The Evening Wrap: Workers await rescue as drilling at Silkyara tunnel on hold for another day

Drilling at the collapsed Silkyara tunnel to rescue 41 men trapped inside for 12 days was halted again on November 24, officials said. Officials said the auger drilling machine faced a hurdle, apparently a metal object, soon after drilling resumed on November 23, a day after officials had put the operation on hold following a technical snag. That snag was set right earlier in the day and the 25-tonne auger machine was restarted. But after a brief while the operation had to be stopped again in the second setback in two days. The multi-agency rescue effort began November 12 when a portion of the under-construction tunnel on Uttarakhand’s Char Dham route collapsed, trapping workers who were still inside. Rescue workers said in the evening that the drill bit has been pulled out through the passage already bored by the machine. Sections of steel pipes had been inserted into the bored passage to allow the trapped men to be pulled out. The effort had reached up to 48.6 metres out of the estimated 57 metres of rubble that blocks the tunnel, officials had said earlier in the day. Suggest panel of bureaucrats from which Delhi can pick Chief Secretary, SC tells Centre The Supreme Court on November 24 suggested to the Centre to provide a panel of accomplished bureaucrats from which the Delhi government can pick a name for appointment as Chief Secretary. The tenure of Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar is ending on November 30, opening another front for an ensuing tug of war between the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) and the Arvind Kejriwal government for control over the bureaucracy of the national capital. A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud decided to intervene, indicating that the court’s past experience of leaving matters open-ended, expecting the Chief Minister and the L-G to “meet and break bread” did not work. The Bench was referring to an earlier case on the appointment of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission chairperson, which the court had to finally step in due to a prolonged impassé between the L-G and the Chief Minister. Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi said an elected government places the highest confidentiality and trust in its Chief Secretary. “The Chief Secretary is the lynchpin,” he said. He said the Delhi government had “exclusively” appointed Chief Secretaries from the inception of Delhi. The Supreme Court, through its Constitution Bench judgments, had upheld the authority of the government over the civil services. Singhvi said the L-G could not claim “unilateral, exclusive” authority to name a Chief Secretary for Delhi on the basis of Government of NCT of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which was assented to by the President in August. The new law was under challenge in the Supreme Court. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the Centre, said it had always been the Home Ministry which appointed the Delhi Chief Secretary. “Ultimately, the Home Ministry has to make the appointment. But you must also have a process by which governments function… Why can’t you both give workable suggestions which will meet the exigencies of the Union and at the same time foster a degree of confidence in the elected arm of the State?” the court addressed the Centre. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the L-G, said governments should be able to work without even the need to come to court every time. He said the present Chief Secretary, Kumar, was forced to go to court against scurrilous attacks on him. “These kinds of things vitiate the atmosphere… a thorough gentleman had to go to court,” Salve said. The Chief Justice said the Centre could provide a panel of names on Tuesday (November 28) and the Delhi government could be given a “little free play in the joints” while picking the name. “Ultimately, the name will be from your panel,” Chief Justice Chandrachud told Mehta. The Solicitor General said he would take instructions from the Centre and return on November 28. Israeli Army withdraws from Gaza hospital after truce: Hamas Health Ministry Israeli forces withdrew from Gaza’s largest hospital Al-Shifa on November 24, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said, on the first day of a temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinian militants. The Israeli military raided Al-Shifa last week, targeting what it said was a Hamas command centre in a tunnel complex beneath the medical facility. The Palestinian militant group and hospital officials have repeatedly denied the claim. Al-Shifa has been a major focus of Israel’s ground offensive in the Gaza Strip following attacks by Hamas across southern Israel on October 7, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people. Since the Israeli raid, many of the estimated 2,300 patients, staff and displaced civilians sheltering in the Al-Shifa complex have been evacuated to the south of the Gaza Strip. But the World Health Organisation was “extremely concerned” about the safety of the estimated 100 patients and health workers remaining at Al-Shifa, spokesman Christian Lindmeier said. Hamas Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra, said the Israeli military had withdrawn but the people remaining at Al-Shifa were in a battered complex whose “main generator is destroyed along with numerous buildings”. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. “We’re working on further evacuations from hospitals as soon as possible,” said Lindmeier, with recent Israeli operations focusing on the Indonesian Hospital, another medical facility in northern Gaza. Central government exempts CERT-In from RTI Act The Central government has added the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) among a list of organisations that are exempted from the ambit of the Right to Information Act (RTI), 2005. The CERT-In is the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents as and when they occur. One of its primary objectives is enhancing “security awareness among common citizens”. It functions under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. There are 26 other intelligence and security organisations established by the Central government such as the Intelligence Bureau, Research and Analysis Wing, Directorate of Enforcement, National Technical Research Organisation that are exempt under RTI. The RTI Act enacted in 2005 said the Act shall not apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, “provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded.” On Friday, the Department of Personnel and Training issued a notification stating that “in exercise of the powers conferred by section 24 (2) of the RTI Act, 2005 (22 of 2005), the Central government hereby makes the following further amendment in the Second Schedule to the said Act, namely, “In the Second Schedule to the RTI Act, 2005, after serial number 26 and the entry relating there to, the following serial number and entry shall be inserted, namely: -27. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team.” The last time an amendment was made to the second schedule of RTI was in 2016 when Strategic Forces Command was added to the list of exempted organisations. Two other organisations of the Ministry of Defence – the Defence Research and Development Organisation and Border Roads Development Board are also placed in the second schedule of the Act. The CERT-In has been probing major cyber attacks in the recent past; it was the first responder to the ransomware attack on November 23, 2022 at All India Institute of Medical Sciences which had crippled the “Hospital Information System (HIS) and e-Hospital” system for several days. Closely monitoring outbreak of H9N2, clusters of respiratory illness in children in China, says government There is low risk to India from both the avian influenza case reported from China as well as the clusters of respiratory illness, said the Health Ministry on November 24. The statement comes following reports indicating clustering of cases of respiratory illness in children in northern China for which World Health Organisation (WHO) has also issued a statement. The Ministry maintained that it is closely monitoring the reported outbreak of H9N2 cases and clusters of respiratory illness in children in northern China. It, however, maintained that there is a need for strengthening surveillance among human, animal husbandry and wildlife sectors and improving coordination was recognised. It maintained that India is prepared for any kind of public health exigency. The Ministry also noted that based on the currently available information, an increase in incidence of respiratory diseases in China has been reported in the last few weeks. “The usual causes of respiratory illness in children have been implicated and there has been no identification of an unusual pathogen or any unexpected clinical manifestations,” said the Ministry in its statement. The Ministry also informed that a meeting was recently held to discuss the preparedness measures against human cases of Avian Influenza in the country against the backdrop of a human case of H9N2 (Avian influenza virus) in October 2023 in China that was reported to WHO. “The overall risk assessment by WHO indicates a low probability of human to human spread and low case fatality rate among human cases of H9N2 reported to WHO so far,” it said. According to a senior Health Ministry official India is embarking on a One Health approach to adopt a holistic and integrated roadmap towards addressing such public health issues. “There has also been a significant strengthening of health infrastructure especially since the COVID pandemic. PM-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) is developing capacities of health systems and institutions across the continuum of care at all levels,” he said. In addition, India’s surveillance, and detection networks under Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) has experience of dealing with challenging health situations during the COVID-19 pandemic he explained. Calcutta High Court division bench allows Amit Shah’s public meeting, rejects Bengal government appeal Observing that processions, rallies and meetings are a “regular feature” in West Bengal, a division bench of the Calcutta High Court on November 24 upheld a single bench order allowing a public meeting to be organised by BJP and addressed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on November 29 in Kolkata. The division bench presided by Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam dismissed an appeal by the West Bengal government, challenging the November 20 order of the single bench. Taking notice of the fact that processions, rallies and meetings “are a regular feature in the state of West Bengal and more particularly in Kolkata”, it upheld the order of the single judge bench which had allowed the BJP to hold the public meeting in front of Victoria House at Esplanade in central Kolkata on November 29. The division bench, also comprising Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya, observed that there have been several instances which have come to the notice of the court where rallies, meetings and agitations have been held for which no permission has been obtained. The State government had moved the appeal before the division bench, challenging the single bench order. The BJP had moved the high court against a rejection by the Kolkata Police of its application for holding the November 29 meeting, which, the party said, is to be addressed by Amit Shah. The saffron party had claimed in its petition that a previous application to organise the meeting on November 28 had also been rejected on the ground that it was not made within the stipulated time frame. The division bench said that the single bench was fully justified in setting aside the rejection. It found no ground to interfere with the order passed by the single bench. The division bench noted that the single bench order also made it clear that the permission would be subject to reasonable restrictions. It directed that since 28 terms and conditions have already been set out in the application format on the Kolkata Police website, those will be imposed, and the organisers would have to abide by these. Naveen Patnaik government withdraws decision to allow transfer of tribal land to non-tribals The Naveen Patnaik Government on November 24 rescinded its decision to amend Orissa Scheduled Areas Transfer of Immovable Property (By Scheduled Tribes) Regulation, 1956 (OSATIP) which would have allowed transfer of tribal land to non-tribals. T he OSATIP not only prohibits the transfer of tribal lands but also criminalises any forced alienation in scheduled areas. A cabinet held in the middle of winter session of Odisha Legislative Assembly, approved proposal of rescinding amendment to OSATIP. In a statement made in State assembly on Friday, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Sudam Marndi said, “The cabinet had on November 14 taken a decision to amend OSATIP basing on the recommendation of Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) held on July 11, 2023. Now, cabinet had again recommended further deliberation of the issue in TAC.” It is rare on part of the Naveen Patnaik government to take back its own decision twice in 10 days. Two days after the November 14 cabinet decision, Marndi took to social networking site X to announce that the proposal to amend OSATIP had been put on hold. The assurance, however, did not satisfy Opposition political parties and tribal rights activists who declared that the prohibition on transfer of tribal land to non-tribals was non-negotiable. If OSATIP is amended to effect permission for land transfer in scheduled areas, it would open the floodgates and soon tribals would be snatched of land, which is important to their identity. The normal proceedings of winter session were also affected following determined opposition from Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs. A delegation of BJP had met Governor Raghubar Das on November 23 accusing the Naveen Patnaik Government of manipulating recommendation of TAC in order to have its say in the cabinet meeting. The delegation said, “In the last meeting of the TAC which was held on July 11, 2023, it was demanded for relaxation for tribals to obtain bank loans for agriculture, construction of residential houses and higher studies of children only.” “But the government has approved transfer of immovable property of tribals to other than tribals in scheduled areas, which was not unanimously decided in the TAC meeting,” it pointed out. Afghanistan announces permanent closure of embassy in India Effective from 23 November, the Embassy of Afghanistan has permanently closed down, a statement from the mission announced on Friday. The embassy blamed both the Taliban rulers in Kabul as well as the Government of India for pressuring it to stop operations in India permanently. The embassy had stopped functioning on September 30 when the senior Afghan diplomats and the ambassador representing the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan left India. “Unfortunately, despite an eight-week wait, the objectives of visa extension for diplomats and a shift in the Indian government’s conduct were not realised. Given the constant pressure from both the Taliban and the Indian government to relinquish control, the embassy faced a difficult choice,” an official statement from the mission said. However, the statement also acknowledged that handing over the property to India is in the “best interest of Afghanistan.” The mission said that it is now for the Indian authorities to decide on the future course of action of the Afghan Embassy. “The responsibility of diplomats appointed by the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has officially come to an end,” the official declaration informed. The statement further alleged that there are some Afghan diplomats who are affiliated with the Taliban dispensation in Kabul who have tried to “tarnish” the image of the Afghan diplomats in India. With the permanent closure of the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the diplomatic presence of the pre-Taliban regime in Afghanistan has come to an end. India has not recognised the Taliban administration in Kabul and it has not restarted full-scale diplomatic activities at its embassy in Kabul after closing it in August 2021. The permanent closure of the embassy of Afghanistan will create a challenging situation for traders and travellers who want to apply for Afghan visas. That apart, it also severs the formal link that India had with the ruling elite of the previous government headed by Dr. Ashraf Ghani. China will allow visa-free entry for France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia China announced on November 24 that it will allow visa-free entry for citizens of five European countries and Malaysia as it tries to encourage more people to visit for business and tourism. Starting December 1, citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia will be allowed to enter China for up to 15 days without a visa. The trial programme will be in effect for one year. The aim is “to facilitate the high-quality development of Chinese and foreign personnel exchanges and high-level opening up to the outside world,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily briefing. China’s strict pandemic measures, which included required quarantines for all arrivals, discouraged many people from visiting for nearly three years. The restrictions were lifted early this year, but international travel has yet to bounce back to pre-pandemic levels. China previously allowed citizens of Brunei, Japan and Singapore to enter without a visa but suspended that after the COVID-19 outbreak. It resumed visa-free entry for Brunei and Singapore in July but has not done so for Japan. In the first six months of the year, China recorded 8.4 million entries and exits by foreigners, according to immigration statistics. That compares to 977 million for all of 2019, the last year before the pandemic. The government has been seeking foreign investment to help boost a sluggish economy, and some businesspeople have been coming for trade fairs and meetings, including Tesla’s Elon Musk and Apple’s Tim Cook. Foreign tourists are still a rare sight compared to before the pandemic. In Brief: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the UN climate talks in Dubai on November 1 and deliver a national statement highlighting India’s climate action, sources said on November 24. The Prime Minister will reach the UAE on November 30, deliver India’s national statement during the United Nations’ World Climate Action Summit on December 1 and return the same day. The World Climate Action Summit on December 1-2 will see heads of states and governments, leaders from civil society, business, youth, indigenous peoples’ organisations, frontline communities, science and other sectors discussing actions and plans aimed at scaling climate action. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 24 November 2023 [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]( Workers await rescue as drilling at Silkyara tunnel on hold for another day Drilling at the collapsed Silkyara tunnel to rescue 41 men trapped inside for 12 days was [halted again on November 24]( officials said. Officials said the auger drilling machine faced a hurdle, apparently a metal object, soon after drilling resumed on November 23, a day after officials had put the operation on hold following a technical snag. That snag was set right earlier in the day and the 25-tonne auger machine was restarted. But after a brief while the operation had to be stopped again in the second setback in two days. The multi-agency rescue effort began November 12 when a portion of the under-construction tunnel on Uttarakhand’s Char Dham route collapsed, trapping workers who were still inside. Rescue workers said in the evening that the drill bit has been pulled out through the passage already bored by the machine. Sections of steel pipes had been inserted into the bored passage to allow the trapped men to be pulled out. The effort had reached up to 48.6 metres out of the estimated 57 metres of rubble that blocks the tunnel, officials had said earlier in the day. Suggest panel of bureaucrats from which Delhi can pick Chief Secretary, SC tells Centre The Supreme Court on November 24 [suggested to the Centre to provide a panel]( of accomplished bureaucrats from which the Delhi government can pick a name for appointment as Chief Secretary. The tenure of Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar is ending on November 30, opening another front for an ensuing tug of war between the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) and the Arvind Kejriwal government for control over the bureaucracy of the national capital. A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud decided to intervene, indicating that the court’s past experience of leaving matters open-ended, expecting the Chief Minister and the L-G to “meet and break bread” did not work. The Bench was referring to an earlier case on the appointment of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission chairperson, which the court had to finally step in due to a prolonged impassé between the L-G and the Chief Minister. Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi said an elected government places the highest confidentiality and trust in its Chief Secretary. “The Chief Secretary is the lynchpin,” he said. He said the Delhi government had “exclusively” appointed Chief Secretaries from the inception of Delhi. The Supreme Court, through its Constitution Bench judgments, had upheld the authority of the government over the civil services. Singhvi said the L-G could not claim “unilateral, exclusive” authority to name a Chief Secretary for Delhi on the basis of Government of NCT of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which was assented to by the President in August. The new law was under challenge in the Supreme Court. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the Centre, said it had always been the Home Ministry which appointed the Delhi Chief Secretary. “Ultimately, the Home Ministry has to make the appointment. But you must also have a process by which governments function… Why can’t you both give workable suggestions which will meet the exigencies of the Union and at the same time foster a degree of confidence in the elected arm of the State?” the court addressed the Centre. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the L-G, said governments should be able to work without even the need to come to court every time. He said the present Chief Secretary, Kumar, was forced to go to court against scurrilous attacks on him. “These kinds of things vitiate the atmosphere… a thorough gentleman had to go to court,” Salve said. The Chief Justice said the Centre could provide a panel of names on Tuesday (November 28) and the Delhi government could be given a “little free play in the joints” while picking the name. “Ultimately, the name will be from your panel,” Chief Justice Chandrachud told Mehta. The Solicitor General said he would take instructions from the Centre and return on November 28. Israeli Army withdraws from Gaza hospital after truce: Hamas Health Ministry [Israeli forces withdrew from Gaza’s largest hospital Al-Shifa]( on November 24, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said, on the first day of a temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinian militants. The Israeli military raided Al-Shifa last week, targeting what it said was a Hamas command centre in a tunnel complex beneath the medical facility. The Palestinian militant group and hospital officials have repeatedly denied the claim. Al-Shifa has been a major focus of Israel’s ground offensive in the Gaza Strip following attacks by Hamas across southern Israel on October 7, which Israeli officials say killed about 1,200 people. Since the Israeli raid, many of the estimated 2,300 patients, staff and displaced civilians sheltering in the Al-Shifa complex have been evacuated to the south of the Gaza Strip. But the World Health Organisation was “extremely concerned” about the safety of the estimated 100 patients and health workers remaining at Al-Shifa, spokesman Christian Lindmeier said. Hamas Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra, said the Israeli military had withdrawn but the people remaining at Al-Shifa were in a battered complex whose “main generator is destroyed along with numerous buildings”. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. “We’re working on further evacuations from hospitals as soon as possible,” said Lindmeier, with recent Israeli operations focusing on the Indonesian Hospital, another medical facility in northern Gaza. Central government exempts CERT-In from RTI Act  The Central government has added the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) among [a list of organisations that are exempted from the ambit of the Right to Information Act (RTI), 2005](. The CERT-In is the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents as and when they occur. One of its primary objectives is enhancing “security awareness among common citizens”. It functions under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. There are 26 other intelligence and security organisations established by the Central government such as the Intelligence Bureau, Research and Analysis Wing, Directorate of Enforcement, National Technical Research Organisation that are exempt under RTI. The RTI Act enacted in 2005 said the Act shall not apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, “provided that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights violations shall not be excluded.” On Friday, the Department of Personnel and Training issued a notification stating that “in exercise of the powers conferred by section 24 (2) of the RTI Act, 2005 (22 of 2005), the Central government hereby makes the following further amendment in the Second Schedule to the said Act, namely, “In the Second Schedule to the RTI Act, 2005, after serial number 26 and the entry relating there to, the following serial number and entry shall be inserted, namely: -27. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team.” The last time an amendment was made to the second schedule of RTI was in 2016 when Strategic Forces Command was added to the list of exempted organisations. Two other organisations of the Ministry of Defence – the Defence Research and Development Organisation and Border Roads Development Board are also placed in the second schedule of the Act. The CERT-In has been probing major cyber attacks in the recent past; it was the first responder to the ransomware attack on November 23, 2022 at All India Institute of Medical Sciences which had crippled the “Hospital Information System (HIS) and e-Hospital” system for several days. Closely monitoring outbreak of H9N2, clusters of respiratory illness in children in China, says government There is low risk to India from both the avian influenza case reported from China as well as the clusters of respiratory illness, said the Health Ministry on November 24. The statement comes following reports indicating clustering of cases of respiratory illness in children in northern China for which World Health Organisation (WHO) has also issued a statement. The Ministry maintained that [it is closely monitoring the reported outbreak of H9N2 cases]( and clusters of respiratory illness in children in northern China. It, however, maintained that there is a need for strengthening surveillance among human, animal husbandry and wildlife sectors and improving coordination was recognised. It maintained that India is prepared for any kind of public health exigency. The Ministry also noted that based on the currently available information, an increase in incidence of respiratory diseases in China has been reported in the last few weeks. “The usual causes of respiratory illness in children have been implicated and there has been no identification of an unusual pathogen or any unexpected clinical manifestations,” said the Ministry in its statement. The Ministry also informed that a meeting was recently held to discuss the preparedness measures against human cases of Avian Influenza in the country against the backdrop of a human case of H9N2 (Avian influenza virus) in October 2023 in China that was reported to WHO. “The overall risk assessment by WHO indicates a low probability of human to human spread and low case fatality rate among human cases of H9N2 reported to WHO so far,” it said. According to a senior Health Ministry official India is embarking on a One Health approach to adopt a holistic and integrated roadmap towards addressing such public health issues. “There has also been a significant strengthening of health infrastructure especially since the COVID pandemic. PM-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) is developing capacities of health systems and institutions across the continuum of care at all levels,” he said. In addition, India’s surveillance, and detection networks under Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) has experience of dealing with challenging health situations during the COVID-19 pandemic he explained. Calcutta High Court division bench allows Amit Shah’s public meeting, rejects Bengal government appeal Observing that processions, rallies and meetings are a “regular feature” in West Bengal, a division bench of the Calcutta High Court on November 24 [upheld a single bench order]( allowing a public meeting to be organised by BJP and addressed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on November 29 in Kolkata. The division bench presided by Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam dismissed an appeal by the West Bengal government, challenging the November 20 order of the single bench. Taking notice of the fact that processions, rallies and meetings “are a regular feature in the state of West Bengal and more particularly in Kolkata”, it upheld the order of the single judge bench which had allowed the BJP to hold the public meeting in front of Victoria House at Esplanade in central Kolkata on November 29. The division bench, also comprising Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya, observed that there have been several instances which have come to the notice of the court where rallies, meetings and agitations have been held for which no permission has been obtained. The State government had moved the appeal before the division bench, challenging the single bench order. The BJP had moved the high court against a rejection by the Kolkata Police of its application for holding the November 29 meeting, which, the party said, is to be addressed by Amit Shah. The saffron party had claimed in its petition that a previous application to organise the meeting on November 28 had also been rejected on the ground that it was not made within the stipulated time frame. The division bench said that the single bench was fully justified in setting aside the rejection. It found no ground to interfere with the order passed by the single bench. The division bench noted that the single bench order also made it clear that the permission would be subject to reasonable restrictions. It directed that since 28 terms and conditions have already been set out in the application format on the Kolkata Police website, those will be imposed, and the organisers would have to abide by these. Naveen Patnaik government withdraws decision to allow transfer of tribal land to non-tribals The Naveen Patnaik Government on November 24 [rescinded its decision to amend Orissa Scheduled Areas Transfer of Immovable Property (By Scheduled Tribes) Regulation, 1956 (OSATIP)]( which would have allowed transfer of tribal land to non-tribals. T he OSATIP not only prohibits the transfer of tribal lands but also criminalises any forced alienation in scheduled areas. A cabinet held in the middle of winter session of Odisha Legislative Assembly, approved proposal of rescinding amendment to OSATIP. In a statement made in State assembly on Friday, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Sudam Marndi said, “The cabinet had on November 14 taken a decision to amend OSATIP basing on the recommendation of Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) held on July 11, 2023. Now, cabinet had again recommended further deliberation of the issue in TAC.” It is rare on part of the Naveen Patnaik government to take back its own decision twice in 10 days. Two days after the November 14 cabinet decision, Marndi took to social networking site X to announce that the proposal to amend OSATIP had been put on hold. The assurance, however, did not satisfy Opposition political parties and tribal rights activists who declared that the prohibition on transfer of tribal land to non-tribals was non-negotiable. If OSATIP is amended to effect permission for land transfer in scheduled areas, it would open the floodgates and soon tribals would be snatched of land, which is important to their identity. The normal proceedings of winter session were also affected following determined opposition from Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs. A delegation of BJP had met Governor Raghubar Das on November 23 accusing the Naveen Patnaik Government of manipulating recommendation of TAC in order to have its say in the cabinet meeting. The delegation said, “In the last meeting of the TAC which was held on July 11, 2023, it was demanded for relaxation for tribals to obtain bank loans for agriculture, construction of residential houses and higher studies of children only.” “But the government has approved transfer of immovable property of tribals to other than tribals in scheduled areas, which was not unanimously decided in the TAC meeting,” it pointed out. Afghanistan announces permanent closure of embassy in India Effective from 23 November, the [Embassy of Afghanistan has permanently closed down]( a statement from the mission announced on Friday. The embassy blamed both the Taliban rulers in Kabul as well as the Government of India for pressuring it to stop operations in India permanently. The embassy had stopped functioning on September 30 when the senior Afghan diplomats and the ambassador representing the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan left India. “Unfortunately, despite an eight-week wait, the objectives of visa extension for diplomats and a shift in the Indian government’s conduct were not realised. Given the constant pressure from both the Taliban and the Indian government to relinquish control, the embassy faced a difficult choice,” an official statement from the mission said. However, the statement also acknowledged that handing over the property to India is in the “best interest of Afghanistan.” The mission said that it is now for the Indian authorities to decide on the future course of action of the Afghan Embassy. “The responsibility of diplomats appointed by the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has officially come to an end,” the official declaration informed. The statement further alleged that there are some Afghan diplomats who are affiliated with the Taliban dispensation in Kabul who have tried to “tarnish” the image of the Afghan diplomats in India. With the permanent closure of the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the diplomatic presence of the pre-Taliban regime in Afghanistan has come to an end. India has not recognised the Taliban administration in Kabul and it has not restarted full-scale diplomatic activities at its embassy in Kabul after closing it in August 2021. The permanent closure of the embassy of Afghanistan will create a challenging situation for traders and travellers who want to apply for Afghan visas. That apart, it also severs the formal link that India had with the ruling elite of the previous government headed by Dr. Ashraf Ghani. China will allow visa-free entry for France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia China announced on November 24 that it will [allow visa-free entry for citizens of five European countries and Malaysia]( as it tries to encourage more people to visit for business and tourism. Starting December 1, citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia will be allowed to enter China for up to 15 days without a visa. The trial programme will be in effect for one year. The aim is “to facilitate the high-quality development of Chinese and foreign personnel exchanges and high-level opening up to the outside world,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily briefing. China’s strict pandemic measures, which included required quarantines for all arrivals, discouraged many people from visiting for nearly three years. The restrictions were lifted early this year, but international travel has yet to bounce back to pre-pandemic levels. China previously allowed citizens of Brunei, Japan and Singapore to enter without a visa but suspended that after the COVID-19 outbreak. It resumed visa-free entry for Brunei and Singapore in July but has not done so for Japan. In the first six months of the year, China recorded 8.4 million entries and exits by foreigners, according to immigration statistics. That compares to 977 million for all of 2019, the last year before the pandemic. The government has been seeking foreign investment to help boost a sluggish economy, and some businesspeople have been coming for trade fairs and meetings, including Tesla’s Elon Musk and Apple’s Tim Cook. Foreign tourists are still a rare sight compared to before the pandemic. In Brief: [Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the UN climate talks in Dubai]( on November 1 and deliver a national statement highlighting India’s climate action, sources said on November 24. The Prime Minister will reach the UAE on November 30, deliver India’s national statement during the United Nations’ World Climate Action Summit on December 1 and return the same day. The World Climate Action Summit on December 1-2 will see heads of states and governments, leaders from civil society, business, youth, indigenous peoples’ organisations, frontline communities, science and other sectors discussing actions and plans aimed at scaling climate action. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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