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Paris Mayor fined for appointing ‘too many women’ in the City Hall

By
The Commune
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The mayor of Paris has been slapped with a whopping €90,000 fine for appointing too many women in managerial positions. About 11 women and 5 men were promoted in 2018 to the City hall. This had apparently breached a 2013 national rule called the “Sauvadet law”, designed to bring about gender parity in employment.

Implemented in 2013, the Sauvadet law imposed a minimum rate of representation for men and women in senior management positions in public service, with neither sex permitted to exceed 60%.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo joked saying that the bureaucracy was suddenly afraid that the panel would become too feminist, and called out on the absurdity of the fine. “11 women, 5 men … The City of Paris was fined 90,000 euros because too many female directors were appointed,” she said on Twitter on Tuesday. “This fine is obviously absurd. Even more, it is unfair, irresponsible, dangerous. Yes, we must promote women with determination and vigour, because the delay everywhere in France is still very great,” she was quoted saying in a report.

“So yes, to promote and one day achieve parity, we must accelerate the tempo and ensure that in the appointments, there are more women than men,” she added. She went on to say that her government was working very hard to make sure that gender parity was being kept at the check, but added that she would take the cheque for the fine to the government in person, along with her deputy mayors and all the women working for her.

‘Ghost boat’ carrying 1400 pounds of cocaine washes ashore on Pacific Islands

By
The Commune
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A small ghost boat washed on a desolate island in the Pacific Ocean carrying nothing but close to 650 kg of cocaine. This boat, which was made of fibreglass, was discovered on a beach in the Marshall Islands, situated between the Philippines and Hawaii.

Upon investigation, it was found that the cocaine had come sealed and wrapped in blocks, and was containing a stained yellowish plastic. The initials KW was also found to be present stamped on them. The Marshall Islands police who had discovered this ad destroyed most of them by warning them in an incinerator.

The residents who had noticed this boat notified the authorities and police brought the drugs back to the capital of Majuro, on another island. This week, police brought the cocaine to the incinerator; only 4.4 pounds (2 kg) were saved for the US Drug Enforcement Agency to conduct laboratory analysis, authorities said.

In total, the haul is worth an estimated $80 million, according to RNZ — and is the largest amount of cocaine to ever wash onto the Marshall Islands. Many of the packages that wash up are professionally wrapped. Sometimes residents take the drugs instead of reporting them, fueling widespread drug availability and use.

Wistron plant vandalism: SFI cadre arrested, Indian Communists lend hand to sinister plot of their Chinese masters

By
The Commune
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In a disturbing development, the Karnataka police have arrested a local president of Students’ Federation of India (SFI), student body of Communist Party of India, in connection with the violence that took place at the Wistron’s iPhone manufacturing plant in Kolar on Saturday (December 12) morning.

According to the reports, ‘Comrade Srikanth’, who is a taluk president of SFI in Kolar in connection with vandalism, was detained by the Kolar police for the wanton destruction of a mobile manufacturing plant in Narasapura, Kolar.

It has been alledged that employees of Wistron and SFI had planned to hold a protest outside Kolar Collector Sathyabhama’s office at 11 am on December 12.

Using social media, Srikanth sent out the WhatsApp message, calling for the protest and this message was widely circulated among employees that instigated several SFI activists, who allegedly entered Wistron’s premises on the morning of December 12, and carried out acts of vandalism in the plant. 

“Srikanth was arrested for instigating the violence and also bringing in non-employees into the plant which was vandalised,” the police said.

What is even more shocking is that the Communist party-affiliated trade unions defended the attacks and claimed that they were protesting against the non-payment of salaries and extended overtime.

However, the Labour department of Karnataka has refuted such claims and have said that the employees received a regular salary and there was only a 4-day delay this month due to a software bug.

On December 12, hundreds of workers employed at the manufacturing plant went on a rampage that led to the destruction of property, vehicles and equipment in a flash strike. This has resulted in damages in several crores.

It must be noted that the communists in India are closely affiliated with China, and it has been alleged that this attack was carried out at their behest. 

After the spread of the Wuhan virus, many companies decided to leave China and the Communist Party of China and its propagandists has been very busy issuing threats to companies for moving their manufacturing units from China to India.

The powerful communist nation has subtly threatened the other partners of Apple Inc such as Foxconn and asked whether these companies now regret about moving their production facilities to India

The news of this attack on this cell phone manufacturing plant was reported by the Communist Party of China’s mouthpiece The Global Times. Qingqing Chen – a chief reporter of the Global Times, had said that the destruction of Wistron’s plant in India was a potential risk for manufacturers who are moving their production lines out of China.

“Children and families getting spoilt through Bigg Boss” CM EPS lashes out at Kamal Haasan

By
The Commune
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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Thursday (December 17) came down heavy on Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) head Kamal Haasan and the show Bigg Boss hosted by the actor politician.

The Chief Minister was addressing the press after participating in a government function in Ariyalur. When a reported posed a question on Kamal Haasan’s tweet alleging corruption in anti-corruption department, CM Palaniswami said “He is someone who has come to politics after retirement [from cinema]. What does he know [about politics]? He is nearing 70. At this age he is running Bigg Boss! How will it be when people hosting Bigg Boss enters politics! No family in the state would do well if it were to watch that show!”

He hit out at Kamal Haasan saying that the actor-politician had no ambition to do any good for the country and that the only job he was doing was to ruin families.

“If one were to watch that show.. both children and happy families will get ruined!”, the CM said.

CM Palaniswami also said that there were many things to show that would benefit the public like Indian river-linking projects, Tamil Nadu green farm project, new developments in farming, informative programme for school students, etc.

“Has he even come out with one meaningful song like Puratchi Thalaivar MGR?”, the CM asked adding that Kamal Haasan made films that only spoils families.

The CM’s statement comes in the wake of the Makkal Needhi Maiam head trying to appropriate MGR’s legacy.

GPS-based toll collection system cleared, India to become ‘toll booth free’ in next 2 years

By
The Commune
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Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and MSMEs Nitin Gadkari has said that the Government has finalised GPS-based (Global Positioning System) technology toll collection to ensure seamless movement of vehicles across the country. He said, this will ensure India becomes ‘toll booth free’ in next two years.

Addressing the ASSOCHAM Foundation Week Programme here today, he shared his perspective on the theme ‘National Infrastructure Pipeline critical for economic revival across sectors,’ and explained that the toll amount will be deducted directly from the bank account based on the movement of vehicles. While now all commercial vehicles are coming with vehicle tracking systems, the Government will come up with some plan to install GPS technology in old vehicles, he said.

The Minister expressed hope that the toll collections may reach ₹34,000 crore by coming March. Mr Gadkari informed, by using GPS technology for toll collection,the toll income in next five years will be ₹1,34,000 crore.

The Minister said that industrial development is key to employment generation and poverty eradication in India, however at present, industry is India is centralised in urban areas as such decentralisation of industry is imperative to boost growth rate as growing urbanisation is causing grave problems in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and others.He also impressed upon the need to promote public-private investment in infrastructure development. He assured Government’s support in projects that are not economically viable.

(Published from PIB)

Disturbance from North Atlantic could be reason for Indian monsoon derailing in August

By
The Commune
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A planetary wave from the North Atlantic is capable of derailing the Indian monsoon on which the Indian economy is heavily dependent, suggests a study published in the journal Science.

The findings suggest that modelling efforts ought to focus on including the influence of mid-latitudes, in addition to the Pacific and Indian oceans, for getting a better handle on predictability of the monsoon, its variability as well as droughts.

A team from the Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (CAOS), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), who carried out the research, supported in part by DST under their climate change programme, showed that, in the past century, Indian monsoon droughts that occurred in non-El Niño years were sub-seasonal, as against El Niño droughts, where the deficit persists throughout the season.

The research team analysed daily rainfall during the two categories of droughts from 1900 to 2015 and noticed dramatic differences in the evolution of rainfall deficit. Rainfall deficit in El Niño droughts sets in early around mid-June and becomes progressively worse. By mid-August, the deficit is very high and spread across the country, with no sign of recovery.

During non-El Niño droughts there is a moderate decrease in June rainfall, followed by signs of recovery during mid-July to mid-August ‒ the peak of the season.  However, in late August, there is an abrupt and steep fall in rainfall, resulting in drought conditions.

“We tried to trace this late August break to a forcing agent or system that influences the behaviour over India. We looked at the winds that were prevalent in these non-El Niño drought years,” said Jai Sukhatme, Associate Professor at CAOS, and one of the senior authors, in an IISC statement.

“The interaction between upper-level winds and deep cyclonic vorticity anomalies located above anomalously cold North Atlantic waters during late August to early September results in an atmospheric disturbance. This disturbance, a Rossby wave, curves in towards India and, apparently squeezed in by the Tibetan Plateau, disrupts the flow of the monsoon winds,” V Venugopal, Associate Professor at CAOS, and a co-author explained.

The atmospheric tele-connection studied in this paper whose first author was a PhD student Pritam Borah with DST inspire fellowship, offers an avenue for improved predictability of droughts, especially in the absence of tell-tale signs in the Pacific.

(Published from PIB)

Yogasana now a competitive sport

By
The Commune
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The Ministry of AYUSH and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports announced the formal recognition of Yogasana as a competitive sport at a joint press conference held by the Union Minister of State (IC) for AYUSH Shripad Naik, and the Union Minister of State (IC) for Youth Affairs & Sports Kiren Rijjju in New Delhi today (December 17).

The Secretary AYUSH gave a presentation and explained that the sports discipline of Yogasana is likely to have 51 medals in 4 events & 7 categories. The proposed events for both men and women include Traditional Yogasana, Artistic Yogasana (Single), Artistic Yogasana (Pair), Rhythmic Yogasana (Pair), Free Flow/Group Yogasana, Individual All Round – Championship and Team Championship.

While addressing, Minister Naik traced the origins of Yogasana competitions to the Indian Yoga tradition, where such competitions have been held for centuries. He said that they are still being conducted today at multiple levels, but a strong and sustainable structure to impart national visibility to the competitions is yet to emerge. He further said that the Government decision to recognize Yogasana as a competitive sport comes after 3-4 years of wide consultations with the stakeholders of the Yoga sector. The Minister also said that Yogasana is an integral and important component of Yoga, which is psycho-physical in nature and popular across the globe for its efficacy in fitness and general wellness.

He further said “Yogasana becoming a sport will also ensure new technologies and new strategies being inducted into the disciplines, to benefit our athletes and officials towards building fruitful and fulfilling careers in this field”.

On this occasion, while addressing the media persons Minister Kiren Rijjju, said that the competitions that will arise out of the recognition of Yogasana as a sport will enhance interest in Yoga among people around the globe. He also said that both Ministries have been closely working together to establish Yogasana as a competitive sport. He further  said that plans are in the pipeline to include Yogasana as a Sport discipline in Khelo India and in the University Games, National Games, SAARC Games, etc and that the ultimate goal remained for it to be included in Olympics.

A pilot Yogasana Competition named as “National Individual Yogasana Sports Championship (Virtual Mode) will be held in early 2021. An Annual Calendar of competitions, events and programs of Yogasana sport is set to be launched. League of Yogasana to ensure a career and social status for performers, experts and practitioners and to create Sports Stars among Yogasana athletes to be launched along with steps to create job opportunities for Yogasana athletes.

(Published from PIB)

India’s garment manufacturing hub Tirupur could look at a 15% growth for Oct-Dec quarter

By
The Commune
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There is very good news for India’s garment export hub, Tirupur, as garment exporters are looking at a potential 15 per cent growth for the October-December quarter. 

The garment manufactures are expecting international sales for the current fiscal to surpass the previous financial year’s total of ₹25,000 crore.

Also, anti-China sentiment amongst the buyers has will play an important role in a strong revival of demand, reports Times of India.

Favourable INR/Euro ratio is also aiding the traders because the European Union is one of the largest importers of garments from Tirupur. To compound to China’s problem, American embargo on exports from China and knitwear made from Chinese cotton is also proving advantageous for Indian traders and exporters.

Tirupur which is located in the Southern state of Tamil Nadu employs around 6 lakh workers, which includes around 3 lakh individuals who belong to other states. A Sakhtivel, head of Apparel Exports Promotion Council remarked, “Exports are back, with a bang. The growth that we are seeing is here to stay.”

Raja Shanmugham, head of Tirupur Exports Association, said, “exports will enhance 15 per cent by volume and 10 per cent by value in the ongoing quarter but we must remain cautious of the ongoing trends given that certain European nations are witnessing further waves of Covid-19 infections that might impact the Christmas sales.”

Given that 40 per cent of Tirupur’s goods are usually circulated to the local markets, he claimed, “Domestic demand is matching exports. We expect domestic supplies to overtake exports if the present demand continues.”

DMK Youth Wing functionary runs fake call centre and swindles crores from public claiming to offer loans

By
The Commune
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Venkatesan (name changed), a resident of Velachery in Chennai was looking to get personal loan for his marriage and had approached several banks for the purpose. One day, he had received a phone call in which the person on the other end, claiming to be from an insurance company, had said that they offered loan services which people can avail by submitting their documents and subscribing to a policy for that is 10% of the loan amount.

Venkatesan who had paid ₹40,000 and submitted his documents had received no communication for several months. Realizing that he had been cheated, Venkatesan lodged a complaint at the Deputy Commissioner of Police Office in Adyar.

Usually, call centres make their calls from landline numbers to come across as legitimate. However, this one time, the said call centre had called from a mobile number which was used by the police to track it down.

Upon investigation it was found that the call centre named Berakhah Business Solution located in Velachery was run by one B. Prem Kumar, an organizer of DMK Youth Wing, which was used for swindling money from the public through enticements.

Police have arrested two people – Bennisha, the wife of DMK Youth Wing functionary managing the call centre and Vignesh, the team lead working at the call centre. Seven landline phones, 3 mobile phones, a car ₹40,000 were seized from the spot. More than 10 women who were working at the call centre were issued a warning and sent.

Police are now on the hunt for B. Prem Kumar and his accomplice Alphonse both of whom are now absconding.

Soon, a temple for Jayalalithaa in Madurai

By
The Commune
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In honor of the late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, the Amma Peravai, welfare wing of the AIADMK is building a temple at T. Kunnathur near Thirumangalam in Madurai.

The shrine would have a life size bronze statue of both Jayalalithaa and founder leader of AIADMK, Dr. M.G. Ramachandran.

Tamil Nadu Minister of Revenue R.B. Udhyakumar who is overseeing the construction of the temple was accompanied by his parents to inspect the work at the site in T Kunnathur.

Speaking to reporters, the Minister said that Jayalalithaa lived in the hearts of 10 crore Tamils across the world and added that 1.5 crore AIADMK cadres worship her as the family deity.

He said that the consecration for the temple would happen soon and that arrangements are being made for all people to come to this temple and pray.

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