Breaking News Updates: PM Modi addresses nation on Indian Constitution Day 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "Today no nation exists as a colony to any other nation. That doesn't mean that the colonial mindset ended...If we talk of absolute cumulative emissions, developed nations caused 15 times more emissions than India since 1850. Still, India is lectured on environmental conservation"

Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay an official visit to New Delhi on December 6, Arindam Bagchi, MEA Spox informed. The visit is scheduled as he will participate in the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

A Thane court has cancelled the non-bailable warrant against former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh after he appeared before them. While cancelling it, Court directed him to cooperate with Thane Police in the investigation. He was asked to furnish a personal bond of Rs 15,000.

According to sources, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids are currently underway on multiple premises linked to Shiv Sena leader Arjun Khotkar, in Maharashtra's Aurangabad. More details on the same are awaited. 

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas of India talks 'Future Ready India’ with Arnab Goswami at Republic’s India Economic Summit.

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Congress will organise a 'Mahangai Hatao' rally in Delhi on December 12. The rally will be addressed by the party's interim president Sonia Gandhi and party leader Rahul Gandhi.

"I pay homage to the freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives &to those who developed this Constitution. It's also important to celebrate the citizenry of independent India"

The initial session of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) General Convention, which begins today, will be attended by fifteen foreign guests, including former Indian Union Minister for Health Dr Harsh Vardhan. It will be held in Chitwan, Central Nepal and would bring together dignitaries from many countries and political organisations.

The CPN-UML said at a press conference on Thursday that the three-day event will be attended by 15 visitors from eight political parties representing other countries. Dr Rajan Bhattarai, the UML's Foreign Affairs Department Chief said that they have visitors from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Cambodia who have come to Nepal and accepted the party's invitation and confirmed their attendance for the event.

"Our approach to global development should be human-centric. COVID has shown interdependence of the interconnected world. The need of the hour is One Earth-One Health"

"As a neighbour & long-standing partner of Afghanistan, India is concerned about the recent developments in that country. India supports an inclusive & representative govt in Afghanistan."

"RIC countries need to work together to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches the Afghan people without hindrance & politicisation. It is necessary for the RIC countries to coordinate respective approaches on the threats of terrorism, drug trafficking & radicalisation"

"Permissible action will be taken as per the police service rules. Further decisions will be taken after speaking to the CM"

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge has called a meeting of the Opposition parties on 29th November.

"On the 13th anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attacks, the Government and people of India somberly remember the victims of this dastardly attack and the valiant security personnel who laid down their lives to protect ours.

The President, Prime Minister and External Affairs Minister, in separate messages, have expressed their firm solidarity with the families of the victims.

A solemn memorial event was organised earlier today by the State Government of Maharashtra at the Police Memorial in Mumbai.

A senior diplomat from the High Commission of Pakistan in India was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs today. A Note Verbale reiterating India’s call for an expeditious trial in the Mumbai terror attacks case, and calling on the Government of Pakistan to abide by its commitment to not allow territories under its control for terrorism against India, was handed over to him.

Fourteen other countries lost their nationals in these attacks. Indian Missions in these countries are organizing memorial events remembering the victims, both national and foreign, reminding the world of the continuing global threat of terrorism. Senior government representatives from the host Governments, family members of victims and survivors will be participating in these solemn events.

It is a matter of deep anguish that even after 13 years of this heinous terror attack, the families of 166 victims from 15 countries across the globe still await closure, with Pakistan showing little sincerity in bringing the perpetrators to justice.

The 26/11 terrorist attack was planned, executed and launched from Pakistani territory. The former Prime Minister of Pakistan had gone on record and admitted that the terrorists were sent from Pakistan’s soil. We once again call on the Government of Pakistan to give up double standards and to expeditiously bring the perpetrators of the horrific attack to justice. This is not just a matter of Pakistan’s accountability to the families of the innocent victims who fell to terrorists, but also an international obligation.

The Government of India will continue to make every effort to seek justice for the families of the victims and the martyrs.

New Delhi
November 26, 2021"

6th Edition of biennial Indo - France military exercise “Ex SHAKTI- 2021” culminated on 25 November 2021 after twelve days of intense joint military training, exhibiting their combat power and dominance over the extremist groups in simulated Counter Insurgency / Counter Terrorism environment. The exercise provided an opportunity for both the contingents to train in counter-terrorism operations in a joint environment under the United Nations charter.

Germany and Italy to ban visitors from South Africa over the new Covid variant threat. This came under the recent spike in mutations due to the variant identified as B.1.1.529. The rapid spread of the virus among young people in Gauteng, South Africa's most populous province has raised concerns among other countries. 

The state-appointed Chandiwal Commission has summoned former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh to appear before it on 29th November in connection to the case of corruption charges. The Commission has been constituted by the Maharashtra government to investigate corruption allegations levelled by the former top cop against former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh.

A team of Delhi Police's special cell has arrested the kingpin of an interstate drug cartel, Mohammed Kashim Ali who carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his arrest. Kashim Ali was responsible for the flow of heroin consignments from Manipur to Guwahati, Siliguri, and Malda to other parts of the country and was wanted for a long time. 

As the agitation led by farmers and farm unions completes one year, several farmers on Friday gathered at Haryana's Bahadurgarh and held 'Kisan Mahapanchayat' further keeping forward their other demands in front of the central government. 

No case of COVID19 variant B.1.1.529 has been reported in India so far, informed Official Sources. 

The World Health Organization is monitoring the new coronavirus variant B.1.1.529 first detected in South Africa and will hold a "special meeting" on Friday to discuss if the heavily mutated strain will become a variant of interest or a variant of concern, a top official said.

The latest variant is the most heavily mutated version discovered so far. First identified in South Africa at the start of this week, the strain has already spread to neighbouring countries, including Botswana, where it has been reportedly detected in fully vaccinated people.

The new variant has been red-flagged by scientists over an alarmingly high number of spike mutations that might make the virus more resistant to vaccines, increase its transmissibility and lead to more severe COVID-19 symptoms.

"There are fewer than 100 whole genome sequences that are available. We don't know very much about this yet. What we do know is that this variant has a large number of mutations. And the concern is that when you have so many mutations, that can have an impact on how the virus behaves, Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and COVID-19 Technical Lead at the WHO Maria Van Kerkhove said during a virtual Q&A session on Thursday.

‘Further summons to Parambir to be decided on today’s statement’ - Thane police sources

Parambir court case updates:

- Crime branch hasn’t received a copy of the application made by PBS yet 
- Once the application is received, will file our say -  Sources from crime branch
- Court may then take cognisance of it and proclamation application can be revoked

Andhra Pradesh government will vaccinate the entire eligible population of 3.95 crores in the state by the end of March 2022, asserted Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday. While a total of 3.4 crore people have been administered the first dose of COVID-19 vaccination, 2.39 crore people have received both their vaccination doses, informed the chief minister.

CM Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was speaking at the state assembly in Amaravati on Thursday, further asserted that the state government aims to vaccinate the entire targeted population with the first doses of COVID-19 vaccines by the end of December 2021. "Unfortunately, vaccinations are not in our hands. We can only administer as many doses as the central government provides. Still, we could so far inoculate 87 per cent of the population," he added. 

Speaking on COVID-19 management in the state, the Andhra Pradesh CM said that the state has tackled the situation effectively and has conducted more than 3.02 crore tests. Apart from that, the state has made rapid development in infrastructure and facilities for controlling the pandemic by setting up 19 labs functioning round-the-clock, he informed. 

"72 years ago, in this Central Hall, the framers of our Constitution had adopted this document for a bright future of independent India," said President Kovind at the Parliament.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari talks ‘super economy, super fast growth’ with Arnab Goswami at Republic’s India Economic Summit.

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Supreme Court issues notice over a petition filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) over a petition challenging the appointment of Rakesh Asthana as the Commissioner of Police of the national capital.

A bench headed by Justice D Y Chandrachud seeks a response from the Centre, Asthana and posted the matter for further hearing after two weeks.

Thane police commissioner set up an SIT to investigate a case registered against former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh.

According to the US Geological Survey, recent reports of earthquakes from the Indo-Myanmar border have caused several secondary hazards including landslides. This has resulted in huge losses to the population and areas occupied by people. 

Meanwhile, the bordering northeastern region which sits on a high seismic zone makes earthquakes more frequent in these areas.

The Indian Army foiled an infiltration bid and eliminated a terrorist from Pakistan in the Bhimber Gali of Rajouri district on late Thursday. The body of the infiltrator along with the weapon and ammunition were recovered by Indian Amry's 16 Corps, White Knight Corps. Terrorists from the other side have been attempting to enter India via forest areas of the Poonch-Rajouri sector where the largest encounter was witnessed in recent times. 

The operation is in progress, wrote White Knight Corps:

India has been elected to serve on the United Nations World Heritage Committee for a four-year term beginning this year. The United Nations Committee is in charge of allocating World Heritage money and assisting governments in maintaining World Heritage sites. The World Heritage Convention is also implemented by this organisation. "Good day for Indian diplomacy. Elected to the @UNESCO World Heritage Committee for 2021-25," External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said in a tweet on Thursday.
 

IMD stated, "Moderate threat over few watersheds of Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur, Thanjavur, Tiruchirapalli, Ariyalur, Kanchipuram, Villapuram districts of Tamilnadu, Puducherry and Karaikal met subdivision in next 06 hours. Surface runoff/ Inundation may occur at some fully saturated soils & low-lying areas over AoC as shown in the map due to expected rainfall occurrence in the next 06 hour."

Persistent Flash Flood Threat (PFFT): The values indicate the difference of recent persisted Merged MAP and the corresponding FFG of the given duration. In this case, the PFFT is considered a “forecast” with persistence of observed rainfall.

Smriti Irani, Union Cabinet Minister for Women & Child Development and Member of Parliament from Amethi in the Lok Sabha, has never ceased to surprise. From camping in the heirloom constituency of Rahul Gandhi which resulted in the BJP scalping the Amethi seat in the Lok Sabha election from the political dynasty of the Congress to shut down her naysayers with black in white deliverables in Union Ministry after Union Ministry, Smriti Irani has undeniably solidified herself as a force to reckon with in Indian politics. 

Earlier today, PM Modi shared on Twitter, "Best wishes to our citizens on Constitution Day. On this special day, sharing a part of Dr Ambedkar’s speech in the Constituent Assembly on 4th November 1948 in which he moved a motion for the adoption of the Draft Constitution as settled by the Drafting Committee."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the media on 72nd Constitution Day from Parliament.

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President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and other political leaders to take part in Constitution Day celebrations at the Central Hall of the Parliament. 

"Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil pay tribute to those who lost their lives in Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks"

"Heavy rain results in waterlogging at T- Nagar; water pumps installed to remove stagnant water"

"India reports 10,549 new cases, 488 deaths and 9,868 recoveries in the last 24 hours; Active caseload stands at 1,10,133," the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare stated. 

Param Bir Singh has sought the cancellation of the November 17 court order declaring him a 'proclaimed offender' in connection with an extortion case. On November 17, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate SB Bhajipale had passed this order against him, Vinay Singh and Riyaz Bhati on the FIR registered at the Goregaon Police Station on builder-cum-hotelier Bimal Agrawal. Basically, he alleged that the accused persons extorted Rs.9 lakh from him for not conducting a raid on two bars and restaurants and forced him to buy two smartphones worth around Rs.2.92 lakh for them.

Speaking to the media after being grilled for over 7 hours, Param Bir Singh remarked, "According to Supreme Court order, I joined investigation today, cooperated with the investigation. I have full faith in court. I do not want to say anything else". 

BCCI shared, "A debut to remember for Shreyas Iyer as he brings up his maiden Test century"

adman Vibushan awardee Verghese Kurien is known as the 'milkman of India' who would have turned hundred on November 26, 2021. Known for transforming the country's dairy farming with the largest rural employment sector providing a third of exhaustive rural income and creating a self-sustaining industry, Kurien emerged to be referred to as the 'Father of White Revolution'. He is responsible for what is now a USD 5.3 billion turnover dairy enterprise owned by 3.6 million farmers nationwide. 

India's largest food product organisation, Amul made the country the world's largest milk producer by 1998, doubled the milk quotient made available to each person and increased milk output four-fold in 30 years. 

Indians in Israel commemorated the victims of killings by Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks of 2008, demanding swift justice by punishing the masterminds of the crime and seeking coordinated efforts to tackle the menace of terror, on the eve of the 13th anniversary of the deadly attacks.

Days after the Central government ordered the repealing of the contentious Farm Laws, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said it was disturbing to see “certain elements” oppose the implementation of laws that are passed by the Parliament constitutionally.

Speaking at the launch of an online course on the Indian Constitution on Thursday, Rijiju acknowledged that as citizens of a democratic country, we have the right to oppose, differ, and dissent. But at the same time, whatever is done constitutionally must be respected, he said.

Rijiju said it has become a fashion for “some elements” to accuse the government of not following the Constitution or to propagate that a law passed by the majority is 'unconstitutional.' Such elements are emerging more in the “deeper areas” of the country, he said, describing it a “very disturbing” scenario.

Rajnath Singh reveal what PM Modi told Yogi

"You would have seen that Modiji had kept his hand on Yogi Ji's shoulder in that photo. People wondered, what he said in his ear? PM Modi said, "Like a smashing batsman you are batting, Yogi Ji. Keep batting like that only and BJP will have a great victory," said Rajnath Singh.

Taking to Twitter, CM Adityanath wrote, "'There is a stubbornness to go higher than the sky".

On Thursday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar took a veiled dig at Pakistan for making repeated attempts to "deliberately" bring bilateral issues into the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The EAM said that such attempts violate the well-established norms of the SCO Charter, adding that it was "unfortunate" to see such "counterproductive" acts, which must be condemned. Speaking at the 20th Meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of Government yesterday, Jaishankar highlighted that India considers the SCO as an important regional group to promote cooperation in various fields based on universally recognised international norms, good governance, rule of law, openness, transparency and equality, as per statement issued by the MEA.

As the farmers' movement completes 1 year, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of the farmer unions have organised nationwide protests on Friday, November 26 to mark the anniversary of the agitation led by the farmers against the central government's three farm laws. According to an official statement of the body, thousands of farmers will reach the protest sites in Delhi and other states and will further hold rallies, demonstrations, and meetings. 

As a part of it, farmers will come together in several states including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Bihar, and others. As per the statement issued by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), protests have been planned across 25 locations in Karnataka while two of the protest locations on major important highways will have people coming from Bangalore followed by other vehicles which will join at Srirangapatna and Chadalapura in Chikballapur district.

Sharing a part of Dr. Ambedkar’s speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished the best to the citizens on Constitution Day.

The countdown is ticking down to the India Economic Summit, where accelerating the global force that is India Inc.

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In a statement, South Africa's health ministry confirmed that a new SARS-CoV-2 variant has been detected and it is a 'reason for concern'.

Triggered by South Africa's new COVID variant, India on Thursday cautioned states and Union Territories over international passengers travelling from or through Botswana, South Africa and Hong Kong.

Health secretary Rajesh Bhushan wrote to states and UTs ordering 'rigorous screening and testing' of passengers travelling from mentioned regions. The government has also informed that “multiple cases of COVID variant B.1.1529 have been reported in Botswana (3 cases), South Africa (6 cases) and Hong Kong (1 case)”.

"It is necessary that all international travellers travelling from and transiting through these countries and also including all other 'at risk' countries are subjected to rigorous screening and testing. The contacts of these international travellers must also be closely tracked and tested," wrote health secretary Rajesh Bhushan wrote to states and UTs. 

On Thursday, UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid announced a temporary suspension of flights from six countries after reports emerged that a new COVID variant with more than 30 mutations is spreading in South Africa.

It comes as Variant B.1.1.529 is declared a Variant under Investigation (VuI) by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

"The variant includes a large number of spike protein mutations as well as mutations in other parts of the viral genome. These are potentially biologically significant mutations that may change the behaviour of the virus with regards to vaccines, treatments and transmissibility. More investigation is required," UK Health Security Agency said in a statement

Constitution Day, also celebrated as National Law Day or Samvidhan Diwas in India is observed on November 26 every year to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India.

On this day in the year 1949, the Constituent Assembly formally adopted the Constitution of India which later came into force on 26th January 1950. The day is observed as Republic Day.

The Constituent Assembly of India set up 13 committees including a Drafting Committee for framing of the Constitution of India. After studying constitutions of nearly 60 countries, the father of the Constitution of India, Dr BR Ambedkar headed the drafting committee of the Constituent Assembly. Following India's independence from the British Government in 1947, its members served at the nation's first Parliament. It is the longest written constitution in the world comprising 395 Articles, 22 Parts, and 12 Schedules.

November 26 was officially earmarked as the Constitution Day of India by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 as part of the year-long celebrations of the 125th birth anniversary of Dr. BR Ambedkar. The government's decision was seen as a move to claim Ambedkar's legacy, aimed to promote Constitution values among citizens and its architect. The day was earlier observed as National Law Day and Dr Ambedkar was also the first Law Minister of Independent India.

Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Dr Bharati Parvin Pawar on Thursday flagged off Food Safety Awareness vehicles to make people across the country acquainted with food safety measures. On the occasion, Minister Pawar unveiled a book on the history of food and another cookbook on curated recipes that use minimal salts. She also released the 'National Low Salt Cooking Challenge Report'.

The Ministry informed that a total of 60 Food Safety on Wheels (FSWs) and 95 Modified Food Safety on Wheels will be presently provided to the States/UTs. "This would not only address the issue of lack of food testing infrastructure in remote areas but also cater to the basic analytical needs of consumers," a ministry statement read.

An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 jolted areas across Tripura, Manipur, Mizoram and Assam. Reports suggest that tremors were felt in Kolkata too. 

No casualty and damage reported so far. 

In what may be called the very first response since the time Param Bir Singh went into hiding 231 days back, former Mumbai Police Commissioner on Thursday said that he joined the investigation as directed by the Supreme Court, and co-operated in the same. Underlining that he has full faith in the judiciary, Param Bir Singh refused to give any further statements or answer any more questions. 

"According to Supreme Court order, I joined investigation today, cooperated with the investigation. I have full faith in court. I do not want to say anything else," Param Bir Singh said.

It is pertinent to mention here that Param Bir was tracked down in Chandigarh on Wednesday after he switched on his phone. Thereafter, earlier on Thursday, he flew down to Mumbai to take part in the probe. As part of the probe, he was grilled by the Mumbai Police Crime Branch for 7-hours. 

The Central government has been asked to file an affidavit by Delhi High Court on whether the administration of booster dose of novel coronavirus vaccine is necessary or not. A division bench comprising Justices Jasmeet Singh and Vipin Sanghi also asked about the timeline within which the booster dose is proposed to be rolled out.

"Let the Union of India file an affidavit for the administration of booster dose and timeline within which it is proposed to be rolled out on the Aarogya Setu app if it is necessary," the Court said.

The court noted the medical view which indicated that the immunity drops against the disease after some time, which is raising concerns among people, especially those falling in the old age bracket and those suffering from other diseases. The court also noted that a huge batch of vaccines is not utilised.

The Chief Ministers of Assam and Mizoram on November 25 decided to increase the fencing along their inter-state border, which has seen the violence that claimed the lives of at least six Assam Police personnel and a civilian in July this year. Assam and Mizoram share a 164km-long border.

Himanta Biswa Sarma reacted to meeting with Mizoram CM Zoramthanga and said, "I took the opportunity of meeting Mizoram CM for dinner. We did not talk about anything, we just enjoyed our dinner today. The situation is normal now at the border, with no issues as such. Tomorrow we will meet Home Minister Amit Shah."

Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga said, "We had a very good meeting. We are like brothers. Tomorrow we will meet the Union Home Minister (Amit Shah) together. We will try to increase our fencing all along the border." The Mizoram CM put out a tweet regarding the meet and thanked Assam CM Sarma.

As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), isolated heavy rainfall to extremely heavy rainfall is likely over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry & Karaikal today, November 26. The region, according to the IMD, will continue to witness isolated heavy to very heavy showers from November 27 to November 29 and isolated heavy rainfall on November 30 and 1 December 2021.

Isolated heavy rainfall is also very likely over South Coastal Andhra Pradesh & Yanam and Rayalaseema on November 26 and November 27, and isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall is very likely over South Coastal Andhra Pradesh & Yanam and Rayalaseema on November 28 and November 29.

Heavy rainfall is expected over Kerala & Mahe till December 1, and over Konkan & Goa and Madhya Maharashtra on November 30 and December 1.  A Low-Pressure Area is likely to form over the south Andaman Sea around 29 November 2021. It is expected to become more marked and move west northwestwards during the subsequent 48 hours. Under its influence, isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely over Andaman & Nicobar Islands from 29 November to 1 December.