Daily Briefing: Slew of measures as poll panel announces election schedule; 3rd wave may peak in Delhi, Mumbai mid-Jan

The big story

Save the date (s). Five states are voting for the assembly at a time when the country is at the beginning of a third wave of Covid. The election schedule is divided into seven phases between February 10th and March 7th, with the vote counting on March 10th. The election commission has announced a ban on road shows and rallies until January 15th. Then she will review the situation.

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IIT Kanpur professor and mathematician Manindra Agrawal, who runs a computer model that tracks the Covid-19 curve in the country, said that while elections are contributing to an increase, they are just one of the factors driving the number of cases. He says the sustained third wave could be as high as 8 lakh falls in one day – almost twice as high as in the second wave.

Former Union Minister P Chidambaram writes: “The Christmas party disruption, hate speech and malicious apps have not sparked a word of condemnation from the Prime Minister. Prepare for the future, bigotry will be unleashed. And talk, otherwise nobody will speak for you anymore. “

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At least 750 doctors and hundreds of other nurses and paramedics from the six major hospitals in Delhi are currently suffering from Covid-19. Although most of them have mild symptoms and are in domestic isolation, it has taken a large chunk of the workforce away, resulting in hospitals Restrict routine clinics and practices.

Almost two weeks after the Union government refused to renew the registration of the Missionaries of Charity (MoC) founded by Nobel Laureate Mother Teresa under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), the center restored it on Thursday. The new FCRA certificate is valid until the end of 2026. With the renewed registration, the association can receive and use funds from foreign contributions.

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While parliamentary elections in five states will be a mid-term review for PM Modi and the BJP, it will be more critical and formative for the opposition, especially the Congress, but also regional forces like the Samajwadi Party, BSP and AAP. The result could shape a greater opposition policy and confirm or question the claim of Congress as the core of the anti-BJP train in the run-up to the 2024 parliamentary elections.

Last week, Alka Mittal was given the additional role of chairman and general manager of India’s largest oil and gas exploration company ONGC, an organization that employs less than 8% of the workforce. We take a look at their careers, how she made it to the top – and how she paved the way for others to follow in her footsteps

With the general election in Punjab imminent and the nationwide election campaign well underway, some fear that the Polls could exacerbate the aggressive third wave the coronavirus pandemic. We visited the constituency of Samrala in Ludhiana, where CM Charanjit Singh Channi held a rally – hundreds came, but hardly a mask was to be seen, not even on the Chief Minister himself. “How will we take Corona seriously when politicians make rallies, none Wearing masks and congratulating people for coming in large numbers? ” asked a passerby.

Over 70 Twitter handles, four YouTube channels, and a game on Instagram were made suspended after being flagged by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) for sharing fake and inciting content. These handles were identified after Twitter users tagged the Department of Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar and asked him to view their content.

And finally

From a migrant dish to a city staple, the adaptable momo signals a developing India whose eating habits have been shaped by migrants on the fringes of the food world. Food aggregator Zomato recently posted a report on its Instagram feed claiming the humble momo has been ordered over 1 crore this year. We speak to some of the people behind this popular dish, the street vendors of Delhi, many of whom were financially troubled during the pandemic.

Until tomorrow,

Leela Prasad G and Rahel Philipose