IN a world where 78.3 crore people grapple with chronic hunger, the revelation that 19 per cent of the food goes to waste demands urgent attention. The latest UN report underscores a stark reality: despite ample resources, the inability to manage food distribution effectively is not only morally reprehensible but also environmentally unsustainable. This crisis is particularly pronounced in India, where food wastage poses a significant challenge alongside persistent food insecurity. According to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, one-third of all food in India is wasted or spoiled before consumption. Household food waste alone is estimated to be around 50 kg per person annually. Another UN report had shed light on a disconcerting nutritional trend in India, where a staggering 74.1 per cent of the population cannot afford a healthy diet.
The environmental implications of food waste are equally alarming. Like many other countries, India faces the adverse effects of greenhouse gas emissions associated with food production and waste. Methane emissions from decomposing food waste in landfills contribute to climate change.
The UN’s findings should propel the world toward overhauling food systems and prioritising equitable distribution. In India, where millions struggle for adequate nutrition, addressing food wastage is a moral obligation. It requires a comprehensive strategy that integrates policy measures, public awareness campaigns and community-driven initiatives. Government interventions, such as implementing regulations to minimise waste and incentivising sustainable practices, are essential. Collaborative efforts between government agencies, NGOs and private enterprises can facilitate efficient redistribution of surplus food to underprivileged communities. Individual action can help combat food waste through practices like meal planning, utilising leftovers and supporting food banks.
ROUSED by the worsening famine and starvation among Palestinians in Gaza, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Thursday ordered Israel to take immediate measures to alleviate the humanitarian crisis. The ICJ’s directive mandates Israel to open additional land crossings to facilitate the unimpeded entry of essentials into Gaza. This is critical in view of the shocking reports that 31 persons, including 27 children, have succumbed to malnutrition and dehydration.
In January, the international court had instructed Israel to refrain from acts potentially contravening the Genocide Convention. Earlier this month, the WHO warned that over a million Gazans could face catastrophic hunger as they struggle to procure food. Aid agencies have been striving to deliver essential supplies, but their efforts are often hampered by restrictions. The EU has accused Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war, while the UN human rights office has raised concerns that aid curbs may constitute a war crime.
However, the ICJ lacks an enforcement mechanism, underscoring the need for Israel’s voluntary compliance and cooperation with the UN to ensure the timely delivery of food, water, fuel and medical supplies. Meanwhile, there is no let-up in the hostilities, with Israel’s military assault exacerbating the suffering of Palestinians. The war, which began last October, has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced a significant portion of Gaza’s population. It is imperative for the international community to exert pressure on Tel Aviv to adhere to its legal obligations. Israel’s staunchest ally, the US, must do more than express frustration; it should provide military aid to Israel only on the condition of sparing civilians and prioritising the facilitation of aid. The world cannot afford to remain a bystander while Gaza tragically sinks deeper into the mire.
China holds 65th-anniversary celebrations of its Tibet takeover in new villages along India and Bhutan borders
China, which is building numerous villages in Tibet close to its borders with India and Bhutan, has held several celebratory events to mark its takeover of Tibet in the new border villages with a mix of border troops and the local population, the official media here reported.
China, which refers to Tibet by its Chinese name Xizang, in recent years as part of new nomenclature of all references to the Tibetan region celebrates March 28 as democratic reform day in the Himalayan region marking the end of the rule of the Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959. Chinese troops took over Tibet in 1951.
“Last Thursday marked the 65th anniversary of the democratic reform that ended feudal serfdom in southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, with multiple grand celebrations and commemorative activities held across the region,” state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
State-run Global Times in its report highlighted the commemoration of the day in the new border villages built along the borders of India and Bhutan.
China has been pressing ahead with its plans to build well-furnished villages in both the Indian and Bhutan borders, raising concerns in both countries.
According to a report by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post last month, three of the villages with new buildings to accommodate locals and soldiers were built on the disputed boundary with Bhutan.
The Post report said the villages were part of China’s state-led poverty alleviation scheme to provide better living conditions but they also doubled as “citadels” to strengthen national security.
The Global Times reported that so far, China has built about 624 villages in the border region.
“Across the border regions of southwest China’s Xizang (Tibet) Autonomous Region, the 65th anniversary of democratic reform was celebrated with enthusiasm and reflection,” Global Times reported on Friday.
“Today’s Xizang sees continuous, rapid development in its border areas, with 624 border well-off villages fully established,” it said.
Yan Jinhai, deputy secretary of the ruling Communist Party of China, Xizang Autonomous Regional Committee, and chairman of the People’s Government of Xizang Autonomous Region, while highlighting the connectivity of the region with 100 per cent of broadband and 4G signals, said Xizang will persist in balancing troop stationing with civilian settlement and emphasising both border consolidation and development, the report said.
“Efforts will be made to tilt policies, projects, and funds more toward the border areas, promoting frontier prosperity to reinforce border defence, border security, and the happiness of border residents,” he said.
In Yadong county, located in the southern borderlands of Xigaze city and intersecting with India and Bhutan, eight celebration events were held across its townships from Tuesday to Thursday, the Global Times report said.
The celebrations were also held in Mêdog County in the south of Nyingchi, at the China-India border besides the newly-built Cona city, it said.
Fresh snow near Atal Tunnel, Manali-Leh highway blocked
he Manali-Leh highway was blocked between Manali and Keylong due to fresh snowfall near the Atal Tunnel in Lahaul and Spiti district today. The higher reaches of Lahaul and Spiti, Mandi and Kullu districts received fresh snow, while lower regions of these districts experienced rain.
The south and north portals of the Atal Tunnel on the Manali-Leh highway received fresh snow, disrupting traffic movement towards Keylong in Lahaul and Spiti district beyond the Solang valley near Manali.
Meanwhile, a large number of tourists thronged the Solang valley from Manali to enjoy snow activities. In view of public safety, the police restricted traffic movement beyond the Solang valley towards Keylong.
Manali DSP KD Sharma said that the movement of common civilians and tourists was allowed up to the Solang valley from the Manali side. Due to fresh snow near the Atal Tunnel and its nearby places, the road had become slippery for the movement of vehicles. So, traffic movement was not allowed beyond the Solang valley towards Keylong.
Lahaul and Spiti SP Mayank Chaudhary said that it snowed in Lahaul and Spiti since last night till this morning, disrupting traffic movement within the district as well as between Manali and Keylong. During daytime, a few emergency vehicles were evacuated towards Manali from the Lahaul side and a few patients and stranded tourists were transported in them. People had been advised to avoid unnecessary journey on the Manali-Leh highway, which has become slippery due to snow and rain.
As weather conditions improved in the Lahaul region later, the BRO deployed its workforce and machinery to clear snow from the road. It is expected that if the weather remains favourable, the highway will be opened for traffic movement tomorrow.
172 roads closed in state
A vehicle moves through a snow-covered road at Koksar village in Lahaul and Spiti on Saturday. ANI
Shimla: Higher reaches and tribal areas received fresh spell of snow while low and middle hills were lashed by intermittent hail and rains on Saturday as the local MeT office predicted wet spell in Himachal Pradesh till April 4.
A Himachal Roadways Transport Corporation bus turned turtle near Maling in the Kinnaur district after skidding on Saturday morning in the snow but no casualty was reported, an official said.
Traffic came to a halt at the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang near Manali following heavy snow. Kalpa and Kukumseri received 5 cm of snow followed by Keylong with 3 cm of snow in the past 24 hours.
A total of 172 roads, including three National Highways, were closed for vehicular traffic in the state on Friday night as per the data of the state emergency operation centre. Most of these roads are in a difficult terrain in Lahaul and Spiti, where 159 roads are still to be opened.
The Local MeT office had issued an orange warning of thunderstorms accompanied with lightning, hail, heavy rains and gusty winds (40-50 kmph) at isolated places in seven out of 12 districts in the state on Saturday. — PTI
Navy frees Iranian vessel with 23 all-Pak crew in Arabian Sea
The Indian Navy has freed an Iranian fishing vessel that was hijacked by pirates in the Arabian Sea and rescued its 23-member crew, all Pakistani nationals.
Nine pirates who had hijacked the vessel, Al-Kambar, had been captured and were being brought to India to face legal action under the Maritime Anti-Piracy Act of 2022, the Indian Navy said.
The Navy said its warship INS Sumedha intercepted Al-Kambar during the early hours of March 29, an operation joined in subsequently by INS Trishul. The Navy has deputed around 10 warships to check piracy.
“The pirates who had hijacked the vessel were forced to surrender following an intense operation lasting 12 hours. The Pakistani crew was safely rescued,” it said.
The fishing vessel was approximately 90 nautical miles southwest of Socotra when the pirates reportedly boarded it. Following the operation, specialist teams from the Navy undertook a thorough sanitisation and seaworthiness check of the fishing vessel in order to escort it to a safe area for resuming normal fishing activities, said a Navy spokesperson.
Earlier on March 16, the Navy had freed 17 crew members of a hijacked merchant vessel and made 35 pirates surrender. The operation started when the hijacked merchant vessel that was being used by pirates as a base opened fire on an Indian Navy helicopter in the Arabian Sea.
‘India Zindabad’ slogans by Pak nationals
The 23 Pakistani nationals rescued by the Indian Navy from Somali pirates thanked India and raised slogans of ‘India Zindabad’.
The Pakistani crew were seen raising the slogans after being freed from the pirates. They were given a thorough medical checkup prior to clearing the boat to continue with its fishing activities.
INS Sumedha had intercepted fishing vessel ‘Al Kambar’ during early hours of Friday and was subsequently joined by guided missile frigate INS Trishul.
Hope elections will be free & fair in India, says UN
After Germany and the US, the United Nations has also spoken on the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the freezing of bank accounts of the Congress, expressing the hope that every citizen’s rights will be protected in the coming General Election. – File photo
After Germany and the US, the United Nations has also spoken on the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the freezing of bank accounts of the Congress, expressing the hope that every citizen’s rights will be protected in the coming General Election.
“What we very much hope is that in India, as in any country that is having elections, everyone’s rights are protected, including political and civil rights, and everyone is able to vote in an atmosphere that is free and fair,” said Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in New York.
Interestingly, a journalist working with a Bangladesh media house had asked the same question from both the US State Department spokesperson as well as the UN Secretary General’s spokesperson.
The US has twice commented on the arrest of Kejriwal and once on the freezing of the Congress’ bank accounts ahead of the General Election. India had summoned an American diplomat the first time the State Department aired its views on Kejriwal’s arrest. However, the MEA did not repeat the summoning when the US State Department doubled down on its remarks on Kejriwal a couple of days later and for good measure also spoke on the action by the tax authorities against the Congress.
A massive avalanche struck the Sonamarg area on the Srinagar-Leh highway in Ganderbal district on Friday.
According to the reports, a avalanche struck the Hung area, burying several vehicles under snow. The authorities promptly mobilised a coordinated response involving the police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), residents and other agencies to initiate rescue operations in the area.
The avalanche directly impacted two vehicles having tourists on board. However, swift action from the rescue teams and locals led to the successful evacuation of all passengers. There were no reports casualties.
Our preparedness levels of very high order: Army Chief Pande on eastern Ladakh situation
In the backdrop of the nearly four-year border row with China in eastern Ladakh, Army Chief General Manoj Pande on Wednesday said the Indian Army’s preparedness levels are of a “very high order” and the force is keeping a “very close watch” on developments across the border.
In response to questions asked during a panel discussion at Times Now Summit here, General Pande also said he believed that it was “only through talks” that one can find resolution of the balance issues that are currently at hand.
The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong Lake area.
The ties between the two countries nose-dived significantly following the clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.
“We are prepared in every manner. Our levels of operational readiness, operational preparedness is of a very high order. In terms of our deployments along the entire length of 3,488 km (LAC) of our borders, I would say is both robust as well as balance. We have also ensured that we have adequate reserves in terms of dealing with contingencies… We have our response mechanism firmly in place,” General Pande said.
He was asked how well is the Indian Army prepared in the backdrop of the eastern Ladakh border standoff.
“We have talks at two levels. One is at the military level, at the level of our corps commanders, we have had 21 rounds of talks. At the diplomatic level, where we have the mechanism, WMCC (Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs,” he said, adding several rounds of WMCC talks have taken place post the event of mid-2020.
The 28th meeting of WMCC was held on November 30, 2023.
“It is my belief that only through talks you will find resolution of the balance issues that are currently at hand. While these talks are progressing, we are also focusing on capability development along our northern borders, of which technology infusion, modernisation are important,” the Army chief said.
General Pande said the Army is also focusing on infrastructure development and “I believe, we are moving in the right direction”.
“Our preparedness levels are of a very high order and we are keeping a very close watch on developments and what is happening across the border,” he added.
Asked to quantify the threat perception from China, General Pande said from time to time “we keep reviewing threats”.
So, threat during the winter months may be slightly different from what it may be during the summer months, he added.
“Just as our western adversary, with respect to our northern adversary, I would only say, our preparedness level is of a very high order,” the Army Chief asserted.
On the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, he underlined the Army formations deployed in the UT, both in hinterland and along the LoC in counter-infiltration grid.
“There are attempts at infiltration, which are continuing both in the Valley region as to the south of the Pir Panjal region. But we have a very robust and effective counter-infiltration grid which has proven successful,” he said.
On criticism surrounding the Agnipath scheme, General Pande said it was a “transformational” change or reform that “we undertook in the past so many years”.
The feedback received from the units is “extremely encouraging, extremely positive”, General Pande said, adding cynicism as to what will happen to the Agniveers after four years is “misplaced”.
On role of the women in the Army, he said, “Close to 128 women officers are now donning the rank of a Colonel and they are now Commanding Officers”.
The General was also asked about the Indian Army’s role in controlling the Manipur situation.
“On the night of May 3-4, I think it was our pro-active deployment, induction of additional forces there that we were able to control the violence levels to a very large extent. Be it the Assam Rifles or the Army units deployed there, I would say they have given an excellent account of themselves,” General Pande said.
In terms of preventing collateral damage to non-military or civilian population, in terms of ensuring their own protection, “I would believe they have done an excellent job”, he said.
On the challenges there, General Pande said one is the aspect of weapons which are still available at large.
There is still fairly a large number of weapons that is still available and that is a “cause of concern”, he added.
Also, the issue of activities happening across the Indo-Myanmar border and with these kinds of weapons available that remains a challenge, the Army chief said.
The situation in Manipur transcends the law and order situation or of land domain, General Pande said.
“We will have to come up with a very comprehensive and a detailed framework to be able to find an answer to the ongoing issues there. We have a large ex-servicemen community. So, we have asked them to engage with people. Our units are helping internally displaced people in various relief camps,” he said.
General Pande in his opening remarks said that he saw the Indian Army as “a key contributor and a stakeholder” in the nation’s rise.
“I believe the nation’s security and progress are inextricably linked. While the economic progress is the fountainhead of growth, it is the military strength that lends it the capability to be able to address ongoing as well as future security challenges. The Army’s commitment to India’s growth story is absolutely unwavering,” he said.
Social worker behind slain soldiers’ memorials eyes pan-India expansion
Sanjeev Rana, a social worker who has made memorials in North India in memory of soldiers killed in action, now plans to expand his initiative across the country.
Rana, who is the national coordinator of the campaign “Eek Eint Shaheed Ke Naam”, says, “We have made six such memorials in North India so far and now plan to do the same in other states too.”
“We do not take any funds as donations. We follow the contributory model to erect memorials. A donor can donate bricks or cement, or provide labour,” said Rana, who was born in Chandigarh.
“To ensure accuracy in our work, we coordinate with local Sainik Boards,” he said.
The campaign was started from Kurukshetra and the first “Martyr Memorial” was built in Pehowa, followed by another one at Anthedi and third at Indri (Karnal). Two have been made in Himachal Pradesh — Bilaspur and Mandi. The sixth has been raised in Samba, Jammu and Kashmir.
The one at Samba is in memory of Colonel Narayan Singh, who was in the 7th Jammu and Kashmir State Forces and held back the rebels for two days in October 1947. The demand for a memorial was made by the Colonel’s 79-year-old daughter Sharmistha, said Rana.
He said his organisation was also repairing houses of slain soldiers’ families. The organisation has planted 140 trees in memory of 140 soldiers in educational institutions in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh.
Rana recollected that when he started the campaign in June 2017, then Haryana Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki donated a brick. Then President of Ram Nath Kovind, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, then Himachal Governor Acharya Devvrat and Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya made donations, he said.
Many senior military officers, 30 IAS officers and international players have contributed to the cause over six years.
Ex-Army Chief VK Singh sabotaged revocation of AFSPA in J-K, alleges Omar Abdullah
National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah on Thursday accused BJP leader Gen (retd) V K Singh of sabotaging the revocation of AFSPA during the UPA-2 government when he was the Army chief.
“The Home Minister remembers AFSPA now. I fought for it (revocation of AFSPA) since 2011 when I was the Chief Minister. Where from did its opposition come from? It was Gen V K Singh, who was his ministerial colleague, and who was the chief of armed staff when I was the chief minister.
“Shah sahab, ask him (Singh) why did he stop the process to revoke AFSPA. Why did he sabotage it then? Why did he say that the Army will not accept it? Today, you are befooling the people that you will revoke AFSPA,” Abdullah said, addressing the party workers here in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district.
The NC leader said the Union Home Minister should first ease the public movement on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway.
“We will see about the AFSPA later, but at least ease the movement of people on highway and we will be grateful to you for that. As for now, stop the Army men from stopping our vehicles, harassing us on the highway when convoys pass through. Then we will accept that you can revoke AFSPA,” he added.
The former Chief Minister also said the Union Home Minister should start by releasing prisoners from J-K who are languishing in different jails across the country.
“Many of our youth are in jails outside the state. Release them first. They have started a new process now of forcing the children and grandchildren of separatists to publish advertisements in newspapers. You are repeating the era of which we have faced the brunt when our and Congress workers were forced to quit politics by announcing in newspapers,” he said.
Abdullah was referring to the public notices published in the newspapers recently in which Ruwa Shah, granddaughter of Syed Ali Shah Geelani, and Sama Shabir, the elder daughter of Shabir Shah, owed an allegiance to the sovereignty of the country.
Later, speaking to reporters, Abdullah said it was regretful that the Union home minister remembered about AFSPA now.
“We have apprehensions that the way the people of Ladakh were befooled on Sixth Schedule, the same will happen with us. When the parliamentary polls conclude and the BJP loses all the five seats, they will forget about AFSPA,” he said.
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