Bodhi News & Analysis - Saudi Arabia and US | Indian banking's continuing crisis | Paris Agreement and NDCs - 24 May

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We analyse 3 major issues - (1) Saudi Arabia and US relations, (2) Indian banking's continued crisis, (3) Paris agreement update.

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Welcome to Bodhi News for 24 May, 2017 - from Bodhi Booster knowledge portal!

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Topics covered indepth:
1. Saudi Arabia and US - how regional dynamics are changing, and Iran was sidelined
2. Indian banking's continuing crisis - the NPA problem has engulfed the sector, with no clear solution in sight
3. Paris agreement and NDCs - a latest status update on the climate change scenario

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Highlights | मुख्य समाचार

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Highlights for 24-05-2017

1. Constitution and law – The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that it was ready to ban triple talaq at one sitting. The Board stated in the affidavit that it would issue an advisory to all qazis and Imams asking them to advise couples, at the time of nikah, not to use instant triple talaq. This is a complete shift in its earlier stand of supporting the practice as an integral part of the Shariat. The affidavit further added that the AIMPLB wanted to bring about a change, they did not appreciate any interference from outside.
2. World politics – China has once again indicated that it would not support India’s bid to join the NSG unless a formula is evolved for admitting any country that has not signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). China’s contention for inclusion of non-NPT countries like India and Pakistan includes following a two-step approach - evolving a universal formula for all such nations and then taking up each country‘s application. Experts feel China is pursuing such an approach at the behest of its close ally Pakistan.
3. International law and jurisprudence – Pakistan has sought a rehearing of the Kulbhushan Jadhav case by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). It is unlikely that this will in any way lead to an annulment, or even dilution, of the interim relief already granted to India. ICJ had earlier stayed the execution of Jadhav until the time the court delivered its final verdict. The court had also acknowledged that Pakistan had violated the Vienna Convention on consular relations.
4. Defence and military – A defiant North Korea said that it was ready to start mass-production of a new medium-range missile after a week-end test-launch confirmed its combat readiness. North Korea has called the missile, which is capable of reaching Japan and major US military bases there, as an answer to US President Donald Trump’s policies.
5. World politics – Iran’s newly re-elected President Hassan Rouhani criticized US President Donald Trump for his critical comments on Iran and Saudi Arabia, which had never seen a ballot box, for hosting Trump’s first foreign visit. He further said that the Americans did not know this region. Rouhani decisively won a presidential election on Friday, securing another four-year term. The vote served as a referendum on Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, as well as a vote of confidence that his government will be able to help the country's faltering economy. Trump has threatened to try to renegotiate the deal.
6. World politics – Pakistan was hugely humiliated at the anti-terror summit when it was not given a chance to speak at the summit when countries like Afghanistan and Bangladesh were given this chance. It seems that Pakistan has started to pay the price of its duplicity on terrorism. While the country continues to claim that it is fighting a war against terrorism on its own territory, it never stops sending its state-sponsored terrorists to India as part of its proxy war against India.
7. Indian economy – The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced several steps, including the reconstitution of oversight committee (OC), bigger role for rating agencies and formation of a committee of its independent board members, to bring down the increasing non-performing assets (NPAs) in the Indian banking system. The RBI said it had already sought information on the current status of the large stressed assets from the banks.
8. Companies, products, services – Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran appointed veteran investment banker Saurabh Agrawal as the next Tata Group Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Agrawal is presently working as the strategy head of Aditya Birla group where he oversaw the multi billion Idea-Vodafone merger and the acquisition of Jaypee's cement assets by Ultratech.
9. Cyber crime and cyber terrorism – While the whole world was getting over the WannaCry ransomware, a new report indicates that an even greater threat in the form of EternalRocks , a new strain of malware, identified by researchers that apparently targets the same vulnerability that wrecked havoc worldwide by WannaCry ransomware. The malware includes far more threats than WannaCry, making it potentially tougher to fight.
10. Science and technology – US space agency NASA and India’s space research organization ISRO have joined hands to make a satellite called NISAR - NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite - which will help scientists to monitor the earth as never before. NISAR is the first big collaboration between NASA and ISRO on RADAR. The NISAR satellite is scheduled to be launched in 2021from India using the Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) and will definitely open a new vista in Indo-US friendship.
11. Deep Dive : More reading material for the sincere student – (1) Triple Talaq related issues – here and here, (2) India – China – Pakistan – here, here and here, (3) Constitution and Law – here and here, (4) Defence and Military – here, here and here, (5) Middle East issues – here and here, (6) Terrorism – here and here, (7) NPAs in Indian Banking – here and here, (8) The Tata crisis and IT sector updates – here and here, (9) Cyber-security – here, (10) ISRO updates – here, here and here
12. World politics – US President Donald Trump, during his Saudi Arabia visit, addressed leaders of Muslim countries. He urged them to take a stand against violence committed in the name of religion, and described the struggle against terrorism and extremism as a battle between good and evil. Human rights violations by Saudi Arabia and other Arab and Islamic countries did not figure in his speech.
13. Defence and military – International condemnation and UN sanctions notwithstanding, North Korea confirmed the successful launch of another medium-range ballistic missile. North Korea’s state media reported that the weapon was now ready to be deployed for military action. The new missile tested is a land-based version of North Korea’s submarine-launched weapon, using solid-fuel that allows for immediate firing.
14. Demonetization – RBI Governor Urjit Patel will once again appear before the Standing Committee on Finance on June 8 to brief members on how much money has come back into the system during demonetization. He had earlier appeared before the panel in January amid dramatic scenes. Members of the committee were not able to complete their questions to the RBI Governor. DeMo final figures remain inconclusive till date.
15. World politics – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was decisively re-elected as President of Iran for a further period of four years. Addressing people after his victory, Rouhani pledged to open Iran to the world and deliver freedoms which the people of Iran yearned for. President Rouhani is known as a cautious and mild leader and a champion of reforms. Iran and America are historical enemies since 1970s, and Obama administration tried to patch up through the nuclear deal.
16. Constitution and law – The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) came into force from May 1, 2017. The need for uniform guidelines and transparency in the real estate sector had been felt for long. RERA now brings the entire real estate sector within a regulatory environment, defining the liabilities and liberties of a developer and providing an effective grievance redress mechanism to the buyer. Many Builders have complained that it will harm the sector more than help, and for the fault of a few in Noida etc., everyone is being punished.
17. Goods and Services Tax (GST) – While tax rates of most goods and services have been finalized, it is still not very clear which commodities and services will be cheaper and which will be dearer in the new tax regime. There is uncertainty about the extent to which GST will impact the supply chain ecosystem. The transition rules still remain unresolved, and are critical because they deal with the process of shifting businesses from the existing tax system to a new one.
18. Science and technology – The much-awaited Tejas Express, which boasts several ultra-modern facilities like LED TV, wi-fi, CCTV, fire and smoke detection facilities and tea, coffee vending machines on board, will be flagged off from Mumbai to Goa on May 22, 2017. This train will run at an average speed of 130 Kmph. The train, manufactured at the Rail Coach Factory in Kapurthala, will have automatic entrance door, a first in non-suburban train in Indian railways.
19. World economy – India will firmly flex its muscle to secure better terms from the OPEC when the ministers from the cartel of oil exporting countries meet in Vienna on May 25 to discuss extending the production cut deal to raise prices. These countries account for around 35% of global supplies. The OPEC group finds itself on shaky grounds in the face of growing US fracking industry.
20. Corruption and transparency – A CBI court observed that the coal ministry officials held guilty in a coal bloc allocation case made dishonest misrepresentation of facts while recommending the allocation of a coal bloc in Madhya Pradesh to Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Limited (KSSPL). The court found that KSSPL’s application was clearly incomplete as it was not accompanied with all the requisite documents.
21. Education – India has taken a firm step towards creating 20 world-class educational institutions in the country which will be termed as Institutions of Eminence. The Human Resources Development (HRD) ministry has moved a proposal to the Union cabinet for approval in this respect. This is a new step to bring Indian institutions to global recognition by freeing them from the University Grants Commission’s (UGC’s) restrictive regulatory regime and bringing in a huge level of institutional autonomy.
22. Deep Dive – Read more here – (1) Donald Trump related issues – here, (2) North Korea related issues – here, (3) Demonetisation – here and here, (4) Middle East issues – here, (5) RERA – here, (6) GST – here and here, (7) Oil – here, (8) Corruption and transparency – here
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