SRI LANKA READIES OIL TANK FARM DEAL WITH INDIA

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit Sri Lanka next week in the midst of a crippling economic crisis that has seen Colombo turn to Delhi for help and fast pedal the long-delayed India-Sri Lanka plan for joint development of the Trincomalee oil tank farm.

Wang Yi’s two-day visit, expected between January 7 and 9, will take place against the backdrop of a spat between the two countries over a contaminated consignment of organic fertiliser that has resulted in unexpected tensions between both countries.

After Colombo cancelled an order for the import of 99,000 tons of the fertiliser, Beijing blacklisted the Sri Lankan state-run People’s Bank and accused it of a “vicious” default on the letter of credit payment.

India’s interest in the oil tank farm dates back to the signing of the 1987 India-Sri Lanka Accord, which stated in the annexure that the work of refurbishing the tank farm located in the north-eastern province of Trincomalee would be undertaken jointly by the two countries. The agreement lay dormant as first India and then Sri Lanka fought the Tamil Tigers. An attempted revival in 2003 went nowhere. In 2017, the two sides agreed to operationalise the long-standing agreement, but opposition from trade unions of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation held up any progress in the matter.

Earlier this month, with the Chinese company launching arbitration proceedings for a compensation of $8 milion, Sri Lanka drew a line under the controversy by agreeing to make a payment of $6.4 million.

Wang Yi’s visit will be significant for the sweeteners he may offer the Rajapaksa government to retrieve lost goodwill.

Meanwhile, Colombo is moving ahead on finalising plans for jointly developing with India the massive oil tank farm at Trincomalee. Although neither country is saying it in so many words, Delhi may offer in return financial assistance to help Sri Lanka tide over its present crisis.

Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange reserves sank to $1.6 billion at the end of November. The shortage has led to a drop in food imports, pushing up prices of essentials in the country. An IMF bailout is the last option that Sri Lanka does not wish to take.

SONIA GANDHI SLAMS POLITICS OF HATE, DIVISIVE IDEOLOGY

Congress president Sonia Gandhi today said the “divisive ideologies anchored in hate and prejudice were weakening” the foundation of a strong India laid by her party’s stalwarts over the years. In a video message to Congress workers on the party’s 137th Foundation Day, Sonia said, “History is being falsified and detestable efforts are being made to erase the ‘Ganga-Jamuni’ culture of the country.”

Asserting that the Congress would neither remain a mute spectator nor allow anybody to “destroy” the country’s rich heritage, she said, “Divisive ideologies anchored in hate and prejudice, which had no role to play in our freedom movement, are now wreaking havoc on the secular fabric of our society.” Sonia’s remarks come at a time when a section of fringe Hindu religious leaders have hurled abuses at Mahatma Gandhi and hailed his assassin Nathuram Godse as the “symbol of truth and religion”. “They are rewriting history to give themselves a role they do not deserve. They inflame passions, instil fear and spread animosity. The finest traditions of our parliamentary democracy are being deliberately damaged,” she said. Meanwhile, the Congress flag fell off the pole as Sonia Gandhi tried to unfurl it at the AICC headquarters.

The Congress on Tuesday slammed the Centre over its refusal to renew the FCRA registration of the Missionaries of Charity, accusing it of targeting Christians to advance its majoritarian agenda.

WORRIES REMAIN, BUT INDIA AND THE WORLD ARE BETTER PREPARED

Around this time last year, coronavirus cases in India were in steady decline even while most of Europe, the United States and Brazil were detecting record numbers of infections. The festival season in India had gone without any spike in cases, and even an election had been conducted, in Bihar. Normal activities were resuming and most people believed, mistakenly as it turned out later, that the worst of the pandemic was over.

One year later, the situation is eerily similar. The daily count of cases in India is at its lowest in 18 months. Five months of a continuous decline in cases after the devastating second wave has ensured a return, in most cases, to normal activities. And the general refrain, once again, seems to be that the worst is probably over for India. This, even when Europe and the US, and several other countries, are in the midst of their worst phase in the pandemic so far.

Behind those similarities, however, are key differences between the situations last year and now. Some of these, the threat from Omicron for example, point to the possibility of the events repeating themselves, while others — such as development of vaccines, and even therapeutics — are indications that 2022 could be remarkably different from 2021, for the better. The uncertainties and the experience of the pandemic until now, however, make it difficult for anyone to make predictions.

The Omicron variant has emerged at roughly the same time this year that the Delta variant, its immediate predecessor initially known as the duble mutant, had been first detected last year. But unlike Delta, Omicron was identified and flagged quickly thanks to improved genetic surveillance.

For India at least, the threat from Omicron is very different compared to that from Delta. The Delta variant had emerged in India and kept circulating in the population for over two months before being flagged. By that time, it had already infected many people, and when the surge came, with unexpected ferocity, India was caught totally unprepared.

With Omicron, India has had sufficient advance warning. And even though the actual number of Omicron infections would, in all likelihood, already be several times the 600-odd cases that have been confirmed till now, it is unlikely that this fast-spreading variant would have as free a run as Delta had.

The biggest relief is that Omicron appears to cause a milder form of disease compared to Delta. All studies so far have indicated this, and not one has produced any counter-evidence.

Omicron spreads very fast because of its ability to evade the immune response and infect even those who have had a prior infection or been fully vaccinated. If the situation currently playing out in Europe and the US is anything to go by, a big surge in cases by mid-January cannot be ruled out. Whether this would be comparable to the second wave, or even the first, is not something anyone can predict.

COVID DASHBOARD – INDIA

As of 0800 IST 29/Dec

from mohfw.gov.in ,

New Cases on Tuesday 9,195

Active Cases 77,002 (+1,546)

Total Deaths (Deaths Yesterday) 4,80,502 (96)

Total Vaccination: 143.15 Crores (+64,61,321)

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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

SYRIAN PORT SET ABLAZE IN ‘ISRAEL STRIKE’

An Israeli air strike hit Syria’s Latakia port before dawn on Tuesday, sparking a fire that lit up the Mediterranean seafront in the second such attack on the key cargo hub this month, Syrian state media reported.

Since the outbreak of Syria’s civil war in 2011, Israel has routinely carried out air strikes on its strife-torn neighbour, mostly targeting Syrian government troops as well as allied Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters.

But it is only the second time it has hit the port of Latakia, in the heartland of President Bashar al-Assad’s minority Alawite community.

“At around 3.21 a.m., the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression with several missiles from the direction of the Mediterranean... targeting the container yard in Latakia port,” Syrian state news agency SANA cited a military source as saying.

Britain-based war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the cargo was “arms and munitions,” which had detonated in “powerful explosions that were felt across the city of Latakia and its suburbs”.

‘OMICRON MAY CUT SEVERE DELTA INFECTIONS’

Infection with the Omicron variant can also strengthen immunity against the earlier Delta strain, reducing the risk of severe disease, according to a paper released by South African scientists. While Omicron has been shown to be highly transmissible and can evade some antibodies, immunity to subsequent infections from the strain rose 14-fold after two weeks of getting symptoms, according to the authors led by Alex Sigal and Khadija Khan of the Durban, South Africa-based Africa Health Research Institute. A smaller improvement of 4.4-fold increase was found against Delta, they said.

“If we are lucky, Omicron is less pathogenic, and this immunity will help push Delta out,” said Sigal, who has previously found a two-dose course of Pfizer and BioNTech’s shot as well as a previous infection may give stronger protection against Omicron. The latest findings suggest the likelihood of someone infected with Omicron being reinfected by Delta is limited, reducing the presence of the latter strain. Omicron is the dominant variant in South Africa’s fourth wave of infections, delivering record case numbers. Delta ripped through the country in July and August, leading to record hospitalisation figures. Omicron hasn’t yet had such an impact on health services.

THE REST

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MANMOHAN SINGH WOULD HAVE RESIGNE: RAHUL GANDHI

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the India-China border issue, claiming that Manmohan Singh would have resigned in a similar situation. He alleged that China captured Indian territories with PM Modi 'is still sitting on the matter'.

He was addressing a meeting of the Congress party workers in Jaipur through video conferencing on the conclusion of a three-day training camp.

UNDER FIRE, J&K POLICE SAY MILITANT AND CROSSFIRE KILLED THREE IN HYDERPORA

Six weeks after three civilians were killed on November 15 in an encounter in Hyderpora, the Jammu and Kashmir Police Tuesday sought to absolve itself from any blame and said one civilian, Mohammad Altaf Bhat, was killed in the crossfire after being taken as a “human shield” by a foreign militant. Another civilian, Mudasir Gul, was killed by the militant before he took Bhat as a “human shield”, it said. The police maintained that Amir Magray, the youth from Ramban district in Jammu Division, was a militant.

Under severe pressure after the controversial encounter, the J-K’s Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) held a press conference Tuesday to clarify its position by showing some videos, even as the report of the magisterial inquiry ordered by the J&K Lieutenant Governor and submitted to the government recently are yet to be made public.

The People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), however, termed the police version of the events as a “concocted cover-up story” reiterating its call for a judicial probe. “It is only a repetition of an old story. There is a strong public perception that the civilians killed were made human shields by the security forces. It will not suffice the legitimate concerns of the people at large and family of slain victims,” said PAGD spokesman and Communist leader MY Tarigami.

CASE AGAINST HINDU SEER FOR REMARKS ON MAHATMA GANDHI

The police here in Maharashtra have registered a case against a Hindu religious leader, Kalicharan Maharaj, for allegedly using derogatory words against Mahatma Gandhi, and hailed his assassin Nathuram Godse. He had also asked people to elect a staunch Hindu leader as the head of the government in order to protect the religion.

Kalicharan Maharaj, alias Abhijit Sarag, a resident of Shivajinagar in old city area of Akola, made the remarks on Sunday during an event at Raipur in Chhattisgarh.

On Monday, local Congress leaders staged a protest outside the City Kotwali police station in Akola against him for allegedly hurting the sentiments of people. The Maharashtra police then registered a case against the seer under Sections 294 (obscene acts) and 505 (statements conducing to public

An FIR was subsequently registered against him in Raipur too. His comments also drew a sharp criticism from Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and the issue found an echo in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Monday.

UNHAPPY WITH GOVT RESPONSE, DELHI DOCTORS REMAIN ON STRIKE

After a meeting with Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya Tuesday evening, protesting resident doctors in Delhi have decided to continue their 11-day long strike over the issue of delayed NEET-PG (The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test- Postgraduate) counselling. The protestors’ ranks were swelled by resident doctors who left Covid duty to join the strike.

Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) president Manish Nigam, who is leading the protest in Delhi, told ThePrint, “We are dissatisfied with the response of the health minister. In his press statement, he has promised that he will look into the matter and try to get a date for PG counselling on 6 January itself. He expressed concern over the Delhi Police’s ill treatment of doctors but no concrete action has been taken so far.”

“We want immediate action. We also held a meeting with resident doctors’ associations in other states and have decided to continue our protest. All the doctors on Covid duty have joined in on the protest as well,” Nigam added.

He mentioned that doctor representatives from eight states in the country, including Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh, have joined in the protest in Delhi.

SUPREME COURT ON EXISTING ILLNESSES IN MEDICAL POLICIES

An insurer cannot repudiate a claim by citing an existing medical condition that was disclosed by the insured in the proposal form, once the policy has been issued, the Supreme Court has said.

A Bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and BV Nagarathna also said a proposer was under a duty to disclose to the insurer all material facts within his knowledge. “The proposer is presumed to know all facts and circumstances concerning the proposed insurance,” it added.

“While the proposer can only disclose what is known to him, the proposer’s duty of disclosure is not confined to his actual knowledge, it also extends to those material facts which, in the ordinary course of business, he ought to know,” the court said.

“Once the policy has been issued after assessing the medical condition of the insured, the insurer cannot repudiate the claim by citing an existing medical condition, which was disclosed by the insured in the proposal form and which condition has led to a particular risk in respect of which the claim has been made by the insured,” the Bench said in a recent judgment.

POET AKBAR ALLAHABADI IS NOW AKBAR PRAYAGRAJ, SAYS UP HIGHER EDUCATION PANEL WEBSITE

Famous Indian poet Akbar Allahabadi is now Akbar Prayagraj, according to the Uttar Pradesh Higher Education Services Commission (UPHESC), an autonomous body under the state government.

The Allahabad district was renamed Prayagraj in 2018 by the Yogi Adityanath government.

The Prayagraj-based UPHESC on its official website has updated the name of the Urdu poet Syed Akbar Hussain, popularly known as Akbar Allahabadi, to Akbar Prayagraj, drawing criticism on social media.

The name change has been made in the “About Allahabad” section. Referring to poets and writers who are from the city, the website says, “Besides Hindi literature, Persian and Urdu literature are also studied in the city. Akbar Prayagraj is a noted modern Urdu poet…”

PLAY INDIAN MUSIC IN AIRCRAFT AND AIRPORTS, SAYS CIVIL AVIATION MINISTRY

Saying that music in India began as an “integral part of socio-religious life,” the Ministry of Civil Aviation, citing a request by the Indian Council of Cultural Research (ICCR), has written to Indian airlines and airport operators urging them to play Indian music on board aircraft and airport premises.

“Music played by most of the airlines across the globe is quintessential of the country to which the airline belongs, for example, jazz in American airlines or Mozart in Austrian airlines and Arab music in an airline from the Middle East. But, Indian airlines seldom play Indian music in the flight, whereas, our music has a rich heritage and culture and it is one of the many things every Indian has a reason for (being) truly proud of it,” Ministry of Civil Aviation’s Joint Secretary Usha Padhee said in a letter marked to airlines and airport operators.

CENTURION TEST, DAY 3: INDIA ON TOP AS 18 WICKETS FALL IN A DAY

Eighteen wickets fell on the third day after no play was possible on Monday due to rain.

Seamer Lungi Ngidi took 6-71 as South Africa made light work of bowling India out after the visitors resumed on 272/3. Ngidi helped the hosts claim the last seven wickets for the addition of only 55 runs in 15.3 overs. India were all out 327.

In response, India bowled out S Africa for 197, with pacer Mohammed Shami posting figures of 5/44.

India reached 16/1 in their second innings at the close, a lead of 146 that already looks imposing.

Mayank Agarwal (4) was the only wicket to fall in India's second innings play of 6 overs. Shardul Thakur then came in as a nightwatchman.

Scores at end of Day 3: India 327 & 16/1; S Africa 197

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

To love means not to impose your own powers on your fellow man but offer him your help. And if he refuses it, to be proud that he can do it on his own strength. - Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

OFF TRACK

A man was sitting alone in his office one night when a genie popped up out of his ashtray.

"And what will your third wish be?"

The man looked at the genie and said, "Huh? How can I be getting a third wish when I haven't had a first or second wish yet?"

"You have had two wishes already," the genie said, "but your second wish was for me to put everything back the way it was before you made your first wish. Thus, you remember nothing, because everything is the way it was before you made any wishes. You now have one wish left."

"Okay," said the man, "I don't believe this, but what the heck. I've always wanted to understand women. I'd love to know what's going on inside their heads."

"Funny," said the genie as it granted his wish and disappeared forever, "That was your first wish, too!"