The Evening Wrap: Amar Jawan Jyoti ‘merged’ with flame at National War Memorial

The iconic Amar Jawan Jyoti (AJJ) at India Gate, which was inaugurated after the 1971 Liberation War of Bangladesh to pay homage to the unknown soldier, was extinguished on Friday as a part of its ‘merger’ with the flame at the National War Memorial (NWM). Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that a statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose would be set up at India Gate, coinciding with his 125th birth anniversary. In the face of protests from the Congress and some soldier associations, sources in the government said the AAJ was “not extinguished” and only “merged” with the NWM flame. At a ceremony presided over by Air Marshal B.R. Krishna, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC), on Friday afternoon, a torch with the flame at the AJJ was carried with full military honours and merged with the NWM flame. The NWM, inaugurated in February 2019, is located at the ‘C’ Hexagon near India Gate and was built in memory of the soldiers who laid down their lives for the country in the post-Independence period. It has the names of over 25,000 soldiers inscribed on it. In a change of tradition since the unveiling of the NWM, before the commencement of the Republic Day parade in 2020, Modi paid homage to the fallen soldiers by laying a wreath at the flame there, instead of at the AJJ. India Gate, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, was unveiled by Lord Irwin on February 12, 1931. It was built to honour the over 83,000 soldiers of British India who died from 1914 to 1921. It has 13,516 names inscribed all over the monument. The AJJ was set up to pay homage for the soldiers who laid down their lives in the 1971 war. The memorial of the unknown soldier, an inverted bayonet with a helmet structure, along with the AJJ was inaugurated under the arch of India Gate by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on January 26, 1972 to commemorate India’s victory in the 1971 war, in which 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war surrendered and saw the birth of Bangladesh. Downplaying the controversy that emerged on the issue, a government source said it was an odd thing to see that the flame at the AJJ paid homage to the martyrs of 1971 and other wars but none of their names were present there. “The names of all Indian martyrs from all the wars, including 1971 and wars before and after it, are housed at the National War Memorial. Hence it is a true ‘shraddhanjali’ to have the flame paying tribute to martyrs there,” the source stated. India Gate was a “symbol of our colonial past” as it has only the names of those who fought for the British in First World War 1 and the Anglo Afghan War, the source noted. “It is ironic that people who did not make a National War Memorial for seven decades are now making a hue and cry when a permanent and fitting tribute is being made to our martyrs.” Since the inauguration of the NWM, all homage ceremonies are being conducted only there. However, defence officials had stated that the AJJ would be kept burning and used for ceremonial occasions and official visits. Modi said on social media, “At a time when the entire nation is marking the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, I am glad to share that his grand statue, made of granite, will be installed at India Gate. This would be a symbol of India’s indebtedness to him.” “Till the grand statue of Netaji Bose is completed, a hologram statue of his would be present at the same place. I will unveil the hologram statue on 23rd January, Netaji’s birth anniversary,” he stated. The government recently announced that from this year onwards, the Republic Day celebrations will begin from January 23 instead of January 24 and end on January 30, Martyrs Day. Centre orders ban on 35 Pakistan-based YouTube channels The Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting ordered a ban on 35 YouTube channels, two websites, two Twitter accounts, two Instagram accounts and one Facebook account that were operating from Pakistan and spreading “anti-India disinformation”, the Ministry said on Friday. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apurva Chandra said the order was issued on Thursday using emergency powers under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. He said the intermediaries, including YouTube, were in the process of blocking the channels, something which takes around 24 hours. Terming it a “war of misinformation against the country”, Chandra said the latest channels to be blocked were the second set, after 20 were blocked in December 2021. He said the content was against the sovereignty of the country. The Ministry played some of the videos from the channels in question at the briefing, including one claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was responsible for the helicopter crash that killed Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat in December and one that said the North Korean army had reached Ladakh. He said the order was issued after the Ministry received inputs from intelligence agencies on Thursday itself. Joint secretary Vikram Sahay, who is the officer authorised under the IT Act, said orders had been issued to the social media companies and the internet service providers to block. Sahay said the channels spread “anti-India” content with a focus on the Indian armed forces, Jammu and Kashmir, India’s foreign relations, the death of Gen. Rawat, separatist ideology and public order, which attracted the provision of Section 69-A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (power to issue directions to block information through computer resource). In a statement, the Ministry said the blocked channels included ‘Khabar with Facts’, ‘Global Truth’, ‘Information Hub’, ‘Apni Duniya TV’ and ‘Khoji TV’. The blocked sites were White News and DNow, whose YouTube channels were also blocked. “The 35 accounts blocked by the Ministry were all operating from Pakistan, and were identified to be part of four coordinated disinformation networks. These include the Apni Duniya Network operating 14 YouTube channels, and Talha Films Network operating 13 YouTube channels. A set of four channels, and a set of two other channels were also found to be acting in synchronisation with each other,” the Ministry said. Chandra called on intermediaries and the public to act against such channels, while saying that the Ministry would continue to act. Family of four, believed to be Indians, frozen to death along U.S.-Canada border In a heartbreaking tragedy, a family of four, including a baby, all believed to be Indians, has died from exposure to cold weather on the Canadian side of the border with the U.S. in an apparent human smuggling operation, according to media reports. Manitoba Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) on Thursday said that the bodies of four people — two adults, a teen and an infant — were found on the Canadian side of the U.S./Canada border near Emerson on Wednesday. U.S. officials say the dead are believed to be a family from India. They are thought to have been attempting to cross into the U.S., according to media reports. RCMP Assistant Commissioner Jane MacLatchy shared the discovery with reporters in a news conference on Thursday. “What I am about to share is going to be difficult for many people to hear,” she said, calling it “an absolute and heartbreaking tragedy”. “At this very early stage of the investigation, it appears that they all died due to exposure to the cold weather,” MacLatchy said, adding RCMP believe the four people are connected to the group that was apprehended on the U.S. side of the border. She said all four were located within 9-12 metres of the border. MacLatchy said that the group was “on their own in the middle of a blizzard” and “faced not only the cold weather but endless fields, large snowdrifts and complete darkness”. Police are referring to them as victims, as there are concerns the group’s attempted border crossing was facilitated in some way, and that they were left out in the extreme cold, Global News reported. MacLatchy said work is underway to ID the victims, but at this stage, it appears they all died from exposure to the cold, the report said. Manitoba RCMP was notified by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Wednesday morning that a group of people had crossed into the U.S. near Emerson, and that one of the adults was carrying items intended for a baby, but there was no infant with the group. An immediate search began on both sides of the border, and by that afternoon, the bodies of an adult man, an adult woman, and an infant were found. The body of a boy believed to be in his mid-teens was found shortly afterwards. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota issued a release late Thursday afternoon and said 47-year-old Steve Shand of Florida had been arrested and charged with human smuggling in connection with the incident. Shand was driving with two passengers determined to be undocumented foreign nationals from India, according to the release. Inside the vehicle, officers found cases of plastic cups, bottled water, bottled juice and snacks in the van. As they were taking the trio back to the border patrol station in North Dakota, officers came across another group of five Indian nationals walking. They said they had walked across the border and had expected to be picked up by someone. The group said they estimated they had been walking for more than 11 hours, the report added. One person in the group had a backpack that he said he was carrying for a family of four they had become separated from them. The backpack contained children’s items such as clothes, a diaper and a toy. The bodies have been tentatively identified as that family of four, the release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The RCMP said it is working with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In a statement, the Canada Border Services Agency said it is also working with law enforcement partners, as well as its American counterparts, on the investigation. The office of the Minister of Public Safety said in a statement: “We are shocked and saddened by the tragic deaths of four people attempting to cross the Canada-U.S. border, near Emerson, Manitoba. We extend our most heartfelt condolences to their loved ones, and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time.” India added over 2,250 startups in 2021; raised $24.1 billion in the year: Nasscom-Zinnov report More than 2,250 startups in India were added in the year 2021, over 600 more than what was added in the previous year, a report by Nasscom and Zinnov said on Friday. The study, titled ‘Indian Tech Start-up Ecosystem: Year of The Titans’ said with rising investor confidence, startups leveraging deep-tech, and tapping unexplored talent pool, the Indian tech startup base continues to witness steady growth. As per the report, startups raised $24.1 billion in 2021, a two-fold increase over pre-COVID levels. In comparison to 2020, there was a 3X increase in number of high-value deals (deals more than $100 million), demonstrating investor confidence with a pool of active angel investors of more than 2,400 and a readiness to take significant risks, it said. While the US remains the leading source of foreign direct investment in startups, worldwide involvement is also growing. About 50% of the deals had at least one India-domiciled investor, it added. The report said the startup ecosystem saw a 2X gain in cumulative valuation from 2020 to 2021, with an estimate of $320-330 billion, demonstrating the sector’s development and recovery throughout the pandemic. It added that more than $6 billion has been raised via public markets with 11 startup IPOs in 2021. In the last decade, the ecosystem has played a key role in growing direct and indirect job opportunities, providing 6.6 lakh direct jobs and more than 34.1 lakh indirect jobs. The industries that saw the most net new job creation were banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), edtech, retail and retail tech, foodtech, SCM (supply chain management) and logistics and mobility. On the back of internet commerce, freelancers, and service industries, indirect jobs have also recovered, it said. “The performance of the Indian startup ecosystem in 2021 has proved the resilience and dedication being put by multiple startups across segments. The ecosystem has grown immensely and positioned itself as a vital contributor to the growth of India's digital economy,” Nasscom President Debjani Ghosh said. World faces shortage of lithium for electric vehicle batteries Lithium is in hot demand due to rapidly growing production of electric vehicles that use lithium-ion batteries, but there is a global supply shortage of the metal, with western countries racing to bring on new mines to compete with China. The Serbian government on Thursday cancelled licenses for a major lithium project owned by Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto Plc, which industry experts said is likely to prolong the supply shortage to mid-decade. Lithium is currently produced from hard rock or brine mines. Australia is the world’s biggest supplier, with production from hard rock mines. Argentina, Chile and China are mainly producing it from salt lakes. Total global production, measured as lithium carbonate equivalent, was forecast in December at 485,000 tonnes in 2021, growing to 615,000 tonnes in 2022 and 821,000 tonnes in 2023, according to Australia’s Department of Industry. India to open 2022 T20 World Cup campaign against Pakistan on October 23 at MCG In a blockbuster T20 World Cup opener for India, the team was on Friday drawn to clash with arch-rivals Pakistan on October 23 at the iconic MCG as the International Cricket Council (ICC) released the fixtures. India had lost to Pakistan for the first time in an ICC tournament when the teams clashed in last year’s T20 World Cup in Dubai. India’s second Super 12 match in Group 2 will be on October 27 in Sydney against a qualifier (runner up of Group A) and will be followed by matches against South Africa (October 30 in Perth) and Bangladesh (Adelaide Oval on November 2). India’s last Super 12 match is scheduled for November 6 against the winners of Group B at the MCG. The Super 12s — round two of the tournament, with two groups — will begin on October 22 with hosts and defending champions Australia playing New Zealand at the SCG on October 22 in a re-match of last year’s men’s T20 World Cup final. The Black Caps will also face England at The Gabba on November 1 in a re-match of their epic semi-final encounter at the 2021 event. In Super 12s, Australia are in Group 1 with world number one England, New Zealand, Afghanistan plus the winner of Group A and the runner-up in Group B from the first round. The semi-finals will be played at the SCG and Adelaide Oval on November 9 and 10, respectively. It will be the first time the Adelaide Oval will host a World Cup semi-final. The MCG will host the final, which will be contested under lights on November 13. Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 3,86,21,519 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 4,88,488. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 21 JANUARY 2022 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Amar Jawan Jyoti ‘merged’ with flame at National War Memorial The iconic Amar Jawan Jyoti (AJJ) at India Gate, which was inaugurated after the 1971 Liberation War of Bangladesh to pay homage to the unknown soldier, was [extinguished on Friday as a part of its ‘merger’ with the flame at the National War Memorial (NWM)](. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that a statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose would be set up at India Gate, coinciding with his 125th birth anniversary. In the face of protests from the Congress and some soldier associations, sources in the government said the AAJ was “not extinguished” and only “merged” with the NWM flame. [A torch is lit with the Amar Jawan Jyoti flame for merging with the flame at the National War Memorial in New Delhi on January 21, 2022.]  At a ceremony presided over by Air Marshal B.R. Krishna, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC), on Friday afternoon, a torch with the flame at the AJJ was carried with full military honours and merged with the NWM flame. The NWM, inaugurated in February 2019, is located at the ‘C’ Hexagon near India Gate and was built in memory of the soldiers who laid down their lives for the country in the post-Independence period. It has the names of over 25,000 soldiers inscribed on it. In a change of tradition since the unveiling of the NWM, before the commencement of the Republic Day parade in 2020, Modi paid homage to the fallen soldiers by laying a wreath at the flame there, instead of at the AJJ. India Gate, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, was unveiled by Lord Irwin on February 12, 1931. It was built to honour the over 83,000 soldiers of British India who died from 1914 to 1921. It has 13,516 names inscribed all over the monument. The AJJ was set up to pay homage for the soldiers who laid down their lives in the 1971 war. The memorial of the unknown soldier, an inverted bayonet with a helmet structure, along with the AJJ was inaugurated under the arch of India Gate by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on January 26, 1972 to commemorate India’s victory in the 1971 war, in which 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war surrendered and saw the birth of Bangladesh. Downplaying the controversy that emerged on the issue, a government source said it was an odd thing to see that the flame at the AJJ paid homage to the martyrs of 1971 and other wars but none of their names were present there. “The names of all Indian martyrs from all the wars, including 1971 and wars before and after it, are housed at the National War Memorial. Hence it is a true ‘shraddhanjali’ to have the flame paying tribute to martyrs there,” the source stated. India Gate was a “symbol of our colonial past” as it has only the names of those who fought for the British in First World War 1 and the Anglo Afghan War, the source noted. “It is ironic that people who did not make a National War Memorial for seven decades are now making a hue and cry when a permanent and fitting tribute is being made to our martyrs.” Since the inauguration of the NWM, all homage ceremonies are being conducted only there. However, defence officials had stated that the AJJ would be kept burning and used for ceremonial occasions and official visits. Modi said on social media, “At a time when the entire nation is marking the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, I am glad to share that his grand statue, made of granite, will be installed at India Gate. This would be a symbol of India’s indebtedness to him.” “Till the grand statue of Netaji Bose is completed, a hologram statue of his would be present at the same place. I will unveil the hologram statue on 23rd January, Netaji’s birth anniversary,” he stated. The government recently announced that from this year onwards, the Republic Day celebrations will begin from January 23 instead of January 24 and end on January 30, Martyrs Day. [underlineimg]  Centre orders ban on 35 Pakistan-based YouTube channels The Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting [ordered a ban on 35 YouTube channels, two websites, two Twitter accounts, two Instagram accounts and one Facebook account that were operating from Pakistan]( and spreading “anti-India disinformation”, the Ministry said on Friday. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apurva Chandra said the order was issued on Thursday using emergency powers under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. He said the intermediaries, including YouTube, were in the process of blocking the channels, something which takes around 24 hours. Terming it a “war of misinformation against the country”, Chandra said the latest channels to be blocked were the second set, after 20 were blocked in December 2021. He said the content was against the sovereignty of the country. The Ministry played some of the videos from the channels in question at the briefing, including one claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was responsible for the helicopter crash that killed Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat in December and one that said the North Korean army had reached Ladakh. He said the order was issued after the Ministry received inputs from intelligence agencies on Thursday itself. Joint secretary Vikram Sahay, who is the officer authorised under the IT Act, said orders had been issued to the social media companies and the internet service providers to block. Sahay said the channels spread “anti-India” content with a focus on the Indian armed forces, Jammu and Kashmir, India’s foreign relations, the death of Gen. Rawat, separatist ideology and public order, which attracted the provision of Section 69-A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (power to issue directions to block information through computer resource). In a statement, the Ministry said the blocked channels included ‘Khabar with Facts’, ‘Global Truth’, ‘Information Hub’, ‘Apni Duniya TV’ and ‘Khoji TV’. The blocked sites were White News and DNow, whose YouTube channels were also blocked. “The 35 accounts blocked by the Ministry were all operating from Pakistan, and were identified to be part of four coordinated disinformation networks. These include the Apni Duniya Network operating 14 YouTube channels, and Talha Films Network operating 13 YouTube channels. A set of four channels, and a set of two other channels were also found to be acting in synchronisation with each other,” the Ministry said. Chandra called on intermediaries and the public to act against such channels, while saying that the Ministry would continue to act. [underlineimg]  Family of four, believed to be Indians, frozen to death along U.S.-Canada border In a heartbreaking tragedy, [a family of four, including a baby, all believed to be Indians, has died from exposure to cold weather on the Canadian side of the border with the U.S.]( in an apparent human smuggling operation, according to media reports. Manitoba Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) on Thursday said that the bodies of four people — two adults, a teen and an infant — were found on the Canadian side of the U.S./Canada border near Emerson on Wednesday. U.S. officials say the dead are believed to be a family from India. They are thought to have been attempting to cross into the U.S., according to media reports. RCMP Assistant Commissioner Jane MacLatchy shared the discovery with reporters in a news conference on Thursday. “What I am about to share is going to be difficult for many people to hear,” she said, calling it “an absolute and heartbreaking tragedy”. “At this very early stage of the investigation, it appears that they all died due to exposure to the cold weather,” MacLatchy said, adding RCMP believe the four people are connected to the group that was apprehended on the U.S. side of the border. She said all four were located within 9-12 metres of the border. MacLatchy said that the group was “on their own in the middle of a blizzard” and “faced not only the cold weather but endless fields, large snowdrifts and complete darkness”. Police are referring to them as victims, as there are concerns the group’s attempted border crossing was facilitated in some way, and that they were left out in the extreme cold, Global News reported. MacLatchy said work is underway to ID the victims, but at this stage, it appears they all died from exposure to the cold, the report said. Manitoba RCMP was notified by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Wednesday morning that a group of people had crossed into the U.S. near Emerson, and that one of the adults was carrying items intended for a baby, but there was no infant with the group. An immediate search began on both sides of the border, and by that afternoon, the bodies of an adult man, an adult woman, and an infant were found. The body of a boy believed to be in his mid-teens was found shortly afterwards. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota issued a release late Thursday afternoon and said 47-year-old Steve Shand of Florida had been arrested and charged with human smuggling in connection with the incident. Shand was driving with two passengers determined to be undocumented foreign nationals from India, according to the release. Inside the vehicle, officers found cases of plastic cups, bottled water, bottled juice and snacks in the van. As they were taking the trio back to the border patrol station in North Dakota, officers came across another group of five Indian nationals walking. They said they had walked across the border and had expected to be picked up by someone. The group said they estimated they had been walking for more than 11 hours, the report added. One person in the group had a backpack that he said he was carrying for a family of four they had become separated from them. The backpack contained children’s items such as clothes, a diaper and a toy. The bodies have been tentatively identified as that family of four, the release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The RCMP said it is working with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In a statement, the Canada Border Services Agency said it is also working with law enforcement partners, as well as its American counterparts, on the investigation. The office of the Minister of Public Safety said in a statement: “We are shocked and saddened by the tragic deaths of four people attempting to cross the Canada-U.S. border, near Emerson, Manitoba. We extend our most heartfelt condolences to their loved ones, and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time.” [underlineimg]  India added over 2,250 startups in 2021; raised $24.1 billion in the year: Nasscom-Zinnov report [More than 2,250 startups in India were added in the year 2021]( over 600 more than what was added in the previous year, a report by Nasscom and Zinnov said on Friday. The study, titled ‘Indian Tech Start-up Ecosystem: Year of The Titans’ said with rising investor confidence, startups leveraging deep-tech, and tapping unexplored talent pool, the Indian tech startup base continues to witness steady growth. As per the report, startups raised $24.1 billion in 2021, a two-fold increase over pre-COVID levels. In comparison to 2020, there was a 3X increase in number of high-value deals (deals more than $100 million), demonstrating investor confidence with a pool of active angel investors of more than 2,400 and a readiness to take significant risks, it said. While the US remains the leading source of foreign direct investment in startups, worldwide involvement is also growing. About 50% of the deals had at least one India-domiciled investor, it added. The report said the startup ecosystem saw a 2X gain in cumulative valuation from 2020 to 2021, with an estimate of $320-330 billion, demonstrating the sector’s development and recovery throughout the pandemic. It added that more than $6 billion has been raised via public markets with 11 startup IPOs in 2021. In the last decade, the ecosystem has played a key role in growing direct and indirect job opportunities, providing 6.6 lakh direct jobs and more than 34.1 lakh indirect jobs. The industries that saw the most net new job creation were banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), edtech, retail and retail tech, foodtech, SCM (supply chain management) and logistics and mobility. On the back of internet commerce, freelancers, and service industries, indirect jobs have also recovered, it said. “The performance of the Indian startup ecosystem in 2021 has proved the resilience and dedication being put by multiple startups across segments. The ecosystem has grown immensely and positioned itself as a vital contributor to the growth of India's digital economy,” Nasscom President Debjani Ghosh said. [underlineimg] World faces shortage of lithium for electric vehicle batteries [Lithium is in hot demand due to rapidly growing production of electric vehicles]( that use lithium-ion batteries, but there is a global supply shortage of the metal, with western countries racing to bring on new mines to compete with China. The Serbian government on Thursday cancelled licenses for a major lithium project owned by Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto Plc, which industry experts said is likely to prolong the supply shortage to mid-decade. Lithium is currently produced from hard rock or brine mines. Australia is the world’s biggest supplier, with production from hard rock mines. Argentina, Chile and China are mainly producing it from salt lakes. Total global production, measured as lithium carbonate equivalent, was forecast in December at 485,000 tonnes in 2021, growing to 615,000 tonnes in 2022 and 821,000 tonnes in 2023, according to Australia’s Department of Industry. [underlineimg] India to open 2022 T20 World Cup campaign against Pakistan on October 23 at MCG In a blockbuster T20 World Cup opener for India, [the team was on Friday drawn to clash with arch-rivals Pakistan on October 23]( at the iconic MCG as the International Cricket Council (ICC) released the fixtures. India had lost to Pakistan for the first time in an ICC tournament when the teams clashed in last year’s T20 World Cup in Dubai. India’s second Super 12 match in Group 2 will be on October 27 in Sydney against a qualifier (runner up of Group A) and will be followed by matches against South Africa (October 30 in Perth) and Bangladesh (Adelaide Oval on November 2). India’s last Super 12 match is scheduled for November 6 against the winners of Group B at the MCG. [Australia lights up with the ICC men's Twenty20 World Cup fixture announcement, on January 21, 2022. Twitter/@T20WorldCup]  The Super 12s — round two of the tournament, with two groups — will begin on October 22 with hosts and defending champions Australia playing New Zealand at the SCG on October 22 in a re-match of last year’s men’s T20 World Cup final. The Black Caps will also face England at The Gabba on November 1 in a re-match of their epic semi-final encounter at the 2021 event. In Super 12s, Australia are in Group 1 with world number one England, New Zealand, Afghanistan plus the winner of Group A and the runner-up in Group B from the first round. The semi-finals will be played at the SCG and Adelaide Oval on November 9 and 10, respectively. It will be the first time the Adelaide Oval will host a World Cup semi-final. The MCG will host the final, which will be contested under lights on November 13. [underlineimg] Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The [number of reported coronavirus cases from India]( stood at 3,86,21,519 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 4,88,488. [underlineimg] Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. Today's Top Picks [[The question of OBC reservation in local bodies] The question of OBC reservation in local bodies]( [[‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ movie review: A thrilling tale on the corroding effect of unfettered ambition] ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ movie review: A thrilling tale on the corroding effect of unfettered ambition]( [[‘Hridayam’ movie review: Might not stir your soul, but will keep you entertained] ‘Hridayam’ movie review: Might not stir your soul, but will keep you entertained]( [[Star-struck amidst a new wave of Malayalam cinema] Star-struck amidst a new wave of Malayalam cinema]( Copyright @ 2021, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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