Airtel, Aircel to appear before Parliament panel on call drops

New Delhi, Dec 22 (PTI) The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology has called telecom operators Airtel and Aircel to appear before it to brief on the issue of call drops on January 5.

A notice of the panel said meeting will be held on January 5, 2017 to "to hear the views of the representatives of Bharti Airtel Limited and Aircel Limited on the subject 'issues related to quality of services and reported call drops'".

The panel, chaired by BJP MP and BCCI President Anurag Thakur, had earlier met officials industry lobby Cellular Operators Association of India and Reliance Jio to discuss call drop issue.

COAI urged the committee to also hear out incumbent operators, including Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular, and Vodafone, for a fairer assessment of the situation.

The members of the panel in November meeting, among various issues, sought to know about service quality challenges arising out of free calls being offered by the newcomer RJio, and how these issues are being sorted, as per sources.

As per telecom regulator Trai report for April-June quarter, maximum call drop was reported on Aircel network across most telecom circles in the country. Call drops were also noticed on the networks of RCom, Telenor, BSNL and Vodafone in April-June period.

Delhi LG resigns in surprise move

New Delhi, Dec 22 (PTI) In a sudden move, Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung today resigned amid a protracted bitter confrontation with the AAP government.

Without citing reasons, Jung's office said he has submitted his resignation to the Centre. 65-year-old Jung, a former IAS officer, had assumed charge of Lt Governor of Delhi on July 9, 2013.

"Lt Governor Najeeb Jung has submitted his resignation to the Government of India. He thanks the Prime Minister for all the help and cooperation he received during his tenure," the LG's office said in a statement.

The reason behind his surprise decision is not immediately known.

"Jung also thanked the people of Delhi for all their support and affection, especially during the one year of President's Rule in Delhi, when he got unstinted support from them and which in turn helped run the administration in Delhi smoothly and effortlessly," the statement said.

Jung also thanked Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his association in the last two years.

"Jung would be returning back to his first love, which is, academics," said his office. 

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Kerry, Doval discuss regional security and counter-terrorism

Washington, Dec 21 (PTI) National Security Advisor Ajit K Doval has met US Secretary of State John Kerry here and discussed regional security, counter-terrorism and deepening of India-US strategic partnership.

"Secretary Kerry met today (December 20) with Indian National Security Advisor Doval to discuss regional security, counter-terrorism, and the deepening strategic partnership between the United States and India," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner told PTI.

"The Secretary expressed confidence that the US-India partnership would continue to move forward in the new administration and thanked Doval for his leadership and hard work on our shared agenda," Toner said.

Doval, who arrived in the US on Monday, yesterday met President-elect Donald Trump's NSA-designate Gen (rtd) Michael Flynn and the two leaders are believed to have discussed a wide range of regional and global strategic issues while exploring ways to further Indo-US ties.

It is understood that Flynn spoke to Doval over phone a few days ago, during which he invited Doval to come to the US for a meeting.

EC to ask I-T authorities to look into finances of 200 parties

New Delhi, Dec 21 (PTI) The Election Commission is set to write to the Income Tax authorities asking it to look into the finances of over 200 political parties it has 'delisted' over a period of time for not contesting elections.

The Commission has, over a period of time, identified various parties which have not contested polls since 2005 and has 'delisted' over 200 of them.

The poll panel believes that most of them exist on papers to help people convert their back money into white by accepting donations.

In the next few days, the Commission will send the list of the delisted parties to the income tax authorities seeking action against relevant laws if they are found to be involved in money laundering.

While the poll watchdog has the mandate to register a political party, it lacks power under electoral laws to deregister any party.

As its demand to get power to deregister a party is pending with the Law Ministry, the Commission used its powers under Article 324 of the Constitution to delist parties for being dormant and not contesting elections for a long time.

There are over 1780 registered, but unrecognised political parties in the country. Besides, there are seven national parties -- BJP, Congress, BSP, TMC, CPI, CMI-M and NCP -- and 58 state parties.

Seeking to stem flow of black money in elections, the Commission has proposed a slew of electoral reforms but most are pending with the government.

RBI rolls back norms for deposit of old notes by KYC customers

Mumbai, Dec 21 (PTI) Under all-round attack, the Reserve Bank on Wednesday did a U-turn on customers depositing demonetised notes over Rs 5,000 till December 30 by making it clear that there will be no questions asked either in case of one-time or repeat deposits if the accounts are KYC-compliant.

Such customers will also not be questioned by bank officials on why they had failed to deposit the old notes earlier.

The RBI turnaround came as Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's assurance on Monday night and yesterday that there will be no questions asked to customers who would make one-time deposit above Rs 5,000 failed to persuade bank officials who insisted that there should be fresh circular from RBI so that customers will not be harassed.

However, customers with non-KYC accounts will be subject to stiff conditions imposed by RBI on December 19 for deposit of junked notes.

The decision follows widespread criticism of the guidelines, with people saying the Prime Minister as well as the finance minister have asked people not to throng the banks as they have time till December 30 to deposit invalid notes in their accounts.

On review of the guidelines, RBI decided to modify the old currency deposit rules for fully-KYC compliant customers, an RBI notification said Wednesday.

The December 19 notification of RBI had said tenders of old currency in excess of Rs 5,000 into a bank account will be received for credit only once during the remaining period till December 30, 2016.

"The credit in such cases shall be afforded only after questioning tenderer, on record, in presence of at least two officials of the bank, as to why this could not be deposited earlier and receiving a satisfactory explanation. The explanation should be kept on record to facilitate an audit trail at a later stage," it had said.

Replying to queries on curbs on deposit of old currency notes by RBI, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley yesterday had said people should go and deposit the now-defunct notes at one go as repeat deposits raise doubt.

"Today, there are no exemptions... Now, there is no further scope of earning old currency. So, those who have got old currency must go and deposit at one go," he had said.

"Therefore, if somebody goes everyday and deposit old currency, it raises suspicion. How is he getting everyday? As long as exemptions existed, there was scope for getting old currency. But once the exemptions have been lifted, if you have old currency, go and deposit at one go.

Govt plans threshold for parties to enjoy tax exemption: FM

New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) Government plans to set a threshold criteria for political parties to enjoy tax exemptions to check money laundering by outfits that do not contest elections, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said today.

He said the Revenue Secretary has been asked to look into the issue in the wake of Election Commission's recommendations in this regard.

Jaitley's remarks at a Times Now event assume significance in the context of the Election Commission's recommendations to the Government to amend laws to bar tax exemption to parties that do not contest elections and win seats in Lok Sabha and Assembly polls and to ban anonymous donations above Rs 2,000 to political parties.

"I can point out one is invisible donation which Election Commission says is anonymous and the second is when political parties got exemptions. There are about 40/50/60 political parties which effectively contest elections in Centre and the states, (but) you have a large number of political parties which got registered not for contesting election but for availing tax exemption.

"Now this part is easier to tackle. I have already asked the Revenue Secretary to look into this and therefore we will have to put a threshold criteria so that we are able to eliminate those which are not real political parties but only for money conversion which have come in," Jaitley said.

He said many political parties do not contest elections but only accept donations and convert money.

"I have already told the Revenue Department to look at them and therefore some threshold criteria could be fixed and number of these could be eliminated," Jaitley added.

India seal 4-0 win over England as Jadeja takes 7/48

Chennai, Dec 20 (PTI) India pulled the curtains down on England's winter of discontent in the manner befitting their dominance as the hosts clinched the five-match series 4-0 with an innings and 75-run victory in the fifth and final cricket Test here today.

Spinner Ravindra Jadeja was the hero of the day as he returned exceptional figures of 7/48 to spell doom for England.

Jadeja's effort deserves special mention as he shone on a pitch where there were no demons. However, triple-centurion Karun Nair walked away with the Man of the Match award for his unbeaten 303-run knock that set the tone for the victory.

In the process of winning their ninth match of the year to stretch an unbeaten run to 18, the hosts wrote and rewrote a plethora of records, including notching up their biggest-ever series victory over England.

Their previous best was the 3-0 verdict under Mohammed Azharuddin's captaincy in 1992-93.

Having made a sedate start to the day, England made a hash of it after tea as they lost their last six wickets for a mere 15 runs.

England were staring down the barrel at 200 for eight, with Jadeja doing the bulk of damage in an exceptional display of slow bowling on a pitch that was one of the flattest in recent times.

The left-arm spinner, who also pulled off a brilliant catch earlier in the day, triggered the English slide when he lured Moeen Ali into playing a casual shot after the tea break.

From 192 for four, the scoreline suddenly read 200 for eight, with plenty of overs left for Indian bowlers to wrap up the tail.

It soon became 207 for nine as the inevitable dawned on England and the end came when the last line of defence, Jake Ball, was foxed by Jadeja for a three-ball duck.

Celebration erupted in the stands at the M A Chidambaram Stadium, and the Indian players also broke into wild celebrations following the team's fifth successive Test series win since September last year. The win also made it India's longest unbeaten run in Test cricket, surpassing the previous best of 17 wins between 198-87.

In front of the plenty of heads totting the stands, the Indian players went on a lap of honour.

A pall of gloom, however, descended on the English camp, while the Indians' joy knew no bounds.

Daman & Diu becomes India's 1st cashless region

New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) The tiny Union Territory along the Arabian Sea coast, Daman and Diu, has become the first cashless region of the country.

Minister of State for Home Hansraj Gangaram Ahir has commended the UT administration for taking the initiative to make Daman and Diu as the first cashless region of the country.

During a recent visit to the Union Territory, Ahir lauded the painstaking efforts of the UT administration in successfully making Daman and Diu a cashless region.

At least 190 teams of trained volunteers visited over 25,000 households spread across the UT to educate their members about the benefits of cashless transactions, an official statement said.

The administration has introduced free Wi-fi services in the Union Territory recently and 3,500 GB Data was used by over 32,000 tourists and local people during the last 45 days.

This initiative was appreciated by Ahir as it will help in promoting the government's initiative of Digital India and e-transactions.

Ahir reviewed the developmental projects in Daman and Diu and also inaugurated the coastal police station at Kadaiya.

He directed the officials to expedite work on setting up the coastal police station at Diu.

Ahir called upon the UT administration to fill up the vacancies immediately so that the coastal police station can operate at its full capacity at the earliest.

The Minister also inaugurated a function to commemorate the 56th Liberation Day of Daman and Diu on December 17, 2016.

Speaking on the occasion, Ahir said the UT has an immense tourist potential and hoped the tourism sector will emerge as a major revenue source with the slew of initiatives undertaken by the UT administration, the release said.

A Staff Recruitment Board has also been constituted recently for bringing transparency in the Administration and to check corrupt practices.

In the social development sector, infrastructure in all primary schools is being upgraded under the 'Jan Bhagidari' scheme of the UT administration.

India strongly condemns murder of Russian Ambassador to Turkey

New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) India on Tuesday condemned the assassination of Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov, saying it was shocked by the dastardly act and that there can never be any justification for terrorism

"India strongly condemns the tragic assassination of the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Turkey. We are deeply saddened and shocked by this dastardly act," the External Affairs Ministry said

Karlov was shot dead by a Turkish gunman at an art exhibition in Ankara last evening

"We offer our condolences to the family of Ambassador Andrey Karlov and share their pain and grief. There can never be any justification for violence and terrorism," the MEA said in a statement

The gunman shouted "God is great!" and "don't forget Aleppo, don't forget Syria", after killing the envoy.

Trump condemns attacks, vows to eradicate terrorists
Washington, Dec 20 (PTI) US President-elect Donald Trump today vowed to eradicate ISIS and other Islamist terrorists from the face of the earth after chilling attacks in Turkey, Germany and Switzerland.

"Today we offer our condolences to the family and loved ones of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov, who was assassinated by a radical Islamic terrorist," Trump said in a statement.
"The murder of an ambassador is a violation of all rules of civilised order and must be universally condemned," he said.
Condemning the Berlin attack, the 70-year-old President- elect said: "Our hearts and prayers are with the loved ones of the victims of today's horrifying terror attack in Berlin.

Innocent civilians were murdered in the streets as they prepared to celebrate the Christmas holiday."

A lorry ploughed into a busy Christmas market in central Berlin yesterday, killing several people and injuring over 50 in what police said was a possible terror attack.

"ISIS and other Islamist terrorists continually slaughter Christians in their communities and places of worship as part of their global jihad. These terrorists and their regional and worldwide networks must be eradicated from the face of the earth, a mission we will carry out with all freedom-loving partners," Trump said.

In a tweet, Trump said, in view of the terrorist attack yesterday the civilised world must change its thinking.

"Today there were terror attacks in Turkey, Switzerland and Germany - and it is only getting worse. The civilised world must change thinking," he wrote.

In Switzerland, a man burst into a Muslim prayer hall, shooting and wounding three men. The attacker was later found dead.

Meanwhile, President Barack Obama, who is on a vacation in Hawaii, was briefed about the assassination of the Russian envoy by his national security aide, the White House said.

"This morning the President was briefed by his National Security Team on the assassination of the Russian Ambassador to Turkey in Ankara today. The President directed his team to provide updates as warranted," White House Deputy Press Secretary Eric Schultz said.

Earlier in a statement, US Secretary of State John Kerry condemned the assassination of Russian Ambassador and offered all American help in the investigation into the tragic incident.

"The US condemns the assassination today in Ankara of Russian Ambassador Andrey Karlov. Our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones, the Russian people, and with the other victims who were injured in this shooting," Kerry said.

"We stand ready to offer assistance to Russia and Turkey as they investigate this despicable attack, which was also an assault on the right of all diplomats to safely and securely advance and represent their nations around the world," he added.

UN chief condemns Russian envoy's murder as 'senseless act'

United Nations, Dec 20 (AFP) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the murder of the Russian ambassador in Turkey, saying he was "appalled by this senseless act of terror."

Ambassador Andrei Karlov was shot dead while attending an art exhibition in Ankara by a Turkish policeman who shouted "Don't forget Aleppo" and "Allahu akbar" (God is great).

Ban is "appalled by this senseless act of terror and emphasizes that there can be no justification for the targeting of diplomatic personnel and civilians," said a statement from his spokesman yesterday.

"The secretary-general is following the unfolding situation closely and wishes the other people who were reportedly injured in the attack a speedy and full recovery."

The UN Security Council will today observe a minute of silence to pay tribute to the Russian diplomat, said Spanish Ambassador Roman Oyarzun, the current council president.

The council was preparing a formal statement condemning the attack.

Venezuela's Ambassador Rafael Ramirez denounced what he termed as a "campaign of hatred" against Russia, in reference to mounting criticism from Western powers of Moscow's role in Syria.

"Everything that is said, everything that is done in a situation which is so fraught with extremist actions, such as the situation in Syria, it does have, unfortunately, consequences," said Ramirez.