Tag: ibps

CURRENT AFFAIRS
23 February 2021

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Puducherry chief minister resigns after losing trust vote. 

Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy on Monday submitted his resignation to Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan after it became apparent that he had lost the confidence of the House. A Motion of Confidence moved by Narayanasamy in the Assembly was not put to vote. However, Speaker V.P. Sivakolandhu announced that it stood defeated after the Chief Minister, questioning the right of the three nominated members to vote, led a walkout of the ruling Congress-DMK legislators. Opposition MLAs numbering 14 from the All India N. R. Congress (7), AIADMK (4) and BJP (3 nominated) were in the House when the Speaker gave his ruling. Resignations by half-a-dozen legislators five from the Congress, including two ministers, and one from the DMK in recent weeks and the disqualification of a Congress legislator last year had reduced the government to a minority. The House strength had come down to 26 from 33 due to which the opposition outnumbered the ruling alliance Congress (9 including Speaker), DMK (2) and Independent (1). Soon after the House assembled at 10 am on the directions of the Lt Governor to the government to prove its majority, Narayanasamy moved a Motion of Confidence and spoke for about an hour on the hurdles they faced from the Centre and from former Lt Governor Kiran Bedi over the years. As soon as he finished his speech, Government whip R.K.R. Anantharaman sought a clarification from the Speaker on voting rights of three nominated legislators belonging to BJP. When the Opposition started arguing with the ruling party members, Narayanasamy and ruling party members staged a walk out. Narayanasamy then left for Raj Nivas to hand over his resignation to the Lt Governor. Addressing reporters after tendering his resignation, Narayanasamy said they staged a walk out as the Speaker did not clarify on their demand on the voting rights of three nominated legislators. The Chief Minister said the Speaker did not agree to our view that only members elected by the people have the voting rights.

B) IMA ‘shocked’ over Patanjali’s claim on Coronil; demands explanation from Harsh Vardhan. 

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday expressed shock and dismay at what it described as a blatant lie of WHO certification for Patanjali’s Coronil tablet, which the company claims can be used to fight Covid-19. It has also demanded an explanation from Health Minister Harsh Vardhan about his presence at the event where Coronil was launched last week. The Association’s two-page note comes after World Health Organisation clarified that it has not reviewed or certified the effectiveness of any traditional medicine for the treatment of Covid-19. On Friday last, Ramdev launched the product in the presence of Vardhan and Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport & Highways and Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. The IMA said it was shocked to note the blatant lie of certification for a secret medicine launched in the presence of the Health Minister, who is a doctor as well. The country needs an explanation from him, it said in a statement. This claim is a blatant deceiving of the people of the country. The Association will write to National Medical Commission for seeking suo motu explanation for his blatant disrespect to the code of conduct. The IMA asked the Health Minister: How appropriate and rational is it to release such false projections in front of the whole country? Being a Health Minister of the country, how justified is it to release such falsely fabricated unscientific product? How ethical is it to promote the product in unethical, wrong and false ways to the whole country? Being a modern medicine doctor, how ethical is it to promote the unscientific product. It said if Coronil was effective, why was the government spending ₹35,000 crore for vaccination? The AYUSH Ministry had earlier said Coronil can be sold only as an immunity-booster and not as a cure.

C) Varavara Rao gets medical bail for 6 months. 

The Bombay High Court granted medical bail to Varavara Rao, 82, in the Bhima Koregaon violence case and said, with all humility and human considerations, we are of the opinion that this is a fit case for allowing the relief. A Division Bench of Justices S.S. Shinde and Manish Pitale said that they feel that with the condition of the undertrial (Rao), it would be inappropriate to send him back. The undertrial is to be released on bail for a period of six months and directs that he has to stay within the jurisdiction of the special National Investigation Agency (NIA) Court, the court stated. Senior counsel Anand Grover had previously urged the court to release Rao on medical bail so that he can be fit for trial. Among other ailments, Rao suffers from a neurological condition and will be fit for trial if he is with his family, Grover had contended.

D) One day police custody for Disha Ravi. 

A Delhi court on Monday sent 22-year-old climate activist Disha Ravi, arrested in connection with allegedly being involved in sharing on social media a toolkit related to the farmers’ protest, to one day police custody. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Pankaj Sharma allowed custodial interrogation of Ravi after police said she was required to be confronted with co-accused. Ravi was produced before the court on expiry of her three-day judicial custody. The court on Friday had sent her to judicial custody after police had said her custodial interrogation was not required for the time being. The agency had said that it would seek her further custodial interrogation once co-accused Nikita Jacob and Shantanu Muluk joined the interrogation on February 22. Ravi was arrested by Delhi police on February 13 from Bengaluru.

E) RIL-Future deal: NCLT can continue proceedings, but cannot pass final order, says SC. 

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) proceedings in connection with the proposed ₹24,713-crore deal between Future Group and Reliance Industries to go on, but directed the Tribunal to refrain from passing any final order of sanction of the scheme. E-commerce major Amazon, which opposes the multi-crore deal, had recently moved the NCLT against Future Group’s plea to hold a meeting of its shareholders or creditors to approve the deal with Reliance. On Monday, an apex court Bench led by Justice Rohinton Nariman also issued notice on a petition filed by Amazon, to stay the operation of a Delhi High Court order of February 8, which revoked an earlier direction to Future Group to maintain ‘status quo’ on the sale of its retail assets to Reliance Industries. They are not saying anything on merits now. They have read the files thoroughly and they know exactly what is happening, Justice Nariman told the lawyers. When senior advocate Ranjit Kumar asked whether the apex court’s intervention and notice in the case would mean the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court could not proceed further, Justice Nariman replied obviously, show them the order. In its order, the Bench, while issuing notice to Future Retail and other parties arraigned by Amazon as respondents, said they would get two weeks to file their counter while Amazon was given a week to file its rejoinder thereafter. The case would next come up for hearing after three weeks. In the meantime, the NCLT proceedings will be allowed to go on but will not culminate in any final order of sanction of scheme, the apex court directed. In its petition challenging the February 8 order of the High Court, Amazon, represented by senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, had said the order was ex-facie arbitrary and illegal. It was passed by a Division Bench of the High Court on an appeal filed by Future Retail Limited (FRL).

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) Boeing’s recommendation to ground 777s not to impact India: Civil Aviation Ministry source. 

Boeing’s recommendation to ground over 120 of its 777 series of planes with engines similar to the one that failed on a United Airlines plane in Denver, United States, would not impact India as the 777s operating in the country did not have Pratt and Whitney PW4000 engines, a Civil Aviation Ministry source said on Monday. After the Denver incident, Boeing recommended grounding of the planes pending inspections. Soon after the take-off, one engine of the plane carrying 231 passengers and 10-member crew from Denver to Honolulu had failed. However, no one was injured during the emergency landing. While United Airlines decided to temporarily ground 24 Boeing 777s, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued a directive for immediate inspection of the planes with the same type of engine. In Japan also, two airline operators have been ordered to suspend operating the 777s using Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, reports said.

B) China expresses support for India hosting BRICS summit in 2021. 

China on February 22 expressed its support for India hosting this year’s BRICS summit and said it will work with New Delhi to strengthen cooperation among the five-member grouping of emerging economies. India has assumed the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) chairmanship for 2021 and is set to hold this year’s summit. On February 19, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar launched India’s BRICS 2021 website at the BRICS Secretariat in Sushma Swaraj Bhawan in New Delhi. Asked about India assuming the BRICS chairmanship this year, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin Beijing backed New Delhi in hosting the summit. He did not, however, specify whether Chinese President Xi Jinping would attend the summit expected to be held later this year.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
22 February 2021

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Two more MLAs quit in Puducherry ahead of floor test. 

Two more MLAs of the Congress-DMK alliance in Puducherry resigned on Sunday, delivering yet another jolt to Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, a day before he is scheduled to face a floor test in the assembly to prove his majority. The resignation by Congress MLA K Lakshminarayanan and DMK legislator Venkatesan further reduced the strength of the ruling alliance to 11, while the opposition has 14 MLAs in the 33-member assembly, which has seven vacancies. Mr. Lakshminarayanan and Mr. Venkatesan submitted their resignation letters separately to Assembly Speaker V P Sivakolundhu at his residence in Puducherry, the both said. Speaking to reporters, Lakshminarayanan said that this government led by Narayanasamy has lost majority. He said he has also resigned from the party membership. Later, Venkatesan told the media that he had quit the post of MLA only and continued to be in the DMK. He was not able to meet the needs of the people in his constituency since there was no allocation of funds under the MLA Local Area Development fund, he said. Four Congress MLAs–including ex-ministers A Namassivayam (now in BJP) and Malladi Krishna Rao had quit, while another party legislator was earlier disqualified. Mr. Narayanasamy’s confidante A John Kumar had resigned this week. Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, handed over additional charge of Puducherry, had on Thursday directed Narayanasamy to prove majority by ordering a floor test on February 22.

B) Sonia Gandhi likens high fuel prices to extortion. 

Congress president Sonia Gandhi in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused his government of profiteering from people’s miseries by called the excessively levying excise duty on petroleum products and called it nothing short of extortion to cover up economic mismanagement. In her three page letter, Ms. Gandhi mentioned that hardships faced by the middle class increased with the price of petrol crossing ₹100 per litre in several parts of India and the surging diesel prices have only added to the problems of the farmers. She asked the government to focus on solutions instead of looking for excuses as India deserves better. The Congress chief said that while India was witnessing erosion of jobs, wages and household incomes, problems for the middle class and marginal income groups have compounded by run away inflation and an unprecedented rise in price of almost all household items and essential commodities. Sadly, in these distressing times, the Government has chosen to profiteer off people’s misery and suffering, Ms. Gandhi wrote, adding that Governments are elected to ease the burden of our people and at the very least, not work directly contrary to their interests.

C) U.P. Police register FIR against 8 Twitter handles. 

The Unnao police on Sunday lodged an FIR under the charges of provoking rioting against eight Twitter users for spreading fake stories about the alleged poisoning of three Dalit girls in Asoha on February 17, which left two dead and one in hospital in critical condition. The police said the Twitter handles had spread false information that the girls had been raped, which was not found in the post-mortem report, and that the last rites of the two girls were done without the consent of their families, which also was denied by the police. An FIR was registered under Section 153 of the IPC and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act against @NilimDutta, @themojostory, @janjagranlive, @SurajKrBaudh, @VijayAmbedkarUP, @Abhaykumarazad97, @Rahuldiwkr and @BhimSenaChief. Unnao SP Anand Kulkarni said further action would be taken in the case and the FIR under the same Sections against Congress leader Udit Raj for a tweet, after the police take legal opinion. He said the tweets could have affected the law and order in the village.

D) Covid watch: Numbers and Developments. 

The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stands at 1,10,05,310 with the death toll at 1,57,796. The Centre has written to States  Kerala, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and J&K which are witnessing a daily surge in the number of daily Covid-19 cases directing an increase in proportion of RT-PCR tests while ensuring that those testing negative with Rapid Antigen be retested by RT-PCR. Centre has also asked states to look into strict, comprehensive surveillance and stringent containment to curb the spread of the virus. In its release issued on February 21 the Health Ministry said that more than 74% of the active COVID-19 cases of the country are in Kerala and Maharashtra and that a spike in cases has been seen in some States. India has been witnessing a rise in the active caseload over the past few days and its total active caseload is pegged at 1,45,634 currently, said the Ministry. It added that in the last four weeks in Kerala the average weekly cases have fluctuated between a high of 42,000 to a low of 34,800 and the weekly positivity here has ranged from 13.9% to 8.9%. In Maharashtra, in the last four weeks, the weekly cases have shown a rising trend and have increased from 18,200 to 21,300 and the areas of concern are the Mumbai Suburban areas where the weekly cases have risen by 19%. Data released by the Ministry said that Punjab too is rapidly assuming a critical dimension with COVID-19 infection registering a positivity rate from 1.4% to 1.6 % in the last four weeks.

E) WHO says no traditional medicine cleared for Covid-19 treatment. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) has in a tweet clarified that it has not certified any traditional medicine for the treatment of COVID-19. The statement comes after recent claims by Patanjali Ayurved on the certification of its product, Coronil, by the global health body. WHO has not reviewed or certified the effectiveness of any traditional medicine for the treatment COVID-19, the global health body said earlier this week. Coronil has received the Certificate of Pharmaceutical Product (CoPP) from the Ayush section of Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation as per the WHO certification scheme, a statement issued by Patanjali had said. The Ministry of Ayush had recommended additional therapies, including the Coronil tablet, as a supporting measure (immune booster) in Covid-19. Patanjali Ayurved had introduced Ayurveda-based Coronil on June 23, 2020.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) China detains three bloggers for ‘insulting’ PLA men who died in Galwan. 

Authorities in China have said they have detained three people for insulting Chinese soldiers who died in the Galwan Valley clash last year, a day after Beijing officially confirmed the deaths. Among the arrested was Qiu Ziming (38), an investigative journalist formerly with The Economic Observer. Mr. Qiu was arrested on Saturday in Nanjing, where he lives, after questioning China’s official account of the Galwan clash. On Friday, the Chinese military announced honours for five People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers, including four who died and one regimental commander who was injured, in the clash on June 15, 2020, which marked the worst violence on the India-China border since 1967. Twenty Indian soldiers lost their lives in the clash. In messages to his 2.5 million followers on Weibo, the Twitter-equivalent used in China, he suggested the fatalities would have been higher than four because as per the official account, some of the soldiers died coming to the aid of troops in difficulty, who, in his view, would have suffered losses as well. He also questioned why the announcement took eight months, while India had, in contrast, promptly recognised the 20 Indian soldiers who died. India’s prompt announcement, he wrote, suggested that in India’s view they won and paid a lesser price.  Police in Nanjing posted a message on Saturday saying he was arrested for releasing false information and smearing the four heroes who died and one who was wounded when dealing with the Indian military’s illegal trespassing. Mr. Qiu’s social media account was subsequently suspended. His arrest was among the most discussed topics online, receiving 730 million views as of Sunday evening.

B) Djokovic wins 9th Australian open title, third in a row. 

Novak Djokovic racked up yet another Australian Open title, making it nine championship wins from nine finals. The Serbian continues to gain ground on Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the Grand Slam standings, now up to 18 overall, two away from the men’s record shared by his two rivals. Djokovic wore Medvedev down with a combination of superb serving and his usual relentless returning and baseline supremacy, grabbing 11 of 13 games in one stretch for a third trophy in a row at Melbourne Park. Some statistics from the Associated Press – The 33-year-old from Serbia improved to 18-0 combined in semifinals and finals on the hard courts of the Australian Open. Serbia’s Novak Djokovic parades with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup after defeating Russia’s Daniil Medvedev in the men’s singles final at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne on February 21, 2021. Looking at the bigger picture, Djokovic has won six of the last 10 major tournaments and is assured of remaining at No. 1 in the rankings at least through March 8. That will give him 311 weeks in the top spot, breaking a mark held by Federer. The No. 4-ranked Medvedev was appearing in his second Grand Slam final he was the runner-up to Nadal at the 2019 U.S. Open but is still left trying collect his first such championship. Djokovic ended the 25-year-old Russian’s 20-match winning streak. Medvedev also had won his previous 12 matches against Top 10 opponents.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
21 February 2021

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) ‘If highlighting farmers’ protest globally is sedition, I’m better in jail,’ Disha Ravi tells court. 

There is no evidence to show that the toolkit on farmers’ protest is responsible for the violence on January 26, activist Disha Ravi’s counsel told a Delhi court, which reserved for February 26 its order on her bail plea. If highlighting farmers’ protest globally is sedition, he is better in jail, Ravi said through her counsel today. Ravi’s counsel was submitting arguments after the Delhi Police opposed her bail plea, alleging she was preparing the toolkit with those advocating Khalistan and was part of a global conspiracy to defame India and create unrest in the country in the garb of farmers’ protest. This was not just a toolkit. The real plan was to defame India and create unrest here, the police said before Additional Sessions Judge Dharmender Rana. However, Ravi’s lawyer rejected the allegations. There is no evidence to link him with Sikhs For Justice, a banned organisation. And even if he (Ravi) meet someone, there is no symbol on him that he is a secessionist, the defence counsel said. The Delhi police gave permission for the farmers’ march, which they’re claiming that he (Ravi) asked people to join, so how did he become seditious, the lawyer said in court. Meanwhile, Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg has extended her support to Ravi. Freedom of speech and the right to peaceful protest and assembly are non-negotiable human rights. These must be a fundamental part of any democracy, Thunberg tweeted on Friday, using the hashtag #StandWithDishaRavi. Her first public expression of support comes almost a week after Ravi’s arrest.

B) Unnao survivor taken off ventilator.

The teenager from an Unnao village, who was among three girls found unconscious in a field on Wednesday, was taken off ventilator support on Saturday, a statement from the Kanpur hospital treating her said. The girl was off ventilator and has spontaneous respiration three days after she was admitted to the hospital at 11 p.m. on Wednesday, a medical bulletin issued by Regency Hospital PRO Paramjeet Arora said. The girl was being treated in the pediatric intensive care unit and was under constant monitoring, the bulletin said. The three minor girls, all from the same Dalit family in a village in Asoha block, who had gone to fetch fodder, were found unconscious by family members on Wednesday evening. Two of the girls later died, allegedly due to poisoning. The Uttar Pradesh police on Friday arrested a youth, Vinay, and detained a juvenile from the neighbouring village for allegedly giving the girls water laced with insecticide. Meanwhile, the Unnao Police on Saturday registered an FIR against Congress leader Udit Raj over a tweet by him claiming that the victims’ family had alleged the girls were raped and that the last rites were performed without their consent. The FIR was filed under Section 153 of the Indian Penal Code (provocation to riot) and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act.

C) One more city renamed: Hoshangabad to become ‘Narmadapuram’

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has announced that Hoshangabad city in the state would be renamed as Narmadapuram and a proposal to that effect would be sent to the Centre, PTI reported. While addressing a gathering on the banks of Narmada, Chouhan asked whether the government should change the name of Hoshangabad, to which the people present there replied in the affirmative. What should be the new name? Chouhan asked, and the people replied, Narmadapuram! The chief minister then said that they are now sending a proposal to the Centre to change the name of Hoshangabad as Narmadapuram. BJP workers, led by protem Assembly Speaker Rameshwar Sharma, expressed happiness over Chouhan’s announcement and burst firecrackers. This is a historic moment. Narmada is the lifeline of Madhya Pradesh. Hoshangabad was so far named after an attacker Hoshang Shah, but will be known after the lifeline Maa Narmada, which is a matter of happiness, he said. However, state Congress spokesman Bhupendra Gupta termed the announcement as the ruling BJP’s ploy to divert the attention of people from important issues like inflation and rising prices of fuel. BJP only changed the names related to the Mughals, but not of those linked to the British rulers. Why the name of Minto Hall (old Vidhan Sabha building) has not been changed? This is just to divert the attention. Instead, it should focus on development and give relief to people, he said.

D) Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments. 

The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 1,09,81,164 with the death toll at 1,57,625. There has been an upsurge in daily new Covid-19 cases in Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, according to the Union Health Ministry. In the past week, Maharashtra exhibited a spike in the number of daily new cases. In the last 24 hours, 6,112 daily new cases have been reported in the State. Chhattisgarh reported 259 cases, Punjab 383 and Madhya Pradesh 297, said the Ministry. It asserted that people should keep in mind the importance of adherence to Covid-19 appropriate behaviour. This is essential for breaking the chain of transmission of the virus and containment of spread of the disease, it stated. Eighteen States/UTs have not reported any Covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours and these include Telangana, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Tripura, Assam, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, Manipur, Meghalaya, Ladakh (UT), Mizoram, Sikkim, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

A) India, China begin 10th round of talks on next phase of disengagement.

India and China began the tenth round of Corps Commander talks on Saturday to work out an agreement on the next phase of disengagement. The talks began at Moldo on the Chinese side at 10 a.m., a defence official said. On Friday, the two sides completed disengagement and also restoration of the ground on the north and south banks of Pangong Tso, as per the agreement reached in the ninth round of talks. This undated handout photograph released by the Indian Army on February 16, 2021 shows People Liberation Army soldiers during military disengagement along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh. The other major friction points are Gogra, Hot Springs and Depsang Plains. The focus of this round of talks is expected to be on Gogra and Hot Springs, where partial disengagement was already done in June-July last year. For disengagement at Pangong Tso lake, both sides had worked out a step-by-step agreement. A second official said a similar agreement would be worked out for the subsequent rounds of disengagement and then de-escalation.

B) Google fires another leader of Ethical AI team. 

Alphabet Inc’s Google fired staff scientist Margaret Mitchell on Friday, they both said, a move that fanned company divisions on academic freedom and diversity that were on display since its December dismissal of AI ethics researcher Timnit Gebru, Reuters reported. Google said in a statement Mitchell violated the company’s code of conduct and security policies by moving electronic files outside the company. Mitchell, who announced her firing on Twitter, tweeting, he is fired. Well known transparency activist and whistleblower Chelsea E. Manning reacted to the firing by commenting, he guess this means there’s no such thing as ethical AI under capitalism. Google’s ethics in artificial intelligence work has been under scrutiny since the firing of Gebru, a scientist who gained prominence for exposing bias in facial analysis systems. The dismissal had prompted thousands of Google workers to protest. She and Mitchell had called for greater diversity and inclusion among Google’s research staff and expressed concern that the company was starting to censor papers critical of its products. Gebru had said Google fired her after she questioned an order not to publish a study saying AI that mimics language could hurt marginalised populations. Mitchell, a co-author of the paper, had publicly criticised the company for firing Gebru and undermining the credibility of her work. The pair for about two years had co-led the ethical AI team, started by Mitchell. Google AI research director Zoubin Ghahramani and a company lawyer informed Mitchell’s team of her firing on Friday in a meeting called at short notice, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person said little explanation was given for the dismissal.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
20 February 2021

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Toolkit case: Disha Ravi sent to judicial custody for 3 days. 

A Delhi court Friday sent climate activist Disha Ravi, arrested for allegedly sharing a social media ‘toolkit’ related to the farmers’ protest, to three-day judicial custody. Her bail hearing is due tomorrow. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Akash Jain sent Ravi, 22, to jail after Delhi Police produced her before the court on expiry of her five-day custodial interrogation. Police said that her custodial interrogation was not required for the time being and the agency may seek her further interrogation once her co-accused Shantanu Mukul and Nikita Jacob join the interrogation. Police said Ravi was evasive during her previous interrogation and tried to shift blame on the co-accused. Mukul and Jacob have been asked to appear before the investigating agency on February 22, the agency told the court. The defence lawyer opposed the police plea and urged the court to release Ravi. He further said that there was an apprehension of tampering of the evidence by police as the case diary is not properly made and in volume form. There is no ground to keep her in any custody, police custody or judicial custody. Ravi ought to be released right now. The court was also informed that the accused has moved a bail application which will come up for hearing on Saturday. Last Sunday, the court had sent Ravi to five-day police custody after it said her custodial interrogation was required to probe an alleged larger conspiracy against the government of India and to ascertain her alleged role relating to the Khalistan movement. Meanwhile, The Delhi High Court Women Lawyers Forum has made a representation before the Supreme Court, urging it to revisit the Constitutional validity of Section 124A (Sedition) of the IPC, in the light of the alleged illegal arrest and detention of climate activist Disha Ravi in connection with the Greta Thunberg ‘toolkit’ case, Livelaw reported.

B) Union Culture Ministry tweets tribute to Hindutva ideologue M.S. Golwalkar. 

The Union Ministry of Culture, through its official Twitter handle today paid tribute to Hindutva ideologue and one time head of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) M.S. Golwalkar on his birth anniversary. Remembering a great thinker, scholar, and remarkable leader #MSGolwalkar on his birth anniversary. His thoughts will remain a source of inspiration & continue to guide generations, said the tweet. Reacting to the tribute, former Culture Secretary and former Prasar Bharati CEO Jawahar Sircar tweeted, As former Culture Secretary, he hang his head in shame to see RSS chief Golwalkar being falsely praised by @MinOfCultureGoI. Golwalkar & RSS opposed Gandhi’s Freedom Struggle. In his ‘Bunch of Thoughts’, Golwalkar opposed India’s tricolour too. Sardar Patel jailed him, banned RSS. In a recent column on Golwalkar, historian Ramachandra Guha had described him as a reactionary bigot, whose ideas and prejudices have no place in a modern, liberal democracy.

C) Bengal court summons Amit Shah in defamation case. 

A designated MP/MLA court in West Bengal issued summons to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday to appear either personally or through a lawyer before it on February 22 in connection with a defamation case lodged against him by Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee. The special judge of MP/MLA court at Bidhannagar directed that Shah’s attendance either personally or through a lawyer is necessary to answer to a charge of defamation under section 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). In a press note, Abhishek Banerjee’s lawyer Sanjay Basu claimed that Shah had made certain defamatory statements against the Trinamool MP on August 11, 2018 at a rally of the BJP at Mayo Road in Kolkata.

D) BJP youth leader arrested with cocaine in Kolkata. 

BJP’s youth-wing leader Pamela Goswami was arrested with cocaine from south Kolkata’s upscale New Alipore area on Friday, PTI reported. Goswami, the state secretary of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), along with a friend identified as Prabir Kumar Dey, was in her car when both of them were nabbed, police said. Around 100 gm of cocaine was allegedly found in her handbag, and other parts of the car, police said. Acting on a tip-off, sleuths of the New Alipore police station made the arrests when she was parking the car, an officer said. She was involved in drug trafficking for quite some time. Today, they got information that she, along with her supplier Prabir was reaching the spot to hand over the drugs to the purchasers, the officer said. The BJP said that it suspects the police’s role in the drugs recovery but if Goswami was wrong, the law should take its course. They had earlier seen that the state police had named several BJP activists in arms cases. He do not have much information about this incident, so he will not be able to say more. Pamela is a young girl. If she has done anything wrong, the law will take its course, BJP MP Locket Chatterjee said.

E) Dr. Reddy’s initiates Emergency Use Authorisation process for Sputnik V. Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. on Friday announced that it had initiated the process with the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) of human adenoviral vector-based platform vaccine candidate Sputnik V. As part of the review process, Dr. Reddy’s will present the safety profile of the phase-two study, and interim data of the phase-three study, which is expected to be complete by 21st February 2021, noted a release issued by the company. G V Prasad, Co-chairman and Managing Director of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, said that the efficacy of Sputnik V was reported to be 91.6 % by The Lancet, which is an impressive development in the fight against COVID-19. The initiation of the EUA process will be a critical step forward for us in ensuring speedy access to the Sputnik V vaccine in India. Sputnik V was the world’s first registered vaccine against Covid-19 based on the human adenoviral vector platform.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

A) Uber drivers entitled to worker rights, U.K.’s top court rules. 

A group of Uber drivers are entitled to worker rights such as the minimum wage, Britain’s Supreme Court ruled on Friday in a blow to the ride-hailing service that has ramifications for millions of others in the gig economy. In a case led by two former Uber drivers, a London employment tribunal had ruled in 2016 that they were due entitlements that also included paid holidays and rest breaks. Uber drivers are currently treated as self-employed, meaning that by law they are only afforded minimal protections. The Supreme Court unanimously dismisses Uber’s appeal, judge George Leggatt said on Friday. The legislation is intended to give certain protections to vulnerable individuals who have little or no say over their pay and working conditions. A total of 25 drivers were part of the case and Uber said the verdict did not apply to all of its current 60,000 drivers in Britain, including 45,000 in London, one of its most important global markets. Uber shares fell 3.4% in pre-market trading following the court announcement. The gig economy, where people tend to work for one or more companies on a job-by-job basis, has faced criticism from trade unions who say it is exploitative, while businesses say many of those working in it enjoy the flexibility. Uber has faced opposition from unions and challenges to its business model in several countries as it disrupts the taxi market. In November, however, it saw off a challenge in its home market of California where voters backed a ballot proposal that cemented app-based food delivery and ride-hail drivers’ status as independent contractors, not employees.

B) China says four of its soldiers died in Galwan clash. 

China on Friday said for the first time that it had lost four soldiers, including a battalion commander, in the June 15 clash in the Galwan valley, breaking its silence over the number of casualties suffered by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The PLA said the announcement, made eight months after the clash, was aimed at honouring the soldiers and setting the record straight, after it accused India of distorting the truth and slandering the Chinese border troops. Twenty Indian soldiers died in the clash which marked the worst violence on the border since 1967. The official PLA Daily said five Chinese frontier officers and soldiers stationed in the Karakoram Mountains have been recognised by the Central Military Commission of China for defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity, one of whom was injured. The report, however, did not say how many injuries the PLA suffered in total. The PLA likely suffered a far higher number of injured, with Indian officials saying they counted around 60 Chinese soldiers being carried on stretchers after the clash.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
19 February 2021

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Two minor Dalit girls die after being found unconscious in a field in Unnao; another in serious condition.

Two minor Dalit girls were declared brought dead to the hospital and another was in a serious condition after they were found in an unconscious state in a field in Unnao district in eastern Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, police said. The three girls, aged 15, 14 and 16, were found tied in a field in Babuhara village in Asoha, around 36 km south of Lucknow, by villagers when they did not return after they left their house to take fodder for the cattle, police said. Director General of Police H.C. Awasthy said the post-mortem could not ascertain the cause of death and the viscera had been preserved for chemical examination. No injury mark was found on the body of the deceased in the autopsy, he stated. On the condition of the third girl, he said she had been referred to a Kanpur hospital for better treatment. According to the medical bulletin, it is a suspected case of poisoning and her condition is critical but stable. Six teams have been formed to investigate the case from all possible angles. Ramesh Chandra Prayalankar, Circle Officer, Purwa, said that on the complaint of the family members, an FIR had been registered against unidentified persons under sections 302 and 201 of the IPC. The girls were cousins. They were found in the wheat field of the family, he told. He denied reports that the victims’ family members were detained at the police station and not allowed to talk to the media. There is no such attempt. They were called to understand the sequence of events and now they have been sent home under police protection to conduct the last rites, he said. Chief Medical Superintendent of Unnao District Hospital Basant Bhatt said that when the girl was brought in, she was in a serious condition. Clinically, it appeared like a case of organo phosphorous poisoning. The chemical is used in insecticides. Froth was coming out of her mouth and she was gasping for breath. They have intubated her to take water out of lungs. The Opposition described it as yet another example of the deteriorating law and order situation in the State. A delegation of the Samajwadi Party met the family members of the victims. First a daughter in Hathras, then a mother in Budaun, and now sisters of Unnao – women are not safe in BJP rule, tweeted SP President Akhilesh Yadav in Hindi.

B) ‘Rail roko’ protest remains peaceful.

Farmers on Thursday gathered near railway tracks at many places in Punjab and Haryana for the ‘rail roko’ protest against the Centre’s new agri laws, with officials stopping trains at stations as a precautionary measure. The rail blockade did not have much impact in Uttar Pradesh, with farmers organising token protests near railway tracks and stations in the state. Around 25 trains have been regulated in the northern zone due to the ‘rail roko’ call by farmers protesting the three agri laws on Thursday, a zonal railway spokesperson said. Regulating trains means they have either been cancelled, short terminated or rerouted. Farmers protesting on railway track against the new farm laws at the Rail Roko agitation at Modinagar railway station in Ghazibad, Uttar Pradesh. Farmers protesting on railway track against the new farm laws at the Rail Roko agitation at Modinagar railway station in Ghazibad, Uttar Pradesh. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions which is spearheading the protest, last week had announced the nationwide rail blockade to press for its demand to repeal the legislations and had said that the agitation will be from 12 pm to 4 p.m.

C) Third Quad ministerial meeting to discuss regional, global issues.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will join his counterparts from the U.S., Japan and Australia on February 18 (later this evening) under the framework of the Quad coalition to deliberate on ways to enhance cooperation in the Indo-Pacific in the backdrop of growing Chinese assertiveness in the region. This is the first such meeting since the election of U.S. President Joe Biden. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the Ministers will exchange views on regional and global issues, especially practical areas of cooperation towards maintaining a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region. The third India-Australia-Japan-USA ministerial meeting will be held on February 18 with participation of the respective Foreign Ministers, the MEA said in a brief statement. The evolving situation in the Indo-Pacific region in the wake of China’s increasing military muscle-flexing has become a major talking point among leading global powers. The U.S. has been favouring making Quad a security architecture to check China’s growing assertiveness. The MEA said the meeting will provide an opportunity to continue the useful exchange of views from their last meeting in Tokyo in October last.

D) LG asks Puducherry CM to prove majority in the Assembly on February 22.

The Congress government in Puducherry will face a test of strength on Monday, newly appointed Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan said, by citing the Opposition’s stand that the ruling party no longer enjoyed a majority. Just months before an election, the state government is believed to have lost its thin majority after four recent resignations, though Chief Minister V Narayanasamy denies this. He insists that two of those resignations are yet to be accepted. Soundararajan, who was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor on Thursday after Kiran Bedi’s sudden removal, said a floor test was needed to ascertain whether the Congress government enjoys a majority. The vote will take place by 5 pm on Monday. A statement said the Lieutenant Governor had conveyed to Narayanasamy that the assembly would meet for a single agenda, namely whether the government of the incumbent Chief Minister continues to enjoy the confidence of the House. Of the 30 elected MLAs in the assembly, the Congress had 15 members and, along with the DMK’s three and one independent member, was just past the majority mark of 16. After the resignations, the government and the opposition both are at 14. The Congress has 10 members, leaving the government one short of the majority mark, which has dropped to 15 with the assembly strength coming down to 28.

E) SC makes queries to govt on felling of trees of a certain species, age. 

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sharad A. Bobde on Thursday asked the government whether measures could be taken to prevent the felling of trees of a certain species and age, after considering their contributions to ecology, even for infrastructure projects. Can something be done to see if trees of a certain age and type are never cut down, Chief Justice Bobde addressed the government, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati. Chief Justice Bobde said certain species of trees could be identified and graded on the basis of their abilities to provide oxygen and to bind the soil. The remarks came even as a Supreme Court-appointed expert committee filed a report that said the felling of 300 heritage trees to construct five railway overbridges in West Bengal would cost India a staggering ₹2,23,50,00,000. The 10-digit figure was arrived at by the committee after calculating the products these trees would produce over the 100 years of their natural lifetime. These include oxygen, micro-nutrients, compost and bio-fertilizer, besides being valuable members of the natural environment. The committee had said an individual tree annually parts with products worth ₹74,500. Though the report was submitted a year ago, the figures of loss quoted in the report had managed to alarm Chief Justice Bobde’s Bench. The CJI had suggested framing a new protocol by which road and highway projects ought to be cleared only after checking the feasibility of other modes of transport such as waterways and railways.

F) ‘Metroman’ E. Sreedharan to join BJP. 

In a major boost for the party, E. Sreedharan, principal advisor to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and popularly known as Metroman, is all set to join the BJP. This was announced by the BJP Kerala unit president K. Surendran at a news conference here on Thursday. Sreedharan, 88, would officially join the party during the inauguration of the Statewide Vijaya Yatra led by Surendran from Kasaragod on February 21, ahead of the Assembly polls. Surendran claimed both the Congress-led United Democratic Front and the CPI (M)-led Left Democratic Front had opposed and humiliated Sreedharan on several occasions. He said that Sreedharan was an asset for the State. The BJP had already requested him to contest the polls, Surendran said.

G) PM moots special visa scheme for medical staff during Covid workshop with nine countries. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday suggested that neighbouring countries should consider creating a special visa scheme for doctors and nurses, so that they could travel quickly within the region during health emergencies, on the request of the receiving country. Modi was addressing a workshop on ‘COVID-19 Management: Experience, Good Practices and Way Forward’ with nine neighbouring nations, including Pakistan. India was hosting the secretary-level virtual meeting, chaired by Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan.The Prime Minister said that civil aviation ministries could coordinate a regional air ambulance agreement for medical contingencies and countries could come together to create a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying data about the effectiveness of Covid-19 vaccines among populations.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) Facebook news goes dark in Australia.

Australians woke to empty news feeds on their Facebook Inc pages on Thursday after the social media giant blocked all media content in a surprise and dramatic escalation of a dispute with the government over paying for content. The move was swiftly criticised by news producers, politicians and human rights advocates, many of whom pointed out that official health and meteorology information had also been scrubbed during the coronavirus pandemic and at the height of Australia’s summer bushfire season. Facebook was wrong, Facebook’s actions were unnecessary, they were heavyhanded, and they will damage its reputation here in Australia, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said. Mr. Frydenberg said facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg gave no warning of the news shutdown when the pair spoke over the weekend about looming laws that will force them to pay local publishers for content. The two had a subsequent conversation on Thursday morning which was constructive, Mr. Frydenberg said, adding they discussed what he called differing interpretations about how the new Media Bargaining Code would work.

B) Texas shivers amid power outages, water shortages. 

Power was gradually being restored but hundreds of thousands of households remained without electricity on Thursday across Texas, the oil and gas capital of the U.S., with some facing water shortages as a deadly winter cold spell that pummelled the southeastern part of the country headed east. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a winter storm warning. It said the storm would bring ice, sleet and heavy snow to parts of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi as it tracks to the northeast, causing power outages, tree damage and making driving hazardous. Even though the Arctic air mass was beginning to lose its grip on an area of the country not used to such extreme cold, the frigid temperatures would continue, the NWS said. More than 30 storm-related deaths have been reported.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
18 February 2021

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Delhi court acquits Priya Ramani in M.J. Akbar’s defamation case; rejects argument that he was a man of ‘stellar reputation’

A Delhi court on Wednesday dismissed former Union Minister M.J. Akbar’s criminal defamation complaint against journalist Priya Ramani for her tweets accusing him of sexual harassment. Women have the right to put their grievances at any platform of their choice and even after decades, the court said while acquitting Ramani in the case. The court also rejected Akbar’s argument that he was a man of stellar reputation. At the height of the #MeToo movement in 2018, Ramani had accused Akbar of sexual harassment. Following Ramani’s accusation, about a dozen former colleagues of Akbar also came out with different allegations against him. In response, Akbar filed a criminal defamation case against Ramani in October 2018. Akbar claimed that Ramani’s tweet and her article accusing him of sexual harassment were defamatory, and lowered his reputation. He has also said that Ramani didn’t produce any evidence to prove her story. However, Ramani pleaded truth as her defence in relation to the allegations of sexual harassment against Akbar. She maintained that the criminal case was initiated to create a chilling effect against women who spoke out about their experience of sexual harassment at his hands..Following the verdict, Ramani said she felt vindicated on behalf of all the women who have ever spoken up against sexual harassment at the workplace. Speaking to The Hindu, Ramani said that this case was not about him, it was about what women face at the workplace. It feels amazing to have their truth validated in a court of law. His victory belongs to everyone who spoke up during the #MeToo movement.

B) Farmers call for rail roko protest from noon to 4 pm tomorrow.

Protesting farm unions have called for a nationwide rail roko protest on Thursday, between noon and 4 pm, which they hope will force the government to break the ongoing deadlock over three farm laws. However, the response to a similar highway protest earlier this month suggests that the mass impact of such blockades may be limited to a few states. The Railways has also focussed on the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal in the deployment of 20,000 additional security personnel ahead of the protest. The protest call has been issued by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, an umbrella group of most of the unions participating in the agitation. From 12 noon to 4 pm, farmers will stop trains by going to their nearest railway station. They will welcome the trains with flower garlands and then communicate with railway passengers. Agitating farmers will also provide water, milk and tea to the passengers, said Bharatiya Kisan Union-Tikait leader Rakesh Tikait, on the eve of the protest. He appealed to farmers to remain peaceful during the protest, and to commuters to take time to listen to farmers’ demands. A successful rail roko protest across the country will force the government to break the deadlock, said Kul Hind Kisan Sabha leader Baldev Singh Nihalgarh.

C) Govt. denies link between Char Dham project and Uttarakhand disaster. 

The government on Wednesday denied in the Supreme Court any link between the Char Dham road-widening project in Uttarakhand and the recent flash floods in the Rishi Ganga valley, which claimed many lives and damaged the Tapovan hydro project. The denial, before a Bench led by Justice Rohinton Nariman, came from the government in response to a communication from the high powered committee (HPC) chairperson Ravi Chopra connecting the tragedy with the Char Dham project. The court asked the government to file a response in two weeks. The 899-km-long Char Dham highway project connects the four shrines of Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath in the Garhwal Himalayas. The project is under the Supreme Court’s scanner after an NGO, Citizens for Green Doon, raised environmental concerns over the cutting of trees and harm to the fragile Himalayan ecology caused by the widening of the existing mountain roads. The high-powered committee was formed to be the eyes and ears of the Supreme Court on the project. However, it had not been unanimous in its views. In January, the government had supported a majority view within the committee favouring the necessity of broadening the Himalayan feeder roads to the Indo-China border in order to facilitate troop movement. The Ministry of Defence, in an affidavit in court, had said it was unfortunate that three of the HPC members gave a minority view to reconsider a December 15, 2020 circular of the Ministry of Road and Transport and Highways, which fixed the carriageway width of the feeder roads at seven metres with a paved shoulder spanning 1.5 metres on either side. The minority view had said the December 15 circular needed a re-think considering its long-term impacts on the fragile Himalayan terrain and sensitive ecosystem.

D) Punjab urban local body election results: Congress wins 6 of 7 municipal corporations. 

The ruling Congress won six of the seven Municipal Corporations (MCs) in the civic polls in Punjab for which results were declared on February 17, officials said. The Congress won in Bathinda, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Abohar, Batala and Pathankot. The result for the seventh corporation was expected later in the day. The counting of votes for yet another corporation will take place on Feb. 18. Over 70% of voting was recorded in the Punjab civic body elections on February 14, 2021.Over 70% of voting was recorded in the Punjab civic body elections on February 14, 2021. The outcome of the elections, held against the backdrop of the farmers’ agitation against the BJP-led government at the Centre, has come as a boost for the Congress, which is also hoping to win the Assembly elections due early next year. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and the BJP failed to make a mark in the elections for the municipal corporations.

E) Have forgiven my father’s killers, says Rahul Gandhi. 

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the killing of his father Rajiv Gandhi in 1991 brought him tremendous pain but he nursed no anger or hatred towards those responsible for it. During an interaction the Congress MP had with students of a State-run women’s college in Puducherry, he was asked, that his father was killed by the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam). What are his feelings about these people? and he answered by saying violence cannot take away anything. He don’t have anger or hatred towards anybody. Of course, he lost his father and for him it was a very difficult time, he said, adding, it was similar to having one’s heart severed. He felt tremendous pain, but he don’t feel any hatred or any anger. He forgive, he said to rounds of applause. Gandhi was interacting with students of Bharathidasan Government College for Women in Puducheery.

F) Petrol prices: PM Modi blames previous governments. 

On a day when the price of petrol crossed the ₹100 mark, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the middle-class would not have been burdened if the previous governments had focused on reducing India’s energy import dependence. Without referring to the relentless increase in fuel prices, which are linked to international rates, he said India imported over 85% of its oil needs in the 2019-20 financial year and 53% of its gas requirement. Can a diverse and talented nation like ours be so energy import dependent? he asked, addressing an online event to inaugurate oil and gas projects in poll-bound Tamil Nadu. He do not want to criticize anyone but he want to say (that) had they focused on this subject much earlier, their middle-class would not be burdened, he said. The price of petrol crossed the ₹100 per liter mark in Rajasthan after fuel rates were hiked for the ninth day in a row. Since India imports the bulk of the oil it needs, retail rates are benchmarked to international prices, which have risen in recent weeks. Opposition parties, including the Congress, have criticised the price hikes, blaming it on the Modi government raising taxes to scoop out the benefit that arose from international oil rates plunging to a two-decade low in April/May last year. While global rates have rebounded with pick-up in demand, the government has not reduced the taxes, which are at a record high. Central and state taxes make up for 60% of the retail selling price of petrol and account for over 54% of the diesel price.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

A) Amazon used a secret strategy to dodge Indian regulators, says Reuters report.

Amazon favoured big sellers on its India platform, and used them to manoeuvre around rules meant to protect the country’s small retailers from getting crushed by e-commerce giants, according to internal documents accessed by Reuters. The documents lay bare that for years, Amazon has been giving preferential treatment to a small group of sellers on its India platform, publicly misrepresented its ties with the sellers, and used them to circumvent increasingly tough regulatory restrictions in India, the Reuters report said. Indian traders, both brick-and-mortar and smaller online sellers, have long alleged that Amazon’s platform largely benefits a tiny number of big sellers and that the American giant engages in predatory pricing that has crushed legions of retailers. Amazon rejects this: It says it complies with Indian law, which stipulates that an e-commerce platform can only connect sellers to buyers for a fee, unlike in the United States, where Amazon can both act as middleman and sell goods directly to consumers. The company also says it runs a transparent online marketplace and treats all sellers equally. The internal Amazon documents contradict those claims, revealing how the e-commerce giant has helped a small number of sellers prosper, giving them discounted fees and helping one cut special deals with big tech manufacturers such as Apple Inc. The documents also show that the company has exercised significant control over the inventory of some of the biggest sellers on Amazon.in, even though it says publicly that all sellers operate independently on its platform. The documents reviewed by Reuters were dated between 2012 and 2019. They included drafts of meeting notes, PowerPoint slides, business reports and emails. One of the notes contains a frank appraisal of Modi’s straight forward style of thinking, sizing him up as not an intellectual.

B) Conservative U.S. radio host Limbaugh dies at 70. 

Provocative and polarising U.S. talk radio luminary Rush Limbaugh, a leading voice on the American political right since the 1980s who boosted and was honoured by former President Donald Trump, has died at age 70 after suffering from : lung cancer, Fox News reported on Wednesday. Mr. Limbaugh’s appeal and the success of his top-rated radio show arose from his brash and colourful style, his delight in baiting liberals and Democrats and his promotion of conservative and Republican causes and politicians. His radio show became nationally syndicated in 1988 and quickly built a large and committed following, making him wealthy in the process. Mr. Trump, a former reality TV personality with a showman’s instincts who pursued right-wing populism during four years in the White House, awarded Mr. Limbaugh the highest U.S. civilian honour the Presidential Medal of Freedom. First lady Melania Trump placed the medal around his neck after her husband lauded Mr. Limbaugh as a special man beloved by millions of Americans. 

C) ‘U.S. will pay over $200 million to WHO’

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that his country would pay the World Health Organization (WHO) $200 million by the end of this month. The announcement is significant as former U.S. President Donald Trump had begun the process of withdrawing the U.S. from the WHO, a process stopped by his successor President Joe Biden. He is pleased to confirm that by the end of the month, the United States intends to pay over 200 million in assessed and current obligations to the WHO. Mr. Blinken told Foreign Ministers of UN Security Council member countries, at an online meeting to discuss the to the pandemic. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar was also part of the meeting. This is a key step forward Antony Blinken in fulfilling our financial obligations as a WHO member and it reflects our renewed commitment to ensuring the WHO has the support it needs to lead the global response to the pandemic even as they work to reform it for the future, Mr. Blinken said. The U.S. is the largest funder of the WHO contributing more than 15% of its total funds. Mr. Trump had pulled the U.S. out of the WHO. which he had called a puppet of China. This process would have been complete in mid-2021, but Mr. Biden reversed it hours after assuming office last month.