Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s wit, humility and rhetorical skills were in full display while replying to a Congress leader’s aukat remark at an election rally in Gujarat. We lead with a special report on this on the front page, for more reasons than one. Besides giving a strong and befitting response to his opponents, the PM also underlined his agenda of development, which is also the focus of our report. He lashed out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and his photo-op with environmentalist Medha Patkar, who had stalled the Narmada project for many decades. A special report on the Rising India page makes a critical appraisal of Rahul’s Bharat Jodo Yatra from varied angles. We also carry an exclusive piece on the yatra by a wellknown political activist.
The UN Climate Change Conference, COP27, concluded this week with a breakthrough agreement to provide ‘loss and damage’ funding for vulnerable countries hit hard by climate disasters. Set against tough geopolitical backdrop, the conference resulted in countries delivering a package that reaffirmed their commitment to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. To delve deep into the entire proceedings and to understand the finer points of the agreement, we approached a former Secretary in the Environment Ministry and a renowned academic to write for us. The two brilliant, and highly insightful, pieces contributed by them appear on the Centrespread.
The FIFA World Cup kicked off in Qatar this week and we have come up with a special package on the biggest sporting extravaganza. Our main report goes into the background, detailing the immaculate planning and rigorous preparations done by Qatar to pull off a spectacular event that has become the pride of the entire Arab world. Besides, we have a rep[ort on the early upsets caused by the Asian giants in the tournament. Another report focuses on the mismanagement and wrongdoings of the All India Football Federation that are primarily behind India’s failure to qualify for the Qatar World Cup. Based on conversations with former football players and aficionados, the report lists AIFF’s lack of a roadmap to develop the game at the grassroots level and its inability to attract major sponsors as the main reasons.
With India set to take over G20 presidency from Indonesia in a few days from now, we carry an exclusive report on how with Brazil, as the next president, the ‘Troika of developing countries’ presents an unprecedented opportunity to set the agenda of G20 to suit developing countries. The report also deals with the multi-dimensional relationship encompassing bilateral and multilateral arenas that India and Brazil enjoy. Among the major news developments of the week, we have included an analytical report on the political significance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to four states in the South and another one listing key takeaways from the third ‘No Money for Terror’ ministerial conference on counter-terrorism financing, held in New Delhi.
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