Day: February 27, 2021
The Centre & Cong govt in Punjab MUST reduce prices of petrol & diesel by Rs 5/litre each: Harsimrat Kaur
Harsimrat Kaur Badal – Former Union Minister :
The Centre & Cong govt in Punjab MUST reduce prices of petrol & diesel by Rs 5/litre each to give relief to the common man.
Strange that instead of reducing its own VAT, INC Punjab has planned a phony protest on March 1 to demand that GOI reduces the prices. It’s laughable!
Cong govt must fulfill its promises made to people of Punjab in its last budget, i.e., complete farm loan waiver, unemployment allowance, Rs 51,000 shagun, increase in old age & widow pensions and jobs for youth. If it’s not done, then Capt Amarinder knowingly made false promises
Centre should rethink & repeal the 3 Farm Laws which are being opposed by the farming community.
Cong govt in Punjab is equally responsible for this discrimination against Annadata as it gave the nod to Agri ordinances & now conveniently refusing to take up the issue with GoI.
We welcome the decision by Bodoland People’s Front: Sushmita Dev
Sushmita Dev – President, Mahila Congress:
We welcome the decision by Bodoland People’s Front (BPF), it will strengthen the Grand Alliance further and we shall continue to work for the people of Assam.
Hagrama Mohilary – President of Bodoland People’s Front:
To work for Peace, Unity and Development the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) has decided to join hands with MAHAJATH in the forthcoming Assam Assembly Election.
We shall no longer maintain friendship or alliance with BJP.
On the occasion of Ravidas Jayanti purchased a traditional handmade footwear: Dharmendra Pradhan
Dharmendra Pradhan – Union Minister:
On the occasion of Ravidas Jayanti purchased a traditional handmade footwear from Shri Lal Bahadur’s shop in Varanasi.
Highly skilled in his craft, Lal Bahadur ji from the Ravidas community is handcrafting comfortable, high-quality & genuine leather footwear for the last 40 years.
The handicraft industry and our local artisans are a vital cog in the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
I urge everyone to appreciate our local products and adopt the Vocal For Local mantra given by PM Shri Narendra Modi to encourage local craftsmen like Lal Bahadur ji.
Only 6% of farmers are able to sell at MSP: P Chidambaram
P Chidambaram – Former Union Finance Minister:
The reward to the farm sector for growing at 3.9% in a recession year is to treat the protesting farmers as if they were enemies of the state
The PM travels from Kerala to Assam but does not have the time or inclination to travel 20 kms to meet the farmers on the border of Delhi
Yet he will claim that he has doubled the farmers’ income
He will also claim that all farmers get MSP when the truth is only 6% of farmers are able to sell at MSP
To ramp up COVID vaccination capacity manifold, significantly large number of private facilities are being involved
Ministry of Health:
Shri Rajesh Bhushan, Union Health Secretary today interacted with Health Secretaries and MDs (NHM) of States and UTs on the vaccination of age-appropriate groups through a video conference (VC).
The nationwide COVID-19 Vaccination drive was launched on 16thJanuary, 2021. From this date onwards, Health Care Workers (HCWs) were given the first dose of the COVID vaccine while Front Line Workers (FLWs) were included from 2nd February, 2021.
So far, more than 1.5 core vaccinations have been done.
This nationwide vaccination program is now to be exponentially expanded to the following age-groups from 1st March, 2021:
i) all citizens above 60 years of age, and
ii) those within the age bracket of 45 to 59 years with specified co-morbidities
To ramp up the COVID vaccination capacity manifold, significantly large number of private facilities is being involved.
Around 10,000 private hospitals empanelled under Ayushman Bharat PMJAY, more than 600 hospitals empanelled under CGHS and other private hospitals empanelled under State Govts. Health Insurance Schemes can participate as COVID Vaccination Centers (CVCs).
Health Departments of State Governments have already initiated dialogue with these private hospitals so that they can be encouraged to participate in this drive as CVCs.
A list of all these private hospitals has been uploaded on the website of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and National Health Authority.
These can be accessed at:
a) https://www.mohfw.gov.in/pdf/CGHSEmphospitals.xlsx
b) https://www.mohfw.gov.in/pdf/PMJAYPRIVATEHOSPITALSCONSOLIDATED.xlsx
In addition, there would be Govt. health facilities which will be used as CVCs such as medical college hospitals, district hospitals, sub divisional hospitals, CHCs, PHCs, Health Sub Centers and Health and Wellness Centers.
Geo reference maps with GPS coordinates of all these health facilities have been prepared that will serve as CVCs and these Geo referenced maps are being shared with the States.
The Government COVID Vaccination Centers will offer free vaccination for all with the Central Government bearing the full cost of the vaccination.
All the private health facilities which will serve as Government COVID Vaccination Centers must follow strict norms of due process, quality and safety including integration with the National Co-Win technology platform.
All private health facilities must also have adequate space, adequate cold chain arrangements, adequate number of vaccinators and support staff and adequate arrangements for addressing Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI).
States were explained the 3 (three) methods of registration i.e. Advance Self Registration, Onsite Registration and Facilitated Cohort Registration.
States have been explained that the private hospitals functioning as CVCs can charge subject to a ceiling of Rs. 250 per person per dose along with the electronic and financial management mechanism in this regard.
User Names and Passwords to be provided to the private facilities to facilitate effective use of CoWIN 2.0, were also discussed during the meeting.
In addition, mapping of private facilities with the nearest cold chain points to ensure seamless flow of vaccines to them was explained to the States.
The simplified system of certifying people with 20 co-morbidities within the 45-59 years age group was also explained to the States.
The certificate can either be uploaded on Co-WIN2.0 by the beneficiary while self registering or a hard copy can be carried by the beneficiary to the CVC.
Ministry of Agriculture finalizes products for One District One Focus Product
Ministry of Agriculture:
The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in consultation with the Ministry of Food Processing Industries has finalized the products for One District One Focus Product (ODOFP).
The products have been identified from agricultural, horticultural, animal, poultry, milk, fisheries and aquaculture, marine sectors for 728 districts across the country.
The list of products have been finalized after taking inputs from the States/UTs and Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
These products will be promoted in a cluster approach through convergence of the Government of India schemes, to increase the value of the products and with the ultimate aim of increasing the income of the farmers.
These identified products will be supported under the PM-FME scheme of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries which provides incentives to promoter and micro-enterprises.
Many products also include convergence of resources and approach from the other departments.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare will support ODOFP from its ongoing centrally sponsored schemes such as MIDH, NFSM, RKVY, PKVY.
The implementation of ODOFP by State Governments will benefit farmers and provide support for realizing the expectations of value addition and subsequently enhancing agricultural exports.
The products for various districts are;
(i) Paddy – 40 districts
(ii) Wheat – 5 districts
(iii) Coarse cum Nutri Cereals- 25 districts
(iv) Pulses – 16 districts
(v) Commercial crops – 22 districts
(vi) Oilseeds – 41 districts
(vii) Vegetables – 107 districts
(viii) Spices – 105 districts
(ix) Plantation – 28 districts
(x) Fruits – 226 districts
(xi) Floriculture – 2 districts
(xii) Honey – 9 districts
(xi) Animal husbandry/Dairy products – 40 districts
(xi) Aquaculture/Marine fisheries – 29 districts
(xii) Processed Products – 33 districts
India’s share in the $ 100 billion global toy market is very small. 85 % of the toys in the country are sourced from abroad. We need to change this situation: PM Narendra Modi
Prime Minister’s Office:
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the India Toy Fair 2021 today through video conference.
Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari and Union Minister of Textiles Smt Smriti Irani also participated in the event.
The Toy Fair will be held from 27th February to 2nd March 2021. More than 1,000 exhibitors are participating in the fair.
The Prime Minister interacted with toy makers from Channapatna in Karnataka, Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, and Jaipur in Rajasthan.
Through this Toy fair, the Government and the Industry shall come together to discuss how India can be made the next global hub for manufacturing and sourcing of toys by way of attracting investments in the sector and promoting exports.
Addressing the event, the Prime Minister called for bringing out the hidden potential of the toy industry in India and to create an identity for it as a big part of the campaign for AatmaNibhar Bharat.
He added this first toy fair is not just a business or economic event. This program is a link to strengthen the country’s age-old culture of sports and cheer.
He said this toy fair is one such platform where one can discuss toy design, innovation, technology, Marketing and packaging and also share their experiences.
He said the world has done research on toys from the era of Indus Valley civilization, Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa.
The Prime Minister recalled that in ancient times, when travelers from the world came to India, they used to learn sports in India and used to take it along with them.
He added that chess, which is so popular in the world today, was earlier played in India as ‘Chaturanga or Chaduranga’.
Modern Ludo was then played as ‘Pachisi’. He said in our scriptures, it was described that Bal Ram had a lot of toys.
In Gokul, Gopal Krishna used to play with his friends outside the house in a balloon. Games, toys and crafts have also been engraved in our ancient temples.
The PM said today India’s share in the $ 100 billion global toy market is very small. 85 % of the toys in the country are sourced from abroad. He stressed the need to change this situation.
The Prime Minister said the country has now graded the toy industry in 24 major sectors.
The National Toy Action Plan has also been prepared. It has included 15 ministries and departments to make these industries competitive, country to become self-reliant in toys, and India’s toys also go into the world.
Throughout this campaign, state governments have been made an equal partner in developing the toy clusters. He said along with this efforts are made to strengthen the possibilities of toy tourism.
Toyathon-2021 was also organized to promote Indian sports based toys and more than 7000 ideas were brainstormed.
The Prime Minister said if there is a demand for Made in India today, then the demand for Handmade in India is also increasing equally. He added today people do not only buy toys as a product but also want to connect with the experience associated with that toy. So we have to promote Handmade in India as well.
As a political leader, in a democracy, I require- institutional support, a media that is objective, a judiciary that is aggressive, the ability to speak in Parliament. All those have been taken away from us. Where is this heading?: Rahul Gandhi
Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi interacts with Advocates at VOC College, Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. Excerpts. via INC India:
A nation is a balance between its institutions. If that balance is disturbed, a nation is disturbed
In India there is – Lok Sabha, Vidhan Sabha, Panchayats, Judiciary, Free Press – these institutions together hold the nation in place. Over the last 6 years, we’ve seen a systematic attack on all these institutions
Democracy does not die with a bang, it dies slowly. I am sad to tell you that democracy is dead in India. It is dead because one organisation – the RSS has combined with huge finances to penetrate and disturb and destroy our institutional balance
There are many different manifestations of this – misuse of sedition law, killing & threatening of people, these are all symptoms.
The problem is- concentration of capital has combined with organisation of RSS & destroyed the institutional balance in the country
There are multiple other balances that have also been destroyed. India is a union of states, all states come together to form the nation. When you destroy institutional balance of the country, you also destroy the negotiation between the states
If all the states do not have equal say then the power balance between those states is destroyed and that is a serious problem for any country. This is what we are facing
The spirit of this meeting is to understand what is happening and to defend the Indian nation and India’s institutions from this brutal assault that is taking place
Choosing the right MLA candidate is just one component. If we look at MP, attempts in Rajasthan, Goa, Jharkhand, Puducherry, Arunachal, these are all Congress Govts, where people gave the mandate to us and concentration of capital took the mandate away from us
I know the amount of money that was thrown at MLAs in M.P., Rajasthan, we’re talking massive amounts of money. When you have a party that is fighting elections with thousands & thousands of crores & other parties are not allowed to raise finance
Financiers who would like to support opposition parties come and say look we understand what you’re standing for, we support what you’re standing for but if we give you one rupee, our business will be destroyed
I have had that conversation where they say we want to support you but if we support you, our business will be destroyed and so we cannot support you
On one side, you have capture of all institutions, monopoly on finance & media. On the other side you have political parties that are not allowed to compete. When they form Govts against all odds, their mandates are taken away from them. Where is this heading?
As a political leader, in a democracy, I require- institutional support, a media that is objective, a judiciary that is aggressive, the ability to speak in Parliament. All those have been taken away from us. Where is this heading?
There’s only one way this will get resolved – by mass action. When ordinary citizens realise this country is not being run by his mandate but by force, undemocratically. That’s where this is going, you can see beginnings of it on borders of Delhi
The stirrings are there but as a political person, in my entire career, before 2014 I had never imagined a situation where I will have no institutional support whatsoever
Even if we put the right MLAs in place, it is not enough. The power is so strong and heavy that even that MLA will not be able to sustain
What happens when we come to power? There’s full penetration of all institutions. We’ll have to deal with 15 yrs of judges who have been placed in judiciary because they support one political party. It’s going to be a huge challenge for the country going forward
You can make anti-defection law stronger, you can disqualify them but remember in order to do that you need Parliament and you’re not going to get Parliament right now. Even to enforce that idea, we need institutional structure, we don’t have it
Now India is entering a phase quite like when we were fighting the British that we cannot rely on the institutions to protect our democracy anymore, we can only rely on the people of the country
We should absolutely have laws that don’t allow MLAs to move but first we need a functioning Parliament, we need a judiciary that is not penetrated by the RSS and BJP, a press that raises this issue
Our Madhya Pradesh Govt goes, it is essentially bought but nobody in the media says anything. Our Govt in Arunachal is bought, nobody says anything
Today, if the Congress party wants to win an election, the only way to win is if we have 2/3rd majority. If we win by 10-15 seats, it’s not a win, it’s a loss because BJP comes, buys the people and has its own Govt. It’s what we are facing
People who question, challenge the RSS, BJP are threatened, pushed around. I am lucky because there is nothing they have on me because I had the good sense in my entire political career to be an honest person. That’s why they can’t touch me
That is why I can speak to you because no ED, CBI is going to affect me. That is also why the BJP attacks me 24*7, because they know this man is not corrupt and we have no leverage on this man
We need to have more women in the Judicial system and I am for women’s reservation in Parliament and Vidhan Sabhas. You need more than reservation. Indian men need to change the way they look at Indian women
We can keep doing reservations but unless Indian men start to view Indian women with the same lens that they view themselves, the real change is not going to happen
We think the CAA is discriminatory and we don’t agree with it, we don’t support it. It is discriminatory on many counts
There is a full scale assault on secularism in this country, RSS & BJP are leading that assault.
Secularism is the foundation of our culture & history and hence it is an attack on our culture & history. It is very important that it is stopped in its tracks
I’m glad to inaugurate the National Centre of Excellence for Winter Games at Gulmarg: Kiren Rijiju
On the 2nd day of Khelo India Winter Games, I’m glad to inaugurate the National Centre of Excellence for Winter Games at Gulmarg”.
Look at the happiness in the eyes of the young players.
The hostel at the National Centre of Excellence for Winter Games at Gulmarg” in Jammu and Kashmir has been inaugurated today.
Attukal Pongala, the annual festival to the goddess Bhagavathy at the historic Attukal Temple: Shashi Tharoor
Shashi Tharoor – MP, Congress leader :
Brought prasadam back from the Attukal Temple for the ladies offering pongala in the front courtyard of my apartment building in Thiruvananthapuram.
May the goddess bless all!
Earlier today..
At the Attukal Pongala, the annual festival to the goddess Bhagavathy at the historic Attukal Temple.
In normal years millions of women congregate from across South Kerala & adjoining districts of TN for miles on end to cook the consecrated offerings. This time it’s more subdued.
Present and former MPs, Mayors & MLAs of all parties are among those watching & waiting at the Attukal Pongala
There’s a proverb that a watched pot never boils. Whoever came up with that doesn’t know the Attukal Pongala, where the boiling of the first offering by temple priests is watched by millions on television screens throughout the southern tip of the peninsula!
