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NEW DELHI: Some of the essential services related to banking, transportation, railways and electricity are likely to be impacted during a two-day nationwide strike called by a joint forum of central trade unions beginning Monday. Talking to PTI, All Indian Trade Union Congress General Secretary <keyword id="366518" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="amarjeet-kaur" source="Orion">Amarjeet Kaur</keyword> said, "We are expecting participation of over 20 crore formal and informal workers with mass mobilisation of workers across the country during the strike on March 28 and 29 to protest against government policies." She said that the strike is expected to hit the rural parts also, where informal workers of farming and other sectors will join the protest. The strike notices were given by workers' unions of various sectors such as coal, steel, oil, telecom, postal, income tax, copper, banks and insurance. Unions in railways and defence sector will carry out mass mobilization in support of the strike at several places, the joint forum said. The unions' demands include scrapping of the proposed changes in labour laws, privatisation of any form and the national monetisation pipeline. Increased allocation of wages under MNREGA (<keyword id="1194612" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mahatma-gandhi-rural-employment-guarantee-act" source="Orion">Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act</keyword>) and regularisation of contract workers are also part of their demands. Workers of roadways, transport and electricity departments have also decided to join the strike in spite of the impending threat of ESMA (Essential Services Maintenance Act) which is likely to be imposed in Haryana and Chandigarh, the joint forum said in a statement. Trade unions, including INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC are part of the joint forum. Meanwhile, the <keyword id="6375040" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="power-ministry" source="Orion">power ministry</keyword> on Sunday advised all the state-run utilities and other agencies to be on high alert and ensure round-the-clock electricity supply and stability of the national grid. "The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) have called for a nationwide strike with effect from 06:00 hrs of March 28 to 06:00 hrs of March 30, 2022," an advisory issued by the power ministry said. The advisory has been issued to all states, central public sector undertakings, central electricity authority, national load dispatch centre and regional load dispatch centres. In the interest of the consumers of electricity, it is advised that all the power utilities shall take necessary measures to ensure round-the-clock functioning of the electricity grid and availability of all plants, transmission lines and substations, the ministry said, adding that all regional/state control room executives should be vigilant and on high alert. The ministry also suggested measures to be taken to ensure secure and reliable grid operations. Shutdown activities planned during March 28-29 may be rescheduled to suitable future dates to the extent possible, it said and asked all concerned officials to ensure close supervision of their regional network/control area. Also, manpower may be deployed at all critical sub-stations/power station 24X7 to handle any emergency situation, it said. Power supply to those engaged in essential services such as hospitals, defence, and railways must be ensured, it added and suggested setting up of a 24x7 control room for information dissemination and handling any kind of contingency. Bank employees' unions said they will support the strike. All <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="India" source="Orion">India</keyword> Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) General Secretary C H Venkatachalam said the union demands the government to stop privatisation of public sector banks and strengthen them. Bank employees also demand speedy recovey of bad loans, higher deposit rates by banks, lower service charges on customers as well as restoration of old pension scheme for staff. A number of public sector banks, including country's largest lender SBI, have said that their services may get impacted to a limited extent due to the strike. SBI said it has made necessary arrangements to ensure normal functioning in its branches and offices during the strike. "It is likely that work at our bank may be impacted, to a limited extent, by the strike," SBI said. New Delhi-headquartered Punjab National Bank (<keyword id="13478968" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="pnb" source="Orion" meta.marketcap="38923.93999753" meta.tagname="Punjab National Bank" meta.tagpopularcount="0" meta.sectorid="15" meta.entitytype="company" meta.matchtype="exact" meta.aum="0" meta.entityid="11585" meta.tagseoname="punjab-national-bank" meta.sector="Banks" meta.tagnameorg="Punjab National Bank">PNB</keyword>) said, AIBEA, Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) and All India Bank Officers' Association (AIBOA) have served notices to go on strike on March 28-29. "While bank has made all arrangements to ensure normal functioning in its branches and offices, it is likely that work in our bank may be impacted to a limited extent by the strike," PNB said. Bengaluru-based <keyword id="13478969" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="canara-bank" source="Orion" meta.marketcap="40836.07197252" meta.tagname="Canara Bank" meta.tagpopularcount="0" meta.sectorid="15" meta.entitytype="company" meta.matchtype="exact" meta.aum="0" meta.entityid="9218" meta.tagseoname="canara-bank" meta.sector="Banks" meta.tagnameorg="Canara Bank">Canara Bank</keyword> said it is taking all necessary steps to ensure smooth functioning of bank branches and offices. However, the functioning of the bank may be impacted, Canara Bank added. Private lender <keyword id="2179992" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="rbl-bank" source="Orion">RBL Bank</keyword> said its bank unions are affiliated to AIBOA and AIBEA, and the employees associated with these unions may participate in the strike. "The bank will take all necessary steps for smooth functioning of the bank's branches/offices on the days of strike. However, it is likely that some of our branches would also be impacted by the strike," <keyword id="13478967" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="rbl" source="Orion" meta.marketcap="491.27195140500004" meta.tagname="Rane Brake Lining Ltd" meta.tagpopularcount="0" meta.sectorid="506" meta.entitytype="company" meta.matchtype="exact" meta.aum="0" meta.entityid="21601" meta.tagseoname="rane-brake-lining-ltd" meta.sector="Auto Ancillaries" meta.tagnameorg="Rane Brake Lining Ltd.">RBL</keyword> said. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/pvr-and-inox-leisure-announce-merger/articleshow/90476756.cms">PVR and INOX Leisure announce merger</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/how-this-former-vedantu-cofounder-is-taking-on-instagram-and-snapchat-to-build-social-media-for-teens/articleshow/90443442.cms">How this former Vedantu cofounder is taking on Instagram and Snapchat to build social media for teens</a>

Two-day Bharat Bandh: Essential services likely to be affected

<keyword id="1851542" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="maratha-groups" source="Orion">Maratha groups</keyword> continued their protests for the third day across several districts in the state to press for reservation for the community here on Tuesday. Alarmed by the spread of agitation, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has convened an all-party meeting in Mumbai on Wednesday to discuss and resolve the issue. Maratha legislators from all political parties staged a protest near the Gandhi statue outside Mantralaya in Nariman Point and are likely to meet Governor Ramesh Bais later demanding a special legislature session to finalise the community quotas. The great grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, Tushar A. Gandhi said that the Centre had very successfully engineered violence in New Delhi to scuttle the anti-CAA-NRC protests that had become a big embarrassment for the government. "Now the same modus operandi has been employed in Maharashtra to defame and derail the Maratha reservation agitation," said <keyword id="97377" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="tushar-gandhi" source="Orion">Tushar Gandhi</keyword> sharply. Another incident of arson on a government office was reported from Jalna where a village panchayat office was torched by some unknown persons raising pro-quota slogans. Scores of Maratha activists lay down on the railway tracks in Solapur and blocked the passage of at least one long-distance train even as police attempted to clear the railway lines. A local office of the Bharatiya Janata Party was set ablaze at Naiknagar in Hingoli district, while a large number of Maratha activists got down in a stream in Pune for a 'jal-samadhi' protest. Public bus services remained shut for the second day in parts of Parbhani district and in Malkapur, Buldhana district, protestors smeared black paint on posters of the CM on a vehicle. Scores of Marathas launched relay hunger strikes at Chunabhatti in Mumbai and Mungse village in Nashik district demanding immediate announcement of quotas. Schools and colleges remained shut on Tuesday in Shevgaon, Ahmednagar district and students participated in the protests. In Pune, protestors blocked the Pune-Bengaluru Highway by throwing burning truck tyres on the Navale Bridge and squatting on the road, raising anti-government slogans, as 10-km long traffic snarls developed on both sides of the important thoroughfare. A large number of activists took out a symbolic 'funeral' procession of the state government in Tembhurni, Solapur district, while half a dozen services of the Nagpur-Pune sleeper bus services were suspended for the day. In Beed, which was rocked by large-scale arson and violence on Monday, a Nationalist Congress Party (SP) activist <keyword id="13209654" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="yogesh-kshirsagar" source="Orion">Yogesh Kshirsagar</keyword> alleged that the torching of his MLA brother Sandeep R. Kshirsagar was "a pre-planned conspiracy". "Before setting our house on fire, someone had snapped off the power supply here, the miscreants who indulged in stone-pelting were carrying bottles filled with petrol, and the police proved totally incapable of stopping them," claimed Yogesh Kshirsagar. The Shivba Sanghatana President Manoj Jarange-Patil, whose indefinite hunger strike entered the seventhday on Tuesday, again appealed to his supporters in the state to refrain from any violence and carry out a peaceful agitation.

Arson, roadblocks rock Maha on third day of Maratha pro-quota protests

A number of agreements will be signed between India and Germany signifying their broad-based ties and the "very close" relationship between the two countries, German Chancellor <keyword id="76" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Angela-Merkel">Angela Merkel</keyword> said on Friday She made the remarks after being received by Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> at the Rashtrapati Bhavan where she was accorded a ceremonial welcome after arriving here on Thursday night on a two-day visit Speaking to reporters with Prime Minister Modi by her side, Merkel said she was delighted to be in India for the fifth Inter-Governmental Consultations "I would like to thank the prime minister for the very warm and gracious welcome with which we have been received here. This is my fourth visit to India and I look forward to the very interesting programme," she said "Germany-India are linked by very close ties. We will have discussions on issues of mutual interest. We also have the opportunity of signing a number of MoUs and agreements that shows that we have a very broad-based and deep relationship," Merkel said Germany and India have been cooperating for many years and will build on this cooperation in future, the German chancellor said "This is a very close relationship. We have great respect for this vast country and its diversity," she added Merkel will pay tributes to <keyword id="6355532" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="mahatma-gandhi">Mahatma Gandhi</keyword> at Rajghat later in the day She will then co-chair the fifth IGC with Prime Minister Modi, following which the two leaders will make press statements and a raft of agreements will be signed between the two sides Merkel will be holding talks with Modi on a host of bilateral issues and nearly 20 agreements are expected to signed between the two countries, the sources said Merkel will call on President <keyword id="6354561" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="ram-nath-kovind">Ram Nath Kovind</keyword> in the evening and will also hold a meeting with the prime minister at his Lok Kalyan Marg residence On Saturday, the German leader will meet a business delegation and visit Continental Automotive Components India Pvt Ltd in <keyword id="47707" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Manesar">Manesar</keyword> near Gurgaon Before heading home, the chancellor will also visit the Dwarka Sector 21 Metro Station Ahead of the visit, German envoy to India Walter J Lindner had said the Modi and Merkel have a "very good relationship and they can talk about any issue. I do not want to anticipate what the two leaders will be talking about" He was responding to a question on whether the Kashmir issue will be discussed between them.

Angela Merkel says India and Germany have an opportunity to sign many agreements

<ul><li> <keyword id="6355455" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-railways">Indian Railways</keyword> is proposing to go all vegetarian to honour <keyword id="6355532" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="mahatma-gandhi">Mahatma Gandhi</keyword> on his 150th birth anniversary on 02 October.</li><li>They are also planning to issue tickets with watermark of Mahatma <keyword id="6356181" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="gandhi">Gandhi</keyword>'s image. </li><li>It is also planning to run special ‘swachhata express’ trains from <keyword id="50476" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarmati">Sabarmati</keyword>, a suburb of the city Ahmedabad, to various stations connected with Gandhiji.</li></ul> Indians are big on vegetarianism, or so they say. According to <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-43581122">research</a>, only 20% of Indians are actually vegetarians. Yet, this year, the Indian Railways is <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/transportation/railways/indian-railways-ode-to-mahatma-gandhi-no-non-vegetarian-food-on-october-2/articleshow/64243397.cms">proposing to go all vegetarian</a> to honour the father of the country, Mahatma Gandhi, on his 150th birth anniversary, on October 2. If the proposal is greenlit, in addition to the day being observed as the <keyword id="5298026" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="rashtriya-swachhta-diwas">Rashtriya Swachhta Diwas</keyword> -- a day dedicated to clean India -- it will also be a ‘Vegetarian Day’. Last month, a circular was sent out to all railway zones by the Railway Board that said "no non-vegetarian food will be served anywhere on Indian Railways premises", on October 2, 2018, 2019, 2020. Bad news for those yearning for the quintessential railways ‘anda’ (egg) curry may want to consider changing their travel dates. Not just that, the railways also plans to run a 'special salt rake' from the city of Sabarmati on 12 March to commemorate Gandhi’s famous Salt March (also known as Dandi March) - a non-violent civil disobedience protest lead by the Father of the Nation to produce salt from the seawater in the coastal village of Dandi. They are also planning to issue tickets with watermark of Mahatma Gandhi's image. Plus, the plan proposes railway stations to have thematic paintings of Gandhiji and ‘digital museums’ are being set up at the station that will highlight the great leader’s achievements. It also wants to display a special logo, that will be designed by the Ministry of Culture, outside the train coaches. All these proposals are subject to approval from the Ministry of Culture, the nodal ministry for the special commemoration. On 2 May, President <keyword id="6354561" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="ram-nath-kovind">Ram Nath Kovind</keyword> chaired the first meeting of the National Committee for the Commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi during which he <a href="http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=179084">said</a>, “He (Mahatma Gandhi) was the inspiration for our largely non-violent, inclusive and democratic freedom struggle.’ As an aside, here’s an <a href="https://thewire.in/12170/what-mahatma-gandhi-said-to-those-who-wanted-beef-banned-in-india/?utm_source=alsoread">excerpt</a> from the Mahatma Gandhi’s prayer discourse of 25 July 1947, when he was inundated by multiple requests to implement a nationwide beef ban: “In India no law can be made to ban cow-slaughter. I do not doubt that Hindus are forbidden the slaughter of cows. I have been long pledged to serve the cow but how can my religion also be the religion of the rest of the Indians? It will mean coercion against those Indians who are not Hindus. We have been shouting from the house-tops that there will be no coercion in the matter of religion. We have been reciting verses from the Koran at the prayer. But if anyone were to force me to recite these verses, I would not like it. How can I force anyone not to slaughter cows.” unless he is himself so disposed? It is not as if there were only Hindus in the Indian Union. There are Muslims, Parsis, Christians and other religious groups here.”

If you’re a non-vegetarian, you may want to avoid taking trains in India on October 2

Railway Minister <keyword id="6356597" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Suresh-Prabhu">Suresh Prabhu</keyword> today flagged off the first indigenously built '<keyword id="195876" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Medha">Medha</keyword>' rake on the western corridor of the city, according to a <keyword id="6367495" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="PTI">PTI</keyword> news report. 
 "We are proud to have built this rake under the Make in India campaign. We are working on various railway projects worth Rs 51,000 crore for the people of Mumbai city, besides projects worth Rs 1.36 lakh crore are underway for the state of <keyword id="13126" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra">Maharashtra</keyword>," <keyword id="19179" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="prabhu">Prabhu</keyword> said in his speech. 
 Two Medha rakes were on a trial mode since last two years and have been designed and built at the <keyword id="49000" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Integral-Coach-Factory">Integral Coach Factory</keyword> in Chennai. 
 The seats of these trains are ergonomically designed for better seating comfort of the passengers. The cost of each Medha rake is Rs 43.23 crore, as against Rs 44.36 crore spent for <keyword id="117791" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bombardier">Bombardier</keyword> rakes. 
 
Prabhu said his ministry was on a "mission mode" to transform the Railways. 
 
"We have chalked out a roadmap to transform the railway and therefore, we have prepared the blueprint of long-term, short-term and medium-term investment to achieve this target. Most importantly, railway authorities have been vested powers to use the fund according to their profile," said Prabhu. 
 During the event, Prabhu also flagged off Lokmanya Tilak Terminus-Tatanagar-Lokmanya Tilak Terminus <keyword id="3260043" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Antyodaya-Express">Antyodaya Express</keyword> (bi-weekly). 
 Having a seating capacity of 2,000, the <keyword id="113158" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Antyodaya">Antyodaya</keyword> Express is meant to be a long-distance, fully unreserved, super-fast train service, which will cover the distance between the two cities in 25 hours. 
 
20-general-coach Antyodaya train has many advanced amenities like water purifiers, fire extinguishers, mobile charging points, anti-theft arrangement, cushioned luggage racks with coat hooks, LED lights and bio-toilets. 
 The regular service will leave <keyword id="426621" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lokmanya-Tilak-Terminus">Lokmanya Tilak Terminus</keyword> at 1.20 PM every Tuesday and Saturday and enroute the train will halt at Igatpuri, Bhusaval, Nagpur, Gondia, Durg, <keyword id="45327" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Raipur">Raipur</keyword>, Bilaspur, Raigarh, Jharsuguda, Rourkela and Chakradharpur stations. 
 Prabhu also flagged off Miraj- Solapur-Miraj Express daily train through a video link, besides announcing <keyword id="4309574" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="lokmanya-tilak-terminus-lucknow-lokmanya-tilak">Lokmanya Tilak Terminus-Lucknow-Lokmanya Tilak</keyword> Terminus AC Superfast (weekly), which will commence its regular services from April 8, 2017. 
 
He also laid foundation stone for the construction of the fourth line between Bhusaval-Jalgaon a 24-km stretch at an approximate cost of Rs 260 crores. 
 
During the event, Prabhu also inaugurated the mechanised laundry installed at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (coaching depot) having capacity of 13,000 bed rolls per day.

Indian Railways just got its first 'Make in India' train rake

The immediate priority of finance minister of India is to improve GDP growth and employment rates while keeping the targets of fiscal consolidation (3.5% of GDP in 2016-17) under control. Based on past few quarters’ results of corporate sector, we see demand hasn’t yet picked up. One of the main reasons is lack of rural demand, low rise in urban consumption and high food inflation. Based on this we think our finance minister should focus on sectors which could have a large scale impact to revive the <keyword id="34412" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="economy">economy</keyword> while providing enough employment to receive the benefits of India’s demographic dividend. These sectors include Agriculture, Infrastructure and Healthcare sector. 
 
1. Agriculture &amp; Rural economy 
Indian Agriculture sectors contributes around 17% to overall GDP, however, 49% of India's workforce is dependent on it. Overall GDP growth rate is round 7.5% while Agri-growth stutters around 1.7% (Down from 4% AGR in 11th Plan). Drought in last two years has made the situation worse by pushing marginalised farmers and agricultural labourers to the brink, leading to massive agrarian distress. 
 · The <keyword id="6355532" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mahatma-Gandhi">Mahatma Gandhi</keyword> National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has been successful in providing employment to India’s rural poor and improve their livelihoods. A study NCAER found that the MGNREGS “has reduced poverty overall by up to 32% and has prevented 14 million people from falling into poverty.” Budget allocated should be increased to Rs. 40,000 cr from current allocation of Rs.34, 699 cr as the current allocation is not sufficient to cover the increased demand. Govt. needs to make it demand-driven programme i.e. allocating resources to states and districts based on poverty level &amp; exposure to drought. Making state &amp; local bodies accountable by monitoring KPIs (Employment level, Assets etc). 
 
· Reliable, faster and effective rural electrification by investing &amp; promoting renewable energy sources (bio-gas, solar, wind etc.) under an integrated rural electrification framework. 
 · Crop insurance schemes in India covers merely 23% of farmers. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Beema Yojna (PMFBY) needs to employ technology and innovation in crop insurance by assessing farm-level damage through satellites &amp; drones, linking farmer’s farm to Aadhar number and transferring the amount directly to account. Out of total sown area of 141 million hectare only 45% (65 million hectare) is covered under irrigation. Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY), launched in 2015, needs to achieve convergence of <keyword id="6362476" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="investments">investments</keyword> by Integration of water source, distribution and farm level applications. Using MSP as insurance mechanism rather than structural tool. 
 
· National Agriculture Market instead of current Mandi system, which suffers from cartelization of intermediaries’ problem, to enable farmers to discover the true price of their product. 
 
2. Infrastructure Sector Investment in infrastructure must give a boost to rail, road, irrigation and ports. Infrastructure has a high multiplier effect and goes a long way in creating sustainable GDP growth. Ports will help boost up trade and rail &amp;road will push activity within the country. Sufficient funds to be allocation to meet NHAI target of 30km/day. <keyword id="547488" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="tax-incentives">Tax incentives</keyword> for multi cargo ports with handling capacity of more than 100 MTPA will boost India’s exports. Withdrawal of minimum alternate tax in a calibrated manner must be done. Government should privatize managing of smaller airports and modernization of atleast 400 railway stations should be done in next year. Further atleast 30GW of renewable energy capacity can be established majorly through wind and solar. Accelerated depreciation benefit should be extended to wind sector apart from solar. 
 
3. Healthcare Sector 
In healthcare government should increase allocation to public healthcare by increasing it to 2% of GDP from current 1%. There must be tax holidays given to the pharma sector and the sunset clause on weighted deductions must be extended as India has the potential to become pharmacy of the world. These deductions on R&amp;D will go a long way on propelling innovation in pharma. Universal health insurance should be carried out through Jan Dhan-Aadhar-Mobile which will benefit patients and increase access thus helps us materialize our demographic dividend. 
 
 The article has been written by Devendra Meel and Sahil Makkar. 
 
(Devendra is a first year PGP student at IIM Bangalore. He has served on the program management &amp; strategy team of RIL's 4G venture. He holds a degree in electronics &amp; communication engineering, and takes strong interest in economics, governance &amp; political issues, reading and cricket) 
 
(Sahil is a first year PGP student from IIM Bangalore. Prior to this he has worked two years in R&amp;D division of Samsung. He is a graduate in Electrical engineering from IIT Bhubaneswar. He is an avid follower of cricket and has interest in economics and finance)

Budget 2016: It's time to create a long lasting impact

A tube is attached to her nose, from where a calculated dose of food is inserted into her stomach forcefully, in order to keep her breathing and her vital organs alive. Despite her frail structure, which has developed from this condition, <keyword id="768247" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Irom-Chanu-Sharmila">Irom Chanu Sharmila</keyword> continues to be a tough nut for the 13th successive year. The reason she is on fast is her demand that the <keyword id="44734" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-Government">Indian government</keyword> should repeal the draconian law that accords the <keyword id="3790" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Armed-forces">armed forces</keyword> absolute power in troubled areas. 
 Her picturesque state Manipur, with most friendly people and rain forests rich in timber and herbs, could have been a picture of peace if not for the simmering conflict between <keyword id="6500558" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="80" keywordseo="Indigenous">indigenous</keyword> people and the government. Like all other places that witness <keyword id="1952107" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Separatist-insurgency">separatist insurgency</keyword>, in which case the government tries to overpower the locals with generous use of force and laws to support it, Manipur has been the hotbed of conflicts since the last five decades, with peace being an intermittently occurring phenomenon. <keyword id="1172406" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Draconian-Laws">Draconian laws</keyword> have been revoked in Manipur ever since. 
 The incident that made Irom Chanu Sharmila both a legend and a victim of the government’s conspiracies occurred just before the new millennium completed a year. On November 2, 2000, armed forces killed 10 innocent civilians who were waiting for a bus in Malon, a town close to the capital city of <keyword id="45774" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Imphal">Imphal</keyword>. 
 Sharmila, also known as Mengoubi (a fair girl), was onto her regular fasting routine when the news trickled in. She used to go on a day-long fast every Thursday. But that Thursday was going to be historical. Protesting the killings, she continued her fast into the next day, the day after and many days following November 2. Her vital signs deteriorated and the news that she was fasting to force the government to revoke <keyword id="60149" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="AFSPA">AFSPA</keyword> (Armed Forces [Special Powers] Act). She was admitted to hospital and a <keyword id="1952110" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Nasogastric-intubation">nasogastric intubation</keyword> was forced down her windpipe to keep her breathing, while under arrest. 
 Sensing trouble with the growing support to Irom Sharmila, the government charged her with ‘attempted suicide’ and ensured her days were split between hospital and legal institutions. But what had to happen transpired like droplets of water trickling into a solid rock. With her silence, resilience and consistent efforts, the frail woman had made a dent, and a solid one at that. This poetess with shy eyes and silken skin had turned into a <keyword id="235269" type="POSITION" weightage="100" keywordseo="political-activist">political activist</keyword>, a human rights activist and also a fighter for <keyword id="97526" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Civil-rights">civil rights</keyword>. 
 And when she completed 500 weeks of <keyword id="1952116" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Continuous-fasting">continuous fasting</keyword>, Sharmila even overtook <keyword id="6355532" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Mahatma-Gandhi">Mahatma Gandhi</keyword>, the undisputed protagonist of the <keyword id="363965" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Indian-national-movement">Indian National Movement</keyword> and the global icon who stood for peace and non-violence, with her fasting credits. All of 41 years of age, she has been fasting for over 13 years of her life! But her struggle has never been daunted, affected or lost sheen and grit in the absence of food. She has been consistently writing letters to the Indian government and international agencies to press for the <keyword id="1952112" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Revoking-of-AFSPA">revoking of AFSPA</keyword>, which gives the <keyword id="15350" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Army">army</keyword> absolute power, which has mostly been misused to silence the voices that are demanding a separate state. 
 AFSPA, the legal provision that has turned Armed forces (read <keyword id="6362743" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Assam-Rifles">Assam Rifles</keyword>) from messiah to maniac, was framed before India became independent. The British had created this act to discourage the citizens of the country from participating in the famous <keyword id="122191" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Quit-India-movement">Quit India Movement</keyword>. But that was way back in 1942. 
 The act was modified a bit in 1958 and amended in 1972, in order to accommodate six sections that accord absolute power to the army, in areas of <keyword id="570941" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="civil-disobedience">civil disobedience</keyword>. Thus was born the monster, which only created mayhem. Armed forces, in order to ‘discipline’ the citizens who were into <keyword id="761056" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Activism">activism</keyword>, used it to snuff out lives indiscriminately, anywhere and everywhere. 
 
Having seen the bloodshed and the temporariness of life, Sharmila decided somebody had to take the lead. And she did. Much to the relief of the people of Manipur, the news travelled far and wide, and national and international organisations began to meet up with her. Her story has become a glowing reference to peaceful activism, globally. Awards soon followed – both from within the country and outside India. There is even a play written on her life that continues to touch the audience throughout the country. 
 It is a noteworthy fact that Manipur shares its border with <keyword id="6356970" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Myanmar">Myanmar</keyword> from where comes another story of <keyword id="1952115" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Political-resilience">political resilience</keyword> in the form of another soft-looking yet <keyword id="1952102" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="tough-woman-leader">tough woman leader</keyword> – <keyword id="56335" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Aung-San-Suu-Kyi">Aung San Suu Kyi</keyword>. 
 
Maybe, just maybe, it’s in the DNA of the people in this region. They are not the ones to accept a raw deal, be it from the government or the armed forces. 
 
Image: Indiatimes

Irom Chanu Sharmila –
The Iron Lady Of Manipur: 13 Years On, Her Activism Continues To Be A Legend

Full transcript of PM Narendra Modi's TV interview

<keyword id="66" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Delhi">Delhi</keyword> wears the crown of achievements with an increase in literacy rate (86.) and sex ratio, according to Economic Survey of Delhi 2014-15 tabled in the <keyword id="6356117" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi-assembly">Delhi Assembly</keyword> today. 

	The sex ratio has improved from 821 in 2001 to 868 in 2011. The density of population has increased from 9,340 persons per square km in 2001 to 11,297 persons per sq km in 2011. 
 

	According to the survey, the literacy rate has increased from 81.67 per cent in 2001 to 86.34 per cent in 2011. The urban population of the national capital increased from 93.18 per cent in 2001 to 97.50 per cent in 2011. 

	Per capita income of India’s national capital is almost three times its value for the country, which stands at Rs. 87,748. Its per capita income during financial year 2014-15 has increased to Rs 2.41 lakh from Rs 2.12 lakh in the previous fiscal, a rise of nearly 13.50 per cent over the period. 
 

	As per the survey, the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) at current prices during 2014-15 has increased to over Rs 4.51 lakh crore, a growth of 15.35 per cent over the previous year. 
 

	At constant prices, the growth of the Gross State Domestic Product for 2014-15 is 8.2 per cent as compared to 7.4 per cent recorded at national level. 
 As per the survey, the fiscal deficit of <keyword id="6354952" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi-Government">Delhi government</keyword> was Rs 2,21.25 crore in 2014-15, which is 0.049 per cent of GSDP, as compared to estimated fiscal deficit of 2.35 per cent of all states during the same year. 

	The expenditure incurred on social service sectors in Delhi increased from 48.79 per cent in 10th Five Year Plan to 57.12 per cent in the 11th Five Year Plan and 65.75 per cent for the first three years of the 12th Five Year Plan. 
 

	Tax collection of Delhi government registered a growth of 2.64 per cent in 2014-15 as compared to the growth of 10.60 per cent in 2013-14, it said. 
 

	Delhi has maintained its consistent revenue surplus which was Rs 6,079.53 crore in 2014-15 as compared to Rs 5,615.37 crore in 2013-14. 
 

	As per Census 2011, about 97.50 per cent of the population lived in urban area. Rural area of Delhi reduced from 558.32 sqm in 2001 to 369.35 sqm in 2011. The number of villages has declined from 165 in 2001 to 112 in 2011, as per the survey. 
 

	The decennial population growth of Delhi during 2001-2011 was recorded as 20.96 per cent as compared to around 50 per cent in each decade between 1961 and 1991 and 47 per cent between 1991 and 2001. The population of Delhi as on March 2011 was recorded at 167.53 lakh. 
 
 

	About greenery, the survey said, tree cover area in 2013 was 297.81 sq km, which is 20.08 per cent of the total area of Delhi. 
 

	The total cropped area reduced from 52,816 hectares in 2000-01 to 34,312 hectares in 2014-15. 
 

	The number of agricultural operational holdings has reduced from 25311 in 2005-06 to 20497 in 2010-11, it said. 
 

	The main reasons behind such reduction are fast urbanisation and shift in occupational pattern especially during the last two decades. 
 

	On power sector, it said the electricity supply in Delhi increased from 23,537 million units in 2005-06 to 37,484 million units in 2014-15. The total number of electricity consumer in Delhi is 54.05 lakh in 2014-15 with power consumption recording an annual growth of 3.63 per cent.
 

	Peak demand increased from 3,626 MW in 2005-06 to 5,925 MW in 2014-15. AT&amp;C (Aggregate Technical and Commercial) losses were brought down from 52 per cent in the pre-reform era to 12.83 per cent in 2014-15. 
 As per the survey to encourage <keyword id="6357019" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="solar-energy">solar energy</keyword>, a new Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV) Power Plant of 2.14 MWp at <keyword id="6354478" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indira-Gandhi">Indira Gandhi</keyword> International Airport has been successfully installed and commissioned. 

	New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) area will be developed as a 'Solar City' by installing SPV panels on rooftops of government buildings, metro stations, bus stops, among other places. 
 

	The total number of motor vehicles on road in Delhi as on March 31, 2015 touched to 88.27 lakh, showing an increase of 6.4 per cent over previous year. 
 

	Total road network of Delhi has increased from 32,131 lane km in 2007-08 to 33198 lane km in 2014-15. 
 

	Average ridership of Delhi Metro was approximately 24 lakh per day during 2014-15 with around 238 Metro Feeder bus services available at 41 metro stations. 
 

	DTC operates 3,781 low-floor AC and non-AC CNG buses and 924 standard-floor buses to take care of about 39 lakh passengers daily, while private sector corporate carriage operators are operating 1,406 cluster buses in 9 clusters. Government has installed CCTV cameras on a pilot basis in 200 DTC buses. 
 

	As per 2011 Census, 81 per cent of total households were having piped water supply system. 
 

	The total number of water connections provided by Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has increased from 17.85 lakhs in 2009-10 to 20.65 lakhs in 2013-14. 
 

	The survey said that about 142 MGD of treated waste water is being utilised for cooling of power plants, horticulture, parks, irrigation as well as crops irrigation. 
 

	According to the report, 35.98 per cent of total population of Delhi is residing in urban areas. There is a near universal electrification and 99 per cent of the households have access to sanitation facilities. 
 

	Close to 31.76 lakh houses (77.6 per cent) were being used exclusively for residential purposes in 2011. The DUSIB has setup 271 night-shelters for the shelter-less population. 
 

	In the education sector, Delhi has a variety of quality schools, colleges and universities as well as centres for research and higher education with male and female literacy rate of 91.03 per cent and 80.93 per cent respectively. 
 

	As per the survey, the literacy rate of Delhi is at around 86 per cent, which is much higher than the all India level of 74 per cent as per the 2011 Census. 
 

	Delhi government has invested massively in education sector for improving the education as around 20 per cent of the total budget of 2014-15 was allocated to the education sector. 
 

	The total number of schools increased from 5043 in 2009-10 to 5798 in 2014-15. Even the number of students enrolled in schools increased from 37.38 lakh in 2009-10 to 44.13 lakh in 2014-15. 
 

	About 25,000 students got admitted under EWS quota in 1200 recognised private unaided.
 
 It is said the number of students in ITIs and Polytechnics increased from 22,070 in 2009-10 to 28628 in 2013-14, with a growth of 30 per cent in five years. More than 16000 trainees were trained under <keyword id="985247" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Skill-Development-Mission">Skill Development Mission</keyword> during 2014-15. 

	As per economic survey, Delhi has a wide network of health sector infrastructure comprising 95 hospitals, 1,389 dispensaries, 267 maternity homes, 973 polyclinics and 16 medical colleges. 
 

	It is said total number of hospital beds increased from 41,706 in 2010 to 48,096 in 2014 simultaneously bed population ratio increased from 2.54 to 2.71 in the same period. 
 

	About 82 per cent of the total births were institutional in 2013. 
 

	The life expectancy in Delhi is of 72 years four years more than the national average of 68. 
 

	In social security and welfare sector around 95 Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) with a network of 10,897 Anganwadi Centers took care of 14.58 lakh pregnant and lactating women and children up to the age of 6 years. 
 

	About 3.32 lakh senior citizens were provided monthly old age pension during 2014-15. 
 

	Around 7.5 lakh girls registered under Ladli Yojana and 84,305 girls received the final maturity value upto March 2015. 
 

	The survey said that around 3400 households were provided financial support of Rs 10,000 under National Family Benefit Scheme during the year 2014-15. 
 

	About 27,000 students of SC/ST/OBC/Minority category studying in recognized unaided public schools got reimbursement of tuition fee. 
 

	Delhi is one of pioneer state in implementation of the National Food Security Act, 2013 with effect from September 1, 2013. It issued 17.68 lakh National Food Security Smart Cards have been issued to eligible households and all the digital Food Security Cards are Aadhar enabled. 
 

	The survey said the number of persons below Poverty Line in Delhi has reduced from 23.3 lakhs (14.2 per cent) in 2009-10 to 16.96 lakhs (9.91 per cent) in 2011-12.

	 
	 
	(image credits: wallpapers.brothersoft.com)

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