"Medical Seats Should Not Go To Waste When Country Faces Shortage Of Doctors": Supreme Court

Precious medical seats should not go to waste when the country was facing acute shortage of doctors, the Supreme Court on Friday said and directed the authorities to hold fresh counselling for filling up the vacant seats.

A bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan asked the admission authorities to hold a special counselling and complete the admission process for medical courses by December 30.

"Taking into consideration the peculiar facts and circumstances and further that the precious medical seats should not go in waste, when the country is facing acute shortage of doctors, we are inclined to extend the period by way of a last chance," the bench ordered.

The apex court passed the order while dealing with pleas seeking directions to the admission authorities to conduct a stray/special counselling round for the remaining vacant seats even after five rounds of counselling.

The bench noted the counsel appearing for the National Medical Council had fairly said that given the number of vacant seats, the court may extend the period as a one-time measure without it being treated as a precedent.

"The admission authorities are, therefore, directed to hold a fresh stray/special counselling for the seats remaining vacant and complete the admission process prior to December 30, 2024 in any eventuality," it said.

The bench directed no college would be permitted to admit students directly and the admission should be conducted only through the state admission authorities.

"We, however, clarify that the stray/special admission process should not disturb the admission which are already finalised and the admissions would be made only from the waitlisted candidates," it said and disposed of the pleas.

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Delhi Bans Firecrackers In City Throughout The Year

The Delhi government on Thursday imposed a "perpetual ban" on the manufacture, use and sale of firecrackers, including through online platforms, in the national capital, according to an official order.

Principal Secretary (environment) of the Delhi government A K Singh invoked the "perpetual ban" on firecrackers under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

The ban covers the manufacturing, storage, and selling, including delivery through online marketing platforms, of all kinds of firecrackers and their bursting in Delhi, said the order.

The move comes amid Delhi facing hazardous air pollution levels leading to a range of restrictions including a ban on construction activities and entry of trucks in the city.

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India, China Arrive At 6 Consensus Points As Ajit Doval, Wang Yi Meet

India and China agreed on six points to resolve the border issue as National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi. Both sides agreed on the need to maintain peace and a commitment to continue seeking a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable package solution to the boundary issue. The consensus points also include cross-border tourism including in areas like Tibet and cross-border river cooperation and Nathu La border trade and resumption of Mansarovar Yatra.

This was the first Special-Representative level meet since the flare-up of incidents at the border. 

The meeting follows the bilateral between Prime Minister Modi and President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit held in Kazan last month. It was the first significant breakthough amid the chill that had set in following the clashes in Ladakh's Galwan -- the worst in decades.

Today's meet was meant to oversee the management of peace at the border and explore a "fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the boundary question".

At the meet, the two sides agreed to continue to take measures to maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas and promote the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations. 

During discussions both SRs also underlined the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity in the border areas to promote overall development of the India-China bilateral relationship.

They reaffirmed their "commitment to continue seeking a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable package solution to the boundary issue in accordance with the political guidelines agreed upon by the special representatives of the two countries".

Among other things the two sides also agreed to further refine the management and control rules in the border area, strengthen the building of confidence-building measures, and achieve sustainable peace and tranquility. 

The cross-border exchanges and cooperation will be strengthened and Indian pilgrims' pilgrimage to Tibet, China, cross-border river cooperation and Nathu La border trade will be resumed, the two sides agreed. 

India and China have also agreed to hold a new round of special representatives' meetings in India next year.

The disengagement, finalised in October, saw both India and China pull back troops from the two remaining friction points in Demchok and Depsang, after nearly four years of military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Following the disengagement, both India and China are keen to build on this momentum and re-establish trust. The special representatives' talks, which are part of a long-established mechanism to address the border dispute, have been convened after a hiatus, with the last meeting held in 2019.

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Turkey-Made Drones Spotted Near Bangladesh Border, Meghalaya Alerts Centre

The Meghalaya government has alerted the Centre over the recent sighting of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) near the border with Bangladesh. This comes after the Turkey-made Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles were spotted near the border.

Prestone Tynsong, Deputy Chief Minister of Meghalaya, has said the Centre and state government are closely monitoring the situation, adding that the Border Security Force and the Indian Air Force have been alerted and New Delhi is keeping a close watch.

"We are keeping the Centre informed on this and they are also taking serious note of this...Centre also must take it up with the government of Bangladesh," Mr Tynsong said.

Meghalaya shares a 443 km border with neighbouring Bangladesh. However, the UAVs were recently spotted close to Sohra and Shella in the East Khasi Hills district, about 200 meters south of the zero line on the international border.

The Indian security agencies, including the Air Force, have intensified surveillance along the India-Bangladesh border.

Bayraktar is a medium altitude long endurance drone, used for conducting intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. The drone is also capable of carrying armed attack missions.

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IIM Raipur Introduces Free Advanced Courses For Entrepreneurs, MSMEs

The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Raipur, in collaboration with the Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) under the Entrepreneurship and Skill Development Programme (ESDP), has launched two advanced development courses for aspiring entrepreneurs and MSMEs. These fee-waiver programmes aim to equip participants with the skills and strategies needed to successfully establish and scale ventures.

The two programmes are:

Advanced E-SDP for New Venture Creation

Duration: February 3-7, 2025

This five-day course is designed for budding entrepreneurs, covering key areas such as marketing, financing, leadership, operational efficiency, and legal compliance.

Advanced MDP For Business Scale-Up For MSMEs

Duration: February 3-8, 2025

Focus: 

Aimed at MSME owners and managers, this six-day programme addresses growth challenges, scalable business models, and sustainable strategies, including opportunity identification, securing finances, and overcoming family business issues.

Eligibility: The courses are open to Indian citizens aged 18 and above with a graduation degree. Preference is given to individuals from Chhattisgarh and underrepresented groups such as SC, ST, OBC, women, and persons with disabilities.

Application Deadline: January 12, 2025

These offline programmes are aligned with India's National Education Policy 2020 and the "Viksit Bharat 2047" vision to empower MSMEs and foster a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem. For further information, applicants can visit IIM Raipur's official website.

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Grenade With Threat Letter Found Outside Contractor's House In Manipur

A threat letter along with a hand grenade was found at a contractor's house in Manipur's Imphal East district on Sunday, triggering panic in the neighbourhood, the police said.

The grenade was kept at the gate of the house of Thokchom Shankar, 52, in Kairang Makha Leikai Lane 3 in Heingang police station area, they said.

The note accompanying it asked if Mr Thokchom could save the lives of his family members, the police said.

The police took the grenade and started an investigation.

Extortion is suspected to be the cause of the threat, the police said, adding they were yet to identify those behind it.

Residents staged a protest at Singjamei in Imphal West district over a similar incident. On December 12, a bomb was left at a house in the area.

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Centre To Amend J&K Reorganisation Act To Align It With 'One Nation, One Poll' Initiative

The Centre will introduce a bill to amend 'The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Act 2019' in Lok Sabha next week, to integrate the Union Territory with its 'One Nation, One Election' initiative, a senior government official told NDTV.

"The existing Union Territory Assembly will complete its full term and in case of premature dissolution of the assembly, mid-term election to be held for only the remaining period of 5 years. Centre is introducing a bill to this effect," a senior government official said.

The official said this will allow the Centre to amend the law to integrate Jammu and Kashmir with the initiative.

As per business scheduled in Lok Sabha on Monday, Union Law Minister Arjun Meghwal would introduce 'The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill-2024' to make changes in the 'Government of Union Territories Act, 1963', the 'Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act', 1991 and the 'Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019'.

"While the amendments in the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 and the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, 1991 have been proposed for respectively for synchronisation of assembly polls of Puducherry and Delhi with Lok Sabha polls, the amendments in J&K Reorganisation Act- 2019 will align Jamm and Kashmir's electoral cycle with Lok Sabha polls," he further explains.

As per amendments proposed in the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act 2019, the term of the Legislative Assembly shall come to an end on the expiry of the full term of Lok Sabha.

The bill states that simultaneous elections would come into effect on an "appointed date" to be notified by the President on the first sitting of the Lok Sabha after a general election.

"As the first sitting of the Lok Sabha elected in 2024 has already taken place, the earliest appointed date for simultaneous elections that can only be notified is the first sitting of the House elected in the 2029 elections. This means that simultaneous polls could be held by 2034 when the full term of that House ends," an official told NDTV, explaining the bill.

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