Month: March 2022

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky amid the ongoing conflict with Russia, and sought continued support from his government for the evacuation of Indian nationals from Sumy.

The Prime Minister also appreciated the continuing direct dialogue between Ukraine and Russia, Government of India sources informed.

In a phone call that lasted for about 35 minutes, PM Modi thanked President Zelensky for the help extended by the Government of Ukraine in the evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine and sought continued support from his government in ongoing efforts for the evacuation of Indian nationals from Sumy.

As per the sources, the two leaders discussed the evolving situation in Ukraine.

“PM Modi appreciated the continuing direct dialogue between Russia and Ukraine,” sources added.

Notably, PM Modi will also be speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin today.

Since the beginning of the conflict on February 24 when Russia launched a special military operation on Ukraine, the Prime Minister has spoken to both the leaders twice.

On February 26, PM Modi spoke to Ukrainian President Zelensky in which the latter briefed the Prime Minister in detail about the ongoing conflict situation. After India abstained during a vote in the United Nations Security council, Zelensky spoke to PM Modi and sought India’s political support at the UNSC.

The Indian prime minister had spoken to the Russian President on February 24 night and then on March 2. In his last call, PM Modi reviewed the situation in Ukraine, especially in Kharkiv and both the leaders had also discussed the safe evacuation of the Indian nationals from the conflict areas, according to the Prime Minister’s office.

Meanwhile, tensions have escalated following Russia’s military action in Ukraine and the government has arranged flights from countries neighbouring Ukraine for the evacuation of Indian students under ‘Operation Ganga’.

On Sunday the Indian government said that since February 22, it has so far evacuated nearly 16,000 Indian students from Ukraine through flights from Ukraine’s neighbouring countries. (ANI)

The Russian armed forces announced a ceasefire from 10:00 am (07:00 GMT) for the residents of Ukraine capital Kiev, Mariupol, Kharkiv, Sumy to leave the cities, local media reported citing interdepartmental coordination headquarters for humanitarian response in Ukraine on Monday.

“Given the catastrophic humanitarian situation and its sharp aggravation in the cities of Kiev, Kharkiv, Sumy and Mariupol, as well as at the personal request of French President Emmanuel Macron to Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, the Russian armed forces announce ceasefire for humanitarian purposes from 10;00 March 7, 2022, and open humanitarian corridors,” the response center said in a statement.

During the ceasefire, Russia will control the evacuation of residents from the cities of Ukraine with the help of drones, the statement read cited by the Sputnik News Agency said.

“We warn that all attempts by the Ukrainian side once again to deceive Russia and the entire civilized world in disrupting the humanitarian operation, allegedly through the fault of Russia, this time is useless and meaningless,” the headquarters said.

According to the headquarters, this information has been communicated to the relevant structures of the UN, the OSCE, the ICRC and other international organizations through all available information resources, including the media.

“We demand that the Ukrainian side strictly fulfil all the conditions for the creation of humanitarian corridors in the above-mentioned directions and ensure an organized withdrawal of civilians and foreign citizens,” the statement added, Sputnik reported. (ANI/Sputnik)

Troops of the Border Security Force (BSF) in the early hours of Monday shot down a quadcopter (drone) in the Ferozpur sector carrying contraband items, the BSF said in a statement.

At about 2.55 am, BSF personnel deployed in the area heard a humming sound of a suspicious flying object coming from Pakistan towards India in the AOR Ferozpur sector. Troops were immediately alerted and they fired on the flying object and also illuminated the area by firing Para bombs. Resultantly, the drone was shot down.

A small green-coloured bag was attached to the drone. It contained four packets in yellow wrapping and one small packet in black coloured wrapping containing contraband items weighing approximately 4.17 kgs (with packing material) and approximately 250 gm of items packed in the black wrapper.

The suspected flying object is a quadcopter make DJI Matrice 300 RTX. (ANI)

Union Labour and Employment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Monday launched the ‘Donate-a-Pension’ programme under Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan (PM-SYM) for people to contribute to the pension fund of their support staff.

“Launched ‘Donate-a-Pension’ programme at my residence by donating to the gardener. It is an initiative under (PM-SYM) pension scheme where citizens can donate the premium contribution of their immediate support staff such as domestic workers, drivers, helpers etc,” tweeted Yadav.

“Under PM-SYM, Workers working in the unorganised sector in the age group of 18-40 years can register themselves and deposit a minimum of Rs 660 to 2400 every year depending on their age. After attaining the age of 60 years they will receive the minimum assured pension of Rs 3,000 per month,” said Yadav.

The ‘Donate-a-Pension’ programme which was launched today is part of many initiatives by the Labour Ministry to be launched in the ‘Iconic Week’ being celebrated by the Ministry from March 7 to 13.

These activities include celebrating 25 crore registrations under e-SHRAM, launching of e-SHRAM on UMANG app, the launch of ‘Donate-a-Pension’, Job fair by National Career Service centers, placement drives, and placement-oriented camps with a special focus for SC/STs and differently-abled persons at 65 places across India, awareness generation and sensitization of workers and employers about their rights and compliances respectively under various Labour Laws in the entire iconic week by the Chief Labour Commissioner at 20 regional offices across the country. (ANI)

As the seventh phase of Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections is slated to take place on Monday, the major districts which are likely to face a fierce competition between Bharatiya Janata Party and Samajwadi Party include Azamgarh, Varanasi, and Mirzapur divisions.

As many as 613 candidates are in the fray for 54 constituencies spread across nine districts of Mau, Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Ghazipur, Varanasi, Chandauli, Mirzapur, Sonbhadra, and Bhadohi (Sant Ravidas Nagar).

BJP is hoping to retain its dominance in the state while the SP not only aspires to hold Azamgarh but also trying to defeat the ruling party by putting its focus on wooing young voters on the issue of employment.

Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency will be at stake tomorrow as he is the single biggest influencer in the country since the 2014 elections. It comprises Pindra, Ajagara, Shivpur, Rohaniya, Varanasi North, Varanasi South, Varanasi Cantt, and Sevapuri Assembly seats.

There are a total of 8 seats in Varanasi, out of which the BJP holds a strong position on 6 out of them. However, this does not seem to be the case with the remaining two seats. One is Varanasi South on which BJP’s Culture Minister Neelkanth Tiwari is contesting against Samajwadi Party’s Kishan Dixit, head priest of Mrityunjay Mahadev. Another is Varanasi Cantt where the BJP has fielded Saurabh Srivastava opposite SP’s Pooja Yadav.

PM Modi even camped in Varanasi for two days and interacted with shopkeepers there. On the same day, he also had a brief stopover at a tea stall in Varanasi after holding a roadshow that attracted a huge crowd. He also tried his hand at ‘damru (drum)’ at Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi, where he also offered prayers.

In the run-up to the elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav also addressed rallies in the BJP’s strong turf in Varanasi.

In Shivpur, another minister and the BJP candidate Anil Rajbhar is contesting the polls against SP’s Arvind Rajbhar. Arvind is the son of Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party chief Omprakash Rajbhar. The seat has a sizable caste population belonging to Brahmin, Vaishya, Kshatriya, Rajbhar, Patel, Maurya, Yadav, Scheduled Caste, among others.

From the Sevapuri Assembly constituency, Nilratna Patel and Surendra Patel are giving neck-to-neck fights to each other. Neelratna Patel is contesting from the BJP and Surendra Patel is the SP nominee. Surendra Patel has a stronghold over the region. However, Neelratna Patel had won the 2017 polls.

Samajwadi Party and the BJP seem to be engaged in a neck-to-neck contest on most of the seats in the district but in the Pindra constituency, Congress’ Ajay Rai is giving a tough fight.

The BJP has fielded Awadhesh Singh from the Pindra seat.

The seventh and final phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections 2022 would see polling in Azamgarh, which has been a traditional stronghold of Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party (SP).

Azamgarh comprises 10 Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) segments. These are Gopalpur, Sagri, Mubarakpur, Azamgarh, Mehnagar, Atrauliya, Nizamabad, Phoolpur Pawai, Didarganj, and Lalganj.

Former minister Dara Singh Chauhan, who had joined Samajwadi Party after leaving BJP, is in the fray from the Ghosi seat of the Mau district. On Mau Sadar’s seat, don-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari’s son Abbas Ansari is contesting on the SP ticket. In Shahganj in the Jaunpur district, the Samajwadi Party has fielded sitting MLA Shailendra Yadav Lalai.

Alka Rai, the sitting legislator and wife of the former BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai, is in the fray from Mohammadabad seat of Ghazipur district. Former BJP MP Krishna Pratap Singh is contesting on the Malhni seat of Jaunpur. Lucky Yadav is a Samajwadi Party candidate from the seat.

A total of 613 candidates are in the electoral fray for the last phase of Uttar Pradesh. The voting will begin at 7:00 am and will conclude at 6:00 pm tomorrow.

The month-long campaigning for the seven-phase state polls came to an on the evening of March 5.

The counting of votes will take place on March 10. (ANI)

As the Russia-Ukraine crisis entered its eleventh day, eight rockets launched by Russia destroyed Vinnytsia airport located in Central Ukraine, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday.

Zelenskyy called on the Western nations and said, “The world has the power to close our skies for Russian rockets and aircraft.” He adds that Ukraine requires aircraft, to make Ukrainian skies safe.

Zelensky has warned that Russia is preparing to bomb Odessa, a strategically important port city on Ukraine’s Black Sea coast.

“Russian people always used to come to Odessa and they only knew warmth and generosity and what’s now? Artillery, bombs against Odessa. This will be a war crime. This will be historic crime”, Zelensky said in a broadcast address on Facebook.

Switching from speaking Ukrainian to Russian, Zelensky appealed to the Russian people to make a choice “between life and slavery.”

Furthermore, the evacuation of civilians with the help of the humanitarian corridor also seems to be hanging in balance. International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said that the second attempt to evacuate 200,000 civilians stranded in Mariupol in Ukraine has failed and added that the parties involved in the ceasefire agreement need to agree not just in principle but also on the details of safe passages.

“People are living in terror in Mariupol, desperate for safety. Today’s attempt to start evacuating an estimated 200,000 people has failed. The failed attempts underscore the absence of a detailed and functioning agreement between parties to the conflict,” ICRC said in a tweet.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also acknowledged that the US has “very credible” reports of war crimes in Ukraine adding that the US along with its EU allies is looking into the possibility of banning Russian oil imports and putting pressure on Russia.

Blinken, in an interview with CNN, said, “We’ve seen very credible reports of deliberate attacks on civilians, which would constitute a war crime. We’ve seen very credible reports about the use of certain weapons.”

The United States is in talks with Poland on a deal to provide fighter jets to Ukraine, a White House spokesperson confirmed.

The spokesperson also said that they are figuring out the logistics as to how the aircraft would be transferred from Poland to Ukraine. US is determining what “capabilities we could provide to backfill Poland if it decided to transfer planes to Ukraine,” added the spokesperson, reported CNN News.

On the other hand Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a phone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Russia’s military operation in Ukraine can be suspended only if Kyiv ceases military actions and fulfills Moscow’s demands.

Putin told French President Emmanuel Macron over the phone that he was not against a trilateral meeting among Russia, Ukraine and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in a third country or via teleconference, but not in Chernobyl in Ukraine, the Kremlin said.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Germany, where both sides discussed several issues, including the situation between Ukraine and Russia.

Bennett first arrived in Moscow on Saturday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. After a stop in Moscow, he concluded his visit to Germany and headed back to Israel in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Pope Francis appreciated the journalists covering the Russia-Ukraine conflict while putting their lives at risk to provide information and called for the cessation of armed attacks.

Moreover, Operation Ganga is undergoing under which 76 flights have brought back over 15,920 Indians including 2500 onboard 13 flights that landed in the last 24 hours.

There are 7 flights scheduled over the next 24 hours. Of these, one would be IAF C-17 flight from Rzeszow, Poland. In terms of departure points, there will be 5 flights from Budapest, one each from Rzeszow and Suceava.

In all, over 21000 Indians came out of Ukraine since the issuance of the advisory in January 2022. Out of these, 19920 Indians have already reached India. Six tranches of humanitarian aid were sent earlier and today one more tranche weighing 6 tons was dispatched by IAF flight to Poland.

The MEA Control Room, as well as the Control Centers operated by our Embassies, continue to operate on a 24×7 basis. The MEA Control Room has attended to 12435 calls and 9026 emails till today afternoon. (ANI)

Due to the ongoing Russia and Ukraine conflict, the city of Lviv in Ukraine has become the city of refugees.

Many people have come to the city of Lviv from Kharkiv, Kyiv, Kherson and other places with their families to save their lives.

Speaking with ANI, a Ukrainian citizen Andrey said, “Volunteers in Lviv provides us with an entire house. I am very grateful to them. It’s peaceful here.”

“On February 25th, I departed from Kyiv region. I took the evacuation train and I am safe, but, I hear news from my friend who are hiding right now in the Kyiv region. Some are sleeping at the Metro Stations. Some of my friends left Kyiv for Poland. Many people are afraid to come to Lviv right now. I left after the first rocket hit the city. My friends were afraid to leave as Russians encircled Kyiv city and there were fewer routes to escape. When we left, there was a huge crowd at the stations, it was overcrowded. Many Ukrainians and foreigners embarked on train. We were able to board the train as we have two babies and some people were kind to vacate seats for us,”Andrey said.

Meanwhile, an Indian Gagan Moga speaking to ANI said that he will not go back to India as his wife is Ukrainian and only Indians are evacuated under Operation Ganga.

“I am an Indian citizen, can go to India but not my wife, who is a Ukrainian, I have been told that only Indians will be evacuated. I can’t leave my family here. My wife is 8-months pregnant, will be moving to Poland. We are currently at a friend’s place in Lviv,” said Moga, who fled from Kyiv.

Talking about the challenges people are facing due to the intense fight between Russia and Ukraine, he said, “You would know that people from Kyiv, Kharkiv, Kherson are leaving the cities. I can’t express their pain, those who are capable are leaving and those who are not are stuck there.”

Sharing his experience about the escape from Kyiv, Moga said that he was helped throughout his journey to Lviv.

I can’t describe in words what difficulties I faced to reach Lviv. If you had witnessed the conflict, if you had witnessed the situation, you would know how horrific it was. I was in an area which is called Bucha (Kyiv Oblast). It was the fighting hub of the Russian Army with the Ukrainian Army. We heard every second, every minute, and every day the sound of the bombs, missiles, saw fighter planes. It was havoc and dangerous times for me. However, my friend and I were able to escape as we had a vehicle and arranged petrol somehow and came to Lviv after a two-day ordeal.

Talking about his future plans, Moga said, “I am thinking to go to Poland as my wife is allowed to go there. I will leave with my family to Poland tomorrow. We are staying here with a friend of mine. They helped us a lot, even while escaping Kyiv, I was helped by Ukrainian people with free shelter and food. They even offered money when I tried to pay them,” he said.

He also urged India to try to stop this war and said that New Delhi should do whatever possible from them.

Meanwhile, the famous Opera House of Ukraine in Lviv is closed and Mc Donald’s staff were told to shut the outlets due to ongoing war in the region. (ANI)

Referring to India’s stand at the international forums on the Russia-Ukraine crisis, German Ambassador to India, Walter J Lindner on Sunday said that India has excellent diplomatic service and seeing the global world order their diplomats know what to do regarding India’s stand on the issue.

Speaking to ANI, the German envoy said, “India has excellent diplomatic service, they know what to do… It’s not about Ukraine or the EU or NATO… it is about the global world order…We all have to stand together against it,” said Lindner on how European Union sees India’s role in the global matter.

India and 34 other countries on Wednesday abstained from a UN General Assembly resolution that censured Russia over its military actions against Ukraine. India had earlier abstained from the UN Security Council procedural vote to call for a United Nations General Assembly session on the Ukraine crisis.

India along with China and UAE had last week abstained from a US-sponsored resolution against Russia’s military actions in Ukraine. Moscow vetoed the resolution.

“Watch the global order. Do we want that this kind of massive, aggressive attack on a peaceful and democratic neighbour is the rule of the game? This will set a precedent for every disputed border in future to recourse to violence. So, we all have to stand together against Putin and say ‘No Putin, Stop it,” said Lindner.

Regarding Germany’s position to NATO, he said, “You have to ask this to Russian President Vladimir Putin, as he had from ‘Day One’ started to lie saying that the military buildup was just a manoeuvre. He said that he is not invading, just rescuing the Russian speaking people there. He is bombarding everyone, then he says our people are peacekeepers and what do they do? They shell everyone, day and night, seven days a week. From the word go, he was lying. NATO is a defence alliance, we have never been aggressive, never invaded anyone, never attacked anyone.”

Russian forces on February 24 launched military operations in Ukraine, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent entities.

Several countries including the UK, the US, Canada, and the European Union have condemned Russia’s military operations in Ukraine and imposed sanctions on Moscow. These countries have also promised Ukraine to help with military aid to fight Russia.

“Putin’s idea was to attack his neighbouring country, he has to stop and then only we can find a solution,” said the German Ambassador.

Regarding sanctions on Russia, Lindner said, “Our stand is the same as other European countries. We say our doors are open for those who are running away for life from war, ‘Putin’s war.’ We have made a decision, EU, whoever comes from Ukraine can choose which country to enter and we take them up, we find a place for them. If you see the solidarity across Europe with these people (Ukrainian) is incredible, so, everyone has to pay price for this Putin’s war and we are very willing to pay it. We share our rooms, food with the refugees. It’s an emergency, the first time we had a land war since World War II. This is a terrible situation.”

Lindner also said that this crisis resulted in “millions of refugees, 1.5 million is what UN has confirmed and there will be more” adding “there are thousands of people who are either dead or wounded from both sides, including civilians, elders, toddlers and women who were seeking refuge.”

He also said that Russia is attacking nuclear power plants, and there is a massive crackdown on the press by Russia. “This is the 10th day of the war and only one person can change it – Putin,” he said.

Speaking about energy needs of Germany, which is maximum in Europe, and how the sanctions will impact dynamics, he said, “Germany is strongly supporting sanctions against Russia though we have quite a lot of dependencies on Russian gas. We have reduced, stopped the new pipeline coming from Russia. We have decided to increase our military budget by more than 2 per cent of our national budget and are exporting weapons to Ukraine. We participate in all the financial and economic sanctions and since Germany is the biggest economic power in Europe, this really gives teeth to the sanctions. Putin will feel the sanctions, as well as his entourage and oligarchs.” (ANI)

Amid heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Russian troops are planning to bombard Odesa, a port city on Ukraine’s Black Sea coast.

Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is in possession of maps and records which were obtained from those who were captured. “They are planning to bomb Odesa,” reported Ukraine’s media outlet, The Kyiv Independent, quoting the Ukrainian President.

Furthermore, the recent clashes at the administrative buildings near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) could be a result of Ukraine storing documents on perspective developments of nuclear weapons there, a news report said citing Russian sources.

“Certain documentation was also available at the Zaporizhzhia NPP. Clashes with Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups in administrative buildings adjacent to the NPP were apparently related to this fact,” the source reportedly told Sputnik, adding that Ukrainian authorities have partially destroyed and evacuated the majority of documents on the issue from Kyiv and Kharkiv to Lviv.

The Russian source also accused Ukraine of trying to conceal nuclear weapons program, saying that the Ukrainian authorities used the Chernobyl NPP for making a “dirty bomb” and for the work on plutonium separation.

A “dirty bomb” is a type of “radiological dispersal device” that combines a conventional explosive, such as dynamite, with radioactive material according to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC).

“According to the available information, the work on both the dirty bomb production and the plutonium extraction were conducted there. The elevated radiation background in the Chernobyl zone concealed such work,” the source said.

He further accused Ukraine of destroying the evidence of its nuclear program saying, “In the realms of increasing tension in relations with Russia, the Ukrainian leadership decided to destroy all valuable documentation stored in the scientific centres in Kyiv and Kharkiv or evacuate it to Lviv Polytechnic National University.”

Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions, Donetsk and Luhansk as independent republics followed by the announcement of a “special military operation” to “demilitarize” and “denazify” Ukraine. (ANI)