Month: July 2021

Air India’s Longest Flight

‘An Airplane Knows Not The Gender Of Its Pilot’

By LokMarg

Captain Zoya Agarwal, who led an all-woman cockpit for Air India’s longest flight (16,000km) and became the first lady captain to fly over the North Pole, speaks about chasing her dream

Yes, we created history but it wasn’t just because of me. It was the team work of my other team polar girls, Air India management that worked tirelessly behind this project of flying over the North Pole, our ministry and every single person who worked behind the scenes to script history and put India on the global aviation map. We are extremely happy about this, it is a huge deal for us.

This has also given a flight to the dreams of many young girls, not only in our country but across the world. How four frail girls – the other three being Capt Papagiri Thanmei, Capt Akanksha and Capt Shivani – achieved a magical feat, will indeed inspire others to chase and achieve their dreams. Much has been written about our flight from Bengaluru to San Francisco over the North Pole. But the real journey started much earlier, at a very young age.

I come from a humble family and I was always expected to walk in the shadows of elders in the house. My mom wanted to see me married happily and raise children. But I was a dreamer from day one and my parents were primarily shocked by me.

Captain Zoya wanted to fly planes since she was an eight-year-old girl

I decided to become a pilot when I was eight-year old and watched from the terrace of my house all the tiny steel frames flying in the sky. I would think: could I ever fly those beautiful flying objects and the word “impossible” would echo in my ears constantly. However, my will was stronger than the sound of the word “impossible”.

I was academically inclined from the beginning so when I told about my aspirations of becoming a pilot to my parents, my mom cried. My father was a little sympathetic and asked me to first finish the college education and see how things work out.

I used to attend my college, go for my aviation classes and return home by 9:30 in the evening. I also had to finish off my assignments before going to bed at midnight. I would be up again at six in the morning. In three years, I finished all my aviation exams and topped my college as well. My parents realized it would be cruel if I were to let go of my flying dreams. My father took a loan and sent me off to train as a pilot.

ALSO READ: ‘Some Doubted My Orientation, Called Me Transgender’

Before I got the job in Air India, I had a fair amount of idea about the male dominated aviation industry. Women were not looked upon as preferable candidates for pilots from airlines’ perspective.  Airlines managements felt appointing a woman would impact the finances as they would be forced to grant the female staff maternity leaves and benefits. Major airlines from the Gulf started accepting lady pilots only by 2016 and some of them from Far East till a couple of years back. Their role was limited to being a flight attendant.

I was extremely fortunate and proud to have joined the only international carrier in India, Air India where women and men are given equal opportunities.

My journey so far has been extremely exciting, electrifying, and magical. I feel blessed to have reach where I am today. Despite all the challenges and everything else that has come my way I wouldn’t want to have this in any other way.

The seat of a pilot doesn’t know whether it’s a man or woman flying it, we are all doing our jobs as professionals. For every woman out there who wish to dream big, however, due to various challenges that come their way take a step back or quit, I would say be positive, believe in yourself. We all have challenging personal and professional lives, but when you say and believe that “you can do it and it’s not a big deal”, it all falls in place. Stay focused, don’t lose sight of the bigger picture.

As Told To Mamta Sharma

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma

Criminals Trying To Escape Should Be Shot: Assam CM

By LokMarg

Shooting criminals trying to escape from police custody “should be the pattern”, said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday.

While interacting with all Officers-in-Charge (OCs) of the state’s many police stations on “Redefining Policing Standards in Assam”, the Assam Chief Minister issued directions to police to strictly deal with crimes against women and show zero tolerance towards such crimes.

“Someone told me that the criminals running away from police custody for the last several days, are being shot, and it has become a pattern. I said this should be the pattern,” said Sarma

“If an accused tries to snath service gun and run away and on top of it he is, say, a rapist, then the police can shoot at him on the leg, but not on the chest. The law allows it,” he added.

The Chief Minister also asked them to file charge sheets of all rape, molestation, assault, etc cases at the earliest along with murder, arms, and drugs smuggling cases for a speedy trial.

He urged the OCs not to succumb to political pressure or other inducements while performing their duties with utmost honesty and dedication. He also called on the policemen to adopt healthy lifestyle habits for good health while endeavouring to deliver people-friendly services.

He also directed the OCs to collect post mortem reports expediently while saying that Range DIGs would ensure post mortem report collection as soon as possible. (ANI)

Koregaon Accused Stan Swamy Dies Waiting For Bail

By LokMarg

Bhima Koregaon accused Stan Swamy on Monday passed away in Mumbai’s Bandra Hospital, where he had been on a ventilator since Sunday, his lawyers said. He was 84.

Stan Swamy was being treated at the private Holy Family Hospital in Mumbai following an order by the Bombay High Court on May 28. He had tested positive for COVID-19 on May 30
Yesterday, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) directed the Maharashtra chief secretary to ensure that every possible effort was made to provide the 84-year-old jailed rights activist Stan Swamy with proper medical care and treatment as part of life-saving measure and protection of his basic human rights.

The Commission had also called for a report in the light of the allegations made in the complaint and the treatment record of Fr Swamy lodged in Taloja Jail, Navi Mumbai.

Stan Swamy, an accused in the January 2018 Bhima -Koegaon case was arrested from Ranchi on October 9, 2020. The High court was scheduled to hear his bail plea on Tuesday.

Violence erupted at an event to mark 100 years of the Bhima-Koregaon battle, leaving one dead and several injured, including 10 policemen.

The police had filed 58 cases against 162 people during a state-wide shutdown in January following clashes in Bhima-Koregaon. (ANI)

Punjab Chief Minister

Punjab Cong Crisis: Capt To Meet Sonia On Tuesday

By LokMarg

Amid efforts to find a solution to the rift in the Punjab Congress, state Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh will meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday, sources said.

The central leadership has been trying to find a way out of factionalism ahead of assembly polls next year and had constituted a panel that held talks with Amarinder Singh and MLAs including Navjot Singh Sidhu, who has been articulating his differences with the chief minister.
The central leadership is seeking to bring about changes in the state unit by keeping the Chief Minister in the loop while also looking at a balance in terms of caste and community.

Sidhu had met Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and former Congress president Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi last week and presented his side. Other senior leaders of the Punjab Congress had also held meetings with Rahul Gandhi for four days in the national capital.

Party leader Harish Rawat, who is AICC in-charge of Punjab and a member of the panel, had expressed hope after Sidhu’s meeting with Rahul and Priyanka that the issues concerning the Punjab unit of the party will be resolved soon.

Punjab Assembly polls, scheduled for next year, are being considered crucial for Congress as it is one of the few states where the party is still in power. (ANI)

Abhijit, Son Of Pranab Mukerjee, Joins Trinamool

By LokMarg

Abhijit Mukherjee, son of former President Pranab Mukherjee, joined the Trinamool Congress in Kolkata on Monday.

Mukherjee, who was a former Congress MP, told the media, “I have joined as a member of the TMC today. I came from the Congress and am joining Trinamool Congress.”
“The Congress did not give me any position and therefore I have now joined the TMC. I will work as a soldier, and accordingly will perform the responsibilities given,” he added.

Calling it a privilege to work under the leadership of someone who stopped BJP from entering Bengal, Abhijit Mukherjee said, “The way Mamata Banerjee halted the recent communal wave by BJP, I believe that in the future, with the support of others, she would be able to do the same in the entire country.” (ANI)

Alaya Bags Lead In Ekta Kapoor’s ‘U-Turn’

By LokMarg

After making her debut with ‘Jawaani Jaaneman’, actor Alaya F will star in the upcoming Hindi remake of the 2018 blockbuster Kannada thriller ‘U Turn’, which featured Shraddha Srinath in the lead role.

The movie was also remade in Telugu in 2018, with Samantha Akkineni in the main role. The film also has a Bengali, Malayalam and Tamil version.
The forthcoming Hindi version, helmed by debutante director Arif Khan, is set to go on floors tomorrow.

Set against an urban backdrop, ‘U Turn’ , will be produced by Cult Movies, which is the new division under Shobha Kapoor and Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms, that focuses to produce new age and edgy content.

Interestingly, ‘U Turn’ is the third film to be announced under Cult Movies, after Anurag Kashyap’s ‘Dobaaraa’ and Dibakar Banerjee’s ‘LSD 2’.

While not much has been revealed about the project, the makers just released a video, announcing the film and giving viewers a glimpse of the thriller. The short clip sets the tone for a suspense thriller, already piquing the interest of the audience.

‘U Turn’ follows the main character, who is a journalist, seeing herself involved in mysterious deaths of a number of people who take a u turn on a highway by removing roadblocks. Both Samantha and Shraddha’s performances in the mystery-thriller were appreciated in the respective versions.

Speaking about the collaboration, Ekta Kapoor shared, “Alaya was fantastic in her debut film. There’s a self-assured yet vulnerable quality to her that I believe can connect with audiences across. U Turn takes you on a ride with twists & turns galore & edge-of-the-seat excitement. I’m so happy to have Alaya on board!”

Echoing similar sentiments, Alaya F said, “It is an extremely exciting opportunity to collaborate with Ekta ma’am so early on in my career, especially for such an interesting project. I feel responsible to be bestowed with the task to drive such an intriguing story and I’m absolutely overjoyed to start this journey.”

Debutante director Arif Khan, who has assisted on over ten films, including ‘Gunjan Saxena’, ‘2 States’, ‘Student of the Year’ amongst others, is all set to bring a new dimension to this new-age thriller. (ANI)

‘LeT, Resistance Front Behind IAF Base Drone Attack’

By LokMarg

The investigation into the Jammu Air Force station attack case has revealed that drones used in carrying out the blast carried approximately 1.5 kilograms of RDX, according to sources.

The sources also said that either Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) or The Resistance Front (TRF) could be behind the drone attack.
The drones were operated through GPS and were handled manually by their handlers, said sources.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is investigating the Jammu Air Force station attack case.

The case relates to an explosion that occurred inside the premises of the Air Force Station, Satwari campus, Jammu on June 27 and a subsequent blast, after about six minutes carried out by drones in a well-planned conspiracy that led to the injury to two Air Force personnel and damaged the office buildings.

A special bomb squad team of the National Security Guard (NSG) is investigating the nature of the blast.

Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force (IAF) is taking all possible measures to ensure that such an incident is not repeated at other places and a high alert has been sounded at all stations.

Two low-intensity explosions were reported early Sunday morning in the technical area of Jammu Air Force Station.

One of the blasts caused minor damage to the roof of a building while the other exploded in an open area.

There was no damage to any equipment, the IAF said. (ANI)

Xi’s Comment On Taiwan Sends Ripples

By Jasdev Singh Rai

China has sent a forceful message to the West, in fact the United States. It has been lost in all the other rhetoric that Chinese leader Xi Jinping thundered in the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China. President Jinping said that the party will ‘complete reunification of Taiwan with the mainland’ and hinted it could be by force. If China ends up doing this, it will be symbolic end of ‘American century’.

China has made similar reference to Taiwan every time a new leader takes over and repeated it almost every year. However, this year there is a seriousness that seems to have replaced caution that marked previous policy. Under President Xi there has been escalation of incursions into Taiwan air and sea territory, gradually encircling Taiwan or testing its defences.

Taiwan is a small State of some 35 million people, one of the densest populated in the world. China on the other hand has 1.4 Billion people and the world’s largest army. In a straight war, Taiwan would not last a day. But Taiwan has a sort of guarantor, that is the United States. This is perhaps the only reason Chinese troops haven’t walked into Taiwan.

The United States has a complex relationship with Taiwan. It has an ambiguous treaty with Taiwan called the Taiwan Relations Act that ensure that Taiwan can defend itself against any aggression by China. The treaty does not commit USA to defend Taiwan. The Act states “the United States will make available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capabilities”.

But there is an implicit threat further in the Act, It states that the United States will “consider any effort to determine the future of Taiwan by other than peaceful means, including by boycotts or embargoes a threat to the peace and security of the Western Pacific area and of grave concern to the United States”.

And further, ‘to maintain the capacity of the United States to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or the social or economic system, of the people on Taiwan.’ 

So the Act draws in the United States dependent on what the United States regional policy and interest are at the time rather than a defence treaty. Taiwan has relied heavily on this Act as a sort of guarantor against a forced takeover by China.

ALSO READ: Taiwan Becomes Meat In US-China Sandwich

China has to calculate what strategic importance the United States gives to the region and how important is Taiwan to USA in that regional interest at any time. China has a reputation for long thinking. Its policy is to make Taiwan of lesser value for USA so USA will avoid a full frontal war.

That policy has already been successfully applied by China in the case of Hong Kong. It refused to accept British sovereignty in Hong Kong, claiming the Island belonged to it. It was transferred in 1997 with Britain ensuring China committed to democracy, freedoms and capitalist system in Hong Kong. China then waited till Britain’s power in the world had waned significantly to break with the one nation two systems agreement. In 2021 the commitment has all but disappeared.

In his speech, President Xi also stressed that China does not interfere in other countries nor attack them. However, China considers Taiwan to be part of China with some legitimacy.

Taiwan was part of the Qing dynasty until 1895 when Japan invaded and took over the islands. Meanwhile in mainland China, the Qing dynasty was ended by revolutions in 1912. The Republic of China was established in 1916. Following further unrest, the country was united by General Chiang Kai-Sheik under the Kuomintang in 1920s. China was called the Republic of China, ROC. But the Kuomintang faced challenge by the Communist Party of China led by Mao Zedong. During second World War, there was truce between the two. With the defeat of Japan, Taiwan was returned to China.

However, the civil war between Kuomintang and CCP continued with the later winning in 1949 and establishing its control over all of mainland China. This was now called the People’s Republic of China, PROC. Chaing Ke-Sheik and a lot of his elite escaped to Taiwan where they established their Government. They claimed that mainland China belongs to them. On the other hand mainland China claims Taiwan belongs to it.

The Taiwan Government was considered to be the legitimate Chinese Government by the West and held the seat at the UN as a veto holding power. This was mainly American policy rather than British.

The situation was absurd to say the least and a reflection of American belligerence and opposition to communism. Finally as China became more powerful and USA needed to restore relations with China, the USA recognised People’s Republic of China as the real China. Mainland China took its place and veto power at UN in 1972. Consequently, Taiwan is not recognised as a sovereign country by UN except by some 14 countries. It engages with the world through Trade Mission Offices.

Chinese policy for reunification has been multipronged. It has blocked any formal defence pact between US and Taiwan and formal recognition of Taiwan as a sovereign country. Trade with China is important for USA. Regionally China has engaged in free flow of trade and travel between mainland China and Taiwan.

ALSO READ: Xi Jinping’s Chinese Exceptionalism

In some ways, Taiwan’s position is somewhat similar to that of Goa. Goa was a Portuguese territory. After independence, Indian request for Portugal to cede the territory to it was refused. India invaded it and annexed Goa in 1961. Portugal didn’t show up.  

Will Xi invade Taiwan as India did with Goa? Xi is more likely to send the Chinese Army into Taiwan to annexe it than any other Chinese leader in recent history. His incursions in Indian territory are a testament to that.

Currently the Chinese Government is still attempting to influence the democratic vote in Taiwan in its favour and peaceful annexation. There is also brain drain from Taiwan to mainland China as there are more opportunities in China for skilled and professional Taiwanese. Lifestyle is better and China is a highly developed country now.

However Xi’s patience will run out at some stage and the prospect of invasion will become imminent.

There is considerable debate within United States to shore up its presence in Taiwan. United States think tanks are divided between letting Taiwan go or US defending it. Those promoting defence of Taiwan think that a showdown in Taiwan will contain Chinese power. The pragmatists say that USA has to come to terms with Chinese power.

If there is a showdown between China and US, it will not affect China but Taiwan might not recover, even possibly be decimated. If US lets Taiwan be taken over, it will affect American prestige, for what is left after defeats in Afghanistan and Iraq. The best possible way forward is to avoid a war, have a hands off approach and let a peaceful process determine gradual entry of Taiwan into China.

Weekly Roundup: Get On Yer Bike, 420 Sarkar? Indianising Twitter

By Mehnga Singh

The answer to exorbitant fuel prices, some say daylight robbery, is simple. Get on your bike! So says the BJP energy minister from Madhya Pradesh. He has seriously advised his fellow Madhya Prades  waasis to ride the bike to the vegetable market when getting Gobi, Aloo, Onion and Bataun, also at world beating prices. Most people can only buy one aloo or onion at today’s prices. ‘It will keep you fit’, he said and ‘save money’.

Fitness man Pardhuman Singh Tomar assured the cynics that he does a lot of walking. One imagines that this is possibly walking around in circles in the office thinking out solutions to the petrol price hikes by his masters in Delhi. Indian petrol and diesel prices have overtaken USA fuel prices (at least one area in which India is ahead of Americans) and catching up with prices in the old colonial masters, United Kingdom. Clearly after miles of walking around the office table and wearing out his shoes, Tomar got the ‘eureka’ moment. ‘Get on yer bike!’ And he then said he does a lot of biking.

Never having met or seen Tomar going to work, the imagination goes a bit wild. Does Tomar put the VVIP flashing red light blaring, peep, peep, peep, peep, on the crown of his head strapped with a plastic stretchable strap with ‘BJP saviour of the ordinary people’ written on it while riding on his bike to work? He can’t put it on the handle because not many people will notice it.

What about all those security police cars? Is there one ahead of him and one behind him as he cycles to work and saves on fuel on the state exchequer? Or has the DGP of Madhya Pradesh put together a special cycle division with lathis, lights and guns all included in a rucksack to escort him to work?

It could catch on. How clean Delhi will be if Modi ji, Shah ji and the rest of the cabinet all cycle to everywhere with red lights flashing. They could put the red light on a dhanda (wooden stick) tied to the bike. It’s the best answer to choking pollution, avoiding Government overspend and saving on fuel to spend the money on the people in big ‘I love Modi’ rallies. Tomar did say, the extra tax is spent to support the poor. It wasn’t clear whether he meant poor as ‘badly paid Netas’ or as in ordinary Garib Janta.

420 Sarkar?

Meanwhile another enterprising citizen has filed a case of fraud against the National Energy Minister! Now that is a novelty. Fraud in India and by the Government? Anyone hear of that?

There is a logic to the charge. The Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan, said with a straight face that the rise in Petroleum prices was due to global crude prices. Patiently he explained “There has been a jump in crude oil prices in the international market. One of the main reasons behind the rise in fuel prices in India is that we have to import 80% of the oil we consume”.

One bright citizen, Tamanna Hashmi, did a quick calculation and probably thought, ‘fraud is being done on citizens’.

When crude was double the current price, Indian oil was less than half the current prices. Crude had reached $130 a barrel in 2008. It is now $65 when Pradhan made his statement.  A barrel of oil has around 160 litres or 42 Gallons of oil. In 2008, the price of oil in India was Rs 45 a litre (when crude was $130) and is now Rs 100 (when crude is $65)

In this country of great noble prize winning mathematicians and a country which invented the number system, Tamanna must have thought. ‘Umm this does not make sense, even my maths does not add up’.

So he has filed a case calling Pradhan that ultimate Indian character assassination, ‘Char so bees’ that is 420. He has sought the trial of Pradhan under IPC sections 420 (fraud) and 295 A (pertaining to deliberate malicious acts) and 511, (attempt to commit offence).

One can imagine the magistrate thinking. ‘aarre which Indian politician is not Char so bees; which country are you living in, why are you wasting court time!’ but obviously dare not say.

Hashmi has also alleged that the prices of petrol have left the people of the country “terrorised” and “enraged”. Perhaps there is no legal protection against being enraged , just see how politicians raise their fists in election rallies, but Pradhan and his boss Modi could be sought by Hashmi under UAPA (1967) for terrorising people. Now that would be a first even in India.

Indianising Twitter

The difference between the unelected Communist Government of China and the democratic government of India is the language in which the two make similar policies look so different.

When China took exception to social media, such as twitter, Whatsapp etc, it crossed its eyebrows, went red in the face and said, “We are sovereign and we will decide what limits freedom of speech people will have”.  So Twitter and Facebook and others were simply kicked out. China showed it was tough, dictatorial and draconian with people’s choices. In the west, China got a really bad press for all these statements. Even now western press says ‘China where political expression is curtailed etc’ and cite Facebook, Twitter bans.

India is a bit more polished. The Modi government wants to stop critique and criticism of its policies. That’s a bit undemocratic in a country which has been selling itself as the ‘largest democracy’ to the western powers. The west is forever evangelically wishful. All a country has to say is, ‘we have democracy, we believe in equal rights and we have an independent judiciary’, and the west will become a patron. It doesn’t matter that it is a flawed democracy with no protection for minorities, caste reigns high and the judiciary even at the highest level is State appointed. Just say the right words and the right buttons get pressed in the west.

So the very clever Indian minister for Electronics and IT, Ravi Shankar Prasad, has decided to curtail twitter with words that find so much empathy with the west and has put twitter in a corner. “India, being a democracy, allows complete freedom to ask questions. Let me categorically say at this platform, that they can criticise Ravi Shankar Prasad, they can criticise my Prime Minister, they can ask questions and these big tech companies are having big business in India”.

So where is the problem? Prasad then went onto say, But twitter in India is not in USA!

“Some of them say that we are bound by American laws…You operate in India, you make money in India, you have good ad revenue in India, but if you take the position that I will only be governed by laws of America…This is plainly not acceptable,” he said.

Prasad further said: “You are free to do your business in India but you have to be accountable to India’s Constitution and its laws… You have to have a harmonious relationship with the autonomy of these digital platforms and obligations of an independent, sovereign nation like India.”

And what is the minister alluding to? It is about ‘misinformation, fake news, colluded materials posing as challenges’. Colluded material posing as challenges is quite an open area to cage freedoms of expression. Clearly not the words of Prasad ji.

Anything said against Modi ji could be ‘misinformation’ any thing criticising Government policy on well-argued grounds could be ‘fake news’ and anything said unflattering about Hindutva or Government in general could be ‘colluded material posing as challenges’. Twitter has met its hubris of freedom pitted against the Indian Babu.

Ingenious defence. In India you will be subject to Indian laws and not assume American laws. And what are Indian laws? Find out in the independent courts that can easily drag you for a century before finally deciding. By that time twitter will have gone into liquidation and son of twitter may be tripping the world.

The issue is not what Indian constitution says, but how the constitution is interpreted by the Government and a well heeled judiciary. It is how misinformation, fake news, colluded materials posing as challenges is interpreted.  Chinese PR can learn a lot from Indian politicians or hire an Indian Babbu.

Why Is PM Not Ready For JPC Probe On Rafale: Rahul

By LokMarg

Days after Congress demanded an inquiry by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) into the Rafale deal, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the Centre and questioned why is the Centre not ready for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe.

In a tweet, the Congress MP wrote, “Why is PM Modi government not ready for a JPC probe?”.
In the tweet, the Congress leader initiated a poll wherein he asked the public about the likely answers. Four options were made available wherein the users could cast their votes namely ‘being guilt conscience’, ‘in an attempt to save friends’, ‘JPC does not want a RS seat’ or ‘all of the above’.

Earlier, Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala had on Saturday demanded an inquiry by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) inquiry into the Rafale deal after France initiated investigations into alleged corruption in the Rs 59,000 crore Rafale deal signed with India in 2016 for the sale of 36 Dassault-built fighter jets.

The Congress said that it will also take up this matter in the upcoming Parliament session.

Congress General Secretary Randeep Surjewala said that with the commencement of the investigation into the Rafale deal in France and the latest revelations in this case, Congress and Rahul Gandhi have been proved right.

Surjewala said, “On June 14, the French Public Projection Service (PNF) has started an investigation into the corruption and illegitimate influence in the Rafale deal. In this, the former and current President of France will be investigated, as well as Anil Ambani’s company Reliance is also under investigation.”

Surjewala said that the UPA government had negotiated to purchase the aircraft at a much lower price but the current government had bought it at a manifold higher rates. (ANI)