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Govt approval reqd for any MoU with Indian varsities: MEA on Confucius institutes

New Delhi (NVI): China’s Confucious institutes will need to get the approval of the Indian Government before signing any MoU or Agreement that “such centers” might wish to enter into with an Indian college or university, the Ministry of External Affairs said today.

During a virtual media briefing here today, External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that MEA had in 2009 issued detailed guidelines for establishment and functioning of Foreign Cultural Centres.

“These guidelines apply also to any cultural centre that is supported/sponsored by an autonomous foreign organisation, including any Confucius Centre,” the MEA spokesman said.

“Under these Guidelines, approval of MEA is required for any MoU/Agreement that such Centres might wish to enter into with an Indian organisation,” he added.

Srivastava said that naturally, if any Indian institution were to enter into or has entered into an arrangement that would come under the purview of these guidelines, then it would require the approval of the Government.

“And as a corollary if the approval was not taken when establishing such Centers then it was not in conformity with the Guidelines,” the MEA spokesman said.

It is pertinent to mention here that UGC had last year officially asked Indian universities to seek approval from the Central government, including the home and foreign ministries, before entering into any agreement for setting up a Confucius Institute.

India has put restrictions on several activities with China after the violent Galwan Valley clashes in which 20 Indian soldiers lost their lives.

Amid the tense border face-off in Ladakh at Line of Actual Control (LAC) and China’s aggressive posturing in the region, India also banned 59 China-based apps in June.

-ARK

Pak shells forward areas along LoC in J&K’s Poonch

Ceasefire
Representational image

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Pakistani troops yet again resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violation in Mendhar and Balakote sectors of Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district along LoC by firing with mortars and small arms, defence officials said today.

They said at 8 pm, Pakistani rangers fired mortars and small arms in a bid to target forward posts of the Indian army at Mendhar and Poonch sectors. “The own troops gave a befitting reply,” a defence official said, adding that “there was no report of any loss to life or property.”

This is the third ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops in Poonch this week as it shelled the forward areas in the district on Tuesday and Wednesday also.

Defence sources said that Pakistan started intense shelling post abrogation of Article 370 last year and continues to resort to frequent unprovoked CFVs (ceasefire violations) in the forward areas of both Kashmir and Jammu regions since August 5 last year.

“The Indian army has been giving a befitting reply to Pakistan every time it violates ceasefire. This time we were expecting some misadventure from Pakistan on the eve of the first anniversary of Article 370 rollback. Our troops are alert across LoC and are keeping a watch on every attempt made by the neighbour, be that ceasefire violation or an infiltration bid,” they said.

As per official records, since January this year, over 1,776 ceasefire violations have taken place in J&K, majority of them in Poonch, Rajouri, RS Pura, Keran, Tangdhar, Machil and Uri sectors of the J&K UT.

An army official said that it is the Pakistan army that violates the 2003 CFV pact every time. “We are always giving them a befitting response. There have been casualties on both sides,” he said, adding that “this year so far, there is a surge in CFV from across the LoC.”

Pertinently, after a long gap of over three decades, the government in the J&K UT has once again started construction of community bunkers in villages close to LoC in J&K.

NVI was the first to break the story about the b construction of community bunkers in Uri, Tangdhar and Gurez sectors of north Kashmir’s Kupwara, Bandipora and Baramulla district. The construction of almost 140 bunkers was started after massive protests by the locals living close to the LoC.

-ARK

India expects ‘sincere’ efforts by China for mutual disengagement at LAC: MEA

Ladakh

New Delhi (NVI): India today said that it expects the Chinese side to work sincerely with New Delhi for complete disengagement and de-escalation and full restoration of peace and tranquility in the border areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava, in a press briefing here, recalled the July 5 telephone conversation between the Special Representatives of India and China where they discussed the situation in the India-China border areas. along LAC. The Chinese side was represented by its foreign minister Wang Yi while National Security Advisor Ajit Doval was from the Indian side.

“The two Special Representatives had agreed that early and complete disengagement of the troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and de-escalation from India-China border areas in accordance with bilateral agreement and protocols and full restoration of peace and tranquility was essential for the smooth overall development of bilateral relations,” Srivastava said, adding that India remains committed to this objective.

The MEA statement on the status of India-China border row comes four days after both the countries held the fifth round of military-level talks to expedite the process of disengagement of troops along LAC. The senior military commanders from both sides held the meet in Moldo, on the Chinese side of the LAC.

Earlier on July 30, the Chinese ambassador to India, Sun Weidong, had claimed that troops of both countries have disengaged in most areas at Line of Actual Control (LAC) on which the MEA issued a clarification saying that there has been some progress but the disengagement process has not been completed yet.

Since the face-off in Galwan Valley of Ladakh on June 15, India and China have held diplomatic and military level talks to resolve the border situation.

Apart from the June 15 Galwan clashes between the Indian Army and PLA troops, the border tensions were also triggered by a violent clash between the two militaries in Pangong Tso area in eastern Ladakh on May 5.

In the June 15 violence, 20 Indian soldiers lost their lives while China also lost some of its troops but Beijing didn’t disclose the number of casualties.

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, India asked China to desist from making “infructuous attempts” to raise issues pertaining to Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir at the UN Security Council (UNSC) after its third attempt failed on Wednesday.

China, at the behest of Pakistan, raised the issue at an informal and closed meeting but most of other member nations refused to pay heed, saying it’s an internal matter of India, according to officials.

This is the third time that China raked up the issue since abolition of special status of Jammu and Kashmir granted under Article 370 on August 5 last year.

The issue was first raised in August last year and then in January this year, but like previous occasions, there was no resolution.

-ARK

Draft EIA notification not final yet, ‘premature’ to publicise objections: Javadekar

Union Minister Prakash Javadekar (File)

New Delhi (NVI): Countering objections from Congress MP Jairam Ramesh over the draft Environment Impact Assessment Notification 2020 (EIA), Union Minister Prakash Javadekar today said that the draft has not been finalised by the Centre yet and it doesn’t not relax the process of public hearing, but rather aims to make it more meaningful.

Javadekar, in a letter to the former environment minister, who also heads the Parliamentary standing committee on science and technology, environment, forest and climate change, wrote: “It has not been finalised yet as public consultation is underway.”

In his response, the Union Environment Minister also issued a point by point rebuttal to the Congress leader on draft EIA notification and termed publicising letters by Ramesh as “premature” as “public consultation is still underway.”

In his letter to Javadekar on July 25, Ramesh had said that the draft EIA reduces public participation in all steps of the environment clearance process “by lessening the notice period for public hearings and doing away with them for a large category of projects”.

Earlier today, Ramesh had written to the minister saying, “The Parliamentary Standing Committee has been inundated with requests from various stakeholders to give them an opportunity for presenting their views. I am sure you will agree that this is both desirable and necessary. Further meetings of the committee will call non-official witnesses. The Notification may, therefore, be kept in abeyance till the committee completes its deliberations.”

To his tweet, Javadekar replied: “Today morning only I had sent you a detailed response to your July 25, 2020 letter, which was delivered at your residence office, still you chose to write this letter and make it public through twitter. I am sharing today’s letter here once again.”

“Provision of ex-post facto approval to bring all violators under regulatory regime by imposing heavy penalties; companies cannot be in perpetual unregulated status,” Javadekar said in his letter.

He further stated in his letter that every project expansion will require submission of the Environmental Management Plan.

“Government has issued a draft notification not the final notification, and is still open for public consultation; ready to discuss in details when the situation warrants,” Javadekar’s letter to Ramesh read.

-ARK

India and Japan looking to have trusted partners to expand businesses: Piyush Goyal

Union Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal (file pic)

New Delhi (NVI): India and Japan are looking to have trusted partners from authentic investors to expand their trade and business relationships, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal today said.

While addressing the Digital Edition of Make in India, Japan Roadshow 3.0, Goyal said, “Japan is one of our most trusted trading partners, fourth-largest contributor of FDI (foreign direct investment). The current partnership will expand through proposed India-Japan Industrial Competitiveness Partnership, which was discussed during the meeting with Japan Minister Hiroshi San.”

“It is important Japan and India expand our trade and business relationships through the proposed India-Japan Industrial Competitiveness Partnership. Together, I have the confidence that we will come out successful in all matters,” he added.

Piyush Goyal further said that as India is opening up for business, both the Centre and states are making strong policy decisions to help investors take advantage of growth opportunities.

The Minister said, “As the world has recovered from the grip of the COVID-19, the Government of India has been preparing strategies and Action Plan not only for business continuity and is set to a revival but also setting out red carpet for global investors to continue to choose India as the preferred destination for investments.”

“Japan’s interest in India is increasing due to variety of reasons including India’s large and growing market. With its large population and growing consumer base, India is the preferred destination for Japanese investments,” he said.

During the event, Hiroshi Kajiyama, Minister of Economy,Trade and Industry (METI), Japan, in his remarks, reiterated his country’s interest in furthering the bilateral relations.

-CHK

Rlys to begin Kisan Rail service to transport perishable items

(File/Representational image)

New Delhi (NVI): Indian Railways will introduce country’s first Kisan Rail, a special parcel train to supply perishable products, between Maharashtra’s Devlali and Bihar’s Danapur from tomorrow on weekly basis, the Ministry of Railways said.

The train from Devlali will start at 11 am on August 7 and will reach Danapur the next day at 6.45 pm, covering a distance of 1519 kilometres in about 32 hours.

It will be flagged off by Union Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar and Minister of Railways, Piyush Goyal through video conferencing.

In a official statement the Ministry said that, the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 had mentioned the Kisan Rail project.

The government had proposed that to build a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables, inclusive of milk, meat and fish, the Indian Railways will set up a Kisan Rail, it added.

It will provide seamless supply chain of perishable products. This train is a step towards realizing the goal of doubling farmers’ incomes by 2022 and Railways aims to help double farmers’ income with the launch of Kisan Rail.

Furthermore, Kisan Rail will help in bringing perishable agricultural products like vegetables, fruits to the market in a short period of time. The train with frozen containers is expected to build a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables, inclusive of fish, meat and milk.

According to Indian Railways, over the Central Railway zone, the Bhusawal Division is primarily an Agro-based division. The city of Nasik and its surrounding region produces a huge quantity of fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers, onions, other perishables, as well as other agro products. Mainly, these perishable items are transported to areas around Allahabad, Patna, Satna, Katni, etc.

The Kisan Rail special parcel service has been provided scheduled halts at Nasik Road, Jalgaon, Manmad, Bhusaval, Burhanpur, Itarsi, Khandwa, Jabalpur, Satna, Katni, Prayagraj Chheoki, Manikpur, Buxar and Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Nagar.

However, it is being expected that the Kisan Rail train service will be patronized well and also, it will be a great help to farmers, as the freight of this train service will be charged at ‘P’ Scale, the ministry added.

-RJV

2 fuel tankers torched, 7 hijacked in Afghan province of Baghlan

(Source: Twitter)

New Delhi (NVI): At least seven fuel tankers were hijacked by “anti-government gunmen” on the Baghlan-Samangan highway near Pul-e-Khumri, capital of Baghlan province, while two others were torched this morning, reports TOLO news.

After torching two tankers, the gunmen took seven others to Dahna-ye-Ghori district, the Aghan news website quoted sources as saying. The incident happened in the Bagh-e-Shamal area in Pul-e-Khumri in Baghlan province.

The incident takes place amid the increasing Taliban attacks in the area, apart from other parts of Afghanistan.

However, neither the local officials have yet commented on the attack nor has any group claimed the responsibility.

TOLO news reports that the Taliban has increased its attacks in Baghlan, particularly against security checkpoints in recent days.

The incident also comes a day after at least 12 people, close to Mahbubullah Ghafari, a former member of the provincial council of Baghlan, were killed in a roadside mine blast in the province.

The incident took place in the Chashmaye Shir area, on the Baghlan -Samangan highway, while Ghafari and his convoy were on the way to Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of northern Balkh province. Ghafari said, “a vehicle was hit by a roadside mine.”

-ARK

Covid-19 containment strategy has been successful in country: Harsh Vardhan

New Delhi (NVI): Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan today affirmed that the spread of COVID-19 has been contained in the country, citing that containment strategy has been successful in states.

While addressing a virtual meeting with WHO’s regional directors for South East Asia (SEA), Harsh Vardhan mentioned the efficacy of the government’s containment strategy.

He stated that, “The strategy has been successful in a way that 50 per cent of the cases are from three States and 32 per cent of the rest are from seven states. The spread of the virus thus has been contained.”

Meanwhile, on the efficacy of the lockdown, Vardhan said, it was effective in slowing down the rate of growth of cases and gave the government time to augment the health infrastructure and testing facilities.

He added that “From one lab in January this year to 1,370 labs today the citizens anywhere can access a lab within three hours travel time. Thirty-three of the 36 states and UTs exceed WHO’s recommendation of testing 140 people per million per day.”

The minister also highlighted that India had been preparing for the pandemic as soon as China informed WHO on January 7.

He also stressed that earlier viral outbreaks like the Avian Influenza, H1N1pdm09 Influenza, Zika and Nipah had provided institutional memory in designing containment and management strategies.

“India’s proactive and graded multi-level institutional response to COVID made it possible to have very low cases per million and deaths per million in spite of having a high population density and low fractional GDP spending and per capita doctor and hospital bed availability as compared to other developed countries,” he pointed out.

The minister further stated that, telemedicine facilities at AIIMS Delhi helped identify the root causes of mortality and made high-impact interventions possible that significantly curbed the mortality rate from 3.33 per cent on June 18 to 2.11 per cent on August 3.

“Within a record 10 days, with the help of DRDO, we were capable of housing 1,000 patients, with an additional 100 ICU beds. Right now, on evaluation, we find that the daily handling capacity of COVID-19 cases in our hospitals has increased,” he added.

However, the meeting focused on maintaining essential health services and public health programmes in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

-RJV

Nigeria initiates mangrove restoration project in Niger Delta

Representational image

New Delhi (NVI): The mangrove forests of the Niger Delta in southern Nigeria will soon be restored as part of measures towards ensuring the protection of mangroves and oceans in the country.

The Federal Government of Nigeria is going to come up with a National Mangrove Restoration Project that will deliver environmental and sustainable livelihood benefits for people living in the Niger Delta region.

The Minister of State for Environment, Sharon Ikeazor, announced this project as Nigeria joined the global community to commemorate the 2020 International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem.

Furthermore, four sites have been identified – Taylor Creek Forest Reserve, Num Forest Reserve, Apoi Creek Forest Reserve, and Edumanon Forest Reserve – all in Bayelsa State which would be upgraded to the status of Marine Protected Area.

Mangrove forests are among the most powerful nature-based solutions to climate change, but with 67 percent of mangroves lost or degraded to date, and an additional 1.0 percent being lost each year, they are at a risk of being destroyed altogether.

Mangroves act as buffers between sea and land, protecting shorelines from damaging winds, waves and floods. They also reduce coastal erosion. Mangroves improve water quality by filtering pollutants and trapping sediment from the land.

“Mangrove For Live Project” is the name of the initiative, which aims to restore degraded mangrove forests and maintain those that are still in good condition in Nigeria. The project will soon be launched in this West African country.

According to Minister Sharon Ikeazor, Nigeria has the largest coverage of mangroves in Africa, and the fourth largest in the world. She added that more than 60 percent of these mangroves, equivalent to 6,000 km, are in the Niger Delta region.

The first phase of the Mangrove For Live Project will help promote the health of the mangrove ecosystem in the Niger Delta. It will also enable the people of this region to develop more sustainable livelihoods.

-CHK

CPM’s Shyamal Chakraborty dies of Covid

New Delhi (NVI): Veteran CPM leader Shyamal Chakraborty died of Covid-19 today, days after he was tested positive for coronavirus. He was 76.

The former West Bengal Transport minister breathed his last at a private hospital at around 1:45 PM today.

The former cabinet minister was admitted to a private nursing home on June 30 with breathing issues and other old-age ailments.

His daughter, Ushashi Chakraborty said that the leader was suffering from breathing problems after developing some infection in his lungs.

Shyamal was also elected to the Rajya Sabha. He was also the state president of CITU, the trade union arm of CPM.

-ARK

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