1. G-20 Summit: PM Modi Meets Trump Ahead of First Trilateral Talks With Japan’s Abe
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, 30 November, met US President Donald Trump during the G-20 Summit in Argentina. He is expected to voice India’s firm commitment to make the Indo-Pacific a region for shared economic growth during the first trilateral meeting between him, Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The first of its kind meeting between Modi, Trump and Abe assumes significance against the backdrop of China flexing its muscles in the strategic Indo-Pacific region.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders stated the trilateral meeting with Prime Minister Modi will be held towards the end of the Trump-Abe bilateral talks.
(Source: Indian Express)
2. Kisan Mukti March: Opposition Rallies Behind Farmers
Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal shared the stage for the first time at Friday’s Kisan Mukti March, leading a show of Opposition unity in support of the farmers’ demands for fair prices and debt relief. Farmer leaders welcomed the political support as a sign that the agrarian crisis is now on top of the poll agenda in the run-up to the 2019 general election.
Thousands of farmers from across the country took to the capital’s streets under the banner of the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC), demanding that the government pass legislation to guarantee remunerative prices and debt relief.
(Source: The Hindu)
3. India’s Q2 GDP Growth Rate Falls to 7.1%, But Retains Fastest Growing Economy Ttag
The Indian economy grew at 7.1 per cent in the July-September quarter of the current fiscal, down from 8.2 percent in the previous quarter (April-June), according to government data released Friday, 30 Novmeber. However, it still remained ahead of China to retain the tag of the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
In the last fiscal year, the Gross Domestic Product at constant prices (2011-12) had grown at 6.3 percent in July-September quarter. The size of the GDP in the second quarter of 2018-19 is estimated at Rs 33.98 lakh crore, as against Rs 31.72 lakh crore a year ago, showing a growth rate of 7.1 percent, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
(Source: Indian Express)
4. Donald Trump Administration Shifting H-1B Selection to Favour Merit
The United States will set into motion next week the process of introducing a new rule requiring companies that wish to hire foreigners on H-1B visas to register their petitions in advance and to usher in “a more meritorious selection of beneficiaries” that will favour foreign students at US institutions of higher studies.
The proposed change in the selection process would result in an estimated increase of up to 16 percent (or 5,340 workers) in the number of selected those with a master’s degree or higher from a US institution of higher education, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which runs the H-1B programme. There is an annual cap of 65,000 visas under the programme for highly skilled workers recruited abroad and 20,000 from foreign students enrolled in higher studies in the US.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
5. Gauri Lankesh Murder: It is Sin Not to Slay Evildoer, Says Book That ‘Guided’ Accused
A book called Kshatra Dharma Sadhana published by Hindutva outfit Sanatan Sanstha, which allegedly guided the actions of several persons accused in the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, justifies the use of violence and guns in “destroying evildoers”.
The Kshatra Dharma Sadhana is an 86-page book authored by Sanatan Sanstha founder Jayant Athawale as part of his work on the Science of Spirituality. The Kshatra Dharma Sadhana or ‘Spiritual practice of protecting seekers and destroying evildoers’ is Vol 1 E in the series.
(Source: Indian Express)
6. Vijay Mallya Can’t Be Declared Fugitive, Was Arrested in UK, Says Counsel
Businessman Vijay Mallya cannot be termed a “fugitive economic offender”, as he was arrested in the United Kingdom and is facing an extradition trial there, his counsel claimed before a special court Friday, 30 November. Mallya’s counsel, Amit Desai, is arguing against him being declared a “fugitive economic offender” under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act that has provisions for confiscation of property even before trial.
Desai submitted that as per the provisions, while the ED, which has sought for the action against Mallya under the new Act, has claimed that a warrant against him is not executed, his arrest in UK proves otherwise.
(Source: Indian Express)
7. Pakistan FM Scored Self-Goal With ‘Googly’ Remark, Says New Delhi
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi scored a “self-goal” by claiming that Prime Minister Imran Khan had tricked India over the Kartarpur corridor, government sources said in New Delhi on Friday, 30 November.
“It [Mr. Qureshi’s remark] was intended to score a point but it turned out to be a self-goal that gives away Pakistan’s real intention in organising the [Kartarpur] event,” an official told The Hindu.
(Source: The Hindu)
8. Rahul Gandhi My Captain: Navjot Sidhu’s Dig at Capt Amarinder Singh Over Pakistan Visit
Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, who had created a splash at the Kartarpur corridor groundbreaking ceremony in Pakistan, said on Friday, 30 November, that his visit was opposed by Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh but not the Congress party. He also hit back at critics of his earlier visit where he had first raised the issue of a special corridor for Sikh pilgrims.
The Punjab minister, whose spirited praise of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on the occasion and photo with a Khalistani leader had earned him much criticism back home, said that though Amarinder Singh had asked him not to go, other Congress leaders backed his decision to participate. Amarinder Singh had himself turned down an invite to the event on the grounds of continuing Pakistani involvement in terror attacks in the state.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
9. Implant Files: Pharma Majors Gave Freebies to Doctors, Claimed Tax Benefits
Deep inside the big unregulated medical bazaar, it’s not just about how pharma giants slip in incentives for doctors to promote their products. It’s also about how they exploit cracks in India’s tax mechanism to claim benefits from it.
Records accessed by The Indian Express show that several pharmaceutical and medical devices manufacturers have claimed tax benefits on crores of rupees spent in buying gifts, sponsoring seminars and organising foreign trips for doctors.
And over the last decade, global giants Abbott, Medtronic and Johnson & Johnson were among several companies red-flagged by authorities for allegedly parking such expenses under accounting heads such as “invention”, “advertisement”, “publicity”, “propaganda” and “customer relationship”, to claim benefits under Section 37(1) — tax deduction for expenditure on business or profession — of the Income Tax Act.
(Source: Indian Express)
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