Cabinet approves 7th Pay Commission, thousands protest lynchings: Top stories to bring you up to date
Cabinet approves hike in allowances, protestors demonstrate against lynching across India, China accuses India of having a hidden agenda in Sikkim, Cabinet approves Air India disinvestment.
7th Pay Commission: Cabinet approves hike in allowances for central govt staff from July 1
The Union cabinet approved on Wednesday the new allowance structure for 34 lakh central government and 14 lakh defence staffers, giving their pay cheques a significant bump from next month. The decision completes the move to the 7th pay commission structure and the biggest jump in salaries will be due to the hike in the House Rent Allowance, which will see a 45% increase on average in a city like Delhi. It is expected to spur spending and prop up demand, which sagged since the November 8 demonetisation that led to a severe cash crunch.
Read the story here.
‘No lynchings in my name’: Protesters across India hit the streets, say outraged over attacks on human life
Thousands took to the streets of 10-odd cities across the country on Wednesday to protest a string of mob lynchings in recent years, which many say is proof of India’s fraying secular ethos. In several places, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kolkata, protesters gathered under the “Not In My Name” banner to make a strong statement against violence perpetrated by right-wing Hindu groups and cow-protection vigilantes. The Delhi protest saw people pouring in from neighbouring states, such as Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. “We are laying our claim as Indian citizens upon this country… we are outraged at the attacks on human life, human dignity… at the systemic violence unleashed on Dalits and minorities,” said filmmaker Saba Dewan.
Read the story here and see pictures of protests here.
India has ‘hidden agenda’, no one should interfere in our territory, says China
China on Wednesday virtually accused India of having a “hidden agenda” as it indicated that Indian troops had stopped PLA soldiers from building a road in Donglang, a region at the centre of a long-standing dispute with Bhutan. The foreign ministry accused Indian troops of trespassing into Chinese territory and said the alleged incursion was “totally different” from previous incidents. Keeping up its aggressive posturing on the stand-off, the ministry said the “liability” for resuming the suspended Kailash Mansarovar Yatra lay with India, which should correct its “errors”. “If India wants to raise (the Donglang dispute), I would say that it doesn’t belong to India and neither does it belong to Bhutan. We have complete legal basis for this,” the foreign ministry spokesperson said.
Read the story here.
Old Indian bunker in Sikkim removed by China using bulldozer: Report
China has removed an old bunker of the Indian Army located at the tri-junction of India, China and Bhutan in Sikkim by using a bulldozer after the Indian side refused to accede to its request, according to official sources. The incident that broke out in the first week of June in Doka La general area in Sikkim had led to a face-off between the two forces, triggering tension in the Sikkim section of the India-China border, sources said on Wednesday. The forcible removal of the old bunker by using heavy machinery like a bulldozer came when the Indian side did not agree to a request by the Chinese authorities to dismantle it, the sources said.
Read the story here.
Cabinet approves Air India disinvestment, panel to decide timeline and procedure
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday formally approved the privatisation of national airline Air India Ltd and five of its subsidiaries. Disclosing this, finance minister Arun Jaitley said at a press briefing that he would be heading a group to work out procedures for the Air India disinvestment. The move will not only embellish the credentials of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) as a reformist administration, but also ease the fiscal pressure on the union government — especially in indirectly servicing the airline’s outstanding debt burden of Rs 52,000 crore.
Read the story here.
Delhi HC sets aside President’s rejection of mercy petition
The Delhi high court set aside on Wednesday the President’s order rejecting the mercy plea of a death-row convict and reduced his sentence to life term. The court order follows a petition filed by the advocate of convicted dacoit Sonu Sardar, who killed five members of a family, including two children, during a robbery in Chhattisgarh’s Cher village in 2004. A division bench of justices said the presidential order rejecting the convict’s appeal for clemency was vitiated. “The mercy petition was processed in an extremely cavalier and casual fashion by the state government at all stages, right up to placing the note for the governor,” the court said.
Read the story here.
Opinion: Why Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is rocking the alliance boat but not sinking it
The controversy over supporting Ram Nath Kovind isn’t an unintended collateral damage, but rather cleverly calibrated and choreographed by Nitish Kumar. There are tensions with Lalu Yadav to think of and how state and national politics will shape up by 2019.
Read the article here.
Fresh cyberattack likely ‘more sophisticated’ than WannaCry: Europol
The wave of cyberattacks hitting Europe and North America is similar to last month’s WannaCry ransomware havoc, but appears potentially “more sophisticated,” the European police agency said on Wednesday. Describing it as “another serious ransomware attack,” Europol said “critical infrastructure and business systems” were being targeted “with a new wave of ransomware, which is an updated version of Petya.” “The attack has caused infections worldwide and has not yet been stopped,” the agency based in The Hague warned.
Read the story here.
US says its warning appears to have averted Syrian chemical attack
US defence secretary Jim Mattis said on Wednesday that the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad appeared so far to have heeded a warning this week from Washington not to carry out a chemical weapons attack. But Russia, the Syrian government’s main backer, said the US assertions that Assad’s forces may have been planning a chemical attack complicated peace talks on ending Syria’s six-year-old civil war.
Read the story here.
India opener Shikhar Dhawan happy to learn from failures, keep bouncing back
Shikhar Dhawan has endured so many failures in his career that a new one now doesn’t affect his morale. At least, that’s what he says. The Delhi batsman, who won the Golden Bat at the ICC Champions Trophy for the second successive edition, remains on the edge despite the brilliant recent past. For, when the young KL Rahul returns from injury lay-off, the left-hander could face some anxious moments. A toss-up perhaps with Ajinkya Rahane, primarily because Rahul is the one for the future and Rohit Sharma looks set.
Read the story here.
Get Current Updates on India News, Lok Sabha Election 2024 LIVE along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.