Month: September 2021

Hailing the various states’ decision of reopening schools, Subhash Sarkar, the Union Minister of State for Education, on Wednesday said that the Covid-19 situation will continue to be analysed by the state governments for necessary action.

“I hope the states which have a higher number of Covid-19 cases will analyse the situation properly and take the required decisions in future,” Sarkar told ANI.
The schools across India were closed in March 2020 when the Coronavirus reached India and the government announced lockdown to stem the spread of the virus but the online classes continued.

At least six states in India recently announced the gradual reopening of in-person schooling with proper hygiene and Covid measures. However, the vaccination for children is expected to begin next month.

Sarkar expressed hope that the inoculation will lead to the state governments further relaxing the Covid-induced restrictions, making more students to step into their classrooms as most schools have reopened with 50 per cent capacity on alternate days.

“I hope students and parents will welcome the reopening of schools,” the minister said.

The Education Ministry, Sarkar said, has sent a list of 13 advisories to all the states and Union Territories since May last year, which West Bengal did not follow.

“I hope West Bengal also come forward and think about following those advisories soon,” he added.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has often differed with the central government policies on the Covid-19 situation in the country and often accused the Centre of providing lesser vaccines to her state.

On Tuesday, at least 25 people were injured when a huge crowd of beneficiaries gathered at a Covid vaccination centre in Jalpaiguri and a stampede followed soon after. The injured had to be hospitalised.

“The West Bengal government should apologise for the incident that happened at the vaccination center in Jalpaiguri district.. The central government is providing Covid vaccines free of charge in enough quantity,” he added. (ANI)

The Taliban on Wednesday said that the negotiations with the leaders of the Panjshir province have gone in vain as it is the only province that is still out of the Taliban’s reach in the country, a media report said.

Taliban’s commission for guidance and encouragement’s head Mullah Amir Khan Motaqi said that negotiations with the tribal elders and leaders failed and asked the people of Panjshir province to motivate their leaders, Afghanistan’s Khaama Press reported.

The Panjshir valley lies in the Hindu Kush mountains, approximately 90 miles north of Kabul. The Taliban have been unable to take this major holdout of resistance after steamrolling across pro-government troops in a matter of months.

“This is the first time in the recent history of Afghanistan that a newly appointed government announces general amnesty and why should the people of Panjshir still be in trouble and they do not avail themselves of the freedom,” Khaama Press quoted Motaqi as saying.

Ahmad Massoud (the son of famous Afghan commander Ahmad Shah Massoud and one of the leaders of the resistance against the Taliban) and Amrullah Saleh (former Afghan government first vice president) are presently in Panjshir valley and trying to mount a challenge to the Taliban.

Motaqi has stressed that the occupation has ended and it is the great pride for entire Afghanistan but people in Panjshir province are still against the Taliban.

He also asked the people of Panjshir to not allow those who are favoring war in the region.

On August 15, the Taliban captured Kabul soon after President Ashraf Ghani fled the nation. So far, the Taliban have controlled all the regions apart from the Panjshir province. (ANI)

A Uyghur woman, Kalbinur Gheni who met a US official in December to discuss the imprisonment of her sister Renagul Gheni by Chinese authorities in the Xinjiang region is being subjected to harassment along with her relatives.

Nuriman Abdurashid, writing in Radio Free Asia (RFA) said that the family is being pressured to stop speaking out about her siblings, while her relatives have been subjected to frequent questioning by police in their hometown.

Gheni told former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo about the detention of her sister for praying after their father’s death. Renagul was sentenced to 17 years in prison for observing religious rites after the death of their father and for keeping religious books in her possession, which she also loaned to others.

A teacher and mother of two children, Renagul, 39, was taken to a “reeducation camp” in 2018 as part of a group of educators and was transferred to prison this May, according to her sister, Kalbinur said, reported RFA.

Up to 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities have been detained in a network of internment camps in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), where they have been subject to political indoctrination, abuse, and forced labour.

Because Kalbinur had not been able to communicate with her family in the XUAR since 2017, she was unaware of her sister’s detention, and found out about it through friends in Beijing in May 2019, said Abdurashid.

Kalbinur met briefly with former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on December 3, 2020, to discuss the fate of her sister. Since then, the woman’s family based in Korla (in Chinese, Kuerle), the second-largest city in the XUAR, has been interrogated frequently by Chinese authorities, she told RFA in an interview last week.

Authorities have begun to pressure Kalbinur both directly and indirectly through her family members, even going so far as to send a voice message from Renagul asking her to “cease her involvement” in what they called “unsubstantiated” or “untoward” matters, Kalbinur said, reported RFA.

“I explained that even though [the US] was taking real action, the situation had not once improved for Uyghurs back in our homeland [or] for our families; that it was in fact getting worse as time goes on,” Kalbinur said of her conversation with Pompeo.

She said she discussed the case of her sister, noting that the arrests of sentencings of Uyghurs in the XUAR were prevalent. Kalbinur stressed that the Chinese government is attempting to control the families of Uyghurs abroad by essentially taking them hostage.

She also detailed some of the many threats she has received, noting that the authorities have attempted to bargain with her by using her family members as bait, reported Abdurashid.

Kalbinur said that Chinese authorities in the XUAR do not want her to express any different opinions about my sister or information about the detention camps and prisons, and want her to accept that Renagul was sentenced for praying and reading religious books.

“They have one goal: Whether it’s for me or my family back home, they want us to accept the crimes my sister has been accused of,” she said. “They want my family to accept it and they want me to accept it, and they want us not to talk. That’s their goal.”

The Uyghur Human Rights Project, an advocacy organization in Washington, DC, that promotes human rights for Uyghurs, issued a report in June describing and analyzing videos released by the Chinese government about the personal and family lives of Uyghurs.

The 57-page report confirms that Chinese authorities force Uyghurs who have been detained to appear on camera and speak out against their relatives abroad, as well as against the broader movement calling for Uyghur human rights, reported RFA. (ANI)

Slamming the Centre over its economic policies, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the Central government has “demonetised” farmers, labourers, small and medium businesses, salaried class, and honest industrialists.

Addressing a press conference here today, the Congress leader also targeted the Centre over the price hike in fuel prices and LGP cylinder.
“In the last 7 years, we have seen a new economic paradigm. Demonetisation on one side, and monetisation on the other side. First Modi ji said that he is undertaking demonetisation and Finance Minister says that she is undertaking monetisation. The people are asking what is undergoing monetisation, and what is being subjected to demonetisation?” he asked.

“Farmers, labourers, small and medium businesses, MSMEs, salaried class, govt employees and honest industrialists are being demonetised. Who is being monetised? 4-5 friends of Narendra Modi ji – economic transfer is being done,” Gandhi said.

The Wayanad MP also pointed out that the prices of LPG have witnessed a hike of 116 per cent, petrol a rise of 42 per cent, adding that the prices of diesel jumped from Rs 57 per lire to Rs 88 per litre, since 2014 when the BJP-led NDA came to power.

“When UPA left in 2014, LPG cylinder was priced at Rs 410/cylinder. Today, it costs Rs 885/cylinder – a rise of 116 per cent. Petrol was Rs 71.5/litre in 2014, today it’s Rs 101/litre – a rise of 42 per cent. Diesel was priced at Rs 57/litre in 2014, it’s Rs 88/litre today,” Gandhi said.

“Modi ji keeps saying that GDP is rising, Finance Minister says that GDP is showing an upward projection. I then understood what does it mean by GDP. It means ‘Gas-Diesel-Petrol’. They have this confusion,” he said.

“People can argue that there is rise in prices of petrol and diesel in the international market. During the UPA govt in 2014, crude oil was priced at Rs 105, today it’s Rs 71 – it was 32 per cent higher at our time. Gas was priced at Rs 880 in our time, today it’s Rs 653 – 26 per cent lower today,” he added. (ANI)

Schools in Tamil Nadu reopened for Classes 9 to 12 on Wednesday with COVID-19 protocols in place.

The students were given sanitisers and social distancing was maintained inside the classrooms.
At a government school in Anna Nagar, Chennai, the school staff gave sanitisers to students as they entered the school.

Teachers also advised the students to follow the COVID-19 protocols.

Inside the classroom, only one student was allowed to sit at a desk. All students wore double masks.

The decision to reopen schools was taken after the government said that 90 per cent of teachers and 89 per cent of school staff had been vaccinated.

Nirmala, an English teacher at a government school in Anna Nagar, Chennai, told ANI, “We are happy that schools have reopened in the state. It is really a good feeling to see young faces early in the morning. We are ensuring social distance is maintained in the classrooms.” (ANI)

Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted raids across 10 locations in Kolkata in connection with the fake vaccine case.

Officials carried out the raids at different locations in Kolkata. The officials also confirmed the raids.
Earlier, Debanjan Deb who was impersonating as an IAS officer was arrested by Kolkata Police for conducting fake vaccination drive.

On July 3, the office of Debanjan Deb was raided by the Detective Department of the Special Investigation Team (SIT).

According to the Kolkata Police, voluminous material, such as attendance registers, visitor slips, applications for jobs, fake tender documents and several others were seized.

Prior to this, an SIT was formed on June 25 by the police to investigate the matter just days after TMC MP Mimi Chakraborty was allegedly given fake vaccination at such a camp. Deb was subsequently arrested based on Chakraborty’s complaint.

On June 26, the West Bengal government had formed a four-member expert committee to examine the effect of the fake COVID-19 vaccination in Kolkata and also take corrective actions.

Further probe in the matter is underway. (ANI)

A high alert has been issued in the coastal areas of Karnataka following an intelligence input received about terrorist activities in coastal Kerala, said Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday.

Interacting with media at the Hubli Airport before his departure for his assembly constituency Shiggaon, the Chief Minister said the state administration is keeping a strict watch for any suspicious activity in the coastal and adjoining forest areas.
“I can not discuss some issues openly, but I want to tell you that Karnataka police along with NIA is keeping a strict vigil on any anti-national activity in coastal and adjoining forest areas. NIA had also picked up a person who was involved in such activities. We have also issued a high alert has in coastal areas,” said the Chief Minister.

When asked if public gatherings will be permitted in the state on the occasion of Ganesh Utsav, Bommai said the state government has appointed an expert panel to study last year’s celebration and Covid status presently.

“We have a meeting with the experts’ panel on September 5 and will make the final decision on that day,” he said.

Speaking about night curfew imposed in Kodagu, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, which share borders with Kerala, the Chief Minister said,” state government is not in the mood of banning financial activities. But precautions have to be taken to maintain the COVID norms. So wherever the situation gets improved there relaxations will be given.” (ANI)

As foreign forces concluded their drawdown from Kabul, the United States said that they have entered a “new chapter” of engagement with Afghanistan.

The US completed the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan on August 30, ending one of its longest wars. In a matter of few weeks, US and Coalition forces evacuated more than 123,000 civilians out of Afghanistan and slightly more than 6,000 of them were US citizens.
“And our work continues, as you heard from the Secretary (Anthony Blinken). A new chapter of America’s engagement with Afghanistan has begun,” US Department of State spokesperson Ned Price said in a press briefing.

Price said that the US will continue to facilitate safe travel of people out of Afghanistan, including by doing everything they can to support the reopening of Kabul airport. “We are focused and clear-eyed as we enter this new chapter with Afghanistan,” he added.

Price said that the US will manage their diplomacy for the way ahead with Afghanistan via Doha.

As US and allied forces completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan, a resolution was passed by the UN Security Council on Monday, requiring the Taliban to honour their commitment to let people freely leave Afghanistan.

“And yesterday, the UNSC passed a resolution, a resolution that enshrines that responsibility, thereby laying the groundwork for another mechanism to hold the Taliban accountable if they do not follow through,” said State Department Spokesperson.

The US has been in contact with Americans who are still on the ground in Afghanistan and provided them with information on how to continue to stay in touch after the US troops’ withdrawal, he added.

“We have already been in touch with the American citizens in Afghanistan who either decided to remain there or who are unable to be evacuated,” Price said.

He said nearly 100 Americans remain in Afghanistan and Washington will continue to be in contact with them as it explores options for their evacuation. “We’re exploring every potential option to bring any American out of the country who wishes to depart,” Price said. (ANI)