1. Mehbooba to Decide PDP’s Future; BJP Alliance Not Ruled Out
The PDP has authorised Mehbooba Mufti to take a call on forming the next government in Jammu and Kashmir, igniting hopes that the political uncertainty following the death of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed might finally come to an end.
Naeem Akhtar, Senior PDP leaderThe agenda of alliance is a sacred document for us, it has to be implemented. The party has authorised Mehbooba Mufti to take a final call on government formation.
The party has also indicated that its alliance with the BJP is likely to continue, which could take the wind out of widespread speculation of a possible political realignment in the state that is now under Governor’s Rule, reports the Hindustan Times.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s visit to Mehbooba Mufti following the death of her father, Sayeed, had prompted conjecture that political equations in the state could be changing.
2. Kejriwal Inked at Odd-Even Event; AAP Blames BJP, Delhi Police
A woman threw ink at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday at a public gathering to mark the “success” of the odd-even traffic restriction scheme but missed him.
Bhavna Arora, alleging a “CNG scam” in the AAP government, threw ink at Kejriwal, who was speaking at the Chhatrasal Stadium in north Delhi. Arora was later detained by the police.
Meanwhile, AAP continues to play the blame-game with the Delhi Police and the BJP, saying the act was “orchestrated” and calling it was a “conspiracy” to attack Kejriwal and his ministers.
Read The Quint’s full report here.
3. Rising Farmer Suicides Force Govt to Review Policy
The Centre has told the Supreme Court that it would set up a panel of experts for re-examining the eight-year-old National Policy for Farmers (NPF), particularly in the wake of rising cases of farmer suicides.
The Ministry of Agriculture said it has proposed to set up an expert committee to initiate the process of re-examining the policy.
The Ministry of Agriculture in an affidavit filed before the courtThere are instances of farmers’ suicides being reported from various parts of the country. There is, thus, a need for an integrated approach and re-look at the present policy. For this purpose, the government intends to initiate action and set up a committee comprising experts and stakeholders to initiate the exercise.
You can read the full report here.
Also read on The Quint:
On Kisan Diwas, Ruing Why Farmers Have Lost Their Political Power
4. Mumbai: Dog Enters Runway, Five Flights Affected
Four flights were made to hover in the skies over the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport for 15 minutes and a domestic flight’s take-off had to be aborted as a dog strayed onto the runway in Mumbai, reports The Indian Express.
A Jet Airways flight was forced to abort take-off, while two IndiGo flights and one each of GoAir and SpiceJet were affected.
Normal operations resumed after the dog was moved off the runway.
Report in The Indian ExpressJet Airways flight which was ready to fly had to abort its take-off, while four other flights at Mumbai airport had to be suspended for a brief period today after a dog strayed into the runway. Due to this, four flights were asked to do a go-around.
5. Debt-Ridden Labourers Want Cries Heard Too
Heated debates over the rising suicides by debt-ridden farmers, and the government’s promise to tackle the issue through a string of initiatives, has inspired another section of the farming community to press for their demands, reports The Hindustan Times.
Farm labourers, caught up in debt, want their swelling loans to be waived off too. “We have worked forty years in the fields, but the government only listens to the farmers... who cares about us?” says a voice in the crowd at a dharamshala in Rasoolpur as a group of farm labourers huddled to work out a strategy. “We are bankrupt... the government must help us... we too have contributed to the economy.”
You can read the full report here.
Also read on The Quint:
To Prevent Farmer Suicides, Make Crop Insurance Mandatory
6. Pathankot Effect? Laser Walls for Riverine Areas of India-Pakistan Border Soon
The Home Ministry has given top priority to more than 40 vulnerable unfenced stretches along the Indo-Pak border and will be covering them with laser walls soon.
These riverine stretches will get the laser wall technology, developed by the Border Security Force, to completely eliminate the chances of breach at the international border by Pakistan-based terror groups, a home ministry official said, reports The Times of India.
A laser beam over a river sets off a loud siren in case of a breach. Only 5-6 out of around 40 vulnerable points are covered by laser walls as of now. The suspected infiltration point of Ujj river in Bamiyal used by the six Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists before storming the Pathankot air base was not covered by a laser wall
7. ‘Dalit Literature Is Not Just About One Caste’
Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) leader Thol. Thirumavalavan said it was an ill-conceived notion that only a Dalit should write about the community or lead a Dalit movement, reports by The Hindu.
Thirumavalavan, quoted in The HinduYou cannot argue that the leadership and ideology of the working class should emerge from the working class themselves. In that case, we cannot accept Karl Marx and Frederick Engels as the ideologues of the communist movement.
Thirumavalavan also stressed that the definition of Dalit literature can’t be confined to literary works dealing only with a particular community. It should include all writings portraying the lives of those from disadvantaged sections.
He has called for the re-evaluation of political views.
While we express solidarity with the Tamils in Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu remained silent when the body of a Dalit was not allowed to be taken to the burial ground through streets where caste Hindus live. We should re-evaluate our views.
Read the complete report here.
8. China Border to Soon Be Guarded by ITBP’s First 500-Strong Female Squad
The first female squad of 500 freshly trained personnel of the Indo-Tibet Border Police (ITBP) is all set to be posted on the India-China border.
The women, in the rank of constable, were inducted in the border-guarding force after 44-weeks of training in battle craft and mountain survival and will now be sent to frontier areas for final acclimatisation before being deployed at ITBP posts along the 3,488-km Sino-India Line of Actual Control (LAC), reports The Times of India.
ITBP director general Krishna Chaudhary, after reviewing the ‘passing out parade’ of the new personnel, asked them to exhibit the best skills that they have learnt during training to discharge their duties in some of the most difficult locations in the Himalayan ranges.
Krishna Chaudhary, ITBP director generalYou will be further trained in field training and high-altitude acclimatisation before your final deployment. I am sure you will do the country and the force proud.
Read the complete story here.
9. Development Gets a One-Year Holiday, Thanks to Sena-BJP Bickering
The Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s bickering in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is causing the city valuable time, which could have been used for development, reports DNA.
The fighting in BMC, in all likelihood, would continue till February 2017, when the civic body elections are due.
The year that passed by, saw almost every big-ticket policy get scrapped or put on hold. The first to be scrapped was the new Development Plan, followed by the pay-and-park policy. The BMC’s ambitious plan to install LED lights all over the city also has not taken off well, as the Sena is opposed to it. Following protests from citizens, the BMC had to review its hawking zones policy too. The open spaces policy, which was put on hold by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday, is the latest casualty
A senior civic official, as reported by DNA.It is unlikely that any policy will see the light of day. The atmosphere is too sensitive, politically. So we are also taking a back seat. Look at what happened to the LED project and the pay-and-park plan. They are held up indefinitely. Things seem set to stay like this
Read the complete story here.