The Centre has announced a new ‘Vibrant Villages’ programme in Arunachal Pradesh to counter Chinese territorial claims and India has allocated ₹200 crore as aid for Afghanistan in its budget for 2022-23…writes Joyeeta Basu.
News in brief from South Asia
India
Budget FY23: Programme to make border villages ‘vibrant’ announced: To counter Chinese territorial claims in Arunachal Pradesh and along the Line of Actual Control, the Centre on Tuesday announced the new ‘Vibrant Villages’ programme to develop and improve connectivity in border areas, reports IANS.
WhatsApp banned over two million accounts: Meta-owned WhatsApp has banned 2,079,000 accounts in India in December in compliance with the new IT Rules, 2021. “We have consistently invested in Artificial Intelligence and other technologies to keep our users safe,” it said, reports DNA News.
WHO: Omicron sub-variant could be more infectious, found in 57 countries: A subvariant of the highly contagious Omicron coronavirus strain, which some studies indicate could be even more infectious than the original version, has been detected in 57 countries, the WHO said Tuesday, reports NDTV.
Assembly Elections 2022: The BJP has announced the candidates for all nine Lucknow seats, which included Aparna Yadav, the daughter-in-law of Samajwadi Party patriarch and former chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav, and BJP MP Rita Bahuguna Joshi’s son Mayank Joshi, reports NDTV.
Financial news
CEA: India expected to become $5 tn economy by FY26 or FY27: India is expected to become a $5 trillion economy by FY26 or FY27 if the eight per cent GDP growth rate is retained, said Chief Economic Advisor, V Anantha Nageswaran on Tuesday, reports IANS.
Pakistan
No paracetamol in Pakistan’s pharmacies amid fifth COVID-19 wave: Paracetamol is unavailable in many of Pakistan’s pharmacies amid the fifth COVID-19 wave and is reportedly being sold in the black market, reports Dawn.
Afghanistan
In India’s Budget, a message to Afghan people that New Delhi isn’t switching off: India on Tuesday allocated ₹200 crore as aid for Afghanistan in its budget for 2022-23, signalling New Delhi’s continuing commitment to the war-torn country, reports the Hindustan Times.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka to buy fuel from Indian Oil to tide over energy crisis: Sri Lanka will buy 40,000 metric tonnes each of petrol and diesel from the Indian Oil Corporation as part of the government’s bid to tide over the current fuel and energy crisis faced by the island nation, reports The Indian Express.
Nepal
India signs MoU with Nepal for key cross-border infrastructure project: India and Nepal have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the construction of a motorable Bridge over the Mahakali River connecting Dharchula (India) with Darchula (Nepal) as a sign of support for infrastructure an project in the Himalayan State, reports the Economic Times.
On a lighter note…
Huma Qureshi to come up with new web series ‘Mithya’: Actor Huma Qureshi will be seen headlining the web show titled ‘Mithya’, directed by Rohan Sippy. The six-part series will navigate through the conflicted relationships between a Hindi literature professor, played by Huma Qureshi, and her student, played by Avantika Dassani, who is the daughter of actor Bhagyashree, reports Mid-Day.
Aishwaryaa Rajinikanth hospitalised after testing positive for Covid-19: The 40-year-old director, who is the elder daughter of megastar Rajinikanth, took to Instagram and posted a picture which showed a cannula in her hand, reports Mid-Day.
Suriya’s Etharkkum Thunindhavan to release on March 10: Director Pandiraj’s much-awaited action entertainer is to release on March 10 worldwide. The film is produced by Sun Pictures and features Priyanka Ariul Mohan, Sathyaraj, Saranga Ponvannan, M. S. Baskar, Soori, and others.
