The Good Word

Bharat First Visit IndiaWiki.org

Jan 2, 2023 - Week 1Volume 7S-86| Pages 3

Kapil Dev’s birthday – image courtesy - App

SC: Demonetization was legal

Twitter: US asked

for 250K account

suspensions

Bharat First Visit IndiaWiki.org

Jan 4, in the latest

series of Twitter Files,

billionaire Elon Musk

has claimed that a US

government agency had

demanded the

suspension of 250,000

accounts, including

journalists and

Canadian officials. This

follows a series of other

revelations on how the

Democrat Government

had been engaging

Twitter to carry out it

agenda.

At: LiveMint

Israel acts to limit

the power of its

Courts

Jan 4, Israeli Prime

Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu’s Justice

Minister has unveiled a

long-promised overhaul

of the judicial system to

right size its powers.

The proposal will allow

lawmakers to pass laws

that the high court has

struck down and

effectively deemed

unconstitutional. It will

allow the 120-member

Knesset to override

Supreme Court decisions

with a simple majority of

61 votes. Politicians will

play a greater role in the

appointment of

Supreme Court judges

and ministers will

appoint their own legal

advisers, instead of

using independent

professionals.

Justice Minister Yariv

Levin argued that the

public’s faith in the

judicial system had

plummeted to a historic

low. It was imperative to

shore up the power of

the elected. At: TheStar

Hence the Nov 8, 2016,

notification to scrap

two high-value

currency notes was

reasonable and based

on sound decision-

making process.

While four judges

including Justices SA

Nazeer, Gavai, A S

Bopanna and V

Ramasubramanian

upheld the verdict,

Justice BV Nagarathna

differed in her

interpretation of

section 26(2) RBI Act.

The verdict clarified

that the Government’s

objective in bringing in

demonetization was

Jan 2, 2023 - Week 1Volume 7S-86| Page 2

Dec 26, an India Rocket

Force is beginning to

take shape amid

growing border tensions

with China. The Defence

Ministry has approved

the acquisition of 120,

DRDO created, Pralay

tactical ballistic missiles

to deploy along the

China border.

The Pralay is a solid-fuel

quasi-ballistic surface-

to-surface missile with a

range of 150 to 500

kilometers, difficult to

intercept, and able to

change direction in

midair.

India is also building

multi-purpose storage

tunnels in border states

to store short-range

ballistic missiles. These

tunnels would keep

India’s missile arsenal

safe from pre-emptive

attack and allow it to

Terrorists kill 7 Hindus, 2 children

in Kashmir, locals demand arms

The all time great,

football legend,

Pele, passes away

mount a quick

counterstrike.

Ex-Army Chief, General

Naravane has said

future wars would

follow a reverse linearity

with rear facilities such

as command and control

posts, logistics hubs,

airfields taking the first

salvo from precision

standoff weapons. The

second salvo of

autonomous drones

would aim to overwhelm

and destroy air

defenses, artillery and

tank formations.

Concentrating forces

increases vulnerability

to long-range precision

fires, thus there is a

need to concentrate fire

rather than platforms.

The late CDS, General

Bipin Rawat was also

working on the creation

of a rocket force.

At: IndiaToday, Swarajya, AsiaTimes

Jan 8, the death toll in

the terrorist attack on

Dhangri village of

Jammu and Kashmir's

(J&K) Rajouri has risen to

seven with one more

civilian succumbing to

injuries at a hospital.

While four persons were

killed and six others

injured in the terrorist

firing on January 1, two

children were killed and

nine others injured in a

powerful Improvised

Explosive Device (IED)

blast in the village the

next morning during

search operations. The

IED was planted by

terrorists in the village

before fleeing.

On the new year two

militants had made their

way through the forests

and barged into three

SC stay on

Haldwani eviction

for rehabilitation

valid. It had aimed to

eliminate black-money,

fake-currency and terror

funding. The 52 day

period given to

exchange old notes for

new currency was also

sufficient. The RBI Act

allows the government

to demonetize any

series of notes and in

discontinuing two entire

denominations, the

government has not

exceeded its brief. The

apex court clarified no

new Act was needed for

demonetization and

there was good reason

to keep its introduction

secret. At: Republic, DKDubey

Image: Republic

houses of the Hindus

residing there. The

terrorists had first

confirmed the identity of

the victims by checking

their Aadhaar cards.

However, the carnage

would have been much

bigger, had Bal Krishan,

a former village defence

committee (VDC)

member not acted in

time and fired upon the

terrorists with his .303

gun which he used after

24 years. Bal Krishan

became a VDC member

in 1998 when he and

other VDC members

were given guns by the

J&K Police. Now, after

the Rajouri terror attack,

the clamour is growing

for strengthening of

VDCs.

At: BusinessStandard, IndiaToday

Image – Bal Krishna – from Twitter

Jan 5, the Supreme Court

(SC) put a stay on the

Uttarakhand High Court

order to evict encroachers

from a plot of Indian

Railways land in Haldwani.

In a similar case on

encroachments on

Railway land in Gujarat,

the SC had ordered

immediate eviction under

the Public Premises

Eviction Act clarifying that

no one can claim

ownership on government

land, but granting

rehabilitation.

In Haldwani’s Gafoor Basti

about 4,500 families,

50,000 people, have

encroached a 2.5

kilometer stretch of

Railway land. Nearly 80%

are Muslims. While the SC

agreed the land belongs

to the Railways and was

needed for expansion, it

ordered the government

to give full rehabilitation

to the eligible residents

while barring any new

construction. The next

hearing is on Feb 7.

At: OpIndia, DKDubey

Dec 30, the Brazilian

football legend Pele is no

more. The King, as he was

known, won three Soccer

World Cup trophies for his

nation. He was aged 82

and had been battling

cancer.

Pele had played four

editions of the World Cup.

Brazil won in three of

these 1958, 1962 and

1970. In the last one he

was also the Player of the

Tournament. The late

footballer holds the

Guinness World Record

for the most goals scored

in a specified period,

1,283 in 1363 matches. He

held the record for the

most goals in any calendar

year, 126 in 1959, and the

most hat-tricks, a

whopping 92. Pele is the

original Number 10. Jersey

holder. The number which

Lionel Messi and Kylian

Mbappe are sporting now.

At: WION Image: JSWTV

Jan 6, the Union

government ordered a stay

on all eco-tourism

activities at Sammed

Shikhar, a holy site of the

Jain community in

Jharkhand’s Giridih district,

and directed the state

government to strictly

enforce an existing ban on

sale of liquor, other

intoxicants and meat in the

Parasnath Wildlife

Sanctuary area.

Large numbers in the Jain

community had been

protesting against the

Jharkhand government’s

decision to develop

Parasnath Hills as a tourist

spot. Representatives had

then called upon Union

Environment Minister

Bhupender Yadav.

Sammed Shikhar is

considered one of the

most important pilgrimage

destinations for both sects

of Jainism, the Digambaras

and the Svetambaras, as it

was here that 20 of the 24

Jain tirthankaras (spiritual

teachers) attained

“moksha” or salvation

after practicing meditation

and sadhana.

At: MSN

Jan 8, the Prime Minister’s

Office will hold a high-

level meeting on the

Joshimath crisis amid

alarm in the Uttarakhand

region due to sinking of

land and cracks in houses,

roads and infrastructure

at several places.

Residents say houses have

developed cracks and that

they are forced to find

support structures to keep

their homes from falling

under their own weight.

Over 500 houses have

developed cracks.

Experts cite several

factors for Joshimath's

vulnerability. First it was

developed on the debris

of a landslide triggered by

an earthquake more than

a century ago. Then, it sits

on a seismic fault-line,

more prone to quakes.

Gradual weathering and

water percolation have

reduced the cohesive

strength of the rocks over

time. Rampant human

settlement has

compounded the issue.

At: FinancialExpress, NDTV, IndiaToday

Jan 2, in a big win for

the Centre the Supreme

Court (SC) upheld the

Union Government’s

decision to demonetize

the erstwhile ₹ 500 and

₹ 1,000 currency notes.

A five-judge bench of

the apex court, led by

Justice SA Nazeer, said,

‘There was consultation

between the Centre and

the RBI for a period of 6

months. We hold that

there was a reasonable

nexus to bring such a

measure, and we hold

that demonetization

was not hit by the

doctrine of

proportionality.’

Pakistan teetering

on brink of a

financial crisis

Jan 7, Pakistan faces a

crippling economic crisis

as the country’s foreign

reserves have depleted

to less than $6 billion,

the lowest since 2014

and can just cover a

month of imports.

Inflation has been

skyrocketing while the

country is also dealing

with the aftermath of

last year’s catastrophic

floods. It is understood

to be teetering on the

brink of a debt default.

At: AlJazeera

Centre bans eco-

tourism at Jain holy

site in Jharkhand

India Rocket Force taking shape

with 120 DRDO Pralay missiles

Jan 4, BJP spokesperson

Nupur Sharma was the

most-searched person

on Google in India in

2022, as per yearly data

released by the internet

giant on Monday.

After the Prophet

controversy in May

2022, her whereabouts

remained untraceable,

until she was recently

seen on a Twitter Post,

looking well.

At: TimesOfIndia; OutFable

Joshimath

sinking: PM holds

review meet

Nupur Sharma, most Googled

Indian of 2022, seen on Twitter

Shri Ramana Maharshi birth anniversary - Dec 30 – image courtesy - QuotesGram

US elects House

Speaker after 15

rounds of voting

Jan 8, Kevin McCarthy

was elected Speaker of

the US House of

Representatives after

heated exchanges

which almost saw fellow

Republicans come to

blows. It took 15 rounds

of voting for McCarthy

to prevail and the win

was secured after

concessions, including a

lower threshold to ask

for a vote to unseat the

Speaker by only one

member, were granted.

At: BBC

TTP challenges

Pakistan’s

sovereignty

Jan 3, in a direct

challenge to Pakistan’s

sovereignty the

Tehreek-e-Taliban

Pakistan (TTP) has

announced the

formation of its own

government in northern

Pakistan and has even

declared the formation

of various ministries.

The TTP has stepped up

attacks since the end of

a ceasefire with the

government in

November last year.

At: BizNY

Email: IndiaWiki2020@gmail.com Website: http://TheGoodWord.IndiaWiki.Org

Our duty to others

means helping

others; doing good to

the world. Why

should we do good to

the world?

Apparently to help

the world, but really

to help ourselves. We

should always try to

help the world, that

should be the highest

motive in us; but if

we consider well, we

find that the world

does not require our

help at all. This world

was not made that

you or I should come

and help it. I once

read a sermon in

which it was said, "All

this beautiful world is

very good, because it

gives us time and

opportunity to help

others." Apparently,

this is a very beautiful

sentiment, but is it

not a blasphemy to

say that the world

needs our help? We

cannot deny that

there is much misery

in it; to go out and

help others is,

therefore, the best

thing we can do,

although in the long

run, we shall find that

helping others is only

helping ourselves. As

a boy I had some

white mice. They

were kept in a little

box in which there

were little wheels,

and when the mice

tried to cross the

wheels, the wheels

turned and turned,

and the mice never

got anywhere. So it is

with the world and

our helping it. The

only help is that we

get moral exercise.

This world is neither

good nor evil; each

man manufactures a

world for himself. If a

blind man begins to

think of the world, it

is either as soft or

hard, or as cold or

hot. We are a mass of

happiness or misery;

we have seen that

hundreds of times in

our lives.

(to continue next

week)

Swami Vivekananda

Karma Yoga

a series of extracts

Bharat First

PAGE 3 THE GOOD WORD

in March last year. Like a

VDC member, each VDG

will be provided a gun

and 100 rounds of

ammunition.

How are VDGs different

from VDCs?

Both VDG and VDC is a

group of civilians

provided guns and

ammunition to tackle

militants in case of attack

until the arrival of

security forces.

Under the new scheme,

the persons leading the

VDGs will be paid ₹ 4,500

per month by the

government, while

others will get ₹ 4,000

each. In the VDCs, only

the Special Police

Officers (SPOs) leading

them were provided a

remuneration, of ₹ 1,500

monthly. The SPOs, the

lowest rank in the J&K

Police, used to be retired

army, para military or

police personnel.

Who will have control

over the VDGs?

The VDGs, officials said,

will function under the

direction of the SP/SSP of

the district concerned.

What was the

composition of VDCs?

A minimum of 10-15 ex-

servicemen, ex-

policemen and able-

bodied local youth were

enrolled in each VDC on

a voluntary basis. On an

average, at least five of

them were provided .303

rifles and 100 rounds

each, through the

district Superintendent

of Police. The allotment

of weapons could go up

depending on the

credentials of the

volunteers, total

population of a village

and its security

requirements, as

assessed by the district

magistrate and SSP

concerned.

Why was the need to

set up VDCs felt?

The militancy that began

in Kashmir in the early

1990s had spread to the

adjoining Doda district

by mid 1990s. The

demand for arming the

civilian population first

rose after the massacre

of 13 people in Kishtwar

in 1993. As the killings

increased, prompting

the migration of Hindus

from villages to nearby

towns, the Home

ministry in 1995 decided

to set up the VDCs so as

to stop this exodus,

coming after Kashmiri

Pandits were forced to

flee the state in the

early 1990s.

Later, the scheme was

expanded to other areas

of the Jammu division as

militants extended their

activities to Udhampur,

Reasi, Rajouri, Poonch,

Kathua and Samba

districts.

How did the idea to arm

civilians come up?

The idea was taken from

the 1965 and 1971 Indo-

Pak wars, when the

government armed ex-

servicemen and abled-

bodied youth in villages

along the border to

guard against

infiltration of Pakistani

spies. The scheme saw

success, with locals

guarding their areas at

night and even

providing information

to Army troops that led

to decimation of

Pakistani posts and

arrest of Pakistani

spies.

VDCs’ contribution in

the fight against

militants

During the peak of

militancy in most parts

of Jammu division,

especially areas falling

in Chenab Valley and

Pir Panjal regions, the

hills of Udhampur, and

Reasi and Kathua

districts, the VDCs

played a significant role

in combating militancy.

They were the most-

feared armed groups

among militants in

areas where poor road

networks delayed the

arrival of security

forces. The villagers,

well-versed with the

local topography,

averted many militant

attacks and helped in

their capture and

killings.

What controversies did

the VDCs get into?

Along with the

successes, the VDCs

also faced allegations

of human rights

violations and other

crimes, including

murder, rape and

extortions. As per

official figures placed

on the floor of the

erstwhile Jammu and

Kashmir Legislative

Assembly in 2016,

27,924 civilians were

serving in 4,248 VDCs

across the state. There

were 221 FIRs against

them, including 23

cases murders, seven

cases of rape, rioting

(15), NDPS Act (3) and

169 other cases.

Disarming of VDC

members

After peace returned,

there were demands

from certain quarters

to disband the VDCs in

2002. Since then, the

demand has been

raised from time to

time, but successive

governments have

stopped short of

disbanding them.

However, over a period

of time, the number of

VDC members has

dropped significantly,

either because of their

involvement in a

criminal case, or the

government taking

back their weapons

once they turned 60.

Apart from this, many

VDC members have

surrendered their

weapons in the

absence of

remuneration.

The fresh demand for

arming civilians

The demand for revival of

VDCs started after militant

activities revived in areas

where peace had returned

long ago. A spurt was

witnessed in infiltration

attempts from across the

border, and drones were

used to drop weapons,

explosives and cash at

various places, especially

in border areas of Jammu,

Samba and Kathua

districts.

According to official

figures, a total of 186

militants, including 56

foreigners, were killed in

98 successful encounters

in J&K during 2022. The

year saw a 37 per cent

decline in local youth

joining terror ranks, from

the previous year.

Of the 100 youth who

joined militancy in this

period, 17 were arrested

and 65 killed in

encounters. Hunt is on for

the remaining 18, said the

police. Apart from this, the

police have busted 146

terror modules, each

comprising 4-5 people,

and seized 188 AK series

rifles, 275 pistols, eight

M4 carbines, 354

grenades, 61 IEDs and

sticky bombs, among

others.

A total of 649 people were

booked under PSA for

supporting militancy,

while 55 vehicles were

seized and 28 houses

attached for being used

for militant activity.

Source: Indian Express

Image: Statesman

After militants killed six

people in two days in the

Upper Dangri village of

Jammu and Kashmir this

Sunday and Monday,

locals have demanded

that they be provided

weapons to take on

attackers. Responding to

the demands, Lt Governor

Manoj Sinha on January 2

assured the people that

they would get a Village

Defence Committee

(VDC) on the lines of

those in Doda district.

The same was echoed by

Director General of Police

Dilbagh Singh, who

visited the village, on the

outskirts of Rajouri town,

after the twin attacks.

What is a VDC?

The VDCs were first

formed in the erstwhile

Doda district (now

Kishtwar, Doda and

Ramban districts) in mid

1990s as a force

multiplier against militant

attacks. The then Jammu

and Kashmir

administration decided to

provide residents of

remote hilly villages with

weapons and give them

arms training to defend

themselves.

The VDCs have now been

renamed as Village

Defence Guards (VDG).

The new scheme to set up

VDGs in vulnerable areas

of J&K was approved by

the Union Ministry of

Home Affairs

What are Village Defence Committees, which J&K locals want revived amid

militant attacks

Jan 2, 2023 | Week 1 | Volume 7S-86

Visit IndiaWiki.org

The new scheme to

set up VDGs in

vulnerable areas of

J&K was approved

by the Union

Ministry of Home

Affairs in March

last year. Like a

VDC member, each

VDG will be

provided a gun and

100 rounds of

ammunition.

Both VDG and VDC

is a group of

civilians provided

guns and

ammunition to

tackle militants in

case of attack until

the arrival of

security forces.

Under the new

scheme, the

persons leading the

VDGs will be paid

₹ 4,500 per month

by the government,

while others will

get ₹ 4,000 each. In

the VDCs, only the

Special Police

Officers (SPOs)

leading them were

provided a

remuneration, of

₹ 1,500 monthly.

The SPOs, the

lowest rank in the

J&K Police, used to

be retired army or

police personnel…

Swami YoganandaParamhan’s birth anniversary – Jan 5– image courtesy - Audible