Month: December 2020

On the Parliament attack anniversary today, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla released a book, ‘The Shaurya Unbound – Tales of Valour of the Central Reserve Police Force’, a collection of 13 exemplary acts of valour of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) bravehearts, on Sunday.

According to a CRPF statement, Birla released both English and Hindi versions of the book which includes tales of insurmountable gallantry, of Constable Kamlesh Kumari Ashok Chakra (Posthumously) and four Shaurya Chakra recipients-Head Constable Yam Bahadur Thapa, Constable D Santosh Kumar, Constable Sukhwinder Singh, Constable Shyambir Singh, while retaliating the dastardly attack on the Indian Parliament in 2001.

The book is co-authored by Nitu, DIG CRPF and M. Dhinakaran, DIG CRPF along with their team comprising Amit, Assistant Commandant CRPF and Inspector Deepak Saxena, the book has stories of the recipients of Ashok Chakra-the Highest Peacetime Gallantry Award, Vir Chakra, and Shaurya Chakras, as per the statement.

The LS Speaker also tweeted about the same, saying: “Released the book ‘The Shaurya Unbound’, which narrates stories of exemplary courage of @crpfindia bravehearts. I am sure that this book will fill hearts of everyone with pride and inspire the generations to come.”

Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh paid tributes to those who lost their lives in 2001 Parliament attack.

On December 13, 2001, five heavily-armed terrorists belonging to terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), stormed the Parliament complex in New Delhi and opened fire indiscriminately.

Around 14 people, mostly security forces and one civilian, were killed in the attack. The terror strike took place around 40 minutes after Parliament was adjourned and about 100 members were present in the building. (ANI)

Amid rising concerns over China’s covert intelligence gathering and surveillance activities around the world, it has been reported that Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) loyal members have been working in British consulates, universities and some of the leading UK companies.

An extraordinary leaked database of 1.95 million registered CCP members reveals how Beijing’s “malign influence” now stretches into almost every corner of British life, including defence firms, banks and pharmaceutical giants, Daily Mail reported.

Most alarmingly, some of its members, who swear a solemn oath to ‘guard Party secrets, be loyal to the Party, work hard, fight for communism throughout my life…and never betray the Party’, are understood to have secured jobs in British consulates.

Among them is a senior official at the British Consulate in Shanghai. The official describes their role as supporting ministers and officials on visits to East China.

The database was originally said to be leaked on Telegram, the encrypted instant messaging app. It was then passed in September by a Chinese dissident to the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which comprises more than 150 legislators around the world who are concerned by the influence and activities of the Chinese government.

According to the report, a detailed analysis by The Mail on Sunday of the material reveals that pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and AstraZeneca – both involved in the development of coronavirus vaccines – employed a total 123 party loyalists.

The analysis also revealed that there were over 600 party members across 19 branches working at the British banks HSBC and Standard Chartered in 2016.

While there is no evidence that anyone on the party membership list has spied for China – and many sign up simply to boost their career prospects – experts say it defies credulity that some are not involved in espionage.

Responding to the findings, an alliance of 30 MPs last night said they would be tabling an urgent question about the issue in the Commons.

China has upped its espionage activities over the last few years. It has even been accused of political interference in Australia.

Recently, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has urged universities in the United States to scrutinise China’s assistance and students, warning that Beijing was set on stealing innovation.

The outgoing top US diplomat made the speech during a visit to Georgia, a state with a growing Asian-American community and which next month holds two runoff elections that will determine which party controls the US Senate.

Writing in The Mail on Sunday today, former Tory Party leader Iain Duncan Smith said: “This investigation proves that members of the Chinese Communist Party are now spread around the globe, with members working for some of the world’s most important multinational corporations, academic institutions and our own diplomatic services.”

“The Government must now move to expel and remove any members of the Communist Party from our Consuls throughout China. They can either serve the UK or the Chinese Communist Party. They cannot do both,” Smith further said.

The Foreign Office last night insisted that it has ‘robust procedures in place to keep information secure and to vet staff at our overseas posts’. It is understood they are aware that they employ party members.

However, a senior Whitehall intelligence source said the revelations did raise security questions. “In that station [the official] will be sat one floor away from the MI6 team and could have identified intelligence officers.” (ANI)

By Aashique Hussain

A delegation of farmers from Uttarakhand met Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Sunday and extended their support to the newly enacted three farm laws.

Agriculture Minister Tomar thanked the farmers for supporting the laws. While speaking to media in Delhi, he said, “Today farmers from Uttarakhand met me in support of the farm laws. I would like to thank the farmers who understood the laws, expressed their views, and supported it.”

Minister of State (MoS) for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Kailash Choudhary and Uttarakhand Education Minister Arvind Pandey were also present in the meeting.

Choudhary said that the government is ready for amendments in the farm law. “I hope that the farmers come with a positive outlook to the next round of talks. If the farmers move two steps, then the government will also move two steps forward, only then a solution can be reached,” he added.

The minister also hit out at opposition parties and said, “Congress and the opposition only do politics in the name of farmers. Opposition parties are misleading people.”

Farmers have been protesting on different borders of the national capital since November 26 against the three newly enacted farm laws–Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. (ANI)

Minutes after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Jagat Prakash Nadda announced his positive diagnosis of Covid-19, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wished him a speedy recovery and good health.

“Heard about BJP National President Shri JP Nadda testing positive for COVID-19. Wishing him a speedy recovery and good health. My prayers are with him and his family during this time,” Banerjee wrote on Twitter.

Earlier today, Nadda informed that due to the presence of initial symptoms for the novel coronavirus, he got himself tested and consequently, the report came out to be positive.

“…My health is fine, I am following all the guidelines and I am in home isolation on the advice of doctors. My request is, whoever has come in contact in the last few days, please isolate yourself and get yourself tested,” an excerpt of his tweet read.

Notably, the West Bengal Chief Minister and BJP chief indulged in a war of words with the former taking a dig at Nadda on Thursday during his two-day visit to the state as part of his 120-days nationwide tour. The BJP leader had also retaliated by saying that the Trinamool Congress supremo’s remarks were not in keeping with the Bengali culture. (ANI)

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz on Sunday ripped into Prime Minister Imran Khan government during the sixth Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) rally, saying the people of Lahore have thrown anti-people government off from the “heights of Minar-e-Pakistan.”

Addressing the crowd in Lahore’s Minar-i-Pakistan, Maryam, welcoming supporters to the gathering, said: “Who would say in their pharoah-like tone that the PML-N should dare and fill the venue?”

“To them, I say: Come and behold this full venue. The entire area surrounding the venue is full. Thousands could not find space here,” Geo News quoted Maryam as saying.

Maryam also urged the supporters to give a warm welcome to leaders of other provinces that have arrived. She said that Lahore will be the binding force for all provinces.

“I have received word that the media is being told to portray as if the rally failed. I know who is making these calls,” Maryam said, adding: “The people of Lahore have thrown this anti-people government off from the heights of Minar-e-Pakistan.”

On their arrival at the venue, PDM leaders Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Maryam Nawaz, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari along with others were greeted by enthusiastic supporters who had gathered at Minar-i-Pakistan during the day.

This is the first time in the recent history of the country that the PML-N is holding a public meeting at Minar-i-Pakistan, the first rally at this venue for PML-N Vice President Maryam.

Similarly, it is PPP Chairperson Bilawal’s first appearance at a political gathering at Minar-i-Pakistan. His late mother, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, held a historic public meeting at Minar-i-Pakistan in 1986.

Awami National Party Ameer Haider Khan Hoti also condemned the ruling PTI and said that about 80 years ago, Bacha Khan had started a non-violent struggle for his nation’s rights but he was termed as a traitor.

Hoti declared that terrorism was “imposed upon the Pakhtun people” saying, “Pakhtun people were the ones who were killed and were defamed as well”. He added that there were “conspiracies” to lead Afghan peace talks towards failure and efforts to “create misunderstandings between Afghanistan and Pakistan”.

“I want to say that this is not our fight alone, this is of all of Pakistan’s,” he said. Hoti urged PDM leaders to stand by the Pakhtun people and vowed that he would continue to stand by the alliance for the “supremacy of the Parliament and Constitution and the respect for vote”. (ANI)

An ultrasensitive test has been developed using a paper-based electrochemical sensor which is capable of detecting the presence of the coronavirus in mere five minutes, the researchers of University of Illinois Grainger College of Engineering have claimed.

As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to spread across the world, the researchers from various laboratories have been coming up with the different strategies that can help to track the virus.

The new study shows the possibility of detecting the virus through a rapid method with the use of a graphene biosensor which is adaptable to other viruses.

A team led by professor Dipanjan Pan reported their findings in ACS Nano which shows that a bioengineering graduate student, Maha Alafeef from the University of Illinois Grainger has co-developed a rapid, ultrasensitive test using a paper-based electrochemical sensor that can detect the presence of the virus in less than five minutes.

“Currently, we are experiencing a once-in-a-century life-changing event. We are responding to this global need from a holistic approach by developing multidisciplinary tools for early detection and diagnosis and treatment for SARS-CoV-2,” said Alafeef.

The two broad categories of Covid-19 tests in the market either use reverse transcriptase real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and nucleic acid hybridization strategies to identify viral RNA, or focuses on the detection of antibodies. However, there could be a delay of a few days to a few weeks after a person has been exposed to the virus for them to produce detectable antibodies.

In recent years, researchers have had some success with creating point-of-care biosensors using 2D nanomaterials such as graphene to detect diseases. The main advantages of graphene-based biosensors are their sensitivity, low cost of production and rapid detection turnaround.

“The discovery of graphene opened up a new era of sensor development due to its properties. Graphene exhibits unique mechanical and electrochemical properties that make it ideal for the development of sensitive electrochemical sensors” said Alafeef.

There are two components to this biosensor, according to the study which is: a platform to measure an electrical read-out and probes to detect the presence of viral RNA. To create the platform, researchers first coated filter paper with a layer of graphene nanoplatelets to create a conductive film. Then, they placed a gold electrode with a predefined design on top of the graphene as a contact pad for electrical readout. Both gold and graphene have high sensitivity and conductivity which makes this platform ultrasensitive to detect changes in electrical signals.

Current RNA-based Covid-19 tests screen for the presence of the N-gene (nucleocapsid phosphoprotein) on the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In this research, the team designed antisense oligonucleotide (ASOs) probes to target two regions of the N-gene. Targeting two regions ensures the reliability of the senor in case one region undergoes gene mutation.

Furthermore, gold nanoparticles (AuNP) are capped with these single-stranded nucleic acids (ssDNA), which represents an ultra-sensitive sensing probe for the SARS-CoV-2 RNA.

The researchers showed that the hybridization of the viral RNA with these probes causes a change in the sensor electrical response. The AuNP caps accelerate the electron transfer and when broadcasted over the sensing platform, results in an increase in the output signal and indicates the presence of the virus.

The team tested the performance of this sensor by using Covid-19 positive and negative samples. The sensor showed a significant increase in the voltage of positive samples compared to the negative ones and confirmed the presence of viral genetic material in less than five minutes. Furthermore, the sensor was able to differentiate viral RNA loads in these samples. “Viral load is an important quantitative indicator of the progress of infection and a challenge to measure using existing diagnostic methods”, stated the researchers.

Not only this, but this platform has far-reaching applications due to its portability and low cost. The sensor, when integrated with microcontrollers and LED screens or with a smartphone via Bluetooth or wifi, could be used at the point-of-care in a doctor’s office or even at home. (ANI)

Alleging that the Central government is working in favour of the corporate sector, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) spokesperson Rakesh Tikait on Sunday reiterated that farmers will not end the agitation till the three recently passed agriculture sector laws are repealed.

“The farmers are here with full preparation to stay. The completion of the construction of godowns before the laws were passed shows that the plan is something else. The farmers’ name is on the files and inside the files, the documents belong to traders. This will not go on in India,” Tikait said.

He said the reins of the agitation are in farmers’ hands and asked the government to reinitiate dialogue with farmers.

“The government should listen to all the issues of farmers. Till the time there is a dialogue on the laws, and the government repeals them, the farmers are not going anywhere. The agitation is completely in farmers’ hands. Farmers have inclinations about how these laws will put them in losses in coming times,” BKU spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, the agitation on Delhi borders entered its 18th day on Sunday, with the farmers’ call to block Jaipur-Delhi main road today to mark the agitation against the three laws.

Farmers have been protesting on different borders of the national capital since November 26 against the three newly enacted farm laws-Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance, and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. (ANI)