NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR MINORITIES TAKES COGNISANCE OF 'HATE SPEECHES'

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has taken cognisance of the alleged hate speeches at religious conclaves in Haridwar and Raipur and sought reports from the Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh governments.

Chairman Iqbal Singh Lalpura told the media on Wednesday that the commission has also taken note of the namaz row in Gurgaon and called for a report from the Haryana Government. Later in a statement, he said the commission had also taken “suo motu cognisance of attacks on churches” and would look into the matter.

Asked if the commission had taken action against the alleged hate speeches delivered by some participants at religious conclaves organised in Haridwar and Raipur recently, the NCM chairman said, “We have sent notices to Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh governments and called for reports. Their reply is expected in the first week of January.” Based on the reports, the commission would decide its next course of action, he said. On the Gurgaon namaz tussle, the chairman said, a notice had been issued to the government.

ARMY COI TEAM INSPECTS NAGALAND’S AMBUSH SITE; LOCALS WON’T COOPERATE

The Army’s Court of Inquiry (CoI) team, probing the killing of 14 civilians in Nagaland’s Mon district on December 4 in firing by security forces, today inspected the spot in Oting village but locals refused to cooperate with the team.

Representatives of Mon district’s civil and police administration accompanied the team. At least three security forces personnel involved in the firing incidents were also present at the spot. Six coal miners returning from work were killed in a botched ambush by the security forces, while seven others were gunned down when angry villagers later scuffled with them.

Sources said the families of those killed and members of the village council did not meet the CoI team following a decision by the Konyak Union, the apex body of tribals in Mon district, to not extend any cooperation to the Army. Konyak Union president Howing Konyak reiterated the non-cooperation with the Army would continue till justice was done. Meanwhile, Public Relations Officer (Defence), Kohima, Lt Col Sumit K Sharma said the CoI team, headed by a Major General, inspected the site to understand the circumstances which led to the incident.

“The Court of Inquiry is progressing expeditiously and all efforts are being made to conclude it at the earliest,” Army officials said.

The team also took along witnesses for a better understanding of how the events must have unfolded. Subsequently, the team visited Tizit police station in Mon district to meet a cross-section of people to obtain information pertaining to the incident.

NEWS MIXED WITH VIEWS IS DANGEROUS COCKTAIL, SAYS CJI

Chief Justice of India NV Ramana said on Wednesday a healthy democracy could thrive only with a fearless and independent press, but maintained “news mixed with views is a dangerous cocktail”. “A trend that I witness in reporting nowadays, is the seeping of ideological stances and biases into the news story. Interpretation and opinions are colouring what should be factual reports,” he said. “News mixed with views is a dangerous cocktail,” the CJI said. He was speaking at the “Red Inks Award” organised through a virtual interface by the Mumbai Press Club in the evening.

MUMBAI, DELHI, GUJ REPORT BIG SPIKE IN NEW COVID CASES

Mumbai, Delhi and Gujarat on Wednesday recorded a big spike in fresh COVID-19 cases--their highest since the May-June period.

The total number of new COVID-19 cases in the country crossed 10,000 after a little over a month.

The spike in the country's financial capital has got pronounced since December 20, when just 283 cases were reported. Tuesday had witnessed 1,377 new cases in the metropolis, and Wednesday's figure was a jump by over 80 per cent, the official pointed out.

Delhi logged 923 new coronavirus cases, the highest since May 30 and to register a 86 per cent jump in the number of this infections recorded the previous day. The positivity rate climbed to 1.29 per cent from 0.89 per cent on Tuesday. No fresh fatality was reported.

Gujarat reported 548 new COVID cases crossing the 500-mark for the first time after more than six-and-a-half months. Gujarat has witnessed a sharp jump in its daily COVID cases over the last few days, recording 177 infections on Sunday, 204 on Monday, 394 on Tuesday and now 548.

COVID DASHBOARD – INDIA

As of 0800 IST 30/Dec

from mohfw.gov.in ,

New Cases on Wednesday 13,154

Active Cases 82,402 (+5,400)

Total Deaths (Deaths Yesterday) 4,80,860 (69)

Total Vaccination: 143.83 Crores (+63,91,282)

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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COVID "TSUNAMI" WILL DRIVE HEALTH SYSTEMS TOWARDS COLLAPSE: WHO

The WHO said new global cases had risen by 11 percent last week, while the United States and France both registered record daily case numbers on Wednesday.

"I am highly concerned that Omicron, being more transmissible, circulating at the same time as Delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference. "This is and will continue to put immense pressure on exhausted health workers, and health systems on the brink of collapse."

He said the pressure on health systems was not only due to new coronavirus patients, but also large numbers of health workers falling ill with Covid.

The WHO reflected on the fight against Covid-19 in 2021 and hoped that next year would see an end to the acute stage of the pandemic -- but warned that it would rest on greater vaccine equity. The WHO wanted 40 percent of the population in every country fully vaccinated by the end of the year and has a target of 70 percent coverage by the middle of 2022.

Tedros announced that 92 of the WHO's 194 member states were going to miss the 40 percent target.

"It's not only a moral shame, it cost lives and provided the virus with opportunities to circulate unchecked and mutate. In the year ahead, I call for leaders of government and industry to walk the talk on vaccine equity.

Tedros slammed the attitude of richer countries accusing them of hogging the weapons to combat Covid-19 -- and leaving the back door open for the virus. "Populism, narrow nationalism and hoarding of health tools, including masks, therapeutics, diagnostics and vaccines, by a small number of countries, undermined equity, and created the ideal conditions for the emergence of new variants," he said.

PAKISTAN BUYS 25 FIGHTER JETS MADE BY CHINA TO COUNTER INDIA’S RAFALES

Pakistan has acquired a full squadron of 25 Chinese multirole J-10C fighter jets in response to India’s purchase of Rafale aircraft, interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said on Wednesday. The minister told reporters in Rawalpindi that a full squadron of 25 all-weather aircraft comprising J-10C will attend the Pakistan Day ceremony on March 23 next year. Apparently, China has come to the rescue of its closest ally by providing J-10C, one of its highly reliable fighter jets.

The J-10C aircraft were part of the Pak-China joint exercise last year, where experts from Pakistan had the opportunity to have a close look at the fighter jets. Pakistan has a fleet of US-made F-16s that is considered a good match for Rafale, but it was looking for a new multi-role allweather jet to augment its defence after India purchased 36 Rafale jets from France.

THE REST

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AFTER CLEAN CHIT TO ITSELF, J&K POLICE THREATENS CRITICS

A day after giving themselves a clean chit, the J&K Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) Wednesday issued an unusual warning threatening penal action against those critical of the police’s conclusions in the November 15 Hyderpora encounter. The SIT was constituted on November 16 to probe the encounter following questions raised by families of the three civilians killed in the action by the security forces.

The SIT’s warning on Wednesday comes after a chorus of outrage from political leaders and people to police statements at a press conference on Tuesday that one civilian was killed by the foreign militant and another in the crossfire. The third civilian from Ramban who was also killed in the encounter, the police said, was a militant, a claim denied by his father. The parties termed the police version as an attempt to “cover up” and “justify the murder”.

Observing that it had come across media posts which cast doubts on the evidence obtained by the SIT so far, the Chairman of the SIT (Sujit Kumar) said in a statement, “Today on 29.12.2021 SIT (Special Investigation Team) came across several posts in media from some political leaders and family members wherein they have cast doubts on the evidence obtained by the SIT so far. These people have tried to call it ‘Concocted Cover up Story’, ‘Ornamental Probe, ‘Clean Chit to Killers’, ‘Fairy Tale of Police’, etc.”

“Such speculative statements from the political leaders have a tendency to create provocation, rumour, fear and alarm among the general masses or particular section of society. This kind of approach is against the rule of law and may attract appropriate penal provisions as envisaged under law,” it said.

The statement said that political leaders and family members should have approached the enquiry officer with “genuine evidence” after the District Magistrate invited the public to share any information about the incident.

PM SAID THINK OF TIE-UP, I SAID NOT POSSIBLE: SHARAD PAWAR

NCP chief Sharad Pawar said Wednesday that the BJP was eager to tie up with his party after the 2019 Maharashtra elections but he was not in favour of such an alliance and told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that “it was not possible”.

Speaking at the launch of Ashtavdhani, a coffee table book published by Loksatta, the Marathi newspaper from The Indian Express Group, to mark his 81st birthday, Pawar said: “It is true that there was a discussion about an alliance between our two parties. The Prime Minister said we should think about it…However, I told him right in his office that it was not possible and I would not like to keep them in the dark.”

Recalling the events following the state elections, Pawar said he had made a “mischievous” statement that NCP was seriously considering support for BJP. “This probably sowed doubt in the mind of Shiv Sena, which stepped forward for an alliance with Congress and NCP,” he said.

CRITICS HIGHLIGHT HIGH PRICE OF PM’S NEW CAR

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be traveling in a highly secured Mercedes-Mayback S650 guard armoured cars. As reports of PM's new armoured cars surfaced, many media reports carried that the new vehicles have been brought at a very high price.

However, refuting rumours around the cost over the highly secured vehicles, sources around have said that the new Mercedes-Maybach S650 guard-armoured cars cost 'a third' of the range of prices being quoted in various reports.

Earlier, reports mentioned that the new vehicles have been brought for a price over to Rs 12 crore

The sophisticated car Mercedes-Maybach S650 Guard which has been included in PM Modi's cavalcade can survive bullets and explosive blast, the sources in the security set up said.

Official sources said the SPG security detail has a six-year norm to replace vehicles used for the protectee, and the previous cars were used for eight years under Modi, leading to an audit objection and comment that it was compromising the life of the protectee.  "The decisions relating to security detail purchases are based on the threat perception to the protectee. These decisions are taken independently by the SPG without taking the views of the protectee.

"The widespread discussion on the security features of the protectee's car is not in the national interest as it puts in the public domain a lot of unnecessary detail. This only threatens the life of the protectee," the source added.

JHARKHAND: RS 25 PER LITRE RELIEF IN PRICE OF FUEL FOR TWO WHEELERS OF THE POOR

In the first such decision by a state to tackle rising fuel prices, Jharkhand will subsidise Rs 25 per litre of petrol for ration-card holders with two-wheelers, with a likely cap of 10 litres per family per month, officials said. The modalities of the move to be implemented from Republic Day are still being worked out, they said.

On Wednesday, while announcing a slew of schemes to mark two years of the JMM-led coalition government, Chief Minister Hemant Soren said: “We know that the prices of petrol and diesel are skyrocketing, affecting the poor. There are motorcycles in houses of the poor, but people can’t ride them because they don’t have money for petrol… the person is not able to go to the market to sell his crop. We hear that people are mixing kerosene and petrol to ride motorcycles. We will reduce the price by Rs 25 per litre of petrol.”

A senior official said  that those with ration cards will get the petrol subsidy with a cap of 10 litres per family for two-wheelers. The state government “may transfer the money directly into accounts”, the official said.

NRIs, OCIS DO NOT NEED RBI'S PRIOR NOD TO BUY IMMOVABLE PROPERTY IN INDIA, EXCEPT FARM LAND

RBI on Wednesday said that NRIs and OCIs do not require its prior approval for acquisition and transfer of immovable property in India, other than agricultural land, farm house and plantation property.

The clarification has been issued following queries received at its various offices with regard to acquisition of immovable properties by Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) in the wake of a Supreme Court judgment relating to Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA). "It is hereby clarified that the concerned Supreme Court Judgment dated February 26, 2021 in Civil Appeal 9546 of 2010 was related to provisions of FERA, 1973, which has been repealed under Section 49 of FEMA, 1999," RBI said in a release.

At present, the central bank said "NRIs/OCIs are governed by provisions of FEMA 1999 and do not require prior approval of RBI for acquisition and transfer of immovable property in India, other than agricultural land/ farm house/ plantation property..."

MAHARASHTRA DISTRIBUTORS TO STOP SUPPLY OF HUL PRODUCTS FROM JAN 1

Hindustan Unilever’s (HUL) distributors in Maharashtra will stop supplying its products in phases in the state from January 1. This is because the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) major has not come forward to discuss the issue of price parity between traditional and organised distributors. Organised distributors include firms like Jiomart and Metro Cash & Carry as well as B2B firms like Udaan and Elastic Run.

Distributors in the state have decided to stop supplying Kissan range of products, which includes ketchups and jams, from January 1. This will be followed by HUL’s face cream range under the brand Glow & Lovely eight days later if the company does not come forward to resolve the issue.

By mid January, distributors have decided to stop supplying Rin products, which include detergent soap and powder. They have also decided to stop supplying all of HUL’s products to retailers from February 1 if the matter is not discussed. HUL has over 150 distributors in the state.

OLA ELECTRIC BEGINS ROLLOUT OF CHARGING POINTS FOR ITS SCOOTERS

SoftBank-backed Ola Electric said it will install more than 4,000 charging points for its electric scooters across cities next year.

“Hypercharger roll out has begun across cities. At key BPCL pumps as well as residential complexes. 4000+ points up through next year,” said Bhavish Aggarwal, founder and chief executive officer, Ola, in a tweet. “We’re installing across India and will make them operational in 6-8 weeks. Will be free for use till end June 2022 for all customers.”

Ola Electric has begun deliveries for Ola S1 and S1 Pro scooters.

The company had said that Ola Hypercharger Network will be the widest and densest electric two-wheeler charging network in the world, with more than 100,000 charging points across 400 cities. In the first year alone, Ola is setting up over 5,000 charging points across 100 cities in India, more than double the existing charging infrastructure in the country. Ola along with its partners would set it up at an estimated cost of $2 billion over a period of five years.

Such a network is expected to help build vehicle platforms including electric motorbike, mass-market scooter and electric car. It would also help it to strengthen Ola’s ‘Mission Electric’- which urges the industry and consumers to commit to electric and ensure that no petrol two-wheelers should be sold in India after 2025.

CENTURION TEST, DAY 4: INDIA SCENT VICTORY

India were on course for an emphatic victory after reducing South Africa to 94 for 4 in the second innings on Day 4 of the first Test, in Centurion, on Wednesday. Jasprit Bumrah produced a couple of magic deliveries at the fag end of the day to strike twice and enable the visitors scent victory.

The home side’s hopes of saving the match rest on captain Dean Elgar, who was unbeaten on a gutsy 52, and some rain on Thursday.

Chasing a never achieved victory target of 305 at Supersport Park, after India’s batters caved in on a track with uneven bounce, getting all-out for 174 in just 50.3 overs, South Africa were reeling at stumps.

With 211 runs required and six wickets in hand, an intriguing battle could be on the cards on the final day though the Indians will pray that the forecast of steady afternoon showers on Thursday does not come true.

Scores at end of Day 4: India 327 & 174; S Africa 197 & 94/4

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy.  My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain. - John Adams (1735-1826)

OFF TRACK

A husband and wife were at a party chatting with some friends when the subject of marriage counselling came up.

"Oh, we'll never need that. My wife and I have a great relationship," the husband explained. "She was a communications major in college and I majored in theatre arts."

He continued, "She communicates well and I act like I'm listening."