1. At Voice of Global South summit, PM gives mantra of ‘Respond, Recognise, Respect, Reform’
2. PM Modi inaugurates 26th National Youth Festival in Karnataka’s Hubbali
3. I-B Ministry exposes 6 YT channels for monetizing fake news; garnered over 51 crore views
4. Panama Papers leak: Central American nation minister assures aid to Indian probe
5. Indian woman accuses Pakistan HC staffer of demanding sexual favors: Islamabad responds

What Else

6. PLA numbers at LAC up, Army watching: General Manoj Pande
7. ‘Take a bow’: Over 1,000 Indian peacekeepers awarded UN medals for outstanding service in South Sudan
8. Sharad Yadav, former Union minister passes away
9. Industrial production rises 7.1% in Nov: Govt data
10. PLA numbers at LAC up, Army watching: General Manoj Pande
11. Sharad Yadav, former Union minister passes away
12. China’s Population Likely Fell in 2022 as Births Hit New Low
13. Attack from space would trigger collective defense, say US and Japan, amid China fears
14. Pakistan, Saudi Arabia ink agreement to finance $1bn oil derivatives

At Voice of Global South summit, PM gives mantra of ‘Respond, Recognise, Respect, Reform’

• The first session of the 2-day special virtual summit, the Voice of Global South summit, began on Thu and was inaugurated by PM Modi, the theme was “Unity of Voice, Unity of Purpose”
• PM Modi said on Thu the “world is in a state of crisis” and told the developing countries “your voice is India’s voice” and “your priorities are India’s priorities”.
• He also said, “We, the Global South, have the largest stakes in the future. Most of the global challenges have not been created by the Global South. But they affect us more”.
• “As India begins its G20 Presidency this year, it is natural that we aim to amplify the Voice of the Global South,” he added.
• PM said countries need to respond to the priorities of the Global South, recognise the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, respect international law and territorial sovereignty, and reform international institutions including the UN.
• He also flagged the issue of food, fuel, and fertilizer shortage, and attributed it to war, conflict, political tension, and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
• More than 120 countries have been invited to participate in this Summit.
• Global South refers to the developing and the less-developed countries of the world.
• The Summit envisages 10 sessions—4 would be on Jan 12, and 6 sessions on Jan 13.
• Each session is expected to witness the participation of leaders and ministers from 10-20 countries.
• The inaugural and concluding sessions are at the Head of State/Govt level and are being hosted by PM Modi.
• The theme is “Voice of Global South – for Human-Centric Development” and that of the Concluding Leaders’ session is “Unity of Voice-Unity of Purpose”.
• In addition, there would be 8 ministerial sessions of Finance, Environment, Foreign, Energy, Health, Education, Commerce, and Trade Ministers. (here)

PM Modi inaugurates 26th National Youth Festival in Karnataka’s Hubbali

• PM Modi on Thu inaugurated 26^th National Youth Festival at Hubbali in Karnataka on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.
• The Prime Minister was accorded a warm welcome on his arrival in the city.
• He held a roadshow with people thronging the roads, waving at him, and showering flowers on his cavalcade. (here)
• A young man breaches the security cover of PM Modi to give him a garland, pulled away by security personnel, during his roadshow in Hubballi.
• PM set to inaugurate luxurious tourist delight in India’s spiritual capital Varanasi today

I-B Ministry exposes 6 YT channels for monetizing fake news; garnered over 51 crore views

• The I&B on Thu bare 6 YouTube channels for “working in a coordinated manner and spreading false info” about the govt, elections, SC and Parliament, president, and PM.
• Last Dec, the Centre flagged 3 channels peddling fake news.
• In an official release, the Fact Check Unit pointed to 6 channels on YouTube — Nation TV, Samvaad TV, Sarokar Bharat, Nation 24, Swarnim Bharat, and Samvaad Samachar – which were using fake and misleading info to viewers.
• These channels are part of a fake news economy that thrives on the monetization of fake news, the I&B ministry said in the official release.
• These channels have 20 lakh subscribers and their videos have been watched over 51 crore times, the release said. (here)

Panama Papers leak: Central American nation minister assures aid to Indian probe

• Panama is willing to assist India with its investigation into the 2016 Panama Papers leak, which included the identities of various Indian celebrities and business tycoons.
• Panama’s FM, Janaina Tewaney, told TOI in an interview that her country is willing to trade information with India and to tell Indian authorities about the progress.
• While appreciating India’s campaign against black money, the minister stated that she had communicated this to her counterpart S Jaishankar in a meeting earlier this week.
• This is the 1^st public guarantee of cooperation from a high level in Panama for Indian investigations, which the govt claims discovered concealed credits of Rs 20,353 crore.
• Tewaney, who has Indian ancestors, is in India as a special invitee to the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas.
• She also represented her country at the Voice of the Global South forum. (here)

Indian woman accuses Pakistan HC staffer of demanding sexual favors: Islamabad responds

• Reacting to an Indian woman’s allegations against a Pakistani High Commission staffer, the Pak FM stated that “there is zero tolerance for misbehavior and mistreatment of individuals visiting our Missions“.
• The Indian woman alleged that a Pak HC staffer had demanded sexual favors in lieu of granting her a visa.
• While we are looking into this case, we are surprised at its timing and how it has been raised.
• There are robust mechanisms in place for the redressal of all public grievances.
• the woman claimed that the staffer at the embassy held her hand and asked her if she was married.
• The woman also claimed that the embassy staffer asked her what she does to fulfill her “sexual desire”. (here)

‘Take a bow’: Over 1,000 Indian peacekeepers awarded UN medals for outstanding service in South Sudan

• Over 1,000 Indian peacekeepers, including 5 female Army personnel, have been honored with UN medals for their vital work in the UN Mission in South Sudan.
• There was something distinctly different about this year’s medal award ceremony for the Indian peacekeepers in Upper Nile.
• For the first time, the parade of the large contingent, consisting of infantry, engineers, and medical staff, was led by a woman, Major Jasmine Chattha (here)

PLA numbers at LAC up, Army watching: General Manoj Pande

• China has ‘slightly increased’ the number of its troops along the eastern sector of the Line of Actual Control, Army chief General Manoj Pande said on Thu.
• He added that a “close watch” is also being kept on the stepped-up activities of the People’s Liberation Army in the crucial Doklam plateau.
• The overall security situation along the 3,488-km long LAC is “stable, and under control, but unpredictable”, Gen Pande said, in the run-up to the Army Day on Jan15.
• With no de-escalation in the military confrontation in eastern Ladakh, and both sides continuing to forward deploy over 50,000 troops each for the 3^rd successive winter
• Gen said the Army was maintaining “a very high level of operational preparedness with adequate forces and reserves” all along LAC to tackle any contingency. (here)
• The Army has decided to commission women officers into the artillery regiments and a proposal on it has been sent to the govt, Army Chief Gen Pande said on Thu.
• Gen described the move as “significant” and noted that women in the Army have performed “exceedingly well”.
• The Army has around 280 artillery regiments that handle various gun systems including Bofors howitzers, Dhanush, M-777 howitzers, and K-9 Vajra self-propelled guns. (here)
• Minor cracks were observed in 25-28 buildings of the Indian Army after the Joshimath land subsidence and soldiers have been temporarily relocated, said Gen Pande on Thu.
• Despite the ongoing crisis, the Army chief affirmed that the army’s accessibility to the forward areas has not been affected. (here)

Sharad Yadav, former Union minister passes away

• Former Union minister and senior Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav passed away on Thu at age of 75.
• His daughter Subhashini Yadav shared the news of his demise on Facebook. “My father is no more,” she said on Facebook.
• He was one of the key players in providing reservations to the “Other Backword Class” during the regime of PM VP Singh. (here)

Industrial production rises 7.1% in Nov: Govt data

• India’s industrial production rose by 7.1% in Nov 2022 after contracting in Oct, according to official data released on Thu.
• The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) grew by 1% in Nov 2021.
• As per the IIP data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the manufacturing sector’s output grew by 6.1% in Nov 2022.
• The mining output rose by 9.7% and power generation increased by 12.7% during the month under review. (here)

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

China’s Population Likely Fell in 2022 as Births Hit New Low

• China’s population likely started shrinking last year for the 1^st time in decades, experts say, a significant milestone that will have long-term repercussions for the economy.
• The government’s official data for the total number of births in 2022 — expected to be released next week — will probably show a record low of 10 million.
• That would be less than the 10.6 million babies born in 2021, which was already the 6^th straight year of decline and the lowest since the founding of China in 1949.
• He added that the country likely recorded more deaths last year than the 10.1 million people who died in 2021, in part because of the spread of Covid infections. (here)

Attack from space would trigger collective defence, say US and Japan, amid China fears

• The US and Japan have said that an attack in space would trigger their security treaty, as officials from both warned that China represents the “greatest strategic challenge”.
• “We agree that [China] is the greatest shared strategic challenge that we, our allies and partners face,” the US Secy of State, Blinken, said on Thu after meeting his Japanese FM, Hayashi, in Washington.
• US and Japanese defense chiefs agreed that attacks “to, from and within” space could invoke article 5 of the treaty, which “ an attack on one of the allies is an attack on both”.
• The US also strongly endorsed Japan’s plans to significantly strengthen its defenses, including the ability to attack enemy bases if it believes an attack is imminent
• A move some have criticized as a violation of the “pacifist” principles set out in its postwar constitution. (here)

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia ink agreement to finance $1bn oil derivatives

• Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia inked an agreement on Thu to finance oil derivatives worth $1 billion, Economic Affairs Ministry confirmed.
• This comes amid news reports that Saudia is augmenting plans to increase the amount of investment and deposit in Pakistan which is struggling with a currency crisis.
• According to an official release, the agreement was inked by Economic Affairs Secretary and Saudi Fund for Development CEO.
• Islamabad’s efforts to shore up the forex reserves with the help of Saudia have started paying off as Riyadh is considering ‘beefing up’ its deposit in the SBP from $3-5 bn. (here)
• SBP-held reserves plummet below $4.5bn to the lowest level since Feb 2014: C.bank forex reserves have plunged after a decline of 22.11%, posing a serious challenge.
• Pakistan has a total of $10.2bn in reserves.
• Reserves held by commercial banks amount to $5.8bn.
• Reserves will now only provide import cover worth 0.82 months. (here)