TMC MP Nusrat Jahan tests COVID-19 positive, cancels all public meetings

Actress turned Trinamool Congress MP Nusrat Jahan tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday. Post her diagnosis, Jahan has canceled all her public meetings and events. 

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Explosion at quarry site in Karnataka: NGT directs committee to submit report

The National Green Tribunal has formed a six-member committee and directed it to submit a report in connection with a gelatin explosion at a quarry site in Chikkaballapur in Karnataka that left six people dead. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice A K Goel took note of a media report and issued notices to the Central Pollution Control Board, state pollution control board, Director Mines Karnataka and the District Magistrate Chikkaballapur.

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COVID-19: Pune extends night curfew till March 14; schools to remain shut

In view of the spike in COVID-19 cases in Pune, the Pune district administration on Sunday extended the night curfew and shutdown of schools till March 14. The essential services are exempted from the curfew. "COVID-19 restrictions imposed in the Pune city till February 28 have been extended to 14 March," said Murlidhar Mohol Mayor Pune.

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PM Modi congratulates Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on successful launch of Amazonia-1 satellite

Terming the successful launch of Brazil's Amazonia-1 satellite by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)-C51 as a "historic moment", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday congratulated President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro. "Congratulations President Jair Bolsonaro on the successful launch of Brazil's Amazonia-1 satellite by PSLV-C51. This is a historic moment in our space cooperation and my felicitations to the scientists of Brazil," PM Modi said in a tweet.

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Congress collapsing across India due to dynasty politics: Amit Shah

Lambasting the erstwhile Congress government in Puducherry, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday alleged V Narayansamy, who headed it, gave "cut money" to the "Gandhi family" from Rs 15,000 crore Central funds. Addressing an election rally of BJP, an enclave of the union territory, Shah claimed the Congress government, which collapsed earlier this month after losing majority, indulged in "petty politics" over Central schemes meant for Puducherry.

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WB polls: 3,064 booths designated for 9 assembly seats across West Bardhaman district

As many as 3,064 booths have been designated for nine assembly seats in West Bardhaman district for the upcoming West Bengal polls, 618 more than the last assembly elections, in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. While addressing a press conference in Asansol, District Magistrate Purnendu Kumar Maji informed that the total number of voters is 22,31,749, out of which 11,46,969 are male, 10,74,732 are female and 48 are third gender voters.

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Fire breaks out at Eco Retreat facility in Odisha

A major fire broke out at the Eco Retreat facility at Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in Odisha''s Angul district on Sunday, official sources said. There was no injury or loss of life in the fire incident, the tourism department said in its Twitter post, adding that safety of tourists was paramount and steps will be taken to ensure that no recurrence of such an incident happens in future.

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Centre to launch campaign to promote water conservation: PM Modi on 'Mann Ki Baat'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the Centre's Jal Shakti Ministry is about to launch a 100-day campaign called 'Catch the Rain' to promote water conservation in the country. The Prime Minister made the statement while addressing this year's second 'Mann Ki Baat' radio programme.

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Odisha govt allows operas & open air theatres with a ceiling of 2,000 persons

The Odisha government has allowed holding of operas and shows in open air theatres subject to a ceiling of 2,000 persons, in its March guideline issued to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the state.

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Kumbh Mela Haridwar 2021: Legal action to be taken against COVID-19 SOP violators

Legal action will be taken against attendants of the Kumbh Mela who violate COVID-19 Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Department informed on Sunday, adding that SOPs will remain in force throughout the duration of the event.

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With 16,752 new COVID-19 cases, India records biggest single-day jump in 30 days

India's COVID-19 tally climbed to 1,10,96,731 on Sunday with 16,752 new infections, the highest in the last 30 days, according to Union health ministry data. The death toll mounted to 1,57,051 with 113 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed. The country had recorded 18,855 new infections on January 29. The active caseload further increased to 1,64,511. It constitutes 1.48 per cent of the total infections, the data stated.

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96% people faced drop in earnings during lockdown: Survey

Nearly 96 per cent of the people surveyed under a food rights campaign in Maharashtra faced a drop in their earnings during the coronavirus-induced lockdown last year, claims a social body. Job losses and non-availability of casual work were the key reasons for this, and every fifth respondent was forced to go hungry because of no money to buy food, Mukta Srivastava, the state's convener for the Anna Adhikar Abhiyan, told reporters here on Saturday.

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IT dept detects Rs 220 crore black income after raids on TN-based tiles manufacturer

The Income Tax Department has detected undisclosed income of about Rs 220 crore after it raided leading tiles and sanitaryware manufacturer based in Chennai. The action was carried out on February 26 and a total of 20 premises in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Kolkata were searched and surveyed.

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Hisar's Khap panchayat to increase milk price in protest against farm laws, fuel rates

Khap panchayat in Hisar on Saturday decided to increase the rate of milk against farm laws and rising fuel prices. "We have decided to give milk at the price of Rs 100/litre. We urge dairy farmers to sell milk at the same price to government cooperative societies," said the Panchayat spokesperson.

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Delhi's law and order situation in serious turmoil, says Kejriwal on recent incidents of crime

Citing recent incidents of crime in the national capital including the murder of an 8-year old girl in Khichripur and an attack on a 17-year-old boy in Kalkaji, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said that "Delhi's law and order situation is in a serious turmoil" and appealed to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal to take appropriate action to address the situation.

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PSLV-C51/Amazonia-1 mission to be launched from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh

The PSLV-C51/Amazonia-1 mission will be launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh today. PSLV-C51 rocket, which is the 53rd mission of PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle), will launch Amazonia-1 of Brazil as primary satellite and 18 co-passenger satellites from Sriharikota, about 100 km from Chennai, Bengaluru-headquartered Indian Space Research Organisation said in a statement.

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JP Nadda on 2-day visit to Varanasi from today

BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda will be on a two-day visit to Varanasi from Sunday where he will participate in various programmes of the party and meet BJP MPs and MLAs also.

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3 more COVID-19 clusters identified in Bengaluru, 33 new cases reported

With 33 COVID-19 positive cases reported till Saturday, in three clusters at Agragami College, Sambharam College and residents of Purva Venezia apartment of Yelahanka New Town, a northern suburb of Bengaluru, the Bengaluru civic body is contemplating to intensifying testing, tracking and treating. It was due to students coming from Kerala to study Agragami College and Sambharam College are responsible for the spread of pandemic, while in Purva Venezia apartment, it was spread from travellers from Maharashtra, who tested positive.

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PM Modi to address 2021's second 'Mann Ki Baat' today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address 2021's second Mann Ki Baat on Sunday at 11 AM. "Tune in tomorrow at 11 AM. #MannKiBaat," tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday.

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COVID-19: Odisha mandates home isolation for people coming from THESE 5 states

The Odisha government on Saturday said that week-long home isolation will be mandatory for people coming to the state by plane or train from five high-risk states, modifying its previous order of imposing the precautionary measures to those arriving from 12 states. The five high-risk states are Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, PK Mohapatra said.

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Rakesh Tikait to tour 5 states in March to drum up support for farmers' protest

Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait will be touring five states in March to drum up support for the ongoing farmers' protest against Centre's new agriculture laws, a Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) office-bearer said on Saturday.

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Will not participate in 'shahi snan' in Yamuna unless water is clean: Hindu seers

Mathura, Feb 27: Underlining the Yamuna’s acute water pollution, three prominent Hindu seers of the country on Saturday vowed not to take another bath on other shahi snan’ days during the ongoing Vrindavan Kumbh near here unless the river water is clean. The declaration to boycott the shahi snan in the river on three remaining auspicious days — March 9, 13 and 25 — and thereafter during subsequent Kumbh fairs was made by the chief of the Ayodhya-based Maha Nirvani Akhara, Mahant Dharm Das.

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Breaking News February 28 | LIVE

Daily dose of news plays a very important role in our daily life. For some people, the morning is incomplete without knowing what's happening across the world. Some digital-savvy people have a habit of consuming news even when they are travelling or in their free time. In today's world, where people rely on news websites for everything that's happening around, IndiaTV News provides you all the breaking news, latest news, breaking story videos, Live TV and top shows of IndiaTV, country's leading news channel on a single platform to ensure you don't miss anything important.

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Covid-19 vaccine at private hospitals likely to cost Rs 300-500. Details

The NITI Aayog has promulgated a price range of Rs 300-500 for two Covid vaccines that would be available for the priority group at private facilities in the third phase of vaccination set to begin from March 1, sources privy to the development told IANS, adding that the Bharat Biotech's Covaxin would cost a bit higher.

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'On 2nd May, hold me to my last...': Prashant Kishore tweets day after EC's poll dates announcement

Political strategist Prashant Kishore, a day after the election commission announced assembly polls scheduled for 4 states and Puducherry, reiterated Trinamool Congress' election slogan Bengal only wants its own daughters adding one of the key battles for democracy in India will be fought in West Bengal. Kishore is overlooking TMC's election campaign in the state. 

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Rahul Gandhi attacks Modi over Sino-India standoff; says Chinese know PM is 'scared'

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Sino-India border standoff, charging him with being 'scared' of the eastern neighbour.

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Opinion | Why is Mamata objecting to eight phase poll in Bengal?

On Friday, soon after the Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora announced the assembly poll schedule for West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, Trinamool Congress Mamata Banerjee alleged at a press conference that the Election Commission was acting in collusion with the BJP and the dates have been announced suit the saffron party. 

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West Bengal: Fire at warehouse in Kolkata's Bowbazar

A fire broke out at a warehouse in a building in central Kolkata's Bowbazar area on Saturday afternoon, police said. The warehouse, located adjacent to a computer store and an eatery on Khetra Das Lane, was used for storing computer goods, they said.

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MP cabinet approves law to give life imprisonment to food adulterators

Madhya Pradesh Cabinet on Friday approved a Penal Law (Madhya Pradesh Amendment) Bill, 2021 to give life imprisonment to food adulterators. Informing about it, the state's Home Minister Narottam Mishra said, "Madhya Pradesh Cabinet has approved Penal Law (Madhya Pradesh Amendment) Bill, 2021 to give life imprisonment to food adulterators."

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PM Modi asks toy manufacturers to use less plastic, more eco-friendly material

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday asked the toy manufacturers to use less plastic and more eco-friendly material, in addition, to focus on innovation. Inaugurating the first India Toy Fair 2021, Modi said, "We have to become Aatmanirbhar in the toy sector and also cater to the global market".

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Delhi's air quality improves to 'poor' category, mercury settles at 17.8 degrees C

The air quality of the national capital has improved to the 'poor' category with the Air Quality Index (AQI) dropping to 211 on the morning on Saturday, said Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR). The concentrations of PM 2.5 and PM 10 stood at 201 in the 'moderate' category and 94 in the 'poor' category respectively.

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COVID-19: DGCA extends suspension of international commercial passenger flights till Mar 31

Aviation regulator DGCA on Friday extended the suspension of international commercial passenger flight services till March 31. Scheduled international flight operations were suspended from March 23 last year in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

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Delhi: 17-year-old boy stabbed for objecting to sister's molestation in Kalkaji, hospitalised

In a shocking incident, a 17-year-old boy was beaten up and stabbed for allegedly opposing three boys who were stalking his sister and passing "indecent remarks" on her in southeast Delhi's Kalkaji area, police said on Saturday. The incident took place near a school on Friday.

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India records 16,488 new COVID-19 cases, 113 deaths in past 24 hours

The daily rise in coronavirus infections was registered above 16,000 for the third consecutive day on Saturday, pushing India''s case tally to 1,10,79,979, while the recoveries surged to 1,07,63,451, according to the latest Union Health Ministry data. 

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Delhi Police ASI shoots himself dead inside PCR van

An Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) of Delhi Police allegedly shot himself dead with his service pistol in a PCR van while he was on duty at Zakhira flyover in west Delhi on Saturday morning, officials said.

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Election vans vandalised, LEDs stolen in Bengal's Kadapara; BJP posts video, accuses TMC

The Bharatiya Janata Party's Lokkho Sonar Bangla raths were vandalised in West Bengal. According to the saffron party, the supporters of the Trinamool Congress entered its warehouse on Friday night and damaged its publicity vans. Some LEDs were also stolen from the spot. The incident was reported from Kadapara in Kolkata and an official complaint has now been filed in this regard with the Kolkata Police. However, the local police have yet not issued a statement in this regard. 

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Fire at cosmetics factory in Delhi's Pratap Nagar, one dead

One person has been killed in a massive fire that broke out at a cosmetics factory in Pratap Nagar area of Delhi's Gulabi Bagh area in the early hours of Saturday. 

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Experts warn against non-adherence to safety norms amid rising COVID-19 cases in Delhi

Just as the Delhi government had asserted that the coronavirus pandemic had been "defeated" in the national capital, cases are on the rise again dramatically, as doctors on Friday warned that the numbers could go up in the coming months and urged people to continue to wear masks and follow COVID-19 safety norms. Many doctors at leading healthcare facilities here cautioned that the rise was "alarming" with an "upsurge" in the number of patients going there in the last couple of days after the cases had shown a downward spiral for nearly six weeks.

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Rajasthan: Sub-inspector suspended for sacrificing goat at family function in Baran

A sub-inspector from Kota district was suspended on Friday with disciplinary action initiated against him in nearby Baran district after a video of him sacrificing a goat was criticised on social media, officials said.

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PM Modi to inaugurate India Toy Fair via video conferencing today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the India Toy Fair 2021 on Saturday at 11 AM via video conferencing. "Toys play a significant part in the development of a child's mind and also help improve psychomotor and cognitive skills in children. In his Mann ki Baat address in August 2020, the Prime Minister had said that toys not only augment activity but also give flight to aspirations," read the press release by Prime Minister's Office.

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R-Day violence: Farmer's death during tractor rally not due to gunshot, says Delhi Police

The Delhi Police on Friday informed the high court that the death of a farmer whose tractor overturned during the tractor rally on Republic Day was due to shock and hemorrhage as a result of head injury, and not due to any gunshot injury. The police stated this in the status report filed in a petition moved by deceased Navreet Singh's grandfather seeking a court-monitored SIT probe into the death. He asserted that Navreet Singh was allegedly shot by the policemen, due to which he lost control of the tractor.

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People joining AAP after seeing work done by Kejriwal govt: Delhi Deputy CM Sisodia

Senior AAP leader and Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia on Friday said many people are joining the his party inspired by the work done by the Arvind Kejriwal led government in the national capital. Retired judicial officer Sukhbir Singh Malhotra joined the Aam Aadmi Party in the presence of Sisodia.

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Assam govt says COVID-19 tests at airports, railway stations will continue

The Assam government on Friday announced that its earlier order of suspending COVID-19 tests at airports and railway stations has been kept in "abeyance" and such clinical examinations at these places will continue. Earlier this month, the government had decided to discontinue mandatory COVID-19 testing at airports and railway stations from March 1, 2021, following a decline in new positive cases.

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CSIR-IICT played key role in developing adjuvant for Covaxin, says CSIR

The process technology developed by the Council Of Scientific and Industrial Research–Indian Institute Of Chemical Technology for the agonist molecule is playing an important role in the production of adjuvant for Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, the CSIR said on Friday. "The vaccine is formulated with Algel-IMDG, which contains chemisorbed TLR7/8 agonist onto aluminum hydroxide gel to generate the requisite type of immune responses," the CSIR said in a statement.

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Breaking News February 27 | LIVE

Daily dose of news plays a very important role in our daily life. For some people, the morning is incomplete without knowing what's happening across the world. Some digital-savvy people have a habit of consuming news even when they are travelling or in their free time. In today's world, where people rely on news websites for everything that's happening around, IndiaTV News provides you all the breaking news, latest news, breaking story videos, Live TV and top shows of IndiaTV, country's leading news channel on a single platform to ensure you don't miss anything important.

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PM Modi to receive global energy and environment leadership award next week

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will receive the CERAWeek global energy and environment leadership award during an annual international energy conference next week. The prime minister will also deliver the keynote address at the CERAWeek Conference-2021, which will be held virtually from March 1 to 5, its organiser, IHS Markit, said on Friday.

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Opinion | New IT regulations for social media and OTT platforms are a welcome step

The government on Thursday announced IT rules for social media giants like Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Google and YouTube and digital OTT platforms like Netflix, Disney Hotstar and others, with particular stress on self-regulation, followed by an Oversight Mechanism to be put in place by the Centre. This is a welcome and revolutionary step taken by the government for the first time since the explosion of news, views, entertainment and other content on social media platforms.   The rules allow freedom to all to express one’s views through news, articles and cinematic medium, but a strong ‘laxman rekha’ has been drawn for those who post toxic content on social media. Hate speeches, abusive comments, obscenity, anti-national content, rumours, lies and innuendoes against personalities, Constitutional functionaries and organizations, will invite swift retribution. The social media intermediaries will have to reveal the “originator” of unlawful content within 72 hours and take action against them.   The Supreme Court had directed the government to frame comprehensive regulations to ensure that social media intermediaries follow Indian laws and the Constitution. The new IT regulations mandate social media intermediaries to appoint compliance and grievance officers to look into complaints that are received from the public. Social media giants like Google, Facebook, Twitter and others can now no longer withhold information on the source of unlawful and inflammatory messaging beyond 72 hours from investigating agencies. They must be prompt in removing objectionable content, such as leakage of images or videos depicting nudity or sexual acts, relating to subscribers, particularly women. The social media platforms will now have to take down any unlawful content within a span of 36 hours, when asked through a court order or on being notified by the government or its agency.   Under the new IT regulations, intermediaries have been asked to appoint grievance officer, who should acknowledge a complaint within 24 hours, and resolve it within 15 days. They must also appoint Chief Compliance Officer and nodal contact person.   The new regulations describe objectionable content as those that threaten the security or sovereignty of India, disturb public order, defamatory, obscene pornographic paedophilic, invasive of another’s privacy, harmful to minors, infringes any patent, trademark, copyright or other proprietary rights.   For the entertainment industry, platforms like Netflix, Disney Hotstar and Amazon Prime will have to provide age-related classifications for their content, as part of the new IT rules. The content shall be divided into five categories – suitable for universal (U) viewing for ages 7 and above U/A 7+, for 13 years and above U/A 13+, for 16 years and above U/A 16+, and adult (A). The content classification shall also identify content on the basis of the themes and message, violence, nudity, sex, language, drug and substance abuse, and horror.   A Code of Ethics will be drawn up for publishers of news and current affairs content and publishers of online curated content to inform Information & Broadcasting Ministry about their details within 30 days of publication of rules, or in 30 days from the start of their India operations. Publishers will have to set up grievance redressal mechanism to receive complaints against content, send acknowledgement of grievance to the complainant within 24 hours, and decide on complaints within 15 days  The publishers shall publish monthly compliance report containing details of grievances received and action taken.   Publishers who operate within India must set up three-tier structure of self-regulation (1) by publishers, (2) self-regulation by self-regulating bodies of publishers, and (3) oversight mechanism to be set up by the Centre.  The I&B ministry will develop, publish, coordinate and facilitate adherence to Code of Ethics by publishers and self-regulating bodies.  An Inter-Departmental Committee (IDC) headed by an officer of Joint Secretary level  will examine complaints and grievances. The iDC can recommend that the ministry should issue a warning or censure the publisher of intermediary, demand apology, or put up a warning card or disclaimer.  The final decision will be taken by the I&B secretary on the basis of recommendations by IDC.   I have narrated details of the new IT rules, so that readers and viewers can have a clear picture of what is on the anvil. Till date, there had been no rules for social and digital media to follow, but from now on they will have to follow the rules and comply with orders.   The question that is being raised is whether the new IT rules will put fetters on the social media and curb freedom of speech and expression. Will they curb expression of dissent against the Centre? I want to make it clear, this is not a new law, it is a set of rules framed to guide and regulate the burgeoning social media, where peddling of lies, rumours, baseless news, abuse, incendiary comments, obscenity, nudity, threats and intimidation are rampant.   Let me compare the social and digital media with the news television industry. News channels in India have to follows a Code of Conduct  which is part of the licence agreement. In addition to this the  News Broadcasters Association(NBA) has established a  self-regulation mechanism. National Broadcasting Standard Authority (NBSA) has been set up, presently chaired by retired Supreme Court judge Arjun Sikri, which goes through all complaints received from the general public, and censures or punishes news channels, if they violate the rules and regulations. NBSA is a self-regulatory body consisting of Justice Sikri and other eminent citizens. The only flaw that remains is that there are several news channels who are not members of NBA, and are therefore not bound to follow the Code of Conduct.  The positive side is that most of the big and popular news channels are members of NBA and they follow the guidelines. Similar, the newspaper industry is regulated by Press Council of India, again headed by a retired Supreme Court judge. The PCI censure/admonishes/punishes newspapers that violates code of conduct for publishers.   In social media, there are many so-called ‘news channels’ on YouTube and a plethora of digital news portals, that are not accountable to any authority. There is no forum for the common public, where one can air grievances or file complaints. Self-regulation and “oversight mechanism” by the government have now been introduced through the new IT rules.   Those who may raise question about curbs on freedom of speech and expression should understand that social media, till now, had been a fertile ground for mischief makers, who used to abuse, threaten or intimidate people through images, videos and texts, and even went to the extent of indulging in seditious activity. Even among the common public, say a man and a woman broke up their relationship, and the man posted obscene pictures to torment his ex-girlfriend. The woman and her family used to run from pillar to post, because social media intermediaries never took up such complaints or grievances. The new IT rules will put an end to this. If a woman or her family members post their grievance, the content will now have to removed by the social media intermediaries within 72 hours.   On Thursday night in my prime time show ‘Aaj Ki Baat’, I interviewed IT and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on the new IT rules. He was emphatic on one point: the new IT rules will not put curbs on freedom of speech and expression, but the new regulations will catch all those who spread lies, innuendoes, baseless news, and incendiary comments. Till now, it was very difficult to identify the “originator” of baseless news and lies, and big IT giants like Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp were unwilling to share the identify of the “originator”. With the enforcement of new IT rules, they will have to identify the mischief maker, so that security agencies can take action against those who spread incendiary content.

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Government was resolute, strong about protecting India's interests in border row: S Jaishankar

India was strong and resolute when it came to handling the border issue and dealt with it in an effective manner, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Friday in an apparent reference to the standoff between India and China. Similarly, India also dealt effectively with the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact by fashioning its own response after listening to everyone, he said at the inaugural session of the 'Asia Economic Dialogue' organised by the Pune International Centre.

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Congress MLAs manhandle Himachal Governor Bandaru Dattatraya while leaving Assembly

Some Congress MLAs allegedly manhandled Himachal Pradesh Governor Bandaru Dattatraya when he was leaving the Assembly after his address on the opening day of the Budget Session on Friday.

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Balakot air strikes anniversary: Country's security paramount under PM Modi, says Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday saluted the valour of the Indian Air Force (IAF) fighters on the anniversary of the Balakot air strikes, and said under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, security of the country and the soldiers is paramount.

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