It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
India citizenship law protests: All the latest updates
Clashes between thousands of protesters and police erupt in New Delhi leading to closure of metro stations in the area.
Protests against India's new citizenship law have spread to several college campuses across the South Asian country in solidarity over police action in two university campuses on Sunday.
More than 100 of students were injured after police stormed New Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) and Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), located 130km (81 miles) from the capital, to disperse the protests.
The students were demonstrating against the passing of a contentious law that seeks to grant citizenship to non-Muslim minorities from neighbouring countries. More:
Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh can acquire Indian citizenship as per the new law, which blocks naturalisation for Muslims.
Critics say the law - similar to US President Donald Trump's Muslim ban - goes against the spirit of India's secular constitution. Rights groups and a Muslim political party have challenged the law in Supreme Court.
Here are all the latest updates: Tuesday, December 17 Clashes erupt in Indian capital over citizenship law
Clashes have erupted in New Delhi between thousands of protesters and police, the latest violence in a week of opposition to the citizenship law.
Police fired tear gas in the New Seelampur part of the capital to push back protesters swarming to barricades and throwing stones. At least two police were injured, a Reuters news agency witness said.
"It was as a peaceful protest against the citizenship bill ... but got out of hand," resident Azib Aman said. Cars were damaged and roads strewn with rocks while small fires on the road sent smoke into the air. Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest against a new citizenship law in Seelampur, Delhi [Danish Siddiqui/Reuters] 'Urban naxals firing off your shoulders': Modi
Addressing an election rally in poll-bound Jharkhand state, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said the opposition parties are "urban naxals firing off your [protesting students'] shoulders".
"Urban naxals" is usually used by India's right-wing forces to describe activists working on tribal and minority rights.
"Stop this guerilla politics. Indian constitution is our only holy book. I appeal to youth in colleges to debate our policies, protest democratically," Modi said, according to ANI news agency. Delhi metro stations closed over protests
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has said it has closed at least four metro stations in the Indian capital following protests against the citizenship law.
"Entry and exit gates of Welcome, Jaffrabad and Maujpur-Babarpur, Seelampur and Gokulpuri are closed. Trains won't be halting at these stations," DMRC said in a tweet.
India protests spread across universities
Fresh protests held across India
Fresh protests against India's new citizenship law and the attack on university students have erupted across the country.
Thousands of protesters marched in the eastern city of Kolkata in West Bengal for a fresh rally led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, a fierce critic of Modi.
Kolkata: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee leads a protest march from Jadavpur to Jadu Babu's Bazar, against #CitizenshipAmendmentAct. Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs Mimi Chakraborty & Nusrat Jahan also present in the protest march. pic.twitter.com/JQiWinGI3L — ANI (@ANI) December 17, 2019
New protests also broke out in the southernmost state of Kerala, while several rallies were planned in the capital New Delhi, according to news agencies. Top court asks petitioners to move lower courts
A three-member bench of India's Supreme Court has directed petitioners to approach lower courts for their pleas seeking an impartial investigation into the police action at New Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia and Uttar Pradesh state's Aligarh Muslim University.
The court asked the petitioners, senior lawyers Indira Jaising and Colin Gonsalves, to approach the High Courts which have jurisdiction over the two areas where protests against the citizenship law took place. Protesters shout slogans outside New Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia university
[Rajat Gupta/EPA] 10 arrested over Jamia violence
Police in India have arrested at least 10 people in connection with Sunday's violence at JMI university that left at least 100 people injured, many of them students, local media has reported.
Delhi Police has said that no Jamia student was among the arrested, according to the NDTV website.
Jamia Vice Chancellor Najma Akhtar has called for a high-level investigation into the police action.
Update 1 PM #AligarhMuslimUniversityFour students undergoing treatment at the JNMC Hospital:1. Head injury - Recovering.2. Abdominal surgery - Recovering.3. Hand Injury - Under observation for surgery.4. Hand injury - Surgery might be done for amputation.Please pray. — Akif عاکف (@khaans) December 17, 2019
Monday, December 162 protesters 'brought to hospital with bullet wounds'
A doctor at Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital told The Washington Post that two male demonstrators were brought in with bullet wounds. One was shot in the chest and the other in the foot, said the doctor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he feared harassment by the police.
The doctor told the newspaper that four police officers escorted the two young men "like prisoners", adding that both were in stable condition after treatment. Jamia women who took on Delhi police in viral video
A group of women is being hailed across India for their defiant bravery after a video went viral on social media, showing them confronting baton-wielding police officers to save their friend during a protest in capital New Delhi.
The women, all in their early 20s and students at JMI university, were among the thousands of people agitating against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act on Sunday.
A woman in Mumbai protests in solidarity with Jamia Millia Islamia
university students [Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters] Students allege intimidation by right-wing groups
Students at Delhi University in the capital have said right-wing student groups linked to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were trying to intimidate them for protesting against the citizenship law.
Raniya Zulaikha, student of political science at Ramjas College, said there were groups of students on campus saying anyone who was protesting should leave the country, or go to Pakistan.
Sanija Mithran, another student, said girls who were wearing the hijab were targeted. "They were selecting the girls with hijab and they were pulling their hijab."
I don't know what happened at Jamia last night; we must be wary of jihadists, Maoists, separatists getting into student protests: FM — Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 16, 2019
Congress protest at India Gate memorial in capital
Leader of the Congress party, Priyanka Gandhi, daughter of interim president Sonia Gandhi and sister of senior party leader Rahul, sat for a protest at the India Gate war memorial in New Delhi against the police crackdown on student campuses.
"The prime minister should answer what happened at the university yesterday. Whose government beat up the students?" she told reporters, according to India's ANI news agency.
Delhi: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, KC Venugopal, AK Antony, PL Punia, Ahmed Patel, Ambika Soni & other Congress leaders continue to sit on a symbolic protest near India Gate over police action during students' protests in Jamia Millia Islamia & Aligarh Muslim University(Uttar Pradesh) pic.twitter.com/s0v9NWzvns — ANI (@ANI) December 16, 2019
Police, students clash in Lucknow
Students have pelted stones at police who locked the gates of a college in the northern city of Lucknow to prevent them from taking to the streets.
About two dozen students at another college in the city in the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh state sneaked out to protest, Reuters news agency reported. 'No reason to worry' about India's law: Bangladesh FM
Bangladesh's Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has said his government has asked India for information on undocumented Bangladeshis so they could be repatriated.
"The Indian government has been telling us repeatedly that they aren't pushing anyone into Bangladesh. We asked them to inform us about anyone living there illegally. We have a standard procedure for this issue. They will be repatriated as per the procedure," he told journalists in Dhaka.
Momen's comments come amid concern that people are being pushed into Bangladesh from the Indian state of West Bengal. He said he was not worried about the impact of the bill on Bangladesh and trusts the government of India. "There is no reason to worry about this," he said. Brutal crackdown on students must end: Amnesty
Rights group Amnesty International India has urged India's federal and state governments to "respect the right to dissent" by the students and investigate allegations of police brutality against them.
IIM Ahmedabad students join protests over police action against Jamia Millia Islamia and AMU students — Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 16, 2019
"Violence against peacefully protesting students cannot under any circumstance be justified," it said in a statement. "Allegations that the police brutally beat up and sexually harassed students in Jamia Millia Islamia University must be investigated."
Amnesty said more than 100 protesters in the AMU were also allegedly beaten and that there were reports of police blocking ambulances from going into the university to help the wounded.
This has gone too far.. can’t stay silent any longer . This government is clearly fascist .. and it makes me angry to see voices that can actually make a difference stay quiet .. — Anurag Kashyap (@anuragkashyap72) December 16, 2019
Solidarity protests across India
Fresh protests have taken place in multiple cities across India, including capital New Delhi and Mumbai, in solidarity with JMI and AMU students who were attacked by the police on Sunday.
Meanwhile, thousands gathered in the eastern city of Kolkata for a major demonstration called by state chief minister Mamata Banerjee against the citizenship law.
The epicentre of the protests has been in India's northeastern states, where demonstrators have rallied against the law that they say will encourage undocumented immigrants to settle in the region.
At least six people have died in Assam state, which has witnessed violent protests. Students in Mumbai rally in solidarity with JMI university students
after police entered the campus [Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters] Modi blames 'vested interest groups'
Prime Minister Modi blamed vested interest groups for "creating the disturbance". "I want to unequivocally assure my fellow Indians that CAA [Citizens Amendment Act] does not affect any citizen of India of any religion... This Act is only for those who have faced years of persecution outside and have no other place to go except India," tweeted.
India's main opposition Congress party has expressed solidarity with the protests against the citizenship law, which it said polarises the people.
"The CAB [Citizenship Amendment Bill, now a law] and NRC [National Register of Citizens] are weapons of mass polarisation unleashed by fascists on India. The best defence against these dirty weapons is peaceful, non-violent Satyagraha [insistence on truth]," tweeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
"I stand in solidarity with all those protesting peacefully against the CAB & NRC." Police storm JMI, AMU to break protests
More than 100 students have been injured in India after baton-wielding police charged at them and fired tear gas at two federally-run universities where students were holding anti-citizenship law protests.
Students in capital New Delhi's JMI and Uttar Pradesh state's AMU had been protesting since the new law was passed last week.
A riot police officer loads a rifle during a protest against a new citizenship law in Seelampur, area of Delhi, India December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiImage Credit: REUTERS
"The police made all 15 of us kneel and started beating us. They used lots of abusive words. One of them removed my prescription glasses, threw (them) on the ground, broke them and told me to look down," said Hanjala Mojibi, an English major at Jamia Millia Islamia University at a news conference, breaking down in tears.
Indian student protests that turned into violent clashes with police galvanized opposition nationwide on Tuesday to a new law that provides a path to citizenship for non-Muslim migrants who entered the country illegally from several neighboring countries.
Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest march against a new citizenship law, in Kochi, India, December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Sivaram VImage Credit: REUTERS
A march by students from New Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia University descended into chaos Sunday when demonstrators set three buses on fire. Police responded with rubber bullets and tear gas. Videos showed officers running after unarmed protesters and beating them with wooden sticks.
Mojibi said that when he and others saw police enter the campus, they walked toward them with their hands up to indicate their protest was nonviolent.
What is the issue?
Citizenship Amendment Act is a newly passed law that applies to Hindus, Christians and other religious minorities who are in India illegally from Muslim-majority Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. They can apply for citizenship under a religious persecution clause.
The law, however, doesn't include Muslim refugees or migrants - in what critics are calling a clear indication of the changing politics in secular India. India has a Hindu population but is also home to 200 million Muslims and other minorities.
Demonstrators gather behind a police barricade during a protest against a new citizenship law and to show solidarity with the students of the Jamia Millia Islamia university after police entered the university campus on Sunday following a protest against the law, in Seelampur area of Delhi, India, December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiImage Credit: REUTERS
This amendment of the Citizenship Act, 1955 which requires the applicant (regardless of religion or country of origin) to have resided in India for 11 of the previous 14 years. The amendment passed this year relaxes this requirement from 11 years to six years, but for Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians from the three nations.
Some of the protesters view the law as inherently discriminatory, while others - particularly in India's northeast - fear it will accelerate demographic and linguistic change.
Sunday violence and accusations against police
Protests in the capital took a violent turn on Sunday as public buses were burnt and civilians injured around the Jamia Millia Islamic campus. The protests by students of the university turned violent when police allegedly barged into the campus.
A demonstrator throws a piece of brick towards riot police during a protest against a new citizenship law in Seelampur, area of Delhi, India December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiImage Credit: REUTERS
Late on Sunday, videos and photos emerged on social media channels accusing police of forcibly entering the college library and even student hostels where they have been accused of firing tear gas pellets and beating students with wooden sticks or lathis.
On Monday, the students of Jamia formed a human chain outside the campus in protest against “police brutality”. Delhi University (DU) students also clashed with the police accusing them of using “excessive force” to control protests in Jamia on Sunday.
Addressing a press conference, Jamia Millia Islamia University Vice-Chancellor (VC) Najma Akhtar demanded a high-level inquiry into the crackdown on university students.
Friends and fellow students help Jamia Millia Islamia University student Mohammad Mustafa, who was injured in police baton charging, as he breaks down while narrating his experience, during a press conference in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. Students involved in a massive weekend protest at a predominantly Muslim university in India's capital described a clash with baton-wielding police at a news conference Tuesday, while opposition grew nationwide against a new law that provides a path to citizenship for non-Muslim migrants.(AP Photo/Manish Swarup)Image Credit: AP
Mujeeb Ahmad, a 21-year-old Arabic major, returned to campus Monday to join the sit-in and retrieve the book bag he lost fleeing the library, where he had been studying for exams.
"We thought we were safe in the library,'' he said, adding that he and others had locked the library doors from the inside. Policemen broke them down, and at least one officer fired tear gas, he said, holding up an empty canister he said he picked up from the library floor.
What is the government saying?
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with Narendra Modi at its helm has been pushing for the legislation for years. The bill was presented by Modi's government in 2016 but that failed to garner the required support in the parliament houses.
However, this time around, the act was passed.
I want to unequivocally assure my fellow Indians that CAA does not affect any citizen of India of any religion. No Indian has anything to worry regarding this Act. This Act is only for those who have faced years of persecution outside and have no other place to go except India.
On Monday, following the violence that ensued in Delhi, Narendra Modi tweeted reassuring people in the country that the act would not affect any citizens. He added, "This is the time to maintain peace, unity and brotherhood. It is my appeal to everyone to stay away from any sort of rumour mongering and falsehoods."
The need of the hour is for all of us to work together for the development of India and the empowerment of every Indian, especially the poor, downtrodden and marginalised.
We cannot allow vested interest groups to divide us and create disturbance.
Speaking at a rally on Sunday, Modi said the protesters who were setting fires "can be identified by their clothes." Critics called the statement a political dog whistle to refer to Muslims, who often wear distinctive garb.
Amit Shah, Modi's powerful second-in-command, has repeatedly stated that the citizenship law will be followed by a nationwide registry in which all Indians will have to provide documents proving their citizenship, ostensibly to identify migrants who entered the country illegally.
This is the time to maintain peace, unity and brotherhood. It is my appeal to everyone to stay away from any sort of rumour mongering and falsehoods.
This act closely follows two other controversial projects undertaken by the Modi government in recent times. One being the revocation of Article 370 which granted semi-autonomy to India's only Muslim-majority state, Kashmir.
The other large-scale operation conducted during this government's reign is the enforcement of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) list in Assam with Amit Shah, Union Minister for Home Affairs, proposing a possible extension of the list to the entire country.
The purpose of the NRC update in the state of Assam has been to identify Indian citizens - who are presently residents of the state - so that illegal migrants who entered the state after midnight on 24 March 1971 can be identified.
Demonstrators gather behind a police barricade during a protest against a new citizenship law and to show solidarity with the students of the Jamia Millia Islamia university after police entered the university campus on Sunday following a protest against the law, in Seelampur area of Delhi, India, December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiImage Credit: REUTERS
The NRC had always been a part of India's efforts to curb illegal migration from erstwhile East Pakistan, now Bangladesh in the years preceding 1971. However, the logistics of updating the list have delayed a publication until now.
The final NRC list was published in August 2019, leaving out 1,906,657 people who had applied for inclusion. While theyc an appeal the non-inclusion, the fate of those who would not be able to get his or her name entered in the register is now a matter under judicial and legislative consideration and more or less uncertain.
These people stand at risk of being deported to Bangladesh if unable to prove the legality of their migration. Bangladesh has repeatedly said that it would not accept anyone India determines to be a foreigner, but on Sunday, Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen said it has asked the Modi government for details on Bangladeshis living illegally in India so that they could be repatriated.
There are also allegations that a large number of Bengali Hindus, genuine Indian citizens, have been left out of the list - their spots being taken by illegal migrants.
State governments, politicians protest against CAA
Several state governments have called for peaceful protests against the act.
In Kerala, both the ruling government and opposition are on the same page as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and LoP (leader of opposition) Ramesh Chennithala held a joint protest against the amended citizenship law in the Assembly on Monday.
A man with a wounded eye is pictured during a protest against a new citizenship law in Seelampur, area of Delhi, India December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Adnan AbidiImage Credit: REUTERS
In Chennai, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) lawmaker Kanimozhi on Tuesday protested against the amended citizenship law and raised slogans against the Central and state government.
People gathered in huge numbers and chanted, "We oppose, we oppose, we oppose Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA)". Clad in a black saree, Kanimozhi stood on the dais to show her disapproval with the newly enacted law.
An association of Muslim advocates on Monday approached the Supreme Court challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, and seeking to declare the new law as "unconstitutional."
A woman shouts slogans from inside a bus after being detained during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Gauhati, India, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. Indian student protests that turned into violent clashes with police galvanized opposition nationwide on Tuesday to a new law that provides a path to citizenship for non-Muslim migrants who entered the country illegally from several neighboring countries. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)Image Credit: AP
"The Act violates Articles 14, 21 and 25 of the Constitution, as well as the Constitution's basic structure," said the Muslim Advocates Association (MAA) in its plea.
West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee, had on Monday spearheaded a protest march in Kolkata against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, and the NRC.
Banerjee has said that she will not allow the citizenship law and the NRC to be implemented in West Bengal.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 has "no clarity" in it.
"The questions we asked in Lok Sabha on Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 were not answered. There is no clarity on the Citizenship Act," Shiv Sena chief Thackeray said at an event here.
About 2,000 people including students and families with young children gathered at New Delhi's iconic India Gate memorial to protest the Citizenship Amendment Act and reports of students demonstrating against the law who were beaten by police at several university campuses.
Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, and her party supporters attend a protest march against the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and a new citizenship law, in Kolkata, India, December 17, 2019. REUTERS/Rupak De ChowdhuriImage Credit: REUTERS
Priyanka Gandhi, a leader in the opposition Congress party, participated at a sit-in at India Gate for two hours. Police stood on the sidelines of the demonstration.
Assam is burning
The law's passage has triggered protests across India, but Assam, the center of a decades-old movement against illegal immigrants, has seen the highest toll.
Assam police officials say officers have fatally shot five protesters in the state capital of Guwahati while attempting to restore order to a city that has been engulfed in demonstrations since last week. About 1,500 people have been arrested for violence including arson and vandalism, police spokesman G.P. Singh said, adding that authorities were reviewing surveillance videos and anticipated making more arrests.
A man grieves over the body of his brother, who was shot by police last week and later died, in Guwahati, India, Dec. 15, 2019. Indian Muslims, who have watched anxiously as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has pursued a Hindu nationalist program, have finally reacted with days of protests and clashes in response to a sweeping new citizenship law that favors every South Asian faith other than IslamImage Credit: Ahmer Khan/The New York Times
Schools remain closed through Dec. 22, the government has blocked internet service statewide and a curfew has been imposed from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. Foreign journalists are not permitted to travel to India's northeastern region, including Assam, without a permit.
Municipal workers were clearing the city of burned tires and other debris on Monday and some businesses had reopened as the All Assam Students Union, which has spearheaded Assam's anti-immigration movement for decades, led a silent protest. The group and its followers fear an influx of migrants will dilute native Assamese culture and political sway.
The Citizenship Amendment Act could also provide protection and a fast track to naturalization for many of the Hindus left off Assam's NRC list, while explicitly leaving out Muslims.
"Our country is not just for Hindus," said Chanda Yadav, 20, a Hindi literature student who was participating in a sit-in Monday at Jamia Millia Islamia University. ``I feel it is my moral right to protest against something which divides us as a community.''
- Inputs from agencies
Protests across India over new citizenship law which excludes Muslims
Critics fear the new law could further marginalize the country's minority Muslim community
A man runs past a burning bus that was set on fire by demonstrators during a protest against a new citizenship law, in New DelhiImage Credit: Reuters
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Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest against a new citizenship law, in New DelhiImage Credit: REUTERS
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Firetenders douse fire set on a bus by by anti-Citizenship Act protestors at Mathura Road, in New DelhiImage Credit: PTI
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Protesters shout slogans during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, that seeks to give citizenship to religious minorities persecuted in neighbouring Muslim countries, inside the Jamia Millia Islamia University in New DelhiImage Credit: Reuters
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Protestors shout slogans during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment BillImage Credit: Reuters
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Firetenders douse fire set on a bus by by anti-Citizenship Act protestors at Mathura Road, in New DelhiImage Credit: PTI
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Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest against a new citizenship law, outside the police headquarters in New DelhiImage Credit: REUTERS
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Policemen detain an injured student outside Jamia Millia Islamia university during a protest against Citizenship Amendment Act in New DelhiImage Credit: AP
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A demonstrator shouts slogans during a protest against a new citizenship law, in New DelhiImage Credit: REUTERS
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Protesters stage a protest over the Citizenship Amendment Act near Jamia Nagar in New DelhiImage Credit:
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Demonstrators attend a protest against a new citizenship law, in New DelhiImage Credit: REUTERS
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A protester walk pass after spraying a graffiti during a protest over the Citizenship Amendment Act near Jamia Nagar in New DelhiImage Credit:
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Protesters holding placards and a national flag during a protest over the Citizenship Amendment Act near Jamia Nagar in New DelhiImage Credit:
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Police personnel conduct a march after the violent protests that erupted against Citizenship Amendment Act near Jamia Millia IslamiaImage Credit: PTI
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Policemen stand guard near Jamia Millia Islamia following the protests against Citizenship Amendment ActImage Credit: PTI
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Indians holds placards and shouts slogans during a protest against Citizenship Amendment Act in Ahmadabad, IndiaImage Credit: AP
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Anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protestors raise slogans during a rally, in BengaluruImage Credit: PTI
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Guwahati: Protestors gather for a concert organised by All Artists of Assam against Citizenship Amendment Act, at AEI playground in Guwahati, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. (PTI Photo) (PTI12_15_2019_000224B)Image Credit: PTI
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Women raise slogans during a protest against the Citizenship (Amendment ) ActCitizenship (Amendment) Act protests: Police attempted to douse fire by using borrowed water bottle The protesters created blockade at Mathura Road and burnt buses there
New Delhi: Chinm Citizenship (Amendment) Actoy Biswal, DCP, South-East Delhi on Monday said that police tried to douse the flames by asking for waters from locals, to save the buses that were put on fire by the anti-social elements during Sunday's protest at an area near Jamia Nagar.
"The protesters created blockade at Mathura Road and burnt buses there. In order to disperse them, we resorted to firing tear-gas. After which they targeted two more buses on their way and a police motorcycle. They tried to set these on fire," said Biswal.
"This allegation that (police burnt buses) is an absolute lie. When the mob was setting fire to properties, police tried to douse the fire by asking for water from residents. As far as the particular bus is concerned, Police saved it by using water from a bottle," he added while responding to queries about a police personnel's action that has gone viral over social media.
He requested that Jamia students to not pay heed to rumours being spread by anti-social elements.
"I appeal to Jamia students, that the image of University gets affected when anti-social elements join their protests. Protests should be peaceful and disciplined," he said.
Delhi Police have registered two FIRs pertaining to property damage and riots in connection with the violence that erupted during the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in Jamia Nagar area.
The protests against Citizenship (Amendment) Act led to clashes between the police and students and left several injured. Some students today also protested at the gate of the University demanding action against Delhi Police for their alleged 'crackdown' on protesters
India: Mass protest against Citizenship Amendment Act
Citizens across the country are rallying in protest of the controversial new rule
Congress supporters during the party's 'Bharat Bachao' rally at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi.Image Credit: PTI
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India's opposition Congress party leaders wave at a rally organized by party to protest against the "anti-people" policies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi led government in New Delhi, India.Image Credit: AP
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Huge crowd of Congress supporters seen during the party's 'Bharat Bachao' rally at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi.Image Credit: ANI
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Congress party supporters wearing onion garland shout slogans during the party's 'Bharat Bachao' rally at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi.Image Credit: ANI
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Protesters display placards during a demonstration against the Indian government's Citizenship Amendment Bill in New Delhi.Image Credit: AFP
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Police officers chase protestors during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, a bill that seeks to give citizenship to religious minorities persecuted in neighbouring Muslim countries, outside the Jamia Millia Islamia University in New Delhi.Image Credit: Reuters
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Protesters run for cover amid tear gas fired by police during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, a bill that seeks to give citizenship to religious minorities persecuted in neighbouring Muslim countries, outside the Jamia Millia Islamia University in New Delhi.Image Credit: Reuters
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Protesters block a road after setting buses on fire during a demonstration against the Indian government's Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) in Howrah, on the outskirts of Kolkata.Image Credit: AFP
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Protesters shout slogans during a demonstration against the Indian government's Citizenship Amendment Bill in New Delhi.Image Credit: AFP
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Members of Muslim community hold placards during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizen (NRC), in Ludhiana.Image Credit: ANI
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Assamese people hold placards during a protest against Citizenship Amendment Act, at Azad Maidan in Mumbai.Image Credit: ANI
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Assamese People hold placards during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, at Azad Maidan in Mumbai.Image Credit: ANI
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Jamia Millia Islamia students protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in New Delhi.Image Credit: PTI
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Assamese People hold placards during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, at Sir Puttanna Chetty Town Hall in Bengaluru.Image Credit: ANI
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Assamese students slogans during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) in Bengaluru.Image Credit: PTI
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Students injured in Friday's clash with the police show their injuries during a protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and NRC at the Jamia Millia Islamia, in New Delhi.Image Credit: PTI
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Assamese people hold placards during a protest against Citizenship Amendment Act, in Mumbai.Image Credit: PTI
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Police stand next to protestors taking part in a demonstration against the Indian government's Citizen Amendement Bill (CAB) in Guwahati.Image Credit: AFP
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People take part in a protest against the passage of Citizenship Amendment Bill, near Raj Bhavan in Shillong, Meghalaya.Image Credit: PTI
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People hold placards and raise slogans as they take part in a mass hunger strike organized by the AASU against the Citizenship Amendment Act, in Guwahati.
CITIZEN SCIENCE
App maker by day, space sleuth by night: How Chennai techie Shanmuga Subramanian found Vikram NASA HELPED NOT B ISRO BUT AN AMATUER Shanmuga Subramanian, a 33-year-old techie working in Chennai, was instrumental in helping Nasa locate debris from the Chandrayaan-2 lander's crash on the lunar surface.
Shalini Lobo Chennai
December 3, 2019 The debris found by Shanmuga Subramanian, left, is marked "S"
in the map. (IMAGES:
Twitter/@Ramanean and NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University)
HIGHLIGHTS
Shanmuga Subramanian used Nasa image to find Vikram debris
Spent hours every night scouring lunar surface
Nasa has acknowledged his contribution in a statement
He combed through the photo night after night, enduring many false eureka moments -- oh, those pesky boulders -- before he found what was looking for: a small white dot.
On December 3, Shanmuga Subramanian's discovery would be revealed to the world by Nasa: the tiny dot was, in fact, a piece of Vikram, the Chandrayaan-2 mission's lander.
Shanmuga Subramanian, 33, is an app developer and mechanical engineer from Madurai, Tamil Nadu. He works in Chennai for an IT firm. Rockets and space tech have always interested him: when he was in college, he watched a sounding rocket launch during a visit to Isro in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
In an e-mail and a TV interview, the young techie explained how he came to be involved in the hunt for Vikram.
It all began, he said, with this simple thought: "It was something challenging as even Nasa can't find out [where the lander was] so why can't we try [it] out?"
He would spend hours -- "four to six" -- every night, scouring a Nasa image of the lunar surface for debris. In early October he was convinced he had found the right spot; he had compared the current photo with previous images from a nine-year period. After that, "I was just waiting for the confirmation from Nasa."
He would get more than that. On December 3, in a statement describing new images of the debris, Nasa credited him with the first positive identification of debris, and mark his finding on a map. (See spot marked "S" on photo below). Photo: NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University
Shanmuga Subramanian feels more efforts need to be made to explore the Moon, not least because he feels it could serve as a base for Martian adventures. But that's not all.
"We don't know about the surface of the South Pole. We don't know where are the locations that have got water...," he told India Today TV.
Twitter is now abuzz with news of Shanmuga Subramanian's extraordinary find, but he humbly attributes the discovery to Nasa's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LRO) team.
"Without LRO's data," he said, "this wouldn't have been possible".
See more pictures of the Chandrayaan-2 mission on IndiaContent.in.
Degree does not matter, says Chennai techie who helped Nasa find Vikram lander debris
Elated by validation of his find by Nasa, Shanmuga Subramanian says when it comes to passion, the degree does not matter.
A software engineer from Chennai with no formal training and no sophisticated equipment has been able to do what scientists from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and US space agency Nasa had been trying to do for months.
New Delhi December 3, 2019 UPDATED: December 4, 2019 Shanmuga Subramanian -
Chennai techie who helped Nasa find Vikram lander debris (PTI)
A software engineer from Chennai with no formal training and no sophisticated equipment has been able to do what scientists from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and US space agency Nasa had been trying to do for months. Amateur space scientist Shanmuga Subramanian has found the debris of Vikram lander - India's moon rover and part of the Chandrayan-2 mission.
The rover had gone incommunicado on September 7, during the final stages of a mission that had been poised to make India only the fourth nation in history to land on the moon.
Shanmuga Subramanian, 33, says he scoured the images clicked by Nasa's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LRO) for four to six hours for several nights before he spotted a tiny white dot. He had spotted the Vikram lander's debris in early October and had been waiting for Nasa's response on his find.
"It took me two to three days to just zero-in on the area of landing. Because images produced by LRO were so vast, it was impossible to do a pixel by pixel scan," Shanmuga Subramanian told India Today TV's Rajdeep Sardesai. he said that he could bring down his search are to a two by two square kilometre area with the help of online forums about Isro.
"Learning is a continuous process, we should not stop learning at any point in time. and even if you don't hold any degrees, it does not matter. Ultimately it is all about what we have done so far in our life. I would say that amateurs should start looking at space as an option," he said.
Shanmuga Subramanian said that what he has done was a small part of space exploration being undertaken by amateurs like him. "There are several others who do a lot more like spotting satellite debris. There are a lot of things to be done in space. I would ask them [space enthusiasts] to try it out and do whatever they can do about it."
How 'Indiana Jones' scientists braved leeches and tigers to fight climate change
Over a hundred scientists travelled the world to find wild relatives of important crops, at a time when climate change endangers global security. Their stories are said to "often resemble scenes from an Indiana Jones movie.” Reuters London December 4, 2019
Photo: Twitter/The Crop Trust
HIGHLIGHTS
Over 100 scientists scour globe for wild relatives of key crops
Collect thousands of wild seeds, results presented Tuesday
Expeditions were dangerous and physically demanding
Braving perils from blood-sucking leeches to tigers and using transport as basic as elephants, scientists have journeyed like "Indiana Jones" to remote locations to collect wild cousins of crop seeds in a project to help tackle climate change.
A report released on Tuesday presented the results of a six-year quest to collect thousands of wild seeds that could play an important role in feeding a rising global population at a time when global warming is jeopardising crop production.
"The expeditions were not a walk in the park."
- Hannes Dempewolf, scientist
Travelling by foot, four-wheel drive, canoe, horse and even elephant to reach remote corners of the world, more than 100 scientists secured 4,644 seed samples of 371 wild relatives - many endangered - of 28 globally important crops.
"The expeditions were not a walk in the park. They were perilous at times, and physically demanding, with heat, dust, sweat and danger from wild animals - from blood-sucking leeches to tigers," said Hannes Dempewolf, senior scientist and the head of global initiatives at the Crop Trust.
We didn't see Bengal tigers in the Chitwan Na’tl Park, "but they're there, & just by being there, they're keeping us humans at bay, & indirectly safeguarding the many @CropWildRelativ to be found there, including Oryza officinalis." https://t.co/IOFgKdxsCJ#Nepalpic.twitter.com/xuGa4zB1wJ
"The stories these seed collectors brought back from the field often resemble scenes from an Indiana Jones movie.
The project, managed by the Crop Trust in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens and Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) and with Norwegian funding, is the most ambitious coordinated global effort yet to collect and conserve crops' wild relatives.
Scientists that took part in the seed quest came from 25 countries in four continents.
The sturdier cousins of widely grown crops have evolved to survive harsh conditions such as low rainfall, flooding, temperature extremes and poor soils, and offer a largely untapped source of diversity for climate-proofing crops.
Crops have been threatened by extinction due to rampant deforestation, climate change, urban sprawl and conflict, and losing this diversity could endanger global food security.
"Bananas are a great example of a crop that is potentially threatened because of increasing incidents of disease and we've been through this before," said project manager Chris Cockel.
"In the post-war period the banana (that) people were familiar with was virtually wiped out by a disease that is now making inroads again. So it's important to use the seed material...to breed back in the lost genetic traits that will help to make bananas more resistant to that particular disease."
Food supplies are under severe threat, according to a United Nations report, given the number of animal and plant species fast disappearing as the world grapples with how to feed a soaring population.
At the same time people are relying on fewer species for food, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, leaving production susceptible to shocks like pests or disease, droughts and other extreme weather linked to climate change.
As per the new study, Structures previously thought to be fossils, or preserved remains of long dead organisms, may actually be minerals.
Structures previously thought to be fossils or preserved remains of long-dead organisms may actually be minerals, according to a study that may aid the search for extraterrestrial life during future missions to Mars. The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, noted that microscopic tubes and filaments resembling the remains of tiny creatures may have been formed by a process called 'chemical gardening' involving iron-rich minerals.
What did the study talk about?
According to the study author Sean McMahon from the University of Edinburgh in the UK, earlier research had suggested such structures to be among the oldest fossils on Earth.
"Such microstructures should therefore not be assumed to represent fossil microbes without independent corroborating evidence," he wrote in the study.
The current study may save future Mars missions valuable time and resources in determining possible signs of life on the Red Planet, McMahon said in a statement.
As part of the research, he created tiny mineral formations in the lab closely mimicking the shape and chemical composition of iron-rich structures commonly found in Mars-like rocks on Earth -- where some examples are thought to be around four billion years old.
Steps in the study
McMahon created the structures by mixing iron-rich particles with alkaline liquids containing the chemicals silicate or carbonate.He said the process -- known as chemical gardening -- occurred naturally where the chemicals abound.
"Chemical reactions like these have been studied for hundreds of years but they had not previously been shown to mimic these tiny iron-rich structures inside rocks. These results call for a re-examination of many ancient real-world examples to see if they are more likely to be fossils or non-biological mineral deposits," said McMahon.
What were the findings?
According to the study, these structures can occur in thermal vents on the seabed, and when deep groundwater circulates through pores and fractures in rocks. The findings suggest that structure alone is not sufficient to confirm whether or not microscopic life-like formations are fossils.
"Here, I show experimentally that abiotic chemical gardening can mimic such purported fossils in both morphology and composition. In particular, chemical gardens meet morphological criteria previously proposed to establish biogenicity, while also producing the precursors to the iron minerals most commonly constitutive of filaments in the rock record," McMahon wrote in the study.
When such formations are found, whether on the Earth or on Mars, McMahon said, more research will be needed to say exactly how they were formed.
TOILET CRISIS IN INDIA 4 yrs of Swachh Bharat Mission (Clean India Mission),but 38% govt hospitals in rural India don't have staff toilets Over 72,000 government health centres in rural India don't have toilet facility for their staff, while nearly 40,000 are functioning without electricity. IndiaToday.in takes a look at the country's rural health infrastructure. On October 2, 2014 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission (Clean India Mission), he said the aim was to improve India's sanitation. Besides general cleanliness, PM Modi laid emphasis on constructing toilets, saying nearly 60 per cent people in rural India were still defecating in the open. He termed this practice as a "blot" that India must clean itself of.
Since then, the government has repeatedly showcased Swachh Bharat Mission as one of its successes.
Mukesh RawatNew Delhi December 4, 2019 (The author tweets at @mukeshrawat705 and can also be reached on Facebook.) Thousands of sub centres, PHCs and CHCs across rural India don't even have basic facilities like regular water supply, electricity and toilets. (Photo: Reuters file photo)
But, while the government may pat its back with its claims of constructing over 9.5 crore toilets across India since 2014, an IndiaToday.in analysis of the latest data on rural health infrastructure reveals that 38 per cent government health centres in rural India don't have toilets for their staff. This data was accessed from Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan's written reply in the Lok Sabha on November 22, which in turn is based on 'Rural Health Statistics 2018', a report prepared by the central government. In 10 states and three Union Territories, more than 50 per cent government health centres in rural areas are without staff toilets. These include large states like Telangana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. These health centres include sub centres, primary health centres (PHCs) and community health centres (CHCs)--the backbone of India's public health services. If we breakdown this data, we find that as on March 31, 2018, at least 60 per cent sub centres, 18 per cent PHCs and 12 per cent CHCs in India were without staff toilets. Sub centres are the smallest units in India's rural health infrastructure. They are under the charge of an ANM (auxiliary nurse midwife) and have been set-up to ensure availability of last mile trained medical services in rural areas. They provide all primary healthcare services. A PHC on the other hand is a government hospital that acts as the first contact point with local community and generally caters to around 25 villages. It is under the charge of a qualified MBBS doctor who is assisted by a pharmacist, 4-5 nurses and other medical staff. PHCs treat patients with routine illness and are also equipped to handle delivery cases, organise sterilisation camps etc. Meanwhile, a CHC is a much bigger hospital, generally with 30 beds and 5 medical experts, including a surgeon and more than 10 nurses. A CHC covers nearly 120 villages.
STATES: WORST AND THE BAD ONES Among major states, Telangana fares worst when it comes to toilet facilities at health centres. The state has 4,744 sub centres in rural areas and none of them have a staff toilet. Overall, 86 per cent government health centres in rural Telangana don't have such toilets. (The overall figure includes data for PHCs and CHCs.) The situation in Telangana is diametrically opposite from its parent state, Andhra Pradesh, where all 7,458 sub centres have staff toilets. Not just this, all PHCs and CHCs in Andhra Pradesh too are equipped with such toilets. Throughout the campaign for a separate Telangana state, leaders from Telangana alleged that the region was neglected and faced discrimination that stunted its progress. Besides Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh is the only other major state to have staff toilets in all government hospitals. Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in India, too fares far better than most states. Only nine per cent government health centres in rural Uttar Pradesh are without toilets for staff. On the other hand, Rajasthan and Gujarat, two big and important states, fare poorly on this count. In Rajasthan, 85 per cent sub centres in rural areas don't have staff toilets while the figure for Gujarat is 73 per cent. The condition in West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand bears a similar resemblance. WHY DO HOSPITALS NEED STAFF TOILETS? Hospital staff works in shifts of long durations during which they attend a number of patients. In absence of toilets, they are often forced to wait for hours before they can answer nature's call. This physical inconvenience can have an adverse impact on their concentration, which in turn has cascading effects on their work. Besides, it is important for hospital staff to have separate toilets to protect them from pathogens in patients' waste. In a 2019 report on water, sanitation and hygiene at health care centres the World Health Organisation (WHO) said 20 per cent of these centres globally don't have sanitation facilities, thus impacting close to 1.5 billion people. The WHO says basic sanitation facility at a health care centre should include at least one toilet dedicated for staff, at least one sex-separated toilet with menstrual hygiene facilities, and at least one toilet accessible for people with limited mobility. "No one goes to a health care facility to get sick. People go there to get better, to deliver babies, to get vaccinated. Yet, hundreds of millions of people face an increased risk of infection by seeking care in health facilities that lack basic necessities, including water, sanitation, hygiene and health care waste services," the report said. Sanitation conditions at a primary health centre in Bihar. (Photo: GettyImages file photo) Stressing on the need for proper sanitation, WHO report said absence of such facilities can spread disease instead of preventing them. Calling sanitation a human right, it said such services in health care facilities are essential to deliver high-quality care that improves health, welfare and dignity of patients and staff, besides improving health outcomes.
NO SEPARATE TOILETS FOR MEN / WOMEN In 2014, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered his first address to the nation on Independence Day, he expressed displeasure at the lack of separate toilets for girls in schools and said it was a key reason that kept many girls out of school. "All schools in the country should have separate toilets for girls," Modi said, setting a one-year target to achieve this. However, while the prime minister set a target to build sex-separated toilets at schools, his message failed to have any noticeable impact on health care facilities. (See chart below)
Nearly 61 per cent of all government hospitals in rural India are without separate toilets for men and women.
Basic sanitation facility at a health care centre should include at least one toilet dedicated for staff, at least one sex-separated toilet with menstrual hygiene facilities, and at least one toilet accessible for people with limited mobility.- World Health Organisation
In Andhra Pradesh, while all 7,458 sub centres have toilets, none of them have separate toilets for men and women. Overall, Kerala and Telangana have the highest percentage of government hospitals without sex-separated toilets (86 per cent each), followed by Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. In 21 states and Union Territories more than 50 per cent rural hospitals don't have separate toilets for men and women. The overall figure includes data for sub centres, PHCs and CHCs.
While toilets are essential for patient care and wellbeing of hospital staff, there are thousands of government health units in rural India which don't even have regular water supply. As on March 31, 2018, there were 26,360 sub centres and 1,313 primary health centres in rural India that did not have a regular source of water. A woman collects water using a hand-pump at a Primary Health Centre in Latur, Maharashtra. (Photo: Reuters file photo from 2016) Stressing on the need of water supply at health care facilities, the WHO says availability of sufficient quantities of safe water is important for health centres to provide quality services. "Without water, a health care facility isn't a health care facility. Water is essential for cleaning rooms, beds, floors, toilets, sheets and laundry. It is central to patient experiences of health care, as it enables them to remain hydrated, to clean themselves, and to reduce the risk of infections," WHO says in a 2019 report on health care.
"No one goes to a hospital to get sick. People go there to get better. Yet, hundreds of millions of people face an increased risk of infection by seeking care in health facilities that lack basic necessities, including water, sanitation and hygiene. - World Health Organisation The WHO estimates that globally around 25 per cent health care facilities don't have basic water services impacting around 2 billion people. Data for India show 45 per cent PHCs in Jharkhand are functioning without regular water supply, while in Nagaland and Manipur the figures are 44 and 43 per cent, respectively. When it comes to sub centres, there are states where more than 50 per cent sub centres don't have regular water source. Manipur leads this list with 79 per cent sub centres devoid of regular water supply, followed by Mizoram (62 per cent) and Meghalaya (60 per cent). Among large states, Bihar has 49 per cent sub centres without regular water supply, Jharkhand (53 per cent), Rajasthan (34 per cent) and Odisha (30 per cent). Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Goa and Tamil Nadu are among states where all sub centres have regular water supply. OUT OF POWER Besides construction of toilets under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the Modi government also counts rural electrification among its success. The government in 2018 claimed it has achieved the arduous target of 100 per cent rural electrification, a claim contested aggressively by the Opposition. Media reports also don't support the government's claim. These tall claims aside, records show nearly 40,000 government health units (39,122 sub centres and 823 PHCs) across rural India are still operating without electricity supply In absence of electricity supply, these health centres have limited utility in helping people in villages during emergencies, especially at night and under unfavourable weather conditions when travelling to bigger hospitals is difficult-something that is common in remote areas. In villages, a PHC generally is the closest government health facility with a qualified doctor. Most pregnancy cases at the time of delivery are taken to PHCs and only when there is a complication, the case is referred to a CHC or district hospital. As such, it is important for PHCs to have round-the-clock electricity supply. The situation is particularly alarming in Goa and Jharkhand where 60 and 43 per cent PHCs respectively don't have electricity supply.
The National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4 revealed that nearly 25 per cent childbirth in rural India don't take place inside a hospital. In Nagaland, 76 per cent deliveries in rural areas don't take place in hospitals. In Arunachal Pradesh this was 56 per cent, in Jharkhand 43 per cent, Manipur 40 per cent, Bihar 37 per cent and in Uttarakhand 36 per cent. The high prevalence of non-institutional deliveries in these states makes the role of sub centres very important. The sub centres are under the charge of trained ANMs who are skilled to handle normal delivery cases. A sub centre generally caters to 4-5 villages and is easily accessible to villagers, even in harsh weather conditions. Against this backdrop, when thousands of health centres in rural India are bereft of even basic amenities like regular water supply, electricity and toilets, healthcare of the common people in rural India gets seriously compromised, besides exposing patients and medical staff to greater risks.
World Toilet Organization was founded on 19 November 2001 and the inaugural World Toilet Summit was held on the same day, the first global summit of its kind. We recognised the need for an international day to draw global attention to the sanitation crisis – and so we established World Toilet Day on 19 November. World Toilet Day has continued to garner support over the years, with NGOs, the private sector, civil society organisations and the international community joined in to mark the global day.
