Lynching is now the foremost concern in the public space. The case by a mob lynching a Muslim farmer in Alwar, Rajasthan, on suspicion that he was taking his two cows for slaughter, was especially gruesome. His injuries led to his death. The police ineptitude compounded the tragedy and has galvanized decent sections of society across the country. Parliament was in uproar, the Supreme Court of India fired a broadside at the government, the media were abuzz with questions, and the broad public demanded answers.
The government in first gear, it would seem, promised action after an official inquiry into the circumstances of the Alwar tragedy. Laws have been promised and suitable sentences for those found guilty under due process.
Truth is that the Sangh parivar (BJP-RSS family) has thuggish numbers consisting the Bajrang Dal and groups of similar ilk. Senior BJP, now sidelined – Murali Manohar Joshi, Yashwant Sinha, Arun Shourie, to go no further – have distanced themselves from the present dispensation at the Centre. The rag-tag Opposition, hungry for power, with no visible awareness of public service or the national interest is scarcely a credible force going forward. One recalls the nullity of the Janata coalition of 1977-79, more circus than government. Whither India? (Hindu, Times of India, Indian Express, Mint, TV channels (July 23-25).
GST cut lauded
The cut in 88 consumer items in the Goods and Services (GST) tax, including cosmetics, refrigerators, washing machines, small screen television sets lithium batteries for mobile phones handloom saris, and sanitary napkins, was widely welcomed, particularly by the middle classes. Many GST items were negatively affected by demonetization, and hence this rationalization sought by States should be beneficial to a large swath of people across India (Indian Express, Times of India, Hindu (July 22).
TCS surge in first quarter
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) beat market expectations , raising the bar for the first quarter of the current fiscal (April-June) with its fastest sequential growth in four years, as the largest US banks boosted spending on technology and hence augmented the TCS revenue flow. The US is the source of 51 per cent of TCS revenue.
Digital performance
In constant terms, TCS’s June quarter revenue rose 4.1 per cent from the three preceding three months. It grew 9.3 per cent from a year earlier, with dollar revenue rose 1.6 per cent to $5.05 billion in the quarter ending June 30. Net profit rose 1.1 per cent to $1.08 in the June quarter from $1.07 per cent in the preceding three months, while operating costs narrowed 25 base points to 25 points from 25.4 points from the last quarter of the previous fiscal ending March 31. For the first time in two years India’s largest software services provider is poised to exceed Nasscom’s industry growth projection of 7.9 per cent in constant currency terms. A strong growth in the company’s strategy of building both talent and technologies is beginning to pay yield results. A strong performance is digital, which grew 45 per cent, the best in seven quarters (Mint July 11).
Sensex in new high
The benchmark BSE Sensex breached the 37,000 mark in its fifth straight session on expectations that earnings growth of Indian companies will accelerate. Nifty in tandem achieved new record highs as their benchmark indices rose on the back of of a widespread stock rally spurred by investor confidence following strong corporate results. (Business Line July 27)
Growth story returns: Birla
It was a great day for the Aditya Birla Group, whose metals arm Hindalco announced the acquisition of US-based Aleris for $2.58 billion. Birla’s telecom business, Idea Cellular, received government approval for its merger with Vodofone India. India’s growth was based on strong fundamentals, said Aditya Birla (Business Line July 27).
GST fillip
‘Results have been strong and the markets got a fillip from the government’s announcement of across-the-board Goods and Services Tax (GST) reductions,’ said Harendra Kumar, Managing Director, Elara Capital. Larsen & Toubro, Asian Paints, Adani Ports, Tata Steel, Infosys, Maruti Suzuki and Coal India each advanced 1.3 per cent (Business Line, Hindu July 24,25).
Bengal’s Silicon Valley
The Mamata Banerjee’s concept of a Silicon Valley in the environs of Kolkata appears to be bearing encouraging results as hiring by IT companies is on the rise.. A survey conducted by Genius Consultants, pegged hiring growth in the state at around 13 per cent, second only to that of manufacturing and engineering. That said, the overall recruitment scenario by companies in the southern states stil stand at the top of the hiring chart with 32.5 per cent new arrivals to the workforce, with western India close at 31.1 per cent However, the Bengal government’s rising investment in infrastructure has boosted economic growth. (Times of India July 4).
L&T net surge in first quarter
Mumbai-based engineering and construction giant Larsen &Toubro (L&T) posted a net profit growth of 36 per cent in the first quarter of the current financial year ending April 1-June 30, cvompared to Rs 893 crore achieved onver the same period last year. The company won new orders worth Rs 36,142 crore across the board. Its infrastructure business rose 16 per cent. The growth was mainly driven by government projects for rural water supply and lift irrigation schemes, while international orders were around 23 per cent. Contrary to expectations, international increased 19 per cent, said L&T CEO R.Shankar Menon at a press conference in Mumbai. The company’s Managing Director S.N. Subramanyan attributed the domestic projects to the looming May/June 2019 election (Business Line July 26).
PM in landmark African tour
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s landmark African tour began in the Rwandan capital Kigali. Bilateral ties took off into the next level with President Paul Kagame’s visit to India in January 2017. India recognized Rwanda’s remarkable economic progress and its political stability achieved under the leadership of President Paul Kagame following a period of internal unrest. Rwanda, a small landlocked country of 26,000 square kilometres is rich in mineral resources, and hence the Strategic Partnership with India should lead to a two-way traffic in industrial and agricultural collaboration, with the special strength of each partner plainly visible.(Indian Express July 23).
Uganda next stop
From Rwanda, Prime Minister Modi next moved to Kampala, capital of neighbouring Uganda, with whom India has had a long and fruitful relationship spanning a century and more when Indian traders and entrepreneurs entered the country, then under British rule, as was India itself. Ugandan stability and economic ruin was the handiwork of the infamous Idi Amin dictatorship. That dark period ended with the overthrow of Amin and the accession of President Yoweri Musaveni, who facilitated the return to his country of the expelled Indian community. Under his leadership, political stability was restored and economic revival commenced.
Indian objectives
Addressing the Ugandan Parliament, Prime Minister Modi said: ‘Today, India and Africa stand on the threshold of a future of great promise,’ with Uganda was an example of Africa on the move. He added: ‘We will strengthen our cooperation and mutual capabilities in combating terrorism and extremism, keeping our cyberspace safe and secure, and supporting the UN in advancing and keeping the peace.’ The Indian Prime Minister referred to India-Africa cooperation in maintaining security in the Indian Ocean between their respective shorelines. ‘We will support Indian investment in Africa,’ particularly in African digitization, public health and services (Hindu July 26).
Bangladeshi terror suspects arrested
Two Bangladesh terror suspects have been arrested in Noida on the outskirts of New Delhi by a joint operation of the Uttar Pradesh anti-terrorist police squad and the West Bengal police. A statement issued by the former stated that the two arrested men were members of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh. They two men, identified as Rubel Ahmed and Musharaf Hussain, had been active since March. The intelligence inputs by the West Bengal police had led to their capture The suspects are to be transferred to West Bengal for trial. Meanwhile, the arrested men will be subjected to further questioning by detectives of the UP anti-terrorist squad (Hindu July 25).
Russian offer of joint designed submarines
In a proposal that could result in huge cost savings, Russia has proposed the joint production of submarines with India based on the technological transfer acquired by Russia in building its own nuclear fleet which promises drastically to reduce the cost of India’s next generation naval production plan.
The proposal, believed to have been discussed at the Sochi summit between Prime Minister Modi and President Putin last month. ‘The Russians side has offered a transfer of technology of all intellectual property rights for the design and prototype construction. This will will mean that there are also no limits to the number of submarines that can be built under the project,’ said an Indian official familiar the details of the proposed venture. India’s tender for an international $10 billion for naval acquisitions and modernization (Economic Times July 6).
