CURRENT AFFAIRS
30 January 2021
NATIONAL NEWS:
A) India’s GDP to grow 11% in FY 2022, aided by V-shaped recovery: Economic Survey.
India’s economic growth is likely to rebound with a 11% growth in the next financial year as it makes a ‘V-shaped’ recovery after suffering a pandemic-led carnage, according to the Pre-Budget Economic Survey, released on Friday. It needs to be kept in mind, however, that the GDP is projected to contract by a record 7.7% in the current fiscal ending March 31, 2021. This means that the 11% growth projection is on a much smaller base. India’s last annual contraction was in 1979-80, when the GDP shrank by 5.2%. The Economic Survey 2020-21 said the agriculture sector was the only silver lining while services, manufacturing and construction were most hit by the lockdown. After an estimated 7.7% pandemic-driven contraction in 2020-21, India’s real GDP is projected to record a growth of 11.0% in 2021-22 and nominal GDP by 15.4%. These conservative estimates reflect upside potential that can manifest due to the continued normalisation in economic activities as the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines gathers traction, the Survey said. The growth will be further supported by supply-side push from reforms and easing of regulations, push for infrastructural investments, boost to manufacturing sector through the Productivity Linked Incentive Schemes, recovery of pent-up demand for services, and increase in discretionary consumption subsequent to roll-out of the vaccine, it said. The survey, tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, said there was likely to be a fiscal slippage during the year based on the available trends for April to November 2020. India is expected to witness a current account surplus during the current financial year after a gap of 17 years, the report said.
B) Unrest at Singhu border as groups of violent men attack farmers.
Days after the chaos witnessed in the national capital on Republic Day, violence again erupted as a group of men claiming to be ‘locals’ stormed the farmers’ protest site at Singhu border near Delhi, demanding that the area be vacated. They went on to pelt stones and vandalised the tents of the protesting farmers. It is worth noting that the farmers had been protesting peacefully at this site for nearly two months. Multiple videos shared by reporters and independent journalists on social media showed security personnel standing mute witnesses as the group of ‘locals’ marched freely through the heavily barricaded and guarded approach to the Singhu protest site and launched attacks on the farmers camped there. They could also be seen chanting ‘Goli Maaro’ [shoot them] slogans, which were last used in early 2020 by groups opposed to the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Unrest at Singhu border is not a case of locals clashing with agitating farmers, but a concerted effort by goons to attack the farmers protest, said activist Yogendra Yadav, one of the spokespersons of the protesting farmers. Meanwhile, following an emotional speech by Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait, triggered by a police attempt to forcibly evict farmers from the Ghazipur protest site on the night of January 28, thousands of more farmers were reportedly on their way to Ghazipur and Singhu protest sites in a show of solidarity with their fellow farmers. In a related development, Congress President Rahul Gandhi, in a press conference today warned the Narendra Modi government that if it doesn’t take steps to resolve the farmers’ unrest quickly, it could soon spread to other parts of the country. The only to way to resolve the issue, he said, was to repeal the three laws, and unless this demand is met, the farmers are not going to go home.
C) India could be reduced to ‘a country of incarcerated artists and flourishing lapdogs,’ Kunal Kamra tells SC.
Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, facing contempt for scandalising the Supreme Court with his tweets, said the phenomenon of taking offence to comedy or satire has been elevated to the status of a much-loved indoor sport in a growing culture of intolerance. The suggestion that his tweets could shake the foundations of the most powerful court in the world is an over-estimation of his abilities. Just as the Supreme Court values the faith public places in it, it should also trust the public not to form its opinions of the court on the basis of a few jokes on Twitter. His tweets were not published with the intention of diminishing the faith of the people in the highest court, Kamra said in a six-page reply to the suo motu contempt notice against him. Taking offence was now seen as a fundamental right, Kamra said. Comedians like Munawar Faruqui are jailed for jokes they did not make. School students are interrogated for sedition, Kamra told the Supreme Court. Hope the court will demonstrate that free speech is a cardinal constitutional value. If the powerful are unable to tolerate rebuke and criticism, they will be reduced to a country of incarcerated artists and flourishing lapdogs, Kamra said. Jokes need no defence, he wrote, pointing out that they were based on a comedian’s perception. His job was to share his perception with his audience and make them laugh. Most people do not react to jokes that do not make them laugh. They ignore them like our political leaders ignore their critics. That is where the life of a joke must end, he told the Supreme Court.
D) Govt will abide by SC order to stay rollout of farm laws, says President; condemns Republic Day violence.
The Union Government respects the Supreme Court and will abide by its decision to stay the implementation of the three farm laws, President Ram Nath Kovind told a joint sitting of Parliament on Friday, even as he strongly defended the new laws and asserted that 10 crore small farmers have benefited from them. Referring to the violence during the tractor parade and the chaos after groups of farmers stormed the Red Fort on January 26, the President said it was unfortunate that the national flag was disrespected on the occasion of Republic Day. The government has always respected freedom of expression and the holding of peaceful agitations in a democratic set-up. However, the recent acts of dishonouring the national flag and showing disrespect to the auspicious occasion of the Republic Day are unfortunate, Kovind said. While the Constitution gives us the right to freedom of expression, it is also expected that we abide by the laws and rules with equal sincerity, the President said. While the President’s address prepared by the Cabinet to showcase the achievements of the union government dwelt on agricultural reforms at length, it was boycotted by more than 20 Opposition parties, including the Congress.
E) Budget to be seen as building on ‘mini-budgets’: PM Modi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi termed the current Budget Session the first of this decade and an opportunity to fulfill the dreams of freedom fighters. The last year was also a year which saw not one but several mini-budget-like packages announced as we dealt with the Covid-19 pandemic, and this budget is to be seen as part of that series of mini-budgets presented by the government last year, said Modi, offering key hints on the Union budget to be presented on February 1. Modi added that the government would take every step to fulfill the expectations of the people and hoped that all members of Parliament would direct their energy to this goal. The Budget Session of Parliament will be held between January 29 and April 8, with a recess from February 15 to March 7. The continued protest by farmer unions on the three agriculture-related laws cleared by Parliament in the last Monsoon Session is expected to make this a stormy session.
F) Dr Reddy’s eyes March launch of Sputnik V vaccine under Emergency Use Authorisation.
Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, which is conducting phase-3 trials of Russia’s Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V, believes the jab can be expected to be launched in India through Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA), a senior official of the city-based drug maker said on Friday. The phase-3 trial is currently ongoing. We are dosing patients and we expect to complete the dosing as part of the phase-3 trials by February. After that they expect to compile the data and submit for Emergency Use Authorisation, and make the request to the DCGI with our dossier, company’s CEO of APIs and Pharmaceutical Services Deepak Sapra said. In September last, Dr. Reddy’s partnered with Russia Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to conduct the clinical trials of the Sputnik V vaccine and for its distribution rights in India. Based on the approval from the DCGI, we believe that we should be in a position to launch the vaccine through a EUA in the month of March 2021 (in India), Sapra said at a press conference in Hyderabad. Sputnik V, developed by the Gamaleya National Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, was registered by the Ministry of Health of Russia and became the world’s first registered vaccine against Covid-19 based on the established human adenoviral vector platform.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
A) U.S. is bombarding civilians in breach of Afghan deal: Taliban.
The Taliban on Friday rejected Washington’s accusations that it had not lived up to its promises in Afghanistan, in turn claiming the U.S. was ‘bombarding civilians’. The U.S. signed a landmark deal with the insurgents last year, agreeing to withdraw its troops from the country in return for security guarantees after a stalemate on the battlefield. The other side have violated the agreement, almost every day they are violating it, Mohammad Naeem, a Taliban spokesman said. They are bombarding civilians, houses and villages, and we have informed them from time to time, these are not just violations of the agreement but violations of human rights. The U.S military has in recent months carried out air strikes against the Taliban fighters in defence of Afghan forces in some provinces. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid added on Twitter that the allegations against the group were unfounded and that it was fully committed to the agreement. John Kirby told reporters on Thursday that the Biden administration remains committed to the Taliban-U.S. deal and ending the war in a responsible way. However, he said, the Taliban are not meeting their commitments to reduce violence, and to renounce their ties to al-Qaeda. They are still involved in trying to get a negotiated settlement, he added. The agreement, signed in Doha last year, required the Taliban to halt attacks on U.S. forces, sharply decrease the level of violence in the country, and advance peace talks with the government in Kabul.
B) Biden taps nuclear deal veteran to resume negotiations with Iran.
The new U.S. administration under Joe Biden has named Rob Malley, an architect of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, as its special envoy to resume talks with Tehran, defying pressure from hawks who accuse him of being too conciliatory toward the Islamic republic. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is building a dedicated team, drawing from clear-eyed experts with a diversity of views, State Department spokesman Ned Price said. Mr. Malley, a childhood friend of Mr. Blinken, has been serving as head of the International Crisis Group, an independent non-governmental organisation focused on conflict resolution. Before that, he was one of the chief negotiators on the 2015 nuclear deal reached by Iran and world powers, under which Tehran was promised economic relief for curbs in its contested nuclear programme. The deal was reached under Barack Obama.
C) Pfizer vaccine not linked to deaths: EU regulator.
The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab has no link to reported post-vaccination deaths and no new side effects, the EU’s medicines regulator said on Friday based on the first data from the vaccine’s rollout. The update by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) followed reports that dozens of mainly elderly people had died in Norway and other European countries after receiving a first shot of the vaccine. The EMA said it had concluded that the data did not show a link to vaccination with Comirnaty (the name of the vaccine) and the cases do not raise a safety concern. The benefits of Comirnaty in preventing COVID-19 continue to outweigh any risks, and there are no recommended changes regarding the use of the vaccine, the EMA said. The EMA authorised AstraZeneca’s vaccine for use in adults throughout the EU on Friday, amid criticism the bloc is not moving fast enough to vaccinate its population. The regulator licensed the vaccine to be used in people 18 and over.
