PM to interact with Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar awardees

 According to a press release by the Prime Minister’s Office, digital certificates will be conferred on PMRBP awardees for the years 2022 and 2021 using Blockchain Technology

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) awardees today at 12 noon via video conferencing. According to a press release by the Prime Minister’s Office, digital certificates will be conferred on PMRBP awardees for the years 2022 and 2021 using Blockchain Technology.

Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar is given as recognition to children residing in India, above the age of 5 years and not exceeding 18 years (as on August 31 of respective year) with exceptional abilities and outstanding achievement in 6 fields of innovation, scholastic achievements, sports, arts and culture, social service and bravery, which deserve recognition.

“This year, 29 children from across the country, under different categories of Bal Shakti Puraskar, have been selected for PMRBP-2022. The awardees also take part in the Republic day parade every year. Each awardee of PMRBP is given a medal, a cash prize of Rs 1 Lakh and a certificate. The cash prize will be transferred to the respective accounts of PMRBP 2022 winners,” said the press release..

Jaishankar-Wi meet: India, China agree on 5-point plan to resolve standoff

The Indian Army and the Chinese PLA have been locked in a tense standoff in multiple areas along the LAC in eastern Ladakh since early May

India and China have agreed on a five-point plan for resolving the prolonged border face-off in eastern Ladakh that included abiding by all existing agreements and protocol on management of the frontier, maintaining peace and tranquility and avoiding any action that could escalate matters. The two countries agreed to the plan during talks between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Moscow on Thursday evening on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet.

The Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army(PLA) have been locked in a tense standoff in multiple areas along the Line of Actual Control(LAC) in eastern Ladakh since early May. The Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) issued a joint press statement early on Friday featuring five points which were agreed by both the sides at the “frank and constructive” discussions by the two ministers.

“The two foreign ministers agreed that the current situation in the border areas is not in the interest of either side. They agreed, therefore, that the border troops of both sides should continue their dialogue, quickly disengage, maintain proper distance and ease tensions,” it said…India China Border Row

US to block cotton, tomato imports from China’s Xinjiang over forced labor

The Trump administration announcement of the actions, initially expected on Tuesday, has been put off until later this week because of scheduling issues

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have prepared orders to block imports of cotton and tomato products from western China’s Xinjiang region over allegations they are produced with forced labor, although a formal announcement has been delayed. The Trump administration announcement of the actions, initially expected on Tuesday, has been put off until later this week because of “scheduling issues,” a CBP spokesman said.

The cotton and tomato bans along with five other import bans over alleged Xinjiang forced-labor abuses would be an unprecedented move by CBP and likely stoke tensions between the world’s two largest economies. The “Withhold Release Orders” allow the CBP to detain shipments based on suspicion of forced-labor involvement under long-standing U.S. laws aimed at combating human trafficking, child labor and other human rights abuses.

President Donald Trump’s administration is ratcheting up pressure on China over its treatment of Xinjiang’s Uighur Muslims. The United Nations has said it has credible reports that 1 million Muslims have been detained in camps in the region, where they are put to work.

China denies mistreatment of the Uighurs and says the camps are vocational training centers needed to fight extremism. CBP Executive Assistant Commissioner Brenda Smith told Reuters that the effective import bans would apply to the entire supply chains involving cotton, including cotton yarn, textiles and apparel, as well as tomatoes, tomato paste and other products exported from the region…Read More

WHO in contact with Russia on new Covid-19 vaccine: Spokesman

WHO is in close contact with Russia regarding a possible pre-qualification of the world’s first Covid-19 vaccine, a WHO spokesman said

The World Health Organization (WHO) is in close contact with Russia regarding a possible pre-qualification of the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine, a WHO spokesman said. “We are in close contact with the Russian health authorities and discussions are underway regarding a possible pre-qualification of the vaccine by WHO,” WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said at a virtual press briefing on Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

“The pre-qualification of any vaccine involves rigorous review and evaluation of all the data required for safety and efficacy” in clinical trials, said Jasarevic, adding that at the WHO level, this process would be the same for any vaccine candidate. “Each country has national regulatory bodies that approve the use of vaccines or drugs in its territory,” he said. “Manufacturers are asking for WHO pre-qualification because it is a kind of seal of quality.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that his country has registered the world’s first vaccine against the novel coronavirus. Putin said he hoped that the mass production of the vaccine registered in Russia should begin in the near future, and vaccination will be available to everyone in the country voluntarily…Read Full Story

Iran issues arrest warrant for Trump in relation to Qasem Soleimani’s death

Iran has issued an arrest warrant for US President Donald Trump over the drone strike that killed a top Iranian general in January, CNN reported citing Iran's local media sources on Monday.

Iran has issued an arrest warrant for US President Donald Trump over the drone strike that killed a top Iranian general in January, CNN reported citing Iran's local media sources on Monday. According to Iran's semi-official Fars news agency, Trump is one of 36 people whom Iran has issued arrest warrants for in relation to the death of Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), but the Tehran attorney general Ali Alqasi Mehr said Trump was at the top of the list.

Mehr claimed that Trump would be prosecuted as soon as he stands down presidency after his term ends, Fars reported. Iran also said it had asked Interpol to issue a Red Notice for these 36 individuals, semi-official state news agency ISNA reported. \Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike at Baghdad International Airport in January along with five others, including Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy head of the Iran-backed Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

The strike, condemned by Iran and its allies as an "assassination," raised the spectre of further regional destabilization. A spokesman for Iran's judiciary, Gholam-Hossein Esmaili, announced in early June that an Iranian citizen had been sentenced to death for allegedly working for foreign intelligence agencies. Esmaili claimed that Seyed Mahmoud Mousavi Majd disclosed the whereabouts of Soleimani to US intelligence officials...Read More

‘Don’t be a fool’: Trump in a letter to Erdogan against Syria offensive

White House announced that US Vice President Mike Pence will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on October 17

US President Donald Trump has written a letter to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatening him against Syria offensive and asking him ‘not to be a fool’. In the letter, dated October 9, the President had also urged Erdogan ‘not to be a tough guy.’

“History will look upon you favourably if you get this done the right and humane way. It will look upon you forever as the devil if good things don’t happen. Don’t be a tough guy. Don’t be a fool. I will call you later”, the US President had said in his letter.

Threatening to destroy the Turkish economy, the US President added, “Let’s work out a good deal! You don’t want to be responsible for slaughtering thousands of people, and I don’t want to be responsible for destroying the Turkish economy -and I will. I have already given you a little sample with respect to Pastor Brunson.”

Switching from his aggressive tone,Donald Trump also offered him prospects of a favourable deal. “I have worked hard to solve some of your problems. Don’t let the world down. You can make a great deal. General Mazloum is willing to negotiate with you, and he is willing to make concessions that they would never have made in the past….