1. Govt Advises Amarnath Yatris to Leave Kashmir
In an unprecedented move, the Governor’s administration in Jammu and Kashmir Friday suspended the annual 2019 Amarnath Yatra ahead of time and asked tourists in the state to leave immediately. The government has cited intelligence inputs of terror threats as the reason behind restricting the pilgrimage nearly a fortnight ahead of its scheduled termination.
An order issued Friday by Principal Secretary Home, Shaleen Kabra advised the tourists and Amarnath yatris in the state to “curtail their stay in the valley immediately and take necessary measures to return as soon as possible”.
Government sources told The Indian Express that the security threat to the yatra is “significantly high” and despite the extensive preparations and the heavy troop deployment, the yatra is being curtailed after “careful consideration”.
(Source: The Indian Express)
2. Bill to Tag Individuals as Terrorists Passed by Rajya Sabha
Parliament on Friday, 2 August, approved crucial amendments to an anti-terror law to designate individuals (as opposed to organisations) as terrorists if they are suspected to have terror links and which empowers the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to seize their assets without requiring the prior permission of state police.
The Rajya Sabha passed the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2019 on Friday with 147 lawmakers voting in favour of the legislation and 42 against it. The Lok Sabha last week passed the bill, which now only requires presidential assent to become law.
The Congress initially demanded that the bill be referred to a select committee for further review, but subsequently voted in favour of its passage.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. Uncle of Unnao Rape Survivor Shifted to Tihar Under CRPF Cover
A day after the Supreme Court directed the CBI to finish the investigation into the crash involving the Unnao rape survivor, her two aunts and their lawyer, the UP government on Friday, 2 August, transferred the rape survivor’s uncle from Rae Bareli prison to the high-security Tihar jail in Delhi.
The survivor’s uncle left Rae Bareli jail around 8:35 pm under a two-layer CRPF security cover and was expected to reach Tihar early on Saturday morning after a ten-hour journey.
DG (prisons) Anand Kumar told TOI that the transfer was done after the SC asked the UP government on Thursday whether the survivor’s uncle should be moved out of Rae Bareli prison. The uncle, who had been lodged in Rae Bareli jail since February, had written several applications to authorities seeking transfer from the prison alleging threat to his life from rape-accused MLA Kuldeep Sengar and his henchmen.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. India Refuses to Accept ‘Impeded’ Access to Kulbhushan Jadhav
India on Friday, 2 August, rejected Pakistan’s offer of consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav, saying it wanted “unimpeded” access, shorn of any riders, to the Indian national in Pakistan’s custody.
Official sources said Pakistan was asked on Thursday to provide consular access to Jadhav “in an environment free from the fear of intimidation and reprisal, in the light of the orders of the International Court of Justice”. This means India doesn’t want the presence of Pakistani officials while Indian officials meet Jadhav.
After its response in the form of a note verbale, India is now awaiting Islamabad’s reaction.
Jadhav has been held and convicted for alleged spying which India has denied.
(Source: The Times of India)
5. Ayodhya Land Dispute: Mediation Fails, Daily Hearing from 6 August
Announcing that attempts to find a mediated solution to the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute have not made any headway, the Supreme Court on Friday, 2 August, fixed 6 August to commence day-to-day hearing on appeals challenging the 2010 verdict of the Allahabad High Court on the division of the disputed Ayodhya site.
“We have received the report submitted by Justice (retd) FMI Kalifulla, Chairman of the Mediation Committee. We have perused the same. The mediation proceedings have not resulted in any final settlement. We, therefore, have to proceed with the hearing of the cases/appeals, which will commence on and from 6.8.2019 (Tuesday),” Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, heading a five-judge Constitution Bench, said.
CJI Gogoi is due to retire on 7 November and Friday’s decision will mean that the hearing will have to be completed and a judgment delivered during his tenure, failing which the matter will have to be heard afresh.
(Source: The Indian Express)
6. Terrorists Moved by Pakistan Ahead of Imran’s US Visit Are Back At LoC
Intelligence reports and satellite imagery of the line of control bordering Pakistan reveal that the country cleared all launch pads of terrorists in the run-up to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to Washington last week – and then brought them back after his return.
“For several days, we got reports saying there are no terrorists at the launch pads waiting to infiltrate into India. It was very surprising because the period between May and October is when infiltration bids are made,” a senior army officer who has seen the intelligence reports said on condition of anonymity.
Khan met US President Donald Trump last week on 22 July. The assessment in Delhi is that Pakistan did not want any skirmish on LoC to spoil the high-level meeting, a first since 2015.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
7. Reviving Sentiment Could Be Key to Battling Economic Slowdown
High-frequency economic indicators suggest that the current economic slowdown is likely to worsen. The core-sector industry index grew just 0.2 percent in June. Maruti Suzuki reported a 36 percent annual decline in car sales for July. The stock market has gone into a tailspin after the budget on 5 July.
A long-term comparison of key economic indicators shows that things have been worse.
GDP has been going down for four consecutive quarters beginning June 2018. Since June 1997, there have been only two instances of GDP growth declining for five consecutive quarters. To be sure, the growth rate in the current phase is still higher than what it was during those periods. However, it is also a fact that the veracity of current GDP numbers is the subject of a controversy.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
8. In a First, Census to Seek Info on Phones, Net Access
Census 2021 will, for the first time, seek information from households on smartphones, DTH/cable television connections, internet access, number of members of households having bank accounts, ownership of house other than rented accommodation, bottled water availability and mobile numbers as part of the house-listing procedure.
Importantly, the latest census will not collect caste data. While the socio-economic caste census (SECC) was conducted alongside Census 2011, the outcome of the caste census is yet to be made public.
An official said the SECC census threw up 40 lakh permutations and combinations of various castes cited by the respondents, and that the social justice ministry was still struggling with tabulating the same by eliminating anomalies that include different spellings of the same caste and respondents citing gotra as caste.
(Source: The Times of India)
9. UGC Recommends Institution of Eminence Status to DU, IIT-Madras, Kharagpur
The University Grants Commission on Friday, 2 August, announced names of all 20 Institution of Eminence (IOEs). The list includes IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi and IISc, besides the private institutes BITS-Pilani, Manipal Academy of Higher Institutes and Jio Institutes.
UGC has recommended that Delhi University, BHU, Hyderabad University, IIT-Madras and IIT-Kharagpur be granted IOE status by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), officials said.
Among universities that have got the UGC recommendations for issuing the letter of intent are Jamia Hamdard University, OP Jindal University and Shiv Nadar University. Meanwhile, Aligarh Muslim University, Tezpur University and Ashoka University have failed to make the cut for the IOE status, officials said.
(Source: The Indian Express)
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