1. Centre Extends Deadline for Linking Aadhaar With Bank Accounts to 31 March
The government, on Wednesday, 13 December, extended till 31 March 2018 the deadline for linking Aadhaar to bank accounts, ahead of the Supreme Court hearing a batch of petitions challenging the proposed mandatory linking of the biometric identity with various schemes and services.
The government announcement came a day after it amended the Prevention of Money-laundering (Maintenance of Records) Rules, 2005 to put off the earlier deadline, 31 December, till a new date was fixed.
An official statement said the new date was fixed “after considering various representations received and inputs received from banks”.
The Supreme Court said on Wednesday a five-judge constitution bench will hear pleas on Thursday seeking an interim stay on mandatory linking of Aadhaar with various government schemes and welfare measures. The same day, the top court will also take up an interim application challenging the move to link Aadhaar to insurance policies.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
2. EC Orders FIR Against Rahul Gandhi for TV Interview on Gujarat Poll Eve
The Election Commission on Wednesday ordered the filing of an FIR against Congress president Rahul Gandhi for giving an interview to a TV channel in Gujarat in violation of the 48-hour ban on campaigning, as well as against all TV channels that telecast the interview across districts going to the polls on Thursday.
The EC, in a notice sent to Rahul Gandhi, said that the interview fell within the definition of "election matter" under Section 126(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, the display of which "within 48 hours ending with the hour fixed for conclusion of poll, amounts to violation of the prohibition contained in Section 126(1)(b) of R P Act".
While seeking an explanation from Rahul Gandhi for violation of the model code latest by 18 December, the EC separately issued a direction to the Gujarat chief electoral officer asking him to initiate action against all those who had violated the aforesaid provisions.
(Source: The Times of India)
3. Rajasthan Hacking: 516 People From Across India Donate Rs 3 Lakh to Shambhulal Regar's Wife
Police in Rajasthan’s Rajsamand have frozen a bank account with deposits of around Rs 3 lakh “collected in the name” of Shambhulal Regar, who is in custody for killing a Muslim labourer from West Bengal, burning his body and circulating videos of the incident.
Police officers told The Indian Express that the money was donated by 516 people from across the country to the account being operated in the name of Regar’s wife Sita. Police have also arrested two businessmen for allegedly circulating images on social media of receipts acknowledging their donations to the account.
The police crackdown followed an alert that a message was being circulated on social media with details of the bank account, and an appeal seeking donations for Regar’s family.
We have frozen the bank account in which money was being collected in the name of Regar. Around Rs 3 lakh was deposited before the account was frozen… We will investigate those who deposited the money to check for any links with the accused.Anand Shrivastava, IG, Udaipur Range
(Source: Indian Express)
4. Campaigns Draw to a Close as Gujarat Gears Up for Phase 2 of Polls
Ninety-three constituencies in the North, West and Central Parts of Gujarat will go into the second phase of polls on Thursday, 14 December. The high-voltage campaigning in the state ended on 12 December, with both the BJP and the Congress tearing into each other. The results will be declared on 18 December.
The voter turnout in the first phase of the Gujarat elections for 89 seats held on 9 December stood at 66.75 percent.
A total of 851 candidates are in the fray for the second phase, which will cover 14 districts in north and central Gujarat. The first phase of elections was marred by faulty EVMs reported across several polling booths.
Read the full story on The Quint.
5. Dengue Death: Haryana Probe Indicts Fortis Hospital for Negligence
The expert committee, set up by Haryana to probe the allegation of medical negligence in the dengue death of a seven-year-old girl at Fortis Hospital in Gurgaon, has concluded that “withdrawal of life support by the hospital in the ambulance amounts to negligence and is against law…”
In its report submitted to the Haryana health ministry on 5 December, the committee, headed by Principal Secretary, Health, Amit Jha, has said that “under the garb of LAMA (leave against medical advice) process, the hospital disposes of the patients in an unethical manner when attendants no longer want to continue the treatment.”
In his complaint to the police, the father of the girl, Jayanth Singh, had alleged that the treating doctor switched off the ventilator and ambu bag when she was taken in the private ambulance. He also alleged that the management refused to provide a Fortis ambulance if she was taken to another hospital.
(Source: Indian Express)
6. India Fights Last-Minute Battle at WTO Meet
With a deal on public stockholding eluding it, India continued to battle on Wednesday for an explicit mention of continuation of the Doha Development Round as the World Trade Organization got down to pen a draft declaration hours before the close of the ministerial meeting here.
But the pressure from India and several other developing countries prompted the draft, which was circulated to members barely three hours before the scheduled close, to refer to the WTO being a consensus-based multilateral body.
The references to Doha Round (meant to balance out the rules that are seen to be in favor of rich countries) as well as special treatment for developing and least developed countries are indirect in the draft declaration, something the government is unhappy about even as officials are pitching for an unequivocal reaffirmation, said sources.
The US has blocked any mention of multilateralism and development in WTO texts as the Trump administration has been openly critical of the current regime.
It even wanted to do away with benefits for countries such as India, Brazil and China. It is possible that the US may not agree to it again and the ministerial will end without a formal declaration, reflecting the huge gap in positions.
(Source: The Times of India)
7. India to Commission Its First New Conventional Submarine After 17 Years
"Sea denial" is the name of the game for conventional diesel-electric submarines. Their primary role is to interdict an enemy's trade and energy routes, block its ports, sink its warships, and sometimes attack land targets with long-range cruise missiles.
Nuclear-powered submarines armed with nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles, called SSBNs in naval parlance, of course, are all about strategic deterrence.
When PM Narendra Modi commissions India's first new diesel-electric submarine in over 17 years in Mumbai on Thursday, it will be a red-letter day for the beleaguered Navy.
The force, after all, is grappling with just 13 ageing conventional submarines, only half of them operational at any given time.
The new 1,565-tonne submarine, named INS Kalvari+ (tiger shark, a deadly deep-sea predator) after the first-ever submarine inducted by India from Russia in December 1967, is to be followed by five of her Scorpene sisters under the Rs 23,652 crore "Project-75" underway at Mazagon Docks in collaboration with France.
(Source: The Times of India)
8. Passengers Likely to Pay Less for Shatabdi, Rajdhani, Duronto Tickets During Off-Seasons, Lean Days
Rail passengers may soon pay less for tickets on popular trains such as the Shatabdi, Rajdhani, and Duronto during the off-season or even otherwise when the trains are not fully booked, railway minister Piyush Goyal said in an interview.
Indian Railways moved to a so-called flexi-fare system for these trains in 2016, but this only saw fares moving in one direction — up. The move helped Indian Railways which made an additional Rs 540 crore from it between September 2016 and August 2017 according to media reports. However, passengers were unhappy because some of them ended up paying the equivalent for a flight fare, sometimes more.
Goyal has previously spoken of the need to review the system, but the Wednesday interview marked the first time anyone in Indian Railways has said something about truly dynamic pricing.
Flexi-fare is under review; instead of just one-way flexi-fare (where prices just increase) we can have dynamic fares. During off-season and when trains are not full, we may even be able to give concessional fares.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
9. Salute Soldiers When They Pass by, NHAI Tells Toll Staff
The highways authority has asked those manning toll gates to "salute" and give a "standing ovation" to armed forces personnel when they cross toll plazas as a mark of respect for their service to the nation.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has directed all toll operators to train their staff to pay respect to armed forces personnel. "Armed forces personnel deserve the highest regard and should be given due respect at the toll plaza including salute and standing ovation as deemed fit," an NHAI circular said.
The circular was issued after NHAI received complaints from armed forces personnel that toll staff often used harsh language with them or sought further proof even after seeing their identity cards. According to rules, personnel of armed forces are exempt from toll while on duty.
(Source: The Times of India)
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