India and the World Bank has signed a $500 million project to build safe and green national highway corridors in the states of Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh.
The project will also enhance the capacity of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in mainstreaming safety and green technologies.
The Green National Highways Corridors Project will support the ministry construct 783 km of highways in various geographies by integrating safe and green technology designs such as local and marginal materials, industrial by-products, and other bio-engineering solutions. The project will help reduce GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions in the construction and maintenance of highways.
“Connectivity for economic growth and connectivity for sustainable development are two important aspects of a country’s development trajectory. This operation brings these two priorities together in support of India’s growth strategy,” said Junaid Ahmad, World Bank Country Director in India.
“This project will provide efficient transportation for road users in the four states, connect people with markets and services, promote efficient use of construction materials and water to reduce the depletion of scarce natural resources, and help lower GHG emissions,” he added.
The National Highways of India carry about 40 per cent of road traffic. However, several sections of these highways have inadequate capacity, weak drainage structures and black spots prone to accidents. The project will strengthen and widen existing structures; construct new pavements, drainage facilities and bypasses; improve junctions; and introduce road safety features.
As it is imperative that the infrastructure investments are climate resilient, disaster risk assessment of about 5,000 km of the National Highway network will also be undertaken under the project along with support to the ministry for mainstreaming climate resilience aspects in project design and implementation.
The $500 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a maturity of 18.5 years, including a grace period of five years.
The decision comes after an episode of Poochta Hai Bharat, a daily current affairs discussion programme in Hindi aired on 6 September 2019, was found to have failed to comply with their broadcasting rules…reports Asian Lite News
UK’s communications regulator Ofcom has fined a £20,000 penalty on Worldview Media Network Limited, which operates Republic Bharat in the UK.
The decision comes after an episode of Poochta Hai Bharat, a daily current affairs discussion programme in Hindi aired on 6 September 2019, was found to have failed to comply with their broadcasting rules, BizAsia reported.
Republic Bharat is a television channel in the UK that broadcasts rolling news and current affairs to the Hindi speaking community.
Ofcom’s official statement says that the said episode of the programme presented by the journalist Arnab Goswami was focused on Indo-Pakistani relations. India’s technological advancements including space research were discussed in comparison to Pakistan’s, the on-going dispute between Pakistan and India over Kashmir, and Pakistan’s alleged involvement in terrorist activities against Indian targets were discussed.
Ofcom’s Executive found that this programme contained uncontextualized hate speech and that this content was potentially highly offensive, breaching broadcasting rules, BizAsia reported.
Worldview Media argued that the programme ‘did not promote terrorism or hatred and it certainly did not promote or justify hatred in any way.’ The broadcaster said that the purpose of the debate was ‘to showcase how India has moved forward, while Pakistan in the same period has failed to develop at the same pace and how terror groups had been allowed to operate in Pakistan.’
It added that this was an “emotionally charged” discussion and that the content was based on evidence that “Pakistan was trying to infiltrate terrorists, threaten Indian sovereignty and destabilize India,” BizAsia reported.
Ofcom considered that there were insufficient contextual factors to justify the hate speech included in this programme. Therefore, it broke Rule 3.2 of the broadcasting code, which warranted the imposition of statutory sanctions.
The continuous improvement in the key economic and business indicators signals that the worst is behind us and expectations of a positive GDP growth at 0.1 per cent to 2 per cent in Q3 and 2 per cent to 4 per cent in Q4 FY 2020-21 are becoming strong with a higher growth trajectory in FY 2021-22 at 7.7 per cent, according to PHDCCI EBM Index (Economic and Business Momentum Index).
The series of stimulus announcements by the Government in last 9 months under the AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 along with the calibrated measures undertaken by the RBI have pulled the economy from the lows of Q1 FY 2020-21 (-) 23.9 per cent in Q1 2020-21 to (-) 7.5 per cent in Q2 FY 2020-21, said Sanjay Aggarwal, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in a press statement issued on Tuesday.
The overall growth for the FY 2020-21 is expected to contract by (-) 7.9 per cent, said Aggarwal.
The growth trend of PHDCCI EMB Index suggests that economy has potential to rejuvenate at more than 7.7 per cent growth trajectory in the next financial year 2021-22.
On a monthly basis, PHDCCI EBMI (Economic and Business Momentum Index) has shown steady recovery from the lows of 78.3 in April 2020 to 85.7 in May 2020, 91.6 in June 2020, 95.5 in July 2020, 95.9 in August 2020, 96.5 in September 2020 and 96.7 in October 2020.
Steady growth of EBM Index is progressing towards the level of Q4 of 2019-20 as October 2020 EBM Index at 96.7 is very near the level of 97.1 in October 2019.
Growth chart. (File Photo: IANS)
Economy is expected to recover to the level of Q4 of 2019-20 in the coming months of Q4 2020-21, said Aggarwal
PHDCCI EBM Index is a composite index of 25 lead economic and business indicators with base year at 2018-19, which considers the demand and supply parameters to present a broad perspective of the economy.
Out of the 25 lead economic and business indicators, 21 have shown a remarkable improvement in October 2020 from their lows of April 2020.
Strong recovery has been observed in the production of cement, steel, consumer durables and capital goods from the lows of April 2020. In the financial segment, FDI equity inflows have shown a remarkable recovery.
Trump Confers Legion Of Merit On ‘Friend Modi’; Biden Picks Bharat For Economic Council Dy Director; US Congress Passes Landmark Tibet Bill – All In Asian Lite Daily Digital – Please Click Here To Read.
In a landmark judgement on Tuesday, a CBI court here after nearly three decades of Sister Abhaya murder, found two of the prime accused guilty in the ‘infamous’ case that has seen several ups and down and even a third accused set free.
The judge K. Sanalkumar, however, reserved the sentencing on the quantum of punishment for Wednesday for Catholic priest Thomas M.Kottur (first accused) and Nun Steffi (third accused).
The judgment took 28 years to come by.
Varghese P. Thomas who quit the CBI while he had 10 years of service was the first officer who found out that Abhaya was murdered. He burst into tears as he told the media on Tuesday that finally the truth has come out.
Thomas was under duress from his senior officer, who wanted his findings from the murder to be a suicide, which was flatly denied by Thomas. He then quit in disgust.
The second of the prime accused in the case — another Catholic priest Jose Poothrikkayil, however has been discharged by the same court in 2018.
Abhaya, an inmate of Pius X convent in Kottayam, was found dead in the well of the convent on March 27, 1992.
The case had dragged on with initially both the Crime Branch and the CBI dismissing it as a suicide, however, public activist Joemon Puthenpurackal formed an Acton Council and pursued the case.
The turnaround in the case happened after Puthenpurackal, managed to get the case reopened, following which the 13th batch of CBI officials cracked the case and on November 19, 2008.
The three accused were among Poothrikkayil, a former Malayalam professor at the Kottayam college where Abhaya studied; Kottor, the Diocesan chancellor of the Catholic Church at Kottayam and Steffi, a resident of the convent when the incident took place.
On January 1, 2009, all three accused though had managed to get bail.
Puthenpurackal, said that this is a victory of the people of Kerala and the media and the biggest victory is for the judiciary.
“This CBI court has delivered the real justice and the crucial witness — Raju, then a petty thief, had stood his firm ground, despite pressure from vested interest.
“He is the happiest person as justice has been delivered. After that incident he stopped stealing and started work as a daily labourer. God has worked in this case, through Raju. I waited for this judgment and even if I die today, I will die as the happiest person,” said Puthenpurackal.
India Suspends UK Flights Till Dec. 31; UK, EU Resume Talks In Final Push For Trade Deal; World On High Alert – All in Asian Lite Daily Digital – Please Click Here To Read.
Home sales across the top seven cities declined 47 per cent to 1.38 lakh units in 2020, according to a report by Anarock Property Consultants. In 2019, overall sales across the major cities was nearly 2.61 lakh units, it said.
The new housing supply in 2020 declined by 46 per cent against the preceding year, nearly 2.37 lakh units in 2019 to nearly 1.28 lakh units in 2020.
The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune were the showstoppers in overall residential activity in 2020.
“While residential real estate bottomed out in 2020 against the previous peak of 2014, there are strong revival signs in Q4 2020 – with home affordability being at its all-time best,” said the report.
Amid varied offers and discounts, the top seven cities saw robust sales of nearly 50,900 units in Q4 2020, rebounding to nearly 86 per cent of the corresponding period in 2019.
In 2019, the festive quarter saw overall home sales of 59,160 units. MMR and Pune drove residential sales with the two cities accounting for more than 53 per cent overall share.
On the supply front, the top cities added 52,820 units in Q4 2020 as against 51,850 units in Q4 2019, increasing by 2 per cent Year-On-Year (YoY). Hyderabad outpaced other cities and added a massive new supply of 12,820 units in the quarter, followed by MMR with more than 11,910 new units.
Due to increased new launches across cities, unsold inventory declined by 2 per cent on a yearly basis, from more than 6.48 lakh units in Q4 2019 to more than 6.38 lakh units in Q4 2020. However, in comparison to the peak levels of 2016, when unsold stock stood maximum at nearly 7.91 lakh units in the top seven cities, it declined by a significant 19 per cent.
Anuj Puri, Chairman of Anarock Property Consultants, said, “2020 has been an unprecedented year due to Covid-19 causing all-round upheaval. However, the residential segment was quick to pick up momentum in the last two quarters of 2020 on the back of growing home ownership sentiment – catalysed by the exigencies of the pandemic.”
He said this pent-up demand was further accelerated by the ongoing discounts and offers, the prevailing lowest-best home loan interest rates and limited period stamp duty cuts in states such as Maharashtra.
US President Donald Trump has presented America’s highest military decoration, The Legion of Merit, to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his leadership and vision under which India’s emergence as a global power has accelerated and for elevating strategic partnership of the two countries.
Official sources said, The Legion of Merit, Degree Chief Commander, bestowed on Prime Minister Modi on behalf of the President, is a rarely-awarded, prestigious decoration that can only be bestowed by Trump, typically to heads of state or heads of government of other countries.
India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, accepted the award on behalf of the Prime Minister from the US National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien at the White House.
The citation with the award states: “For exceptionally meritorious service as the Prime Minister of the Republic of India from May 2014 to August 2020. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s steadfast leadership and vision have accelerated India’s emergence as a global power and elevated the strategic partnership between the US and India to address global challenges. Prime Minister Modi’s personal engagement expanded US-India ties across all facets of the relationship, helping to establish a strong foundation for an enduring partnership that is based on shared commitment to freedom, democratic principles, the equal treatment of all citizens, and the rule of law.
“India is a key partner for the US in the Indo-Pacific, where the two countries are increasing collaboration to ensure freedom of the seas, open and transparent investment and infrastructure development, secure and reliable digital networks, and good governance.”
In a glowing tribute, the citation adds: “Prime Minister Modi’s personal initiative strengthened the defence partnership between the United States and India, enhancing the US’ ability to secure joint military cooperation that addressed shared challenges. His efforts to expand India’s economic cooperation with the US has advanced prosperity, investment and job creation in both countries.
“Prime Minister Modi’s superior effort, personal leadership, and unwavering commitment to advancing strategic cooperation between the United States and India and promoting global peace and prosperity reflect great credit upon himself, the Indian armed forces, and his country.”
The Legion of Merit, Degree Chief Commander is a domed five-pointed American white star plaque of heraldic form bordered in purplish-red enamel 215/16 inches circumscribing diameter with 13 white stars on a blue field emerging from a circle of clouds; backing the star, a laurel wreath with pierced, crossed arrows pointing outward between each arm of the star and the wreath. The reverse is engraved with the words ‘United States of America’.
In September this year, after a very long gap, President Donald Trump awarded the Legion of Merit, Degree Chief Commander, to Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has suspended all flights from the UK to India till December 31 in the wake of the new mutant strain of novel coronavirus.
The suspension will start with effect from 23.59 hours on December 22, 2020.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri
Consequently, all flights from India to UK shall also stand temporarily suspended during the period, said a Ministry tweet.
“Considering the prevailing situation in the UK, the government of India has decided that all flights originating from UK to India to be suspended till December 31, 2020 (23.59 hours),” the tweet read.
This suspension to start w.e.f. 23.59 hours, 22nd December 2020. Consequently flights from India to UK shall stand temporarily suspended during above said period. https://t.co/m7YaV6n0gM
It added that as a measure of abundant precaution, passengers arriving from the UK in all transit flights should be subjected to mandatory RT-PCR test on arrival at the airports in India.
India’s bar on passenger flights follows similar steps by several European countries on Sunday.
Union Health & Family Welfare, Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Minister Harsh Vardhan addresses at the launch of the National Clinical Registry for COVID-19, Vaccine Web Portal, Mobile Stroke Unit and ICMR-NIN Documents, at ICMR headquarters, in New Delhi on Sep 28, 2020. (Photo: IANS/PIB)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_HgbABas0I
The Union Health Ministry has called an urgent meeting of its joint monitoring group on Monday to discuss the emergence of the mutated variant of Coronavirus in the UK…reports Asianlite Newsdesk.
The Union Health Ministry on Monday called an emergency meeting of its top advisors to discuss the emergence of a mutated variant of the novel Coronavirus in the UK.
The special strain of the Covid-19 virus has led to massive surge in cases in southeast England and London, and prompted several countries to ground flights from the country.
The Joint Monitoring Group will be chaired by the Director General of Health Services. Experts from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the World Health Organisation (WHO) representative and others will be part of the emergency meeting.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
On December 19, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the newly identified strain of the virus may be up to 70 per cent more transmissible. His Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the new variant was “out of control”.
Immediately Saudi Arabia and several European nations, including Italy, Belgium, France and the Netherlands banned flights to and fro from the the UK after report of the mutant strain came to the fore.
We’re in close contact with UK 🇬🇧 officials on the new #COVID19 virus variant. They’ll continue to share info & results of their analysis & ongoing studies. We’ll update Member States & public as we learn more about the characteristics of this virus variant & any implications.
The WHO tweeted late on Saturday that it was “in close contact with UK officials on the new COVID-19 virus variant and promised to update governments and the public as more is learned”.
Strict lockdown in London
The discovery of a new and more potent strain of SARS-CoV-2 found in parts of Europe including the UK, The Netherlands, Denmark and Austria has sent an alarm across the world as the British government stated the new mutated form of the Coronavirus is 70 per cent more transmissible and “out of control”.
The UK government has imposed a strict lockdown in London and South-East England amid Christmas celebrations.
Worried by the potential influx of travellers from Britain, countries such as Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands on Sunday announced the suspension of air links — and in some cases rail and ferry routes as well — from Britain.
Member of National Task Force for Covid-19, Giridhar R. Babu, told IANS that in the absence of a detailed study to determine the symptoms and severity of the new strain, it would be too early to impose travel ban in India.
“The new information on antigenic drift in the UK and South Africa is a result of widespread community transmission, necessitating the virus trying to find a way by changing its genetic lineage to survive and human beings trying to duck it with vaccines. These changes are also probably specific to the geographical region,” he explained.
“The modifications in the genetic lineage and mutations and the associations with the clinical symptoms and severity are to be investigated in detail in India. In the absence of such evidence, it would be too early to impose travel bans,” reasoned Babu, who is also Professor and head of Lifecourse Epidemiology at Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI).
However, majority of India’s public health experts argued that the country should close its sky to prevent the entry of newly mutated coronavirus here.
Lalit Kant, former head of epidemiology and communicable diseases at Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) suggested that the government should take all measures to contain the mutated variant from infiltrating the country as it is found highly contagious.
“In first week of November, the infectivity of the latest variant was found at 24 per cent but rose exponentially within a month and reached 70 per cent as we are speaking. So considering these evidences, India should take a prompt decision and must ban air-travel at least from countries where its emergence is found,” he added.
“If the new strain finds its way to the country’s population, it would severely affect the people with comorbidities, leading to a huge burden on hospitals which India witnessed during the recent Covid surges,” Kant cautioned.
Soumyadeep Bhaumik, public health specialist at the George Institute for Global Health, said that India should learn from the past and not repeat the mistake of February and March where a crucial period to contain the virus was lost due to indecisiveness.
“The country needs to ban all international flights pronto,” he stated while speaking to IANS.
“As per the reports of the cases spread in European countries, the virus is spreading incredibly fast. It’s just a matter of time for it to reach India. Since Europe is a free trade country, people who travelled there recently can head back to India with a possibility of carrying the latest strain.
“Looking at the reports of the infectiousness of the new strain which is 70 per cent higher, India should ban flight from Europe without any delay. Several countries have already followed that,” Bhaumik added.
