The Hindu Morning Digest, January 4, 2024

Farmers raise slogans as they block a road during the statewide ‘bandh’ called as part their ongoing protest, near Golden Gate in Amritsar, Monday, Dec. 30, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Farmer unions say new draft policy is worse than three repealed farm laws

The draft National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing (NPFAM), released recently for public comments by the Union Agriculture Ministry, is more dangerous than the three farm laws repealed in 2021, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, an umbrella organisation of about 500 farmers’ outfits, said on Friday.

Tension erupts in Manipur’s Kangpokpi as mob clashes with police

A mob attacked the offices of the Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police in Manipur’s Kuki-majority Kangpokpi district on Friday (January 3, 2025) evening. Photos of the SP with injuries on the forehead went viral on social media although there was no official confirmation.

India protests China’s ‘new counties’ in Ladakh

India has lodged a “solemn protest” with China over the formation of two counties in the Hotan Prefecture that incorporates territory of India’s Ladakh. Speaking to reporters during the weekly briefing on Friday (January 3, 2025), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reminded China that India “never accepted” Beijing’s “illegal occupation of Indian territory in this area”. He further stated categorically that India has also conveyed its “concerns” about building a mega hydro power project in the upstream Yarlung Tsangpo, which is the Tibetan name of Brahmaputra, that flows through Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.

Health Ministry monitors HMPV outbreak in China, says situation not alarming yet

The Union Health Ministry said on Friday that it was closely monitoring the alleged outbreak of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) in China. The Ministry maintained that while China had reported a rise in respiratory illness, particularly HMPV, India hadn’t registered any unusual spike in winter respiratory diseases.

EPFO completes rollout of centralised system for pensioners

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has completed full-scale implementation of the new Centralised Pension Payments System (CPPS) to provide PF pensions under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS). Pension worth ₹1,570 crore, for the month of December 2024, was disbursed to more than 68 lakh pensioners in 122 pension disbursing regional offices, the Union Labour Ministry said in a release on Friday (January 3, 2025).

Civil, criminal cases against Gautam Adani assigned to one judge: New York court order

A New York court has ordered that the criminal and civil cases filed against billionaire Gautam Adani and others in a bribery scheme are “related” and will be assigned to the judge overseeing the criminal case.

IT Ministry notifies draft rules on data protection law, seeks feedback by February 18

The Union government on Friday (January 3, 2025) evening released the draft Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Rules, 2025, which will enforce provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. While the Act was passed over a year ago, the rules that will result in its enforcement have thus far been under development, and are only now being floated for public consultation. The DPDP Act provides a legal framework for “data fiduciaries” — entities that collect personal data from “data principals” or users — in order to protect that data against misuse and penalise firms who violate data protection principles.

Union Carbide waste disposal: Protests erupt across Pithampur

Two men suffered burn injuries on Friday (January 3, 2025) after they tried to immolate themselves as protests erupted during a call for bandh in Madhya Pradesh’s Pithampur industrial town, a day after the Bhopal gas tragedy’s toxic waste from the Union Carbide factory was transferred there for disposal. 

After protests, MHA grants foreign fund registration to NGO treating Bhopal gas leak victims

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday (January 3, 2025) granted foreign fund registration to the Sambhavna Trust, an NGO that provides free treatment to the victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas leak. This comes five years after the Ministry cancelled the NGO’s registration on the grounds that it had not uploaded its annual reports on MHA’s portal.

15-hour ED interrogation of ex-Haryana Congress MLA a blow to human dignity: SC

The Supreme Court has seconded the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s observation that the zeal shown by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to interrogate former Haryana Congress MLA Surender Panwar at a stretch for nearly 15 hours on a charge of illegal mining linked to money laundering was “nothing heroic” and a blow to human dignity.

SC agrees to examine CBI appeal against Dera Sacha Sauda chief’s acquittal in murder case

The Supreme Court on Friday (January 3, 2025) consented to look into an appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the acquittal of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and four others in the 2002 murder of Ranjit Singh, a former manager of the sect.

French aircraft carrier group to visit Goa, Kochi

French aircraft carrier strike group (CSG) led by FNSCharles De Gaulle on a deployment in the Indian Ocean is set to make stopovers at Goa and Kochi in the next few days. The CSG operates Rafale-M fighter jets, 26 of which India is looking to procure and a deal is expected to be concluded in the next couple of months.

Donald Trump hush money trial: Judge sets sentencing for January 10, signals no jail time

In an extraordinary turn, a judge Friday set President-elect Donald Trump’s sentencing in his hush money case for January 10 — little over a week before he’s due to return to the White House — but indicated he wouldn’t be jailed. The development nevertheless leaves Mr. Trump on course to be the first president to take office convicted of felony crimes. Judge Juan M. Merchan, who presided over Mr. Trump’s trial, signaled in a written decision that he’d sentence the former and future president to what’s known as a conditional discharge, in which a case gets dismissed if a defendant avoids rearrest.

Republican Mike Johnson re-elected House speaker in dramatic floor vote

Republican Mike Johnson won re-election to the House speakership on a first ballot Friday, pushing past GOP hard-right holdouts and buoyed with a nod of support from President-elect Donald Trump. A collection of hardline Republicans convened in the back of the House chamber during a tense roll call on the first day of the new Congress, one by one declining to vote or choosing another lawmaker. The standoff sparked fresh turmoil signaling trouble ahead under unified GOP control of Washington.

Top European diplomats urge inclusive transition in Syria visit

The European Union backs a peaceful, inclusive transition in Syria, top French and German diplomats said Friday on a Damascus visit to meet with new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock were in the Syrian capital for talks on behalf of the European Union, in the highest-level visit by major Western powers since Islamist-led forces toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad last month.

Venezuela’s government offers $100K reward for whereabouts of opposition’s presidential candidate

Venezuela’s government on Thursday (January 2, 2025) announced a $100,000 reward for information on the whereabouts of Edmundo González, the opposition candidate who claims to have defeated President Nicolás Maduro in last year’s election. The announcement came eight days before Venezuela’s next presidential term is set to begin.

At least 30 people killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza as stalled ceasefire talks set to resume

At least 30 people, including children, were killed in Gaza by Israeli strikes overnight and into Friday morning, hospital staff said, as sirens also sounded across Israel and stalled ceasefire talks were set to resume.