˘ˇˆ˙˘˝˛˚˚˜ · 2019. 3. 4. · in Chas (Bokaro) on 22 December 2016 and section 133 of...

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Transcript of ˘ˇˆ˙˘˝˛˚˚˜ · 2019. 3. 4. · in Chas (Bokaro) on 22 December 2016 and section 133 of...

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    Abrief spell of rain onTuesday night came to therescue of the people residing inthe national Capital as Delhi’sair quality improved “remark-ably” and the National AmbientAir Quality Index recorded thelevel of harmful pollutants as“lowest” of this season.

    The contribution fromstubble burning to pollutionwas recorded at three per cent.From severe to poor, SAFAR’strend marked air quality rela-tively good! However, the fore-cast said air quality may dete-riorate from Thursday.

    The major pollutant PM10, which has remained above410, was recorded at 280 onWednesday, whereas PM 2.5was significantly less on AirQuality Index (AQI) at 127.

    According to the CentralPollution Control Board(CPCB), Ministry ofEnvironment, Forest andClimate Change (MoEF &CC),the overall average Air QualityIndex was recorded at 312microgram per cubic whichwas 642 on the very next day

    of Diwali. Citing the local climate

    trend, SAFAR said air qualityhas improved considerably dueto rainfall early on Tuesday; itwashed away bigger particlesand created space for faster dis-persion without decline in tem-perature.

    “AQI is back to “very poor”.A slight increase in AQI is pre-dicted in next three days andlikely to remain very poor,”SAFAR said.

    “This is mainly due to thefact that surface winds are stilllow and temperature is likely tocool down. Stubble fire is

    unlikely to impact Delhi AQIas fire counts are significantlydown and winds are also flow-ing from other direction,”SAFAR explained on Metgraph.

    The largest contributer toPM 2.5 pollution onWednesday was power plantsfollowed by diesel generators.Household pollution con-tributed 15.9 per cent.

    Meanwhile, air quality inneighbouring States of Delhiwas better.

    The restriction imposedby on heavy vehicles’ entry toDelhi was lifted on Wednesday.

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    With monkey menace pre-vailing in the corridorsof power in New Delhi,including Parliament, ahead ofthe Winter Session, the LokSabha Secretariat has comeout with a circular advisingpeople not to make direct eyecontact with monkey and donot cross the path between amother and her infant.

    The Parliament HouseComplex along with othernearby buildings, includingthe North and South Blocksand the Rashtrapati Bhavanaround the Central Ridge for-est, face monkey menace.There is no official data onDelhi’s monkey population.

    The city has thousands ofRhesus Macaque monkeys

    that break into houses, ter-rorise people and steal food.The civic bodies estimatedaround 30,000-40,000 mon-keys in the national Capital.Many people feed monkeys onTuesday and Saturdays —

    days associated with GodHanuman. This practicemeans that people carryingfood at other times risk beingbitten. Around 90 per cent ofthe monkeys carry tuberculosis.

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    Sri Lanka’s Parliament onWednesday passed a no-confidence motion againstPrime Minister MahindaRajapaksa, who was installedby President MaithripalaSirisena in a controversialmove, a day after the SupremeCourt overturned the presi-dential decree to dissolve theHouse and hold snap polls onJanuary 5.

    Amid raucous scenes,Parliament on Wednesday metfor the first time since October26 when President Sirisenasacked Prime Minister RanilWickremesinghe and installedRajapaksa in his place and sus-pended the House, plunging theisland nation into an unprece-dented constitutional crisis.

    Speaker Karu Jayasuriyaannounced that a majority ofthe 225-member Parliamentsupported the no-confidencemotion against Rajapaksa, the72-year-old former strongman,who ruled the country for adecade from 2005. “Accordingto the voice, I recognise that theGovernment has no majority,”Jayasuriya announced in theHouse as Rajapaksa supportersprotested.

    He gave the ruling after theno-confidence motion wastaken for a vote. The Speakercalculated the votes based onthe voices he heard.

    The passing of the no-confidence motion comes as amajor blow to PresidentSirisena and a victory to oust-ed Prime MinisterWickremesinghe. The resolu-tion was moved by Left-wingJanatha Vimukthi Peramunaparty leader Anura KumaraDissanayaka and lawmakerVijitha Herath.

    The Tamil NationalAlliance and smaller Muslimparties supported the no-con-fidence motion. Three newlysworn Cabinet Ministers and astate Minister also crossed overto the Opposition benches insupport. Rajapaksa needed thesupport of a minimum of 113lawmakers in the House toprove his majority.

    Continued on Page 4

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    Steadily heading towards anew dawn, Jharkhand willcelebrate its 18th year of con-stitution amid much fanfaretoday. With a series of activitieslined up ranging from thelaunch of differentGovernment schemes to a glit-tering cultural evening, theState will enter in its 19th yearon Thursday, November 15.

    The Statehood Celebrationprogramme which also marksthe birth anniversary of one ofthe greatest tribal leaders -Bhagwan Birsa Munda -- willcommence from 9 AM onwards.Chief Minister Raghubar Dasalong with other dignitaries willpay floral tribute to BhagwanBirsa at his mausoleum locatedat Kokar. Later, the CM will visitBirsa Chowk to garland thestatuette of martyr Birsa around9:30 AM.

    The arrangement for themain programme has beenmade at Morhabadi Ground.The event will begin from12:30 PM. As per the tentativeprogramme schedule releasedby the State government, theCM will address the State at1:20 PM followed by the speechof Governor, Draupadi Murmuat 1:40 PM, who will grace theoccasion as the Chief Guest.Minister of State for TribalAffairs, Sudarshan Bhagat,Speaker - State LegislativeAssembly, Dinesh Oraonincluding Minister of State for

    Civil Aviation, Jayant Sinha willbe present as the distinguishedguests during the programme.

    Welcome address will bedelivered by Minister, AmarBauri - Department of Sports,Art, Culture and Youths Affairsat 12:43 PM. Distribution ofgrants amount to the beneficia-ries, launch of coffee table book,major announcements aboutState's achieving OpenDefecation Free (ODF) tagincluding declaring three districts- Lohardaga, Hazaribagh andDeoghar fully electrified will bedone by the CM, the Governor,the Ministers, MPs and others.Various presentations, audio-video clippings of agriculture

    department focusing on doublingthe income of cultivators will bealso screened there.

    Appointment letters will bedistributed among 713 newlyrecruited Revenue Officers,around 1,385 high schoolteachers and 20 freshCommercial Tax departmentemployees. Further, boostingthe State's infrastructure whichis mandatory for uniformexpansion in any sector,Jharkhand government willgift various civil projects to theresidents being conceived andconstructed under JharkhandState Building ConstructionCorporation Limited (JSBCCL)of worth Rs. 1100 crore. In

    addition, as many as six DinDayal Upadhayay Skill devel-opment Centers underJharkhand State LivelihoodPromotion Society (JSLPS) willbe inaugurated.

    To mark the occasion,around 10 persons/ institu-tions/ Non-GovernmentOrganisations (NGOs) will befelicitated for their significantcontribution towards the soci-ety with a citation and incen-tive rewards.

    Sakhi Mandals' aka womenSelf-Help Groups (SHGs) asso-ciated with JSLPS that played asignificant role in reviving cot-tage industries and have beendoing highly commendablejob in agro, pesiculture, live-stock and animal husbandry toname a few will be given agrant amount of Rs. 100 crore.

    Loan letters, assets sanc-tioned under different Centraland State government schemessuch as Mudra by variousbanks to the beneficiaries willbe also distributed. The mainevent will be wrapped up at1:50 PM with a Band Displaypresented by Police personnel.

    Continuing the celebrationahead, this year too, a tantaliz-ing cultural event will see thepresence of musical maestros.Two popular BollywoodPlayback singers - KavitaKrishnamurthy and SureshWadkar will entertain the pub-lic with their heartwarmingmusical tunes. Besides the musi-cal affair, an array of culturalprogrammes portraying the richart and culture of different Stateshas been planned by the Stategovernment from 6 PM to 9 PM.

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    Iexpress my gratitude on the BirthAnniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda.Today is Jharkhand’s Foundation Day. Icongratulate the 3.25 crore people ofJharkhand. Our State is completing 18years today. The completion of 18 yearsmeans that Jharkhand has become ayouth today. Our State stands on a thresh-old where we are getting a glimpse of astrong, strong and prosperous Jharkhand.Time has come to fulfill all the dreams thatwere seen at the time of its establishment.

    In 2014, the 3.25 crore people ofJharkhand had chosen the government ofBharatiya Janata Party and from the lastfour years, we have been trying to provetheir belief on us. We are working hard dayand night. Our government first pioneeredthe basic infrastructure.Work has beenstarted in almost every sector, includingroad, electricity, drinking water, health,education, irrigation, and the effect of thisis also seen. Due to political instability,Jharkhand had stayed away from thepath of development in last 14 years.However, under the able leadership andguidance of Prime Minister NarendraModi, my Government has been workingday and night to accelerate the pace ofdevelopment with teamwork.

    Unemployment is a major concern ofthe State. In about 4 years, our governmentprovided more than 32 lakh jobs and self-employment opportunities, which is arecord in itself. By 12 January 2019,employment will be provided to 1 lakhpeople. Our Jharkhand is rich but there ispoverty. We have kept in mind poverty andmade plans for every class so that no classcould feel neglected.

    The government took several steps toimprove the health sector. Today, any poorin the State is not deprived for treatmentanywhere in the country. The Centre and

    the State government have jointly provid-ed health insurance of �5 lakh for eachpoor. AIIMS is being developed inDeoghar, it will prove to be 'Sanjivani' forthe Santhal region. Moreover, the foun-dation stone of Cancer Hospital in Ranchihas been laid. There has always been lackof doctors in Jharkhand. After indepen-dence there were only three medical col-leges in 67 years. Our government is open-ing six more medical colleges.

    Today, on the occasion FoundationDay, I would like to mention specificallyRani Mistri sisters who have madeJharkhand free from open defecation, ieODF.Our government is committed to theempowerment of women, for this houseand land registry of upto �50 lakhs arebeing done in the State at only one rupeein the name of women. So far, more than1 lakh 10, 000 women have become the

    owners by taking advantage of this facil-ity.Our farmers of Jharkhand used to farmagriculture with the help of rain, but in thelast four years we provided water to thefarmers of the State and today the irriga-tion of 3,18,613 hectares of land is beingreceived from the canals in the State. Weare also teaching the farmers Israel basedtechniques of drip irrigation, which canproduce at least the water. Farmers ofJharkhand have made history by learningnew techniques. Today, the total agricul-tural production of Jharkhand is 67.61 lakhtonnes.

    Our Jharkhand was also backward inthe field of education. Today there is nosuch school in the state where there is nobench desk for children. Whether it is atechnical education or higher education,the government has tried to strengthenevery area. Our young people are very dili-gent, they only need to be provided withtraining. To fulfill this, the governmentopened 32 new ITIs and 14 polytechnicscolleges, so that they could become intel-ligent, today they are getting good jobsabroad by taking training.

    Whether it is electricity, road or clean-ing, our government has been working inevery area, electricity has reached everyhousehold in 8 districts of Jharkhand andby the end of this year, electricity will beprovided to every household in the entirestate. Whether it is Power Plant of Patratuor Sindri Fertilizer Factory, our govern-ment did all this work which would helpto provide identify to Jharkhand.

    I do not claim that in the last four yearswe have achieved everything that neededJharkhand but I can say with the claim thatour government has laid the foundationsof development, on which we will add newchapter of progress in Jharkhand and Ihave full faith that we will do this worktogether with your support and will makeJharkhand state the number one state.

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    Even as para-teachers planto stage a protest in sup-port of their demands duringthe Statehood Day celebrationsat Morhabadi ground onThursday, the district admin-istration stated that elaboratesecurity arrangement wouldbe made to prevent any dis-ruption during the celebration.

    Chief Secretary SudhirTripathi, Ranchi deputy com-missioner Rai Mahimapat Ray,SSP Anish Gupta and otherofficials visited the venue andreviewed the arrangement onWednesday evening.

    The administration woulddeploy around 1000 policepersonnel along with RapidAction Force in and aroundthe venue to ensure smoothand peaceful conduct of the

    celebrations.It may be stated here that

    para-teachers are agitating

    over regularization of theirservices and other demandsfor the past several days. Theyplan to stage a protest if thegovernment fails to make anyannouncement in this regardon the State’s Foundation Day.

    “We are keeping a vigil atall entry points of the statecapital including roads andrailway station to monitorinflux of protestors. Closedcircuit television cameras havebeen installed at many placesaround the venue,” RanchiSSP Anish Gupta said.

    He added the entire venuehas been divided into threezones with each area under the

    charge of senior officer.The district police would

    also conduct patrolling aroundthe venue as a preventive mea-sure.

    It may be noted here thatdistrict administration hastaken a serious view of theprotest threat and issued awarning that disciplinaryaction could be taken againstprotestors if needed.

    Officials had said thatthose employed in govern-ment services would be dis-missed from job the very nextday.The district administrationalso issued an order regulatingthe movement of traffic.

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    As the political fever riseswith the Assembly polls forfive States underway and theCongress vowing to "imple-ment ban" on Governmentemployees from participatingin the activities of RashtriyaSwayemsevak Sangh (RSS), theRSS affiliate Bhartiya MazdoorSangh (BMS) has written toPrime Minister Narendra Modito remove the ban provisionfrom the Government servicerules.

    The ban on Governmentofficials taking RSS member-ship and joining its activitieswas there but some States likeGujarat, Goa, Madhya Pradeshhave them in service rules."After Keshubahi PatelGovernment took over inGujarat in 2000, the provisionwas removed from the Servicerules but in Madhya Pradeshit is continuing", said RSS func-tionaries.

    Congress manifesto forthe November 28 Madhya

    Pradesh polls in the Statepromises to ban 'Shakhas' ofthe RSS in Governmentpremises and stopGovernment employees fromattending RSS 'Shakhas' .Congress General SecretaryDigvijay Singh has said thatthe rule existed even under theJan Sangh and BJPGovernments in the State inthe past, including the regimesof V K Sklecha, Kailash Joshi,Sunderlal Patwa, Uma Bhartiand Babulal Guar and that theCongress was "only pledgingto continue it."

    RSS leaders maintain thatit was already in the service rulebut it was never implementedin letter and spirit. "Congress isfor the first time promising toimplement if it comes to power

    in Madhya Pradesh", they said.They remind that even duringJawahar Lal Nehru's time, sev-eral Congress members in theparty's Central WorkingCommittee were also membersof the RSS.

    The BMS has sought PrimeMinister Narendra Modi tohave the service rule removedso as to lift the ban on theCentral Government employeesfrom working with the RSS.

    The RSS outfit hasappealed to the Prime Ministerto intervene in the matter per-sonally and direct the con-cerned Ministry to issue nec-essary amendments permit-ting the Government employ-ees to participate in nation-building activities.

    The Secretary-General of

    Government EmployeesNational Confederation, affil-iated to the BMS, in a letter tothe Prime Minister on October20, pointed out that in accor-dance with provisions of DP &AR OM No. 15014/3/(S)/80-Estt. (B), dated 28.10.1980,there is a ban on participatingin the activities of RSS by theCentral GovernmentEmployees.

    "Through an order datedNovember 30, 1966, (by theMinistry of Home Affairs), thethen Congress Governmenthas imposed the ban onswayamsevaks, who work invarious departments under theUnion Government.Unfortunately, the order hasbeen evoked time and again bythe successive Governments",the letter said.

    Pointing out that any per-son going against the ruleinvites "imprisonment for aterm which may extend toseven years or fine or withboth", the BMS maintainedthat many Governmentemployees interested in theRSS activities hold back onaccount of the fear of discipli-nary action and "are not able tolend their hand in a genuinecause of Nation Building."

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    The National InvestigationAgency (NIA) onWednesday filed a chargesheetagainst banned terror groupDukhtaran-E-Millat's chiefAasiya Andrabi and her asso-ciates, Sofi Fehmeeda andNaheeda Nasreen, before adesignated court here forallegedly waging war againstthe country.

    Andrabi and her associatesSofi Fehmeeda and NaheedaNasreen were actively run-ning a terrorist organisationDukhtaran-E-Millat which isproscribed under the FirstSchedule to the UnlawfulActivities (Prevention) Act,1967. DEM as a terroristorganisation is engaged inAnti-India activities and hasbeen inciting the general pop-ulace of Kashmir for an armedrebellion against theGovernment of India with aidand assistance of terroristorganisations based inPakistan, the NIA said.

    "The three accused per-sons were using various mediaplatforms like Twitter,Facebook, YouTube, TVChannels including those inPakistan to spread insurrec-

    tionary imputations and hate-ful messages and speechesagainst India. DEM throughAasiya Andrabi and others,openly advocates secession ofJammu & Kashmir from theUnion of India and its mergerwith Pakistan through violentmeans," the NIA said in astatement.

    A case was registered bythe NIA on April 27 this yearunder various Indian PenalCode Sections relating to crim-inal conspiracy, waging waragainst the nation and underprovisions of the anti-terror lawUnlawful Activities(Prevention) Act, 1967.

    The trio was arrested byNIA on July 6 in connectionwith the case and is sincelodged in the Tihar Jail here.

    "Investigation has estab-lished that Aasiya Andrabi isheading Dukhtaran-E-Millatas its Chief and has used socialmedia and other platforms toabet waging of war againstGovernment of India. She isspreading seditious and insur-rectionary imputations againstGovernment of India. She ispromoting ill-will and enmitybetween different communitiesin India on ground of religion.Investigation has also estab-

    lished that she has close con-tacts with designated GlobalTerrorist Hafeez MohammadSaeed who is head of Jamaat-Ud-Dawah (JuD) and Lashkar-E-Toiba (LeT), internationallydesignated terrorist organisa-tions that are based inPakistan," the NIA furthersaid.

    Andrabi has used publicplatforms to incite youth ofKashmir to rise in armed insur-rection against theGovernment of India with anobject of achieving cessation ofKashmir from India and itsmerger with Pakistan, theagency said in its chargesheet.

    The agency said investi-gation has also established thatSofi Fehmeeda, as PersonalSecretary to Chief of DEM andalso Press Secretary ofDukhtaran-E-Millat, andNaheeda Nasreen as its GeneralSecretary have been instru-mental in the use of socialmedia and other platforms forabetment of waging war againstthe Indian Government besidesspreading seditious and insur-rectionary imputations againstit, and are promoting ill-willand enmity between differentcommunities in India ongrounds of religion.

    �5��������������#� ����6������������"���������� (���� ��.����*5

    Twitter has suspended twofake accounts being run inthe name of the ElectionCommission (EC). The accountused the EC logo as well as theTwitter handle@ElectionComm. Anotheraccount used @DalitFederationas its handle. The two accountshave been suspended after theEC asked Twitter to take "deci-sive action.

    The Election Commission'sspokesperson confirmed thatthe Commission does not haveits own verified Twitter handle.The fake accounts had a hugefollowing with one of themhaving 4,751 followers. The ECfeared that they could misleadpublic ahead of Assembly pollsin five States and coming up LokSabha elections next year. "TheEC does not have any presenceon Twitter, though it does oper-ate a Facebook handle," said anofficial of EC on the conditionof anonymity.

    The media division of theEC asked Twitter to take decisiveaction against them. Althoughthere were no tweets from theseaccounts, they had a large fol-lowing. The Commission hasavoided opening an account onTwitter as it does not have themanpower, a dedicated team ofprofessionals or media budget tohandle requests and grievancesthat are likely to flood it once itregisters its presence on Twitter,"an official said. However, EC hasauthorised the State chief elec-toral officers to create a Twitteraccount of their own.

    EC had earlier held talkswith Twitter and other socialmedia companies like Googleand Facebook to help it trackfake news and monitor pollexpenditure on social mediaadvertising and publicity.Google, Facebook and Twitteron Monday promised to domore to fight news in India,while refusing to provide anydefinite timeline for bringingtougher actions that could elim-inate the menace of fake newsfrom their platform.

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    Soon database of country'salmost all health establish-ments including clinics, nursinghomes, hospitals and diagnos-tic labs whether in private orGovernment sector will beavailable online with interactivemaps.

    Aiming to improve healthoutcomes and create healthdatabase, the Union HealthMinistry has rolled out theNational Health Resource

    Repository (NHRR) whereinmassive exercise to map allpublic and private healthcareestablishments at the districtlevel is being undertaken in thecountry. This is the first everhealthcare establishment cen-sus, using paperless technolo-gy.

    A senior Health Ministryofficial said that a web-basedand geo-mapping enabled sin-gle platform of all the healthresources both Governmentand private is being developed.

    It will comprise of the data onhealth infrastructure, humanresource and the availability andtype of medical facilities.

    The importance of healthmapping lies in the productionof interactive and publishedmaps that would link the geog-raphy of communities withother dimensions such as avail-ability and accessibility of healthservices, or disease preventionand control services particularlyin rural areas, added an officialfrom the WHO.

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    Liberalised Visa regimeimplemented for the pasttwo years witnessed sharpincrease of visit of foreigners toIndia. As per the statistics in2017 and 2018, more than 35lakh foreigners visited India,including tourists, businesspurposes. Before launching ofe-Visa and instant visa, in2015, as per the statistics,around 4.5 lakh foreigners vis-ited India. As many as 26 air-ports and five sea ports, theBureau of Immigration (BoI)

    has implemented e-Visa sys-tem.

    "The Electronic Visa Facilitynow covers practically all thecountries of the world. Foreignnationals of 166 countries cannow enjoy this facility at 26 air-ports and 05 seaports. The for-eigner does not have to interactwith any Indian official till hisarrival at the immigrationcounter. The Bureau ofImmigration (BoI) generallydecides within 24-48 hourswhether or not to grant an e-visato a foreigner. The popularity ofe-visa is sky rocketing. The

    number of foreigners who visit-ed India on e-visa has gone upfrom 4.47 lakhs in 2015 to 17.00lakhs in 2017. The figure for 2018is 18.78 lakhs upto 30th October,2018," said Home Ministry in astatement on Wednesday, detail-ing the sharp increase of visitors.

    Currently e-Visa is per-mitted in five categories liketourist, business, medical, con-ference and medical attendant."The local FRRO has beenempowered now to extendduration of electronic visasbeyond 60 days upto 90 days.

    Moreover, these e-visas can

    now be availed three times inone year against twice in a yearearlier. For foreigners who arealready in India and who requireany consular/visa services likeextension of visa, conversion ofvisa, exit permission or any ofthe total 27 visa-related services,an online e-FRRO facility hasnow been launched throughoutthe country. The foreigners donot have to physically visit theoffices of FRROs/FROs. Theycan apply as well as receive con-sular/visa services online aftermaking online payment," saidHome Ministry.

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    In a move to encourage coop-erative start ups and businessventures in agriculture andallied sectors, the Ministry ofAgriculture on Wednesdaylaunched a new scheme thataims to provide cheaper loansto startups in the cooperativesector and those having inno-vative projects costing up to �3crore.

    The scheme is called 'YuvaSahakar CooperativeEnterprise Support andInnovation Scheme' will beimplemented by the NationalCooperative Development

    Corporation (NCDC). A cor-pus fund of �1,000 crore hasbeen created to this purpose.The scheme would be liberal tocooperatives in the north east-ern region, those registeredand operating in 'aspirationaldistricts' identified by think-tank Niti Aayog as well ascooperatives which have 100per cent women and SC/STmembers. The heavily incen-tivised scheme has componentof subsidy as well as interestsubvention and cooperativeregistered even one years agowill be eligible.

    Launching the scheme,Union Agriculture Minister

    Radha Mohan Singh said thatthe new scheme aims toencourage newly formed coop-eratives to take advantage ofinnovative ventures, especiallyby societies having new andinnovative ideas. "Cooperativesoperating for at least for oneyear and having a positive networth are eligible to avail cred-it under the scheme for newand innovative project ideas",Singh said.

    The project cost should notexceed �3 crore and there willbe two years moratorium onpayment of principal amount,he said, adding that the periodof moratorium may vary

    depending on type of projectand ability to generate revenue.NCDC lending so far has beento cooperatives working infishery, sugar, textiles, food-grains, crops, fruits, vegetables,cold storage, water conserva-tion, dairy, poultry, handlooms,coir and seri culture so far.There are eight lakh registeredsocieties in the country.

    As an incentive, theMinister said the credit will beprovided at two per cent lessthan the applicable interestrate on term loan for the pro-ject activities. The interest rateincentive would be applicableonly for timely repayers.

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    Washington: President DonaldTrump on Tuesday said US'relationship with India can actas a "bulwark" for freedom,prosperity and peace as he cel-ebrated Diwali in the WhiteHouse along with eminentIndian-Americans.

    It is the second consecutiveyear that President Trump hascelebrated the largest festival ofIndia and Indian Americans inthe White House.

    "I am thrilled to be here forthe celebration of Diwali, theHindu Festival of Lights, and Iam honored to host this beau-tiful ceremony at the WhiteHouse. Very, very special peo-ple," Trump said.

    "I'm honoured to host thisbeautiful ceremony at theWhite House. Very, very specialpeople. We're gathered today tocelebrate a very special holidayobserved by Buddhist, Sikhsand Jains throughout theUnited States and around theworld," Trump said.

    "This ceremony signifiesthe triumph of light over dark-ness and good over evil. It is ajubilant occasion that bringsloved ones, neighbours, and

    communities closer together,"Trump said before lighting theceremonial diya in the historicRoosevelt Room of the WhiteHouse.

    He said the shining lightsremind people to "seek wis-dom, to give thanks, and toalways cherish and love theones who grace our lives.

    "Our nation is blessed to behome to millions of hard-working citizens of Indian andSouth East Asian heritage toenrich our country in countlessways. Together we are oneproud American family. Do weagree with that? I think so. Ithink we do. Right? Better,believe it," he said.

    "India is the world's largestdemocracy, and the relation-ship between our two countriescan act as a bulwark for free-dom, prosperity, and peace,"Trump said, amidst China flex-ing its military muscles in thestrategic Indo-Pacific region.

    He said the United Stateshas deep ties with India and hewas grateful for his friendshipwith Prime Minister NarendraModi.

    "Modi is my friend andnow her (Ivanka) friend andhas great respect for India andthe Indian people that I cansay," said the US President as heintroduced his daughter to theaudience, who was present in

    the room."Absolutely," replied

    Ivanka, who had visited Indialast year. She was the first topofficial of the Trump adminis-tration to travel to India toattend the GlobalEntrepreneurship Summit inHyderabad in November lastyear.

    Trump also mentioned theongoing negotiations betweenthe US and India on a tradedeal but indicated that thetalks were moving though itwas tough.

    "We're trying very hard tomake better trade deals withIndia. But, they're very goodtraders. They're very goodnegotiators. You would sayright. The best. So we're work-ing. And it's moving along," hesaid.

    Along with nearly twodozen top Indian-Americanofficials of his administration,Trump invited the IndianAmbassador to the US, NavtejSingh Sarna, his wife Dr AvinaSarna, and his special assistantPratik Mathur to be presentduring the White House Diwalicelebrations. PTI

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    Singapore: Prime MinisterNarendra Modi on Wednesdaytold US Vice President MikePence that all the traces and allthe leads in the global terrorattacks ultimately leads to a"single source and single placeof origin", in an apparent ref-erence to Pakistan.

    Modi, who held talks withPence on a wide range of bilat-eral and global issues of mutu-al interests on the sidelines ofthe East Asia Summit here, alsoexpressed concern over theparticipation of terrorists in theelections in Pakistan.

    Briefing the reporters afterthe meeting, Foreign SecretaryVijay Gokhale said there wassome discussion on the issue ofterrorism. Pence referred to theupcoming 10th anniversary ofthe deadly Mumbai terrorattack on November 26 andhailed cooperation between

    the two sides on counter ter-rorism, Gokhale said.

    Some 166 people werekilled in the attack carried outby Pakistan-based 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists. Nine of theattackers were killed by policewhile lone survivor AjmalKasab was caught and hangedafter handed down death sen-tence by an Indian court.

    Modi thanked Pence forhis words and reminded himthat in one way or another allthe traces and all the leads inthe global terror attacks ulti-mately leads to a "single sourceand single place of origin",without naming any country ororganisation.

    He was apparently refer-ring to Pakistan.

    A number of terroristattacks across the world havebeen carried out by people ofPakistani origin. On December

    2, 2015, 14 people were killedin a mass shooting by aPakistani origin married cou-ple in San Bernardino,California.

    A Pakistani-origin manwas among three knife-wield-ing militants responsible forcarrying out the brutal terrorattack in London that killedseven people and injured 49 inJune 2017.

    Prime Minister Modi alsoexpressed concern over theMumbai terror attack master-mind Hafiz Saeed's party con-testing the July 25 elections inPakistan.

    "He (Modi) did point outthat the mainstreaming of peo-ple involved in the Mumbaiattacks in a political processwhich has taken place in therecent elections in Pakistanshould be a matter of seriousconcern not just to the two

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    S i n g a p o r e :There was alight momentduring PrimeM i n i s t e rNarendra Modi's meeting withUS Vice President Mike Pencein Singapore on Wednesdaywhen he riffed on the meaningof 'Indiana' — the Americanleader's home state.

    Through his translator,Modi said that when he metPence in the US in 2017 he toldhim that "Indiana" (INDIA-Ana) in Hindi, meaning "Tocome to India."

    Modi then repeated hisinvitation to Pence to visitIndia.

    Pence laughed apprecia-tively. "Thank you, Mr. PrimeMinister," Pence said. "I expectI will 'Indiana'." The US vicepresident is likely to visit Indiain 2019. PTI

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    Sriharikota (AP): India onWednesday successfully putinto orbit its latest communi-cation satellite with its heaviestrocket and the new space mis-sion is expected to serve thecommunication needs of peo-ple in the remote areas of thecountry.

    The textbook launch ofthe rocket GSLV-MkIII-D,which is dubbed by the ISROas the 'Bahubali' or "fat boy" ofIndian rockets, is also seen ascrucial for the space agency asit would be used for the ambi-tious Chandrayaan-2(lunarmission) and the country'splanned manned space mis-sion. The 3,423 kg satelliteGSAT-29 is also the heaviestIndian satellite to be put intoorbit.

    Indian Space ResearchOrganisation(ISRO) chief KSivan said while the rocket's

    first operational mission wasgoing to be "none other thanChandrayaan" in January 2019,"this fantastic vehicle is goingto carry humans to space inthree years from now."

    ISRO has set a 'target' ofachieving the country's ambi-tious manned mission to spaceby 2021, with the firstunmanned programme of'Gaganyaan' planned forDecember 2020, according to

    Sivan.Prime Minister Narendra

    Modi announced in hisIndependence Day address thisyear that India will attempt tosend an astronaut to space by2022 on board 'Gaganyaan'.

    The 27-hour-countdownfor the Wednesday launchbegan at 2.50pm Tuesday andthe rocket blasted off at 5.08pm from the spaceport atSriharikota over 100 km fromChennai.

    The satellite carries Ka andKu band high throughputtransponders which will pro-vide communication servicesto remote places in the NorthEast and Jammu and Kashmir,besides aid the Centre's DigitalIndia programme, Sivan said.

    ISRO scientists broke intocheers as the satellite was inject-ed into a geosynchronous orbit,16 minutes after lift-off.

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    Security was beefed up allalong Jammu-PathankotNational Highway, dotted withvital Army installations, afterfour suspected 'miscreants'hijacked a passenger taxi, hiredfrom Jammu railway station,near Madhopur in Punjab, lateTuesday night.

    The incident came to lightin the wee hours ofWednesday after driver of thepassenger Taxi, Raj Kumar,raised an alarm soon after hemanaged to escape after abrief scuff le with the miscreants.

    The miscreants hadthreatened to kill him anddump his dead body in thenearby canal.

    After the a larm wasraised, Punjab and J&Kpolice, alerted security checkpoints on possible escaperoutes to track down the hijackers and prevent possible terror strike in theclose vicinity of Pathankot

    air base.Jammu Railway Station

    Taxi Operator's Union, Vice-President, Rajvender Singhtold reporters in Jammu, "a

    group of four people hadbooked a Taxi from Jammurailway station for dropping atPathankot late Tuesdayevening".

    ��)�*!��2�*�3

    T h i r u v a n a n t h a p u r a m :Woman activist Trupti Desaion Wednesday waded intothe Sabarimala issue whenshe asked for complete policeprotection during her visit tothe temple starting Friday.But temple activist RahulEashwar promised to fighther tooth-and-nail to preventher entry.

    Desai wrote to KeralaChief Minister PinarayiVijayan to order police pro-tection for her group whenthey visit Sabarimala onNovember 17 when the templewill open for the two-monthlong pilgrimage.

    The temple town has wit-nessed protests by Hindugroups and temple tantri andoff icials ever since theSupreme Court verdict onSeptember 28, allowed womenof all ages to pray at LordAyyappa temple that hithertobanned girls and women agedbetween 10 and 50.

    Desai wrote to Vijayan onWednesday that she alongwith six other women wouldbe arriving in Kerala onFriday for a visit at the tem-ple on Saturday. She soughtpolice protection right fromthe time she lands in Keralatill they leave the State, saying"we will visit the temple what-ever be the resistance".

    While Eashwar said heand his officials along withLord Ayyappa's true devoteeswould ensure that none wereable to break the tradition ofthe temple.

    "We will lie down beforethe women who come tobreak the temple's tradition."

    The temple will open onFriday evening for theMandala Mahotsavam andshe has asked to be escortedright from the airport to theirrooms in Kottayam, wherethey would rest for the day.

    The police must then pro-vide protection when theyhead for the hilltop temple onSaturday.

    Speaking to a MalayalamTV channel, Desai said shehas written to the ChiefMinister, Kerala Police chiefLoknath Behra and also PrimeMinister Narendra Modi.

    "I have written but have notdone any online booking forthe darshan. The SupremeCourt order is now very clearand hence we will be there andwe will visit the temple what-ever be the resistance," said Desai.

    The temple will be openfor 66 days till January 20,with a small break in between.Promising an even biggerresistance, Sabarimala Tantrifamily's Rahul Eashwar alongwith activists and devoteestold the media here, that Desai would know thepower of the faith of Ayyappadevotees when she and hergroup reaches the temple town.

    Eashwar was put in jail inOctober during the firstmonth's protest after the topcourt's ruling came into existence. "Come, what may,we will ensure that our protestwill be in the true Gandhianway and none will be able tobreak the tradit ion of the temple.

    "We will lie down beforethe women who come tobreak the temple traditionand if they have to move for-ward, they will have to walkon our bodies and once thathappens, the police will haveto arrest such people," said Eashwar. IANS

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    +'�(5�5� �����>���&5 �''��5������4���&�'5(�������'5�7�(5�8A��'�*,����*.�'����� �.5�*���5>5����������>�����������*��(��5��*�'�4��*������5�.�,���-��.��*�+�.�'��7��*��7�5�*��7�88�++����>������.*���*������*�'� '�,+

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    Union Culture MinisterMahesh Sharma called fora "holistic approach" to beadopted on the Sabarimalatemple issue on Wednesday sothat the sentiments of the peo-ple were not hurt, observingthat the Centre would inter-vene in the matter at the "righttime" if required.

    The Supreme Court onTuesday agreed to review its ver-dict allowing the entry of womenof all ages into the hilltop shrinein Kerala, which had sparkedviolent protests in the southernState, but refused to grant a stay.

    Asked if an ordinance wasrequired to deal with the situ-ation, Sharma said the KeralaGovernment had to decide onthe matter, adding that theCentre would intervene at theright time if required.

    "The State Governmenthas to take a call on that (ordi-nance) and the CentralGovernment, if required, willdefinitely intervene at the right

    time," he told reporters here.Asked if the contention

    that the entry of menstruatingwomen would make the tem-ple impure, Sharma said, "Well,I am a doctor, I will not makeany comment because the mat-ter is sub-judice, but we have totake a holistic call on it."

    The two-month-longMandala Makaravillakku pil-grimage season that commenceson November 17 attracts mil-lions of devotees from all overthe country to Sabarimala.

    On September 28, a five-judge constitution bench of theapex court, headed by thenChief Justice Dipak Misra, in a4:1 verdict, had lifted the cen-turies-old ban on girls andwomen in the 10-50 age groupfrom entering the shrine, sayingit amounted to gender discrim-ination. The review petitionsagainst the verdict were takenup "in-chamber" by a bench ofChief Justice Ranjan Gogoiand justices RF Nariman, AMKhanwilkar, DY Chandrachudand Indu Malhotra.

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    Assam’s Leader of theOpposition, DebabrataSaikia, slammed Chief MinisterSarbananda Sonowal-ledGovernment in the State forfailing to protect the State’sinterest and address the grow-ing insecurity in the State.

    Saikia’s statement came daysafter a top brass of the Assampolice admitted that the resent-ment against the Citizenship(Amendment) Bill, 2016 has ledyoung people in some districtsto join the anti-talk faction ofUnited Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA).

    “This is nothing short ofa conf irmation of theSarbananda Sonowal-ledGovernment’s failure to pro-tect Assam’s interests and itstendency to betray people,”Saikia said in a statementissued on Wednesday.

    Director General (SpecialBranch) of Assam Police and theSuperintendent of Police,Tinsukia and other senior offi-cials of the police administrationhave recently stated that theresentment against the Bill

    across the State has been fuellinga fresh spurt in young people ofthe Brahmaputra Valley joiningthe ULFA faction led by its com-mander in chief Paresh Baruah.

    “The ULFA’s popularityhad gradually waned duringthe decade-and-a-half whenthe Congress was in power inthe State. But the NarendraModi-led CentralGovernment’s decision totable the controversial Billand the Sarbananda Sonowal-led State Government’s failureto mount a strong oppositionto the proposed legislation areinducing a section of youngboys and girls to take uparms against the State,” Saikia said.

    He said that dwindlingemployment opportunitiesand stagnation of develop-ment activit ies l ike theMGNREGA are also creatingfrustration and resentmentamong many youth, who aregravitat ing towards the ULFA faction.

    ���)�����)�(���� -��-���

    Afurious Bengal ChiefMinister Mamata Banerjeeon Wednesday came down heav-ily on the Central Governmentfor “intentionally delaying” theprocess of renaming West Bengalto “Bangla” as proposed andpassed by the State Assembly inSeptember last year.

    “I had personally requestedthe Union Government andHome Minister Rajnath Singh tohasten up the matter of renam-ing Bengal into Bangla after theresolution was passed in theState Assembly. But nothinghas been done in this regard.The Centre is ignoring the opin-ion of the majority populationbecause some people who are ina microscopic minority (StateBJP leader) want them to do so.This is amounts to defying thefederal nature of theConstitution,” she said.

    “They (the BJPGovernment) are changingthe names of other places butthey are delaying the renam-ing of Bengal when the peopleof the State want it to be doneas was proved by the unani-mous support this cause

    received in the StateAssembly,” the Chief Ministersaid wondering “if the name ofBombay, Bangalore, Orissaand Pondicherry changed intoMumbai, Bengaluru, Odishaand Puducherry, then whyWest Bengal cannot bechanged into Bangla.”

    The proposal of renamingthe State had been in the airsince the nineties but it wasfinally passed in August 2016when West Bengal wasrenamed into Bengal, Bangal,Bangla in English, Hindi andBengali. The proposal wasturned down by the Centrewhich then asked the State toconsider a new name.

    It was then that theAssembly voted in favour ofsingle name Bangla inSeptember . last year.

    “They (BJP) are of theopinion that Bangladesh isalso called Bangla so it is notthe proper alternative for WestBengal, but these people fail torealize that there is one Punjabeach in Pakistan and Indiawithout doing any harm toany sentiments,” Mamata said.

    Warning the presentGovernment which was “cross-

    ing its limits in many ways,”Banerjee reminded “theConstitution has divided thepowers of the State and theCentre and so no one shouldthink itself superior to the other.

    “Even the State ChiefMinisters were called PrimeMinister in the British periodbut after the Independencethe States got Chief Ministersand the Centre got a PrimeMinister considering the dif-ferent roles they played,” shesaid adding there was no rea-son to think that the State orthe Centre were superior toeach other.

    Instead of upholding thevalues enshrined in theConstitution the Centre wasdisregarding India’s federalstructure she alleged. “It is nota few leaders in Delhi whorun this country. In fact Indiais run by the federal States.”

    Reacting to Banerjee’scharges Bengal BJP presidentDilip Ghosh however said that“instead of renaming the Statethe Government should con-centrate on development andrestoring democracy in the State.”

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    N a g a p a t t i n a m ( T N ) :Puducherry Chief Minister VNarayanasamy on Wednesdayheld a review meeting with offi-cials of various departments atThirunallar in Karaikal districtand took stock of the prepared-ness as cyclone Gaja is likely tohit the coastal district on Thursday.

    Agriculture Minister RKamalakannan, KaraikalDistrict Collector R Kesavan,Senior SP Rahul Alwal andheads of PWD, Health,Electricity, Fisheries, Fire andRescue Services departmentsattended the meeting.

    The Chief Minister direct-ed the district authorities tokeep stock of relief materials.Urging officials to ensure sup-ply of protected drinking waterto all areas, Narayanasamy saidif needed he would camp inKaraikal to coordinate theactivities. Three teams of theNational Disaster ResponseForce (NDRF) have arrivedhere to provide emergencyassistance. Meanwhile,Nagapattinam district collectorC Sureshkumar told reportersthat the district administrationhas made all necessary arrange-ments to meet any eventuality.

    Twenty two cyclone shel-ters have been kept in readiness

    to accommodate people, hesaid adding that a 24 hour-

    control room was functioningat the Collectorate. PTI

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  • Reinhold Niebuhr, a famousAmerican academician oncesaid, “Man’s capacity for justicemakes democracy possible, butman’s inclination to injusticemakes democracy necessary.” This is agreat quote for two reason: First, becauseit talks about our humanity and how itcraves for justice and equality, which arethe foundations of any democracy, and sec-ond, because it reminds us of our morebase tendencies that can only be kept incheck through a democratic system ofGovernment. For a democracy to thrive,there are a few pillars that are at play simul-taneously and constantly. These pillarsinclude the judiciary, the executive, the leg-islature and the Press. Contrary to whatthis Government would like to assume, amodern democratic society cannot bemerely whittled down to the legislature,which makes the laws of the country andare the elected to power. But it alsorequires the judiciary, the Press, and thebureaucracy to play their important roles.I think someone forgot to tell that to thecurrent Government in power.

    While there has been an uneasy con-sistency with which the Government hastargeted these other pillars of democra-cy, the first real shot was fired by theFinance Minister, who while speakingabout the Supreme Court’s decision tostrike down the National JudicialAppointments Commission (NJAC) saidthat Indian democracy cannot be atyranny of the unelected and comment-ed how if the elected are undermined,democracy itself would be in danger. I amafraid that Arun Jaitley has missed thepoint here because a democracy is not theblind and blank mandate of only theelected but instead, in order to functionwell, it requires a fine balance betweenthe elected and the unelected.

    In this week’s column, I will examinehow the current Government has tried tominimise the influence of these unelect-ed pillars like the judiciary, the bureaucra-cy and the Press and demonstrated a tyran-nical approach to governance.

    For a democracy to prevent its descentto anarchy, it is imperative for citizens tohave respect for the rule of law. The pri-mary role of the judiciary is to interpretthe law of the land and to state the law asit is. The Supreme Court, as the final inter-preter of law in our country, recently ruledthat no woman can be restricted fromentering the Sabarimala temple in Kerala.The Supreme Court came to its decisionbased on the principles of equality thathave been laid down in our Constitution.Since the judgement was borne out of areligiously charged issue, it is the respon-sibility of the party in power to ensure thatthe situation on the ground is not furtherinflamed resulting in greater violence.

    Instead, the Bharatiya JanataParty (BJP), in clear abdicationof its responsibilities stokedtensions further. Commentsfrom the BJP president reflecta clear disregard for the judi-ciary, which is an essential pil-lar of a successful democracyand only serves to underminean important part of the State.

    The BJP has been brazenin its attempts to exercise con-trol over the bureaucracy aswell. The bizarre episode withthe CBI director beingreplaced in the wee hours ofthe morning and the CBI raid-ing its own officers, was justthe latest indicator of howthis Government has sought tomaintain a stranglehold oninstruments of the state andhas lost control of these insti-tutions. While the electeddrafts the laws of the country,this Government will do wellto recognise that the actualimplementation of the laws ofour country is through thebureaucracy.

    The bureaucracy has aduty to implement the lawsdrafted by the legislature with-out any interference. However,there is clear disregard of thistenet by the Government andwas further evidenced by thechanges that were proposedwith respect to the appoint-ment of civil servants to theirrespective services.

    The most recent exampleof an attack on the institutionsand how the Government actslike a spoilt child if things are

    not going its way, is the currentstand-off between the ReserveBank of India and theGovernment. The widemingrift between the Reserve Bankof India (RBI) and theGovernment concerns ademand for funds from theRBI that have been collectedover decades. The Governmentwould set a dangerous prece-dence by invoking Section 7 ofthe RBI Act that would allowthe Government to dictatefinancial policy. This is becausethrough the past four and ahalf years, this Governmenthas shown how inept it is athanding the economy. Fromdemonetisation to the imple-mentation of Goods andServices Tax (GST), our coun-try has had to suffer a greatdeal because of Modinomics.Also, with fuel prices higherthan ever and the rupee lowerthan ever, questioning thefinancial prudence of the RBIby forcing the Central Bankinto submission, is anotherway to substitute the expertiseof the unelected with the arro-gance of the elected. Indiamust avoid such this scenario.

    An independent Press isthe primary medium to speakthe truth to powers that maybebut this pillar has been bad-gered by this Government intosomething unrecognisable. Ihave written in this newspaperbefore, while discussing free-dom of Press, that there is anenvironment of fear and trep-idation in the entire country-

    where we are unable to raisequestions about theGovernment without attackson our patriotism. Of theseattacks, perhaps the resigna-tion of Punya Prasun Bajpaifrom ABP News, a few monthsago under circumstances thatare frighteningly Orwellian,was perhaps the most discon-certing. These attacks cou-pled with the approach of thisGovernment to shroud itself insecrecy and a Prime Ministerwho refuses to take unscript-ed and uncomfortable ques-tions indicate that theGovernment does not believethat in order for a country tobe stronger going forward, itmust be able to question itsGovernment.

    An examination of theexamples I have detailed aboveshows how this Government hastried to diminish checks on anyreckless exercise of its power bywhatever means necessary. It isobvious that the Governmentviews any such checks as tyran-nical while in reality, it is mere-ly democracy at work thatrequires the unelected, too, toplay an important role. Theelected, however, have chosen toadopt a hammer and tongsapproach to governance andignore this basic tenet. Theproblem, with such an approach,is that if you have a hammer inyour hand, everything lookslike a nail — even good sense.

    (The writer is JharkhandPCC president, former MP andIPS officer. Views are personal)

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  • There is certainly something seri-ously going wrong with our freshwater bodies, not only in Indiabut also across the world. Is it globalwarming, or climate change, or failingrains? Or a combination of all these?The scientific and the environmentalexperts are getting hard pressed to findthe exact reason and hopefully thesolution for the same. In the mean-while, the once flourishing rivers inparts of the world are rapidly turninginto dry river beds comprising of noth-ing but sand and quickly falling preyto land sharks and real estate mafia.

    In India, the 1990s saw a flurryof hydel projects being approved andbuilt of various capacities; these pro-jects successfully dammed the riversemanating from the Himalayas at var-

    ious points, leading to electricitygeneration no doubt, but eventuallycausing the rivers downstream toquickly dry up and adversely affect-ed millions of people and agriculture,which was dependent on the natur-al flow of the river.

    Is this a India-specific phenome-na? Apparently not. It would be of inter-est to note that of all places, Europe is,as we speak, flummoxed by drying upof their rivers. Water levels in WesternEurope and Germany’s most importantriver, the Rhine, is at record low levelscurrently. More shockingly the waterlevels in this river is fast approachingzero at several spots. This occurrenceis due to a recent drought, which isbeing blamed on climate change.Needless to say that the developmenthas affected freight supplies, as the riveris one of the most important transportroutes in the region.

    German media reports quotedGermany’s Federal Waterways andShipping Administration as saying thatabout half of Germany’s river ferrieshad stopped running, and river cruiseships were having to transport their

    passengers by bus for parts of theirjourney. The reports also noted thatthousands of fish in the Swiss sectionof the river had died because of the heatand low oxygen levels. The mostimportant effect of this has been onsupplies of freight. Roughly 80 per centof the 223 million tonnes of cargo istransported by ship in Germany eachyear travels the Rhine, which links thecountry’s industrial heartland toBelgium, the Netherlands and theNorth Sea.

    As a consequence of the river dry-ing up, petrol stations in the region thatrely on tankers to deliver fuel fromrefineries in the Netherlands have runout of supplies. A number of inlandports are now idle, and millions oftonnes of goods are being transport-ed by rail or road. Media reports havespeculated that drying of the Rhinecould may be due to climate change.The river’s flow relies not just on annu-al rainfall, but also on long-termwater reserves in the Alps. Meltingsnow and glaciers, as well as LakeConstance, the source of the Rhine,feed the upper parts of the river. These

    reserves are substantially lower todaydue to climate change. And in morebad news, other major rivers on thecontinent, such as the Danube and theElbe are also drying up in parts.

    Similar to the Rhine, the Gangesis an important river of India and isexceedingly suffering the same fate.The Ganges serves as the source ofdrinking water for almost 500 millionpeople. It flows all the way from3,000m above sea level in theHimalayan Mountains to the Bay ofBengal, and is one of the most reveredand sacred water bodies. Despite this,it is also under increasing threat fromclimate change, industrial pollutionand unhygienic rituals and waste dis-posal engendered by its legend. In fact,it was ranked as the fifth most pollut-ed river worldwide.

    The Ganges already sustains near-ly half a billion people and accordingto the International Water ResourceManagement Institute (IWRMI), thedemand for fresh drinking water willonly increase. It projects the demandwill rise roughly by one-third in thecoming 15 years, meaning that the

    Indians will rely on the river more thanever. However, a recent study survey-ing 925 rivers worldwide found that cli-mate change posed a serious threat tomany of the world’s running watersources. Due to its geographical loca-tion, the Ganges was found to be par-ticularly at risk, along with Africa’sNiger River and the Chinese YellowRiver.

    Climate change is poised to affectthe Ganges in another, more direct way.Water pollution in Asia has long beena subject of concern, and the Gangesis one of the harder hit bodies of waterfrom the effects of the industrialboom in the continent. A report fromthe World Bank estimates that around20 per cent of the contaminants in theriver come from industrial emissions,and roughly one billion gallons ofuntreated sewage enters its waterwayson a daily basis. Clearly, the situationis a concerning one. Add to this, thedeeply religious significance of the riverdoes little to help cleanup efforts. TheObserver Research Foundation (ORF),a non-profit NGO from New Delhi,conducted a survey of 500 people and

    interviewed 150 more to find out howattitudes to the river affected its clean-liness.

    A large number of respondents tothe survey felt that the religious valueof the Ganga was non-negotiable.The respondents to the survey evensuggested that the scale of traditionalrituals such as corpse immersions inthe Ganga were so low that they didnot really upset the ecological balanceor biodiversity of the river and thatimmersion of dead bodies in the riverhad in no way been found to hinderwater management initiatives in theGanga. The mythological idea of theGanga is sadly more valued than theriver itself.

    If this trajectory of destructioncontinues, our pious and sacred riverswill be staring at becoming dryriverbeds of tomorrow. Only zero tol-erance policies pertaining to pollutionand climate change can retrieve ourrivers from doom. But do the author-ities have the will to see this through?Only time will tell.

    (The writer is an environmentaljournalist)

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    On November 3, Army Chief,General Bipin Rawat, while delivering a lecture at a seminarorganised by the Centre for Landand Warfare Studies (CLAWS), emphatically mentioned that although at pre-sent Punjab is peaceful, but because of foreign linkages, attempts are being made “to revive insurgency in the state.” He also stated that “wehave to be very careful” and we hould take earlyaction, before it is too late. He emphasised thatinternal security is India’s leading problem butit cannot be resolved easily because of foreignassistance to insurgent groups. He also mentioned that foreign powers are trying to revi-talise insurgency in Assam. He rightly asserted that only military cannot curb insur-gency and all Government agencies, civiladministration and police should work incohesion to restore peace.

    The Union Government has also informedPunjab Government that the Inter ServicesIntelligence (ISI) is trying hard to reanimateinsurgency in Punjab through Sikhs settledabroad, especially in Canada, Europe, theUnited States, and Australia. On August 12,2018, Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), a pro-Khalistanorganisation, promoted the ‘London Declarationon Referendum 2020 for Sikhs’. The so-calledreferendum, which was organised with thefinancial and logistical support of the ISI,demanded an independent Khalistan.

    Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a resident of theUnited States is an important functionary of theSFJ. The organisers collected details, includingpassport copies, college documents, pho-tographs, mobile numbers, email and WhatsAppaddresses of Sikhs from Punjab in the name ofsponsoring them, to attend the referendum. Inthis way they have collected details of large num-ber of young Sikhs who were interested inattending the pro-Khalistan referendum. Thesedetails can be misused by the ISI as well as bypro-Khalistan elements in future. As the ISI isready to finance the referendums, the SFJdeclared that it will organise referendums inother countries as well.

    The SFJ is planning to finance the visit of10,000 Sikh pilgrims to Pakistan to celebrate550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak. The ISIwould utilise the visit to distribute anti-India andpro- Khalistan literature and might try toinstigate Khalistan sentiments to a large num-ber of Sikhs visiting Pakistan. The Gurdwarascontrolled by pro-Khalistan elements in Canada,the US and the UK have prohibited the entryof Indian diplomats, Indian Members ofParliament, et al. The Indian Governmenturged the Governments of these countries to liftthe ban but they refused to help.

    Security forces also unearthed a depravedplan of the ISI under which young persons ofPakistani origin and citizens of Western coun-tries were cultivated and trained in Punjabi andSikh traditions. Later on, they were sent toPunjab and marry Sikh girls and convert theminto pro-Khalistan entities. Hence, the ISI isusing not only young women to honey-trap butalso using young men to allure Sikh women.However, the ulterior motive lies the revival of

    insurgency in Punjab. The interrogation reports of Sikh

    terrorists, including Jagtar Singh Chiefof Khalistan Tiger Force, clearly indicate that the ISI is fomenting trouble in Punjab and spread concoct-ed reports in Pakistani media. Thesereports are picked up by international media, which are sym-pathetic to the intelligence agency.

    As the ISI was funding lavishly,pro- Khalistan elements have createdseveral terrorist outfits namelyKhalistan Commando Force (KCF),Bhindranwala Tigers Force ofKhalistan (BTFK), KhalistanLiberation Force (KLF), BabbarKhalsa International (BKI),International Sikh Youth Federation(ISYF), Khalistan Zindabad Force(KZF), Khalistan Liberation Army, AllIndia Sikh Students Federation(AISSF), Khalistan Armed Force akaDashmesh Regiment, Shaheed KhalsaForce, Khalistan Guerilla Force,Khalistan Security Force, et al.

    However, these forces lack masssupport and, hence, sometimes theyput few pro-Khalistan posters orcarry out terrorist activities. In 2015,three Sikh terrorists killed a superin-tendent of police, three home guardsand three civilians in Dina Nagarpolice station (Gurdaspur), and ShivSena and Rashtriya SwayamsevakSangh (RSS) leaders were also assas-sinated. Analysts claim that theseincidents happen when the ISI refus-es to release funds unless their agentscarry out some terrorist activities.

    The ISI has given shelter to a fewSikh leaders, including KCF chiefParamjit Singh Panjwar, BKI chief

    Wadhawa Singh Babbar, ISYF chiefLakhbir Singh Rode and KZF chiefRanjit Singh Neeta in Pakistan. Theseleaders propagate Khalistani ideolo-gies to the Sikhs residing abroad. TheISI also uses them to spread anti-Indiaand pro-Khalistan views to IndianSikh jathas (group of pilgrims) when-ever they visit Pakistan.

    At present due to close family rela-tionship between Sikhs and Hindus,Sikhs understand that Khalistan is notpracticable. However, the ISI persis-tently sends its agents to Punjab inorder to instigate Sikhs.

    The ISI has also smuggled drugsin Punjab and at present youth havebecome drug-addicts. The ISI usesthem as support agents to spreadhatred towards Hindus. As there is noideological basis for Khalistan, the ISIcirculates news about perceived atroc-ities and statements of anti-establish-ment political leaders who denounceIndian system with ulterior motives.

    Analysts also claim that the econ-omy of Pakistan is ruined and it is inon verge of loan default. PrimeMinister Imran Khan returned emptyhanded from China. The InternationalMonetary Fund (IMF) has put strin-gent conditions to grant loan and,hence, the Pakistan Government israising the Khalistan issue to sidetrackthe attention of poor and illiteratemasses.

    India must safeguard its interests.The analysts claim that not only ISIbut several intelligence agencies sup-port various terrorist outfits. Hence,Indian security forces must analyse thereason why European countries,Canada and the US never help Indian

    security agencies against Khalistanielements.

    Pro-Khalistan Sikhs should beblacklisted and they should not beallowed to enter India. At present, theKhalistan movement is dormant inIndia but it is not dead and it canrevive with foreign assistance. A vastmajority of Sikhs are aware of the futil-ity of the movement but a few disen-chanted members of the communitymay be tempted to play with fire fortheir selfish interests.

    Sikhs settled abroad may alsorender ideological and financial assis-tance to the perceived discriminationand atrocities. Hence, Central as wellas State Government should try to sortout simmering issues, including pu