Category: National

Patna: A man in Bihar was beaten, tonsured and paraded through the streets after he was found frequently cutting power supply to a village to meet his girlfriend under the cover of darkness.

Witnesses said the residents of Ganeshpur village in eastern Bihar’s Purnia district reacted after facing frequent power cuts for two to three hours at a particular time in the evening, while the neighbouring villages remained illuminated.

On investigating, they were surprised to find that a local electrician posted with the electricity department was the cause of this power crisis.

The villagers found that the electrician had been cutting power supply in the evening so he could meet his girlfriend under the cover of darkness. Power supply would be restored only after he left the village.

Worried villagers soon chalked out a plan to catch the accused red-handed. The next time power went off, a group of villagers rushed to a government school located on the village’s outskirts and caught the couple.

Witnesses said the electrician was beaten up before being tonsured and paraded through the streets as punishment. The man told the villagers that he would cut the power supply whenever he wished to meet his girlfriend.

The villagers then got him married to the girl.

“The man was married to the girl in the presence of the Sarpanch and other village council officials,” villager Marar Ram Murmu told the local media on Thursday.

The police said they had not received any complaint so far. “We have come to know about the incident but will act once we receive a complaint,” local police station in-charge Vikas Kumar Azad told the media.

With Inputs from Agencies

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

In his annual Vijayadashami speech, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat says, with Taliban’s rise, India’s north-western borders have again become a matter of ‘serious concern’.

New Delhi: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat Friday said the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan was “not entirely surprising”, adding that China, Pakistan and Turkey all worked in collusion to prop up the insurgent group. As a result, he said, the situation along India’s north-western borders has once again become a matter of “serious concern”.

“Another situation, which was not entirely surprising, but occurred before the expectation, is the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Their predisposition — passionate fanaticism, tyranny and terrorism in the name of Islam — is sufficient to make everyone apprehensive of the Taliban,” Bhagwat said in his annual Vijayadashami speech.

The speech, delivered at the RSS headquarters in Nagpur, was attended, among others, by Israel Consul General in Mumbai Kobbi Shoshani.

Referring to the Taliban takeover on 15 August, Bhagwat pointed fingers at China, Pakistan and Turkey, accusing the three countries of empowering the group.

“China, Pakistan and Turkey have coalesced in an unholy coalition with the Taliban. Our north-western borders are once again a matter of serious concern,” he said. “The Taliban have time and again alternated between Kashmir and peace talks simultaneously. This is an indicator that we cannot rest in complacency.”

‘Military preparedness on the borders needs to be alert’

Seeking to direct the government on how it should take the next steps in the evolving geopolitical situation, Bhagwat said the country’s military needs to be more alert in the border areas. The country, he added, needs to be self-sufficient in defence and security.

“Our military preparedness on the borders needs to be alert and sound on all ends and at all times. In such a situation, the internal security and stability of the country must be secured by the government and society with caution and vigilance,” he said. “Efforts to achieve self-sufficiency in the domain of defence and security and to become up-to-date with newer concerns like cybersecurity must be ramped up.” 

“We should be self-sufficient at the earliest when it comes to domains like security,” he added. “While keeping the channels for dialogue open and without negating the possibility of a heart-change, we must be prepared for all possibilities.” 

‘Terrorists in J&K carrying out targeted killings’ 

Bhagwat Friday said terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir are back to conducting “targeted killings of national-minded citizens”, especially Hindus. 

“In this tragic hour, the need for emotional integration of the people of Jammu and Kashmir with the rest of Bharat should be accelerated,” he said. “Terrorists in Jammu & Kashmir have restarted the spate of the targeted killings of national-minded citizens, especially Hindus, to destroy their morale and re-establish the reign of terror in the Valley.” 

“The citizens are braving and shall brave the situation with courage but efforts for curbing and finishing off the terrorist activities need speeding up,” he added.

Israeli diplomat attends Bhagwat’s speech

The annual address by Bhagwat, which has become an important event since the BJP came to power, was attended by Israeli diplomat Kobbi Shoshani. 

Sri Kobbi Shoshani . Consul General, Consulate General of Israel, Mumbai is also participating in the #RSSVijaydashami event as a guest. pic.twitter.com/SNUpZ9MFnU

— RSS (@RSSorg) October 15, 2021

Shoshani took over as consul general at the Israel Consulate General in Mumbai this August. He succeeded Yaakov Finkelstein.

Back in 2015, in one of his public addresses, Bhagwat had said that in terms of defence preparedness, India should learn from Israel.

With inputs from ThePrint

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) 

As per the 2021 rankings, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal have fared better than India

The 2021 report, prepared by Irish aid agency Concern Worldwide and German organization Welt Hunger Hilfe, said the level of hunger in India is ‘alarming’.

GHI scores are calculated on four parameters — undernourishment, child wasting (percentage of children below five years of age who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition), child stunting (percentage of children below five years of age who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition) and child mortality (the mortality rate of children under the age of five).

The news of ‘India’s starvation’ has started making headlines in the world… Is this the achievement of the BJP government?

‘भारत की भुखमरी’ की ख़बरें, विश्व की सुर्ख़ियाँ बनने लगी हैं… क्या यही भाजपा सरकार की उपलब्धि है। #नहीं_चाहिए_भाजपा pic.twitter.com/WPDHxZ9f8Y

— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) October 15, 2021

With inputs from Agencies

New Delhi: The military build-up by China in the eastern Ladakh region and new infrastructure development to sustain the large-scale deployment are matters of concern and India has been keeping a close watch on all the activities by the Chinese PLA, Chief of Army Staff Gen MM Naravane said on Saturday.
He said if the Chinese military maintains the deployment through the second winter, it may lead to an LoC-like situation (Line of Control) though not an active LoC as is there on the western front with Pakistan
The Chief of Army Staff said if the Chinese military continues with its deployment, the Indian Army too will maintain its presence on its side which is “as good as what the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) has done”.
Indian and Chinese militaries have been on a standoff in several areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh for nearly 17 months though both sides disengaged from a number of friction points this year following a series of talks.
“Yes, it is a matter of concern that the large-scale build-up has occurred and continues to be in place, and to sustain that kind of a build-up, there has been an equal amount of infrastructure development on the Chinese side,” Gen Naravane said at the Indian Today conclave.
“So, it means that they (PLA) are there to stay. We are keeping a close watch on all these developments, but if they are there to stay, we are there to stay too,” he said.
Gen Naravane said the build-up and the infrastructure development on the Indian side are as good as what PLA has done.
“But what this would, especially if they continue to stay there through the second winter, definitely mean that we will be in a kind of LC (Line of Control) situation though not an active LC as is there on the western front,” he said.
“But definitely, we will have to keep a close eye on all the troop build-up and deployments to see that they do not get into any misadventure once again,” the Army Chief said.
To a question, Gen Naravane said it is difficult to understand why China triggered the standoff when the world was reeling under the COVID-19 pandemic and when that country had certain issues on its eastern seaboard.
“While all that is going on, to sort of open up one more front is very difficult to understand or fathom,” he said.
“But whatever it might have been, I do not think they have been able to achieve any of those because of the rapid response done by the Indian armed forces,” the Army Chief added.
Asked to comment on the overall situation in eastern Ladakh, Gen Naravane referred to a recent statement by a spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs and said he had clearly mentioned that whatever has happened on the Northern border is because of the massive build-up by the Chinese side and the non-adherence to various protocols.
“So that is very clear as to what was the trigger for all that which has happened,” Gen Naravane said.
The Army Chief said following the standoff in eastern Ladakh, Indian Army realised that it needs to do more in the area of ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance).
“So that has been the thrust of our modernisation over the last one year. Similarly, other weapons and equipment that we thought we need for future, those have got our attention also,” he said.
The border standoff between the Indian and the Chinese militaries erupted on May 5 last year in eastern Ladakh following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.
Both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.
As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in the Gogra area in August.
In February, the two sides completed the withdrawal of troops and weapons from the north and south banks of the Pangong lake in line with an agreement on disengagement.
Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the LAC in the sensitive sector. PTI

PTI

Guwahati: The Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati was handed over to the Adani Group for operations, management and development responsibilities on Friday.

Beginning the process of developing and modernising the Northeast’s foremost airport, the symbolic key of the airport was handed over by Ramesh Kumar, Airport Director of the Airports Authority of India (AAI). to Utpal Baruah, Chief Airport Officer of the new airport operator at an event held midnight, a press statement said.

In 2018, the government of India included the Guwahati airport in the group of six airports — Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Mangalore, Jaipur and Thiruvananthapuram — set for privatisation for operations, management and development (OMD) for a period of 50 years.

Adani Enterprise Limited emerged as the successful bidder for all the six airports.

The concession agreement between the AAI and Adani Enterprise Limited was signed on January 19 this year in New Delhi.

From Friday onwards, the operations, management and development responsibilities of Guwahati’s Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport will be handled by the new airport operator — Adani Guwahati International Airport Limited (AGIAL) — the statement said.

Amidst the sonorous traditional tune of ‘taal-khol’ and ‘Bihu’, in presence of the Adani Group’s representatives, the charge handover moment was witnessed by several staff and officers of the airport with their families.

In the initial three years, the new airport operator will be supported by the employees of the AAI. Speaking on the occasion, Kumar wished luck to the new operator and assured his support in the initial phase.

Baruah, in his address, thanked the AAI for bringing in noticeable changes to LGBI Airport.

He appealed to each individual at the airport and public at large for wholehearted support to make the airport a world class facility which will bring pride to the nation, the statement said. (PTI)

(This story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

PTI

Veteran actor Ghanashyam Nayak, best known for his work as Nattu Kaka on the popular sitcom “Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah”, passed away on Sunday after a long battle with cancer, producer Asit Kumarr Modi said.

The actor, who was in his late 70s, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year.

Modi, who is the creator of “Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah”, said the actor’s health deteriorated in the past few days.

“He passed away today evening. He wasn’t keeping well for a long time. He had cancer. He always wanted to keep shooting. Even though he was unwell, work would always make him happy. I would look for opportunities to get him on the show. But it had become difficult for him to shoot. For the last two days he was extremely unwell,” Modi told PTI.

Nayak appeared in nearly 100 Hindi and Gujarati films, apart from featuring on more than 300 TV serials.

The veteran actor was also known for his work in the Gujarati theatre.

Earlier this year, during his chemotherapy, Nayak had shot for a special episode of “Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah”.

He is survived by his wife and three children. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

PTI

India recorded a single-day rise of 23,529 COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking its infection tally to 3,37,39,980, while the count of active cases dipped to 2,77,020, the lowest in 195 days, according to Union Health Ministry data.

The death toll due to the disease has climbed to 4,48,062 with 311 daily fatalities being recorded, according to the data updated at 8 am.

The number of active cases has declined to 2,77,020, comprising 0.82 per cent of the total infections the lowest since March 2020, the ministry said.

The national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 97.85 per cent, the highest since March 2020, it added.

A decrease of 5,500 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

Also, 15,06,254 COVID-19 tests were conducted in the country on Wednesday, taking the total number of such examinations done so far to 56,89,56,439, the data showed.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.56 per cent. It has been below three per cent for 31 days.

The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 1.74 per cent. This figure has been below three per cent for 97 days, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has surged to 3,30,14,898, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.33 per cent.

The cumulative number of coronavirus vaccine doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide inoculation drive has exceeded 88.34 crore. (PTI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

PTI

The government is making efforts to ensure there is one medical college or an institution for post-graduate medical education in each district of the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

He also said that the government’s focus is on preventive healthcare, and ayurveda and yoga are being promoted.

The gap in medical education and delivery of health services is being reduced, the prime minister said in a virtual ceremony to mark the foundation stone laying of four medical colleges and inauguration of the Institute of Petrochemicals Technology in Rajasthan. (PTI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

PTI

A 21-year-old man from Odisha’s Jajpur district has been arrested for allegedly abducting and raping a teenager, police said on Thursday.

The man became friends with the 17-year-old girl, who studies in a college in Kalinga Nagar. He used to talk to the girl over mobile phone and became closer to her, according to the police.

The accused abducted the teen while she was on her way to the college on September 8, took her to Hyderabad and then shifted her to Secunderabad. He sexually assaulted her multiple times, police said.

Her mobile phone was tracked and she was rescued near the Secunderabad railway station and the accused was arrested on Monday night, Jakhapura police station in-charge Laxman Dandasena said.

A case has been lodged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The accused was produced in a local court on Wednesday and remanded in judicial custody.

Medical examinations of the two have been conducted and the girl was handed over to her parents, police said. (PTI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

PTI

The Congress on Saturday extended support to the Bharat Bandh call given by farmer unions against the Centre’s three agri laws and demanded that discussions be initiated with the protesters.

Congress spokesperson Gourav Vallabh said the Congress party and all its workers will support the “peaceful Bharat Bandh on September 27, called by farmer unions and farmers”.

“We demand that the due process of discussion with the farmers should be initiated because they are sitting on the borders of Delhi for last more than nine months. We demand that these three black laws, which were imposed without any consultation, should be taken back,” he also said.

The Congress leader also demanded that the MSP should be given as a legal right to every farmer “as they do not want only ‘jumlas’ (rhetoric)” and referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s promise to double the farmers’ income by 2022.

“If we compare 2012-13 income of a farmer family with his income in 2018-19, the income due to farming in the total income of a farmer has reduced from 48 percent to 38 percent,” he claimed.

Vallabh cited the Situation Assessment Survey of the Government of India, which states that a farmer on average is earning Rs 27 per day.

He claimed that the agriculture sector suffered a permanent dent in the last seven years.

He alleged that the Modi government “first tried to usurp farmers’ land by bringing in the Land Acquisition Ordinance in 2014 and then in 2015, it filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court that if farmers’ produce is purchased on MSP, as per the formula given by Swaminathan Commission, the markets are going to be distorted”.

He also alleged that in the name of agriculture insurance, the government gave a major portion of the agriculture budget to insurance companies, even as the cost of farming per hectare has gone up by Rs 25,000.

“This is also the first government in the last 70 years that has imposed a tax on agriculture in the form of GST, which has also been imposed on tractors, pesticides, seeds and farm equipment, and the agriculture sector is being taxed indirectly,” he claimed.

The result is that the average debt of a farmer which was Rs 47,000 in 2012-13 has increased to Rs 74,121 in 2018-19, he alleged and said this is the reason the Congress is supporting the Bandh.

Vallabh said the farmers are demanding the withdrawal of three “black laws which were imposed without following any democratic process or consultation”.

“They are only demanding that MSP should be given as a legal right to every farmer.

“I am surprised that why Prime Minister Modi is opposing Chief Minister Modi? When UPA-2 was in power, Chief Minister Modi gave in writing that MSP should be given as a legal right, now he is opposing his own words and his entire party is opposing his words,” he said.

The government and farmer unions have held 11 rounds of talks so far, the last being on January 22, to break the deadlock and end the farmers’ protest. Talks have not resumed following widespread violence during a tractor rally by protesting farmers on January 26.

The three laws — The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020 — were passed by the Parliament in September last year.

Farmer groups have alleged that these laws will end the mandi and MSP procurement systems and leave the farmers at the mercy of big corporates, even as the government has rejected these apprehensions as misplaced and asserted that these steps will help increase farmers’ income.

The Supreme Court had in January stayed the implementation of the three laws till further orders and appointed a panel to resolve the impasse. (PTI)