Author: Arif ArifArman

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India’s goods and services tax (GST) collection in April rose 12 per cent year-on-year to hit an all-time high of Rs 1.87 trillion, the finance ministry data showed on Monday. The robust mop-up was mainly driven by a boost in year-end sales, data analytics ensuring better compliance, and sustained economic growth. The previous highest collection was Rs 1.68 trillion in April last year, while the mop-up stood at Rs 1.60 trillion in March this year. April 2023 also saw the highest ever tax collection on a single day. “On April 20, Rs 68,228 crore was paid through 9.8…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India has sent two frontline warships to take part in the maiden naval exercise with Asean countries, in keeping with the overall policy to further crank up the military outreach to the 10 South East Asian nations with an eye firmly on China. Guided-missile destroyer INS Delhi and multi-purpose stealth frigate INS Satpura, under the command of the Eastern Fleet commander Rear Admiral Gurcharan Singh, reached Singapore on Monday for the first Asean-India Maritime Exercise from May 2 to 8. The ‘harbour phase’ of the exercise will be held at the Changi naval base from May 2 to…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: The US does not want to comment on Bangladesh’s forthcoming national election, noting that it is an “internal, domestic election.” “I don’t have anything else to get into that beyond as it’s an internal, domestic election,” Deputy Principal Spokesperson at US Department of State Vedant Patel has said. He came up with the remarks when a journalist wanted to know how the US would navigate a situation where, in Bangladesh, another party refuses to participate in a national election and may later claim it to be an “unfair and unjust election.” Patel, however, said, as it relates to…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Among the slew of security measures, special highway patrolling teams will be deployed at major junctions along the major roads in Srinagar. Also anti-drone technology will be installed. Sources told Deccan Herald newspaper that top security officials from Jammu and Kashmir had detailed discussions with a central team to make security and other arrangements for G20 delegates in the Valley where the meeting is scheduled to be held. Special forces and anti-drone technology from New Delhi will be deployed in Srinagar and tourist places where G20 delegates will visit. “Additional paramilitary forces from within the UT will also…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: As a long-standing partner, World Bank Group President David Malpass has said that they will support Bangladesh as it navigates a challenging global environment on its way to reaching upper-middle-income status by 2031. “I am confident that with the right set of policies and timely action, Bangladesh can achieve its growth aspirations,” he said while speaking at the celebration of 50 years of partnership with Bangladesh on May 1. The World Bank president said Bangladesh’s remarkable journey was made possible by the indomitable energy and resilience of its people and a national will to build a prosperous nation.…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Apple CEO Tim Cook’s visit to India, the latest by a top global executive, exemplified the rising tide of interest that corporations are showing in doing business with India, reported CNN Business. Cook was in India last month for launching two Apple physical stores in New Delhi and Mumbai where he was welcomed with huge cheers. According to the CNN Business report authored by Michelle Toh and Hanna Ziady, just days after his landmark trip, Pret A Manger, a trendy British sandwich chain, set up its first outlet in the commercial capital of Mumbai, as it bets on…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India is fast emerging as a key global aviation market, according to the latest market analysis report of the International Air Transport Association ( ATA). India’s domestic air travel has continued to grow robustly and as of February, it was a mere 2.2 per cent shy of reaching pre-pandemic levels measured by passenger revenue kilometres (PRK). The India domestic passenger market also led the rest of the domestic markets in the passenger load factor (PLF) metric in the report which includes the US, China and Japanese domestic markets. It has been the top domestic market measured by PLF…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: On the occasion of the first anniversary of the implementation of the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on Monday, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal congratulated the people of India and the UAE on the milestone. He talked about CEPA’s role as a growth engine for India-UAE bilateral trade over the past 11 months. CEPA is a full and deep Agreement signed on 18 February 2022, during a virtual summit between the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi and the President of the UAE Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. CEPA entered into force on 1 May 2022. The…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: World Bank will provide USD 2.25 billion as loan to Bangladesh to develop various sectors, including regional trade and connectivity, disaster preparedness and environmental management. A loan agreement was signed on Monday (May 01, 2023) between Bangladesh and the World Bank for implementing five projects. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and World Bank President David Malpass witnessed the exchanges of the financing agreement. This loan agreement comprises five projects: ·Accelerating transport and trade connectivity in Eastern South Asia (ACCESS) – Bangladesh Phase-1 Project worth USD 753.45 million. ·USD 500 million Resilient Infrastructure Building Project (RIVER) for resilience, adaptation and…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India’s exports to the UAE are expected to reach USD 50 billion by 2026-27 from USD 31.3 billion at present on the back of the free trade agreement between the countries, a top government official said on Monday. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said that trade between India and the UAE has grown significantly after the implementation of the trade agreement on May 1 last year. “We are hoping that we would be able to reach USD 50 billion exports by 2026-27,” Barthwal told reporters. The India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) which was signed between the two nations…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday expressed his gratitude to Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates for his words of appreciation on his monthly radio address “Mann Ki Baat”. PM Modi on Monday tweeted: “I thank my friend @BillGates for his words of appreciation. #MannKiBaat reflects the collective spirit of the people of India to make our planet better, something Mr. Gates is also passionate about. The strong resonance with SDGs is highlighted well in the study by @BMGFIndia.” The tweet was in response to Gates’ post on Saturday, saying, “Mann ki Baat has catalyzed community-led action on…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: May Day is being observed in Bangladesh, as elsewhere across the world, with due respect. May Day, also known as the International Workers’ Solidarity Day, commemorates the historic uprising of workers in Chicago, USA at the height of a prolonged fight for an eight-hour workday in the late nineteenth century. May Day is a public holiday in Bangladesh. This year, the theme of the day in Bangladesh is “Sramik-malik oikya gori, smart Bangladesh gore tuli” (roughly translated: “Let’s develop workers-employers unity, build smart Bangladesh”). Newspapers published special supplements while radio and television channels are airing special programmes highlighting…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The US is already walking on the edge of the knife of financial recovery and President Joe Biden’s economic diplomacy push with China is putting the country at high risk with low reward, Josh Rogin writes in The New York Times. Biden has announced that he will be running for a second term in office and the Ukraine war and inflation are just like the salt on the open wounds. And on top of that Biden is doubling down on his push for economic engagement with Beijing. The author believed that raising the economic pressure on China in…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: In a significant move NSA Ajit Doval is scheduled to visit Tehran on Monday at the invitation of his Iranian counterpart Ali Shamkhani ahead of the country’s formal entry into the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit here on July 3-4. During his one-day visit to Tehran, Doval will meet with Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) of Iran, and other senior Iranian officials to discuss regional and international issues of mutual interest, hinted at by persons familiar with the agenda. Shamkhani and Doval have been meeting on the sidelines of the meetings of various regional…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: In a landmark decision, Bangladesh has given India access to Chattogram and Mongla ports for transit and trans-shipment of cargo vessels. The move will significantly cut time and cost needed to transport goods to India’s northeastern states and West Bengal and push regional connectivity in Bay of Bengal. The decision by the Sheikh Hasina government comes close on the heels of its announcement of an Indo-Pacific policy that will enable wider cooperation between New Delhi and Dhaka. Cargoes can be transported from Chattogram and Mongla ports to Agartala in Tripura via Akhaura, Dawki in Meghalaya via Tamabil, Sutarkandi…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Lt Rekha Singh, the wife of Naik Deepak Singh who was killed in Galwan Valley clashes with Chinese troops in June 2020, was on Saturday commissioned into the Army as an officer and has been posted to a frontline unit in eastern Ladakh, officials said. Rekha Singh, 29, has been deployed with the Army Ordnance Corps after she completed her training at the Chennai-based Officers Training Academy (OTA). The officials said Lt Rekha Singh has been posted at a frontline unit in eastern Ladakh. Her husband, Naik Singh was from the Army Medical Corps, and he was later…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India will start participating in the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) and the Long-Term Aspirational Goals (LTAG) from 2027. This was announced at a meeting of the Parliament’s Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Civil Aviation held in New Delhi on Friday. The meeting was chaired by the Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia. The ICAO has been tasked to reduce carbon emissions from international civil aviation as one of its focus areas. In order to mitigate carbon emissions from aviation and its impact on climate change, the global…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Lauding the unprecedented advancement of Bangladesh, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva said leadership like Bangladesh Prime Minister is necessary to go ahead towards prosperity confronting all the hurdles. “Bangladesh is a role model in the world, it has made unprecedented advancement in various sectors under the dynamic leadership of Sheikh Hasina,” said the IMF chief while paying a courtesy call on Bangladesh Prime Minister at the meeting room of The Ritz-Carlton hotel in Washington. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief led a delegation at the meeting, Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen told reporters during a press briefing.…

TECHNOLOGY DESK: Twitter Inc CEO Elon Musk said on Saturday that the social media platform will allow media publishers to charge users on a per article basis with one click, calling it a win for both the public and media organisations, reports Reuters. The feature, to be rolled out in May, will enable users who do not “sign up for a monthly subscription to pay a higher per article price for when they want to read an occasional article,” billionaire owner Musk tweeted. On Friday, Musk had said that Twitter will take a 10 per cent cut on content subscriptions…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: While delivering his remarks at the MIREX, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that India’s each engagement has its own particular weight and focus. Whether it is the United States, Europe, Russia or Japan, India is trying to ensure that all ties advance without seeking exclusivity. However, China falls into a different category, Jaishankar said. EAM Jaishankar was on a visit to the Dominican Republic from 27-29 April. While making remarks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic, Jaishankar said, “For the first time in 2015,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: After the eighth flight of A C-130 Indian Airforce plane carrying 40 Indians reached India, the no. of evacuated Indians reached the mark of 2,300, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar said on Sunday. “A C-130 Indian Airforce flight has landed in New Delhi with 40 passengers. With this flight, around 2,300 people have reached India,” EAM Jaishankar tweeted. The number reached the 2300 mark on the 8th flight however, following it, three more flights carried 229, 288 and 135 passengers respectively, taking the number of evacuees to more than 2500. An Indian Air Force C-130J aircraft with 40 passengers…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday interacted with UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay in the 100th episode of his monthly radio broadcast ‘Mann Ki Baat’. The Director-General of UNESCO not only wished the countrymen for the wonderful journey of the 100th episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ but also asked questions on education and cultural preservation in India. “I have received another special message from Audrey Azoulay, DG, UNESCO regarding ‘Mann Ki Baat’. She has wished all the countrymen for this wonderful journey of 100th episode,” PM Modi said during his 100th Mann Ki Baat address. Audrey Azoulay is a…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan called India the third largest ecosystem for startups globally and hoped for India to become the fourth-largest economy overtaking Germany by 2024 while speaking at an event in New Delhi on Saturday. “India is emerging as the third largest ecosystem for startups globally and over 84,000 startups recognized by the government exist today. By 2024, we hope to overtake Germany to become the fourth-largest economy in the world,” said the CDS. Talking about the major change undergoing in the global order Chauhan said, “The global security environment currently is in a…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Indian Navy ship, INS Teg, successfully evacuated 288 stranded Indians under Operation Kaveri from the crisis-hit Sudan on Saturday. This is the 14th batch of stranded citizens heading to Jeddah. “14th batch of Indians leaves Port Sudan under #OperationKaveri. 288 passengers onboard INS Teg are enroute to Jeddah,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted. Previously, INS Sumedha, which is stationed at Port Sudan, had also left the crisis-hit country with 300 passengers onboard for Jeddah. As many as 2,400 Indians have evacuated from Sudan, where the country is experiencing bloodshed as a result of clashes between…