WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-37

About: the world this week, 8 September to 14 September 2024: Wars; America Debates; SpaceX walks in Space; Typhoon Yagi; India – West Bengal, Pappu, Manipur; Paralympics 2024 – the end.

Everywhere

Ukraine; Israel

This Tuesday, Ukraine targeted Russia’s capital Moscow, in its biggest drone attack so far, killing at least one person, wrecking dozens of homes, and forcing around 50 flights to be diverted from airports around Moscow. On its turn, Russia said it had destroyed about 20 Ukrainian attack drones as they swarmed over Moscow.

In the Israel-Hamas War, reports say that Israel offered Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, a safe exit from Gaza in return for release of all the remaining hostages, in a bid to end the war. But it was turned down. And the war goes on.

This week, Israel launched multiple strikes on southern Lebanon, killing a senior Hezbollah Commander. In another daring raid, Israeli commandos obliterated a missile and secret weapons production facility in Syria, near the Lebanese border. The operation involved Air and Ground Forces. More than 18 were killed and dozens injured. And Hezbollah keeps firing rockets into Israel.

America Debates

WARNING: Debate victories do not always translate into election wins.

In the first-and perhaps only-US Presidential Debate, Vice-President Kamala Harris sparred with Ex-President, Donald Trump this Tuesday, on tackling issues like abortion, immigration, the economy, and foreign policy. The Debate was hosted by ABC News in Philadelphia’s National Constitution Centre.

The overwhelming opinion on the outcome was that Harris won the Debate, with Trump ‘willingly’ taking the bait and walking into traps laid for him. It was a poised and prepared Kamala Harris that met a crabby and thin-skinned Donald Trump. Harris effectively needled Trump on his deepest insecurities while painting a clear choice for voters. When Trump spoke dismissively of Harris, she systematically dismantled his rhetoric. This line by Harris probably sums it up, “You’re not running against Joe Biden. You’re running against me”. Make my day?

The ABC News moderators were criticised for not ‘moderating enough’ and leaning towards the Harris side, doing fact-checks on Trump’s statements and not on Harris’.

When Harris challenged Trump’s obsession with rallies, he countered in his trademark style, “People don’t leave my rallies. We have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics”.

Giant Leap in Space

This Tuesday (oh, what a Tuesday of the week!) SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn Mission kicked off, launching a four-person crew of civilian astronauts into orbit. And hours later they made history, reaching the highest orbit around Earth. The SpaceX Crew Dragon Spacecraft carrying the crew reached its peak altitude of 1,400.70 km, which surpassed the 1,373 km record set by NASA, in the early days of Space ventures, in the 1966 Gemini 11 Mission. Elon Musk’s SpaceX continues to scale greater heights!

NASA’s Apollo Missions have traveled farther, but did not enter a traditional orbit around Earth as they were destined-straight- for the moon. The Polaris Dawn mission also marks the farthest any human has journeyed since the final Apollo mission in 1972.

Then, in a ground-breaking moment, the crew successfully carried out the first ever commercial spacewalk, on the third day in space, when the spacecraft was orbiting at 732 km above the Earth’s surface.

Billionaire Jared Isaacman, the 41 year old founder of Shift4 Payments and Commander of the mission, exited the Spacecraft, performed designated tests, and returned to the Spacecraft in about 12 minutes. He was then followed by Mission Specialist, Sarah Gills, a SpaceX Engineer who also egressed the Spacecraft, did the same tests and returned, without incident.

Isaacman and Sarah conducted a series of mobility tests, carefully moving arms and legs through various positions to assess the Special Space Suit’s (EVA – ExtraVehicular Activity – suit) flexibility and comfort in the vacuum of Space. The Spacewalkers remained tethered to the spacecraft using a specially designed ‘Skywalker’ handrail system for stability.

The other two crew mates, Mission Pilot Scott Poteet and Mission Specialist and Medical Officer Anna Menon stayed and watched from inside – monitoring vital support systems throughout the operation. The whole process lasted about 46 minutes and the Spacewalk itself was for about 20 minutes.

When the hatch was unlocked and opened, the entire Spacecraft was depressurised and exposed to the vacuum of Space – a dangerous, and historic milestone. On the return when the hatch was closed, the Spacecraft re-pressurised, cabin oxygen and pressure levels normalised and confirmed, the crew were able to remove their EVA suits.

Meanwhile, late last week, on Friday evening, Boeing’s ‘impaired’ Starliner capsule returned from the International Space Station (ISS), concluding its nearly three-month ‘diseased stay’ in space. It flew back to Earth with an empty cabin, leaving behind two astronauts, it had carried, Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams who must now remain on the ISS for another five or six months – waiting for a SpaceX Mission to bring them home. They were left behind as it was considered too risky to use the Starliner, which had problems with its Thrusters and a leaking helium system, which could not be resolved.

Before the capsule departed, Butch and Sunita wished the spacecraft, nicknamed ‘Calypso’, luck on its journey home. As the Starliner dropped through Earth’s air, a set of parachutes-which Boeing redesigned and tested as recently as this January-slowed the capsule before the vehicle deployed airbags for a gentle touchdown on terra firma. Starliner is the first US-made spacecraft to parachute to a landing on the ground rather than typically splash down in the ocean. Boeing hopes that approach will make it easier to recover and refurbish the spacecraft after flight.

The decision not to bring-back Butch and Sunita appears to a good one, as on the return a new thruster failed, and the Starliner experienced a temporary blackout of its guidance system during reentry. However, the undocking from the ISS and the landing on Earth were successful. Over to that, ‘Space between the ears’ – for Boeing?

Vietnam

Late last week, Asia’s most powerful typhoon this year, Typhoon Yagi, battered the north of Vietnam killing more than 200 people – and about 125 missing. In the capital Hanoi thousands had to be evacuated, especially those living near the swollen Red River – the principal river of northern Vietnam – as its waters rose to a 20-year high, flooding streets. Yagi brought gales and heavy rain as it moved westwards after landfall last Saturday, causing the collapse of a bridge, while it scythed through provinces along the banks of the River. A flash flood swept away an entire hamlet in Lang Nu, in the Lao Cai province.

Across the country, the typhoon and subsequent landslides wreaked havoc on many factories and flooded warehouses in coastal export-oriented industrial hubs east of Hanoi, forcing closures, with some only expected to resume full operations after weeks. The disruptions threaten global supply chains as Vietnam hosts large operations of multinationals that ship mostly to the US, Europe, and other developed nations.

India

West Bengal

In Kolkata, West Bengal State, Doctors are continuing to protest and cease work, seeking justice for the brutal rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College, a month ago, and water-tight safety measures at work. The Supreme Court of India appeared to be taking sides when it gave an ultimatum to the striking Doctors to return to work by 5pm on Tuesday or face the wrath of the Government. Meanwhile, State Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee invited the Doctors for talks, which was rejected. Never mind, the Doctors still refused to get back to work.

The mainstream protests appear to be organic and non-political, with people spontaneously rising-up to agitate over the abysmal state of affairs. A prominent Member of Parliament and an ex-IAS Officer, Jawhar Sircar, of the ruling party of the State resigned in disgust over the mishandling of the entire Case. The pressure is mounting, even as India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in investigating, and is yet to throw up a decisive final report. The CBI cleared gang-rape allegations and identifies the accused- already in Police custody-Sanjay Roy as the sole culprit, based on evidence to this effect.

Manipur

Peace continues to elude the ethnic strife torn state of Manipur ever since clashes between the valley-based Meitei community and the hills-based Kuki community, triggered by a reservations issue in May last year.

This week violence erupted again following a sophisticated drone and rocket attack by Kukis. Drones were used to drop explosives in a few places. Overall, at least eight people have died and many injured in the fresh wave of violence.

Student protestors marched to the Raj Bhavan – where the Governor of the State resides -demanding the resignation of the Sate Police Chief and the Security Advisor among other demands. The march had to be tear-gassed by Police when stone pelting and other kinds of violence began.

Curfew was imposed, internet shutdown and more paramilitary forces were rushed to troubled spots to quell violence.

A Loose Cannon Ball: Lobbying Abroad

India’s Opposition Leader, of the Congress Party, Rahul Gandhi, fondly called ‘Pappu’ (an innocent kid) is on a tour of the United States and he is living up to his nickname, and much more. His claim that Sikhs in India are not allowed to wear Turbans and Kada (metal bracelet) and worship in Gurdwaras, in India, while the only time they had to hide their Sikh identity was during the 1984 anti-Sikhs pogrom (under his late father, Rajiv Gandhi’s Prime Ministership) stirred the proverbial hornet’s nest. Now the damage: Khalistani Separatist Groups have endorsed Rahul Gandhi’s remarks on Sikhs being unsafe in India and are using it to justify their call for a separate Sikh state. The Khalistan movement is outlawed in India a considered a grave national security threat.

Pappu also raked up caste divisions in India and why he wanted a Caste Census to be done to ‘measure-up’.

Instead of promoting India abroad, he seemed to defame India. And the ‘select’ people he met -and interacted with -during his visit, only reinforced an anti-India bias – a hatred for India. A case in the point is Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who has introduced many anti-India resolutions in the US Congress and violated India’s sovereignty in visiting Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir on the invitation of Pakistan. She has also been peddling hatred against Hindus in India.

During our school days we were taught to understand ‘puns’ with the popular example, ‘An Ambassador LIES abroad for the good of his Country’. Well, here is a person, that too a responsible law-maker, spewing hatred abroad, for his own good?

Paralympics 2024: The Closing

This Sunday France bid goodbye to the Paralympics 2024 with an explosion of fireworks, laser beams, breakdancing, and a thumping set, by the giants of French electronica. It was the biggest party it had ever thrown.

The big surprise of the night-and one of the best musical performances -was the blind Malian singers Amadou and Mariam performing a stunning rendition of Serge Gainsbourg’s anthem about goodbyes, Je Suis Venu te Dire que Je M’en Vais (I came to tell you, it’s goodbye ) at the base of the ballon-borne Paralympic flame, just as it was extinguished.

The rain Gods, which blessed and soaked the Opening Ceremony with a downpour or rain came back for another round of washing. The skies opened completely drenching the athletes who valiantly danced to the music as flames warmed the occasion by constantly bursting into the sky from the stage.

India limped to the end of the Paris Paralympics 2024 with a haul of 29 medals – 7 Gold, 9 Silver, and 13 Bronze – which is nearly half of the 60 medals won by India in all its 13 Games so far. In its 11 Paralympics till 2016, India had won 12 medals. India’s performance at Tokyo Paralympics 2020 marked a quantum jump with 19 medals. It has gone up by 10 more at Paris.

China led the Medals table with 220 medals followed by Britain with 124, and the United States at 105. Overall India was at number 18.

More stories to soak-in coming up in the weeks ahead. Keep your umbrella, stay with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-34

About: the world this week, 18 August to 24 August 2024: Wars; America’s Presidents; India grapples with sexual assault, India’s PM visits Poland and Ukraine; Bangladesh crisis; and Antimicrobial resistance.

Everywhere

The Wars

The wars of the world seem to be adding up every week, without end in sight. Ukraine is basking in its counter-offensive against Russia, wading into Russian territory, holding on, and shouting out loud that the famous Russian retaliation is after all a, cry-wolf!

In the Gaza War, this week, Israel retrieved bodies of six hostages from the Khan Younis area in southern Gaza. They were found dead in a tunnel. And are part of the Israeli civilians that Hamas had kidnapped alive on 7th October 2023, held hostage, tortured in underground tunnels, and obviously executed.

Cease-fire talks are going on furiously with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flying around. Israel appears close to accepting a proposal, keeping the release of the remaining hostages in mind, but Hamas remains the bad boy, thinking about the ‘day after’. Unconfirmed reports say that the Hamas Chief, Yahya Sinwar insists on guarantees for his own safety-that he should not be assassinated-as part of any agreement to release hostages. He once roared that it would be an honour to die fighting Israel.

America

This week, ahead of the United States Presidential Elections, the Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago City to uphold the candidatures of Vice President Kamala Harris for President, and her running-mate Minnesota State Governor Tim Walz for Vice President(VP). And a formal acceptance of the nominations by respective candidates happening during the Convention.

President Biden gave an emotional speech as he made the case for ‘President Kamala Harris’. He praised his choice of Harris as his VP, saying it was the best decision of his career. The Obamas spoke about why Kamala Harris should win. While the former President gave his speech in a generic uplifting manner, the former First Lady talked black & white.

Meanwhile, outside the Convention hall, thousands of protesters gathered to show dissatisfaction over Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

India

The outrage in India continues over the rape and murder of a 31-year-old Post Graduate trainee Doctor while on night-duty at the RG Kar Medical College, Kolkatta. Protests continued this week and the streets are screaming for justice.

India’s Supreme Court stepped in on a ‘suo motu’ basis, slamming the events after the murder: the Hospital immediately calling it a suicide, speedily cremating the body as if to bury the crime, and lodging a First Information Report (FIR) well after the post-mortem of the unnatural death.

The Supreme Court constituted a 10-member National Task Force to formulate a protocol for ensuring safety of doctors and healthcare professionals. And appealed to the striking Doctors to ‘trust the SC’ and resume their duties. Later, the Doctors agreed and called-off the strike, but protests by others continue.

Then in another incident in the State of Maharashtra massive protests broke out in Badlapur when two four-year old girls were sexually abused by a school, house-keeping staff, sweeper, a 23-year-old male, who was subsequently arrested on a complaint by the parents. The assault occurred in the girls’ toilet, which lacked female staff supervision. The incident came to light when one of the girls visibly frightened, told her parents that an older male at school, whom she referred to as ‘dada’ (Marathi for elder brother), had undressed her and touched her inappropriately. The parent then went on to make a complaint. The school suspended the Principal and three staff members as the protests escalated. Parents of the children and local citizens blocked the railway tracks at Badlapur Railway Station and also ransacked a local Police Station demanding strict punishment – a death penalty for the accused.

Stepping back, the cases of rape and sexual assaults in India have been astoundingly high. Blame it on India being an underdeveloped country or our hardwired genetics playing its part? And, we now have social media and democratised data access to report incidents. Will a death penalty work as a deterrent? Solid studies show that, without doubt, it is the ‘fear of getting caught’ that reduces criminality. Taking a higher view, India must sort out investigation of crime and enforcement – separating them. India is crying for Police and Judicial reforms: delivery of justice should be quick -on the double. Recall the Ajmer sex scandal which came to light in the year 1992. More than 100 girls aged between 11 and 20 years were victimised by a gang, whose members befriended them and shot their photographs in compromising situations, and later raped them. This week, 6 of the 18 accused were sentenced to life imprisonment – after a whopping 32 years!

Four years ago, I wrote about Police Reforms in India. Here is a link for any further reading:

https://kumargovindan.com/2020/08/15/shake-well-before-use-indian-police-reimagined/

This week, India’s Prime Minister (PM) set out on a visit to Poland and Ukraine to improve bilateral ties and discuss global issues. The Poland visit was the first by an Indian PM in 45 years. Amazing that it took so long for an Indian PM to reach Poland. And it is the first trip by an Indian PM to Ukraine since the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

India and Poland share a social relationship going back to World War II when Maharaja of Nawanagar, Jamnagar, Gujarat, Digvijaysinghji Ranjitsinji Jadeja – called the Dobry Maharaja (the Good Maharaja)- provided shelter and homes for Polish refugees escaping the wrath of Hitler’s invasion of Poland. You can read that story here:

https://kumargovindan.com/2021/08/28/world-inthavaaram-2021-35/

Naturally, India’s PM paid homage at a memorial of the Dobry Maharaja in Warsaw and recalled the special relationship. He also touched upon the Kabaddi Connection between the countries. The game of Kabaddi had reached Poland, and they have taken it to great heights, with the country becoming the European Kabaddi Champion for two consecutive years. And Poland is all set to host the World Kabaddi Championships, for the first time, this 24th August. Kabaddi is quite popular in Poland as it resembles the European game of Tag, and Wrestling.

Tag is a playground game involving one or more players, who is ‘it’ chasing other players in an attempt to ‘tag’ or mark them out of play, typically by touching with a hand, thereby making that person ‘it’.

India’s PM said he will ‘share perspectives’ on the peaceful resolution of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia during his visit to Ukraine, which comes more than a month after he travelled to Russia. The PM added that for decades India’s foreign policy was to maintain a distance from all countries. The situation has changed. Today India wants to maintain close ties with all countries. Hence, the many firsts coming up…and the list may get longer.

India’s support for Ukraine has been patchy and may be this is an opportunity to show substance and explain why India does what it does – a Bharat first approach.Could India have an ace up its sleeve – balancing Russia and Ukraine?

Towards the end of the visit, India’s PM listened to Ukrainians speak Hindi – being taught in the country. And presented four BHISHM (Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita & Maitri) Cubes to Ukraine. The BHISHM cubes are an easy-to-use, mobile medical facility that can be swiftly deployed to save lives in the most challenging circumstances.Each BHISHM Cube is self-contained consisting of medicines and equipment for the first line of care in emergency situations. It also includes surgical equipment for a basic Operation Room that can manage 10-15 basic surgeries per day. The Cube has the capacity to handle about 200 cases of diverse nature such as trauma, bleeding, burns, fractures, etc. It can also generate its own power and oxygen in limited amounts. A team of experts from India have been deployed to provide initial training to the Ukrainian side to operate the Cube.

And of course, to match the Russian bear-hug, Indian and Ukrainian leaders hugged each other, awfully close.

Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, with the new Interim Government in place, normalcy appears to be only limping-back, but Islamist violence against Hindus continues. And the situation is as if hanging in some kind of a balance. Wonder what comes up next!

On 20th August in the district of Thakurgaon mobs set fire to Hindu homes, leaving devastation and fear in their wake. This incident is not an isolated one, but a continuation of a sinister pattern of persecution that has gripped the Hindu community in Bangladesh for decades. Just days before, Bangladesh was rocked by the murder of Haradhan Roy, a Hindu councillor, and his driver. The senseless killing is believed to be motivated by Roy’s religious identity and his position of influence within the community. This was soon flooded by another disturbing incident where Gautam Chandra Paul, a respected Hindu Teacher was forced to resign from his position solely because of his faith.

The systematic erasure of Hindus from the social, political, and cultural fabric of Bangladesh appears to a work in progress. The numbers tell a story of their own. In 1941, Hindus constituted approximately 28% of the population in what is now Bangladesh. Today, that figure has plummeted to less than 9%. This sharp decline is the result of a calculated campaign of violence, intimidation, and forced conversions aimed at driving out the Hindu population. It highlights a disturbing trend of religious persecution. Despite the gravity of the situation, there is a deafening silence from certain media and political quarters who have sought to downplay these incidents; dismissing them as sporadic acts of violence rather than acknowledging them as part of a broader, systematic issue.

AMR

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a term used to describe micro-organisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites evolving over time and becoming resistant to antimicrobials-drugs used to treat infections caused by such micro-organisms. As a result existing medicines become ineffective and infections persist in the body, increasing the risk of spread to others, and making it harder to treat and contain diseases.

Antimicrobials include antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals, and antiparasites. Micro-organisms that develop antimicrobial resistance are also called ‘superbugs’. The misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans, plants, and animals are the main drivers in the development of drug-resistant pathogens.

AMR is considered as a ‘silent pandemic’ and according to a study published by ‘The Lancet’ in January 2022, it was directly responsible for 1.27 million global deaths in 2019 and contributed to 4.95 million deaths.

India is the largest consumer of antibiotics globally in terms of absolute volume. Studies have reported poor prescription quality, including un-indicated prescription of broad-spectrum antibiotics without evidence of bacterial infection. These findings are of particular public health relevance considering India reports high antibiotic resistance in bacteria that cause certain common infections.

Under the guidelines of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Global Action Plan, India launched its National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (NAP-AMR): a five-year plan (2017–2021) that outlines strategies to curb AMR in the country. The plan aims to tackle AMR in both human and non-human sectors, including agriculture, fisheries, animal husbandry, and the environment. The plan’s first five strategic priorities align with the Global Action Plan while the sixth priority highlights India’s role in containing AMR internationally. The plan also includes state-level action plans to ensure action at the ground level.

The States that have launched their State specific Plans are Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi. The State of Kerala stands-out in making pioneering progress in AMR.

The Kerala Drug Control Department launched tests in the first week of January 2024 called Operation Amrith (AMRITH – Antimicrobial Resistance Intervention For Total Health) to prevent the overuse of antibiotics in the State. Pharmacies must keep accurate records of antibiotic sales as per this initiative. Additionally, a poster mentioning ‘antibiotics not sold without a Doctor’s prescription’ should be displayed. If not complied, strict action would be taken against pharmacies and medical stores that supply antibiotics without a Doctor’s prescription. Operation Amrith is aimed at conducting surprise raids in retail medical shops for detecting Over-The- Counter(OTC) sale of antibiotics and also a Toll Free Number is provided for lodging complaints against medical shops. Once a complaint is received, it will be transferred to the corresponding zonal office for verification and immediate departmental actions will be taken, if violation is detected.

The Government of Kerala was the first state in India that came up with the state action plan on AMR, KARSAP, in 2018. Aligned with India’s National Action Plan, Kerala’s plan reflects a multi-sectoral approach. Besides human health aspects, it aims to address animal and environmental dimensions of the AMR problem, which is crucial for effective containment of AMR. Delhi-based think tank, Centre for Science and Environment, had actively contributed to the Kerala action plan and has been an implementation partner in the state’s AMR containment efforts.

It’s time other States hear Kerala’s clarion call and get their act together.

More viral stories coming up in the weeks ahead. Stay safe with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-33

About: the world this week, 11 August to 17 August 2024: Ukraine invades Russia; Israel holds; Trump and Musk on X; leaving New Zealand; a horrific rape and murder in India; India-events; mpox is here; Paris Olympics-goodbye.

Everywhere

Ukraine’s Invasion of Russia

Last week, Ukrainian soldiers smashed through the Russian border in a surprise attack aimed at improving future negotiation options, slowing the advance of Russian forces into Ukraine, and disorienting them.

This week, Ukraine’s forces captured the town of Sudzha in Russia’s Kursk region in the biggest foreign incursion into Russia since World War II, putting Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on the defensive. Ukraine, carving out a slice of Russian territory gives it a foothold for further advances, revealing the weakness of Russia’s border defences and prompting it to evacuate at least 200,000 people while it rushed in reserves and imposed a security lockdown. You just cannot go about bombing your own people, can you?

The Ukrainian assault on Russian has dramatically changed the narrative around the two-and-a-half-year-old war. Previously, it was Russia that had been advancing in eastern Ukraine since the failure of Ukraine’s 2023 counteroffensive.

Wonder on which side the dice is loaded?

Israel Holds On

Israeli forces pressed on with operations near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis amid an international push for a deal to halt fighting in Gaza and prevent a slide into a wider regional conflict with Iran and its proxies.

This week Hamas said it would not take part in a new round of ceasefire talks in Qatar, but mediators are expected to consult with Hamas, afterwards.

On another angle, there is a suspended animation on Iran’s revenge act on Israel, while Hezbollah and even Hamas keep pumping those rockets-a never-ending fire -into Israel. Will Iran dare attack Israel?

Trump and Musk: Birds of a Feather

This week, Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump sat for a friendly two-hour interview with Elon Musk on social media platform X, after technical problems delayed the start of the event for more than 40 minutes. Musk, who has endorsed Trump, was quick to blame the difficulties on a Distributed Denial-Of-Service (DDOS) attack, in which a server or network is flooded with traffic in an attempt to shut it down.

Trump and Musk chatted on X for over two hours. Trump recapped his assassination attempt, promised the largest deportation effort in US history if re-elected, boasted about his relationship with foreign leaders like North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, and the kind. Musk often praised the former President and seemed to even pitch himself as a potential Trump administration official. Their ‘bird chat’ played out as 1.3 million people listened-in at one point, according to an X counter.

Leaving New Zealand

People are leaving New Zealand in record numbers as unemployment rises, interest rates remain high, and economic growth is anaemic, government statistics revealed.

Data released by Statistics New Zealand showed that 131,200 people departed New Zealand in the year ended June 2024, provisionally the highest on record for an annual period. Around a third of these were headed to Australia.

While net migration, the number of those arriving minus those leaving, remains at high levels, economists also expect this to wane as the number of foreign nationals wanting to move to New Zealand falls due to the softer economy. Data shows that of those departing, 80,174 were citizens, which was almost double the numbers seen leaving prior to the COVID19 pandemic.

New Zealand’s economy is struggling after the central bank hiked cash rates 521 basis points in its most aggressive tightening since the official cash rate was introduced in 1999. The economy had an annual growth of 0.2% in the first quarter, unemployment rose to 4.7% in the second quarter, and inflation remains high at 3.3%.

Furthermore, Australia has been recruiting and offering relocation packages in areas such as nursing, policing, and teaching where they have skill shortages attracting New Zealanders, who do not need visas to work there. And with the New Zealand government having undertaken a significant downsizing of its public services, it has left many skilled workers looking for jobs. Well, that’s available aplenty across the border.

India: A Rape and Murder Most Foul

A 31-year-old woman trainee post-graduate Doctor working on night duty, was found dead last Friday at the RG Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkatta – a 138 year old premier Medical Institution in the State of West Bengal. In the morning of 9th August, the mauled body was found in the seminar room on the fourth floor of the emergency department building: first spotted by a security guard. Her laptop, bag, and mobile were found nearby. On the fateful night, the Doctor a second-year chest medicine trainee had dinner with her colleagues and later retired to the seminar room for some much-needed rest: there being no separate ‘on-call’ room.

When the incident came to light, the Principal of the College, Dr Sandip Ghosh appeared to shamelessly indulge in victim blaming, calling the death a case of suicide, and attempted to brush aside the incident. The parents of the woman Doctor resisted, leading to the police to investigate and confirm that she had been raped and murdered. Subsequently, the Police arrested a suspect, a civic volunteer, Sanjoy Roy, 33, through electronic footprints at the scene and the Hospital premises. He is an outsider who had free access to the different departments of the Hospital.

Civic Volunteers are a band of about one lakh so-called do-gooders, put together by the State Government. Initially, they were deployed as Traffic Wardens, to manage traffic, during festivals. Over the years, this army of youngsters has been co-opted by the Police who use them liberally, such as to collect legitimate fines (and bribes too?) These Civic Volunteers gradually became a law unto themselves, pitching in with their services for the ruling party, the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), whenever required. And this is not the first time a Civic Volunteer has been linked to an unnatural death in West Bengal.

The initial autopsy said the woman Doctor was murdered after being sexually assaulted, between 3 am and 6am. Her neck bone was found broken: she was first strangulated and then smothered to death. Her body was found in a half-naked condition with her spectacles broken. Further analysis, such as the amount of semen, suggested the involvement of multiple people. Her entire body bore marks of injury-not a single inch was spared-an examining doctor termed it as the most gruesome he has seen in his entire lifetime.

Doctors in India’s crowded and often squalid government hospitals have long complained of being overworked and underpaid, and say not enough is done to curb violence levelled at them by people angered over the medical care on offer.

Thousands of doctors marched on Monday in Kolkata and the surroundings to denounce the killing at the government-run hospital, demanding justice for the Doctor and better security measures. Hospital services were disrupted in several cities on Tuesday after the doctors’ protest spread nationwide. More than 8,000 government doctors in the western Maharashtra state, home to the financial capital of Mumbai, halted work in all hospital departments except emergency service.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the investigation hours after an order by the Calcutta High Court, which came down heavily on Dr Sandip Ghosh, saying it was ‘disheartening’ that he was not ‘proactive’. The court also flagged that the former Principal was given the same role in another college hours after he resigned and said he must be immediately relieved of duties and sent on leave.

The incident brought back memories of Aruna Shanbaug, a junior nurse at King Edward Memorial Hospital, Mumbai who was brutally assaulted by a ward boy, in November, 1973. She was left blind, deaf, and paralysed, and lived on for 42 years on life-support at the Hospital. She was cared for by fellow nurses before she passed away in 2015. He death spurred important legislation on safety and euthanasia in India.

Also, recall the Nirbhaya Case when in December 2012 a 23-year-old woman- a physiotherapy intern-was brutally gang-raped and assaulted in a moving bus in New Delhi, while returning home. The savage brutality of the incident stirred and shook India to the core. The six men involved were caught and convicted, including one juvenile. Four were hanged to death, one died-apparently suicide-in jail. And the juvenile was released after a 3-year jail sentence in a reform facility- maximum for juveniles under law.

Back to Kolkatta. In a further aggravation of the situation, when doctors were peacefully protesting, vandals armed with sticks, bottles, and bricks, usurped the night unleashing about 40 minutes of mayhem. The mob coursed through the campus ransacking critical care units, turning the medicine store room upside down, throwing around life-saving drugs, injections and other supplies. Were they trying to wipe-out evidence? The protesting doctors were forced to run to safety, and the Police were found wanting, yet again. Special forces had to be called-in to quell the violence.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) called for a 24 hour nation wide stir -withdrawal of services-beginning on Saturday, in support of the woman Doctor and her family, and to highlight the shabby handling of the crime situation by the College Authorities and stalling of the Police investigation after the first day.

Calls for the ‘woman’ Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, who handles the health and home portfolios, to quit, grew shrill. Shockingly, she announced a protest march against ‘her own Government’ pressurising the CBI to ‘complete the investigation on the double and hang the culprit by Sunday!’ Unbelievable that a leader can indulge in politicking and act without empathy.

The incident will remain a devastating memory and a shameful blot on West Bengal. Violence is endemic to the State, long beset by insurgency, social upheaval, mass migration, and violent mobilisation for political control. It has a long, deadly history of political violence, which has persisted over many decades: deeply impacted life and stained the fabric of society in the State, in complex ways. Could this be a turning-point?

Bangladesh Flux

There is cautious optimism as Bangladesh grapples with the aftermath of its student-led protests and the cataclysmic events that led to the exit of former Prime Minister Sheik Hasina from the country. Attacks on Hindus and minorities appear to have climbed down. Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus who lead the interim government used the opportunity to rid himself of most of the cases piled on him by the previous Government. And then began the return in kind. A murder investigation has been opened into Sheik Hasina over the police killing of a man during civil unrest. Six other top figures in the previous government are also being investigated.

Later in the week, Yunus called up India’s PM to assure him of safety of Hindus and minorities in Bangladesh.

India: Melange

India celebrated its 78th Independence Day on 15th August with India’s Prime Minister, in his usual vibrant, colourful head-gear, raising the national flag for the 11th time in a row. He laid down plans for the year in a long speech, from the ramparts of the Red Fort in New Delhi. This time, the PM sported a multi-coloured Rajasthani Leheriya print turban. And the theme of this year’s celebration was Viksit Bharat @ 2047 (a developed India by 2047).

India’s ISRO successfully launched its third developmental flight of Small Launch Vehicle (SSLV) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Friday and successfully injected a Satellite it was carrying into its exact planned orbit. ISRO only gets better after each adventure into Space.

India’s Election Commission announced Elections in the State of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K)-the first Assembly elections in over a decade – and in Haryana State, which was ending a term. The J&K Elections will be held in three phases on 18th, 25th September, and 1st October, while the Haryana Elections will be on in a single phase on 1st October.

Mpox

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the mpox outbreaks in Congo and elsewhere in Africa a global emergency – Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHIC)- with cases confirmed among children and adults in more than a dozen countries. And a new form of the virus, called ‘clade 1b’ is spreading mainly through sexual networks. Few vaccines are available for treating cases.

This PHIC determination is the second in two years relating to mpox. WHO said that the current upsurge along with the spread of a new sexually transmissible strain of the monkeypox virus is an emergency not only for Africa but for the entire globe. It is caused by an Orthopoxvirus and first detected in 1970 in Africa.

Mpox, previously known as monkeypox has been detected in 13 countries this year, and more than 96% cases and deaths are in Congo. Cases are up to 160% and deaths have swelled up to 19% compared to the same period last year. So far, there have been more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths.

Unlike the previous mpox outbreaks, the new form causes milder symptoms making it harder to spot. People might also sicken others without knowing they are infected.

Paris Olympics 2024: Goodbye

Hollywood movie star Tom Cruise was chosen as the showstopper of the Closing Ceremony of the Paris Olympics, and he did not disappoint. Maybe it was also a stunt to establish a connection with the next Games. Known for performing all of those dangerous stunts in his movies, he did the same at the closing ceremony, giving it a Hollywood touch. Tom Cruise jumped off the roof of Strate De France, one of the largest stadiums and landed on stage, in a jaw-dropping moment. The audience welcomed him with cheers. And the ladies even manhandled him-landing tons of kisses!

Paris has set new standards for the Olympic Games by hosting most of their games at iconic landmarks such as Place de la Concorde, the Eiffel Tower, the Chateau de Versailles and the Grand Palais. They also brought top celebrities for the grand opening ceremony including Celine Dion and Lady Gaga.

The next Summer Olympics will be held in 2028 in Los Angeles, USA and then in Brisbane, Australia in 2032. India is considering bidding for the 2036 Olympic Games.

It will exciting to see how the Summer Games will be hosted in the City of Angels, LA: its Mayor Karen Bass, who was present said, “will really show the diversity and the international character of our city. And we do have Hollywood, so I expect a lot of magical opportunities, which might begin at the closing ceremony.”

In the final Medals Tally, the United States of America led with 40 Gold, 44 Silver, and 42 Bronze -Total of 126 medals; followed by China, 40 Gold, and 91 overall; Japan, 20 Gold and 45 overall; Australia 18 Gold and 53 overall. The hosts France won 16 Gold, 26 Silver, 22 Bronze, and overall 64.

India won a total of 6 medals: 1-Silver and 5-Bronze. Overall, one medal less than the previous Games.

More sensational stories cruising-in, in the weeks ahead. Stay alert and on stage with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-32

About: the world this week, 4 August 2024 to 10 August 2024: Britain’s riots; US Elections-running mate; Taylor Swift-not fearless; Bangladesh coup; war fronts; and the Paris Olympics – focus on India.

Everywhere

Britain: Rioting Right

Violent protests erupted in towns and cities across Britain following last week’s knife attack, which killed three children in Southport, north of Liverpool. The protests spread across the country, including Liverpool, Bristol, and Manchester, resulting in dozens of arrests as shops and businesses were vandalised and looted. Several police officers were injured in the line of duty.

The stabbing attack was seized on by anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim groups as misinformation spread that the suspected attacker was an immigrant and a radical Islamist. This stoked further outrage. Police said the suspect was born in Britain and are not treating it as a terrorist incident.

On Sunday, hundreds of anti-immigration protesters gathered by a hotel near Rotherham, northern England, where Britain’s Interior Ministry was housing asylum seekers. The protesters, many wearing masks or balaclavas, threw bricks at police and broke several hotel windows, before setting a large bin close to the hotel on fire.

The new Government, fresh from a superb win at the hustings, scrambled to control the worst disorder in the United Kingdom in more than a decade. Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the protests and riots as “far-right thuggery” and said perpetrators would face the full force of the law. The target of the attacks were Muslim communities, mosques, and other minorities. With this crisis running on the streets of Britain, the honeymoon period of the new Government is all but over.

Who is behind the thuggery? Faceless. Plans to engage in violent gatherings have been spread on social media, encouraging attendees to shield their faces or use coded language that stirs up anger at immigration without explicitly calling for violence. Naturally, the Govt is looking at social media as an instigator. Mind that ‘misinformed’ tweet, you could get yourself arrested!

United States Elections: Running Mate

This week US Vice President Kamala Harris decided on her running-mate, choosing Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota. Walz is currently in his second term as Governor and chairs the Democratic Governors Association. He previously served 12 years in Congress. And prior to that, Walz was a high school teacher and football coach and served in the Army National Guard, reaching the rank of Command Sergeant Major, one of the highest ranks an enlisted member can attain. As a first-time campaigner, he opposed a ban on same-sex marriage and supported abortion rights. Walz fell out of favour with the gun lobby over his support for gun safety actions as Governor. Walz supports In Vitro-Fertilization (IVF) having himself ‘become productive’ after struggling to become a parent along with his wife of three decades.

Taylor Swift: Not Fearless

US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift is in the Vienna, Austria leg of her blockbuster Eras tour scheduled to play three shows in the European city from Thursday to Saturday. But Organisers cancelled the shows over a possible terrorist attack after Austrian authorities said they foiled a terror plan in Vienna. The extraordinary decision-which came at significant cost to Vienna’s businesses-has devastated fans and renewed focus on the vulnerability of huge concerts as soft targets for terror networks and spree killers.

Police in Austria have questioned three teenagers suspected of plotting a suicide attack at the Taylor Swift show, sparking renewed concerns over the indoctrination of young people online. Foreign intelligence agencies helped authorities uncover the plot. That’s the world swiftly singing together on intelligence gathering.

The Bangladesh Drift: the Churning

Bangladesh is at a historic turning-point. Well, it has been in this place many times before, at about the same cross-roads. And they keep coming on the trot.

The student protests of the past weeks over reservations in government jobs, dangerously changed track and galvanised into a force that toppled the Government of Prime Minister (PM) Sheik Hasina, 76. In January this year, she won a landslide mandate for the fourth consecutive time in the General Elections. Her party, The Awami League won 224 seats, out of the 300 under direct elections. That’s about 15 years in continuous power and a total of 20 years as PM. Most Opposition Parties had boycotted the Elections, apparently making the win easier.

The seemingly harmless and peaceful demands by University students to abolish quotas in civil service jobs that began in July transformed beyond recognition. This despite the Supreme Court calling-off the strangulating quota system. However, the creeping death toll reaching over 300, due to the brutal crackdown on the protesters, turned the Government into an authoritarian one to preserve peace. Enough reason for people to spill on to the streets. And with most of the Opposition in various modes of arrest, this seemed the only outlet for anger against the Government. The PM repeatedly cut-off internet access in parts of the country, imposed a nation-wide curfew, and labeled the demonstrators as ‘terrorists seeking to destabilise the nation’. Well, they lived up to the label.

Sheikh Hasina blamed the Pakistan basedJamaat-e-Islami, its Islami Chhatra Shibir student wing, and other associate bodies for inciting the student violence. And in an official circular imposed a ban on Jamaat-e-Islami under an anti-terrorism law.

With protests spiralling out of control, the Army served a 45 minute ultimatum to Sheik Hasina to leave the country. She found a helicopter and flew into the safe-haven of India, landing at a military airfield, Hindon, near New Delhi, and was met by India’s National Security Advisor after which was taken to a safe location.

Meanwhile, protesters reached the PM’s house and raided all that was inside, dusting-up her blouses, bras, and what not? One even paraded her Sari and wore it.

It was awfully painful to see people climb up the statue of the Father of the Nation and try to hammer him down. Almost killing him a second time. Recall, Sheik Mujibur Rahman-the founding father of Bangladesh and the father of Sheik Hasina- was shot in point plank range by the same Army, which entered his home, and killed almost the entire family in a horrific turn of events in 1975. That was the first Army coup of Bangladesh. Hasina herself was in Germany at that time and after years of struggle lived to become PM one day. Her sister too escaped the carnage, at that time.

Bangladesh Army Chief, General Waqar-uz-Zaman quickly took control and announced the formation of an Interim Government. Meanwhile the President of Bangladesh Mohammed Shahabuddin, ordered the immediate release, from House-Arrest, former PM Khaleda Zia who was also Bangladesh’s first Woman PM and leader of the Opposition, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Bangladesh’s unicameral parliament was also dissolved. What is the President’s role in Bangladesh?

Bangladesh has a unique system of transfer of power; at the end of the tenure of the government, power is handed over to members of a civil society for three months, who run the general elections and transfer power to elected representatives. The President as the ceremonial head of the state has limited powers. He can grant pardon to a man sentenced to death penalty or lessen the punishment. In certain instances, he also performs some legislative and judicial functions.

On another front, Hindu and other minority communities were ruthlessly attacked amounting to ethic-cleansing and heading towards genocide, showing another diabolical motive of the unfolding drama in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council said that about 200 to 300 Hindu homes and businesses have been vandalised since Hasina resigned. About 15 to 20 temples have been looted.

Towards the end of the week, the Protestors agreed to Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus becoming Leader of an Interim Government. Student Leaders of the so-called ‘Gen Z Revolution’ said they have not met all of their goals, and after Hasina’s resignation, the group wanted to ‘abolish fascist systems forever’. The leaders say they won’t accept a military-led or supported government.

Professor Muhammad Yunus, 84, who was in France over a minor medical procedure, flew in to Bangladesh’s capital Dacca, and was sworn-in on Thursday. Tucked inside his new cabinet are Nahid Islama and Asif Mahmud, students who led the anti-government protests. Yunus kept up to 27 critical portfolios with himself. One man show?

Muhammad Yunus known as the ‘banker to the poor’ aims to bring stability to Bangladesh. He answered the call of student protesters to temporarily lead the restive country following weeks of deadly anti-government demonstrations.

Yunus is a social entrepreneur and banker who won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his pioneering microfinance work as founder of the Grameen Bank that helped alleviate poverty in Bangladesh and was widely adopted around the world.

He is also a longtime critic of Sheikh Hasina. Over the years, Yunus was embroiled in multiple legal cases said to be unfairly targeted by the authorities. They include a defamation suit, a food safety case, and allegations of tax irregularities. In January, a court in Bangladesh sentenced Yunus to six months in prison for labor law violations. In a separate case, he was indicted in June on embezzlement charges. All of which was denied by Yunus.

India’s Prime Minister, under pressure to protect persecuted Hindus, had this to say, “My best wishes to Professor Muhammad Yunus on the assumption of his new responsibilities. We hope for an early return to normalcy, ensuring the safety and protection of Hindus and all other minority communities. India remains committed to working with Bangladesh to fulfill the shared aspirations of both our peoples for peace, security and development”.

Yunus’ first speech acknowledged the attack on Hindus and minorities and appealed to the protesters to trust him to bring law and order under control. If not, he threatened to step-down as Interim Leader.

Israel and Ukraine: the fight is on

The two steadily ongoing war fronts are that of, Ukraine-Russia in Europe and Israel-Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Middle East.

In the first front, this week, in a surprise turn, Ukraine Forces pushed further into the Kursk region of Russia in a cross-border incursion with the intent of diverting Russian forces and to disrupt and demoralise them. Ukraine intends to hold-on to the territory as long as they possibly can.Will a tit-for-tat work?

In the second front, Iran mulls scrapping plans to take revenge on Israel for killing Hamas’ Political Head on its soil, in exchange for a Gaza ceasefire. In the background US, Qatar and Egypt hit the negotiation acceleration pedal urging Hamas to resume talks, after the killing in Iran.

Paris Olympics 2024: Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together

The Olympic Games is running on the Paris, France, stage from 26 July to 11 August.

In Tennis, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic struck gold in the Men’s Singles Tennis beating Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(3), 7-6(2), in an enthralling neck-and-neck final.

Novak Djokovic is the only player in tennis history to win every big event in the game of Tennis. This is the first time in his career that he has won an Olympic Gold, adding to his ever-expanding chest of 24 Grand Slam titles. Alcaraz missed out on a gold medal in his maiden Olympics appearance.

In Hockey, India beat Britain in penalty shoot-outs, 4-2 after a 1-1 tie in the regular game. Indian Goal-keeper Sreejesh became an overnight sensation over his heroics of the day-saving many goals on the field and blocking a crucial one in the shoot-out. The Great Wall of India-shouted fans, who then went treasure hunting into this Home Sate of Kerala and dug up stories of what went into building of the wall. India faced Germany in the semi-finals but despite a valiant fight succumbed 2-3. Then, bringing some cheer, India went on to beat Spain 2-1 to clinch the bronze medal. This is Indian’s second consecutive win having won the bronze in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, beating Germany.

India’s gold medal winning hope Neeraj Chopra secured a Javelin final spot with a throw of 89.34m. His best throw was 89.94m at Stockholm in the Diamond League Games, last year. In the finals, Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem threw a stunning 92.97m to win the Gold and break the Olympic Record of 90.57 established in Beijing 2008. Neeraj threw 89.45 to get the Silver. The Bronze Medal throw reached 88.45m.

This is a back-to-back Olympic Medal for Neeraj who had won the gold in Tokyo Olympics with a throw of 87.58m. In that competition Arshad Nadeem had finished fifth with 84.62m. This is Pakistan’s first ever medal in this event at the Olympics.

In Wrestling, India’s Vinesh Phogat defied huge odds to earn herself a sure chance of a medal in the 50kg event. She became the first Indian Woman to reach an Olympic final in Wrestling. Sakshi Malik is the only other wrestler, who had clinched a bronze medal in the Rio 2016 Olympics. In her opening match Phogat stunned reigning Olympic Champion, Japan’s Yui Susaki; then beat former European Champion, Ukraine’s Oksana Livach in the quarters, and Pan American Games Champion, Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman in the semi-finals to reach the finals. She was to take on USA’s Sarah Hildebrant for the Gold. But then, in a sudden twist and a heart-break, on the day of the finals, Phogat was disqualified for being overweight by a beggarly 100 grams in the 50 kg weight category. Competition rules say wrestlers must stay in their weight category on both days of the tournament. After Phogat’s disqualification, only the gold and bronze medals were awarded in the event. India has made a legal appeal and there could be yet another twist.

Now, a flashback. In May 2023, Vinesh Phogat was detained by police in New Delhi while attempting to march to India’s new parliament building, just as it was being inaugurated. This was during a protest against Brij Bhushan Singh, the wrestling federation chief, over allegations of sexual harassment and intimidation. Phogat was later released.

In the run-up to the final, Phogat’s fellow wrestlers hailed her journey as both a personal and collective triumph for India’s wrestling community who have long complained that authorities failed to take their allegations seriously.

At the end of the week, Aman Sehrawat, 21, won the Bronze Medal in the Men’s Freestyle 57 kg bringing some cheer to India. He became the youngest Olympic medalist in Wrestling.

Vaulting to other events, Sweden’s Armand Mondo Duplantis broke the men’s Pole Vault world record for the 9th time with a jump of 6.25 m to cap a gold medal-winning streak. The 24-year-old has won every global men’s Pole Vault title since claiming his first Olympic gold in Tokyo.

In the Medals Tally, USA leads with 33 Gold and overall 111 medals, followed by China, Australia, and Japan. India had a total of 6 medals: 1-Silver and 5-Bronze. In the previous Olympics Tokyo Olympics, India had won 7 medals: 1-Gold, 2-Silver, and 4 Bronze.

More medal stories coming-up in the weeks ahead. Run, jump, or swim to glory with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-27

About: the world this week, 30 June 2024 to 6 July 2024: Israel grinds; US gasps; France swings; Britain labours; India stampedes; and Team India wins a nail-biting T20 Cricket World Cup Final.

Everywhere

Israel Grinds On

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the idea of starting a ceasefire in Gaza while Hamas remains in power. This comes in the background of talks about a truce that would give Israeli troops time to prepare for a potential land war with Iran-backed militant Hezbollah, operating in Lebanon.

Israel killed a senior Hezbollah commander on Wednesday, the second top field leader killed in less than a month, and Hezbollah retaliated by firing scores of rockets at Israeli military positions near the border. This is anyway a regular sideline feature in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

The over 120 Israeli hostages in the captivity of Hamas, for over 270 days, are yet to see freedom. Negotiations for a possible deal to secure their release appears to be alive, walking in the shadows.

The United States Gasps

The first Presidential debate-ahead of the upcoming US Election in November 2024-left viewers gasping for breath; actually it was the Democrats’ candidate, incumbent President Joe Biden, who struggled to find air. He delivered a shaky, halting performance, while his Republican rival Donald Trump battered him with a series of attacks at a debate last Thursday. The two oldest presidential candidates ever, exchanged personal insults; traded barbs on abortion, immigration, the wars in Ukraine and Gaza; growled on each other’s handling of the economy; and even put stick to their golf games. Later, standing on firmer ground, Joe Biden said, he can do the job even though, “I don’t walk as easy as I used to, I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to, I don’t debate as well as I used to.” Time to send him home? Reusing has its limits!

Meanwhile, in a landmark ruling, the US Supreme Court ruled that Trump cannot be prosecuted for any actions that were within his constitutional powers as President, but can be, for private acts. This ruling recognises for the first time, any form of presidential immunity from prosecution.

Then, Biden, this time quick on the draw, and reading from a teleprompter, thundered, “This nation was founded on the principle that there are no kings in America. Each, each of us is equal before the law. No one is above the law. Not even the President of the United States”. He called the Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity, a ‘dangerous precedent’ that could turn Presidents into kings and called on the American people to ‘dissent’ by rejecting Donald Trump in November’s election. Maybe, the Democrats need to dissent on going along with him.

France Swings

France has a semi-Presidential type of Government with a President and Prime Minister. The President is the pre-eminent figure-the Big Boss-and is directly elected through Presidential Elections in a term, separate from Parliament. The President’s role is unique. He can deal directly with the people when required, bypassing and even dissolving Parliament. The President appoints the Prime Minister and chairs cabinet meetings. The Prime Minister is responsible to Parliament, which consists of a Lower House- the National Assembly and an Upper House-the Senate.

The parliamentary election to the National Assembly is a complex, two-round process in which the two candidates who get the most votes in the first round go through to a second round. There are 577 seats in the National Assembly. And for an absolute majority a party needs 289. The Parliament may or may not be controlled by the party the President belongs to.

When opposing parties control parliament and the presidency, the power-sharing arrangement is known as cohabitation. Before the year 2002, cohabitation occurred as a regular feature, because the term of the President was seven years and the term of the National Assembly was five years. And the overlapping brought together strange bed-fellows. With the term of the President shortened to five years, it is expected that cohabitation is less likely to happen.

Emmanuel Macron is the current President of France, in office since May 2017, being elected for a second term in May 2022.

This week, the results of the first round of France’s Parliamentary Elections were out. And the challenger, Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) & Allies made historic gains winning 33% of the vote, followed by a left-wing bloc with 28%, and well ahead of President Macron’s broad alliance of centrists, who scored just 22%.

The first round eliminates all candidates who fail to win the support of 12.5% of locally registered voters. Anyone who scores more than 50% of the vote with a turnout of at least a quarter of the local electorate wins automatically. That normally happens only in a handful of constituencies.

RN is led by 28-year-old Jordan Bardella – designated Prime Minister – and in Parliament by Marine Le Pen, who has fought for the presidency three times and lost each time. Now, the polls say her party could become the biggest in France, falling short of an absolute majority. Naturally, Le Pen has set her eye on the next presidential election, in three years’ time.

Pollsters calculated the first round had put the RN on track for anything between 250-300 seats, but that is before tactical withdrawals reshape voter intentions this weekend. And there seems to be ganging-up of parties against Marine Le Pen, given her strident anti-Muslim stand. Le Pen has called for the hijab to be banned in public spaces, while Jordan Bardella, has called the veil a ‘tool of discrimination’.

The second round – the run-off will be held on Sunday, 7th July. And consists of a series of run-offs fought either by two, three or sometimes four candidates. Some candidates may drop out before 7th July to give an Ally a better chance of stopping a rival from winning.

Never before has the far-right won the first round of a French parliamentary election.

The Macron alliance had only 250 seats in the outgoing Assembly.

Whoever wins, President Macron has said he will not resign. If his party loses, and National Rally wins, then the question is whether RN can win an absolute majority or a relative majority similar to that held since 2022 by the Macron camp.

An RN victory could open the door to almost three years of ‘cohabitation’: when the president of one party heads the state and another party runs the government.

Marine Le Pen is the daughter of Jean-Marie Le Pen who founded the National Front Party. For years, she has been working to ‘de-diabolise’ or detoxify her party from the antisemitic and extremist roots of her father and his fellow founders. Once in control, she renamed the party as, National Rally to shrug-off the past. Much of its focus now is on the cost-of-living crisis, but many of its strict anti-immigration policies remain, and a ruling this year by the Council of State, France’s highest court for administration, confirmed it could be considered ‘extreme right’. Jordan Bardella wants to ban French dual nationals from sensitive strategic posts, calling them ‘half-nationals’. He also wants to limit social welfare for immigrants and get rid of the automatic right to French citizenship for children with foreign-born parents.

Britain’s Labour Labours Liberally

British voters headed to the polls this Thursday for a crucial General Election. The snap vote, called by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, was held months earlier than necessary, and caught much of his party by surprise.

The opposition Labour party had suffered its worst defeat since 1935 in the last general election, but has since rebuilt itself under the leadership of Keir Starmer. And when the results were out on Friday it was a Landslide win for Labour with 410 sets, well above the majority mark of 362. Well, that was what India’s Prime Minster was aiming for, 400 paar – 400 and above. Never mind, it happened in faraway Britain.

The Labour Party swept hundreds of seats across the country and in the process brought an end to 14 years of Conservative rule. And a tumultuous era, which saw five different Conservative leaders running the country.

Sir Keir Starmer, 61, was quickly appointed Prime Minister(PM) by King Charles, later in the day. Rishi Sunak, the outgoing PM, conceded early in the morning, acknowledging Labour had won and calling Starmer to congratulate him. Sunak took responsibility for the loss. His Conservative party won a conservative 121 seats.

Britain’s new Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, studied at Reigate Grammar School, University of Leeds, and University of Oxford. He is married to NHS occupational therapist Victoria Alexander and has one son and one daughter.

Keir started his professional life as a Barrister in the 1990s, and was appointed the director of public prosecutions, the most senior criminal prosecutor in England and Wales, in 2008, which service eventually got him knighted as ‘Sir Keir Starmer.’

He was first elected in the Holborn and St. Pancras constituency in north London in 2015, and took over the leadership of Labour after the party’s poor 2019 general election, pledging to start a new era after the abrasive left-wing leadership of Jeremy Corbyn.

This election’s insurgent party was Reform UK, the right-wing successor to the Brexit Party and the UK Independence Party. Nigel Farage, its leader, finally won a seat on his eighth attempt – but his party’s initial projection of 13 seats fizzled to four.

India’s Death Stampede

It is one of the deadliest stampedes and worst crowd crushes in India, 123 people, including women and children, died in Phulrai Mugalgarhi village in Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Hathras District. About 250 were injured. The tragedy occurred at the conclusion of a Hindu religious satsang (a prayer meeting) organised in the area, by a self-styled God-man guru, called Bhole Baba; when the meeting concluded and the Baba was leaving the venue.

The organisers tried to create a passage from the venue to the main highway for the convoy of Baba’s cars to leave, amidst a rush of people who began gathering on both sides of the corridor. All of this, combined with the mismanagement of the huge crowd by the organisers has prima-facie led to the stampede. A Mad rush, extreme humidity, slippery ground, desperation to seek Baba’s blessings – collect dust under his feet- confusion, screams, and fear were tell-tale signs of the gruesome scene. Most of the deaths resulted from suffocation.

More than three times the permitted number of people attended the event-about 250,000-despite permission being granted only for 80,000.

The satsang was held by Suraj Pal, 58, who also goes by the names, Narayan Hari, Sakar Vishwa Hari Bhole Baba or simply ‘Bhole Baba’. Hari hails from Bahadur Nagari village in Kasganj district, about 65 km from Hathras where the stampede occurred. Suraj Pal worked as a constable with the UP Police, and was last posted in Agra, before he quit in the 1990’s to become a religious preacher. He claims to have a spiritual bend even while working with the Police, which made him ‘switch careers’.

He then adopted the name Bhole Baba, began preaching, and conducted satsangs known as ‘Manav Mangal Milan Sadbhavna Samagam’ along with his wife, who is known as Matashree. Hari does not have children.

Bhole Baba does not wear the traditional saffron clothes, often appearing in a white suit and tie or a kurta-pyjama. He claims to spend all the money donated to him on devotees. He calls himself a disciple of Hari (Lord Vishnu). He is said to have a notable following in western Uttar Pradesh.

Wonder why the ‘God-Man’ did not stay back and offer succour to those affected, or use his ‘Godly power’ to bring back people to life? Instead, he promptly fled the scene.

T20 World Cup Cricket Thrills

I have not watched live cricket on TV in a long time and there was no better day to get back than last Saturday. And it was worth its weight in gold watching the India – South Africa Finals.

India’s 13 year wait for a World Cup win finally ended on a glorious day at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, West Indies, on 29th June. For South Africa, the endless agony for a Cup Win goes on. The spectacle these two teams produced was more than worthy of a World Cup final. It was a contest that sashayed back and forth, each blow followed by an equally brutal counterpunch that left the result hanging in balance until the final moments, in an edge-of-the-seat position.

In the end India won against South Africa by seven runs, becoming just the third side to win the Men’s T20 World Cup twice, after England (2010, 2022), and West Indies (2012, 2016). Barring a no result against Canada, India won all their remaining contests in the tournament, thus becoming the only undefeated side to win the T20 World Cup.

In the Finals, India batted first, making 176/7 runs in 20 overs with a vintage performance by Virat Kohli who made 76 of 59 balls, and pinch-hitter Axar Patel delivering his role to perfection, knocking 47 runs off 31 balls. In return, South Africa made 169/8 in 20 overs. Indian bowlers Hardik Pandya 3/20, Jasprit Bumrah 2/18, Arshdeep Singh 2/20 delivered the final blows – finishing the job.

Classy Klaasen lifted South Africa to the precipice but then it took the genius of Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya to dismantle the Proteas. Bumrah, the human slingshot with logic-defying accuracy, had bowled flawlessly throughout the tournament and in the final innings. And when India was desperate for a wicket -that would open the gates to the South African batting’s tail-end, he flung down a delivery only the cricketing gods could conceive, clicking-off the stumps. And then Suryakumar Yadav performed a nimble feet-of-flames tiptoe around the boundary rope to complete a one-man relay catch struck by David Miller off a Hardik Pandya ball, which was a turning point in the game. Virat Kohli was declared the man of the match and Bumrah, man of the tournament. India exploded in celebrations and waited for the Team to return Home-caught in a West Indian Hurricane.

This was ‘the Wall’ Rahul Dravid’s final innings as Team Coach (he lamented that he is now jobless!), while Captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kholi said they were quitting T20 International Tournaments. It was an all-round fiery display of coaching and captaincy, which brought Team India to deliver its best when it really mattered. Over to the next team.

The ICC Men’s Twenty20 (T20) tournament organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) commenced on 1st June with co-hosts USA taking on neighbours Canada, while fellow hosts the West Indies playing Papua New Guinea in Guyana on the second day of group play.

More nail-biting stories coming-up in the weeks ahead. Stay the course with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-17

About: the world this week, 21 April 2024 to 27 April 2024: the world’s war-front; India’s Charged Elections; an Ex-President’s Woes; and India’s moves in World Chess.

Everywhere

On the World’s War-front

Israeli strikes intensified across Gaza in some of the heaviest shelling in weeks, and the Israeli army ordered fresh evacuations in the north, warning civilians they were in a dangerous combat zone. Non-stop bombardments also continued in the Central and Northern parts – mostly strikes by air and shelling from tanks on the ground.

Meanwhile, the Hamas psychopaths published a new propaganda video of a hostage, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, showing the 23-year-old Israeli-American saying he has been held captive for nearly 200 days. Hersh is seen in the video missing one of his hands. It was blown off from the elbow down when terrorists lobbed grenades into a shelter, where he and others who tried to escape the 7 October 2023 Nova party massacre., were hiding.

On another front, Israel’s military is poised to evacuate Palestinian civilians from Rafah and assault Hamas hold-outs in the southern Gaza Strip city, despite international warnings of a humanitarian catastrophe. Israel is clearly moving ahead with a ground operation. Israel’s Defence Ministry bought 40,000 tents, each with the capacity for 10 to 12 people, to house Palestinians relocated from Rafah in advance of an assault.

In a new streak of ever-growing wokeism in America, mass chaos broke out at college campuses across the United States of America as pro-Palestine protests intensified. Columbia, Harvard, University of Southern California, University of Texas at Austin, and others were swarmed by protesters. Harvard Yard was also been taken over by pro-Palestine protesters who set-up camp after the university threatened to take action. Police had a tough time managing the footloose, unruly, university students as protests turned violent.

Their support should naturally be for Israel and a shout-out to release the over 130 hostages in the captivity of the terrorist Hamas.

In the other warfront in Europe, far from the trenches, at orderly new centres across Ukraine, civilian recruiters armed with laptops and info packs offer patriotic volunteers opportunities to join the war. As Ukraine’s efforts to conscript enough men to fight Russia are stymied by public scepticism, defence officials and military units are embarking on a multi-pronged charm offensive to recruit a citizens’ army to resist the invasion. Candidates can select their precise unit and roles suiting their skills, as well as how long they will serve.

On city streets, billboards of Ukrainian soldiers implore citizens to join up and defend their homeland, offering QR codes for convenience. For e.g., online, the 93rd Mechanised Brigade assures countrymen that ‘everyone can do it!’ in a glossy video campaign showing civilians, such as a chef and tractor driver, switching to analogous army roles as battlefield cook and tank driver.

On another front in Iran, the same day it launched its first ever direct attack on Israel, it embarked on a less-noticed confrontation at home. Police were ordered in several cities to take to the streets to arrest a growing number of women accused of flouting its strict Islamic dress code. Under Iran’s sharia, or Islamic law, women are obliged to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothes. Offenders face public rebuke, fines, or arrest.

India’s Super-charged Election

This week, on 26th April, India passed the second phase of General Elections-Lok Sabha Elections 2024 -to elect a new Government at the Centre for the next five years. A total of 88 constituencies across 13 states and a Union Territory voted in this phase. The votes were cast in all 20 Lok Sabha seats of Kerala, 14 of the 28 seats in Karnataka, 13 seats in Rajasthan, 8 seats each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, 6 seats in Madhya Pradesh, 5 seats each in Assam and Bihar, 3 seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and one seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu & Kashmir.

This week the high-pitch, ever-decibel growing election campaign revolved around the Congress Party’s wild thinking of introducing ‘Inheritance Tax’ in India. This on the lines of that in America, where the children inherit 45% of the family wealth, on the death of the family wealth creator, and the Government grabs the balance 55%. This comes in the backdrop of the Congress Party’s Election Manifesto talking about tackling growing inequalities in wealth and income through suitable change in policies. Also as a prelude, economic and institutional surveys along with a caste census would be conducted to ‘redistribute’ wealth.

We all know growth is the only way to reduce inequality, but the Congress seems to have other ideas.

Surely a regressive kind of thinking, and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seized the opportunity to take the Grand Old Party of India to the cleaners. The Congress was forced to ‘disown’ a statement made by its overseas In-charge. But I reckon no one was listening – with people looking at safeguarding their wealth.

Another talking point was former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh having said in the year 2009, that ‘minorities, especially poor Muslims, should get priority when it comes to the nation’s resources’. Haunting times for the Congress, indeed.

With five more phases to go we can expect more fireworks in the days to come.

This week the Supreme Court of India rejected a plea for 100% verification of Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) Slips with the Electronic Voting Machine (EVM). This comes in the background of the various parties in India – especially the opposition – crying for a return to the old Paper Ballot and Manual Counting System. It also rejected a plea to allow the voter to take the VVPAT slip and deposit it in a ballot box. And it rejected the plea to revert to Paper Ballot Voting.

The Supreme Court added some strictures such as the sealed containers of the Symbol Loading Units should be kept in storerooms with the EVMs for least 45 days post-declaration of results. And gave some futuristic ideas such as, exploring the possibility of machine-counting of VVPAT slips.

Once a voter presses the vote button on the EVM- Ballot, a printed slip is generated in the adjacent VVPAT machine. This shows the choice of the voter, and as is visible for 7 seconds – after which it drops down into a sealed compartment. This enables the voter to confirm that his vote has been recorded correctly.

EVM’s were first used in the State of Kerala in 1982 and progressively used all over India, starting in the late 1990s. The VVPAT was added in 2013 to confirm that electronic voting is accountable and reliable. The EVM was developed for the Election Commission of India by the Government owned Electronics Corporation of India and Bharat Electronics. EVMs are standalone machines built with ‘write once read many (WORM)’ -information once written cannot be modified- are self-contained, battery powered and do not need any networking capability. They do not have any wireless or wired internet components and interface. Hence, impossible to hack or manipulate.

Donald Trump’s Woes

In America, The US Supreme Court weighs Ex-President Donald Trump’s bid for immunity from prosecution. The Supreme Court’s conservative justices signaled support on Thursday for US Presidents having some level of protection from criminal charges for certain acts taken in office as it tackled Trump’s claim of immunity from prosecution for trying to undo his 2020 election loss.

Trump, seeking this year to regain the White House, appealed after lower courts rejected his request to be shielded from four election-related criminal charges. This was on the grounds that he was serving as President when he took the actions that led to the indictment.

With a colourful variety of cases piled-up on him, Donald Trump is spending a lot of time in the Courts. And seems to be enjoying it.

World Chess and India’s Moves

These days hardly a move is made in the world of Chess without an Indian being behind it. This week, India’s 17-year-old Grandmaster Gukesh Dommaraju became the youngest player to win the men’s chess tournament after a draw against his opponent Hikaru Nakamura, in the final day of the 2024 Candidates Tournament held in Toronto, Canada, from 3rd April to 22nd April. It’s an eight-player chess tournament, held to determine the challenger for the World Chess Championship 2024. The event was held alongside the Women’s Candidates Tournament.

Gukesh effectively wrapped up victory in the tournament after American Fabiano Caruana blundered a winning position against Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi to be held to a draw.

The previous youngest winner of the men’s Candidates Tournament was Garry Kasparov, who was 20 when he prevailed in 1984, a year before winning the world champion title against fellow Russian Anatoly Karpov.

Gukesh, who was one of three Indian players in the tournament, will face China’s Ding Liren for the title later this year. World No 1 Magnus Carlsen, a five-time classical chess world champion, relinquished his title last year, citing a lack of motivation.

Gukesh became a Grandmaster at the age of 12, the third youngest person to have done so. If he beats Ding Liren this year, he will become India’s second world chess champion after Viswanathan Anand who won the title five times.

China’s Tan Zhongyi dominated the women’s tournament and will face her compatriot Ju Wenjun for the world title.

Gukesh lives in Chennai, Tamil Nadu studying at the Velammal Vidyalaya school, Mel Ayanambakkam, Chennai. His father, Dr Rajinikanth, is an Ear, Nose, and Throat surgeon, and his mother, Dr Padma, is a microbiologist.

Gukesh won the Under-9 section of the Asian School Chess Championships in 2015, and the World Youth Chess Championships in 2018 in the Under-12 category. He also won five gold medals at the 2018 Asian Youth Chess Championships, in the U-12 individual rapid and blitz, U-12 team rapid and blitz, and the U-12 individual classical formats. He completed the requirements for the title of International Master in March 2017 at the 34th Cappelle-la-Grande Open.

On 15 January 2019, at the age of 12 years, 7 months, and 17 days, Gukesh became the then second-youngest grandmaster in history, only surpassed by Sergey Karjakin with 17 days. Since then the record was beaten by Abhimanyu Mishra, making Gukesh the third youngest.

More fighting stories coming in the weeks ahead. Make your moves with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-16

About: the world this week, 14 April 2024 to 20 April 2024: Israel & Iran; knives out in Australia; UAE goes underwater; India begins voting; and keeping a Princess & Future Queen safe.

Everywhere

Israel – Iran

In an insane move and probably a serious miscalculation, Iran attacked Israel launching over 300 drones and missiles into Israel. But, in an unbelievable military defence operation almost 99% of them were knocked-out by the combined might of the United States (US), United Kingdom(UK), and Israel. Actually, it was a multinational coalition consisting of, among others-a huge surprise-Jordon and Saudi Arabia!

Obviously, Iran’s action is a follow-through on its vow to avenge Israel’s attack on a ‘building next to it Consulate in Damascus, Syria’, which had resulted in the killing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander and his deputy.

Iran’s strike began with over 100 ground-to-ground missiles being fired from Iran into Israel. Simultaneously, drones and ballistic missiles were fired from its partners-in-crime, Yemen, Iran, Iraq, and Syria.

Tens of Israel fighter jets were immediately scrambled, which included F15, F16, and F35 planes. The Israeli planes flew deep into the airspace of the Middle East and began hunting the missiles and drones, detonating them one after the other. In parallel, fighter jets from the US and UK, along with other countries also took off from various Bases, and began to ‘hunt down’ the missiles. Whatever survived the fighter jet attacks and managed to reach Israeli airspace were immediately taken out by Israel’s Air defence systems including the Iron Dome, Hetz (Arrow) 2, Hetz 3, and more.

Israel and its allies mostly shot down all the missiles and drones and there were no deaths, but Israel says it must retaliate to preserve the credibility of its deterrents. Iran says it views the matter as closed but will retaliate again if Israel does.

What Israel will do next is yet to be seen, but the Iranian regime was humiliated that night, and to top that off, they are now waiting in fear to see how badly Israel punishes them.

Then late in the week, Israel carried out a surprise attack deep inside Iran’s territory, hitting an Iranian military base at Isfahan. The base is used by combat aircraft and military transport planes, likely with air defence systems – which seems to have been ‘defanged’ by the surgical strike. It is also close to a major Iranian nuclear facility for uranium enrichment. This strike was symbolic, sending a message that Israel is capable of targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities or anywhere in Iranian soil.

Israel had a point to make and it made it. What next?

Australia: Knives Out

Last Saturday in Australia, a knife-wielding man went on a stabbing rampage at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction, in Sydney’s Eastern suburbs, before a woman police inspector shot him dead after he turned and raised a knife.

The attacker identified as 40-year-old Joel Cauchi, was known to police in the neighbouring state of Queensland. Cauchi, wearing shorts and an Australian national rugby league jersey, ran through the Westfield Mall with a knife. He fatally stabbed six people and injured at least 12 before he was killed by Inspector Amy Scott who ran into the shopping centre by herself, confronted the terrorist and killed him. Incredible heroism on display.

The man first stabbed a mother and her baby. The mother Ash Good, 38, died from her injuries while her baby who was also stabbed has undergone surgery and is in serious condition. The knife rampage lasted 15 minutes.

It was revealed that police knew the attacker and was and on their radar. He had mental health issues in the past and there is no indication ideology was a motive in the attack.

Quick on the heels of the knife attack on Monday another stabbing incident took place at a Sydney church, which Police have declared as religiously motivated and a terrorist act. A 16-year-old boy attacked a Bishop, a priest and churchgoers during mass at the Assyrian Christ The Good Shepherd Church, which was being streamed online.

Four people suffered ‘non-life-threatening’ injuries. The attacker was also hurt. Police arrested the boy after the stabbing at the Church that injured Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, 53, and a priest. Both are expected to survive.

The video online showed the Bishop being repeatedly stabbed in the head and upper body during the service. He sustained lacerations to his head after being lunged at. And underwent surgery. A 39-year-old man also sustained cuts and a shoulder injury while attempting to intervene.

Ordained by the Assyrian Orthodox Church in 2011, Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel is seen as a popular and a controversial figure. His sermons have received millions of views on social media. But the Bishop has had a turbulent relationship with the Assyrian Church, reportedly being suspended for disobeying canons and forming a breakaway church. In 2021, Mar Mari Emmanuel became a vocal opponent of Covid-19 restrictions, describing lockdowns in Australia as slavery and arguing that vaccines were futile.

The teenage boy arrested after the stabbing attack inside the Sydney church was placed on a good behaviour bond after facing Court for a knife crime just three months ago. Police know the identity of the 16-year-old boy, but have chosen not to publish his name. The boy was charged with a range of offences, including possessing a knife, in November last year after an incident at a Sydney train station involving other teenage boys. The boy was found in possession of a flick knife and charged with being armed with a weapon with intent to commit an indictable offence, stalking and/or intimidation and recklessly destroy or damage property. He was on bail until his last court appearance in January, where his case was ‘proven’ but dismissed with a good behaviour bond.

Police said the suspect’s comments pointed to a religious motive for the attack.

“We’ll allege there’s a degree of premeditation on the basis that this person has travelled to that location, which is not near his residential address, he has travelled with a knife and subsequently the Bishop and the priest have been stabbed,” Police said. “They’re lucky to be alive”.

Dubai: Desert Storm

How many times we have heard this often repeated line – almost a cliche-‘The whole year’s rain came down in a single day’. The rain, tired of conquering the seas, the costal areas, and fertile hills and valleys turned its sights on the Desert and United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) Dubai, and Oman ‘came under its wing’.

This week the UAE was drowned in unprecedented rains brought by a storm that brewed over the desert, the heaviest experienced by the country in the 75 years. It brought much of Dubai to a standstill and caused significant damage. The storm hit neighbouring Oman on Sunday and then pounded the UAE on Tuesday, with 20 reported dead in Oman and one in the UAE.

While some roadways in hard-hit communities remain flooded, delivery services across Dubai, whose residents are used to ordering everything at the click of a mouse, slowly began returning to the streets.

Rains are rare in the UAE and elsewhere on the Arabian Peninsula, which is typically known for its dry desert climate. Summer air temperatures can soar above 50 degrees Celsius. Following Tuesday’s rains, questions were raised whether cloud seeding-a process of manipulating clouds to increase rainfall- that the UAE frequently conducts, could have caused the heavy rain. A UAE government agency that oversees cloud seeding denied conducting any such operations before the storm. But climate experts blame global warming for such extreme weather events.

Researchers anticipate that climate change will lead to heightened temperatures, increased humidity and a greater risk of flooding in parts of the Gulf region. Countries like the UAE where there is a lack of drainage infrastructure to cope with heavy rains can suffer the most.

Dubai, a city in the desert proud of its modern gloss, faced the towering task of clearing its water-clogged roads and drying out flooded homes. Dubai International Airport, a major travel hub, struggled to clear a backlog of flights and many roads were still flooded in the aftermath of Tuesday’s deluge.

Inking India’s Finger

This week, Friday 19th April, marked the beginning of the biggest Festival of Democracy the world has seen. The first phase, of the seven-phase polls, decides 102 seats in 21 Indian States for India’s 543 member Lower House of Parliament, the Lok Sabha. And after meandering through the rest of April and May concludes on 1st June 2024.

An average of 60% of voters in various States got their finger inked with indelible ink – to mark that they have voted. The aggregate voter turnout till 9pm was 62.37 % with the highest percentage in Tripura at 80.17%. In the previous Elections in 2019 the aggregate was 69.43% in the first Phase.

The process was by and large peaceful, except for incidents in the State of Tamil Nadu, and others, that names have been left out of the Voters List despite having a valid Voter Identification. The Election Commission of India needs to get its tails-up to resolve this problem. Violence was reported in some parts of West Bengal and Manipur and the voter turnout fell from the figure in the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections.

Tough being a Princess and a Future Queen

The Netherlands, a country of 18 million people, has low rates of violent crime – a safe country. Its royal family are sometimes called ‘the bicycle monarchy’ for their informal approach to royal duties. But there is a problem. Princess Amalia, 20, the future Queen of the Netherlands, has been living outside her country for the past year over security concerns. Amalia is the eldest daughter of the Dutch King Willem-Alexander and his Argentine-born wife Queen Maxima and will one day ascend the throne as the country’s next monarch.

However, the young Princess has been forced to leave the Netherlands due to kidnapping threats. This is based on intelligence reports indicating Amalia was mentioned in communications by organised crime groups, sparking fears she could be a target of attacks. Amalia has been living in Madrid, Spain for the past year but recently relocated to the palace after new measures were taken to ensure her safety. She made a rare appearance at a state banquet at the royal palace in Amsterdam with her parents in honour of the Spanish royal family.

In September 2022, the Princess began studying at the University of Amsterdam and briefly lived on campus with other students as she pursued a bachelor’s degree in politics, psychology, law and economics. However, soon afterwards the royal family said she had been forced to leave her student housing, citing similar concerns for her safety, and she moved back into the palace and became a virtual recluse. “She can’t live in Amsterdam, and she can’t really go outside (the palace),” Queen Maxima told journalists at the time. The Netherlands needs a Princess Shield.

More Princess stories coming in the weeks ahead. Build your Palace with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-7

About: the world this week, 11 February 2024 to 17 February 2024; Israel rescues; Elections results in Pakistan, and Indonesia; India negotiates prisoners with Qatar; 1% of India’s farmers agitate; and India’s Electoral Bonds Scheme is struck down.

Everywhere

This week, Israel rescued two hostages in a deadly stealth operation in Rafah, Southern Gaza. This is the first successful rescue mission since the 7th October massacre of Israelis by Hamas Terrorists and should be a huge boost to Israel’s ‘lonely’, relentless efforts to bring home all the hostages kidnapped on that fateful day. There are about 130 of them still out there.

After Israeli intelligence identified a building in Rafah in which two hostages were held, Elite Commandos stormed a house and extracted the hostages after killing three terrorists guarding them. Within minutes, the Israeli Air Force carried out a massive air-strike providing cover for the hostages to be safely taken to an armoured vehicle and then onto a waiting military helicopter. The two Israeli hostages rescued were Fernando Simon Marman, 60, and Louis Har, 70, who were ‘taken’ from Kibbutz, Nir Yitzhak.

Israel also discovered a baffling network of the ‘signature tune’ Hamas underground tunnels beneath the headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which served as a command centre for the terrorists and also held the hostages. This is another damning find on the Hamas-complicit actions of UNRWA operating for decades in the Gaza Strip. Later, Israel promptly blew-up the Headquarters!

The final results of last week’s General Elections in Pakistan were out, amid reports of massive rigging and delays in counting of votes due to multiple reasons that’s possible only in Pakistan. The Election was dubbed as the most rigged (in favour of PML-N) election in the history of Pakistan. And the first reaction, to the outcome, is that this is something the Pakistan Army would not like at all.

Neither former Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) with 75 seats, nor the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, son of assassinated former premier Benazir Bhutto, with 54 seats won enough seats to form a government on their own. Independent candidates backed by former PM Imran Khan represent the largest group, with 93 of the 264 parliamentary seats declared.

The results shocked many, who had expected the showing of Imran Khan’s supporters to be severely dampened by an intense crackdown on Imran Khan and his party. But Khan cannot become PM as he is in jail and his grouping cannot form a government as they nominally ran as independents as his party the Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), was barred from contesting the Elections. Analysts think the election results indicate voters’ protest against perceptions of the country’s powerful military’s involvement in politics, which, of course, the military denies. That adds to the political instability, given the military’s strong historic role in the security and foreign affairs of Pakistan.

“Pakistan has been on a slippery slope for some time but a mild one. The slope is now much stiffer,” said a South Asia expert. “The military will most likely be able to manage the situation for some time, but the political situation is likely to be less and less stable”.

Former PM Shehbaz Sharif-Nawaz Sharif’s brother-is likely to lead a coalition that is being stitched together, as the new Prime Minister of Pakistan.

Now, on to another Election, this time in Indonesia.

Unofficial tallies in Indonesia’s Presidential Election show Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto taking a commanding lead. An official result is not expected until several weeks after the vote.

Prabowo Subianto, 72, is in pole position to be Indonesia’s next leader. He is a former special forces commander, and in recent times has cultivated the persona of a more charismatic statesman than the fiery, pious nationalist he earlier portrayed. He is from an elite Indonesian family and once the son-in-law of late Indonesian strongman dictator, President Suharto.

Subianto was dismissed from the military amid speculation of rights abuses, exiled in Jordan, and once banned from the United States over his alleged dark past. He is also accused of involvement in the kidnapping of student activists in 1998 and human rights abuses in Papua and East Timor.

Subianto lost in the previous two Presidential Elections to incumbent Joko Widodo who is hugely popular, but unable to run for a third term, in keeping with the ‘maximum two terms’ rule of the Constitution. In a patch-up, Subianto joined the government and has Joko Widodo’s tacit backing, with the President’s 36 years old son as his running mate and a possible Vice-President.

This week, Indian diplomacy was at its negotiating best when India convinced Qatar to release eight former Indian Navy personnel who were sentenced to death: seven returned to India this week and the remaining one is expected soon, after clearing certain legal formalities. The former navy personnel, working for a company in Qatar, were arrested on spying charges, and after a secret trial, handed the death sentence by a Court in Qatar. India then got the death sentence commuted to life imprisonment before pulling-of this stunning victory. And the process was lubricated by a special pardon by Qatar’s Ruler, Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.

This week, India saw a bumper agitation by a section of its farmers, taking off from where they left the proceedings over two years ago.

There are about 9 crore farmers in India, of which about 10 lakh are in the State of Punjab. This, barely 1%, is a ‘disgruntled’ lot owning the best branded cars in the world and reaping every benefit offered by India’s Government (GOI), such a free-electricity, highly subsidised fertilisers, open-ended procurement of wheat and paddy, among other things: a pampered lot! Well that doesn’t seem to be enough. They want more, and this week they began protests.

Over 250 farmer associations from Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh began a ‘Chalo Delhi’ march on their high-end cars, ‘fortified tractors’ and the kind, armed with a list of demands, raising tensions at Delhi borders. The GOI in turn set up riot control teams standing guard behind barricades on highways leading into the national capital, where police have prohibited large gatherings.

Farmer unions are seeking guarantees, backed by law, which they want the GOI to fulfill. What are they?

Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for 23 crops should receive a statutory legal backing; MSP should be fixed at above 50% above the comprehensives cost of production- actual cost incurred to grow crops and assumed values of other items such as family labour; Farm Loan waivers; Pension – about INR 10,000 per month for farmers over 60 years old; and pulling out of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The MSP, which is the cost at which the GOI purchases crops from farmers, provides farmers with an assured income for their produce. This price acts as a safety-net ensuring farmers receive a fair price, particularly during times of market uncertainties and fluctuations or when market prices fall below the MSP. Of the 23 crops that the government currently announces MSPs for every year, there are seven cereals-paddy, wheat, maize, bajra, jowar, ragi, and barley; five pulses-chana, arhar, moong, urad and masoor; seven oilseeds-groundnut, soybean, rapeseed-mustard, sesame, sunflower, niger seed, and safflower; and four commercial crops-sugarcane, cotton, copra, and jute.

However, while MSP is announced for all crops it works mainly for rice and wheat, because the GOI has a vast storage system for only these grains that feed the GOI’s Public Distribution System (PDS). The GOI often ends up buying twice the amount needed for a buffer stock.

The issue is best understood through the political economy of Punjab, the most prosperous and fully irrigated agriculture system in the country. There are years when the procurement in Punjab, especially paddy has exceeded the production in the state. As paddy comes from other States- Uttar Pradesh and Bihar-to be sold in Punjab as the market price is often 15-25% below the MSP in these states and there is hardly any procurement in the home states. And everyone in the grain procurement network benefits and profits from the system: Commission Agents charge 2.5% commission; Punjab Govt charges 6% Mandi fees and other cess. The bill is footed by the GOI for the Food Security Programme which is executed by the Food Corporation of India (FCI).

Punjab farmers have high productivity of paddy and wheat and use high doses of subsidised fertilisers. But their prices are constrained, especially when exports are banned and stocking limitations are imposed. The FCI also unloads wheat and rice at prices below their economic cost to bring down market prices on par with MSP or even below so that they can procure enough grains at ‘easy costs’. The GOI policy is biased towards urban consumers at the cost of farmers.

If the GOI policy does not allow the markets to operate especially when market prices are higher than MSP farmers stand to lose. So they clamour for higher and higher MSP based on unrealistic comprehensive costs. The difference between what farmers want and the GOI’s current cost calculation for MSP is about 25-30% in most crops. In the long run farmers stand to lose if they do not adapt to the ‘free’ market pricing of the simple ‘demand and supply’ mechanism.

Agricultural scientist and this year’s Bharat Ratna (India’s highest civilian award) winner, late Dr M S Swaminathan, called the Father of India’s Green Revolution, recommended that the GOI fix MSPs for farm produce based on a comprehensive measure of cultivation costs – weighted average cost of production – that includes the input cost of capital and the rent on the land (called ‘C2’ ) + 50% of C2, to give farmers 50% returns, rather than a narrower measure that takes into account the direct costs- out-of -pocket expenses incurred by the farmer and the value of family labour ( called ‘A2+FL’ ), which the GOI uses.

The M S Swaminathan Committee, established to recommend farm policy through the National Commission on Farmers, submitted its final Report in the year 2006. And the MSP calculation methodology was not readily accepted by the then GOI headed by Economist Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, as it was considered irrational, untenable, and unviable and would probably distort the market. And there were aspects of the comprehensive costs that were not ‘comprehensively’ defined.

Ashok Gulati, India’s most respected Agri-economist argues that agreeing to the framers demands means fiscal stability will go for a toss, food inflation will rise, and no Government can afford to accept these demands. He suggests farm income augmentation should be through diversification to high-value crops and livestock. And the Punjab farmers should come out of cultivation of only staple crops, and tap exports.

In 2021, when the year-long protest by farmers pushed the present GOI to repeal some farm laws, designed to deregulate vast agricultural markets, the GOI said it would set up a panel to find ways to ensure support prices for all farm produce. Farmers accuse the GOI of going slow on that promise and also not achieving a GOI stated goal of ‘doubling farm incomes by 2022-23 (over a base of 2015-16).

The GOI is in talks with the agitating Farmers and some ‘minimum’ results are expected in the upcoming week.

Meanwhile-to get a hang of the situation-a farmer in down South Karnataka State had this to say: “MSP of paddy is INR 2,204 per quintal; the market price near Mysuru is INR 3,000 per quintal; Last week I sold 10 quintals of paddy at INR 3,100 per quintal to a buyer in Nanjangud (a Town in Mysuru district). Why are farmers protesting in Punjab?”

In a historic judgement this week, India’s Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the Electoral Bond Scheme introduced by the Government in 2018. This allowed anonymous corporate contributions to Political Parties through the State Bank of India (SBI) – the only bank authorised to issue these bonds. There is not limit on the amount and an existing corporate limit was removed to facilitate the flow of ‘unlimited’ funds. Further, the contributions did not attract income tax. The GOI’s stated intent was to curb black money in Elections and bring ‘transparency’ in Electoral Funding. And by not revealing names, any political harassment was sought to be avoided. However, the Court said this could be quid pro quo for future benefits and that the citizen has a right to know the donations coming-in to a Political Party. On the other side, ‘right to privacy’ of Corporate Houses is in jeopardy.

The SBI has been ordered to stop issuing these bonds forthwith, and furnish details of contributions received for publication on the Election Commission of India’s website by 13 March 2024. Parties which received the funds have been ordered to return un-encashed Electoral Bonds to the donors.

More bonding stories coming-up in the weeks ahead. Vote for World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-2

About: the world this week, 7 January 2024 to 13 January 2024; Israel changes tactics; the Houthi Movement; France’s new Prime Minister; Bangladesh’s old PM; India’s oil find; the Golden Globe Awards; and passing of Football superstars.

Everywhere

Israel is shifting its war against the terrorist Hamas to a different level: to a new kind of tactical urban guerrilla warfare. And once their goals are accomplished, I am sure there will be no army like Israel’s Defense Forces. There are still 136 hostages out there, since 7 October 2023, under unimaginable duress, and Israel is fighting hard to bring them home.

On another front, the United States and the United Kingdom launched a massive retaliatory strike against Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen. The strikes were from the air and sea against Houthi military targets in Yemen, in response to the Houthis’ attacks on ships in the Red Sea. And this is a dramatic regional widening of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The Houthis have, more than two dozen times, attacked commercial vessels since mid-November 2023, triggering an international challenge. The US and UK said their action demonstrated a shared commitment to freedom of navigation, international commerce, and defending the lives of mariners from illegal and unjustifiable attacks.

The Houthi Movement, officially known as ‘Ansar Allah’ is a Shia Islamist political and military organisation that emerged in Yemen in the 1990s. The leadership is drawn largely from the Houthi Tribe, hence the name. In the formative stages, it was mainly an opposition to Yemen’s President Ali Abdullah Salem, who they accused of corruption and being backed by Saudi Arabia and the United States. What began as a moderate theological movement that preached tolerance and held broad-minded views evolved into a violent organisation, over the years, largely influenced by the Hezbollah of Iran. In the year 2003, the Houthis adopted their official slogan as, ‘God is the Greatest, Death to America, Death to Israel, A curse upon the Jews, Victory to Islam’. This slogan is often portrayed on a white flag, with the written text in red and green: the pro-islamic statements in green and the anti-America & anti-Israel ones in red. The Houthis aim to govern all of Yemen and support external movements again the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. They have a complex relationship with their own people-the Sunnis- in Yemen.

This Tuesday, France named a new Prime Minister: the youngest and the first openly gay person. Gabriel Attal, 34, takes over from his predecessor Elisabeth Borne following her resignation early in the week over turmoil on an Immigration law that strengthens the Government’s power to deport foreigners. Gabriel joined French President Macron’s political movement in 2016 and was Government Spokesman from 2020 to 2022, which made him well-known. He also served as Budget Minister and Education Minister in Macron’s Government. And is popular among the people besides being media savvy. France seems to be growing young, riding on the shoulders of the old. Macron himself became France’s youngest President at age 39 in the year 2017.

This week, South Korea’s Parliament passed a landmark ban on production and sale of dog meat, bringing to an end a centuries old practice. Until now, eating dog meat was neither explicitly banned nor legally permitted and has long been viewed as a source of stamina on hot summer days.

In India’s immediate neighbourhood, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,76, secured a record fourth straight term-her fifth at the top job-with her Awami League Party winning two-thirds majority in Parliament. The voter turnout was miserly at 40% and could be due to the main Opposition Party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its Allies, boycotting the General Elections. They were angry over the harsh crackdown on the opposition and human-rights violations. Hasina herself won her seat for the eight time, since 1986, and her nearest rival secured just 469 votes.

Hasina has been in power since 2009 and has remarkably transformed the economy of Bangladesh. Its garment sector is one of the world’s most competitive. She has staved off military coups, controlled Islamic militancy, and raised the profile of her country. And she is best friends with India.

Sheikh Hasina is the daughter of Bangladesh’s Father of the Nation, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was the architect of separation from parent Pakistan, and founding Bangladesh as an independent nation in 1971 – with India’s help. The Father was assassinated in August 1975. Hasina herself has survived a total of 19 assassination attempts on her life. She has a son and a daughter. Hasina’s niece – the daughter of her only living sibling, Sheikh Rehan is Tulip Siddiq, the UK politician serving as Member of Parliament for the Hampstead and Kilburn constituency.

India is beginning to get rich in many ways. It’s already the owner of the largest ornament gold in the World and as if the shine of this yellow isn’t enough, India discovered one of its best Black Gold – Crude Oil – finds ever. India’s Oil & Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) announced the discovery. A total of 26 wells were found, and 4 wells have just begun production, capable of pumping out 45,000 barrels per day by May or June this year. This would meet about 7% of India’s total oil requirements. The discovery is 30 kilometres from Kakinada’s coast, nestled within the Krishna Godavari basin, off the coast of Andhra Pradesh State.

The 81st Golden Globes Awards Ceremony 2024, hosted by comedian Jo Koy, was held at the Beverley Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, California, US, on 7th January and the award winners were announced. The Golden Globes is one of the few Award ceremonies which include achievements in both motion picture and television. Oppenheimer and Barbie, between them, won most of the nominations and the awards, reminding us that ‘Barbenheimer’ are quite a pair, still running together on the big screen. Oppenheimer had 8 nominations and 5 wins: best Film-drama, best Actor-drama for Cillian Murphy, Best male actor in a supporting role for ‘Iron Man’ Robert Downey Jr, Best original score, and Best Director for Christoper Nolan.

Barbie was the most nominated film in 9 categories and won 2 Globes. It won the first-ever award for Cinematic & Box Office Achievement, introduced this year. Barbie directed by Greta Gerwig set records and hit over USD 1 billion in global box offices. The second award was for Best Original Song. Billie Eilish O’Connell and Finneas O’Connell won for their emotional track, ‘What Was I Made For?

Best Film-musical or comedy went to Poor Things: about a young woman living in Victorian era London who, after being resurrected by a scientist following her suicide, runs off with a debauched lawyer to embark on an odyssey of self-discovery and sexual liberation. The best animated film went to The Boy and the Heron: follows a boy during the Pacific War, who discovers an abandoned tower in his new town after his mother’s death and enters a fantastical world with a talking grey heron.

The best non-English Film award went to Anatomy of a Fall: a French courtroom drama thriller about as a writer trying to prove her innocence in her husband’s death.

Best Television Series-Drama went to Succession: the ups and downs of a dysfunctional American global-media family. Best Television Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television went to Beef: about two strangers whose involvement in a road rage incident escalates into a prolonged feud. Ali Wong and Steven Yeun became the first actors of Asian descent to win for their meaty roles in the series.

Major fashion and dressing trends were unleashed at the Golden Globe Awards. And individuality still ruled the Red Carpet. The 50s ankle-length cocktail dress—the sheath and lavender was there. Bangs (locks of hair that fall over the scalp’s front hairline to cover the forehead, usually just above the eyebrows) were a big-bang sensation, going by Taylor Swift’s ‘Kissing the Brow Bangs.’ Carey Mulligan’s blunt cut, which some call the bob, also did the rounds. Large glam curls were seen on Jennifer Lopez and Brie Larson, which provided a soft look. Selena Gomez and Helen Mirren went for the traditional bun, while Billie Eilish and Lily Gladstone did some exciting things with the layers. Ponytails were back. Florence Pugh’s fluffy reverse duck-tail was chic and could start a trend with women. Barbie’s Margot Robbie came in a pink Armani dress inspired by the classic ‘Superstar Barbie’ doll of 1977. She continued playing Barbie.

What about the men? They were simply suave.

In the world of Men’s Football, only three players have won the FIFA World Cup, both as player and as a Manager. Franz Beckenbauer of Germany, Mario Zagello of Brazil, and Didier Deschamps of France.

This week, on 9th January, Franz Beckenbauer died at the age of 78. Late last week, on 5th January, Mario Zagello, died at the age of 92. That’s two legends leaving the football field forever, within the span of a week.

Beckenbauer, known in Germany as ‘Der Kaiser (the Emperor) is considered one of the greatest footballers of all time. He helped Germany win their second world title as a player and Captain in 1974 and later as a Manager in 1990, in their third win.

Born in Munich in 1945, he captained Germany to the 1974 World Cup title on home soil when they beat the Netherlands 2-1 in the Munich final; then managed the team that beat Argentina 1-0 in Rome to lift the trophy at Italia’90. He was named European footballer of the year in 1972 and 1976. He played a pivotal role in some of the country’s greatest sporting achievements. But, in later years, his legacy was tarnished by his involvement in scandals surrounding Germany’s successful bid to host the 2006 World Cup.

Mario Zagello was in Brazil’s winning team, playing alongside the legendary Pele, in the 1958 and 1962 World Cup, and ‘managed’ Pele and the Brazilian team in 1970 when Brazil won the World Cup for the third time. He wore the nickname of ‘The Professor’ throughout his coaching career due to his tactical awareness and commanding presence on the bench. Brazil went on to win the world in 1994 and 2002 – an unsurpassed record five times. Brazil is quickly followed by Germany with 4 FIFA World Cup wins in 1954, 1974, 1990, and 2014 and Italy also with four wins in 1934, 1938, 1982, 2006.

More real and reel stories coming up in the weeks ahead. Watch with World Inthavaaram .

This is my Blog where I essay stories on life about and around me, on subjects that stir and shake me up, as I turn, and make life's pages count: hoping to inspire you to live your own story!

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Ukraine; Israel

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Giant Leap in Space

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A Loose Cannon Ball: Lobbying Abroad

Paralympics 2024: The Closing

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The Wars

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AMR

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Ukraine’s Invasion of Russia

Israel Holds On

Trump and Musk: Birds of a Feather

Leaving New Zealand

India: A Rape and Murder Most Foul

Bangladesh Flux

India: Melange

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Paris Olympics 2024: Goodbye

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Britain: Rioting Right

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Paris Olympics 2024: Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together

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Israel Grinds On

The United States Gasps

France Swings

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India’s Death Stampede

T20 World Cup Cricket Thrills

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On the World’s War-front

India’s Super-charged Election

Donald Trump’s Woes

World Chess and India’s Moves

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Israel – Iran

Australia: Knives Out

Dubai: Desert Storm

Inking India’s Finger

Tough being a Princess and a Future Queen

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