| 1. How Modi pitched India for COP33 |  | Green Credit Initiative- Asserting that the world does not have much time to correct the mistakes of the last century, PM Narendra Modi on Friday announced a 'Green Credit Initiative' focused on creating carbon sinks through people's participation and also proposed to host the UN climate conference in 2028, or COP33, in India.
- Carbon sinks are essentially anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases.
What is it?- Addressing the high-level segment for heads of states and governments during the UN climate conference (COP28) in Dubai, Modi called for a pro-planet, proactive and positive initiative.
- He further said the Green Credits Initiative goes beyond the commercial mindset associated with carbon credits, which are essentially permits that allow entities to emit certain amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases.
- The Green Credit Initiative is similar to the Green Credit Programme, notified domestically in October. It is an innovative, market-based mechanism designed to reward voluntary environmental actions in different sectors by individuals, communities and the private sector.
'India has walked the talk'- Asserting that India has presented a great example to the world of striking balance between development and environment conservation, PM Modi said India is among the only few countries in the world on track to achieve the national action plans to restrict global warming to 1.5C, the guardrail to avoid worsening of the impact of the changing climate.
- Modi called for maintaining a balance between mitigation and adaptation and said that energy transition across the world must be "just and inclusive." He also urged rich countries to transfer technologies to help developing nations combat climate change.
Meetings that matter- On the sidelines of the COP28 summit, Modi met with the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and said that India deeply values its strong ties with the Gulf nation.
- Modi also met Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed Ali, UAE Vice President Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
- While Israel has a war going on with Hamas, the other countries (Bahrain, Ethiopia and UAE) have deep economic ties with India.
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| 2. A 'good and appropriate' Indian probe |  | A welcome move- The US has welcomed as "good and appropriate" India's decision to announce a high-level probe into its allegations that an Indian official was involved in a foiled plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist on American soil and said it is looking forward to seeing the results.
- Separately, the White House on Thursday also praised New Delhi for setting up its own investigations into the matter and said this will not have an impact on the India-US relationship.
What Blinken said- "The government announced today that it was conducting an investigation, and that's good and appropriate, and we look forward to seeing the results," Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters travelling with him in Tel Aviv on Thursday, even though he did not give any details about the case, calling it an ongoing legal matter.
- "So you'll understand I can't comment on it in detail. I can say that this is something we take very seriously. A number of us have raised this directly with the Indian Government in past weeks," news agency PTI quoted Blinken saying. Watch here
A Senate hearing- US Senator and Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee Ben Cardin on Thursday said that the US Justice Department's indictment of an Indian national for his alleged involvement in a failed assassination plot was disturbing, and that he will be chairing a Senate hearing on the issue, which is likely to happen next week.
A concern for India?- India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had on Thursday described as a "matter of concern" the US charging an Indian national with conspiring to kill Sikh separatist GS Pannun on American soil.
- The MEA asserted that a high-level probe committee would investigate all aspects of the case. It was set up to investigate allegations relating to the foiled plot to kill Pannun, an American and Canadian citizen who is wanted by Indian agencies.
- Pannun is associated with a group named 'Sikhs for Justice', which has been banned by the Indian government.
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| 3. Why SC wants a guv to invite CM for a chat |  | What- In an unusual move, the Supreme Court on Friday asked Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi to hold a meeting with Chief Minister MK Stalin to resolve the impasse over the non-grant of assent to Bills by him passed by the state legislative assembly.
- A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud heard senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the Stalin government, noting that the governor has now remanded the readopted Bills for consideration by the President.
The advice- "We would like the governor to resolve the impasse...We will appreciate it if the governor resolves the impasse with the chief minister. I think the governor invites the chief minister and let them sit down and discuss it," the bench said, fixing December 11 as the date to hear the plea.
- "We are conscious of the fact that we are dealing with high constitutional functionaries," it said.
A constitutional matter- Referring to Article 200 of the Constitution, the bench said the governor cannot send the bills to the President after they were readopted by the legislative assembly upon getting them back from the office of the governor earlier.
- The court remarked that there are three options for the governor — give assent, withhold assent or reserve the bill for the President.
- But once the governor withholds assent, there is no question of him reserving it for the President, the bench said.
The fight- Ravi has referred all 10 Bills to the President. Those ten bills were re-enacted by the state assembly.
- The matter is about 12 Bills. Ravi had withheld assent on 10 Bills and sent two others for the President's consideration.
- On November 18, the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed the 10 Bills again. The Stalin government has moved the SC for directions to Governor Ravi to clear the bills.
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| 4. A 2-year target to plug infiltration gaps in borders |  | A target- Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said India's two major borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh will be completely secured in the next two years.
- He said work is underway to completely plug gaps in about 60 km stretch along these two fronts.
- Shah was speaking after taking a salute from a ceremonial parade of the Border Security Force (BSF) on the occasion of its 59th Raising Day celebrations in Jharkhand.
A work in progress- Shah said the Modi government has fenced and plugged gaps in about 560 km of the India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh borders in the last nine years.
- These gaps were being used for infiltration and smuggling, he said, adding that all the gaps are being plugged and work in only about 60 km is left.
The challenge- India has a 2,290-km border with Pakistan and a 4,096-km border with Bangladesh.
- The two borders are marked by long riverine, mountainous and marshy areas where it is very difficult to erect fences.
- The BSF and other agencies use technical gadgets to check infiltration.
Why fence the borders- Shah said, "I firmly believe that a country cannot develop and prosper if its borders are not secure...the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has led the country to the moon with the Chandrayaan mission, G20 Summit and brought the economy from the 11th to the fifth spot, and this was all possible due to our forces deployed for securing the borders like the BSF."
Vigil at the border- The home minister said his government installed flood-lights along the 11,000 km of this border, created 452 new border posts, maiden observation towers in the 'Harami Nala' area of Rann of Kutch, 510 observation towers, got electricity connection in 637 borders posts while 500 such facilities were linked with piped water along these two borders over the last nine years.
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| 6. The bombs are back in Gaza |  | Ceasefire collapse- Amid a breakdown in talks to extend a week-old truce, Israel's warplanes launched a renewed assault on Gaza on Thursday and Friday.
- The devastating airstrikes sent wounded and deceased Palestinians flooding into hospitals, while terrified residents poured into the streets seeking refuge from the onslaught.
Immediate casualties- Within hours of the truce expiring, Gaza health officials reported that 109 people had been killed and dozens wounded in air strikes that hit at least eight homes.
- The most intensive bombing occurred in Khan Younis and Rafah in southern Gaza, where a significant population had sought refuge from the conflict further north.
A blame game- With the truce collapsing, Israel and Hamas blamed each other for rejecting terms crucial for extending the ceasefire.
- Peace talks collapsed overnight as Israel demanded Hamas release female soldiers, who were not among the 240 people taken as hostages on October 7.
- The seven-day truce, which began on November 24 and was extended twice, allowed for daily exchanges of over 100 hostages held in Gaza for Palestinian detainees, while trucks brought in aid.
Complicating mediation efforts- As the conflict escalated, Qatar, a central player in mediation efforts, said ongoing negotiations with Israelis and Palestinians were aimed at restoring the truce.
- However, Israel's renewed bombardment of Gaza posed significant challenges, complicating efforts to find a resolution.
Global reaction- The United Nations said the collapse of the ceasefire would worsen an extreme humanitarian emergency.
- There were expressions of regret and dismay from leaders around the world, though notable silence from Washington.
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a trip to West Asia, declined to answer questions about Israel and Hamas going back to war while speaking to reporters travelling with him.
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| 7. A tough day for police in Bengaluru |  | What- Forty-eight private schools in Bengaluru on Friday morning received an email with a bomb threat on its premises, triggering panic among the staff and parents, police said.
- After school authorities alerted the police, they reached the institutions concerned with the bomb disposal squads and anti-sabotage check teams.
- The students and staff were evacuated from the school premises, police said. However, no suspicious objects were found in any of the schools in the police search.
A hoax?- The police said it looked like it was a hoax message. The message about a bomb threat was received from an email id.
- "We are also in the process of registering a case in this regard and a thorough investigation is underway," a senior police officer said.
The panic- Following the bomb threat reports, parents rushed to schools from their respective offices and homes in panic to get their children back home safely. Some of the students said they had exams scheduled for the day.
- "The email claimed that explosives had been planted on school premises. We received a call from the command centre and immediately rushed our teams to schools located in different parts of the city," another senior officer said.
The threat mail- Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said the message had come from email id kharijites@beeble.com. The email says bombs have been placed in about 15 schools in Bengaluru and threatened to kill children and staff.
- The police were verifying who was behind this email. Parameshwara said it would be investigated if there was some terror outfit behind this email.
Not the first- Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B Dayananda said, "Earlier also, similar threat letters and emails had come to schools and they were found to be a hoax for mischief and police had identified those behind it."
- Some miscreants sent such emails in 2022 claiming a bomb threat to schools in Bengaluru, which later turned out to be a hoax message. More here
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| 8. Will winter session break the ice? |  | All-party meeting- The Centre has scheduled an all-party meeting today ahead of the winter session of Parliament.
- Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi announced the meeting in New Delhi, emphasising the importance of cooperation from all political parties during the upcoming session.
- It will be the last full session of the current Lok Sabha. The session will run for 19 days, concluding on December 22, with a total of 15 meetings scheduled.
Legislative agenda- Currently, 37 Bills are pending in Parliament, with 12 earmarked for consideration and passing, and seven for introduction, consideration and passing.
- Three key Bills aimed at replacing the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), and the Evidence Act are likely to be taken up for consideration.
- The standing committee has already endorsed the three reports, paving the way for their potential passage during the session.
- Another key Bill on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners is pending in Parliament. Introduced during the monsoon session, its passage was deferred in a special session due to opposition protests. The Bill seeks to align the status of CEC and ECs with that of the cabinet secretary.
What happens to Mahua Moitra?- If Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla accepts the Ethics Committee's recommendation on the "cash-for-query" allegations to cancel the membership of TMC MP Mahua Moitra, the proposal may be presented in the Lok Sabha during the winter session.
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| 9. Navy one step closer to 'all roles, all ranks' for women |  | A first- The Indian Navy has appointed the first woman commanding officer in a naval ship in sync with its philosophy of 'all roles-all ranks' for female personnel, Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar said on Friday.
- "The overall strength of women Agniveers has now crossed the 1,000 mark. These statistics stand testament to our philosophy of 'all roles, all ranks' approach to deployment of women in the service," said Admiral Kumar, addressing a press conference on Friday.
'A game-changer'- While Admiral Kumar did not share further details, Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Western Naval Command, said in Mumbai that the Navy has put one woman officer in command of a small ship. "That will be a game-changer," he said.
Timing- The development comes at a time when the Army is considering the induction of women personnel in combat roles, especially with the help of the Agnipath scheme.
- The government has also been working towards converting the experimental scheme for induction of women fighter pilots in the Indian Air Force into a permanent one.
What else the Admiral said- Admiral Kumar on Friday shared several important details in his presser.
- On the long-pending project to build a deck-based twin engine fighter aircraft, the Navy Chief hoped that his force would be able to get it by 2032.
- On new Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu calling for withdrawal of Indian military personnel from the Maldives, the Chief of Naval Staff did not give a direct reply and said both countries have strong defence ties.
- On China's increasing forays into the Indian Ocean, he said the Indian Navy monitors all activities in the region.
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| Answer To NEWS IN CLUES |  | Mizoram. While counting of votes in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana will take place tomorrow, the exercise in Mizoram will take place on December 4 – a day after it was originally scheduled, the Election Commission said on Friday. It said the decision was taken following representations from various quarters requesting for a change in the date of counting from December 3 on the ground that Sunday holds a special significance for the people of Mizoram, a Christian-majority state.
COURTESY : TIMES TOP 10 |
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