The Indian Weekender 15 July 2022

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14 INDIA Friday, July 15, 2022 India is fastest growing economy in the world with 8.2% growth rate in 2022: Amit Shah Union Home Minister and China and 8 per cent of Brazil. Cooperation Minister Criticising Congress leader Amit Shah on Tuesday Rahul Gandhi's comment on announced that India is the fastest-growing economy in the world with a growth rate of 8.2 per cent in 2022. Goods and Services Tax (GST), Shah said our GST collection has crossed Rs 1.62 lakh crore. The Home Minister further "Today India is the fastestgrowing said there is a smooth economy in the world. With a growth rate of 8.2 per cent, we are the world's fastestgrowing atmosphere for those doing business in current regime of the Central government led by economy in 2022," Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Shah said while addressing the the Government in garnering Shah also said India has 6th National Conclave on Mines valuable feedback for the achieved a record 421 billion and Minerals. sustained growth of the mineral dollar merchandise export, an The National Conclave on sector. The Minister also all-time high in India's export Mines and Minerals is reckoned compared India's growth rate history, mentioning "the as an overwhelming success in with various countries of the achievement is the result of providing an effective platform same period and said it was 3.7 hard work of Indian youth". to showcase key policy per cent in the US, 2.1 per cent The Minister also emphasised initiatives undertaken and help in Germany, 4.4 per cent of how India recorded the "highest India is set to surpass China as the world's most populous country in 2023, with each counting more than 1.4 billion residents this year, a United Nations report said , warning that high fertility would challenge economic growth. The world's population, estimated to reach 8 billion by November 15 this year, could grow to 8.5bn in 2030, and 10.4bn in 2100, as the pace of mortality slows, said the report released on World Population Day. India's population was 1.21bn in 2011, according to the domestic census, which is conducted once a decade. The government had deferred the 2021 census due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The world's population was growing at its slowest pace since 1950, having fallen below 1% in 2020, UN estimates showed. In 2021, The Indian government has defended the look of the national emblem on top of the new parliament building amid criticism over its appearance. The new statue, adapted from an ancient Indian sculpture, was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday. The 6.5m (21ft 3in)-tall cast shows four Asiatic lions mounted back-to-back on a circular disc. Critics say the new lions look "ferocious" and stray from their original depiction. Opposition leaders have also criticised the government, saying that the new avatar of the emblem - adapted from the Lion Capital of Ashoka, a the average fertility of the world's population stood at 2.3 births per woman over a lifetime, having fallen from about 5 births in 1950. Global fertility is projected to decline further to 2.1 births per woman by 2050. "This is an occasion to celebrate our diversity, recognize our common humanity, and marvel at advancements in health that have extended lifespans and dramatically reduced maternal and child mortality rates," UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a statement. Still, a growing sculpture that was atop one of the several pillars erected by Emperor Ashoka during his reign in 250BC - was a "brazen insult to India's national symbol". But a federal government minister on Tuesday dismissed the criticism, saying the statue was a "perfect replica" of the original "except for the size". "Sense of proportion and perspective. Beauty is famously regarded as lying in the eyes of the beholder. So is the case with calm and anger. The original Sarnath Emblem ever" annual foreign direct investment of 83.57 billion dollar in 2021-22. Speaking on inflation in the event, Shah said "we have controlled" it in comparison with other countries in the world. "There is inflation across the world. We've controlled inflation compared to the world. We're seeing the situation in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and our neighbouring countries even in the US," Shah said. The Home Minister lauded the policies of BJP-led Central government under supervision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the effort despite facing Covid-19 pandemic, world's worst ever health crisis. India to surpass China as most populous country in 2023, UN report says is 1.6-metre high whereas the emblem on the top of the New Parliament building is huge at 6.5 metres," Hardeep Singh Puri wrote on Twitter, posting photos comparing the original emblem and the new statue. The minister added that the if an exact replica of the original were to be placed on the new building, "it would barely be visible beyond the peripheral rail". Sunil Deora, one of the two sculptors behind the statue, said that the perceived difference in the lion's demeanour was because of the "scale and dimension" of the new emblem. "If you look at the Sarnath Lion Capital from below, it will look the same as the parliament Read online www.iwk.co.nz National emblem: India rejects criticism over ‘snarling’ lion statue The bronze cast of the national emblem was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday population was a reminder of a shared responsibility of care for the planet and to "reflect on where we still fall short of our commitments to one another," he said. Referring to an earlier World Health Organization report -- estimating about 14.9 million deaths relating to the Covid-19 pandemic between January 2020 and December 2021, the UN report said global life expectancy at birth fell to 71 years in 2021 from 72.8 years in 2019, mostly due to the pandemic. The United Nations said more than half of the "This is an occasion to celebrate our diversity, recognize our common humanity, and marvel at advancements in health that have extended lifespans and dramatically reduced maternal and child mortality rates projected increase in the global population up to 2050 will be concentrated in eight countries -- Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Tanzania. Countries of sub-Saharan Africa are expected to contribute more than half of the increase anticipated through 2050. However, the population of 61 countries is projected to decrease by 1% or more between 2022 and 2050, driven by a fall in fertility. China says India risks scaring away investors with raids on its companies India risks damaging its reputation among foreign investors with its "frequent investigations" into Chinese companies, Beijing said this week. China's embassy in India said in a statement Thursday that probes by Indian authorities into Chinese companies were disrupting "normal business activities" and chilling "the confidence and willingness of market entities from other countries, including Chinese enterprises to invest and operate in India." The criticism comes after India's Enforcement Directorate — the country's main financial investigation agency — raided major Chinese smartphone company Vivo over allegations of money-laundering earlier this week. In a press release on Thursday, the Indian agency said it had carried out searches at 48 Vivo locations in the country, and seized 4.65 billion rupees ($60 million) from 119 bank accounts, including fixed deposits, cash and gold bars. In the statement, the Enforcement Directorate has accused Vivo of tax fraud and said the firm remitted 624.8 billion rupees ($7.9 billion), mostly to China. Xiaomi also targeted The raids on Vivo offices come two months after India seized more than $700 million from another big Chinese smartphone maker — Xiaomi. It was also accused of moving money out of the country illegally. Xiaomi India said at the time that "all our operations are firmly compliant with local laws and regulations." Chinese phone makers dominate the Indian market, with Xiaomi being the top-selling brand, according to data compiled by Counterpoint. Vivo is also among the top five brands, the firm said. emblem does," the 49-yearold sculptor told The Indian Express. Prime Minister Modi had shared a video of the unveiling on Monday morning which showed the cast - weighing 9,500kg (20,943 pounds) - on top of the central foyer of the new parliament building. A senior government official called the installation of the emblem an "important milestone in the decolonisation" of the capital city. But many social media users pointed out that the demeanour of the lions in the new cast differed significantly from the original depiction and that instead of looking "benevolent and regal", they now "snarled".
Read online www.iwk.co.nz Friday, July 15, 2022 WORLD 15 Protesters storm Sri Lanka's prime minister's office, as president flees country without resigning Sri Lanka's political and economic crisis escalated as protesters stormed the prime minister's office on Wednesday, demanding the country's leaders step down after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled to the Maldives without resigning. Rajapaksa had been expected to formally resign Wednesday but instead left the crisis-hit nation and appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as its acting leader, citing a section of the constitution that allows a prime minister to "discharge the powers, duties and functions of the office of president" when the president is ill or "absent" from Sri Lanka. Wickremesinghe was also due to formally resign "to make way for an all-party government." The move further enraged protesters, who want both leaders to vacate their roles as the country's 22 million people struggle to buy basic goods, fuel and medicine. Hundreds of demonstrators breached the compound of the prime minister's office in Sri Lanka's largest city Colombo on Wednesday and entered the premises, according to footage from the scene and local witnesses. The grounds have now been taken over by protesters who are gathering in celebration, following standoffs with armed police at the gates of the Police use teargas on Wednesday as protesters storm the prime minister's office. property. At least 30 people have sustained injuries and been admitted to the hospital, according to the Colombo National Hospital. A nurse at the hospital told CNN that many people were brought in due to tear gas inhalation, while others had cuts and bruises likely received when trying to jump over fences. The nurse did not confirm any gunshot injuries. Demonstrators outside demanded that neither the President nor the Prime Minister "be spared." This follows months of escalating anger over the economic crisis, with Rajapaksa accused of high-level corruption and mismanagement that ultimately bankrupted the country. As demonstrators took to the streets, acting President Wickremesinghe appointed a committee of senior armed forces commanders headed by the Chief of Defense Staff Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva to Half a world away from the political drama in London, many Indians are closely following the twists and turns of who replaces Boris Johnson as British prime minister, curious to see how two candidates with Indian ancestry fare. Rishi Sunak, the bookmakers' favourite to prevail, and Suella Braverman are campaigning for the Conservative party leadership and have made reference to the opportunities Britain gave members of minorities like them. If either were to win the race for the premiership, they would be the first prime minister of Indian origin in the United Kingdom. In both cases, their Indian families migrated to Britain in the 1960s in search of better lives. Britain ruled India for about 200 years before the South Asian country gained independence in 1947 after a "restore law and order" in the nation, a high-ranking military official told CNN Wednesday. Wickremesinghe declared a state of emergency across Sri Lanka and a curfew on Wednesday only to later cancel both orders, according to the prime minister's office. In Colombo, a handful of protesters also entered the premises of state broadcaster Sri Lanka Rupavahini on Wednesday, negotiating a "deal" with broadcast staff to not give airtime to politicians such as Wickremesinghe. The broadcaster instead played history and culture programs. Rajapaksa was forced to announce his resignation after after more than 100,000 people massed outside his residence over the weekend. His planned resignation would leave him without presidential immunity -- potentially exposing him to a raft of legal charges and reduced security. prolonged freedom struggle. "It will be a great feeling to see an Indian as the PM of a country which very ruthlessly ruled India for a very long time!" said a Twitter user named Emon Mukherjee. There are around 1.4m Indians in Britain, making them its single largest ethnic minority, and the two countries enjoy friendly relations. Bilateral trade stood at 21.5bn pounds ($25.55 bn) in 2020-21. Leading Indian industrialist Anand Mahindra joined a steady stream of social media reaction to the possibility of a British prime minister with Indian heritage. He shared a digitally altered photograph of 10 Downing Street, the prime minister's official residence, with its famous black door adorned with marigolds and mango leaves, symbols of an auspicious beginning in the Hindu religion. Sunak, 42, is the son-in-law of Indian billionaire N. R. Narayana Murthy, founder of Indian outsourcing giant Infosys Ltd . CONTROVERSY That connection threatened to dent his popularity in Britain after it was revealed that his wife, NASA draws back curtain on Webb space telescope’s first full-colour images NASA drew back the curtain on billions of years of cosmic evolution with the inaugural batch of photos from the largest, most powerful observatory ever launched to space, saying the luminous imagery showed the telescope exceeds expectations. The first full-color, highresolution pictures from the James Webb Space Telescope, designed to peer farther than before with greater clarity to the dawn of the universe, were hailed by NASA as milestone marking a new era of astronomical exploration. Nearly two decades in the making and built under contract for NASA by aerospace giant Northrop Grumman Corp, the $9 billion infrared telescope was launched on Dec. 25, 2021. It reached its destination in solar orbit nearly 1 million miles from Earth a month later. With Webb finely tuned after months spent remotely aligning its mirrors and calibrating its instruments, scientists will embark on a competitively selected agenda exploring the evolution of galaxies, life cycle of stars, atmospheres of distant exoplanets, and moons of our outer solar system. “All of us are just blown away,” Amber Straughn, Webb deputy project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, said among a panel of experts who briefed reporters following the big reveal. Whoops and hollers from a sprightly “cheer team” welcomed some 300 scientists, telescope engineers, politicians Ancestral ties: India avidly watching British leadership race Murthy's daughter, had not been paying British tax on her foreign income through her "non-domiciled" status, which is available to foreign nationals who do not regard Britain as their permanent home. Akshata Murthy later said she would start to pay British tax on her global income. "It was Britain that gave them hope, security and opportunity and this country has afforded me incredible opportunities in education and my career, and I owe a debt of gratitude to this country." Murthy is an Indian citizen and owns a 0.9% stake in Infosys. She and Sunak entered The Sunday Times UK Rich List at number 222 with a reported net worth of 730 million pounds, the Sunday Times newspaper reported in May. Murthy's family, based in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru, has largely avoided discussing Sunak's political journey, and did not and senior officials from NASA and its international partners into a packed and auditorium at Goddard for the official unveiling. “I didn’t know I was coming to a pep rally,” NASA Administrator James Nelson said from the stage, enthusing that Webb’s “every image is a discovery.” The event was simulcast to watch parties of astronomy enthusiasts worldwide, from Bhopal, India, to Vancouver, British Columbia. The first photos, which took weeks to render from raw telescope data, were selected by NASA to show off Webb’s capabilities and foreshadow science missions ahead. The crowning debut image, previewed on Monday by U.S. President Biden but displayed with greater fanfare on Tuesday, was a “deep field” photo of a distant galaxy cluster, SMACS 0723, revealing the most detailed glimpse of the early universe recorded to date. At least one faint galaxy measured among the thousands in the image is nearly 95% as old as the Big Bang, the theoretical flashpoint that set the expansion of the known universe in motion some 13.8 billion years ago, NASA said. respond to a request for comment. Sunak's colleague Braverman, currently Britain's attorney general and also in the race to succeed Johnson, was born into a Christian family of Indian origin. Her parents migrated to Britain in the 1960s from Kenya and Mauritius. She has previously spoken about her parents, saying they came to Britain with nothing. In 2017, Braverman posted on Facebook that her mother was awarded the British Empire Medal for 45 years of service in the National Health Service as a nurse and for voluntary work abroad. "It was Britain that gave them hope, security and opportunity and this country has afforded me incredible opportunities in education and my career, and I owe a debt of gratitude to this country," Braverman said. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is another recent example of a politician of Indian origin who made it big abroad. Residents of her ancestral village in southern India celebrated her inauguration with firecrackers and gifts of food.
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