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Karnataka MP seeks transparent probe into Mirage crash

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Nasheman News : BJP’s Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday sought a transparent inquiry into the crash of the upgraded IAF Mirage-2000 fighter in Bengaluru on February 1, resulting in the death of two ace test pilots.

“We need a thorough and transparent inquiry into the crash of an HAL-upgraded IAF Mirage in Bengaluru and the loss of life of its two brave warriors,” said Chandrasekhar in a statement from New Delhi.

Although the lawmaker submitted a request for discussion on the crash in the Upper House, disruption of the proceedings by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) members did not allow the Zero Hour.

“Though I had submitted a Zero Hour mention on the issue, it could not be taken up due to disruption of the proceedings by the TMC members,” lamented the member in the statement.

The test pilots — Squadron Leader Samir Abrol from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and Squadron Leader Siddartha Negi from Dehradun in Uttarkhand died from fatal injuries after the fighter crashed while taking off from the military airport on an acceptance sortie after an upgrade by the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).

The pilots, commissioned in the air force a decade ago, were on deputation as test pilots at the IAF’s Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE) in this tech hub from their respective air bases.

“I appeal to those in the political class who dithered in the modernisation of the IAF combat fleet for over a decade whilst they bought helicopters for VIPs — to not obstruct modernisation to score brownie points,” he said.

“Doing so (politicking) would be to put our brave young aviators at risk unrelated to the enemy or combat mission,” the lawmaker said.

Recalling that many brave air warriors lost their life in similar test flights or regular sorties, Chandrasekhar said the government should fix accountability for the mishaps.

“It is our collective duty to ensure the brave combat aviators fly the latest aircraft and not continue with 35-40-year-old aircraft to fulfil their missions in peace and war for our nation,” the member added.

A joint inquiry by HAL and IAF will be held to ascertain the causes that led to the fatal crash of the ill-fated French fighter on a test flight.

Hazare breaks 7-day-old fast after talks with CM Fadnavis

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Nasheman News : Social activist Anna Hazare ended his 7-day- long hunger strike on Tuesday evening after a nearly six-hour marathon meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis

Union Agriculture Minister Radhe Mohan Singh also participated in the discussions at Hazare’s Ralegaon-Siddhi village.

After the meeting, Fadnavis requested Hazare to break his fast, which the activist did by accepting a glass of sherbet from the chief minister amidst loud cheers by his supporters and villagers.

Earlier, Fadnavis and Singh discussed threadbare the 3-point demands raised by Hazare who launched the indefinite hunger strike on January 30.

The demands were: implementation of Lokpal at the national level, setting up Lokayuktas in all states and conceding the farmers demands through the M.S. Swaminathan Commission Report.

The government moved at top speed to appease the 81-year old Hazare after he lashed out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday, accusing it of “using” him to come to power in 2014.

In wake of the statement, Fadnavis rushed to Hazare’s village from Mumbai on Tuesday afternoon to hold final talks with him and later announced that his demands have been met.

“The process of appointing Lokpal will be initiated soon by the centre. The Lokpal search committee will meet on February 13 as per the directives of the Supreme Court in the matter,” Fadnavis said.

For the Lokayukta in Maharashtra, as demanded by Hazare, a joint drafting committee has been set up to prepare a new bill on the issue which would be introduced in the upcoming Budget session of the state legislature starting later this month, he said, adding it would have representatives of the government as well as those nominated by Hazare.

The farmers’ demands pertaining to the Swaminathan Commission Report implementation has also been taken up to Hazare’s satisfaction and further process will be taken up, he said.

BJP MLA’s disrupt Karnataka Governor’s address

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Nasheman News :  The 10-day budget session of the Karnataka legislature began on a stormy note on Wednesday with BJP legislators disrupting Governor Vajubhai Vala’s address to its joint sitting.

As soon as Vala began his address in Hindi, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members walked towards the Chair and started raising slogans against the state’s JD-S-Congress coalition government, drowning his voice. 

With the opposition members refusing to hear him out in the pandemonium, the Governor abruptly stopped his speech after reading only two pages and left the Assembly.

Soon after, Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar tabled the Governor’s speech as ‘read’ and copies of Vala’s joint address were circulated in Kannada and English to the members of the Assembly and Council.

The Speaker made obituary references to the state’s iconic seer Shivakumara Swami, who passed away on January 21, and Mangaluru-born former Defence Minister George Fernandes, who died on January 29.

Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, BJP leader in the Lower House B.S. Yeddyurappa and Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara also paid tributes to the seer and Fernandes.

Kumaraswamy, who also holds the Finance portfolio, will present the state Budget for fiscal 2019-20 in the Assembly on Friday.

Input by Rizwan Asad.

‘I studied at uni, now sell eggs’: India’s job crisis under Modi

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'I studied at uni, now sell eggs': India's job crisis under Modi

New Delhi, India – A grim-faced young man rustles up a quick egg snack on a pushcart at a quiet residential corner in a suburb of the Indian capital, New Delhi, as he meticulously enquires about his patrons’ tastes.

Sagar Kumar, a 21-year-old undergraduate in commerce at an open university in Noida, a city in Uttar Pradesh – the country’s most populous state in the Hindi-speaking heartland – is angry.

He has been working as a roadside food vendor for a year to pay for the school fees of his younger siblings and the kidney dialysis of an ailing father. He is impatient for a government job.

India unemployment rate highest in 45 years: Report

“I study at night, the rest of the time I tend to this food cart and earn 500 rupees [$6] a day. What use is a commerce graduate degree to sell eggs by the roadside?” Sagar said.

In New Delhi’s Tughlakabad slums, around the remnants of a medieval era fort, 24-year-old Seema is a part-time cook, but hopes to get a job as an office secretary.

“My typing speed is very good and I can add numbers. My family came to Delhi from Badayun [in Uttar Pradesh] where I wanted to get a clerical job at a government office. But I have had no luck yet. There are also safety concerns to consider when looking for a job as a woman here,” she says.

Survey barred from publishing

India’s fast-paced economic growth has failed to generate employment opportunities for over 12 million Indians who enter job market every year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who swept to power in 2014 on the promise to create 10 million job annually, has been accused of creating the worst unemployment crisis in decades.

A leaked report about India’s unemployment last week revealed that jobless rate rose to its highest level in at least 45 years.

For the first time, half of India’s working-age population (15 years and above), is not contributing to any economic activity, data analysis by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) shows.O

Officials at Niti Aayog, the premier government policy think-tank, said the report was not final and that sufficient jobs were being created.

Former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley dismissed the survey findings, saying it was “disinformation”.

“If the economy is growing at 12 percent nominal growth for the last five years, it would be an economic absurdity to say that such a large economic growth, the highest in the world, doesn’t lead to the creation of jobs,” Jaitley told Indian news agency ANI.

“If no job creation takes place then there is social unrest. This has been a peace period where no major social agitation has been witnessed in the last five years,” the minister claimed. 

‘We need jobs’

But warnings about a brewing jobs crisis are not new. In December, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) said labour participation rate, a measure of adults who are willing to work, has fallen to 42 percent.

In March 2018, data from the CMIE, a portal that tracks economic activity, said 31 million Indians were looking for jobs.

A report released last month by the All India Manufacturers’ Organisation said 3.5 million jobs had been lost since 2016, when Modi banned about 85 percent of currency notes.

Government jobs in India are the most sought after. India’s railway network recently received 19 million applications for 63,000 jobs as cleaners and track maintainers.

Sagar, son of a migrant family from Madhepura in Bihar state, says he applied for several government jobs, including at the railways which does not mandate a college degree.

Old enough to vote for the first time, he says “whoever forms the next government must help us”.

“We need jobs. If you can’t do that, then help us earn. I tried to get a loan for entrepreneurs, but that is a nightmare as well. So there is nowhere to turn. Neither jobs are available nor is it easy to get bank loans to fund a small business,” he added.

Sagar is among the 133 million young adults who will cast their ballots when the world’s biggest democracy holds a general election due in less than 100 days.

The election comes as India struggles through a period of what economists call “jobless growth”.

“The jobs crisis is really bad. The medium and small scale industries and agriculture are major employers in our country. These sectors have suffered due to policy induced shocks like a badly-implemented national services tax GST and a note ban in 2016 that broke the backs of small businesses and the informal sector,” economist Prasenjit Bose told media.

“Even the organised sector has not grown under this government. Although public sector investments have happened but that has not translated into jobs,” he said.

“The fact is that the economic growth data is being grossly overestimated. There can be no other explanation for this discrepancy between an over 7 percent GDP growth and a 45-year-high unemployment rate.”

Unemployment fuels inequality

Job growth has slowed just as the biggest youth bulge the world has ever seen nears its peak in a country where more than half of its 1.2 billion people are under 25.

In cases like Sagar and Seema, a precarious labour market, socioeconomic factors and a lack of public services has made matters worse.

Since the lack of access to income is the main driver of poverty, experts warn this will also fuel an increase in inequality.

With faster but uneven economic growth in recent decades, boundaries between villages and small towns have blurred. Meanwhile, migration, mobile phones and television have ensured people are more keenly aware of how the lives of others are improving faster than their own.

In states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana and Rajasthan, upper caste land-owning farming communities have held large protests in recent years, demanding quotas in government jobs.

Under pressure to placate the unemployed youth, the government passed a law last month offering quotas to the upper castes in public sector jobs and higher education places.

Population is rising beyond the economy’s capacity to create jobs and there is insufficient job creation in the private sector, say experts.

Investment in the Indian economy is stagnating at lower levels than 2011-12 and the unorganised sector is declining, said Professor Arun Kumar, author of “Demonetisation and the Black Economy”.

“The government needs to address the agricultural crisis. The unorganised sector needs a boost, you need to give them credit and support. The unorganised sector, when revived, will create demand for its own self,” Kumar told media

In the midst of the squabbling over jobs data, economist Kumar says it is necessary to point out the distinction between unemployment and underemployment.

“In India, we don’t have social security. So if somebody loses work, they can’t say we won’t work. Everybody does some work here, so you see graduates pushing a cart etc. India is characterised more by underemployment than unemployment. The problem is our unorganised sector employs 93 percent of those seeking work. It is this 93 percent that is losing jobs because this sector is in crisis,” Kumar said.

Major election issue

This is why India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) looks nervous as it seeks re-election.READ MORE

India plans job quotas for upper caste poor as election nears

In a television interview last year, Prime Minister Modi had said that selling ‘pakodas’ (deep-fried finger food) is also a form of employment since the ‘pakoda’ seller would earn rupees 200 ($2.7) a day.

The remark created a huge controversy, with the opposition accusing Modi of being insentitive to people’s demands for jobs. Ahead of polls, it has ratcheted up pressure on Modi over his unkept promises on jobs.

The main opposition Congress party has promised to introduce a minimum income guarantee for the poor if it wins the elections, due by May.

India’s fractured political landscape, with its dozens of regional parties and caste alliances, poses a serious challenge to Modi’s reelection bid.

Inspite of people like Sagar and Seema’s economic aspirations, regional and caste politics will play a big part in how people vote. And it will be an uphill task for the next government, irrespective of its ideological affiliation, to create all the jobs needed.

Agencies

1st T20I: Disciplined New Zealand beat Indian women by 23 runs

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Nasheman News : A disciplined performance with the ball and on field pressure helped New Zealand outsmart India by 23 runs in the opening Twenty20 International match here on Wednesday.

Although Smriti Mandhana struck the fastest Twenty20 International half-century, getting to the mark in 24 deliveries, a disciplined performance helped New Zealand fight back to claim victory, according to an ICC statement.

When Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues added 58 runs in the Powerplay, India seemed well on course to chase down the target of 160. 

But Kiwi pacer Lea Tahuhu (3/20), and spinners Leigh Kasperek (2/25) and Amelia Kerr (2/28) fought back, and with the fielders holding on to the chances they were offered, the hosts pulled off a stunning victory.

Hannah Rowe’s catch off Mandhana proved to be the game-changer, as India collapsed from 102/1 to 136 all out after that. The middle order offered no resistance, and when captain Harmanpreet Kaur was stumped trying to charge down the ground, India’s hopes disappeared. 

Earlier, New Zealand’s total had been set up by Sophie Devine. After the hosts were put in to bat, Devine led the charge in partnerships of 36 with debutant Caitlin Gurrey (15) and 69 with Amy Satterthwaite (33 off 27 balls). 

For India, Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav and Poonam Yadav scalped one wicket each.

With this victory, the hosts have taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Brief scores: New Zealand: 159/4 (Sophie Devine 62; Deepti Sharma 1/19) against India: 136/10 (Smriti Mandhana 58; Lea Tahuhu 3/20)


Notice to Prashant Bhushan on contempt plea

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Nasheman News : The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notice to advocate Prashant Bhushan on a contempt plea filed by Attorney General K.K. Venugopal and the Centre saying that Bhushan tweeted that the AG “fabricated” minutes of a selection panel meeting on the appointment of then acting CBI Director M. Nageswara Rao that was cleared by the panel.

A bench of Justice Arun Mishra and Justice Navin Sinha said they will be addressing the issue of “vital importance” involving commenting on a matter of sub-judice affecting public opinion and the rights of the litigants. The next hearing will be on March 7. 

Making it clear that “punishment to a lawyer should be the last resort”, Justice Mishra said: “Contempt is a Brhamastra, it should not be used ordinarily.” 

While Venugopal, at the outset, made it clear that he was not seeking any punishment for Bhushan but wanted a line to be drawn and a law be declared spelling out the limits on media reporting and lawyers commenting on matters sub-judice. 

However, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, sought to discipline the errant lawyers who go public criticizing judgments and casting aspersions on judges. 

Mehta said the “magnanimity” of the court on not taking action against such people should not be treated as a “weakness”. 

BJP may take up scams to stem Congress-NCP tide

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 Nasheman News : MPolitics is the game of possibilities where all stakeholders play their games to keep opponents on their toes. They use all the instruments at their disposal to prevent possible electoral tie-ups and spoil political fortunes.

According to political pundits, the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena combine in Maharashtra is planning to throw spanners to block a political scenario where the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) would come together to spoil the possibilities of the BJP-Sena combine improving or maintaining its tally in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra. 

And it should surprise none if the ruling combine decides to rake up the scam related to a Mumbai-based top housing finance company and the aircraft deal to corner the top leadership of the NCP. The arrival of ‘corporate lobbyist’ Deepak Talwar to India from the UAE and the recent raking up of the housing finance company’s case are being seen in political circles as an attempt to serve a signal to the NCP to watch its step while joining the anti-BJP alliance. While both the developments have links to the NCP leadership, it’s almost certain that NCP chief Sharad Pawar cannot be part of the BJP alliance. 

However, before baring the claws, both NCP patriarch Sharad Pawar and Prime Minister Narendra Modi tried to soft handle each other, keeping political analysts busy trying to decipher and decode the political messaging.

The Maharashtra strongman, known for his friendly ties with leaders across the party divide, praised Modi for his hard work after the Gujarat Chief Minister-led NDA’s stunning victory in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. “Modi works hard, that is a fact. During our tenure I had a good equation with him, for professional reasons, and I know his working style. Amongst UPA partners I am the only one who has a communication line with him,” Pawar said at that time. 

Modi too responded in similar vein. While addressing a meeting in Baramati, hometown of Pawar, in February 2015, Modi, who had lashed out at Pawar some six months earlier, showered praises on the NCP leader, claiming that even if they are from two different parties and have two different ideologies, their aim is one – India’s progress.

And come December 2018, the willy politician that Pawar is tried to open communication channels with the Gandhis. Attacking Modi for targeting the Gandhis, the Maratha strongman said the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru spent years in jail during the British rule while Indira Gandhi protected interests of the poor when in power. Praising Sonia Gandhi and her son and party President Rahul Gandhi, Pawar said: “People should feel proud of them as they continue to serve the poor despite the assassination of prime ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.”

Meanwhile, after tough posturing on both sides, the Congress leadership in Maharashtra and the Pawar-led NCP appear to tie the political knot for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, political sources said. And the possibilities of that have unnerved the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA). 

The crucial seat-sharing formula for the 48 Lok Sabha seats — the second highest after Uttar Pradesh — is “practically clinched” and would soon go for the formal nod of the top party leaders like Sharad Pawar and Congress President Rahul Gandhi.

However, the question of accommodating some key local allies is still pending and keeping everyone on tenterhooks.

It may be recalled that on the eve of the 2014 Assembly elections, the Congress-NCP, as also the BJP-Sena combine, had split and fought elections separately, resulting in multi-cornered contests in most of the 288 (Assembly) segments.

This was among the prime factors, analysts later said, which led to the Congress-NCP rout after 15-year rule in Maharashtra, a traditional Congress stronghold. The state was earlier ruled for a term by the Sena-BJP (1994-1999) and from 1999-2014 by the Congress-NCP.

In the present scenario, with a major change in political circumstances compared with 2014 when the “Modi wave” had washed out the Congress-NCP, “a pre-poll alliance is a sensible option”, as a senior NCP official put it.

Though the final figures are kept under wraps, both sides claim “a win-win situation” that would give a tough fight to the BJP-Sena combine, which has yet to finalise its alliance, with the Sena stance giving the BJP a headache.

The Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh (BBM) led by Prakash Ambedkar, which has allied with the Owaisi brothers’ All India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) to present a potent Dalit-Muslim force, has demanded 12 seats for allying with the Congress-NCP, leaving the latter aghast.

Besides, the Congress-NCP are wary of the AIMIM factor, which could gnaw into their minority strongholds and indirectly benefit the BJP-Sena combine with a division in votes, said a high-ranking state NCP leader.

A senior Congress leader said in the final tally, the Congress-NCP may part with 3-4 seats from their share to accommodate the smaller parties and also ensure their victory.

There is also considerable speculation whether Maharashtra would opt for simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections — though categorically denied by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis — but nobody from the BJP has commented.

Nevertheless, Maharashtra Congress President Ashok Chavan is unfazed: “We are prepared for simultaneous elections. It’s up to them to decide,” he said.

If this materialises, smaller parties rue it would pose fresh organisational, manpower and funding challenges for them, with the ruling combine having an upper han

1st T20I: India opt to bowl vs New Zealand

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Nasheman News : Stand-in India skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl against New Zealand in the first of the three-match Twenty20 international rubber here on Wednesday.

All-rounder Daryl Mitchell makes his T20I debut for the Kiwis while Rishabh Pant, who missed a place in the ODI squad, finds a spot in the Indian playing eleven.

Playing XI:

New Zealand: Colin Munro, Tim Seifert (Wicket-keeper), Kane Williamson (Captain), Ross Taylor, Daryl Mitchell, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Scott Kuggeleijn, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson

India: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Vijay Shankar, Dinesh Karthik, M.S. Dhoni (Wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, K. Khaleel Ahmed.

RBI penalises UCO Bank, Axis Bank and Syndicate Bank

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Nasheman News : The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed separate monetary penalties on lenders — UCO Bank, Axis Bank and Syndicate Bank — over deficiencies in complying with different regulatory norms.

The RBI imposed a penalty of Rs 2 crore each on UCO Bank and Axis Bank for non-compliance with its circular on ‘Collection of Account Payee Cheques – Prohibition on Crediting Proceeds to Third Party Account’ and Master Directions on ‘Frauds – Classification and Reporting by commercial banks and select FIs’.

In addition, a separate penalty of Rs 20 lakh was imposed on Axis Bank for contravention of the directions contained in ‘Master Circular on Detection and Impounding of Counterfeit Notes’ and, the ‘Circular on Sorting of Notes – Installation of Note Sorting Machines’.

In another statement, the RBI said it has imposed a penalty of Rs 1 crore on the government-owned Syndicate Bank for non-compliance with the directions contained in ‘Master Circular on Frauds – Classification and Reporting’ and ‘Circular on Risk Management Systems in Banks’.

Lok Sabha adjourned after condoling death of BJD member

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Nasheman News :The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day on Wednesday without transacting any business as a mark of respect for Biju Janata Dal member Ladu Kishore Swain, who died on Tuesday.

Soon after the House met for the day, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan announced that the Odisha MP had passed away.

The House paid silent tribute to the member and was then adjourned for the day.

Swain died at age 71 on Tuesday night. He was admitted to Apollo hospital in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday due to kidney-related ailments.

He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Aska constituency in 2014.

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