RIVANCH

In recent weeks, several farmer leaders from Punjab addressed rallies in poll-bound West Bengal. The rallies, however, seem to have found more resonance in Punjab than in the latter state. Many activists and journalists from Punjab now say that the farm union leaders should take the political plunge in the northern state as well. The Assembly election in Punjab is likely to be held early next year. Ludhiana-based Amandeep Singh Bains, a member of Tractor2Twitter, one of the pressure groups garnering support for the farm protests, said, "There is a strong reason why people want them (farmer leaders) to join electoral politics. If the recent clean sweep by the Congress in the municipal polls is any indication, there is presently a vacuum in Punjab's politics." Bains further said, "Looking at the manner in which the farm leaders organised a massive protest against the Central government and are now campaigning against them in the upcoming elections, an aspiration h

New Delhi: Ashoka University on Sunday acknowledged "lapses in institutional processes" and expressed "deep regret" at the recent events surrounding the resignations of political commentator Pratap Bhanu Mehta and noted economist Arvind Subramanian from its faculty. Meanwhile, Mehta wrote a letter to students, urging them to not "press" for his return, asserting that the circumstances that led to his resignation will not change in foreseeable future. The university in Haryana's Sonipat became the centre of a controversy earlier this week, when Mehta, who had resigned as its vice chancellor two years back, chose to step down as professor, saying that the founders made it "abundantly clear" that his association with the institution was a "political liability". Subramanian, the former chief economic advisor to the government, had resigned from the university two days later in solidarity with Mehta. "We acknowledge that there

09:47 (IST) Coronavirus LATEST Updates Over 11.3 lakh samples tested on Saturday, says ICMR A total of 23,35, 65,119 samples have been tested for COVID-19 up to 20 March, of which 11,33,602 were tested on Saturday, according to the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR). COVID-19 Testing Update. For more details visit: https://t.co/dI1pqvXAsZ @MoHFW_INDIA @DeptHealthRes #ICMRFIGHTSCOVID19 #IndiaFightsCOVID19 #CoronaUpdatesInIndia #COVID19 #Unite2FightCorona pic.twitter.com/HlhTEsFQad — ICMR (@ICMRDELHI) March 21, 2021 09:37 (IST) Coronavirus LATEST Updates Maharashtra's Thane district record 1,932 new cases   With the addition of 1,932 coronavirus cases, the infection count in Thane district of Maharashtra mounted to 2,86,249, an official said on Sunday. These new cases were reported on Saturday, he said. As the virus claimed the life of seven persons, the toll in the district rose to 6,377. The district's COVID-19 mortality rate is 2.23 percent, he a

New Delhi:  Three Congress MPs on Saturday dissociated themselves from the report of a parliamentary standing committee recommending implementation of the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020, and alleged that the report was adopted against norms and conventions. The said Act is one of the three contentious agriculture-marketing laws which have triggered protests by farmers and which the Congress wants repealed. The Congress and Trinamool Congress have accused the BJP of "flouting norms" and pushing the report in the absence of its regular Chairman, TMC MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay who is currently busy in West Bengal Assembly elections. Three Congress MPs in the panel — Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, Rajmohan Unnithan and Vaithilingam Ve — have separately written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, urging him to look into the matter and allow them to record their dissent in writing. The 11th report of the Standing Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution was adop

Bharatiya Kisan Union chairman Naresh Tikait Saturday alleged the BJP government was behind the 26 January violence in Delhi, and it is "insulting" farmers. Addressing a mahapanchayat at Puwaya, Tikait said, "The BJP government itself engineered the violence in Delhi, and insulted the farmers. "The BJP government is the biggest enemy of the farmers. There still is time for all farmers to unite, otherwise they will reach to the brink of destruction." He also claimed that whatever happened in Delhi during farmers' tractor march on 26 January, "was a plan of the government, and the accused were also people of the government. "The farmers have been called terrorists, Khalistanis, members of tukde-tukde gang and parasites. But we are anti-government, we are against the policies of the government," he said. He also said, "We will not allow the farmers to get deceived, and all the talks will be held with Samyukt Kisan Morcha. Hence, one pe

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday said he discussed the issue of human rights of minorities in India with the Union ministers in Delhi, while noting that partners need to be able to have such exchanges. Replying to a question on the Sino-India border row in eastern Ladakh at a media briefing, Austin also said that the US never thought that India and China were at the threshold of a war. When asked whether he discussed with Prime Minister Narendra Modi the alleged violations of human rights particularly against minorities in India, Austin said he did not have the opportunity to talk about it with him. "I did not have an opportunity to talk with him about that. Having said that I did have a conversation with other members of the cabinet on this issue," he told the select media briefing. "I think we have to remember that India is our partner whose partnership we value. And I think partners need to be able to have those kinds of discussions. And certainly, we

The state of Maharashtra, which has been battling the worst coronavirus outbreak among all Indian states, on Saturday registered a new all-time high in daily cases. According to state health officials, the state recorded 27,126 new COVID-19 cases, the highest one-day rise since the outbreak of the pandemic last year. The previous highest one-day figure was 25,833, reported on Thursday. Among those who tested positive on Saturday, included Maharashtra minister and son of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Aaditya. The unrelenting spurt prompted district administrations in worst-hit cities to double down with curbs and a renewed push to vaccination campaigns. The Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation, for example, decided to conduct random and mandatory testing in all crowded places such as malls and markets, stating that those who refuse to undergo tests will be booked under the Epidemic Act. The Nagpur administration has decided to extend a near-total lockdown, which was already in plac

Former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh, who was sacked from his post following the National Investigation Agency's arrest of assistant inspector Sachin Waze, has accused state home minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh of "malpractices" and using police officers to "collect" money, reports said. In a letter to Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, Singh reportedly levelled several allegations against Deshmukh, including accusing the home minister of "asking Waze to collect Rs 100 crore per month", India Today reported . This money, Singh reportedly claimed in the letter, was to be collected from restaurants, pubs and bars and other sources. Firstpost was not able to independently verify the authenticity of the letter or the claims reportedly made in it. Waze was recently arrested by the NIA in connection with a case involving the discovery of an explosives-laden vehicle near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's residence. Ac

The coronavirus cases are on a rise in Maharashtra again and the state’s education board has stated that the examinations of Class 10 and Class 12 will be conducted in offline mode. Varsha Gaikwad, the state's School Education Minister, made the announcement on Saturday, 20 March. The class 10 exam will be held between 29 April and 20 May. The Class 12 exams are scheduled to begin on 23 April. The last exam will take place on 21 May. "The schools of the students will be their exam centres. Apart from the regular three-hour period of the exam, they will get an extra half an hour to attempt the questions," Varsha told PTI . Also, physically disabled students will get 20 minutes extra per hour. While the dates had already been declared by the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) last month, the practicals will be conducted after the written exams are over, added Gaikwad . Students will be asked to complete only a limited number of

New Delhi: Eminent economist Raghuram Rajan has said free speech suffered a "grievous blow" in India with the resignations of Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Arvind Subramanian from the Ashoka University and that the varsity's founders have bartered away its soul. Earlier this week, the Sonipat-based Ashoka University — a leading varsity that offers courses in liberal arts and sciences — found itself at the centre of a controversy after political commentator Mehta and economist Subramanian resigned. In a Linkedin post, former RBI governor Rajan said that free speech has suffered a "grievous blow" in India this week as professor Mehta, one of India's finest political scientists, resigned from the Ashoka University. "The reality is that professor Mehta is a thorn in the side of the establishment. He is no ordinary thorn because he skewers those in government and in high offices like the Supreme Court with vivid prose and thought-provoking arguments," he s

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, on Saturday, 20 March, announced the result of the Joint Admission Test 2021 (JAM 2021). The result can be accessed by entering login credentials on the official website of IISc, Bangalore or by visiting jam.iisc.ac.in /. The computer-based test was conducted on Sunday, 14 February. Candidates can follow these steps to check their results: Step 1: Visit the website https://jam.iisc.ac.in/ . Step 2: On the homepage, click on ‘JAM 2021 results are announced’. Step 3: A new page will open. Click on submit after entering the enrollment number and password. Step 4: The result will get displayed on the screen. Download it. Step 5: Take a print out of the scorecard and keep it safely for future reference. The merit list has been prepared on the basis of an All India Rank (AIR). According to the official notification, the scorecards (including marks and AIR) will be available for the qualified candidates between 27 March to 31 Jul

The schools in Delhi are set to release the first merit list for 2021 admissions for nursery, kinder garden (KG), and Class 1 on Saturday, 20 March, reports said. Once released, parents can check it by visiting the official websites of the Delhi Education Department and respective schools they have applied to, a report in The Indian Express said. The online admission process for the 2021-22 academic session began on 18 February, for 1,700 private schools. According to a report in NDTV , on 25 March, the second merit list will be released and the admission process will start by 31 March. Whereas, the classes will begin from 1 April as per schedule. Along with the name of the selected students, the merit list will also have the points scored by the students out of 100. After checking it, parents will have to submit relevant documents to participate in the admission process. Steps to check merit list Step 1: Visit the official website of Delhi's education department https://i

Reforms to judicial appointments in India seem to be stuck in a time warp. If one were to create a timeline of events on this subject, the last significant event will be traced back to 2015 when the Supreme Court struck down the constitutional amendment as well as the law which would have established the National Judicial Appointments Commission (‘NJAC’). The NJAC, comprising three judges, the Union Law Minister and two eminent persons, was tasked with appointing judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts. This decision was momentous in ways more than one. It was a rare instance where the Supreme Court invalidated an amendment to the Constitution. It was also the time when the Supreme Court nipped in the bud a legislative attempt to replace the judicially-created collegium with an appointments commission. The jury will forever be out on whether or not the NJAC would have been a worthy substitute for the collegium. It is, however, abundantly clear that as an institution, the collegi

Bengaluru:  Karnataka born Dattatreya Hosabale was on Saturday elected as the'Sarkaryawah' (General Secretary) of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He was until now the sah-sarakaryavah (joint general secretary) of the Sangh. The election took place at the two-day annual meeting of the Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS), the Sangh's highest decision-making body that began in Bengaluru on Friday. "Bangaluru : Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha of RSS elected Shri Dattatreya Hosabale as its Sarkaryavah. He was Sah Sarkaryavah of RSS since 2009," RSS tweeted. Hosabale will replace the 73-year-old Suresh 'Bhaiyyaji' Joshi, who wasSarkaryawah for four terms, with each term having three years. Sarkaryawah post is considered as Sangh's number 2 in command after sarsanghchalak (chief of RSS) which is currently held by Mohan Bhagwat. Though ABPS is an annual meet held at different places, but every third year it is held at RSS headquarters in Nagpur 

15:47 (IST) Coronavirus LATEST Updates Devendra Fadnavis demands probe into rising COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra Senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said a team of experts should be formed to probe the reason for the surge in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra compared to the other states in the country. The former chief minister was speaking to the media after attending a meeting with Nagpur Guardian Minister Nitin Raut and district officials at the divisional commissionerate. "I feel a team of experts should be constituted to study the surge in COVID-19 cases in the state. Maharashtra is no different from other states, but then why is it witnessing such a surge in infections?" Fadnavis said. 15:34 (IST) Coronavirus LIVE Updates Eight states showing rising trajectory in COVID-19 cases, says Centre A rising trajectory of daily new cases is visible in eight states and UTs, including Delhi and Maharashtra, while Kerala is showing a declining trend, the Health

The registration for OPENMAT, OPENNET and B.Ed entrance exam will conclude on Saturday, 20 March. Conducted by the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), the OPENMAT 2021 exam will be for admission in management programme while OPENNET 2021 is for nursing programmes. Admission to the B.Ed programme of IGNOU will be based on the entrance exam. Steps: Step 1: Visit the website http://ignou.ac.in/ Step 2: On the homepage, you will find the option ‘Online Registration for BED, OPENMAT, Post Basic (Nursing Program) Entrance Test for January 2021 session.’ Click on this Step 3: A new page will open. Click on the option to register Step 4: Enter your details in the application form and submit any documents, if required. Pay the application fee to complete the registration process Step 5: Download the application form Step 6: Take a print out of the application form and keep it safely for future reference Alternatively, you can also click on the direct registration link here:

The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) has released the scorecards for the interview round of Specialist Officers (SO) recruitment on Saturday, 19 March. Candidates can check the results on the official website www.ibps.in/ by using their login credentials. The scorecards will be available till Tuesday, 30 March. Candidates can follow these steps to check the results: Step 1: Visit the website https://www.ibps.in/. Step 2: On the homepage, click on the option titled ‘Click here to view scores of candidates shortlisted for interview for CRP SPL-X’. Step 3: A new page will open. Click on the option to ‘view the scorecard again’. Step 4: Enter your registration number, password, and security key. Click on Login. Step 5: Download the scorecard. Step 6: Take out the print out and save it for future reference. There are three stages of the IBPS SO recruitment process including preliminary, main, and interview round. The preliminary examination was held on 26 Decem

The University of Madras (UNOM) has announced the results of the undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) exams (except for the first semester) on Friday, 19 March. Students can visit the official website — unom.ac.in  to check the results of the April 2020 Supplementary and November 2020. How to check the results: Step 1: Visit the website unom.ac.in . Step 2: On the homepage, you will find an option titled ‘Click on the option UG/PG (Except First Semester)/Professional Degree Examination Results - April 2020 Supplementary / November 2020. Here is the direct link. Step 3: A new page will open. Enter your ‘registration number’ and click on ‘Get Result’. Step 4: The result will be displayed on the screen. Download it. Step 5 : Take a print out of the scorecard and keep it safely for future reference. Around 2 lakh students appeared for the exams conducted between December 2020 and January 2021. Almost 60,000 candidates gave arrear exams between 21 December to 10 February. A

New Delhi: India saw 40,953 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, the highest single-day rise recorded in 111 days, taking the nationwide COVID-19 tally to 1,15,55,284, according to Union Health Ministry data updated on Saturday. Registering an increase for the tenth day in a row, the total active caseload has reached 2,88,394, which now comprises 2.49 percent of the total infections, while the recovery rate has further dropped to 96.12 per cent, the data stated. The daily rise in infections (40,953) was the highest recorded in 111 days, while the death toll increased to 1,59,558 with 188 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed. On 29 November, 41,810 new infections were recorded in a span of 24 hours. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,11,07,332, while the case fatality rate stood at 1.38 percent, the data stated. India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20 lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on Septemb

The Persian New Year Nowruz 2021 is being celebrated today (Saturday, 20 March). The Persian New Year marks the first day of the spring season and will begin at 3:07 pm on Spring Equinox (time of the year when day and night are of equal length). Over 300 million people worldwide celebrate the festival, including those from Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, India, Pakistan, Turkey and other countries in Central Asia and West Asia. Significance of Nowruz The significance of the festival is that it marks the arrival of spring and the renewal of nature. The rituals practiced on the day of Nowruz are a blend of the traditions of both Eastern and Western civilisations. Nowruz brings people together and promotes peace between different communities. Nowruz celebration The most important part of Nowruz celebration is having Haft Seen (Seven S). A table is set up with seven items whose names start with the letter ‘s.’ The rituals may vary depending on the region, however, most people celebrat

Politics is often the art of hollowing out words of their meaning. Those who dog-whistle the word ‘secular’ to do minority politics empty the word of its intended neutrality. Those who claim they are liberal sleep with the most illiberal. Those who claim to be Right and Conservative are often the biggest proponents of freebies instead of a free market. Lately, the words ‘nationalist’ and ‘internationalist’ have been turned on their heads by an unprecedented tragedy. The COVID-19 days saw the fall of the world's most infamous ‘nationalist’, Donald Trump. He went around without a mask for months, even exhorted hordes to abandon it. But it has also thrown up a very seminal question. Which is a ‘nationalist’ nation and which is ‘internationalist’? The great new internationalist President of the United States Joe Biden is busy meeting the target of vaccinating 100 million Americans. He said he would send vaccines to Mexico thereafter if there was a surplus. He clearly wants to keep

10:47 (IST) Assam Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates Rahul Gandhi to adress rallies in Jorhat and Biswanath Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to interact with employees at the IOC Refinery in Assam's Tinsukia and hold two public meetings in Jorhat and Biswanath on Saturday, ANI reported. 10:45 (IST) Assembly Election 2021 LATEST Updates Modi to address rallies in Bengal and Assam today  Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address election rallies in Kharagpur in West Bengal and Chabua in Assam on Saturday. In a tweet, Modi said that he will elaborate on BJP's development agenda in his speeches. "Will be in Assam and West Bengal tomorrow and the day after. Tomorrow, 20 March, I would be speaking at rallies in Kharagpur (WB) and Chabua (Assam). Will elaborate on BJP's development agenda during my speeches. It is clear both states want to elect NDA in the upcoming polls," he tweeted. Will be in Assam and West Bengal tomorrow and the day after. Tomorrow, 2