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Israel, the U.S., and Hamas have reached a tentative agreement to free dozens of women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting, a U.S. media report has said, citing people familiar with the deal.
While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. officials said on Sunday that no deal had been reached yet, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said he had growing confidence that a hostage deal would be reached and the challenges that remained were “very minor”.
The challenges facing the agreement are just practical and logistical,” he said at a press conference with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in Doha.
The hostage release could begin within the next several days, barring last-minute hitches, according to people familiar with the detailed, six-page agreement.
Under the agreement, all parties will freeze combat operations for at least five days, while 50 or more hostages are released in groups every 24 hours.
Hamas had taken about 240 hostages during its October 7 rampage inside Israel. The pause is intended to allow humanitarian aid in, the report said, adding the outline for the deal was put together during weeks of talks in Qatar.
States
Kerala to expand farming of GI-tagged Onattukara sesame (Page no. 6)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Efforts are being made to expand the cultivation of geographical indication (GI)-tagged Onattukara sesame in Alappuzha district of Kerala.
Authorities have announced an incentive scheme for growing sesame on fields and homesteads in the Thekkekara Krishi Bhavan limits.
Mavelikara Thekkekara gram panchayat president K. Mohankumar said a financial assistance of ₹40 for a cent of land would be given to farmers for cultivating sesame.
The project, which was launched recently, is a joint initiative involving the local Krishi Bhavan, Onattukara Vikasana Agency (OVA), Onattukara Regional Agricultural Research Station (ORARS), Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Kayamkulam, and Mavelikara Thekkekara panchayat.
Mr. Mohankumar said seeds would be distributed from the Thekkekara Krishi Bhavan and the sesame produced under the scheme would be procured by the OVA at market price.
Individuals, farming collectives, Kudumbashree groups, self-help groups, and joint liability groups will be given incentives for cultivation.
Editorial
Steering road safety in India back onto the right lane (Page no. 8)
(GS Paper 2, Governance)
India’s roads are a paradox. They represent an enormous and growing opportunity to commute and connect, to transport and travel. They go hand in hand with the country’s modernisation and impressive economic progress.
In this context, India has some of the greatest opportunities to build a strong road safety management framework, with strong helmet producers, car manufacturers, big tech and large road investments. And yet, as in many countries, they are also the source of a silent but deadly pandemic.
Each year, a staggering 3,00,000 people are estimated to be killed on the road in India, according to the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO). That is equivalent to more than 34 people every hour of every day.
And that is a conservative estimate. The number of people suffering life-altering injuries in road crashes is exponentially higher even than that.
Beyond human suffering, there is a serious economic toll: In India, road crashes are estimated to cost between 5% and 7% of national GDP.
India, and the wider region in which it sits, is far from alone. Road safety is a global problem, with 1.3 million people killed in road crashes every year. But almost one in every four road deaths around the world takes place in India.
Opinion
Making public education inclusive (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 2, Education)
There is no denying that education is a human right. It ought to be accessible and affordable for all sections of society so that development is truly inclusive.
Yet, a study by IIM Ahmedabad’s Right to Education Resource Center confirmed the well-known but disconcerting truth that parents lack trust in government schools due to poor quality of education and prefer to admit their children into private schools even if that means spending significantly more on tuition and other fees.
However, the Odisha government’s revolutionary reforms in the State’s public education sector through the Odisha Adarsha Vidyalayas (OAV), the ‘Mo School’ Abhiyan, and the 5T- High School Transformation Programme are on their way to making government schools better than private schools in all parameters — infrastructure, affordability and quality.
Text & Context
The role of the Governor in legislature (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
Tamil Nadu Governor R. N. Ravi has ‘withheld’ assent for certain Bills passed by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly.
This follows the Supreme Court expressing ‘serious concern’ over inaction by the Governor on Bills presented for his assent. The court expressed displeasure on similar delays by Governors of Telangana, Punjab and Kerala.
Article 200 of the Constitution lays down that when a Bill, passed by a State Legislature, is presented to the Governor for their assent, they have four alternatives — may give assent to the Bill; may withhold assent to the Bill, that is, reject the Bill in which case the Bill fails to become law; may return the Bill (if it is not a Money Bill) for reconsideration of the State Legislature; or may reserve the Bill for the consideration of the President.
News
IMA, nurses’ association honoured with Indira Gandhi Peace Prize (Page no. 12)
(Miscellaneous)
The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development, 2022 was, jointly awarded to the Indian Medical Association and the Trained Nurses Association of India as representatives of the COVID-19 warriors in the country.
Former Vice-President Hamid Ansari presented the award to Sharad Kumar Agarwal, president, Indian Medical Association, and Roy K. George, president, Trained Nurses Association of India.
Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, who heads the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust, said the award was for every doctor, nurse, paramedic and karamchari for their selfless service, unflinching dedication and perseverance.
Ms. Gandhi said the award, instituted in the name of one of the most remarkable leaders of the 20th century, aims to honour women, men and institutions that have done exemplary work.
The prize endeavours to promote the causes that Indiraji herself championed and worked for in her astonishing career.
She added that the life of Indira Gandhi will stand out for her tremendous ability to fight against odds.
World
Delegation from Palestinian Authority, Muslim nations to visit China amid Gaza war (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Top foreign policy officials from the Palestinian Authority and four Muslim-majority countries will visit China, Beijing announced, as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas claims thousands of civilian lives.
The visiting delegation is set to include the Foreign Ministers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia, as well as the secretary-general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
“During the visit, China will have in-depth communication and coordination with the joint delegation of Foreign Ministers of Arab and Islamic countries to promote a de-escalation of the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict, protecting civilians, and justly resolving the Palestinian issue,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said in a statement.
U.S. leaders call to block assistance for Pakistan (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
A group of 11 influential U.S. lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to withhold future assistance to Pakistan until Islamabad restores constitutional order and holds free and fair elections.
In a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, the lawmakers, which included Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who is one of the champions of Muslim causes in the U.S. Congress, requested the State Department to assess if U.S.-origin security assistance had facilitated human rights violations in Pakistan.
We further request that future security assistance be withheld until Pakistan has moved decisively toward the restoration of Constitutional order, including by holding free and fair elections in which all parties are able to participate freely.
Science
Chimaeras – hosts to multiple genotypes, and maybe human organs (Page no. 20)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
At present, more than 3 lakh people are waiting for an organ transplant in India alone; the global number is far higher, with no respite in sight.
There is an alarming disparity in the number of organ donors and the number of recipients – and animals have played an important part in filling this gap.
The successful application of animal insulin and the more recent use of animal heart valves in human surgeries have saved human lives.
Researchers have also made attempts to grow full human organs inside the bodies of animals using advancements in induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) technology.
At the same time, controversy continues to beset this field, most of it centred on the use of human iPSCs in animal embryos and the creation of chimeric animals, the results of which we are yet to fully comprehend.
However, humans are not new to the concept of chimaeras. Mythology abounds with a rich collection of these beguiling beings.