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Archives for February 2019

Amit Shah visited Goa to collect Rafale files from Parrikar’s bedroom: Congress

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Nasheman News :  Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national President Amit Shah’s “real” mission during his Goa visit on Saturday was to take away files related to the Rafale deal from Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s bedroom, Goa Congress spokesperson Jitendra Deshprabhu alleged on Tuesday.

He also claimed that some of the documents related to the Rafale deal, which were leaked to the media over the last few days, could have been part of Rafale files which were stashed at Parrikar’s private residence.

“The Congress alleges that (Shah’s) Goa visit was to collect the files at Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s home… The files were taken away. Once the files are taken away, they (Shah and the BJP) can be at peace and they can then sack Manohar Parrikar, who can no longer blackmail the top leadership now,” Deshprabhu alleged at a press conference organised at the opposition party’s state headquarters.

He said a leaked audio tape, purportedly containing a journalist’s conversation with Health Minister Vishwajit Rane, had already confirmed that the former Defence Minister did keep files related to the Rafale deal in his bedroom.

The controversial tape, in which Rane is heard telling a yet-unnamed journalist that Parrikar during a recent cabinet meeting had said that Rafale files were stashed in his bedroom, had created a stir in Parliament in January.

Deshprabhu now alleges that Shah visited the state to collect the same clutch of files and had an unscheduled 45 minutes with Parrikar at the latter’s private residence, before eventually addressing a party booth workers’ meeting near Panaji.

He also alleged that some of the documents which were leaked to the media over the last few days came from the former Defence Minister’s residence.

“It is possible that a few documents have slipped from there. Because N. Ram (of The Hindu) is quoting documents. Documents are also being sourced from other places. Where are they coming from? Amit Shah’s job was to clear files from Parrikar’s bedroom so that their scam is not exposed,” he added.

Go and sit in the corner: CJI to CBI official

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Nasheman News :“Go and sit in the corner,” Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi told former acting CBI Director M. Nageswara Rao, after holding him guilty of contempt of the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

A bench headed by the Chief Justice was in no mood to listen to Rao’s explanations on the issue of transferring out Additional Director A.K. Sharma, who was probing the Bihar shelter home horror, without the court’s permission.

Rao and CBI’s in-charge of prosecution S. Bhasuran were held guilty of contempt of court for disobeying its order to not transfer out Sharma. They were also fined Rs 1 lakh each.

Refusing to accept the unconditional apology tendered by Rao on Monday, the bench, also comprising Justice L. Nageswara Rao and Justice Sanjiv Khanna, directed the CBI officer to sit in the courtroom for the remaining working hours of the day. 

“The dignity of the court must be maintained, but this is brazen,” Chief Justice Gogoi said. 

Rs 2,000 aid to BPL families announced not eyeing elections’

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Nasheman News :  Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami on Tuesday said the Rs 2,000 assistance to 60 lakh below the poverty line (BPL) families was not announced with an eye on the Lok Sabha elections.

On Monday, Palaniswami made the announcement to provide financial assistance to the BPL families in the state affected by the cyclone Gaja, drought and failure of rains.

Speaking in the Assembly, Palaniswami said many districts are suffering from drought and agricultural workers are not getting sufficient wages. People affected by the cyclone Gaja in several districts of the state don’t have jobs.

Taking these factors into account, the government announced Rs 2,000 financial grant to the BPL families, he said.

“The aid will be given to all the BPL families regardless of their political affiliation.”

He said the outlay for this will be Rs 1,200 crore and will be made in the supplementary demands for grants to be made this fiscal.


Swiggy launches ‘Stores’ platform for FMCG, medicine delivery

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Nasheman News :  In a bid to challenge the dominance of online fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) delivery platforms like Grofers and Big Basket, food delivery app Swiggy on Tuesday launched “Stores” – a platform to allow users to order groceries, medicines and other daily amenities.

“Swiggy ‘Stores’ extends the option of ordering food from nearby restaurants to ordering anything from any store across your city,” Sriharsha Majety, Co-Founder and CEO of Swiggy wrote in a blog-post. 

With “Stores”, Swiggy aims to connect people to every store, retailer or brand – both online and offline – and deliver goods to people’s doorsteps. 

“We’re taking our first step by launching across Gurugram and will deliver from over 3,500 stores across the city. We’ve already partnered with over 200 stores in categories such as fruits and vegetables to florists and pet care stores,” Majety added. 

“Stores” platform has been made available within the main Swiggy app itself. 

“We are launching ‘Stores’ in beta for now, while we fine-tune the service to make sure it meets the high standards that we at Swiggy hold ourselves to,” Majety noted.

Swiggy’s new platform comes amidst controversies ignited by hundreds of restaurant owners sending a petition to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) alleging wrongdoings by food delivery companies. 

The petition, first reported in January, accused Swiggy, Zomato, Uber Eats and Foodpanda of misusing their dominant positions by engaging in practices such as deep discounting, in-house kitchens and internal sourcing.

Court nod for lie-detector test of Kalabhavan Mani’s friends

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Nasheman News : A court here on Tuesday granted permission to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct lie-detector tests on seven friends of late actor Kalabhavan Mani.

On February 8, Jaffer Idukki, Sabumon and five others had presented themselves before the Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate, offering to undergo the tests as demanded by the CBI that was probing the popular actor’s death in 2016.

According to the guidelines, the test can take place only with the concurrence of those who are to undergo it.

Mani, 45, who acted in some 200 films in Malayalam and other languages, was admitted to a hospital in Kochi on March 4, 2016 for an alleged liver ailment. He died two days later.

Forensic experts said an insecticide (Chlorpyrifos) was found in the actor’s blood but the police failed to crack the case.

Mani was staying in a 30-acre farmhouse near Chalakkudy, away from his home, his wife and daughter, where these friends were believed to be present on the day the late actor fell ill.

After his death, the hospital authorities reported the presence of an organophosphate pesticide in the body, leading to speculation that Mani might not have died a natural death.

Ever since, his family has been running from pillar to post to ascertain the real cause. In 2018, the Kerala government too sought a CBI probe.

Karnataka BJP seeks judicial probe into audio tape

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Nasheman News : The BJP’s Karnataka unit on Tuesday sought a judicial inquiry into the audio tape in which state Assembly Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar’s name figured in an alleged conversation between party leader B.S. Yeddyurappa and JD-S legislator Naganagouda Kandakur’s son Sharanagouda.

“The Speaker should order a House committee probe or judicial inquiry into the audio tape as we do not trust the (state) government to hold a fair probe by its police monitored SIT,” Bharatiya Janata Party MLA J.C. Madhuswamy said in the Assembly amid a ruckus between the ruling and opposition members.

Echoing Madhuswamy, another BJP MLA Suresh Kumar said his party feared a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe would lead to a witch hunt against its members.

“Hence, we urge a judicial probe into the audio tape,” Kumar told the Speaker.

On the Speaker’s directive, Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Monday ordered the SIT probe into the audio tape he released on February 8 to expose Yeddyurappa’s alleged attempt to lure Kandakur to join the BJP.

The Speaker has asked for the inquiry report in the next 15 days.

Rejecting the BJP’s demand, Kumar said an SIT probe was desirable as a judicial inquiry would be delayed.

Kumar adjourned the House proceedings when the ruling and opposition members levelled charges and counter-charges during the debate on the issue.


Kabbadi player killed in road accident

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Nasheman News : National-level kabbadi player Vikesh Kumar Rawat died after being run over by a truck in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district on Tuesday.

Rawat died instantly near the Blooming Buds school situated on the Deoghar-Dumka highway. The body was sent for post-mortem.

Expressing grief, kabbadi players in Deoghar said Rawat had to participate in the recruitment of the Jharkhand Armed Police (JAP) at Bokaro on Wednesday. 

Rawat had represented Jharkhand from junior to senior level in kabbadi games from 2011 to 2014.

Indian selectors to meet on Feb 15 to pick squad for Australia series; focus on workload management

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Nasheman News : Two cricket World Cup wins in 44 years, yet the flame carried in the hearts and minds of savants in India burns. As a top tier team, India once again is in search of the Golden Fleece.

Workload management of the stars will be on top of the mind when the selectors meet in Mumbai on Friday to pick the squad for the white ball series against Australia. 

The Indian team is set to play two T20Is and five ODIs against the Aussies in what is set to be the last set of international games that the boys get before going into the 2019 World Cup in England, starting on May 30. The only practice they will get after this is in the Indian Premier League. 

The Selection committee will look at keeping the right balance as they would not only wish to give the senior guys ample rest before going into the showpiece event, but also wouldn’t want to give the Australians the upper hand in what will be the last series before the World Cup. India has been playing incessantly overseas and the fast bowling wolf pack has had no real rest. 

BCCi sources said: “Workload management of the senior players will definitely be the main area of discussion as we all know that the Indians have been on the road and the selectors and team management have made a conscious effort to ensure that the players get ample rest between games and series. Like you saw, regular skipper Virat Kohli was rested for the back end of the New Zealand series. You might see Rohit Sharma rested for some games here.

“But it is also important to note that the Indians would want to keep the foot on the pedal and ensure that they don’t give the Australians any momentum going into the World Cup. A good series against India would mean a confidence booster for the team. So, there has to be a balance so that the composition of the team is not affected,” he explained.

While Rishabh Pant is almost certain to get more game time, it will be interesting to see if someone like Ajinkya Rahane gets one last go to seal a place in the World Cup squad. In the bowling department too, Jasprit Bumrah is almost certain to make a comeback after a well-earned rest during the New Zealand series.

In fact, head coach Ravi Shastri has already made it clear that players will be monitored even during the IPL.

“We’ve been in touch with the BCCI and CoA in this regard. We have certain plans in place and we’ll be looking to follow them. Usually, the two months of IPL are seen as relatively free months for me and I can just sit down and enjoy the cricket, watch out for new, young talents that keep emerging. But this IPL will be about monitoring the players, keeping the World Cup in mind,” he said in a recent interview.

Congress misleading people on Rafale issue: Rajnath

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Nasheman News : Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday accused the Congress of misleading people by raking up the Rafale fighter jet deal issue repeatedly.

The Minister’s remarks during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, prompted the Congress to criticise the government and stage a walkout from the House.

“The issue has been discussed in detail in the House and the Supreme Court has also put the matter to rest. The Congress has been raking up the issue every now and then. But the truth will remain true,” he said.

Politics is not done by by misleading the people. A person should have the guts to speak the truth, Singh added.

To this, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge reiterated his party’s demand to constitute a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the deal.

“The Prime Minister does not have the courage to constitute a JPC. You constitute a JPC, we will prove the misdeeds,” he said. 

Kharge had earlier said that if the Prime Minister has nothing to hide, then he should come forth and announce the JPC probe for a detailed inquiry into the matter.

Child marriages still prevalent in Bihar, Bengal, Rajasthan: Unicef

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Nasheman News : Although child marriages in India have declined, a few states like Bihar, West Bengal and Rajasthan continue to carry on with the harmful practice and there is nearly 40 per cent prevalence in these states, the Unicef said.

A new report ‘Factsheet Child Marriages 2019’ released by the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef) late on Monday stated that while in Tamil Nadu and Kerala child marriage prevalence was below 20 per cent, they were pockets of disparity concentrated in tribal communities and amongst particular castes, including the Scheduled Castes.

Child marriage threatens girls’ lives, well-being and futures and if efforts were not accelerated, more than 150 million girls would be married off before their 18th birthday by 2030. 

Improving rates of girl education, proactive government investments in adolescent girls, and strong public messages around the illegality of child marriage and the harm it causes were among the reasons for the shift, it pointed.

It also showed that the prevalence of girls getting married before 18 years of age in India has declined from 47 per cent in 2005-2006 to 27 per cent in 2015-2016.

“While the change is similar with all states showing a declining trend, the prevalence of child marriage continues to be high in some districts. The focus is on geographies that have high (50 per cent) and medium (between 20 per cent to 50 per cent) prevalence of child marriage,” it said in a statement.

The report revealed that worldwide, an estimated 650 million girls and women alive were married before their 18th birthday and globally, the total number of girls married in childhood is estimated at 12 million per year.

“South Asia is home to the largest number of child brides with more than 40 per cent of the global burden (285 million or 44 per cent of the global total), followed by sub-Saharan Africa (115 million or 18 per cent globaly),” it noted.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, there was no evidence of progress at all, with levels of child marriage as high as they were 25 years ago.

However, there is a silver lining as well, the report stated that the practice of child marriage has declined around the world.

In the past decade, the proportion of women who were married as children decreased by 15 per cent, from 1 in 4 (25 per cent) to approximately 1 in 5 (21 per cent), that’s around 25 million child marriages that have been prevented.

In South Asia, a girl’s risk of marrying in childhood has declined by more than a third, from nearly 50 per cent a decade ago to 30 per cent at present, largely driven by great strides in reducing the prevalence of child marriage in India.

The report mentioned that the global burden of child marriage is shifting from South Asia to Sub-Saharan Africa, due to both slower progress and a growing population. Of the most recently married child brides, close to 1 in 3 are now in sub-Saharan Africa, compared to 1 in 7, 25 years ago.

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