Newsletter 4 March

Top 5 News

1- Cabinet meeting chaired by PM Modi has approved the mega merger of ten public sector Banks
2- India saw Rs 6.14 trillion, or 3% of GDP, escape tax net in 2017: Report
3- Terrorist organization ISIS was far more advanced in using SM than forces like the US and the UK
4- Post NE Delhi Riot
5- Corona Virus Row

National

Cabinet meeting chaired by PM Modi has approved the mega merger of ten public sector Banks

With the deadline of Apr 1 fast approaching for the mega merger of 10 public sector banks, there seems to be odder in the way of meeting the target date as a series of regulatory approvals and clearances are still pending, bank officials said. Even after Cabinet approval to the proposed mega merger plan, officials said, fixation of share swap ratio, shareholders consent and other regulatory approvals are expected to take at least 30-45 days. It is believed that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has sought details from these lenders about their financial projections for the next three to five years. Details in respect of NPAs, capital requirement, credit growth and cost savings on account of the mergers have been asked for, officials said. Union Fin. Min. Nirmala Sitharaman beirfed to press that Cabinet has approved Companies (Second Amendment) Bill, 2019. Bill removes criminality under the Act. This Bill furthers ease of living for law-abiding corporates and de-clogs the criminal justice system in the country. “FDI Policy amended to permit foreign Investments in M/S Air India Ltd by NRIs who are Indian nationals, up to 100 % under automatic route. Earlier only 49% was available for sale to NRIs in Air India. Now they can purchase 100%,” Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said after the Cabinet meeting. In a relief to the telecom industry, currently grappling with the adjusted gross revenue crisis, the government on Wed said that mobile service providers would be given the option to defer future spectrum auction payments The Union Cabinet has approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Republic of India and the Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene of the Republic of Cote d’lvoire on Cooperation in the field of Health. Union Min of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions said in written reply to question in Lok Sabha stated that Govt has absolute right to retire Govt officials prematurely on ground of lack of integrity or ineffectiveness, in public interest. Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai in a written reply in Rajya Sabha stated that 18,999 nationals of neighboring countries have been granted Indian Citizenship from 2014 to 2019.

Year	Afghanistan	Bangladesh	Pakistan	Sri Lanka	Myanmar	Total
2014	249	24	267	4	0	544
2015	234	16+14864	263	17	0	15394
2016	244	39	670	35	0	988
2017	117	49	476	34	1	677
2018	30	19	450	12	0	511
2019	40	25	809	113	1	18999

India saw Rs 6.14 trillion, or 3% of GDP, escape tax net in 2017: Report

India has the third-highest trade-related illicit financial flow among over 135 countries with a whopping $83.5 billion (Rs 6.14 trillion, which is 3.05%, of nation’s gross domestic product) escaping the government’s tax net owing to trade-based money laundering tactics, according to a report released on Tuesday by US-based think tank Global Financial Integrity (GFI).

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Wed asked the fair trade regulator CCI to initiate again the probe against Flipkart for an alleged use of its dominant position.

Delhi government moves city court seeking fresh date for execution of four Nirbhaya case convicts, after President Ram Nath Kovind rejects the mercy plea of the 2012 Delhi gang-rape case last convict, Pawan. Previously, some news flashed on some media that President has done on same day, but in fact, it happen today only.

Terrorist organization ISIS was far more advanced in using SM than forces like the US and the UK

Army Chief General MM Naravane said that the “In Iraq and Syria, it is the ISIS an organization steeped in the 17^th century, was far more advanced in using social media than the 21^st-century forces like the US and the UK,” while speaking at the Indian Army’s internal seminar with the

theme ‘changing characteristics of land warfare and its impact on the military’.

Naravane also said that China has not been involved in real hardcore combat for a few decades now, yet its regular showcasing of its military might has created this aura of China being the undisputed military leader in key technology domain.

Balakot airstrike saw short intense escalatory cycle in full media blare where sophisticated info narratives played an imp role. It demonstrated that if you play escalatory game with skill, military ascendance can be established in cycles that don’t necessarily lead to war.

Army Chief on changing character of warfare: Icons of the 20th-century warfare like large main battle tanks and fighter aircraft are on their way out. We are looking at using block-chain technologies and direct energy weapons like a laser in future.

Post NE Delhi Riot ….

Suspended AAP councilor Tahir Hussain moves Delhi court seeking anticipatory bail in a case lodged in connection with alleged killing of IB official Ankit Sharma.

Previously Delhi police in media briefing said that there are some media reports that Tahir Hussain was rescued by police. The fact is that on 24 Feb night we received information that a Councilor is trapped and surrounded but when police checked he was found at his home.

INC targets the Centre over the Delhi violence once again. Leader of Opposition Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary, questions the need to postpone the discussion till Holi, says that Delhi has already witnessed ‘khoon ki Holi’.

SC Ordered Delhi HC to hear Delhi violence related matter on Mar 6th

SC orders the matter relating to violence in Delhi to be listed before Chief Justice of Delhi HC on 6^th HC is requested to decide the matter as expeditiously as possible, says CJI
- In the video, which is said to be from Dec 19^th last year, Mander is seen addressing a gathering outside gate number seven of the Jamia Millia Islamia University. “This fight shall not be won in the Supreme Court as well. In recent times, we have seen the Supreme Court in cases like NRC, Kashmir, Ayodhya. The court didn’t protect humanity, equality and secularism,” Mander is seen saying in the clip.
- “We will definitely try our best there. But, the decision will not be made either in Supreme court or Parliament, it has to be made at the streets,” he adds to huge applause from the gathering.
Today, when Mr Mander’s lawyer denied that he made any derogatory speech against the top court, Chief Justice Bobde asked for a transcript of the speech.
The original petition was filed by 10 victims of the violence. Besides, Mander, Aruna Roy, Nikhil Dey, historian Irfan Habib, economist Prabhat Patnaik and some organizations have also approached the SC.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentions before the SC about the ‘alleged video clip’ of and petitioner in the case, Harsh Mander. Mehta said
that Harsh Mander can be seen calling people to streets for real justice.
SC declines to hear Harsh Mander’s petition today. Court says that if this is how he feels about the courts then it will have to be decided first whether he should be given a hearing at all.

Corona Virus Row…..

As per Min of Health, total 29 cases of corona virus reported so far in India, out which 3 earlier cases in Kerala have been cured properly. So 25 remain positive. He also informed that 39 labs have facility to testing the Corona Virus. Another case in Jaipur, wife of the already confirmed Italian patient, has been confirmed for COVID-19.

In addition, two cases with high viral load have been detected in Telangana.

14 out of 21 Italian nationals have found positive for coronavirus. They have been sent to at Indo-Tibetan Border Police’s (ITBP) quarantine facility in Chhawla.

He added, From now on, all flights and passengers will be part of universal screening, not just the 12 countries which we had listed earlier. 589 K people have been screened so far.

If Iran Govt supports our efforts, then we have an intention to establish a test lab there as well. This will let us bring back our citizens from Iran after a thorough screening.

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare: Cabinet Secretary held a review meeting through video conference in Delhi today, with the Secretaries of concerned Ministries, Chief Secretaries and Health Secretaries of the States to review and assess action taken for containment of #COVID19.

Govt has issued advisory on y’day night to all media that they pay due attention on corona virus, its prophylaxis and others related issues.

Amid, all these conditions, WB, CM Mamata Banerjee alleges that “some people and channels” are trying to create panic over corona virus in country to divert attention from Delhi communal riots.

In House of Commons, India faces fire for CAA, Delhi riots

As per some media reports, India came under fire in the House of Commons comprises, 650 MPs, on Tue with Labor, SNP, Liberal Democrats and Conservative MPs, including Indian-origin MPs, queuing up to criticize the Indian government for the recent violence in Delhi and the CAA and urging the UK government to take stronger action.

Who said what?

At one point, when SNP’s David Linden said they had seen Modi and Trump embracing “in their scramble to get a trade deal” and asked for assurances that the UK would raise these cases “at the highest levels of government” and not ignore human rights when it came to trade deals.
Junior minister in the FCO Nigel Adams, standing in for foreign secretary Dominic Raab who was in Turkey, said: “Whilst trade is absolutely vital for our economy and future prosperity, this in no way compromises the UK commitment to holding human rights at the core of our foreign policy, and I can guarantee we will not pursue trade to the exclusion of human rights.”
Adams said the events in Delhi were “very concerning”, the UK was monitoring the violence and developments around CAA “closely” and the UK condemned targeting of people based on religion. “Any allegation of human rights abuses is deeply disturbing and we have made it clear these must be investigated thoroughly, promptly and transparently,” Adams said.
Tory MP Richard Graham said videos showed “shocking orchestrated sectarian violence” and asked the minister to invite the UK Indian high commissioner to his office to share with him the “deep concerns” of so many constituents. “If there is one silver lining it is what one Gujarati Muslim said to me — he and his family now value more than ever the plurality and safety across faiths that this country provides.” Adams said he would ask Lord Ahmad to meet with the Indian high commissioner.
Labor MP Stephen Timms said the CAA was “a decisive move away” from Ambedkar’s Constitution which was admired around the world for its commitment to equality.
Labor MP and PIO Tan Dhesi said “incited mob violence in Delhi on the basis of someone’s faith” brought back painful memories of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots when he was studying in India.
He said that the “persecution of Indian Muslims”, many of whom have been peacefully protesting against CAA, is “utterly intolerable” and the police cannot stand by “or worse still be complicit as is alleged by many victims and social activists”. He said the perpetrators must face the full force of law.
Many of the MPs referred to a BBC broadcast on Mon night which said the police had been complicit in the violence against Muslims.
- Mirpur-born Labor MP Mohammad Yasin said: “As the BBC recently reported, there is evidence the police are complicit in the latest outbreak of violence in Delhi and encouraging violence against Muslims.”
- Tory MP Nusrat Ghani asked the minister to make sure the concerns of MPs are relayed to the Indian authorities, “including the brutality that seems to have (been) meted out by those who should be enforcing the law which was covered by the BBC on Monday night”.
- PoK-origin Labor MP Zarah Sultana said the violence in Delhi had been “whipped up by BJP politicians” and was “the latest targeted assault on Muslims by the Modi government.”
- PIO Labor MP Nadia Whittome said it was time to reject the language of “clashes and communal violence ” when describing the riots as it was actually “a continuation of sustained and systemic Hindutva violence waged on Muslim and many minority ethnic communities in India that is sanctioned by Modi’s BJP government”.
- Liberal Democrats MP Alistair Carmichael said the CAA and the violence it has precipitated was not an isolated act and came on the heels of the implantation of the NRC in Assam and “Modi government actions in Kashmir”. “It begins to look like part of a course of conduct designed to marginalize Muslims in India. India is in the Commonwealth. What are we doing through the Commonwealth?” Carmichael asked.
All such statements are based on reports published in BBC, Washington Post and New York Times, written by some Indian Journalist which only mentioned atrocities against a particular community but ‘intentionally’ not other face of coin? Some of them, compared to Anti-Sikhs Riot of Delhi in 1984, which is factually incorrect in which more 3000 lives have lost. But the authors of aforementioned media have underlined this line of thought.

US fears drug shortages after India restricts exports due to coronavirus disruption

U.S. health regulators are watching for potential drug shortages after India restricted the export of some raw pharmaceutical ingredients, a move that has potential to disrupt the global supply chain of drugs manufactured around the world.

Earlier Tues, India said it would limit export of some common medicines as concerns grow over shortages of chemical ingredients. Many manufacturers in China are shut due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

“India has restricted the export of 26 active pharmaceutical ingredients for export, which represents about 10% of their export capacity,” U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn told Congress at a hearing Tue in Washington.

Though India is the source of about 20% of the world’s generic-drug supply, the country is dependent on China for about 66% of the chemical components needed to make them.

A recent analysis by the Indian government found that as many as 450 drug ingredients could be affected by China’s efforts to contain the coronavirus, which include a complete lockdown of Hubei province, a center of the country’s drug industry.

A legislation by Arunachal Pradesh Assembly today. Those who damage public property in the name of a protest will have to pay for it. Mobs and lumpen elements can’t get away.

Congress party has called an urgent meeting with all Lok Sabha MPs led by party leader Rahul Gandhi over the issues of Delhi violence, vandalisation at office of Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and political situation in Madhya Pradesh.

In Madhya Pradesh, Minister Jitu Patwari alleged that Shivraj Singh Chouhan is the mastermind behind all this; several videos and audios are viral now which reveal his role in everything that is happening.

MP ki sarkar ko koi khatra nahi hai. The BJP is in opposition, have made 4 congress MLAs and 4 others MLAs in captive in a hotel.

Few days back, a senior leader of Congress, Digvijay Singh Blamed that BJP is offering our MLAs to 30-45 Cr.

This is countered by former MP CM, BJP leader SS Chouhan “Maamla unke ghar ka hai, aarop hum par lagate hain. Unka kaam kewal aarop lagana hai. Ab itne gutt hain

Congress mein ki aapas mein hi maaram maar machi hui hai”.

Minister and independent MLA Pradeep Jaiswal: I am with the government of Kamal Nath till it is there. If in future, the government falls, my options will remain open considering the will of people of my constituency and for their development.

International

Meanwhile, the United States conducted an airstrike against Taliban fighters in the southern Helmand province, a US forces spokesman said, the first strike since the troop withdrawal agreement was signed.

Chinese researchers recently registered a 3-month clinical trial for Actemra that will recruit 188 coronavirus patients and take place from February 10 to May 10, according to records shown on China’s clinical trials registration database.

Chinese drug makers have been racing to develop alternatives to Roche’s treatment. Bio-Thera Solutions Ltd expects to file new drug approval for its Actemra biosimilar in 2021, and Zhejiang Hisun Pharmaceutical Co Ltd received in 2016 regulatory approval to conduct clinical trials for its Tocilizumab candidate, company filings showed.

States

Govt of JnK: Internet access across the Union Territory with internet speed restricted to 2G only and internet connectivity with Mac-binding to continue till 17^th Mar, 2020. The directions to remain in force unless modified earlier.

While the postpaid sim card holders shall continue to be provided access to the internet, these services shall not be made available on pre-paid sim cards unless verified as per norms applicable for post-paid connections.

India in International Frame

BBC

Delhi riots: How Muslims’ homes were targeted and burnt

§ The ‘hero cop’ who braved a mob to save lives

§ Why Delhi violence has echoes of the Gujarat riots

§ Muslim women recall horror of Molotov cocktails and arson

§ Watch: ‘My brother died after police beating’

Reuters

India’s coronavirus cases rise to 28, including 16 Italians