CMYK THURSDAY www.thestatesman.com 12 JANUARY 2023 FIND US ONLINE Scan this with your smartphone twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd facebook.com/thestatesman1875 Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘MP AN IDEAL INVESTMENT DESTINATION’ DAY OF ACTION? P6 BIDEN ‘SURPRISED’ GOVT RECORDS FOUND AT OLD OFFICE P8 P10 Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 26 °C and 13 °C respectively. India preferred destination for global investors : Modi RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY PM addresses the MP Global Investors’ Summit in Indore via video message WEATHER Max. 84 % Min. 39 % Max: 25.3 °C (0) SUN RISES 06:19 hrs MOON RISES 20:56 hrs Min: 13.7 °C (-1) SUN SETS 17:11 hrs MOON SETS 09:17 hrs TEMPERATURE A stable government, a decisive government, a government running with the right intentions, shows development at an unprecedented pace STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 JANUARY Govt approves incentive scheme to promote RuPay & BHIM-UPI : The Union Cabinet, chaired by U Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today appro- ved an incentive scheme for the promotion of RuPay Debit Cards and low-value BHIM-UPI transactions (person-to-merchant) for a period of one year from April 2022 with a financial outlay of Rs 2,600 crore.Under the said scheme, acquiring banks will be provided financial incentives, for promoting Point-of-Sale (PoS) and e-commerce transactions using RuPay Debit Cards and lowvalue BHIM-UPI transactions (P2M) for the curPG8 rent financial year. All departing US flights grounded after FAA computer outage Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to visit India at an early date during a telephonic conversation on Wednesday, according to a press release by the Prime Minister's Office. The PM also congratulated Netanyahu for his appointment as the PM of Israel for a sixth time, and wished him a very successful tenure, as per the press release. According to the recent press release, the two leaders during the telephonic conversation expressed satisfaction at the rapid progress in the India-Israel strategic partnership in recent years and agreed on the potential for further strengthening strategic cooperation in a variety of areas. Prime Minister Modi, earlier on December 29, had also congratulated Netanyahu, through a tweet, on being sworn in as the Prime Minister of Israel and said he looks forward to working to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries. "Heartiest congratulations Netanyahu for forming the government. Looking forward to working together to strengthen our strategic partnership," PM Modi tweeted. Likud Party leader Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Israel on December 29, hoping to deliver political stability after five general elections since 2019. Israeli Ambassador to India Naor Gilon recently said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's historic visit to Israel in 2017 broke the ice between the two nations and the famous picture of him with exIsraeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is one of the pictures that will stay as a symbol of how things are done. tination.The PM also spoke about India's strong macroeconomic fundamentals and mentioned in this regard the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which claimed that India would be among the fastest-growing economies in the G-20 group this year. Quoting Morgan Stanley, he said India was moving towards becoming the world's third-largest economy in the next 45 years. He further added that the CEO of McKinsey has declared that not just the present decade but the century itself belonged to India. Emphasising India’s reliance on the strength of its private sector, Modi informed that many strategic sectors like defence, mining and space have opened up for private players. He further added that dozens of labour laws have been incorporated into four codes which was a major step in itself. He also spoke about the “unprecedented efforts” that were under way at both the central and the state levels to reduce the burden of compliance and informed that about 40,000 compliances have been removed in the last few years. Highlighting the modern and multimodal infrastructural development in the nation that give rise to investment possibilities, the PM said the speed of construction of national highways has doubled in the last eight years along with the number of operational airports in the country. He also touched upon the unprecedented improvement in the handling capacity and turnaround time of India's ports. NEW DELHI, 11 JANUARY THUMBNAILS JCO among three Army soldiers killed in snow mishap : A junior commissioned officer (JCO) of the Army was among three soldiers who were killed on Wednesday when they slipped into a deep gorge in the Machhal Sector of north Kashmir's Kupwara district.Two of these killed soldiers were from Himachal Pradesh and one from Jammu. They have been identified as Naib Subedar Parshotam Kumar, Havaldar Amrik Singh and Sepoy Amit Sharma. oting that India was receiving a record-breaking FDI, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today declared that a strong democracy, young demography and political stability in the country have resulted in international financial institutions and global investors showing strong optimism towards the country. A stable and decisive government running with the right intentions has brought about development at an unprecedented pace, he remarked as he threw light on the last eight years during which, he claimed, the speed and scale of reforms have increased continuously.He highlighted India’s decisions that boost ease N of living and ease of doing business and said “institutions and credible voices that track the global economy have unprecedented confidence in India.” The PM was addressing the Global Investors’ Summit in Indore via video message. The summit will showcase the diverse investment opportunities in Madhya Pradesh. Giving examples of the trust shown in India by global organisations, he noted that the IMF saw India as a bright spot in the global economy while the World Bank believed India was in a better position to deal with global headwinds than many other countries. He also referred to a survey conducted by a prestigious international bank which found that a majority of the investors preferred India as their investment des- Judiciary cannot legislate, Legislature cannot script a judicial verdict :Dhankhar SNS & AGENCIES JAIPUR, 11 JANUARY At the 83rd conference of All India Presiding Officers being held in Jaipur, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot discussed the challenges of judicial interference in legislative proceedings. They also called for decorum amongst the MPs and MLAs while running the House. The Vice President expressed his displeasure over the cancellation of the law by the Supreme Court which was passed by Parliament. Dhankhar said that in 1973 a very wrong tradition started.“It was in 1973, in the Kesavananda Bharati case, that the Supreme Court evolved for the first time the right of the courts to strike down constitutional amendments that violated what it called the 'Basic Structure', or the fundamental architecture of the Constitution. The power of the Parliament to amend the constitution and deal with legislation is not subject to any other authority. This is the lifeline of a democracy. I am sure this will engage your thoughtful consideration," he said. “I want to say with respect to the court that I do not agree with this, the House can make changes. This House should tell whether it can be done,” he stated. Dhankhar said, “When I took charge as the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, I had said that neither the executive can see the law, nor the court can interfere. If any institution invalidates the law made by Parliament on any ground, then it will not be good for democracy. It would be difficult to say that we are a democratic country.” He added that in subsequent years, the highest court delivered significant rulings on matters that it held pivotal to this "Basic Structure" and in the process, parliamentary sovereignty was compromised. The most recent and prominent judicial manifestation of the "basic structure doctrine" was on 16th October 2015, when the highest court of the land in a 4-1 majority verdict, held both the 99th Constitution Amendment Act, 2014, and the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act, 2014, unconstitutional on the premise of being in violation of the basic structure. History of sorts was created in Parliament with respect to the NJAC as there was complete unanimity in the Lok Sabha. Centre names new food security scheme as PMGKAY GANGASAGAR-BOUND STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW YORK, 11 JANUARY NEW DELHI, 11 JANUARY A computer outage at the Federal Aviation Administration brought flights to a standstill across the U.S. on Wednesday, with hundreds of delays quickly cascading through the system at airports nationwide.The FAA ordered all U.S. flights to delay departures until 9 a.m. Eastern, though airlines said they were aware of the situation and had already begun grounding flights. At 8 a.m. Eastern, there were more than 2,500 delayed flights within, into or out of the US, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware, exceeding the number of all delayed flights on the previous day. More than 150 have been cancelled.AP SEE PG10 P12 PM invites Netanyahu to visit India SNS & AGENCIES Full Moon on 22 January Light and sound show at Victoria Memorial in Kolkata on Wednesday.  SNS ‘OUR DISCIPLINE IN FIRST TEN OVERS WAS LACKING’ The Centre has named the new integrated food security scheme launched on 1 January 2023 as “Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY)”. The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had approved the scheme for providing free foodgrains to Antodaya Ann Yojna (AAY) & Primary Household (PHH) beneficiaries. The implementation of the scheme started on 1 January, benefitting more than 80 crore poor and the poorest of the poor. Keeping in view the welfare of the beneficiaries and in order to maintain uniformity across the states, free Sadhus seen at the transit camp on their way to attend Gangasagar Mela, in Kolkata.  ANI The central government will spend more than Rs 2 lakh crore in 2023 as food subsidies under NFSA and other welfare schemes, to remove the financial burden of the poor and the poorest of the poor. foodgrains will be provided under PMGKAY for the year 2023 to all PHH and AAY beneficiaries, as per entitlement under the National Food Security Act (NFSA). The integrated scheme will strengthen the provisions of NFSA, 2013 in terms of accessibility, affordability and availability of foodgrains for the poor. For the effective and uniform implementation of NFSA 2013, the PMGKAY will subsume the two subsidy schemes of the Department of Food & Public Distribution (a) Food Subsidy to FCI (b) food subsidy for decentralised procurement states dealing with procurement, allocation and delivery of free foodgrains to the states under NFSA. Necessary steps have already been taken for smooth implementation of the PMGKAY in the field, i.e. necessary notification has been issued for making the price of foodgrains zero for AAY and PHH beneficiaries, resolution of technical issues at Fair Price Shops (FPS), advisory related to margin to the Fair Price Shop Dealers, zero prices in the print receipts given to beneficiaries etc, an official release said. PM to flag off world’s longest river cruise, MV Ganga Vilas on 13 Jan Air India incident: Court dismisses bail plea, says conduct of accused shocked civic consciousness STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE SNS & AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 11 JANUARY NEW DELHI, 11 JANUARY Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the World’s Longest River Cruise, MV Ganga Vilas, and inaugurate a Tent City at Varanasi on 13th January at 10.30 am via video conferencing. He will also lay foundation stones for several other inland waterways projects worth more than Rs 1000 crores during the event.MV Ganga Vilas begins its journey fromVaranasi in Uttar Pradesh and will travel around 3,200 km in 51 days to reach Dibrugarh in Assam via Bangladesh, sailing across 27 river-systems in India and Bangladesh. MV Ganga Vilas has three decks, 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists, with all luxury amenities. The maiden voyage has 32 tourists from Switzerland signing up for The Magistrate Court of Delhi's Patiala House Court onWednesday while dismissing the bail plea of accused Shankar Mishra said the alleged act of accused of relieving himself upon the complainant is utterly disgusting and repulsive. "The alleged act in itself is sufficient to outrage the modesty of any woman. Egregious conduct of the accused has shocked the civic consciousness and needs to be deprecated, said Metropolitan Magistrate Komal Garg. As per the allegations, the accused was voluntarily drunk and had consumed alcohol during the flight and the said fact has not been denied by the applicant. The alleged act in itself prima facie reflects the intention of the accused, added the Court.Further, as per the record, the accused had failed the entire length of the journey.The MV Ganga Vilas cruise is curated to bring out the best of the country to be showcased to the world. The 51 days cruise is planned with visits to 50 tourist spots including World Heritage Sites, National Parks, River Ghats, and major cities like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Guwahati in Assam. The journey will give the tourists an opportunity to embark upon an experiential voyage and indulge in the art, culture, history, and spirituality of India and Bangladesh.In line with PM’s endeavour to boost river cruise tourism, the huge untapped potential of river cruise will get unlocked with the launch of this service and it will herald a new age of river cruise tourism for India. The Tent City has been conceptualised on the banks of River Ganga to tap the potential of tourism in the region. The project has been developed opposite city ghats and provide accommodation and cater to the increased tourists influx in Varanasi, especially since the inauguration of Kashi Vishwanath Dham. to join the investigation even after the notice under section 41A Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) being issued to him and his presence could be secured only upon the execution of NBWs. Therefore, the conduct of the accused does not inspire confidence, noted the Court. It has also come on record that the accused has tried contacting the victim and the possibility of the accused influencing the witnesses cannot be ruled out. Further, as per the report of IO, the other witnesses are yet to be interrogated CMYK and the investigation is at a very initial stage, said the court in order.During detailed arguments, appeared for Mishra, Advocate Manu Sharma submitted, "I couldn't control my drink but the unzipping was not for sexual desire. The complainant's case does not put him as a lustful man. The trial will take time but the man has been sacked from his job after these allegations. He is not at flight risk." "My client has clearly and willingly participated in any inquiries related to the alleged event, with the intention to establish his innocence and will continue to act in this bona fide manner and assist the police in the investigation into this matter," submitted Adv Manu Sharma, lawyer of Shankar Mishra.However, Delhi Police opposed the bail plea of Shankar Mishra. Police said, if he enlarged on bail, he can influence the complainant. Public Prosecutor representing Delhi Police submits that 164 statements of the complainant have been recorded along with several others. More statements are yet to be recorded soon. The Magistrate Court was also informed by the Delhi Police that, it has moved a revision plea against the denial of police remand which is listed tomorrow.Delhi Police while opposing the bail plea of Shankar Mishra said that several crew members and others are yet to be examined. Advocate Ankur Mahendru appeared for the complainant and also opposed the bail plea of Shankar Mishra submitted that the father of the accused is sending me messages and is deleting them. “He writes 'Karma will hit you back' and then deletes it,” said Mahendru. IMD: Cold wave conditions likely in northern, central states after 14 Jan NEW DELHI, 11 JANUARY The India Meteorological Department on Wednesday predicted cold wave conditions after January 14 for central and northern parts of the country.The cold wave conditions are very likely in isolated pockets over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi and Rajasthan on January 15, 16, said the IMD. It also added that a fresh spell of dense to very dense fog is very likely in isolated pockets during night and morning hours over Punjab and Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi during January 1416.The IMD said that cold-day to severe cold-day conditions are very likely to continue in some parts of Uttar Pradesh on January 11, while cold-day conditions are also very likely to continue in isolated pockets over Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana,Chandigarh and Delhi on January 11 and over Bihar on January 11-13. “The rise in minimum temperatures by about 2 degrees Celsius very is likely over many parts of Northwest India by January 12 morning; no significant change by January 13 and gradual fall by 35 degrees Celsius during January 14-16. The gradual rise in minimum temperatures by 2-4 degrees Celsius is very likely over many parts of East India during the next three days and no significant change thereafter. A gradual rise in minimum temperatures by 2-3 degrees Celsius is very likely over many parts of Central India during the next three days and fall by 2-4 degrees Celsius thereafter”, said the IMD. However, it added that no significant change is likely in minimum temperatures over Gujarat state during the next 24 hours and a gradual fall by 3-5 degrees Celsius SNS & AGENCIES thereafter.