan Khan, two others in drugs case 

A metropolitan magistrate in Mumbai on Friday denied bail to Aryan Khan, son of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, and two others in a case pertaining to the alleged seizure of banned drugs from a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate R.M. Nerlikar rejected the bail pleas of Aryan Khan (23) and the other two accused. The court on Thursday sent Aryan Khan and seven others arrested in the case in 14-day judicial remand after their NCB custody ended. Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, appearing for the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), opposed the bail applications of the three accused. After hearing the arguments, the magistrate denied bail to Aryan Khan, Munmun Dhamecha and Arbaaz Merchant, saying their applications were not maintainable. The NCB had arrested these three along with some others over the last weekend after raiding the Goa-bound Cordelia cruise ship on Saturday evening. The central agency had claimed to have recovered drugs from the ship. A total of 18 persons have been arrested so far in the case.

In favour of raising speed limit on expressways to 140 kmph: Gadkari 

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday said that he is in favour of increasing the maximum speed limit on expressways to 140 km per hour, and added that a Bill will soon be introduced in Parliament to revise the speed limits for vehicles for different categories of roads. The Minister for Road Transport and Highways added that there is a mentality regarding speed that if the speed of the car increases, then there will be an accident. My personal view is that the speed limit for vehicles on expressways should be increased to 140 km per hour, he said while addressing the ‘India Today Conclave 2021’. Gadkari added that while the speed limits for National Highways should be at least 100 km per hour on four-lane roads, the respective speed limits for two-lane roads and city roads should be 80 km per hour and 75 km per hour. He said the parameters of speed limits for vehicles in India is one of the big challenges. There are some decisions by the Supreme Court and High Courts regarding car speed due to which we are not able to do anything, Gadkari said. He added, Such expressways have been built in the country that not even a dog can come on those roads because barricading has been done on both sides of the road. He said he had prepared a file to revise the maximum speed limits for vehicles for different categories of roads. In a democracy, we have the right to make laws and judges have the right to interpret the law…a Bill will soon be introduced in Parliament to revise the speed limits for vehicles on Indian roads, he said.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

Two journalists win Nobel Peace Prize for defending freedom of expression 

The 2021 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded on Friday to journalists Maria Ressa of the Philippines and Dmitry Muratov of Russia. The Norwegian Nobel Committee cited their fight for freedom of expression, stressing that it is vital in promoting peace. Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda, said Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the committee. Without freedom of expression and freedom of the press, it will be difficult to successfully promote fraternity between nations, disarmament, and a better world order to succeed in our time, she said. Ressa in 2012 co-founded Rappler, a news website that has focused critical attention on the (President Rodrigo) Duterte regime’s controversial, murderous anti-drug campaign, the Nobel committee said. She and Rappler have also documented how social media is being used to spread fake news, harass opponents and manipulate public discourse. Reacting to the news, Ressa told Norway’s TV2 channel that the government (of the Philippines) will obviously not be happy. I’m a little shocked. It’s really emotional, she added. But I am happy on behalf of my team and would like to thank the Nobel Committee for recognising what we are going through. Muratov was one of the founders of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta in 1993. Novaya Gazeta is the most independent newspaper in Russia today, with a fundamentally critical attitude towards power, the Nobel committee said. The newspaper’s fact-based journalism and professional integrity have made it an important source of information on censurable aspects of Russian society rarely mentioned by other media, it added. The Nobel committee noted that since the launch of Novaya Gazeta, six of its journalists have been killed, among them Anna Politkovskaya, who covered Russia’s bloody conflict in Chechnya. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov hailed Muratov as a talented and brave person. We can congratulate Dmitry Muratov he has consistently worked in accordance with his ideals, Peskov said in a conference call with reporters after the prize was announced. Reiss-Andersen noted that the peace prize has gone to journalists in the past, including Ernesto Teodoro Moneta of Italy who was cited in 1907 for his work in the press and in peace meetings. In 1935, Carl von Ossietzky was awarded the prize for his burning love for freedom of thought and expression after revealing that Germany was secretly re-arming after World War I. Reiss-Andersen also noted the risks to free speech in today’s world due to the spread of fake news, noting that Ressa has been critical of Facebook’s role in manipulating public debate. Conveying fake news and information that is propaganda and untrue is also a violation of freedom of expression, and all freedom of expression has its limitations. That is also a very important factor in this debate, she said.

 

Bomb kills at least 100 at Shia mosque in Afghanistan’s Kunduz 

An apparent bomb attack on worshippers at a Shia mosque in the Afghan city of Kunduz killed at least 100 people on Friday, in the bloodiest assault since US forces left the country. Scores more victims from the minority community were injured in the blast, which has not been claimed but appears designed to further destabilise Afghanistan in the wake of the Taliban takeover. A medical source at the Kunduz Provincial Hospital said that 35 dead and more than 50 injured had been taken there, while a worker at a Doctors Without Borders hospital reported 15 dead and scores more wounded. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid had earlier said an unknown number of people had been killed and injured when an explosion took place in a mosque of our Shiite compatriots in Kunduz. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State group, arch-rival of the Taliban, has claimed similar recent atrocities. Residents of Kunduz, the capital of a province of the same name, told AFP the blast hit a Shiite mosque during Friday prayers, the most important of the week for Muslims. Kunduz’s location makes it a key transit point for economic and trade exchanges with Tajikistan. It was the scene of fierce battles as the Taliban fought their way back into power this year. Often targeted by Sunni extremists, Shiite Muslims have suffered some of Afghanistan’s most violent assaults, with rallies bombed, hospitals targeted and commuters ambushed. Shias make up roughly 20% of the Afghan population. Many of them are Hazara, an ethnic group that has been heavily persecuted in Afghanistan for decades. In October 2017, a lone IS suicide attacker struck a Shiite mosque as worshippers gathered for evening prayers in the west of Kabul, killing 56 people and wounding 55, including women and children.