09:39 Bank workers at it again: Second nation-wide strike within a week:
Banking operations will be affected today as close to 10 lakh employees of various public sector and some of the private and foreign banks are on a day-long strike to protest against the proposed merger of Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank with Bank of Baroda.
The nation-wide strike would impact banking services like deposits and withdrawal at branches, cheque clearances and issuance of demand drafts, among others.
In September, the government had announced merger of state-owned Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank with the larger peer Bank of Baroda.
The merged entity will have a combined business of Rs 14.82 trillion, making it the third largest bank after State Bank of India and HDFC Bank.
The unions are claiming that the merger is not in the interest of banks or their customers and will in fact be detrimental to both.
The government wants banks to grow in size through this amalgamation but even if all public sector banks are bundled into one, the merged entity cannot find a place among the top 10 globally, said United Forum of Bank Unions, which has called for the one-day strike.
“This merger will see a large number of branches getting closed and customers will have to face hardships as already banks are burdened with the implementation of various government schemes such as Jan Dhan Yojana, Mudra, social security insurance, and Prime Minister’s housing scheme, among others,” the union said.
— PTI
09:21 ‘Can’t say who will be next prime minister,’ says Ramdev:
With months to go for the 2019 general elections, yoga guru Ramdev said the political situation in the country is currently complex and it was difficult to predict who would win the polls.
“Now the political situation is very difficult. We cannot say who will [be] the next prime minister or who will lead the country, but situation is very interesting…” Ramdev said in Tamil Nadu’s Madurai.
The comments come two weeks after assembly elections in five states, in which the Congress managed to win three heartland states from the BJP – Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. While K Chandrashekar Rao’s Telangana Rashtra Samithi retained Telangana, the Congress lost Mizoram to the Mizo National Front.
Ramdev said he is not going to support any person or oppose any party in the Lok Sabha elections due next year.
“I am not focusing on politics,” he said.
“We don’t have a political or religious agenda but we want a spiritual country and a spiritual world. Through yoga and Vedic practices, we are making a divine, prosperous and spiritual India,” said Ramdev.
Ramdev, 52, had supported the BJP’s national election campaign in 2014. A year later, he was named Haryana’s brand ambassador and then granted cabinet minister rank. He was allotted a car with a beacon, security personnel and an escort vehicle whenever he visited the state.
09:00 No foreign visit on cards as PM Modi focuses on 2019 polls:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not expected to make any foreign visits in the first four months of the coming year in order to focus on local issues ahead of the general elections, senior government officials familiar with the development said to Hindustan Times on condition of anonymity.
To be sure, they added, there are no major multilateral events in the coming months at least not any that require the PMs participation. In the last year, Modi made 14 overseas visits.
In addition to his prime ministerial responsibilities, Modi is also the BJPs most important campaigner. The party has faced its most significant losses in the past five years in the recent elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.
Modi will also participate in the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations in Varanasi during January 21-23.
The prime ministers most recent foreign visits were to Japan in October, Singapore (for events related to the Asean Summit), the Maldives (for President Ibrahim Solihs swearing-in) and Argentina (for the G20 Summit) in November.
08:25 Pehla vote Modi ko: BJP’s plan to woo first-time voters in MP:
The BJP lost the state election, but its Madhya Pradesh unit has started preparing for the Lok Sabha elections. The unit has set up what it calls the NaMo network to recruit young workers for the party.
They will be contacted via missed calls and WhatsApp messages and will be expected to work as volunteers during the 2019 election.
The party is also planning to start a new campaign to woo first-time voters in the state. The campaign has been propitiously branded ‘Pehla vote Modi ko’ (‘My first vote for Modi’).
— Business Standard
08:03 Deve Gowda upset over being left out of Bogibeel Bridge inauguration :
Former prime minister and JD-S supremo HD Deve Gowda, who had laid the foundation of the Bogibeel Bridge during his tenure, expressed disappointment at not being invited for the inauguration of the country’s longest rail road bridge in Assam.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 4.9-km-long bridge at Bogibeel across Brahmaputra River, built at a cost of Rs 5,900 crore on Tuesday. The foundation stone for the project was laid by Gowda when he was the prime minister in 1997.
“Railway line to Kashmir, Delhi Metro and Bogibeel rail road bridge were among the projects I had sanctioned (as prime minister). I had sanctioned the budget of Rs 100 crore for each of these projects and laid their foundation stones. People have forgotten today,” Gowda said.
Replying to a question from reporters on the sidelines of a function here as to how he felt about the inauguration of the project started by him, the former prime minister said he had given the nod for many projects.
To a question whether he received an invitation, Gowda quipped, “Aiyo Rama! Who will remember me? Some newspapers might have mentioned about it.”
08:00 Not my business to decide on successor: Dalai Lama tells HT:
Not my business to decide on successor: Dalai Lama tells Hindustan Times
His Holiness told the newspaper’s Sishir Gupta that the dialogue process for reincarnation had not started. This, he said, should be decided at an international conference after his natural death.
Source: Rediff