Jason Miller is an American communications strategist, political adviser and CEO, best known as the chief spokesman for the Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign and transition of Donald Trump. He was a Senior Adviser to the Trump 2020 re-election campaign. Miller was formerly a partner and executive vice-president at Jamestown Associates.

Last Tuesday, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav sealed an alliance with Om Prakash Rajbhar’s Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), a former BJP ally.  In the 2017 Assembly polls, out of the 325 seats in the 403-member House won by the BJP and its allies, the SBSP had won four after contesting in eight. Then BJP chief Amit Shah had held a rally with Rajbhar in Mau in the run-up to the 2017 polls, something that Akhilesh Yadav did on Tuesday.   The Rajbhar community accounts for an estimated 3-4 per cent of UP’s population. This may be a small proportion, but the fact that the community is concentrated in eastern UP — which means a higher proportion of the population in that region — gives it the potential to sway several seats in the upcoming elections. Besides, the SBSP’s support base is not restricted just to the Rajbhar community, but also extends to other Most Backward Classes (MBCs) such as Chauhan, Pal, Prajapati, Vishwakarma, Bhar, Mallah, and Vishwakarma.  Out of 90 seats in eastern UP’s 18 districts, there are around 25-30 constituencies where Rajbhars are high in number, including up to 1 lakh in some of them. In its near-sweep of the state, the BJP gained significantly in eastern UP, growing from 14 seats in 2012 to 72 in 2017, while the SP slipped from 52 to 9.  The SBSP itself claims that its influence spreads wider, covering 150 seats, and that the alliance helped the NDA win 146 of these seats.  The SP has already forged an alliance with the Mahan Dal Party, which is another party that addresses the Backward Classes, and is headed by Keshav Dev Maurya.

Since the announcement about Covaxin data submission by Bharat Biotech for the approval from World Health Organization (WHO), reports have been emerging, predicting the date for the final decision on the Indian Covid -19 vaccine. According to WHO’s chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan, the agency’s technical advisory group will meet on 26 October to consider granting Emergency Use Listing (EUL) to the vaccine.  Many people in India are keeping an eye on it because their travel plans are dependent on the WHO's EUL for the vaccine. Young people who have taken Covaxin and want to study abroad are hoping for approval from the UN agency, as numerous nations, notably the United States, have declared they will recognise vaccines approved by the global health body. Despite the fact that various public health organisations have spoken out against requiring vaccination as a condition of travel, the practice continues in a number of nations, including in Europe.   Earlier this week, the WHO said on Twitter that it understands that many people are waiting for its recommendation on whether Bharat Biotech's Covid vaccine Covaxin should be added to the EUL, but it can't rush it, adding that it needs more evidence from the Hyderabad-based vaccine maker.

Yesterday (21 October), India crossed the remarkable milestone of 100 crore Covid-19 vaccinations. What makes this achievement especially impressive is that it was achieved in only nine months of the start of the drive. This is a testament to the state capacity of India and proves once again how efficient it can be when it sets its eyes on executing a particular project.   As we celebrate this stupendous accomplishment, there are four things that need to be realised.  First, while one has to appreciate the Narendra Modi-led government for delivering on the execution front and especially the brilliant way it used technology and developed the CoWin platform, the man who deserves overwhelming credit for the vaccine century, is Adar Poonawalla whose Serum Institute of India (SII) is responsible for around 88 per cent of total doses administered in the country so far.    Second, the low figure of fully vaccinated people shouldn’t worry us as of now. Third, the biggest signal of vaccination drive reaching its end is the slowing pace of daily vaccinations. That’s what is happening in India as well.   Fourth, estimating that 65 crore people can be fully vaccinated (at max) by this year’s end and Dose 1 coverage reaches 75 crore (80 per cent of total adult population), this means that we will be needing around 40 crore doses until new year (on the higher side). With monthly capacity already at 25 crore and around 11 crore doses still in stock with the states, it gives India enough space to indulge in smart vaccine diplomacy and also allow Serum to meet its prior international commitments. We can hope to export 20-25 crore doses by this year’s end. With a total export of 30 crore doses (including 6.5 crore doses supplied earlier), image of India as the biggest force for good during the Covid-19 pandemic would be burnished.

In recent years, probably the most talked-about promising technology is 'blockchain', which has primarily been linked to cryptocurrencies. But this technology has the potential to revolutionise a variety of industries, including finance and trade.   On 15 October, the Finance Ministry's Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) began a prototype Electronic Cargo Tracking System(ECTS) initiative based on blockchain technology. The initiative seeks to achieve secure container documentation and GPS-based tracking.   According to a recent tweet from Prasar Bharati News Services (PBNS), CBIC India “explores new frontiers for promoting #DigitalIndia by adopting blockchain for tracking movement of containers to a bonded warehouse”.  This warehouse is located in Delhi Customs' Inland Container Depot or ICD Tughlakabad Import Commissionerate.  It was reported that the Finance Ministry has cooperated with the Asian Development Bank for this initiative.  The International Chamber of Commerce's 2020 Global Trade Survey found that the Covid-19 pandemic caused lockdowns and working from home are hastening the migration to digital commerce solutions, such as Blockchain.   It noted that 44 per cent of surveyed banks said that as they aim to assure future growth, technologies like Blockchain, digital trade, and online trading platforms are important areas of development and strategic focus in the near term. More than half of those polled agreed that a growing number of document types used in trade might be digital.

The cumulative COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country surpassed the 100-crore milestone on Thursday and the economic recovery is expected.   In the last seven years, the comprehensive entrepreneurial environment of India has gained tremendous support from its ruling government. Policy initiatives of the Narendra Modi government like Make In India, Skill Development India, MUDRA Bank, Digital India, Startup India, and now ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ are a few of the vital determinants of the upgradation of the Indian entrepreneurial ecosystem.   In the recent past, the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector, also known as the growth engine of the Indian economy, has witnessed three macroeconomic events concerning its operation and survival. Demonetisation, goods and services tax (GST) implementation, and the black swan Covid-19 pandemic.   India’s MSME sector is on the verge of attaining the pre-Covid levels, but several sectors continue to struggle, especially the ones pertaining to the clientele studying in schools, colleges, or working in offices. The precious metal sector is also reeling under the threat of an imminent third wave, thus denting the festive spending.

Many in India have been trying to falsely portray the latest horrific attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh as “isolated incidents” that are aberrations and not reflective of the ‘secular and syncretic’ culture of Bangladesh.  But they are wrong, and grossly so.  The attacks this time (they started Wednesday last week and are continuing) are part of the Hindu genocide that commenced exactly 75 years ago in Noakhali where hundreds of Hindus were killed, countless womenfolk raped and forcibly converted to Islam, and Hindus displaced from their properties. Since 1946, Hindus in Bangladesh have been attacked, maimed and killed, Hindu women (including minor girls) raped, forcibly converted to Islam and married off to old men or sold to brothels, millions of acres of land belonging to Hindus have been forcibly taken over and tens of thousands of Hindus have been evicted from their homes and denied livelihood. That is why millions of Hindus have migrated to India since 1947. Had the continuing attacks on them been ‘isolated incidents’ and ‘aberrations’, millions of Hindus would not have fled their homes and heath and abandoned whatever little they possessed across the border to migrate to India and become ‘stateless citizens’ here over the last 75 years.

The widespread and well-coordinated attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh could not have happened without the complicity of ruling Awami League functionaries and leaders.   And it was primarily because of the involvement of members of the ruling party that the police remained mute bystanders when Islamist mobs assaulted and killed Hindus, molested and raped Hindu women and girls, destroyed Durga Puja pandals, attacked, looted and desecrated mandirs and targeted Hindu homes and businesses.  Top office bearers of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, the apex body of minority bodies in that country, told Swarajya over the phone from Dhaka, Chittagong and other parts of the country that the involvement of members and leaders of the ruling Awami League, as well as the radical Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, is very apparent.   Charu Chandra Das Brahmachari, the general secretary of the ISKCON (International Society of Krishna Consciousness) in Bangladesh, has gone on record alleging that “some activists” of the Awami League were closely involved in the attacks on mandirs and Hindu religious institutions. He urged Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to take strong action against her own party men involved in attacks on Hindus.   An ISKCON mandir was attacked and desecrated in Noakhali district of Bangladesh, and two members of the order were brutally killed on Friday (15 October). Brahmachari warned that the order would not “sit and idly watch” attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh.

While Centre has capped paddy (non-basmati) procurement quantity from Punjab at 170 lakh tonnes on MSP rates, the state is pushing for a revised estimate of 190 lakh tonnes. Experts, however, claim that even this figure will not serve the purpose. They want the state to work out an estimate based on sown varieties and not loosely on the basis of few prevalent varieties.   Around 32 per cent area of paddy in Punjab is under long duration varieties which give nearly 85 to 100 mann (34 to 40 quintals) yield per acre.  Around 68 per cent area is under seven short duration varieties — PR-121, PR-126, PR-114, PR-112, PR -124 and PR-129, PR-127 — which take 123 days to 143 days including the nursery period.   According to the Punjab Agriculture Department, 26.05 lakh hectares (LH) is under paddy this year and by this calculation Punjab has around 8.34 LH under long duration and 17.72 LH under short duration.  If the average yield of PAU’s surveys is considered, then average yield of long varieties and short varieties should be around 67.52 lakh tonnes and 132.85 lakh tonnes, respectively, and the total of which comes out to be 200.38 lakh tonnes which is around 10 lakh tonnes above the government’s revised target (190 lakh tonnes).  Vice Chairman, Punjab Mandi Board (PMB), Vijay Kalra, said that their capping will create unrest among farmers. Every variety, he added, has its own potential yield and capping per acre yield will create lot of confusion.

Until a few days ago, the discussion around Kashmir was restricted to the huge influx of tourists this year, investment proposals and other detailed project reports pertaining to the development in the valley, infrastructure projects and connectivity, and ideas around governance to further economic development and social integration of the valley with the other parts of India. However, the recent killing spree, aided by several terrorist groups, especially ‘The Resistance Front’ along with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) have shifted the discussion away from the development prospects to the underlying violence within the valley. In Srinagar, a renowned local pharmacist and a street vendor from Bihar were targeted. Less than a week ago, two teachers were gunned down. They were first asked to step apart from their Muslim colleagues and then shot. Three Muslims were also killed in separate incidents, one of them being the president of a local traders’ body. Even if we discount the religion factor for the sake of argument, given that even Muslims were killed by these terrorist groups, two questions arise. One, is this the end to the peace process that was ushered in the valley after the revocation of Article 370 and furthered by the buffer offered by the pandemic, and two, is this about eradicating certain religious communities from Kashmir completely or more?