India Narrative

  India has told China once again that assigning "invented names" to some places in Arunachal Pradesh will not change the reality. China's Ministry of Civil Affairs, in an announcement on Wednesday, had made official 15 publicly-used place names in southern Tibet - or Zangnan as the Chinese call Arunachal Pradesh - giving geographical coordinates of the locations in India's state.   "In accordance with the relevant regulations of the State Council on the management of geographical names, our ministry and relevant departments have standardized some geographical names in southern Tibet. The second batch of publicly-used place names in southern Tibet (15 in total) is now officially announced," said the Chinese ministry. Slamming Beijing's move, New Delhi said that it is not for the first time that China has attempted such a renaming of places in Arunachal Pradesh, having also assigned such names in April 2017. "Arunachal Pradesh has always been, and wi

  The year end doesn’t spell well for the wildlife and animal lovers of the country, as the National Tiger Conservation Authority has reported 126 tiger deaths in 2021 – the highest in a decade. Sixty of these 126, according to NTCA, died due to poaching, man-animal conflict outside the protected areas and accidents. NTCA has been maintaining the record of the public deaths of the felines since 2012. The data this year has led to concern among the wildlife experts and officials with demand for rigorous conservation efforts and initiatives, especially in the reserve forest areas. The break-up of the figures shows that Madhya Pradesh which has a population of 526 tigers, has registered 41 deaths, the highest number, followed by Maharashtra which has 312 tigers and lost 25, while Karnataka with 524 tigers has registered 15 deaths. Uttar Pradesh with 173 tigers, showed a figure of nine deaths. Wildlife expert suggested that the death toll could be higher as many of the natural deaths occu

  The simultaneous spread of the Delta and Omicron variants of the coronavirus is creating a "tsunami of cases" that continue to put immense pressure on health systems that are already on the brink of collapse, the WHO warned on Wednesday. "Delta and Omicrom are now twin threats driving up cases to record numbers, leading to spikes in hospitalisation and deaths," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference. 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 said over 6.5 million cases new cases had been recorded worldwide in the week between Dec 22-28, while the United States and France both registered a record number of daily infections on Wednesday. Tedros said countries must share vaccines more equitably and warned that the emphasis on boosters in richer countries could leave poorer nations short of doses. Read More

  Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Haldwani in Uttarakhand on December 30 to lay the foundation stone of 17 projects in the state worth over Rs 14,100 crore, according to information provided by the Prime Minister's Office on Tuesday. These projects cover a wide array of sectors across the state including irrigation, road, housing, health infrastructure, industry, sanitation and supply of drinking water. The programme will also witness the inauguration of 6 projects including multiple road widening projects, a hydropower project in Pithoragarh and projects to improve the sewerage network in Nainital. The cumulative cost of the projects being inaugurated is over Rs 3,400 crore, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office. The Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of the Lakhwar Multipurpose Project to be built at the cost of about Rs 5750 crore. This project was first conceived in 1976 and was lying pending for many years. Read More

  Taking the Military-Technical Cooperation (MTC) between the two countries to a new high, Russia has offered India "new areas of work", including developing together new armoured vehicles based on the T-14 Armata tank platform .   The negotiations to create exclusive equipment based on the Indian military's specifications took place during the meeting of the Inter-Governmental Commission on Military and Military-Technical Cooperation held in New Delhi on December 6. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoygu had co-chaired the discussions which were held just a few hours before the 21st India–Russia Annual Summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. "The Indian partners were offered new areas of work, including the creation of armoured vehicles based on the customer's specifications on the Armata platform, especially given that the Indian military is planning to expand work on the creation of a

  It has been more than 100 days and Afghan girls are still not allowed to attend school and college classes by the Taliban government which had promised that their new regime would be different from the old one of Mullah Omar. In a new diktat, the Taliban’s Higher Education Minister Abdul Baqi Haqqani says “co-education is unislamic” and the regime will not allow the concept of men and women studying together. Without specifying the time line, Haqqani said that the Taliban government has to make separate classes for girls and hire extra women lecturers that need more time and extra budget, reported Khaama Press. The former student of “Jihad Factory”, the Darul Uloom Haqqaniya Madrasa in Pakistan, Abdul Baqi Haqqani made it clear that this not on their priority list and refused to answer that when girls might return to school and university classes across the country. Read More

  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday unveiled four hydro-electricity projects in Himachal Pradesh worth over Rs 11,281 crore in what he termed a “big step forward in realising the dream of a climate-friendly New India.” Addressing a huge rally in Mandi, the Prime Minister said, “In 2016 the country had set a target of achieving 40% electricity capacity from non-fossil fuels by 2030. But all Indians will be proud to know that this goal has already been achieved in November this year.  This reflects the speed at which India is working under the present double-engine government to move ahead with development projects, he added.  The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of Renukaji Dam project which he pointed had been lying pending for around three decades. The 40 MW project will be built at a cost of around Rs 7000 crore. It will prove to be immensely beneficial for Delhi, which will be able to receive around 500 million cubic metre water supply per year.  The Prime Minister als

  It was surely not a ‘silent night’ on Christmas in Kolkata . Frenzy gripped Kolkata’s Park Street and the adjoining areas, as scores of people – most of them without masks-- gathered to celebrate Christmas.  Restaurants, pubs and discotheques remained open way past midnight. Not just Christmas but the following day too saw large gatherings on the street with serpentine queues outside popular restaurants and street joints such as Mocambo, Peter Cat and Kusum Rolls. People of all age groups gathered singing, dancing and merrily posing for photographs on Park Street The restaurants were packed to capacity even as Kolkata reported its first Omicron case on Friday. Discotheques on Park Street including the popular Tantra drew crowds, who partied, drank and danced. Needless to say, Covid protocols sounded alien as the Trinamool Congress government relaxed norms for the Christmas-New Year period.  One could even catch a glimpse of a poster thanking state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for a

  Israel on Sunday unveiled a plan to spend more than 300 million US dollars to double its population in the Golan Heights in the coming years, local media reported on Sunday. During a weekly cabinet meeting at the Mevo Hama community in the Golan today, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett vowed this was the "moment" to boost the number of Jewish Israelis living in the territory. "This is our moment. This is the moment of the Golan Heights," Times of Israel quoting Bennett reported as saying. "After long and static years in terms of the scope of the settlement, our goal today is to double settlement in the Golan Heights." According to the Times of Israel, Bennett also announced several new communities and neighbourhoods in the Golan. The plan's goal, formulated by a team headed by the Prime Minister's Office director-general, Yair Pines, is to boost the population in the Golan Regional Council and the Katzrin Local Council in 2022-2025. Read More:  htt

  India has reported a total of 415 cases of the heavily mutated Omicron variant of coronavirus out of which at least 115 patients have recovered, the Health Ministry said on Saturday. Maharashtra tops the list with 108 Omicron infections, followed by Delhi with 79. Gujarat has recorded 43 cases and Telangana 38. Kerala and Tamil Nadu come next on the list with 37 and 34 Omicron cases respectively. On Friday, 358 cases of Omicron were reported and it was found that 87 of them were fully vaccinated with three having received booster doses. However 70 per cent of the cases were asymptomatic. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Thursday chaired a high-level meeting to review the status of Omicron and the preparedness of health systems across the country. He said in view of the new variant, the country should be 'satark and savdhaan.'   The government is alert and continues to take proactive action and support states in their efforts of containment and management under the ‘Whole

  India handed over one million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to Myanmar on Wednesday in its first public outreach to the military government since the February 1 coup. Foreign Secretary Harshvardhan Shringla, who is on a two-day visit to Myanmar, gave the vaccines to the Myanmar Red Cross Society.  The Indian embassy in Myanmar tweeted: "Foreign Secretary harshvshringla handed over 1 million doses of 'Made in India' vaccines to the representatives of the Myanmar Red Cross Society to support the people of Myanmar, including those along the India-Myanmar border, in their fight against COVID-19". In a statement on Tuesday, the Ministry of External Affairs had said that the, "Foreign Secretary will hold discussions with the State Administration Council, political parties and members of civil society. Issues relating to humanitarian support to Myanmar, security and India-Myanmar border concerns, and the political situation in Myanmar will be discussed". Shringla w

  External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met François Delattre, Secretary-General of France's Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, and discussed the situation in the Indo-Pacific. The two also discussed mutual relations with focus on enhanced cooperation in defence and security. Delattre's visit comes on the heels of the Annual Defence Dialogue held on 17 December 2021 between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and the French Minister for Armed Forces Florence Parly. Jaishankar tweeted about the meeting: "Glad to receive French Secretary General François Delattre. Good discussions on our bilateral cooperation, Indo-Pacific and global developments ". Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla too met the Secretary-General to discuss cooperation in spheres such as space, cybersecurity, digital economy, blue economy, education and people-to-people contacts, energy, health and climate change. The two officials were joined by the respective ambassadors. The two countries als

  The number of cases of Covid's heavily mutated Omicron variant has crossed 200 in India with Maharashtra and Delhi recording the highest tally, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday. Out of them, 77 patients have recovered or migrated, the ministry added. Maharashtra and Delhi have reported the highest number of Omicron infections with 54 cases each. They are followed by Telangana (20 cases), Karnataka (19), Rajasthan (18), Kerala (15) and Gujarat (14). However, the total number of fresh daily Covid-19 infections recorded in the last 24 hours has come down to 5,326 cases, the lowest count in 581 days. There are now 79,097 active cases in the country, the lowest in 574 days. The total number of deaths recorded over the past 24 hours stood at 453. Meanwhile, the Omicron strain is leading to an alarming spike in cases across the world. Most of the cases in India are also linked to those who have travelled abroad. The government has introduced stringent measures at airports to t

  The heavily mutated Omicron variant of coronavirus is spreading faster than the Delta variant and is infecting people who have been fully vaccinated, the WHO chief has said. "There is now consistent evidence that Omicron is spreading significantly faster than the Delta variant," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference in Geneva on Monday. "And it is more likely people vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19 could be infected or re-infected," he added. WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan said it would be "unwise" to conclude from early evidence that Omicron was a milder variant than the other strains. The variant is successfully evading some immune responses, she said, meaning that the booster programmes being rolled out in many countries ought to be targeted towards people with weaker immune systems. Their comments come at a time when the Omicron variant is surging in the UK, USA and other European countries such as t

  According to Trading Economics, steel production in the country slowed to 71.6 million tonnes in October after touching almost 100 MT in May this year. The steel sector in China has been booming as the real estate industry drove the country’s economic growth. The uncertainty in the real estate sector would have a direct impact on other commodities such as cement and steel and this has happened when there are already major supply side constraints in the country,” DK Srivastava, chief policy adviser, EY India told India Narrative. Earlier Tata Steel’s managing director TV Narendran told the Economic Times that India could stand to benefit as China cuts production. “The forecast is that Chinese consumption will stay flat and consumption outside China will grow…the growth in consumption will be driven more by markets outside China, and I'm more positive about this industry in India,” the news organisation quoted Narendran as saying. The India Brand Equity Foundation noted that in 20

  Indian and Taiwanese space organisations are collaborating with other international research bodies to launch a miniaturised satellite for space research in January 2022 . The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology are collaborating with Taiwan's National Space Organization (NSPO) in launching a CubeSat into space in January 2022. Other international collaborators include the University of Colorado Boulder and the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, says a report in Taiwan News. NSPO Director General Wu Jong-shinn expressed optimism about the future of cooperation between Taiwan and India on space projects. He added that India's nearly 500 space-related businesses could partner with Taiwan's strengths in the fields of semiconductors, ICT, and weather technologies to help the island nation develop its own space economy.

  Eighteen students have tested positive for coronavirus at a school in Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra after a student was found infected with the virus. Mass testing of the students is now being carried out and the number may go up. The father of the student who was initially found positive had recently returned from Qatar, following which the entire family was tested for Covid-19. Though the man tested negative his son was found infected with the virus. Since the boy had been attending school, several students were tested and 18 were found positive. Mass testing is on at the school and the number may go up. Meanwhile, Maharashtra reported 902 new COVID-19 cases on Friday and eight infections of the new Omicron variant.  The total number of infections due to the new variant of coronavirus has now gone up to 48 in the state, the health department said. Of these, six patients were from Pune, one was from Mumbai and another from Kalyan-Dombivli on the outskirts of Mumbai. All eight new Omic

  Ten new Omicron cases were detected in Delhi on Friday, taking the nationwide tally of the heavily mutated variant of COVID-19 to 90 in the country. The daily count of fresh coronavirus cases in Delhi has also gone up to 85 in the last 24 hours giving rise to concern. Delhi has reported 20 cases of the new variant since the first case was registered  on December 5. Ten of these patients have been discharged, Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Friday. Many international passengers have been testing positive for Covid lately, he added. Maharashtra, the state with the highest overall Covid cases, has so far recorded the most number of Omicron cases at 32. Karnataka, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh are the other states that have detected cases of the new variant. Most of the Omicron has been found in people returning from overseas travel. The Centre has asked states to step up surveillance and send samples for genome sequencing to keep infections in chec

  Bhutan has conferred its highest civilian award , Ngadag Pel gi Khorlo, to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Overjoyed to hear His Majesty pronounce Your Excellency Modiji’s Narendra Modi name for the highest civilian decoration, Ngadag Pel gi Khorlo. PMO India,” Prime Minister of Bhutan’s official twitter handle said. Separately in a Facebook post, Bhutan’s Prime Minister Lotay Tshering’s office said, “HM highlighted all the unconditional friendship and support Modiji extended over the years and particularly during pandemic. Much deserving! Congratulations from the people of Bhutan. In all interactions, seen Your Excellency as a great, spiritual human being. Looking forward to celebrating the honour in person.” Bhutan was one of the first countries that received Covid 19 vaccines from India in January this year. "As we celebrate the arrival of the vaccine as the new milestone in our battle to beat the pandemic at home, we applaud the gesture that signifies the compassion and gener

  As part of the mega celebrations marking December 16 -Vijay Diwas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to the warriors of 1971 war at a solemn ceremony and lit the Swarnim Vijay Mashaal in the capital today. ‘Swarnim Vijay Varsh’ also commemorates 50 years of India’s victory over Pakistan in 1971. Modi was accompanied by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. “On the 50th Vijay Diwas , I recall the great valour and sacrifice by the Muktijoddhas, Biranganas and bravehearts of the Indian Armed Forces. Together, we fought and defeated oppressive forces,” the Prime Minister tweeted in the morning. December 16 is celebrated with equal fervour in India and Bangladesh. The day, which is celebrated in India to mark its victory over Pakistani forces, for Bangladesh, it is the independence day. Meanwhile, President Ram Nath Kovind, who is in Bangladesh attended the Victory Day Parade in Dhaka to mark the South Asian country’s 50 years of independence. A 122 member tri services contingent from

  The World Health Organization has warned that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is spreading at an unprecedented rate and urged countries to act WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told journalists that the strain had been reported in 77 countries and had probably spread to most nations undetected "at a rate we have not seen with any previous variant". At the same time the WHO on Tuesday also gave reason for some optimism, saying Africa had recorded a massive rise in cases over the past week but the number of deaths were lower than the previous waves. However, it urged countries to act swiftly to rein in transmission and protect their health systems and warned against complacency. WHO expert Bruce Aylward emphasised against "jumping to a conclusion that this is a mild disease". "We could be setting ourselves up for a very dangerous situation," he added. Omicron, first identified by South Africa and reported to the WHO in late November, has over 30 spike

  The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as Pakistan Taliban, killed two policemen guarding polio teams in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in north-west Pakistan over the weekend. Another policeman was wounded even as the polio workers escaped unharmed. The attacks began as soon as the one-month-long ceasefire ended between the TTP and the Imran Khan government. The TTP militants identify themselves closely with the Taliban militants in neighbouring Afghanistan and advocate for an Islamic rule in Pakistan—in a manner resembling Afghanistan. Soon after the Kabul takeover by Taliban in August, the TTP began its attacks on the Pakistani Army and security forces.  Aseefa B Zardari, polio ambassador and daughter of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, tweeted about the attacks. In a series of tweets, she said: “The cowardly TTP have taken responsibility for the attack on health workers and police. They are attacking those who are trying to protect our children from disease. Now t

  As India and Bangladesh gear up to celebrate December 16 marked as Vijay Diwas for the South Asian nation, elaborate preparations are on even in the small northeastern state of Tripura. An emotional Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during her trip Agartala in 2012 had recalled the immense contribution of the people of the northeatern state.” “If Bangladesh is India-locked, Tripura is Bangladesh-locked — goes an adage in the region,” a study by the Observer Research Foundation noted. India-Bangladesh relations have typically been driven by an overpowering narrative that emphasizes the commonalities between the people of West Bengal and the South Asian nation. True the two share common culture, language and food habits but the role of other states including that of Tripura, that is almost tucked within Bangladesh, cannot be ignored. Also read: Maitri Diwas: From physical to emotional connectivity—the way forward for Indo-Bangladesh ties “About 84 per cent of the state’s border

  PM Modi has had a long history of association and a deep connection with the religious and spiritual city of Kashi. Long before he became PM and started representing Varanasi in Parliament, he had several opportunities to visit the holy abode of Baba Vishwanath. While each subsequent visit further strengthened the bond of the PM with the city, it also further fuelled his desire to contribute towards spiritual regeneration of the city and to return the city its lost grandeur. When PM came to kashi to fill his nomination for elections, he said the now immortal lines “न मैं यहाँ आया हूँ न यहाँ लाया गया हूँ मुझे माँ गंगा ने बुलाया है।” With this in mind, he set on a path of rebuilding the city. The fruits of his labour soon became visible with the development of infrastructure and 360 degree transformation of Kashi. But, it was the lifelong dream of PM Modi to contribute towards helping Kashi Vishwanath Mandir attain the aura of the past. With this, he embarked on the odyssey of developm

  Chandigarh-based model Harnaaz Sandhu has been crowned the new Miss Universe, becoming the third Indian to win the title after Sushmita Sen in 1994 and Lara Dutta won the title in 2000. Harnaaz represented India today at the 70th Miss Universe 2021 , held in Eilat, Israel. The 21-year-old from Punjab pipped Paraguay's Nadia Ferreira and South Africa's Lalela Mswane in the final round to win the coveted title. Harnaaz was presented the crown by Andrea Meza, former Miss Universe 2020 from Mexico. On being asked what advice she would give to young women on how to deal with the pressures they face, Harnaaz nonchalantly replied: "The biggest pressure the youth of today is facing is to believe in themselves, to know that you are unique and that's what makes you beautiful. Stop comparing yourselves with others and let's talk about more important things that's happening worldwide." "This is what you need to understand. Come out, speak for yourselves because

  Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Friday inaugurate the Rs 9,800 crore Saryu Nahar irrigation project that interlinks five rivers in Uttar Pradesh, bringing to an end a 40-year wait for the farmers of the region.  According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s office, PM Modi will visit Balrampur in UP tomorrow to inaugurate the project that was “delayed by 40 years and has now been completed in four years.” Work on the project started in 1978 but due to lack of continued budgetary support, interdepartmental coordination and adequate monitoring, it got delayed and was not completed even after nearly four decades. The Prime Minister then prioritised the inordinately delayed project in 2016 by bringing it under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana with the target to complete it in a time bound manner. Land acquisition was expedited and the digging of new canals speeded up to complete the project in four years. The Saryu Nahar National Project has been built with a total c

  Even at Baramulla and the border town of Uri, where he served with an unparalleled liaison with the people, candle light tributes were paid to Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Bipin Rawat, who died along with his wife and 11 others of his staff and crew in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday. Known as ‘People’s General’ during his tenures in northern Kashmir’s Uri, Sopore and Baramulla, Gen. Rawat had a very special bond with the people in Valley, particularly those of the district headquarters of Baramulla where he headed a garrison 10 years ago. This bondage, which passed as a legacy through many decorated Army officers like Gen. JJ Singh, who later on became Army chief, made the General Officer Commanding (GoC) of Srinagar based Chinar Corps, Lt Gen. DP Pandey to attend a special remembrance ceremony for Gen. Rawat at Baramulla on Thursday. While paying rich tributes to India’s first CDS, who had served in Baramulla as a Company Commander in Uri, Brigade Commander of 5 Sect

  As the black box of the ill-fated Indian Air Force Mi-17V5 helicopter which crashed in Tamil Nadu's Coonoor on Wednesday was retrieved, the bodies of 13 people including Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife, and 11 armed personnel who were killed in the accident, have been shifted from Madras Regimental Centre (MRC) in Wellington to the Sulur Air Force station. The bodies will now be flown to the respective native places of the crash victims. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had told Rajya Sabha on Thursday morning that the bodies of General Rawat, his wife and the others who died in the crash would be brought to Delhi by the evening. It was reported that the black box, also known as a flight recorder, was recovered after the investigating authorities expanded their search area at the accident spot from 300 metres to one km. What is a black box? The black box recovered today would contain valuable information regarding the IAF helicopter's final moments. A blac

  Chief WHO scientist Soumya Swaminathan has cautioned against knee-jerk reactions to early studies that hinted the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine may have reduced efficacy against the new variant. She pointed out that the studies done so far were small and that the reduction in the "neutralising activity" varied dramatically between different studies. five fold in some experiments to up to 40-fold in others. They also only looked at the neutralisation of antibodies, when "we know the immune system is much more complex than that," she said. "So I think it's premature to conclude that this reduction neutralising activity would result in a significant reduction in vaccine effectiveness," she said. "We do not know that." The WHO experts stressed the importance of vaccination , highlighting that even if vaccines prove less effective against Omicron, as some data indicates, they are still expected to provide significant protection against severe disease.

  An air force helicopter with Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and 13 others on board crashed today in Tamil Nadu, the Indian Air Force has confirmed.  Five charred bodies have been recovered from the crash site crash while four persons have been taken to hospital with severe burn injuries. Further details are not known so far. General Rawat's wife, his Defence Assistant, security commandos and Indian Air Force personnel were reportedly among the 14 on board. The Indian Air Force confirmed in a tweet that the Chief of Defence Staff was on the flight. He had taken a flight from Delhi to Sulur earlier today and that flight manifest had listed nine people. "An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu. An Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident." The crash took place in the Nilgiris shortly after the Mi-series chopper took off from the army base at Sulur in Coimbatore. Al

  Existing vaccines will still protect people who contract the Omicron variant from severe Covid-19 cases, according to a top World Health Organization (WHO) official. "We have highly effective vaccines that have proved effective against all the variants so far, in terms of severe disease and hospitalisation, and there's no reason to expect that it wouldn't be so for Omicron,” Dr Mike Ryan, the WHO's emergencies director, told AFP news agency. His observation comes at a time when the first lab tests of the heavily mutated new variant in South Africa suggest it can partially evade the Pfizer vaccine. Researchers say there was a "very large drop" in how well the vaccine's antibodies neutralised the new strain. But Ryan said there was no sign Omicron would be better at evading vaccines than other variants. He also said that initial data suggested that the COVID-19 symptoms in the case of Omicron were less severe than the Delta and other strains. Scientists

  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated three mega projects in Gorakhpur which include a new AIIMS spread across a sprawling 112 acres, a big fertiliser plant and an ICMR research centre, giving a booster shot to development in eastern Uttar Pradesh. The three ambitious projects have been set up with an investment of over Rs 9,600 crore and have been completed ahead of the UP assembly elections scheduled for early next year.  Addressing a massive rally at Gorakhpur , the Prime Minister said that the BJP’s “double-engine” government which also works at twice the speed of others had succeeded in ending the long-wait for proper healthcare facilities by the people of eastern Uttar Pradesh.  He said that patients from the region will now no longer have to travel to big cities for treatment as modern healthcare facilities were available at their doorstep. He pointed out that since many years after independence there was only one AIIMs in the country, but since the last 7 years

  Peoples’ clashes with the Police and security forces, marked by heavy stone pelting and violent demonstrators, which were a routine in Kashmir from 2015 to August 2019, have subsided after withdrawal of the erstwhile State’s special constitutional status. There has been no major news of what a section of the media and politicians used to call ‘agitational terrorism’. The Union Territory’s summer capital of Srinagar has, however, witnessed around 18 encounters between the militants and security forces since January 2020. Besides, around 20 civilians and unarmed Policemen have been killed in Srinagar in different terror strikes. They include one CID Inspector, one probationary Sub Inspector and two constables who were all attacked from behind and shot dead. They also include popular chemist Makhan Lal Bindroo, two non-Muslim teachers and two golgappa vendors who killed selectively. Some of these attacks were captured live on CCTV cameras; some by the assassins’ bodycams, which were su

  In a short while Russian President Vladimir Putin will begin talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi .  The visit is being watched with particular interest on both sides, coming as it does at a particularly critical time - volatile Taliban rule in Afghanistan, worsening NATO/Ukraine – Russia relations, India-China tensions, India’s inclusion in the QUAD, and the new geopolitical move with AUKUS. Especially significant is  the fact that given its closeness to the US, India is intent on going ahead with its purchase of S 400 TRIUMF missiles, with the threat of CAATSA (though improbable) hanging over it. Turkey has faced similar sanctions from the US over its purchase of the same missile system from Russia. During President Putin’s visit the India-Russia 2+2 dialogue involving the foreign and defence ministers on both sides, which replicates the India-US  2+2 dialogue, has already begun. The timing of the visit, however, is significant and interesting historically. Fifty years ago on 6t

  In the two decades since India and Russia declared a new strategic partnership, the global geopolitical landscape has undergone major transformations. While the partnership retains a strong strategic content, its course has inevitably been impacted by shifting equations between major global powers. This aspect is likely to figure prominently on the dialogue agenda of President Putin and Prime Minister Modi on December 6 . Over these two decades, India-US political and economic relations surged and, after the India-US nuclear deal of 2008, defence and technology cooperation took off as well. Among the US motivations to strengthen partnership with India was that a strong, democratic India could be a useful partner for the US in Asia, where China was emerging as a formidable rival. India welcomed this premise, as well as the opportunity to diversify military acquisitions from near-exclusive dependence on Russia. Russia-US relations were already somewhat strained in the early 2000s, but

  In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, authorities have initiated verification and fresh registration of around 6,000 non-governmental agencies after a case of human trafficking surfaced in the valley. At least two Covid orphans were found to have been ‘sold’ by an NGO, leading to registration of FIR against the group and arrest of two persons allegedly involved in the human trafficking. Officials said that an investigation was launched by the Police, one FIR registered and two persons of Sambora, Pampore, arrested after it was reported in the national media that some individuals had indulged in offering young Covid orphans for adoption against monetary considerations by some individuals outside Jammu and Kashmir. A collective of clergymen issued an appeal for a “sustained campaign” against trafficking of the young Kashmiri children whose parents had died due to the pandemic in the last 20 months. According to the officials, the Police Station of Pampore received a written app

  Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India on December 6 represents a huge upturn in the India-Russia relations . This will be the first international bilateral visit by Putin since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic about two years ago. The fact that Putin’s first stand-alone visit is to India is reaffirmation of the underlying strength and resilience of the India-Russia relationship, notwithstanding the rapid flux in geo-politics in the region.  Putin’s earlier visit outside Russia was in June this year to Geneva for a summit with President Joe Biden. That was, however, an interaction in a third country and not a bilateral visit to another country. Putin’s visit can also be seen as his way of signalling that although Russia’s relations with China are vital and critical, particularly because of Russia’s heavy dependence on China for export of its oil, gas and defence equipment as also because of the stringent sanctions imposed on it by the West as a result of Crimea’s acce

  Monkeys, humankind’s closest relative, have always impressed with their intelligence and ingenuity and yet another example of this has come to light through a recent study. Inhabiting one of the globe’s coldest areas in Japan, snow monkeys have managed to live and survive the harsh winter by “going fishing”, that is lifting out creatures alive, including the brown trout, out of rivers of Japan and consuming them alive, states this new study. Native of the main Japanese islands, except Hokkaido, the snow monkey or the Japanese macaque Macaca fuscata is the non-human primate living most northerly. With the Kamikochi area of Chubu Sangaku National Park located in the Japanese Alps covered in snow, these creatures are confronted with scarcity of their preferred food. Also read: Vulture bees of Costa Rica feast on meat Faced with such adverse conditions, the monkeys running low on energy are bound to die of starvation but the streams that are fed by groundwater with a constant temperatur