Job aspirants in Dharwad protest demanding recruitment drive to fill vacant govt posts
Dharwad (PTI): Several job aspirants on Monday staged a protest here demanding that the Karnataka government launch a recruitment drive to fill vacancies across various departments.
Police said 35 people, including women, were detained.
The demonstration was organised by Janasamanyara Vedike and Udyogakankshigala Horata Samiti.
Aspirants had planned to march from Srinagar Circle to the District Commissioner’s office, but police intervened and detained many of the participants.
Students from different parts of the city assembled in the Srinagar area and raised anti-government slogans.
They urged the government to announce a clear policy during the upcoming winter session of the state legislature to fill all vacant posts and introduce more student-friendly measures.
Police had earlier denied permission for the protest, citing traffic congestion and potential law-and-order issues. Despite this, the organisers went ahead with the demonstration.
Speaking to reporters later, Dharwad Police Commissioner N Shashikumar said the job aspirants had sought permission, but it was withheld due to security concerns.
"They claimed around 30,000 students would join the protest. Some PG and library science students had spoken about holding an indefinite dharna and blocking junctions. We asked for clarification on who would lead the protest and how many would actually participate," he said.
He noted that around 80,000 students live in the area and that it is surrounded by schools, colleges and hospitals.
"If miscreants misuse such a situation in a student-populated area, law and order could easily deteriorate. For these reasons, permission was not granted," he said.
According to the commissioner, the organisers failed to provide complete information to the authorities. On Monday morning, nearly 200 local students and aspirants gathered to demonstrate.
"I told the organisers that the protest was unlawful. Even one wrong act could have led to serious problems. We explained that the government had already taken certain steps, but they insisted on marching to the DC office," he said.
He added that the route passes several coaching centres and that police detained the protesters as a precaution. "We have detained 35 people, including women," he said.
Shashikumar recalled that during an earlier protest by the same group, some individuals had shouted "inappropriate" slogans and blocked Jubilee Circle, inconveniencing the public.
"There is no question of suppressing protests. Everyone has the right to protest, but it must be done as per the rules," he said.
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Russian military hardware, spare parts for Indian military to be manufactured in India
New Delhi (PTI): Russia agreed to encourage joint manufacturing in India of military hardware and spare parts for maintenance of Russian-origin arms and defence equipment.
Ways to bolster overall bilateral defence cooperation figured prominently during summit talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
It has been a long-standing grievance of armed forces that the supply of critical spares and equipment from Russia takes a long time, affecting the maintenance of military systems procured from that country.
"Both sides agreed to encourage joint manufacturing in India of spare parts, components, aggregates and other products for maintenance of Russian origin arms and defence equipment under Make-in-India programme through transfer of technology," a joint statement said.
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It said both sides also agreed to set up joint ventures for meeting the needs of the Indian armed forces as well as subsequent export to mutually friendly third countries.
The joint statement said the India-Russia defence partnership is being reoriented to take up joint co-development and co-production of advanced defence technology and systems.
In their meeting on Thursday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov resolved to expand bilateral defence cooperation.
In the meeting, the Indian side showed keen interest in procurement of additional batches of S-400 missile systems from Moscow to bolster its combat prowess.
In October 2018, India signed a USD 5 billion deal with Russia to buy five units of the S-400 air defence missile systems, notwithstanding a warning by the US that going ahead with the contract may invite US sanctions under the provisions of Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
Three squadrons have already been delivered.
The S-400 systems played a crucial role during Operation Sindoor. India may also look at procuring the S-500 missile systems from Russia.
In the Modi-Putin talks, the two sides also agreed to continue jointly developing systems of bilateral trade settlements through the use of national currencies.
Additionally, the two sides agreed to continue their consultations on enabling the interoperability of the national payment systems, financial messaging systems, as well as central bank digital currency platforms.
Modi and Putin appreciated the ongoing intensification of the joint work on a free trade agreement on goods between India and the Eurasian Economic Union, covering sectors of mutual interest, the joint statement said.
They also directed both sides to intensify efforts in negotiations on a mutually beneficial agreement on the promotion and protection of investment, it said.
India and Russia also welcomed steps to ensure long-term supply of fertilisers to India and discussed the potential establishment of joint ventures in this area.
