A top American scientist has said that the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines by India in collaboration with leading global institutions has rescued the world from the deadly coronavirus and New Delhi’s contributions must not be underestimated. Dr Peter Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston told a webinar that the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is India’s gift to the world in combating the virus.

Dr Hotez is an internationally-recognised physician-scientist in neglected tropical diseases and vaccine development. Dr Hotez said that he felt compelled to make this statement because India’s huge efforts in combating global pandemic is a story that’s not really getting out in the world. The webinar was organised by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH).

India’s drugs regulator gave emergency use authorisation to Covishield, produced by Pune-based Serum Institute of India, and Covaxin, indigenously developed jointly by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech and Indian Council of Medical Research scientists. Dr Hotez, who is considered the authority on vaccinations, is working on an affordable coronavirus vaccine in collaboration with Indian pharmaceutical companies.

India is called the pharmacy of the world during the COVID-19 pandemic with its vast experience and deep knowledge in medicine. The country is one of the world’s biggest drug-makers and an increasing number of countries have already approached it for procuring coronavirus vaccines.

International Women’s Day is being observed today. The day is celebrated on the 8th of March every year to help forge a gender equal world, celebrate women’s achievements and their increasing visibility in every sphere of life. This day celebrates the cultural, political, economic and social achievements of women. It also highlights the extraordinary roles played by women in almost every walk of life and celebrates acts of courage and determination by ordinary women. The theme this year is – Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world.
 
AIR correspondent reports that at every occasion, women have brought glory and laurels to the country and proved their abilities in various fields be it land, air and water. The Central Government has accorded high priority to the empowerment of women and undertaken many initiatives including access to education, better healthcare and improving gender sensitivity.
 
Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme has prevented gender biased sex selective elimination and ensured survival and protection of the girl child. Government also enacted the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act to abolish the practice of instant Triple Talaq. The law has contributed towards women empowerment and dignity.
 
Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana has provided free of cost cooking gas to women. Now there is no need for women to venture into forests to get firewood for cooking.
 
Over 700 one stop centres have become operational in 35 States and Union Territories, providing a range of integrated service under one roof to the women affected by violence and in distress. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday dedicated to the nation, the seventy five hundredth Janaushadhi Kendra at Neigrihms in Shillong through video conferencing. Speaking on the occasion the Prime Minister called upon the people to use medicines from JanAushadhi Kendra saying that people have saved more than 9,000 crore rupees through these centres. He said, the scheme has relieved the poor of their high medical expenses. He said, Jan Aushadhi centres are helping people from poor and middle-class families to save around 3,600 crore rupees every year.

The Prime Minister pointed out that more than 1,000 JanAushadhi Kendras are being run by women. He also interacted with the beneficiaries of the Janaushadhi scheme.

The National Committee set up to commemorate 75 years of India’s Independence will hold its first meeting today to discuss modalities relating to preparatory activities. The 259 member committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet virtually. The committee includes Union Ministers, Chief Ministers, Governors as well as leaders of different political parties including BJP President JP Nadda and Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi.
 
Former President Pratibha Patil, Chief Justice of India SA Bobde, former Prime Ministers HD Deve Gowda and Dr Manmohan Singh and Nobel Laureates Amartya Sen and Kailash Satyarthi are also part of the committee. AIR correspondent reports the Government has decided to commemorate 75 years of India’s Independence in a befitting manner at National and International level in the form of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
 
The National Committee includes dignitaries and eminent citizens from all walks of life including Artists, Sportspersons, Business leaders, Gandhians and media persons. The committee will provide policy direction and guidelines for formulation of programs for the commemoration. The 75 years of India’s Independence falls on 15th August next year. The celebrations are proposed to be launched 75 weeks prior to this date on 12th of this month. 12th March is the 91st anniversary of the historic Salt Satyagraha led by Mahatma Gandhi.

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 1 PM amid the protest and sloganeering by Congress MPs over the issue of rise in fuel and LPG prices. As the House met after the first adjournment at 11 AM, the Leader of Opposition, Mallikarjun Kharge demanded to discuss the issue which was rejected by the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha Harivansh saying that the matter cannot be discussed. As the pandemonium continued, the Upper House was adjourned till 1 PM.

Earlier, on the first day of the second leg of the Budget Session, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge raised the issue of rise in fuel and LPG prices saying that people are suffering due to the price rise. He said, petrol prices have reached to 100 rupees per litre and diesel price has touched 80 rupees per litre in the country. He said, LPG prices have also gone up and excise duties have been increased manifold which resulted in collection of more than 21 Lakh crore rupees. 

Afterwards, Congress demanded a discussion on the issue and started a protest. The Congress MPs came into the well and started sloganeering. Chairman of Rajya Sabha, M. Venkaiah Naidu urged the members to return to their seats saying that he does not want to take any drastic step on the first day.

 International women’s day is celebrated on the 8th of March all around the world, a tradition started in Soviet Russia as the soviet women gained suffrage in 1917. In some places, it is a public holiday, in some places, it is not; in some places, it is used as a day of protest and in some places, a day of celebration. Overall, it is a global celebration of women, their struggles and their contributions to the world.

This year’s UN theme for International Women’s day is ‘Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world,’ in the light of how female heads of state like Jacinda Ardern have responded to the pandemic in a way that should be inspiring for the rest of the world, proving that women are not fundamentally incompetent and in fact even serve as better leaders than men in many circumstances.

Women’s day everywhere should not serve as a day to simply contribute to appreciative gestures to women in men’s lives as the function they serve in their lives, but a day spent to also commemorate the struggles women have faced in establishing their human rights and how there is a long way to go before they achieve it. In this day and age, wherein brands have co-opted feminist messaging and boiled feminism down to taglines and discounts, it is important to realize how we need more women in leadership positions and important roles so our polity is not androcentric.

Today, we should celebrate women and their struggles and materially contribute to their liberation from their patriarchy. Women are an important element of any society, their oppression being a blemish on the world, their continual strength a source of energy for the world and justice. And that deserves to be commemorated every single day of the year.

Health Ministry along with NITI Aayog reviews COVID-19 situation of States, UTs  Health and Family Welfare Secretary Rajesh Bhushan and Member Health of NITI Aayog Dr. Vinod K. Paul interacted with Health Secretaries and officials of Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Chandigarh. 

During the interaction, ongoing public health measures and management strategies have been discussed. It was pointed out that Delhi, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Chandigarh pose concern as several districts are witnessing rising cases. States and Union Territories were asked to ramp up the testing, refocus on surveillance and stringent containment mechanism, accelerate vaccination and promotion of COVID Appropriate Behaviour. It has also been asked to collaborate with the private hospitals to open up vaccination time-table for a minimum of 15 days and maximum of 28 days at a time.

In Badminton, Olympic Silver Medallist PV Sindhu will take on top seed and Rio Olympics gold medallist Carolina Marin in the summit clash of the Women’s Singles final at the Swiss Open tournament in Basel today. It will the first meeting between the two in over two years. Sindhu defeated fourth seed Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark 22-20, 21-10 in the semi-final last evening.

In Men’s Singles semi-final, former Champion Kidambi Srikanth lost to top seed Viktor Axelsen of Denmark 13-21, 19-21.

In Men’s Doubles, World number 10 Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also bowed out after losing 10-21, 17-21 to sixth-seeded Danish pair of Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in the semi-finals.

The cumulative number of COVID19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed 2.06 crore. Health Ministry said that so far 2 crore 6 lakh 62 thousand and 73 vaccine doses have been given to the beneficiaries.

These include 69 lakh 72 thousand 859 Healthcare workers who have taken the 1st dose and 35 lakh 22 thousand 671 Healthcare workers who have taken the second dose. Besides, 65 lakh 2 thousand 869 Frontline workers took the first dose and over one lakh 97 thousand received the second dose.  

4 lakh 60 thousand 782 beneficiaries above 60 years of age and over 30 lakh beneficiaries aged 45 and above with specific co-morbidities received the vaccine. Over 11 lakh 64 thousand vaccine doses were given till 7 pm yesterday on the fiftieth day of nationwide COVID19 vaccination.

The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on 16th of January and vaccination of the Frontline Workers started from 2nd February 2021.

The next phase of COVID-19 vaccination has commenced from 1st of this month for those who are over 60 years of age and for people aged 45 and above with specified co-morbid conditions.

Campaigning is gaining momentum for Assembly elections in West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a mega rally at Brigade Parade ground in Kolkata at 2 PM today. According to the BJP, Mr Modi’s rally is seen as the culmination of Parivartan yatra which was launched by the party in February.

This will be the first election rally to be addressed by the Prime Minister after poll notification for West Bengal was issued. West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh said, Mr Modi will set the tone of the election campaign at the rally, which will be attended by the party workers from across the state.

Prime Minister is scheduled to hold more than 20 rallies in Bengal during Assembly elections. Elections for the West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases beginning with polling for 30 seats on March 27.

TMC leader and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will be taking part in a rally at Siliguri. Allies of Sanyukt Morcha- Congress, left parties and Indian Secular Front had their first joint programme since the announcement of the alliance in Kolkata yesterday where senior leaders Biman Basu of the CPIM and Abdul Mannan of the Congress took part.

Door-to-door campaigning is also expected to gain momentum as most parties have announced their candidates of the first two phases.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the ‘Janaushadhi Diwas’ celebrations at 10 AM today via video conferencing. Prime Minister will dedicate to the nation the seven thousand 500th Janaushadhi Kendra at NEIGRIHMS, Shillong during the event.

Mr Modi will interact with beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana and also give awards to stakeholders by recognizing their excellent work. Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers will also be present on the occasion.

AIR correspondent reports that Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana endeavours to provide quality medicines at an affordable price. The number of stores under the scheme has grown to 7,499, with all districts of the country covered. Sales in the current financial year has led to total savings of nearly three thousand 600 crore rupees for common citizens.

The cost of medicines sold at Janaushadhi Kendra’s is cheaper by 50 per cent to 90 per cent than their corresponding market rates.

The first week of March is being celebrated as ‘Janaushadhi Week’ across the nation, with the theme of ‘Jan Aushadhi – Seva Bhi, Rozgar Bhi’ with the last day being observed as ‘Janaushadhi Diwas.

All India Radio Delhi will broadcast live the function on its FM Gold and Indraprastha Channels from 10 AM. The broadcast will also be live-streamed on AIR Live News 24×7 and Akashwani AIR YouTube Channels.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stressed the need to develop Indian military into a future force in the backdrop of fast changing technological landscape. Addressing the valedictory session of the Combined Commanders’ Conference at Kevadia in Gujarat, the Prime Minister asked the three services to get rid of systems and practices that are no longer relevant.

The Prime Minister called for a holistic approach focused on breaking down civil-military silos and emphasised the need to expedite decision-making. Mr Modi also stressed the importance of enhancing indigenisation in the national security system, not just in sourcing equipment and weapons but also in the doctrines, procedures and customs practised in the armed forces.

The Prime Minister also laid stress on optimising manpower planning. Sharing pictures from the conference on social media platform, Mr Modi said there is a need to make India Aatmanirbhar in the defence sector.

The Prime Minister appreciated the resolute dedication shown by the armed forces over the past year, while dealing with the challenging situation on the northern border and also the Covid-19 pandemic. Prime Minister was briefed by the Chief of Defence Staff about the discussions during this year’s conference.

The Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for the structure and agenda of the conference and particularly appreciated the inclusion of Junior Commissioned Officers and Non Commissioned Officers in this year’s meeting.

Prime Minister pointed out that the country will be celebrating 75 years of its independence next year, and called upon the armed forces to use the occasion to undertake activities and initiatives that will inspire the youth of the country.

The three-day conference, a premier brain-storming event of the Military Commanders from the three Services culminated yesterday.

During the three-day conference, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the military commanders and a team of Secretary-level officers from the Ministry of Defence participated in deliberations. 

 The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF), in a notification of January 6, 2011, stated that it wanted to secure the livelihood of the fishing communities and other local communities living in the coastal areas, conserve and protect coastal stretches, their unique environment and marine area and promote development in a sustainable manner. 

The CRZ notification 2011 declared that the coastal stretches of the country and India’s territorial waters, excluding Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands, as Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) and restricted the setting up and expansion of any industry, operations or processes and manufacture or handling or storage or disposal of hazardous substances there.

It then directed the respective state governments and Union Territories to prepare Coastal Zone Management Plans (CZMP) by identifying and classifying the CRZ areas. The Goa state department of environment handed over the responsibility of preparing the CZMP to the NCSCM in 2014. The NCSCM’s draft report made public earlier this year states that the primary purpose of a CZMP is to describe proposed actions to be implemented by administrative or other public authorities and potentially by the private sector to address priority management issues in the coastal zone over a defined implementation period.

Environmentalists, local bodies and opposition parties have all voiced their opposition to the draft CZMP report. According to environmentalist and Goa Foundation director Claude Alvares, they had informed the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA), that the 30-day limit for suggestions and objections to the draft was not legal, as it was contrary to the 60-day limit provided by the Environment Protection Rules, 1986. Activists also say that 254 maps that were to cover the state but certain villages and municipal areas have been missing from the maps. Locals and fishermen from South Goa villages have claimed that structures including some homes and churches have been left out of the CZMP. 

This is a serious concern because of the growing lack of democratic consultation in processes that involve changing the environment’s classification, which can have adverse consequences. The public hearing on the finalisation of the draft CZMP will be held on Sunday from 10:30 am to 5 pm in Panaji for North Goa and in Margao for South Goa. Let’s hope that a consensus favourable to both the environment and the parties involved is arrived at democratically.