Today News Diary on 22 Feburary 2021

1. EAM Jaishankar addresses 46th session of UNHRC virtually

2. PM Modi gives 'Self-3' Mantra to IIT students

3. DRDO conducts two successful launches of Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile

4. Facebook to restore Australian news pages after tweaks to media laws

5. Seven Chinese netizens detained for defaming PLA Galwan soldiers

6. Amar Chitra Katha joins hands with HarperCollins to bring Indian folktales in new format

7. Nepal's Supreme Court reinstates dissolved House of Representatives

8. Kushinagar airport gets aerodrome licence

9. Delhi court frames terror charges against Kashmiri separatist Aasiya Andrabi

10. BJP sweeps municipal polls in Gujarat

11.Motera stadium, the largest cricket stadium in the world

12.NASA releases first audio from Mars, video of Perseverance rover landing

13. Toolkit case: Court grants bail to activist Disha Ravi, terms police probe ‘scanty and sketchy’

14. In UP govt’s attempt to boost tourism, Ayodhya gets the biggest pie

15. Long-serving Saudi oil minister Ahmed Zaki Yamani dies at 90

News in Detail

1. EAM Jaishankar addresses 46th session of UNHRC virtually

India and Mauritius sign Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement. CECPA provides for an institutional mechanism to encourage and improve trade between the two countries.

The CECPA between India and Mauritius covers 310 export items for India, including food stuff and beverages, agricultural products, textile and textile articles, base metals and articles thereof, electricals and electronic item, plastics and chemicals, wood and articles. Mauritius will benefit from preferential market access into India for its 615 products.

Dr. S. Jaishankar on Tuesday addressed the 46th session of UN Human Rights Council virtually. During his address, the External Affairs Minister said gaps in implementation of human rights must be addressed in a fair manner, respecting national sovereignty.

EAM Jaishankar stated that India over the years has taken strong actions in the fight against terrorism.

The External Affairs Minister also spoke about India's vaccine diplomacy, under which it has sent consignments of COVID-19 vaccines to many countries.

2. PM Modi gives 'Self-3' Mantra to IIT students

Prime Minister Narendra Modi gives Mantra of 'Self-3' - Self-awareness, Self-confidence and Selflessness to students of IIT- Kharagpur; Addressing the convocation of the premier institute through video conferencing, PM says, there is a need to take IITs to the next level of 'Institution of Indigenous Technology'.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the 66th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur via video conferencing. Union Education Minister Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank also participated virtually.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged students present on the occasion to build startups to bring a change in the lives of Indians. The Prime Minister referred to the degree as an aspiration letter of millions of hope.

Asserting that engineers have a vision to see subjects in more detail, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that they have the capability to take things from patterns to patents.

Speaking on hurdles that students may face in the future, the Prime Minister said that through self-awareness, self-confidence and selflessness difficult situations can be overcome in life.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that in view of the aspiration of 21st century India, IITs have to be taken to the next level as Institute of Indigenous Technology.

The Prime Minister also called on students to make solar energy affordable through improved technology.

3. DRDO conducts two successful launches of Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile

Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted two successful launches of Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM).

The launches were carried out today from a static vertical launcher from Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. Indigenously designed and developed by DRDO for Indian Navy, VL-SRSAM is meant for neutralizing various aerial threats at close ranges including sea-skimming targets. The current launches were carried out for demonstration of vertical launch capability as part of its maiden launch campaign. On both occasions, the missiles intercepted the simulated targets with pinpoint accuracy. The missiles were tested for minimum and maximum range. VL-SRSAM with Weapon Control System (WCS) were deployed during the trials.

The launches were monitored by senior scientists from various DRDO labs involved in the design and development of the system such as DRDL, RCI, Hyderabad and R&D Engineers, Pune.

During the test launches, flight path and vehicle performance parameters were monitored using flight data, captured by various Range instruments such as Radar, EOTS and Telemetry systems deployed by ITR, Chandipur.

The present trials have proved the effectiveness of the weapon system and few more trials will be conducted shortly before deployment on Indian Naval ships. Once deployed, the VL-SRSAM system will prove to be a force multiplier for the Indian Navy.

4. Facebook to restore Australian news pages after tweaks to media laws

Facebook will restore Australian news pages after Canberra offered amendments to a proposed law designed to force tech giants to pay for media content displayed on their platforms.

Australia will offer four amendments, including to the mechanism for final offer arbitration.

The issue has been widely watched internationally as other countries including Canada and Britain considering similar legislation.

Australia and the social media group have been locked in a standoff for more than a week after the government introduced legislation that challenged Facebook and Alphabet Inc's Google's dominance in the news content market.

Facebook last week blocked all news content and several state government and emergency department accounts.

But after a series of talks between Australian Treasurer Frydenberg and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg over the weekend, a concession deal has been struck.

5. Seven Chinese netizens detained for defaming PLA Galwan soldiers

In China, police have detained seven Chinese netizens so far, for posting online comments defaming Chinese soldiers who died during Galwan Valley clash with India in June 2020.

State media reported that the netizens came from Beijing, Chongqing, South China's Guangdong, North China's Hebei, Southwest China's Guizhou, Sichuan and East China's Jiangsu provinces, with ages ranging from 19 to 40. China unveiled the details of the deaths of Chinese soldiers involved in the border clash with the Indian army in the Galwan Valley near Line of Actual Control for the first time on Friday, prompting many to flood social media platforms with emotions running high.

China passed a law in 2018 that makes it illegal to defame the country's martyrs with offenders to be held criminally responsible. Previously, several popular Chinese bloggers have had their accounts suspended for insulting heroes.

6. Amar Chitra Katha joins hands with HarperCollins to bring Indian folktales in new format

Tina Narang, publisher at HarperCollins Children’s Books, says that Amar Chitra Katha has such a strong history of publishing for children, generations have grown up reading ACK comics.

Amar Chitra Katha has joined hands with HarperCollins India to bring the iconic folktales of India from its comic books in a new format for younger readers.

Each book in the Amar Chitra Katha Folktales Series is adapted from the original Amar Chitra Katha comics and aims to bring the reader closer to the thoughts and traditions that make up our India’s identity, a statement by the publishers said.

“India’s rich tapestry is woven together by her stories. These tales can be from the great epics and mythology, or from the ancient history of this rich land.

“But sometimes the stories of the people, passed down from generation to generation - told at bedtimes and celebrations, in schools and homes - are the most astounding. These are the folktales that are part of the great collective inheritance from our past generations,” it said.

The series is put together by the writers at Amar Chitra Katha and brings together some of the greatest folktales in the ACK catalogue.

Tina Narang, publisher at HarperCollins Children’s Books, says that Amar Chitra Katha has such a strong history of publishing for children, generations have grown up reading ACK comics.

“So, we are delighted to present a first-time adaptation of these popular comics into a narrative format for young children. We look forward to a long and fruitful association with ACK and to bringing out many more collections in the months and years ahead,” she says.

Founded in 1967, Amar Chitra Katha has been a household name for generations of Indians. For decades, it has been retelling the stories of India, from the great epics, mythology, history, literature, oral folktales, and other sources, for young Indian children in the form of comics, providing a veritable route to their roots.

7. Nepal's Supreme Court reinstates dissolved House of Representatives

Nepal plunged into a political crisis on December 20 after President Bidya Dev Bhandari dissolved the House of Representatives

Nepal's Supreme Court on Tuesday reinstated the dissolved House of Representatives, in a setback to embattled Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli who was preparing for snap polls.

A five-member Constitutional bench led by Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher JBR annulled the government's decision to dissolve the 275-member lower house of parliament and ordered the government to summon the House session within the next 13 days.

Nepal plunged into a political crisis on December 20 after President Bidya Dev Bhandari dissolved the House of Representatives at the recommendation of Prime Minister Oli, amidst a tussle for power within the ruling party.

Mr. Oli's move to dissolve the House sparked protests from a large section of the Nepal Communist Party led by his rival Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', also a co-chair of the ruling party.

Mr Oli repeatedly defended his move to dissolve the House of Representatives, saying some leaders of his party were attempting to form a "parallel government".

As many as 13 writ petitions including the one by the ruling Nepal Communist Party's Chief Whip Dev Prasad Gurung were filed at the apex court seeking the restoration of the lower house parliament.

8. Kushinagar airport gets aerodrome licence

The licence authorises the aerodrome to be used for flight operations.

It will boost tourism and facilitate travel on Buddhist circuit: MinisterThe Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has granted licence to the Airports Authority of India for operations at the Kushinagar airport in Uttar Pradesh.

“Kushinagar airport gets necessary clearances from DGCA to become 3rd licensed international airport of U.P. Will boost tourism in the region & facilitate travel on Buddhist circuit by providing direct aviation connectivity to the city where Lord Buddha attained Mahaparinirvana,” tweeted Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

The licence authorises the aerodrome to be used for flight operations.

9. Delhi court frames terror charges against Kashmiri separatist Aasiya Andrabi

The court passed the order after Aasiya Andrabi pleaded not guilty and claimed trial

A Delhi court has framed terrorism, sedition and other charges against Kashmiri separatist Aasiya Andrabi and her two associates for allegedly waging war against the government of India and conspiring to commit terror acts in the country.

The case relates to waging war against the country with support from Pakistan including terror entities. Special Judge Parveen Singh had put Andrabi and her associates - Sofi Fehmeeda and Nahida Nasreen - on trial for various offences punishable under IPC and the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) on February 20.

The court passed the order after the accused pleaded not guilty and claimed trial.

The court framed charges under sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 121 (waging war against the government of India), 121-A (conspiracy to wage war against government of India), 124-A (sedition), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups), 153-B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national-integration) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the IPC.

It further framed sections 18 (conspires or attempts to commit, or advocates, abets, advises or incites terror act), 20 (being member of terrorist gang or organisation), 38 (offence relating to membership of a terrorist organisation) and 39 (offence relating to support given to a terrorist organisation) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Andrabi, who was chief of the banned outfit Dukhtaran-e-Millat (daughters of nation), was accused by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) of being involved in conspiracy and acts to "severely destabilise the sovereignty and integrity of India", along with her two other associates.

The three accused were arrested in April 2018 and are currently in custody.

10. BJP sweeps municipal polls in Gujarat

AAP, in its maiden contest in Surat Municipal Corporation, became the main opposition party

The BJP swept the urban local bodies of Gujarat winning all the six municipal corporations in Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Bhavnagar for which the results were announced on Tuesday.

The ruling party won 69 out of 76 seats in Vadodara, 68 out of 72 in Rajkot, 50 out of 64 in Jamnagar and 44 out of 52 seats in Bhavnagar in its largest victory in the civic bodies of the state. In Surat, the parties won 93 out of 120 seats while counting for Ahmedabad are underway but the saffron party is likely to cross 160 out of total 192 seats in the city.

11.Motera stadium, the largest cricket stadium in the world

A video on the largest cricket stadium in the world situated in Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Motera stadium, also known as Sardar Patel stadium is now the world's largest cricket stadium and the second largest sports stadium.

Situated on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, Motera stadium has a seating capacity of 1.10 lakh spectators.

The pink-ball day-night Test between India and England starting February 24, 2021, will be the first international match in the refurbished stadium.

In 1982, the Gujarat government donated 100 acres on the banks of the Sabarmati river. The proposal of a larger stadium with a larger capacity was initiated by Narendra Modi.

The Motera stadium was rebuilt after demolishing the old one,which was constructed in 1982 with a seating capacity of 49,000 spectators.

The Motera stadium that spread across over 64 acres has three entrances. It has 76 air-conditioned corporate boxes with a seating capacity of 25 each. An Olympic-size swimming pool and four dressing rooms, a parking area that can accommodate around 3000 cars and 10,000 two-wheelers.

The stadium also has a club house with 55 rooms, gymnasium, indoor practice pitches and food courts. The Motera stadium has no flood lights instead LED lights are being installed on roof.

*The old Motera stadium was one of the venues for the 2006 edition of the ICC Champions Trophy and it has always been a venue whenever India hosted ICC World Cup. Motera stadium which is yet to be inaugurated, hosted the iconic event addressing U.S. President Donald Trump, "Namaste Trump" on February 24, 2020.

12.NASA releases first audio from Mars, video of Perseverance rover landing

The video clip showed the deployment of the parachute and the rover’s touchdown on the surface of the Red Planet. The U.S. space agency NASA on Monday released the first audio from Mars, a faint crackling recording of a gust of wind captured by the Perseverance rover.
NASA also released the first video of last week's landing of the rover, which is on a mission to search for signs of past life on the Red Planet.
A microphone did not work during the rover's descent to the surface, but it was able to capture audio once it landed on Mars.
NASA engineers played a 60-second recording.

13. Toolkit case: Court grants bail to activist Disha Ravi, terms police probe ‘scanty and sketchy’

Disha Ravi, who was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Pankaj Sharma by police at the expiry of her three-day judicial custody on Monday, was remanded to one-day police custody. Her remand ended today.

In his order granting bail, Additional Sessions Judge Dharmender Rana said, “Considering the scanty and sketchy investigation, I do not find any palpable reason to breach the general rule of ‘ Bail’ against a 22 years old young lady, with absolutely blemish-free criminal antecedents and having firm roots in the society, and send her to jail..”

The court has asked Ravi to not leave the country without its permission and to cooperate with the investigation.

14. In UP govt’s attempt to boost tourism, Ayodhya gets the biggest pie

Speaking to mediapersons after the presentation of the Budget in the Assembly, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said Ayodhya is fast emerging as one of the most preferred tourist places for national as well as international tourists.

To develop Ayodhya as a “world-class tourist attraction”, the UP government in its annual Budget presented on Monday, made several provisions for the temple town, including Rs 300 crore allocation for constructing roads leading to the Ram temple. Another Rs 140 crore has been proposed for the “all-round development” of Ayodhya and Rs 101 crore for the upcoming airport, which will be named after Lord Ram – Maryada Purushottam Ram Airport.

“A provision of Rs 300 crore has been made for the construction of approach roads to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple, Ayodhya Dham,” Finance Minister Suresh Khanna said.

Besides developing Suryakund in Ayodhya, the government has proposed to spend another Rs 100 crore for the development and beautification of tourism facilities in Ayodhya.

In the Budget, the government has earmarked Rs 8 crore for the construction of the Uttar Pradesh Tribal Museum in Lucknow and Rs 4 crores for building a museum for freedom fighters in Shahjahanpur.

To boost tourism, Rs 200 crore and another Rs 100 crore have been allocated for the development and beautification of tourism facilities in Chitrakoot and Varanasi, respectively. Also, a provision of Rs 200 crore has been proposed for the Chief Minister Tourism Development Scheme.

Apart from this, a provision of Rs 30 crore has been made in the Budget for site development in Vindhyachal and Naimisharanya.

In view of the centenary year of the Chauri-Chaura incident, Rs 15 crore has been allocated for year-round celebration of Chauri-Chaura Shatabadi Mahotsava, Khanna said.

15. Long-serving Saudi oil minister Ahmed Zaki Yamani dies at 90

Known for his Western-style business suits and soft-spoken, measured tones, Yamani helped Saudi Arabia command a dominating presence in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries from its birth.

Ahmed Zaki Yamani, a long-serving oil minister in Saudi Arabia who led the kingdom through the 1973 oil crisis, the nationalization its state energy company and later found himself held hostage by the assassin Carlos the Jackal, died Tuesday in London. He was 90.

Saudi state television reported his death, without offering a cause. It said he would be buried in the Muslim holy city of Mecca.

Known for his Western-style business suits and soft-spoken, measured tones, Yamani helped Saudi Arabia command a dominating presence in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries from its birth. The kingdom remains a heavyweight in the group even today and its decisions ripple through the oil industry, affecting prices from the barrel down to the gasoline pump.

“To the global oil industry, to politicians and senior civil servants, to journalists and to the world at large, Yamani became the representative, and indeed the symbol, of the new age of oil,” author Daniel Yergin wrote in his seminal book on the oil industry “The Prize.” “His visage, with his large, limpid, seemingly unblinking brown eyes and his clipped, slightly curved Van Dyke beard, became familiar the planet over.”

Yamani became oil minister in 1962 and would lead the ministry until 1986. He served a crucial role in the nascent oil cartel OPEC as producers around the world began to try to dictate prices to the world market previously dominated by the economic policies of Western nations.

Yamani was the first Saudi representative on OPEC’s board of governors in 1961. From his position, he became known not for the hysterics that accompanied years of turmoil across the wider Middle East, but an ever-calm negotiating style that Saudi ministers after him sought to mimic.

But that style for an oil kingpin known by the honorific “the Sheikh” would be tested by the times, which included upheaval in the global energy market. That was especially true in the 1973 Mideast War, in which Egypt, Syria and its allies launched a surprise attack on Israel on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur.

When the U.S. under President Richard Nixon moved to support Israel, Arab producers in OPEC agreed to cut their supply by 5% a month. When Nixon continued his support, the decision gave birth to what would become known as the “oil weapon” — a total embargo on the U.S. and other countries.

Prices in the U.S. would rise by 40%, leading to gasoline shortages and long lines at the pump. Oil prices globally would quadruple, leading to the wealth now seen across the Gulf Arab states today.

In 1975, Yamani found himself twice at major moments in history. He stood just outside the room when a nephew of King Faisal assassinated the monarch in March.

In December, Yamani found himself among those taken hostage at OPEC headquarters in Vienna, an attack that killed three people and saw 11 seized. The attack ended up seeing all the pro-Palestinian militants and those held hostage released.