PRESIDENT RAM NATH KOVIND MARKS BANGLADESH LIBERATION IN DHAKA

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will today lead the nation in commemorating 50 years of India’s victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war and the formation of Bangladesh even as President Ram Nath Kovind reached Dhaka today on his maiden three-day visit to mark the occasion.

Kovind assured the top Bangladesh leadership that the nation had a “special place” in India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and underlined that the bilateral relationship based on sovereignty, equality, trust and understanding was mature enough to handle the “most complex of problems”.

President Kovind held talks with Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka on “issues of shared interest and reviewed progress relating to the bilateral cooperation between the two nations”, said the Ministry of External Affairs. The President and Bangladesh PM also recalled the spirit of the 1971 Liberation War and expressed satisfaction at the joint celebrations of Maitri Diwas, said MEA.

GOVT STICKS TO STAND ON OPP DEMAND TO REVOKE SUSPENSION OF 12 MPS

Hardening its stance against the demand to revoke the suspension of 12 Rajya Sabha MPs, the govt on Wednesday said it was “unfortunate” that senior Opposition leaders are “not willing to repent” for the act of their colleagues during the Monsoon Session in August.

Leader of House in Rajya Sabha Piyush Goyal alleged that the suspended MPs “pushed female marshals and attempted to strangulate male marshals” during the disruptions on August 11, charges that were contested by Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge.

Kharge said the Opposition was being subjected to “crimes that it did not commit”.

CABINET CLEARS ELECTORAL REFORM PROPOSALS

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday cleared a bill on electoral reforms, including the one to link electoral roll with Aadhaar on a voluntary basis to root out multiple enrolments.

A provision of the proposed bill will allow the youth to enrol as voters on four different dates every year. As of now, those turning 18 on or before January 1 of every year are only allowed to register as voters.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) had been pushing for multiple cut-off dates to allow more eligible people to register as voters. Currently, for an election to be held in a particular year, only an individual who has attained the age of 18 years as on January 1 of that year or before is eligible to be enrolled in the voters’ list.

AJAY MISHRA TENI LOSES COOL AT REPORTERS; VIDEO VIRAL

Union minister Ajay Mishra lost his cool at reporters on Wednesday, calling them “thieves” and lunging at one of them when they questioned him on the October 3 violence for which his son is among the accused.  The confrontation took place at a govt health centre near Lakhimpur Kheri district headquarters, where he had gone to inaugurate an oxygen plant.

A memorandum submitted by reporters also accused the Minister of State for Home Affairs of scuffling with them and snatching a reporter’s mobile phone.

The opposition has renewed its demand for the minister’s dismissal after a special investigation team  told a local court that the Lakhimpur Kheri violence in which eight people, including four farmers, were killed was a “pre-planned conspiracy.” The court on Tuesday also allowed the SIT to add the attempt to murder charge in the FIR against the minister’s son, Ashish Mishra, and 12 others booked in the case.

On Wednesday, the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day after opposition members raised slogans and waved placards demanding that the minister should be sacked.

The BJP, however, rejected the demand for resignation, saying that it was “unfounded” and also ruled out a discussion on the issue as the matter was sub judice.

COVID DASHBOARD – INDIA

As of 0800 IST 16/Dec

from mohfw.gov.in ,

New Cases on Wednesday 7,817

Active Cases 87,245 (-317)

Total Deaths (Deaths Yesterday) 4,76,478 (186)

Total Vaccination: 135.25 Crores (+60,12,425)

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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PUTIN AND XI CEMENT PARTNERSHIP IN FACE OF WESTERN PRESSURE

Russia and China should stand firm in rejecting Western interference and defending each other’s security interests, presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping agreed in a video call on Wednesday.

Their conversation, eight days after Putin spoke to US President Joe Biden in a similar format, underscored how shared hostility to the West is bringing Moscow and Beijing closer together. “At present, certain international forces under the guise of ‘democracy’ and ‘human rights’ are interfering in the internal affairs of China and Russia, and brutally trampling on international law and recognised norms of international relations,” China’s state-run Xinhua news agency quoted Xi as saying. “China and Russia should increase their joint efforts to more effectively safeguard the security interests of both parties”.

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters that Xi had offered support to Putin for his push to obtain binding security guarantees for Russia from the West, saying he understood Moscow’s concerns. He said the pair also expressed their “negative view” of the creation of new military alliances such as the AUKUS partnership between Australia, Britain and the US and the Indo-Pacific “Quad” of Australia, India, Japan and the US.

US VIRUS TOLL: 75% OF DEATHS AMONG 65+

As the coronavirus pandemic approaches the end of a second year, the US stands on the cusp of surpassing 8,00,000 deaths from the virus, and no group has suffered more than older Americans. All along, older people have been known to be more vulnerable, but the scale of loss is only now coming into full view. Seventy-five percent of people who have died of the virus in the US — or about 600,000 of the nearly 800,000 who have perished so far — have been 65 or older. One in 100 older Americans has died from the virus. For people younger than 65, that ratio is closer to 1 in 1,400.

In interviews across the country, older Americans say they have continued to endure the isolation and fear associated with the pandemic long after tens of millions of younger and middle-aged people have gone back to work and school and largely resumed normal lives.

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HELICOPTER CRASH SURVIVOR GROUP CAPTAIN VARUN SINGH DIES

Decorated air warrior Group Captain Varun Singh succumbed to his injuries at a military hospital in Bengaluru on Wednesday, a week after he was seriously injured in the chopper crash near Coonoor that killed CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife and 11 armed forces personnel.

The Group Captain was admitted to a hospital in Wellington in Tamil Nadu with severe burns on Wednesday last following the Mi-17V5 helicopter crash. Last Thursday, Group Captain Singh was shifted to the Command Hospital in Bengaluru from Wellington.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed anguish at the passing away of Group Captain Singh, saying his rich service to the nation would never be forgotten. Describing the Group Captain as a "true fighter", Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said he fought till his last breath.

SHIV SENA PIONEER OF HINDUTVA POLITICS: SHIV SENA’S SANJAY RAUT

Shiv Sena, a key ally of the Congress, on Wednesday staked claim to the Hindutva plank and asserted that its founder Balasaheb Thackeray had ensured that “Hindus cast their vote in the name of religion”.

He was reacting to Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil’s claim that Chhatrapati Shivaji was the first person to have created a Hindu vote bank. “I do not know whether Chhatrapati Shivaji created the first Hindu vote bank, but “the teachings of Chhatrapati Shivaji were nurtured by Balasaheb Thackeray and earlier by Veer Savarkar in Maharashtra and across the country,” Raut said.

“When Babri was being demolished in Ayodhya, those espousing the Hindutva vote bank today had run away. It was the Shiv Sainiks and Balasaheb Thackeray who stood firm in favour of Hindus and were proud of Shiv Sainiks who had demolished Babri,” Raut told reporters in New Delhi.

“Balasaheb had demonstrated for the first time that a Hindu vote bank existed in the country and ensured that Hindus cast their vote in the name of religion,” Raut said referring to the Maharashtra Assembly bypolls held after the demolition in Ayodhya.

“Our Hindutva does not teach us to be scared. We stand firm, we fight and we win. Our Hindutva is not just for politics and elections. It is not limited to temples,” he said.  “Our Hindutva is for ensuring that people get food, clothes and shelter,” Raut said.

The Shiv Sena leader’s remarks came days after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi denounced Hindutva politics, saying “Hindutvadis” have a lust for power and want it at any cost.

WHEN ‘VEG’ IS ‘NON-VEG’

Delhi High Court has directed the food safety regulator to ensure that food business operators make full disclosures on all that goes into any food article — “not only by their code names but also by disclosing as to whether they originate from plant, or animal source, or whether they are manufactured in a laboratory, irrespective of their percentage in the food article”.

The court gave the example of the chemical disodium inosinate, a food additive found in instant noodles and potato chips, which is commercially manufactured from meat or fish. “A little search on Google…shows that it is often sourced from pig fat,” it said.

When such ingredients are used, often “merely the codes of the ingredients are disclosed, without actually disclosing on the packaging as to what is the source, i.e. whether it is plant based, or animal based, or it is a chemically manufactured in a laboratory,” the court said. “Many food articles which have ingredients sourced from animals, are passed off as vegetarian by affixing the green dot.”

The court said the use of non-vegetarian ingredients, even in “a minuscule percentage”, “would render such food articles non-vegetarian, and would offend the religious and cultural sensibilities/ sentiments of strict vegetarians, and would interfere in their right to freely profess, practice and propagate their religion and belief”.

OMICRON: SECTION 144 CLAMPED IN MUMBAI TILL DEC 31

Amid the Omicron scare, the Mumbai police said prohibitory orders under Criminal Procedure Code Section 144 will be imposed in the city from December 16 to December 31, a period covering Christmas and New Year eve, banning large gatherings as part of measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

They also said only people up to 50 per cent of the capacity at a venue will be allowed to attend any event and organizers of programmes should be fully vaccinated against coronavirus.

Any shop, establishment, mall, event and gathering must be manned by fully vaccinated persons and all visitors and customers at such places shall be fully inoculated against coronavirus, the order stated. All public transport shall be used only by fully vaccinated persons, it said, adding all persons travelling into Maharashtra shall be either fully vaccinated or carry a RT-PCR test valid for 72 hours.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and West Bengal reported their first COVID-19 variant Omicron cases on Wednesday. So far, Maharashtra has reported the highest number of cases at 32, followed by Rajasthan at 17. With this, the tally of the Omicron variant cases in the country has risen to 73.

GOVT BANK EMPLOYEES TO GO ON TWO-DAY NATIONWIDE STRIKE TODAY

Banking operations could see a delay with nearly nine lakh employees of state-run banks set to go on a two-day nationwide strike today. The strike has been called by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella body of nine unions, including the All India Bank Officers' Confederation (AIBOC), All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and National Organisation of Bank Workers (NOBW).

SBI has warned customers about the nationwide strike's possible impact on banking operations such as cheque clearance and fund transfer.

The two-day nationwide strike was called by the UFBU after a conciliation meeting with the Additional Chief Labour Commissioner failed to yield any results on Wednesday.

The unions have been protesting ever since the Centre in its Budget 2021-22 announced its intent to privatise two public sector lenders.

CABINET APPROVES RS 76,000-CRORE POLICY PUSH FOR SEMICONDUCTOR, DISPLAY MANUFACTURING

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a Rs 76,000 crore policy boost for semiconductor and display manufacturing ecosystem in the country in a bid to position India as a global hub for hi-tech production.

Announcing the decision of the Cabinet, IT and Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw observed that electronics plays an important role in everyday life, and semiconductor chips forms a crucial part of electronics. Outlining the details of the scheme, he said the Rs 76,000 crore programme has been approved for the development of semiconductors and display manufacturing ecosystem.

The scheme is expected to usher in a new era in electronics manufacturing by providing a globally competitive incentive package to companies in semiconductors and display manufacturing as well as design. It will strengthen India’s technological prowess in these areas of strategic importance and economic self-reliance. The programme will give an impetus to semiconductor and display manufacturing by facilitating capital support and technological collaborations.

The govt has lined up an attractive incentive support for companies engaged in silicon semiconductor fabs, display fabs, compound semiconductors, silicon photonics, sensors fabs, semiconductor packaging and semiconductor design.

The scheme for setting up of semiconductor fabs and display fabs in India will extend fiscal support of up to 50 per cent of project cost to eligible applicants.

The Centre will work closely with the state govts on high-tech clusters with requisite infrastructure in terms of land, semiconductor grade water, power, logistics and research ecosystem, to approve applications for setting up at least two greenfield semiconductor fabs and two display fabs in the country.

GOVT ISSUES URGENT WARNING FOR GOOGLE CHROME USERS

The Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has issued a 'high severity' warning for Google Chrome Internet browser users. As per the advisory, several vulnerabilities have been found in the Google Chrome browser that could be exploited by a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the targeted system.

Google has already released a fix for these vulnerabilities in its latest software update for Chrome and it is highly advisable that Google Chrome users upgrade to the latest version soon.

According to Google, 22 types of security fixes have been given in the latest Chrome browser, which works to increase user privacy.

The govt advisory as well as Google advised Chrome users to update to the latest version. Google recently updated the Chrome stable channel to 96.0.4664.93

ODI CAPTAINCY ISSUE: KOHLI COMPLETELY CONTRADICTS GANGULY

India Captain Virat Kohli opened a can of worms as he took BCCI President and former skipper Sourav Ganguly head on about claims that the Board had asked him not to quit as the T20I captain.

'Whatever was said about the communication that happened about the decision that was made was inaccurate,' Kohli said with obvious reference to Ganguly's statement that the Board requested him not to quit T20 captaincy as split captaincy might not work in the white-ball format.

'Actually, the BCCI had requested Virat to not step down as the T20I skipper but, obviously, he did not agree. And the selectors then did not feel it right to have two different captains for two white-ball formats,' Ganguly had said on December 9. "'So it was decided that Virat will continue as Test captain and Rohit will take over as the white-ball captain. I, as President, personally spoke to Virat Kohli; so did the chairman of selectors,' Ganguly added.

But Kohli denied his claims in an explosive press conference ahead of the Indian team's departure for South Africa.

'I was contacted one-and-a half hours before the selection meeting on the 8th (December) for the Test series and there was no prior communication with me at all since I announced the T20 captaincy decision uptil the 8th of December where I got a call one-a-and-half hour before the selection meeting,' Kohli said yesterday.

'The chief selector (Chetan Sharma) discussed with me the Test team to which we both agreed and before ending the call I was told that the five selectors have decided that I will not be the ODI captain, to which I replied 'okay, fine'. And in the selection call afterwards I chatted about it briefly and that's what happened. There was no communication before that at all.'

Contrary to Ganguly's claims, Kohli revealed that he was never told to continue as India's T20 captain. 'When I communicated to BCCI about quitting as India's T20 captaincy, it was received very well. There was no offence or no hesitation. I was never told that 'you should not leave T20 captaincy', in fact it was received very well, as a progressive step and in the right direction.'

'At that point I had communicated that I wanted to continue as the captain in the ODIs and Tests unless the selectors and office-bearers feel that I should not continue with the responsibility, so all this was clarified in that call.' 'So my communication with BCCI was very clear about what I wanted to do and as I said I had given an option that if the selectors and office-bearers feel I should not be the captain, then the decision is up to them.'

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you’re scared to death. - Earl Wilson