Tension Flares After 'Reckless' Pak Airstrikes Kill 8 Civilians In Afghanistan

by Pabitra Mohan Senapaty

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

Tensions simmered in the South Asian neighbourhood as Pakistan on Monday launched airstrikes in the border regions of Afghanistan, reportedly killing at least eight civilians, including three children.

New Delhi, Mar 18: Tensions simmered in the South Asian neighbourhood as Pakistan on Monday launched airstrikes in the border regions of Afghanistan, reportedly killing at least eight civilians, including three children.

Confirming the aerial strikes in the Khost and Paktika provinces, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that "such incidents can have very bad consequences which will be out of Pakistan's control".

According to TOLO News, the Taliban said they have responded to these attacks and targeted Pakistani military centres with heavy weapons.

Mujahid said the bombardment began at around 3 a.m. (local time) and targeted the houses of civilians in the Barmal district of Paktika province and the Afghan Dubai area of Sepera district in Khost province.

Calling the "reckless action" a violation of Afghanistan's territory, he said that "Pakistan should not blame Afghanistan for the lack of control, incompetence, and problems in its territory".

The aerial strikes reportedly were in response to last week's Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) attack on Pakistani armymen in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Mir Ali region.

Seven soldiers, including a Lieutenant Colonel and a Captain, were killed in the attack that was denounced by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Vowing retaliation, President Zardari said: "Pakistan has decided that whoever will enter our borders, homes or country and commit terror, we will respond to them strongly, regardless of who it is or from which country."

Meanwhile, as several media outlets in Pakistan reported that TTP commander Abdullah Shah was killed in the Pakistani airstrikes, Mujahid said in the statement: "The person named Abdullah Shah, who the Pakistani side claims was targeted in the incident, is in Pakistan."

This came even as a video went viral on X showing a man, identifying himself as Shah, saying: "Whatever propaganda is being spread against me is baseless."

The TTP, also known as the Pakistan Taliban, became active in 2007 and operates across the porous border with Afghanistan, even as the Taliban denies harbouring them.

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The group has been responsible for numerous terrorist attacks in Pakistan, targeting both the military establishment and civilians.

(IANS)

BJP Approaches EC Over Sujata Karthikeyan's "Gross Misconduct for BJD's Electoral Gains" In Odisha

by Hemanta Pande

New Delhi/ Bhubaneswar, May 2: The central leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday approached the Election Commission here accusing Odisha’s Mission Shakti Department Secretary, Sujata Karthikeyan of “misusing” her position to mobilise women attached with self-help groups “for electoral gains" of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD).

A delegation led by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar, Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi and senior party leader Om Pathak met the Election Commission and submitted a memorandum in this regard.

"Sujata Pandian, IAS, Commissioner cum Secretary, Mission Shakti, who is the wife of VK Pandian, also known as V Karthikeyan Pandian, is not only affiliated politically to the BJD, but also indulging in grave misconduct through misuse of authority, government machinery, and man power for influencing voters through 'SVEEP' for electoral gains of the BJD," the BJP leaders wrote in memorandum.

The BJP leaders alleged that VK Pandian, who also served as the Private Secretary to CM Patnaik for over a decade, wields considerable influence within the state’s administration.

“In November 2023, after taking voluntary retirement from IAS, Pandian joined the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) party. He was subsequently appointed as the chairman of the state’s flagship programme- 5T transformational initiatives with the rank of a Cabinet Minister...His proximity to the Chief Minister as well as the BJD cannot be overemphasized,” the memorandum reads.

"With a view to preserve the unbiased and unblemished reputation of ECI, it would be the fitness of things to relieve Sujata R. Karthikeyan, IAS, from the post of Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Mission Shakti, Government of Odisha and not assigned any public dealing duty till the conclusion of the impending Parliamentary and Assembly Elections in the State of Odisha" it says.

SVEEP is the flagship programme of the Election Commission of India for voter education, spreading voter awareness and promoting voter literacy in the country.

Assembly and Lok Sabha elections will be held simultaneously in Odisha in four phases, starting from Phase one on May 13, Phase two on May 20, Phase three on May 25 and the final Phase on June 1.

The results will be announced on June 4.

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Covaxin Has Excellent Safety Record, Says Bharat Biotech

by Hemanta Pande

Hyderabad, May 2: Bharat Biotech on Thursday said that its Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin has an excellent safety record without any vaccine-associated incidents of blood clots, thrombocytopenia, TTS, VITT, pericarditis, myocarditis, etc, as it was developed with a single-minded focus on safety first, followed by efficacy.

The Hyderabad-based company issued a statement amid questions being raised in some quarters over the safety of Covid vaccines after global pharmaceutical manufacturer AstraZeneca admitted that its Covid vaccine Covishield, developed by researchers from Oxford University, can cause a rare side effect of blood clotting and low platelet count after immunisation.

As many as 175 crore doses of Covishield, developed by AstraZeneca and manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute, were reportedly administered in India.

Bharat Biotech mentioned that Covaxin was the only Covid-19 vaccine in the Indian government’s Covid-19 immunisation programme to have conducted efficacy trials in India.

"Covaxin was evaluated in more than 27,000 subjects as part of its licensure process. It was licensed under restricted use in clinical trial mode, where detailed safety reporting was carried out for several hundred thousand subjects," the vaccine manufacturer said.

The safety of Covaxin was also evaluated by the Ministry of Health.

"Ongoing safety monitoring (pharmacovigilance) was continued throughout the product life cycle of Covaxin. All the above studies and safety follow-up activities have demonstrated an excellent safety record for Covaxin without any vaccine-associated incidents of blood clots, Thrombocytopenia, TTS, VITT, pericarditis, myocarditis, etc.," it said.

"As seasoned innovators and product developers, the Bharat Biotech team was well aware that, while the efficacy of Covid-19 vaccines may be short-lived, the impact on patient safety could last a lifetime. Hence safety is the primary focus for all our vaccines," it added. (IANS)

Tension Flares After 'Reckless' Pak Airstrikes Kill 8 Civilians In Afghanistan

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