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PM Modi lays foundation-stone of AIIMS at Rajkot

By
The Commune
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Narendra Modi bureaucrats bureaucracy IAS officers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of AIIMS Rajkot through a video conference today. Union Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani were present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, PM Modi recalled the efforts of the millions of doctors, health workers, scavengers and other frontline corona warriors who have constantly put their lives at stake to protect humanity. He lauded the efforts of the scientists and all those who provided food to the poor in this difficult period with full dedication.

He also remarked that this year showed that when India unites, it can effectively cope with the most difficult crisis. He said that India is in a much better position as a result of effective steps and India’s record of saving victims of the coronavirus pandemic has been much better than other countries. He added that efforts are in the final stages for producing the vaccine in India and making sure it rapidly reaches every nook and corner of the country. India’s preparation to run the world’s largest immunization campaign is in full swing, he said.

Speaking about the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) which will be constructed at Rajkot, PM Modi said that AIIMS Rajkot would boost health infrastructure, medical education and provide employment opportunities in Gujarat. He said that about five thousand direct jobs and many indirect jobs would be created. He lauded the efforts of Gujarat in fighting COVID-19 too. He credited the robust medical infrastructure in Gujarat, for Gujarat’s better handling of the pandemic. Two decades of relentless effort, dedication and resolve was behind this success of Gujarat in the medical sector, he said.

He added that in the last six years, work on ten new AIIMS has started and many have been inaugurated. Along with AIIMS, twenty super-specialty hospitals are also being constructed.

The Prime Minister emphasized that before 2014, different aspects of our health sector were working towards different directions and approaches. However, after 2014, the health sector has worked holistically and emphasis has been on preventive care, while also giving priority to modern treatment facilities. He said that the government has reduced the cost of treating the poor and, at the same time, also emphasized on increasing the number of doctors rapidly.

Listing the initiatives undertaken by the government to improve the health of the people, he said that under the ‘Ayushman Bharat” scheme, the work to establish about 1.5 million health and wellness centers in remote areas is being undertaken. Among those, about fifty thousand centers have already started functioning. About five thousand among those are in Gujarat alone. He said that about seven thousand Jan Aushadhi centers provide medicines at low cost to about 3.5 lakh poor patients.

The Prime Minister said that as diseases are becoming globalised, it is time for coordinated global responses for global health solutions. India will play a major role in the health solutions as it played in meeting the challenges of 2020, he stressed.

(Published from PIB)

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approves Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor

By
The Commune
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In a big boost to the upcoming Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor Project, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved proposals for the construction of industrial corridor nodes at Krishnapatnam Industrial Area in Andhra Pradesh at an estimated cost of the project of Rs. 2,139.44 crore and Tumakuru Industrial Area in Karnataka at an estimated cost of Rs. 1,701.81 crore, reports Swarajya.

The idea for this project was derived from transportation corridors like Eastern & Western Dedicated Freight Corridors, Expressways and National Highways, proximity to ports, airports, etc.

A press release from CCEA says, “The objective of Industrial Corridor Programme is the creation of greenfield industrial cities with sustainable, ‘plug n play’, ICT enabled utilities to facilitate the manufacturing investments into the country by providing quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure to industries”.

The developed land parcels in these cities will be ready for immediate allotment for attracting investments into manufacturing and positioning India as a strong player in the Global Value Chain.

The release by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry read, “Krishnapatnam Industrial Area in Andhra Pradesh and Tumakuru Industrial Area in Karnataka under Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC) have been approved to kick start the development in Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor Project. These greenfield industrial cities will be self-sustained with world-class infrastructure, road and rail connectivity for freight movement to and from ports and logistic hubs along with reliable power and quality social infrastructure”.

The Krishnapatnam node is estimated to generate 98,000 jobs upon the completion of the first phase of development. However, the best part is that out of those nearly one hundred jobs, nearly 58,000 jobs is likely to be employed at the site which would give a big boost to the locals.

For Tumakuru node, employment of about 88,500 persons is estimated, out of which 17,700 persons will be from service industries such as retail, offices and other commercial opportunities in the initial development phase.

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has already marked out Vasanthanarasapura in Tumakuru district for being developed into a major industrial hub as part of the Chennai-Bengaluru industrial corridor project. To ensure the success of the project, the Karnataka government will allot land free of cost to the special purpose vehicle (SPV) that will be set up to create, develop, and manage the Tumakuru node. The State government will contribute 50 per cent of the investment in the form of land, and the Central government will match the contribution in the form of a grant to develop infrastructure, up to a maximum of ₹3,000 crores. In Vasanthanarasapura Karnataka, the government has identified 9,629 acres for the development of the node.

The Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC) is one of the five special economic and industrial corridors envisioned by the Centre in a bid to boost manufacturing and industrial growth and to create jobs. It will link Bengaluru and Chennai, measuring a total distance of 560 km.

The main reason for developing CBIC is part of a long term plan that will accelerate the development of the regional industry and agglomeration in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. This will facilitate the development of a well-planned and efficient industrial base by providing smooth access to the industrial production units, decreased transportation logistics costs along with an improved delivery time and reduction in inventory cost and ensure increased private investments in manufacturing and industrial activity in the three states.

Financial scandals, embezzlement force Pope Francis to fire powerful Cardinal 

By
The Commune
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Following a financial scandal that has now come out in public, Pope Francis has formally stripped the Vatican Secretariat of State of its financial assets and real estate holdings.

The Pope signed a new law over the weekend ordering the Secretariat of State to complete the transfer of all its financial holdings to the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA) amid corruption investigation, ABC News reported.

Under the new law, the Peter’s Pence collections from the faithful, as well as other donations that had been managed by the Secretariat of State, will now be held and managed by the Vatican’s treasury office as separate funds that are accounted for in the Holy See’s consolidated budget. Peter’s Pence (or Denarii Sancti Petri and “Alms of St Peter”) are payments that are made by members of the Catholic community directly to the Pope to maintain the needs of the entire Church. The Church also gets money via fees for weddings, funerals and confirmations.

After years of criminal investigations into allegations of mismanagement of donations and investments by the Vatican’s Secretariat of State which resulted in losses of tens of millions of euros at a time of financial crisis for the Holy See, Giovanni Angelo Becciu, one of the most powerful cardinals in the Vatican and the longtime number two in the Vatican Secretariat of State, was removed in September after evidence emerged that he embezzled 100,000 euros ($117,440) from the secretariat to fund a charity controlled by his brother.

In another embarrassment for the Vatican, in October 2019, the Vatican began investigating how funds worth $200 million parked in Swiss bank accounts were used to finance a luxury property development in one of London’s upscale Chelsea district. When this news broke out, it was revealed that the company that managed the investment for the Holy See saw record profits. But is must be noted that the $200 million held in Swiss bank accounts was controlled by the Secretariat of State and was transferred to a Luxembourg investment fund called Athena Capital. The funds were then used towards the construction 49 luxury apartments at 60 Sloane Avenue. The Vatican is said to be engaged in the project since 2014.

In the Vatican, after the Pope, the most powerful individual is the one who is appointed as the Secretariat of State. He is the head of the central papal governing bureaucracy of the Catholic Church and is also responsible for the political and diplomatic functions of the Holy See. More importantly, the Secretariat of State has access to millions of dollars in charity given by Catholics around the world, money which is managed without any oversight.

Europe’s anti-money laundering body Moneyval has also commenced its assessment of Vatican finances.

In August last year, Pope Francis announced renewed statutes for the governance of the Vatican Bank. To ensure the investigation is fair, he brought external auditors for the first time and introduced new ethical guidelines for members of the bank’s staff, all of which were unprecedented in the history of the Vatican.

When the investigation of suspected financial irregularities was being carried out, the Vatican police had also raided the offices of the Holy See’s Secretariat of State and its Financial Information Authority, or AIF, and had taken away documents and electronic devices. The Vatican itself had announced that the raids were prompted by complaints lodged in the summer by the Vatican’s bank and auditor-general about “financial operations carried out over the course of time”.

Five Vatican employees, including a top official at the Vatican’s Financial Information Authority (AIF) and a monsignor, were also suspended following the police raid. The Vatican Bank, better known as the Institute for Works of Religion, or IOR, for decades, has been embroiled in numerous financial scandals but due to the sensitive and secretive nature of the Catholic Church.

The Church is renowned for hiding secrets and coverups from matters of financial irregularity that never became public, to shielding paedophile priests for decades.

Idol of Shri Rama damaged by miscreants in temple in Vizianagaram district

By
The Commune
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Tension prevailed at the Ramateertham village of Nellimarla Mandal in Andra Pradesh’s Vizianagaram district as news spread of unidentified miscreants vandalising a temple located on Bodi Konda hill and damaging the idol of Shri Rama.

On Tuesday, locals visiting the 400 year-old Kodanda Rama Temple on the Bodi Konda hill found that the idol had been damaged and the head had been separated from the idol. It is suspected that the vandals took the idol’s head with them or dumped it in the nearby forest. As news of the crime spread, locals began thronging to the temple. Investigation into the matter has begun, as SP B Rajakumari visited the temple and deployed a team to collect evidence against the miscreants.

Local Telugu Desam Party leaders S Ravisekhar and others rushed to the temple and staged a dharna at the foot of the hill. They demanded that the government take swift action against the miscreants and provide security to Hindu temples. BJP district president R Pavani and others also visited the temple and staged a dharna. They condemned the brutal incident and demanded that the government find the criminals and take measures to safeguard the temple. Nellimarla MLA B Appala Naidu also visited the temple and reviewed the situation.

Srinivasananda Swamy, Chairman of Ramateertham Parirakshana Parishad also visited the temple and stated that this offensive and disrespectful incident has pained the devotees visiting the temple. He said that the government should rapidly act on this issue to restore confidence among the public and provide protection to all the temples in the state.

The village of Ramateeertham is also home to the Sitaramaswamy Temple, another temple dedicated to Shri Rama.

The crime took place one day before Andhra Pradesh Chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy was set to visit the district.

Thanjavur boy designs world’s lightest FEMTO satellite for NASA launch

By
The Commune
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S Riyasdeen, a second-year Mechatronics student from Sastra University has been selected to be a part of NASA mission to make the world’s lightest satellite. Riyasdeen created a 37 mm sized FEMTO satellites VISION SAT v1 and v2 with a payload of 30 mm weighing 33 gms and is now the world’s lightest FEMTO satellite, the New Indian Express reported. He hails from Karanthai in Tamil Nadu’s Thanjavur district.

“The satellites are named as VISON SAT v1 and v2 and both are of 37 mm in size and the payload is only around 30 mm with 33 grams weight and thus it has become the world’s lightest FEMTO satellites”, Riyasdeen was quoted as saying. He used polyetherimide thermoplastic resins as well as 3D printing technology.

Apart from polyetherimide thermoplastic resins, the boy deployed 3D printing technology to create the satellite. The competition was conducted by the National Aeronautical Space Agency (NASA) and had 1,000 participants from 73 countries. The competition was held for students between the age of 11 and 18.

SASTRA is to fund up to ₹5 lakhs as incubation grant to Riyasdeen to fulfil his aspiration to establish a successful start-up, said SASTRA Vice-Chancellor S Vaidhyasubramaniam.

Shocking: 3 persons locked in a room for 10 years rescued

By
The Commune
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A voluntary charity organisation recently rescued three members of the same family who were locked in a room for the past 10 years in Rajkot, Gujarat. They had gotten information about these 3 persons from unnamed sources and immediately rushed to spot.

The volunteers were shocked to find the sorry state that they were in. Looking like beggars with matted locks and covered in human waste, they were too physically weak to even get up. Two brothers and sister had spent 10 years locked in a room without light or proper food. Shockingly, all three of them were well educated graduates While the eldest brother Amrish is a lawyer, Meghana, the sister is a psychology graduate, the youngest son is a BA graduate and a budding cricket player.

They had been rendered mentally ill and severely traumatized after their mother had passed away tragically. Following this, they had locked themselves in a room for the past ten years. They had been provided with food and water by their father Patel, who used to leave food outside the door of their room. Neighbours however suspect that this had been the act of the father who was very much into superstitions and had believed that his children had somehow been cursed.

They have now been cleaned up and admitted into rehabilitation centres where they are receiving care.

Los Angeles hospitals declare ‘internal disaster’ because of ‘lack of oxygen’ facilities

By
The Commune
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The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services in California have confirmed that several hospitals have declared an internal disaster situation and are even turning away patients due to lack of oxygen facilities.

There has been a serious lack of oxygen to treat coronavirus patients as supply seems to be steadily deteriorating. In addition to this, there has also been a severe issue supplying canisters as well as hospital pipes that are breaking down by the minute.

“First, high levels of oxygen are necessary to treat patients with COVID-19, and that level may be up to 10 times more than normal usage,” the department was quoted saying in a report. “Hospitals, in general, are running out of oxygen sooner than under their normal conditions, and the oxygen suppliers are changing their processes to respond to the hospitals’ needs.”

Some hospitals have started moving their patient to lower floors due to lack of pressure pumps to pump them to the higher floors. This has resulted in a lot of patients being cramped in a congested environment. The intensive care units are overflowing as it is, with 0% capacity available, and patients are made to wait for hours on end in the ambulance as they wait for a bed to be cleared.

While the world has seen an influx of media houses pouncing on news scoops of lack of medical facilities in developing countries, they seem to have gone missing in action when the same happens in a developed country like the US.

Hindu Temple in Pakistan burned and razed to the ground

By
The Commune
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The historic Krishna Dwara Mandir in Teri village of Karak district in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was burned and razed to the ground by a mob of hundreds of people on Wednesday. The Samadhi of Shri Paramahans Ji Maharaj near the temple was vandalised and set on fire too.

The mob claimed that the temple had encroached on extra land.

According to eyewitnesses, the destruction of the temple by the mob went on for hours but the police did not intervene. No case has been registered and neither any arrest made so far in the incident. Videos of the destruction of the Hindu temple are circulating on social media.

https://twitter.com/SengeHSering/status/1344201906097442816

Pakistan’s federal Parliamentary Secretary for Human Rights Lal Chand Malhi strongly condemned the vandalism by, as he called them, “some anti-social elements”.

This is not the first time the temple has been attacked. This same temple was first attacked and demolished in 1997. After intervention by Pakistan’s Supreme Court in 2015, the local Muslim community had finally agreed to the temple’s reconstruction. Despite this, there was a dispute over the land allocated to the temple. This further led to conflicts between the Hindus demanding the temple and the local clerics.

When contacted after the destruction of the temple, Rohit Kumar, a representative of the local Hindu community, told local reporters that the temple had not exceeded the agreed area and that the residents of the area had violated the agreement by devastating the temple.

Hindus are the biggest minority in Pakistan. According to official estimates, 75 lakh Hindus live in Pakistan. The majority of Pakistan’s Hindu population is settled in Sindh province. Hindus in Pakistan bear the brunt of the harassment and persecution perpetrated upon them by the country’s Muslim majority.

“It is evident that Tamil Makkal are waiting to bring AIADMK led NDA back to power”: AIADMK-BJP alliance gets sealed

By
The Commune
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Amid Superstar Rajinikanth’s announcement about his withdrawal from taking the political plunge, another new development has happened with the alliance between the AIADMK and the BJP for the 2021 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls getting cemented.

On December 30, BJP National General Secretary C.T. Ravi tweeted that the AIADMK is the largest partner in NDA alliance and that the Chief Minister will be from the largest partner adding that the NDA Co-ordination Committee will announce the CM candidate once elections are announced.

He also said that the goal is to put Tamil Nadu on the path of prosperity ensuring people friendly schemes of PM Narendra Modi and late Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa. 

“It is evident that Tamil Makkal are waiting to bring AIADMK led NDA back to power in 2021 Assembly Elections.”, he said cementing the alliance.

Earlier on November 21, Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam had declared that the AIADMK’s alliance with the BJP will continue for the Assembly Elections to be held in May 2021.

Engineers to use new construction technique for Ram Mandir following discovery of loose soil

By
The Commune
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Sri Ram temple Christians Ram Mandir Ayodhya Karnataka

Engineers at the grand Ram Mandir have discovered loose sand 200 feet underneath the surface of the construction site during the testing of its pillars and so now a new technique and will be taken for the building of the foundation of the temple, Hindustan Times reports.

Anil Mishra, a member of the trust told the publication, “Engineers of Larsen & Toubro and Tata Consulting Engineers will suggest a new technique for constructing Ram Mandir’s foundation.”

The preparations for the construction of the Ram Mandir is gathering pace and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) will soon kick off a fund collection drive for the purpose too were they plan to contact 11 crore Hindu families to collect donations in the most transparent way from January 15, 2021 onward.

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