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HDFC removes video hailing notorious pastor as ‘Neighbourhood Hero’

By
The Commune
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Following The Commune’s story based on the expose by Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), HDFC Bank has removed the video in which it hailed the notorious Christian pastor Praveen Chakravarthy as a ‘Neighbourhood Hero’.

In a shocking revelation, Praveen Chakravarthy, the notorious Christian pastor who had boasted of kicking and defacing idols of Hindu Gods and creating ‘Christ Villages’ was declared as one of the ‘Neighbourhood Heroes’ by HDFC Bank.

Pastor Praveen Chakravarthy was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) on Wednesday (13th January, 2021) for promoting enmity between different religious groups and committing offence in places of worship. He has been charged under various 153 A, 153 B (1) (c), 505 (2), 295 A, 124 A and 115 of the Indian Penal Code and has multiple FIRs registered against him.

HDFC Bank in August 2020 had posted a video in its YouTube channel in which it hailed Pastor Praveen as a ‘Neighbourhood Hero’.

According to HDFC Bank, ‘Our Neighbourhood Heroes’ is an ‘initiative that thanks and celebrates heroes from across the country, who’ve gone above and beyond to help those in need during these difficult times’.

“A moment of courage is all it takes, to make the normal, heroic and that is exactly what you’ve done!”, the video put out by HDFC Bank said introducing Pastor Praveen.

The video also said that when underprivileged residents were struggling with ‘Volunteering Service & Time’ and needed help, Pastor Praveen stepped up.

“By providing Volunteering Services & Time to around more than 500 Underprivileged Residents you have truly helped and made a difference”, the video said and went on to declare that the bank prides itself in calling Pastor Praveen as the Neighbourhood Hero of Kakinada.

This video which was published in YouTube on August 28, 2020, several months after information about pastor’s rabid religious hatred were put out in public, has now been removed.

Pastor Praveen Chakravarthy is the President of ‘Sylom Blind Centre’. His activities were brought to light in 2019 by Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), a legal activism collective. LRPF had lodged a complaint with the Union Home Ministry in December 2019 against ‘Sylom Blind Center’and its President Praveen Chakravarthy for indulging in rampant rabid proselytization.

In a video tweeted by LRPF Pastor Praveen Chakravarthy can be heard saying with impunity in Telugu that he hit the ‘stone God’ and trees [sacred trees like Neem, Peepal, etc that are venerated by village people] with his leg. The video was first made available in a YouTube channel called ‘Bangalore go-sipps’. This video was published on December 11, 2019.

Chakravarty in the video can be seen describing how he converts a village to Christianity. He says that first a pastor would come and stay in the village to teach the Bible. He says that the village becomes a “Christ village” after everyone has accepted Christ as their saviour and adds that ‘stone gods’ and ‘trees’ are kicked as a finality.

“So there are many cases which (sic) I have kicked the God’s heads and I was so happy”, he says in that video.

 

Make Tamil Nadu COVID-free state, Sadhguru urges people at Mattu Pongal celebrations

By
The Commune
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In his first public Satsang at Isha Yoga Center in more than a year, Sadhguru urged people to make Tamil Nadu’s Covid-free by continuing to follow social protocols and acting responsibly. Addressing the gathering in Tamil following cultural performances and traditional Pongal festivities at  Isha’s famed Adiyogi, Sadhguru spoke about the significance of the farmer’s festival and said it was time to bring back natural farming practices and traditional variety of crops.

“Rice was once considered Amritam but now doctors are saying it is equivalent to poison,” Sadhguru told the large number of people including farmers and people from surrounding villages who participated in the Mattu Pongal celebrations at the Yoga Center .

He said that earlier, we used to have 2000 varieties of rice, which has now reduced to just 4 or 5 varieties, which don’t contain much nutrients, because the soil doesn’t have the necessary nutrition. Sadhguru added that putting back organic content in the soil was critical to make farming sustainable and the produce nutritious. On his recent visit to Isha Natural Farm which grows one of the most rich and nutritious rice variety – black rice or kavuni – Sadhguru said he found the naturally grown rice stalks exceeded 6 feet in height. He urged farmers to adopt the natural farming model which yields superior quality and quantity.

Sadhguru also spoke about the role of Yoga in enhancing physical and mental wellbeing and called on the people to commit to learning and teaching it to others. He spoke specifically about Surya Shakti that leverages the energy of the Sun to enhance physical and mental health, strengthening the heart and building immunity.

“We have about 7000 teachers for offer this practice to our people. But we need many more. All of you can learn this practice, become physically fit and offer this to at least 100 more people,” he said. Sadhguru revealed that though 4200 people lived at the Isha Yoga Center, not one of them contracted the virus during the entire year.

Various cattle breeds including Kangayam, Ongole, Kongrij, Umbalacheri and Gir, bred in Isha were on display at the venue. The gracefully decorated cattle sported turmeric, sandalwood paste and saffron and seemed to enjoy the attention of visitors.

Indian sailors stuck in China for months; return delayed yet again

By
The Commune
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The return of the 23 Indian sailors who are stranded in China has been delayed yet again. The Indian crew members of the cargo ship MV Jag Anand were supposed to arrive in Japan on 14 January. However, this has been put off to 18 January.

Union Minister of State for Ports, Shipping & Waterways Mansukh Mandaviya had, on January 9, announced that the Indian mariners would return via Japan on January 14.

 

The sailors were expected to reach Japan on January 14 and they were to be flown back to India, subject to the COVID-19 protocols. The sailors have been stuck in China for seven months. In December, the Indian External Affairs Ministry had said that two cargo vessels with a total of 39 Indians on board have been on anchorage in Chinese waters as they were not allowed to unload their cargo.

On January 10, India had returned a Chinese soldier who had strayed into the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control. He was apprehended near the south bank of Pangong Tso, a mountain lake along the de facto frontier. Pangong Tso lake is the site of the clashes that took place between India and China in May 2020, where soldiers exchanged blows and hurled rocks at one another along the banks of the lake.

TN becomes 11th state to complete One Nation One Ration Card system reform

By
The Commune
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Tamil Nadu has become the 11th State in the country to successfully undertake “One Nation One Ration Card system” reform stipulated by the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance. Thus, the State has become eligible to mobilise additional financial resources of ₹4,813 crore through Open Market Borrowings. Permission for the same was issued by the Department of Expenditure.

Tamil Nadu has now joined 10 other States namely, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh, who have completed this reform. On completion of One Nation One Ration Card system reform, these 11 States have been granted additional borrowing permission of ₹30,709 crore by the Department of Expenditure. State wise amount of the additional borrowing permitted is as under:

Sl.No. State Amount (₹ in crore)
1. Andhra Pradesh 2,525
2. Goa 223
3. Gujarat 4,352
4. Haryana 2,146
5. Karnataka 4,509
6. Kerala 2,261
7. Madhya Pradesh 2,373
8. Tamil Nadu 4,813
9. Telangana 2,508
10. Tripura 148
11. Uttar Pradesh 4,851

One Nation One Ration Card System is an important citizen centric reform. Its implementation ensures availability of ration to beneficiaries under National Food Security Act (NFSA) and other welfare schemes, especially the migrant workers and their families, at any Fair Price Shop (FPS) across the country.

The reform especially empowers the mirgatory population mostly labourers, daily wagers, urban poor like rag picker, street dwellers, temporary workers in organised and unorganised sectors, domestic workers etc, who frequently change their place of dwelling to be self reliant in food security. This technology driven reform enables the migrant beneficiaries to get their entitled quota of food grains from any electronic point of sale (e-PoS) enabled fair Price Shops of their choice anywhere in the country.

The reform also enables the States in better targeting of beneficiaries, elimination of bogus/ duplicate/ineligible card holders resulting in enhanced welfare and reduced leakage. Further, to ensure seamless inter-state portability of a ration card, Aadhar seeding of all ration cards as well as biometric authentication of beneficiaries through automation of all Fair Price Shops (FPSs) with installation of electronic point of sale (e-PoS) devices are essential. Therefore, additional borrowing limit of 0.25 percent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) is allowed to the States only on completion of both of the following actions:

(i)    Aadhar Seeding of all the ration cards and beneficiaries in the State

(ii)   Automation of all the FPSs in the State.

In view of the resource requirement to meet multiple challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of India had on 17th May, 2020 enhanced the borrowing limit of the States by 2 percent of their GSDP. Half of this special dispensation i.e. 1 percent of GSDP was linked to undertaking citizen centric reforms by the States. The four citizen centric areas for reforms identified by the Department of Expenditure were (a) Implementation of One Nation One Ration Card System, (b) Ease of doing business reform, (c) Urban Local body/ utility reforms and (d) Power Sector reforms.

So far 11 States have implemented the One Nation One Ration Card System, 8 States have done ease of doing business reforms, and 4 States have done local body reforms. Total additional borrowing permission issued so far to the States who have done the aforesaid refoms stands at ₹­­­61,339 crore.

(Published from PIB)

India and Japan sign MoU to enhance cooperation in ICT

By
The Commune
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India and Japan signed MoU to enhance cooperation in the field of Information and Communications Technologies today. MoU was signed by Union Minister for Communications, Electronics and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad and the Japanese Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications Takeda Ryota and it was exchanged through a video conference today.

Department of Telecom, Government of India and Ministry of Communications, Government of Japan will enhance mutual cooperation in the field of 5G technologies, telecom security, submarine optical fiber cable system to islands of India, spectrum management, smart cities, high altitude platform for broadband in unconnected areas, disaster management and public safety etc. It has been agreed that apart from Ministry level cooperation, Government of India organization such as C-DOT and ITI Limited along with industry partners from Japan will also part of this cooperation.

Speaking on this occasion the Union Minister for Communication, Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad highlighted the timely execution of connecting Andaman & Nicobar Islands with submarine optical fiber cable as a great example of cooperation between India and Japan. He further shared the rapid adoption of innovative digital technologies by India during COVID19 pandemic such as AarogyaSetu app, use of Aadhaar Enabled Payment System for doorstep disbursement of cash by India Post, digital hearings in Courts of India and rapid growth of digital payments. He further highlighted that during COVID19, due to attractive polices like PLI  and SPECS large amount of investments have come to India in the field of electronics manufacturing. He urged the Japanese electronics industry to invest in India and avail the benefits of the new technologies. Minister further highlighted the great potential India holds for Japanese investors in the field of 5G and 5G based services, Internet of Things, digital health technologies etc.

Japanese Minister Mr. Takeda Ryota expressed happiness on signing of MoU between India and Japan and expressed the commitment of Government of Japan towards mutual cooperation and investments in India.

(Published from PIB)

Indian Army demonstrates drone swarms during Army Day Parade

By
The Commune
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Feature Image Credits: PIB

The Indian Army carried out a live demonstration of Drone Swarming capability using 75 indigenously designed and developed drones which executed an array of Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled simulated offensive missions and close support tasks during the Army Day Parade held at Delhi Cantt on 15 January 2021.

This demonstration is a recognition of the Indian Army’s steady embrace of emerging and disruptive technologies to transform itself from a manpower intensive to a technology enabled force to meet future security challenges. The Indian Army is investing heavily into Artificial Intelligence (AI), Autonomous Weapon Systems, Quantum Technologies, Robotics, Cloud Computing and Algorithm Warfare in order to achieve a convergence between the Army’s warfighting philosophies and military attributes of these technologies.

The Indian Army has undertaken a wide array of technology initiatives in coordination with Dreamers, Startups, MSMEs, Private Sector, Academia,  Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs). One such project is the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Offensive Drone Operations which has been incubated with an Indian Start Up. This project symbolises the beginning of the Indian Army’s tryst with autonomy in weapon platforms and showcases the Army’s commitment towards merging the cutting edge of digital technologies with its human resource.

(Published from PIB)

Union Health Minister dispels myths surrounding COVID19 vaccines, reassures country of efficacy of indigenously manufactured vaccines

By
The Commune
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Image Credits: MediCircle

The Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, today reviewed preparations for the launch of the nationwide COVID19 vaccination drive scheduled to begin tomorrow. The Union Minister visited the Dedicated COVID Control Room which has been setup at the Nirman Bhawan premises of the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the 1st phase of the pan India rollout of COVID-19 vaccination drive tomorrow, 16th January, 2021 at 10:30 AM via video conferencing.  This vaccination program will cover the entire length and breadth of the country, with a total of 3006 session sites across all States and UTs which will be connected virtually throughout the exercise. Around 100 beneficiaries will be vaccinated tomorrow at each of the session sites. The vaccination drive has been planned in a phased manner, identifying priority groups. Health Care workers, both in government and private sectors including ICDS (Integrated Child Development Services) workers, will receive the vaccine during this phase.

During his visit to the COVID Control Room, Dr. Harsh Vardhan minutely scrutinised each aspect of the working of CoWIN, an online digital platform developed by Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, which will be used to drive the COVID-19 vaccination programme in the country. It will facilitate real time information of vaccine stocks, storage temperature and individualized tracking of beneficiaries for COVID-19 vaccine. This digital platform will assist programme managers across National, State, and District levels while conducting vaccination sessions. It will help them track beneficiary coverage, beneficiary dropouts, sessions planned v/s sessions held and vaccine utilization

The platform enables national & state administrators to view & sort data of beneficiaries as per their gender, age & co-morbidity. They can also view the metadata of vaccinations and Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI) reported from constituent districts across States & UTs. District administrators can additionally create session sites at any location by entering the pin-code, followed by specifying the locality or villages and subsequently assigning a vaccinator. Dr. Harsh Vardhan suggested that the software modifications and lessons learnt while using the highly advanced CoWIN platform be incorporated into India’s Universal Immunization Program.

The Union Minister also reviewed the Beneficiary Registration Page for all non-prioritized groups on CoWIN. He suggested pre-populating the software with beneficiaries by seeding it with electoral database, in addition to other documents that are authorized for registration.

The dedicated COVID Control Room has been involved in the massive exercise of monitoring district wise COVID19 data from across the country as well as in depth analysis of the data to interpret & evaluate the status of the pandemic. For the last several months, through this dedicated control room, the government has been closely monitoring parameters such as case fatality rates, infection rates, death rates & other parameters based on which containment strategies have been continuously evolved. The Control Room has also been helping to track & record best strategies being adopted by different countries as a part of their response system and translating them into key learnings for India.

The Union Minister also reviewed the working of the ‘Communications Control Room’ which has been closely monitoring the disinformation campaigns and rumour mongering in relation to administering of COVID19 vaccines. He advised the administrative machinery to go all out to counter the misinformation campaign being spread by vested interests.

Dr. Harsh Vardhan said India’s exercise to vaccinate its population against COVID19 shall be the largest immunization drive of the world. The Union Minister reiterated that both the indigenously manufactured vaccines, COVISHIELD & COVAXIN, have proven safety and immunogenicity records and are the most important tools to contain the pandemic.

(Published from PIB)

Train connecting Chennai with Statue of Unity to be flagged off by PM

By
The Commune
- 
Image Credits: Saur Energy, Twitter

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off eight trains connecting different regions of the country to Kevadiya on 17th January, 2021 at 11 AM via video conferencing. These trains will facilitate seamless connectivity to the Statue of Unity.

Train number 09119/20, the Chennai-Kevadiya Express will be making a weekly trip between Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. M. G. Ramachandran Chennai Central Railway Station and Kevadia in Gujarat.

Prime Minister will also inaugurate several other projects related to the Railways sector in Gujarat during the event. Chief Minister of Gujarat and Union Railways Minister will be present on the occasion.

Prime Minister will inaugurate the Dabhoi – Chandod Gauge converted Broad Gauge railway line, Chandod – Kevadiya new Broad Gauge railway line, newly electrified Pratapnagar – Kevadiya section and the new station buildings of Dabhoi, Chandod and Kevadiya. These buildings have been designed aesthetically incorporating local features and modern passenger amenities. Kevadiya station is India’s first railway station with a Green Building Certification. The projects will add fillip to the development activities in the nearby tribal regions, boost connectivity to important religious and ancient pilgrim places nestled on the banks of River Narmada, increase both domestic and international tourism, act as a catalyst for overall socio-economic development of the region while also helping generate new employment and business opportunities.

Sr.

Num

 Train

Num

 From To Train Name &  frequency
1 09103/04 Kevadiya Varanasi Mahamana Express (Weekly)
2 02927/28 Dadar Kevadiya Dadar-Kevadia Express (Daily)
3 09247/48 Ahmedabad Kevadiya Janshatabdi Express (Daily)
4 09145/46 Kevadiya H. Nizamuddin Nizamuddin – KevadiaSamparkKranti Express (Bi-Weekly).
5 09105/06 Kevadiya Rewa Kevadia – Rewa Express (Weekly)
6 09119/20 Chennai Kevadiya Chennai – Kevadia Express (Weekly)
7 09107/08 Pratapnagar Kevadiya MEMU train (Daily)
8 09109/10 Kevadiya Pratapnagar MEMU train (Daily)

(Published from PIB)

Journo Nidhi Razdan claims she was scammed, Harvard never sent her a job offer

By
The Commune
-

Nidhi Razdan, formerly a journalist with NDTV, has revealed in a statement on Twitter that she has been the victim of a “sophisticated and coordinated phishing attack”.

In June 2020, she had said on Twitter that she was quitting her job at NDTV to teach journalism at the reputed Harvard University. “Later this year, I start as an Associate Professor teaching journalism as part of Harvard University’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences”, she had tweeted.

However, in her recent tweet she has declared that the job offer from Harvard was a hoax. “I have been the victim of a very serious phishing attack. I’m putting this statement out to set the record straight about what I’ve been through. I will not be addressing this issue any further on social media”, she said in a tweet.

In her statement, Nidhi Razdan said, “I had been given to believe that I would be joining the University in September 2020. While I was making preparations to take up my new assignment, I was later told that due to the ongoing pandemic, my classes would commence in January 2021. Along with these delays, I began noticing a number of administrative anomalies in the process being described to me.”

Image

Pictured: Part 1 of Nidhi Razdan's statement

“At first, I had dismissed these anomalies as being reflective of the new normal being dictated by the pandemic, but recently the representations being made to me were of an even more disquieting nature. As a result, I reached out to senior authorities at Harvard University for clarity. Upon their request, I shared some of the correspondence that I believed I had received from the University,” her statement continued.

After further communications with Harvard University, she soon realized that there was, in reality, no job offer from Harvard. What had transpired was an elaborate con. Nidhi Razdan said, “I did not, in fact, receive an offer by Harvard University to join their faculty as an Associate Professor of Journalism. The perpetrators of this attack used clever forgeries and misrepresentations to obtain access to my personal data and communications and may have also gained access to my devices and my email/social media accounts.”

Image

Pictured: Part 2 of the statement

Nidhi Razdan said that the police and the authorities at Harvard University have been informed of the incident. A police complaint has been filed, although it is unclear whether the former journalist has suffered any financial losses due to this scam. “I hope that the police are able to get to the bottom of this attack on me at the earliest and help me bring this unsavoury incident to a swift end”, she said.

Centre allows postal department exam to be written in Tamil

By
The Commune
-

The Central Government has said that the exam for PO and Railway Mail Service (RMS) accountants in the Department of Posts will also be held in Tamil.

The exams for the post of Accountant in the Postal Service are scheduled to be held on February 14. The official announcement only featured English and Hindi and Tamil was not included. 

The two political parties in Tamil Nadu had raised the issue with the Centre.  It was informed that action should be taken to write the examination in Tamil. Now, the Centre has allowed for the exam to be held in Tamil as well along with English and Hindi.

The PO and RMS accountant exams are conducted for postal assistants (PA) and sorting assistants (SA) who are already working in the department. It is neither a direct recruitment nor a promotion examination. According to V Santhanaraman, Director of Postal Services, the exam which primarily tests the accountancy skills of clerks is for persons who are willing to change their roles from the existing ones. The exam is also an open-book test where questions are based on the posts and telegram (P & T) manuals and financial manuals. It is expected that not more than 200 people would be attempting it across the country.

The exam has been conducted in English and Hindi only for many years as all the manuals are only in those languages. Mr. Santhanam was also quoted saying in a report that the claim of postal department exams being conducted in regional languages in the past was wrong. Exams for lower grade posts like postmen are conducted in regional languages as they have a connection directly with the consumers.

 

 

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TheCommune
The Commune is a news and views portal focusing on social and political issues of the southern part of India with a focus on Tamil Nadu.
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