Month: March 2023

Protests In Gilgit-Baltistan Over Wheat, Power Shortage

Protests In Gilgit-Baltistan Over Wheat, Power Shortage

By LokMarg

People in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (Pok), Gilgit-Baltistan protested in two districts over the shortage of electricity and wheat, Dawn reported.

According to the Pakistani newspaper, in Gilgit Baltistan, many residents including women gathered at the intersection and blocked Shahrah-i-Quaid-i-Azam in continued protest against 22 hours of daily power outages in their area.

Protesters at Zulfiqarabad Chowk chanted slogans against the government and said the crisis had been going on for the last two weeks. The residents said they were sometimes deprived of even two hours of daily electricity supply, making their lives difficult amid winter.

On top of it, they were also faced with wheat shortage, the protesters said and blamed the government for failing to provide even necessities to people, according to Dawn.

One of the protesters said that the Gilgit Baltistan Chief Minister should be here to resolve public issues, but he was in Lahore “to protect former prime minister Imran Khan”.

Later, the protesters dispersed peacefully after Amin Baig, coordinator to the chief minister, negotiated with them and assured them of resolving their issues immediately.

Meanwhile, the residents of Ghanche’s Barah village, the hometown of GB Local Government Minister Haji Abdul Hameed, also staged a protest against the wheat shortage.

The demonstrators blocked Siachen Road and staged a sit-in to press the government to fulfil their demands, reported Dawn.

Prolonged power cuts have led to frequent angry demonstrations in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. Skardu city has been left totally without electricity for the past three months. Load-shedding has become a daily occurrence.

Power shortage is not the only issue for the ACC protesters. Wheat and flour have disappeared from the shops, according to reports in Baad-e-Shimal, Daily K2.

The power situation has worsened over the years despite the abundance of water resources in a region that is reputedly

Pakistan’s principal water reservoir. But only 16 per cent of the capacity for hydropower generation has been utilized so far.

The estimated total hydropower potential of Pakistan is around 60,000 MW. Currently, the hydro installed capacity is only 10,251MW, around 25 per cent of the total installed capacity. Successive governments have resorted to imports as an easy solution.

Writing in The News International (February 21, 2023), irrigation and power engineer Ali Rehmat Shimshali points to the overall neglect of hydropower and preference for fuel-based power generation. (ANI)

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Dia Mirza

Dia Mirza Shares Adorable Video With Son Avyaan

By LokMarg

Balancing work and personal life, especially for actor-moms is not easy. Busy actors take their toddlers to work.

Dia Mirza on Wednesday posted a video with her little munchkin. She took her son Avyaan to work. The video shows Dia was shooting for some endorsement. And in between work, she spent time with her son.

he actor wrote in the caption, “Mind is made #WednesdayWisdom #MammaAtWork.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CpO5XNKA42q/

Celebs along with fans loved the video. Malaika Arora posted a love emoji to it. Actor Sandhya Mridul wrote, “I want more of this kid.” The lovable moments between mother and son won the hearts of millions.

Dia married businessman Vaibhav in February 2021, and they welcomed a baby boy named Avyaan in May, 2021.

On the work front, Dia will be next seen in ‘Dhak Dhak’ alongside Taapsee Pannu, Ratna Pathak Shah, Fatima Sana Shaikh, and Sanjana Sanghi.

Helmed by Tarun Dudeja, the film ‘Dhak Dhak’ belongs to the adventure genre which follows the story of a road trip undertaken by a girl gang.

Apart from that, she will also be seen in Rajkummar Rao and Bhumi Pednekar’s next social drama film ‘Bheed’. (ANI)

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Army To Buy 307 ATAGS Howitzers

Army To Buy 307 ATAGS Howitzers

By LokMarg

In a major stride towards the ‘Make-in-India’ in the defence sector, the Ministry of Defence has received a proposal from Indian Army to buy 307 Advanced Towed Artillery Gun Systems (ATAGS) for deployment along the borders with China and Pakistan.

The proposal worth over USD 1 billion has been received from the Indian Army and is under discussion. It is expected to be cleared soon and sent for clearance by the Cabinet Committee on Security, defence officials told ANI.
This would be the first order for the indigenous howitzer which can strike targets at around 50 kms and is believed to be the best gun in its class, they said.

The forces have been conducting trials of the gun in different altitudes and terrain. They have been upgraded as per the suggestions made by the users, the officials said.

The technology and know-how of raw howitzer have been shared with two private firms Tata Advanced Systems and Bharat Forge group by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and they would be supplying the system to the forces including over 320 high mobility vehicles.

The trials of the 155mm/52 calibre Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) were completed at the Pokhran Field Firing Range (PFFR) between April 26 and May 2.

The ATAGS is an indigenous towed artillery gun system project undertaken in mission mode by the DRDO as a part of the artillery modernisation programme of the Indian Army, the statement added.

Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) Pune is the nodal laboratory of the DRDO for the design & development of ATAGS, along with other DRDO laboratories.

The development has been done with two industry partners, Tata Advanced Systems Ltd and Bharat Forge Ltd, along with the active participation of other industries.

The reliability of both guns has been proven by firing multiple rounds in various zones, including burst, intense & sustained modes. High accuracy and consistency in range and line with maximum range have been established, the DRDO had said recently. (ANI)

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Bill Appreciates India’s COVID-19 Management

Bill Appreciates India’s COVID-19 Management

By LokMarg

Microsoft co-founder and Philanthropist Bill Gates on Wednesday met Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya in the national capital and appreciated India’s COVID-19 management.

During his meeting, Bill Gates appreciated India’s COVID Management, vaccination drive and Digital Health initiatives like Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.
He also visited the dedicated War Room named National Public Health Observatory which was shaped during Covid times.

India’s G20 health priorities, PM Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana and eSanjeevani were also discussed between Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and the Microsoft founder.

“Wonderful meeting with @BillGates. He appreciated India’s COVID-19 Management, Vaccination Drive & Digital Health initiatives like Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. We discussed India’s G20 health priorities, PM Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana and eSanjeevani,” Minister Mansukh Mandaviya tweeted on Wednesday.

Notably, one of India’s three health priorities at the G-20 summit is hosting is to ensure access to such medical countermeasures for all in the event of another pandemic.

The Health Minister showed him the dedicated War Room named National Public Health Observatory which was shaped during Covid times. It tracked COVID cases & Vaccination speedily & efficiently and currently each health program and initiative uses Artificial Intelligence (AI).

On Tuesday, Bill Gates also met former Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and had a discussion with him about his philanthropic work specially related to children’s healthcare.

Besides Sachin, Gates also met Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das and held discussions on wide-ranging matters.”Mr. @BillGates visited RBI Mumbai today and held wide-ranging discussions with Governor @DasShaktikanta,” RBI tweeted.

This is Gates’ first visit to India after the COVID-19 pandemic. On February 23, he expressed his happiness in coming to India.

“India gives me hope for the future. I’m excited to visit next week and see the work being done by innovators and entrepreneurs to tackle big challenges like climate change, health, and hunger,” he tweeted. (ANI)

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Banned 2.9 MN Accounts In Jan To Combat Abuse: WhatsApp

Banned 2.9 MN Accounts In Jan To Combat Abuse: WhatsApp

By LokMarg

Social messaging platform WhatsApp on Wednesday said it banned over 2.9 million accounts in the country in month of January to “combat abuse.”

“WhatsApp is an industry leader in preventing abuse, among end-to-end encrypted messaging services,” a spokesperson of the social messaging platform said.
In order to keep “our users safe on our platform,” WhatsApp over the years has consistently invested in artificial intelligence and other state-of-the-art technology, data scientists and experts, the spokesperson said.

“In accordance with the IT Rules 2021, we have published our report for the month of January 2023. This user-safety report contains details of the user complaints received and the corresponding action taken by WhatsApp, as well as WhatsApp’s own preventive actions to combat abuse on our platform. As captured in the latest monthly report, WhatsApp banned over 2.9 million accounts in January,” he added.

From January 1 till January 31, a total of 1,461 reports were received and a total of 195 cases were taken up for actions. There were 51 reports on the issue of account support, 1,337 reports on ban appeal, 45 cases on other support case and 21 cases on product support.

In the company statement, the messaging company said in addition to responding to and actioning on user complaints through the grievance channel, WhatsApp also

deploys tools and resources to prevent harmful behaviour on the platform.

The company said, “We are particularly focused on prevention because we believe it is much better to stop harmful activity from happening in the first place than to detect it after harm has occurred.”

The abuse detection operates at three stages of an account’s lifestyle: at registration, during messaging, and in response to negative feedback, which we receive in the form of user reports and blocks.

“A team of analysts augments these systems to evaluate edge cases and help improve our effectiveness over time,” the company said, adding, “We have detailed our on-platform capabilities to identify and ban accounts in a white paper.” (ANI)

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Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal

If Sisodia Joins BJP Today, He Will Be Free Tomorrow: Kejriwal

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday attacked the BJP-led centre over the arrests of Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain and said that if Manish Sisodia joined BJP today, he will be released tomorrow.

While talking to ANI, Kejriwal said, “Two people who brought laurels to India have been jailed by the PM. The excise policy was just an excuse, there was no scam. PM wanted to stop good work in Delhi. Manish Sisodia was arrested as he did good work in education. Satyendar Jain was arrested as he did good work in health.”

“If Manish Sisodia joins BJP today, won’t he be released tomorrow? All cases will be withdrawn. If Satyendar Jain joins BJP today, all cases will be withdrawn and he’d be released from jail tomorrow. The issue isn’t corruption but stopping work and sending CBI-ED after the opposition,” he added.

In a major rejig in the Delhi cabinet necessitated by the resignations of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sent the names of Aam Aadmi Party MLAs Saurabh Bhardwaj and Atishi to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena to be elevated as ministers, sources said on Wednesday.

The development comes after Sisodia, who headed 18 departments, and Jain, who has been in jail for months in a money laundering case, stepped down as ministers.

Sources on Tuesday had said the departments held by Sisodia will be redistributed to senior AAP leaders Kailash Gahlot and Raaj Kumar Anand.

“Sisodia held 18 departments, some of which will now be handled by Kailash Gahlot and the rest by Raaj Kumar Anand,” a source said on Tuesday.

Sisodia was earlier arrested by the CBI in connection with the Delhi excise policy case.

Sisodia was arrested on Sunday in an ongoing investigation of a case related to alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the new excise policy of the Delhi government.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court refused to entertain Sisodia’s plea challenging his arrest in the excise policy case.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said the top court is not inclined to entertain the petition at this stage, suggesting that Sisodia move the Delhi High Court.

“We cannot interfere in the matter as it may open the gate of people approaching the top court in every such matter,” the bench observed.

Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court on Monday sent him to CBI custody for 5 days.

The CBI had also quizzed AAP leader Jain in Tihar Jail in connection with alleged corruption in the implementation of the now-junked Delhi Excise policy.

Jain is currently lodged in judicial custody in connection with a money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Recently, the CBI and ED made several arrests for alleged corruption in the implementation of the Delhi Excise Policy. (ANI)

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Ram Mandir UP Yogi

Yogi Govt To Provide Uninterrupted Power Supply On Holi

By LokMarg

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday instructed officials to ensure an uninterrupted power supply between March 7-9 in view of the festival of Holi.

Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) Chairman M Devraj instructed all DISCOM (power distribution) officials in the state in this regard.

“As per the instructions of the Chief Minister, clear instructions have been given to the DISCOM officials to ensure that everyone gets uninterrupted electricity during this period. Action should be taken immediately on the toll-free number information,” Devraj said.

UPPCL Chairman stated that all the Managing Directors have been directed to take the necessary actions to ensure a cut-free uninterrupted power supply in their DISCOM.

The officials have also been directed to take immediate action on the supply-related information received on the 1912 toll-free number. They have been warned against any kind of negligence in this. The distribution officers have been directed to carry out their respective responsibilities.

The Managing Director should conduct effective monitoring at his level, and all officers engaged in distribution should constantly be on alert.

M Devraj said that if there is any problem in the power supply at the local level, it should be resolved as soon as possible. (ANI)

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UK Foreign Secy Raises Issue Of BBC Tax Searches In India With Jaishankar

UK Foreign Secy Raises Issue Of BBC Tax Searches In India With Jaishankar

By LokMarg

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly on Wednesday said that the issue of searches on BBC offices in India was raised with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during a bilateral meeting today.

Cleverly is currently in India to attend the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting brought up the issue of the BBC tax searches during his meeting with Jaishankar, sources told ANI.
“He was firmly told that all entities operating in India must comply fully with relevant laws and regulations,” according to sources.

In February this year Income Tax authorites had conducted searches at the offices of the British broadcaster in New Delhi and Mumbai.

Speaking to ANI in an exclusive interview, Cleverly said that BBC is an independent organisation and is separate from the UK Government.

“I didn’t see the documentary but I’ve seen reactions in UK and India. BBC is an independent organisation and separate from government. I enjoy a strong personal relationship with Dr Jaishankar…relationship between UK-India growing stronger by the day,” said Cleverly when asked about the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The BBC had in January this year released the documentary film titled ‘India: The Modi Question,” which features the Gujarat riots of 2002. The film caused controversy for alluding to the leadership of Modi as chief minister during the riots while disregarding the clean chit given by the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile speaking on Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the UK, Cleverly said, “We do a lot of business with India and are working extensively. I’ll be meeting India’s trade secretary. We want to make sure this trade agreement really benefits both the countries and unlocks billions of pounds of bilateral trade.”

Cleverly added that the UK looks forward to bringing the trade agreement to conclusion in due course of time.

Commending India’s G20 presidency Cleverly said it is quite exciting and the event holds has fantastic opportunities.

“This is a great opportunity to talk about sustainable economic agenda and green agenda,” he said.

The G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting (FMM) is scheduled to take place in physical format from March 1-2, 2023 in New Delhi under India’s presidency.

Representatives of 40 countries, including non-G20 members have invited by India, and multilateral organisations will attend.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address the foreign ministers of the member countries of G20 and he will talk about India’s growing influence globally.

The foreign ministers are also likely to discuss ways to deal with falling economic growth, increasing inflation, lower demands for goods and services as well as increasing prices of food, fuel and fertilisers. (ANI)

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16-Year-Old Found Hanging In Pvt College

16-Year-Old Found Hanging In Pvt College

By LokMarg

A 16-year-old boy was found hanging from the ceiling fan of his classroom at a private college in the Rangareddy district of Telangana on Wednesday.

The deceased boy was identified as Nagula Satwik, the police informed further, adding that his parents alleged foul play saying that his death was the fallout of the tortured perpetrated on him by the management of the private college.
“It appears that the boy hung himself at 10.30pm on Wednesday, after attending his classes. He was an intermediate student at a private college in Narsingi.”

“It is too early to determine why the boy took this extreme step. However, his parents have alleged that the death might be the fallout of the torture that he was subjected to by the management at the private college. We have registered a case under Section 305 (abetment to suicide) of the IPC and an investigation is underway,” the officer said.

After word of the incident got out, members of the student union, as well as the boy’s kin, staged a protest on a road in Narsingi, sources said.

A police team rushed to the spot and set about breaking up the protest, a source informed further.

Earlier, on Saturfay, a final-year MBBS student of Nizamabad Government Medical College died by suicide inside her hostel room, the police said.

The deceased student was identified as Dasari Harsha.

In another incident that came to light on Tuesday, a third-year BTech student of a private engineering college was found dead at her relatve’s place.

Two persons were arrested in connection with the death, police informed on Wednesday. (ANI)

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This Isn’t An Era Of War: India Reaffirms Position On Russia-Ukraine

This Isn’t An Era Of War: India Reaffirms Position On Russia-Ukraine

By LokMarg

India on Wednesday cleared its stand on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, reaffirming Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement that “this isn’t an era of war”.

Speaking at a special briefing on G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said, “India’s position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict is that ‘This isn’t an era of war’. Dialogue and diplomacy are the way forward. The agenda is for the foreign ministers to discuss in the meet.”
He said the Russia-Ukraine conflict will be an important point of discussion when the foreign ministers from around the world meet during Thursday’s Group of 20 (G20) gathering in New Delhi.

“Given the developing situation of Russia-Ukraine, naturally, it’ll be an important point of discussion during the Foreign Ministers’ meeting. Foreign ministers will be focusing on the Russia-Ukraine situation, it’ll be important to what they come out with, what understanding is developed,” said Kwatra.

He further added, “Issues of the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the world, including economic impact and impact on development, will also be focused upon in the meeting.”

Kwatra said that G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting under India’s G20 presidency will be held tomorrow.

“This would be the second ministerial meeting held under our presidency. The venue will be Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Center. 40 delegations expected to participate,” he said.

The G20 foreign ministers meeting is taking place days after a gathering of finance ministers and the Central Bank Governors of the G20 member countries in Bengaluru failed to come out with a joint communique over sharp differences between the Western powers and Russia-China combine over the Ukraine conflict.

On whether a joint statement will be issued after the G20 Foreign Ministers meet, Foreign Secretary Kwatra said, “Can’t prejudge the outcomes.”

“Ask the Russians, Chinese if they stand by Bali consensus, we stand by the declaration,” said the Mninistry of External Affairs spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi.

He said Russia and China opposed some para of Bali declaration, which was in the India chair statement/outcome after finance ministers’ meet.

Meanwhile, Kwatra further stated that sessions will “capture” issues of the global south, when asked how India will be the voice of global south at the G20 FMs meet.

The foreign ministers are also likely to discuss ways to deal with falling economic growth, increasing inflation, lower demands for goods and services as well as increasing prices of food, fuel and fertilisers.

During the Foreign Ministers meeting on Thursday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be chairing two sessions of the foreign ministries meeting.

“First session will focus on multilateralism, and issues related to food and energy while the second session will focus on four or five key issues including new and emerging threats including counter-terrorism and narcotics, global skill mapping, focus on global talent pools,” said the Foreign Secretary.

Responding to a meeting between Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Kwatra said, “The External Affairs minister is expected to be meeting all foreign ministers. Details to be shared once all the meetings are concluded.”

The G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting (FMM) is scheduled to take place in physical format from 1-2 March, 2023 in New Delhi under India’s presidency. Representatives of 40 countries, including non-G20 members invited by India, and multilateral organisations will attend.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address the foreign ministers of the member countries of G20 and he will talk about India’s growing influence globally. (ANI)

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