分类： bharat

DefExpo 2020, which opens today in Lucknow, is the latest manifestation of India’s massive military modernization. The event will see arms industry grandees from all over the world fighting for attention of New Delhi purchasers.
Sitting on the northwest shore of the Gomti river, Lucknow is the heritage capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and the fourteenth most populous city in India. A cultural and artistic hub, Lucknow is also known as the ‘CCTV city’ of India, being the first in the country where more than 9,000 CCTV cameras are installed to keep an eye on crime — and where drones are deployed to keep watch on major areas during big events. Now, Lucknow will become the stage for one of the biggest defense expos worldwide.

The biannual event, held between February 5-8, has been dubbed the “mega defense exhibition” by India’s Deputy Defense Minister Shripad Yesso Naik. More than 1,000 domestic and foreign arms companies are expected to participate — as well as delegations from some 70 countries, with about a half led either by defense ministers or chiefs of staff.

Among the advanced weapon systems on display at DefExpo India 2020 is the Russian 57-mm gun turret. Action video of the shell-spewing death machine, which can target low-flying drones, was published by the producer.
The turret, or Automatic Artillery Weapon System AU-220M as the manufacturer prefers to call it, is a remotely controlled module armed with a 57mm main gun and a 7.62mm machine gun, full of sensors, stabilizer devices and other equipment.

The developer, a research subsidiary of Uralvagonzavod, says its product will be put on Russia’s future infantry fighting vehicles and other light armor to give them a firepower boost. The test video shows a land-based use of the system. But patrol boats large enough to carry the 3.65-ton module are a viable platform too.

AU-220M’s gun can fire its entire ammo reserve of 80 shells in just one minute and has an effective range of 14.5km. And if guided projectiles are used, it can effectively take out low-flying drones and other small aircraft. Potentially the turret may be operated from afar rather than by the crew of whatever craft is armed with it.

Iconic rifle of choice
Soviet tank mechanic Mikhail Kalashnikov finalized the design of the original Avtomat Kalashnikova (Automatic Kalashnikov) in 1947. Known for reliability and ease of use, his AK-47 has since become the iconic weapon of choice around the world. It is estimated that one in five firearms – about 100 million – on the planet today is a Kalashnikov of some kind.

The AK-203 is the export version of the AK-12, which is currently being phased into Russia’s own armed services as the standard assault rifle. Unlike the AK-12, it uses 7.92x39mm rounds, and India has long preferred the 7.62x51mm NATO caliber.

What the slightly shorter rounds of the AK-203 may lack in range and accuracy, the rifle makes up in reliability. It is rugged and easy to use, which is perfect in the tough conditions of the Indian frontier, such as deserts or mountains. It is also easy to repair, and if the AK-47 is anything to go by, can last 20-40 years.

Every other soldier of India’s million-strong army may soon be armed with a domestically made AK-203 Kalashnikov assault rifle, as a final deal with Russia might be taking shape at the DefExpo in Lucknow.
New Delhi is keen to order 670,000 Kalashnikovs from the joint venture established last year with the eponymous Russian conglomerate. A factory has already been built for the purpose in the northern district of Amethi. However, the initial cost of production and technology transfer is driving up the prices of Kalashnikovs, arguably the most famous assault rifles in the world for over two generations.

The two partners in the joint venture are presently engaged in bringing down the cost from $1,000 per rifle to something more affordable. Even though the AK-203 is a vastly improved and advanced version of the rifle, its iconic predecessor, the AK-47, can be bought for a few hundred dollars in the global arms market.

The brother of Asia’s richest man has pleaded poverty in his dispute with three Chinese banks seeking US$680 million (HK$5.28 billion) in defaulted loans.
“The value of my investments has collapsed,” Anil Ambani said, according to a court filing by the banks in a London lawsuit. “The current value of my shareholdings is down to around US$82.4m and my net worth is zero after taking into account my liabilities. In summary, I do not hold any meaningful assets which can be liquidated for the purposes of these proceedings.”
The lawsuit was filed by three state-controlled Chinese banks which argue that they provided a loan of US$925 million to Ambani’s Reliance Communications in 2012 with the condition that he personally guarantee the debt. The comments were disclosed on Friday as Ambani sought to avoid depositing hundreds of millions of dollars with the court ahead of a trial.
The embattled Indian tycoon says that while he agreed to give a non-binding “personal comfort letter,” he never gave a guarantee tied to his personal assets – an “extraordinary potential personal liability.”
The 60-year-old is the brother of Mukesh Ambani, who is worth US$56.5 billion and is the wealthiest man in Asia. Anil, on the other hand, has seen his personal fortune dwindle in recent years, losing his billionaire status. His telecommunications group Reliance Communications filed for bankruptcy last year.

The banks asked Judge David Waksman to force Anil Ambani to put up US$656 million into the court’s account.

An Indian airport has devised a highly creative – and reportedly effective – method to keep vexatious langurs off their runway: have an employee dress up as a bear and scare them off.
An extremely busy international airport in India’s western Ahmedabad city deployed the unorthodox tactic after struggling to prevent langurs from swarming the grounds of the air hub – and creating a potential safety hazard for passengers. The idea was reportedly hatched after the airport’s management learned that langurs are terrified of bears. The airport already has a team dedicated to chasing off birds and wildlife, so using a bear costume to increase results was perhaps a logical – and more fun – decision.

Pakistani premier Imran Khan has rebuffed his Indian counterpart’s claims that it would take 10 days at most to take down Pakistan, citing the past failures of French general Napoleon Bonaparte and Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.
“Narendra Modi, you need to brush up on your history. It seems your degree was fake,” Imran Khan said on Thursday, before showing off his own knowledge on the subject.

Leaders who have shown such pride have always been defeated in the past … [take] the failure of Hitler’s and Napoleon’s forces to permeate Russia.

Even the world’s most powerful military – namely, the American one – failed to win the Vietnam War and made no gains during the 19-year war in Afghanistan, he added.

The bizarre comparison – though not unusual for Khan’s rhetoric on Modi – came after the Indian premier maintained that it “won’t take more than a week – 10 days to make Pakistan bite the dust” if a war breaks out between the rival neighbors.

Another waiver for India?
The US has been keen to promote strategic partnerships with Indian in the Indo-Pacific region to counter rapidly-growing Chinese influence. To that end, it has so far been lenient when it comes to India’s ‘transgressions’ regarding US sanctions.

For instance, it has seemingly overlooked New Delhi’s decision to go ahead with the procurement of Russia’s S-400 surface-to-air missile systems, which some expected might earn the wrath of Washington and invite new sanctions ‘to punish’ both Russia and India.

Meanwhile, Turkey – a NATO ally – which also procured the S-400 systems from Russia – faced punitive actions from the Trump administration resulting in the cancellation of the the delivery of around 100 fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft from the US.

So far, it’s unclear whether India will manage to extract further concessions from Washington to continue to do business with Iran over the INSCT, improving connectivity with Afghanistan and allowing it to make inroads into the EAEU markets — but the question will likely figure prominently in upcoming discussions between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Trump when he visits New Delhi later this month.

India’s entry to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), spurred by Russia, could help expand South Asia-Eurasia trade, but there’s a potential glitch. The US would need to allow a waiver for New Delhi to transship goods through Iran.
With talks ongoing about a possible India-EAEU free trade agreement (FTA), Moscow has also been pushing for New Delhi to join the EAEU — currently consisting of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.

Such a move could open new trade opportunities between the South Asian and Eurasian regions via the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) — a 7,200km ship, rail and road trade network that cuts across Central Asia, beginning in Iran and ending in the southern Russian city of Astrakhan.

Yet, fresh US sanctions on Iran could stand in the way — unless Washington is willing to grant New Delhi a waiver to work with Tehran.

印度希望在未来4到5年内，将其铁路网全部电气化。

印度铁道与能源部部长戈亚尔周四（6日）表示，作为削减碳排放的努力的一部分，印度希望在未来4到5年内将其铁路网全部电气化。

戈亚尔表示，目前印度55%的铁路网络已经电气化，剩下的还在使用柴油。

今年1月17日，长城汽车与通用汽车签署收购通用汽车印度塔里冈工厂协议，这笔交易为长城进入印度市场奠定基础，收购交易将于2020年下半年完成。该工厂位于印度中西部马哈拉施特拉邦浦那市塔里岗工业园，距离孟买约100公里，距离孟买新港约120公里，是印度较为成熟的汽车产业基地。

2月5日，中国汽车制造商长城汽车携哈弗品牌及长城EV正式亮相德里国际车展，并正式宣布进军印度市场。这是长城汽车首次参加印度车展，采取独立包馆的形式，参展面积达到3150平方米，创下历史记录。

以“科技长城 智领全球”为主题参展的长城汽车，此次共展出哈弗SUV以及长城EV两大品牌，包括哈弗Concept、哈弗Vision 2025以及哈弗F7，F7x、F5、H9。长城iQ、R1等纯电动车型。

其中，全球首发概念车哈弗Concept H，以及印度首发概念车哈弗Vision 2025代表了哈弗最新设计语言，展示了长城对电气化智能化汽车的思考。此外还包括电池技术、哈弗智能座舱、哈弗安全车身、长城EV自动驾驶等功能展示。

在本届德里车展上，长城汽车宣布正式进军印度市场。长城汽车认为，随着印度经济的不断发展和消费者购车需求的释放，印度有望成为未来十年全球最具成长性的汽车大市场。预计2022年印度汽车销量达600万辆，将超过日本成为第三大汽车市场。

根据《印度时报》的数据，在2007至2013年间，大约有2600名印度人死于药物临床试验中。从2013-2015年有1335人死于临床试验。据估计，参与人体实验的印度人，高达60万人。印度政府和西方药企达成了一个妥协，印度政府允许西方药企拿印度人做新药实验，但是，西方药企也要允许印度人生产仿制药。

Srei Infrastructure Finance Ltd. plans to stop financing Indian infrastructure projects after three decades in the business, as a slowing economy and crisis in the shadow bank sector dries up funding lines.

The International Finance Corp.-backed firm will instead focus solely on financing purchases and leasing of equipment, Vice Chairman Sunil Kanoria said in an interview in his Kolkata office. Srei has tied up with eight banks that will fund 80% of each project while Srei will finance 20%, reducing Srei’s need for capital.

Russia has kicked off production for a batch of S-400 missile defense systems with India’s name on them, bringing a deal reached in 2018 one step closer to fruition despite fevered protests – as well as threats – from Washington.

“The Almaz-Antey concern has begun manufacturing the S-400 systems for India, and Russia will deliver the S-400s to India within the timeframe stipulated by the contract,” said Russian Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov, adding that training centers had already been established in India to prepare operators of the missile system.

In general, all commitments undertaken by the parties, including the payment, are being fulfilled in full.

Since Moscow and New Delhi inked a $5.43 billion contract for five S-400 units in 2018, Washington has made numerous attempts to scuttle the deal, warning India the move could restrict the country’s “interoperability” with American systems, and at times even hinting at economic sanctions.

韩国现代汽车集团将在印度市场加强攻势。继旗下的起亚汽车2019年底在印度南部起用自主工厂之后，2020年将追加2款新车。尽快把集团整体在当地的产能提高至100万辆。现代将印度市场定位为替中国市场的增长火车头，挑战排在首位的玛鲁蒂铃木的根据地。

现代汽车集团积极拓展的是印度市场。起亚汽车2019年12月正式起用年产30万辆规模的印度工厂。除了SUV“Seltos”之外，到2020年还将在印度推出2款新车，以争取广泛消费者。

现代汽车也计划2020年扩建印度金奈工厂，把产能提高至75万辆，两家企业合计产能将超过100万辆。计划将来向西亚和非洲出口，把印度作为市场开拓的立足点。

　　有印度汽车分析师表示，“在设计、功能和价格等印度人偏好的基础上充分研究、推进开发”，对现代汽车集团给予积极评价。目前表现强劲的起亚汽车的Seltos售价最低100万卢比（约合人民币9.98万元），价格适中。汽车行业相关人士表示，“与其他车企的SUV相比非常具有竞争力”。

印度汽车市场价格竞争激烈

　　印度汽车市场的竞争正日益激化。1月17日，中国长城汽车决定收购美国通用汽车（GM）在印度的出口用工厂，进军印度市场。有分析认为，印度市场到2030年前后将从2019年的381万辆增至1000万辆左右，但目前市场正在缩小。消费者也对价格很敏感，培育为盈利来源并不容易。各家车企不得不“比拼忍耐力”。

　　在印度，仅乘用车的主要企业就有13家展开激烈竞争。具备稳固销售网和品牌号召力的铃木子公司玛鲁蒂铃木掌握5成份额，但第3位以下则是当地的塔塔汽车和马辛德拉公司（Mahindra & Mahindra）等，差距很小。即使是塔塔汽车，最近也在亏损，排在后面的企业被认为业绩严峻。

　　印度汽车市场的竞争并未缓和。通用汽车2017年停止在印度销售，但上海汽车集团通过收购通用的工厂而进军印度，2019推出了旗下的英国老字号品牌“MG”的汽车。

A specially equipped Air India flight has arrived back home with 324 Indians previously stranded in the Chinese city of Wuhan – the epicenter of a fast-moving viral outbreak – but six were barred from boarding due to high fevers.
“Indian citizens return safely to our motherland. We are extremely grateful to [the Chinese Foreign Ministry] and the local authorities in #Hubei for their help and support,” the Indian Embassy in China said in a tweet.
According to one passenger who spoke to the ANI news agency, however, six Indians meant to board the flight were prevented from doing so “as they had high temperatures” – fever is one of the symptoms of the lethal coronavirus which has killed at least 259 people and infected nearly 12,000 in China.

All 324 evacuees were brought to a special quarantine facility in Manesar near India’s capital of Delhi and are now under observation for signs of the illness, the Indian Army said. The observation period will last for two weeks, supervised by a team of doctors and other healthcare workers. The group was divided into three categories: “suspected cases,” “close contacts” and “non-contacts,” and each will be allowed to return home if no symptoms are noted.

India, the second-largest gold consumer globally, is expected to see growing demand for the precious metal this year in the range of 700-800 tons, up from 690 tons in 2019.
According to a World Gold Council (WGC) report, growth could come as a result of the Indian government’s attempts to bolster consumer confidence and spending power in order to revive the economy.

“We believe reforms that are going to be announced in the budget are likely to put more money in the hands of people. It will drive up consumption,” said Somasundaram PR, the managing director of WGC’s Indian operations.

An Air India flight carrying 323 Indians and seven Maldivians from coronavirus-stricken Wuhan touched down in New Delhi on Sunday morning. It’s the second time Indian citizens were airlifted from China since the outbreak.
“The second flight from #Wuhan has just landed in #Delhi. We wish all those on board good health in the days ahead,” tweeted Vikram Misri, Indian ambassador to China, extending gratitude to Beijing for greenlighting the evacuation.

It was the second time an Air India Boeing 747 has flown to the Chinese city at the epicenter of the deadly outbreak to rescue stranded Indians, many of whom are medical students at a local university.

On Saturday, the first such flight arrived in New Delhi with 324 people, bringing the total number of Indian evacuees to 657. This time, however, seven foreigners – citizens of the Republic of Maldives – were also transported.

India, which is striving to become the fourth space superpower, is sending a group of astronauts to Russia where they will be given rigorous training at the famed Cosmonaut Training Center outside of Moscow.
An Indian crew of four is arriving in February and the program “is intended for one year and a half,” the head of Russia’s Cosmonaut Training Center, Pavel Vlasov, told TASS. The center will train a spacecraft commander and spacecraft flight engineers, using the time-tested Soyuz.

India, which is seeking to launch its first-ever manned mission – known as Gaganyaan (‘sky vehicle’ in Sanskrit) – into orbit by 2022, is apparently eager to learn from Russia’s decades of experience.

Last year, the Indian Human Space Flight Centre and Roscosmos agreed to jointly screen, select, and train India’s astronauts at Russian facilities. The Indian space program may also incorporate Russia’s life support systems and thermal control into Gaganyaan.

Meanwhile, Indian scientists have independently tested several building blocks for their milestone mission, including re-entry capsule, pad abort test, safe crew ejection mechanism, and flight suit.

This is not the first time India has sent astronauts to Star City, where the training center is based. In the 1980s, it embedded Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma in the 1984 Soyuz T-11 mission, who became the first and so far only Indian to travel to space.

Following the success of a joint Indo-Russia nuclear power project in Bangladesh, the two countries could join hands to build more nuclear plants abroad. It’s a sign of deepening ties, but will the US let it pass?
The Indian ambassador to Russia, Venkatesh Varma, recently announced that India could collaborate with Russia to launch new projects in Africa and the Middle East. He stated, “Russia already has agreements in this field with a number of African countries,” adding, “Ethiopia is one of them, and there are some countries in the Middle East.”

Russia – a leading player in the international commercial nuclear energy market, offering turnkey projects to over 33 countries globally – has been a key partner for India’s own nuclear energy programme. In fact, the nuclear plant at Kudankulam in South India was built with Russian assistance. Furthermore, since 2018, Indian companies have been working in collaboration with Russia’s state atomic energy agency, Rosatom in building two nuclear power plants at Rooppur in Bangladesh. The project is expected to be completed by 2023 at a cost of $13 billion.

As a non-member of the Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG) – a group 48 nuclear supplier countries that seek to prevent misuse of nuclear technology that could be used to manufacture nuclear weapons – India is only permitted to perform construction and installation works, personnel training and the supply of materials and equipment in the “non-critical” part of the Bangladesh project. Still, it’s been a huge opportunity for Indian companies to develop expertise in the construction of nuclear power plants.

News of more possible joint nuclear projects abroad clearly shows a deepening of the partnership in civilian nuclear energy – and also adds a new dimension to the Russian-Indian relationship in general.

Responding to Indian PM Narendra Modi’s claim that Pakistan would “bite dust” in case of war with India, Islamabad urged New Delhi not to underestimate its army, invoking an aerial dogfight that led to an Indian pilot’s capture.
The war of words between Pakistan and India has escalated, and has recently seen the two nuclear-armed nations trading barbs to highlight the strength of their respective military forces. The latest round in the verbal back-and-forth began on Tuesday, with Modi saying that the Indian Army could take down neighboring Pakistan in a week – 10 days at the most.

India’s Muslim law board has advised the Supreme Court that nothing in the tenets of Islam bars women from praying in mosques. The non-profit noted that the court should not have a say in the religious issue, however.
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) responded to a request by India’s Supreme Court to comment on the petition filed by a Muslim couple. Yasmin Zuber Ahmad Peerzade and her husband Zuber Ahmad Nazir Ahmad Peerzade have asked the court to formally renounce any restrictions that women face as they attempt to enter a mosque, calling the practice “not only repugnant to the basic dignity of a woman as an individual” but “also violative of the fundamental rights.”

The pair argued that while some mosques allow unimpeded access to female believers, many sites that belong to the Sunni branch of Islam either bar women from entering or have certain rules they must obey – such as entering via a separate entrance or praying in certain spaces where men are not allowed to go.

“The present respondent (AIMPLB) has taken a stand, as per Islamic texts, that entry of woman into mosque for namaz is permitted. Any other ‘fatwa’ to this effect may be ignored,” the organization said Wednesday.

AIMPLB is a non-government organization set up in 1973 to ensure proper protection of Sharia law in the private lives of India’s Muslims.

India’s first confirmed case of novel Coronavirus has been detected in Kerala. A student who had been studying at Wuhan University tested positive for the virus.

The ministry says in a statement that the student has been kept in isolation and is being monitored at a hospital. It’s not clear when the student returned to India from China.

Passengers who have travelled to China recently are being screened for symptoms in at least 20 Indian airports. The virus which originated in China has so far killed 170.

India has confirmed its first case of the new coronavirus. The infected individual has been hospitalized and is being closely monitored in the state of Kerala.
The patient reportedly caught the virus while studying at Wuhan University in China. While this is India’s first confirmed case of the virus, 10 other patients have been quarantined in the state of Maharashtra for possible exposure, local media reported.

阿列克谢·科列涅夫说，俄罗斯限制从中国进口鱼类产品会在市场上产生影响，因为中国是俄水产品主要供应国之一。俄罗斯联邦海关总署的资料显示，2018年俄罗斯从中国进口冷冻鱼3.62万吨，占俄进口总量的12%，进口此类产品所占份额超过这一比例的只有法罗群岛和智利。中国在俄罗斯进口甲壳类动物（包括虾）方面也仅次于印度和格陵兰岛位居第三位，对俄出口7400吨（占总量的18%）。此外中国在俄罗斯鱼片和蛤蜊进口中位居首位，分别对俄出口2.03万吨（占比28.9%）和1.37万吨（占比70%）。业内人士认为，此类产品的某些品种一段时间内将不可避免地出现短缺，但影响不大而且是临时性的。

阿列克谢·科列涅夫说：“由于俄联邦兽医及植物卫生监督局2019年12月31日公布该决定，2020年1月9日起进口禁令开始生效，因此俄罗斯国内大部分企业基本上来不及找到替代中国供应商的方案。”他说，诚信可靠的供应商需要至少三四个月的时间研究可替代方案，接下来从遥远地区交货也至少需要四五十天。不过目前有许多来自白俄罗斯、印度、孟加拉国、智利、法罗群岛和格陵兰岛的鱼类产品供入俄罗斯市场。科列涅夫说：“通过增加从这些国家进口足以迅速弥补这一缺口。至于是否会由于对质量存在疑问的鱼类产品和海产品供应实施禁令使中俄两国关系蒙上阴影，则该举措不太可能严重影响两国贸易额及两国经济和政治关系。”他认为这是纯技术性问题，消除所发现缺陷后中国对俄鱼类产品出口会重新恢复。

俄罗斯计划到2025使对印贸易额增加到300亿美元。印度人口众多，经济发展迅速，是俄罗斯非原料出口主要市场之一。根据一项国家专项计划，俄罗斯到2024年非原料出口应增长到2500亿美元（2019年预计为1600亿美元）。

Despite Western claims that the freezing of military contacts with NATO would lead to international isolation, Russia signed deals on military cooperation with 39 countries in five years – and India could be a main beneficiary.
Russia’s Deputy Minister of Defence Alexander Fomin announced recently that cooperation agreements – including for sales of military hardware – have been signed with countries in the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific region and Latin America.
Yet, the agreements in Southeast Asia have the potential to be particularly beneficial to Russia, as they offer fresh opportunities for collaboration with India – a long-time buyer of Soviet and, latterly, Russian military equipment – which may offer training and maintenance services in the region for Russian-made systems.

Taking a dig at the United States in particular, Fomin said countries often prefer to deal with Russia due to its record of not imposing damaging sanctions on its international partners. “The strengthening authority of the [Russian] Armed Forces is confirmed by the increasing number of visits to our country by defense ministers of other countries,” he said.

Indian PM Narendra Modi says the Indian military could take down neighboring Pakistan within a week – 10 days at most. Both regional rivals are nuclear-armed powers.
Speaking at the National Cadet Corps Rally in Delhi on Tuesday, Modi lamented the “inaction” of his predecessors who were reluctant to use military force against Pakistan. He said that even when India’s top brass “asked for action,” the political leadership “would not go ahead,” but instead conducted what he called “a proxy war” with Pakistan as a law and order issue, rather than one requiring a military solution. The prime minister said he believes Pakistan would not stand a chance if a military confrontation broke out between the two.
The Indian armed forces won’t take more than a week-10 days to make Pakistan bite dust

The two regional archrivals have fought three major wars and have been involved in numerous smaller skirmishes, most of them over the disputed Kashmir region, since both gained independence from Britain.

While India’s conventional military might is no match for Pakistan, India’s army of 1.2 million vastly outnumbers Islamabad’s 560,000 troops. Pakistan levels the playing field with its sizable arsenal of nukes.

At least 27 people, including a 7-year-old girl, were killed after the speeding bus they were travelling in crashed with an autorickshaw and fell into a well in Maharashtra state in western India, officials said on Wednesday.
Both vehicles fell into the roadside well after the crash late on Tuesday.
Emergency crews worked through the night to rescue survivors and retrieve bodies and used a crane to remove the red-and-white bus from the well, as hundreds thronged to the crash site in Nashik district, around 254km (158 miles) from India’s financial capital Mumbai.
Rescue operations ended early on Wednesday.
“We conducted rescue operations throughout the night and recovered 26 bodies. Another 32 injured have been sent for treatment,” National Disaster Response Force spokesman Sachidanand Gawde said.
Other reports put the death toll at 27. The bus driver was among the dead.

An Indian deep-tech startup will begin teaching the country’s teenagers how to build their own artificial intelligence systems using DIY kits, before applying what they’ve learned to real-world problems.
Tech start-up CYRAN developed the ‘BUDDHI AI DIY Kit’, with ‘Buddhi’ standing for “Build, Understand, Design, Deploy Human-like Intelligence.” It also means ‘brain’ or ‘mind’ in Hindi.

The pack includes an AI handbook, DIY AI projects, lessons, exercises, presentations, and videos while making use of both proprietary software and hardware like AI actuation circuit boards powered by AI computing-engines.
AI was only recently added to the school curriculum in India by the country’s Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), and will be taught to pupils in class 8, from roughly the age of 14 onwards, who have the requisite background in subjects like advanced mathematics, data science, and computer programming. A CBSE official previously said that AI “will be the power that will fuel the future global digital economy.”

Spectre of stagflation looms over India and China

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has agreed to import 130,000 tons of raw sugar from India for $49 million, despite an ongoing row over palm oil trade between the two countries.

The amount is a leap from last year’s raw sugar imports from India of 88,000 tons. Malaysia’s sugar producer MSM Malaysia Holdings Berhad (MSM) said it has procured the first quarter of its raw sugar requirement from India for 2020, and is expecting the arrival of three more shipments between January and February.

MSM is the leading sugar refiner in Asia, with annual production capacity of up to 2.25 million tons of refined sugar.

The company operates under the world’s largest palm oil producer FGV Holdings, which is a unit of the Malaysian state-owned Federal Land Development Authority.

MSM Group CEO Khairil Anuar Aziz said in a statement released on Thursday that the company decided to import Indian sugar due to “the acceptable quality and competitive freight cost of raw sugar produced from India.”

India is among the world’s largest sugar producers alongside Brazil and Thailand. “Over 900,000 metric tons of raw sugar were imported in 2019 from various top producing countries, which include India,” said Anuar Aziz.

MSM did not cite the palm oil dispute as a cause for the increase in sugar imports, but sources from Reuters reported that the move was a bid to appease India, which has been urging Malaysia to reduce the trade deficit between the countries.

“These are two large Asian economies that are no strangers to international trade,” said Dr. Oh Ei Sun, a senior fellow with the Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

Indian authorities averted a major attack on Republic Day when they killed three jihadist militants during a raid in Kashmir, including a mastermind behind the 2019 Pulwama blast, the country’s army and police chiefs said.
The militants, belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) jihadist group, were killed in a clash with security forces in the Pulwama District of the Indian-controlled part of disputed Kashmir on Saturday, ahead of the nationwide celebrations, police and army officials revealed.

Kashmir’s Inspector General of Police Vijay Kumar told reporters that one of the killed terrorists was Qari Yasir, the group’s chief in the region. “He was an IED expert and was involved in recruitment as well as relocation of militants coming in from Pakistan,” Kumar said, adding that Yasir was also “involved” in the February 2019 suicide bombing that killed 40 military policemen in Pulwama District.

India celebrated its 71st Republic Day with a grand parade, showcasing the nation’s military might, history and cultural diversity, with visiting Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro as the guest of honor.
Before the parade kicked off down the iconic Rajpath boulevard in downtown Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid a wreath at the newly built National War Memorial for the first time instead of doing so at the Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial, dedicated to the heroes of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

Top Indian government officials have reviewed safeguards already in place and potential crisis response measures, in case the rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak, which has already killed 56 in China, spills across the border.
On Saturday, Health Ministry officials briefed top cabinet members, including the home, foreign, defense and civil aviation secretaries, about the screening and other preventative measures being undertaken as more countries report 2019-nCoV infections.
While nobody in India has tested positive for the new coronavirus yet, authorities routinely take samples from all travelers who show any respiratory disease symptoms. Over 20,000 passengers on 115 flights at seven international airports across India have been screened in recent days.
In addition to thermal scanners set up earlier, several multidisciplinary teams comprising public health experts, clinicians and microbiologists were sent to airports in New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kochi on Sunday. According to Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, screening measures have also been increased at the border with Nepal, which reported the first coronavirus case on Friday.

The Health Ministry also issued a fresh advisory for travelers going to or returning from China, urging them to avoid close contacts and promptly seek medical attention, and report to the Indian Embassy, if they feel sick and have symptoms like fever and cough.

Internet services will be partly restored in Indian Kashmir from Saturday, ending a five-and-a half-month government-imposed blackout in the troubled region, but social media will stay offline, local authorities said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government imposed a communications blackout in early August when it stripped the portion of Kashmir it controls – the country’s only Muslim-majority region – of its partial autonomy.

India also imposed a curfew, sent in tens of thousands of extra troops and detained dozens of Kashmiri political leaders and others, many of whom remain in detention, drawing criticism abroad.

Internet access will be restored later Saturday but only to 301 government-approved websites that include international news publications and platforms such as Netflix and Amazon.