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UNDP and Invest India launch SDG Investor Map for India

By
The Commune
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UNDP and Invest India have launched the SDG Investor Map for India, laying out 18 Investment Opportunities Areas (IOAs) in six critical SDG enabling sectors, that can help India push the needle forward on Sustainable Development.

“India occupies a key role in determining the success of the SDGs, globally. Invest India is pleased to have partnered with UNDP India to develop the first-ever ‘SDG Investor Map for India’. This initiative is an instrumental stride in India’s development trajectory, and I believe it couldn’t have come at a better time. We hope our data-backed research and insights serve as useful blueprints to understand how best the SDG financing gap can be narrowed in India”, Mr. Deepak Bagla, CEO & MD, Invest India, said on the launch occasion.

Mr Shoko Noda, Resident Representative, UNDP India said on the occasion, “The Map comes at a critical time for India. With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the financing gap for the SDGs in India has only widened further and decades of development progress is nearly on the verge of reversal. Investing in the SDGs at this point is crucial to ‘Building Back Better’ and making the economy and our societies more resilient and sustainable. Enhanced productivity, technology adoption and increased inclusion are all critical factors that this map uses to identify the most attractive sectors for investors.”

Key highlights of the SDG Investor Map:

  • Of the 18 IOAs identified, 10 are already mature investable areas that have seen robust Private Equity and Venture Capital activity, and feature companies that have been able to unlock scale and demonstrate profitability. The remaining eight IOAs are emerging opportunities, which have seen traction from early-stage investors.
  • The map has also identified eight White Spaces, which have seen investor interest and have the potential to grow into IOAs within a 5-6-year horizon. However, these require further policy support and private sector participation to mature into commercially attractive IOAs.
  • Nearly 50% of the shortlisted IOAs have historical investments that have yielded IRRs in excess of 20%.
  • 84% of the IOAs have investment timeframes ranging from the short term (less than 5 years) to the medium-term (between 5- 15 years).

The observations from the map present a strong case for investing in SDG enabling sectors and IOAs, bridging the gap between high-level development targets and the need for commercially viable returns. Moreover, investing in the SDGs is crucial to ‘Building Back Better’ from COVID-19 and enhancing India’s resilience to future threats. Investing in opportunities that enhance employment and employability, push forward the inclusion of underserved communities and leverage technology will be of essence to India as it grapples with the challenges of a post-COVID economy.

83% of the identified IOAs address job creation and industrialization needs, 70% focus on inclusive business models and 50% leverage digital technologies to deliver commercial returns and impact at scale. Notable IOAs include ‘Online Supplementary Education for K12’ (Education), ‘Tech-Enabled Remote Care Services’ (Healthcare), ‘Digital Platforms to service input/output needs of farmers to enable easy access to markets’ (Agriculture) and ‘Access to credit by Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Low-Income Groups especially through digital platforms for Income Generating Purposes’ (Financial Services).

By mapping the overlaps and gaps between public sector priorities and private sector interest, the SDG Investor Map lays out pathways that can bring together private-sector investment and public sector support for 6 SDG-enabling sectors including Education, Healthcare, Agriculture & Allied Activities, Financial Services, Renewable Energy & Alternatives and Sustainable Environment. These sectors and the IOAs within them were selected through a rigorous analytical process that included extensive consultations with a number of major domestic and international investors, government stakeholders and think-tanks. This ensured that the Map’s findings were truly reflective of market sentiment.

(Published from PIB)

LeT’s political front Jamaat-ud-Dawa holds special prayers for 26/11 terrorists in Pakistan

By
The Commune
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Twelve years after the 26/11 attacks, Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD), the political and evangelical front of Pakistan-based banned Islamic terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is holding special prayers for the 10 terrorists who carried out the terror attacks., reports Hindustan Times

LeT which planned one of the deadliest terror attack post 9/11 held an event in Sahiwal city in Punjab on Thursday (November 26) to commemorate the Mumbai massacre by asking its cadres to pay homage to the 10 jihadists.

Prayers were held in LeT/JuD mosques to remember the ten terrorists who carried out the 2008 strikes in Mumbai that killed 170 people.

It is to be remembered that Congress leader Digvijay Singh had participated in the release of a book which claimed that the 26/11 attacks was a conspiracy case of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). 

Friends of RSS on Twitter: "In 2010, a book named “26/11 : RSS ki Sazish” was released by Digvijay Singh. The book claims the RSS & BJP are behind 26/11 attack. Congress

Ajmal Kasab was only one who survived the attack and was later hanged to death after due process of law on November 21, 2012.

The JuD is a non-state asset of Pakistan military and has also floated the JK United Youth Movement (JKYM), a political platform to provide support to separatist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

On November 19, a Pakistani court sentenced Saeed and two close aides to ten years on two cases of terror financing, a decision seen as cosmetic to please the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). However, the cases in which Saeed was convicted had no connection to the Mumbai attack case.

Pakistan is in a serious economic and political crisis right now and western powers, Saudi Arabia, UAE and the FATF has been putting a lot of pressure on the Imran Khan Niazi government to crack down on terror groups and terror financing.

Most of the LeT leaders have only been arrested in appearance but are in protective-custody with many living in their own accommodations with the complete moment of freedom to operate and run the activities of the outfit, including fundraising.

In fact, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, who was one of the masterminds of the 26/11 attacks, fathered a child while being held on terror charges at the high-security Adiala jail in Rawalpindi.

3 new modules launched in online Indian Railways’ Human Resource Management System, will increase accountability and transparency

By
The Commune
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railways

Indian Railway has launched completely digitized online Human Resource Management System (HRMS). Human Resource Management System (HRMS) is a high thrust project for Indian Railways to leverage improved productivity & employee satisfaction. It is a move to improve efficiency and productivity of Railway system and a step towards realizing the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. HRMS is expected to create a big impact on the functioning of all the employees and will make them more tech savvy.

Shri Vinod Kumar Yadav, Chairman & CEO, Railway Board has launched following modules of HRMS & User depot useful for railway employees and pensioners today via video conferencing.

Employee Self Service (ESS) module enables railway employees to interact with various modules of HRMS including communication regarding change of data.

Provident Fund (PF) Advance module enables Railway employees to check their PF balance and apply for PF advance online. Advance processing will be online and employees will also be able to see the status of their PF application online.

Settlement module digitizes the entire settlement process of retiring employees. Employees can fill their settlement / pension booklet online. Service details are fetched online and pension is processed online completely. This will eliminate use of paper and it also facilitates monitoring for timely processing of settlement dues of retiring employees.

Prior to these modules, Indian Railways has already launched other modules of HRMS like Employee Master module which stores all basic information details of Railway employee, Electronic Service Record module replacing physical Service Records storing service records of employees in digital format, Annual Performance Appraisal Report (APAR) module digitizing the complete process of writing annual peeformance Appraisal of all 12 lakh non gazetted Railway employees, Electronic Pass module replacing the physical paper pass, Office Order Module meant both for the issue of office Orders and updation of data on joining of new employees, promotion, transfer of employees and retirement of employees in HRMS database.

‘Re-evaluate education system to make it more value-based, holistic and complete’, VP tells universities and educators

By
The Commune
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The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu today called upon the universities and educators to re-evaluate India’s education system to make it more value-based, holistic and complete.

Addressing the 13th e-convocation of ICFAI University, Sikkim, through video-conferencing today, the Vice President asked the educators to take inspiration from our holistic Vedic education and understand the vision behind New Education Policy.

Quoting Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, the Vice President said that education without values is no education at all. “Educational institutions and universities are expected to produce well-rounded and compassionate human beings and not mere degree holders”, he said and rued that often, this aspect gets ignored in the race for paychecks.

Giving the example of climate change, Shri Naidu said the holistic solution to combat this challenge should include a value-based education that respects nature. He stressed the need to equip our engineers and technologists to create new defences and come up with innovative out-of-box solutions to meet the challenges posed by extreme weather events. No human intervention can totally withstand nature’s fury but we have to minimize its impact, he warned.

Highlighting that values had always been emphasized in our ancient systems, the Vice President said that our Vedas and Upanishads mandate our duties towards self, family, society and nature. We were taught to live in harmony with nature, he emphasized.

Stressing the importance of nature and culture in one’s life,  the Vice President asked the students to learn from nature and follow the values enshrined in our ancient culture.

Appreciating the Gurukul system, Shri Naidu said that education was complete in all respects in our ancient times and this is what gave us our title of Vishwa Guru at that time.

He said the New Education Policy also envisages these ideals and aims at making India a “Vishwa guru” once again.

Underlining the paradigm shift envisaged in the New Education Policy (NEP, the Vice President said it tries to do away with a segregated approach to education and replaces it with an integrated approach.

Describing the New Education Policy as “much needed reform”, he lauded it for its focus on multi-disciplinary method and efforts to reorient the research and the regulatory systems.

Stating that value-based education with proper synergy with technology was the need of the hour, Shri Naidu said that we need professionals who are not only well versed with the latest technology, but are also empathetic and understanding.

He stressed that education founded in life values can ensure a long and prosperous career as people with such values will have high emotional intelligence and resilience to fight adversities in life.

The Vice President asked the students to be confident, develop a positive outlook, set clear targets and work with sincerity, discipline and dedication towards realizing whatever goals they set in life. “The fast-changing world requires you to think critically and adapt quickly to the new situation. You need to be pro-active, anticipate the future and be prepared to meet the challenge”, he told them.

Asking the Universities to prepare students to effectively deal with real-world challenges, the Vice President cited the example of COVID-19 pandemic which caught all nations off-guard and unprepared. “We have to learn lessons from this pandemic and experts need to come together and come up with solutions to meet such threats in the future”, he said.

Shri Naidu told students that the COVID pandemic was the first big adversity in front of them. However, he asked them to leverage technology to create opportunities out of it instead of looking at it as a crisis. “For those of you seeking to become job creators, there cannot be a better place to implement your business ideas than India right now as we are following our Prime Minister’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat”, he said.

Asking the students to always place the interests of the country above everything else, the Vice President wanted them be at the forefront in eliminating social and other evils that hinder the growth and development of the nation on various fronts.

Appreciating the founder of ICFAI group late Shri N.J. Yasaswy, the Vice President said that the university has been providing quality education to students in the region.

Shri Ganga Prasad, Governor of Sikkim, Shri Prem Singh Tamang, Chief Minister of Sikkim,

Shri Kunga Nima Lepcha, Minister for Education Government of Sikkim, Shri Achyuta Samanta, Member of Parliament, Gurudev Shri Shri Ravi Shankar ji, Shri S C Gupta, Chief Secretary, Government of Sikkim,

Dr. R.P Kaushik, Chancellor of ICFAI University, Sikkim, Dr. Jagannath Patnaik, Vice Chancellor, students, parents and teachers were among those who participated in the e-convocation.

(Published from PIB)

Citing security concerns, UAE halts issuing visas to 13 countries, most of them Muslim majority

By
The Commune
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The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has stopped issuing new visas to citizens of 13 countries including Pakistan and Afghanistan over security concerns.

The UAE has also stopped issuing visas to citizens from Iran, Turkey, Syria, Algeria, Kenya, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen, Tunisia and Somalia, among others. It must also be noted that these are countries where Islam is the state religion or the population of the country is predominantly Muslims. 

An immigration document released by the UAE said that applications for new employment and visit visas have been suspended until further notice for nationals outside the UAE from the said countries.

The report said the UAE has temporarily stopped issuing new visas to most of the Muslims majority countries on the list among others over security concerns. But the visa ban is expected to last for a short period.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry last week in its briefing had said that the UAE had stopped processing new visas for its citizens. Islamabad is trying to ascertain if the suspension of new visas is due to the coronavirus pandemic or other reasons.

Raveendran, close aide of Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan told to appear before ED in gold smuggling case

By
The Commune
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As the fallout of the Kerala gold smuggling case continues, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s close aide CM Ravindran was rushed to the state-run Medical College Hospital on Wednesday (November 25) after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) directed him to appear in there Kochi office on Friday (November 27)  for questioning in the gold smuggling case.

Immediately after the ED asked Ravindran to appear in its office, he complained of uneasiness which is now seen as a medical pretext to avoid the travel to Kochi for Enforcement Directorate questioning.

Ravindran was posted as an Assistant Private Secretary to the Chief Minister and he was a CPI-M nominee and for the embattled CM it is proving very difficult to disassociate with Ravindran whom he has known for several years.

This is the second  notice served by ED to Ravindaran however, Ravindran could not appear because tested coronavirus positive.

The notice was served to Ravindaran after his connection with prime accused Swapna Suresh’s alleged links to the gold smuggling case surfaced.

This led to the arrest of CM Vijayan’s Principal Secretary and senior IAS official M Sivasankar by the ED and that Ravindran was next in line to questiond.

Harvard Medical School affiliate establishes “Sadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet” in US

By
The Commune
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Globally, there is growing acceptance of the role of human consciousness in supporting the advancement of medical science. A new initiative by Harvard Medical School affiliate Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston has taken a bold step towards pushing the boundaries of medical science to explore how raising human consciousness can augment healing and recovery.

BIDMC’s Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine has established the Sadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet with the objective of improving the health of patients and the broader community through scientific research in three connected areas of Consciousness, Cognition and Compassion. BIDMC’s mission is to teach technologies for inner wellbeing and raise every human being to the peak of their potential. Using scientific tools, the Center’s research and ongoing clinical studies are focused on establishing the relationship between meditative practices and physiological changes. The initiative is part of Sadhguru’s mission to establish global platforms that will raise individual human consciousness to accelerate the journey towards creating a Conscious Planet.

“This unique center will use a scientific approach to integrate medical and contemplative sciences, help identify methods to improve and enhance the physical and mental health of our patients, providers and community,” said Bala Subramaniam, MD, MPH, Director of Sadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet.

Harvard Medical School affiliate Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has established the “Sadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet”  to explore how Consciousness, Cognition and Compassion can be harnessed to augment healing. We’re delighted and excited to associate with the Center, Isha Foundation tweeted.

The Center’s research will focus on (1) expanding the understanding of human consciousness, cognition, and compassion; (2) creating medical and contemplative interventions to reduce cognitive decline and accelerate recovery after surgery and critical illness; (3) using meditation techniques to enhance well-being; (4) promoting collaboration across other disciplines, and (5) educating the community about best practices.

The Sadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet will bring together scientific investigators, experienced meditators, experts in the fields of medicine, contemplative sciences and others in exploratory research in this field. Based on their findings, the Center aims to develop education programs for health care workers, patients and the public about the role of meditative techniques and to improve cognition and wellbeing.

Stalin’s new gem: ‘Indian Freedom Struggle was started in 1975 by Puli Thevar’

By
The Commune
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Adding to his bloopers series, DMK chief MK Stalin has come out with another new gem that is now going viral on social media.

Addressing the DMK cadres of Tenkasi and Tirunelveli as part of the “Tamizhagam Meetpom” virtual campaign, the DMK chief was talking about the region being home to freedom fighters like Puli Thevar.

He said “When India was enslaved… the warrior who stood against the British forces – Kaathappa Puli Thevan was born in this land. Not 1 or 2 years, for 17 years the warrior palayakaarar (poligar) who fought the British… was Puli Thevan. Historians say that the first phase of Indian Freedom Struggle was started in 1975 by Puli Thevan”.

Puli Thevar was a polygar who ruled Nerkattumseval situated near Sankaran Kovil in today’s Tirunelveli district in Tamil Nadu. Born in 1715 in the Maravar community, he waged 17 wars against the British in the 12 year period from 1755 to 1767 out of which he made the British run helter-skelter in 15.

This latest speech of Stalin has now become a fodder for netizens triggering a series jokes and memes on the DMK chief who is known for his faux pas.

India to build Shahtoot Dam on Kabul river, will provide clean water for 20 lakh people

By
The Commune
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UN Like An Old Company, Occupying Space In Market: EAM Jaishankar

At the Geneva Donors Conference, Union Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar announced yesterday (24 November) that India will construct the Shahtoot Dam on Kabul river in Afghanistan.

Both governments of two nations have recently concluded an agreement to build this important dam for the betterment of the Afghan people, reports Times of India.

The construction of the Shahtoot dam over the Maidan river tributary of Kabul river would provide safe drinking water to two million residents of Kabul city, capital of Afghanistan. 

The government of India and Afghanistan started the talks for construction of the Shahtoot Dam in 2016.

India’s former Ambassador to Afghanistan Amar Sinha expressed delight and said, “I am happy to learn of India’s commitment on constructing the Shahtoot Dam on Kabul river. It is essential for drinking water supplies to Kabul which is staring at serious water shortage.” he added, “We should, together with Afghan partners, expedite work on this project for which basic groundwork has been done.”

However, Pakistan which considers Afghanistan as its strategic backyard is likely to protest the construction of the dam by India at a time when it has accused India of cutting its water supply from Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and Afghanistan. 

AP govt quietly slips in ‘tribal religion’ in household survey software

By
The Commune
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The Jagan Mohan Reddy government in Andhra Pradesh has clandestinely initiated a new policy of quietly making changes in its Household Survey software by including ‘Tribal Religion’ option which can be exercised by citizens of the state belonging to various Scheduled Tribes.

 

This move is being seen as an attempt to uproot the tribal population out of their native Hindu fold.

Under the Constitution of India, it not permitted to use a separate religion for Scheduled Tribes. This is because in a vast country like India, there is variety and complexity amongst Scheduled Tribal communities in practising their ancestral faith and belief systems.

This move of the Andhra Pradesh government under CM Jagan Mohan Reddy, a devout Christian, is being seen as a sinister attempt to evangelize the state of Andhra Pradesh. During the time of his father Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy the state machinery openly resorted to evangelism to promote Christianity in the state.

BJP which has some presence in the state had raised the issue of conversion, however, it was the BJP MLC PVN Madhav, who has questioned the logic of including religion column to this survey.

Madhav said, “It is against the Constitution to include religion. Tribals belong to Hindu religion and there is no religion called tribal religion. It is an attempt to divide Hindus by showing SCs and STs as people of separate religions.” The BJP MLC has demanded immediate suspension of this survey.

Across India, Christian missionaries with access to large amounts of foreign funds  have systematically targeted tribal communities to convert them to Christianity. 

Recently, the Jharkhand Assembly passed a resolution for the provision of a separate ‘Sarna Code’ for Tribal people. The resolution will seek a special column for followers of the ‘Sarna’ religion in the Census 2021.

Evangelical operations across AP since the coming of YSRCP government is said to have increased exponentially. Many of the tribals who have there own unique cultural identity have been converted to Christianity in AP.

However, when it comes to reservations in government jobs and educational institutions these the Scheduled Caste/Tribe Christians remain as Hindus to avail benefits.

Recently it was revealed that 70% of the 29,841 Christian pastors, who received one-time government honorarium of ₹5,000 through the Disaster Relief Fund, held Scheduled Caste / Other Backward Caste certificates illegally. 

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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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