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EDITORIAL TODAY (ENGLISH)

In this section, we are presenting our readers/aspirants compilation of selected editorials of national daily viz. The Hindu, The live mint,The Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Economic Times, PIB etc. This section caters the requirement of Civil Services Mains (GS + Essay) , PCS, HAS Mains (GS + Essay) & others essay writing competition

1. A robust friendship: On Modi-Putin summit meeting

India and Russia have to navigate a complex geopolitical landscape while deepening ties

Russian President Vladimir Putin has concluded a short summit meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, highlighting the “all-weather” partnership between the two countries despite trying global circumstances. Not only does the President’s visit come as the world faces the grim prospect of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it also follows years of growing proximity between New Delhi and Washington, a potential irritant to Moscow. Simultaneously, the China factor has been steadily pulling the India-Russia bilateral tango in all the wrong directions. While Russia relies on cordial ties with China to stabilise its interests in an unstable Afghanistan post the U.S.’s exit, New Delhi and Beijing have scarcely seen eye-to-eye on border tensions and geo-political rivalry across the Asia region. Notwithstanding these reasons for possible strategic dissonance, India and Russia reaffirmed the strength of their abiding deep, multi-decade ties, building further confidence in each other through substantive defence agreements. Moscow has agreed on a 10-year military-technical plan that includes technology transfer to India. And trade received a fillip through an agreement for India to produce more than 600,000 Kalashnikov assault rifles. For India’s part, despite resistance from Washington through its Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, New Delhi will proceed with purchasing the S-400 missile defence system from Moscow.

The challenges facing Mr. Modi and Mr. Putin in terms of maintaining this momentum in bilateral exchanges are multidimensional. First, and most imminently, the pandemic has periodically crippled the growth of both economies and the threats to public health remain despite considerable progress with vaccinations. Second, Russia-U.S. ties are showing signs of fraying yet again, this time over U.S. President Joe Biden’s intention, reportedly, to warn Mr. Putin that Russia will face “economy-jarring sanctions” if it seeks to occupy Ukraine, a fear that has grown in the U.S. as Russian troops massed near the Ukraine border. India has so far held firm to its mantra of ‘strategic autonomy’ in a multipolar world, but South Block will have to work hard to manage the tightrope act between Moscow and Washington. Third, India and China have forged an uneasy truce across their Himalayan border in the aftermath of the Galwan valley exchange in 2020, yet there are numerous potential flashpoints that could send ties into a spiral again, including China’s historically provocative actions in the South China Sea and its thinly veiled insecurity about India joining the Quad for Indo-Pacific security. Moscow has adroitly managed to remain friends with both its mega-neighbours, but it will require a robust focus on confidence-boosting cooperative initiatives if India and Russia are to safely navigate the complex geopolitical landscape that they occupy.

2.At home: On India’s series win over New Zealand

India won the cricket bouts against New Zealand, but the challenge overseas is different

India’s domineering cricketing aura, especially in its backyard, was further reiterated at the conclusion of the Test series involving New Zealand at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Monday. The emphatic 372-run triumph in the second Test helped Virat Kohli’s men clinch the series at 1-0. This climax emerged after New Zealand mounted a stirring resistance in the opening drawn fixture at Kanpur when Ajinkya Rahane led India in Kohli’s absence. The Indian template at home — runs on the board and wily spinners on the mark — was in vogue and there was nothing much the Black Caps could do, especially after regular skipper Kane Williamson missed the final Test with an injury. The latest victorious outing in the longest format was India’s 14th consecutive Test series win at home since 2012 December when the visiting England squad ambushed the host riding on Kevin Pietersen, Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar. Since that stumble, India at home has been invincible. Batters obviously feeling at home, seamers adept at swing — both conventional and reverse — and spinners headlined by a remarkable R. Ashwin, have all contributed in nursing India’s blinding halo in a familiar environment. Perhaps it was prescient of former Australian skipper Steve Waugh to refer to India as the Final Frontier two decades ago. And as the last fortnight revealed, the fortress remains intact.

The sparkling performance at Mumbai and the earlier 3-0 sweep in the Twenty20 Internationals against the same rival, also helped new coach Rahul Dravid step in on a winning note. But as Dravid pointed out, New Zealand competed hard at varying points, especially in Kanpur. Even if the unit got overwhelmed in the subsequent clash, left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel’s Perfect Ten in the first innings, following in the footsteps of Jim Laker and Anil Kumble, was a splendid feat. The Mumbai-born New Zealand-immigrant’s excellence reflected the Indian diaspora’s increasing sporting clout across shores. This was the return of the prodigal, but with a twist. And as the pandemic throws up variants while India looks ahead at the imminent tour of South Africa, it is not essentially a perfect slate. A series may have been won despite the absence of Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah, and the excellence of Ashwin, Shreyas Iyer, Mayank Agarwal and Axar Patel to name a few, augurs well. Yet, the poor yields from Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara and even Kohli by his exalted standards, are a cause for worry. Having won his bouts against poor form during a storied career, Dravid understands the challenges that his core group of batters are grappling with. A turnaround is needed as a crucial overseas tour beckons.

 

3.India’s mounting plastic challenge

According to the Centre, plastic waste generation has more than doubled in the last five years, with an average annual increase of 21.8%

PREMIUM A 2018-2019 CPCB report puts India’s annual plastic waste generation at 3.3 million metric tonnes (Satish Bate/HT PHOTO)

Many have woken up to India’s plastic waste generation problem after worrying data was presented in Parliament on Monday. But alarm bells have been ringing for a long time. According to the Centre, plastic waste generation has more than doubled in the last five years, with an average annual increase of 21.8%. A 2018-2019 Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report puts India’s annual plastic waste generation at 3.3 million metric tonnes. This, according to experts, is an underestimation. Seven states — Maharashtra, Delhi, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, West Bengal, and Tamil Nadu — contribute to 66% of the country’s total plastic generation. And, Goa and Delhi’s per capita plastic use is six times higher than the national average.

4.When Modi met Putin

On defence, the partnership is growing. But a more broad-based relationship that expands beyond defence will be essential for ties with Russia in the long-term

President Vladimir Putin made only his second trip outside Russia since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic for the annual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reflecting the importance Moscow attaches to its relationship with New Delhi and the desire of the leadership of the two countries to give a push to ties in areas from security to trade and investment. Mr Putin’s last foreign trip was to Geneva in June for a summit with United States (US) President Joe Biden. The outcome of that was not as fruitful as the meeting with Mr Modi. India and Russia have maintained contact amid the pandemic, working closely on the Covid-19 response and the situation in Afghanistan. This prepared the grounds for the summit, which coincided with the inaugural 2+2 dialogue, and the delivery of the first of the S-400 air defence systems to India — developments which underline Russia’s importance as a key security partner.

That the two sides signed an agreement on military-technical cooperation for the next decade and finalised a contract for making more than 600,000 assault rifles for the Indian military shows their defence collaboration remains robust amid efforts by India to diversify its arms procurements, and despite pressure from the US, now an important defence partner for India, under its Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act regime. There were discussions on economic cooperation, including arrangements for energy and fertilisers from Russia, and connectivity options. On Afghanistan, the two sides are on the same page, despite Russia’s initial dalliance with the Taliban.

5.Temple massage: Some UP BJP leaders’ Mathura statements fly in the face of SC’s judgment and observations

Another masjid-mandir dispute is being manufactured and can become a major flashpoint in always-volatile UP. State BJP leaders like deputy CM Keshav Maurya and Balia MP Ravindra Kushwaha suggest another round of mandir politics – via the Shahi Eidgah mosque in Mathura. Hindu Mahasabha, in a typical attempt, has even more dangerously announced it will hold an arti in mosque premises. Kushwaha also sought repeal of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act 1991, which expressly forbids turning over, in any manner, a place of worship from one faith to another. A sole exception was made so that the Babri Masjid-Ramjanmabhoomi title suit could proceed.

Kushwaha likened such a repeal to Modi government’s farm reform repeal. This argument is as disingenuous as Mathura statements are dangerous. Farm laws lie squarely in the government’s policy domain. Protection for places of worship draws legitimacy from constitutional norms that enjoin the state to not discriminate on grounds of faith. So, the fact that GoI backed down on farm reform – which, parenthetically, was a bad call – has absolutely no bearing on any communally charged plan to agitate for another mandir.

These BJP UP leaders should read the Supreme Court’s Ayodhya verdict, which they celebrated. SC had clearly affirmed the 1991 law’s primacy. As educative should be this SC observation: “This court cannot entertain claims that stem from the actions of the Mughal rulers against Hindu places of worship in a court of law today. For any person who seeks solace or recourse against the actions of any number of ancient rulers, the law is not the answer.” That despite this apex court judgment and the 1991 law, a Mathura district court has admitted a civil suit on the mosque-mandir issue is shocking.

But although that suit won’t open the door to legal means for mandir agitators, some BJP leaders in UP likely won’t put this ugly genie back in the bottle. It doesn’t take a political genius to figure out that Mathura is back on the boil because UP polls are drawing nearer. It is up to UP CM Yogi Adityanath and BJP’s national leadership to rein in state unit leaders – fallouts of an aggressive Mathura campaign can be extremely dangerous. The party brass should also ponder this question – if UP polls once again need a mandir agitation after all claims of governance, welfare and skilfully implemented caste strategies, what does it say about BJP’s five-year governance in the state?

Aiming for a high: Quality of life does influence investment decisions. India needs to loosen up

 

Times of India’s Edit Page team comprises senior journalists with wide-ranging interests who debate and opine on the news and issues of the day.

Around 15 years back, GoI brought together a few experts to suggest a path to transform Mumbai into an international financial centre, ready to take on Singapore or London. Their report had predictable suggestions on taxation and the foreign exchange market. Then came the surprise. It said that “cognoscenti” remarked that most innovative ideas are exchanged over cups of coffee. And also “stray conversations of the weekend” can ignite business. Perhaps that’s the closest a GoI report came to admitting that beverages matter in creating an attractive destination.

Now, it’s the turn of Gujarat’s GIFT, which has positioned itself as an international financial centre, to follow that path. GIFT’s management has sought relaxation from Gujarat’s stringent prohibition laws. One of India’s most investor-friendly states might have to admit that business and pleasure may not exist in silos. A thriving nightlife need not be incompatible with more business. This is a blind spot among various governments in India that strive to attract investments. Important as infrastructure is to the endeavour, other aspects that fall within the ambit of quality of life could be the clincher. It can be provided without losing any ‘traditional value’.

UAE, a popular choice of expats in the financial sector, provides a good example. This week, the country aligned its weekly holiday with the rest of the world by moving it from Friday to the weekend. Investment decisions are influenced by the ease with which people can adapt to a new destination. Governments in India need to accept that reality. Allowing people to lead their regular lives will indeed attract those who do business. The Gujarat government should respond positively to the GIFT management’s request if it wants to actualise its vision of a vibrant international financial centre. It might take business to a new high.

 

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