THE HEADLINES:
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh meets Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss various issues of bilateral defence cooperation.
- India evacuates 75 of its nationals from Syria, amid escalating conflict following fall of Bashar al Assad’s regime.
- Mohamed al-Bashir appointed as caretaker Prime Minister of Syria.
- China decides to impose visa restrictions on US personnel over interference in Hong Kong affairs.
- National Panchayat Awards 2024 to be presented at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi today.
- Indian Women’s team to face Australia in pre-quarterfinal in World Squash Team Championships in Hong Kong.
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Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called on the Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow yesterday. During the meeting, Mr Singh mentioned the friendship between India and Russia, saying New Delhi has always stood by its Russian friends and will continue to do so in future. The Defence Ministry said in a statement, the two leaders discussed various issues of bilateral defence cooperation. They expressed that partnership between the two nations hold immense potential and combined efforts will pave way for remarkable outcomes.
Earlier, the Defence Minister co-chaired the 21st meeting of India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military and Military Technical Cooperation with his Russian counterpart, Andrey Belousov in Moscow. Making an initial remarks the Defence Minister emphasised that India-Russia relationship is very strong, and has lived up to the responsibilities of a special and privileged strategic partnership.
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The Government has evacuated 75 Indian nationals from Syria, following the recent developments in the West Asian country. The evacuees include 44 ‘zaireen’ from Jammu and Kashmir who were stranded at Saida Zainab. All Indian nationals have safely crossed over to Lebanon and will return by the available commercial flights to India.
External Affairs Ministry said in a statement the evacuation was coordinated by the embassies of India in Damascus and Beirut. The evacuation was put into effect following New Delhi’s assessment of the security situation and the requests from Indian nationals in Syria.
The Ministry stressed that the Government accords highest priority to the safety and security of Indian nationals abroad. Indian nationals remaining in Syria have been advised to stay in touch with the Indian Embassy in Damascus on its emergency helpline number +963 993385973 and email ID (hoc.damascus@mea.gov.in) for updates.
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In Syria, Mohamed al-Bashir has been appointed as the caretaker Prime Minister of the transitional government. In a televised statement, Mr Bashir said, he will lead the interim authority till 1st of March, next year with the backing of the former rebels who toppled President Bashar al-Assad regime a few days ago. Al-Bashir ran the rebel-led Salvation Government before the 12-day lightning offensive swept into Damascus.
Mohammed al-Bashir, a figure little known across most of Syria, previously ran an administration in a small pocket of the northwest controlled by rebels.
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China has decided to impose visa restrictions on US personnel over interference in Hong Kong affairs. The decision comes in response to the recent US announcement to impose visa restrictions on officials of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made the announcement yesterday at a regular press briefing in Beijing. She said, the US has interfered in China’s internal affairs and violated the principles of international law and basic norms governing the international relations.
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US President-elect Donald Trump has named Republican Party activist Harmeet Dhillon to be the Assistant Attorney General for civil rights. Making the announcement, Mr. Trump said, in her new role at the Department of Justice, Harmeet will be a tireless defender of American Constitutional Rights, and will enforce Civil Rights and Election Laws fairly and firmly. He also added that throughout her career Harmeet has stood up consistently to protect the country’s cherished Civil Liberties.
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President Droupadi Murmu will confer the National Panchayat Awards 2024 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi today. This year, a total of 45 awardees have been selected under various categories, reflecting a wide spectrum of achievements in grassroot governance and community development.
During the ceremony, the Panchayati Raj Minister will unveil a booklet on the innovative and impactful practices of award-winning panchayats. The Ministry said in a statement that through these awards it aims to inspire other Panchayats to adopt best practices and contribute to the holistic development of rural India.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release the compendium of the complete work of great Tamil poet and freedom fighter Subramania Bharati at his residence in New Delhi today. Subramania Bharati’s writings instilled patriotism in people, brought the essence of Indian culture and spiritual heritage of the country to masses in a language that the masses can relate to. It contains the details of the editions, explanations, documents, background information and philosophical presentation, among others, of the writings of Subramania Bharati.
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The BJP said that the notice of no-confidence against Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar is an attempt by Congress party to cover up the distrust within the INDIA alliance towards Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and the party. Addressing media in New Delhi, BJP Spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi accused the Congress of trying to undermine the country’s entire system, including Election Commission, EVMs, and LIC. He alleged that Congress is now trying to attack Constitutional positions.
The opposition yesterday submitted a no-confidence motion against Rajya Sabha Chairman, Jagdeep Dhankhar accusing him of being partisan in functioning in the House. .
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with young innovators at the Grand Finale of the Smart India Hackathon 2024 via video conferencing today. Union Minister for Education, Dharmendra Pradhan, will virtually inaugurate the Grand Finale of the 7th edition of the Hackathon. Over 1300 student teams will participate at the Grand Finale.
The Smart India Hackathon is a nationwide initiative to provide students with a platform to solve some of the pressing problems faced in daily lives, thus inculcating a culture of product innovation and a problem-solving mind set. The Ministry of Education and All India Council of Technical Education are organising the event simultaneously at 51 centres across the country to foster innovation, entrepreneurship, and creativity to shape the future of education and industry.This year, more than 250 problem statements have been submitted by 54 Ministries, Departments, State Governments, and Industries. More than 86 thousand teams have participated in the SIH 2024 at the institute level and around 49 thousand student teams (each consisting of 6 students and 2 mentors) have been recommended by these institutes for the national level competition. A 150 per cent increase has been recorded in internal hackathons at the institute level, making this the largest edition so far. Adarsh for Akashvani News, Delhi.
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The National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar is hosting a two day Smart India Hackathon 2024 grand finale beginning this morning. The categories and themes for Smart India Hackathon 2024 align with the Prime Minister’s vision of promoting hackathons, innovation challenges, and start-ups as part of building a “New India.” More from our correspondent:
“The Nodal Officer for Smart India Hackathon at NIT Srinagar Dr. H.S. Pali told Akashvani News that 25 teams from across the country are participating in the Srinagar Hackathon. He said this is for the first time NIT Srinagar has been selected among 30 engineering institutes for this year’s 7th edition of Smart India Hackathon. He informed that the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment and Gas Authority of India, are part of Srinagar Hackathon to seek solutions for their five problems that could be related to software, hardware, hacking, cyber security or related issues. TARIQ RATHER, AKASHVANI News, Srinagar.”
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The three-day Rising Rajasthan Global Investment Summit organized in Jaipur to attract investments in Rajasthan will conclude today. Before the valedictory session, MSME Conclave will also be organized today. More than 5 thousand investors, representatives of trade organizations, subject experts from about 35 countries participated in this three-day grand investment Summit. Before the summit, MoUs have been signed for investment proposals worth 35 lakh crore rupees in the state.
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In sports, as the year draws to a close, Indian athletes are competing in key events across Squash, Chess, and Cricket.
In the World Squash Team Championships 2024, the Indian Women’s team will face Australia in the pre-quarterfinal fixture in Hong Kong, China, today. The match is set to begin at 9:30 AM IST. Meanwhile, the Indian Men’s team will take on Malaysia in their pre-quarterfinal fixture at 12:00 PM IST. In the FIDE World Chess Championship Indian Grandmaster Dommaraju Gukesh will challenge defending champion Ding Liren of China in the 13th game in Singapore today after a day’s rest. The match will begin at 2:30 PM IST, with Gukesh playing with the white pieces. With only two games remaining, the contest is finely balanced at 6 points each. The winner needs 7.5 points to clinch the championship. Meanwhile, in Women’s Cricket, India will face hosts Australia in the third and final game of the 3-match ODI series at the W.A.C.A. Ground in Perth today. The match starts at 9:50 AM IST. Australia have already sealed the series with an unassailable 2-nil lead. The Women in Blue will look to salvage pride with a win, while Australia will aim for a commanding clean sweep. MANIK SHARMA, AKASHVANI NEWS, DELHI.
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In Badminton, the Women’s Doubles Group A match between the Indian duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand and the top-seeded Chinese pair of Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning is underway at Hangzhou in China.
Treesa and Gayatri are India’s sole representatives at the BWF World Tour Finals 2024.
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The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast cold wave conditions over northwest and adjoining central India during the next 3 to 4 days. Cold wave conditions are very likely in isolated pockets over Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, West Uttar Pradesh today and over Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh during the next 2 days. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall over isolated places at Tamil Nadu, Karaikal, Puducherry, Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Yanam and Rayalseema today.
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TODAY’S NEWSPAPERS HEADLINE,
⦁ All the dailies have taken note of the India Russia meet in Moscow. A front page headline in Hindustan Times states “Defence ties in focus at Rajnath-Putin meeting.”
⦁ “IISc in world’s top fifty universities for environment education; IIT-Delhi tops India in QS sustainability rankings” writes The Asian Age.
⦁ Quoting the S&P Global rating agency, The Financial Express cites “India set for ‘resilient’ growth with 6.8 percent forecast retained in 2025.”
⦁ “Female labour force participation rate rose during last five years” notes The Indian Express.
⦁ And Finally, Setting a global benchmark in Mahakumbh 2025 “Akharas embrace digital tools for streamlined management and spiritual outreach” blending tradition with technology, writes The Pioneer.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN-
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh meets Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss various issues of bilateral defence cooperation.
- India evacuates 75 of its nationals from Syria, amid escalating conflict following Bashar al Assad’s regime fall.
- Mohamed al-Bashir appointed as caretaker Prime Minister of Syria.
- China decides to impose visa restrictions on US personnel over interference in Hong Kong affairs.
- National Panchayat Awards 2024 to be presented at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi today.
- Indian Women’s team to face Australia in pre-quarterfinal in World Squash Team Championships in Hong Kong.
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