JIM MATTIS PRAISE TRUMP ON AFGHANISTAN
United States Defense Secretary, Jim Mattis has said President Donald Trump has a made a decision on the United States’ strategy for Afghanistan after a sufficiently rigorous review process.
Speaking in Amman, capital of Jordan, Mattis said he is satisfied with the process the Trump administration went through to formulate its new strategy for Afghanistan, but he declined to provide details. He said he will not talk about the policy until it is officially disclosed by the White House. Mr. Trump said on Saturday that his administration has decided how to deal with the 16-year war in Afghanistan.
After years of extensive support from the US and other NATO member nations, the Afghan military is still struggling to resist the Taliban, which recently made advances in Afghanistan and the Pakistan border region.
About 8,400 US troops and an estimated 5,000 NATO troops are in the country, serving primarily in advisory and training capacities. The United States also maintains a force in Afghanistan that is tasked with fighting terrorist groups, including Islamic State and al-Qaida.
CALL FOR ACTION AGAINST STATE TERROR ON NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN
Call for Action against State Terror on Narmada Bachao Andolan
Demand Immediate Release of Medha Patkar, Durji, Santu and Vijay
No Eviction Without Rehabilitation ! End State Repression !
Dear friends,
Many of you have been following the series of incidents of state repression in the Narmada Valley, over the past month, especially the forcible ‘hospitalization’ and illegal detention of Medha Patkar and other oustees on 7th August, following a massive police action at the Chikalda Satyagraha and subsequent arbitrary jailing of Medha by foisting baseless charges, including that of ‘abduction’. The brutal lathicharge on hundreds of oustees at Chikalda left about 45 persons injured including a 15 year old girl.
The arrests of villagers-activists Durji S/o Balya (Village Nisarpur), Devandra alias Santu S/o Ambaram (Village Nisarpur) and Vijay S/o Bharat (Village Khaparkheda), on the basis of severe charges including ‘attempt to murder’ is also yet another way to repress people’s struggle. In the past one week a large number of FIRs have been filed against key activists of NBA. On the other hand,the proceedings before the criminal courts is also quite alarming, especially the manner in which the State Govt. is seeking Medha’s externment from the submergence areas, as a ‘pre-condition’ for her bail. All of this is absolutely malevolent and clearly shows that the State is going all-out to crush the peaceful movement of the Sardar Sarovar oustees.
The people of the valley are waging a relentless and courageous battle against an insensitive State. Even yesterday, about 5,000 oustees, mostly women, stormed the streets of Kukshi (MP) and Nandurbar (Maharashtra), along with hundreds of supporters across different cities in MP, demanding an end to this repression and lack of rehabilitation. While we acknowledge with gratitude, the hundreds of solidarity actions across the country and even beyond, in the past few months, we urge you to continue your solidarity in different forms at this crucial juncture of the struggle.
We call upon you all to immediately organize solidarity actions in your cities / towns / villages with the following two demands from the Govt. of Madhya Pradesh and Govt. of India:
- Immediate release of Medha Patkar, Durji, Santu and Vijay, allowing them free access to the submergence villages, end to all forms of terror tactics and repression on NBA.
- No eviction of the SSP oustees, without full rehabilitation and initiate dialogue with NBA.
Kindly also call the Chief Minister of MP and Prime Minister’s Office and flood their twitter accounts with short messages, incorporating the aforesaid demands:
PMO India: @PMOIndia | indiaportal@gov.in , connect@mygov.nic.in | 011-23012312
CM, Madhya Pradesh: @ChouhanShivraj | cm@mp.nic.in | 0755-2441033, 2441581, 2441096
Contact for further details:
Himshi Singh (9867348307) Rahul Yadav (09179617513) Madhuresh (09818905316)
JOHN S MCCAIN COLLIDES WITH OIL TANKER
US Navy has said, its Guided-missile destroyer USS John S McCain has collided with an oil tanker off the coast of Singapore in the early hours today.
It said in a statement that the Destroyer had sustained damage to its port side when it struck the Liberian-flagged vessel. Navy said currently 10 sailors are missing and five injured in the collision and search and rescue efforts are underway in coordination with local authorities.
US Navy has said.
“Initial reports indicate John S. McCain sustained damage to her port side aft,” the US Navy said, noting that the incident happened while “the ship was transiting to a routine port visit in Singapore.”
“The extent of damage and personnel injuries is being determined,” the statement said. The condition of the wounded is yet unknown, the navy said in a follow-up statement.
It is the second collision involving a ship from the Navy’s 7th Fleet in the Pacific in two months. Seven sailors died in June when the USS Fitzgerald and a container ship hit each other in waters off Japan.
INSECURITY, INTOLERANCE & UNSCIENTIFIC APPROACH OF THE STATE
#JawabDo
August 22, 2017
3pm onwards
Deputy Speaker Hall, Constitution Club, Rafi marg, New Delhi
PUBLIC DISCUSSION
Insecurity, Intolerance & Unscientific Approach of the State
Speakers:
Apoorvanand
Comrade D Raja
Comrade Sitaram Yechury
Gauhar Raza
Githa Hariharan
Manoj K Jha
Swami Agnivesh
Chair
Avinash Patil, Executive President MANS
maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti
& Delhi Andhaviswas Unmulan Samiti
—
ANHAD
C-5, Basement, Nizamuddin West,
C-5, Basement, Nizamuddin West,
New Delhi – 110013
Phone – 01141670722
MERKEL:TURKEY’S ‘MISUSE’ OF INTERPOL WARRANTS
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, Turkey’s use of an Interpol arrest warrant to detain a German writer in Spain, telling an election town hall event on Sunday that this amounted to an abuse of the international police agency.
Dogan Akhanli was stopped in Spain on Saturday after Ankara issued a “red notice”. The German-Turkish writer was released on Sunday but must remain in Madrid while Spain assesses Turkey’s extradition request.
“It is not right and I’m very glad that Spain has now released him,” Merkel said. “We must not misuse international organisations like Interpol for such purposes.”
Relations between Turkey and the European Union have been under growing strain since last year’s failed military coup in Turkey. European-Turkish nationals are among the 50,000 people detained since then in what critics condemn as an indiscriminate crackdown by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Merkel has been more muted in her criticism of Erdogan than other German politicians, with critics charging her with being beholden to Erdogan because of Turkey’s role as a buffer against a renewed flood of Syrian war refugees arriving in Europe.
“(Dogan’s) is one of many cases, unfortunately,” Merkel said, in a sharpening of her tone toward Ankara. “That’s why we have massively changed our Turkish policy recently… because it’s quite unacceptable that Erdogan does this.”
On Saturday Erdogan urged Turks in Germany to “teach a lesson” to Germany’s “anti-Turkish” mainstream parties in next month’s parliamentary election, despite German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel’s warning he should keep out of German politics.
“Who are you to talk to the president of Turkey? Talk to Turkey’s foreign minister. Know your place,” Erdogan said at a rally for his AK Party in the southwestern province of Denizli.
European countries with large Turkish diasporas have grown increasingly uneasy at what they see as Ankara’s attempts to use ethnic Turkish populations to influence domestic politics.
“President Erdogan is trying to instrumentalise ethnic Turkish communities, especially in German and Austria,” Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz told Die Welt newspaper. “He polarises and brings Turkish conflicts into the EU.”
The final days before elections in the Netherlands this year were overshadowed by violent protests by local affiliates of Erdogan’s party. German security officials have expressed concern about a possible repetition in Germany.
Interpol did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Merkel’s remarks.
DHARMENDRA PRADHAN FLAGS OFF MOBILE MEDICAL UNITS
Posted: 20 Aug 2017 04:53 AM PDT
Hon’ble MoS (I/C), P&NG Shri Dharmendra Pradhan flags off Mobile Medical Units (MMUs)MMUs to provide doorstep healthcare services in villages of Odisha
Each MMU to have a doctor, nurse, medicines, can function as ambulance too
Bhubaneswar, August 20, 2017: Seeking to provide doorstep healthcare facilities in rural Odisha, Hon’ble Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas (Independent Charge) Shri Dharmendra Pradhan today flagged off 11 Mobile Medical Units (MMUs) which will travel across villages in the state providing free primary healthcare services.
Six of these MMUs, which are specially equipped Tempo Traveler vehicles, have been supported by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. and four by GAIL (India) Limited as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Each MMU will have a qualified Doctor (minimum MBBS), nurse (ANM), laboratory technician, pharmacist, essential medicines, ddiagnostic kit (Swashtya Jaanch Machine) and information and awareness material on health and hygiene. Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited has also supported the initiative with one mobile Medical Unit.
The MMUs are GPS enabled so that their movement can be tracked on a real-time basis. The project is designed to cover villages in a range of 25 to 40 kms from its base location. One MMU can cover 4 to 5 villages in a day on a regular basis and can cater to the health needs of 90 to 100 people on an average. In emergencies, they can also function as a referral clinic and as ambulance also.
The facilities extended through the MMU will also include quarterly eye-screening and medical health check-up camps, free distribution of Moksha Sanitary Napkins to adolescent girls and women in villages, free distribution of Shuddhu tablets for purification of water and IEC material for creating awareness on Swachhata, health and hygiene issues.
GAIL has deployed the four MMUs as part of its CSR initiative Project Arogya (Wellness) which provides nutrition, health and sanitation and drinking water facilities. They will primarily provide services to villages along the GAIL natural gas pipelines being constructed in Odisha under the Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga project, i.e., in the districts of Cuttack, Jajpur, Angul and Dhenkenal. The project will be implemented through Wockhardt Foundation.
The Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga project, which is presently under construction, will connect eastern India to the country’s Natural Gas Grid through the Jagdishpur – Haldia & Bokaro – Dhamra Pipeline (JHBDPL). The pipeline will pass through five states, i.e. Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal and the longest stretch – 762 kms – will be built in Odisha.
GAIL is also implementing the City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack to provide environment-friendly Piped Natural Gas for households and industries and Compressed Natural Gas for vehicles.
CORPORATE FEUDS, FRAUDS WITHIN CRIPPLING INDIAN ECONOMY
August20, 2017 (C) Ravinder Singh progressindia2015@gmail.com
There was sudden Explosion of ‘Corporate Feuds’ last week, Raymond, Tata, Mistry, Infosys – all reported in ET but Swaminathan Aiyar ignored them all because of Ignorance & Incompetence. It was shocking Tata Group companies were giving Preference to Family Group Companies and to Shapoorji Pallonji Group than competitive bidding.
There is no old family run business ‘Free of Feuds and Frauds within’ – Ambani, Birla, Bajaj, Thapar, Singhania, Goenka, Shriram, 99% of all, some going back 5-6 generation. All due to Control Over the Company and Income Sharing. Even first generation Corporate – INFOSYS has internal feud due to false ego.
This has led to INEFFICIENCY – these Corporate rarely Engage Professional Experts to be CEO of the Company –Mukesh Ambani with many close relations would be in Key Management Positions which they normally don’t deserve at all. These have Crippling Effect on Indian Economy –
Ø These Family Businesses are Most Inefficient in Use of Capital,
Ø These Family Businesses don’t TRUST outside professionals,
Ø These Family Businesses NEGLECT R&D and Avoid Risk Taking,
Ø These Family Businesses SOURCE/Sell Products through Family Companies,
Ø These Family Businesses AVOID creating new jobs.
Corporate Family Feuds & Frauds had HURT India the most are responsible for Gross Failures in every respect.
My own experiences are eye opener –
1974 – Working in QC department I found Maintenance Deficiencies at Bharat Steel Tube – Raunaq Group company and offered to PROVIDE TECH SOLUTIONS – I was asked to resign. Later topped Zenith Steel Tube (Birla) competition,Indian Steel Tubes (Tata), Jain Tube were other Companies who could have benefit from it. Swaraj Paul too run Steel Tube Mill in UK.
1975 – Invented ‘Efficient Kerosene Stove’ – NRDC, Indian Oil were interested in cheating than manufacturingCommercial Scale Technically Sound Product – TERI (Tata) alone took foreign Funding for over 40 yrs from over 50 sources didn’t produce a Commercial product.
1976 – Working at BTPS noticed TRF (Tata) Coal Handling Plant was substandard – ‘Offered to Improve It’. Desert Cooler was another Invention. Voltas & Rallis were making substandard and Inefficient Desert Cooler – I Offered to Improve it – TATA product delivered 1800 M3/H and Consumed 250W – My Invention intended to deliver 6000 M3/h and consume around 120W power, Saving 80% to 85% Energy Use.
1978 – Invented ‘Irrigation Technologies’ and ‘Urban Water Supply’ – India has FAILED to Develop Such Essential Technologies – CORPORATE LET DOWN Who OWN FACTORIES Get Bulk of BANK CREDITS, Tax Concessions.
GOI must Come Up with Policies That Dismantle Family Group Company Dealings, Support Promotion of New Technologies than Families, Older Companies Must Contribute Max Taxes, Charged Max Interest Rate, Directed to Seek Funds Through IPOs and FD.
GOI is reducing their Interest Burden by Half – and protecting their PPA at up to 5 Times Present Bid Rates in case of Solar Power. Stories annexed here.
Ravinder Singh, Inventor & Consultant, INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES AND PROJECTS
Y-77, Hauz Khas, ND -110016, India. Ph: 091- 9871056471, 9718280435, 9650421857
Ravinder Singh* is a WIPO awarded inventor specializing in Power, Transportation,
Smart Cities, Water, Energy Saving, Agriculture, Manufacturing, Technologies and Projects
