NATIONAL NEWS
Promote yoga break among staff, says Centre.
The Ministry of Ayush had designed and developed five minutes duration yoga protocol, named Y-break, for workplace. The Centre has asked all its departments to promote five-minute yoga break or ‘Y-break’ among employees working under them, with a view to refresh, distress and refocus with enhanced efficiency at workplaces, according to a personnel Ministry order. The Ministry of Ayush had designed and developed five minutes duration yoga protocol, named Y-break, for workplace by an expert committee in 2019 and the module was launched in January 2020 on pilot project basis in six major metro cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kolkata) with the help of various stakeholders. Feedback of the same was very encouraging, it said. Consequent to this success, the Ministry of Ayush developed an android based application Y-break and the same was made available recently in Google Play Store for access by public, said the order issued to all Central government departments. In order to spread awareness about access and usage of Y-break protocol/app among workforce for all sectors (public/private), all Ministries/departments of government of India are requested to promote the usage of Y-break protocol among the employees, it said. A campaign was launched to spread awareness of the same to provide access and usage of Y-break protocol/app among people at workplaces , the order added.
President Kovind lauds teachers for responding to new challenges
President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday greeted educators across the country on the eve of Teachers’ Day and lauded them for their efforts to enable uninterrupted education of students during the COVID-induced lockdown. He said the occasion honoured the dedicated services of all the teachers who played a leading role in the intellectual and moral development of children. In the Indian tradition, teachers are placed on the same pedestal as God, Mr. Kovind said. Since the onset of the pandemic, the pedagogy adopted by teachers also underwent a major change, the President said. During lockdown, our teachers accepted every challenge associated with the introduction of online medium of education. They took effective steps to enable uninterrupted education of the students, he said. On this occasion, let us all express our gratitude to the entire teaching community for its invaluable contribution towards building a strong and prosperous nation, Mr. Kovind said. Teachers’ Day is observed on the birthday of a great educationist, philosopher and former President of India, Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. I extend my warm greetings and best wishes to all teachers on the occasion of Teachers’ Day, the President said.
India, Singapore conduct 3-day naval exercise
India and Singapore have carried out a mega naval wargame in the southern fringes of the South China Sea over the last three days, in reflection of their growing congruence of interests in the strategically key region. The Indian Navy deployed its guided-missile destroyer INS Ranvijay, anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kiltan and guided-missile corvette INS Kora and one P8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft for the ‘SIMBEX’ exercise from September 2-4, officials said. The Singapore Navy was represented by formidable class frigate RSS Steadfast, victory class missile corvette RSS Vigour, one Archer class submarine and one Fokker-50 maritime patrol aircraft, they said. Four F-16 fighter aircraft of the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) also participated in the exercise during the air defence drills. It was the 28th edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX). Initiated in 1994, SIMBEX is the Indian Navy’s longest uninterrupted bilateral maritime exercise with any foreign navy. Sustaining the continuity of this significant engagement despite the challenges of the ongoing pandemic further underscores the strength of bilateral defence ties, Indian Navy Spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said. Despite these constraints during the planning stages, both navies could achieve seamless and safe execution of several challenging evolutions including live weapon firing and advanced naval warfare serials, including anti-submarine, anti-air and anti-surface warfare drills, he said. Commander Madhwal said the scale and complexity of the drills is a testimony to the interoperability achieved between both Navies. This year’s edition of SIMBEX is also a special occasion as it takes place during the ongoing celebrations of the 75th year of India’s independence, he said. The success of SIMBEX-2021 is yet another demonstration of the mutual resolve on both sides to strengthen the bilateral partnership further in the years ahead, he added. India-Singapore defence ties remain a very significant aspect of the overall engagement between the two countries. Both navies have a representation in each other’s Maritime Information Fusion Centres and have also recently signed an agreement on mutual submarine rescue support and coordination.
Chief Justice of India unhappy with less representation of women at the top
Chief Justice of India (CJI) N.V. Ramana on Saturday lamented that very few women find representation at the top and admitted that even a mere 11% representation of women on the Bench of the Supreme Court was achieved with great difficulty. Ideally, women should have got at least 50% representation at all levels after 75 years of Independence, he said. The CJI’s remarks come within days of the Supreme Court Collegium led by him scripting history by successfully recommending three women judges to the court in one go. The court has four women judges now, the highest ever. After 75 years of Independence, one would expect at least 50% representation for women at all levels, but I must admit, with great difficulty, we have now achieved a mere 11% representation of women on the Bench of the Supreme Court, he stated at an event organised by the Bar Council of India to felicitate him. A majority of women lawyers suffered within the profession and continued to face significant challenges even after they reached the top. Women lacked basic amenities in court complexes. Women do not have restrooms in lower courts… It is difficult for them to wait for long hours in the court corridors, the CJI pointed out. The reality remained that the legal professions was yet to whole-heartedly welcome women into its fold, he noted. The CJI refused to accept sole credit for the recent appointment of nine judges to the Supreme Court in one shot. The Collegium, led by the CJI, had followed this feat by recommending a whopping 68 judges to 12 High Courts, again in one go. Lawyers had referred to him as Sachin Tendulkar for repeatedly creating history within so short a time of taking charge as top judge in April 2021. A while ago, I was referred to as Sachin Tendulkar. I must correct the perception here. Like any game, it’s a team effort. Unless all the members of the team perform well, it is difficult to win. Here, I must place on record my sincere thanks to my colleagues in the Collegium – Brothers U.U. Lalit, A.M. Khanwilkar, D.Y. Chandrachud and L. Nageswara Rao – who have become active and constructive partners in this endeavour, he observed. Judicial appointments was an ongoing process. The Collegium intended to live up to the herculean task of filling up 41% of vacancies existing in all the High Courts, he asserted. At one point, commending the young and dynamic Law Minister, Kiren Rijiju, who was present on the dais, and the government, for quickly approving the nine names recommended for the Supreme Court, the CJI said in another one month, we expect 90% of the vacancies filled in this country.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Sri Lanka offers help with New Zealand knife attack probe.
Sri Lanka will cooperate with New Zealand’s investigation into a knife rampage by an Islamic State-inspired assailant from the South Asian nation, authorities said Saturday. Police shot dead the 32-year-old Sri Lankan after he attacked seven people in an Auckland supermarket on Friday. The man had been living in New Zealand since 2011. Sri Lanka condemns this senseless violence, and stands ready to cooperate with New Zealand authorities in any way necessary, foreign ministry spokesman Kohularangan Ratnasingam said in the Sri Lankan government’s first comment on the incident. Ratnasingam commended the quick response of New Zealand authorities in dealing with the attacker. Sri Lankan police sources said criminal investigators had already interviewed the attacker’s brother, who lives in Colombo, and were looking into all possible links. We are collecting information about him as well as anyone else who may have had contacts with him, a top police official said, adding there were no records of the attacker visiting Sri Lanka recently. The South Asian country is still scarred by suicide attacks on three churches and three hotels on Easter Sunday in 2019 that left 279 dead. Some of the attackers came from the same eastern province as the Auckland attacker. The 2019 bombings were blamed on a group that pledged allegiance to the then Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Sri Lanka’s Muslim Council has condemned the Auckland attack as a barbaric act of terrorism and thanked New Zealand police for their swift response. This reminds all of us to come together and be united and fight against terrorism and violent extremism locally and internationally for the betterment of everybody, council member Mohamed Hisham told AFP.
UN Secretary-General: Mercenaries and foreign fighters must leave Libya
Antonio Guterres urged Libyan parties to exert every effort to ensure that parliamentary and presidential elections are held on December 24. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is again urging countries to withdraw all foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya, saying they continue to operate throughout the conflict-stricken North African country in violation of last October’s ceasefire agreement with no discernible abatement of their activities. The United Nations chief also urged countries supplying arms and military equipment to the foreign fighters to stop violating the United Nations arms embargo, saying, the movement of aircraft providing logistical support also continued unabated at airbases in central Libya in the strategic city of Sirte and nearby Jufra area. In a report to the United Nations Security Council circulated September 3, Mr Guterres called for the implementation of a comprehensive plan for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all mercenaries and foreign forces from Libya, with clear timelines. He also urged Libyan parties to exert every effort to ensure that parliamentary and presidential elections are held on December 24 in accordance with the political road map that ended hostilities last year. Libya has been wracked by chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011 and split the country between a U.N.-supported government in the capital, Tripoli, and rival authorities loyal to commander Khalifa Hifter in the east. Each have been backed by different armed groups and foreign governments. Hifter launched a military offensive in 2019 to capture the capital, a campaign backed by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Russia and France. But his march on Tripoli ultimately failed in June 2020 after Turkey sent troops to support the government, which also had the backing of Qatar and Italy. Subsequent United Nations-sponsored peace talks brought about a ceasefire last October and installed an interim government that is expected to lead the country into December elections, but the Libyan parliament has so far failed to agree on a legal framework to hold elections. Mr. Guterres cited initial differences over whether presidential elections should be carried out by direct voting or indirectly by the elected parliament, whether a referendum on the draft permanent constitution should be held first, and eligibility criteria for candidates including military personnel and dual citizens. The U.N. chief urged the parties and institutions to clarify the constitutional basis for elections and to adopt the necessary electoral laws.
