Morning Filter: India celebrates 77th Independence Day

1. PM Modi to deliver 10th consecutive Independence Day address Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver on Tuesday his 10th consecutive Independence Day address which will also be his last before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as a mood of anticipation builds around the annual showpiece event that he has used to present his government’s report card, unveil flagship schemes and lay down his vision for the country. There is a view that the prime minister may choose to chart the country’s journey on his watch in various sectors since 2014 and outline his vision for the years ahead, something he has done in previous addresses as well. 2. Prasar Bharati deploys 41 cameras for live coverage of I-Day celebrations Prasar Bharati has deployed 41 cameras, including five robotic cameras, for live coverage of the 77th Independence Day celebrations that will begin with Prime Minister Narendra Modi unfurling the national flag at the ramparts of the Red Fort on Tuesday. Prasar Bharati, the public broadcaster, said 36 cameras have been installed on the Red Fort premises from where the Prime Minister will address the nation on Tuesday morning. The Independence Day celebrations will be telecast on Doordarshan and its regional channels and the national channels of All India Radio. Five cameras have been deployed at Rajghat, where the Prime Minister will pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi. 3. 50 nurses, their families invited as special guests to I-Day event at Red Fort Fifty nurses along with their family members from across the country have been invited as special guests to witness and participate in the Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort on Tuesday. These invitees will be part of the 1,800 special guests from different walks of life, including over 400 sarpanches of more than 660 vibrant villages; 250 members from farmer producer organisations scheme and 50 participants each of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Scheme and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, the Union Health Ministry said in a statement. 4. Sharad Pawar on two-day Aurangabad visit from Tuesday Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar will be on a two-day visit to central Maharashtra’s Aurangabad from Tuesday during which he will attend condolence meetings organised for late Marathi poet and lyricist Namdeo Dhondo Mahanor and educationist Prataprao Borade. According to a release issued by the party’s local office on Monday, Pawar will reach Aurangabad by a helicopter from his hometown Baramati in Pune district. In the evening on Tuesday, the Rajya Sabha member will attend a condolence meeting for Mahanor who died in a Pune hospital on August 3, said the release. 5. Mobile internet services restored, security stepped up in Nuh ahead of Independence Day Mobile internet services were restored in Nuh on Monday as police stepped up security ahead of Independence Day in the Haryana district where communal clashes broke out two weeks ago, police said. Following the violence on July 31, mobile internet services were completely stopped by the government till August 8. The suspension was subsequently extended till August 13. Six people, including two home guards and a cleric, died in the clashes that erupted in Nuh after a procession of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) was attacked by mobs on July 31 and spread to adjoining areas, including Gurugram. 6. Delhi Police issues traffic advisory for Independence Day on Tuesday The Delhi Police has issued a traffic advisory to ensure smooth vehicular movement in the city on Tuesday, when Independence Day will be celebrated. According to the advisory, traffic for the general public around Red Fort, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation on August 15, will remain closed from 4 am to 10 am. It will be open to only authorised vehicles, it added. 7. Independence Day: Six villages in Chhattisgarh’s Naxalite-affected Bastar region to witness hoisting of tricolour for first time Six remote villages in the Naxalite-infested Bastar region of Chhattisgarh will witness hoisting of the national flag for the first time since the country’s independence, police said on Monday. Setting up of new camps by security forces near these villages has been paving way for development here, they said. “The tricolour will be hoisted in Chinnagelur, Timenar and Hiroli villagers in Bijapur district and Bedre, Dubbamarka and Tondamarka villages in Sukma district on Tuesday, where such an event has not been witnessed since independence,” Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P told PTI. 8. Mumbai: Western Railway to convert 49 suburban local train services to 15-coach from August 15 In an attempt to accommodate more commuters, the Western Railway has decided to convert 49 suburban local train services from 12-car to 15-car from August 15, an official said on Monday. With this, the total number of 15-car services will increase from 150 to 199, though the total number of suburban services will remain unchanged at 1,394, which includes 79 air-conditioned trains, a release stated. The carrying capacity of each train will increase by 25 per cent, it said. 9. NCCF, NAFED to sell tomatoes at Rs 50 per kg amid fall in wholesale rates The Centre on Monday directed cooperatives NCCF and NAFED to sell tomatoes at a reduced rate of Rs 50 per kilogram from Tuesday in view of the decline in prices in the wholesale markets. Since July, both NCCF and NAFED have been selling tomatoes at a discounted rate on behalf of the consumer affairs ministry in Delhi-NCR, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar to boost domestic availability and contain price rise. Initially, the ministry had asked the two cooperatives to sell tomatoes at a subsidised rate of Rs 90 per kg and later reduced the price to Rs 80 per kg. Further, the price was cut to Rs 70 per kg. 10. Russia’s ruble hits its lowest level since early in the war. The central bank plans to step in The Russian ruble on Monday reached its lowest value since the early weeks of the war in Ukraine as Moscow increases military spending and Western sanctions weigh on its energy exports. It led Russia’s central bank to announce it will hold an emergency meeting Tuesday to review its key interest rate, opening the possibility of an increase in borrowing costs that would support the flagging ruble. The Russian currency passed 101 rubles to the dollar, continuing a more than 25 per cent decline in its value since the beginning of the year and hitting the lowest level in almost 17 months. The ruble recovered slightly after the central bank’s announcement. 11. 51 killed in Himachal rains, 12 of them in Shimla landslides At least 33 people were killed in Himachal Pradesh, seven of them buried under the rubble of a temple in Shimla as rains wreaked havoc in the state, triggering landslides that blocked key roads and brought down houses, officials said on Monday. More people are feared trapped under the debris of the Shiv temple in Shimla’s Summer Hill area. The shrine was crowded with devotees, offering prayers on an important day of the Sawan period. 12. Administrative work post-delimitation to start shortly in Assam: Himanta Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said that the state government will shortly commence administrative re-organisation work following the delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies. He said while some protests against the final delimitation report are taking place, people have to accept it as reality. The final report on delimitation, which was published by the Election Commission (EC) on August 11, retained the number of assembly constituencies in Assam at 126 and Lok Sabha seats at 14. However, it revised the nomenclature of one parliamentary and 19 assembly constituencies as mentioned in the draft notification. 13. Typhoon approaches western Japan, threatening to bring heavy rain and high winds during holiday week A powerful typhoon was approaching Japan’s main archipelago of Honshu on Monday, threatening to hit large areas of western and central Japan with heavy rain and high winds, as many people were travelling for a Buddhist holiday week. Typhoon Lan was packing winds of up to 126 kph (78 mph) as it headed northwest over the Pacific Ocean south of Cape Shionomisaki in the central Japanese prefecture of Wakayama, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. 14. Bihar govt sounds alert after heavy discharge from Kosi barrage Bihar government on Monday sounded an alert in view of more than four lakh cusecs of water from the Kosi barrage following heavy rainfall in the catchment areas of Nepal. State Water Resources Minister Sanjay Kumar Jha said the discharge at Birpur in Supaul district on Sunday night was 4.62 lakh cusecs, the highest for a day in nearly three decades. “The last time we saw a greater discharge was way back in 1989 when it was 4.72 lakh cusecs. As is always the case in the Kosi belt, this has been due to torrential rain in the catchment areas of Nepal,” he told reporters. 15. Mount Etna eruption closes Sicily’s troubled Catania airport Flights serving the eastern Sicilian city of Catania were halted on Monday after an eruption from nearby Mount Etna, local authorities said, bringing fresh travel woe to the crisis-plagued Italian airport. The 3,330 metre (10,925 ft) high volcano burst into action overnight, firing lava and ash high over the Mediterranean island. The lava flow subsided before dawn, but ash was still coming from one of the craters. Flights to and from Catania, a popular tourist destination, will remain suspended until 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) on Tuesday morning, the airport operator said in a statement, dashing hopes they could resume on Monday night. 16. Iron Sharmila appeals to youth to bring normalcy in Manipur Civil rights activist Irom Sharmila Chanu on Monday appealed to youth in the country to help bring normalcy in Manipur and attacked the BJP government, alleging it was deliberately ignoring the ongoing violence in the northeastern state. “Please help in bringing normalcy in Manipur,” Chanu said after inaugurating a night-long protest at Muvattupuzha near here to express solidarity with the two women who were raped and paraded naked recently in northeastern state amidst the ongoing unrest. 17. Karnataka Deputy CM hints at changes in cabinet in days ahead, also state Cong revamp Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday indicated that there might be changes in the cabinet in the days ahead, and said the Congress state unit will be revamped, to build a new team. Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President, said this at the general body meeting of KPCC. “We have to prepare a good foundation for 2024 (Lok Sabha polls) and 2028 (next assembly polls). We will have to revamp the KPCC in the days to come, we will have to relieve some Ministers. We will have to certainly make changes. From block to district to KPCC level we will have to revamp and build a new team,” Shivakumar said. 18. TN: Security tightened in Rameswaram ahead of Independence Day As Tamil Nadu gears up to celebrate 77th Independence Day, security has been stepped up in Rameswaram, with Pamban Railway line and bridge being monitored by armed security personnel round the clock, said officials.According to Railway Police, Rameswaram, armed police personnel have intensified security and patrolling at the Pamban railway bridge and other important areas of Tamil Nadu ahead of the 77th Independence Day celebrations. 19. Spain’s turmoil is in the past as La Roja face Sweden in the Women’s World Cup semifinal Spain is just one win away from the Women’s World Cup final, less than a year after more than a dozen players staged a mutiny and stepped away from the team. La Roja will face Sweden in a semifinal match on Tuesday at Auckland’s Eden Park, with the winner advancing to play either England or co-host Australia in the championship match. It is just the third time Spain has played in the tournament and the furthest it has advanced. La Roja reached the knockout round four years ago in France but they were eliminated by the eventual champion U.S. team. The only other time Spain has reached the final four at a major tournament was the 1997 Euros. [logo] The Morning Filter 15 August 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Morning Filter newsletter, your guide from The Hindu on the major news stories and events to follow today. [Arrow]Open in browser [Mail icon]More newsletters Here are the latest updates and the big news stories to follow today 1. PM Modi to deliver 10th consecutive Independence Day address Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver on Tuesday his 10th consecutive Independence Day address which will also be his last before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as a mood of anticipation builds around the annual showpiece event that he has used to present his government’s report card, unveil flagship schemes and lay down his vision for the country. There is a view that the prime minister may choose to chart the country’s journey on his watch in various sectors since 2014 and outline his vision for the years ahead, something he has done in previous addresses as well. 2. Prasar Bharati deploys 41 cameras for live coverage of I-Day celebrations Prasar Bharati has deployed 41 cameras, including five robotic cameras, for live coverage of the 77th Independence Day celebrations that will begin with Prime Minister Narendra Modi unfurling the national flag at the ramparts of the Red Fort on Tuesday. Prasar Bharati, the public broadcaster, said 36 cameras have been installed on the Red Fort premises from where the Prime Minister will address the nation on Tuesday morning. The Independence Day celebrations will be telecast on Doordarshan and its regional channels and the national channels of All India Radio. Five cameras have been deployed at Rajghat, where the Prime Minister will pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi. 3. 50 nurses, their families invited as special guests to I-Day event at Red Fort Fifty nurses along with their family members from across the country have been invited as special guests to witness and participate in the Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort on Tuesday. These invitees will be part of the 1,800 special guests from different walks of life, including over 400 sarpanches of more than 660 vibrant villages; 250 members from farmer producer organisations scheme and 50 participants each of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Scheme and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, the Union Health Ministry said in a statement. 4. Sharad Pawar on two-day Aurangabad visit from Tuesday Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar will be on a two-day visit to central Maharashtra’s Aurangabad from Tuesday during which he will attend condolence meetings organised for late Marathi poet and lyricist Namdeo Dhondo Mahanor and educationist Prataprao Borade. According to a release issued by the party’s local office on Monday, Pawar will reach Aurangabad by a helicopter from his hometown Baramati in Pune district. In the evening on Tuesday, the Rajya Sabha member will attend a condolence meeting for Mahanor who died in a Pune hospital on August 3, said the release. 5. Mobile internet services restored, security stepped up in Nuh ahead of Independence Day Mobile internet services were restored in Nuh on Monday as police stepped up security ahead of Independence Day in the Haryana district where communal clashes broke out two weeks ago, police said. Following the violence on July 31, mobile internet services were completely stopped by the government till August 8. The suspension was subsequently extended till August 13. Six people, including two home guards and a cleric, died in the clashes that erupted in Nuh after a procession of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) was attacked by mobs on July 31 and spread to adjoining areas, including Gurugram. 6. Delhi Police issues traffic advisory for Independence Day on Tuesday The Delhi Police has issued a traffic advisory to ensure smooth vehicular movement in the city on Tuesday, when Independence Day will be celebrated. According to the advisory, traffic for the general public around Red Fort, from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation on August 15, will remain closed from 4 am to 10 am. It will be open to only authorised vehicles, it added. 7. Independence Day: Six villages in Chhattisgarh’s Naxalite-affected Bastar region to witness hoisting of tricolour for first time Six remote villages in the Naxalite-infested Bastar region of Chhattisgarh will witness hoisting of the national flag for the first time since the country’s independence, police said on Monday. Setting up of new camps by security forces near these villages has been paving way for development here, they said. “The tricolour will be hoisted in Chinnagelur, Timenar and Hiroli villagers in Bijapur district and Bedre, Dubbamarka and Tondamarka villages in Sukma district on Tuesday, where such an event has not been witnessed since independence,” Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P told PTI. 8. Mumbai: Western Railway to convert 49 suburban local train services to 15-coach from August 15 In an attempt to accommodate more commuters, the Western Railway has decided to convert 49 suburban local train services from 12-car to 15-car from August 15, an official said on Monday. With this, the total number of 15-car services will increase from 150 to 199, though the total number of suburban services will remain unchanged at 1,394, which includes 79 air-conditioned trains, a release stated. The carrying capacity of each train will increase by 25 per cent, it said. 9. NCCF, NAFED to sell tomatoes at Rs 50 per kg amid fall in wholesale rates The Centre on Monday directed cooperatives NCCF and NAFED to sell tomatoes at a reduced rate of Rs 50 per kilogram from Tuesday in view of the decline in prices in the wholesale markets. Since July, both NCCF and NAFED have been selling tomatoes at a discounted rate on behalf of the consumer affairs ministry in Delhi-NCR, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar to boost domestic availability and contain price rise. Initially, the ministry had asked the two cooperatives to sell tomatoes at a subsidised rate of Rs 90 per kg and later reduced the price to Rs 80 per kg. Further, the price was cut to Rs 70 per kg. 10. Russia’s ruble hits its lowest level since early in the war. The central bank plans to step in The Russian ruble on Monday reached its lowest value since the early weeks of the war in Ukraine as Moscow increases military spending and Western sanctions weigh on its energy exports. It led Russia’s central bank to announce it will hold an emergency meeting Tuesday to review its key interest rate, opening the possibility of an increase in borrowing costs that would support the flagging ruble. The Russian currency passed 101 rubles to the dollar, continuing a more than 25 per cent decline in its value since the beginning of the year and hitting the lowest level in almost 17 months. The ruble recovered slightly after the central bank’s announcement. 11. 51 killed in Himachal rains, 12 of them in Shimla landslides At least 33 people were killed in Himachal Pradesh, seven of them buried under the rubble of a temple in Shimla as rains wreaked havoc in the state, triggering landslides that blocked key roads and brought down houses, officials said on Monday. More people are feared trapped under the debris of the Shiv temple in Shimla’s Summer Hill area. The shrine was crowded with devotees, offering prayers on an important day of the Sawan period. 12. Administrative work post-delimitation to start shortly in Assam: Himanta Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said that the state government will shortly commence administrative re-organisation work following the delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies. He said while some protests against the final delimitation report are taking place, people have to accept it as reality. The final report on delimitation, which was published by the Election Commission (EC) on August 11, retained the number of assembly constituencies in Assam at 126 and Lok Sabha seats at 14. However, it revised the nomenclature of one parliamentary and 19 assembly constituencies as mentioned in the draft notification. 13. Typhoon approaches western Japan, threatening to bring heavy rain and high winds during holiday week A powerful typhoon was approaching Japan’s main archipelago of Honshu on Monday, threatening to hit large areas of western and central Japan with heavy rain and high winds, as many people were travelling for a Buddhist holiday week. Typhoon Lan was packing winds of up to 126 kph (78 mph) as it headed northwest over the Pacific Ocean south of Cape Shionomisaki in the central Japanese prefecture of Wakayama, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. 14. Bihar govt sounds alert after heavy discharge from Kosi barrage Bihar government on Monday sounded an alert in view of more than four lakh cusecs of water from the Kosi barrage following heavy rainfall in the catchment areas of Nepal. State Water Resources Minister Sanjay Kumar Jha said the discharge at Birpur in Supaul district on Sunday night was 4.62 lakh cusecs, the highest for a day in nearly three decades. “The last time we saw a greater discharge was way back in 1989 when it was 4.72 lakh cusecs. As is always the case in the Kosi belt, this has been due to torrential rain in the catchment areas of Nepal,” he told reporters. 15. Mount Etna eruption closes Sicily’s troubled Catania airport Flights serving the eastern Sicilian city of Catania were halted on Monday after an eruption from nearby Mount Etna, local authorities said, bringing fresh travel woe to the crisis-plagued Italian airport. The 3,330 metre (10,925 ft) high volcano burst into action overnight, firing lava and ash high over the Mediterranean island. The lava flow subsided before dawn, but ash was still coming from one of the craters. Flights to and from Catania, a popular tourist destination, will remain suspended until 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) on Tuesday morning, the airport operator said in a statement, dashing hopes they could resume on Monday night. 16. Iron Sharmila appeals to youth to bring normalcy in Manipur Civil rights activist Irom Sharmila Chanu on Monday appealed to youth in the country to help bring normalcy in Manipur and attacked the BJP government, alleging it was deliberately ignoring the ongoing violence in the northeastern state. “Please help in bringing normalcy in Manipur,” Chanu said after inaugurating a night-long protest at Muvattupuzha near here to express solidarity with the two women who were raped and paraded naked recently in northeastern state amidst the ongoing unrest. 17. Karnataka Deputy CM hints at changes in cabinet in days ahead, also state Cong revamp Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday indicated that there might be changes in the cabinet in the days ahead, and said the Congress state unit will be revamped, to build a new team. Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President, said this at the general body meeting of KPCC. “We have to prepare a good foundation for 2024 (Lok Sabha polls) and 2028 (next assembly polls). We will have to revamp the KPCC in the days to come, we will have to relieve some Ministers. We will have to certainly make changes. From block to district to KPCC level we will have to revamp and build a new team,” Shivakumar said. 18. TN: Security tightened in Rameswaram ahead of Independence Day As Tamil Nadu gears up to celebrate 77th Independence Day, security has been stepped up in Rameswaram, with Pamban Railway line and bridge being monitored by armed security personnel round the clock, said officials.According to Railway Police, Rameswaram, armed police personnel have intensified security and patrolling at the Pamban railway bridge and other important areas of Tamil Nadu ahead of the 77th Independence Day celebrations. 19. Spain’s turmoil is in the past as La Roja face Sweden in the Women’s World Cup semifinal Spain is just one win away from the Women’s World Cup final, less than a year after more than a dozen players staged a mutiny and stepped away from the team. La Roja will face Sweden in a semifinal match on Tuesday at Auckland’s Eden Park, with the winner advancing to play either England or co-host Australia in the championship match. It is just the third time Spain has played in the tournament and the furthest it has advanced. La Roja reached the knockout round four years ago in France but they were eliminated by the eventual champion U.S. team. The only other time Spain has reached the final four at a major tournament was the 1997 Euros. [Sign up for free]( Today’s Best Reads [[The long story of how a Dalit family an outcaste once ruled the global condiment industry world] The long story of how a Dalit family an outcaste once ruled the global condiment industry world]( [[Democracy in India, a gift and a warning] Democracy in India, a gift and a warning]( [[President Murmu urges citizens to move ahead with harmony, brotherhood] President Murmu urges citizens to move ahead with harmony, brotherhood]( [[Google Doodle celebrates India’s Independence Day] Google Doodle celebrates India’s Independence Day]( Copyright @ 2023, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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