Archives for 2021

New Delhi: Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan will be on a three-day visit to the UAE beginning Tuesday during which he will hold talks with the leadership of that country with a special focus on the welfare of Indian workers, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Monday.

The visit comes after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s visit to the UAE in November last year.

The Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs will be undertaking an official visit to the UAE from January 19-21, 2021, the MEA said in a statement.

During the visit, he will be meeting with UAE dignitaries and a broad cross-section of the Indian community in the UAE, the MEA said. He will hold talks with the UAE side on various bilateral and international issues of mutual interest, it said.

There will be special focus in the visit on issues related to the Indian community, especially the welfare of Indian workers, the MEA said. India and the UAE have maintained close coordination in the spirit of their comprehensive strategic partnership during the COVID-19 pandemic.

An air bubble arrangement has been functioning successfully between both the countries, the statement said.

The Board also called for the exclusion of Republic TV from the BARC rating system until the final court order on the matter.

On Monday, 18 January, the News Broadcasters Association released a statement stating that the alleged WhatsApp exchanges between Arnab Goswami, Republic TV editor-in-chief, and Patho Dasgupta, former CEO of the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), establish a clear conspiracy between the two in manipulating the Television ratings.

As a result, the NBA has proposed expulsion of Republic TV from the Indian Broadcasting Foundation.

The NBA press release states that “month after month, by fraudulently manually reducing ratings of other channels to give Republic TV an unfair advantage, the manipulation of ratings was done.” It also mentioned that it was shocking to see the messages exchanged between Goswami and Dasgupta.

“The Board also called for the exclusion of Republic TV from the BARC rating system until the final court order on the matter, stating that “the NBA requests that IBF membership of Republic TV be suspended with immediate effect until the case involving the manipulation of ratings is pending before the court.

“These WhatsApp messages not only reflect rating manipulation but are also about powerplay,” the statement also said. The messages exchanged relate to the recruitment of secretaries, the reorganization of the Government, access to the PMO (Prime Minister’s Office) and the functioning of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.”

“Emphasizing the lack of transparency of the BARC, the NBA called on the Broadcast Council to “make a direct statement on the veracity of its ratings during the audit period and also carry out an audit of the Hindi news genre; Expunge the data of the erring broadcaster and restate from the beginning the real status of the rankings of all news channels; clarify the specific measures taken by BARC to protect the ratings in the last three months.

The statement further claimed that the continued release of ‘meddled data’ by BARC has resulted in credibility losses as well as huge financial losses for news broadcasters, and therefore the council must have a reason for the same.

Hundreds of Adivasi farmers from Maharashtra, mostly women, have reached Delhi and have moved to Shahjahanpur and a large contingent of farmers has left for Delhi from OdishaBy :Gauri Lankesh News Desk |January 18, 2021 Share

Yesterday in a Press Meet, Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) shared the details of the plans for the “Kisan Republic Day Parade” for the 26th of January 2021.

Morcha stated that food producers of the country want to celebrate Republic Day along with Jawans of the country and uphold the pride of the nation by taking out a disciplined parade. “No anti-social elements will be allowed to infiltrate this”, said leaders of SKM.

While a large contingent of farmers that has left for Delhi from Odisha as part of Navanirman Krushak Sanghatan reached Jharkhand today, hundreds of adivasi farmers from Maharashtra, mostly women, have reached Delhi and have moved to Shahjahanpur.

SKM urged Haryana and Delhi Police to cooperate. The Parade will happen peacefully, and will not disrupt the official Republic Day Parade. There will be no threat to any national heritage sites, or to any other site.

Republic Day Farmers Parade To Showcase Agricultural Realities of Different States

The Parade would take place on the Outer Ring Road. The vehicles in the Parade will consist of tableaus and floats that will reflect the agricultural reality of different states in addition to showcasing historical regional and other movements. The vehicles will all fly India’s national flag and will also have the flag of the farmer organisation that the members are affiliated with. No political party flags will be allowed. It is also expected that the parade will have the participation of families of martyr farmers of the agitation, awarded defence services personnel, awarded sportspersons, women farmers, etc. It is expected that many states will be represented in the Parade.

Those who cannot come to Delhi to take part in this parade will organise their own parades at state capitals and district headquarters with the same norms around discipline and peace. SKM appealed to all citizens to come forward and express their support and solidarity, and also watch the parade.

Farmer leaders stated that they will go into the talks with the government in good faith even on the 19th of January despite the unconducive atmosphere created by the Agriculture Minister’s statement today.

With immense pain, we are informing you that every day many farmers are separating from us. So far 131 farmers have been martyred in this movement. SKM pays homage to these individuals and stands with their families.

Plans for starting an Akhand Jyoti for the farmers who got martyred so far were announced.

As informed earlier, 18th January will be celebrated as Women Farmers Day. Respecting women’s incomparable role in agriculture and exercising women’s agency in protests and every sphere, women will be managing the stage and all the speakers on this day will be women. Other cultural programs will also be organised, showcasing the contribution of women.

On 20th January, Prakash Parab of Guru Gobind Singh Ji, SKM requests people across the world to take a pledge to make this movement success.

In Belagavi in Karnataka, several farmer leaders of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha got arrested during a protest organised on the occasion of Mr. Amit Shah’s visit there today.

SKM condemns strongly the use of NIA against many supporters of the farmers’ movement and even unconnected service providers like transporters etc. It is not just summons for questioning but registration of cases against many people in Punjab that the Central Government has initiated, despite the fact that the last meeting with the government explicitly discussed this issue and received an assurance from the government.

Samyukta Kisan Morcha appeals to people across the nation to boycott the products of corporate houses, especially of Ambani and Adani. We also appeal to people to expose the reality of the BJP and its allies of NDA by opposing them in every sphere.

SKM shared that plans for a program of actions that will take place after January 26th will be announced soon, in the next press conference of the Morcha.

New Delhi: Ahead of Republic Day, Delhi Police Commissioner S N Shrivastava on Saturday held a review meeting in which he also took stock of the arrangements at farmers’ agitation sites to maintain law and order, officials said.

In the meeting held with senior officers, the police chief took stock of anti-terrorism measures as well as action taken against criminals involved in various cases, including burglary, violation of the Excise Act and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, and gambling cases, they said.

Shrivastava also reviewed pending cases under POCSO and crime against women, officials said.

Senior officers examined proposed action against listed criminals under surveillance, including jail/bail/parole released criminals and ‘Bad Characters’, according to a police statement.

“The officers have been directed to increase vigil through picket checking and update history sheets. An action plan for police stations was also reviewed for formation of anti-snatching teams and identification of areas prone to organized crime like liquor/drugs trade and gambling,” said Anil Mittal, Additional PRO (Delhi Police).

The district DCsP were also advised to take optimum use of crime teams for investigation, he said.

Mangaluru: Three persons have been arrested in connection with the attempt to kidnap some minor children at Konchady area here on January 13, police said on Saturday.

The trio had come on bikes and tried to kidnap small children playing near the Mahalasa temple at Konchady by throwing gunny bags on them.

The children, however, managed to escape.

City Police Commissioner N Sashi Kumar told reporters here on Saturday all the three have criminal cases against them in different police stations. The accused told the police that they made the attempt just as a prank for uploading the video on YouTube.

The real motive behind the crime is being investigated, Kumar said, The three were produced before the court and sent to police custody for two days.

Police have also arrested one person for setting fire to three beef stalls at Valapete in Thokkottu under Ullal police station limits on January 8. He told police that he had a quarrel with one of the stall owners over the quantity of meat purchased by him.

The shop keeper insulted him in front of others and he set fire to the shops late night in a revenge act.

On the social media post by a woman, who complained of sexual harassment in a bus, the commissioner said police have decided to file case on their own and special teams have been formed to nab the accused.mThe woman had posted her bad experience with the picture of the accused, which she took on her mobile.

Shashi Kumar said a meeting would be held with representatives of the bus owners association to ensure safety of women and students in buses.

A police team would be formed and they would be deployed in mufti at public places to check such activities, he said.

New Delhi: A group of 100 former civil servants wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday raising questions over transparency in the PM-CARES Fund.

They said it is necessary that, for reasons of probity and adherence to standards of public accountability, the financial details of receipts and expenditures be made available in order to avoid doubts of wrongdoing.

“We have been keenly following the ongoing debate about the Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations, or ‘PM-CARES’, — a fund created for the benefit of people affected by the COVID pandemic. Both the purpose for which it has been created as well as the way it has been administered have left a number of questions unanswered,” they said in the letter.

“It is essential that the position and stature of the Prime Minister is kept intact by ensuring total transparency in all dealings the Prime Minister is associated with,” they said.

The letter was signed by former IAS officers Anita Agnihotri, S P Ambrose, Sharad Behar, Sajjad Hassan, Harsh Mander, P Joy Oommen, Aruna Roy, former diplomats Madhu Bhaduri, K P Fabian, Deb Mukharji, Sujatha Singh and former IPS officers A S Dulat, P G J Nampoothiri and Julio Ribeiro among others.

In March last year, the Centre set up the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) Fund with the primary objective to deal with any kind of emergency situation like the one currently posed by the COVID-19 outbreak and provide relief to those affected.