Tag: Panel

Parliamentary panel asks govt to define fake news, seeks response on fact checking

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New Delhi: A high-level Parliamentary panel has asked the government to broadly define the term “fake news” and has also sought its response on the need for various fact-checking units (FCUs) in the country.
Noting that “fake news” is becoming a disturbing trend in the country, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communication and Information Technology has disapproved of the government’s silence on the matter.
The comments from the panel have come just days after the government decided to extend the timeline for consultations of its plan to take down information which is marked as “fake” by the FCUs of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
The extension came amid protests from all quarters against the move.
The Parliamentary panel’s observations have been made in its action taken report on “Ethical Standards in Media Coverage”, submitted in Parliament by the panel last week during the Budget session.
In the light of false or fake news becoming a disturbing trend in India, the committee has also sought to know from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, whether it intends to have such FCUs for countering misinformation in general.
The panel has also expressed its disappointment over the ministry’s silence on its earlier recommendation of using latest technologies like Artificial Intelligence, considering existing expertise in non-government agencies and to study the anti-fake news laws of countries like Australia, Malaysia and other democracies for developing some legal provisions.
It noted that “the ministry’s reply is silent on all these aspects and they submitted merely the statutory and institutional mechanisms for preventing spread of fake news existing for print media, TV channels and digital news publishers”.

However in the light of rapid spread of fake news due to latest technologies and its impact on the citizens, the committee has recommended that “there is always a scope for learning from the expertise of non-government organisations in the field and for studying anti-fake news laws of other countries so as to have some legal provisions for curbing fake news in the country”.
It has thus asked the Ministry to provide action taken in this direction along with the initiatives taken for utilising latest technologies such as Artificial Intelligence for intervening and checking fake news in near real time.
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#Parliamentary #panel #asks #govt #define #fake #news #seeks #response #fact #checking
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 16, 2023
Minorities panel received maximum complaints from Muslims in last 5 yrs from UP

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New Delhi: As incidents of violence against minority communities in the past few years across the country have seen a spike, what specifically raises eyebrows is the fact that a bulk of complaints, or 71 per cent of total complaints and petitions received by the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) in the past five years are related to the Muslim community alone.
Uttar Pradesh has been the only state for the last five years, from where the maximum number of complaints related to the Muslim community have been received by the commission.
According to the Ministry of Minority Affairs’ data, of the total 10,562 complaints received by the commission related to all the minority communities, namely Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis, Jains and Buddhists between 2017-18 and 2022-23 (till January 31, 2023), 7,508 pertain to the Muslim community alone. This is 71 per cent of total complaints received by the minorities’ panel from all the minority communities.
As per Section 9(1) of the NCM Act, 1992, among its various other functions, the commission is required to look into specific complaints regarding deprivation of rights and safeguard of minorities and taking up such matters with the appropriate authorities.
The complaints now being received by it are mostly related to police atrocities, service matters, minority educational institutions and encroachments to religious properties.
Reports are sought from the concerned authorities under the Union and state governments. On receipt of the reports, the commission makes appropriate recommendations to the respective authorities for redressal of the grievances.
A closer analysis of the data pertaining to the total complaints received in the last five years by the NCM, a majority of them come from the Muslim community.
In 2017-18, of the total 1,498 complaints received by NCM, 1,128 of them or 75 per cent of the complaints came from the Muslim community. Of these, 529 complaints were from Uttar Pradesh alone from Muslims.

Similarly in 2018-19, 1,344 complaints of the total 1,871 complaints (72 per cent) received by the commission, belonged to the Muslim community. Here, too, Uttar Pradesh led with 810 complaints from the Muslim community.
This pattern could also be seen in 2019-20, when 73.7 per cent of the total complaints received by NCM, were from the Muslim community, with Uttar Pradesh leading with 728 complaints.
In 2020-21, too, 75.5 per cent or 1,105 out of the total 1,463 complaints received by the panel pertained to the Muslim community, with 646 from Uttar Pradesh alone.
In 2021-22, 68 per cent of the total complaints came from the Muslim community to the NCM, 659 being from Uttar Pradesh.
During the current fiscal (2022-23) till January 31, 2023, the NCM received 1,984 complaints, of which 1,279 or 64.4 per cent came from the Muslim community, with 662 from Uttar Pradesh.
According to the Ministry’s data, complaints received by the panel from other minority communities have been very few during the last five years, if the figures are to be compared to those sent by the Muslim community.
However, with maximum complaints lodged with the NCM coming from the Muslim community and that, too, mainly from Uttar Pradesh, which is easily miles ahead of other states in terms of sheer number of complaints received from there, indeed shows the growing level of intolerance towards a particular community, especially in a state considered to be one of the most politically conscious and significant.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 13, 2023
Delhi Assembly panel asks govt departments to fill vacant posts reserved for SCs/STs

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New Delhi: The Delhi Legislative Assembly Committee on Welfare of SCs/STs has asked all central and state government departments to fill vacant posts reserved for the communities on priority, a statement said on Saturday.
The committee chaired by AAP MLA Vishesh Ravi had earlier written to all the departments in Delhi to share the backlog of vacant SC/ST positions.
A probe into the matter revealed several ‘Group A’ posts could not be filled due to a delay by the Union Public Service Commission and many ‘Group B’ and ‘Group C’ posts were vacant due to delay on the part of the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board and state government departments.
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#Delhi #Assembly #panel #asks #govt #departments #fill #vacant #posts #reserved #SCsSTs
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 11, 2023
Government says media council may not be desirable; parliamentary panel makes fresh push

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New Delhi: The government has told a parliamentary committee that it “may not be desirable” to set up a unified media council as each media platform was unique and distinctive in its own way with a self-regulatory mechanism, prompting the panel to make a fresh push for such a framework with statutory powers to enforce advisories.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, chaired by Shiv Sena member Pratap Jadhav, had suggested to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to have a media council, contending that there were limitations in enforcement of advisories issued by the Press Council of India and News Broadcasting Standards Authority.
In an action-taken report on the subject ‘Ethical Standards in Media Coverage’, the committee said it had opined that the ministry should explore the possibility of establishing a media council encompassing print, electronic and digital media which should be equipped with statutory powers to enforce its orders where required.
The committee noted that the ministry had informed it that there were separate regulatory mechanisms for different media platforms.
“… Each platform is unique and distinctive in its own way and therefore unifying and merging them under one regulatory framework may not be desirable,” the committee said, citing the submission made by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
“However, in light of the rising need for inter-sectoral coordination due to emergence and convergence of new technologies, the committee would like to reiterate and recommend the ministry to explore the possibilities for having unified Media Commission/Body/Council with separate wings and regulatory mechanism for print/electronic/digital media,” the committee said.
It said such a framework can have a holistic view of the media and ensure inter-media parity in handling the similar cases of unethical media coverage.
The committee pointed out that the Press Council of India too had sent a proposal to the ministry regarding the constitution of a media council encompassing various media platforms.

It recommended to the government to ensure that all private television channels were part of a self-regulatory body.
It noted that out of 926 private channels, 309 channels were members of Broadcasting Content Complaints Council, while 41 channels were members of News Broadcasters Federation – Professional News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBF-PNBSA). It noted that 576 television channels were not members of any self regulating body.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 10, 2023
BCI forms panel to probe advocate’s role in misleading candidates in bar council exams

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Ahmedabad: The Bar Council of India (BCI) has formed a panel headed by retired high court judge Paresh Upadhyay to probe an advocate’s role in allegedly misleading candidates in the bar council exams held across India last Sunday.
BCI Chairman Manan Mishra told IANS, “There is a report alleging that an advocate and his companions misled candidates in the bar council exams. To probe the allegation, a three-member panel has been formed, which will look into whether there is any substance in the allegation. It will submit a report within seven days.”
Mishra added, “If the probe panel finds any irregularities in the exams, it will decide about the exams accordingly. If they find out that the advocate and his companions misled the candidates, action will be taken against them.”
There were reports from Rajkot that a practising advocate and his companions had leaked the answer keys to help candidates appearing for the lawyer’s exams.
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#BCI #forms #panel #probe #advocates #role #misleading #candidates #bar #council #exams
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 7, 2023
Karan Adani, Anant Ambani among members of Maha economic advisory panel

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Mumbai: Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekharan will head the Maharashtra state Economic Advisory Council (EAC) which also includes Karan Adani and Anant Ambani, a government resolution said on Monday.
Karan Adani, the CEO of Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd, is the son of Gautam Adani, who is battling allegations of stock manipulation and fraud in Adani Group raised by Hindenburg Research. The Adani Group has denied the allegations, which created a political firestorm and eroded his networth.
The Adani junior has been named as the expert on the ports and SEZ sector in the 21-member body.
“An Economic Advisory Council as an Independent Body to advise the state government on economic and other related issues ,” the government resolution said.
The council has domain experts from fields including textiles, pharma, ports, special economic zone, banking, agriculture, industries, engineering, and manufacturing.
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#Karan #Adani #Anant #Ambani #among #members #Maha #economic #advisory #panel

( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 6, 2023
beatXP Blue plus Digital Bathroom Weighing Scale with LCD Panel & Thick Tempered Glass, Electronic Weight Machine for Human Body – 2 Year Warranty

Price: [price_with_discount]
(as of [price_update_date] – Details)

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Product Description

Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 30 x 29.5 x 3 cm; 1.3 Kilograms
Date First Available ‏ : ‎ 15 September 2021
Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ beatXP
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09MFX8ZHC
Item model number ‏ : ‎ Blue +
Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ China
Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ beatXP, GHV Medical Anchor Private Limited , Plot N0 1453. ST Tower Old Delhi Gurgaon Road -122008, Contact – 91-7303762766 email support@beatxp.com
Packer ‏ : ‎ GHV Medical Anchor Private Limited , Plot N0 1453. ST Tower Old Delhi Gurgaon Road -122008, Contact – 91-7303762766 email support@beatxp.com
Importer ‏ : ‎ GHV Medical Anchor Private Limited , Plot N0 1453. ST Tower Old Delhi Gurgaon Road -122008, Contact – 91-7303762766 email support@beatxp.com
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 kg 300 g
Item Dimensions LxWxH ‏ : ‎ 30 x 29.5 x 3 Centimeters
Net Quantity ‏ : ‎ 1 count
Included Components ‏ : ‎ Weighing Scale, 2 AAA Baterries
Generic Name ‏ : ‎ Weighing Scale

✅ [ACCURATE READINGS] : Its high-precision sensors provide measurements in the range of 2.5 to 180 kg with an accuracy of 0.5 kg. The digital weight scale provides accurate readings in two different measurement units; kg and lbs.
✅ [EASY TO USE] : The weight machine for the human body is equipped with Step ON technology to automatically calibrate and give accurate measurements as soon as you step on it. Please ignore the first reading while taking your measurements. The electronic weight machine for the human body operates on 2 AAA batteries.
✅ [LCD PANEL WITH MULTI-FUNCTION INDICATORS] : The backlit LCD panel showcases prominent readings with low battery and overload indicators. Apart from that, the digital weighing scale also displays room temperature.
✅ [SCRATCH-RESISTANT & ANTI-SKID] : The 6 mm thick tempered glass top of the digital bathroom weighing scale is made with tough-bearing material. Its scratch resistant and anti-skid properties makes it easier to clean and requires low maintenance.

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#beatXP #Blue #Digital #Bathroom #Weighing #Scale #LCD #Panel #Thick #Tempered #Glass #Electronic #Weight #Machine #Human #Body #Year #Warranty

February 6, 2023
House ousts Ilhan Omar from foreign affairs panel over Israel remarks

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Washington: Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota was fired from the Foreign Affairs Committee over past comments about Israel following the debate on the House Floor on Tuesday morning, according to the statement released by the House of Meeks.
“Today’s vote is not a reflection of Representative Omar, but on the rank hypocrisy of Republican leadership, which has used its power to exact revenge on their political opponents and, in the case of Omar, punish a Member to satisfy the extreme MAGA (Make America Great Again) wing of their party,” the statement read.
This decision came after Omar had made what Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) recently described as “repeated antisemitic and anti-American remarks” throughout her time as a member of the House. The resolution explicitly condemns Omar for using an antisemitic trope to suggest Israel’s allies in US politics were motivated by money rather than principle when she in 2019 tweeted, “It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” according to The Washington Post.
Ilhan Omar’s past statements make it clear she is unfit to represent the U.S. on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
– She repeatedly used anti-semitic tropes
– She described 9/11 by saying “some people did something”
– She compared America and Israel to Hamas and the Taliban pic.twitter.com/VnDIVtw5oV
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) February 2, 2023
“If the purpose of this vote is to punish a Member for antisemitism, this resolution should not be aimed at a Representative who has apologized and learned from her mistakes, but those within their own party who’ve yet to apologize for their antisemitic remarks and actions. It should be condemning Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene – of ‘Jewish spacefarers fame – for spreading conspiracies that ‘Zionist supremacists” are flooding Europe with migrants to replace white populations. It should be condemning Rep. Miller for quoting Adol f Hitler in Congressional remarks, or Rep. Gosar for inviting a Holocaust denier to the State of the Union,” the statement added.
The statement also stated that this resolution should condemn Speaker McCarthy himself for his November 6th tweet accusing three Jewish men of buying the election, an antisemitic dog whistle about Jewish money buying elections.
“Not only does Representative Omar not deserve to be removed from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, as the only African-born and Muslim Member on the Committee, but her perspective and insight also make her an invaluable asset to the Committee’s important work. Rather than allowing Congress to do its job and legislate, the very purpose that people have sent us to Washington in the first place, Republicans are spending time stripping a Member of her Committee assignment on grounds they themselves can’t stand on,” the statement added.
Calling Omar’s past statements ‘unfit’, McCarthy tweeted, “Make it clear she is unfit to represent the U.S. on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. She repeatedly used anti-semitic tropes. She described 9/11 by saying ‘some people did something’. She compared America and Israel to Hamas and the Taliban.”
lawmaker Ilhan Omar was arrested in July in Washington DC during an abortion rights protest in front of the Supreme Court. A video clip shared by Omar’s official Twitter handle showed the lawmaker pretending to be handcuffed as they were escorted away from the Supreme Court by police.

Earlier, controversial Omar visited Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Not known to take much interest in Pakistan or the Kashmir issue previously, United States’ Muslim lawmaker Omar paid a highly publicized visit to PoK and promised to ‘mainstream’ Pakistan’s concerns with India which has made a little impact over the years in Washington.
Omar received a red carpet-welcome. She met Sharif and his foreign minister Hina Khar but also held a much-hyped meeting with Khan, her original host.
(Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 3, 2023
Democratic Party representative Ilhan Omar ousted from US Congress panel

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New York: The US House of Representatives has ousted Ilhan Omar, a Democratic Party legislator from the influential Foreign Affairs Committee.
The House voted on Thursday mainly for her bigoted comments against Jews to remove her from the committee that she had used before to campaign against India.
The vote was on party lines, 218 to 211, in the House that was captured in last year’s election by the Republican Party.
The Democratic Party leadership and members were solidly behind her.
Fellow Democrat Pramila Jayapal, the leader of the Progressive Caucus who is also a critic of India, in a voice filled with emotion said that voting her out of the panel was an attempt to silence her “strong and necessary voice” and an act of revenge by the Republicans.
A defiant Omar said, “We didn’t come to Congress to be silent”, and added that despite the ouster, “my voice will get louder and stronger”.
Republican Mike Lawler countered that rhetoric aceleads to harm” and Omar “is being held accountable for her words and her actions”.
The US has seen a rise in attacks against and harassment of Jewish people and the Anti-Defamation League which monitors such incidents said they reached an all-time high with 2,717 incidents recorded in 2021.

Omar is a member of the left-wing wing of the Democratic Party and one of the four in the radical group called the “Squad”.
One of three Muslims in Congress, she represents a constituency in Minnesota with a large number of immigrants from Somalia like her.
Two months after a visit to Pakistan and to the part of Kashmir it occupies, she introduced in June last year a resolution in Congress to condemn India for what she termed “human rights violations and violations of international religious freedom”.
That resolution, which drew the support of 12 Democrats, failed to even come up for a vote.
During her visit to Pakistan, she had gone close to the Line of Control and complained that Kashmir was not “being talked about to the extent it needs to in Congress but also with the administration”.
She met with Prime Minister Shabaz Sharif, whose office said that he valued her “courage of convictions and her political struggle”.
Omar also voted in 2019 against a bill that would have cut for Indians the waiting time for permanent residency or Green Cards that stretches to several decades making the wait futile for many.
In one of the last bid attempts to save her from ouster, an op-ed was published in The New York Times highlighting her opposition to India in what the writer, New York City University Professor Peter Beinart, called an example of her asking “uncomfortable questions”.
In the encounter with Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman at a committee meeting cited in the article, Omar let loose a propaganda salvo likening the democratically elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, who had ousted a democratically elected government in a military coup and killed thousands and tortured and detained tens of thousands.
She was critical of US policies to forge closer ties with India to counter China.
It was Omar’s record of anti-Semitism – a characteristic often shared by those who are also anti-India – that did her in when the protective mantle of the Democratic majority disappeared in the House.
Among her controversial statements, one said, “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel”.
Alluding to supporters of Israel, she spoke of those with “the allegiance to a foreign country”.
She suggested that Jewish people were buying support for Israel in a tweet that said, “It’s all about the Benjamins baby”, which is a reference to $100 notes that carry the picture of Benjamin Franklin and anti-Semites the name to link it to the Biblical Jewish sacred figure.
She has also compared Israel to the Taliban in a statement with other Democrats.
The Democrats set a precedent when held the House majority by removing two Republicans, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar, from House committees accusing them of promoting violence.
At that time Kevin McCarthy, who is now the speaker, warned that he would remove Omar and another Democrat, Eric Swalwell from committees when his party controlled the House.
Last week, McCarthy removed from the House Intelligence Committee Swalwell and Adam Schiff, who had been its head when the Democrats controlled the Hous — leading to Jayapal’s accusation of “revenge”.
An alleged Chinese operative Fang Fang had placed an intern in Swalwell’s office and participated in raising funds for his campaign, which was a likely reason for his removal.
McCarthy alleged that Schiff had misused his office while heading the intelligence panel and created misinformation against Trump.
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#Democratic #Party #representative #Ilhan #Omar #ousted #Congress #panel
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

February 3, 2023
House Dem laments ‘friendly fire’ after losing a plum panel seat

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A Jeffries spokesperson noted that Quigley had already served for four full terms on the Intelligence Committee, but otherwise declined to comment.
The Intelligence Committee limits members to four terms on the panel, though members can receive waivers. Chairs and ranking members are exempt from the term limit.
Quigley’s exit also follows that of several other senior Intelligence Committee Democrats due to retirement or election to higher office, such as Reps. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Jackie Speier (D-Calif.). That turnover is leading some Democrats to worry about a loss of expertise — among them former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), spotted speaking to Jeffries on the House floor Wednesday evening about the need to maintain institutional knowledge on the panel through its longer-serving members like Quigley.
Asked Wednesday about Quigley, Pelosi said she “thought there was still an opportunity” for him to serve on the panel.
Another wrinkle to Quigley’s intelligence panel departure stems from Jeffries’ ascension atop the caucus. Quigley had privately backed Schiff when he was sounding out a potential leadership bid that would have pitted him against Jeffries, prompting some Democrats to theorize that Quigley’s removal from the committee was linked to leadership maneuvering. Schiff ultimately decided against running for leadership in favor of pursuing a Senate bid, and Jeffries ran unopposed for minority leader.
As the minority party, Democrats’ allotted number of seats on the committee shrank, forcing tough choices about appointments to the sought-after panel. To replace departing members, a half-dozen Democrats were added to the Intelligence Committee, including Reps. Ami Bera of California, Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey and Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, though several members of the panel who’d served on it in previous Congresses returned, including Reps. Andre Carson of Indiana and Joaquin Castro of Texas.
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#House #Dem #laments #friendly #fire #losing #plum #panel #seat
( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

February 2, 2023