Month: September 2021

Delhi Police has said that two terrorists, Zeeshan and Osama upon interrogation revealed that they had received training at Thatta in Pakistan to carry out blasts on bridges, railway tracks and large gatherings in India.

Despite traveling to Pakistan, their passports are not stamped. They had taken the sea route and entered through Gwadar Port. They also used a motorboat while en route to Pakistan from Oman.
The investigation also revealed that the planning was similar to the 1993 Mumbai blasts. People from different locations were supposed to meet after conducting recces in different locations.

Sources claimed that the role of sleeper cells has also emerged.

1.5 kg RDX was recovered from the terrorists and the probe agency is investigating and connecting each and every dot.

As per sources in the Special Cell, 15 Bengali-speaking persons were also trained by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in a town named Jioni near Gwadar port along with two arrested terrorists. Police suspect they are from West Bengal.

Maharastra ATS team is in Delhi for meeting Special Cell officers and joint interrogation of the suspects is likely.

Delhi Police Special Cell on Tuesday has busted a Pakistan organised terror module and arrested six operatives, including two Pakistani-trained terrorists.

The arrested suspects were planning to carry out targeted killings and blasts across the country, as per the police. (ANI)

The first cabinet meeting of the newly-inducted Council of Ministers of Gujarat will be held on Thursday at 4.30 pm. The meeting will be led by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.
“The first cabinet meeting of the Council of Ministers to be chaired by CM @Bhupendrapbjp will take place at 4.30 pm today at Gandhinagar,” Gujarat’s CMO office tweeted.

The swearing-in of new ministers in the Gujarat Cabinet of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel will take place today at Raj Bhawan in Gandhinagar at 1 pm. According to sources, over 20 leaders would be sworn in as ministers.

The majority of ministers in the cabinet headed by previous Chief Minister Vijay Rupani are likely to be dropped, the sources said. Senior leaders in the party had been reaching out to those not likely to be retained as ministers.

“There is a massive exercise going on to see that leaders who won’t be accommodated in the cabinet do not feel left out,” the sources added.

Bhupendra Patel took oath as the 17th Chief Minister of Gujarat on Monday.

The party is counting on Patel to shore up the party’s fortunes ahead of the assembly elections towards the end of next year. In the 2017 state election, the BJP won 99 of the state’s 182 Assembly seats and Congress got 77 seats. (ANI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday inaugurated the Defence Offices Complexes at Kasturba Gandhi Marg and Africa Avenue in the national capital.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, and Army chief General MM Naravane were also present at the event.
The Prime Minister will interact with Army, Navy, Air Force and Civilian Officers. This will be followed by his address to the gathering, the statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office read.

The new Defence Offices Complexes will accommodate around 7,000 officials from the Ministry of Defence and the Armed Forces, including the Army, Navy and Air Force. The buildings will provide modern, secure and functional working spaces.

An Integrated Command and Control Centre has been established for managing building operations, while also catering to the end to end safety and surveillance of both the buildings.

The new Defence Office Complexes are state-of-the-art and energy-efficient, with comprehensive security management measures. One of the defining features of these buildings is the use of new and sustainable construction technology called LGSF (Light gauge steel frame), which reduced construction time from 24-30 months in the case of conventional RCC construction. The buildings utilize resource-efficient green technology and promote environment-friendly practices. (ANI)

India reported 30,570 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the tally of cases in the country to 3,33,47,325, informed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday.

Of the new infections, Kerala recorded 17,681 COVID cases.
The country has been reporting less than 50,000 cases of COVID infection for 81 consecutive days now, the ministry said. India’s active caseload now stands at 3,42,923. The active cases account for 1.03 per cent of total cases.

Meanwhile, the weekly positivity rate at 1.93 per cent has remained less than 3 per cent for the last 83 days now. The daily positivity rate is reported to be 1.94 per cent. It has been less than 3 per cent for the last 17 days. The recovery rate is 97.64 per cent.

With 38,303 recoveries recorded in the last 24 hours, the cumulative recoveries have climbed to 3,25,60,474. As many as 431 people succumbed to the COVID-19 infection in the last 24 hours taking the death toll to 4,43,928.

India has substantially ramped up its COVID-19 testing capacity wherein over 54.77 crore tests have been conducted so far. In the ongoing nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive, 76,57,17,137 vaccine doses have been administered to eligible beneficiaries till date of which 64,51,423 were administered in the last 24 hours. (ANI)

The European Parliament has passed a resolution on the situation in Afghanistan and blamed Pakistan for assisting the Taliban in fighting the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF) in the Panjshir Valley led by Ahmad Massoud.

“The Taliban are facing the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF) in the Panjshir Valley led by Ahmad Massoud and Pakistan is assisting the Taliban in fighting the NRF by supplying its special forces and providing air support. Taliban fighters have been provided with safe havens in Pakistan for many years,” said a European Parliament release.

Taliban have proclaimed the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and have already started to impose numerous repressive measures reversing the achievements of the Afghan people of the past 20 years that were supported and facilitated by the EU and the international community. Afghan women and girls, and ethnic, religious and other vulnerable groups will suffer the most from the already ongoing suppression of their basic rights, added the release.

Taliban have taken power by force and the caretaker government they have appointed is neither inclusive, legitimate nor accountable to the Afghan people, said the release.

Taliban had announced the caretaker government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, naming Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund as interim prime minister and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, a co-founder of the group, as his deputy with no women in its cabinet.

European Parliament said Taliban’s caretaker government includes persons responsible for acts of terrorism, including former detainees, individuals under UN sanctions and a person on an FBI most wanted list.

Many members of the Taliban’s caretaker government are holders of passports issued by Pakistan, added the release.

“Taliban’s caretaker government was formed without keeping the Taliban’s promises of an inclusive government, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs has been dismantled. The Taliban do not envisage continuous participation of women in leadership roles in Afghanistan, and are persecuting women leaders, officials and activists, and are using lethal force to disperse women’s rights protests. There is a well-founded fear that the Law on Elimination of Violence Against Women, which imposes criminal penalties for child and forced marriages, domestic violence and numerous other abuses against women will be repealed,” it said.

Moreover, the Taliban’s caretaker government has issued a countrywide ban on protests and has started a crackdown on the free media, including the detention of and assaults on journalists and imposing new restrictions on media work.

The Taliban use propaganda to spread hatred towards the West and the EU and putting the EU’s own security at risk said the release. (ANI)

The new Excise Policy will provide Rs 3500 crore alternate revenue to Delhi, taking total revenue generation to Rs 10,000 crore, said Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday.

Addressing a press conference here, Manish Sisodia said that due to COVID-19 2020-21, Delhi received revenues 41 per cent less than our budget estimates.

“Because of this, except for salaries and COVID-related expenses, most of the other expenses were put on hold. If we look at the number of 2021-22, we are 23 per cent below the budget estimates. The government is withholding most of the expenses for now, except salaries and COVID-related expenses,” he said.

He said that from next year, the Delhi government will not be receiving the GST compensation as well.

“I reiterate that the Delhi government does not get the 42 per cent share from Central Tax Collection via the Finance Commission of the Central government. This 42 per cent is given to the rest of the states, but not Delhi. For the past 20 years, Delhi gets a grant of Rs 325 crores from the Central government while Delhi’s people pay a tax of approximate Rs 1,40,000 crore through the Central tax,” the Deputy CM said.

While mentioning the Excise Policy, Sisodia said, ”CM Arvind Kejriwal approved the new excise policy on April 15, this year. Under the New Excise Policy, the biggest change was that Excise Duty and VAT that was usually evaded, we converted it into licence fees. Till now the license fee was very nominal, like Rs 8-10 lakh and then there were 250-300 per cent excise fees and VAT. Because of having higher rates, it had an incentive for evasion. The license fee that used to be Rs 8 lakh on average rose to be around Rs 6.5-7 crore per shop. We increased that also by 10 per cent, and then we started the bidding process for it.”

He said that Delhi had estimated that it will receive 200 per cent more revenue through this. “The government will receive Rs 3,500 crore extra revenue in the next 12 months. We will get Rs 10,000 crores whereas earlier it was getting Rs 6,900 crores. This is a big jump in itself,” he noted.

Sisodia said that after 2016, under the policy of the Kejriwal government in Delhi, no new liquor shops have been opened.

“All the old liquor shops that were working had this pattern that in some municipal wards there were 10-15 liquor shops while in some wards there were none. Their pattern was such that in the wards where there were no shops, illegal liquor shops were functional,” he added.

Sisodia informed that Delhi had approximately 850 legal shops and 2,000 illegal shops running out of people’s houses and godowns.

“We caught approximately 7 lakh bottles of liquor in one year. 1,864 FIRs were lodged and 1,000 vehicles were confiscated. We divided Delhi into 32 zones and received roughly 250 bids. The highest bid in each zone won in a very transparent manner. Adding all the bids, the government will get a revenue of approximately Rs 10,000 crores which is a matter of relief for us. Secondly, the liquor selling and consumption experience in Delhi will change drastically,” he added

Sisodia further informed that new shops will start opening from November 17 onwards. (ANI)

By Ashoke Raj

The Tata Group has made its financial bid for the debt-laden national carrier Air India (AI) on Wednesday, said government sources.

According to sources, the Tata group’s bid is also at the forefront. The Tata-winning Air India would be the airline’s homecoming for the conglomerate that had transferred the company to the government in 1953.

The privatization of loss-making Air India is being seen as one of the biggest reforms by this government.

“Financial Bids for Air India Disinvestment received by Transaction Advisor. The process has now moved to the concluding stage,” tweeted the DIPAM secretary.

The winning bid is likely to be announced before the end of this month and the government plans to transfer the airline to the winning bidder by the end of this financial year.

Earlier today, the government has initiated the process of financial bids for the debt-laden national carrier. Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia made it clear that September 15 date for the process is fixed and will not change.

After failing to find any buyer for a 76 per cent stake in Air India in 2018, the government is expected to complete the sale of the national carrier with at least two buyers expected to submit financial bids by September 15.

Earlier, industry sources told ANI that Tata Group, through its holding company, and SpiceJet chairman Ajay Singh his personal capacity, are likely to make its financial bid for the airline.

Air India is laden with a huge debt of around Rs 43,000 crores of which Rs 22,000 crores will also be transferred to the Air India Asset Holding Limited (AIAHL).

The government declined to share any details on expectations from the sale of Air India.

The Centre is planning to sell a 100 per cent stake in the airline and its low-cost subsidiary Air India Express, and a 50 per cent stake in ground handling company Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited (AISATS).

Other properties including the Air India building in Mumbai, Airlines House in Delhi will also be part of the deal.

Four acres of land at Connaught Place in Delhi and various housing societies in Delhi, Mumbai and other cities for AI employees and others usage. Air India’s subsidiaries such as Air India Engineering Services Limited (AIESL) and Air India Air Transport Services Limited (AITSL) will also be part of AIAHL.

At present, Air India has control over 4,400 domestic and 1,800 international landing and parking slots at domestic airports as well as 900 slots abroad. (ANI)

Pakistan’s envoy to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan on Tuesday met the Taliban interim government’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and discussed strengthening bilateral cooperation between both countries.

“Called on the new Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mutaqi and discussed strengthening bilateral cooperation particularly facilitating humanitarian, economic and people to people exchanges,” Khan tweeted.
This is the first meeting between a Pakistani official and the representative of the interim Afghan government. Although the two sides have been in regular contact even before the announcement of the interim Afghan government announced last week, The Express Tribune reported.

The meeting, according to the Taliban spokesperson, took place at the ministry of foreign affairs of Afghanistan. Sohail Shahin said the two discussed “smooth movement of people at Torkham and Spin Boldak and problems of Afghan refugees in Pakistan,” the Pakistani publication reported.

According to The Express Tribune, Pakistan is not accepting any new refugees from Afghanistan and only permitting people who need medical treatment, foreigners and evacuees who have valid travel documents through its land routes with Afghanistan.

The Torkham, which is the main border crossing, was closed for pedestrian movement by the Afghan Taliban on Monday. However, the border was reopened on Tuesday.

“Pakistan ambassador promised to facilitate the movement of the people at Torkham and Spin Boldak and resolve problems faced by the Afghan refugees there. The two also discussed the bilateral relationship and the humanitarian aid,” The Express Tribune quoted the Taliban spokesperson as saying.

Afghanistan plunged into crisis last month after Kabul fell to the Taliban and the democratically elected government of former president Ashraf Ghani collapsed.

At a UN meeting in Geneva on Monday, the international community pledged to provide over USD 1 billion in humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Muttaqi on Tuesday said that it wants good bilateral relations with the world’s countries, including the United States. He also thanked the world for pledging hundreds of millions of dollars in emergency aid to Afghanistan, reported Tolo News.

Muttaqi also called on the countries, especially the Asian Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank, to provide development funds to Afghanistan. (ANI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, on Wednesday launched the Sansad TV.

The launch date coincides with the International Day of Democracy, informed the official communique by the Prime Minister’s Office.
Sansad TV has been launched after merging the Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV channels.

The 24-hour channel, through its content, will showcase the democratic ethos and the functioning of democratic institutions of the country with an aim to target national and international audiences.

In February 2021, the decision to merge Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV was taken and Ravi Capoor- a retired IAS officer, was appointed as its CEO in March.

Sansad TV programming will primarily be in four categories – functioning of Parliament and democratic institutions, governance and implementation of schemes/policies, history and culture of India and issues/interests/concerns of contemporary nature. (ANI)

The Drug Controller General of India has given its approval to the single-dose COVID-19 vaccine version of the Sputnik V vaccine ‘Sputnik Light’ to conduct trials on the Indian population to check whether the vaccine gives a similar immune response in trials similar to what it has shown on the Russian population.

A Subject Expert Committee (SEC) meeting held on August 5 recommended the trial condition based on the efficacy of the vaccine also to be evaluated on the 42nd, 90th, and 180th day following the second dose.
“Interim analysis can be conducted on day 42 as this data was generated during the Sputnik V trials in India after the first dose, which was stated to be available up to day 21,” reads the minutes of the SEC meeting.

Earlier in the month of April, the two-dose version of the vaccine, Sputnik V, was approved for ’emergency use’ by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI).

According to Dr V K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, till now 8- 9 lakh doses of Sputnik V has been administered in India.

Sputnik Light, which is the first dose of the original two-dose composition, has shown the efficacy of 79 per cent. (ANI)