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Indian medical students in Ukraine struggle amid war as locals ask them to ‘go back’ citing Indo-Russia ties

OpIndia Staff
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Indian medical students in Ukraine struggle amid war as locals ask them to ‘go back’ citing Indo-Russia ties

The challenges faced by Indian students who returned to Ukraine, a nation currently engaged in a military conflict with Russia, to finish their medical studies seem unending. These students are now facing growing resentment from specific sections of the local community, who view India as aligned with Russia in the ongoing strife. This animosity has intensified significantly, particularly following Ukraine’s recent military offensive operations initiated in June 2023.

In the weeks following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, approximately 18,000 students were successfully evacuated from the country. However, a significant number of them faced obstacles in obtaining permission to resume their studies at Indian colleges or other international universities. Therefore, nearly 3,400 determined students defied the risks and returned to Ukraine to complete their degrees.

In the midst of their dire circumstances, these students have been making earnest endeavours to secure transfers to universities in different nations. They have been reaching out to both their individual state governments and the central government in pursuit of this goal. Unfortunately, their persistent efforts have yielded no positive outcomes.

According to a report by the Times of India, a student studying in Ukraine and originally hailing from Madhya Pradesh said, “As per National Medical Council (NMC) guidelines, students who are studying abroad after December 2021 cannot transfer to any other university. This is why I and many other students had to come back here.”

As the conflict continues to unfold, there is a growing shift in public sentiment that is becoming increasingly unfavourable towards Indian students. Another student said, “Local residents in Ukraine say, ‘You Indians are good friends with Russia’. They want us to leave their country.” She added, “Sometimes shopkeepers don’t sell things to us. We face the same thing in our hostel. The staff behave rudely with us.”

Another student said, “Sometimes, water is not available or the electricity goes out, or both. Sometimes the kitchen doesn’t open. How will we survive? We are stuck here because we have no other option.” Every time a siren wails, fear grips the students.

Another student said, “We live in constant terror. Our families in India live in fear. The sires are so frequent that we can’t study. We are pleading with our government to allow us to transfer to any other university in any other country. We are not demanding any money from anyone.”

As Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh battles devastating floods, the party focuses on Rahul Gandhi’s tourism in neighbouring Ladakh

Shraddha Pandey
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As Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh battles devastating floods, the party focuses on Rahul Gandhi’s tourism in neighbouring Ladakh

Rahul Gandhi, the prince whom the Congress party launches and relaunches prior to every election in the country is presently in Ladakh ahead of the elections for Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Kargil (LAHDC-Kargil). The Congress leader shared pictures of his bike ride to Pangong Lake on his social media pages.

Rahul Gandhi the owner-operator of ‘Mohabbat Ki Dukaan’ is in Ladakh at a time when Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh is witnessing the worst natural calamity in the last 50 years. While the flash floods and subsequent landslides have wreaked havoc in Himachal Pradesh claiming more than 70 lives, the Gandhi scion has been busy riding his sports bike to Pangong Lake, getting photoshoots done, meeting party workers, and watching football matches in Leh, Ladakh.

During his Ladakh visit, Rahul Gandhi did not forget to rake up the China issue claiming that the Chinese Army forcefully entered the Indian territory and grabbed the grazing land.

It is, however, not a new thing for Rahul Gandhi who aspires to become the Prime Minister of India to ignore his responsibilities as a public representative. Every time the Congress party is faced with a crisis its prince Rahul Gandhi leaves for foreign trips.

The Congress party has been overtly promoting Rahul Gandhi’s tourism in neighouring Ladakh projecting the Gandhi scion as a ‘dynamic’ mass hero who rides sports bikes reaches out to people and raises their issues. While the neighbouring Himachal Pradesh is facing “Tabahi ka Manzar”, the Congress party is glorifying Rahul Gandhi’s “Mohabbat Ka Safarnama”.

Congress party’s social media is rife with videos and pictures of Rahul Gandhi’s tourism in Ladakh, the party has hardly talked about the tragedy in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh exhibiting its ‘seriousness’ in serving the people.

It is pertinent to note that Himachal Pradesh has been declared as a natural calamity-affected area as the state has been ravaged by flash floods, cloudbursts, slope failures etc incurring a loss of lives and property. Shimla, the popular tourist destination in the state has been one of the worst sufferers of natural calamity in the state. According to the state government, the state has suffered losses worth Rs 10,000 crore since the start of the monsoon season this year. In addition, Public Works Department (PWD) endured losses worth Rs 2, 421 crore and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) faced a loss of around Rs 1000 crore.

Although several media reports and Congress supporters claimed that Rahul Gandhi would be visiting Himachal Pradesh on August 16 and meet the affected locals, the Congress leader did not show up, but rather prioritised planning for the election of the 30-member LAHDC-Kargil on August 25.

Rahul Gandhi’s neglect of Himachal Pradesh’s plight is not surprising at all since Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, the chief minister of the Congress-ruled state himself has been busy blaming the Bihari masons and laborers for the destruction caused by excessive rainfalls and landslides. As reported earlier, CM Sukhu in an interview said that ‘Bihari architects’ come here and construct a floor on the floor.

While the Congress party persists in hailing Rahul Gandhi as the ‘JanNayaka’, the leader only tries to be one where elections are scheduled to be held if not leaving for foreign trips already.

Apparently, Rahul Gandhi showers his ‘Mohabbat’ only when there are elections in a particular state and after securing victory or moral victory, the Gandhi scion turns oblivious to the issues and plights of the people of that state.

Even in the Congress party’s efforts to present Rahul Gandhi as a dynamic ‘young’ leader venturing out on his sports bike, the BJP took the opportunity to compliment the Gandhi scion for promoting the magnificent roads constructed in the Himalayan region under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, Union Earth Sciences Minister Kiren Rijiju shared a video wherein an old clip of Ladakh roads from 2012 and the recent clip of Rahul Gandhi riding his KTM sports bike on a smooth road en route Pangong Lake as he thanked Rahul Gandhi “for promoting excellent roads of Ladakh built by the Narendra Modi government.”

While Rahul Gandhi is busy ‘reinventing‘ himself ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2024, the impact of the Congress leader’s neglect of the states ruled by his party be it Himachal Pradesh as the state faces its worst natural crisis or Rajasthan, where crimes against women have witnessed a dramatic surge, might reflect in the next elections in these states.

Jharkhand: Principal and guard of school in Dumka arrested for sexually harassing schoolgirls, demanding money for alcohol, 2 teachers absconding

OpIndia Staff
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Jharkhand: Principal and guard of school in Dumka arrested for sexually harassing schoolgirls, demanding money for alcohol, 2 teachers absconding

On Friday, August 18, the principal and a guard of a residential school for girls in the Dumka district of Jharkhand were arrested over allegations of harassing the schoolgirls. The action came after a group of girls studying at the residential school run by the state’s Welfare Department on Thursday sent a letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Dumka Anjaneyulu Dodde informing the DC about the alleged harassment.

The letter stated that the school’s guard watches pron videos and sexually harasses them. The students urged the authorities to take prompt action or else they will be compelled to take desperate measures.

“We are pained to say that we are studying in a very miserable condition. The school guard watches dirty videos and sexually harasses, and abuses us. We are very scared and are in pain. Please take action or else we will be forced to take some desperate measures.”

Additionally, the students alleged in their letter that community-specific slurs were directed against them. They further said that the residential school’s teachers took them and the school staff home to do household tasks. Moreover, the students alleged that the principal had asked their parents to give them money to buy alcohol. 

The girl students also alleged that apart from these two, two more teachers often drink alcohol inside the school premises.

While the principal and the guard have been arrested, two teachers named in the FIR are absconding. Meanwhile, the statements of the students have been recorded before a magistrate.

DC Dodde said that the letter sent by the girls was received on Thursday, and within five minutes a team headed by an IAS officer was deployed to conduct an investigation into the allegations. “The findings were shocking. We immediately lodged a complaint and registered an FIR,” the Dumka DC said.

After the allegations levelled by the schoolgirls were found to be true, the DC directed the District Welfare Officer Sanjay Kashyap, who runs the school, to file an FIR against the headmaster and three others without delay. Following this, the District Welfare Officer gave a complaint letter to the city police station and filed an FIR against Headmaster Shailejanand Jha, night watchman Shivpujan, and teachers Pankaj and Nihal.

According to DWO Sanjay Kashyap, there are 280 girl students in the residential school in question. Moreover, male teachers have been removed from the other two residential schools and counseling sessions for the students have been started educating them about good and bad touch.

After the complaint was filed, police recorded the statements of the girls in the presence of a judicial magistrate.

Meanwhile, police station in-charge Arvind Kumar revealed that in addition to the allegations mentioned in the letter, it has been found that the accused teachers used to sexually abuse the students by inappropriately touching them on the pretext of medical checkups.

The police officer further informed that a case was registered under IPC Sections 354-A (sexual harassment and punishment for sexual harassment), 354-B (any man who assaults or uses criminal force to any woman 354-D (punishment for stalking), and under POCSO Section 8 (sexual assault), 12 (sexual harassment).

In a press conference, Dumka SP Pitambar Kherwar stated that the arrested principal and guard were produced before the court that sent to jail. The court refused police custody of the accused as the FIR does not mention any victim’s name. As POCSO has been invoked in the case, age of the victims needs to be proved, and that’s why the FIR must identify the victims.

SP Kherwar added that investigation into the matter is underway.

US Presidential Election: Indian American Vivek Ramaswamy surges in Republican primaries, at tied second spot with DeSantis as Trump maintains top position

OpIndia Staff
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US Presidential Election: Indian American Vivek Ramaswamy surges in Republican primaries, at tied second spot with DeSantis as Trump maintains top position

The Indian American billionaire turned-politician Vivek Ramaswamy has created a storm in US political circles. Within a short span, his popularity has swelled considerably, and is now at a joint second position in the race of Republican Presidential candidates, as revealed by recent polls. 

On Saturday, a new National poll revealed that he is at a tied-second spot with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in the GOP primary contest. Both of them garnered the support of 10 percent of the votes polled in the survey. However, both leaders are trailing significantly behind former US President Donald Trump. As per the survey, Trump has been maintaining an unassailable voter margin of 46 percent.   

The Emerson College poll found that Republicans’ support for Trump has remained steady at 56 percent despite the fact that he faced three different indictments in the same time frame. Throughout the GOP Presidential race, Trump has garnered the support of more than half of the Republican voter base. 

This latest poll gives a significant indication days ahead of the first GOP primary debate which is scheduled to be held on Wednesday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. On the basis of a leaked campaign strategy document, US media has claimed that DeSantis has planned to “take a sledgehammer” to challenge the rising star within the party, seemingly aimed at Vivek Ramaswamy. 

This comes in the wake of a massive decline in the support base of Florida Governor DeSantis. According to the Emerson College poll, the support for DeSantis has declined alarmingly by 11 percent. Evidently, two months back the same polling agency found that nearly 21 percent of Republicans were favouring DeSantis in the GOP Presidential race as against 10% in the recent survey. 

(Image Source – New York Posts)

However, this is not an isolated indication, rather the same trend was also noted in other recent polls. As highlighted by the Emerson College Poll, the 38-year-old businessman Ramaswamy has registered a notable surge of 8 percent in support since June. 

The Executive Director of the poll, Spencer Kimball said that Ramaswamy’s appeal has grown particularly among Republican voters holding postgraduate degrees. Earlier, this segment had been associated with DeSantis. Further, Ramaswamy has managed to gain support among Republican voters below the age of 35.

Despite the surge, the road ahead for Indian American Vivek Ramaswamy would not be easy as he is up against Trump seemingly in a David vs Goliath battle. If the current trend persists, many political analysts have suggested that in that case, he should be ready to run as Trump’s running mate, that is, run for Vice Presidency under Donald J Trump. 

However, reflecting strongly on this possibility, Ramaswamy firmly stated that he would decline such an offer. On Saturday (19 August), in a Fox News interview, Ramaswamy said he would turn down an offer of the vice presidency if he doesn’t win the GOP presidential nomination for 2024.

As per US newspaper The Hill, he said, “I’m not interested in a different position in the government.” 

He added, “Frankly, I’d drive change through the private sector sooner than becoming a number 2 or a number 3 in the federal government. Donald Trump and I share something in common, and that is that neither of us would do well in a number 2 position.”  

Currently, Ramaswamy stands out as the youngest major Republican presidential contender. He hails from Ohio and holds a biology degree from Harvard University and a Yale Law School diploma.

In his speeches, he has taken an anti-war, anti-immigrant, anti-wokeism, and delinking Russia-China alliance stance. Recently, he gained an influential supporter in the form of Elon Musk who hailed him as a “very promising candidate.”

Jadavpur University ragging case: Interim VC says death of the student is responsibility of the University as a whole

OpIndia Staff
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Jadavpur University ragging case: Interim VC says death of the student is responsibility of the University as a whole

On 20th August, newly-appointed interim Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Jadavpur University (West Bengal) Buddhadeb Sau said in a statement that if a student dies allegedly following ragging and sexual harassment, it is the responsibility of the University as a whole. He added that a proper security arrangement is needed on the campus to ensure a healthy atmosphere for the students to avoid such incidents in the future.

In his statement, Sau described the death of the 17-year-old boy, Swapnodeep Kundu, as “unfortunate” and “heartrending”. The student died after falling from the balcony of a second floor in the main boys’ hostel. The incident took place on 9th August. His family alleged he was a victim of ragging at the University.

He said, “The responsibility is of the whole University and not of any one person… A proper security arrangement must be made to ensure a healthy atmosphere in the University.”

Sau added that the steps had been taken earlier over the allegations of ragging as per the rules and guidelines. He admitted there have been lapses on the University’s side and said, “We will have to ensure that such things do not happen again.”

Sau has been appointed as the interim VC by the Governor of West Bengal, C V Ananda Bose after pro-VC Amitabha Dutta was asked to step down from the post of interim VC. Governor is the ex-officio chancellor of the University. Sau is a professor in the Department of Mathematics at Jadavpur University. The orders were issued from the governor’s office directing Sau to exercise the powers and perform the duties of the VC with immediate effect on the night of 19th August.

The former full-time VC of the University, Suranjan Das, served at the post for nine years. His tenure ended on 31st May. The government appointed Amitabha Datta, the pro-VC of the University, as the officiating VC. However, he resigned on 4th August after being asked by the Governor.

Death of a student at the Jadavpur University

On 9th August, Swapnodeep Kundu, a Bachelor of Arts in Bengali student from Hanskhali in Nadia district, fell off the second floor of the hostel building at midnight. Swapnodeep was in room number 68 on the second floor of the A-2 block of Jadavpur University Main Hostel.

As students arrived at the scene after hearing a loud noise, they discovered Swapnodeep lying in a pool of blood. Swapnodeep was transferred to KPC Medical College for treatment, where he died on Thursday at 4:30 AM.

Ramprasad Kundu, the deceased’s father, filed a complaint saying that some of the hostel residents were responsible for his son’s murder.

West Bengal police arrested an ex-student of Jadavpur University in connection with his death, who was the target of ragging in the varsity hostel. The next day, the police made two more arrests. The Kolkata police arrested second-year undergraduate students identified as Deepshekhar Dutta (19) and Manotosh Ghosh (20), who were reportedly at the scene when first-year students were ragged. The two were arrested after several hours of questioning as police reportedly found discrepancies in their statements.

Students of Jadavpur University objected to CCTV

Speaking to News The Truth YouTube channel, Srijata Bagcchi, one of the students opposing the installation of CCTV cameras in the University, made a bizarre statement. When asked about the graffiti being installed against CCTV, she said that there are hundreds of videos of crimes happening in Manipur and other parts of the country, which did not stop the crimes from happening.

When the reporter asked about the beer bottles etc in the campus and what students have done to stop it, she said they tried but failed. She said, “It is very important to observe that all the people who are talking big about why there are this many beer bottles on campus. I’m pretty sure all these people are not people who’ve never touched alcohol in their entire life. They do it in their own homes, and the institution we treat like a second home, that is why we have a complete right if we want to smoke and drink on campus.”

The flabbergasted reporter asked again if she said it was students’ right to drink and smoke on campus and if it could be applied to students in the school. She said no, as the school students are not of legal age and students in University are 18 to 20 years, so they can smoke and drink.

Jadavpur University’s Dean of Science Faculty, head of the committee probing student’s death, resigns from his post

ANI
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Jadavpur University’s Dean of Science Faculty, head of the committee probing student’s death, resigns from his post

Jadavpur University’s Dean of Science Faculty, Subenoy Chakraborty, who headed the 10-member committee investigating the student’s death resigned from his post on Sunday.

Earlier on Saturday, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose appointed Buddhadeb Sau as the officiating vice-chancellor of Jadavpur University on Saturday night, as per the commune from the Raj Bhavan.

Bose, also the chancellor of the University, issued orders authorising Sau to exercise the powers and perform the duties of the vice-chancellor with immediate effect. The university is without a full-time vice-chancellor since June.

The university is in the eye of a storm over the death of a student at its hostel allegedly due to ragging. The first-year undergraduate student died after falling from the second-floor balcony of the varsity’s main hostel on August 9. His family alleged he was a victim of ragging.

The deceased identified as Swarnodip Kundu, died after allegedly falling from the balcony of the university’s hostel on the night of August 9. He was allegedly subjected to ragging before his death.

As many as 12 people have been arrested in connection with the case. Meanwhile, a four-member fact-finding committee has been formed by the state government regarding the Jadavpur student death case. The committee is slated to submit its report within two weeks.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Kiren Rijiju thanks Congress for highlighting how roads have improved dramatically in Ladakh during NDA tenure

OpIndia Staff
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Kiren Rijiju thanks Congress for highlighting how roads have improved dramatically in Ladakh during NDA tenure

On Sunday (August 20), Union Minister Kiren Rijiju thanked Congress scion Rahul Gandhi for highlighting the drastic improvement of Ladakh under the Narendra Modi government.

The development came a day after the Congress scion went on a bike expedition to Pangong Lake from Leh and posted pictures of his trip on Instagram. While taking potshots at Rahul Gandhi, Kiren Rijiju said, “Thanks to Rahul Gandhi for promoting excellent roads of Ladakh built by the Narendra Modi govt.”

He added, “Earlier, he also showcased how Tourism is booming in Kashmir Valley & reminded all that our “National Flag” can be peacefully hoisted at Lal Chowk in Srinagar now!”

The BJP Minister pointed out how roads had improved since 2012 when the film ‘Jab Tak hai Jaan’ hit the theatres. “Some people shared Shah Rukh Khan starrer 2012 Film to prove that roads existed then too. I thank them for amplifying the proof,” he wrote.

“As one can clearly see in Shah Rukh pic that even roads along Indus river were rough and not aligned geometrically, forget the roads in high passes,” Kiren Rijiju further emphasised.

He also shared the video clip of a 2013 speech by then Defence Minister and Congress leader AK Antony that the government’s policy had been to not carry out development work alongside the international border.

“The independent India had a policy for many years that the best defence is to not develop the border…Undeveloped Borders Are More Safe Than Developed Borders. So for many years, there was no construction Of roads or airfields on the border areas,” the veteran Congress leader told the Parliament on September 6, 2013.

“By that time, China continued to develop their infrastructure in the border areas. So, as a result, they have gone ahead of us,” AK Antony had conceded.

On Saturday (August 19), Rahul Gandhi took a bike trip from Leh to Pangong Tso. He shared several images with the caption, “On our way to Pangong lake, which my father used to say, is one of the most beautiful places in the world.”

Only in Pakistan: President Arif Alvi says he didn’t sign 2 bills but his staff approved the bills behind his back, begs forgiveness for them from Allah

OpIndia Staff
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Only in Pakistan: President Arif Alvi says he didn’t sign 2 bills but his staff approved the bills behind his back, begs forgiveness for them from Allah

Bizarre things regularly took place in Pakistan, which is always seeing volatile political situations. In the latest such incident, Pakistan’s president Arif Alvi has alleged that even after he had refused to sign two bills sent for his assent by the national assembly, the bills were passed by his staff without his knowledge.

On Sunday, 20th August 2023, Pakistan’s president Arif Alvi took to X to share a post saying that he did not sign Official Secrets Amendment Bill 2023 & Pakistan Army Amendment Bill 2023. He also said in his post that while he had told his staff that he disagreed with the bills and asked them to return the bills unsigned, his staff helped the bills pass behind his back.

Arif Arvi posted from his X handle, “As God is my witness, I did not sign Official Secrets Amendment Bill 2023 & Pakistan Army Amendment Bill 2023 as I disagreed with these laws. I asked my staff to return the bills unsigned within the stipulated time to make them ineffective. I confirmed from them many times whether they have been returned & was assured that they were. However, I have found out today that my staff undermined my will and command. As Allah knows all, He will forgive Insh Allah. But I ask forgiveness from those who will be affected.”

On July 31, the National Assembly approved the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which seeks to impose a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment on those who reveal sensitive information related to national security or the armed forces. Likewise, shortly before the National Assembly’s dissolution on August 7, the Official Secrets Act was endorsed. The bills were passed after some amendments were made after they were sent to the standing committee.

After receiving approval from both the Senate and the National Assembly, a decision that garnered disapproval from legislators in both the ruling and opposition factions, the bills were submitted to the president for final endorsement. The president also encountered strong opposition from his own party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), for his decision to sign the bills. He has now retracted and said that his staff helped pass these bills without letting him know.

It’s worth noting that Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Imran Khan, both prominent figures within PTI, were apprehended subsequent to the registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against them under the Official Secrets Act. This action was taken due to their alleged disclosure of diplomatic cypher contents for political advantages on August 15. In the wake of President Alvi’s disclosures, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) conveyed its profound apprehensions.

PIT tweeted, “Tweet of the President on the issue of signatures on the draft amendments to the Official Secrets Act and the Army Act. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has expressed deep concern over the president’s tweet The President’s tweet is unusual, alarming and unimaginable in every respect. After the President’s tweet, a serious wave of anxiety and anxiety has arisen in the entire nation. The president’s tweet has exposed to the nation the most deadly infection spreading from top to bottom in the state system. Examining the contents of the President’s tweet from every angle and every aspect, Tehreek-e-Insaf Spokesman will present his response to the nation after a detailed review of the President’s tweet.”

While the president has asked for forgiveness for his staff from Allah, political and legal experts say that President Alvi should imitate legal proceedings against his staff and his apology was not enough, reported Geo TV.

The Army Act provides the legal framework for imposing a maximum sentence of five years of rigorous imprisonment on individuals found guilty of divulging any information obtained in an official capacity. This information is deemed to be or potentially be detrimental to the security and interests of Pakistan or its armed forces.

The proposed changes will extend to both active-duty and retired officers and personnel of the Pakistan Army. These amendments encompass various aspects such as the authority to bestow commissions, establish terms and conditions of service, undertake welfare initiatives, contribute to national development endeavours, and address operational and institutional affairs. These changes are in accordance with the directives of Pakistan’s Supreme Court’s judgment.

The updated version of the Official Secrets Act grants the Federal Investigation Agency of Pakistan the authority to carry out investigations on individuals who are suspected of contravening its provisions. Furthermore, the revised bill eliminates the amendment that previously categorised individuals as enemies merely for being involved with foreign agents.

An important amendment in the Official Secrets Act 1923 says that under this Act “the Investigation Officer shall be an officer of the FIA not below the rank of BPS-17 or equivalent and he shall be designated by Director General FIA. If Director General FIA deems necessary, he may appoint a Joint Investigation Team consisting of officers of intelligence agen¬cies as he may appoint.”

Luna 25 mission crashes on the Moon’s surface, Russia declares mission failed

OpIndia Staff
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Luna 25 mission crashes on the Moon’s surface, Russia declares mission failed

Russia’s moon mission, Luna-25 has ended as a failure after its space agency Roscosmos announced that the spacecraft went out of control and ultimately crashed on the Moon’s surface. The space agency stated that the apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the Moon.

Through its official Telegram channel, Roscosmos State Space Corporation said, “On August 19, in accordance with the Luna-25 flight programme, an impulse was provided to form its pre-landing elliptical orbit. At about 14:57 Moscow time, communication with the Luna-25 apparatus was interrupted. The measures taken on August 19 and 20 to search for the device and get in contact with it did not produce any results.”

The agency has added that it will form a special interdepartmental commission to deal with the issues and it will clarify the reasons for the loss of its moon mission. 

The preliminary analysis of the Luna 25 mission suggested that a deviation between the actual and calculated parameters of the propulsion manoeuvre led to the spacecraft transitioning into an unintended orbit. This unfortunately resulted in its collision with the lunar surface and subsequent loss.

This was Russia’s first moon mission after a long gap of 47 years. Earlier, Roscosmos had stated that an “abnormal situation” occurred as mission control tried to manoeuvre the spacecraft into a pre-landing orbit at 11:10 GMT on Saturday, ahead of a planned touchdown slated for Monday, (21 August).

In a brief statement, Roscosmos said, “During the operation, an abnormal situation occurred on board the automatic station, which did not allow the manoeuvre to be performed with the specified parameters.”

After that, Russian media had expressed concerns that their lunar spacecraft might be lost which eventually turned out to be true.

According to Russian space officials, Luna-25 was slated to execute a soft landing on the south pole of the moon on the 21st of August. In a friendly rivalry, it was racing against India’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft which is also scheduled to land on the moon’s south pole this week. However, apart from this friendly rivalry between Chandrayaan-3 and Luna-25, the Russian moon mission was aimed at challenging the hegemony of China and the United States. Russia also wanted to portray itself as a space superpower as it once had been in the erstwhile Soviet era.

The last Russian moon mission was the Luna-24 and it was attempted way back in 1976 when Leonid Brezhnev ruled the Kremlin.

In its heydays, during the Cold War competition, Moscow was the first to launch a satellite to orbit the Earth – Sputnik 1, in 1957. Subsequently, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man to travel into space in 1961. But now, its attempt to revive its space superpower image has suffered a dent after the failure of its moon mission, Luna 25. 

Chandrayaan-3 to attempt a soft landing on Moon’s surface on 23rd August

Meanwhile, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) took to X to announce that Chandrayaan-3 will attempt a soft landing on the lunar surface on the evening of 23rd August. As per the planned schedule, the lander will have a feather-like touchdown on the moon’s surface at around 6:04 PM on Wednesday. Once accomplished, India will become the first country to have successfully demonstrated a soft landing on the moon’s south pole. 

Uttar Pradesh: Minor boy murders 8-year-old cousin over failed attempt to rape her after watching porn in Bulandshahr

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Minor boy murders 8-year-old cousin over failed attempt to rape her after watching porn in Bulandshahr

A 16-year-old boy murdered his 8-year-old cousin in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh on the night of 16 August revealing a heartbreaking incident. The teenage boy attempted to rape the child after watching porn at night, leading to the murder.

He brought the victim to an isolated piece of land outside of the home at night with the intent to sexually assault her. She began to cry and yelled for assistance after which he shut her mouth and strangled her neck to death in reaction to the alarm.

The case pertained to the Siyana police station area of ​​the district. The family learned about the tragedy on the morning of 17 August when they discovered the girl dead on the cot of her uncle, her father’s elder brother. Seeing that her body was cold, her uncle informed her father about the same. They reported the occurrence to the police who saw nail and injury marks on the body.

The dead body was sent for a post-mortem by the police and the autopsy result was received on 18 August which disclosed that she died due to strangulation. They established that the girl was murdered by the perpetrator after completing a comprehensive investigation based on the post-mortem report.

The uncle with whom the girl was sleeping was initially apprehended by police. He unveiled during interrogation that she sleeping on a cot outside the house with her cousin, the son of his younger brother. He was, although, unsure of how she ended up in that condition next to him in the morning.

After that, the cousin was questioned by the police, and he broke down during the interrogation and admitted to the crime.

He confessed to her murder and mentioned that on the fateful night, he was watching porn on his mobile phone. Meanwhile, she came to sleep with him outside the house as it was hot inside. He took her to a secluded plot outside of their residence with the purpose of violating her. However, she protested and said that she will complain about it to his father. When she started to scream, he strangled her to death. He then took the body to the house and placed it on the bed next to his uncle.

According to the police, the offender was taken into custody afterwards and has been placed in a juvenile facility. They remarked that he picked her up with malicious intent and killed her after she shouted in order to call for help to save himself. He scooped up the dead body and laid it in the uncle’s bed to dispel the possibility of any suspicion about him.

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