NAMASKAR! A warm welcome to 'World News: an Indian perspective on All India Radio.This is RAMYA and with me is NABANITA ADHIKARI bringing glimpses of the major developments of the day from across the globe. Over the next half an hour, we shall bring to you the latest from the world of politics, economy, sports, entertainment and more.

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HEADLINES:

• India to assume Presidency of G-20 for one year from Thursday; Several events to be held across the country; 100 monuments to be illuminated with G-20 logo.

• External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar to participate in a university connect event in New Delhi; Students and leading academicians from 75 universities across the country to be virtually connected.

• Ten-day Hornbill Festival to begin in Nagaland from Thursday.

• India and Australia exchange notifications regarding Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement.

• In Men's Hockey, India beat Australia 4-3 in 3rd Test in Adelaide.

• In Cricket, third ODI between India and New Zealand washed out at Christchurch; Hosts clinch the three-match series 1-0.

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INDIA-G-20 PRESIDENCY

We begin the world news with an Indian perspective with stories in the run up to India assuming the Presidency of the G-20 from Thursday. During the course of its one-year Presidency, India will be holding about 200 meetings in 32 different sectors in multiple locations across the country. The G20 Summit to be held in September next year, would be one of the highest profile international gatherings to be hosted by India. AIR news desk recounts the facts about G20:

The G20, is an intergovernmental forum of the world’s major developed and developing economies. It comprises 19 countries Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, UK, USA and the European Union. Collectively, the G20 accounts for 85 per cent of global GDP, 75 per cent of international trade and two-thirds of the world population, making it the premier forum for international economic cooperation. The deliberations are at three distinct levels, the Sherpa track, the finance track and the inter-governmental level.

Originally intended for economic cooperation, G20 over the years has evolved into a platform for deliberation on a wide range of global issues where a decision is based on consensus.

Prime Minister Modi has already outlined India's approach towards the G20. Addressing the concluding session at Bali Summit he said, the agenda will be inclusive, ambitious, decisive and action-oriented.

S/B PM –BALI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the logo, theme and website of India’s G20 Presidency. The theme of India’s G20 Presidency - Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam or One Earth One Family One Future - is drawn from the ancient Sanskrit text of the Maha Upanishad.

Essentially, the theme affirms the value of all life- human, animal, plant, and microorganisms and their interconnectedness on the planet Earth and in the wider universe.

The G20 Logo draws inspiration from the vibrant colours of India’s national flag - saffron, white and green, and blue. It juxtaposes planet Earth with the lotus, India’s national flower that reflects growth amid challenges. The Earth reflects India’s pro-planet approach to life, one in perfect harmony with nature. Below the G20 logo is “Bharat”, written in the Devanagari script. THIS IS SAIRA MUJTABA FOR WORLD NEWS.

G20-Website

The website of India’s G20 Presidency www.g20.in which was launched by the Prime Minister will seamlessly migrate to the G20 Presidency website www.g20.org on Thursday.

In addition to substantive information about G20 and logistics arrangements, the website would also be used to build and serve as a repository of information on G20.

G20-CULTURE

G-20 offers the best opportunity for India to showcase its culture, history and tourism potential and to position itself as a major tourist destination in the world.

MONUMENTS ILLUMINATION

As many as 100 monuments in the country will be lit up with the G20 logo as India formally takes over the G20 presidency on Thursday. Prominent among them include Veerabhadra Temple, Lepakshi in Andhra Pradesh; Ranghar Ruins, Sivasagar in Assam; Nalanda Monuments in  Bihar; Red Fort Complex, Delhi; Basilica of Bom Jesus, Candolim in Goa; Modhera Sun Temple, Gandhinagar in Gujarat. Shankaracharya Temple in Jammu and Kashmir; Jain Temples, Bellary Hampi, Karnataka; Konark Sun Temple in Odisha; and Kumbhalgarh Fort, Udaipur, Rajasthan.

G-20: UNIVERSITY CONNECT

Connecting the youth with the spirit of Janbhagidari is the hallmark of India's unique approach to G20 summit. For the first time students and leading academicians from 75 universities across the country will be virtually connected with top leaders, scholars and academicians. The main function will be held at Sushma Swaraj Bhawan in New Delhi where External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar will be attending with students and vice-chancellors.

In order to disseminate information on the G20 meetings and presidency, education outreach to school children in different parts of our country are being organised. A G20 jingle has also been commissioned to be played on FM radio and other YouTube channels to promote the event.

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G20-HORNBILL FESTIVAL

The G20 presidency tenure of India will also be marked with celebrations at the Hornbill Festival in Nagaland. The colourful annual event will showcase the rich traditions of a North-Eastern state in India. The 23rd Hornbill Festival 2022 will be held at Naga Heritage Village Kisama from December 1 to 10. Vice President of India Jagdeep Dhankhar will grace the inaugural function of the festival as the Chief Guest. Advisor for Tourism, Art and Culture Department, H Khehovi Yeputhomi informed that Ambassador of France to India, Emmanuel Lenain, and Trade Commissioner for South Asia and British Deputy High Commissioner for Western India, Alan Gemmel and Australian High Commissioner to India, Barry O’Farrel AO will also attend the inaugural programme as honoured Guests. Ambassador of Bulgaria Eleonora Dimitrova, Chief of Navy Staff  Admiral Hari Kumar, Director External Affairs, South Asia Office Rickitt and President All India Football Federation Kalyan Chaubey will also attend the festival. More from our Kohima correspondent:

Nagaland is all set to host the biggest cultural extravaganza ‘ The Hornbill Festival”. The Festival is held at the heritage village of Kisama, about 12 km from Kohima. In ten day festival, a visitor gets the opportunity to catch a ring side view of all the Naga tribes, their culture and distinctiveness at one place. A total of 132 stalls will be set up in Kisama wherein, 100 stalls will be taken up by the Micro Small & Medium Enterprises and 32 temporary stalls.  Besides, the daily cultural events, a host of activities such Hornbill Music Festival, photo fest, fashion shows, adventure sports, Night carnival, Hortiscape are lined up in this 10 day festival. This is Asonuo for AIR News, from Kohima.

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RAJASTHAN-G-20 SHERPA MEETING

The G-20 Sherpa meeting will be held at Rajasthan's Udaipur from December 5 to 7. India's Sherpa Amitabh Kant along with senior officials of the Ministry of External Affairs reviewed the arrangements related to the event in Udaipur recently. In a meeting with senior officials, he said that G-20 Sherpa meeting will help in projecting Udaipur as an international tourist destination. Sherpa Amitabh Kant appreciated the efforts of the district administration for the preparations related to the event. Talking to AIR News, Former Diplomat Dilip Sinha termed India's assuming the chairmanship of G-20 as a great opportunity for the country.

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SRI LANKA-KISHORE REDDY

President of Sri Lanka India society, Kishore Reddy has said that the Indian Presidency of G20 is a great opportunity for the countries not represented in the forum. Speaking exclusively to our Special Colombo Correspondent, Mr. Reddy was confident that India will safeguard interests of countries like Sri Lanka also at the forum.

Mr. Reddy said that the perception of India will widen because of the meetings at several locations that are lined up in the coming year. He added that Indian expertise in IT sector will give a major boost to India’s image globally.

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HOTSPOT

In today's Hotspot Section, we bring you discussion on Global Technology Summit 2022. In conversation with Former Foreign Secretary, Shashank and Journalist Simran Sodhi.

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INDIA AUSTRALIA ECTA

India and Australia have exchanged written notifications regarding the India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement, ECTA. The ECTA will enter into force on 29th December. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said in a tweet that India and Australia have consolidated their long-standing partnership. He added that it is the dawn of a whole new era for businesses and people of both nations.

The India-Australia ECTA will significantly enhance bilateral trade in goods and services, create new employment opportunities, raise living standards, and improve the general welfare of the people.

Duties on 100 percent tariff lines are to be eliminated by Australia under the agreement. The total bilateral trade will cross 45 to 50 billion dollars in five years from existing 31 billion dollars.

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INDIA KOREA

India and South Korea have signed the arrangement regarding Economic Development Cooperation Fund loan of over 245 billion Korean won for establishment of Intelligent Transport System on Nagpur-Mumbai Super Communication Expressway Project in New Delhi. The objective of the project is to enhance the efficiency in traffic management through establishment of the Intelligent Traffic Management System. The project will also improve the efficiency in toll management through the establishment of the Toll Collection System.

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NATO UKRAINE

NATO allies have promised to send equipments to restore Ukrainian power supply systems which were knocked out by Russian missile strikes. The allies also assured to boost the air defense system capabilities of Ukraine. Foreign ministers from the NATO alliance, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, began a two-day meeting in Bucharest on Tuesday, seeking to sustain Kyiv's military through a coming winter campaign. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that Russian forces were attempting to advance in multiple regions. Maenwhile, NATO Secretary General chief Jens Stoltenberg also said that the military alliance expects more missile attacks on Ukraine.

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AUSTRLIA-COVID FINE

In Australia, more than 33,000 Covid fines will be withdrawn or refunded in the country's most populous state of New South Wales after a court deemed them invalid. A legal advocacy group challenged the pandemic-era fines on the basis they were "too vague". The fines were issued for a range of alleged offences - from carpooling to attending a public gathering. They ranged from 1,000 dollars to 3,000 dollars. Shortly after the decision was given by New South Wales Supreme Court, the Commissioner of Fines Administration withdrew 31,121 of the 62,138 fines.

In a statement, Revenue NSW said it prioritised the health and safety of residents during the pandemic.

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BANGLADESH-PM

High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Pranay Verma has paid an introductory call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her official residence Ganabhaban in Dhaka. A social media post issued by the High Commission of India in Dhaka said that Mr. Verma conveyed greetings of Prime Minister Modi to Prime Minister Hasina and discussed the implementation of outcomes following her state visit to India in September.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Deputy Press Secretary K M Shakhawat told media after the meeting that Prime Minister Hasina said Bangladesh never allowed its soil to be used for terrorism. She said terrorism has no religion or boundary. Prime Minister Hasina urged Indian businessmen to invest in Bangladesh in the 100 economic zones established in the country.

Ambassador-at-large Mohammad Ziauddin and Prime Minister's Principal Secretary Dr.

Ahmad Kaikaus were present during the meeting.

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BUSINESS CAPUSLE

The Sensex and the Nifty today closed at record high. Both indices rose more than half a percent. Both stocks gained amid positive cues from global share markets. Extending gains for the seventh session in a row, the BSE Sensex finished above the 63,000 mark while the Nifty settled above the 18,750 level. A report from the business desk-  

The Sensex rose 418 points to finish at 63,100. The Nifty also appreciated 140 points to end at 18,758. At global stock markets, Asian equity markets today logged gains except Japan's NIKKEI-225 which lost 0.2 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 2.2 percent and South Korea’s KOSPI climbed 1.6 percent. Singapore’s Straits Times rose 0.4 percent and China’s Shanghai Composite index added 0.1 percent. European shares were up in intra-day trade. Oil prices rose more than 2.5 percent on signs of tighter supply. A weaker dollar and optimism over a Chinese demand recovery also pushed the crude prices up. Brent crude was trading at 85 dollars per barrel. Back Home, At the Multi Commodity Exchange, Gold futures for December was trading at 52,530 rupees per ten grams. Silver futures for December was trading at 62,340 rupees per kilogram, when reports last came in. In the forex market, the rupee strengthened 30 paise against the US dollar. The domestic currency closed at 81 rupees and 43 paise against the American currency. Gouran Dhawan Lal for World News, All India Radio.

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PRESIDENT AWARDS

India's President Droupadi Murmu has given away the National Sports and Adventure Awards 2022 at Rashtrapati Bhawan. She presented the Dronacharya award to wrestling coach Raj Singh and boxing coach Mohammad Ali Qamar at the ceremony. Para shooting coach Suma Siddharth Shirur and wrestling coach Sujeet Maan also received the Dronacharya award.

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HOCKEY

After facing two successive defeats, Indian men's hockey team beat Australia in the 3rd Test at the Mate Stadium, Adelaide on Wednesday. India won an absolute thriller against the home team as in the last 2 minutes both teams scored 3 goal in topsy turvy encounter. India finally won the match by 4-3 and now the 5 game series is poised in favour of Australia by 2-1.

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CRICKET

The third and final one-day international Cricket match between India and New Zealand was called off due to relentless rain at the Hagley Oval, in Christchurch on Wednesday as the hosts won the three-match series 1-nil. Chasing a target of 220 runs, New Zealand were 104 for one after 18 overs when play was stopped due to rain. Earlier, the hosts won the toss and opted to bowl first. The visitors were all out for 219 in 47.3 overs. Washington Sundar hit his maiden fifty and Shreyas Iyer scored 49 runs. Adam Milne and Daryl Mitchell claimed three wickets each while Tim Southee scalped two. New Zealand won the opening ODI at Eden Park, in Auckland, by seven wickets. The second ODIs at Christchurch was also washed out due to rain.

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FIFA WORLD CUP -2200

In the FIFA World Cup, Australia beat Denmark 1-nil at Al-Janoub Stadium while Tunisia shocked France 1-nil at the Education City Stadium in the group D encounters.

In the Group D, Australia joined the defending champions France in the Round of 16 with a 1-nil win over Denmark. Mathew Leckie gave lead for Australia in the 60th minute.

France already qualified for the knockout stages after Saturday’s victory over Denmark.

After a draw with Denmark in their opener, Tunisia lost to Australia in their second match.  

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FPR 

Now let us take a look at the major developments around the world, as reported in the Foreign Press.

• The Washington Post writes Russia postpones talks on New START pact, imperiling major nuclear accord.

• The Financial Times reports Eurozone inflation falls more than expected to 10 percent.

• The Guardian writes that Killer of South African anti-apartheid leader Chris Hani stabbed in jail.

• Japan Times reports that Russia is firing unarmed missiles to deplete Ukraine air defense.

• THE KHABARHUB writes that Former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin dies at 96.

• The Balochistan Post says the Supreme Court of Pakistan expressed concern that the excessive use of water at the Reko Diq mine could spearhead a wide-scale drought in the region.

• Nepali Times writes that Nepal saw its biggest and longest dengue outbreak this monsoon.

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A QUICK LOOK AT THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:

• India to assume Presidency of G-20 for one year from Thursday; Several events to be held across the country; 100 monuments to be illuminated with G-20 logo.

• External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar to participate in a university connect event in New Delhi; Students and leading academicians from 75 universities across the country to be virtually connected.

• Ten day Hornbill Festival to begin in Nagaland from Thursday.

• India and Australia exchange notifications regarding Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement.

• In Men's Hockey, India beat Australia 4-3 in 3rd Test in Adelaide.

• In Cricket, third ODI between India and New Zealand washed out at Christchurch; Hosts clinch the three-match series 1-0.

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