LADAKH STAND OFF: DIPLOMATS BUILD ON INDIA-CHINA MILITARY TALKS

Indian and Chinese diplomats agreed Wednesday to "sincerely implement the

understanding on disengagement and de-escalation" along the Line of Actual

Control in Ladakh where both sides have massed troops in a faceoff since

May.

At the meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on

India-China Border Affairs (WMCC), held two days after Corps Commanders of

the two armies reached a "mutual consensus to disengage" troops, the Indian

side "conveyed its concerns" on the developments in eastern Ladakh,

including the June 15 showdown in Galwan Valley in which 20 Indian Army

personnel were killed.

The Ministry of External Affairs said it was emphasised that both sides

should "strictly respect and observe" the Line of Actual Control.

The Chinese statement mentioned the exchange of "candid and in-depth" views

on the border situation and how both sides said they will "earnestly

implement the important consensus" reached by the Foreign Ministers during

their June 17 phone conversation, and "actively accommodate with the two

military forces to implement the outcome reached" at the June 6 and June 22

military talks.

In its statement, the MEA said: "The two delegations agreed that

implementation of this understanding expeditiously, in accordance with the

bilateral agreements and protocols, would help ensure peace and tranquility

in border areas and the development of broader relationship between the two

countries. In this context, they also took note of the discussions in the

second meeting of the Senior Commanders held on 22 June."

The Chinese Defence Ministry, however, struck a jarring note, echoing

Beijing's claim to the Galwan Valley. "China has sovereignty over the Galwan

Valley region and the Chinese border troops have been patrolling and on duty

in this region for many years," it said. This is the first time that the

Chinese armed forces have staked claim to an area that is well within Indian

territory.

The two sides also agreed to maintain communication both at diplomatic and

military level including under the framework of WMCC to "resolve the

existing situation peacefully", it said.

Despite all these talks, China is said to have significantly ramped up its

military presence in Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley and several other friction

points in eastern Ladakh.

China has also increased the number of troops and weaponry in several other

key sectors along the Line of Actual Control in Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim

and Uttarakhand.

COVID-19 IMPACT: IMF PROJECTS INDIAN ECONOMY TO CONTRACT BY 4.5% IN FY21

The IMF has warned that the Indian economy faces an even deeper downturn

than what it had projected in April as the country grapples with the

Covid-19 pandemic. It has projected a sharp contraction of 4.5 per cent in

FY21, a steep drop from its April forecast of a 1.9 per cent expansion,

calling it a "historic low" for India.

In fact, India faced the sharpest cut in the outlook - a 6.4-percentage

point revision due to a more severe fallout of the pandemic than

anticipated.

The silver lining, however, is that the country is expected to bounce back

in FY22 with a 6 per cent growth rate, the IMF said in its latest World

Economic Outlook titled A Crisis like No Other, An Uncertain Outlook.

However, it is lower than even the ASEAN-5 average of 6.2 per cent estimated

for 2021 by the agency.

China is estimated to post 1 per cent growth in 2020 and revive to 8.2 per

cent in 2021, retaining the fastest-growing economy tag for the third

straight year.

The Indian economy grew by 4.2 per cent in 2019-20. The global output is

seen shrinking 4.9 per cent, and EMs by 3 per cent. "For the first time, all

regions are projected to experience negative growth in 2020," said the IMF.

"The Covid-19 pandemic pushed economies into a Great Lockdown, which helped

contain the virus and save lives, but also triggered the worst recession

since the Great Depression," IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said.

COVID-19 DASHBOARD - (Nos. IN INDIA / Nos. WORLDWIDE)

(Indian data from covid19india / and World Data from

worldometers.info/coronavirus/ )

Total Cases 4,72,930 (+16,863) / 95,27,124 (+1,72,798)

Total Deaths 14,907 (+424) / 4,84,972 (+5,156)

Total Recovered 2,71,688 (+13,089) / 51,75,405 (+1,33,592)

Active Cases 1,86,335 (+3,350) / 38,66,747 (+34,050)

Serious / Critical Cases - N.A. / 58,421 (+510)

Top impacted nations so far: (And some of India's Neighbours)

Country, Total Cases / Total Deaths / Recovered Cases / Active

Cases

1 USA 24,62,554 / 1,24,281 /

10,40,605 / 12,97,668

2 Brazil 11,92,474 / 53,874 /

6,49,908 / 4,88,692

3 Russia 6,06,881 / 8,513 /

3,68,822 / 2,29,546

4 India 4,72,985 / 14,907 /

2,71,688 / 1,86,390

5 UK 3,06,862 / 43,081 / N/A

/ N/A

6 Spain 2,94,166 / 28,327 / N/A

/ N/A

7 Peru 2,64,689 / 8,586 /

1,51,589 / 1,04,514

8 Chile 2,54,416 / 4,731 /

2,15,093 / 34,592

9 Italy 2,39,410 / 34,644 /

1,86,111 / 18,655

10 Iran 2,12,501 / 9,996 /

1,72,096 / 30,409

11 Mexico 1,96,847 / 24,324 / 1,49,318

/ 23,205

14 Pakistan 1,88,926 / 3,755 /

77,754 / 1,07,417

17 Bangladesh 1,22,660 / 1,582 /

49,666 / 71,412

105 Sri Lanka 2,001 / 11 /

1,562 / 428

Top 18 impacted Indian States so far: (Total No. of Confirmed case / No. Of

Deaths)

State / Confirmed Cases / Active Case / Recovered /

Deceased

Maharashtra 1,42,899 / 62,353 / 73,792 /

6,739

Delhi 70,390 / 26,588 / 41,437 / 2,365

Tamil Nadu 67,468 / 28,839 / 37,763 /

866

Gujarat 29,001 / 6,169 / 21,096 / 1,736

Uttar Pradesh 19,557 / 6,375 / 12,586 /

596

Rajasthan 16,009 / 3,023 / 12,611 /

375

West Bengal 15,173 / 4,880 / 9,702 /

591

Madhya Pradesh 12,448 / 2,441 / 9,473 /

534

Haryana 12,010 / 4,897 / 6,925 /

188

Telangana 10,444 / 5,858 / 4,361 /

225

Andhra Pradesh 10,331 / 5,423 / 4,779

/ 129

Karnataka 10,118 / 3,797 / 6,153 /

164

Bihar 8,273 / 2,112 / 6,106 / 55

Jammu and Kashmir 6,422 / 2,516 / 3,818 /

88

Assam 6,283 / 2,312 / 3,959 / 9

Odisha 5,752 / 1,605 / 4,123 / 24

Punjab 4,627 / 1,415 / 3,099 / 113

Kerala 3,604 / 1,691 / 1,888 / 23

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

======================

CHINA WARNS US OVER ACTIONS AGAINST 4 MORE MEDIA OUTLETS

China is warning it will take countermeasures after the U.S. added four more

Chinese media outlets to a list of organizations that should be considered

"foreign missions" in the United States because of their ties to the

government and ruling Communist Party. A foreign ministry spokesperson

attacked the Trump administration's move as "yet another example of the

U.S.'s flagrant political suppression of the Chinese media," saying it would

obstruct their reporting on the U.S. and betray America's commitment to

freedom of the press. State Department officials say the four organizations,

including state-run CCTV, will be required to submit the identities of all

staff in the U.S. and any real estate holdings just as they would if they

were foreign embassies or consulates.

NEPAL'S OPPN URGES OLI GOVT TO BRING BACK TERRITORY ENCROACHED BY CHINA

After a Nepal government report acknowledged that China has been using

increased road construction in Tibet to encroach on its land, the opposition

Nepali Congress has urged the KP Sharma Oli government to bring back the

encroached territory by holding dialogue with Beijing.

In a letter to the secretary, House of Representatives, the opposition said

that more than 64 hectares of land of various districts were encroached by

China.

This comes after a report prepared by Survey Department of Agriculture

Ministry, showed a list of 11 places, of which China has encroached on 10

places comprising about 33 hectares of Nepali land, by diverting the flow of

rivers which act as a natural boundary.

PAK STAYS IN FATF'S 'GREY LIST'

The global terror financing watchdog, FATF, on Wednesday decided to keep

Pakistan in the "Grey List" as it has failed to check flow of money to

terror groups like the LeT and the JeM, officials said.

The decision was taken at the Financial Action Task Force's third and final

plenary held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plenary was held

under the Chinese Presidency.

"The FATF plenary decided continuation of Pakistan in 'Grey List' till its

next meeting to be held in October," an official privy to the development

said.

THE REST

========

AS CASES OVERTAKE MUMBAI, DELHI TO SURVEY ALL HOUSES, RAMP UP TESTING

With 3,788 new Covid-19 cases being reported on Tuesday, Delhi has overtaken

Mumbai as the city with the highest case count - 70,390 cases so far. The

total case count in Mumbai, which reported 1,118 new cases in the last 24

hours, is 69,528.

But Delhi has had fewer deaths (2,365) than Mumbai (3,964).

With the number of cases still rising, the Delhi government has prepared an

ambitious plan -house-to-house screening in containment zones by June 30,

and in the rest of the city by July 6.

The Delhi government had taken over the Radha Soami Satsang Beas in south

Delhi's Chhatarpur, roughly the size of 22 football fields in its effort to

ramp bed strength and add medical infrastructure. By weekend, it should have

a ten thousand bed capacity. And it is being made fully air-conditioned.

Every patient will have a bed, a stool, a chair, a small plastic cupboard, a

dustbin and utensils, and will be given a toiletry kit. Individual phone and

laptop charging facility will be available for each bed. Patients can also

bring their laptops, but for any video or audio application, they will have

to use headphones.

MUMBAI CLAIMS THAT COVID SITUATION GETTING BETTER

The Maharashtra government has begun to close some Covid-19 care centres in

Mumbai after the number of people testing positive for the virus has begun

to decline in parts of the city like Dharavi, according to officials here.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on Wednesday said that it was

shutting two Covid-19 care centres in Dharavi-Asia's largest slum-after a

fewer number of residents tested positive for the virus. "The average number

of cases fell to 20 per day in June and only five cases were reported on

Tuesday," Kiran Dighavkar, Assistant Municipal Commissioner of G-North Ward,

under which Dharavi falls, said.

The slum and its surrounding areas have reported 2,189 cases so far

including 81 fatalities.

Dighavkar said there were enough care centres for those who test positive

for the virus.

According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation the number of Covid-19

cases reported in the country's financial capital continue to be steady at

around 1000 per day for the past several days. On Tuesday 824 new cases were

reported. Civic officials said, newer cases of people testing positive for

the virus is being reported from Mumbai's middle-class northern suburbs as

more people start returning to work.

E-COMM FIRMS TOLD: LET BUYERS KNOW COUNTRY OF ORIGIN OF GOODS

The department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)

Wednesday directed e-commerce firms to work out a mechanism that will enable

customers to identify the country of origin for all products displayed on

their platforms.

The direction was conveyed during a meeting with representatives of 20

firms, including Amazon, Flipkart, Paytm and Pepperfry, following which the

platforms sought around 10 days to work out a system, according to senior

officials and executives.

Another meeting with the firms is expected to take place soon, possibly

within a week or 10 days, to take stock of the measures, executives close to

the development said.

Experts say such a requirement does not have a precedent, may not be easy to

roll out and may require more brainstorming, especially for products, such

as cellphones and laptops, that may have inputs from several countries.

The DPIIT's meeting comes nearly 10 days after the Confederation of All

Indian Traders (CAIT) approached Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal to make the

origin tag mandatory for private e-commerce firms.

INDUSTRY FEARS SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTION AMID CURBS ON CHINESE IMPORTS

Industry bodies have taken issue with reports of ports across the country

detaining Chinese consignments, writing letters to government officials on

Wednesday protesting against the move.

Global companies that manufacture here say the move will impact their supply

chain and force them to halt production. Mobile device manufacturers,

electronics and PC makers, and telecom equipment players, among others, have

all been affected by the move as they depend on imports from China for

components as well as finished products.

In letters to DPIIT Secretary Guruprasad Mohapatra and Revenue Secretary

Ajay Bhushan Pandey, the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum said a sudden

embargo on imports will adversely affect the supply chain of most products

and ultimately India's manufacturing. This will also send a chilling signal

to foreign investors who look for predictability and transparency, USISPF

said in the letters reviewed by Business Standard.

"While we support India's ambition to expand its manufacturing capability,

we are concerned about the repercussions an unanticipated embargo on the

import of goods from neighbouring countries will have on the supply chain

and manufacturing," USISPF President and Chief Executive Officer Mukesh Aghi

wrote.

Though no formal orders have been issued, USISPF member companies have

reported that Customs authorities have abruptly halted clearance of

consignments coming in from China at most major ports and airports.

PIL SEEKS NIA PROBE INTO AGREEMENT BETWEEN CONG, CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

Amid India-China face-off on Line of Actual Control, a PIL has been filed in

the Supreme Court seeking an NIA probe into a 2008 agreement between Indian

National Congress and Communist Party of China.

"The petitioners firmly believe that the Nation's security cannot and

shouldn't be compromised by any one," said the PIL filed by advocate

Shashank Shekhar Jha and journalist Savio Rodrigues.

The said agreement was signed between Congress and Communist Party of China

in Beijing for exchanging high-level information and co-operation. Under the

agreement, the two parties were to get "opportunity to consult each other on

important bilateral, regional and international developments".

In 2008, Sonia Gandhi had visited Beijing along with Rahul Gandhi and her

daughter Priyanka Vadra, son-in-Law Robert Vadra and their two children to

attend the opening of the Olympic Games, it submitted. The agreement was

said to have been signed then.

PATANJALI 'CORONA KIT': NO GOVT NOD, TRIALS THAT USED ALLOPATHIC DRUGS, AND

LICENCE FOR IMMUNITY BOOSTER

On Wednesday, a day after the Ministry of Ayush ordered Patanjali to stop

publicising claims of Covid-19 cure, the Rajasthan government said it had no

knowledge of clinical trials at a private hospital in Jaipur where Covid-19

patients are admitted.

Most significantly, when mildly symptomatic patients developed fever during

the trials, they were administered allopathic medicines. As it is, the

trials were conducted only on asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic patients.

Severely symptomatic patients and those with acute respiratory distress

syndrome were excluded for enrolment.

Moreover, the study based on these trials at NIMS, are not peer-reviewed,

admitted Dr Ganpat Devpura, Principal Investigator, NIMS, Jaipur. "This is

just an interim report with a sample size of 100 Covid-19 patients. The

final report and the findings will be published after 15-25 days and then it

will be sent for peer review," said Dr. Devpura.

Rajasthan Health Minister Raghu Sharma said the clinical trial process was

done without following the due process and without informing the government.

"There are clear guidelines for clinical trials which weren't followed.

During a pandemic threatening the world, this sort of action is absolutely

unacceptable..I have instructed officials to take action if any attempt is

made to sell this drug as a potential medicine of Covid-19 in Rajasthan," he

said.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government is set to issue a notice to Patanjali

for launching a drug claiming to be a remedy for Covid-19 despite applying a

licence only for an immunity booster against cough and fever.

DIESEL BECOMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN PETROL IN DELHI

The price of diesel in New Delhi surpassed the price of petrol for the first

time ever with OMCs hiking the price of diesel by 48 paise per litre to Rs

79.88 even as the price of petrol was at Rs 79.76, not hiked for the first

time in 18 days. The price of diesel has traditionally been lower than that

of petrol and continues to be lower in all other parts of the country.

INDIAN RESTAURANT VANDALISED IN US, RACIST GRAFFITI WRITTEN AT SITE

An Indian restaurant has been vandalised with racist graffiti written amid

the devastation left by the attack in New Mexico state. Local leaders and

the community are rallying behind the Sikh-owned restaurant, India Palace,

in Santa Fe, which suffered $100,000 in damages during the attack discovered

on Monday.

Besides causing extensive damage to the restaurant, the vandals had written

slogans in support of President Donald Trump and "White Power", and racist

remarks like "Go Home".

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham tweeted on Tuesday, "We will not stand for

such hatred in New Mexico." She added that she had spoken to restaurant

owner Bajit Singh to "let him know that our community is with him".

Mayor Alan Webber described the vandalism a "sickening and appalling" hate

crime and vowed, "We will find whoever did it and punish them to the full

extent of the law." He said, "The Singhs are a long-standing Sikh family

that has used its own resources to feed homeless Santa Feans through the

goodness of their hearts. For them to be attacked this way breaks our

hearts."

INDICATORS

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74,470

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US$-Rs. 75.36 GBP-Rs. 94.02, Euro-Rs. 85.05, UAE Dhm-Rs.20.51, Can$-Rs.

55.48, Aus$- Rs. 52.04

GBP 0.80 /US$, Euro 0.88 /US$, Jap.Yen 106.73 /US$, Aus$ 1.44 /US$, Sing

1.38 /US$, Bang Taka 83.21 /US$, Can$ 1.35 /US$, Mal Ring 4.27 /US$,

Pak Re 166.91 /US$, Phil Peso 50.01 /US$, Russian Rouble 69.09 /US$, NZ$

1.55 /US$, Thai Baht 30.82 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 26.48 /US$, Norway NOK 9.57

/US$

Bitcoin - USD 9,249

Dollar Index 97.24 Brent Crude 40.04 BDI 1,617

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,761 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 4,841 / 4,741

Silver (Rs. Per KG) 48,510

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is

rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong. - Lao Tzu

OFF TRACK

The politician was sitting at his campaign headquarters when the phone rang.

He listened intently, and after a moment his face brightened. When he hung

up, he immediately phoned his mother to tell her the good news.

"Amma," he shouted, "the results are in. I won the election!"

"Honestly?"

The politician's smiled faded. "Oh, amma!, why bring that up at a time like

this?"