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24, మార్చి 2022, గురువారం

8pm NEWSFEED

220 new airports by 2025: Jyotiraditya Scindia

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 05:57 AM PDT

New Delhi [India]: Highlighting that the Civil Aviation industry has become a key element of India’s economy, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday said that the Government has set a target of creating 220 new airports by 2025.


Replying to the demands for grants of the Civil Aviation ministry for 2022-23, Scindia said that India had moved forward in domestic and international travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Cargo flights for perishable food items will be increased to 30 per cent with 133 new flights in the coming years,” he said.

Scindia said the simplification of pilot licence will be done in the coming days with the latest technology. He said that the Government plans to create 33 new domestic cargo terminals, set up 15 new flight training schools for pilots, create more jobs, and increase focus on the drone sector.


“With this, Government has set a target of creating 220 new airports by 2025,” he said.


The minister informed the House that 3.82 lakh passengers per day undertook air travel in the last seven days. He informed the house that Ministry is targeting to triple the passenger throughput from 34.5 crore in 2018-19 to 40 crore in 2023-24. Scindia said 90 flights sent to five countries evacuated students from Ukraine.


Scindia thanked the Indian Air Force which conducted 14 sorties and operated 4-C17 Globe Masters during the evacuation.


The minister informed the House that 15 per cent of total pilot strength in the country are women.


Speaking in the Lok Sabha today, Scindia said, “In all other countries in the world, only 5 per cent of the pilots are female. In India, over 15 per cent of pilots are female. This is another example of women empowerment. There has been a lot of changes in the aviation industry in the last 20-25 years.”


“Earlier only big cities had airports. Today that has changed completely. This is the reason why the Civil Aviation industry has become a key element of India’s economy. The amount of employment generated in the industry is massive,” Union Civil Aviation Min Jyotiraditya Scindia said today.


The second half of the Budget session of Parliament resumed from March 14 and will conclude on April 8. The first half of the Budget session began on January 31 and concluded on February 11. 

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Over 50 lakh children between 12-14yrs get COVID-19 vaccine

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 05:47 AM PDT

New Delhi [India]: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday informed that over 50 lakh beneficiaries aged between 12-14 years have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.


“Another feather in the cap of the world’s largest vaccination drive. Over 50 lakh youngsters between the 12-14 age group have received their first dose of #COVID19 vaccine. Extremely proud of our young warriors! #SabkoVaccineMuftVaccine,” tweeted the Union Health Minister. On March 16, the inoculation of children in the age group of 12 to 14 years against COVID-19 started with the Corbevax vaccine.

Besides, the government had also decided to waive the condition of comorbidity for those above 60 years in order to receive the precaution dose.


“Taking the COVID-19 vaccination campaign forward, under the ‘#SabkoVaccineMuftVaccine’ campaign led by PM @NarendraModi ji, the COVID vaccination of children in the age group of 12-14 has started from today. All people of 60+ age will also be able to get precaution dose from today. Let’s secure the country together, get the vaccine,” Health Minister had tweeted.


Two doses of Biological E’s intramuscular vaccine Corbevax would be administered to the beneficiaries in the 12 to 14 years age group in an interval of 28 days, the government data notified.


Meanwhile, the government informed that India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 181.89 crore (1,81,89,15,234) as per provisional reports till 7 am today.


The nationwide COVID-19 vaccination started on January 16, 2021. The new phase of universalisation of COVID-19 vaccination commenced from June 21, 2021. The vaccination drive has been ramped up through availability of more vaccines, advance visibility of vaccine availability to States and UTs for enabling better planning by them, and streamlining the vaccine supply chain.


As part of the nationwide vaccination drive, the Government of India has been supporting the States and UTs by providing them COVID Vaccines free of cost. In the new phase of the universalisation of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the Union Government will procure and supply (free of cost) 75 per cent of the vaccines being produced by the vaccine manufacturers in the country to States and UTs. 

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India will have 220 new airports by 2025 – Jyotiraditya Scindia

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 05:34 AM PDT

Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday said that the Government has set a target of creating 220 new airports by 2025.

Civil Aviation Minister Scindia said that India had moved forward in domestic and international travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Cargo flights for perishable food items will be increased to 30 per cent with 133 new flights in the coming years,” he said.

Scindia said the simplification of pilot licence will be done in the coming days with the latest technology. He said that the Government plans to create 33 new domestic cargo terminals, set up 15 new flight training schools for pilots, create more jobs, and increase focus on the drone sector.

“With this, Government has set a target of creating 220 new airports by 2025,” he said.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha today, Scindia said, “In all other countries in the world, only 5 per cent of the pilots are female. In India, over 15 per cent of pilots are female. This is another example of women empowerment. There has been a lot of changes in the aviation industry in the last 20-25 years.”

“Earlier only big cities had airports. Today that has changed completely. This is the reason why the Civil Aviation industry has become a key element of India’s economy. The amount of employment generated in the industry is massive,” Union Civil Aviation Min Jyotiraditya Scindia said today.

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IPL 2022: 25 percent occupancy to be allowed in stadiums with COVID-19 protocols.

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 05:10 AM PDT

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to welcome fans back to stadiums for the Indian Premier League (IPL 2022) after a brief hiatus owing to the pandemic.

The IPL 2022 matches will be played across stadiums in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Pune with an audience occupancy rate of 25 per cent as per COVID-19 protocols, BCCI confirmed on Wednesday.

IPL 2022 resumes with the Chennai Super Kings taking on the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium on March 26. This match will be a momentous occasion as the 15th edition of the IPL 2022 will welcome fans back to the stadiums.

Ardent cricket fans are all set to witness nail-biting matches, cheering for their favourite players at the most anticipated cricket tournament of all time.
In all, 20 matches each will be held at Wankhede Stadium and DY Patil Stadium, 15 matches each at Brabourne and MCA International Stadium, Pune.

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Birbhum Arson: ‘One ladsahab is sitting here and making statements’- Mamata Banerjee to Governor

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 05:08 AM PDT

Birbhum Arson incident: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday slammed Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar terming him as “one ladsahab” who has been making negative statements against the state.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday termed the Birbhum incident “unfortunate” said that her government will take action in a ‘fair’ manner. Eight people were burnt to death in the Rampurhat area after a mob allegedly set houses on fire following the killing of Trinamool Congress leader Bhadu Shaikh.

Mamata, who will visit Rampurhat tomorrow, said she is concerned about people in our state. “The government is ours, we are concerned about people in our state. We would never want anyone to suffer. The Birbhum, Rampurhat incident is unfortunate. I have immediately dismissed the OC, SDPO. I will go to Rampurhat tomorrow,” said Mamata Banerjee.

Attacking the Governor, the chief minister said, “One ladsahab is sitting here and making statements everytime that the situation in West Bengal is bad.”

This comes after West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the Birbhum violence and said that it is high time to revisit confrontational unconstitutional stance so that democratic values and human rights get restored and people get a reprieve from repressive ‘fear’ and suffering.

Dhankhar’s comments came in reply to Banerjee’s letter in which she urged Governor “to refrain from making unwarranted statements and allow the administration to conduct an impartial probe into the Birbhum violence.

The Governor alleged that Banerjee is adopting diversionary tactics and is labelling his reaction as a “sweeping and uncalled for statement.”

In the face of such enormity, I cannot ‘fiddle’ in Raj Bhawan and be a mute spectator. That would be an unpardonable abdication of my constitutional duty,” he said.
“Every time flagging of the issue at this end leads to unleashing your apparatus against the Governor,” he added.

The Chief Minister further said that such kinds of incidents have happened in Gujarat and Rajasthan too. “I am not justifying the incident in Rampurhat. We will take action in a fair manner,” she added.

DGP Malaviya said that 11 arrests have been made in the case so far. He further informed that Bhadu Shaikh’s murder was reported last night, an hour after which 7-8 houses nearby had caught fire.

A special investigation team has been formed to probe the matter. Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday called for President’s rule in West Bengal. Further, BJP demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

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IPL 2022: Ravi Shastri returns as commentator, Suresh Raina to make debut

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 04:48 AM PDT

IPL 2022, the 15th edition of mega event will feature 85 commentators across languages including English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Malayalam, Bengali, and the newly added Gujarati feed.

Ravi Shastri is making a comeback to the commentary panel while Suresh Raina, Piyush Chawla, Dhawal Kulkarni, and Harbhajan Singh are all set to make their debut. A popular personality in the IPL broadcast team, Mayanti Langer Binny too makes a comeback after a gap of two years.

To bring fans closer to all the exhilarating action, IPL 2022 will be telecasted across nine languages. The inclusion of Gujarat Titans this season has seen the introduction of a new Gujarati feed for the fans as part of the overall offering. An immensely popular voice on the radio, Dhavnit Thaker, who also is a Gujarati actor and singer, will team up with Nayan Mongia and Manprit Juneja among others in the Gujarati commentary team.

Ravi Shastri said, “I am excited to be back in the commentary box after five years and associate with Star Sports for one of the world’s most popular sporting leagues, TATA IPL. Star Sports has always leveraged technological innovations to provide an immersive experience and I look forward to interacting with IPL players as well as the fans remotely during the game.”

Former India cricketer, Suresh Raina, part of the Hindi commentary panel, said, “After being part of the IPL since its inception in 2008, I am excited to associate with the league in a new avatar, as part of the IPL Hindi commentary panel for Star Sports. Over the years, the Hindi commentary has done an incredible job which has resulted in its popularity and I am looking forward to being a part of this new journey with the start of TATA IPL 2022 from March 26.”

The complete list of commentators and presenters on Star Sports and Disney+ Hotstar:

World Feed: Harsha Bhogle, Sunil Gavaskar, L Sivaramakrishnan, Mpumelelo Mbangwa, Ian Bishop, Graeme Smith, Graeme Swann, Kevin Pietersen, Murali Kartik, Deep Dasgupta, Anjum Chopra, Daniel Morrison, Morne Morkel, Simon Doull, Matthew Hayden, Nicholas Knight, Rohan Gavaskar, Alan Wilkins, W V Raman, and Daren Ganga

Hindi and English: Jatin Sapru, Mayanti Langer Binny, Tanya Purohit, Anant Tyagi, Neroli Meadows, Suren Sundaram, Aakash Chopra, Nikhil Chopra, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Ravi Shastri, Suresh Raina, Piyush Chawla, Mohd Kaif, and Dhawal Kulkarni

Tamil: Bhavna Balakrishnan, Muthuraman R, Radhakrishnan Sreenivasan, K V Sathyanarayanan, RJ Balaji, Vishnu Hariharan, S Badrinath, Abhinav Mukund, K Srikkanth, Yomahesh Vijayakumar, R Sathish, and Russel Arnold

Telugu: Vindhya Vishaka M, M Anand Sri Krishna, Kaushik NC, R Sridhar, MSK Prasad, Venugopalarao Yalaka, Kalyan Krishna, Kalyan Kollarapu, Ashish Reddy, and T Suman

Kannada: Madhu Mailankody, Reena Dsouza, Kiran Srinivasa, Sumesh Goni, Srinivasa Murthy P, Vijay Bharadwaj, Bharath Chipli, Akhil Balachandra, Pavan Deshpande, Venkatesh Prasad, and Veda Krishnamurthy

Marathi: Kunal Date, Prasanna Sant, Chaitanya Sant, Snehal Pradhan, Vinod Kambli, Sandeep Patil, and Amol Muzumdar

Bangla: Sanjeeb Mukherjea, RR Varun Kaushik, Saradindu Mukherjee, Joydeep Mukherjee, and Saurasish Lahiri

Malayalam: Vishnu Hariharan, Shiyas Mohammed, Tinu Yohannan, Raiphi Gomez, and CM Deepak

Gujarati: Karan Mehta, Manan Desai, Dhvanit Thaker, Akash Trivedi, Manprit Juneja, and Nayan Mongia.

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No confidence motion on Friday; Pak Army and Imran Khan at loggerheads

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 04:10 AM PDT

Islamabad [Pakistan]: A drowning man will catch a straw, as the proverb goes. It is otherwise difficult to explain Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan praising India for its independent foreign policy when on Friday, March 25, 2022, he will have to face a crucial no-confidence motion in the National Assembly of Pakistan where his ouster seems all but certain.


Imran Khan was referring to the Indian decision to buy oil from Russia despite the sanction and despite India being a member of the Quadrilateral Alliance. “Their policy is for the betterment of people,” he said while addressing a public rally at Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on March 20.

He seems to have realised his own folly of trying to preside over the government of a failed state. With Imran Khan’s own party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf having only 155 seats in the 342-member National Assembly, and support from six coalition partners who between them have 23 seats being uncertain, it is difficult to see how the former cricket captain of Pakistan will survive as the Prime Minister.


Nearly 100 legislators from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples’ Party have submitted the no-confidence motion. They need the support of 172 members in the National Assembly to remove Imran Khan from power.

Cracks have surfaced among Imran Khan’s own Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf. A key partner of the coalition Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid is opposed to Imran Khan as Prime Minister.


The possible ouster of Imran Khan would once again establish that democracy cannot survive in Pakistan, a country where the army and its powerful wing the Inter-Service Intelligence control everything.

Imran Khan has committed the cardinal sin of offending the army. In Pakistan, the support of the politically powerful military is critical for any political party to retain power. He has used the ISI to stay in power, and now the same ISI is trying to remove him from power.


Imran Khan had stood in the way of what was being seen as a routine transfer in the army, with Pak army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa planning to shift Director General of ISI Lt Gen. Faiz Hamid as the commander of Peshawar-based XI Corps and replacing him with Lt Gen. Nadeem Anjum as the DG ISI. The Prime Minister had refused to issue the formal notification.


The fact, possibly, is that Imran Khan himself had become too dependent on Lt Gen. Faiz Hamid and was using the ISI for his political survival. Finally, Imran Khan had to eat the humble pie in October 2021 and accept the face-saver of choosing the same Lt Gen. Nadeem Anjum as the DG ISI from a panel of three names presented to him by Gen. Bajwa. It is reported that Imran Khan had been warned against any attempt by him to replace the army chief.


While domestic issues like rapid inflation have been highlighted by opposition parties in seeking Imran Khan’s ouster, the former cricket captain of Pakistan must also share a part of the blame himself for having made a mess of the foreign relations of Pakistan.


This, too, has not gone down well with the army which has a major say in the foreign relations of the country.


Imran’s own obsession with the Kashmir issue has antagonised a powerful section of the Islamic world. He has embraced China with open arms, and in the process has antagonised the USA.

To humour China, he has refused to condemn the persecution of fellow Muslims in Xinjiang; but even then, he has failed to win the full support of the Chinese either.


The politically powerful army chief of Pakistan, Gen. Bajwa, seems to have decided to strike against Imran Khan for having interfered in the traditional domain of the army.
Gen. Bajwa has chosen his moment when Pakistan is hosting a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Islamabad on March 22 and 23.


In a meeting of the OIC in Niger in November 2021, OIC sent a message to the Imran Khan government by refusing to discuss Kashmir as a separate item.

Ever since the abrogation of article 370, the Imran Khan government has been asking for a special session of OIC on Kashmir, but this has not found favour from countries like Saudi Arabia.


Under the Imran Khan regime, Pakistan’s relations with the Arab world are believed to be at a historic low; particularly after the Prime Minister of Pakistan had refused to criticise the genocide on Muslims of the Xinxiang province committed by China; instead been trying to project Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the leader of OIC for the support that the latter has extended on Kashmir; calling it still a burning issue in the United Nations General Assembly.


In fact, except for China, Malaysia and Turkey, no other country has supported Islamabad on Kashmir. A professor of International Relations at John Hopkins University has been quoted in the German broadcasting agency DW that Saudi Arabia is unlikely to take measures against India over New Delhi’s Kashmir policy.

It sees India as an important trading partner and is unlikely to support Pakistan on the Kashmir issue.


Ironically, though Imran Khan has let down his Muslim brethren in Xinjiang for the sake of humouring China, Beijing has refused to toe Imran Khan’s line on Kashmir. In the joint statement between Pakistan and China released after Imran Khan’s visit to Beijing during the Winter Olympics, the Chinese stand on Kashmir was no different from what it had said in the past, that it was a dispute left over from history and should be peacefully resolved based on bilateral talks. Significantly, China opposed any unilateral action to resolve the Kashmir issue.


The kowtowing of the Imran Khan government to Beijing seems to reflect the reality that since the introduction of Belt and Road Initiative projects in Pakistan, particularly the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, Pakistan has turned into a quasi-colony of China.


Unfortunately, however, despite the overtures of the Pakistan government, Beijing seems to be offering a cold shoulder to Islamabad. When Imran Khan went to Beijing in February 2022 for the Winter Olympics, Pakistan had wanted to convert it into a state visit by Imran Khan with an entourage of a dozen ministers.

Beijing, however, asked Islamabad to cut the size of the entourage to about four ministers. President of China Xi Jinping agreed to grant Imran Khan an audience only after a lot of entreaties, and that too, a brief one.


It is learnt that China has lately conveyed to Pakistan the displeasure of the former over the deteriorating law and order situation in Pakistan and the slow pace of CPEC projects.

Analysts say China does not consider the prevailing security, financial and political situation in Pakistan conducive for more investment; nor is it willing to humour Islamabad with more loans at concessional rates of interest.

Baloch separatists are targeting CPEC and the commercial interests of China. There have been protests also by the common people of Pakistan against measures like forcible land acquisition in CPEC project sites.


It is lack of foresight that the Imran Khan government in its anxiety to please the Chinese has antagonized the USA, the traditional friend of Pakistan. At the behest of China, Pakistan stayed away from the Summit for Democracy that US President Joe Biden convened in December 2021. China, incidentally, was not invited to the summit.


The message that the Biden administration learnt was clear, Pakistan had chosen a side; China’s side.


President Biden has not yet made a single phone-call to Prime Minister Imran Khan, which has not gone down too well with Islamabad.


On top of it has come the assertion of Imran Khan in a media interview that would not allow the US to use Pakistan as a base for its operations against Al Qaeda and other Islamic fundamentalist groups. This may not have gone down well with influential sections of the military and civil establishment in Pakistan with their preference for the USA.


Imran Khan has annoyed friends of Pakistan in the European Union, too, by being present in Moscow hours after the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, even calling the moment “exciting times.” For this, however, Pakistan is unlikely to enjoy the patronage of Russia. During the Winter Olympics in Beijing, Imran Khan had sought a meeting with Vladimir Putin, but in vain. 

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Birbhum violence- WB Governor Dhankhar slams Mamata Banerjee

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 02:05 AM PDT

Jagdeep Dhankhar, West Bengal Governor on Wednesday slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the Birbhum violence.

WB Governor said, it is high time to revisit confrontational unconstitutional stance so that democratic values and human rights get restored and people get a reprieve from repressive ‘fear’ and suffering.

The Governor in his three-page letter to Mamata said that there was a “political conspiracy” behind the violence. He also said that the number of casualties may be higher.

Dhankhar’s comments came in reply to Banerjee’s letter in which she urged Governor “to refrain from making unwarranted statements and allow the administration to conduct an impartial probe into the Birbhum violence.

The Governor alleged that Banerjee is adopting diversionary tactics and is labelling his reaction as a “sweeping and uncalled for statement.”

“In the face of such enormity, I cannot ‘fiddle’ in Raj Bhawan and be a mute spectator. That would be an unpardonable abdication of my constitutional duty,” he said.

“Every time flagging of the issue at this end leads to unleashing your apparatus against the Governor,” he added.

Dhankhar said that there can just be no credibility for the SIT headed by Gyanwant Singh as the probe will be a ‘cover-up operation’ to provide an escape route to rogue elements.

The Governor also said that, a Chief Minister, claiming to be the protector of democracy, should have minimally acted against the known dreaded musclemen, who only survive on state patronage.

He further asked Banerjee to hold the rule of law as the supreme command, rather than finding fault in the Governor, who is expectedly performing his solemn duty under the Constitution rightly at this most unfortunate moment that has seen people being burnt alive.

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UP: 4 children die after consuming toffees; CM orders probe

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 01:50 AM PDT

Kushinagar (Uttar Pradesh): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister on Wednesday expressed condolences over the death of four children who allegedly died after eating toffees in Kushinagar.


According to Adityanath’s Office, the Chief Minister has given instructions for immediate assistance to the families of the victims and ordered a probe. Four children died allegedly after eating toffees in Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar on Wednesday.

After consuming the toffees, all four children had immediately fallen sick and were rushed to the district hospital where they died.


A police probe has been initiated and the cause of death is being investigated.
“The whole matter is being investigated. The guilty will not be spared at any cost.

Further investigations will only clear out the doubt of witchcraft in the matter,” said Superintendent of Police, Sachindra Patel. 

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COVID-19: Disaster Management Act provisions revoked after 2 yrs, wearing face masks to stay

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 01:05 AM PDT

New Delhi [India]: After two years, the Government of India revoked provisions of the Disaster Management Act for COVID containment measures, as per the order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday.


The order copy signed by Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla reads that after taking into consideration the overall improvement in the situation and preparedness of the Government to deal with the pandemic, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has taken a decision that there may not be any further need to invoke the provisions of the DM Act for COVID containment measures. Accordingly, after the expiry of the existing Ministry of Home Affairs orders dated February 25, 2022, no further order may be issued by the MHA.


However, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) advisories on COVID containment measures, including the use of face masks and hand hygiene, will continue to guide the overall national response to the pandemic.


“I would like to mention that in view of the nature of the disease, we still need to remain watchful of the situation. Wherever any surge in the number of cases is observed, the States/UTs may consider taking prompt and proactive action at the local level, as advised by MOHFW from time to time,” the Home Secretary said in the order.


He also advised States and UTs to discontinue the issue of orders and guidelines under the DM Act.


“I would, therefore, advise all the States/UTs to consider appropriately discontinuing issue of orders and guidelines under the DM Act, 2005 for COVID containment measures. The States/UTs may continue to follow the SoPs/advisories that have been or are being issued by the MoHFW from time to time for COVID containment measures, vaccination and other related aspects, including observing COVID Appropriate Behaviour,” he said in the order.


Since March 24, 2020, on the direction of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the Ministry of Home Affairs has been issuing Orders and Guidelines under the Disaster Management Act, (DM Act) 2005, for the containment of COVID-19 in the country.


The Central Government, in close coordination with the State Governments and Union Territory Administrations (UTS), has taken various proactive measures to deal with the unprecedented global crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic.


The MHA order further reads that over the last 24 months, significant capacities have been developed for various aspects of management of the pandemic, such as diagnostics, surveillance, contact tracing, treatment and vaccination, hospital infrastructure and the general public has a much higher level of awareness on the COVID appropriate behaviour.


States and UTs have also developed their own capacities and systems and implemented their detailed State/UT specific plans for managing the pandemic, over the last seven weeks or so there has been a steep decline in the number of cases, it said.


The total caseload in the country stands at 23,913 only and the daily positivity rate has declined to 0.28 per cent. It is also worth mentioning that with the combined efforts, a total of 181.56 Cr vaccine doses have been administered.

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Fire breaks out at Mumbai’s Vitthal Niwas building

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 01:00 AM PDT

Mumbai (Maharashtra) : A fire broke out at the Vitthal Niwas building in Mumbai on Wednesday.


No injuries have been reported so far, said Mumbai Fire Brigade, which rushed to douse out the fire. Three fire tenders are present at the spot.


Further details are awaited.

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Kharge asserts PoK integral part of India after Pak PM Imran Khan raises Kashmir issue

Posted: 23 Mar 2022 12:56 AM PDT

New Delhi [India]: Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday hit out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for raking up Kashmir issue in the meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), asserting that Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) is an integral part of India.


Kharge said that Imran Khan is facing political challenges in Pakistan and he’s resorting to raking up Kashmir to deflect attention. “Imran Khan is facing political compulsions and he is chanting Kashmir-Kashmir. No one is going to listen to Imran Khan. He is talking about giving away India’s land to someone else. India is not going to tolerate this,” said Kharge.


“Pakistan Occupied Kashmir is an integral part of India and we won’t let it go. Jammu and Kashmir is and will remain an integral part of India,” the Congress leader further said.


Kharge’s remark came in the backdrop of the Pakistan Prime Minister raking up the Kashmir issue at the OIC meeting in Islamabad.


In his keynote address at the inaugural session of the 48th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the 57-member body of Muslim countries, Khan said, “We have failed both the Palestinians and the people of Kashmir. I am sad to say that we have been able to make no impact at all. They don’t take us seriously, we are a divided house and those powers know it.”


With Opposition leaders moving a no-confidence motion against him, Khan, who is on shaky political grounds, in an attempt to deflect from the attention urged member countries of the OIC to present a united front to make a significant impact on Palestine and Kashmir.


At the OIC inaugural address, the Pakistan Prime Minister also raked up the issue of the abrogation of the special status to Kashmir. On August 5, 2019, the government of India had revoked the special Constitutional status of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of the Constitution and abrogated Article 35A.


Pakistan has repeatedly sought to raise the Kashmir issue at the OIC even while India’s relations with several key players in West Asia and in the Islamic organisation, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Indonesia and Bangladesh, have seen marked improvements in recent years. 

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Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha adjourned till noon

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 11:38 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: The Lok Sabha was adjourned till noon on Wednesday.


Meanwhile, the Congress MPs are protesting at the Gandhi statue in Parliament over the increase in the prices of LPG cylinder gas and petrol and diesel. The Rajya Sabha was also adjourned till noon on Wednesday following the ruckus created by the Opposition parties against rising cooking gas and fuel prices in the country.


This was the second consecutive day when the Upper House faced similar protest leading to adjournment. The House was adjourned twice on Tuesday too in the first half of the day over rising prices of fuel across the country.


In the first hike in four months, the fuel prices have been raised in India. Diesel and petrol prices have been hiked by 80 paise. It was in November when the country saw the last fuel price surge.


A litre of petrol in Delhi will now cost Rs 96.21 and diesel will be sold at Rs 87.47 per litre.


The second half of the Budget session of Parliament began on March 14 and will conclude on April 8. The first half of the Budget session began on January 31 and concluded on February 11.

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Office & residence of Hero MotoCorp MD Pawan Munjal raided

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 11:10 PM PDT

The Income Tax Department is conducting searches on several premises linked to Hero MotoCorp Chairman Pawan Munjal and other senior executives of the company for suspected tax evasion.

Offices and residential premises of Mr Munjal in Gurugram, Haryana, Delhi and few other locations are being covered, sources in the Income Tax department said.

A team of officials of the department are looking at financial documents and other business transactions of the company and the promoters, they said. 

“The searches are being conducted at Hero Moto Corp Chairman Pawan Munjal premises. Over two dozen premises of Hero Moto Corp and its senior executives are also being searched. Search and Seizure action on suspicion of tax evasion,” sources in the Income Tax department said.

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Bangladesh authorities unearth tax evasion by Chinese firms

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 10:59 PM PDT

Dhaka [Bangladesh]: Chinese companies are reportedly violating local laws in Bangladesh which is leading to loss to the exchequer, a media report said on Tuesday.


This report adds to the already poor image of corporate ethics practised by Chinese firms who are found breaching laws in several countries.

In December 2021, Bangladesh authorities discovered that a Chinese company China Road & Bridge Corporation (CRBC), a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) engaged in the construction of roads and bridges in Bangladesh was involved in tax evasion while importing construction material for government projects, Bangladesh Live News reported.


It was not the first time that Chinese companies had violated the Bangladeshi laws causing loss to the exchequer.


Earlier in December 2020, the BD revenue authorities had launched an investigation into ZTE Bangladesh, a subsidiary of the Chinese ZTE Corporation with many business operations in different sectors of the country, on the suspicion of tax evasion.


In the latest case, Chittagong customs officials exposed (Feb 2022) that Bangladesh based Chinese company Tianye Outdoor (BD) Co Ltd (TOCL), a subsidiary of Chinese company Comefly Outdoor Co Ltd has been involved in tax evasion and tax fraud to the tune of BD Taka 21 crore and 57 lakh, Bangladesh Live News reported.


TOCL is a Chinese owned company located in Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh and engaged in the production and sale of camping tents, outdoor apparel and other supplies, textile and garment etc. During the routine physical inspection, the BD officials recovered high duty foreign cigarettes from consignments that had been supplied to TOCL though TOCL had declared to ship cotton yarn from China (Desipro Pvt Ltd).


With Bangladesh identifying corrupt Chinese business practices and also deciding to crack down on them, China’s Belt and Road ambitions may face a setback.
According to Bangladesh Live News, presently, there are nine active BRI projects in the country.


Meanwhile, the functioning of Chinese companies has been under the scanner in other parts of the world as well as multilateral financial institutions, especially the World Bank. Though China portrays itself as a reliable economic partner, the country’s economic partnership appears to be fraught with malpractices, Bangladesh Live News reported. 

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IAF officer probing accidental missile firing incident, prima facie fingers pointed at Group Captain

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 10:52 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: An Air Vice Marshal from the Air Force headquarters is carrying out a detailed investigation into the accidental firing of the tactical BrahMos supersonic cruise missile which landed in Pakistan on March 9.


Government sources said that the detailed probe by the Air Force officer (equivalent to Major General in the Army) is still going on but prima facie, a Group Captain-rank officer is being seen as blameworthy. The officer was in-charge of the mobile command post of the missile system when the accidental firing happened during a Command Air Staff Inspection (CASI) at its home base.


However, the sources said the probe would be finalised in a time-bound manner and final details would be known only after that.


The sources said the AVM probing the incident is highly qualified and is in-charge of operations in the Air Force headquarters.


Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on March 15 had stated in Parliament that a high-level probe has been ordered into the incident involving the accidental launch of a missile that landed in Pakistan.


“A missile was unfortunately accidentally launched on March 9. The incident occurred during a routine inspection. We later came to know that it had landed in Pakistan,” he had informed Rajya Sabha.


Making it clear that the Indian missile system is extremely trustworthy and secure, the Defence Minister had stated that Indian armed forces are experienced in handling such systems.


Pakistan has been trying to rake up the issue of accidental missile firing at the international stage without realising that the BrahMos missile is just a tactical system and was unarmed at the time of the incident.


The missile also did not cause any major damage to property or any loss of life in the Mian Channu town of Pakistan. India has also regretted the incident. 

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PM Modi hails milestone as India achieves highest ever goods export target of USD 400 billion

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 10:48 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: History has been scripted, as India achieved its highest ever goods export target of USD 400 billion nine days ahead of schedule, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday.


He further said that this is a key milestone in our Aatmanirbhar Bharat journey.

“India achieves the target of 400 Billion dollars of goods exports for the first time ever. I congratulate our farmers, weavers, MSMEs, manufacturers, exporters for this success. This is a key milestone in our Aatmanirbhar Bharat journey. #LocalGoesGlobal,” said PM Modi in a tweet.

On average, every hour USD 46 million goods are exported, USD 1 billion goods are exported everyday and USD 33 billion every month.


The exports in the financial year 2020-21 were USD 292 billion while the exports in 2021-22 are USD 400 billion with a 37 per cent rise.


Earlier in February, the Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal had said, “For 10 months in a row, continuously, from April 2021 to January 2022, India has posted over USD 30 billion of exports. We have already crossed USD 334 billion exports which is more than the highest ever that India had done earlier in a full 12-month period.”


On March 7, the Commerce and Industry Minister also said that India’s merchandise exports have reached USD 390 billion till March 14 of the current financial year and would certainly cross USD 400 billion during the year ending March 31, 2022.

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Sonia Gandhi continues consultations with G23, changes only after Congress prez poll

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 10:09 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: With G-23 leaders stepping up demands for organisational changes, Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi is learnt to have told the leaders from the dissident faction that no major changes in the organisation could be possible until the election for the post of party’s president is held in August-September this year.

Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday afternoon met G23 leaders Anand Sharma, Manish Tewari and Vivek Tankha at her residence in New Delhi as part of her efforts to resolve the deepening rift within the party after the poll rout of Congress in fives states in the recently concluded Assembly elections.

As per sources, the Congress leaders in the meeting pointed out a lack of collective leadership in the decision-making process.


While G-23 leaders are pressing for organisational changes, Sonia Gandhi is learnt to have said that the requisite measures will be taken after the August-September elections for party president.


Quoting Sonia, sources said, “By August-September, the election for party’s president will be over. Focus on that. I can make changes only to a certain extent by then.”


As per sources, during the meeting, neither the Gandhi family nor the G-23 leaders mentioned Kapil Sibal, who had questioned the party’s leadership.


The G23 members have been raising the issue of a few leaders in the party taking every decision while their accountability is not being fixed.


The three Congress leaders told Sonia Gandhi that the general secretaries are making decisions in the name of Rahul Gandhi while accusing them for the poll rout.


“Who will take responsibility for the consequences of decisions being taken by a few in the party? The party cannot be handed over to a few people. Sonia Gandhi said that she will consider the issues raised by the party leaders in the meeting,” sources said.


The G23 leaders are also demanding “collective and inclusive” leadership. The ire of the G23 members in the Congress is seen aimed at party leaders Randeep Surjewala, Ajay Maken and KC Venugopal, the general secretaries of Congress, said sources.
According to sources, Gandhi’s meeting with more G-23 leaders is an attempt to bridge the gap between the disgruntled bloc and the Congress leadership.


On March 18, Ghulam Nabi Azad met Gandhi after the recent poll rout. 

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Rafael Nadal suffers stress fracture in rib, out for up to 6 weeks

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 10:05 PM PDT

The 21-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal on Tuesday announced that he has suffered a stress fracture in one of his ribs.

The Spaniard further said that he will be out of action for four to six weeks due to the fracture. Nadal enjoyed a personal-best start to the season, going 20-0 before suffering his first loss, which came in the Indian Wells final on Sunday against Taylor Fritz.

“Hi everyone, I wanted to let you know that I’m back in Spain and I went straight to see my medical team for tests after the Indian Wells final, which I played in discomfort,” Nadal tweeted in Spanish. “I have a stress fracture in one of my ribs and I will be out for 4 to 6 weeks. It’s not good news and I didn’t expect this. I am devastated and sad because after such a good start to the season I have had.”

“Now is a very important time of the year for me and I had a very good feeling and good results. Well, I have always had that spirit of fighting and overcoming and what I will do is be patient and work hard after my recovery. Once again I would like to thank everyone for their support,” he added.

The lefty has won three titles this season, including his record 21st Grand Slam trophy at the Australian Open. On Monday, he moved up to No. 3 in the ATP Rankings. 

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Pentagon has forgotten how NATO bombed Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya: Russian Ambassador to US

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:55 PM PDT

Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said the Pentagon has already forgotten how US and NATO planes bombed the cities of Yugoslavia, Iraq and Libya.

The Russian ambassador’s statement came in response to statements by Pentagon spokesman John Kirby about the alleged involvement of the Russian Armed Forces in war crimes in Ukraine. “The feeling is that the Pentagon has already forgotten how, quite recently, aircraft of the United States and their NATO allies bombed the cities of Yugoslavia, Iraq, and Libya [in] live [TV broadcasts] . Washington does not remember the egregious crimes of American military personnel and mercenaries in Afghanistan and Syria either,” Antonov said in a statement posted in the Russian diplomatic mission’s Telegram channel.

He said Russian Armed Forces’ strikes target only Ukrainian military infrastructure facilities.

Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24 in response to calls from the Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics (DPR and LPR) for protection against intensifying attacks by Ukrainian troops.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the special operation, which targets Ukrainian military infrastructure, aims to “demilitarize and denazify” Ukraine. Moscow has said it has no plans to occupy Ukraine. Western nations have imposed numerous sanctions on Russia.

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India reports 1,778 fresh COVID-19 cases in last 24 hours

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:50 PM PDT

With 1,778 fresh COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, active cases in India declined further to 23,087 said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday.

For the fourth consecutive day, the daily cases were below the 2000-mark. The country’s active cases now comprise 0.06 per cent of the total infections. The cumulative COVID-19 tally in the country is now at 4,30,12,749.

The death toll has climbed to 5,16,543, with 33 daily fatalities, while the recoveries have surged to 4,24,70,515 with 2,542 recoveries in the last 24 hours.

The national COVID-19 recovery rate increased to 98.74 per cent and the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.20 per cent.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.28 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was at 0.39 per cent, the health ministry said.

A total of 5,68,471 COVID-19 tests were conducted in India in the last 24 hours. India has so far conducted over 78.36 crore cumulative tests.

The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive have exceeded 181.56 crore.

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Equity indices open in green, Sensex up by 184 points

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:20 PM PDT

Equity benchmark indices opened in the green on Wednesday with Sensex up by 184.38 points and Nifty up by 56.50 points.

At 9:35 am, the BSE Sensex was up by 184.38 points or 0.32 per cent at 58173.68. The 50-scrip NSE Nifty was trading at 17372.00, at 9:35 am, up by 56.50 points or 0.33 per cent.

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11 killed in fire at scrap shop in Hyderabad’s Bhoiguda

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:18 PM PDT

At least eleven people were killed after a fire broke out in a scrap shop in Hyderabad’s Bhoiguda on Wednesday.

As per Gandhi Nagar Station House Officer (SHO) Mohan Rao, out of the 12 people, one person survived. “A total of 12 members were inside the scrap shop. Bodies of 11 labourers have been shifted to Gandhi hospital,” he said.

The deceased labourers hail from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, the police said.
Rao further informed that although the reason behind the fire is yet to be ascertained, “a short circuit could be the reason for the fire.”

The fire has been doused. “DRF reached the spot to douse the fire,” he added.
The investigation into the matter is underway.

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PM Modi to inaugurate Biplobi Bharat Gallery at Kolkata’s Victoria Memorial Hall today

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:40 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: On the occasion of Shaheed Diwas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Biplobi Bharat Gallery at Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata on Wednesday at 6 pm via video conferencing.


The Prime Minister will also address the gathering during the event. According to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the gallery which is to be inaugurated depicts the contribution of the revolutionaries in the freedom struggle of India, provides a holistic view of the events that led up to 1947.


“The Gallery displays the contribution of the Revolutionaries in the freedom struggle and their armed resistance to British colonial rule. This aspect has often not been given its due place in the mainstream narrative of the freedom movement. The purpose of this new gallery is to provide a holistic view of the events that led up to 1947 and highlight the important role played by the Revolutionaries,” stated the PMO in an official release.


The revolutionary movement, formation of significant associations by revolutionary leaders, spread of the movement, formation of the Indian National Army, the contribution of Naval Mutiny will also be showcased at the gallery.

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Sonia Gandhi holds meeting with Himachal Cong leaders, advises them to stay united for polls

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:36 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: After the poll debacle faced by Congress in Punjab due to infighting, party president Sonia Gandhi asked leaders of Himachal Pradesh to avoid a Punjab-like situation and stay united as the state goes to Assembly polls later this year, said sources.


According to sources, Sonia Gandhi took a jibe on party leaders, “You all are sitting together right now but otherwise you don’t even talk to each other.” Congress Himachal Pradesh in-charge Rajiv Shukla was also present in the meeting.


Having lost Punjab to Aam Aadmi Party, Congress leaders briefed Sonia Gandhi about the present position of AAP in Himachal Pradesh.


“AAP is not an issue in Himachal Pradesh. Only those people who will not get tickets from BJP or Congress will contest from AAP’s ticket,” said Rajiv Shukla.


Sonia Gandhi deliberated on the AAP position in the state with the party leaders and asked them to prepare a poll strategy to take on rivals.


“All leaders from Himachal Pradesh promised Sonia Gandhi that they will remain united and a situation like Punjab will not be repeated there. Party leaders assured AICC president that state leaders will accept whatever decision the central leadership takes,” said sources.


Sources say that state party president and legislature party leader can also be changed if the situation demands.


“Central leadership is not changing any officer bearers right now but the option is open,” sources added.


The Congress had done well in the by polls held in Himachal Pradesh last year, winning the Mandi Lok Sabha seat and three assembly seats. The party is trying to repeat this success in the upcoming assembly polls.


It was also decided in the meeting that the results party witnessed in the Mandi Lok Sabha seat and three other assembly seats will only be repeated if the party moves ahead together with a full proof strategy to take on the BJP.


After the demise of Virbhadra Singh, Congress is witnessing a vacuum in the top leadership in the state. There are many leaders trying to take the position of party’s face in the hilly state but Anand Sharma is being seen as a frontrunner for that post.
However, his being a part of G-23 might emerge as a barrier for his candidature to lead the Congress in Himachal Pradesh.


The 68-member Himachal Pradesh Assembly is due for polls in October this year. 

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Convicted booked by Delhi Police for threatening to throw acid on same victim

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:31 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: An FIR has been filed in New Delhi against a man, who was convicted in an acid attack case several years ago, for threatening to throw acid on the same victim and her family members, said Delhi Police.


The case has been registered against a man for allegedly sexually exploiting and blackmailing his relative in December 2021 after threatening to throw acid on her, said local Police. The FIR has been filed in Sultanpuri Police station under section 376 (Punishment for rape) and 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.


“The accused was earlier jailed for 7 years in connection with an acid attack on the same victim in Uttar Pradesh,” said Delhi Police officers.


He was released from jail in 2011. 

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PM Modi pays tributes to Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru on Shaheed Diwas

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:27 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru on Martyrs’ Day (Shaheed Diwas) today and said their passion to die for the motherland will always inspire the countrymen.


The three freedom fighters were hanged to death by Britishers on March 23, 1931, in the Lahore conspiracy case. PM Modi tweeted in Hindi, “Tributes to the immortal sons of Mother India, Veer Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru on Martyrs’ Day. Their passion to die for the motherland will always inspire the countrymen. Long live India!”


March 23 is observed as Shaheed Diwas to pay tribute to Indian revolutionaries Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, who were hanged by the British Government in 1931. The trio was found guilty of the murder of deputy police superintendent JP Saunders in 1928, to avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. Bhagat Singh was 23, Rajguru was 22 and Sukhdev was 23 when they were hanged to death at Lahore Central Jail.


On the occasion of Shaheed Diwas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Biplobi Bharat Gallery at Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata at 6 PM via video conferencing,


Meanwhile, the newly-elected Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab has declared Bhagat Singh’s death anniversary on March 23 as a state holiday. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had declared about the state holiday in the Assembly and requested people to visit his ancestral village Khatkar Kalan in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district. It may be noted that the swearing-in ceremony of CM Mann took place at Khatkar Kalan on March 16.


After an unprecedented win in the recently concluded Punjab elections, Bhagwant Mann had said that in all the government offices in the state, there will be only portraits of Bhagat Singh and Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar.

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Afghanistan: Taliban threaten revenge killings of former govt officials, activists

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:21 PM PDT

New York [US]: Taliban authorities in Afghanistan’s Helmand province have threatened to retaliate against activists and former government officials in response to recent killings of Taliban commanders, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday.


The Taliban in Helmand have heightened surveillance and said that they would take retaliatory action in response to further attacks on Taliban officials. International law prohibits reprisal attacks – otherwise unlawful attacks taken as an enforcement measure – against civilians. “Taliban leaders in Helmand should not be responding to attacks with threats of unlawful punishments,” said Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director at HRW. “Taliban authorities need to prevent retaliatory attacks and ensure that crimes are dealt with through a proper legal process,” added Gossman.


A Taliban police official in Gereshk, Helmand, told residents that district-level authorities were calling for retaliation and targeting former government officials. According to the rights group, residents have reported an increase in patrols and night raids, along with warnings from local Taliban officials that mass arrests will ensue if attacks continue.


Afghan activists told HRW that the Taliban in Helmand have increased their surveillance of individuals and groups they accuse of being “opposed to the Islamic Emirate.”


The threats follow a spate of attacks in which Taliban members have been abducted or killed. The Taliban have previously carried out revenge killings of former government officials and have been responsible for forcibly disappearances or summarily executing former members of the security forces and others they accuse of being their enemies.


The statements heighten concerns that Taliban fighters in the province could use recent attacks as a pretext to commit abuses against perceived critics, including journalists and activists.

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Taliban Foreign Minister meets UN special envoy, discusses human rights issues

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:15 PM PDT

Kabul [Afghanistan]: Taliban acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met UN Special Representative Deborah Lyons and discussed human rights, humanitarian assistance, development projects, the banking sector, economic growth, and other issues.


In a press release, the Foreign Ministry of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), said that Lyons stated that she presented a “positive report” of Afghanistan in the UNSC’s latest meeting which is an achievement for the interim government of the IEA, Khaama Press reported.

Earlier, the Taliban welcomed the renewal of the UN mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) mandate for Afghanistan for a period of 12 months.


Last week, the UN Security Council extended the mandate for Afghanistan. The resolution was confirmed by 14 votes, with Russia abstaining.


During the meeting, Muttaqi expressed hope that the renewal of the UN mission in Afghanistan’s (UNAMA) mandate will not only be concentrated on the humanitarian situation but will also help in the political sphere and will help Afghanistan gain recognition, Khaama Press reported.


Muttaqi further said the extension of the mandate will be a positive step in lifting sanctions on individuals and the economy of Afghanistan.


“Absence of Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN has led to violation of rights of the Afghan people both inside and out of Afghanistan,” Khaama Press Muttaqi as saying.


During the meeting, both the parties agreed to continue meeting for resolving issues.
UNAMA is mainly focused on providing aid and assessing the situation of Afghanistan.

Based on available numbers, the poverty rate has unprecedentedly increased as Afghanistan is struggling with a dire humanitarian crisis post-Taliban took control of the nation last August. 

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Taliban to open high schools for girls today

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:10 PM PDT

Kabul [Afghanistan]: The Taliban has allowed girls to return to high schools from Wednesday, ending the uncertainty over whether the Islamic group would allow full access to education for girls.


Teenage girls across will return to their classrooms after being banned after the Islamic outfit sized power last August. Since taking power, the Taliban have rolled back women’s rights in virtually every area, including crushing women’s freedom of movement.

The vast majority of girls’ secondary schools were closed. Universities recently reopened, with new gender segregation rules. But many women are unable to return, in part because the career they studied for is off limits now as the Taliban banned women from most jobs.


“Critical period ahead for Afghanistan as school and colleges soon re-open after winter break. UNAMA conducted a discussion on Higher Education yesterday with Mawlawi Abdul Baqi Haqqani. Importance of equal access to quality education for all & guarantees for academic freedom was stressed,” the UN Mission in Afghanistan said in a tweet.


Heather Barr, former senior Afghanistan researcher, at Human Rights Watch (HRW), said opening girls’ secondary schools is hugely important.


According to HRW, women and girls are blocked from accessing health care as some healthcare facilities require them to bring a mahram. Reports suggest that women and girls facing violence have no escape route if they can flee only with an abuser escorting them.


Allowing girls into schools and other educational institutes has been one of the main demands of the international community.


The majority of countries have refused to formally recognise the Taliban amid worries over their treatment of girls and women. and other human rights issues.


UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday had welcomed the plan announced by the Taliban to reopen schools for girls and boys.

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COVID surges in China, 2,591 new local cases reported

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:03 PM PDT

Beijing [China]: Witnessing a COVID surge, China on Tuesday reported 2,591 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said Wednesday.


Of the new local infections, 2,320 were reported in the province of Jilin, 110 in Fujian, 36 in Liaoning, 24 each in Tianjin and Shandong, 15 in Guangdong and 13 in Heilongjiang, Xinhua reported. The rest of the cases were reported in 12 other provincial-level regions, including Hebei and Jiangxi.


According to the commission, a total of 76 imported COVID-19 cases were reported on Tuesday. It further said that three suspected cases, all imported, were reported in Shanghai, as per Xinhua.


Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic situation in China continues to heat up as more than 20 provinces and cities have imposed travel bans and lockdowns.


The situation in more than 20 provinces and cities including Jilin, Hebei, Guangdong, and Shanghai has deteriorated.


China is facing mounting pressure to guard against infections amid a recent surge in cases throughout the country.


Earlier, Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that Beijing will stick to its “zero Covid-19” policy, days after National Health Commission (NHC) released new guidelines easing its control measures.NHC had uploaded a new document on its website. Titled the Novel Coronavirus Diagnosis And Treatment Plan, it was the ninth revision to a document setting out COVID-19 policy for the country of 1.4 billion.


China’s zero-COVID policy is pushing cash-strapped local governments to the brink amid rising health care costs and efforts to control debt. 

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BWF World Rankings: Lakshya Sen breaks into top-10 after All England heroics

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:00 PM PDT

India’s ace shuttler Lakshya Sen has broken into the top 10 of the men’s singles badminton world rankings.

This is for the first time that Sen has cracked the top-10, taking up the ninth spot in the latest rankings released by BWF on Tuesday. The 20-year-old Sen has been in top form since clinching the world championships bronze medal last year and won the India Open in January. Lakshya also made the final of the German Open, earlier this month and followed it by the sensational final appearance in the All England Open on Sunday which helped him in jumping two spots to 9th.

The young shuttler finished runner-up in a strong field at the All England, beating defending champion Lee Zee Jia and world bronze medallist Anders Antonsen on the way to the final.

In the All England final, Viktor Axelsen defeated Sen by 21-10, 21-15 at Utilita Arena in Birmingham. After taking part in that final, Sen is now only the fifth Indian – after Prakash Nath (1947), Prakash Padukone (1980 and 1981), Pullela Gopichand (2001), and Saina Nehwal (2015) – to make the summit clash of All England.

Sen currently has 74,786 points in the men’s singles rankings. Top of the men’s singles list is being headed by Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark, followed by Japan’s Kento Momota and another Dane Anders Antonsen.

In the men’s doubles rankings, the star duo of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also moved up a spot to equal their career-best ranking of seventh.

In the women’s doubles, the teenage pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also reached their career-best ranking of 34, jumping 12 spots. 

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US could face more COVID-19 lockdowns if cases go up again due to latest variant

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:59 PM PDT

Washington [US]: The United States could face more COVID-19 lockdowns if cases go up once again due to the latest variant, even as the most cautious begin to shrug off their virus fears once-and-for-all, British paper Daily Mail has reported, citing the top U.S. infectious-disease expert.


Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease and adviser to U.S. President Joe Biden, said easing restrictions, waning protection from vaccines and the rise of the BA.2 sub variant around the world could bring on another wave of rising infections to the United States. “We generally follow what goes on in the UK by about two to three weeks,” Fauci said.


“I would not be surprised in the next few weeks, given the fact that we’ve begun to open up, and we have an increase in the BA.2 variant, that we’ll be seeing an increase in cases,” Fauci said in a CNN interview last week.


At the height of the Omicron surge, the United States hit an all-time record of well over a million new infections every day, the report said.

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England opener Jason Roy fined, handed 2-match ban

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:55 PM PDT

England opener Jason Roy has been fined 2,500 pounds and handed a suspended two-match ban from international cricket, ECB announced.

Roy’s ban is for the next two England matches for which he is eligible for selection, but has been “suspended for 12 months dependent on good behaviour”. The England and Wales Cricket Board announced the sanctions in a statement on Tuesday but did not disclose the reasons behind the hearing and penalties.

The ECB statement said, “A disciplinary panel of the Cricket Discipline Commission has announced its sanction on Jason Roy after he admitted a charge of conducting himself in a manner which may be prejudicial to the interests of cricket or which may bring the game of cricket, the ECB and himself into disrepute, in breach of ECB Directive 3.3.”

The 31-year-old is a white-ball specialist who has averaged 40.19 in 98 ODIs batting at the top of the order.

Roy last played for England in the T20I series against the West Indies in January and will hope to be selected for the ODI series against the Netherlands in June this year. 

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Biden to designate 300 members of Russian state Duma as early as Thursday

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:54 PM PDT

Washington [US]: US President Joe Biden is expected to announce this week new sanctions against more than 300 members of the Russian State Duma over Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal reported citing American officials.


The report said on Tuesday that the Biden administration could announce the sanctions as soon as Thursday when Biden will meet with NATO leaders to discuss the situation in Ukraine. Earlier in the day, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Biden will announce new sanctions against Russia while he is in Brussels meeting with NATO and European partners.


The report, citing US officials, confirmed that the sanctions will be announced in coordination with the European Union and members of the G7.


A US official said the planned sanctions packaged are often postponed and changed during the interagency review process prior to being finalised.


Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24 with the goals of demilitarising the country, neutralising nationalist battalions, ensuring Ukraine remains a neutral country and that Crimea is recognised as a part of Russia that cannot be taken away. Russia also seeks to ensure Ukraine also recognises the Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics are independent states.


According to the Castellum. Al sanctions tracker, Russia has become the most sanctioned country in the world with more than 7,100 restrictive measures imposed against the country since 2014 – a majority of which came after Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine in February.


On March 20, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said it had recorded 2,361 civilian casualties since the start of the operation in Ukraine, including 902 deaths and 1,459 injuries. 992 of the total casualties occurred in Donetsk and Luhansk and 1,369 in other regions of Ukraine, according to the OHCHR.

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IPL 2022: Shane Watson calls Rishabh Pant ‘calm leader’

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:49 PM PDT

Delhi Capitals (DC) newly appointed Assistant Coach Shane Watson on Tuesday described skipper Rishabh Pant as a calm and collective leader.

“Rishabh Pant should be the best version of himself. Rishabh is very calm and collective as a leader. Both Rishabh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni are different individuals with amazing skill sets,” Watson said during a media interaction ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 season. “Delhi is certainly one of the strongest squads across the board with Indian players and foreign players. That’s is why I am so excited to be a part of the Delhi Capitals,” he added.

Watson recalled his memories with late legendary spinner Shane Warne and called him an ‘incredible leader’.

“Warnie was an incredible leader. He believed in the ability of the players. Shane Warne just knew how to pull it off. My memories with Shane became all the more special after his sudden demise,” said Watson.

IPL 2022 will start from March 26 with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squaring off in the first clash. DC will be going against Mumbai Indians in their opening game on March 27.

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World No 1 Ashleigh Barty announces shock retirement from tennis at age of 25

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:46 PM PDT

Australia’s world number one Ashleigh Barty on Tuesday announced her shock retirement from tennis aged just 25.

Barty has been the No.1-ranked WTA player for 114 consecutive weeks and counting. The outgoing Aussie is one month shy of her 26th birthday. “It’s the first time I’ve actually said it out loud and, yeah, it’s hard to say,” an emotional Barty told former doubles partner Casey Dellacqua in a video posted on her Instagram. “But I’m so happy, and I’m so ready.”

“I don’t have the physical drive, the emotional want and everything it takes to challenge yourself at the very top of the level any more. I am spent,” she added.
Barty is retiring after winning three major singles titles on three different surfaces – the 2019 French Open, the 2021 Wimbledon and, back in January, the Australian Open.

In all, she collected 15 titles in singles and 12 in doubles – more than any other active player in that span.

Across all-levels of play, Barty produced a 305-102 record in singles and a 200-64 record in doubles, earning total career prize money of USD 23,829,071.

Barty’s current reign as No.1 is the fourth-longest streak in the history of the Hologic WTA Tour, behind Steffi Graf (186 weeks), Serena Williams (186) and Martina Navratilova (156). Her 121 total weeks are No.7 all time.

Barty becomes the second reigning World No.1 ranked woman to retire while on top, following Justine Henin, who retired in May of 2008, after 61 consecutive weeks at No.1. Henin returned to play two years later.

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Petrol, diesel prices rise by 80 paise per litre for 2nd day in row

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:44 PM PDT

New Delhi [India]: Petrol and diesel prices were hiked by 80 paise per litre for the second consecutive day across the country on Wednesday.


Petrol and diesel prices were increased by 80 paise a litre in the national capital. The petrol will be sold at Rs 97.01 per litre while it would be Rs Rs 88.27 for diesel today. In the financial capital of the country, Mumbai, the petrol and diesel prices were raised by 85 paise a litre and it will be sold at Rs 111.67 and Rs 95.85 per litre respectively.


In Chennai, the price of petrol is Rs 102.91 per litre, which was increased by 75 paise and diesel is Rs 92.95 after an increase by 76 paise per litre.


While in Kolkata, the price of petrol was increased by 83 paise per litre and the diesel was increased by 80 paise per litre.


Petrol and diesel will be sold at Rs 106.34 at Rs 91.42 per litre respectively in Kolkata.


Petrol and diesel prices differ from state to state depending on the incidence of value-added tax.


In the first hike in four months, the fuel prices were raised on Tuesday.


Earlier on Tuesday, the Opposition parties created a ruckus in the Rajya Sabha against rising fuel prices in the country.


The Opposition parties, including Trinamool Congress, Shiv Sena and Congress, created pandemonium after the Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu rejected their plea to hold a discussion over rising fuel prices under Rule 267.

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BJP demands inquiry by central agencies in Birbhum arson incident

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:38 PM PDT

The Bharatiya Janata Party has sought the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the Birbhum arson incident and demanded an investigation into the incident by central agencies.

As many as eight people were burnt to death in the Rampurhat area of West Bengal’s Birbhum on Tuesday after a mob allegedly set houses on fire following the killing of Trinamool Congress leader Bahadur Shaikh. “Locals tells us that about 20 people have been killed there but no one knows the actual number because no one is being allowed to enter in Birbhum. There is a need for an independent impartial inquiry into the matter. CBI should be handed over the case,” said Locket Chatterjee, BJP MP from Hooghly.

“National Investigation Team (NIA) should also be sent to West Bengal as the whole state is sitting on the pile of gunpowder,” she added alleging the Law and Order failure in West Bengal.

Demanding resignation from CM Mamata Banerjee, BJP leader Gaurav Bhatia said that “She has lost the trust of people in the state. Hence, she should resign.”
“Law and Order have failed in West Bengal. Attempts are being made to eradicate Democracy. She is responsible for the Birbhum incident. The goons of Trinamool Congress are destroying the justice system of the state,” said Bhatia.

Bhatia claimed that the house in Birbhum was set on fire after some people including women and children were locked inside that house.

“Even firefighters were stopped from doing their work,” Bhatia alleged.

Following the violence in Birbhum, a delegation of West Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs met Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday seeking his intervention in the law and order situation in the state.

The delegation included Sukanta Majumdar, Dilip Ghosh, Locket Chatterjee, Jagannath Sarkar, Raju Bista, Arjun Singh and others.

“The Home Minister has taken cognizance of the matter. He directed Chief Secretary to seek a report within 72 hours. After which a team comprising MPs of other states will go there to review the law and order situation,” said Chatterjee.

Director-General of Police (DGP) West Bengal, Manoj Malviya informed that 11 arrests have been made in the case so far. He further informed that Bahadur Shaikh’s murder was reported last night, an hour after which 7-8 houses nearby had caught fire.
A special investigation team has been formed to probe the matter.

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Kerala leaders trying to fill their pockets under garb of SilverLine project: MoS Muraleedharan

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:32 PM PDT

Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan alleged that some leaders in the Kerala government are trying to make money and fill their pockets in the name of development under the garb of the SilverLine rail project.

“In the name of development, the state government and some of the leaders in the government wants to make some money, fill their pockets. That is the goal of this (SilverLine)project,” said Muraleedharan on Tuesday.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader claimed this project will not bring in any development to the state instead it will only displace the people whose lands are being acquired by the government for this project.

“Railway Minister has mentioned in the Parliament that they have not given any approval for this project,” he said.

Meanwhile, Vijayan on Tuesday said that Left Democratic Front (LDF) led Kerala government will implement the protested SilverLine project while assuring that the state government would pay four times the prevailing market prices as compensation for acquiring land.

“The LDF government will implement the SilverLine project. There are attempts to mislead people. It is natural that people whose land is being acquired for the project will be disappointed. But I want to tell you that the government will pay four times the market price as compensation,” said Vijayan.

People across Kerala are protesting against SilverLine project. The first major protest happened in Kottayam’s Madampally on March 18.

The 529-km SilverLine railway project will link Thiruvananthapuram in the south to Kasaragod in north Kerala, covering 11 districts through 11 stations. The journey between two stations is expected to take four hours, whereas it currently takes 12 hours to reach from one end to another.

It is also being opposed by the opposition Congress-led UDF, which has been alleging that the project is “unscientific and impractical” and will put a huge financial burden on the state.

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Congress demands imposition of Article 355 in West Bengal over Birbhum incident

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:25 PM PDT

Leader of Congress party in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury urged President Ram Nath Kovind to impose Article 355 of the Constitution in the Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal over Birbhum incident.

“Special Investigation Team is of now use. I will meet the President of India over the Birbhum incident and will suggest him to consider (imposing) Article 355 in the state. Law and order situation getting worse, people feel unsafe in Bengal,” said Chowdhury on Tuesday.

According to Article 355, It shall be the duty of the Union to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance and to ensure that the government of every State is carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.

As many as eight people were burnt to death in the Rampurhat area of West Bengal’s Birbhum on Tuesday after a mob allegedly set houses on fire following the killing of Trinamool Congress leader Bahadur Shaikh.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has sought the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the Birbhum incident and demanded an investigation into the incident by central agencies.

Meanwhile, Director-General of Police (DGP) West Bengal, Manoj Malviya informed that 11 arrests have been made in the case so far.

He further informed that Bahadur Shaikh’s murder was reported last night, an hour after which 7-8 houses nearby had caught fire.

A special investigation team has been formed to probe the matter. 

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Pushkar Singh Dhami to take oath as Uttarakhand Chief Minister today

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:08 PM PDT

Bharatiya Janata Party leader and son of ex-servicemen Pushkar Singh Dhami will take oath as the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand for his second consecutive term on Wednesday.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held at Parade Ground in Dehradun at 3:30 pm. Along with him, the cabinet ministers will also be administered the oath.

Dhami was elected leader of the BJP legislature party in Uttarakhand on Monday, paving the way for his taking over the reins of the state for a second time.

Dhami, who lost from the Khatima constituency in the Uttarakhand, led the party’s poll effort as Chief Minister during the assembly polls held last month.

Several names, including that of former union minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, Union Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt, Rajya Sabha member Anil Baluni, MLA Dhan Singh Rawat and Uttarakhand Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj were doing the rounds as possible choices for chief minister.

Dhami had lost to Congress candidate Bhuwan Chandra Kapri from Khatima by a margin of 6,579 votes in the state polls. He got a total of 41,598 votes with a vote share of 44.8 per cent against Kapri who got 48,177 with 51.89 per cent votes. Dhami had won twice from the seat.

Dhami will be the 13th Chief Minister of the hill state. He belongs to the Kumaun region. The last two chief ministers before him were from the Garhwal region.

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India, UK to strengthen ties on trade, security: Boris Johnson

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:03 PM PDT

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday and agreed to build a strong relationship between the two countries on trade, security and business in the coming days.

“Today @narendramodi and I spoke about the grave situation in Ukraine and agreed its sovereignty must be respected. The UK-India relationship continues to go from strength to strength, and we’ll build on our trade, security & business ties in the coming weeks and months,” tweeted Johnson post the conversation.

Notably, during the conversation, PM Modi and Johnson discussed issues of bilateral interests and agreed on the potential of further deepening cooperation in various areas including trade, technology, investments, defence and security besides people-to-people relations.

According to a PMO statement, PM Modi expressed satisfaction at the positive momentum in the ongoing negotiations on the bilateral Free Trade Agreement.
He also appreciated the progress in implementing the ‘India-UK Roadmap 2030’ adopted during the virtual summit between both leaders last year.

The Prime Minister conveyed his desire to welcome PM Johnson in India at an early date, as per mutual convenience.

The two leaders also held a detailed discussion on the Ukraine situation where PM Modi reiterated India’s consistent appeal for cessation of hostilities and a return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy.

He emphasized India’s belief in respect for international law and the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all states, as the basis of the contemporary world order.
Russia began its military operations in Ukraine on February 24.

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Regardless of India-Russia historical relationships, US-India “partners of choice now”: Ned Price

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 06:58 PM PDT

The US on Wednesday termed India as an essential partner for its shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific and highlighted that regardless of India-Russia historical ties, the US is a “partner of choice for India now.”

A day after US President Joe Biden’s comment that India is an exception among the QUAD members with its “somewhat shaky” response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price stressed that Indo-Pacific is at the heart of QUAD’s policy and India holds an important place in realising this shared vision.

Responding to – whether or not all QUAD partners are in sync with India’s historic relationship with Russia, Price stressed “We are a partner in India when it comes to shared interests. When it comes to the values we share in a free and open Indo-Pacific and we’ve invested in that relationship in terms of our defence and security. So historical relationships notwithstanding, we are a partner of choice for India now, as are many of our partners and allies around the World.”

These remarks by Price comes at a time when Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in a virtual summit said that Australia understands New Delhi’s position on the ongoing Ukraine crisis.

Replying to a question whether Biden administration has made up a decision on whether to apply or waive sanctions under CAATSA, vis-a-vis the S-400, Price mentioned that he does not have any updates and that the US continue to work with the Congress and our Indian partners.

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NATO invites Ukrainian President Zelensky to address summit via video link

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 06:48 PM PDT

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been invited to virtually address the NATO summit set to take place on Thursday discussing the Russian invasion of his country.

“President Zelensky is invited to address the NATO summit via video link,” a NATO official said Tuesday. “This will be an opportunity for allied leaders to hear directly from President Zelensky about the dire situation facing the people of Ukraine because of Russia’s aggression,” the official added, reported France 24. A meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the level of Heads of State and Government will take place on Thursday. The meeting will be in person and will be chaired by the NATO Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg.

On February 24, Russia began a special military operation in Ukraine after the Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics requested help in defending themselves. What followed the military operation was a slew of sanctions imposed by the western countries targeting the Russian economy.

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J-K: 3 held for involvement in March 19 grenade attack

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:46 AM PDT

Shopian (Jammu and Kashmir): Jammu and Kashmir Police on Tuesday arrested three accused who were allegedly involved in a grenade attack that occurred on March 19 and recovered incriminating materials including arms & ammunition from their possession, informed Jammu and Kashmir police.


During the investigation, Shopian police based on reliable sources picked up one suspect identified as Fazil-bin-Rashid, son of Abdul Rashid Alai, a resident of Melhura, read a press release. During questioning, he disclosed that he was working with one active terrorist namely Basit Ahmed linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT(TRF) of Frisal Kulgam and on his instructions, he threw a grenade on March 19, 2022, at Babapora camp (D-Coy of CRPF 178 Bn), in which one CRPF Jawan namely Amit Kumar got injured, stated the press release.


He further disclosed that he lobbed the grenade as a task given by the said terrorist in order to join terrorist ranks, as per the press release.


During further questioning, he disclosed the name of another accused person identified as Qaiser Zahoor Khan son of Zahoor Ahmed Khan of Nowpora Safakadal, Srinagar. On the disclosure of the name of accused Qaiser Zahoor Khan, incriminating materials, arms and ammunition including three Chinese pistols, six magazines, four grenades & 30 rounds have been recovered.


All the three accused persons involved in the terror crime have been arrested. Further investigation in the instant case is going on.

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High Speed Free Wi-Fi Internet Facility now available at 6100 Railway stations across India: RailTel

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:44 AM PDT

The High-Speed Free Wi-Fi Internet Facility is now available at 6100 Railway stations across the country, RailTel said on Tuesday.

With the commissioning of Wi-Fi facility at Ubarni Railway Station in Rae Bareli district of Uttar Pradesh over Lucknow Division of Northern Railway, RailTel is close to achieving 100 per cent coverage (except the halt stations) and only few stations are left a statement by RailTel said.

Puneet Chawla, Chairman & Managing Director, RailTel said that the responsibility to implement this remarkable Digital India initiative has been entrusted to Railway Mini Ratna PSU “RAILTEL”. Working tirelessly and continuously even through trying times of COVID-19 pandemic, RailTel is providing state-of-the-art public Wi-Fi under the brand name of ‘RailWire’ which is the retail broadband service of RailTel.

The highlight of this project is that out of these 6100 Railway stations, more than 5000 stations are in rural areas making Wi-Fi facility available at many far-flung stations across the country like several stations of North Eastern Region and all the 15 stations of Kashmir Valley.

The Wi-fi is free for the first 30 minutes of usage every day at 1 mbps speed. For using the Wi-Fi facility further at “higher” speed beyond 30 minutes, the user needs to choose a plan with higher speed by paying a nominal fee. The plans vary from Rs. 10/day (for 5 GB @ 34 MBPS) to Rs. 75/30 day (for 60 GB @ 34 MBPS) excluding GST. A number of payment options like net banking, wallet, credit card can be used to purchase plan online.

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India is emerging global power, leader in Indo-Pacific, says South Korean envoy

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:39 AM PDT

New Delhi [India]: India is an emerging global power specially in the economic domain and is a leader in the Indo-Pacific region as part of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), South Korea’s enovy Chang Jae-bok said on Tuesday.


Speaking on the matter, the South Korean Ambassador to India said that relations between the two countries are strengthening in diverse fields. “India is an emerging global power, especially in the economic field, security and other issues. It’s part of the Quad (consisting of Australia, Japan, India and the US), so leader in the Indo-Pacific region,” he said.


Bilateral relations between India and South Korea, officially known as the Republic of Korea, were established in 1962 and upgraded to ambassador-level in 1973.


The envoy said apart from cultural relations, the two countries are also strengthening ties in areas of security and commerce.


Asked about the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the ambassador said that dialogue is the way forward. He said South Korea is providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.


“South Korea is rooting for peace and dialogue to solve it. South Korea is in a position to help Ukrainian people who are in a dangerous situation. The Korean government is providing humanitarian assistance to the Ukrainian people,” Chang Jae-bok said. 

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35000 temporary workers to get permanent jobs in Punjab

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:34 AM PDT

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday announced that 35,000 temporary employees of Group C and D will be regularised.

The Punjab CM in a tweet mentioned, “We have decided to make 35,000 temporary employees of Group C and D permanent. I have directed Chief Secretary to end such contractual and outsourcing recruitments.” He also added that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had promised the same in the manifesto and hence they are trying to get it implemented at the earliest.

Meanwhile, the AAP ministers took charge of their respective offices at Punjab Civil Secretariat today.

Laljit Singh Bhullar has been given the Transport and Hospital Ministery; Harpal Singh Cheema has been made the Minister for Finance Excise and Taxation; Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer took charge as school Education, Sports and Youth Services and Higher Education Minister and Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Forests and Wildlife Departments have been allocated to Lal Chand Kataruchak.

Earlier, on March 17, Punjab’s newly-elected MLAs including Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann took oath as members of the Legislative Assembly. The legislators were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Protem Speaker Dr Inderbir Singh Nijjar.

AAP leader and the party’s face for recently held Punjab assembly polls took oath as the Chief Minister of the state on March 16.
AAP recorded a landslide victory in the recently concluded Punjab assembly polls winning 92 seats, sidelining most of its rivals.

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ED provisionally attaches immovable properties of Uddhav Thackeray’s brother-in-law

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:32 AM PDT

Mumbai (Maharashtra): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable properties worth Rs 6.54 crore of Shridhar Madhav Patankar, brother-in-law of Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday.


As per reports, the immovable properties worth Rs. 6.45 crores have been provisionally attached in the case of M/S Pushpak Bullion, one of the companies of Pushpak Group. The attachment includes 11 residential flats in the Neelambari project, Thane belonging to Shree Saibaba Grihanirmiti Pvt Ltd, owned by Patankar.

Further probe is underway.

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No survivors found so far in China plane crash: Aviation authority

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:33 AM PDT

Beijing [China]): Chinese aviation authorities on Tuesday said they had traced no survivors from a crashed China Eastern aircraft carrying 132 people on board.


A China Eastern Airlines plane with 132 people on board crashed in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on Monday. “No survivors have been found so far in Monday’s plane crash,” said Sun Shiying, chairman of China Eastern Airlines Yunnan branch, at a news briefing held Tuesday night, Xinhua News Agency reported.


The plane crashed in the city of Wuzhou, the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region of China, causing a forest fire.


Soon after the crash of a passenger plane with 132 passengers in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Chinese Eastern Airlines Boeing expressed solidarity with the passengers and crew members affected by the incident and assured to support them.


The Boeing 737 aircraft of China Eastern Airlines took off from Kunming to reach the destination Guangzhou but in between, the plane crashed at about 2:38 p.m. into a mountainous area near the Molang village in Tengxian County in the city of Wuzhou, causing a mountain fire, according to Xinhua citing the emergency management department.

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COVID-19 situation in China continues to heat up

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:29 AM PDT

Beijing [China]: The COVID-19 pandemic situation in China continues to heat up as more than 20 provinces and cities have imposed travel bans and lockdowns.


The pandemic situation in Jilin and Shanghai has deteriorated, and the situation of closed management and control has frequently been imposed to contain the virus, reported local media. The situation in more than 20 provinces and cities including Jilin, Hebei, Guangdong, and Shanghai has deteriorated.


Shanghai is totally closed and controlled, and many people are caught in the predicament of survival.


Residents of Xinchang Town, Pudong New Area, Shanghai, escape from the containment zone to buy vegetables, reported the local media.


Authorities in Shenyang, the capital of northeast China’s Liaoning Province, began to implement closed management of communities and villages on Tuesday in a bid to contain the local COVID-19 outbreak.


As of Monday, the city of Shenyang had reported 241 local positive cases, including 94 confirmed cases and 147 asymptomatic carriers, in the latest outbreak, reported Xinhua.


China is facing mounting pressure to guard against infections amid a recent surge in cases throughout the country.


Earlier, Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that Beijing will stick to its “zero Covid-19” policy, days after National Health Commission (NHC) released new guidelines easing its control measures.


NHC had uploaded a new document on its website. Titled the Novel Coronavirus Diagnosis And Treatment Plan, it was the ninth revision to a document setting out COVID-19 policy for the country of 1.4 billion.


China’s zero-COVID policy is pushing cash-strapped local governments to the brink amid rising health care costs and efforts to control debt.


Analysts said that the local governments in China are facing a growing financial burden to meet Beijing’s hardline zero-COVID strategy, according to a think tank, Policy Research Group (POREG).


China is battling its biggest virus surge in two years and numerous cities have imposed travel bans and lockdowns, including tech hub Shenzhen, which have shaken economic stability and global supply chains.


China has clung to a zero-tolerance approach to the virus that relies on stringent lockdowns, mass testing and quarantine in government facilities. 

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iPhone 14 Pro might have thicker body, two screen cutouts

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:23 AM PDT

Washington [US]: American tech giant Apple’s upcoming high-end iPhone14 Pro might feature a thicker overall design and a more prominent camera bump.


Recently surfaced schematics for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max obtained by GSM Arena, showed a pill-shaped cutout for the Face ID sensors and another hole for the front-facing camera. The surfaced schematics also revealed Apple might keep the thickness of the forthcoming lineup to 7.85mm.


The punch-hole selfie design will be available only to the Pro series while the standard and the mini will be settling for a notch for yet another year.


The rest of the design traits seem to be unchanged compared to the current iPhone 13 generation, as per GSM Arena. 

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Will ensure no toll plazas within 60 km on highways, says Gadkari

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:19 AM PDT

New Delhi [India]: Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Tuesday that there should be no toll plaza within 60 km on national highways and he will ensure the norms are fully implemented in the next three months.


“I will ensure that there will be only one toll plaza within 60 km and if there’s a second toll plaza, then it will be shut in the next three months,” he said, replying to a discussion in the Lok Sabha on the demands for grants pertaining to his ministry.

Referring to points raised by members, he said people residing near the toll plazas will be able to get passes with the use of Aadhar cards.


Speaking about the infrastructure development projects in Jammu and Kashmir, the minister said that around 1,000 people are working on the Zojila tunnel project at present.


“In Jammu and Kashmir projects worth Rs 7,000 crores are underway. About 1,000 people are working inside the Zojila tunnel at -8 degrees celsius,” Gadkari said.


“Work on Delhi-Amritsar-Katra highway work has begun. By end of this year, we’ll be able to reach Mumbai from Srinagar in 20 hours and the distance between Delhi and Amritsar will be covered in four hours,” he added. 

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March on Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway; Gurgaon police issues advisory

Posted: 22 Mar 2022 08:13 AM PDT

New Delhi: A proposed march on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway (from Kherki Dhaulla toll to Hero Honda Chowk) tomorrow in support of demand for creation of ‘Ahir Regiment’ in the Army may create a traffic nightmare on National Highway-48. Gurugram police fears traffic to be hit between 7AM to 5PM.

The Gurugram police is advising daily commuters to take alternate routes. Buses will not be allowed on the highway tomorrow.

Traffic from delhi has been advised to take alternate routes via Golf Course road and Sohna Road.

All traffic would be diverted at Hero Honda chowk towards Subhash Chowk or Pataudi Road.

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