India Narrative

Secretary-General Patricia Scotland said she is impressed with the way Prime Minister Modi pulled together members of SAARC , including Pakistan. Scotland said that India, home to half of the Commonwealth ’s 2.4 billion citizens, is a valued member of the Commonwealth family, with its government, people and institutions contributing in practical ways to collaborate across 54 member countries, particularly through innovative programmes such as the UN India Fund and Commonwealth Trade Finance Facility . On the pandemic, she said the whole Commonwealth has been affected by the virus. India reported its first case in January just like the US, Italy and Russia and has made an immense effort to keep the spread of the virus under control and safeguard its citizens. As of May 20, it has over 106,000 cases and 42,298 recoveries, considering the size of its population, India has done well, Scotland said. “That is why, people are looking to India for how Prime Minister N...

Support us, but don’t tell us to behave decently—this is the Taliban ’s to the European Union ’s (EU’s) call for democratic and humane principles. The European Council supports the peace negotiations in Afghanistan and also provides financial assistance to the war-torn nation. The EU said in a statement on Friday, “The EU will condition its future political and financial support to ensure that the republican, democratic and values-based principles are protected and further promoted.” This has not gone down well with the Taliban, which sees the EU remarks as an affront to Afghanistan’s sovereignty. “We have constantly shown commitment to non-interference in the internal affairs of others in our statements,” a statement from the group’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on yesterday. “We also expect others to not interfere in our internal affairs nor complicate the issue of Afghanistan even further. The future governance system in Afghanistan shall be chosen by the Afghans i...

Indian intelligence agencies are abuzz with news about the attack on Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin in Islamabad this Monday. They believe that the attack happened at the behest of Pakistani spy agency ISI due to differences over the situation in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. Salahuddin, who is also the head of the United Jihad Council – an alliance of terrorist groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed , all nurtured and trained by Pakistan, is reported to have sustained serious injuries in the attack. He has been hospitalised. Supported by Pakistan, Salahuddin was considered as one of the main motivators for urging the youth in Kashmir to take up terrorism. The idea was to show that terrorism in Kashmir was an ‘indigenous struggle’ against Indian rule, and not an activity promoted by Pakistan by pushing terrorists into India. Reportedly, differences between Salahuddin and the ISI began after his group’s failure to launch major terror a...

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain has appealed to the US Congress to table a Bill for the independence of Balochistan and Sindh from Pakistan on the same lines as they introduced a bill on Tibet’s freedom from China. In his latest statement released on Twitter, Hussain said that the US Congress should table the Bill for the sake of the humanity and to save the lives of over 80 million people of Balochistan and Sindh who want independence. While welcoming the US Congress decision to table a Bill on Tibet’s independence, Hussain said he would like to appeal to all the members of the US Congress to also pay attention to the plight of Baloch people of Balochistan province and Sindhi and Urdu speaking people (commonly known as Mohajir) of Sindh province of Pakistan. He said Baloch and Sindhi men and women are often subjected to enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and put behind bars by Pakistan Army and its intelligence agencies. This, he sai...

The government, while announcing Lockdown 5 till June 30, has begun to reduce restrictions. In one of the biggest reliefs announced so far, it has allowed inter-state and intra-state movement of persons and goods. Restrictions on movement of people and goods will be applicable only in containment zones up to June 30 – the end date for Lockdown 5. The latest order by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) says, “There shall be no restriction on inter-state and intra-state movement of persons and goods. No separate permission/approval/e-permit will be required for such movements.” This also means that if a state or a Union Territory plans to regulate movement due to public health reasons, it will give wide publicity in advance regarding its decision and also announce procedures to be followed. The MHA said, “Movement by passenger trains and Shramik Special trains; domestic passenger air travel; movement of Indian nationals stranded outside the country and of specified persons t...

It was a bolt from the blue when Nepal alleged that India has encroached upon its territory on the border with Uttarakhand . But worse was to come when Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli said, the “Indian virus looks more lethal than Chinese and Italian now. More are getting infected.” It is a clear sign that not all is well between India and Nepal. But how did a relationship with a friendly country slide down so fast? Late last year, our relations with the world had nosedived, but were restored through urgent medical diplomacy. With Nepal too we need a dose of tactful, persuasive diplomacy. To begin with,  the onus is on India to resolve   border irritants with Nepal. This begins by not making provocative statements, for diplomacy is an art and cannot be reactionary. Nepal has been asking India to discuss Lipulekh since late last year. Owing to the famed Indian bureaucracy, we have been sitting on that bilateral request for so long that it has now caught global ...

Call it Unlock 1.0 as India begins to exit the lockdown . The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), in a guideline issued today, allowed several activities to resume in a phased manner from June 1. Malls, shops, hotels, restaurant and religious places can reopen from June 8. They will have to strictly follow the standard operating procedures (SOPs), prescribed by the Health Ministry. The SOPs will be issued by the Health Ministry after consultations with other ministries and departments concerned. The lockdown rules, however, will be applicable at all containment zones. The exit from lockdown will be undertaken in three phases. Cinema halls, metro rail services, international air travel, gyms, swimming pools, bars, entertainment parks and theatres will remain closed in the first phase of the exit. These will be allowed to open only after an assessment of the situation, the MHA said. Schools and educational institutions will also remain closed. The decision to reopen school...

The Board of Control for Cricket in India ( BCCI ) has nominated Rohit Sharma for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2020 while fast bowler Ishant Sharma , opener Shikhar Dhawan and women’s team all-rounder Deepti Sharma have been nominated for Arjuna Awards. The Government of India’s Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports had sought invitations for the respective awards with the period of consideration beginning January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019. Rohit Sharma, Team India’s vice-captain in the white-ball format has been a prolific run-getter. Named the ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year for 2019, the stylish opener became the first player in the history of the game to score five ODI centuries in one edition of the World Cup. He is also the first batsman to score four T20I centuries and is the first player to have twin centuries in his maiden appearance as a Test opener. Shikhar Dhawan holds the record for the fastest Test century on debut and is the only batsman ...

Scientists from the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology ( IASST ), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science & Technology, have developed a pH-responsive smart bandage that can deliver the medicine applied in the wound at the pH that is suitable for the wound. The scientists have developed the delivery system by fabricating a nanotechnology-based cotton patch that uses cheap and sustainable materials like cotton and jute. In the research done by Dr. Devasish Chowdhury, Associate Professor, IASST, a nano-composite hydrogel bound compact cotton patch incorporated with jute carbon dots was fabricated to carry out the drug release. Jute has been used for the first time as a precursor in synthesizing fluorescent carbon dots, and water was used as the dispersion medium. Herbal formulation neem leaf (Azadirachtaindica) extract was taken as the model drug to exemplify the release study. This study published in the journal ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. de...

The death of migrants on board the Shramik special trains and reports of passengers complaining of lack of food, water, and hygiene have become a huge cause for concern for the Indian Railways. The trains are being run on a daily basis throughout the country to ensure that migrants can travel back to their homes. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal appealed yesterday that “people suffering from serious ailments, pregnant women & those above 65 years & below 10 years of age to travel only when necessary in Shramik Trains.” Issuing a detailed statement, the Ministry said that “a few unfortunate cases of deaths related to pre-existing medical conditions while travelling have happened.” It further said that persons with co-morbidities (like hypertension, diabetes, cardio-vascular diseases, cancer, immune deficiency conditions), pregnant women, children below the age of 10 years and persons above 65 years of age may avoid travel by rail, except when it is essential.” Howev...

The biggest-ever spy network of Pakistan which was attempting to gather information about the Indian defence in Ladakh, using illegal Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) exchange has been busted in Mumbai by the Military Intelligence of Jammu & Kashmir and the Crime Branch of Mumbai Police. One person has been arrested in Mumbai so far. The probe, sources said, is underway to ascertain the identity of other individuals involved in the network and locations of other similar exchanges. Sources said more arrests are expected in the next few days. Official sources said that in a joint operation, the crime branch of the Mumbai Police and the military intelligence of the Indian Army unearthed three functional Chinese SIM boxes and one standby sim box along with 191 SIM cards, laptop modem; antennas; batteries and connectors used for an illegal VoIP exchange in Mumbai. VoIP is the transmission of voice and multimedia content over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. The le...

Modiji has led this country successfully for the last six years. This is the first year of the Second term which has been completed. This year was eventful. Modis work can be seen as a three-pronged activities. First, some historical national initiatives. Second, fighting Covid-19 and, third, laying foundation stone for the future of India through “ Aatmanirbhar Bharat ”. Abrogation of Article 370, creation of Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir , passing of Citizenship Amendment Bill and abolition of Triple Talaq , facilitation of Ram temple, can be grouped into national and historical political initiatives. Kashmir situation has improved thereafter. Now, even the internet has been restored. Our forces are keeping watch on Pakistan’s nefarious designs. A comprehensive agreement to end over 50 years of old Bodo crisis was done and all sections of the society are very happy. Likewise, Bru-Reang refugee crisis has been solved successfully with a tripartite agreement ...

The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology ( CCMB ) has established stable cultures of coronavirus (Sars-CoV-2) from patients’ samples. Virologists at the CCMB have isolated infectious viruses from several isolates. The ability to culture the virus in lab enables the CCMB to work towards vaccine development and testing of potential drugs to fight Covid-19. The novel coronavirus enters human cells by binding with the ACE-2 receptor on the cell surface. Not all cells have ACE-2 receptors. Human epithelial cells in the respiratory tract copiously express ACE-2 receptors, causing respiratory disease in the infected patient, says an official press release. However, we cannot grow human epithelial cells in lab. “Currently, primary epithelial cells generated from human origins do not grow for many generations in labs, which is key to culturing viruses continuously. At the same time, the labs that are growing the virus need an ‘immortal’ cell line,” says Dr. Krishnan H. Harshan...

My fellow Indian , This day last year began a golden chapter in the history of Indian democracy. It was after several decades that the people of the country voted back a full term government with a full majority. Once again, I bow to the 130 crore people of India and the democratic ethos of our nation. During normal times, I would have been in your midst. However, the present circumstances do not permit that. That is why, I seek your blessings through this letter. Your affection, goodwill and active cooperation have given new energy, and inspiration. The way you have showcased the collective strength of democracy is a guiding light for the whole world. Back in 2014, the people of the country voted for a substantive transformation. In the last five years, the nation saw how the administrative apparatus broke itself free of status quo and from the swamp of corruption as well as mis-governance. True to the spirit of ‘ Antyodaya ’ the lives of millions have been transformed...