By TNV Desk

This is a weekly foreign media digest that tells you how India has been covered in the global media from July 30,2023 to August 05,2023

 BBC – Chandrayaan-3: Historic India mission enters Moon orbit, aiming for south pole

• Chandrayaan-3, India’s latest Moon mission, has entered the lunar orbit, the country’s space agency has said.The spacecraft with an orbiter, lander and a rover lifted off on 14 July. It will try to set the lander and rover on the lunar surface on 23 or 24 August.
• If successful, India will be the first country to land near the Moon’s little-explored south pole.
• It will be only the fourth to achieve a soft landing on the Moon, after the US, the former Soviet Union and China.
• After the spacecraft orbited the Earth for more than a week, it was sent into the translunar orbit on Tuesday through a slingshot manoeuvre.
• The lander (called Vikram, after the founder of Isro) weighs about 1,500kg and carries within its belly the 26kg rover which is named Pragyaan, the Sanskrit word for wisdom.
• On Tuesday, Isro tweeted that the spacecraft had completed its orbits around the Earth and was headed towards the Moon.
• “A successful perigee-firing performed at Isro has injected the spacecraft into the translunar orbit. Next stop: the Moon,” it said. A perigee is the point in the orbit closest to the Earth.
• Now that the craft has entered the Moon’s orbit, scientists will begin reducing the rocket’s speed gradually to bring it to a point which will allow a soft landing for Vikram.
• Once it lands, the six-wheeled rover will eject and roam around the rocks and craters on Moon’s surface, gathering crucial data and images to be sent back to Earth for analysis.

(For detailed report click on the link –  https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-66402526)

 

Reuters – India delays import restriction on laptops, tablets by 3 months

• India will provide a transition period of about three months before a new licensing regime for imports of laptops, tablets and personal computers comes into effect, the country’s trade regulator said late on Friday.
• This is a partial reversal from a surprise decision on Thursday to impose the licensing requirement with immediate effect, which had prompted calls for a delay.
• “Import consignments can be cleared till October 31 without a licence and a government permit would be required for clearance of import from November 1,” the government said in a notification.
• Deputy IT and Electronics Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar had said the move was aimed to “ensure trusted hardware and systems” and reduce dependence on imports.
• His ministry earlier in the day assured that the government would be prompt in issuing licences and not create supply gaps in the market.
• It had said New Delhi will issue licences for companies to import laptops and tablets within two days. Licences can be obtained online.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-seeks-boost-manufacturing-with-laptop-licensing-move-2023-08-04/)

 

Washington Post – Vivek Ramaswamy and the Christian language of Hinduism

• Like many Republican presidential candidates, Vivek Ramaswamy has been outspoken about the role of faith and society. An enthusiastic second-generation Indian American, Ramaswamy also isn’t shy about talking about his own faith.
• To reach evangelical Christians, the largest religious group skewing Republican, Ramaswamy has affirmed both his Hindu identity and the Judeo-Christian civic religion in which he was raised
• Hindu Americans across the country condemned the pastor’s remarks, including Democratic Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi (Ill.) and Ro Khanna (Calif.). The United StatesIndia Relationship Council, a political action committee dedicated to supporting political candidates who are pro-India, released a public statement.
• The ancient tradition of Sanatana Dharma — more commonly known as Hinduism — has long been misunderstood by unfamiliar audiences, especially in places like the United States, where Christianity predominates.
• A tradition that has more than a billion adherents worldwide, Hinduism does not always fit neatly into categories understood by those more familiar with Abrahamic faiths like Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Hindus hold a pluralistic worldview in which many paths exist to experiencing the supreme, eternal spirit of reality known as Brahman

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2023/07/31/vivek-ramaswamy-hindu-christian-language/)

 

Gulf news – Tesla discusses India factory plans with commerce minister Goyal in Delhi

• India’s Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal met senior U.S.-based Tesla executives last week in a closed-door meeting to discuss the carmaker’s plans to establish a manufacturing plant in the country, two people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
• Tesla has expressed an interest in building a factory in India that would produce a low-cost electric vehicle (EV) priced at $24,000, around 25 per cent cheaper than Tesla’s current entry model, for both the Indian market and export.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://gulfnews.com/auto/news/tesla-discusses-india-factory-plans-with-commerce-minister-goyal-in-delhi-1.1691076269871)

 

Independent – India’s top court stays conviction of opposition leader for mocking the prime minister’s surname

• India’s top court has stayed the criminal defamation conviction of opposition leader Rahul Gandhi for mocking the prime minister’s surname
• India’s top court on Friday stayed the criminal defamation conviction of opposition leader Rahul Gandhi for mocking the prime ministers surname. His party said it would now seek to have Gandhi reinstated as a member of parliament.
• A fierce critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his main challenger in 2024 polls, Gandhi was ousted from Parliament after his conviction by a magistrate’s court in March.
• The stay by the Supreme Court means a temporary halt to the conviction while the court goes into Gandhi’s appeal in detail before issuing a final ruling.
• Gandhi’s disqualification as a lawmaker also now remains in abeyance, said Live Law, an online portal for Indian legal news. Congress party leader K.C. Venugopal said the party would approach the Parliament speaker to restore his seat.
• Despite its decision, the Supreme Court observed that Gandhi’s comments were not in “good taste” and said that a person in public life ought to have been more careful while making public speeches.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/rahul-gandhi-ap-narendra-modi-supreme-court-india-b2387613.html)

 

Economist – Climate and China fears are bringing South Asia’s countries closer

• For much of June the 23m people in and around Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital, suffered in temperatures of up to 38°C. Fans and air-conditioners were of little use—the country experienced power cuts on 114 of the first 150 days of this year. Just 500km to the north, the Himalayan republic of Nepal faced the opposite problem. The country’s demand for electricity tops out at 1.7gw but generation capacity—almost entirely from hydropower—peaks at 2.8gw. Officials have been telling power plants to cut production to avoid destabilising the grid.
• The imbalance may soon start to be corrected. A trilateral deal between Bangladesh, India and Nepal, expected to be finalised in weeks, would see some of Nepal’s surplus electricity flow to power-starved Bangladesh via India’s transmission infrastructure, starting with a modest 50mw. Sceptics dismiss it as a rounding error in Bangladesh’s shortfall. At peak times demand exceeds supply by up to 25%, according to analysis by Reuters. Yet to focus on the amount of power coming in from Nepal is to miss the point.
• That it is happening at all is a breakthrough in a region where neighbours have viewed each other with suspicion for decades. Observers hope this deal will lay the foundation for a more integrated energy market in the region.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.economist.com/asia/2023/08/04/climate-and-china-fears-are-bringing-south-asias-countries-closer)

 

Bloomberg – Tensions Simmer Around India’s Capital After Religious Clashes

• Thousands of security forces patrolled neighboring towns of New Delhi after religious clashes killed six people just weeks before a summit of the Group of 20 nations in India’s capital.
• Hindu and Muslim groups clashed during a religious procession in Nuh town of the northern state of Haryana on Monday, killing four people, including two policemen. Videos on social media and television news channels showed mobs pelting stones, vandalizing shops and setting cars on fire.
• Several Hindu groups organized protest marches in the Delhi region on Wednesday.
• The Supreme Court of India directed authorities to take steps to prevent further violence or hate speeches during such demonstrations. The top court also asked Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments to prepare for deploying additional forces.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-02/tensions-simmer-around-india-s-capital-after-religious-clashes?leadSource=uverify%20wall#xj4y7vzkg)

 

Reuters – Indian navy ships dock in Papua New Guinea as interest in Pacific sharpens

• Two Indian navy ships docked in Papua New Guinea on Wednesday, underscoring the strategic importance of the country to global superpowers the United States and China and their allies.
• The INS Kolkata guided missile destroyer and INS Sahyadri frigate will stay in PNG’s capital Port Moresby for two days, an Indian embassy official said. The visit will “enhance maritime cooperation and security in the region”, an embassy statement added. India currently holds the rotating presidency of the G20.
• The navy port call follows a visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in May to Papua New Guinea, an underdeveloped but resource-rich nation north of Australia. Modi took part in a summit meeting of Pacific nations

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.reuters.com/world/indian-navy-ships-dock-papua-new-guinea-interest-pacific-sharpens-2023-08-02/)

 

National Post – Police ’engaged’ as Ottawa says video contains threat against Indian diplomats

• Ottawa says law enforcement is “engaged” after a video circulating online appeared to threaten Indian diplomats in Canada.
• Some Canadian Sikhs who advocate for the secession of a region in India have claimed that New Delhi was involved in the June death of a preacher near Vancouver, though police say they have no evidence of such a link.
• A month ago, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly denounced posters accusing senior Indian diplomats of being “killers,” saying they were “unacceptable.”
• The issue has strained diplomatic relations between Canada and India as the two negotiate a possible trade agreement ahead of an expected visit by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau next month to New Delhi.
• Last month, Indian media reported that the high commission in Ottawa had formally asked the Canadian government to enhance protection for its senior diplomats, for instance through escorts.
• In June, Canadian and Indian officials condemned a parade float in Brampton, Ont., that portrayed the 1984 assassination of prime minister Indira Gandhi by her two Sikh bodyguards. Organizers said the float was meant to commemorate martyrs and acknowledge bloody strife in India, but officials said it glorified violence.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/police-engaged-as-ottawa-says-video-contains-threat-against-indian-diplomats)

 

BBC – Why India’s rice ban could trigger a global food crisis

• On 20 July, India banned exports of non-basmati white rice in an attempt to calm rising domestic prices at home. This was followed by reports and videos of panic buying and empty rice shelves at Indian grocery stores in the US and Canada, driving up prices in the process.
• There are thousands of varieties of rice that are grown and consumed, but four main groups are traded globally. India is the world’s top rice exporter, accounting for some 40% of the global trade in the cereal. (Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan and the US are the other top exporters).
• Among the major buyers of rice are China, the Philippines and Nigeria. There are “swing buyers” like Indonesia and Bangladesh who step up imports when they have domestic supply shortages. Consumption of rice is high and growing in Africa. In countries like Cuba and Panama it is the main source of energy.
• Last year, India exported 22 million tonnes of rice to 140 countries. Of this, six million tonnes was the relatively cheaper Indica white rice. (The estimated global trade in rice was 56 million tonnes.)
• Indica white rice dominates around 70% of the global trade, and India has now ceased its export. This comes on top of the country’s ban last year of exports of broken rice and a 20% duty on non-basmati rice exports.
• Not surprisingly, July’s export ban has sparked worries about runaway global rice prices. IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas reckons the ban would drive up prices and that global grain prices could rise up to 15% this year.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-66360064)

 

BBC – Space junk: India says object found in Australia is theirs

• India has confirmed that an object that washed up on a Western Australian beach recently was from one of its rockets.
• India’s space agency spokesman told the BBC on Monday it was from one of its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLV).
• Sudhir Kumar added that it would be up to Australia to decide what to do with the object. He did not comment further.
• His comments came after the Australian Space Agency (ASA) on Wednesday said that the object was “most likely” the third stage of a PSLV, which are used by India to launch satellites into orbit.
• The object is currently in storage with the ASA. It is still not clear which mission it was used in, nor how long it had been in the water before washing up at Green Head.
• It is not the first time that space junk has landed in Australia. Last year, a chunk from one of Elon Musk’s Space X missions was found in a paddock in the state of New South Wales

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-66359381)

 

Reuters – Authorities in India’s Haryana demolish houses after procession attacked

• Local authorities in India’s northern state of Haryana have begun demolishing what they term illegal houses that were allegedly used in an attack on a Hindu procession earlier this week that sparked deadly Hindu-Muslim clashes across the state.
• The violence erupted in the Nuh district on Monday and quickly spilled over into adjoining areas, including the business hub Gurugram, which neighbours New Delhi and where some vehicles, a mosque and some scrap shops were torched, and several eateries were vandalised.
• Seven people died in the clashes, including two police personnel.
• Narendra Singh Bijarniya, who has been Nuh’s top police official since the clashes, said police action would be taken on houses that were used to pelt stones at the procession, and would take place according to the law.

(For detailed report click on the link – https://www.reuters.com/world/india/authorities-indias-haryana-demolish-houses-after-procession-attacked-2023-08-04/)

 

Reuters –At least five killed in Hindu-Muslim clashes south of New Delhi

• At least five people, including two police personnel, were killed in clashes between Hindus and Muslims that erupted on Monday News Media House: Reuters Wire News 6 around 50 km (30 miles) south of the capital New Delhi, police officials told Reuters.
• The violence erupted after a Hindu religious procession passed through the Muslim dominated Nuh region, in Haryana state, the officials said.
• Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, in a post on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter, also condemned the incident in Nuh, where curfew orders have been imposed, the internet shut off, and additional security forces deployed

(For detailed report click on the link –https://www.reuters.com/world/india/least-five-killed-hindu-muslim-clashes-indias-haryana-state-2023-08-01/)

 

(The report is curated by Dr Vinay Nalwa)