Akashvani , National news, All India Radio News

NAMASKAR! A warm welcome to 'World News: an Indian perspective on AKASHVANI.This is GEETANJALI MATHUR 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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THE HEADLINES:

• India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says, government has made transformative changes in defence sector by promoting self-reliance.

• BRICS Foreign Ministers call for use of local currencies in international trade.

• India's Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan to pay official visit to Maldives from Saturday.

• US Congress averts historic default, approves debt ceiling bill.

• Argentina's Celeste Saulo appointed as first female Secretary-General of  World Meteorological Organization.

• At least 9 persons killed in Senegal protests following opposition leader’s jail sentence.

• In Badminton, Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen enters semifinals of Thailand Open 2023.

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RAJNATH-DEVELOPED INDIA

India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said, the government has made transformative changes in the defence sector by promoting self-reliance.  Addressing an event in New Delhi on Friday, he said the government has emphasized manufacturing of state-of-the-art weapons for the use of Indian forces. He said the country’s domestic defence production has crossed the one lakh crore rupees mark recently. Mr Rajnath Singh said a strong military not only secures the borders but also protects the culture and economy of a country. The Minister said that the government is working to build a developed India by the year 2047 by focusing on all sectors of the country. Mr Singh highlighted the measures taken in the field of economy, defence, education, governance, and women empowerment.

Terming India as a resurgent superpower, the Minister said, the government has brought a sea change in the tax structure and promoted ease of doing business in the country. He said, record tax collection was made in the last financial year and foreign investors are seeing India as an attractive destination for investment.

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PM-FARMERS  

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, the sweat and toil of farmers play a big role in the country's progress and their relentless work is the backbone of food security. In a tweet on Friday, Mr. Modi said, it has been nine years of the government to keep on empowering Annadatas. He said the government is ensuring that the agriculture sector scales new heights of growth. The Prime Minister also lauded the record wheat procurement of over 260 lakh metric tonnes during the ongoing Rabi Marketing Season. Talking to Akashvani News, Additional Secretary in the Department of Food and Public Distribution, Subodh K Singh said, the wheat procurement so far has surpassed last year’s total procurement of 188 lakh metric tonnes by 74 lakh metric tonnes. According to the Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution Ministry, a quantity of 385 lakh metric tonnes of rice has been procured till the end of last month during the Kharif Marketing Season 2022-23.

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PRESIDENT-VISIT

India's President Droupadi Murmu will be on a State visit to Suriname & Serbia from the 4th to the 9th of June.

During the first leg of her visit,  President will visit Suriname from the 4th to the 6th of June.

This will be her maiden State visit after assuming the office of the President. Briefing media  Mr. Saurabh Kumar, Secretary (East), Ministry of External Affairs said that the visit assumes historical significance as President  Murmu will be the Chief Guest at the 150th-anniversary celebrations of the arrival of Indians in Suriname. The anniversary will be celebrated on the 5th of June. Indians were taken to Suriname for the first time in 1873 to work on plantations.

Talking about the India -Suriname bilateral relations, Mr. Kumar said both nations enjoy warm and friendly relations.

Mr. Kumar also highlighted the role of the Indian diaspora as a living bridge between the two countries.

Mr. Saurabh Kumar said the visit not only reflects the goodwill between the two countries but also reflects India’s growing stature on the global stage.

On the second leg of her visit, the President will visit Serbia from the 7th to the 9th of June, at the invitation of President Aleksandar Vučić. Briefing the media, Secretary (West), Mr.

Sanjay Verma, stated that this is the first-ever state visit of the Head of State between the two countries.

A special feature of the second leg of the visit will be the participation of a 20-member business delegation from India. The focus of the visit is to encourage the business communities of both countries to explore possibilities and prospects of business opportunities.

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MEA-SCO SUMMIT

India has expressed hope that Chinese authorities will facilitate the continued presence of Indian journalists working and reporting from China. External Affairs Ministry's spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in New Delhi that the two sides continue to remain in touch regarding this issue.

The External Affairs Ministry has also told that the forthcoming Summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation-SCO Council of Heads of State will be held on the 4th of next month in a virtual format. MEA spokesperson said preparations for the successful organisation and holding of the Summit are underway. Mr Bagchi said, India is confident that the  Summit will produce notable outcomes.

The theme of the SCO Summit is ‘Towards a SECURE SCO’. The SECURE acronym was coined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 2018 SCO Summit and stands for Security, Economy and Trade, Connectivity, Unity, Respect for Sovereignty and Territorial Integrity and Environment. These themes have been highlighted during India's Chairmanship of SCO.

India assumed the rotating Chairmanship of SCO at the Samarkand Summit on the 16th of September last year.

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MEA- ARIHA SHAH

The Government of India has urged the  German authorities to do all that is necessary to send baby Ariha Shah to India at the earliest, which is also her inalienable right as an Indian national.

During a media briefing in New Delhi,  External Affairs Ministry's spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that India remains committed to ensuring the return of Ariha Shah from Germany. He said, the Ministry of External Affairs and the Embassy of India in  Berlin, have been persistently advocating for the return of the baby to India.

The child is an Indian national and was placed in the custody of Germany’s Youth Welfare Office in September 2021, when she was seven months old and she has now been in foster care for more than 20 months. He added that India's efforts have been guided by the best interests of the child, which we believe can be fully realised only when she is in her home country where her socio-cultural rights can be safeguarded.

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BRICS-FMs MEETING

The foreign ministers of the BRICS countries  (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) have encouraged the use of local currencies in international trade, saying that the world economy has been complicated by sanctions and boycotts.

In a joint statement issued on Friday in the foreign ministers’ meeting in Cape Town, the ministers covered a range of topics from international trade to peace resolutions for the Ukraine conflict.

The joint statement reiterated China and Russia’s explicit support for India, Brazil and South Africa’s aspirations to play a greater role in the UN Security Council.

The joint statement also expressed appreciation for proposals of mediation and peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

The BRICS foreign ministers also called for greater use of local currencies in international trade. Ministers underscored the importance of encouraging the use of local currencies in international trade and financial transactions between BRICS as well as their trading partners.

The BRICS brings together five of the largest developing countries of the world, representing 41 per cent of the global population, 24 per cent of the global GDP and 16 per cent of the global trade.

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MURALEEDHARAN-MALDIVES

India's Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan will be on a two-day official visit to Maldives from Saturday. During the visit, Mr. Muraleedharan will participate in the groundbreaking ceremony of the Gan International Airport at Addu city, the second largest city in the Island Nation. He will also participate in the ceremony for the commencement of works of Addu Reclamation project. In Addu, the Minister will also inaugurate High Impact Community Development Projects, built under India’s grant assistance.

Mr. Muraleedharan will also meet the leadership of Maldives. Ministry of External Affairs said, the visit will also see the signing of agreements related to the bilateral development cooperation in Maldives.

The Ministry said, Maldives is India’s key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region and occupies a special place in the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘SAGAR’ Security and Growth for All in the Region and the ‘Neighbourhood First Policy’. Ministry of External Affairs said this visit is expected to lend further momentum to substantive cooperation and robust people-to-people ties between the two countries.

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HOTSPOT

In today's hotspot section, we bring you a commentary on Growing Synergies in India-Cambodia Relations.

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UPI-RECORD

India's Unified Payments Interface UPI registered a record of more than nine billion transactions last month amounting to over 14 lakh crore rupees. According to the National Payments Corporation of India NPCI, UPI recorded a total of 9.41 billion transactions in May 2023. In Financial Year 2022-23, the payment system processed a total of 83 billion transactions, amounting to a value of 139 lakh crore rupees.

India's homegrown payments system Unified Payments Interface UPI is one of the globally accepted payment systems and has emerged as a trusted payment mode ever since its launch in 2016.

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India G20 - South Centre Event

India G20 - South Centre Event on International Taxation concluded successfully on Friday at Nagpur as per a statement released by the Ministry of Finance. The two-day event on International Taxation was organised on the 1st and 2nd of June in collaboration with South Centre, a Geneva-based intergovernmental policy research think-tank of 55 developing countries. The meeting's outcome was the historic two-pillar solution to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalisation of the economy. The event was an initiative of the Indian Presidency to bolster capacity building for Indian tax officials of both senior and middle management levels in the area of International Taxation, with a global south perspective.

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US DEBT

The US Congress has approved a deal to lift the country's borrowing limit, days before the world's largest economy is due to default on its debt. The bipartisan measure sped through the Senate by a vote of 63-36, a day after it cleared the US House of Representatives. President Joe Biden has said he will enact the measure into law. His signature on the bill will spare the US from a catastrophic default on its 31.4 trillion Dollar debt. The country is forecast to overshoot its current debt ceiling on the 5th of this month. A default would limit the government's ability to borrow more money or pay all of its bills and also threaten to wreak havoc overseas, affecting prices and mortgage rates in other countries.

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WMO-FIRST FEMALE HEAD

Argentina's Celeste Saulo has been appointed as the first female Secretary-General and United Arab Emirates' Dr Abdulla Al Mandous, has been elected as the new President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

Saulo won a landslide vote at the UN climate and weather agency's congress in Geneva.

Saulo has served as the director of Argentina’s National Meteorological Service since 2014.

In a statement, she said that in these times when inequality and climate change are the greatest global threats, the WMO must contribute to strengthening the meteorological and hydrological services to protect populations and their economies.

Dr. Abdulla Al Mandous secured 95 votes out of the representatives from WMO’s 193 member states and territories. 

The leadership election of the World Meteorological Congress takes place every four years. The agency plays a key role in coordinating international meteorological work. It relies on satellites and thousands of weather stations to measure key parameters of the atmosphere, land and ocean. 

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SENEGAL-PROTESTS

At least nine persons have been killed in protests in Senegal’s capital Dakar and other cities, following the sentencing of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko on Thursday to two years in prison. The court found Sonko guilty of corrupting youth, according to state media, but cleared him of other charges, including rape. He can appeal the ruling within 15 days, but his chances of participating in next year’s presidential election now seem dim.

Government spokesman Abdou Karim Fofana said authorities were working to maintain order in the disturbed cities, while Interior Minister Antoine Felix Abdoulaye Diome said in a press conference that social media and messaging apps were restricted to limit fake news.

Sonko’s political party PASTEF (Patriots of Senegal for Ethics, Work and Fraternity), said the verdict was politically motivated as he is challenging President Macky Sall’s government.

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TURKIYE ELECTIONS

In Turkiye, the Turkish Supreme Election Council has officially declared Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the winner of the presidential election runoff with 52.18 percent of the votes.

Erdogan was reelected as the president in the runoff polls where he contested against the presidential nominee of the Turkish opposition bloc Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Kilicdaroglu had 47.82 percent of the votes. The presidential runoff was held on the 28th of May after neither of the candidates secured over 50 percent of votes in the 14th of May elections. Erdogan will take oath in parliament on Saturday and then announce his new cabinet.

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UAE-INDIA

India is set to remain the United Arab Emirates' largest export destination by 2030, according to a new report by Standard Chartered. The report, titled "Future of Trade: New opportunities in high-growth corridors", forecasts that the UAE's exports will reach around 543 billion dollars by 2030, showcasing a robust annual growth rate of 5.5 percent.

The report also highlights that trade corridors anchored in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East are expected to outpace the global trade growth rate by almost four percentage points, propelling the combined trade volume in these regions to an astounding 14.4 trillion dollars, accounting for 44 percent of global trade by 2030.

The report also noted that the UAE is taking steps to diversify its economy away from oil, which will help to further boost its exports. The UAE is investing in new sectors such as manufacturing, tourism, and logistics, the report said.

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J&K-TERRORIST KILLED

In the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, a terrorist was killed in an encounter with security forces in Rajouri district on Friday. Our Jammu Correspondent reports that an encounter broke out between security forces and terrorists during a cordon and search operation in the forests of Dassal Gujran. The security forces launched a cordon and search operation on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday after noticing suspicious movement in the forest. The search operation turned into an encounter after the terrorists fired upon the forces. Security Forces retaliated and in the gun battle, one terrorist was killed.

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WORLD NEWS CAPSULE

Key domestic indices  ended with marginal gains in a highly volatile session. The Sensex at the Bombay Stock Exchange finished above 62,500 mark while the Nifty at the National Stock Exchange settled above 18,500 level. Both indices rose amid positive cues from global share markets. A report from the business desk-

The Sensex rose 119 points or 0.2 percent to finish at 62,547. The Nifty also appreciated 46 points or 0.25 percent to end at 18,534.

Asian stocks surged  as the bill was approved to raise U.S. debt ceiling which helped perk up investors appetite for risky assets. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 3.9 percent and South Korea's Kospi surged 1.3 percent. Japan's Nikkei-225 appreciated 1.2 percent. China's Shanghai Composite index accelerated 0.8 percent. Singapore's Straits Times index was closed on account of Vesak Day. European Markets were also up in intra-day trade.

Oil prices rose more than one and a half percent  after a U.S. debt ceiling deal averted a default in the world's biggest oil consumer, while attention turned to a meeting of OPEC ministers and their allies at the weekend.In intra-day trade, Brent crude was trading at 75 dollars and 46 cents a barrel Back Home, Gold prices, at Multi Commodity Exchange for June contracts, were trading at around 60,160 rupees per 10 gram. On the other hand, silver was trading at 72,730  rupees per kilogram for July Contracts when reports last came in.

And In the forex market, the rupee appreciated eleven paise to close at 82 rupees and 31 paise against the US dollar. S.Rangabhasiym for World News, AKASHVANI.

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THAILAND OPEN

In Thailand Open Badminton, in Men's quarter-final Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen defeated Malaysia's Jun Hao Leong 21-19, 21-11 to enter the semifinals of the Thailand Open 2023.

Earlier, in another quarterfinal match, Indian shuttler Kiran George was defeated by French player Toma Popov by 16-21 and 17-21.

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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 Guardian writes, Zimbabwe outlaws criticism of government before August elections.

• Le Monde reports, Senegal erupts in anger after conviction of opponent Ousmane Sonko.

• Khabarhub writes, Three persons, including former vice-chancellor of BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences found guilty of misappropriation.

• The Globe and Mail writes, Thousands of police to enforce Hong Kong ban on Tiananmen massacre gatherings.

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A QUICK LOOK AT THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:

• India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says, government has made transformative changes in defence sector by promoting self-reliance.

• BRICS Foreign Ministers call for use of local currencies in international trade.

• India's Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan to pay official visit to Maldives from Saturday.

• US Congress averts historic default, approves debt ceiling bill.

• Argentina's Celeste Saulo appointed as first female Secretary-General of  World Meteorological Organization.

• At least 9 persons killed in Senegal protests following opposition leader’s jail sentence.

• In Badminton, Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen enters semifinals of Thailand Open 2023.

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