The record-breaking performance of the BJP in the Gujarat Assembly elections is the top news development of the week; and that obviously becomes our Cover Story. Besides doing an in-depth analysis of this unprecedented tsunami, our report explains the political implications of the poll outcome from PM Modi’s home state. The results from the hill state of Himachal Pradesh, where the Congress Party won a comfortable majority, also form part of our electoral coverage. Embellished with charts and graphics, we extend our political package to the Zoom-In with more insightful reports.
As the new G20 President, India outlined its focus areas and set out priorities at the first Sherpa meeting at Udaipur, in Rajasthan. At the four-day meeting, India emphasised that during its year-long presidency, it will pitch for providing a greater voice to the Global South, says our report on the Rising India page. It will utilise the opportunity to forge mutually beneficial collaborations between developing countries and advanced economies on some of the most pressing global issues. India’s G20 Sherpa Amitab Kant, says our report, outlined key economic challenges facing the world and highlighted the need for collective efforts by the grouping to respond to them. India will also focus on tech transformation, green development and LiFE, spotlighting women-led development, accelerating implementation of the SDGs, and facilitating inclusive and resilient growth, according to our report.
The G20 package is enriched with two more reports. The first is about India’s digital payments power being on full display at Udaipur where G20 delegates purchased local crafts and fabrics using UPI. It quotes Sherpas and delegates lauding India as “the pioneer of digital technology,” and praising the digital transformation, especially in the area of digital payments. The second report is a status-check on the redevelopment work at the exhibitioncum-convention centre at Pragati Maidan, the venue of the G20 Summit to be held in September next year. According to officials quoted in our report, the convention centre works will be completed by December 31 and arrangements for food and beverages will be ready by January 15, 2023, well before the mega event. We also carry some interesting snippets from the Udaipur meeting on this special page.
The current edition comprises a richer, and more elaborate, package of news developments of the week, both from India and abroad. Among the major news stories on the domestic front are: India’s GDP growth update by the World Bank that brings some happy tidings; AIIMS cyber-attack coming as a wake-up call; Central Asian NSAs’ meeting; VicePresident Jagdeep Dhankhar joining the collegium debate; and Google being told to discontinue ads of online betting companies. We also highlight the case of a former V-C of IGNOU, who had to wait for eleven long years to come out clean from graft charges levelled against him. The global news package includes a report on the confusion over the fate of Iranian ‘morality police’ and increase in the flow of Indian students to Australia after a gap of two years.
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