INDIA TO GET 30 US ARMED DRONES

In a strategic move, India has okayed a proposal to procure 30 armed drones, called MQ9B Guardian, from the US. Once done, it will be the biggest military deal in dollar terms between the two countries. The deal is expected to be worth Rs 32,000 crore (nearly $4 billion).

The drone made by General Atomics is available in multiple variants. It can be used to target enemy positions on ground, warships at sea, airbases and even small targets like planes, besides for 24x7 surveillance capability.

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the apex decision-making body of the Ministry of Defence, on Thursday approved the proposal. It will now have to be cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security before negotiations begin with the US as it is likely to be a deal done through the foreign military sales route adopted by the US. The development comes ahead of PM Narendra Modi’s visit to the US from June 21 to 24.

The armed drones will change the battlescape and New Delhi’s prowess. At present, India doesn’t have long endurance armed drones that can fire missiles at desired targets and return to the base. New Delhi will be getting the same drones as available to the US forces and its allies like the UK.

UN ADOPTS INDIA-PILOTED RESOLUTION TO HONOUR FALLEN PEACEKEEPERS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said he was delighted that the resolution to establish Memorial Wall for Fallen Peacekeepers, piloted by India, had been adopted in the UN General Assembly (UNGA). “The resolution received a record 190 co-sponsorships. Grateful for everyone’s support,” he tweeted.

Earlier yesterday, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on honouring fallen peacekeepers by establishing a memorial wall. It also passed a resolution on promoting a culture of peace.

India’s Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj had introduced the draft resolution “Memorial wall for fallen UN peacekeepers”, pointing out that more than 10 lakh men and women from 125 countries have served in 71 peacekeeping missions worldwide. “Even today, over 80,000 peacekeepers serve in various conflict zones, enduring harsh conditions and risking their lives to maintain peace,” she said. “However, this has come at a cost — more than 4,200 peacekeepers have laid down their lives in the service of the blue flag. These brave men and women, who came from different parts of the world, practiced different faiths and followed different cultures, were united by the cause of peace, their spirit of selfless sacrifice, professionalism and resolve. They made the supreme sacrifice in the pursuit of mandates that we, as member states, requested them to carry out,” she said. “The resolution received 190 co-sponsorships, a testimony to the faith in India’s contributions and intent,” said EAM S Jaishankar.

UCC: OPPOSITION CLAIMS GOVT DESPERATE TO CONTINUE POLARISATION AGENDA

The Congress and other opposition parties Thursday attacked the Centre over the Law Commission’s move on the uniform civil code, calling it the government’s desperation for continuing with its agenda of polarisation and diversion from its glaring failures.

The ruling BJP hit back accusing them of “constantly sacrificing women rights, women empowerment and women issues” at the altars of vote bank politics and charged the Congress with succumbing to “fundamentalists”.

While the Janata Dal (United) said the UCC is not a “political instrumentality” to be hurriedly imposed, the TMC said the government was fanning divisive politics out of “desperation.” The BJP, however, asserted it was committed towards implementing the uniform civil code (UCC) in the country.

Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said it is strange that the Law Commission is seeking a fresh reference when it acknowledges that its predecessor, the 21st Law Commission, had published a consultation paper on the subject in August 2018. He said no reasons have been given by the Law Commission on why the subject is being revisited except for vague references to “the relevance and importance of the subject and also, various court orders”. “This latest attempt represents the Modi government’s desperation for a legitimate justification of its continuing agenda of polarisation and diversion from its glaring failures,” he charged.

The BJP slammed the Congress over its remark, saying it has succumbed to pressure from the “fundamentalists” and is opposing the move for vote bank politics.

RUSSIAN OIL FOR PAK REFINED IN INDIA

The first consignment of Russian oil that arrived in Karachi on Sunday was refined in an Indian refinery in Gujarat. But keeping Islamabad’s sensitivities in mind, it was shipped via the United Arab Emirates.

The move helped Moscow achieve two aims. First, it ensured that India will not be upset by its oil deal with Pakistan. Second, a discounted source of oil to Pakistan will help it negotiate with a stronger hand with the west-dominated IMF for removing subsidies from pump prices. The removal of subsidies would have made petrol and diesel costlier which would have made the present Pakistan government unpopular.

The Pakistan government stalled for some time, but gave in. However, Pakistan PM Shahbaz Sharif did not mention the conditions in his statement where he said, “One lakh tonne oil deal has been signed with Russia. We got 45,000 tonnes of them.”

Pakistan’s Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik also mentioned the pre-condition. “I have fulfilled another of my promises to the nation. This is the first-ever Russian oil cargo to Pakistan and the beginning of a new relationship between Pakistan and the Russian Federation,” he had tweeted. The oil is being supplied to Pakistan reportedly at $64 per barrel as against the market price of around $80 per barrel.

The Russian oil was loaded into a crude oil tanker from Russia’s Primorsk on May 8 and reached Wadinar in Gujarat where it was refined and then sent to the UAE. The consignment then left UAE on June 6 and reached Karachi five days later.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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BOJO MISLED HOUSE OVER COVID LOCKDOWN PARTIES, SAYS REPORT

Boris Johnson deliberately misled the British parliament in an unprecedented way over rule-breaking parties at his office during Covid-19 lockdowns, a committee said on Thursday in a damning verdict that further tarnished the former PM. A year ago, Johnson was talking about remaining PM into the 2030s. But the privileges committee — the main disciplinary body for lawmakers — said Thursday he should now be stripped of having automatic access to parliament. The committee also accused Johnson of being “complicit in a campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation” towards them.

Johnson, who in 2019 led the Conservatives to a landslide election victory, dismissed the report as “a lie” and “a charade”, and accused committee members of waging a vendetta against him. The stand-off will do little to heal the deep divisions in the Conservatives and can only pile pressure on PM Rishi Sunak, whose push to try to boost Britain’s flagging economy is being overshadowed by the ongoing Johnson drama.

N KOREA FIRES TWO MISSILES AFTER WARNING RESPONSE TO ALLIED DRILLS

North Korea fired two short-range missiles off its east coast on Thursday, the South Korean military said, less than an hour after Pyongyang warned of an “inevitable” response to military drills staged earlier in the day by South Korean and US troops. The latest action by North Korea came as US President Joe Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, was in Tokyo for meetings.

In a meeting with NSAs of South Korea and Japans on Thursday, the three discussed North Korea’s missile programme and confirmed that they would work closely together to get Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear weapons, according to a readout of the meeting released by Japan.

A spokesperson for North Korea’s ministry of national defence said the drills were escalating the military tension in the region and its forces would sternly respond to “any kind of protests or provocations by enemies”.

THE REST

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BIPARJOY BATTERS GUJARAT COAST, TRAIL OF DESTRUCTION FEARED; 2 KILLED

Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall near Jakhau Port in Gujarat on Thursday evening with a wind speed of 115-125 kmph gusting to 140 kmph as heavy rains lashed the coastal region, where several areas plunged into darkness due to power cuts and a large number of trees, electric poles and hoardings got uprooted.

A relief and rescue operation was underway with multiple teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) deployed in the affected districts, while and Armed Forces were on standby for any emergency situation, officials said. Biparjoy unleashed destructive wind speed and incessant rains as trees and electricity poles were uprooted, while seawater entered villages located in low-lying areas, they said.

A cattle-rearer duo of father and son died while trying to save their goats stuck in a flooded ravine in Bhavnagar district. Several parts of the state, including Bhavnagar, received considerable rain as the cyclone made landfall.

YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO BEAR THE CONSEQUENCES: STALIN WARNS BJP

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Thursday warned the BJP not to 'provoke' the DMK, saying it will not be able to 'bear the consequences', escalating his attack on the saffron party after the arrest of his cabinet colleague V Senthil Balaji.

Stalin also alleged that the BJP leadership wants to do its 'politics through the ED'.

"Turn back the pages of history to know the kind of agitations done by the DMK. Else, ask the senior leaders in Delhi. Don't provoke. If you provoke the DMK or the DMK worker you will not be able to bear the consequences. We also know all types of politics. This is not a threat, but a warning," he said targeting the BJP in a video message posted on his official Twitter handle.

The Madras high court, meanwhile, allowed the shifting of Balaji, who is under medical treatment at a Chennai government hospital, to a private facility. A division bench of Justices J Nisha Banu and D Bharatha Chakravarthy also said there was 'no question of enlarging him on bail', as Balaji was under judicial custody.

The court, at the same time, said Balaji will continue to remain in judicial custody and allowed the ED to have its own team of doctors also to examine the minister. A sessions court on Wednesday sent Balaji to judicial custody till June 28.

3 SHOT DEAD IN CLASHES DURING BENGAL PANCHAYAT POLL NOMINATIONS

Three persons were shot dead and several others were injured as violence and arson marked the conclusion of nomination filing for the three-tier West Bengal panchayat polls slated next month.

Two persons were killed at Bhangore in South 24 Parganas district, around 30 km from Kolkata, while another youth was gunned down by miscreants at Chopra in Uttar Dinajpur district, around 50 Km from Siliguri, in the northern part of the state, police said.

Several incidents of clashes were reported from different parts of the state as the police had a harrowing time controlling the situation.

The violence triggered a political slugfest between the opposition CPI-M, the Congress and the BJP -- and the ruling Trinamool Congress, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accusing the opposition of trying to malign the state by orchestrating the violence.

She denied any involvement of her party workers in the incidents of violence, stating that the TMC has instructed its members to allow all candidates to file their nominations.

HOUSES SET ABLAZE IN MANIPUR; TRIBAL GROUP MOVES SC OVER GOVTS’ ‘COMMUNAL AGENDA’

At least two houses were set on fire by a mob in Imphal on Thursday, a day after an attack in the Khamenlok area bordering Imphal East and Kangpokpi districts of Manipur left nine dead and 10 others injured, officials said. Security forces, in an attempt to quell the mob, had to use force and fired tear gas shells at the mob at New Checkon in Imphal, they said.

This happened as the Army and Assam Rifles intensified their area domination operations in the aftermath of the recent spurt in violence in the strife-torn state of Manipur. The state government has extended the suspension of Internet services for the ninth time till June 20.

Amid escalation in ethnic violence, an NGO has moved the Supreme Court (SC), accusing the Centre and the state Chief Minister of pursuing a communal agenda aimed at the “ethnic cleansing” of Kukis.

ANTI-CONVERSION LAW: KARNATAKA GOVT TO SCRAP TWEAKS MADE IN BJP RULE

The Karnataka government has decided to repeal the amendments passed by the erstwhile BJP government to the anti-conversion law, the state’s Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil said Thursday.

The Karnataka Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021, commonly referred to as the anti-conversion Bill, prohibits conversion from one religion to another by misrepresentation, force, fraud, allurement or marriage. Anyone found guilty can be imprisoned for three to five years with a fine of Rs 25,000. If minors, women or members of the SC/ST communities are illegally converted, the offender can face up to 10 years in prison. It was passed in September, 2022.

When it was in the opposition, the Congress had termed it anti-constitutional and anti-minority. Christian groups have also, in the past, staged protests against the legislation.

CHARGESHEET FILED AGAINST WFI CHIEF FOR SEXUAL ABUSE, STALKING

The Delhi Police yesterday recommended dropping of POCSO charges against BJP MP and WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh but charged him with sexual harassment and stalking six women wrestlers in a 1500-page chargesheet.

The government had assured the agitating wrestlers, including Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik and fellow Olympian Vinesh Phogat, that the chargesheet would be filed by June 15, following which they had suspended their stir.

The police recommended the cancellation of the complaint filed by the minor wrestler, citing “no corroborative evidence”. The police submitted a report based upon the statements of the complainant, who is the father of the minor, and the girl herself, a statement issued by Delhi Police PRO Suman Nalwa said.

2016 Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik, at the forefront of the protest against Singh, flagged concerns and questioned the manner in which police dealt with the minor’s complaint.

“In the POCSO case, if Brij Bhushan was arrested when the minor’s statement was (first) recorded before a magistrate, then the minor would not have withdrawn the complaint. And not only that. Other girls would have also come forward and complained (about sexual harassment). There was pressure and threats is what I have heard. The court will have to decide what to do (with the statement),” says Sakshi.

GOVT SET TO GARNER RECORD RS 63,000 CRORE IN DIVIDEND FROM LISTED PSUS

The government is expected to net an all-time high equity dividend of Rs 63,056 crore from 67 listed public-sector undertakings (PSUs) for FY23, based on the final dividend proposed so far by these companies for last fiscal year.

The amount is 24.7 per cent higher than the dividend of Rs 50,583 crore the government netted for FY22 from listed PSUs.

Public-sector banks (PSBs) and financial institutions are expected to contribute around Rs 18,000 crore for FY23. That is an increase of 56 per cent over their FY22 contribution of Rs 11,525 crore.

Non-financial PSUs are expected to contribute around Rs 45,000 crore, up 15.4 per cent over the Rs 39,059 crore in the previous year.

FIRST SYNTHETIC HUMAN EMBRYO MODEL CREATED FROM STEM CELLS

In a major breakthrough, scientists from the University of Cambridge and California Institute of Technology have reported creating the world’s first synthetic human embryo models using stem cells and without using eggs or sperm.

These structures have no organs like the brain or the heart and are at very early stages of human development. But these have cells that would proceed to form the placenta, yolk sac and the embryo, said scientist.

Scientists said the study was triggered by their need to understand the black box period of human development. The black box period is the period following 14 days after fertilisation, which is the agreed limit for scientists to grow and study embryos in a lab.

PRANNOY, CHIRAG-SATWIK ENTER QUARTERFINALS; SINDHU FALTERS

Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy registered straight-game wins to advance to the men’s singles quarterfinals but it was curtains for double Olympics medallist PV Sindhu at the Indonesia Open Super 1000 here today.

Taking the court first, Srikanth used his vast experience to quell the challenge of Lakshya Sen 21-17 22-20 in an all-Indian second round duel. It was a hard-fought battle between the two Indians but Srikanth reigned supreme in the crucial moments with his calmness and experience to prevail over Sen in a match that lasted 45 minutes.

Seventh seed Prannoy then took just 43 minutes to get the better of Angus Ng Ka Long of Hong Kong 21-18 21-16.

Sindhu made an early exit once again, losing 21-18 21-16 to her nemesis and world No. 3 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei in a women’s singles second round match. Tai Tzu, seeded third, has been the opponent Sindhu had struggled against the most in the international arena and it was no better here with the Chinese Taipei shuttler enhancing her head-to-head record over the Indian to a staggering 19-5.

World No. 5 men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty sailed past China’s He Ji Ting and Zhou Hao Dong 21-17 21-15 in 46 minutes. The seventh-seeded Indians will be up against top seeds Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto in the quarterfinals.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Vision without action is merely a dream, action without vision is merely passing time, but vision with action can change the world. - Nelson Mandela

OFF TRACK

The All India Institute For Medical Sciences had advertised for participants for a study of obsessive- compulsive disorders. They were looking for people who'd been diagnosed with the condition.

The response they got was amazing. Within three days, they received over 3700 responses.

Unfortunately, they were all from the same person.