Today’s Top News Headlines and Latest News at 8:30 pm on 12 June 2023

The Centre denied reports of an alleged data breach on the Health Ministry’s CoWIN platform and said that it is completely safe with adequate safeguards for data privacy. Earlier in the day, it was reported that an automated account on messaging platform Telegram was allegedly sharing sensitive personal information of Indian citizens — including their Aadhaar and passport numbers — who signed up for the CoWIN portal for their Covid-19 vaccination. The alleged leak could impact more than 100 core individuals who have secured vaccinations after signing up through the CoWIN portal. This includes more than 4 crore children between the age of 12-14 and over 37 crore people over the age of 45, a significant part of which could be senior citizens.

In other news: Farmers once again blocked the Delhi-Chandigarh-Amritsar national highway near Pipli in Kurukshetra, where a kisan mahapanchayat was underway, to pressurise the Haryana government to adhere to their demands, including ensuring the purchase of sunflower crop at MSP and the release of arrested BKU leaders, including Gurnam Singh Chaduni. A large police force has also been deployed to maintain law and order. Wrestler Bajrang Punia joined the mahapanchayat in Kurukshetra at noon and announced his support to the farmers. Earlier, the farmers’ organisations had extended their support to the wrestlers’ protest, seeking action against Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed officials to ensure safe evacuation of people living in vulnerable locations in the path of Cyclone Biparjoy, which is likely to make landfall in Gujarat's Kutch. Modi also directed to ensure maintenance of all essential services such as power, telecommunications, health and drinking water, and restore them immediately in the event of any damage caused to them. The prime minister also directed that the safety of animals should be ensured and ordered the setting up of 24x7 control rooms. The NDRF has pre-positioned 12 teams, which are equipped with boats, tree-cutters and telecom equipment, and has kept 15 teams on standby.

The Supreme Court put a stay on Delhi High Court’s order that allowed bike-taxi aggregators to operate in the national capital till such time as a final policy was notified. A vacation bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Rajesh Bindal granted liberty to the two aggregators to request urgent hearing of their pleas by the Delhi HC. The court, however, ordered that applications for licensing of bike taxis be dealt with expeditiously once a policy is finalised by the Delhi government.

Meanwhile in Madhya Pradesh: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra kickstarted the Congress campaign for the state elections by hitting out at the BJP over issues ranging from scams to promises of jobs. At the rally in Jabalpur, Priyanka said the BJP regime has given only 21 government jobs in the state in the last three years. Alleging that the people of Madhya Pradesh are being “used” for the last 18 years, Priyanka said the BJP makes big promises during elections but don’t try to fulfil them. “I have seen several double, triple-engine governments, but people of Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka gave befitting reply to them. What happened to you in the past 18 years is wrong. You have been used and exploited,” she said.

A Dutch vlogger visiting Bengaluru’s Chickpet Market was allegedly manhandled by a local trader, and police said that the trader was arrested after a video of the incident went viral. According to police sources, Pedro Mota, a citizen of the Netherlands, was recording his experience when the trader forcefully grabbed his hand and confronted him for filming his wares. Despite Mota’s pleas to let go of him, he was pushed by the trader. Pedro Mota, who has a following of more than 29,000 subscribers on YouTube, posted the video on Sunday. He titled it “Attacked At The Thieves Market In India”.

In world news: The four Indigenous children who survived 40 days in the Amazon jungle after their plane crashed have shared limited but harrowing details of their ordeal with their family, including that their mother survived the crash for days before she died. The kids, aged 13, 9 and 4 years and 11 months, are expected to remain for at least two weeks in a hospital receiving treatment after their rescue Friday, but some are already speaking and wanting to do more than lying on a bed, according to family members.

Lastly: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to “hold hands” with Russian President Vladimir Putin and bolster strategic cooperation on their shared goal of building a powerful country, state media KCNA reported. Kim made the pledge in a message to Putin marking Russia’s National Day, defending his decision to invade Ukraine and displaying “full support and solidarity". “Justice is sure to win and the Russian people will continue to add glory to the history of victory,” Kim said in the message published by KCNA.
 

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