Panauti remark against PM Modi | Election Commission issues notice to Rahul Gandhi
The Election Commission of India on November 23 issued a notice to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for using the words jebkatra (pickpocket) and panauti (Jinx) against Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his campaign in Rajasthan. BJP on November 22 approached the ECI to demand that action be taken against Mr. Gandhi for calling Mr. Modi a panauti during an election rally in Rajasthan.
Uttarkashi tunnel collapse | Rescue operations resume after 6-hour delay
Rescue operations to evacuate 41 workers trapped in Uttarakhand’s Silkyara tunnel resumed on November 23 morning after an overnight hurdle delayed the drilling by several hours. Former Advisor to the Prime Minister’s office Bhaskar Khulbe, who was at the site, said an iron mesh which had come in the path of the drilling machine that is creating an escape path for the workers was removed in the morning. Mr. Khulbe said the process of welding the pipes to go beyond 45 metres has been restarted. The drilling will also resume soon, he said.
Rajouri encounter | Lashkar’s highly-trained militant killed, say officials
Two militants, including one ‘highly-trained’ Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant, were killed in the ongoing anti-militancy operation in Rajouri’s Kalakote area on November 23. Meanwhile, one more injured soldier succumbed to his injuries on November 23. A total of five soldiers, including two Army Captains, were killed in the gunfight that started around 10 a.m. on November 22 and ended on November 23 morning. Officials said the security forces have spotted the body of a militant at the encounter site at Kalakote’s Baaji Maal, as the sanitisation of the area resumed in the morning.
Deepfake issue | New regulations soon; Vaishnaw holds meeting with social media platforms
Amid serious concerns over the deepfake issue, the Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology and Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw held a high-level meeting on the challenges posed by deepfake content. and announced that the government will come up with new regulations soon to tackle deepfakes. The Minister met with all the social media platforms, companies that are leaders in AI tools and NASSCOM, and professors from the field of Artificial Intelligence.
Supreme Court agrees to consider petition to hear same-sex marriage review in open court
The Supreme Court on November 23 agreed to look into a request for an open court hearing of a petition seeking a review of its majority judgment in October refusing to legalise same-sex marriage. Appearing before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Menaka Guruswamy, advocates Arundhati Katju and Karuna Nundy urged the court to post the review in open court rather than by the usual way of circulation in judges’ chambers.
BJP planning to expel Mahua Moitra from Lok Sabha, says West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on November 23 said that the BJP leadership is planning to expel her party MP Mahua Moitra from the Lok Sabha. “Their (BJP leadership) plan is to expel Mahua (Moitra). This will only make her more popular. For three months she will say what she was saying inside the Parliament to the media outside. How does it matter? Only those who are stupid can make such an attempt,” Ms. Banerjee said addressing a gathering of Trinamool Congress leaders in Kolkata.
Kerala rain | Heavy rain pounds Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta districts; two reported missing
Heavy overnight rains inundated vast swathes of low-lying regions in Thiruvananthapuram and Pathanamthitta districts in Kerala on November 23. At least two people were reported missing. The heavy rain caused mud slips, wall collapses, power outages, inundated roads and neighbourhoods, uprooted trees, traffic jams and overflowing canals in several localities, including in Idukki and Thrissur. Schools and colleges shuttered for the day in several parts of the State.
Efforts on to give quota to Marathas; government positive towards their demands: Devendra Fadnavis
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on November 23 said the government is positive towards addressing demands raised by Marathas and efforts are under way to give reservation to the community. A delegation of the Maratha community met Mr. Fadnavis in Pandharpur town of Solapur district where the Deputy CM and his wife performed puja at the temple of Lord Vitthal and Goddess Rukmini on the occasion of Kartiki Ekadashi on November 23. The community has been demanding reservation in government jobs and education.
WHO asks China for more data on respiratory illnesses outbreak
The World Health Organization has asked China for more data on respiratory illnesses spreading in the north of the country, but Beijing offered no public comment on November 23. Northern China has reported an increase in “influenza-like illness” since mid-October when compared to the same period in the previous three years, the WHO said.
Israel-Hamas war | Israeli military confirms Al Shifa Hospital head held for questioning
The Israeli military confirmed that the director of Al Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip had been held for questioning over evidence that the facility had been used as a command and control centre for the Hamas. “In the hospital, under his management, there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity,” the military said in a statement. A doctor at Gaza’s largest hospital Al-Shifa said that the facility’s director and several other medical personnel were arrested by Israeli forces on November 23. “Doctor Mohammad Abu Salmiya was arrested along with several other senior doctors,” said Khalid Abu Samra, a chief of department at the hospital. An official in the Hamas-run Health Ministry said that one other doctor and two nurses had been detained, as well as the hospital director. In a statement, Hamas said it “strongly denounces” the arrest of Salmiya and his colleagues, calling on the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international organisations to work towards their “immediate release”.
Anti-EU, anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders seeks to form Dutch Govt after shock election win
Dutch anti-EU far-right populist Geert Wilders will start looking for coalition partners on November 23 after a massive election win that is set to have wide repercussions in the Netherlands and Europe. A fan of fellow eurosceptic, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the vocally anti-EU Mr. Wilders has vowed to halt all immigration, slash Dutch payments to the union and block the entrance of any new members, including Ukraine.
OpenAI researchers warned board of AI breakthrough ahead of CEO ouster
Ahead of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s four days in exile, several staff researchers sent the board of directors a letter warning of a powerful artificial intelligence discovery that they said could threaten humanity, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The previously unreported letter and AI algorithm was a key development ahead of the board’s ouster of Altman, the poster child of generative AI, the two sources said. Before his triumphant return late Tuesday, more than 700 employees had threatened to quit and join backer Microsoft in solidarity with their fired leader.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on November 23 said NBFCs and small finance banks need to remain cautious while lending as suggested by the Reserve Bank. Speaking at ‘DATE with Tech’ event in New Delhi, Ms. Sitharaman cautioned that NBFCs and small finance banks should respect the red line and should not go too far in their enthusiasm.
England all-rounder Ben Stokes to miss IPL 2024, confirms Chennai Super Kings
Premier England all-rounder Ben Stokes will miss the 2024 edition of the IPL due to workload management, his franchise Chennai Super Kings announced on November 23. Stokes had joined CSK ahead of IPL 2023 but played in only two matches as he was managing a troublesome knee injury throughout the course of the two-month long tournament. “England Test captain, all-rounder Ben Stokes has made himself unavailable for IPL 2024 to manage his workload and fitness,” CSK said in a statement on their website on November 23.
