[NEWS OF THE DAY]

Presidential Election Results Live: Droupadi Murmu cements lead in the second round of counting

After the 2^nd round, (at 5 pm) where the ballot paper of the first 10 states was alphabetically counted – the total valid votes were 1138, and their total value 1,49,575. Out of this, Droupadi Murmu gets 809 votes valued at 1,05,299 & Yashwant Sinha gets 329 votes valued at 44,276. In 1^st round, Droupadi Murmu secured 540 votes with a value of 3,78,000 and Yashwant Sinha has secured 208 votes with a value of 1,45,600. A total of 15 votes were invalid. These are figures for Parliament (votes) announced by Secretary Gen, Rajya Sabha. The former governor of Jharkhand Droupadi Murmu has come to the center of attention, adulation, and controversies in the past few days — after her name was announced as the NDA’s presidential candidate for the top constitutional post. Opposition leaders termed Droupadi Murmu as a ‘rubber stamp’ while a Congress leader said she represents an evil philosophy of India. Droupadi Murmu suffered many personal tragedies. Between 2009 and 2014, she lost her husband, two sons, mother, and brother. In 2009, one of her sons died under mysterious circumstances. According to reports dating back to 2009, Laxman Murmu (25) was found in an unconscious state in his bed. Her husband Shyam Charam Murmu died following a cardiac arrest in 2014. In 2012, Droupadi Murmu lost her second son in a road accident. Murmu’s daughter Itishree Murmu works at a bank and is married to Ganesh Hembram, who is a rugby player. Before starting her political career, Droupadi Murmu was a teacher at Sri Aurobindo Integral Education and Research Centre at Rairangpur in Odisha.

After the House, US Senate moves to deepen ties with India on defense, emerging tech

In yet another signal of Capitol Hill’s political commitment to the India-United States (US) strategic relationship, the Senate Armed Services Committee, in its version of the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA), has asked Pentagon to step up its engagement with India on issues of “emerging technologies, readiness and logistics” within 90 days of the passage of the legislation. Among other issues, the Senate version of NDAA has identified intelligence collection capabilities, unmanned aerial vehicles, 5G, 4^th and 5^th generation aircraft, and joint R&D, as areas for cooperation with India. It has also asked the secretary of defense to submit a report on the issue to the appropriate committees in the Senate and House of Representatives within 180 days. The Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), which has piloted the legislation, has proposed an $847 billion budget for national defense in 2023. In their comments on the act and the challenges faced by the US, the chair of the committee, highlighted the emergence of China as America’s most “consequential strategic competitor”, while a ranking member of the committee, Republican Jim Inhofe, spoke of the Chinese Communist Party “accelerating the already historic modernization of its military”. (here)

India adopts joint statement on cooperation on global supply chains

On behalf of partner economies including India, US State Department on Wed (local time) released a Joint Statement of the 2022 Supply Chain Ministerial Forum, focussing on the global challenge which includes — the COVID-19 pandemic, wars and conflicts and climate change. The partner economies include Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the EU, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Spain, the UK, and the US. According to the statement, for building collective long-term resilient supply chains based on international partnerships, all the partner countries aimed to follow various global supply chain principles including transparency, diversification, security and sustainability. “We aim to promote diversification and increase global capacities for multiple, reliable, and sustainable sources of materials and inputs, intermediate goods, and finished goods in priority sectors, along with logistics infrastructure capacities, increasing the resilience of supply chains to make our economies less vulnerable to disruptions and shocks,” it read further. (here) Obviously, both China & Russia are missing from the joint statement.

China conducts military exercises with attack choppers over Pangong Lake

Beijing: China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) carried out a military exercise with attack helicopters over Pangong Lake, a video telecast by the state media network CCTV shows. The 33-second video was released hours after the two countries concluded the 16^th round of Corps Commander-level talks held on Sun, reported Sputnik. The video shows the army aviation brigade attached to the PLA Xinjiang Military Command carrying out an exercise over the world’s highest saltwater lake, Pangong Lake, at an altitude of almost 4,350m. China’s state media reported that Z-10 attack helicopters joined the drills for the first time, unlike in the past when only transport helicopters carried border defense troops for patrol missions. Over 50,000 soldiers have been stationed since 2020 at forwarding posts along the LAC with advanced weapons to prevent a change in the status quo. The Indian Army responded strongly to the Chinese aggression in 2020 and moved multiple formations toward the Ladakh sector to bolster its preparedness. The Army has now allotted the Mathura-based 1 Strike Corps to the northern borders while formations from all around the sector are holding their summer exercises there to keep a check on the PLA activities across the LAC. (here) Indian Govt keeping a close watch on any development that has a bearing on the security of the country, MEA said in a weekly briefing on Chinese plans for development/infra at Aksai Chin/ Doklam

[NATIONAL]

Karnataka, Manipur, Chandigarh top NITI Aayog’s latest innovation index

Karnataka, Manipur, and Chandigarh have topped in their respective categories in the third and latest edition of NITI Aayog’s India Innovation Index. While Karnataka has topped again in the ‘Major States’ category, Manipur is leading the ‘North East and Hill States’ category, and Chandigarh is the top performer in the ‘Union Territories and City States’ category, a NITI Aayog statement said. The 3^rd edition of the innovation index was released on Thu by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery in the presence of Member VK Saraswat, CEO Parameswaran Iyer, Senior Adviser Neeraj Sinha, and Institute for Competitiveness Chairman Amit Kapoor. The 3^rd edition highlights the scope of innovation analysis in the country by drawing on the framework of the Global Innovation Index. The number of indicators has increased from 36 (in the India Innovation Index 2020) to 66 (in 2021). (here)

F/A-18 Super Hornet built for carrier ops, ‘compliant’ with INS Vikramaditya & Vikrant — Boeing

The F/A-18 Super Hornet’s successful completion of its trials in Goa earlier this year “reinforced” its ability to effectively and safely operate off Indian Navy carriers,” the fighter aircraft’s maker, American aviation giant Boeing, said Wed. The American firm, which competes with French aviation major Dassault Aviation for a mega Indian Navy contract for new fighters, said two U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornets had completed multiple ski-jumps, roll-in, and fly-in arrestments (when an aircraft lands on a carrier and decelerates rapidly using arresting gear). They also did performance flights, in a variety of weights in the air-to-air, air-to-ground, and air-to-surface configurations, “meeting the Indian Navy test requirements”. The company asserted that the F/A-18 Super Hornet was designed and built for carrier operations, and is “fully compliant” with the aircraft carriers INS Vikramaditya and INS Vikrant. The F/A-18 will be able to operate on the deck, in the hangar, and on the lifts of the Indian Navy’s aircraft carriers, the company said in a statement. (here)

RBI Says ‘Inflation may be Peaking’: Will MPC Still Go For Aggressive Rate Hikes?

Though inflation is showing a slight downwards trend and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said “there are indications that inflation may be peaking“, experts think that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is still expected to go for a rate hike but the latest data may limit the aggressive hikes. The RBI in its July 2022 Bulletin has said the easing of inflation could be even sooner and faster and the key is the direction of change in inflation – not its level – in these extraordinary times. “Against this backdrop, we hope that required monetary policy actions in India will be more moderate than elsewhere in the world and that we will be able to bring inflation back to target within two years.” The retail inflation in India stood at 7.01% during June, the 6^th consecutive month when the inflation remains above the RBI’s tolerance limit of 6%. However, this is the 2^nd consecutive month that has seen a slight easing in inflation as compared to the previous month. The inflation in April had stood at 7.79%, which fell to 7.04% in May and now to 7.01% in June. (here)

ED questions Sonia Gandhi for 2 hours, ends the session on her request as she is recovering from Covid: Officials

As party president Sonia Gandhi heads into the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in central Delhi on Thu, Congress workers in Delhi and elsewhere in the country will hold protests against the federal agency’s move to summon their leader in connection with a money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper. “This issue relates to an overall sinister strategy to ensure that the Opposition is involved in unnecessary controversies rather than raising the voice of people effectively…” said party spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill. The case relates to alleged financial irregularities in the party-promoted Young Indian, which owns the National Herald newspaper. The agency registered a new case under the criminal provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after a trial court in Delhi took cognizance of an Income Tax department investigation into Young Indian Pvt Ltd based on a private criminal complaint filed in 2013. (here)

Over 800 suicide cases reported in armed forces in last five years: Government

The maximum number of 642 suicides were reported by the Indian Army, Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt said in Rajya Sabha in a written reply. ​Apart from the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force reported 148 cases of suicide in five years, while the Indian Navy reported 29 cases, MoS Defence Ajay Bhat said. (here)

Covid-19: India reports 21,566 new cases and 45 deaths in the last 24 hours

India reported 21,266 new coronavirus cases and 45 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the total tally of Covid-19 cases to 4,38,25,185, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Thu. The death toll climbed to 5,25,870 with 45 fresh fatalities in the last 24 hours.

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

Ranil Wickremesinghe sworn-in as Sri Lanka’s new president

Veteran politician Ranil Wickremesinghe was on Thu sworn in as Sri Lanka’s 8^th president and will face the tough task of leading the country out of its economic crisis and restoring order after months of mass protests. Wickremesinghe, a six-time former prime minister, was elected as Sri Lanka’s President by lawmakers on Wed, in a rare move that could provide continuity for crucial discussions with the IMF for a bailout deal for the cash-strapped nation. Wickremesinghe faces an uphill task in Sri Lanka: Although IMF wants to complete rescue talks with Sri Lanka as quickly as possible, the election of Wickremesinghe, who is a princeling of the pearl nation, indicates that things will go much worse in the island nation before they start to get better. Wickremesinghe is deeply unpopular with the masses, who have been gripped by severe shortages of fuel, food, and other essentials after its foreign reserves dried up. So much so that he is often derided as Ranil Rajapaksa by the public as he is seen as a front for the Rajapaksa empire and as a 5-time PM and multiple times finance minister is also seen by the public as a major contributor to the economic mess. However, as someone who has dealt with the IMF in the past, Ranil also has an opportunity in this if he can ease the economic situation in the country and restore his credibility. This is easier said than done as the public today has to wait 3-4 days for a gas cylinder and 4-5 days to get motor vehicle fuel. (here)

Biden says he expects to speak with China’s Xi in ‘10 days’

“I think I’ll be talking to President Xi within the next 10 days,“ U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters Wed Eastern Time, according to a White House transcript. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment. When asked whether he thought Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi should visit Taiwan this summer, Biden said: “The military thinks it’s not a good idea right now, but I don’t know what the status of it is.” The Financial Times this week reported, citing sources, that Pelosi planned to take a delegation to Taiwan in Aug — the first visit by someone in her position in 25 years. China warned it would take “strong and resolute measures” if such a trip were to take place. Taiwan is a democratically self-ruled island that Beijing considers part of its territory. China has maintained it seeks peaceful reunification with Taiwan. (here)

Hunter Biden probe reaches ‘critical stage,’ as officials weigh possible charges: source

The federal investigation into Hunter Biden and his tax affairs has reached a “critical stage,” a Fox News reported citing a source, as officials are looking into whether to charge President Biden’s son with various tax violations, and possible foreign lobbying violations, and more. The investigation is being conducted by Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss, a prosecutor appointed by former President Trump. (here)

The China-Taiwan conflict could lead to intense trade disruption

International businesses are assessing the implications for global trade following possible intense disruption of trade in the event of an escalation of conflict between Taiwan and China. This comes after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine led to a disruption in the supplies of oil, gas, and wheat along with a price surge all across the world. Asia-Pacific supply chains is expected to enter a period of intense disruption and reconfiguration if a conflict between China and Taiwan occurs, an article in The Singapore Post said quoting China Neican, a current affairs website. Even though Taiwan and China’s conflict can have many likely scenarios, several western and Asian analysts have predicted that the result would be the same and will “involve an economic or military blockade of Taiwan or its outlying islands”. The economic or military blockade will prevent Taiwan from accessing the freight supply routes by sea. These routes will involve the ones passing through the Strait of Malacca, which is a trade chokepoint between the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra, and Luzon Strait, south of Taiwan’s main island of Formosa, it added. The telecommunication and financial services in Taiwan will be disrupted if a blockade occurs in the Luzon Strait as several fiber-optic cables are running through the trait which connects China, Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan with the US. (here)

Taiwan’s concerns on the speed of arms sales will be conveyed to the US, says ex-US defense secretary

Reuters – Former U.S. defense secretary Mark Esper said on Thu he would take back to Washington D.C. concerns expressed in Taiwan about the speed of arms sales to the island and the need to get greater access to weapons like portable missiles. Taiwan has previously talked of problems accessing some weapons it has on order, like shoulder-fired Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. Taiwan has complained of stepped-up military pressure from China to force it into accepting Beijing’s sovereignty claims. Esper, visiting Taiwan under the auspices of the Atlantic Council think-tank and where he had meetings with senior leaders including President Tsai Ing-wen, said he did not get the sense Taiwanese officials were frustrated at what arms were on offer from Washington. (here)

CIA chief warns Beijing appears determined to use force in Taiwan

Mainland China appears determined to use force in Taiwan, with Russia’s experience in Ukraine affecting Beijing’s calculations on when and how – not whether – to attack, the head of the CIA said on Wed. Appearing at the Aspen Security Forum, Central Intelligence Agency director Bill Burns said that Beijing had likely seen in Ukraine that “you don’t achieve quick, decisive victories with underwhelming force”. He played down speculation that Chinese President Xi Jinping could move to the island after a key Communist Party meeting later this year but said the risks “become higher, it seems to us, the further into this decade that you get”. “I wouldn’t underestimate President Xi’s determination to assert China’s control” over the self-ruling island, he said. (here)

69 pc of Afghans believe India ‘best friend’ to Kabul: Survey

Sixty-nine percent of Afghan people chose India as Afghanistan’s “best friend” country, according to a recent survey. To gain insight into the people of Afghanistan, a survey was conducted which gathered an understanding of the common people’s assessment of their past, current scenario, and future aspirations, a Brussels-based news website EU Reporter reported. Data shows that more than 67% of Afghan people believe that the mistimed and mismanaged exit by the US allowed Pakistan and China to encourage the Taliban to take over Kabul, according to a survey. India has strong stakes and strategic interests in Afghanistan. The two countries have very ancient historic and cultural ties. Despite all the efforts of Pakistan, India-Afghanistan relations at the people-to-people level have remained good, surviving Taliban rule in the 1990s and since Aug last year. (here)

IMF not adding new conditions to pact: Ahsan Iqbal

Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal said on Wed that the International Monetary Fund has not added new conditions to the staff-level agreement it concluded with Pakistan last week. Bloomberg reported earlier on Wed that the Fund was “assessing Saudi Arabia’s commitment to financing Pakistan before it disburses fresh funds to the South Asian nation.” The minister, who has held two meetings with IMF officials in New York and Washington this week, said the fund “did not raise this issue in talks with us.” Asked at a news briefing at the Pakistan Embassy in Islamabad, Mr Iqbal said, “The Fund did not suggest any new conditions in our meetings.” (here)

Pakistan won’t go route of ‘regional country’ as fuel reserves at ‘record levels’: ministers

Dastgir, who was addressing a press conference in Islamabad alongside State Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik, said this as he drew comparisons between Pakistan and “another country in the region that is facing economic difficulties“. While he did not name the country in this instance, the comparison was an apparent reference to Sri Lanka, the island nation of 22 million that has been reeling from economic crises for months, which prompted widespread protests that brought down the president. Energy Minister Khurram Dastgir asserted on Thu that the PML-N-led coalition govt’s commitment to stabilise Pakistan’s economy and prevent the effects of an “international energy crisis” from manifesting in the country was clear as petroleum product reserves were at a “record level”. When he spoke, Musadik Malik said imports of petroleum products between June 2021 and June 2022 had reduced by around 9pc.(here)

Alarm bells as Pakistani markets fall short on essential medicines

An alarming situation has arisen as markets in the country are short on several essential medicines, including suicide prevention drugs, due to a hike in their production costs — creating fear of an increased suicide rate in the country, The News reported. “None of the brands selling lithium carbonate are available in the market for the last couple of months,” a renowned psychiatrist and former president of the Pakistan Psychiatric Society (PPS) said while referring to the formulation known as the most effective medicine for the treatment of several psychiatric illnesses, including bipolar disorder. Similarly, some other essential medicines, including methylphenidate for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and clonazepam drops and tablets for epilepsy in children and adults, are also not available in the market, physicians and pharmacists said. (here)

We will not put Asean unity at risk, says Asean special envoy on Myanmar crisis

ASEAN will not put its unity at risk as it goes about trying to help Myanmar resolve its political crisis, said the regional bloc’s special envoy Prak Sokhonn on Thu (July 21). Speaking during a webinar organized by the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, the Cambodian foreign minister urged people to be “fair and respectful” about all the effort expended so far to address the turmoil triggered by the Myanmar military coup on Feb 1 last year. “Whatever we do and will do to help Myanmar, our efforts, actions, and dedication shall never put at risk, in any way, our unity, the Asean unity,” he said. The World Bank expects Myanmar’s economy to grow 3% in the year ending September, after suffering an 18% contraction in the previous year. About 40% of its population is living below the poverty line. (here)