Plaudits from all around

The spectacular event that marked the anniversary of Blitz India and the launch of Blitz Legal, Blitz UK and Blitz YouTube channel was, perhaps, the most talked about development of the week and we give it the prominence it deserves. Held at the prestigious India International Centre in New Delhi, the mega event witnessed the presence of luminaries of the four pillars of democracy. An array of dignitaries spoke on the rising stature of India under the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Government and lauded the pioneering initiative of Blitz India to focus on development news. The venue brimming to capacity with thinkers, influencers, politicians, journalists, and others was a testimony to the success of the mission launched by Blitz India and a huge motivation for us to carry it further. The Cover Story wraps up the deliberations of the grand show that yielded many a takeaway, some of which are focused upon in the inside pages.

The inside package begins with the Solicitor General of India’s address in which he emphasised how difficult it is to enter into the arena of developmental journalism whereas being anti-establishment is easier, and more popular. In somewhat similar vein, Press Council of India chief spoke of the spree of complaints received by the regulatory body regarding fake, defamatory and sensational news. In this context, she lauded Blitz India’s resolve to focus on development journalism, which has no negativity and is always constructive.

While UP Deputy CM dwelt upon the various development works undertaken by the Modi Government, India’s G20 Sherpa elaborated upon the slew of projects initiated during the last over eight years.

A pictorial summary of the event on the centrespread pages gives a glimpse of the grand scale on which it was conducted. The main story on G20 Podium covers the Agriculture Deputies Meeting in which G20 countries were urged to adopt 3S Strategy – Smart, Sustainable and Serve – for the agriculture ecosystem in order to address global food security concerns. Among the key recommendations that emerged from the meeting was ways to incentivise farmers for adopting green agriculture practices.

The other story is about the Digital Economy Working Group meeting, wherein it was stressed how digital technology has transformed the lives of Indians. Addressing the meeting, the IT Minister and UP Chief Minister highlighted the importance of digital technologies for transformation of lives of people and sustainable development.

India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), they said, has led to digital and financial inclusion, delivery of services, prevention of monopolies, and security, privacy and good governance. The Podium also includes select G20 tweets, as always.

Air India’s massive aircraft purchase order from Boeing and Airbus ushers in a new dawn for the civil aviation sector and our special report on the Rising India page deciphers it from every possible angle. Another upbeat development that finds space on this page is about the new YouTube CEO Neal Mohan who joins the long list of Indian-origin executives leading tech firms. The week’s top news about Uddhav Thackeray losing all claims to the party founded by his father is also covered in this edition. Besides, we offer more readable stuff as part of our Perspective and freshly-launched Legal columns.

Enjoy reading!