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☆ Scolding Isn’t a Foreign Policy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Walter Russell Mead | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Internationally, it was another grim week for the Biden administration, the United States of America, and world peace. Indian officials reported that China is supporting the development of a military listening post on Myanmar’s strategic Great Coco Island in the Bay of Bengal. Farther south, a Sudanese military faction backed by Russia’s Wagner Group battles for control of Africa’s third-largest nation. The usual spinners and makeup artists are doing their best to make the disorderly unraveling of the American-led world order look like a visionary triumph of enlightened foreign policy, but former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers expressed a more cogent view. What we get from the United States is a lecture.’ ”

☆ Soaring temperatures bring school closures in parts of India
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KOLKATA, April 18 (Reuters) - Authorities in parts of India have shut schools for a week after they recorded sweltering temperatures of more than 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit). At least two states, Tripura in the northeast and West Bengal in the east, ordered schools to shut this week, as temperatures rose more than 5 Celsius above normal, state governments said. India is likely to experience heat waves between March and May, the national weather office said in February. Average maximum temperature in February across India was 29.54C 85.1F) the highest since 1901, when the IMD started keeping weather records. Reporting by Subrata Nag Choudhary Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The extrajudicial killing has sparked widespread concern about the state of law and order in Uttar Pradesh as well as fears of retaliation. A decade later, he was elected as a member of Uttar Pradesh’s legislative assembly where he served five times, from 1989 to 2004. Police in Uttar Pradesh have killed more than 180 suspected criminals during encounters over past six years, according to Reuters. “The shoot out that happened is unacceptable.”CNN reached out to Uttar Pradesh police for comment on the situation but did not receive a response prior to publication. A political flashpointFollowing the incident, the Uttar Pradesh state government announced it will form two three-member Special Task Forces (SIT) to investigate the killing of Atiq and his brother.

India is monitoring a strategically located island in the Bay of Bengal over concerns China could be involved in a buildup of infrastructure there, including an expanded airstrip, aircraft hangars, a pier and a dome that protects radar equipment, Indian security officials said. Satellite images captured over a decade show the gradual buildup on Myanmar’s Great Coco Island, which lies north of an archipelago that hosts a significant Indian military presence, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In addition to the new infrastructure, equipment is visible at the site that could be used to track aircraft, one of the officials said.

☆ Japan proposes industrial hub in Bangladesh with supply chains to India
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Manoj Kumar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, April 11 Reuters) - Japan has proposed developing an industrial hub in Bangladesh with supply chains to the landlocked northeastern states of India, and to Nepal and Bhutan beyond by developing a port and transport in the region, officials said on Tuesday. It comes after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's visit to India last month in which he touted the idea of a new industrial hub for the Bay of Bengal and northeast India that could bolster development in the impoverished region of 300 million people. "It can be a win-win plan for India and Bangladesh," Hiroshi Suzuki, Japan's ambassador to India, said on Tuesday, citing the industrial hub proposal at a meeting of Indian, Bangladeshi and Japanese officials in Agartala, the Tripura state capital. He said the deep seaport was likely to become operational by 2027 and would be a key to building an industrial hub connecting the Bangladeshui capital Dhaka to landlocked areas of India. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit Japan from April 25-28 at Kishida's invitation, a government statement said.

The opposition has come together after this month's conviction of opposition leader Rahul Gandhi of the Congress party on a charge of defamation and his disqualification from parliament. Opposition politicians say Gandhi's shock disqualification, and possible jail time, is the latest evidence of the Modi government's strongarm tactics and follows investigations and legal troubles faced in recent months by other opposition parties. A day after Gandhi's conviction, 14 political parties jointly petitioned the Supreme Court, saying opposition groups were being selectively targeted by federal investigative agencies. "The Modi government's fascist steps have given a new chance for opposition parties to be united," Trinamool MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, told Reuters. "Anti Modi-ism or anti BJP-ism cannot be the glue that brings together disparate opposition parties with different aspirations and ambitions and positions," said Nalin Kohli, the BJP's national spokesperson.

☆ More than 180 Rohingya Muslims arrive by boat in Indonesia's Aceh
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, March 27 (Reuters) - More than 180 Rohingya Muslims landed in Indonesia's Aceh province on Monday, officials said, the latest among hundreds who have fled by boat from desperate conditions in Myanmar and in camps in Bangladesh. A spokesperson for the local police, Kamil, confirmed by phone that 184 Rohingya had arrived in East Aceh district and were "all in healthy condition". Since November last year, Indonesia has registered 918 Rohingya who reached Aceh, its westernmost region, according to the foreign ministry, having made the journey south in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Nearly 1 million Rohingya live in crowded conditions in Bangladesh, among them those who fled a deadly crackdown in 2017 by Myanmar's military, which denies committing crimes against humanity. Reporting by Ananda Teresia and Stanley Widianto; Editing by Martin PettyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India, world’s largest democracy, leads global list of internet shutdowns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Of 187 internet shutdowns recorded worldwide, 84 took place in India, according to the report published Tuesday by Access Now, a New York based advocacy group that tracks internet freedom. India has the world’s second largest digital population, following China, with more than 800 million internet users. Pradeep Guar/Mint/Getty ImagesIn recent years, the government has repeatedly justified blocking internet access on the grounds of preserving public safety amid widespread fears of mob violence. Rest of the worldLast year saw more internet shutdowns worldwide than ever before, Access Now said, prompting the group to raise fears of “digital authoritarianism” as governments continue the trend. Apart from India, other countries that saw internet shutdowns last year include Ukraine, Iran and Myanmar.

Adani Transmission (ADAI.NS), Adani Total Gas (ADAG.NS), Adani Green Energy (ADNA.NS), Adani Power (ADAN.NS) and Adani Wilmar (ADAW.NS) fell between 5% and 20% on Monday. It stayed well below the offer price of the issue, which if successful will be largest such share offering ever in India. Adani Enterprises' $2.5 billion secondary share sale closed its second day amid weak investor sentiment. The stock closed at 2,892.85 rupees, 7% below the 3,112 rupees lower end of the offer price band. "While there is a risk that the share sale does not go through, it will be crucial today to wait and see how institutional investors participate."

☆ Twitter account of Indian actress Ranaut restored after two-year ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW DELHI, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The Twitter account of leading Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut has been restored two years after she was banned following a tweet urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to subdue one of his political opponents. Ranaut sent a screen-shot of her Twitter handle @KanganaTeam from her Instagram account on Tuesday and said she was "glad to be back on Twitter". Twitter Inc did not immediately respond to a query from Reuters on the restoration of Ranaut's account. Twitter suspended Ranaut's account in May 2021 for "repeated violations" of its hateful conduct and abusive behaviour policies. She took to Instagram last year to applaud articles about Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter and also shared requests from users who appealed to Musk to restore her Twitter account.

REUTERS/Ruma PaulCOX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Mohammed Ismail says four of his relatives were killed by gunmen at the Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh between April and October last year. The group has fought against Myanmar's security forces and some Rohingya say it has been recruiting fighters, often through coercion, in the Bangladesh camps. Ismail, who lives with his parents, wife and brother, says he fears for his life and understands why some Rohingya are fleeing Bangladesh. A FRAUGHT CHOICEReuters spoke with several refugees who returned to the Bangladesh camps after abandoning journeys to Malaysia, via Myanmar, out of trepidation. "People are risking their lives on sea journeys as there is no future here and criminal activities are rising," Aziz said.

☆ Fact Check-Video shows man being hit by a live wire in India, not being electrocuted due to Bluetooth earphones
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A video shows a ticket examiner at the Kharagpur railway station in India being electrocuted when a live wire hit him on the head. The video, however, is being shared online alongside an unrelated claim that the electrocution happened due to wearing Bluetooth earphones. The video shows two men talking on a train platform when a long, thin wire comes into frame and lands on the head of the man on the left. He is electrocuted and falls back onto the tracks, while the other man and onlookers run out of frame. The incident seen in the video took place in India, where a ticket examiner was injured by a falling live wire, according to local reports.

Women in West Bengal, India, have been weaving jute into mats for generations. Many Rajbanshi women depend on the craft to make their livelihoods. But mass-produced mats are flooding the market and threatening to put them out of business. Loading Something is loading. But mass-produced mats are flooding the market and threatening to put them out of business.

That was on top of 31 missile attacks and 12 air strikes across the country in the past 24 hours. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said on Twitter: "Russia coldly and cowardly attacked Ukraine in the early hours of the new year. But Putin still does not seem to understand that Ukrainians are made of iron." Russian media also reported multiple Ukrainian attacks on the Moscow-controlled parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, with local officials saying at least nine people were wounded. There was no immediate response from Kyiv, which rarely comments on attacks inside Russia or on Russian-controlled territories in Ukraine.

[1/2] Rohingya refugees rescued by fishermen are seen on a boat behind a patrol boat near the coast of Seunuddon beach in North Aceh, Indonesia, June 24, 2020. In Buddhist-majority Myanmar, most Rohingya are denied citizenship and are seen as illegal immigrants from South Asia. Nearly 200 Rohingya are feared dead or missing at sea this year already. "We hope against hope that the 180 missing are still alive somewhere out there", said UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch. Two boats carrying a total of 230 Rohingya refugees, including women and children, landed on the shores of Indonesia's Aceh province in November, while this month, Sri Lanka's navy rescued 104 Rohingya adrift off the Indian Ocean island's northern coast.

☆ India antitrust agency raids some steel firms for alleged price collusion-sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( Aditya Kalra | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MUMBAI, Dec 17 (Reuters) - India's antitrust watchdog is raiding offices of small-scale steel companies for alleged price collusion of steel products used in construction, two sources with direct knowledge told Reuters. Among those raided were Rungta Steel and Shyam Steel, the sources said, as officials from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) conducted searches in states of West Bengal, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Indian capital New Delhi on Saturday. In all around eight to nine offices of steel companies were searched, though names of other firms raided were not immediately clear. The CCI does not disclose any details publicly of its raid operations or cases related to alleged price collusion. Shyam Steel is a 30 billion Indian rupees ($362.73 million) group which manufactures several steel products.

☆ Redis Names Former Five9 CEO to Head Database Startup
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Belle Lin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Database startup Redis Ltd. has named Rowan Trollope its new chief executive officer, effective Feb. 1. Mr. Trollope was CEO of the cloud-based customer-service software firm Five9 Inc. until Nov. 28, and had served in the role since 2018. After Mr. Trollope’s departure, former Five9 CEO Mike Burkland returned to his previous post. At Redis, Mr. Trollope will succeed Ofer Bengal, who co-founded the startup with Yiftach Shoolman in 2011 and has served as CEO since its founding. Mr. Trollope led Five9 through its plans to merge with Zoom Video Communications Inc. in September of last year.

☆ Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Gujarat State Heads to the Polls
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Shan Li | Krishna Pokharel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

GANDHINAGAR, INDIA—Gujarat, the home state of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi , will vote in state assembly elections starting this week, offering a barometer of the endurance of Mr. Modi’s personal appeal ahead of national elections in 2024 in which he will run for a third term. The Bharatiya Janata Party has ruled in the western coastal state for 27 years, and there is little doubt of another victory, but the party is leaving little to chance after a surprisingly tough challenge from its rival, the Indian National Congress Party, in 2017. Top BJP leaders were also stung by the party’s defeat in West Bengal last year after it poured money and resources into winning state elections there, analysts said.

☆ India's IFB Industries posts 2% drop in profit as costs climb
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Oct 28 (Reuters) - India's IFB Industries Ltd (IFBI.NS) posted a 2% fall in its second-quarter profit on Friday, as expenses soared and took the shine off higher sales of its home appliances. Consumer goods makers globally have seen their bottomline take a knock from higher commodity prices, with the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war leading to a rise in input costs. For Kolkata, West Bengal-based IFB, which makes several home appliances including washing machines and air conditioners, total expenses rose 13.3% to 10.85 billion rupees. Net profit fell to 241.2 million rupees ($2.93 million) in the three months ended Sept. 30, from 245.9 million rupees a year ago. However, analysts have said the recent fall in commodity prices would start helping companies from the December quarter onwards.

☆ Cyclone lashes Bangladesh killing nine, flooding low-lying areas
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Ruma Paul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DHAKA, Oct 25 (Reuters) - A cyclone roared into the Bangladesh coast on Tuesday, killing at least 9 people, destroying houses, uprooting trees and disrupting road, power and communication links, officials said. Mass evacuations before Cyclone Sitrang made landfall on the west coast helped save lives but the full extent of the casualties and damage would only be known after communications are restored, they said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterPower and telephone links have been largely cut and coastal areas plunged into darkness, officials said. Environmentalists warn that climate change could lead to more disasters, especially in places like densely populated Bangladesh. "When extreme weather events like Cyclone Sitrang strike, communities are left devastated.

☆ NFL roundup: Bills edge Chiefs in AFC Divisional round rematch
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Allen passed for 329 yards and three touchdowns for the Bills, who have the best record in the AFC. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterButker booted a 44-yard goal to give the Chiefs a 20-17 lead with 9:49 remaining in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Garoppolo threw two first-half touchdown passes to Brandon Aiyuk, but also mixed in a pair of interceptions on a 29-for-41, 296-yard day. Bengals 30, Saints 26Joe Burrow threw three touchdown passes as visiting Cincinnati came from behind in the fourth quarter to defeat New Orleans. The two connected on a scoring strike with 9:55 left in the fourth quarter to help the Steelers snap a four-game losing skid.

☆ Indian billionaire Gautam Adani was a college dropout. Now he may be too big to fail
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate had just launched a hostile bid to take over an influential broadcaster in the capital. Rupak De Chowdhuri/ReutersMuch of his fortune is tied up in the sprawling Adani Group, which he founded over 30 years ago. Most of the companies in the Adani empire are held closely by the billionaire, his family and associated firms, including nearly 75% stakes in AEL, Adani Power, and Adani Transmissions. Yet, the Adani Group has continued to raise billions from Indian and foreign banks. CreditSights, a research firm owned by Fitch Group, in August published a report about Adani Group titled “Deeply Overleveraged” in which it expressed strong concerns.

☆ Opinion: The British Empire: A legacy of violence?
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Peter Bergen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +19 min

A related question is also surfacing now: What is the legacy of the British Empire writ large? Bergen: This reassessment of British Empire: You are leading the charge. Bergen: So, are the British in high school as they learn about British history being told a bunch of fairy tales? Are there similarities between the 1619 Project and what you and other colleagues are doing in your reassessment of the British Empire? And I think that’s what we’re seeing in different kinds of ways with the history of the British Empire.

☆ India's rice export ban: The Asian countries set to be hit hard — and those that’ll profit
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Rice production in India has fallen by 5.6% year on year as of September in light of below-average monsoon rainfall, which has affected harvest, Nomura said. India, the world's largest rice exporter, has banned shipments of broken rice — a move that will reverberate across Asia, according to Nomura. India accounts for approximately 40% of global rice shipments, exporting to more than 150 countries. But production has decreased by 5.6% year-on-year as of Sept 2. in light of below-average monsoon rainfall, which affected harvest, Nomura said. Big rice-producing India states such as West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are receiving 30% to 40% less rainfall, Varma said.

☆ India's young investors prefer crypto to gold and 'boring' stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-03-03 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

New Delhi CNN Business —Indian businesswoman Swati Daga first bought bitcoin in 2017, when the cryptocurrency was trading well under $3,000. “I find stock markets boring,” she told CNN Business, adding that she enjoys the “thrill” and “recklessness” that comes with investing in volatile currencies. The growth is driven by younger investors — mostly under the age of 35 — and many of them are coming from smaller cities and towns, founders of two of India’s biggest crypto exchanges told CNN Business. WazirX also has over 10 million users, and called 2021 a “phenomenal year” for crypto trading in India. On-again, off-again relationshipThe excitement over crypto is rising in India despite the country’s on-again, off-again relationship with digital currencies.

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