THE egalitarian turn to Padma Awards is our top story of the week. Our report highlights how the emphasis of the awards has shifted to the work done by the nominees, than to their identities. Incorporating relevant examples, it shows how the majority of these awards now go to ordinary citizens, thereby reaffirming that Narendra Modi Government is, indeed, the common man’s sarkar. Indian women pugilists’ history-making performance in the recently-concluded IBA World Boxing Championships is our anchor on the Cover Page.
Although elimination of tuberculosis is one of the sustainable development targets (SDG Target 3.3) to be achieved by the world by 2030, India has set 2025 as its goal. Our Zoom-In subject this week is the ‘One World TB Summit’, which was addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his home constituency Varanasi. India, says our report quoting the PM, has emerged as a role model for the world in its efforts to eliminate TB. Over the last nine years, public participation through initiatives like ‘Ni-kshay Mitra’ has played an important role in fight against tuberculosis, said the PM, while also launching several initiatives.
The other report in this package is based on India’s Annual TB Report 2023, which was also released by the PM on the occasion. While there has been a decline in the number of TB cases in India, the reporting of cases has also improved, says the report. Besides, we have a report on the role which the Department of Biotechnology is going to play in this holistic healthcare approach for the elimination of tuberculosis.
Senegal, whose Independence Day falls on April 4, is our focus on the International page. The main report takes a close look at the political, economic, and cultural ties that bind India and this West African nation together. An accompanying report is about an annual recognition certificate instituted by the Embassy of India in Dakar to commend the contributions made by Indian individuals, associations, or companies based in Senegal towards bolstering India Senegal relations.
The two-day meeting of the Framework Working Group, held in Chennai, is our main report on G20 Podium. The meeting, according to our report, deliberated on enhancing policy cooperation to achieve strong, sustainable, balanced, and inclusive growth. The other report is about the Sustainable Finance Working Group meeting in Udaipur in which members agreed on key deliverables for the year, including developing a set of options for mobilising financial resources for climate action, creating an analytical framework for SDG-aligned finance, and implementing the G20 Sustainable Finance Technical Assistance Action Plan.
The main write-up in Blitz Legal deals with the issue of criminal defamation in politics that has surfaced following Rahul Gandhi’s conviction. The other piece is about the misuse of Article 144 of the Criminal Penal Code. The ‘New India’ subject this week is Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY). The 99th episode of PM Modi’s Mann Ki Baat was focused on those who donate organs to save lives. We carry the excerpts from the monthly talk-show on the Rising India page. Apart from a perspective piece on the first anniversary of the Yogi Government’s second term in office, the News pages comprise key developments of the week.
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