LIVE! Must resolve Kashmir peacefully: Pak Army chief

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Tue, 02 February 2021

Must resolve Kashmir peacefully: Pak Army chief

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23:47 Must resolve Kashmir peacefully: Pak Army chief

Pakistan and India must resolve the Kashmir issue in a 'dignified and peaceful manner', Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa said on Tuesday.

General Bajwa was addressing the graduation ceremony at the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Asghar Khan Academy in Risalpur in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, according to the Army.

Pakistan and India must resolve the longstanding issue of Jammu and Kashmir in a dignified and peaceful manner as per the aspirations of people of Jammu and Kashmir..., he said.

Pakistan is a peace-loving country that has rendered great sacrifices for regional and global peace, he said.

We stand firmly committed to the ideal of mutual respect and peaceful co-existence. It is time to extend a hand of peace in all directions, he said.

However, we will not allow anybody or any entity to misinterpret our desire for peace as a sign of weakness, Bajwa said. -- PTI

A court in Lucknow on Tuesday issued non-bailable warrant against Aam Aadmi Party Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh in an alleged hate speech case.

Judge P K Rai of the MP-MLA court fixed February 17 as the next date of hearing.

Singh had on August 12, 2020 held a press conference in Lucknow, wherein he had alleged that the Uttar Pradesh government was favouring one particular caste.

An FIR was registered against him with Hazratganj police under sections 153-A, 153-B, 501, 505(1), 505(2) of the Indian Penal Code.

After probe, the investigating officer filed a charge sheet on September 7.

Ten days later, the state government granted sanction for prosecution of Singh.

The special court took cognisance of the charge sheet and issued summons to Singh on December 4.

Singh moved the Allahabad high court but Justice Rakesh Srivastava on January 21 dismissed his plea to quash the MP-MLA court's order, accepting the arguments of government advocate Vimal Srivastava that there was no illegality in the special court's order.

Singh's lawyer on Tuesday requested the MP-MLA court to exempt his personal appearance, but the judge declined the plea saying that he had not obtained bail till date. -- PTI

The Red Fort will remain shut till further notice as a measure against the spread of avian influenza, according to an order issued by the Archaeological Survey of India.

The iconic site has been closed for visitors since January 19 after the district administration wrote to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) requesting it to shut the monument to restrict the spread of the disease.

The site was also shut from January 22 to January 26 in view of Republic Day and was scheduled to open the following day when people from across the city get an opportunity to view tableaux from the Republic Day celebrations on display at the Red Fort premises for 15 days.

However, on January 26, a section of agitating farmers entered the monument and climbed on to the ramparts.

Soon after the ASI announced that the site will be shut for all visitors till January 31 and cited bird flu behind the decision.

As per order received from the District Magistrate (Central)-cum-District Disaster Management Authority, Government of NCT of Delhi and in continuation to previous office orders of this office, it is hereby directed that the Red Fort, Delhi shall remain closed for the public and general visitors until further order, as a measure to control the spread of Avian Influenza in the Red Fort area which is declared as infected zone, the order issued on February 1 said. -- PTI

Photograph: Kind courtesy, Rihanna/Instagram

22:39 Rihanna tweets about farmer protests, net ban

Pop star Rihanna is the latest international celebrity to tweet in support of the ongoing farmers' protest at Delhi's borders against the Modi government's farm laws.

'Why aren't we talking about this?' the star tweeted a cnn.com report on the internet shutdown around Delhi, with the hashtag #farmersprotest.

The Barbadian pop star, born Robyn Rihanna Fenty, has more than 100 million followers on Twitter. Her post has clocked more than 91,000 likes, 41,000 retweets and 9000 quoted tweets.

Her tweet on farmers protest sent the singer trending on Twitter with thousands of responses from Indians, including one from actor Kangana Ranaut, an ardent supporter of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party who has made no bones about her strong dislike for the farmers' protest that has challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

'No one is talking about it because they are not farmers they are terrorists who are trying to divide India, so that China can take over our vulnerable broken nation and make it a Chinese colony much like USA... Sit down you fool, we are not selling our nation like you dummies,' the Padma Shri awardee responded on Twitter.

Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait will attend a farmers' mahapanchayat in Haryana's Jind district on Wednesday to gather support for the agitation against the Centre's new farm laws.

Elaborate arrangements have been put in place at Jind's Kandela village for the event, Sarv Jatiya Kandela Khap head Tekram Kandela said on Tuesday.

Besides Tikait, several khap leaders will take part in it, he said.

It will be a big gathering to muster support for the farmers' agitation, Kandela said.

The Kandela khap, which had spearheaded a farmers' agitation in Haryana nearly two decades ago, has lent its support to farmers against the new farm laws.

Several other khaps too are backing the agitation.

Tekram Kandela said at the Wednesday's event, issues including the demand to repeal the farm laws and a legal guarantee of the minimum support price will be taken up.

The Centre should talk to farmers and immediately find a resolution as thousands of farmers have been holding the agitation for months now.

The prime minister should himself talk to the farmers to find an early solution, Kandela said.

Meanwhile, Haryana BKU leader Gurnam Singh Chaduni reached Surewala Chowk in Hisar district's Uklana and addressed a group of farmers, where he sought their support for the countrywide chakka jam called by farmer unions on February 6.

Farmer unions on Monday announced to block national and state highways for three hours in protest against the Internet ban in areas near their agitation sites and the alleged harassment meted out to them by the authorities.

Chaduni also criticised the government's move of parking buses to seal the main entry points, putting up multi-layer barricades and checkpoints at the Delhi's Ghazipur border, the new focal point of the farmers' agitation.

He said the farmers' agitation will continue till the time the government does not withdraw the farm laws. -- PTI

The central government has no plans to enact an anti-conversion law to curb interfaith marriages, the Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.

Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said issues related to religious conversions are primarily the concerns of state governments, adding that law enforcement agencies take action whenever such instances of violation come to the fore.

Reddy said in a written question that the central government has no plans to enact a central anti-conversion law to curb interfaith marriages.

"Public order and police are state subjects as per the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution and hence, prevention, detection, registration, investigation and prosecution of offences related to religious conversions are primarily the concerns of state governments and Union Territory administrations.

"Action is taken as per existing laws by law enforcing agencies whenever instances of violation come to notice," he said. -- PTI

The Haryana government on Tuesday further extended the suspension of mobile Internet services till 5 pm on February 3 in seven districts of the state amid a protest by farmers against the Centre's three farm laws.

The Haryana government has extended the suspension of mobile Internet services (2G/3G/4G/CDMA/GPRS), SMS services (only bulk SMS) and all dongle services etc provided on mobile networks except the voice calls in seven districts--Kaithal, Panipat, Jind, Rohtak, Charkhi Dadri, Sonipat and Jhajjar--till 5 pm on February 3, an official statement said in Chandigarh.

It said the order has been issued to prevent any disturbance of peace and public order in the jurisdiction of these districts of Haryana and shall be in force with immediate effect.

Any person found guilty of violation of the aforesaid order will be liable for legal action under relevant provisions, it said.

The government's move to suspend mobile Internet services in 17 districts earlier and later on keeping these suspended at a few places saw protests by farmers in the state.

Farmers on Tuesday blocked the national highway near the Khatkar toll plaza near Narwana in Jind to protest against the curbs.

Azad Singh Palwa, a Khap leader, alleged that the suspension of Internet services is adversely affecting various sections, particularly students.

The final examinations of students are approaching.

Many students are preparing for entrance exams, but their studies are being hit due to Internet suspension, he said.

Indian National Lok Dal leader Abhay Singh Chautala told reporters in Jind that the suspension of the mobile internet services in some parts had affected office work and the studies of the students. -- PTI

More than 2 crore farmers benefited from the government's procurement of seven commodities at the minimum support price (MSP) during 2019-20, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar informed Parliament on Tuesday.

Tomar, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, however added that it is difficult to assess the accurate number of farmers benefitting from MSP as the procurement is done by government agencies under various schemes.

"Besides, the overall market also responds to declaration of MSP and Government's procurement operations which results in private procurement on or above the MSP for various notified crops. Therefore, accurate number of farmers benefiting from MSP declaration is difficult to assess," Tomar said.

However, about 2,01,16,575 farmers benefitted from the government's MSP procurement during 2019-20, he said.

Of this, 1.24 crore were paddy growers, 35.57 lakh wheat growers, 21.50 lakh cotton farmers, 11 lakh pulses growers, 8.42 lakh oilseeds farmers, 3,744 jute growers and 3,439 copra growers.

Further, Tomar said the government declares MSP for 22 major agri-commodities of fair average quality (FAQ) each year in both crop seasons after taking into account the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).

The government also extends remunerative price to farmers through its various intervention schemes.

The minister explained that the government extends price support for paddy and wheat through the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and state agencies.

Under this policy, whatever foodgrains are offered by farmers within the stipulated period and conforming to the specifications prescribed by government are purchased at MSP by the state government agencies as well as FCI for the central pool.

It aims to service the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and other welfare schemes of the government so that subsidised foodgrains are supplied to the poor and needy, and to build up buffer stock to ensure foodgrain security.

Further, different types of nutri-cereals and maize are procured by state governments in consultation with FCI to the extent that the concerned state government may utilise the same for distribution under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) and Other Welfare Schemes (OWS).

The minister also mentioned that oilseeds, pulses and copra of fair average quality (FAQ) are procured from registered farmers at MSP as part of the Price Support Scheme (PSS) under the umbrella scheme of Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA) in consultation with the concerned state government as and when market prices of these items fall below the MSP.

Under PM-AASHA, states are offered to choose either PSS or Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS) in a given procurement season with respect to particular oilseeds crop for the entire state.

Further, states have the option to roll out Private Procurement and Stockist Scheme (PPSS) on pilot basis in a district/selected APMCs of district involving the participation of private stockist for oilseeds.

Tomar said cotton and jute are also procured by the government at MSP through the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) and the Jute Corporation of India (JCI).

For making effective procurement by government agencies at MSP and providing maximum benefits to the farmers, the minister said procurement centres are opened by respective state government agencies and central nodal bodies like NAFED and FCI after taking into account the production, marketable surplus, convenience of farmers and availability of other logistics/ infrastructure such as storage and transportation.

Large number of the purchase centres in addition to the existing mandis and depots/godowns are also established at key points for the convenience of farmers to ensure procurement and also to prevent sale below MSP, he added. -- PTI

The government is set to formally seal on February 3 the Rs 48,000 crore deal to procure 83 Tejas light combat aircraft from state-run aerospace major Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for the Indian Air Force, officials said on Wednesday.

The mega contract will be signed at the Aero India air show in Bengaluru in presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, top brass of the IAF and senior officials of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), they said.

Tejas is a single engine and highly agile multi-role supersonic fighter capable of operating in high-threat air environments.

The aircraft, manufactured by the HAL, is a potent platform for air combat and offensive air support with reconnaissance and anti-ship operations as its secondary roles.

The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 13 approved the deal for procurement of the 73 Tejas Mk-1A variant and 10 LCA Tejas Mk-1 trainer aircraft from the HAL to boost Indian Air Force's combat prowess.

The Tejas Mk-IA will be equipped with an active electronically scanned array radar, beyond visual range missile, electronic warfare suite and air-to-air refuelling system.

Chairman and Managing Director of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited R Madhavan told PTI last month that the delivery of the Tejas aircraft to the IAF will begin from March 2024 and around 16 aircraft will be rolled out annually till completion of the total supply of 83 jets.

Madhavan said the basic price of the aircraft will be around Rs 25,000 crore while Rs 11,000 crore will be used for ground support equipment and other required infrastructure at the bases and around Rs 7,000 for basic customs duty and output GST.

The HAL chairman and managing director said the cost for each fighter version of the four-and-half generation aircraft will be Rs 309 crore and Rs 280 crore for the trainer version.

The total cost of Rs 48,000 crore includes design and development cost of Rs 2,500 crore to be given to Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and around Rs 2,250 crore set aside for variations in foreign currency exchange rate. -- PTI

A major fire broke out at the set of Adipurush, a film starring actors Prabhas and Saif Ali Khan, in suburban Goregaon on Tuesday afternoon. The two actors were not present when the incident took place and nobody was reported injured, police said.

Adipurush, an adaptation of the Ramayana, went on floors on Tuesday with a special set erected on open ground near Inorbit Mall in Bangur Nagar.

The fire started around 4.10 pm, a police official said, adding that eight fire engines and six water tankers were rushed to the spot and dousing operation was underway.

Sources said director Om Raut and a small crew were filming on the set.

"Prabhas and Saif were not present. There has been no injury to anyone. Paramedics, fire brigade and ambulances were arranged immediately," sources said.

Fire brigade officials declared it to be a `level two' fire which is considered as major.

The film, backed by T-series, is slated to be released in theaters on August 11, 2022. -- PTI

Parts of north and central India are likely to receive rains from February 3 to 5, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Tuesday.

The IMD said a gradual rise in minimum temperatures is very likely over most parts of northwest and adjoining central India during the next three to four days and the current spell of cold wave conditions is likely to abate in the next 24 hours.

According to the National Weather Forecasting Centre of the IMD, a western disturbance as a cyclonic circulation lies over Afghanistan.

An induced cyclonic circulation also lies over central Pakistan and adjoining west Rajasthan.

These systems are likely to affect weather over northwest Himalayan region from the night of February 2.

"The confluence of southwesterlies, in association with the western disturbance and lower level southeasterlies, are very likely over the plains of northwest and adjoining areas of central India during February 3-5," the IMD said.

Under the influence of above systems, scattered to fairly widespread, light to moderate rain/snow with isolated thunderstorm, lightning and hail (is) very likely over the western Himalayan region from February 2 night to February 5.

"Isolated heavy rainfall/snowfall is likely over Jammu and Kashmir on February 3 and 4, and over Himachal Pradesh on February 4," the IMD said.

Fairly widespread light to moderate rain/thundershowers with isolated lightning and hailstorm are likely over plains of northwest India during February 3 to 5, over Madhya Pradesh from February 4 to 5 and over east Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand from February 5 to 6. -- PTI

The PM-CARES fund, which has been set up to provide relief during the coronavirus pandemic, has contributed over Rs 2,200 crore for the first phase of vaccination drive, which is looking to inoculate frontline healthcare workers, the Expenditure Secretary said on Tuesday.

Set up in March 2020, the exact collections made by the fund through voluntary contribution by individuals and corporates, are not known but the corpus managed by the PMO has been providing relief to pandemic-hit sectors.

Expenditure Secretary T V Somanathan said the cost of vaccination of frontline and healthcare workers in the current fiscal is being borne fully by the central government and the money is coming from PM CARES fund and Health Ministry.

"For January-March the (vaccination) cost is expected to be about Rs 2,700 crore approximately. Part of it is coming from the Health Ministry and some part of it is funded from the PM CARES fund. This is for the first round of 3 crore frontline and health workers," he said.

The entire cost of this round will be borne by the Central Government, he said.

"We had provided extra funds to the health ministry for incidental costs to vaccination. We made an additional allocation of Rs 480 crore just for the 3 crore batch of vaccination," he said.

The remaining about Rs 2,220 crore will come from PM-CARES fund.

-- PTI

The BJP has decided to stop mass joinings from the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal amid growing resentment within the saffron party over rampant inductions without scrutiny, senior leaders said on Tuesday.

"Selective" inductions would be made henceforth, that too after consultations with the local leadership, they said.

"We don't want the BJP to turn into the B-team of the TMC by inducting leaders who don't have a clean image. We don't want people, facing allegations or are involved in immoral or illegal activities, to join our party," BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya said.

"So henceforth, mass joinings would not take place. From now on, the joinings would be very selective and that too after scrutiny," he added.

The decision has been taken amid rising infighting within the party's West Bengal unit, often snowballing into the open, a senior state BJP leader said.

Elections to the 294-member West Bengal assembly are likely to be held in April-May.

-- PTI

The Supreme Court on Wednesday will hear a batch of pleas pertaining to tractor rally violence in the national capital on the Republic Day, including the one which has sought setting up of a commission headed by a retired apex court judge to inquire into the incident.

The tractor parade on January 26 that was to highlight the demands of farmer unions to repeal three new agri laws dissolved into anarchy on the streets of the national capital as thousands of protesters broke through barriers, fought with the police, overturned vehicles and hoisted a religious flag from the ramparts of the iconic Red Fort.

The petitions would be taken up for hearing by a bench comprising Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian.

One of the pleas filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari has sought setting up of a three-member inquiry commission under the chairmanship of a former apex court judge and comprising of two retired high court judges for collecting and recording evidence and submit a report on the January 26 violence to the top court in a time bound manner.

He has also sought direction to the concerned authority to lodge FIRs against individuals or organisations responsible for the violence and causing dishonour of the National Flag on January 26.

Another petition has been filed by advocate Manohar Lal Sharma who has sought a direction to the concerned authority as well as the media not to declare farmers as "terrorist" without any evidence.

Sharma has claimed in his plea that there was a "planned conspiracy" to sabotage the protest by farmers' and they were allegedly declared as "terrorist" without any evidence.

-- PTI

The government on Tuesday asserted in Lok Sabha that it was ready to discuss issues related to farmers both inside and outside Parliament amid vociferous protests by the Opposition which forced the House to adjourn twice, first for almost an hour and then for nearly two hours.

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said during Zero Hour, which began at 5 pm, that the Modi government is always committed to discuss the farmer's issues.

"Government is ready to discuss issues related to farmers inside and outside Parliament," he said amid sloganeering by opposition members.

Tomar's reply came after Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury claimed that 170 farmers have died during the ongoing agitation against the three contentious farm laws.

"Atrocities are being committed on farmers. Situation is similar to British rule," he alleged.

As opposition members, including from Congress, DMK, Trinamool Congress, SP and BSP, trooped near the well, Speaker Om Birla appealed to them to go back to their seats so that House can taken up normal business.

"This House is for debate and discussions. Please go back to your seats," he said.

However, the unrelenting opposition continued their protests, leading to the Speaking announcing the second adjournment till 7 pm.

-- PTI

17:43 4 Tik Tokers shot dead in Karachi

Four Tik Tokers, including one female, were shot dead in Garden area of Karachi on Tuesday morning, Dawn reported citing officials.

City Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Sarfaraz Nawaz Shaikh said all four deceased were active on social media, particularly Tik Tok, a video-sharing social networking service owned by Chinese company ByteDance. He said two of those who died, identified as Muskan and Amir, were friends, Dawn reported.

According to the official, Muskan called Amir, asking him to meet on Monday night. Amir arranged a car and took his friends, Rehan and Sajjad, to meet her.

"All four of them roamed the city and [Amir and Muskan] also made TikTok videos [during that time]," the police officer said.

The official said the four were attacked near Anklesaria Hospital, Garden, at 4:48 am by unknown assailants. "The woman was killed inside the car while all three men were shot outside the car. They were taken to the hospital but succumbed to their wounds," the official said.Shaikh said Rehan and Sajjad had previously made a TikTok video in which they were seen doing the aerial firing in the city's Ittihad Town area.

Update: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced on Tuesday the schedule for classes 10 and 12 board exams which will begin on May 4.

As per the datesheet, the exams for class 10 will conclude on June 7, while those for class 12 will conclude on June 10. Usually, practical exams are conducted in January and written exams begin in February and conclude in March.

However, the exams are delayed this session in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools across the country were closed in March last year to contain the spread of COVID-19. They were partially reopened in some states from October 15. The board exams last year had to be postponed mid-way in March. They were later cancelled and the results announced on the basis of an alternative assessment scheme.

The Delhi High Court Tuesday directed Future Retail Ltd (FRL) to maintain status quo in relation to its Rs 24,713 crore deal with Reliance Retail, which has been objected to by US-based e-commerce giant Amazon. Justice J R Midha said the court was satisfied that an immediate interim order was required to be passed to protect the rights of Amazon.

"Respondents (FRL) are directed to maintain status quo as on today at 4:49 PM till pronouncement of the reserved order," the judge said. Amazon has approached the high court seeking direction to order enforcement of the award by Singapore's Emergency Arbitrator (EA) restraining FRL from going ahead with its Rs 24,713 crore deal with Reliance Retail. Amazon has sought to restrain Kishore Biyani-led Future Group from taking any steps to complete the transaction with entities that are a part of the Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani (MDA) Group. PTI

17:25 CBSE Class X, XII exams to begin from May 4

Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal announces date-sheet of CBSE board exams for class XII. Exams to begin on 4th May 2021.

A Delhi court Tuesday granted bail to freelance journalist Mandeep Punia who was arrested by Delhi Police from farmers' protest site at Singhu border. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Satvir Singh Lamba observed that the complainant, victims and witnesses are police personnel only. "Hence, there is no possibility that accused/ applicant can influence any of the police officials," the judge said.

Punia was arrested by police on Sunday in an FIR registered under various sections including 186 (Obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 332 (Voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty) of IPC.

The court directed Punia not to leave the country without its prior permission. Accused shall not indulge into similar offence or any other offence in the event of release on bail. Accused shall not tamper with the evidences in any manner, it said. It further directed that the accused shall join the investigations as and when required by the investigating agency. PTI

The BSE benchmark Sensex zoomed nearly 1,200 points while the NSE Nifty reclaimed the 14,600-level on Tuesday as the post-Budget rally continued for the second session. The Sensex ended 1,197.11 points or 2.46 per cent higher at 49,797.72. The BSE gauge topped the 50,000-level briefly and swung 1,554 points during the day. Likewise, the Nifty advanced 366.65 points or 2.57 per cent to end the session at 14,647.85.

Together with Budget day gains, the Sensex has amassed 3,511 points or 7.58 per cent in two sessions, and the Nifty has accumulated 1,007.25 points or 7.38 per cent.

Tuesday's top gainers included SBI, UltraTech Cement, HDFC Bank, L&T, Bharti Airtel, Maruti Suzuki and Kotak Bank. Of the Sensex constituents, 27 shares closed in the green. Most analysts are of the view that the equity markets reacted positively to the Budget primarily due to higher capital expenditure plans, status quo on direct taxes and no incremental taxes on capital gains.

On Monday, foreign institutional investors bought equities worth a net Rs 1,494.23 crore. Economists and market analysts opined that this is a bold growth-oriented Budget and the absence of the much-feared 'COVID tax' and surcharges on income tax is a great relief. Besides, privatisation of two nationalised banks and proposal of monetisation of assets like land are clear positives, according to them.

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain

15:51 56% of people in Delhi have Covid antibodies

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain says the Sero Survey shows about 56% of people have developed antibodies. "We should not get into discussions over herd immunity. Everyone should follow COVID-19 appropriate behaviour including wearing masks and sanitizing hands regularly," he said.

The fifth sero survey, the largest in the country so far, was conducted from January 15 to January 23, he said. At 62.18 per cent, Southwest Delhi district reported the maximum sero prevalence, while North Delhi recorded the lowest at 49.09 per cent, Jain said.

"A new, better technology was used during the survey. Samples were collected from every ward. In all, 28,000 samples were taken," a senior official said. The minister said the number of cases, fatalities and hospital admissions have declined significantly, but insisted that people continue to use masks for a few more months and maintain "COVID-19-appropriate behaviour".

The COVID-19 vaccine is being provided free of cost to states and UTs for vaccination of healthcare and frontline workers in the first phase of vaccination, Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey informedRajya Sabha on Tuesday.

On whether any state has announced to supply the COVID-19 vaccine to the public free of cost including Kerala, Choubey said, "The government of India has not received any formal communication from states and UT regarding announcement to supply the COVID-19 vaccine to the public free of cost, including Kerala."

A total of 165 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been procured of which 110 lakh doses are of Covishield vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India and 55 lakh doses are of Covaxin vaccine manufactured by Bharat Biotech International Limited. The total cost of procurement of these doses of vaccines is Rs 350.25 crore. -- PTI

Rajnath Singh with HAL employees today

15:28 Can't remain dependent on other countries for India's defence: Rajnath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday India cannot remain dependent on other countries for its defence. Under the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan India is looking forward to increase its defence manufacturing capabilities, said Singh, who inaugurated Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's second LCA-Tejas production line.

"India cannot remain dependent on other countries for its defence", he said. Singh said Tejas is not only indigenous, but is also better than its foreign equivalents on several parameters and also comparatively cheaper.

"Many countries have shown interest in Tejas. India will achieve the target of Rs 1.75 lakh crore in the field of defence manufacturing in (a) few years", the Minister said.

The delivery of the Tejas LCA to the Indian Air Force under a Rs 48,000-crore deal will begin from March 2024 and around 16 aircraft will be rolled out annually till the completion of the total supply of 83 jets, Chairman and Managing Director of HAL, R Madhavan said recently -- PTI

Bhartiya Kisan Union (Arajnaitik) leader Rakesh Tikait says, "Our slogan is - 'kanoon wapsi nahi, to ghar wapsi nahi'. This agitation will not conclude before October, it will not end anytime soon."

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday reached the farmers' protest site at Ghazipur on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border where he met Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait.

The Maharashtra leader arrived at Ghazipur when security has been further tightened at the farmers' protest site.

Raut, one of the handful people wearing a face mask, met Tikait and other protestors off the stage after reaching around 1 pm. "The way vandalism unfolded here after January 26 and an attempt made to suppress the movement and Tikait, we felt it is our responsibility to stand by the farmers' and extend support of the whole of Maharashtra, Shiv Sena and Uddhav Thackeray saahab," Raut told reporters.

14:50 75% dip in tourist arrivals to India in 2020

Less than three million foreign tourists visited India in 2020, a dip of around 75 per cent as compared to the previous year, due to travel restrictions imposed to control the coronavirus pandemic, the government informed Parliament on Tuesday.

Tourism Minister Prahlad Patel said that while in 2019, the number of foreign tourist arrivals was 10.93 million, the number stood at 10.56 million in 2018. It was in 2017 that foreign tourist arrivals crossed the 10 million-mark. There were 10.4 million arrivals in that year, he said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha. Last year, foreign tourist arrivals stood at 2.68 million and "no formal study has been instituted for assessment of loss of revenue in 2020", Patel said.

"However, several rounds of discussions and brainstorming sessions with industry stakeholders indicate massive loss of revenue, foreign exchange and jobs. In view of the highly unorganised nature of the sector, the impact in numerical terms can only be ascertained in due course," the minister said.

"With an aim to incentivize stakeholders in the tourism industry, the guidelines for the scheme of Market Development Assistance (MDA) for providing financial support to stakeholders for the promotion of domestic tourism have been modified to enhance the scope and reach of the scheme, so as to provide maximum benefits to the stakeholders," Patel told the House.

In addition, promotional activities have been incorporated including online promotions and the extent of financial assistance permissible has been enhanced, he said. Tourism departments of states and union territories are also now eligible for obtaining financial support under the scheme, Patel said. PTI

14:43 No talks until detained farmers freed: Union

There can be no "formal" talks with the government until "harassment" by police and administration stops and detained farmers are released, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha said on Tuesday.

In a statement, it alleged that increased barricading, including digging trenches, fixing nails on roads, setting up barbed-wire fences, closing internal roads, stopping Internet services and "orchestrating protests through BJP-RSS workers" are part of "attacks" being organised by the government, its police and administration against the farmers.

The umbrella body of farmers' unions protesting the Central farm laws termed the "frequent Internet shutdown" at protest sites and blocking of many Twitter accounts related to the farmers movement "direct attack on democracy". Twitter on Monday blocked several accounts and tweets after the government asked the microblogging platform to take action against 250 handles and posts for containing 'false and provocative content' related to the ongoing farmers' agitation, according to sources.

"It appears the government is extremely fearful of the rising tide of support for the ongoing protest from different states," the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) said. Farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, are protesting the Centre's farm laws for more than two months at the borders of the national capital, choking highways to neighbouring states.

"The SKM decided in its meeting on Monday that there can be no formal talks with the government until police and administration's harassment of different kinds against the farmers' movement is immediately stopped," the SKM said. It also said no formal proposal for talks has been received by it. "Though no formal proposal for talks came from the government, we clearly state that the talks will be held only after unconditional release of farmers who are in illegal police custody," the statement said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an all party meeting on Saturday had said the government's offer to suspend the farm laws for 18 months was still on the table and the Agriculture minister Narendra Tomar was just a phone call away to take the talks forward.

The Morcha had reacted to Modi's statement by reiterating its demand for repeal of the three agri laws. The government's negotiations with protesting farm unions hit a roadblock on January 22 as the farmer leaders stuck to their demands for a complete repeal of the three farm laws they find pro-corporate and a legal guarantee for minimum support price, even as the Centre asked them to reconsider its proposal for putting the Acts on hold for 12-18 months. Unlike the last 10 rounds of talks, the 11th round could not even reach a decision on the next date for the meeting as the government also hardened its position saying it is ready to meet again once the unions agree to discuss the suspension proposal. -- PTI

14:36 Swapan Dasgupta BJP's Bengal CM candidate?

Asked about the BJP's lack of a chief ministerial face for the Bengal assembly election, a BJP Lok Sabha MP told a Rediff contribtor last week that Swapan Dasgupta -- columnist and Rajya Sabha member -- is being spoken of in party circles as the likely chief minister if the BJP wins a majority. The probable party thinking is that a measured intellectual like Dasgupta will appeal to the Bengali bhadralok.

14:10 NIA to probe Israeli embassy blast case

The National Investigation Agency will probe the Israeli embassy blast case, a ministry of home affairs official said.

A minor improvised explosive device blast took place near the Israeli Embassy in New Delhi on Friday evening.

No injuries have been reported in the incident so far.

Windscreens of several cars parked in the vicinity of the embassy on Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Road were found damaged.

The explosion took place not far from Vijay Chowk, where several VVIPs including President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi were in attendance during the 'Beating Retreat' ceremony.

Aung San Suu Kyi during a visit to India in 2012

13:58 India advisory for Myanmar: Avoid travel

In view of a military coup in Myanmar, Indian Embassy in Yangon issued a notification on Tuesday, urging Indian citizens to take precautions and avoid unnecessary travel.

"In view of the recent developments, all Indians Citizens are required to take due precautions and avoid unnecessary travel. They may get in touch with the Embassy if required," the notice read.

This comes as State Counselor Aung Suu Kyi along with other top politicians were detained in the early hours of Monday, with Myanmar's military declaring a one-year state of emergency after weeks of escalating tensions over allegations of vote-rigging in the November election.

The detentions and the seizure of power took place hours before the opening session of Myanmar's new Parliament.

In another notification, the Indian Embassy informed about the rescheduling of Air India Flight (AI 1233) to February 11, which was earlier slated for February 4.

Sameera Reddy with her baby Nyra

13:33 Kerala's first human milk bank to be opened on Feb 5

Kerala's first Human Milk Bank (HMB), a state-of-art facility will be opened at the Ernakulam general hospital here on Friday by Health Minister K K Shailaja.

Set up with the support of the Rotary Club of Cochin Global, the milk bank is to ensure breast milk for new born babies, who are not being breastfed by their own mothers who may be sick, deceased or due to insufficient production of breast milk, in the hospital. Although approximately 3600 babies are born in the general hospital a year, 600 to 1,000 sick babies are admitted into the NICU.

"Providing the low birth-weight premature babies, infants whose mothers are unable to provide sufficient milk and babies separated from mothers due to many reasons with the pasteurized breast milk from the bank will reduce the risk of infections and boost their immunity," said Dr Paul P G of Rotary Cochin Global. Though the concept had come to India 32 years back, Kerala did not have a milk bank till now.

13:30 Fire at building in suburban Mumbai

Fire breaks out on 6th floor of a building in Andheri; five fire tenders at the spot. More details awaited.

13:25 LIVE! Sena leaders meet Tikait at Ghazipur

Shiv Sena leaders including party MPs Arvind Sawant and Sanjay Raut meet Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait at Ghazipur (Delhi-Uttar Pradesh) border. The Shiv Sena has been supporting the farmers who are agitating at Delhi's border points for over two months against the Centre's three new farm laws.

"The Maha Vikas Aghadi government took decisions in the interest of farmers. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray stood with farmers when they were in pain. Will visit the farmers protesting at Ghazipur border on his instruction," Raut tweeted.

Farmers' protest sites at Delhi's borders turned into fortresses Monday as police beefed up security and strengthened barricades.

13:08 Covid-19 killed 160+ doctors in India

COVID-19 has so far claimed the lives of 162 doctors, 107 nurses and 44 ASHA workers in the country, Rajya Sabha was told on Tuesday. The figures are based on the intimations received from the states till January 22.

This was stated by Minister of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey in the House in response to a question on the number of healthcare staff, including doctors, nurses and ASHA workers who have been affected died due to COVID-19.

On whether the data presented by the Indian Medical Association regarding the number of healthcare workers who have died due to COVID-19 has been taken note of by the Ministry and any follow up verification of the same done, Choubey said the process of insurance disbursement has been de-centralized under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP: Insurance Scheme).

Accordingly, the verification of a person affected and died to COVID-19 vests with state governments/Central government authorities concerned. The necessary certification for claims is done by healthcare Institution, organization or office where the deceased was an employee of/engaged by the institution.

They submit the documents to the competent authority for state and UT, or the competent authority for Central Government, Central Autonomous /PSU hospitals, AIIMS, INIs and hospitals of other central ministries, as the case may be. The competent authorities then forward and submit claim to the insurance company. PTI

12:50 Investors grew richer by Rs 3L crore today

Investor wealth further grew over Rs 3 lakh crore in morning trade on Tuesday as market continued to remain euphoric a day after the Union Budget, which analysts termed as unprecedented against the backdrop of the pandemic-induced slowdown.

The BSE benchmark zoomed 1,553.87 points to 50,154.48 during the morning trade. Tracking the extremely positive investor sentiment, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies jumped Rs 3,04,169.3 crore to Rs 1,95,50,883 crore in morning trade.

"It has been a picture perfect rally in the last two sessions with the broader indices clocking record Budget Day gains and extending them today as well. Although some profit-booking can be expected, but we expect stock-specific action to continue," said Rahul Sharma, Head Technical & Derivatives Research, JM Financial Services. Cheering the Budget proposals, the BSE benchmark Sensex zoomed 2,314.84 points or 5 per cent to close at 48,600.61 on Monday.

Investors became richer by over Rs 6.34 lakh crore on Monday as markets gave a big shout-out to the Budget 2021-22. This was the best Budget-day gain for the markets since 1997, analysts said.

The Union Budget FY22 did not allow a good crisis to go to waste, Anand Rathi said in a research note. Making up for the lack of a decisive fiscal stimulus in 2020, the Budget has simultaneously rolled out uncluttered measures to stimulate investment, especially in infrastructure, healthcare, financial and select manufacturing sectors, and signalled progressive withdrawal of government from commercial activities. -- PTI

Super spreader? Local trains in Mumbai today after services resumed yesterday

12:36 Covid cases declining since 4 months: Govt

The country is showing a declining trend of COVID-19 cases since the last four months and compared to similarly placed nations, the cases and deaths per million population in India is among the lowest, the government told Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey was responding to a question on the reasons for exponential multiplication of coronavirus cases in the country and whether there was a wrong approach at the initial stage by the government in focusing on testing, contact tracing, isolation and quarantine management.

"The country is showing a declining trend of COVID 19 cases since the last four months. Recovery rate and case fatality rate for the country is 96.94 per cent and 1.44 per cent respectively. Compared to similarly placed countries, the cases and deaths per million population in India is among the lowest (7,778 cases and 112 deaths per million population)," he said in a written reply.

The government's strategy of focusing on testing, contact tracing, isolation and quarantine-containment is the fundamental approach for managing infectious disease outbreaks of epidemic or pandemic in nature, Choubey said, adding that the strategy has been recommended globally and by the World Health Organisation for suppressing transmission or breaking the cycle of transmission of COVID-19.

Such a strategy combined with non-pharmaceutical interventions such as physical distancing, hand hygiene, respiratory etiquettes and use of mask or face covers, closure of schools and work places, complements the containment strategy in preventing the disease from spreading, the minister said. The government periodically issued guidelines, protocols and standard operating procedures based on existing scientific evidence, Choubey said.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrives at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Airport in Bengaluru. He will inaugurate HAL's second LCA (Light Combat Aircraft) production line today and attend Aero India show to be held from February 3 to 5.

Congress and other opposition parties on Tuesday forced adjournment of Rajya Sabha proceedings for the third time in the pre-noon session as they insisted on taking up a discussion on the issue of farmers' protest over the three new farm bills. The House was first adjourned for about 40 minutes till 10:30 am.

As soon as the House met again, similar scenes were witnessed leading to another adjournment till 11:30 am. When the Upper House re-assembled at 11.30 am, the uproar continued as several protesting members trooped in Well prompting Deputy Chairman Harivansh to adjourn the proceedings till 12:30 pm.

The Deputy Chairman appealed to the opposition members to return their seats and follow COVID-19 protocols. However, they did not heed to his requests. Congress, Left, TMC, DMK and RJD members first walked out from Rajya Sabha after their demand for suspension of business of the day for taking up the discussion was rejected by the Chair. Opposition members shouted slogans to disrupt the Question Hour, forcing Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu to adjourn the proceedings till 10:30 am.

As the protesting members continued sloganeering, Naidu asked them to return to their seats. "Please go to your seats and allow the House to function. Some of you said the last time that not having question hour is 'murder of democracy'. This is a statement made outside," he said. "Members who have walked out and again coming to the Well is not fair," Naidu said before adjourning the House for the first time.

When the House met at 10:30 am, the sloganeering continued and the Deputy Chairman, who was in the Chair, tried to persuade members to allow the House to function. However, as the opposition members did not yield, he adjourned the proceedings till 11:30 am. At the time of adjournment, ports, shipping and waterways minister Mansukh Mandaviya was speaking on The Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020.

Earlier, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said opposition members themselves were demanding Question Hour and the government agreed. "Question Hour is going on....whether they (protesting members) want Question Hour or not, let them place it on record," he said, as opposition members were raising slogans. Opposition parties including the Congress, Left, TMC and DMK had given a notice under rule 267 that calls for setting aside of business of the day to take up a discussion on the issue pressed. Chairman Naidu had, however, disallowed the motion saying the members were free to raise the issue during the discussion on Motion of Thanks to the President's address.

When the House met for the day, Naidu said he has received notice under rule 267 from various members but the issue can be raised during the discussion on Motion of Thanks to the President's address to the joint sitting of both houses of Parliament.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the US government's top infectious-disease expert, will be the subject of a feature documentary, being developed by National Geographic Documentary Films. According to Variety, Emmy winners John Hoffman and Janet Tobias will direct the documentary titled "Fauci".

The 80-year-old director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease is the longest-serving public health leader in Washington, DC.

The documentary will offer a glimpse into the career and life of the public servant who has advised seven US presidents beginning with the AIDS pandemic in the 1980s and through SARS, Ebola and now COVID-19. There is only one Dr. Fauci, and it is an incredible privilege to bring his inspiring, lifelong quest to cure disease and prevent outbreaks, to viewers around the world.

This film will be an unprecedented, intimate portrait of our nation's greatest public servant, whose relentless pursuit of truth and devotion to science has never been more important," Hoffman and Tobias said in a statement. The project will be produced by Alexandra Moss.

The documentary will include interviews with President George W. Bush, Bill Gates, Bono, former HHS secretary Sylvia Burwell, former national security advisor Susan Rice, NIH director Dr. Francis Collins, former CDC director Dr. Tom Frieden, key AIDS activists and organizers, as well as family, friends and former patients. PTI

11:41 Aero India takes off on Feb 3 amidst Covid

The country's premier aerospace and defence exhibition, Aero India 2021 takes off here on Wednesday amidst the COVID-19 pandemic with buzz around "AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan" and "Make in India" push.

With a combination of both physical and virtual exhibition, the 13th edition of the biennial international event at Air Force Station Yelahanka will be the world's first hybrid aerospace show, officials said.

A negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test report (dated January 31, 9 am or later) is a must to attend the three-day event, where each day only 3,000 visitors will be allowed at the flight display venue in view of the pandemic.

As many as 601 exhibitors -- 523 Indian and 78 foreign -- and 14 countries have confirmed participation, they said. Companies are showcasing their capabilities, latest technologies, solutions, products and services at the show. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) will exhibit its latest defence technologies and demonstrate many systems.

11:33 Aatmanirbharta named Oxford Hindi word of 2020

'Aatmanirbharta' implying self-reliance has been named by Oxford Languages as its Hindi word of the year 2020 as it "validated the day-to-day achievements of the countless Indians who dealt with and survived the perils of a pandemic".

The word was chosen by an advisory panel of language experts Kritika Agrawal, Poonam Nigam Sahay and Imogen Foxell. The Oxford Hindi word of the year is a word or expression that is chosen to reflect the ethos, mood, or preoccupations of the passing year, and have lasting potential as a term of cultural significance.

In a statement, Oxford Languages said in the early months of the pandemic when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced India's COVID-19 recovery package, he emphasised the need to become self-reliant as a country, as an economy, as a society and as individuals, in a bid to navigate the perils of the pandemic.

There was a massive increase in the usage of 'aatmanirbharta' following the prime minister's address, highlighting its increased prominence as a phrase and concept in the public lexicon of India, it said.

One of the standout successes of the entire Aatmanirbhar Bharat campaign is the large-scale manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccine in India. During the Republic Day parade, the Department of Biotechnology highlighted the Aatmanirbhar Bharat campaign and showcased the COVID-19 vaccine development process in its tableau at Rajpath.

"In an unprecedented year, 'aatmanirbharta' found resonance with a wide cross-section of people as it is seen to be an answer to the revival of a COVID-impacted economy," said Oxford University Press India managing director Sivaramarkrishnan Venkateswaran. Agrawal said amid a number of interesting and topical entries received, 'aatmanirbharta' stood out because it validated the day-to-day achievements of the countless Indians who dealt with and survived the perils of a pandemic. "This word "gives a voice to the strength displayed by young and old alike in dealing with extended periods of isolation, lack of familial support, loss of livelihoods and other difficulties through sheer determination and self-reliance", she said.

Previous Hindi words of the year are Aadhar (2017), Nari Shakti (2018) and Samvidhaan (2019). While the Hindi word of the year has great resonance for the year in which it was chosen, it doesn't mean that the word will automatically go into any Oxford dictionaries. PTI

In Delhi, police personnel continue to be deployed at Singhu border where farmers' protest against three farm laws enters day 69.

The Delhi Police diverted vehicular traffic at Akshardham and Nizammudin Khatta towards Anand Vihar, Chilla, Delhi-Noida Direct (DND) flyway, Apsara, Bhopra, and Loni borders on Tuesday due to the farmers' agitation at the Ghazipur (Delhi-Uttar Pradesh) border. Traffic from Singhu, Saboli, Piau Maniyari borders has also been closed.

Farmers have been protesting on the different borders of the national capital since November 26 against the three newly enacted farm laws: Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

Opposition parties including the Congress, Left, TMC and DMK on Tuesday staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha after their demand for suspension of business of the day to take up a discussion on more than two-month-old farmers' agitation was rejected by the Chairman.

The opposition parties had given notice under rule 267 calling for the suspension of business of the day to take up discussion on the ongoing agitation by farmers on Delhi borders against three new farm laws.

When the House met for the day, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said he has received notice under rule 267 from various members but the issue can be raised during the discussion on motion of thanks to the President's address to the joint sitting of both House of Parliament. The President, he said, had referred to the farmer's agitation in his address made at the start of the Budget session of Parliament last week.

While the Lok Sabha is scheduled to start a discussion on the motion on Tuesday, the Rajya Sabha will do so on Wednesday.

"As we are going to start a discussion on Motion of Thanks to President's Address tomorrow, members can participate and raise their concerns," he said rejecting the 267 notice. He said several rounds of discussions have happened between the government and the farmers' group.

"I understand the concern (of members) for the need to resolve the issue at the earliest date," he said. Farmers have been camping on Delhi's border with Uttar Pradesh and Haryana for over two months now, protesting against three farm laws that they say would favour corporate entities and would bring down the curtain on minimum support price (MSP) based procurement by the government. The government has vehemently denied these allegations and stated that MSP will continue.

A barricade of nails at the Ghazipur border

10:49 Build bridges, not walls: Rahul advises Centre

As security was beefed up at different borders of the national capital in light of the ongoing farmers' protest, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday advised the BJP-led central government to 'build bridges and not walls'.

"GOI, Build bridges, not walls!," tweeted Gandhi on Tuesday. This comes as barricades have been placed with nails cemented near them at the Ghazipur and Tikri borders of the national capital in the wake of the ongoing farmers' protest.

Last week, during a press conference, Gandhi accused the government of "beating, threatening and bullying" farmers, adding that the three new farm laws should be repealed immediately and it would be wrong for the ruling coalition to think that the protests will end.

Meanwhile, security has also been tightened at Ghazipur, Singhu, and Tikri borders, as farmers continue to make their way to the protest site for the past two to three days.

Actress Urmila Matondkar shares this image of the gorgeous interiors Mumbai's civic headquarters, the BMC building, which has Indo-Saracenic architecture. Matondkar, who joined the Shiv Sena, tweeted, "#Mumbai gets even more beautiful n glittery with BMC office showing off its stunning architecture as hottest weekend destinationStar-struck Special thanks to @AUThackeray also to @mybmc @KishoriPednekar

for promoting Mumbai tourism which helps in livelihood. #Mumbaikar."

In order to promote Mumbai's heritage among citizens and tourists, the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra has inaugurated a guided heritage walk inside the 128-year-old BMC headoffice at CST.

The tours are open every weekend.

The fortified Ghazipur border can hold off an army

10:37 Sena's Raut to meet farmers at Ghazipur

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday said he will visit farmers who are protesting at the Ghazipur border near Delhi, as per the instruction of Maharashtra Chief Minister and party head Uddhav Thackeray.

The Shiv Sena has been supporting the farmers who are agitating at Delhi's border points for over two months against the Centre's three new farm laws.

Farmers' protest sites at Delhi's borders turned into fortresses Monday as police beefed up security and strengthened barricades. Workers under the watch of police personnel hooked iron rods between two rows of cement barriers on a flank of the main highway at the Singhu border to further restrict the movement of protesters.

Another portion of the highway at the Delhi-Haryana border is practically blocked now as a makeshift cement wall has come up there. At Ghazipur on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border, there are multi-layer barricades to stop the movement of vehicles.

Barbed wire has also been put up to keep off people on foot. Protesters have been pouring in as the Bharatiya Kisan Union members and its leader Rakesh Tikait have stayed pitched at Ghazipur's UP Gate, occupying a stretch of the Delhi-Meerut highway since November last year. PTI

10:13 Only 8,635 Covid cases in 24 hours

India reports 8,635 new COVID-19 cases, 13,423 discharges, and 94 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per the Union Health Ministry. This is probably the lowest number of Covid cases in a day, ever. The total cases: 1,07,66,245, total discharges: 1,04,48,406, death toll: 1,54,486, active cases: 1,63,353, total vaccination: 39,50,156.

10:05 Sensex touches 50,000 mark

Sensex touches 50,000 mark! The Sensex zoomed over 1459 points and the Nifty crossed the key 14,700-level in the opening session on Tuesday, a day after the Union Budget which outlined a slew of measures to pull the economy out of the pandemic-induced slump.

10:01 Sensex gets sentimental, soars 1500 points

The Sensex zoomed over 750 points and the Nifty crossed the key 14,500-level in the opening session on Tuesday, a day after the Union Budget which outlined a slew of measures to pull the economy out of the pandemic-induced slump.

The BSE gauge Sensex was trading at 49,352.27, witnessing a strong rally of 751.66 points or 1.55 per cent in opening deals. Likewise, the NSE barometer Nifty was higher by 222.65 points or 1.56 per cent at 14,503.85 in early trade.

In the Sensex pack, all shares were trading in the green barring HUL.

Enthused over various measures announced in the Budget on Monday, the Sensex zoomed 2,314.84 points or 5 per cent to finish at 48,600.61; and the Nifty soared 646.60 points or 4.74 per cent to finish at 14,281.20 the biggest single-day gains ever for the benchmarks on Budget day.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) purchased shares worth a net Rs 1,494.23 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Asian markets were also trading broadly higher in afternoon trade.

Economists and market analysts are of the view that this is a bold growth-oriented budget and absence of the much-feared COVID tax and the surcharges on Income Tax is a great relief. -- PTI

Indian-American Bhavya Lal was on Monday appointed by NASA as the Acting Chief of Staff of the US space agency.

Lal served as a member of the Biden Presidential Transition Agency Review Team for the agency and oversaw the agency's transition under the administration of President Joe Biden.

In a statement, NASA said Lal brings extensive experience in engineering and space technology, serving as a member of the research staff at the Institute for Defence Analyses Science and Technology Policy Institute from 2005 to 2020.

There, she led analysis of space technology, strategy, and policy for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and National Space Council, as well as federal space-oriented organisations, including NASA, the Department of Defence, and the intelligence community.

Lal is an active member of the space technology and policy community, having chaired, co-chaired, or served on five high-impact National Academy of Science committees.

She served two consecutive terms on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Federal Advisory Committee on Commercial Remote Sensing and was an External Council member of NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts Program and the Technology, Innovation and Engineering Advisory Committee of the NASA Advisory Council.

Before joining STPI, Lal was president of C-STPS LLC, a science and technology policy research and consulting firm. Prior to that, she was the director of the Center for Science and Technology Policy Studies at Abt Associates, a global policy research consultancy based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

She co-founded and is co-chair of the policy track of the American Nuclear Society's annual conference on Nuclear and Emerging Technologies in Space and co-organises a seminar series on space history and policy with the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

For her many contributions to the space sector, she was nominated and selected to be a Corresponding Member of the International Academy of Astronautics, the statement said.

Lal earned Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in nuclear engineering, as well as a Master of Science degree in technology and policy, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and holds a doctorate in public policy and public administration from George Washington University.

She is a member of both the nuclear engineering and public policy honor societies. -- PTI

Congress MP Manish Tewari on Tuesday said that the so-called 'Captains of Corporate India' have never ever uttered a single criticism of any budgets -- good, bad or ugly.

"One thing that stands out on Budget Day year on year budget after the budget is that so called Captains of Corporate India never ever have a single criticism to offer of any budget-good, bad or ugly. They rise together in an orchestra of peans. Their spine is wonderfully supine," he said in a tweet.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the union budget in Lok Sabha on Monday and said it was focused on six pillars - health and wellbeing, physical and financial capital and infrastructure, inclusive development for aspirational India, reinvigorating human capital, innovation and R&D and minimum government and maximum governance. -- ANI

Soon after the announcement of the Union Budget 2021 on Monday, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray slammed the central government and alleged that instead of the entire country, the budget was more focused on poll-bound states including West Bengal.

In a statement, Thackeray said, "The budget should be for the country and not for elections. This is the budget of the country and not of polls,"

The Shiv Sena leader said that the focus of the entire country was on the budget and the people of all the regions have their own expectations from the budget.

"If the budget will be made by keeping eyeing on upcoming assembly elections then how will the people of the whole country meet their expectations," he added the official statement.

The Opposition has accused the Centre of allocating more funds to some poll-bound states. -- ANI

The global decrease in the number of new emerging cases of COVID-19 suggests that the virus can be controlled regardless of its mutations, Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

"For the third week in a row, the number of new cases of #COVID19 reported globally fell last week. There are still many countries with increasing numbers of cases, but at the global level, this is encouraging news," Tedros said at a Monday briefing, adding "It shows this virus can be controlled, even with the new variants in circulation."

The WHO chief warned governments against opening up too quickly, as that could enable the coronavirus to come back in full strength.

Tedros said governments need to make appropriate adjustments, such as making quarantine measures easier to adhere to.

"Controlling the spread of the #COVID19 virus saves lives now, and saves lives later by reducing the chances of more variants emerging. And it helps to ensure vaccines remain effective," Tedros said.

On Friday, the WHO chief warned against coronavirus vaccine hoarding, saying it could lead to slow global economic recovery and most importantly a never-ending pandemic.

Since the start of the pandemic last year, more than 103 million coronavirus cases have been confirmed worldwide, with over 2.2 million fatalities, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Protests against tough coronavirus restrictions have been held in various countries as businesses are slow to recover and people are struggling amid deteriorating economic conditions. -- ANI

United States President Joe Biden has appointed Indian-origin Raj Panjabi to lead his Malaria Initiative, which is mainly in African and Asian countries.

"After being sworn in this morning, I'm honored to share that I've been appointed by" Biden as the president's Malaria Coordinator to lead the US president's Malaria Initiative, Panjabi said on twitter. "I'm grateful for this chance to serve," he added.

Born in Liberia, Panjabi and his family fled the county during its civil war and arrived in the United States as refugees in the 1990s.

"My family and I arrived in America 30 years ago after fleeing civil war in Liberia. A community of Americans rallied around my family to help us build back our lives. It's an honor to serve the country that helped build back my own life as part of the Biden-Harris Administration.

"In the face of an unprecedented crises, I am humbled by the challenges our country and our world faces to build back better. But as I have learned in America: we are not defined by the conditions we face, we are defined by how we respond," Panjabi said in a series of tweets.

As a doctor and public health professional who has cared for patients alongside the staff of the President's Malaria Initiative and its partners USAID and Center for Disease Control, Panjabi said: "I've been inspired by how they've responded to fight malaria, one of the oldest and deadliest pandemics, and saved lives around the world."

He said this mission is personal for him. "My grandparents and parents were infected with malaria while living in India. As a child in Liberia, I fell sick with malaria, and as a doctor serving in Africa, I have seen this disease take too many lives," he said.

"I've seen how" the Malaria Initiative and its partners have responded with resolve in the countries where it operates.

"I've seen the relief on the faces of parents whose children survived malaria because they were treated with medicines and by health workers backed by its support," he said.

Panjabi fled Liberia during the country's civil war at age nine, becoming a refugee in the US.

He returned to Liberia as a medical student and in 2007, co-founded Last Mile Health.

He has served as an assistant professor of medicine at the Harvard Medical School, an associate physician at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and the CEO and co-founder of Last Mile Health, according to his profile on LinkedIn.

Panjabi and the Last Mile Health team played a key role in the 2013-16 West Africa Ebola epidemic, helping train over a thousand frontline and community health workers and support the government of Liberia to lead its national Ebola Operations Centre. Panjabi delivered testimony on the Ebola epidemic at the US Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee.

In response to COVID-19, he led Last Mile Health to support governments in Africa to train frontline health workers.

He served as the advisor to former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in her role as the co-chair of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response at the World Health Organization.

Panjabi has cared for patients with COVID and urgent care needs.

He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, trained in internal medicine and primary care at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and received a masters degree in public health in epidemiology from Johns Hopkins.

He has served as a faculty member at the Harvard Kennedy School. -- PTI

The United States is "concerned" by Beijing's pattern of ongoing attempts to intimidate its neighbours, the Biden Administration said on Monday, adding that it is closely monitoring the situation along the India-China border.

"We are closely monitoring the situation. We note the ongoing talks between the governments of India and China and continue to support a direct dialogue and a peaceful resolution to border disputes," Emily J Horne, spokesperson, National Security Council of the White House, told PTI.

He was responding to a question on recent Chinese attempts to intrude into Indian territories and occupy it.

"The United States is concerned by Beijing's pattern of ongoing attempts to intimidate its neighbours," Horne said.

"We will stand with friends, partners and allies to advance our shared prosperity, security and values in the Indo-Pacific region," he added.

This is the first response of the Biden Administration on India-China border clashes.

Addressing a joint session of Parliament, President Ram Nath Kovind last week said India has strengthened its military presence at the Line of Actual Control along the two countries' shared border to protect its sovereignty. "My government is fully committed to the protection of the interests of the nation and is also vigilant. Additional forces have been deployed to protect India's sovereignty over the LAC," Kovind said.

"New India-China border clash shows simmering tensions," The New York Times said in a report last week. -- PTI

In a late night administrative reshuffle, the Uttar Pradesh government on Monday transferred Additional Chief Secretary, Power Department, Arvind Kumar and few other senior officers.

Kumar has now been posted in the Infrastructure and Industrial Development Department, an official spokesman said here.

Additional Chief Secretary Finance, Sanjiv Kumar Mittal has been sent to the State Tax department in the same capacity, while ACS Vocational Education S Radha Mohan shifted to Finance in his place, he said.

ACS Medical Education Rajnish Dubey has been made ACS Urban Development department.

Principal Secretary Medical Health, Alok Kumar has been sent to Medical Education in the same capacity, and Principal Secretary Power, M Devraj made Chairman and MD of UP Power Corporation Limited.

Chief Secretary R K Tiwari has been given the additional charge of Infrastructure and Industrial Development commissioner, the spokesman added. -- PTI

The White House on Monday condemned the desecration of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in a city in California.

"We certainly would have concern about the desecration of monuments of Gandhi," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference.

She was responding to a question on the desecration of the six-foot-tall, 650-pound (294 kg) bronze statue of Gandhi in the Central Park of the city of Davis in northern California. It was broken and ripped from the base by unknown miscreants recently.

"Certainly we would condemn that desecration and watch it closely," Psaki said.

The city of Davis, in a statement, condemned the act of vandalism.

"We do not support any actions that include the destruction of property. We understand that our community reflects a diversity of views and values, but we expect that everyone will extend respect to each other and to shared spaces.

"We are committed to creating a city that is inclusive and lives up to our principles. We work diligently to ensure the physical and psychological safety of every resident. Acts of destruction are violent and shatter this safety," it said.

The city said it sympathises with those who are grieving the destruction of the statue and promised a thorough investigation and full accountability for those who committed this crime.

"We sympathise with those who have sincerely voiced their opposition to the statue and who feel unheard. But we reiterate our belief that the solution to solving such differences is never in violent acts but through compromise and dialogue. It is our sincere desire that our community moves forward with peaceful and positive discourse and reconciliation," the city said in its statement. -- PTI

The Delhi Police on Monday arrested a protester who allegedly attacked and injured a Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel during violence at the Red Fort on Republic Day, officials said.

The accused has been identified as Akash Preet, a resident of Rampur in Uttar Pradesh.

He was arrested from the national capital, they said.

According to the police, the CISF personnel was deployed at the Red Fort and tried to stop the accused who was part of the mob that entered the monument.

When the accused was stopped by the security person, he attacked him with a sword.

The events were captured on camera, a senior police officer said.

Thousands of protesting farmers, who reached ITO from the Ghazipur border, clashed with the police on Republic Day.

Many of them, driving tractors, reached the Red Fort and entered the monument.

They hoisted flags on the domes and placed a flagstaff at the ramparts of the national monument, where the national flag is unfurled by the prime minister on Independence Day. -- PTI

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