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Military, Defence Ministry employees to donate one day's salary to PM's COVID-19 fund...

The Army, Navy and the Indian Air Force as well as employees of the defence ministry have decided to donate one day's salary totalling around Rs 500 crore to the relief fund announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to help fight the coronavirus outbreak in the country. Separately, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh announced that he will donate one month's salary to the fund.

On Saturday, Modi announced setting up of the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES) to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

A number of union ministers, private entities, industrialists and government organisations have responded to the prime minister's announcement and contributed to the fund.

So far, India has recorded a total of 979 positive cases of coronavirus and 25 deaths.

"I have decided to donate my one month's salary to the PM-CARES Fund. You can also contribute in this fund and strengthen India's resolve to fight against the menace of COVID-19," the defence minister said.

Singh said he has also asked the Chairman MPLADS (Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme) to release Rs 1 crore to the PM-CARES Fund.

A defence ministry spokesperson said Singh has approved a proposal for contribution of one day's salary by employees of the ministry to the Fund.

"It is estimated that around Rs 500 crore will be collectively provided by the Defence Ministry to the Fund from various wings, including Army, Navy, Air Force, Defence PSUs and others," he said.

The employees' contribution is voluntary and those desirous of opting out will be exempted.

Indian Navy manufactures multi-feed oxygen cylinder for Covid-19 patients...

To cater to the requirement of oxygen supply for multiple patients during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, personnel from Naval Dockyard Visakhapatnam has designed an innovative ‘portable multi-feed oxygen manifold (MOM)’ using a six-way radial header fitted to a single cylinder.

After successful trials, the dockyard has started manufacturing of the oxygen cylinder that can cater to six patients at one time. This innovation would enable one oxygen cylinder to supply to six patients concurrently, thus enabling critical care management to a larger number of COVID-19 patients with the existing limited resources.

The entire set up was made operational by the manufacturing of a Fine Adjustment Reducer and specific adapters of requisite dimensions for connecting the oxygen cylinder and the portable multi-feed oxygen manifold.

A typical oxygen providing facility at hospitals comprises an oxygen cylinder feeding only one patient through a Ventimask arrangement.

During the ongoing pandemic, ventilator support will be required for about 5-8 per cent of patients with symptoms whereas a large number of patients would require oxygen support.

The existing facilities are not adequate to cater to such large requirements.

“A need was therefore felt to design a suitable portable arrangement that could provide oxygen through masks to a number of needy patients using a single-cylinder during emergencies which is the need of the hour,” Navy Spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said.

The preliminary trials of the entire assembly were conducted at the medical inspection room in the Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam, which was followed by rapid trials at the Naval Hospital INHS Kalyani wherein the portable multi-feed oxygen manifold was successfully set up within 30 minutes.

After successful trials, the Naval Dockyard has commenced manufacturing of 10 portable multi-feed oxygen manifold with two six-way radial headers catering to 120 patients at makeshift locations.

Soldiers failing to disclose Covid-19 information will invite action under Army Act...

Soldiers failing to disclose possible Covid-19 symptoms, their travel details to an identified hotspot or even about their contact with a suspected patient will be tried under the Army Act, 1950, “for breach of discipline”.

An advisory issued last week by the Adjutant General’s branch stated that Army personnel should disclose to their superiors — either during rolls calls or during medical screening — if they have Covid-19 symptoms such as cough, throat pain, fever, breathing difficulties, their possible contact with any Covid-19 patient, friend or relative while on leave or temporary duties, or about their travel to a Covid-19 hotspot as identified by the government.

The advisory states that concealing any such information will put other troops in harm and thus the act will be treated as “willful concealment” and dealt with under the Army Act for breach of discipline.

The advisory comes at a time when India is facing a 21-day lockdown and the government is trying to control the Covid-19 outbreak with 942 cases in the country as on Monday morning.

Recently, the Kerala government suspended Kollam Sub-Collector Anupam Mishra who had jumped home quarantine after coming back from a holiday in Singapore. The 2016-batch IAS officer and his wife had left for his hometown in Uttar Pradesh without informing the district collector and health authorities, who had advised them to remain home quarantined for two weeks.

Army sources said any such non-disclosure of information related to the pandemic is likely to be tried under Section 42 (e) of the Act that deals with neglect to obey any general, local or other order. Concealing of venereal diseases is also tried under the same section, since the offence is not contracting a disease but concealing it, an Army source said.

Defence sources said the Navy and the Air Force, too, could take a similar decision soon.

Leaves to be regularised, soldiers to join nearest base after 15 April

Anti-Sikh riots was “biggest lynching” incident: Rajnath Singh
Saturday, July 21, 2018

Countering the opposition attack on the BJP-led government over instances of mob lynching, Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said the 1984 anti-Sikh riot was “biggest” such incident.

Speaking on the lynching incidents, one of the issues cited by the opposition to attack the government, Singh said the Centre will provide all assistance required, but the state governments should take stringent steps to curb such incidents.

“The biggest incident of the mob-lynching happened during 1984,” Singh said, referring to the anti-Sikh riot that took place in the aftermath of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination on October 31, 1984.

The minister said the government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and assured that justice would be given to the Sikh community.

Speaking on the opposition-sponsored no-confidence motion, Singh said the opposition had doubt about who will be the leader and what will the policies be.

“Against whom are you bringing no-confidence? The appeal of the prime minister is such that several people gave up the gas subsidy after he urged them to do so.

“They (the opposition) do not trust each other. And when it comes to talking about the leadership, then ‘gayi bhains paani mein (they lose their steam),” Singh said.

The minister said the BJP has made a mark in states like Kerela and won Tripura by a two-thirds margin, which was unthinkable some time ago.

Expressing displeasure for introducing the no-confidence motion despite numbers favouring the NDA, he said the BJP never thought of doing so while it was in opposition from 2004-2014 as it was convinced that Manmohan Singh was safe.

He also took a dig at the Congress saying former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had ridiculed the BJP for having two MPs in the Lok Sabha in 1984. “One should not be arrogant as time changes and the same party (BJP) today has majority in Parliament.”

Hitting out at Congress leader Shashi Tharoor’s ‘Hindu Pakistan’ remark, the senior BJP leader said, “Where do they (Congress) want to take the country and what does it want India to become.

“Here, there is a talk about Hindu Taliban. India is the only country where minorities are prospering. Do they not want such an India,” the Home Minister said.

Singh said the country’s image has grown due to the steps taken by the Prime Minister and India is among the largest world economies and has risen from number 9 to number six over the last four years.

Referring to India’s membership in the Missile Technology Control Regime club in 2016, Singh even China has not been able to become a member of the elite club.

As the Minister spoke, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) members started demanding that he should speak on the Andhra issue and created a ruckus in the House. When TDP MPs started walking towards Singh, there was an altercation between them and the members of the BJP.

With the TDP members threatening to sit in the Well, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan adjourned the House for 15 minutes.

When the House reconvened, Singh resumed his speech.

He said the Centre will provide all possible assistance for the development of Andhra Pradesh.

With regard to the TDP’s demand for providing special status to Andhra Pradesh, the home minister said there were “some constraints”.

Without naming Rahul Gandhi or pointing to his hugging the Prime Minister, Singh said it seems that Chipko Movement has started in Parliament.

He said after the House adjourns, “I would go out and hug Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge.”

In his speech, the home minister said there has been an improvement in the security situation in North East and added that has been a steep decline in the insurgency.

The Naga framework agreement has matured, he said, adding there has not been a single incident of terrorist attack in the last four years.

PM Modi losing popularity with every passing day, says China’s State Media
Monday, July 09, 2018

China's official Xinhua News Agency has said that the BJP 'has been losing its popularity with each passing day', in an analysis published on Sunday that speculated on the possibility of early general elections.

The article- 'a news analysis' published by Xinhua and written from New Delhi-attributed this to the lynching incidents and what it described as the "not-so-successful economic policies of Demonetisation and GST (goods and services tax).

"Expectations that the general elections would be preponed stem from the fact that the BJP has been losing its popularity with each passing day, after suffering repeated defeats in recent by-polls (in parliamentary constituencies) in politically big states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Bihar, Xinhua reported.

It cited a recent Lokniti-CSDS (Centre for the Study of Developing Societies) poll that "found that the drop in Modi's popularity has been quite sharp".

Pointing to the recent by-polls in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and West Bengal, the article said that, "The repeated defeats of the BJP candidates in the parliamentary by-elections have given enough indications that the main ruling party is facing a tough incumbency factor among the country's voters."

"The key reasons cited for BJP's poor performance in recently held by-polls could be summarised as increasing incidents of lynching on dalits.. and the minority communities, particularly the Muslims over beef controversies, and the "not-so-successful" economic policies of Demonetisation and GST (goods and services tax)."

The write-up also quoted the July 9 India Today cover story on the BJP's new gameplan for 2019 saying that "BJP was concerned at losing popularity among the Dalits and lower caste people."

In Beijing, however, the general sense among strategic experts who follow India is an expectation that Prime Minister Modi will return for a second term, although some have speculated he might return with a weaker position.

To that end, Beijing has also been keen to portray Modi's relations with President Xi as being aimed at the long-term, and suggested it was investing in building a close relationship between the two in convening the informal summit in Wuhanthe first of its kind hosted by Xi.

Before the April 28-29 Wuhan summit with President Xi, Chinese officials said they saw Modi as a widely popular leader.

Comparing the two leaders, Vice Foreign Minister Kong Xuanyou told reporters then, "Xi and Modi both have strategic vision and historic responsibility. They are both widely supported by their people and have devoted a lot of energy to this relationship."