MODI APPEALS TO AGITATORS TO GIVE FARM LAWS A CHANCE

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday appealed to agitating farmers to give

the new farm laws a chance and see if these laws bring a positive change to

their lives.

"If there is any drawback in the laws, these would be corrected. If there is

a loose end somewhere, it will be tightened. Our doors are open for

suggestions," Modi said.

Modi, while giving his reply at the Rajya Sabha to the debate following the

President's address on the inaugural day of the Budget Session on January

29, asserted that the system of Minimum Support Price for crops would

continue to remain in practice.

Mandis would be modernized, the Prime Minister said and added that a

provision had been made in the current budget for this purpose.

The Prime Minister implored the farmers camping at the outskirts of Delhi

demanding the repeal of the three farm laws to return home. "It does not

feel nice. There are also old people in the gathering," the Prime Minister

said.

Modi also appealed to the MPs to request the agitating farmers to leave. "If

the laws produce an adverse impact, pass the blame to me-if the laws work,

take all the credit," the Prime Minister told the opposition MPs and sought

their cooperation.

"We should not spread misinformation. We have been entrusted with serious

responsibility by people," Modi said.

Stating he was happy that Manmohan Singh was present in the House, Modi said

the idea of a "one large common market" for agricultural produce was also

envisaged by the former Prime Minister. To substantiate his claim, Modi

quoted Manmohan Singh as having said that the existing marketing regime

prevented farmers from selling their produce where they could get the

highest rate of return.

Modi added that these farmers, who are not given a loan by banks and so do

not benefit from loan waiver schemes introduced by state governments as a

political sop, will benefit from the new farm laws.

Modi also tried to end the discourse around the farmers' protests being

allegedly fuelled by Sikh separatist elements. He slammed those calling Sikh

agitators names, saying it won't do the country any good. "India is very

proud of the contribution of Sikhs. This is a community that has done so

much for the nation. The words and blessings of the Guru Sahibs are

precious. The language used by some for them and attempts to mislead them

will never benefit the nation," he said.

But he also directed some remarks towards those he called "andolan-jeevi" or

professional protesters, also making references to "par-jeevi" (parasite)

and the social media outrage over the farmer agitation by Western

celebrities, calling it "FDI - foreign destructive ideology".

R-DAY VIOLENCE A CONSPIRACY BY BJP GOVT, SAYS ADHIR RANJAN CHOWDHURY

Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Monday alleged that the violence that

unfolded in Delhi on Republic Day was a conspiracy by the BJP government.

"The most important question is how could the miscreants reach Red Fort on a

day like Republic Day? January 26 is a day in which the national capital

remains under maximum security. Then, how can such an incident take place? I

am sure that this was an incident staged by the government. You sent your

people, who came disguised as farmers, and took part in violent activities,"

he said.

After days of logjam in the Lok Sabha, the Opposition on Monday accepted

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's request to let lower house function and

'not let traditions break down'. "Our democracy is lively & healthy, and

everyone above party lines wants to keep it the same. It's our

responsibility to keep dignity of every institution. I appeal to everyone to

hold discussions on Presidential address & not let traditions break down,"

he said.

In a series of meetings between the Opposition and top BJP leadership on

Monday, they decided to end the stalemate in the Lok Sabha which had started

on Tuesday and continued till Friday.

V K SINGH LAC REMARK COUNTERS INDIA POSITION, CHINA SAYS TRESPASS CLEAR

A day after Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Gen V K Singh

(retd) said that India has transgressed the LAC more often than the Chinese

side based on perceptions, contradicting India's official position, Beijing

Monday claimed that the former Army Chief's remark was an "unwitting

confession" of "frequent acts of trespass".

In Madurai on Sunday, while responding to questions from the local media,

Singh had said that China had transgressed many times based on its

perception of the LAC. ".none of you come to know how many times we have

transgressed as per our perception. We don't announce it. Chinese media does

not cover it. Let me assure you, if China has transgressed 10 times, we must

have done it at least 50 times, as per our perception," Singh said.

Singh's comments are in variance with India's official position. In June

last year, after the Galwan Valley incident when 20 soldiers and an

unspecified number of Chinese troops were killed, the Ministry of External

Affairs' official spokesperson Anurag Srivastava had said that "the Indian

side has never undertaken any actions across the LAC".

Responding to a question, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin

said: "This is an unwitting confession by the Indian side. For a long time,

the Indian side has conducted frequent acts of trespass in the border area

in an attempt to encroach on China's territory and constantly created

disputes and frictions, which is the root cause of the tensions at the

China-India border."

Wang said: "We urge the Indian side to follow through on the consensus,

agreements and treaties it reached with China, and uphold peace and

stability in the border region with concrete actions."

MODI, BIDEN LOOK FORWARD TO FURTHER PEACE, SECURITY IN INDO-PACIFIC REGION

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to US President Joe Biden on Monday and

discussed a host of issues, with the PM asserting that both of them are

committed to a rules-based order and look forward to consolidating the

bilateral strategic partnership as well as further peace and security in the

Indo-Pacific region and beyond.

This was their first conversation after Biden assumed office last month.

In a tweet, Modi said that he conveyed his best wishes to the US president,

and the two leaders discussed regional issues as well as shared priorities.

"We also agreed to further our cooperation against climate change," he said.

"President Biden & I are committed to a rules-based order. We look forward

to consolidating our strategic partnership to further peace & security in

Indo-Pacific region and beyond," Modi said in another tweet.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

======================

MYANMAR JUNTA DEFENDS COUP FOR A 'DISCIPLINED DEMOCRACY'

Myanmar's military leader said on Monday his junta would hold a new election

and hand power to the winner as tens of thousands of people took to the

streets for a third day to protest against the coup that overthrew Aung San

Suu Kyi's civilian government. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing was speaking

in a televised address, his first to the country since last Monday's

military takeover. He did not say when the election would be held, but

repeated claims that last November's poll, won by Suu Kyi's National League

for Democracy, had been fraudulent.

In the capital Naypyitaw, crowds of protesters chanted anti-coup slogans and

told police they should serve the people not the military. Police turned

water cannon on protesters and warned that they might use live fire if the

demonstrators did not disperse, but the protests ended without bloodshed.

Protests also took place in the commercial capital Yangon and elsewhere.

UK, FRANCE, OZ & GERMANY SUPPORT ASTRAZENECA JAB

Western governments rushed to offer support for the AstraZeneca Covid-19

vaccination after South Africa halted its roll-out when research showed it

offered minimal protection against mild infection from a variant spreading

there.

South Africa announced its pause after a study found that the AstraZeneca

vaccine provided only minimal protection against mild or moderate infection

from the B.1.351 variant. "This study confirms that the coronavirus will

find ways to continue to spread in vaccinated populations, as expected,"

said Andrew Pollard, chief investigator on the Oxford vaccine trial. "But,

taken with the promising results from other studies in South Africa,

vaccines may continue to ease the toll on healthcare systems by preventing

severe disease."

French health minister Olivier Veran voiced support for the AstraZeneca

vaccine, arguing it provided sufficient protection against "nearly all the

variants".

German health minister Jens Spahn said current evidence suggests all three

vaccines approved in Europe - which include AstraZeneca - provided effective

protection against serious infections. "We think that both the vaccines that

we're currently using are effective in, as I say, in stopping serious

disease and death," UK PM Boris Johnson said.

THE REST

========

UTTARAKHAND GLACIER BURST: 26 BODIES RECOVERED, 171 MISSING

In the aftermath of the Uttarakhand glacier burst, 26 bodies have been

recovered till now, Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar said on Monday. As of 8 pm

today, 171 people still remain missing out of which around 35 are supposed

to be in the tunnel where rescue operations are underway.

A multi-agency rescue operation including - ITBP and National Disaster

Response Force (NDRF) - is in full swing to release people still stuck in

the tunnels. The forces have cleared 90 meter stretch of debris in the big

tunnel at Tapovan till now, with about 100 meters of clearing still left to

do.

The glacier burst took place at the Rishiganga power project after a

portion of Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Tapovan area of Joshimath in

Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Sunday morning and damaged the Rishiganga

dam on Alaknanda river.

AFTER PM'S INVITE, FARMER LEADERS SAY READY FOR TALKS

Farmer unions agitating against the three farm laws on Monday asked the

government to fix a date for the next round of talks, soon after Prime

Minister Narendra Modi urged them to end their stir and invited them to

resume the dialogue.

Farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka, who is a senior member of the Samkyukta

Kisan Morcha which is spearheading the ongoing stir, said they are ready for

the next round of talks and the government should tell them the date and

time of the meeting. "We have never refused to hold talks with the

government. Whenever it has called us for dialogue, we held discussions with

Union ministers. We are ready for talks with them (government)," Kakka said.

Reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement on the Minimum Support

Price (MSP) in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU)

spokesperson Rakesh Tikait said, "They (Centre) are complicating the matter,

when did we say that the MSP system is ending, we only want a law on it."

UP GOVT TO SC: PUNJAB 'VOCIFEROUSLY' DEFENDING 'GANGSTER' MUKHTAR ANSARI

Taking serious objection to Punjab not transferring strongman and BSP MLA

Mukhtar Ansari to face trial in multiple cases, the Uttar Pradesh government

Monday told the Supreme Court that the Punjab government has "vociferously

defended" a "dreaded gangster having terror charges" against him.

Mau MLA Ansari has been lodged in Rupnagar district jail since January 2019

in connection with an alleged extortion case in Punjab. The top court is

hearing a plea filed by UP, seeking direction to Rupnagar jail authorities

to give Ansari custody to UP jail authorities in connection with production

warrants issued against him.

Appearing for UP, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench comprising

Justices Ashok Bhushan and R S Reddy that the trial in several cases of

heinous crimes involving Ansari has been held up in the state and that

Punjab government is "supporting a gangster".

"The state (Punjab) says Mukhtar Ansari is suffering from depression. Ansari

says he belongs to a family of freedom fighters. The point is there are

several cases of heinous offences lodged against him (in Uttar Pradesh). He

is a gangster. He is happy in jail in Punjab," Mehta told the court.

MAHA GOVT TO PROBE CELEBS TWEETS ON FARMER PROTEST; BJP FUMES

The Maharashtra government's intelligence department will conduct a probe

into allegations some celebrities were pressurised to post tweets with

regard to the farmers' protest, said Home Minister Anil Deshmukh on Monday,

drawing an angry response from the BJP.

Deshmukh made the remarks on an online platform after the Congress, a ruling

coalition ally in Maharashtra, sought an investigation into the BJP's

alleged connection with recent tweets of some celebrities on the ongoing

farm protest and to find out whether the saffron party "arm-twisted" them in

posting those statements which were deemed pro-Centre.

In New Delhi, BJP president J P Nadda took a swipe at the Maharashtra

government over the probe move, saying it has a unique model of governance

that hails "noises of anarchy" from overseas but "harasses" patriotic

Indians who stand for the nation.

A number of prominent personalities, including cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar

and legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, recently rallied around the central

government on social media using hashtags #IndiaTogether and

#IndiaAgainstPropaganda.

This came after tweets by American pop star Rihanna and climate activist

Greta Thunberg backing farmers who are protesting near Delhi's border points

against the Centre's three new farm laws.

CAIT CALLS FOR BHARAT BANDH ON FEBRUARY 26

The staunchly pro-Modi government Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT)

has called for a Bharat Trade Bandh on February 26 against the GST, "one of

the most complex taxation system which has resulted in misery to traders".

The CAIT has also claimed the support of All India Transport Welfare

Association (AITWA) which will carry out a 'chakka jam' on the same day.

"Repeated statements of CAIT were never responded by the GST Council, which

has generated a feeling among the traders across the country that the

council has its own agenda and it is not interested in obtaining cooperation

of traders. We highly regret such dismal picture of GST and which has

compelled the trade leaders attending the conference to call for a Bharat

Trade Bandh," said a statement.

Besides the complicated tax structure, the traders' ire is directed at the

absence of a consultative mechanism both at centre and states which is

"against the declared policy of PM Modi for taking stakeholders into

confidence while framing a policy or the rules and minimum

government-maximum governance", it said in a statement.

SETBACK FOR AMAZON AS HC LIFTS STATUS QUO ON $3.4 BN FUTURE-RELIANCE DEAL

The Delhi High Court on Monday stayed its single-judge direction to Future

Retail Ltd (FRL) and various statutory authorities to maintain the status

quo with regard to the Rs 24,713-crore deal with Reliance Retail in a

setback for Jeff Bezos-led e-commerce giant Amazon, which has challenged the

transaction.

A division Bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh was

hearing the appeal filed by FRL against the court's order passed last week.

The court had then said it was satisfied that an immediate interim order was

required to be passed to protect the rights of Amazon.

On Monday, the division Bench noted that FRL was not a party to an

arbitration agreement with Amazon and prima facie the "group of companies"

doctrine could not be invoked in the present case as the three agreements -

Future Retail Shareholding Agreement (SHA), Future Coupons Pvt Ltd (FCPL)

SHA, and FCPL Share Subscription Agreement - were distinct in nature. The

court observed that there was no reason to seek a status quo order from the

single judge.

TESLA MAY ACCEPT BITCOIN PAYMENTS

Tesla Inc expects to allow customers to pay for its electric vehicles with

bitcoin soon, the automaker said on Monday, a move that could expand how the

most popular cryptocurrency is used for real-world transactions.

Although bitcoin has become more of a household name in recent years, it is

still mostly used as an investment product rather than a form of payment.

A handful of mainstream brands have allowed customers to make purchases with

bitcoin through third-party processors, but Tesla suggested it might accept

bitcoin directly as part of a broader plan to incorporate the cryptocurrency

into its investment portfolio.

The company made the disclosures in a section of its quarterly securities

filing that also detailed its purchase of $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin. If

customers buy Teslas with bitcoin, the company may or may not liquidate

those payments right away - which some experts read as an indication that

Tesla might hold on to at least some of the coins and not sell them

automatically.

CHENNAI TEST, DAY 4: ENGLAND DON'T ENFORCE FOLLOW-ON, SET 420 RUN TARGET

A cautious England spared India the ignominy of a follow-on but set them a

daunting 420-run victory target in the FIRST tEST OPF TEH SERIES.

England, who had posted a mammoth 578 in the first innings, bowled India out

for 337 but opted against enforcing the follow-on.

The tourists walked out to bat instead and were bowled out for 178 (in 46

overs) an hour before stumps, baffling many by their refusal to declare

which would have given them more time to bowl out India.

The hosts finished the penultimate day on 39/1, still 381 behind the target,

with Shubhman Gill batting on 15 and Cheteshwar Pujara on 12.

Earlier yesterday, Washington Sundar led India's rearguard resistance with

an unbeaten 85 before he ran out of partners. The all-rounder added 80 runs

with Ravichandran Ashwin in a spirited seventh-wicket stand to take India,

who had resumed on 257/6, past the 300-mark.

INDICATORS

Sensex 51,349 (+617), Nifty 15,116 (+192), Trading Value NSE (Rs.crores)

77078.85

Nasdaq 13,988 (+131) Dow 31,386 (+238), S&P 3,916 (+29)

US$-Rs. 72.87 GBP-Rs. 100.02, Euro-Rs. 87.74, UAE Dhm-Rs.19.83, Can$-Rs.

57.11, Aus$- Rs. 55.98

GBP 0.72 /US$, Euro 0.83 /US$, Jap.Yen 105.40 /US$, Aus$ 1.30 /US$, Sing

1.33 /US$, Bang Taka 82.98 /US$, Can$ 1.27 /US$, Mal Ring 4.06 /US$,

Pak Re 159.48 /US$, Phil Peso 48.05 /US$, Russian Rouble 74.41 /US$, NZ$

1.38 /US$, Thai Baht 29.97 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 27.46 /US$

Bitcoin - USD 45,734

Dollar Index 90.72 Brent Crude 61.11 BDI 1333

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,841 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 4,736 /

4,636, Silver (Rs. Per KG) 68,700

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

A single thread of hope is stronger than all the chains that bind you. -

Jeffrey Fry

OFF TRACK

At Sunday School they were teaching how God created everything, including

human beings. Little Johnny seemed especially intent when they told him how

Eve was created out of one of Adam's ribs.

Later in the week his mother noticed him lying down as though he were ill,

and she said...

"Johnny, what is the matter?"

Little Johnny responded...

"I have a pain in my side. I think I'm going to have a wife."