Month: April 2022

Pakistan Peoples Party’s Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will take the oath as the Foreign Minister in one or two days, PPP’s leader Zaman Kaira confirmed on Saturday.

While conversing with journalists in London, Kaira revealed that Bilawal has left for Pakistan after holding two meetings with Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) leader Nawaz Sharif to exchange views on political matters, Geo TV reported.

Former Prime Minister and PPP Chairman, in their last meeting, discussed ways forward after a “constitutional victory for democracy, the rule of law and supremacy of parliament” and agree to work closely to “repair the rot across the board,” read a joint statement.

Notably, PML-N and PPP are the two key alliances of the ruling coaling government, Geo TV reported.

In the meeting, both the party’s leaders also discussed the roadmap for the future with the consensus of all democratic forces and the unfinished business left on the “Charter of Democracy”.

“It was also agreed that high-level summitry is needed to brainstorm the path ahead for a new charter,” read the statement.

Earlier, there was speculation that PPP is seeking more stake in the government but the sources confirmed that Bilawal and Nawaz did not discuss anything related to the posts of Senate, Governor Punjab or Presidency, according to Geo TV.

The three-hour-long meeting between the PML-N leader and PPP chairman was held in two parts. In the first part, Bilawal and Nawaz held a one-on-one meeting, while in the second half, other senior leaders of both parties also joined their leaders.

Meanwhile, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb also confirmed that the PPP chairman would take the oath after he returns to Pakistan, reported Geo TV.

Earlier, on Friday, Pakistan President Arif Alvi administered the oath to three new federal ministers and one minister of state for the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s cabinet at the Aiwan-i-Sadr in Islamabad.

On Tuesday, 33 lawmakers were inducted into the new PM’s cabinet after they were sworn in by Acting President Sadiq Sanjrani in the absence of the president, who had earlier refused to administer the oath to the lawmakers.

Although the oath was taken by 33 lawmakers, a notification issued by the country’s Cabinet Division carried the names of 26 federal ministers and two ministers of state, Dawn newspaper reported. (ANI)

Even though Earth Day, which is globally marked on April 22 to spread awareness about various environmental issues, just went by, for Bollywood actor Ananya Pandey “every day is earth day”.

On Saturday, the ‘Gehraiyaan’ star took to her Instagram and posted a series of pictures of her in which she could be seen having a good time on a sunny day in the arms of nature.

In the pictures, the 23-year-old actor could be seen sporting a white sports bra; she clubbed it with a pair of military print activewear tights. Ananya accessorized her whole look with a dusty sling bag. She captioned the picture, “every day is earth day “.

Reacting to the post Ananya’s best friend Shanaya Kapoor dropped a bunch of hearts and commented, “Prettiest”, while Navya Nanda, granddaughter of veteran superstar Amitabh Bachhan commented, “Didn’t you come in this yesterday”, “I’m confused now”.

Talking about Ananya’s upcoming project, she is currently busy shooting for her upcoming movie ‘Kho Gaye Hum Kahan’ alongside Siddhant Chaturvedi and Adarsh Gourav. (ANI)

China has taken full advantage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, grabbing the huge discount offered by Moscow on coking coal which is used in steel mills, as Japan and the European Union have curbed imports leaving the Russian companies scrambling for buyers.

China imported 321,380 tonnes of liquefied natural gas from Russia last month roughly the same amount as in March last year despite an overall 17pc year-on-year decline in its gas imports, driven by soaring prices. Beijing’s willingness to work with Moscow will feed frustration in the West, as it undermines the effectiveness of sanctions launched over the past two months, media reports stated.
China needs coal as it is the most common energy source in the country, representing more than half of total consumption despite efforts over recent decades to reduce usage.

On one hand, China is fulfilling its requirements and on the other hand, it is assisting Moscow in limiting the effect of Western sanctions keeping in view it itself does not face sanctions and its internal food security is not compromised.

China has moved to step up domestic coal mining, but its mines produce an inferior quality of material that is unsuited for use in steel mills, forcing it to rely on foreign imports.

Imports of the fuel, which is used in making steel, rose to 1.4m tonnes in March from 590,000 a year earlier, reports suggested.

Intellasia further stated that Brent crude oil was trading at around $108 a barrel on Wednesday afternoon. In mid-March, traders had been selling Urals blend the most common Russian variety at discounts of $25 to $30 a barrel.

The EU purchased euro 5.2 billion of Russian coal in 2021. As a whole, coal imports fell 31pc year-on-year, driven by a collapse in demand for thermal coal, which is used for power generation, reported Intellasia.

Holger Schmieding, an economist at Berenberg, said that timing “should allow EU members to find alternative sources”. It will also give Russia time to redirect its exports.

The lure of cheaper energy, in the form of gas, coal and oil, and low-cost wheat from Russia far outweighs the fear of sanctions as China has decided to make deals with Russia as long as it can. (ANI)

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said that India would not hesitate to act against terrorists who target the country from across borders and to take bold decisions to protect the unity and integrity of the country.

Singh voiced the government’s unwavering commitment to strengthening the country’s security apparatus to deal with internal and external threats and said, “We have taken a firm stand to eliminate terrorism in all its forms and have protected our citizens from the menace.”

“If needed, we will eliminate terrorism emanating from across the border. The government does not and will not hesitate to take bold decisions to protect the unity and integrity of the country. We will not hesitate to act against terrorists by crossing borders if our country is targeted from outside. We have already given a message that we can deal with terrorism very strongly,” he said.

Attending a felicitation ceremony organized by the Assam government at Srimanta Sankardev Kalakshetra in Guwahati to honour the valour, dedication and sacrifice of the Bravehearts who fought the enemy and ensured victory in the 1971 war, the Defence Minister said that, the removal of Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from many areas of the North-East is the result of durable peace and stability in the region.

“Some people believe that the Indian Army does not want AFSPA to be removed. I want to say from this forum that the Army has a minimal role in internal security. The Army wants that the situation becomes completely normal in Jammu and Kashmir so that AFSPA can be removed from there as well,” he said.

The Defence Minister lauded the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) for strengthening the infrastructure in border areas, saying that all efforts are being made to bolster the far-flung areas from Arunachal Pradesh to Ladakh.

Talking about some of the BRO projects including the Atal Tunnel and the under-construction Sela Tunnel which, Rajnath Singh said, will provide all-weather connectivity to the far-flung areas and enhance the defence preparedness.

“We fulfilled the long-pending demand of One Rank One Pension as soon as we came to power. Under Digital India, many online services have been started, including Smart Canteen Card and Ex-Servicemen Identity Card. A Pension Grievance Portal is also functioning to address the issues of pensioners. Now, Havildars who retired before 2006 and got the rank of Honorary Naik Subedar are also getting the benefit of a revised pension. Orders were also given to revise the pension regulation of the three services in December 2020. We believe in taking care of our brave soldiers, not only while they are in service, but also after their retirement,” he said.

Talking about the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, the Defence Minister said that, earlier, India was counted amongst the defence importers, but today, India is ranked among the top 25 defence exporters of the world.

“In the last few years, we have increased our defence exports by about 334 per cent. We have set an export target of Rs 35,000 crore by 2024-25,” he added.

He further said that this decade will be known as the ‘Roaring Twenties’ in India’s defence manufacturing.

On the other hand, Assam Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma announced that his government has made efforts to recognize and compensate for the sacrifices made by our soldiers by way of offering Rs 50 lakh as ex-gratia, jobs for next of kin, 2 per cent job reservation in government jobs and reservation of seats for their wards in medical studies.

“We salute our war veterans and offer tributes to those who made supreme sacrifices in the 1971 India-Pakistan war. Today’s felicitation is an endeavour to recognize the contribution of soldiers from Assam in India’s victory in the war that liberation of Bangladesh,” Sarma said.

During the programme, the Defence Minister felicitated the veterans of the 1971 India-Pakistan war.

The state government had given Rs 10 lakh each to 9 war widows, Rs 5 lakh each to eight war casualties, Rs 2.5 each to two ex-prisoners of war and Rs 2 lakh each to 86 veterans.

Rajnath Singh also released a book ‘The Bravehearts of 1971’ at the programme.

Assam Governor Prof Jagdish Mukhi, Lt Col Quazi Sajjad Ali Zahir (Retd), a Bangladeshi veteran of the 1971 war who was awarded a Padma Shri, senior officials of the Indian Army, Assam Police, state government, ex-army personnel were also present during the felicitation ceremony. (ANI)

Amidst global condemnation of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, the Taliban issued a decree to remove the Persian language from the Supreme Court bill.

The new panel of the Supreme Court, which is written only in Pashto and English, the name of the Supreme Court has also been changed to “Judiciary of Power”. In recent months, the Taliban have removed Persian from several other tablets, including Balkh University, local media reported.

The Taliban has also eliminated the Persian language from various other boards, including the Balkh University, reported the Afghan media outlet.

Taliban has even banned the secondary education of girls.

The Taliban has ordered a ban on video-sharing app TikTok and online multi-player game PUBG, arguing they were leading Afghan youths “astray”.

Earlier, the Taliban also imposed the forceful removal of the Uzbek language in the country. (ANI)

Dismissing UK Labour MP Naz Shah’s remarks on human rights in India, Indian scholar Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Bareilvi said that Muslims here live in peace and any interference by a foreign nation in India’s internal matter is unwarranted.

Confronting the UK MP’s comments, Razvi, Director of Islamic Research Center, said that the statement by the UK parliamentarian is irresponsible. Lauding India for being unbiased towards the Muslim minority in the country, Razvi added, “In India, all the Muslims live with peace and tranquillity, we do not face any discrimination of any kind in our country.”
“We carry out Namaz, Azaan, Jalsa.. all with complete freedom. No one faces any problem. As far as Kashmir is concerned, it is an integral part of India and will remain so forever,” he stated.

“All the Indian Muslims believe that Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will always be a part of India. There is no conflict of thoughts regarding this. Muslims are happy in India. We want prosperity in India which is one of the most developing nations,” Razvi noted.

He urged UK MP and Pakistan to not speak in any of the internal matters of India, adding “we do not accept interference in Kashmir’s matter or Hijab issue…we do not accept any interference of a foreign nation”.

Razvi’s remarks came in response to the UK MP’s tweet “I urge @BorisJohnson to read my thread, to stand up for human rights and stop embarrassing us on the international front with his ignorance. Bulldozing homes of minority Muslims in India, amid rising tensions is serious!.” (ANI)

A report has stated that while farm loan waivers reduce the quality of expenditure by implementing states, it also negatively affects institutional incentives to disburse agricultural credit.

The research report on farm loan waivers in India, released by Chairman NABARD on Friday, also noted that there does not appear to have a statistically significant inflationary impact.
Using secondary and primary data, the study addressed key questions like how states funded the farm loan waivers and if diversion of funds towards the waivers crowded out capital expenditures (CapEx) in the states while farmers’ behaviour and attitudes towards these waivers were studied through a primary survey of about 3,000 farmers from three states — Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra.

The report argued that the strategy to support distressed farmers in a sustainable manner that empowers them in short and long run requires a rethink. This report makes a case for a deeper analysis and the need to address the structural factors that consistently cause distress to farmers.

“Loan waivers are considered a one-time solution to farmer distress. Farmers in India are plagued by several distortions that make the farming business unviable. The production cycle makes it impossible for farmers not to be indebted and the income instability makes it difficult for them to come out of the cycle of debt. Thus, the loan waivers offer temporary solace without addressing the underlying issues and, hence, within a few years farmers need another waiver,” the report stated.

The report claimed that its valuable source of data-backed evidence on farm loan waiver programmes can be beneficial for different stakeholders, ranging from policymakers in the states and the Centre, to academia and researchers. Ideally, the policymakers and governments may like to refer to the study before designing and implementing distress alleviating policy relief measures for farmers, it added.

Funded by NABARD, the study was conducted by Dr Sweta Saini, Siraj Hussain and Dr Pulkit Khatri under the aegis of Bharat Krishak Samaj (BKS). (ANI)

India reported 2,527 new COVID-19 infections and 33 fatalities in the last 24 hours informed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday.

India on Friday had reported 2,451 fresh COVID-19 cases and 54 fatalities.
With this, the active caseload in the country stands at 15,079 which is 0.04 per cent of the total cases.

A total of 1,656 COVID patients recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours taking the total number of recoveries since the beginning of the pandemic to 4,25,17,724. The recovery rate is 98.75 per cent.

According to the Ministry, 33 patients succumbed to the virus. The death toll in the country is now at 5,22,149.

The daily positivity rate is at 0.56 per cent. The weekly positivity rate stands at 0.50 per cent.

As many as 4,55,179 COVID samples were tested in the last 24 hours. A total of 83.42 crore tests have been conducted in the country so far.

As far as vaccination is concerned, 19,13,296 doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered during this period. With this, the total number of vaccine jabs administered under the nationwide vaccination drive so far went up to 1,87,46,72,536. (ANI)

The Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Bhagwant Mann led Punjab government has withdrawn the security provided to 184 former ministers, MLAs and private protectees in Punjab.

In a letter, dated April 20, the Additional Director General of Police Security said, “Consequent to a security review based on current threat assessment, the competent authority has approved the withdrawal of security from… Former Ministers, Former MLAs and private protectees.”
Among the 184 VIPs to lose their security are the Families of– former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, Gurdarshan Brar, IPS Gurdarshan Singh, and Udaybir Singh (son of former cabinet minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa).

Alongside, the security of former Cabinet Ministers– Surjit Singh Rakhra and Bibi Jagir Kaur, Tota Singh (Shiromani Akali Dal Moga), Former Congress MP– Varinder Singh Bajwa, Santosh Chaudhary, and Ex- Congress MLA Deep Malhotra has also been withdrawn.

Rajesh Bagga (State Vice President from Bharatiya Janata Party), Mahi Gill (BJP star campaigner), and Harinder Singh Kohli (District president BJP) have also lost the deployed security personnel.

According to the order personnel deployed on specific orders of the Supreme Court or High Court will not be withdrawn.

Earlier on March 12, the security cover of 122 Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) was stripped. (ANI)

Hollywood star Nicolas Cage has revealed the gender and name of the baby he is expecting with his wife, Riko Shibata.

According to Page Six, while appearing on the latest episode of ‘The Kelly Clarkson Show’, Cage revealed, “I am gonna have a little girl.”
He shared that his daughter’s name will be Lennon Augie in tribute to John Lennon and the actor’s father, August Coppola.

“I’ll call her Lenny for short. I’m thrilled. It’s going to be the biggest adventure of my life,” he continued.

Cage explained that ‘Across the Universe’ by The Beatles is his “favourite song ever written,” so Lennon seemed like the right fit. He did not announce Shibata’s due date.

As per Page Six, back in January, Cage and Shibata had confirmed that they were expecting a baby. The couple tied the knot in Las Vegas at the Wynn Hotel in February 2021. (ANI)