CHINA PROPOSES VISITS, EVENTS TO REVIVE INDIA TALKS

Two years into the military standoff along the LAC in Ladakh, Beijing has reached out to New Delhi to revive bilateral dialogue and set the stage for the BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) summit in China later this year.

Beijing has proposed a series of events to kickstart the dialogue, starting with possible high-level visits from both sides.

To begin with, Beijing has proposed a visit by Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi to India as early as this month. This is to be followed by a reciprocal visit by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. The Chinese side has also proposed a series of high-level visits by its top Politburo members and key officials in President Xi Jinping’s regime.

The Chinese have also proposed an ‘India-China Civilization Dialogue’ to be held in both countries. They have also proposed an India-China Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum and an India-China Film Forum.

But China’s ultimate and clear objective is to host Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the in-person BRICS summit which will be attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin as well. China, which also holds the chair for the RIC (Russia-India-China) trilateral this year, could also host the leaders’ summit on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.

In the current circumstances, it is politically difficult for Modi to attend an in-person meeting with Xi — when the border standoff has still not been resolved.

The last BRICS summit to take place in China was in Xiamen in September 2017 which was attended by Modi. In fact, the Doklam border standoff was resolved after two-and-half months, just before the BRICS summit.

ENCOURAGING INDIA TO STAND UP AGAINST PUTIN: WH

The United States remains in touch with Indian leaders and continues to encourage them to work closely with it to stand up against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the White House said on Wednesday.

"As you know, we remain in touch through a range of channels from our national security team with leaders in India and continue to encourage leaders to work closely with us to stand up against President Putin's invasion of Ukraine," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference.

Over the past two weeks, the Biden administration has shown an understanding of India's position on Russia given the complexity of its ties with Russia and over-dependence on Moscow for military and security needs.

"We recognise that India has a complicated history and relationship with Russia," Ely Ratner, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, told members of the House Armed Services Committee during a hearing.

END SOCIAL MEDIA INTERFERENCE IN OUR DEMOCRACY: SONIA GANDHI TO GOVT

A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi cited the film “The Kashmir Files” to claim that an “entire ecosystem” has been working to suppress the truth, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi today red-flagged the “rising danger of social media abuse to influence the Indian democracy”, urging the government to put an end to the “systematic interference” of Facebook and other social media giants in India’s electoral politics.

Making a zero hour submission in the Lok Sabha, Gandhi referred to a report published in Al Jazeera and The Reporters’ Collective to claim that Facebook offered BJP cheaper deals for election advertisements as compared to other political parties.

A toxic ecosystem of proxy advertisers posing as news media is flourishing on Facebook “bypassing election laws of the nation breaking Facebook’s own rules and completely suppressing voice of those speaking up against the government”, she also said, terming the issue “ beyond partisan politics and important for all parties irrespective of whosoever is in power”.

“Global companies like Facebook and Twitter are being used increasingly to shape political narratives by leaders, political parties and their proxies. Evidence showed a growing nexus between big corporations, the ruling establishment and global social media giants like Facebook,” she said.

When asked by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla what her demand was, Gandhi said, “I urge the government to put an end to the systematic influence and interference of Facebook and other social media giants in the electoral politics of the world’s largest democracy.”

INDIAN OIL CORPORATION BUYS RUSSIAN CRUDE AT DEEP DISCOUNT

Indian Oil Corporation has bought as much as 3 million barrels of crude oil that Russia had offered at steep discount to prevailing international rates. Sources aware of the matter said IOC bought Urals crude for May delivery at a discount of USD 20-25 a barrel to dated Brent.

IOC made the purchase on modified terms that require the seller to deliver it to the Indian coast so as to avoid any complications that sanctions may lead to in arranging shipping and insurance.

Unlike the sanctions the US imposed on Iran over its controversial nuclear programme, oil and energy trade with Russia has not been banned. This means international payment systems are available to settle any purchase made from Russia, they said.

COVID DASHBOARD – INDIA

As of 0800 IST / March 17

from mohfw.gov.in ,

New Cases on Wednesday 2,539

Active Cases 30,799 (-2,012)

Total Deaths (Deaths Yesterday) 5,16,132 (22)

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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RAY OF HOPE? RUSSIA, UKRAINE TALK COMPROMISE

New talk of compromise from both Moscow and Kyiv on a status for Ukraine outside of Nato lifted hope on Wednesday for a potential breakthrough after three weeks of war. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said negotiations were becoming “more realistic”, while Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said proposals now being discussed were “close to an agreement”. Russian President Putin, who ordered his troops into Ukraine on February 24, said Moscow was ready to discuss neutral status for its neighbour.

The Kremlin said the sides were discussing status for Ukraine similar to that of Austria or Sweden, both members of the European Union that are outside the Nato military alliance. Ukraine’s chief negotiator said Kyiv was still demanding a ceasefire and withdrawal of Russian troops.

Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Mykhailo Podolyak, said Kyiv was seeking direct Zelensky-Putin talks. Moscow has said they could meet but only to finalise an agreement already hammered out.

International pressure against Moscow mounted and its isolation deepened as the 47-nation Council of Europe, the continent’s foremost human rights body, expelled Russia. And the International Court of Justice ordered it to stop attacking Ukraine, though there was little hope it would comply.

President Biden on Wednesday called President Putin a war criminal as the atrocities in Ukraine mount. While other world leaders have used these words, the White House had so far been hesitant to declare Putin’s actions those of a war criminal, saying it was a legal term that required research. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called Biden’s remark “unacceptable and unforgivable rhetoric”.

ZELENSKYY TELLS US CONGRESS, ‘WE NEED YOU RIGHT NOW’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy cited Pearl Harbor and the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 on Wednesday as he appealed to the US Congress to do more to help Ukraine’s fight against Russia.

Livestreamed into the Capitol complex, Zelenskyy said the US must sanction Russian lawmakers and block imports, and he showed a packed auditorium of US lawmakers an emotional video of the destruction and devastation in his country has suffered in the war.

“We need you right now,” Zelenskyy said, adding, “I call on you to do more.”

Appearing in his now-trademark army green T-shirt as he appeals to world leaders, Zelenskyy has emerged as a heroic figure at the center of what many view as the biggest security threat to Europe since World War II. Almost 3 million refugees have fled Ukraine, the fastest exodus in modern times.

Invoking Shakespeare’s hero last week, Zelenskyy asked the British House of Commons whether Ukraine is “to be or not to be.” On Tuesday, he appealed to “Dear Justin” as he addressed the Canadian Parliament and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Zelenskyy called on European Union leaders at the start of the war to do the politically unthinkable and fast-track Ukraine’s membership  and he has continued to push for more help to save his young democracy than world leaders have so far pledged to do.

THE REST

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BHAGWANT MANN SWORN IN

From a comedian to Punjab chief minister, Bhagwant Mann has seen a phenomenal rise in a political career of just over a decade. Mann on Wednesday was sworn in as chief minister at Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.

Mann, 48, was elected twice as an MP from Sangrur before his legislative assembly debut this time. He now becomes the first non-Congress and non-Akali leader to become the CM after the reorganisation of Punjab in 1966.

Inviting people of Punjab to his oath-taking ceremony, Mann told them it will be their government.

Mann, in a video message, released earlier had invited the people of the state for his oath-taking ceremony, urging men to wear 'basanti (yellow)' turbans and women yellow 'dupatta' for the ceremony.

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia also sported yellow turbans at the ceremony, tied in a style inspired by Bhagat Singh's turban.

CONGRESS G-23 LEADERS PUSH FOR ‘INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIP’

Some members of the dissident G-23 group of Congress party met at Ghulam Nabi Azad’s residence over dinner on Wednesday. There were three new entrants — veteran leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, Lok Sabha MP and former Punjab CM Amarinder Singh’s wife Preneet Kaur, and Gujarat leader Shankarsinh Vaghela, who quit the Congress in 2017. Vaghela joined the NCP in 2019, but left last year. He is reported to be keen to return to the Congress.

And for the first time, they made the meeting official by issuing a statement signed by 18 leaders. “We the… members of the Congress party met to deliberate on the demoralising outcome of the recent results of the Assembly elections and the constant exodus of both our workers and leaders. We believe that the only way forward is for the Congress party to adopt the model of collective and inclusive leadership and decision-making at all levels,” the statement said.

“In order to oppose the BJP, it is necessary to strengthen the Congress party. We demand the Congress party to initiate dialogue with other like-minded forces to create a platform to pave the way for a credible alternative for 2024,” it said.

The 18 the signatories are: Azad, Anand Sharma, Kapil Sibal, Prithviraj Chavan, Manish Tewari, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Akhilesh Prasad Singh, Raj Babbar, Vaghela, Aiyar, Shashi Tharoor, P J Kurien, M A Khan, Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Sandeep Dikshit, Kuldeep Sharma, Vivek Tankha and Preneet Kaur.

Leader of the Opposition in RS Mallikarjun Kharge accused the G-23 leaders of trying to break the party by continuing to hold meetings even after the CWC discussed all the issues at its recent meeting.

CENTRE RINGS ALARM AMID COVID COMEBACK IN CHINA

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting in the wake of a humongous rise in the Covid-19 cases in China and South East Asia.

Mandaviya asked for a high level of alertness, aggressive genome sequencing and intensified surveillance. The meeting was attended by top health officials, including the health secretary, pharma secretary and the principal scientific adviser to the Government of India, sources added.

The meeting comes as China is seeing a comeback of Covid-19 cases led by an Omicron-led outbreak with the country on Wednesday reporting 3,290 fresh infections. China also huddled to free up hospital beds as the highly transmissible Omicron variant is posing a stern challenge to its zero-Covid strategy, resulting in the 17.5 million residents of the southern tech hub of Shenzhen being locked down and other cities also under tight restrictions.

Meanwhile, mortuaries in Hong Kong are overflowing with Covid victims as the country is reeling under a deadly outbreak led by the Omicron variant.

In under three months, since the highly transmissible variant broke through, Hong Kong has recorded nearly a million infections and more than 4,600 deaths — the bulk of them from the city’s unvaccinated elderly population.

Hailing the commencement of Covid inoculation drive for 12 to 14-year olds at government vaccination centres and booster shots for all 60-year plus from Wednesday, PM Narendra Modi noted that India’s vaccine campaign was people- driven unlike in other countries where vaccine hesitancy was a challenge.

SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS GOVT’S IMPLEMENTATION OF ONE RANK, ONE PENSION

The Supreme Court Wednesday upheld the central government’s decision on One Rank, One Pension (OROP) for defence forces and said that it does not find any constitutional infirmity in the manner in which it is being implemented.

A three-judge bench presided by Justice D Y Chandrachud which went into the “principles governing pensions and cut-off dates” said there “is not a legal mandate that pensioners who held the same rank must be given the same amount of pension” and that “the varying benefits that may be applicable to certain personnel which would also impact the pension payable need not be equalised with the rest of the personnel”.

Applying the “principles to the facts of the case”, the bench, also comprising Justice Surya Kant and Vikram Nath, said: “We find no constitutional infirmity in the OROP principle as defined by the communication dated 7 November 2015…” to the three service chiefs.

The petitioners had challenged the letter dated November 7, 2015, saying that in the course of implementation, the OROP principle has been replaced by ‘one rank multiple pensions’ for persons with the same length of service. They contended that the initial definition of the OROP was altered and instead of an automatic revision of the rates of pension under which any future enhancement to the rates of pension are automatically passed on to the past pensioners, the revision now would take place at periodic intervals. This deviation from automatic revision, they argued, is arbitrary and unconstitutional under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.

Rejecting the argument, the court held that “OROP definition is not arbitrary”.

DRAFT READY FOR 4-YEAR UG DEGREE WITH ‘COMMON’ COURSES

The UGC has prepared draft frameworks which, upon implementation, will overhaul the higher education structure — from undergraduate degrees to PhDs — from the next academic session, in tune with the National Education Policy, 2020.

UGC chairperson Prof M Jagadesh Kumar said the existing structure in undergraduate education “lacks multi or interdisciplinary flavour”. “Now, industries look for human resources with multiple capacities rather than specialists in one particular field. Therefore, students need to be exposed to a full range of holistic education, community engagement and service, environmental education and value-based education. Internships with local industry and businesses are also required in order to meet the demands of future jobs. For this to happen, the curriculum of general education needs to be transformed,” he said.

As per the proposed structure for four-year UG courses, students will study a set of “common” and “introductory” courses in natural sciences, humanities and social sciences during the first three semesters, regardless of what they choose to specialise in. The common courses include English language, a regional language, and courses on “understanding India”, environmental science, health and wellness or yoga and sports, Artificial Intelligence and big data analysis among others during the first three semesters.

At the end of the third semester, students will have to declare a “major”, which will be a subject they want to study in depth. The four-year course shall have 160 credits on offer, with one credit accounting for 15 hours of classroom teaching. “Both the academic interest of the student and his/ her performance in the first three semesters will be considered for allocating the disciplinary/ interdisciplinary major,” says the draft framework.

At the beginning of the seventh semester, students will have to take up a research project, which will be their only focus in the eighth and final semester, related to what they have chosen as “major”, says the draft.

KARACHI TEST: PAKISTAN PULL OFF AN UNLIKELY DRAW

Skipper Babar Azam produced a career-best 196 under immense pressure as Pakistan snatched draw from the jaws of defeat in the second Test against Australia on Wednesday.

Chasing a record 506 for an improbable win, Pakistan's best bet was to bat out the final day and Babar led by example as they finished on 443-7, the sixth highest fourth innings total of all time.

The hosts were on the back foot after folding for 148 in reply to Australia's massive first innings total of 556-9 at the National Stadium.

The record victory target was never within Pakistan's reach but Babar's marathon 228-run partnership with opener Abdullah Shafique (96) kept them afloat in the contest.

Australia began the final day needing eight wickets to go 1-0 up in the three-Test series. Pakistan, on the other hand, required 314 runs in 90 overs to pull off Test cricket's greatest chase or, alternatively, bat out three sessions to force a draw.

Scores - Australia 556 for 9 dec and 97 for 2 dec; Pakistan 148 and 443 for 7

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Thinking will not overcome fear, but action will. - W. Clement Stone

OFF TRACK

A salesman was testifying in his divorce proceedings against his wife.

"Please describe," said his attorney, "the incident that first caused you to entertain suspicions as to your wife's fidelity."

"Well, I'm pretty much on the road all week," the man testified. "So naturally when I am home, I'm attentive to the wife.

"One Sunday morning," he continued, "we were in the midst of some pretty heavy love-making when the old lady in the apartment next door pounded on the wall and yelled, 'Can't you at least stop all that racket on the weekends?'"