Author: Arif ArifArman

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Amid the financial crisis, government hospitals in Balochistan have run out of medicines, Pakistan vernacular media reported citing the Young Doctors Association of Balochistan. In Quetta’s government hospitals, a year’s worth of unrepaired CT scans, MRI, and angiography equipment is concerning as well. The Young Doctors Association Balochistan has urged electronic and media persons to also do a special report on the plight of hospitals in Quetta, as the top officials have also appealed to ensure the delivery of medicines in Government hospitals as soon as possible, Pakistan vernacular media Urdu Point reported. Earlier, The Express Tribune reported…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Adding to the grandeur of Poonch, a city rich in history, the historic ‘Poonch Fort’ in the middle of the town, is a beautiful tourist attraction, which despite its dilapidated condition, reminds of the greatness of the ancient architects and the rulers here. In its era, this fort was considered a symbol of grandeur. Today, it remains a witness to historical events which saw the rise and fall of many powerful rulers of its time. Its remains seem to be in a state of disrepair, but are still visible today telling the story of its glorious past to…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Amazon.com Inc’s (AMZN.O) cloud computing unit will invest 1.06 trillion rupees ($13 billion) in India by the end of this decade, doubling down on its past investments to cater to the growing demand for such services in one of Asia’s fastest-growing economies. This comes on top of its $6.5 billion investment in e-commerce in India, where it has rapidly expanded over the years but faces a strict regulatory environment that forces it to run only a marketplace. The latest investment will be used to build its cloud infrastructure in India and will support over 100,000 full-time jobs annually,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday held a meeting with US President Joe Biden in which the two leaders concurred on continuing to work closely together in addressing issues related to China and also confirmed the importance of cooperating with China on shared challenges. The two leaders exchanged views on regional issues, on the basis of the recognition that any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force in the Indo-Pacific region, especially in East Asia, must not be tolerated, a statement released by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Biden is currently in Japan…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China is renewing its push for massive infrastructure projects in Central Asia as Beijing aims to fill the vacuum left in former Soviet states by Russia, which is ensnared in a widening net of Western sanctions over the Ukraine war, reports AFP. Central Asia has become key to China’s trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, a defining geopolitical project for President Xi Jinping. Around 150 countries have received Chinese funds to build roads, ports, railways or hydroelectric dams. Beijing says trade with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan reached $70 billion in 2022 and expanded 22 percent year-on-year in…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India’s liquefied natural gas buyers are seeking decades-long supply deals to protect them from price surges, a move that will support the government’s plan to boost the fuel’s use. Importers are accelerating efforts to lock in fuel, according to traders and executives. Buyers including Petronet LNG Ltd., GAIL India Ltd. and Indian Oil Corp. are in talks with suppliers in the US, Qatar and the UAE for deals that last for 20 years. The trend is a reversal for the nation, which hasn’t signed a long-term deal since 2021, according to contract data from BloombergNEF. That should help…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: More than a month ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington, India and the US on Wednesday held extensive talks focusing on operationalising their ‘Major Defence Partnership’ and co-development of military platforms. Boosting defence industrial cooperation, sharing of critical technology and having joint long-term research were also the focus of the 17th meeting of India-US Defence Policy Group (DPG) that was held in Washington. The two sides also deliberated on operationalising the ‘Major Defence Partnership’ and ways to improve supply chain security at the 17th meeting of India-US DPG that was held in Washington. “The two…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Tripura Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath on Wednesday said that a special exhibition of Tripura’s Queen Pineapple will be held in New Delhi on Thursday to draw more buyers from the national markets. According to Nath, the product has received wide appreciation after being exported to countries like Dubai, Qatar and Germany. “In Dubai and Qatar, we have sent the whole fruit while the Germans received a shipment of packed pineapples in sliced form. Both these consignments really helped the farmers earn good prices for their harvest. Since this product has good demand across the…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Bangladesh and Nepal have agreed to make efforts to start trading of power from the upcoming wet season (June-November) with the export of 40–50MW electricity from Nepal, according to a member of the Nepali delegation to the bilateral talks held in Patuakhali, Bangladesh. During the fifth meeting of the secretary-level Joint Steering Committee on energy cooperation between Nepal and Bangladesh on Tuesday, the two sides agreed to start trading of power by taking India, which lies between the two countries, on board. A meeting of the joint-secretary level Joint Working Group, held on Monday at the same venue, had made its…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India aims to become the champion of cyber security, G20 Sherpa, Amitabh Kant said on Wednesday. While talking with reporters after attending an event at IIT Delhi’s Bharti School of Telecommunication, Technology & Management, Kant said, “We have worked enough in the country on digital transformation, as I informed there are 4 billion people around the globe who do not have an identity, 2.5 billion have no bank account and 133 countries have no fast payment system.” “We have to take this digital public infrastructure to the global level, we also need to become a global champion of…

TECHNOLOGY DESK: Meta has added a new feature to WhatsApp that allows users to lock specific chats using a password or biometric authentication to further enhance user privacy. According to Indian Express, these locked conversations will be stored in a separate folder. The feature also hides the name and the actual message in the notification, which can only be accessed post-authentication. While there has been an option to lock the entire WhatsApp using biometrics or a PIN code on both Android and iOS devices, this new feature allows users to further protect specific private messages. Hence, even if someone gets…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China will launch pilot projects in more than 20 cities to create a “new-era” marriage and childbearing culture to foster a friendly child bearing environment, the latest move by the authorities to boost the country’s falling birth rate. China’s Family Planning Association, a national body that implements the government’s population and fertility measures, will launch the projects to encourage women to marry and have children, the state-backed Global Times reported. Promoting marrying, having children at appropriate ages, encouraging parents to share child-rearing responsibilities, and curbing high “bride prices” and other outdated customs are the focus of the projects,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a three-nation tour during which he will take part in G-7 Summit in Japan and the Quad Leaders’ Summit in Australia. The Prime Minister will visit Hiroshima in Japan from May 19 to 21 for the G-7 Summit under the Japanese Presidency. He is visiting Japan at the invitation of Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. During the Summit, Prime Minister will speak at G-7 sessions with partner countries on subjects such as peace, stability and prosperity of a sustainable planet; food, fertiliser and energy security; health; gender equality; climate change and…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Dhaka and Kathmandu have reviewed the progress in their bilateral and regional cooperation on power sector at the 5th joint steering committee (JSC) meeting held at Payra power plant office in Patuakhali. Bangladesh and Nepal reviewed the details of the construction of a hydropower plant in Nepal through joint venture investment and the import of electricity from Nepal using interconnecting transmission lines through neighbouring India. Bangladesh planned to import 500 MW of electricity from Indian company GMR’s 900 MW Upper Karnali power station through the new line. Power Secretary Habir Rahman led the Bangladesh delegation in the meeting,…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has reiterated Bangladesh’s call for the peaceful settlement of the crisis in all its aspects and on the basis of international law and UN resolutions, and for the achievement of an end to the Israeli occupation and establishment of an independent, sovereign and viable State of Palestine, on the basis of the pre-1967 borders. She urged the international community to step up efforts to reverse the consequences of ‘Nakba’ and restore the legitimate rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people to live in safety, stability, and dignity in a sovereign homeland. The Prime Minister…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India’s mission to United Nations slammed Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues over the comment on G20 meet in Srinagar and called it “baseless and unwanted.” Taking to Twitter, the Indian mission to the UN in Geneva said, “We @IndiaUNGeneva strongly reject the statement issued by SR on minority issues @fernanddev & the baseless & unwarranted allegations in it. As G20 President, it’s India’s prerogative to host its meetings in any part of the country.” India accused UN’s Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues Fernand de Varennes of “acting irresponsibly” and politicising the Jammu and Kashmir issue. We are aghast…

SANJAY PULIPAKA: The Economic Advisory Council to the prime minister of India recently released an occasional paper on challenges confronting the Group of Twenty and the need to craft appropriate policy responses by incorporating the concerns of the developing world or the Global South. For instance, on climate change, the paper emphasized increased assistance to developing countries to operationalize resilience measures and develop generous technology-sharing norms. Notably, to help the Global South overcome post-pandemic economic challenges, the paper called for greater multilateral and bilateral funding for “build back broader” initiatives by implementing integrated infrastructure projects. Since taking over the presidency…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China’s global market share of arms exports is falling drastically as its overseas arms transfers fell 23 per cent over the past half-decade. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), in its annual report on the global arms trade published recently, observed that between 2018–2022, Chinese arms transfers averaged barely $1.4 billion, significantly down from $2 billion worth of arms exports in 2013, Xi Jinping’s first year as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party. Countries like the United States, France, and Italy have seen their shares of the global arms market rise considerably. South Korea is becoming…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Jamaat-e-Islami has been found carrying out terror funding activities in Jammu and Kashmir, even after being declared an unlawful association under UAPA. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday continued searches in Jammu and Kashmir in the case of terror funding by Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir– an unlawful association under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Earlier on May 11, the Central anti-terror agency carried out searches in Budgam and Baramulla districts of Jammu and Kashmir. The NIA on May 4 conducted searches at 16 places in Jammu and Kashmir as part of its continuing crackdown on terror funding…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The head of the artificial intelligence company that makes ChatGPT is set to testify before Congress as lawmakers call for new rules to guide the rapid development of AI technology. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is scheduled to speak at a Senate hearing Tuesday. His San Francisco-based startup rocketed to public attention after its release late last year of ChatGPT, a free chatbot tool that answers questions with convincingly human-like responses. What started out as a panic among educators about ChatGPT’s use to cheat on homework assignments has expanded to broader concerns about the ability of the latest crop…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: President Mohammed Shahabuddin on Tuesday said the society should be built in accordance with the desire of the people. He said this while exchanging views with journalists at Pabna Press Club. He also sought cooperation of the media, irrespective of party affiliations and ideologies, in fulfilling his assignments in the country’s highest office. A life member of Pabna Press Club the president talked about his political life, including student politics and his journalistic career that started with now-defunct daily Banglar Bani. Md. Sahabuddin, while reminiscing his days in student politics in the 70s, remembered many talented journalists and…

INTERNATIONAL DESKl: In a significant development for the tourism industry in Kashmir, the Ecotourism Society of Kashmir (ETSK) has welcomed the G20 meeting that is set to take place in the valley. Sameer Baktoo, the convenor of ETSK, expressed his optimism that the summit would give the tourism sector a much-needed boost and help spread a positive message globally. “We are hopeful that the countries that had put travel advisories restraining their citizens from travelling to Kashmir will be lifted, and we will see a huge footfall of foreign tourists in the valley post-G20 summit in Kashmir, as it was…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The picturesque district of Ganderbal witnessed a grand welcome to the historic G20 event in Kashmir, with the “Pedal for Peace” cyclothon organized by the social voluntary organization ‘Voice for Peace and Justice’. More than 500 athletes from across the valley participated in the event, expressing their desire for peace and development in Kashmir. As the G20 delegates arrived in Kashmir for the Y-20 event, the focus on promoting Kashmir’s traditional handicrafts and tourism sector at the global level became prominent. The new generation of Kashmiri youth is eager for more employment resources to be created in the…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Washington and the European Union will pledge joint action to tackle concerns focused on China about non-market practices and coordinate their export controls on semiconductors and other goods at a meeting this month, a draft statement showed. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, European Commission Vice-President Margrethe Vestager and other senior officials are due to meet for the fourth edition of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council in Lulea, Sweden, on May 30-31. The draft statement seen by Reuters said the two sides would address non-market practices and economic coercion, and aim to hold regular talks on efforts…