Month: June 2022

India has expressed concern over explosions and gunfire reported from a Gurudwara in the Afghanistan capital Kabul on Saturday morning and said it is closely monitoring the situation.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a statement: “We are deeply concerned at the reports emanating from Kabul about an attack on a sacred Gurudwara in that city. We are closely monitoring the situation and waiting for further details on the unfolding developments.”
At least two blasts were reported from near the Gurdwara in Karte Parwan area in Kabul this morning, according to local media. No group has claimed responsibility so far for the attack in which one person has died, according to sources.

“The sound of explosions was heard in Karte Parwan area of Kabul city. Details about the nature and casualties of this incident are not yet known,” Afghanistan’s Tolo News tweeted. Photographs and videos put out by Tolo News showed thick black plumes of smoke rising from the area.

Manjinder Singh Sirsa of the BJP said he has spoken to Gurnam Singh, president, Gurdwara Karte Parwan, who informed him that the incident took place early morning when a granthi was heading inside the gurdwara for ‘Parkash’, the first morning prayer in the gurudwara.

A group of unidentified gunmen reportedly stormed into the gurdwara and opened fire.

Initial inputs suggested that an explosion took place outside the gate of the gurdwara killing at least two Afghans. Afterwards, two explosions took place inside the complex, some shops attached to the gurdwara caught fire, it is believed that at least two attackers are still inside the gurudwara complex.

According to sources, 25-30 people were present inside the gurdwara for morning prayers. While attackers entered the premises 10-15 people managed to flee but the seven or eight people are still believed to be trapped inside. The numbers have not been confirmed. The guard of the gurudwara has been shot dead by the attackers.

Religious minorities in Afghanistan, including the Sikh community, have been targets of violence in Afghanistan.

In October, last year 15 to 20 terrorists entered a Gurdwara in the Kart-e-Parwan District of Kabul and tied up the guards.

In March 2020, a deadly attack took place at Sri Guru Har Rai Sahib gurudwara in Kabul’s Short Bazaar area in which 27 Sikhs were killed and several were injured. Islamic State terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack.

Meanwhile, earlier this month on June 11, several people were injured in a blast at Batkhak Square in the 10th district of Kabul.

Prior to that, there was a blast in Police District-4 of Kabulfrom with explosives strapped on a bicycle, the Kabul security department said.

On May 25 this year, three explosions rocked the capital of Balkh province, leaving at least 9 people killed and 15 others injured. Meanwhile, on the same day, a blast at Masjid Sharif Hazrat Zakaria mosque in Kabul City left at least two worshippers dead, according to officials. (ANI)

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, on Friday indicated that assembly elections could be held in the Union Territory by the end of this year.

Recently, a delimitation exercise was accomplished after the abrogation of Article 370 from the then state of Jammu and Kashmir. As per the order, out of the 90 Assembly Constituencies (ACs) in the Jammu and Kashmir, 43 will be part of the Jammu region and 47 for the Kashmir region.

Addressing an event here, Singh said: “Recently, the delimitation exercise concluded in J-K. Now, Jammu will have 43 seats and Kashmir will have 47 seats in Vidhan Sabha. There is a strong possibility that the electoral process will commence by the end of this year in J-K.”

Singh once again lashed out at the “neighbouring country” Pakistan, for attempting to “break the social fabric” of the region and added that Pakistan is sowing seeds of hatred in India.

Recently, a spate of targeted killings had broken out in the region following which there were reports of the Kashmiri Hindus leaving the Valley due to fear.

“I appeal to the people here that the social fabric of Jammu and Kashmir should never break rising above religion, caste. There are some forces here which have always tried to break this social fabric and promoted the radicals. Recently, attempts were made again to ignite hatred in J-K. There is an important role of our neighbouring country in sowing the seeds of hatred here. From the attacks of 1947 to the recently conducted targeted killings, there is a foreign conspiracy behind all of these. We won’t let forceful migration take place of any community from Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

On Thursday the defence minister had while addressing security forces in Baramulla district said that Pakistan was continuously trying to disturb peace in J-K through its approach of “bleed India with a thousand cuts”.

“Our neighbour has always resorted to anti-India activities. The state also witnessed terror activities in the past. Due to the relentless efforts of the personnel of the Armed Forces, BSF, CRPF and Jammu and Kashmir Police, there has been a significant decline in the number of terror activities in the state recently. Pakistan continuously tries to disturb peace in the country through its approach of bleed India with a thousand cuts. But, our security forces are such a protective shield for this country that whoever tries to break it, bleeds himself. The nation has immense faith in our forces who are always ready to deal with any situation,” he said.

Meanwhile, addressing an event held here today to mark the 200th anniversary of Mahararaja Gulab Singh ‘Rajyaabhishek ceremony’, the defence minister hit out at Pakistan for the illegal occupation of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan and said that it was never made a part of the Pakistani Constitution unlike India’s where the entire Jammu and Kashmir is a part of the country.

“In 1947, when India was divided, a large chunk of the region was captured illegally before the accession of Jammu and Kashmir. Even today, Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan is under the illegal occupation of Pakistan. The areas which Maharaja Gulab Singh had added in Jammu and Kashmir are being claimed by Pakistan as theirs,” he said.

“The truth is that Pakistan has no locus-standi in these areas. If this were so, then in 1956, 62, 72, and 73, when Pakistan’s Constitution was made, Gilgit-Baltistan was never mentioned as a part of Pakistan. Whereas, we have only one Constitution in which it is mentioned clearly that PoK, Gilgit Baltistan are inseparable parts of India and resolution for the same was passed in both the Houses of the Parliament,” the Defence Minister added.

Singh also mentioned Article 370 of the Constitution, which was abrogated in August 2019, and said that the people “had sensed the problems created due to this seclusion a long time ago”.

“If Jammu and Kashmir were merged to India after Independence, then Article 370 of the Constitution which kept the region secluded and the people here had sensed the problems created due to this seclusion a long time ago,” he said.

“The people of Jammu and Kashmir protested for the betterment of the region for seven decades. We lost our leader Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. Despite all protests and efforts, Article 370 was not scrapped due to vote bank politics. On August 5, 2019, Article 370 was scrapped by both the Houses of the Parliament and the Constitutional distance from India was ended,” Singh alleged. (ANI)

As many as 340 train services were affected on Friday due to youth’s agitation against the recently launched Agnipath recruitment scheme.

The Agnipath Scheme was launched by the Union Defence Ministry on Tuesday with the intent to enable a youthful profile of the Armed Forces and provide a fresh lease of ‘Josh’ and ‘Jazba’ whilst at the same time bringing about a transformational shift towards a more tech-savvy Armed Forces.

As per the latest reports by the Railways Ministry, 94 Mail Express and 140 Passenger Trains have been cancelled, whereas 65 Mail Express and 30 Passenger Trains have been partially cancelled to run in the country.

The Railways have also decided to divert the route of 11 Mail Express trains for tomorrow.

As per an official statement by the Northern Railways, 12 trains which were scheduled to commence on June 17– Kamakhya-Bhagat Ki Kothi Express (15624), Darbhanga-New Delhi Bihar Sampark Kranti Express (12565), Raxual-Anand Vihar Terminal Satyagrah Express (15273), Saharsa-New Delhi Special (02563), Howrah-New Delhi Duronto Express (12273), Jaynagar-Anand Vihar Terminal Garib Rath Express (12435), Dibrugarh-Lalgarh Avadh Assam Express (15909), Alipurdwar-Delhi Jn. Mahananda Express (15483), Kamakhya-Anand Vihar Terminal North East Express (12505), Bhagalpur-Anand Vihar Terminal Vikramshila Express (12367), Varanasi-Patna Special Express (03289), and Varanasi-Barkakana Special Express (03360)– have been cancelled due to the protests.

Apart from this, another train Bhagat Ki Kothi Kamakhya Express, bearing the number 15623, which was earlier scheduled to start its journey on June 21 has also been cancelled.

During the protest, which remained active for a third day today, several trains in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Telangana were vandalised and torched by the agitators demanding immediate withdrawal of the recruitment scheme.

Several protestors in Hyderabad set ablaze 4-5 train engines and 2-3 coaches. Divisional Railway Manager at Secunderabad railway station, AK Gupta, however, ensured that they will analyse the extent of the damage.

“Info of one person being injured. Train services temporarily halted for the safety of passengers,” Gupta said.

Similarly, a mob in the morning vandalised a train at the Ballia railway station in Uttar Pradesh during the protest against Agnipath.

Bihar, remained the most affected state due to protest as the agitation continued for the second day today and the youth disrupted the movement of trains in various districts.

Earlier in the day, the East Central Railway informed that as many as nine trains were cancelled and nine others were short terminated, while the agitating protestors torched the train coaches at Islampur railway station in Bihar’s Nalanda.

The East Central Railway also issued helpline numbers for several Railway Stations amid the protest.

Meanwhile, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw appealed to the youth to not indulge in any violent protests.

“I appeal to the youth to not indulge in violent protests and not damage the property of the Railways,” he said. (ANI)

The three chiefs of Indian Defence services on Friday hailed the decision of the Central government to approve the Agnipath Scheme, a recruitment process for Indian youth to serve in the Armed Forces.

“The Government has announced Agnipath scheme under which youth will be able to join armed forces. The age criteria will be 17.5 to 21 years. Happy to announce that for the first recruitment, the upper age limit has been revised to 23 years. It will benefit the youth. Air Force recruitment will begin on June 24,” the Indian Air Force chief, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari said in a virtual address on Friday.
The Indian Army chief General Manoj Pande, in an exclusive interaction with ANI, informed that the training of first Agniveers will begin this December.

“As far as the question of Agniveers going to recruitment training centres is concerned, the training of first Agniveers will begin this December (in 2022) at the centres. The active service will commence in the middle of 2023,” said General Pande.

Agnipath Scheme, which was approved by the cabinet on June 14, was launched in an effort to bring a change in the recruitment process of the Armed Forces. With the new military recruitment scheme facing criticism, the Centre has decided to bring a change in the upper age limit for recruiting Agniveers.

Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar termed the Agnipath scheme as “one of the most transformational schemes for the armed forces.”

“It gives an opportunity for the youth to participate and contribute toward Desh Seva,” India Today quoted Kumar as saying.

Granting a one-time waiver, the Centre on June 16, 2022, announced that the Agniveer upper age limit for recruitments via Agnipath Scheme has been extended to 23 years from 21 years.

Indian Air Force also appreciated the government for increasing the upper age limit to 23 from 21 for recruitment under the Agnipath scheme for the year 2022.

COVID-19 halted the Army’s recruitment for over two years. In 2019-2020, the Army recruited jawans and there has been no entry since then. On the other hand, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force had both recruited in the last two years respectively.

The Ministry of Defence, in its statement on Tuesday, said that the Agnipath scheme has been designed to enable a youthful profile of the Armed Forces. It will provide an opportunity to the youth who may be keen to don the uniform by attracting young talent from the society who are more in tune with contemporary technological trends and plough back skilled, disciplined and motivated manpower into the society.

This is a major defence policy reform introduced by the Government to usher in a new era in the Human Resource policy of the three Services. The policy, which comes into immediate effect, will hereafter govern the enrolment for the three services. (ANI)

India’s net collection from direct taxes rose to Rs 3,39,225 crore in the current financial year till June 16 as compared to Rs 2,33,651 crore recorded in the corresponding period of the last year, registering a year-on-year growth of 45 per cent, as per the government data released on Friday.

The net direct tax collections of Rs 3,39,225 crore as of June 16 in the current financial year include corporation tax of Rs 1,70,583 crore (net of refund) and the personal income tax including Security Transaction Tax (STT) at Rs 1,67,960 crore (net of refund), according to data released by the Central Board of Direct Taxes.

The gross collection of direct taxes (before adjusting for refunds) for the financial year 2022-23 till June 16 stands at Rs 3,69,559 crore compared to Rs 2,64,382 crore in the corresponding period of the preceding year, representing an increase of nearly 40 per cent year-on-year.

This includes corporation tax at Rs 1,90,651 crore and personal income tax including Security Transaction Tax (STT) at Rs 1,78,215 crore.

Minor head wise collection comprises advance tax of Rs 1,01,017 crore, Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) of Rs 2,29,676 crore, Self-Assessment Tax of Rs 21,849 crore, Regular Assessment Tax of Rs 10,773 crore, Tax on Distributed Profits of Rs 5,529 crore and Tax under other minor heads of Rs 715 crore.

The advance tax collections for the first quarter of 2022-23 stand at Rs 1,01,017 crore against Advance Tax collections of Rs 75,783 crore for the corresponding period of the previous year, showing a growth of more than 33 per cent.

This comprises corporation tax at Rs 78,842 crore and personal income tax at Rs 22,175 crore. This amount is expected to increase as further information is received from Banks, the Union Finance Ministry said in a statement.

The TDS collections for FY 2022-23 (as on June 16, 2022) stand at Rs 2,29,676 crore against TDS collections of Rs 1,57,434 crore for the corresponding period of the previous year, showing a growth of nearly 46 per cent.

The self-assessment tax collections for FY 2022-23 (as on June 16) stand at Rs 21,849 crore against self-assessment tax collections of Rs 15,483 crore for the corresponding period of the previous year, showing a growth of more than 41 per cent.

Refunds amounting to Rs 30,334 crore have been issued in the current financial year till June 16. (ANI)

Global financial watchdog the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) said on Friday that Pakistan will continue to stay on its ‘grey list’ and a final decision to remove it from the list will be taken after an “on-site” verification visit by the Paris-based body.

This decision was announced after the conclusion of the FATF plenary in Berlin, where delegates from governments around the world and partner organizations, including the UN and IMF discussed key money laundering and terrorist financing issues.

“At its June 2022 Plenary, the FATF made the initial determination that Pakistan has substantially completed its two action plans, covering 34 items, and warrants an on-site visit to verify that the implementation of Pakistan’s AML/CFT reforms has begun and is being sustained, and that the necessary political commitment remains in place to sustain implementation and improvement in the future,” the FATF said in a statement.

“The FATF will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and conduct an on-site visit at the earliest possible date,” it added.

Pakistan has been on the Paris-based global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog’s grey list for deficiencies in its counter-terror financing and anti-money laundering regimes since June 2018. This greylisting has adversely impacted its imports, exports, remittances, and limited access to international lending.

In June 2021, the country was given three months to fulfil the remaining conditions by October. However, Pakistan was retained on the FATF ‘grey list’ for failing to effectively implement the global FATF standards and over its lack of progress on investigation and prosecution of senior leaders and commanders of UN-designated terror groups.

Back in March, FATF had called Pakistan to work on “complex money laundering investigations and prosecutions.” (ANI)

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday inaugurated the “Boulder Climbing Wall and the Himalayan Museum” at Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering and Winter Sports (JIMS) in Pahalgam.

Addressing the gathering at JIMS in Pahalgam, the Union Minister said the institute has earned its name in skiing training while it also imparts training for mountaineering and other allied sports.

“I have been told that this Institute has earned a name for itself in skiing training, while it also imparts training for mountaineering and other allied sports. Many women also receiving training here now. Training programs here are subscribed,” Singh said.

On Thursday, Rajnath Singh who is on a two-day visit to the Union Territory visited the forward areas of Jammu and Kashmir and took stock of the security situation along the border.

He undertook a first-hand assessment of the situation in the formations looking after the Line of Control (LoC) and forward areas in North Kashmir.

According to Defence Ministry, he was accompanied by Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj Pande, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GoC-in-C), Northern Command Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, GoC, 15 Corps Lt Gen AS Aujla and GoC, 19 Infantry Division Maj Gen Ajay Chandpuria.

Rajnath Singh and Manoj Sinha attended the 9th executive council meeting and the 4th general body meeting at JIMS. (ANI)

Bollywood actor Parineeti Chopra unleashed her terrific style statement in her latest Instagram post, turning heads with her glamorous look.

“Won a style award last night. The college Pari wouldn’t have believed it.” captioned the ‘Ishaqzaade’ star.

In the very first picture, Parineeti gave a dapper look with her bold makeup. She donned a golden-coloured, full-sleeve floral suit with shimmers and glitters. Her black scarf could be seen flying as she stares at the camera with her sharp facial features.

Parineeti struck a stylish pose in the second image. Her matte brown lipstick shade accompanied by those well-manicured white nail polish, enhanced her diva look further. Parineeti’s bronze skin tone, made her look no less than a belle!

In the third picture, the actor faced sideways. She kept her hair in a bun and her sharp jawline complimented her glam quotient.

As for the fourth image, Parineeti’s expressions were totally on point. She seemed to look straight at the camera, and her piercing look must have won millions of hearts.

Meanwhile, on the film front, Parineeti will next be seen in Sooraj Barjatya’s ‘Unchai’. The film also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Boman Irani and Anupam Kher. Apart from this, she will next be seen in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s film ‘Animal’, alongside Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol. (ANI)

One person died in Telangana’s Secunderabad on Friday as protests against the newly announced military recruitment policy, Agnipath, turned violent.

Earlier today, agitators vandalised the Secunderabad Railway Station and set a train ablaze during a protest against the Centre’s Agnipath scheme.
Telangana Police resorted to aerial firing to disperse the angry crowd at the railway station.

Speaking to mediapersons, the Superintendent of Gandhi Hospital, Raja Rao said, “Around 13 people were brought to the Gandhi hospital. One person was brought dead. After the panchama is done on the dead body, a postmorterm examination will be conducted.

“For four persons pellet bullet injuries have been noticed and for others, whether these are injuries from bullets or rubber bullet it is yet to be examined. The remaining injured are being examined by the doctors on duty. One person’s situation is critical, he has received a chest injury,” the hospital superintendent said.

The official informed that an investigation is still underway and said that two persons are in need of surgery while the condition of one person is critical. Others brought to the hospital are are out of danger.

“The investigation is still on, one person received a fracture and another has an injury in the chest and now surgery is going on. These two surgeries are on. The remaining have received injuries and we are trying to take out foreign bodies. One is critical and others out of danger,” Rao said.

In other parts of the country like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, protestors demonstrated for the third consecutive day.

At the Secunderabad Railway station, protestors vandalised the windows of a train and torched a two-wheeler on tracks and a few bags on the platform. The Railways has discontinued trains to the area. Protestors also vandalised a TSRTC bus at Secunderabad bus station.

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, protesters torched compartments of a train in Samastipur and those in another train at Lakhisarai station.

On June 14, the Union Cabinet approved the Agnipath recruitment scheme for Indian youth to serve in the Armed Forces. Youth selected under this scheme will be known as Agniveers and will serve in the Armed Forces for a period of four years.

The government is “dedicatedly working” towards expanding the length of the National Highways network in the country to 2 lakh kilometres by 2025 from the current around 1.47 lakh kms, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has said.

Addressing the 222nd mid-term council meeting of the Indian Roads Congress (IRC), Gadkari said in the last 8 years the length of National Highways in the country has gone up by more than 50 per cent from 91,000 km in 2014 to about 1.47 lakh kms now.
Gadkari said infrastructure development has an important role in fulfilling the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make India a 5 trillion-dollar economy.

Addressing the Indian Roads Congress meeting virtually, the minister proposed setting up of ‘Innovation Bank’ for new ideas, research findings, and technologies to focus on quality in infrastructure development, according to an official statement released by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways

He said new initiatives are expected from IRC and innovation should be the focus area for all engineers.

Gadkari said the Indian Roads Congress should develop a World-class state-of-art laboratory with the help of the Indian Institute of Technology (IITs) and other global institutions.

“We are ready to adopt World’s best and most successful technology and new materials for construction,” Gadkari said. He said the use of proven technology and reduction in construction costs are the two most important driving forces for road construction in the country.

“We need to reduce the cost of construction while maintaining quality,” he added.

Gadkari said there should be minimum carbon footprints and exploitation of limited natural resources during the construction and operation phase. He said development at the cost of degradation of ecology and environment is not acceptable to the government.

The minister highlighted the need for the development of sustainable alternatives for steel and cement.

He said road safety is a high-priority area for the government. “We need to incorporate effective global practices and guidelines related to road engineering into the specification,” he added. (ANI)