PM Modi Selling India's Crown Jewels: Rahul Gandhi

 

Rahul Gandhi contended that the Congress is not opposing the privatisation process but "the entire NMP is designed to create a monopoly"

A day after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the government's four-year National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) worth Rs 6 lakh crore, former Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of bringing in the process of selling the "crown jewel" assets built by his party in the last 70 years.

He also contended that the Congress is not opposing the privatisation process but "the entire NMP is designed to create a monopoly".

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters along with former Finance Minister P. Chidamabaram, Gandhi said: "The Prime Minister and the BJP said that the Congress had done nothing in last 70 years. There is a list here of all the assets that the Congress has helped build using the public money."

"Now the Prime Minister is in the process of selling the crown jewels of this country."

Listing out the sectors which are going to be privatised, Gandhi said that these are being sold and one can guess to whom it is going. "And frankly, these will go to three to four people," he said.

Announcing the measure on Monday, Sitharaman had said it is to unlock value in brownfield projects by engaging the private sector, transferring to them the rights but not the ownership in projects, and using the funds for infrastructure creation across the country.

But assailing the government, Gandhi said: "I want to tell the youths, your employment has been snatched, for farmers, three special farm laws have been made. And today I want to say what Prime Minister plans to give to his industrialist friends."

This, he claimed, comprises 26,700 km of national highways worth Rs 1.6 lakh crore, Rs 1.5 lakh crore in railways with 400 railways stations, 150 private trains, railway tracks and warehouses.

He further said that 42,300 circuit km of transmission network, 6,000 MW power generation, solar wind assets from NHPC, NTPC and NLC, and 8,000 km of national gas pipeline of GAIL are all going to be privatised.

Even the 4,000 km of petroleum pipeline, 2.8 lakh km of telecom assets of Bharat Net Fibre Network, BSNL and MTNL towers, warehouses worth Rs 29,000 crore with a storage space of 210 lakh metric tonne, 107 coal mines, 761 mineral blocks, 25 airports worth Rs 21,000 crore, ports worth Rs 13,000 crore, along with 31 projects, and two national stadium worth Rs 11,000 crore are going to be gifted to a few industrialists, he said.

Reiterating that these are going to be given to "only three to four people", Gandhi said: "This is your future. Your future is being sold to these three-four industrialists. It is reality."

He, however, said that the Congress is not against privatisation.

"We had logic behind privatisation," he said, adding that industries which were chronically loss-making and companies with minimal market share were privatised.

"And the sectors where there were risks of private sector monopoly, we decided not to sell. But this entire scheme is designed to create monopoly," he alleged.

"All the sectors that I have named are there to bring monopoly. We say do privatisation but not at the cost of loss to the country," he said, claiming that when these assets are privatised or sold to private players, then there will very few employment opportunities.

"I had warned about Covid and you all made fun of me. When this starts, your chances of getting employment will be less. The assets of India are being sold and it is an attack on your future," he said, adding that the Prime Minister is not working for India but "for three or four people".

The Congress leader also charged the government of mishandling the country's economy.

"There is an excuse they have come up with that we are leasing these... The government clearly mishandled the economy and doesn't know what to do," he said.

Accusing the government of "basically destroying what the UPA built", he said that now, as a last resort, they are selling everything that the UPA had helped create.

"To me, this is a huge tragedy," he added.

Chidambaram said: "This is a grand closing down sale. Virtually there would not be any public sector undertakings (PSUs) left after the proposed 'roads to railways' monetisation plan of BJP government."

He said that this exercise has been designed without any ex-ante criteria. "The government should have spelt out what its criteria and goals were. You don't embark upon such a big exercise without first setting out the criteria and what your goals are," he said.

"Raising funds cannot be (the) sole goal for selling assets built over 70 years. All stakeholders, including employees, workers' unions, farmers must be consulted before embarking on such large sale of assets," he added.

 

1,500 Farm Union Reps To Come Together At National Convention

FILE PHOTO: Farmers take part in a candlelit vigil, in memory of a person who died during a tractor rally on Republic Day, as protests against farm laws continue, at the Singhu Border near New Delhi

 

Over 1,500 representatives of farm unions from across the country will come together to discuss future strategies for the ongoing farmers' protest during the national convention on August 26 and 27, farmer leaders said.

The two-day convention at the Singhu border is being held to mark the completion of nine months of the farmers’ agitation against the three contentious farm laws.

"Unlike our other events, the national convention is not going to be a mass gathering or a rally. Instead, 1,500 representatives of farmer unions from across the country will come together for two days at the Singhu border to discuss strategies to sharpen and intensify our protests," farmer leader Abhimanyu Kohar told PTI.

He added that the convention was aimed at bringing together farmers from across the country, so that everybody could be part of the decision making on how the protest was to be taken forward.

"We have been protesting for nine months. It is not a short span of time. We want to include everybody, and representatives of farmer organisations from east, west, south and north… everybody will be here," Kohar added.

One of the major issues that will be up for discussion at the convention will be the farmers' upcoming ''mahapanchayat'' in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar on September 5.

"Our next strategy is the Muzaffarnagar ''mahapanchayat'' on September 5, which will also be discussed at the convention. Preparations for the ''mahapanchayat'' are in full swing. I know that at least 5,000 vehicles will be travelling to Muzaffarnagar,” Kohar said.

On August 26, the farmers' protest against the three contentious laws will complete nine months. The farmers have been demanding the repeal of the three laws, which they are afraid will do away with the MSP system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporations.

Over 10 rounds of talks with the government that has been projecting the laws as major agricultural reforms have failed to break the deadlock between the two parties.

While the Singhu border will be the central point of the national convention, gatherings will be organised in different parts of the country simultaneously.

In Chandigarh, farmer leader Paramjit Singh said about 2,000-2,5000 people are expected to come together to discuss the "issues that have been impacting the farmers as well as the common man".

"We will gather on the ground in Sector 25 where a stage will be put up. On one of the days of the national convention, Rakesh Tikait is expected to visit our gathering and address the crowd,” he said.

"Leaders of different farm unions will also participate to discuss how the agitation should be taken forward,” Singh said.

He added that the farmers have ensured that their protests are peaceful, and do not cause any inconvenience to people.

"Farmers have been very straightforward about their demands from the beginning. It is the government that is being stubborn,” Singh said.

"We will continue to be patient because we do not want to cause any inconvenience to anyone. The government will have to give in to our demands because we will continue building pressure,” he said.

According to the farmer leaders, the visiting representatives from different states, including Kerala, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu, will be provided accommodation at the Singhu border itself.

"We have been protesting constantly over the last nine months. This convention will also be a way to recall our struggle through the last nine months," said Rachpal Singh, another farmer leader.

"The farm union leaders from across the country, who will stay at the Singhu protest site, will address the protesters there, talking about our agitation, the three black laws and the state of farmers in the country," he added. (PTI)

 

Hurriyat Factions Likely To Be Banned Under UAPA

FILE PHOTO: The separatist conglomerate broke into two factions in 2005, with the moderate group being led by the Mirwaiz Umer Farooq (1st from left) and the hardline headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani (2nd from left)

A ban under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act may be imposed on both factions of the secessionist conglomerate Hurriyat Conference, which has been spearheading the separatist movement in Jammu and Kashmir for over two decades, officials said.

They said a recent probe into the granting of MBBS seats to Kashmiri students by institutions in Pakistan indicates that the money collected from aspirants by some organisations which were part of the Hurriyat Conference conglomerate was being used for funding terror organisations in the union territory.

The officials said both the factions of the Hurriyat are likely to be banned under Section 3 (1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or the UAPA, under which “if the Central Government is of opinion that any association is, or has become, an unlawful association, it may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare such association to be unlawful.”

They said the proposal was mooted in accordance with the Centre’s policy of zero tolerance against terrorism.

The Hurriyat Conference came into existence in 1993 with 26 groups, including some pro-Pakistan and banned outfits such as the Jamaat-e-Islami, JKLF and the Dukhtaran-e-Millat. It also included the People’s Conference and the Awami Action Committee headed by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq.

The separatist conglomerate broke into two factions in 2005, with the moderate group being led by the Mirwaiz and the hardline headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani.

So far, the Centre has banned the Jamaat-e-Islami and the JKLF under the UAPA. The ban was imposed in 2019.

The officials said a probe into funding of terror groups indicated alleged involvement of secessionist and separatist leaders, including the members and cadres of the Hurriyat Conference, who have been acting in connivance with active militants of proscribed terrorist organisations Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), Dukhtaran-e-Millat (DeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

The cadres raised funds in the country and from abroad through various illegal channels, including hawala, for funding separatist and terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir, they said.

The funds collected were used for causing disruption in the Kashmir Valley by way of pelting stones on security forces, systematically burning schools, damaging public property and waging war against India as part of a criminal conspiracy, they claimed.

Supporting the case for banning the two factions of the Hurriyat Conference under the UAPA, the officials cited several cases related to terror funding, including the one being probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in which several of the conglomerate’s cadres were arrested and jailed.

Many of the second-rung cadres of both the factions are in jail since 2017, they said.

Among those in jail are Altaf Ahmed Shah, the son-in-law of Geelani; businessman Zahoor Ahmed Watali; Geelani’s close aide Ayaz Akbar, who is also the spokesperson of the hardline separatist organisation Tehreek-e-Hurriyat; Peer Saifullah; Shahid-ul-Islam, spokesperson of the moderate Hurriyat Conference; Mehrajuddin Kalwal; Nayeem Khan; and Farooq Ahmed Dar alias ‘Bitta Karate’.

Later, JKLF chief Yaseen Malik, DeM head Asiya Andrabi and pro-Pakistan separatist Masarat Alam were also named in a supplementary chargesheet in a case of terror financing.

Another case which is likely to be cited for banning the two Hurriyat Conference factions is the one against PDP youth leader Waheed-ur-Rahman Parra, who is alleged to have paid Rs 5 crore to the son-in-law of Geelani for keeping Kashmir in turmoil after the death of Hizbul Mujahideen terror commander Burhan Wani in 2016, the officials said.

The NIA has alleged that after the death of Wani, who was killed in an encounter with the Army in July 2016, Parra got in touch with Altaf Ahmad Shah, alias Altaf Fantoosh, and asked him to ensure that the Valley was kept on the boil with widespread unrest and stone pelting.

Also, the Counter Intelligence (Kashmir), a branch of CID department of Jammu and Kashmir Police, registered a case in July last year following information that several unscrupulous persons, including some Hurriyat leaders, were hand in glove with some educational consultancies and are selling Pakistan-based MBBS seats and admission in other professional courses in various colleges and universities.

At least four persons, including Mohammad Akbar Bhat alias Zaffar Bhat, self-styled chairman of the Salvation Movement, which is part of the moderate Hurriyat Conference, were arrested in this case.

It is alleged that the constituents of Hurriyat Conference were “selling” MBBS seats in Pakistan to Kashmiri students and using the money collected, at least partly, to support and fund terrorism.

During the probe, it had surfaced that individual Hurriyat leaders had their quota of seats, which were sold to people desiring to obtain MBBS and other professional degrees in one way or the other, the officials said.

The officials said evidence showed that the money was “put into channels that ended up in supporting programmes and projects pertaining to terrorism and separatism like payment for organising stone pelting.”

Citing investigation, the officials said that the average cost of an MBBS seat in Pakistan was anything between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh. In some cases, the fee was brought down on the intervention of Hurriyat leaders. Depending upon the political heft of the Hurriyat leader who intervened, concessions were extended to aspiring students, the officials said. (PTI)

Explainer: The Disappearing Glaciers Of The Himalayas

Rising temperatures are melting glaciers and other frozen water across the Hindu Kush Himalayas. Urgent action to curb emissions is needed to secure water supplies, protect livelihoods and prevent disasters across the region (Illustration: Arati Kumar-Rao)

As the Earth warms, frozen water in its many forms is affected. In mountainous regions like the Hindu Kush Himalayas, one of the most visible signs of climate change is the impact on glaciers.

In the Hindu Kush Himalayan region – which includes the mountain ranges of the Pamirs, the Tien Shan and the Tibetan Plateau – the cryosphere is a vital source of freshwater. Approximately 2 billion people rely on the rivers that flow from these mountain ranges, with more than 240 million people living in the mountain areas. As well as providing a water supply for humans, livestock and wildlife in the region, freshwater originating in the cryosphere is essential for agriculture, hydropower, inland navigation, and spiritual and cultural uses.

While water flow is determined by a host of factors – including rainfall, groundwater and springs – the presence of the cryosphere has led to stable water flows across the Hindu Kush Himalayan region. But as the frozen water in glaciers, snow and permafrost is now melting at unprecedented rates, these flows are changing.

The Himalayan glaciers are receding

Glacier loss is difficult to project over the whole of the Hindu Kush Himalayas. Rates of glacial melt depend on a number of variables, including elevation and elevation-dependent temperature, precipitation and debris cover, among others.

On the whole, glaciers across the Hindu Kush Himalayas have lost mass since the 1970s. Unfortunately, given political sensitivities in the region, much satellite photography from before 2000 remains classified, and high-altitude field-based surveys are difficult. Nevertheless, the data that has emerged in recent years allows scientists to make general predictions for the region.

In the near term, by 2030, glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region are expected to lose between 10-30% of their mass. By 2050, this figure is expected to increase to 25-35%. In the long term, by 2080-2100, glacial mass loss is predicted to reach 35% in the Karakoram, 45% in the Pamir mountains, and as high as 60-95% in the eastern Himalayas if world governments fail to implement aggressive emissions-reduction policies. All of these figures are based on a moderate emissions scenario (RCP 4.5). Given different emissions scenarios and modelling methods, there is significant variation between longer-term projections.

There are thousands of glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, and there will be anomalies in terms of glacial melt. The glaciers in the eastern part of the region are at a lower elevation on the whole than those in the western part, leaving them relatively more vulnerable to melting. In the Karakoram region, which hosts a number of high-altitude glaciers, there have even been some glacial surges, leading to discussion of a “Karakoram Anomaly”.

The Himalayan region is warming faster than the global average

The Hindu Kush Himalayan region has the largest concentration of frozen water on Earth after the North Pole and South Pole, hence it is referred to as “the third pole”. Like the Arctic and part of Antarctica, the Hindu Kush Himalayan region is warming faster than the global average, and for similar reasons.

As ice cover melts, it exposes larger areas to solar radiation, thus allowing greater absorption of heat. Since ice reflects light, as the ground is increasingly exposed this leads to greater heating. The fact that many glaciers in the HKH region are covered with debris means this effect is less pronounced than in areas like the Arctic. Greater detail on exactly how and why this is happening can be found in the third chapter of the HKH Assessment conducted by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).

Unfortunately, the glaciers of the Hindu Kush Himalayas are facing another problem: black carbon. This is essentially soot from fires in the surrounding lowlands which rises in the air and settles on glaciers. Because of its dark colour, black carbon absorbs solar radiation faster. Black carbon and other short-lived climate pollutants – such as dust and aerosols – are produced by a range of human activities, including biomass burning, brick factories, and coal-based electricity plants. Not only do they darken the glaciers, these pollutants can also lead to warming of the air mass, leading to higher temperatures around the cryosphere and melting of its ice.

What happens when glaciers melt rapidly?

It is difficult to speculate how exactly the melting of the third pole’s glaciers will impact water flow and availability across the regions that depend on Himalayan rivers. This is because multiple factors influence water flow, including the stability of monsoons that are responsible for precipitation – both rain and snow – in the region.

One effect that can be predicted is an increase in glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs).

While it is very difficult to predict individual GLOFs, it is clear that their frequency will go up as the climate warms. Since the 1990s, glacial lakes across the Hindu Kush Himalayan region have increased in both number and size. Given the regional disparity in elevation, the greatest increase has been in the eastern and central sections of the Hindu Kush Himalayas.

GLOFs can be devastating, as the resulting flash floods can devastate downstream habitations with little warning. Given the number of hydropower projects in the region, GLOFs can also pose a risk to long-term infrastructure such as dams.

The permafrost is melting

Not all frozen water in the Hindu Kush Himalayas is in the form of glaciers. Glaciers are often referred to as rivers of ice, as they are large frozen volumes of water that slowly flow. Where there is less flow, but the temperature remains below freezing, ice accumulates in the ground as permafrost. As a general rule of thumb, humid areas have more glaciers while arid areas have more permafrost. In the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, permafrost is found across around 1,000,000 square kilometres, whereas glaciers occur across around 90,000 square kilometres.

Within the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, study of the permafrost has been largely restricted to the Tibetan Plateau, beginning in the 1990s. Little research has been carried out in the rest of the region. The research on the Tibetan Plateau shows that the active layer of permafrost is thickening as the permafrost melts. This makes the ground less stable, leading to higher risk of landslides.

Policy recommendations

Three main policy recommendations emerge out of the latest, most detailed survey of the cryosphere in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region (the HKH Assessment) as part of the Hindu Kush Himalayan Monitoring and Assessment Programme conducted by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). First and foremost, the world must focus on lowering carbon emissions. The challenges of managing the cryosphere will only increase if the world warms at a faster rate. Second, the HKH Assessment recommends the expansion of observation networks and data-sharing agreements across the extended HKH region. Third, improvements in research and observation should be used to anticipate disasters such as GLOFs and avalanches, and put processes in place to minimise their impacts.

(TheThirdPole)

 

New Farm Laws Need ‘Improvement’: BKS

FILE PHOTO: Farmers cheer and wave flags as more tractors arrive from Punjab to participate in the ongoing farmers' protest at Singhu border, to mark the 100th day of demonstrations against the farm laws

The RSS-affiliated Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) on Thursday said the outfit will stage a nationwide agitation on September 8 to press for ''remunerative price'' to farmers for their produce to cover their production cost and called for "improvement" in the Centre's new agri laws that are facing opposition from a section of cultivators.

The farmers' body said the Central government should either bring in a new legislation or make changes in the agri-marketing laws enacted last year to add a provision for payment of minimum support price (MSP) for major farm produce.

Top BKS functionary Dinesh Kulkarni, addressing a press conference in Nagpur, said farmers should get ''remunerative price'' for their produce to cover their cost of production, which they are not getting in the existing system.

"Remunerative price is cost of production plus profit -- that is what we are demanding. Remunerative price is the right of farmers, which should be facilitated by the government," said Kulkarni, the BKS's national organising general secretary.

"The MSP announced by the government today is not a remunerative price. However, even if it is not doing that it should at least give the MSP it is announcing and make a law for the same," he said.

Kulkarni said the three new farm laws do not have any clause about ensuring MSP or remunerative price for agricultural commodities.

"The government should ensure this remunerative price in the present farm laws or make a separate legislation for the same. The government should make guidelines in respect of contract farming wherein crops are not purchased below MSP. This should be at least implemented for the 23 crops that are currently under the MSP regime," he said.

Asked about his views on the Centre's new agri-marketing laws, against which farmers are protesting for the last 10 months, Kulkarni told PTI that they need "some improvement".

"For example, there should be an agriculture court (to tackle disputes). Similarly, (private) traders coming into the farm sector should be registered and should give bank security. Thirdly, there is a huge flaw in respect to (changes) in the Essential Commodities Act as far as consumers are concerned," he said.

The government, in order to promote business, has given huge exemption to big companies, allowing them to stock some commodities as much as they want and this needs to be corrected, the BKS leader said.

The 2020 amendment to the Essential Commodities Act, which is part of the new agri laws, removes restrictions on stocking of certain essential commodities.

To a query on the BKS' view on the ongoing farmer protests, Kulkarni said the nature of the agitation changed after January 26, when the stir took a violent turn in New Delhi. After that, dialogue with the Centre stopped, he said.

The government and farmers' unions have held 11 rounds of talks so far, the last being on January 22, to break the deadlock on the new laws and end the protest.

"It (talks) would have paved the way for discussion with the system for implementing remunerative price in the right manner. However, that dialogue stopped," Kulkarni said.

The three farm laws enacted in September 2020 have been projected by the Modi government as major reforms in the agriculture sector that will remove the middlemen and allow farmers to sell anywhere in the country.

However, the protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that the new laws would pave the way for eliminating the safety cushion of MSP and do away with mandis, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates. The Centre has repeatedly asserted that these mechanisms will remain in place. (PTI)

‘Insufficient Material Against Tharoor’: What Court Said

FILE PHOTO: There was nothing to demonstrate prima facie that the accused had subjected the deceased to physical cruelty, Special Judge Geetanjali Goel said

In the absence of specific allegations and sufficient material, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor could not be compelled to face the rigmaroles of a criminal trial, a Delhi court said while discharging him in a case related to his wife Sunanda Pushkar's death.

There was nothing to demonstrate prima facie that the accused had subjected the deceased to physical cruelty, Special Judge Geetanjali Goel said.

These observations were made by her in the detailed court order, which passed on Wednesday.

Pushkar was found dead in a suite of a luxury hotel on the night of January 17, 2014.

“In the present case, it cannot be said that the accused had ever intended or acted in such a manner which under normal circumstances would drive the deceased to commit suicide,” the judge said in the detailed order made available later.

The judge also noted that there was no allegation of any demand of dowry and harassment by the accused and there was also nothing, even prima facie, to show that he had subjected the deceased to physical cruelty.

She stated that even if the case of the prosecution is taken on its face value that the accused had an affair with Mehr Tarar, a Pakistani journalist, and the deceased was "distressed, agitated, upset and mentally disturbed, in the absence of anything further," it cannot be said that the same would amount to mental cruelty.

“Even for instigation, the intention to provoke, incite, urge or encourage doing of an act is an essential factor but the record does not bear out any such intention on the part of the accused,” she said.

The court rejected the argument of the prosecution that Tharoor had continued the affair with Tarar despite his assurance to the contrary and this showed willful misrepresentation and instigation by misrepresentation.

“Even as per the case of the prosecution, the accused took steps to hide his alleged affair with MT. There is nothing on record to show that the accused did some act in order to irritate or annoy the deceased until she reacted, or strongly persuaded or advised the deceased to do some act with the intention to provoke, incite, urge or encourage the latter to commit suicide,” it observed.

The court said the deceased might have felt distressed or mentally disturbed with the alleged extra marital relation of the accused but mental disturbance does not constitute the offence of abetment.

“No doubt a precious life was lost. But in the absence of specific allegations and sufficient material to make out the ingredients of the various offences, and on the basis of which the court could, at this stage presume that the accused had committed the offence, the accused cannot be compelled to face the rigmaroles of a criminal trial,” the judge said.

She said that in view of the arguments in the case, the uncontroverted allegations made, as well as the material collected during the investigation, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety, do not prima facie disclose the commission of offences punishable under Sections 498-A or 306 of IPC against the accused.

Tharoor was charged under Sections 498-A (husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty) and 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code by Delhi police, but was not arrested in the case.

“The accused Shashi Tharoor is discharged for the offences under Sections 498-A and 306 IPC,” the judge said.

While rejecting prosecution's request to frame the charge of murder (section 302 of IPC), even though it was not alleged in the chargesheet filed by the Delhi police, the judge said: “It cannot be said that suspicion, much less grave suspicion, exists in the present case to charge the accused for the offence under section 302 IPC.”

Tharoor was granted anticipatory bail in the matter by a Sessions court on July 5, 2018.

Following that order, a magisterial court converted the anticipatory bail into regular bail after he appeared before it on July 7 in pursuance to the summons issued by the Metropolitan Magistrate in the matter.

 

What Do We Know About Covid-19 Booster Shots?

 

US health officials may soon recommend COVID-19 booster shots for fully vaccinated Americans. A look at what we know about boosters and how they could help fight the coronavirus.

WHY MIGHT WE NEED BOOSTERS?

It’s common for protection from vaccines to decrease over time. A tetanus booster, for example, is recommended every 10 years.

Researchers and health officials have been monitoring the real-world performance of the COVID-19 vaccines to see how long protection lasts among vaccinated people. The vaccines authorized in the U.S. continue to offer very strong protection against severe disease and death.

But laboratory blood tests have suggested that antibodies one of the immune system’s layers of protection can wane over time. That doesn’t mean protection disappears, but it could mean protection is not as strong or that it could take longer for the body to fight back against an infection.

The delta variant has complicated the question of when to give boosters because it is so much more contagious and much of the data gathered about vaccine performance is from before the delta variant was widely circulating. Delta is taking off at the same time that vaccine immunity might also be waning for the first people vaccinated.

Israel is offering a booster to people over 50 who were vaccinated more than five months ago. France and Germany plan to offer boosters to some people in the fall. The European Medicines Agency said it too is reviewing data to see if booster shots are needed.

WHEN WOULD THEY BE GIVEN?

It depends on when you got your initial shots. One possibility is that health officials will recommend people get a booster roughly eight months after getting their second shot of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.

Officials are continuing to collect information about the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which was authorized for use in the U.S. in late February, to determine when to recommend boosters.

WHO WOULD GET THEM?

The first people vaccinated in the United States would likely be first in line for boosters too. That means health care workers, nursing home residents and other older Americans, who were the first to be vaccinated once the shots were authorized last December.

BOOSTER? THIRD SHOT? WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Transplant recipients and other people with weakened immune systems may not have gotten enough protection from vaccines to begin with. They can now receive a third dose at least 28 days after their second shot as part of the initial series of shots needed for them to be fully vaccinated. For those with normal immune systems, boosters are given much later after full vaccination not to establish protection, but to rev it up again.

WHAT QUESTIONS REMAIN?

Still unknown is whether people should get the same type of shot they got when first vaccinated. And the nation’s top health advisers will be looking for evidence about the safety of boosters and how well they protect against infection and severe disease.

Global access to vaccines is also important to stem the pandemic and prevent the emergence of new variants. Booster shots could crimp already tight global vaccine supplies.

WHAT ABOUT THE UNVACCINATED?

Dr. Melanie Swift, who has been leading the vaccination program at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, US, says getting more shots into people who haven’t yet been vaccinated at all is our best tool, not only to prevent hospitalization and mortality from the delta variant, but to stop transmission. “Every infection,” she says, “gives the virus more chances to mutate into who knows what the next variant could be.” People who took the vaccine the first time are likely to line up and get their booster, Swift says. “But it’s not going to achieve our goals overall if all their unvaccinated neighbors are not vaccinated.” (AP)

 

Taliban Announces ‘Amnesty’, Urges Women To Join Govt

FILE PHOTO: Afghan women attend a consultative grand assembly, known as Loya Jirga, in Kabul, Afghanistan on April 29, 2019

The Taliban announced on Tuesday an amnesty across Afghanistan and urged women to join its government, trying to calm nerves across a nervous capital city that only the day before saw chaos at its airport as people tried to flee their rule. 

The comments by Enamullah Samangani, a member of the Taliban’s cultural commission, represent the first such comments on governance from a federal level after their blitz across the country. While there were no major reports of abuses or fighting in Kabul, many residents have stayed home and remain fearful after the insurgents’ takeover saw prisons emptied and armories looted. 

Older generations remember their ultraconservative Islamic views, which included stonings, amputations and public executions during their rule, before the US-led invasion that followed the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks. 

“The Islamic Emirate doesn’t want women to be victims,” Samangani said, using the militants’ term for Afghanistan. “They should be in government structure according to Shariah law.” He added, “The structure of government is not fully clear, but based on experience, there should be a fully Islamic leadership and all sides should join.” 

Meanwhile on Tuesday, Stefano Pontecorvo, NATO’s senior civilian representative to Afghanistan, posted a video online showing the runway empty with American troops on the tarmac. What appeared to be a military cargo plane could be seen in the distance from behind a chain-link fence in the footage. 

There were no other immediate flights seen in Afghan airspace, which has been taken over by the American military as commercial flights have been halted in the country. Across Afghanistan, the International Committee of the Red Cross said thousands had been wounded in the fighting. 

Security forces and politicians handed over their provinces and bases without a fight, likely believing the two-decade Western experiment to remake Afghanistan would not survive the resurgent Taliban. The last American troops had planned to withdraw at the end of the month. 

“The world is following events in Afghanistan with a heavy heart and deep disquiet about what lies ahead,” United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said. A resolute US President Joe Biden on Monday said he stood squarely behind his decision to withdraw American forces and acknowledged the gut-wrenching scenes unfolding in Kabul. 

Biden said he faced a choice between honouring a previously negotiated withdrawal agreement and sending thousands more troops back to begin a third decade of war. “After 20 years, I’ve learned the hard way that there was never a good time to withdraw U.S. forces,” Biden said in a televised address from the White House. 

Talks appeared to be continuing between the Taliban and several Afghan government officials, including former President Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, who once headed the country’s negotiating council. 

President Ashraf Ghani earlier fled the country amid the Taliban advance and his whereabouts remain unknown. An official with direct knowledge of the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he wasn’t authorized to brief journalists, said senior Taliban leader Amir Khan Muttaqi had arrived in Kabul from Qatar. Muttaqi is a former higher education minister during the Taliban’s last rule. Muttaqi had begun making contact with Afghan political leaders even before Ghani fled.

Chidambaram Asks Why Modi Is Silent On Pegasus

 

Former Home Minister and Congress Leader P Chidambaram

A day after the defence ministry stated that it did not have any transaction with the NSO Group, the company at the centre of the Pegasus row, senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Tuesday said only Prime Minister Narendra Modi can answer on behalf of all ministries and departments over the issue and asked "why is he silent".

NSO Group, an Israeli surveillance software company, has been under increasing attack following allegations that its Pegasus software was used for surveillance of phones of people in several countries, including India.

Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt, while replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, said, "Ministry of Defence has not had any transaction with NSO Group Technologies."

Reacting to the development, Chidambaram tweeted, "MoD has 'absolved' itself of any deal with the NSO Group, Israel. Assuming, MoD is correct, that takes out one Ministry/Department. What about the remaining half a dozen usual suspects?"

"Only the PM can answer on behalf of ALL ministries/departments. Why is he silent?" the former home minister said.

An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers, including that of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union ministers Prahlad Singh Patel and Ashwini Vaishnaw, businessman Anil Ambani, and at least 40 journalists, were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using NSO Group's Pegasus spyware.

The government has been denying all opposition allegations in the matter.

Tokyo Olympics End With Message Of Hope

General view of fireworks above the stadium during the closing ceremony | REUTERS

 In between an unrelenting virus and an approaching typhoon, the extraordinary Tokyo Olympics drew to a close on Sunday, having oscillated between trials and triumphs with an unprecedented show of hope and tenacity.

With a large firework display adding a burst of sound to the dancing, singing and merry-making, the Japanese capital pulled the curtains down on one of history's most unique Games, handing over the flag to Paris with the message of moving forward while remembering those who lost their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Despite the global health crisis, the one-year delay, the soaring costs and strongly divided opinions among locals, the spectacle saw the light of the day after staving off numerous challenges on the way.

In sync with the time he is living in, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach, after closing the Games, said, "Athletes went faster, went higher and were stronger because they all stood together in solidarity. You inspired us with this unified symbol of sport. And it was even more remarkable because of what you faced in the pandemic."

Bach, without whom the Games wouldn't have happened, added, "For the first time since the pandemic, the world came together. People were united by emotion, sharing moments of joy and inspiration. This gives us hope, this gives us faith in the future."

"The Olympic Games of Tokyo were the Olympic Games of hope, solidarity and peace. You the Japanese people can be extremely proud of what you achieved. On behalf of all the athletes we say thank you Tokyo, thank you Japan."

The festivities began in front of the athletes, dignitaries and officials from across the world after the Japanese flag was raised at the 68,000-seater National Stadium, which was out of bounds to spectators owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The athletes entered the stadium and formed a circle around the rostrum. Unlike the opening ceremony which is a formal affair with the athletes dressed in formal attire, the closing was a time for the achievers to relax and enjoy the occasion.

A sizeable number walked in holding their mobile phones to capture the moment and some waved flags while wiping sweat on a humid Tokyo evening.

The theme of the closing ceremony was the 'Worlds We Share' and featured a whole lot of items, from lights to music shows, dazzling fireworks and stunts.

Before extinguishing the Olympic flame that has been burning in the cauldron since the opening ceremony, the closing of the Tokyo 2020 Games broke away from history and propelled hundreds of millions of viewers right into the very heart of Paris.

For the first time in a handover ceremony, the next host country's national anthem was broadcast as a film shot entirely in the future host city.

In another first, the closing ceremony featured live and spectacular celebrations from the next host city as the people of Paris and France embraced their role as host of the 33rd Olympics.

The segment took hundreds of millions of viewers on a tour of Paris and treated them to a deep dive into the City of Lights to the tune of a re-orchestrated version of La Marseillaise.

The musicians performing in six different spots in and around Paris evoked what the world has experienced over the past several months.

The message was, "We are apart, we can join forces and play together."

The Governor of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike, handed the Olympic Flag to Bach who, in turn, passed it on to the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo.

"I would like to express my feelings of gratitude and respect to all the athletes, and to everyone else who overcame so many difficulties to so thoroughly prepare for these Games and deliver their absolute best performances," said Tokyo Olympics organising committee president Seiko Hashimoto.

Bach presented Kenya's Peres Jepchirchir with the gold medal for women's marathon event, while Eliud Kipchoge received his yellow metal for winning the men's marathon.

Lights illuminated the Tokyo sky and then formed the Olympic rings, with fireworks going off to make it spectacular.

Due to the coronavirus protocols, the ceremony was held without spectators but the organisers put up a screen inside the stadium where fan videos from across the world were projected.

With bronze-winning wrestler Bajrang Punia as its flag-bearer, the largest Indian contingent bid the Games a goodbye after finishing their campaign with the best medal tally in history.

The handover was characterised by audacity and freedom as it highlighted Paris' promise to take sport out of its traditional spaces, to open the Games to the city and its people, and to connect with new audiences in new ways.

One of the many unique aspects of this ceremony was that unlike at past Olympics, where only Games volunteers (field cast) were recognised, Tokyo 2020 recognised both the Games and City volunteers.

The volunteers to be recognised were selected with an eye towards balancing representation of genders, ages, and other factors, in order to embody the diversity of all volunteers.

Six field cast members and two city cast members (one who volunteered in Tokyo and one who volunteered in Fukushima) were recognised on behalf of all the volunteers.

In appreciation of all volunteers and their collective contribution to the Games, flower bouquets identical to those presented to the medal-winning athletes at victory ceremonies were given to a representative group of eight.

The ceremony opened with a video that looked back on the 17 days of events and competition.

Fireworks went off at the stadium to mark the beginning of the final chapter in which the organisers "expressed gratitude for the countless individuals who lent us their strength and helped us make it to the Closing Ceremony."

This was followed by Japan's Crown Prince Akishino and the International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach making an appearance in the official stand.

The focus of the opening video was not records and scores but the valiant efforts of all the athletes, who competed in a strictly enforced bio-bubble, undergoing daily COVID-19 tests.

The salient message of the ceremony was that the Games will open the door to a brighter future.

India certainly could look towards that brighter future after claiming its best ever haul of seven medals, including their first gold medal in 13 years, from javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who is also going back as the country's first track-and-field medallist at the Games.

The country's haul also had two silver and four bronze medals.

The USA topped the medals tally with 113 podium finishes, including 39 gold, while China came second with 88 podiums that comprised 38 golds.

Hosts Japan finished a creditable third with a totals of 58 medals, including 27 gold.

 

 

Snow Leopard Conservation Handicapped By Lack Of Research

 

Snow leopards in the mountains of Asia face a multitude of threats, including conflict and retaliatory killing, trade in their body parts and climate change (Alamy)

More than 70% of snow leopard habitat remains understudied by conservationists, leaving conservation planning handicapped by large information gaps, according to a recent report by WWF.

Snow leopards live across the cold and rugged high mountains of Asia, from Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan, through China and Central Asia to Russia and Mongolia. In this landscape spanning approximately 1.8 million square kilometres, there are estimated to be fewer than 6,400 snow leopards. Another estimate by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) puts the global population between 2,710 and 3,386 adult snow leopards.

Healthy populations of top predators play a crucial role in maintaining ecosystem health, including by keeping herbivore populations in check, thereby securing local vegetation. The mountains where snow leopards live also form the headwaters of 20 major river basins, a crucial water source for the more than two billion people across 22 countries who live in the basins of these rivers.

The WWF report is based on a systematic review of snow leopard research spanning 100 years up to 2020. The idea behind the report was “to figure out whether we have adequate information on snow leopards to determine what the conservation action should be,” said Rishi Sharma, one of the authors and lead of the snow leopard programme at WWF.

The findings point to a lack of information from large portions of the snow leopard’s range. “This is worrying. This is what conservation organisations and governments should be focusing on,” said Sharma.

The report shows that Nepal and India are leading snow leopard research, followed by China. There are huge research gaps in Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Bhutan, Russia and Pakistan.

“We have tagged snow leopards that have gone to Afghanistan from Pakistan but because there’s no research going on [in Afghanistan], we have no idea at all how many [snow leopards] there are,” said Rab Nawaz, senior director of programmes at WWF-Pakistan.

Inaccessible Mountain Terrain A Challenge For Researchers

Nawaz said that research on snow leopards in Pakistan is “very concentrated in very few areas” like Chitral National Park in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Valleys on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border that are very likely home to snow leopards have not been studied because they are difficult to access.

The tough terrain and harsh climate of much snow leopard habitat makes research particularly demanding, a primary reason why vast sections of snow leopard habitat remain uncharted territory for researchers.

“Access to some of these areas is difficult and even if you manage [to access them], the logistical challenges of doing research come into play,” Rishi Sharma said. He compared his research experiences with tigers in central India with his work on snow leopards. “In central India, we could take a four-wheeler and cover substantial areas and install around 25-30 camera traps [in a single day]. In Spiti or Ladakh [in the north Indian Himalayas] or any other snow leopard range, even visiting three sites in a day is difficult.”

The report also points out that less than 3% of snow leopard range has robust data on snow leopard abundance, and that multi-year research is being carried out in only four research hotspots.

There is, however, space for hope. “The one positive thing I see is that there has been a huge increase in research in the last decade,” said Justine Shanti Alexander, regional ecologist at the Snow Leopard Trust and executive director of the Snow Leopard Network, who provided inputs for the WWF report.

Missing Link: Snow Leopards And Rangelands

The WWF report points to glaring gaps in the human elements of snow leopard conservation in research to date. Rangeland-related issues are highlighted as one of the least studied aspects of snow leopard conservation, despite their importance.

Lands that make good snow leopard habitat are also often those where livestock herding is the dominant human activity. Meanwhile, only 14-19% of snow leopard range overlaps with protected areas. This means that herders and snow leopards largely live alongside each other, leading to potential for conflict which endangers both livestock and snow leopards. The WWF report states that between 221 and 450 snow leopards are killed by people every year, and that 55% of these killings are driven by retaliation for snow leopard predation on livestock.

“What this means for conservation is that we should understand the human dimension of the story. What do people who live with snow leopards think? How is their life impacted by living with a predator which kills their livestock?” Rishi Sharma said. “In-depth research on the social science aspect of snow leopard conservation is lacking.”

A study published last month highlighted case studies from India, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia and Pakistan to show how “respectful engagement and negotiation” with local communities can go a long way in addressing human-wildlife conflict. Many conservation organisations, including the Snow Leopard Trust, Nature Conservation Foundation and WWF, are working to support communities in mitigating conflict. For example, there are efforts underway to reduce livestock loss by building predator-proof corrals and holding pens in the Spiti Valley in Himachal Pradesh and Changthang in Ladakh.

A major caveat is scale. “These efforts are limited in terms of their geographical coverage. So, unless [the issue of conflict] finds place in government policies, we will only find success in certain areas. The hard thing to do is replicate the success across larger areas of the snow leopard range,” Rishi Sharma explained.

Commercial livestock rearing – more capital-intensive and organised than traditional pastoralism – can also cause problems for snow leopards. A 2015 study found that livestock grazing and snow leopard habitat use are “compatible up to a certain threshold of livestock density, beyond which habitat use declines”. The reason for this, the authors said, is possibly due to “depressed wild ungulate abundance and associated anthropogenic disturbance.”

Rishi Sharma points out that production of pashmina is an important economic activity on parts of the Tibetan Plateau. “The challenge is, how do you reconcile wildlife conservation goals with government policies which aim to promote pashmina and when pashmina is also an important economic activity for the people.” According to Sharma, such economic incentives have led to a situation where “there is more livestock than what these rangelands can sustain.”

The growth of mining and infrastructure like roads and dams pose challenges for both snow leopards and rangelands. “In the last 10-15 years, demand for minerals has opened up remote pastures for mining in countries like Mongolia, China, Kyrgyzstan,” said Koustubh Sharma, assistant director of conservation policy and partnerships at the Snow Leopard Trust. In some areas, like Tost Nature Reserve in Mongolia, herder communities have viewed snow leopard conservation as a means to protect pasturelands from threats like mining. “The area has been declared as a protected area for [conserving] snow leopards, ibex and argali and there’s zoning to allow grazing,” said Justine Shanti Alexander.

Climate Change Impacts On Snow Leopard Habitat

Only around 35% of current snow leopard range will remain climatically stable and suitable for viable snow leopard populations by the late 21st century, a 2016 study predicted. Despite such startling statistics, the WWF report highlights that climate change is a major unexplored theme in snow leopard research.

“We call climate change the mother of all threats because it amplifies each of the other threats that snow leopards face like retaliatory killing, poaching and extreme weather resulting in lack of prey,” said Koustubh Sharma. This makes these threats “much more severe and urgent and complex”.

Climate change is driving more frequent flash floods and dzuds (a Mongolian term for extreme winters), among other impacts. This can push people into hitherto unexplored areas, in search of better pastures for livestock or more comfortable conditions for living. “These new areas may be snow leopard habitat and [this] can lead to conflict,” said Koustubh Sharma.

The pressures of climate change can also make other conservation interventions more difficult. “It remains challenging to expect communities that are experiencing poverty and climate change-related shocks like drought to go beyond immediate mitigation of risks of carnivore depredation and take on additional broader actions related to snow leopard conservation,” said Alexander. She added that working with communities to build resilience against environmental shocks is important for long-term conservation of high mountain ecosystems.

“As of now, the immediate climate change-related threat is… how people [living with snow leopards] respond to climate change,” said Koustubh Sharma.

The Path Ahead – Landscape-level Conservation

In 2013, the governments of all 12 snow leopard range countries adopted the Bishkek Declaration with a shared goal of conserving snow leopards across their habitat. The Declaration lays out steps countries should be taking towards conserving snow leopards over the long term through the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Programme (GSLEP).

“Under GSLEP, all 12 countries recognise that landscape-level conservation [rather than country-level ones] are needed,” said Koustubh Sharma.

Alexander highlighted the importance of “secured and connected” habitats for snow leopards. In China, predicted to host 50-60% of the world’s total suitable snow leopard habitat, large areas are protected as nature reserves. For instance, Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve, at more than 150,000 square kilometres, is more than half the size of Kyrgyzstan. “This is vital because snow leopards have large home ranges and to protect a population you need at least several thousand square kilometres,” Alexander added.

Recognising landscape-level issues also means acknowledging that the landscape is used in multiple ways. “The best way to conserve snow leopards is to partner with local communities, minimise the losses they face and maximise the benefits they can gain from the fact that they share snow leopard habitats,” said Koustubh Sharma.

The Third Pole

Thousands More Flee Fires In Greece Amid Heatwave

 

Flames rise as wildfires burn near the village of Afidnes, north of Athens, Greece (Reuters)

Thousands of people in Greece fled to safety from a wildfire north of Athens early on Friday, as firefighters waged an overnight battle to stop the flames from reaching populated areas, electricity installations and historic sites.

On the nearby island of Evia, the Greek coast guard mounted a massive operation with patrol boats and private vessels to evacuate hundreds of residents and vacationers by sea, as dozens of fires burned across the country for a third day amid a protracted heatwave.

One of the most severe blazes tore through forest areas 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) north of the capital, destroying more homes. Ground crews of several hundred firefighters dug fire breaks and hosed the flames.

Traffic was halted on the country's main highway connecting Athens to northern Greece as crews tried to use the road as a firebreak before water-dropping planes resumed flights at first light. But sparks and burning pine cones carried the fire across the highway at several points.

Several firefighters and volunteers were hospitalized with burns, health officials said. Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias said nine people had been taken by ambulance to hospitals in Athens from the fire north of the Greek capital, three of them suffering breathing problems, while 11 more were being treated in a health center on Evia.

"We are going through the 10th day of a major heatwave affecting our entire country, the worst heatwave in terms of intensity and duration of the last 30 years," Fire Service Brig. Gen. Aristotelis Papadopoulos said.

In the Drosopigi area north of Athens, resident Giorgos Hatzispiros went Friday morning to check on his house after being ordered to evacuate the previous afternoon. Only the charred walls of the single-story home remained, along with his two children's bicycles, somehow unscathed in a storeroom. Inside, smoke rose from a still-smoldering bookcase.

"Nothing is left," Hatzispiros said. He urged his mother, who was accompanying him, to leave, to spare her the sight of their destroyed home.

In southern Greece, nearly 60 villages and settlements were evacuated on Thursday and early Friday, with weather conditions expected to worsen as strong winds were predicted in much of the country.

Fires were raging on the island of Evia, northeast of Athens, and at multiple locations in the southern Peloponnese region, where a blaze was stopped before reaching monuments at Olympia, birthplace of the ancient Olympic Games.

A summer palace outside Athens once used by the former Greek royal family was also spared.

In Evia, the coast guard said its patrol boats, private vessels and tourist boats had evacuated 631 people overnight and by early Friday morning from beaches on the northeastern coast of the island. Coast guard patrols were continuing along the coast.

Fire crews, water-dropping planes, helicopters and vehicles from France, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland were arriving on Friday and through the weekend to help. Fire crews and planes from Cyprus were already in Greece, as the European Union stepped up support to fire-hit countries in southeast Europe. The heatwave also has fueled deadly fires in Turkey and across the region.

"Our priority is always the protection of human life, followed by the protection of property, the natural environment and critical infrastructure. Unfortunately, under these circumstances, achieving all these aims at the same time is simply impossible," Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a televised address on Thursday night.

The wildfires, he said, display the reality of climate change. More than 1,000 firefighters, joined by the army and teams of volunteers, as well as nearly 20 water-dropping planes and helicopters, were fighting five major fires across the country, the fire department said.

In 2018, more than 100 people died when a fast-moving forest fire engulfed a seaside settlement east of Athens. Some of the casualties drowned trying to escape by sea from the choking smoke and flames after becoming trapped on a beach.

Olympics: Ravi Dahiya Goes Down Fighting, Wins Silver Medal

 

Russia's Zavur Uguev (blue) wrestles Ravi Kumar Dahiya in the men's freestyle 57kg wrestling final match during the Tokyo Olympics (AFP)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hailed wrestler Ravi Dahiya for winning a silver medal at the Olympic Games and said his fighting spirit and tenacity are outstanding.

Dahiya became only the second Indian wrestler to win a silver medal at the Olympic Games after he lost the men’s freestyle 57kg title clash 4-7 to reigning world champion Zavur Uguev in Tokyo.

“Ravi Kumar Dahiya is a remarkable wrestler! His fighting spirit and tenacity are outstanding. Congratulations to him for winning the Silver Medal at #Tokyo2020,” Modi tweeted. “India takes great pride in his accomplishments,” he said.

Modi also lauded the efforts of wrestler Deepak Punia, who came agonisingly close to winning a bronze medal on his Olympic debut but conceded a take-down in last 10 seconds of the 86kg play-off against San Marino’s Myles Nazem Amine to miss out on achieving the feat.

Dahiya is the first man to win a medal for India at the Tokyo Olympics. Mirabai Chanu won a silver in weightlifting, P.V. Sindhu won a bronze medal in badminton and Lovlina Borgohain bagged a bronze in boxing.

Reigning world champion Uguev started off on an aggressive note, pushing Dahiya out of the mat, to score the first two points. The Indian managed to equalise by pinning him on his knees but almost immediately, Uguev returned the favour and went 4-2 up.

The Russian athlete scored another point, grabbing Dahiya from the back and pushing him out of the mat yet again.

With the gap widening, the Indian tried to go for an attack, but Uguev turned it around and pinned him to the ground, thus conceding another two points.

Dahiya, 23, managed to win two more points towards the end, raising hopes of a repeat of the semifinal miracle when he came back from a 2-9 scoreline to win against the Kazak wrestler Nurislam Sanayev.

However, Uguev defended strongly and managed to hang on to the three-point lead to win the gold.

The Indian had won against Colombia’s Tigreros Urbano (13-2) in his opener and then defeated Bulgaria’s Georgi Valentinov Vangelov (14-4) in the quarterfinals.

Before Dahiya, four Indian wrestlers have won medals at the Olympics. They are: K.D. Jadhav (1952 Helsinki Games), Sushil Kumar (2008 Beijing Olympics, 2012 London Games), Yogeshwar Dutt (2012 London Olympics) and Sakshi Malik (2016 Rio Olympics).

Lovlina’s Dream Was To Win The Gold Medal, Says Father Tiken Borgohain

India’s Lovlina Borgohain (blue) exchanges punches with Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey in the women’s welterweight (64-69kg) category boxing semi-final match, at the Summer Olympics 2020, in Tokyo on Wednesday, Aug 4, 2021. Borgohain lost the match. (PTI Photo)

 Indian boxer Lovlina Borgohain’s father Tiken Borgohain has stated his daughter’s dream was to win gold after the 23-year-old settled for bronze in the semifinal of women’s welterweight (64-69kg) category at the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday.

Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey defeated Lovlina by a unanimous decision of 5-0. All five judges gave decisions in favour of the Turkish pugilist after she dominated all the rounds in the bout. Lovlina is now only the third Indian boxer after Vijender Singh in Beijing 2008, and MC Mary Kom in London 2012, to win the bronze for India at the showpiece event.

“I’m happy with her bronze medal. I don’t watch her match live. I’ll go to Guwahati airport to receive her,” Tiken Borgohain told ANI, after the game. “I’ll talk to her later. She will be sad right now as her dream was to win the gold medal.”

“Definitely not feeling good, as I have lost the match. Every time I have to settle for bronze, so I am feeling bad about it,” Lovlina had told reporters after her bout. “A medal is a medal even if it is of Olympic or inter-district. I had prepared for gold and I was 100% sure that I will take the gold, this time around.”

Talking about her Olympic dream, she said: “Since I have started boxing, I always dreamt of playing in the Olympics and winning the gold here. I used to do every work and training session thinking about the Olympics. Am feeling good currently that a medal came in the Olympics but my expectations were not met.”

 

China Orders Mass Testing In Wuhan As Covid-19 Outbreak Spreads

A January 2020 photo shows health workers checking on an elderly man who collapsed and died on a street in Wuhan, China (AFP)

 Chinese authorities announced mass coronavirus testing in Wuhan on Tuesday, as an unusually wide series of COVID-19 outbreaks reached the city where the disease was first detected in late 2019.

Wuhan, a provincial capital of 11 million people in central China, is the latest city to undergo city-wide testing. Three cases were confirmed there on Monday, its first non-imported cases in more than a year.

China has largely curbed COVID-19 at home after the initial outbreak that devastated Wuhan and over time spread to the rest of China and globally.

Since then, authorities have tamped down and controlled the disease whenever it pops up with quick lockdowns and mass testing to isolate infected people.

The current outbreaks, while still in the hundreds of cases in total, have spread much more widely than previous ones, reaching multiple provinces and cities including the capital, Beijing.

Many of the cases have been identified as the highly contagious delta variant that is driving a resurgence in many countries.

The National Health Commission said on Tuesday that 90 new cases had been confirmed the previous day, 61 locally spread ones and 29 among people who had recently arrived from abroad.

Most of the local cases are still in Jiangsu province, where an outbreak started at the airport in Nanjing, the provincial capital, and has spread to the city of Yangzhou, 105 kilometers (65 miles) away.

Authorities reported 45 new cases, five in Nanjing and 40 in the city of Yangzhou, which was conducting a second round of mass testing. Five other provinces and the cities of Beijing and Shanghai reported new local cases in the single digits.

In Shanghai, the nation’s largest city, a driver working at one of its two main airports tested positive. Beijing has reported a total of five cases in recent days.

Government-affiliated scientists have said that Chinese vaccines are less effective against the new strains of the coronavirus but still offer some protection. Only Chinese vaccines are currently being given in China, where authorities say more than 1.6 billion doses have been administered.

‘Momentous Day’: India Assumes UNSC Presidency For August

 

FILE PHOTO: The United Nations logo is pictured on a flag

India will always be a voice of moderation, an advocate of dialogue and a proponent of international law, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Sunday as the country takes over the presidency of the United Nations Security Council for August.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi described it as a “momentous day” and referred to the Sanskrit phrase ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (the world is one family) to describe India’s worldview.

“As we take over UNSC Presidency for August, look forward to working productively with other members. India will always be a voice of moderation, an advocate of dialogue and a proponent of international law,” Jaishankar tweeted.

Bagchi said India’s tenure at the UN Security Council has been guided by five ‘S’ --- ‘Samman (respect), Samvaad (dialogue), Sahyog (cooperation), Shanti (peace) and Samriddhi (prosperity)’.

The first working day of India’s Presidency will be Monday, August 2.

India began its two-year tenure as a non-permanent member of the UNSC on January 1.

It is India’s seventh term on the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member. India has previously been a member of the UN Security Council in 1950-51, 1967-68, 1972-73, 1977-78, 1984-85, and 1991-92.

Following its election to the global body, India said that it will promote responsible and inclusive solutions to international peace and security and would pitch for a new orientation for a reformed multilateral system. (PTI)