The SubContinent: 20 December 2020
The SubContinent: 20 December 2020
Apple puts riot-hit Manufacturer Wistron on Probation
Pakistan: Taboo busting Kanwal Ahmed
Mid-term Polls in Nepal
Rail Track Reopens After 55 years
36 Runs Only
1. Apple puts riot-hit Manufacturer Wistron on Probation
Taiwanese manufacturing giant Wistron, currently manufacturing iPhones in India, has been put on probation by Apple. The company will not receive any further orders from Apple till corrective measures are enforced and completed (Hindustan Times).
What Happened?
Wistron is manufacturing iPhones in India at a facility in Narasapura, near Bengaluru. Workers went on a riot alleging that they were not being paid what was promised. Employees went on a rampage damaging property, vandalizing the plant, and setting a few vehicles on fire (Times of India). The loss was initially estimated at Rs 437 crore (Mint), which was later revised to 41 crore (The Wire).
Working Conditions
A report about working conditions at the Narasapura plant pointed out serious violations, exploitative practices, underpayment of wages, and poor working conditions (SCMP). The Karnataka state labour minister stated that some temporary staff had not been paid for three months and that there were inadequate facilities for women employees (Business Today).
Fall out
Wistron removed its Vice President of India operations, Vincent Lee (Money Control). The company also apologized to its workers.
Eighty people were arrested for rioting (BBC).
2. Kanwal Ahmed: Busting Taboos in Pakistan
Kanwal Ahmed has given many Pakistani women a platform to talk about issues hitherto regarded as taboo, including sex, abuse, abortion, divorce, and marital problems. Born in Karachi and currently living in Canada, she ran a Facebook group called “Soul Sisters Pakistan.” (The Print).
Digital Show
Now, crowdsourcing has helped her raise 5 million Pakistani Rupees (The Guardian) to launch a digital talk show, “Conversations with Kanwal.”
3. Nepal: Mid-term polls
The Nepal Parliament has been dissolved, and mid-term elections will be held in April-May 2021. The President, Bidya Devi Bhandari, dissolved the Parliament following the recommendations of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli (The Statesman).
Dates
Elections will be held on April 30, and May 10.
Criticism by Opposition
The opposition has criticized the prime minister’s decision to recommend mid-term elections (The Himalayan Times) (Kathmandu Post).
4. After 55 years, India-Bangladesh Rail Track Reopens
A defunct railway track between India and Bangladesh, which was closed in 1965, has now been reopened. The railway link connects Haldibari in India and Chilahati in Bangladesh (NDTV).
From 7 Trains to 5
At the time of India’s independence in 1947, seven railway lines connected India and Eastern Pakistan (Bangladesh). Today, there are five operational railway lines.
The functional lines are
Petrapole – Benapole
Gede – Darshana
Singhabad -Rohanpur
Radhikapur – Biral
Haldibari – Chilahati.
5. 36 Runs Only
This is the lowest ever cricket test score in Indian cricketing history. The harrowing loss to Australia at the Adelaide Oval stadium saw India plummet to 36 runs, with one player retiring hurt and the rest bowled out. No Indian batsman scored more than nine runs, meaning that no one reached double digits.
With such an abysmal performance, newspapers and commentators ran out of words, and the team ran out of excuses. No words - just utter humiliation (ABC).
Ugly Backlash
Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli is all set to return to India after the first test match and was not scheduled to play the entire series. Prior to the series, he had sought leave to be with his wife (actress Anushka Sharma) as the couple expected their first child. Immediately after the loss, Twitter warriors began blaming his wife for distraction.
The ugly and insensitive attacks on her were immediately called out by many media outlets (Yahoo).