INDIA THIS WEEK FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2023 1 A W e e k l y N e w s p a p e r Fe a t u r i n g N e w s & Tr e n d s f r o m t h e I n d i a n S u b - C o n t i n e n t P u b l i s h e d f r o m t h e U S C a p i t a l Website: www.indiathisweek.online Vol. 31 No 12 • WASHINGTON D.C • Phone: 301-445-0200; 301-917-4800 • e-mail: indiathisweekads@gmail.com • Friday • March 24, 2023 President Murmu confers Padma Awards, SM Krishna, Narendra Chandra Debbarma honoured New Delhi [India], March 22 (ANI): President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday conferred Padma awards to distinguished honorees across diverse fields, including former Union Minister SM Krishna and Narendra Chandra Debbarma, the late president of the Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura. Krishna received the Padma Vibhushan from President Murmu at a grand presentation ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Wednesday, Debbarma, the late president of the Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura, received the Padma Shri (posthumously). The award was collected by his son Subrata Debbarma. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were in attendance during the presentation ceremony. Six distinguished persons this year were conferred with the Padma Vibhushan while 9 were conferred with Padma Bhushan. Another 91 persons were conferred with Padma Shri. Of the awardees this year, nine were women while seven were conferred with the honour posthumously. The Padma awards are given for exemplary work in diverse fields such as art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports and civil service, among others. Padma Vibhushan is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service, Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of high order and Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field. The awards are announced on Republic Day every year. These awards are conferred by the President at a ceremonial function at Rashtrapati Bhavan around March-April every year. ENDS APRIL 3 RX 500h NX 450h+* RZ Luxury* A“SAVE THE DATE” WORTH SAVING Yeh hai aapka invitation to uncover what makes a Lexus … a Lexus — from thrilling performance and remarkable capability to unmatched experiences. lexus.com | #Lexus *Limited availability. See your preferred Lexus dealer for details. ©2023 Lexus, a Division of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. India, China don’t want war and confrontation, have wisdom to resolve dispute: Chinese envoy New Delhi [India], March 22 (ANI): China has said that the border dispute with India is a bilateral issue and foreign interference will not help solve the problems, Chinese Charge d’Affaires Ma Jia said while speaking to reporters in New Delhi. Speaking to reporters, Ma Jia said, “Border issue between India and China is a bilateral issue, both countries have the wisdom to resolve the issue, we can handle that, we don’t invite any other, especially from other regions to interfere in this bilateral dispute, and whether foreign interference is helpful to resolve the issue, anytime you see there is interference in bilateral dispute, on the contrary, it will not help the two sides to solve the problems.” Commenting on External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s remarks that the situation at the India-China border is fragile, the Chinese envoy said, “Jaishankar says that situation now is fragile, that’s what we are talking about, that’s what senior commander and diplomats are talking and discussing about, there are difficulties, INDIA CHINA SEE PAGE 6
March 24, 2023 Friday INDIA THIS WEEK Code on Social Security provides social security to all unorganized workers including domestic workers: Rameswar Teli New Delhi [India], March 21 (ANI): Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Rameswar Teli on Monday informed that the Unorganized Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008, now subsumed in the Code on Social Security, 2020, provides for social security to all unorganized workers including domestic workers, stated an official release. In the written reply to the Lok Sabha, it was stated that the Government has launched Schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Beema Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Beema Yojana (PMSBY) for life and disability cover respectively and Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Man Dhan Pension Yojana (PM-SYM) for pension to the unorganised workers including domestic workers. Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PM-JAY) provides health cover of Rs 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to vulnerable families. These families include unorganized workers including domestic workers as per the defined eligibility. The newly enacted Labour Codes, viz Code on Wages, 2019, Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions, 2020 and Social Security Code, 2020 provide for, inter-alia, decent working conditions, wages, occupational Safety, grievances redressal mechanism and social security benefits to all categories of workers including domestic workers. Further, the Ministry of Labour and Employment has launched eSHRAM portal, a National Database of the Unorganised Workers. It has been made available to the States/UTs for registration of unorganised workers including domestic and household workers. As of March 15, as many as 2.79 crore domestic and household workers have registered on the e-SHRAM portal, stated a release from the government. (ANI)
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INDIA THIS WEEK India, China don’t want war and confrontation, have wisdom to resolve dispute: Chinese envoy INDIA CHINA FROM PAGE 1 we have to face it.” The Chinese envoy’s remarks came after Jaishankar in India Today Conclave on March 18 made a comment on the India-China border issue and said, “The situation, to my mind, remains very fragile because there are places where our deployments are very close, and in military assessment, actually quite dangerous,” the minister told the gathering. Further, Ma Jia added, “China and India don’t want a war, neither of us wants a war, neither of us wants a confrontation along the border areas so I think as long as we have these kinds of intentions, understanding of each other, we can find a way out, we have some difficulties, the border issue is very complicated it has a leftover of history for many years so it is not easy to reach an agreement, we have to face the problem, we have to talk, the intention of the two sides is to improve the situation, our two leaders have consensus on that, we can find a way out.” Expressing his views on reports of China building huge infrastructure along the border, the Chinese envoy said that as a government it is their responsibility to build infrastructure for civil and military purposes and countries must have mutual trust and there are channels to build this trust. He also said the Indian side is also building huge infrastructure in the past few years. Chinese Charge Charge d’Affaires Ma Jia called mutual trust a “crucial thing”. The envoy said, “Crucial thing is mutual trust, if we have diplomatic and military channels to keep the channels smooth and explain to each other about what is the intention of that would be helpful to increase the mutual trust between the two sides, especially between the two militaries.” “I think that is very crucial, we have already solved some problems through these From The Poet’s Pen INDIA THIS WEEK- March 24, 2023 God Can Heal A Broken Heart by Margaret Cagle Has your heart ever been broken, And you thought it would not heal? Then you looked to God for comfort As you sought to do His divine will. Maybe you lost a precious loved one Through the sad tragedy of death, And tears flowed all night long, As you grieved with every breath. Maybe by chance you lost your job, And the future looked dim and bleak. It seemed you might lose everything, As in vain another job you seek. When the night seems so very long, And it seems that it’ll never end, The light of morning streams through When time in prayer you spend. God can heal that broken heart, So Friend, never ever give up. Keep trusting His mercy and grace While blessings overflow your cup. channels, we finished some disengagement in some points, we can gradually solve these problems. We have to understand as a government, we have a responsibility to build infra to be used for civil and military purposes,” he added. Speaking on the growing ties among Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) nations comprising of Japan, Australia, India and the US, the Chinese envoy said that Beijing does not oppose any kind of regional or international cooperation if it is in the interest of the people and the country in the region. Commenting on the growing partnership among the Quad nations, the Chinese envoy said, “We don’t oppose any kind of regional or international cooperation if it is in the interest of people and country in this region but we oppose those small circles composed for the purpose of geopolitical intentions for the containment of China, so we are hopeful all the cooperation are helpful to the world and the region.” Ma Jia said that China supports India’s G20 Presidency and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and expressed hope for positive outcomes. Notably, India assumed the G20 Presidency on December 1. He stressed that India has been trying very hard to bring everyone together but the job is very tough. Speaking on why there was no consensus reached during G20 foreign ministers meeting, the envoy said, “I have personally attended the G20 foreign affairs meeting, I can see that everybody from the US and western countries talking about Ukraine they don’t have time to talk about other G20 agenda so like this is overwhelming.” He further said, “At the Bali summit, we already had a similar thing but finally they reached some kind of accommodation in a joint statement. INDIA THIS WEEK Address: P.O. Box 352, Bryans Road, MD 20616 Phone: 301-445-0200; 301-917-4800 www.indiathisweek.online India This Week is published every Friday by ADV Solutions Inc, Views expressed in this paper are those of the individual writers and not necessarily of India This Week. India This Week accepts no liability for the errors in advertisements or in any of its reports. For remedial actions any errors should be brought to the attention of the editor by the information provided below. Publisher: Chief Editor: Contributing Editors: Dr. Babu Stephen Rajan George Saju Mathew Isaac George Asst. Editors: Manu Jacob Sherena Panjikkaran Special Business Correspondent Elisha B. Pulivarti Business Coordinators Rajan C. George Jithu Johny Panjikkaran Dr. Renuka Misra, Special Correspondent: Geeta Goindi Community Coordinator: Prof. Vinod Goel India Office Manesh Krishna Columnists: Anadi Naik World Religions Dr. Sam Prasad Jillella Photo Journalist: Mathew Karmel, System Admn. & Maintenance: Rajan C. George Layout & Graphics: Prinston Samuel, Business Affairs: Mrs. Molly George CALL US • 301-445-0200 • 301-917-4800 e-Mails: Advertisements: indiathisweekads@gmail.com Press Releases: indiathisweekpress@yahoo.com Web: www.indiathisweek.online Atal Innovation Mission launches ‘Stories of Change’ for promoting grassroots innovations New Delhi [India], March 22 (ANI): Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) under NITI Aayog on Tuesday launched the Stories of Change - a series of captivating journeys of 15 change-makers from grassroots. The launch was made in the presence of Chintan Vaishnav, Mission Director Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog. According to NITI Aayog, these stories of impact creators from across India are aimed at inspiring an entrepreneur in every citizen. This is also an opportunity provided to these innovators to bring out their stories of success and struggle. Dr Chintan Vaishnav in his remarks during the event said, “We have a lot of changemakers in the Community who despite their challenges have some great ideas and are committed to taking that forward. With the Atal Community Innovation Centres, AIM has focused on recognising the gap that exists in terms of the availability of resources and mentorship to these budding innovators in villages and towns of India. We want to amplify the work that these people are doing and have a systemic resource pool Remember: which can facilitate and prosper their talents.” Also with Startup 20 being the largest policymaking group at the global stage, there is an opportunity for India to showcase the potential of its villages for their problem-solving capabilities, Vaishnav said. Atal Innovation Mission will be bringing such stories in future as well to give a platform to community innovators at a national scale. AIM through Atal Community Innovation Centres (ACIC) has envisaged to serve the unserved/underserved areas of the country and provide support to every grassroots innovator and work towards accelerating the pathway to reach SDGs 2030. Currently, AIM has established 15 ACICs in nine states of India with plans to cumulatively establish 50 such ACICs soon, said NITI Aayog statement. Atal Innovation Mission is the Government of India’s endeavour to promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. Its objective is to serve as a platform for the promotion of world-class innovation hubs, grand challenges, startup businesses, and other self-employment activities, particularly in technologydriven areas. (ANI) “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. ” JESUS CHRIST
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March 24, 2023 Friday INDIA THIS WEEK US President Joe Biden to host PM Modi for state dinner this summer Wa s h i n g t o n [US], March 18 (ANI): US President Joe Biden plans to host Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a state dinner this summer, people familiar with the matter said, reported Bloomberg. The White House aims for the state dinner to take place in June but the timing could slip. However, a spokesman for the National Security Council declined to comment, reported Bloomberg. PM Modi‘s formal state visit is a sign of the deepening US-India relationship in various fields including defence, technology, space exploration, trade and investments. Moreover, the Biden administration advances policies and initiatives for a free and open Indo-Pacific to counter what it sees as a growing threat posed by China and India plays a key role in it. India is hosting the Group of 20 (G20) leaders summit in New Delhi in September, where Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will be among the chief topics of discussion. It’s unclear whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the gathering, reported Bloomberg. Biden is also expected to see Modi in Australia in May when the countries convene for the Quad summit along with the leaders of Australia and Japan. Biden’s dinner party with Prime Minister Modi will be his third official state visit and dinner, following ones for French President Emmanuel Macron in December and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on April 26. Last month, the United States and India unveiled the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies, a proposal to exchange advanced defence and computer technology, including the joint production of General Electric Co aircraft engines. It is to be noted that India has not been as outspoken against Putin’s war in Ukraine as the US and its allies would like. PM Modi‘s dialogue, “this is not the time for war” in Ukraine, with Russian President Vladimir Putin was a statement of principle on behalf of what he believes is right and was welcomed by the US. This statement became popular and was praised by international media. He made the statement on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s summit, in Uzbekistan’s Samarkand. “Today’s era is not of war and I have spoken to you about it on the call. Today, we will get the opportunity to talk about how we can progress on the path of peace. India and Russia have stayed together with each other for several decades,” PM Modi had said. “We spoke several times on the phone about IndiaRussia bilateral relations and various issues. We should find ways to address the problems of food, fuel security and fertilizers,” he added. Meanwhile, US political leaders of both parties have sought to strengthen ties with Modi. The partnership on critical technologies is intended to counter Russian influence in India by reducing New Delhi’s historic reliance on Moscow for military hardware, and China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, reported Bloomberg. (ANI) Washington [US], March 20 (ANI): Despite the persistence of sour relations between India and China, Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to be quite popular among Chinese citizens. Writing for a US-based magazine, The Diplomat, author Mu Chunshan in his article – ‘How is India viewed in China?’ wrote that PM Modi is quite famous amongst Chinese netizens who have also given him an unusual nickname called “Modi Laoxian”, which means “The Immortal”. Laoxian notably refers to an elderly immortal with some weird abilities. The nickname implies that Chinese netizens think Modi is different – even more amazing – than other leaders, the author said in his article for The Diplomat. C h i n e s e perceptions of India, according to Mu’s article, are quite complex but typically founded on a sense of superiority and self-confidence. He added that the gap between the two South Asian neighbours – India and Pakistan – is “growing larger,” and is an apparent allusion to the current political and economic collapse Pakistan is going through. “The facts over the past nine years have proved that China and India have more room for cooperation. For example, China’s trade with India is worth USD 115 billion a year – far more than China’s trade with Pakistan, which sits at around USD 30 billion”, Mu wrote in his article. “Of course, China has not forgotten Pakistan. But many Chinese netizens have a realistic view of the two South Asian neighbours. The argument is very sober: The idea of using Pakistan to restrain India is becoming more unrealistic because the gap between Pakistan and India is getting wider”, he added. Despite Chinese views of India being very complicated, for a foreign leader like Modi to gain importance and popularity in China is an important point to be noted when the relations between the two countries are seen. On India’s relationships with other important nations, the author stated that whether it is Russia, the United States, or countries in the Global South, India can have amicable relations with all of them, which is “quite admirable” to certain Chinese internet users. “I have been doing international media reports for nearly 20 years and it is rare for Chinese netizens to give a nickname to a foreign leader. Modi’s nickname stands out above all others. Clearly he has made an impression on Chinese public opinion,” the author wrote. “One of my conclusions is, on the whole, the Chinese have no malice towards India, with one glaring exception: the border dispute. Once the border dispute is mentioned, most Chinese netizens become very angry. The perception is that India has besieged and contained China with the support of the West, joining the Quad for the same purpose,” The Diplomat reported citing the author. (ANI) PM Modi popular among Chinese citizens, gets unusual nickname
FRIDAY MARCH 24, 2023 9 Sale Ends 3/30/2023 India, US working on information sharing agreement between air forces: US Air Force secy Frank Kendall New Delhi [India], March 22 (ANI): In a significant development amid tensions between India and China, a top American military official on Tuesday said the US and India were working on an informationsharing agreement between air forces. American Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall also stated that india and the US were close to signing an agreement on sharing of jet engine technology which may help New Delhi to produce fighter aircraft engines indigenously. “India is a major and valuable defence partner. We share values and expanding our relationship,” he said. The senior official said both sides are working on an air informationsharing agreement. The pact is expected to facilitate sharing of information between the Indian and the US forces apart from cooperation in specific areas. He added that to catch up with an old friend, US Secretary of Air Force Frank Kendall. Discussed the global strategic scenario and new opportunities for India-US defence cooperation.” Notably, the meeting between the External Affairs Minister and the US Secretary of Air Force is crucial as on Wednesday as recently, an Indian-American man was appointed as Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for the first time. The United States Senate on Wednesday (Local Time) confirmed Indian origin Ravi Chaudhary as the Assistant Secretary of Air Force for Energy, Installations, and the Environment. (ANI) New Delhi [India], March 21 (ANI): Indian Navy on Tuesday rescued a fishing vessel Neelkanth and seven crew who were onboard in Gujarat’s Okha, officials said. According to an official statement, the vessel was at sea for over a week. It experienced flooding in the engine room on the morning of March 21, resulting from the breaking of a seawater pipeline. “The vessel raised a distress call when flooding became uncontrollable. INS Karuva was patrolling in the area a few miles away when the distress call was made. She immediately rushed to rescue the vessel and brought the entire crew of seven to safety,” the official statement from the Indian Navy said. “Karuva then secured the fishing vessel alongside her and provided assistance to first de-flood the vessel and then repair the defect in the ruptured pipeline,” it added. (ANI) Indian Navy rescues 7 fishermen in Gujarat’s Okha they want to develop peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pcific region for the common interest. On being asked about US concern over ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, he responded that the requirement of having a larger share of products manufactured in India should be implemented in stages rather than the expectation of having it all in one go. Responding to questions on the US and India signing the air information sharing agreement, he said, “India and the US are working on an air information sharing agreement and it could be finalised very soon.” Kendall said the US-India defence partnership has been moving forward and there are scope for greater cooperation in diverse areas including in the space sector. “We have very strong shared values as democracies, shared security concerns across a spectrum of security interests. We expanding our relationship. India is a very valuable partner for us,” he said at a media briefing. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met with US Secretary of Air Force Frank Kendall on Tuesday and discussed the global strategic scenario and new opportunities for IndiaUS defense cooperation. Following their meeting, Jaishankar tweeted, “Great
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