Adani crash stalls Parliament;Opposition seeks JPC probe
Summary:
The Parliament in India failed to function on Thursday due to persistent demands from the opposition for a debate on the high exposure of public financial institutions such as the State Bank of India and the Life Insurance Corporation to the Adani Group. Following a Hindenburg report alleging money round-tripping by the Adani Group, the opposition is demanding a thorough probe into the matter, either by a Joint Parliamentary Committee or a Supreme Court-monitored panel. The opposition is also demanding day-to-day reporting of the investigation. The protest united several major political parties and resulted in both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha functioning for only a few minutes each, with the Friday session expected to also be a washout.
No bar on contesting two seats in one poll
Summary:
The Supreme Court in India has declined to strike down a provision in the election law that allows candidates to contest from two constituencies simultaneously, stating that it is a matter of legislative policy and up to the Parliament to decide. The petition sought to declare Section 33(7) of the Representation of the People Act as invalid. The court noted that the restriction to two constituencies is reasonable enough and that there was no manifest arbitrariness in the provision. The government had argued in 2018 that the law cannot curtail a candidate's right to contest elections and limit the public's choice of candidates.
Anguish in A.P. over Budget aid to Upper Bhadra project
Summary:
Union government decision to provide funds for lift irrigation project causing frustration in Andhra Pradesh. People in Kurnool and Anantapur districts feel the project may delay or reduce their water allocation from Tungabhadra dam. Anantapur and nearby areas rely on the dam for drinking water and irrigation. Delay in filling of the dam due to water being lifted upstream is a concern. State government criticized for not prioritizing Rayalaseema irrigation projects
A right reading of post-cleavage political parties
Summary:
The article argues that the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is often represented as the triumph of post-ideological politics, which is a mistake because ideology plays a significant role in both cleavage politics (differential mobilization of social groups) and aggregative politics (construction of a dominant coalition). The article compares AAP with the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) as examples of the post-cleavage turn in politics and identifies the moral, distributive and discursive dimensions of their ideology. Both parties view elections as a mechanism to ensure popular accountability over government functioning and not to represent group interests. This is due to the historical dominance of the middle-class interests and weak politicization of caste identity in Delhi and Odisha. The frustration with corruption and a malfunctioning bureaucracy led to a need for a strongman leader to prevent the leakage of public resources into the hands of a small, well-networked elite.
Trading more within Asia makes economic sense
Summary:
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that global trade will slow down from 5.4% in 2022 to 2.4% in 2023. A recent paper by the IMF argues that there is a strong base for South Asia to trade more with dynamic East Asia. The trade between South Asia and East Asia has increased since the 1990s and could reach $500 billion by 2030. The IMF suggests several steps to encourage regional trade integration across Asia including reducing barriers to trade, improving special economic zones, pursuing comprehensive free trade agreements, and reinventing the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation. To mitigate a backlash against regionalisation, a narrower geographical coverage between South Asia and Southeast Asia may be a building block for eventual trade integration across Asia.
ChatGPT and the future of Journalism
Summary:
The author conducted an experiment to test the effectiveness of AI-based chatbot, ChatGPT, in producing news articles. The AI won over a traditional research method, but it stated that it could only generate simple news articles and not to be fully trusted for accuracy. The author asked ChatGPT about its impact on journalism, and the AI replied that it could be used to assist journalists with simple tasks and freeing them up for in-depth reporting. However, the real impact of AI on journalism will depend on how it's integrated into the news production process. Some areas in journalism, such as reporting on structured data and proofreading, may be disrupted by AI, but human thinking is still necessary for investigative journalism. The news industry has been using AI for some time, tracking reader habits and selecting articles. The author's news organization is experimenting with AI tools for NLP, but the machine failed to provide coherent output.
Putting Budget 2023 into perspective
Summary:
The Indian economy is expected to have a real GDP growth of 7% in 2022-2023, with declining inflation rates and high growth. The Union Budget presented assumes a nominal GDP growth of 10.5% in 2023-24 and an inflation rate of 4%. The private sector and banks are expected to lead a new cycle of investment-led growth. The Finance Minister has increased capital expenditure to encourage private investment in infrastructure. However, subsidies on food, fertilizers, petroleum, and interest subsidies have been reduced, indicating higher prices in the future. Total central government expenditure has decreased to 15% of the GDP. Capital expenditure has increased, while subsidies have decreased. Defense expenditure has fallen to 1.5% of GDP. Expenditure on agriculture has increased, but education has reduced. Gross tax revenues have remained to be a constraint on public expenditure, and are just over 11% of GDP. Corporate tax collection has declined, but income tax has risen progressively. Revenues from personal income taxes are almost equal to corporate tax revenues, indicating a regressive taxation regime.
With Pathaan, Shah Rukh Khan comes out on top of the ‘Raktabeej’ of hate
Summary:
The article is a review of the Bollywood movie "Pathaan" directed by Siddharth Anand. The movie is noted to be a blend of action, glamour and humor. The film is said to have symbolic and allegorical references and is seen as a counter to the cancel culture in India. The characters are well-written and well-developed, avoiding the demonization of nationalities and religions. The film has a strong opening and has been compared to the iconic film "Amar, Akbar, and Anthony." The film is noted to have intelligent writing and intertwined stories, with the lead actor, Shah Rukh Khan, playing a different kind of action hero. Khan is seen as a people's star who has had a series of box office failures and has been the target of controversies. However, he remains focused on his screen performance and fights back after taking body blows. The film is noted to reference the Japanese art of kintsugi, which underscores Khan's ability to bring people together. The film is set in a world where terrorism has no religion and is outsourced to a third party.
No surprises in BJP list of candidates for Nagaland, Meghalaya Assembly polls
Summary:
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced its candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Meghalaya and Nagaland, with a few last-minute additions from other political parties. In Meghalaya, the BJP is contesting all 60 seats and in Nagaland, the BJP and its ally, the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), are contesting 20 and 40 seats, respectively, based on a seat-sharing agreement. The list of candidates includes several former members of other political parties, including the National People’s Party (NPP) and the Trinamool Congress. The BJP has a realistic target of reaching double-digit marks, according to the BJP State president. In Nagaland, the BJP has retained most of its MLAs and accommodated a former minister who quit as an MLA of the Naga People's Front (NPF). The BJP aims to win more than 12 seats this time.
U.S. military to get greater access to Philippines bases
Summary:
The United States and the Philippines announced a deal that will allow US troops access to four more bases in the Southeast Asian nation to counter China's military rise. The agreement was made during a visit by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and aims to expand cooperation in "strategic areas of the country". The two countries have a decades-old security alliance, including a mutual defense treaty, which has been hindered in recent years but the new administration of Ferdinand Marcos is keen to strengthen the relationship. The addition of the four new locations brings the total number of sites accessible to US forces to nine, with talks ongoing for a potential 10th site. Most of the new locations are reportedly on the main island of Luzon, closest to Taiwan.