“Both India and USA are global engines of growth. Eliminating terrorism is among the topmost priorities for us.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the US President Donald Trump at the White House during his recent visit to the United States of America. Here are the key takeaways from their meeting:
1. I have always had a deep admiration for your country and your people, the rich culture and traditions. It’s great honour to welcome the leader of the world's largest democracy. You have a true friend in the White House... our ties have never been stronger and better, President Trump said at the joint press conference after delegation-level talks.
2. India is the fastest growing economy in the world. We hope we will be catching up you very soon. You have a big vision for improving infrastructure and fighting corruption, President Trump told PM Modi.
3. I am proud to say that PM Modi and I are world leaders in social media.
4. PM Modi invited my daughter Ivanka to lead US delegation to the global entrepreneurship in India, and I believe she has accepted it, Trump said.
5. The security partnership between the US and India is incredibly important. Both our nations have been struck by the evils of terrorism and we are both determined to destroy terrorist organisations+ and the radical ideology that drives them. We will destroy radical Islamic terrorism, President Trump said.
6. Our talks today are an important moment in the cooperation between our nations. We held talks on wide range of issues pertaining to the India-USA relationship, PM Modi said.
India needs to be taught rules of the game: Chinese media on Sikkim stand-off
DIPLOMACY// India needs to be taught the “rules” of dealing with border disputes, Chinese state media has said, cautioning New Delhi not to mistake China’s silence on boundary problems as its weakness.
The warning comes in the middle of a standoff between the border troops along Sikkim on India’s northeastern border with Tibet that has seen the Chinese side suspend an annual pilgrimage through the Nathu La pass that lies on the frontier.
The Chinese government “must force the Indian troops to retreat to the Indian side by all means necessary”, the media said on Wednesday, a day after China accused Indian soldiers of crossing into its territory. Cautioning India against being “arrogant”, the state media reminded New Delhi that China was a far more powerful country, militarily and economically.
“China avoids making an issue of border disputes, which has indulged India’s unruly provocations. This time the Indian side needs to be taught the rules,” the nationalistic tabloid Global Times said in an opinion piece
In the last few days, Beijing has stepped up the offensive but New Delhi has said little on the face-off. Though Indian Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat shrugged off reports of a skirmish in Sikkim, saying there was no incursion into India
But the Chinese media blamed the Indian military so did the ministries of defence and foreign affairs, which on Tuesday accused Indian soldiers of preventing its troops from building a road on their side of the line of actual control, the de facto border between the two countries.
The Chinese side also linked the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, an annual pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet held sacred by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, to the “withdrawal” of troops by India.
The Nathu La route for Mansrovar Yatra is a major confidence-building exercise between the two often-bickering neighbours.
INDIA'S SRIKANTH STUNS CHEN TO WIN AUSTRALIAN OPEN BADMINTON
BADMINTON// India's Kidambi Srikanth claimed a first victory over Olympic and two-time world champion Chen Long to win the Australian Open Superseries final in Sydney on June 25. The 11thranked Srikanth outgunned the sixth-ranked Chinese star 22-20, 21-16 in 46 minutes for his second successive Superseries title after winning the Indonesia Open earlier in June. It was Srikanth's first win in six encounters against the Rio Olympic champion, with Chen defeating the Indian at the Sudirman Cup on Australia's Gold Coast last month
“I was not thinking of winning or losing. I missed competitive badminton during my break last year and wanted to enjoy the match,” Srikanth said.
“These conditions are such that you can’t really attack, it’s a bit slow, you have to be prepared for a long match. In all the breaks today I had the advantage, (coach) Mulyo told me to keep it going, not to make simple mistakes and allow him back into the match."
Indians have now won four of the six Superseries this year. Srikanth is in career-best form after returning from injury in April.
ANIL KUMBLE QUITS AS HEAD COACH OF TEAM INDIA
CRICKET// Anil Kumble announced his resignation as head coach of the Indian cricket team, recently and said he was informed about the reservations captain Virat Kohli had with his working style “for the first time yesterday”. But those in the know say communication lines between the two had more or less snapped during the past few months.
In a statement, Kumble said he was “surprised” by Kohli’s “reservations” since he had “always respected the role boundaries between captain and coach”.
The BCCI, in a press release, had said that the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) — comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman — had endorsed an extension to Kumble’s tenure. What wasn’t mentioned in the official statement was a rider. “They made it clear that Kumble would only be retained if his differences with Kohli were solved. We had long chats with the two but we couldn’t solve the problem. While Kumble didn’t acknowledge there was a problem, Kohli’s view was very different,” said the source.
Kumble, in his statement, also mentioned the last-minute truce efforts. “Though the BCCI attempted to resolve the misunderstandings between the captain and me, it was apparent that the partnership was untenable, and I therefore believe it is best for me to move on,” he stated.
RAINS LASH MUMBAI, HARBOUR LINE SERVICES AFFECTED
WEATHER// Intermittent rains continued for the fourth consecutive day in Mumbai and suburbs, disrupting local train services on the Central Railway’s Harbour Line. The continuous showers led to deposition of mud on tracks between Mankhurd and Gowandi suburban stations which led to the suspension of train services for about half-an-hour on the Harbour Line, that stretches between Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) and Panvel in adjoining Raigad district. The services were later resumed with a speed restriction because of which the trains were running behind schedule, he said. Jain said the services on the Central Railway’s main line, running from CST to Kalyan and onwards to Kasara and Khopoli, were smooth but because of the heavy downpour, the trains were running 10-15 minutes behind schedule. No water-logging was reported at any of the suburban stations on the main line. According to an official of the Mumbai civic body’s disaster management department, the Colaba observatory recorded 63 mm rainfall and Santacruz 51.1 mm on June 28.
Aadhaar-PAN linking must from July 1, govt notifies rules
TAX// The government has made it mandatory for taxpayers to link existing Aadhaar numbers with PAN cards+ with effect from July 1. Amending income tax rules and notifying the same, the government has made quoting of the 12-digit biometric Aadhaar or the enrolment ID a must at the time of application of permanent account number (PAN). Finance minister Arun Jaitley through an amendment to tax proposals in the Finance Bill for 2017-18 had made Aadhaar mandatory for filing income tax returns and provided for linking of PAN with Aadhaar to check tax evasion through use of multiple PAN cards. The revenue department said “every person who has been allotted PAN as on July 1, 2017, and who in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (2) of section 139AA is required to intimate his Aadhaar number, shall intimate his Aadhaar number to the principal director general of income tax (systems) or DGIT (systems)”. The rules will come into force from July 1, 2017, the revenue department said while amending Rule 114 of the I-T Act, which deals in application for allotment of PAN
As many as 2.07 crore taxpayers have already linked their Aadhaar with PAN
ISLAMIC STATE CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY FOR TERROR ATTACK ON LONDON BRIDGE
ATTACKS// On 3 June 2017, an attack took place in the Southwark district of London, England, when a van mounted the pavement of London Bridge and was driven into pedestrians. The van crashed, and the three male occupants ran to the nearby Borough Market pub and restaurant area, where they stabbed people with long knives. Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, stated that the attackers were "probably" Islamist terrorists. Eight people were killed and 48 were injured, including four unarmed police officers who attempted to stop the assailants. The three attackers, who wore fake explosive vests, were all shot dead by police. It was the third terrorist attack in Great Britain in just over two months, following a similar attack in Westminster in March and a bombing in Manchester in May.
The ringleader of the London Bridge terror attack who was photographed dead on the ground with canisters strapped to his body was named by police as Khuram Butt, 27, of Barking, East London, He is believed to have led the trio of terrorists who ploughed into pedestrians on the bridge using a hired van, before stabbing revellers in pubs and bars in Borough Market.
Witnesses heard the men shout “This is for Allah” before they were shot and killed by police within eight minutes of the first 999 call. Armed officers fired an “unprecedented” 50 rounds, according to Scotland Yard. The three men appear to have stabbed people at random in the market. They rampaged through the area, entering the many pubs and restaurants to stab anyone in sight.
Police have been piecing together eyewitness accounts, and believe that three men got out of the van and started attacking people with knives.