He was addressing The Chiefs of Air Staff Conclave began at Aero India 2021 at Air Force Station, Yelahanka  .Chiefs of Air Staff (CAS) of more than 24 countries are attending the conclave physically and 16 virtually. The theme of the two-day event is “Leveraging Aerospace Power for Security and Stability”.

Raksha Mantri said that the LCA Mk-1A will be indigenously designed, developed and manufactured and would bolster the “Make in India”initiative of the nation. He added that close to 500 indigenous design and production agencies are involved in the manufacture of the LCA. Speaking of the success stories of the indigenous defence industry he applauded the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for testing 12 missile types spanning the spectrum of ranges and purposes in a matter of one and a half months.

Shri Rajnath Singh added that the IAF has launched a major indigenisation drive for sustenance of all aircraft fleets and maintenance aspects and expressed belief that this will prove to be the growth engine for Indian’s domestic aerospace manufacturing capability.

Raksha Mantri said that the country has reached an inflection point in domestic defence manufacturing and the trajectory from here on would only be upwards.He expressed the intention of the country to cooperate with defence partners in these niche technologies with focus on knowledge sharing and co-production.

Shri Rajnath Singh assured that India can take on the role of being the net security provider in the region adding that air power has and would continue to play a critical role in maintaining regional stability and peace in the region. Recalling Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s historic keynote address at ShangriLa Dialogue-2018, Shri Rajnath Singh said that the Prime Minister had articulated the key role of India’s Armed Forces in building partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region for peace and security, as well as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

Raksha Mantri further said that India’s unique disposition in the Indian Ocean Region complimented by a potent airlift capability of IAF enables it to contribute significantly in Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) missions.He pointed out that in the last five years itself India has tackled roughly about 100 contingencies during which more than 6,000 sorties have been flown evacuating over 44,000 persons in distress. He said India had been regularly conducting exercises to deepen HADR cooperation and coordination with neighbours with focus on sharing expertise and assisting capability building.

Earlier in his opening remarks, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria pointed out that amid the COVID-19 pandemic, rising mistrust and geopolitical tensions have reinforced the need for mature and balanced cooperation at the international level. In this backdrop, there is a need to strengthen mutual understanding and existing security frameworks based on the principles of cooperation, collaboration and co-existence, he stressed, recalling that the IAF has built bridges of friendship through numerous bilateral and multilateral exercises with a large number of nations who share common values and interest in maintaining peace and stability. He said conclaves such as the current one, provide an opportunity to discuss current and emerging security challenges and enhance cooperation among the air forces.

Referring to the changing nature of warfare Chief of Air Staff said that advent of new technology and cross linking of physical, digital and cognitive domains have complicated the art of fighting. The understanding of national boundaries has shifted beyond classical definitions, he said. He added that low cost and easy availability of technology to state or non-state actors have made them more lethal and capable of generating disproportionate effects. He said that the IAF was closely observing these developments and was working on capabilities in the unmanned and optionally manned platforms, manned unmanned teaming and anti-drone technology.He highlighted the growing criticality of space-based technologies for modern warfare and the importance of software capabilities in the digital great game.  Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat was also present in the Conclave.

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The timing of this bank strike is symbolic as it coincides with the release of the Economic Survey in the Parliament today and the presentation of the Union Budget tomorrow.

While work at private sector banks like ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank would not be affected due to the strike, services at PSU banks were hit. The State Bank of India (SBI) had already warned that its services could be impacted to some extent. Around 10 lakh bank employees were expected to join the two-day protest.

Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, West Bengal, UP, MP, Delhi, Punjab, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar, etc. banking transactions have been greatly affected

Bank unions vs bank management

Bank employees under the umbrella of United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) and representatives of bank management (Indian Bank’s Association or IBA) had a last minute meeting yesterday on wage settlement issues, pending since November 2017. IBA said it has increased the pay hike offer of 12.25% to 19% including performance linked incentive. The bank unions have refused to budge from their demands of a 20% pay hike on pay slip components with adequate loading thereof.

Bank unions are also demanding 5-day work week, merger of special allowance with basic pay, scrapping of new pension scheme, etc. IBA made it clear that the proposal of a 5-day banking is not possible. “It is known to all that the economy of the country is going through testing times. Banks being the principal players in economic development, cannot afford to provide lesser number of working days for banking activities,” IBA said in a statement.

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“India’s efforts remain focused on peace and stability in the region and this has been reflected in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and external affairs minister S Jaishankar’s outreach to all the key players in recent days says diplomatic sources.

About 25,000 Indians are working across Iraq, mainly in infrastructure and oil sectors. Erbil, the capital of northern autonomous region of Kurdistan has the highest number of Indians.

Since Sunday, Jaishankar has spoken to both US secretary of state Mike Pompeo and Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif and the foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Oman and Jordan to discuss ways to reduce the tensions and to work for de-escalation. PM Modi has also discussed the issue with US President Donald Trump during a phone call on Tuesday.

India’s efforts are aimed at ensuring energy security and protecting the interests of some 8 million expatriates in West Asia, including more than 2.5 million in Saudi Arabia alone. Any confrontation between Iran and the US is bound to affect sea routes in the Persian Gulf and hit oil prices and supplies.

The UN has unofficially advised India’s Ambassador to Iraq to not allow more Indians to the country till the situation is back to normal. The mission is still assessing the situation and is expected to take the call soon

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Elaborating on the same, officials said that the suburban trains would run through and trains are not likely to be affected.

The strike has been called to protest against the Central government’s “anti-labour” and anti-people policies. About 60 organisations of students and elected office-bearers of some universities have also decided to join the strike with an agenda to raise voice against increased fee structure and commercialization of education.
The unions are also against privatisation in railways, corporatisation of 49 defence production units and forced merger of banks. In Mumbai from 11 am to 4 pm massive rallies of workers from various undertakings will be taken out .

TUJAC, Maharashtra gave an official statement which read: “Ten central trade unions and Bhartiya Kamgar Sena in Maharashtra state will be observing nation-wide strike on January 8, 2020. Almost 25 crore people will participate in the strike to protest against the Central government’s “anti labour” and anti people policies. Trade unions INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF, UTUC and Central/State Government employees along with various sectoral independent federations and associations had adopted a declaration in September last year to go on a nationwide strike on January 8, 2020. We expect the participation of not less than 25 crores of working people in the forthcoming strike, to be followed by many more actions seeking reversal of the anti-worker policies of the central government.”

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Many parents received messages from schools informing them that educational institutes will be closed on Thursday.

Transport unions blamed both the centre and the Delhi government for strike. The sector is passing through its worst phase because of “rising economic uncertainties, exorbitant taxes and penalties and corruption”, they said.

“We have sought redressal of our grievances related to the new MV Act from both the centre and the Delhi government for the last 15 days, but no solution is there is sight forcing us to go on one-day strike,” UFTA general secretary Shyamlal Gola told .

“The exorbitant and unviable penalties imposed through the amended Motor Vehicle Act 2019 has increased the corruption, high handedness and harassment of vehicle owners and drivers,” Shyamlal Gola said.

The federation leaders demanded withdrawing of the provisions of the amended act such as steeply hiked penalties and limiting liability of insurer to Rs. 5 lakh. They also demanded perks such as insurance and medical facilities, and an increase in free parking times at airports and train stations.

The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, which came into effect on September 1, made several changes to traffic fines, toughening the penalty for violations like not wearing a seat belt, jumping red light and drunk driving.

Driving without a seat-belt can now invite a fine of Rs. 1,000, which was earlier Rs. 100. Use of mobile while driving can invite a fine between Rs. 1,000-5,000. For drunk driving, the fine has been hiked from Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 10,000.

However, many states have resisted the amended Motor Vehicles Act and refused to enforce the fines. BJP-ruled Gujarat was the first to slash the fines, some to as low as 10 per cent of the amount in the new rules.

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