Brief of newspaper articles for the day bearing
relevance to Civil Services preparation
- GS PAPER 2
- India and Bangladesh barter power, bandwidth {Foreign policy}
- Building new alliances with BRICS {Multi organisation}
- GS PAPER 3
GS PAPER 2
[1]. India and Bangladesh barter power, bandwidth
News
- Bangladesh And India jointly inaugurated the supply of 100 MW power from India and leasing of 10 GBPS Internet bandwidth from Bangladesh.
Give and take
- Bangladesh will give 10 GBPS Internet bandwidth
- India will give 100 MW power
Background
- Tripura had given millions of Bangladeshis shelter during the nation’s liberation war in 1971.
- Bangladesh allowed the transport of over-dimensional cargo through its territory during the construction of the Palatana power plant in Tripura in 2011.
- The power grids supplied of 500 MW of power to Bangladesh.
- The supply of another 500 MW through the same interconnection was also announced during Mr. Modi’s Dhaka visit in 2015.
The sharing of bandwidth and power is yet another milestone in the development of ties between Bangladesh and India
Future Commitment
- Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal (BBIN) connectivity deal
- digital connectivity
- Bangabandhu-1 Satellite by the end of 2017.
[2]. Building new alliances with BRICS
There have been different experiments to give chaos, an order. Initially it was the US led order with the opening of World bank and IMF and NATO, leaving any other possible alternative aside.
Then EU(european union) Europe’s leaders quickly realised that deeper economic integration and mutual interdependence was the best guarantor of regional stability.
Thirdly, the emergence of the Chinese global play and the efforts to put together a new world order defined by state control and underwritten by state capitalism.
- China is also expanding its military might as it seeks to be a Pacific and Asian power.
- Through initiatives like the “One Belt, One Road”, it is vastly expanding its market access, and selectively drawing in countries that would simultaneously serve China’s strategic as well as economic interests.
- China is also creating new institutions like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the New Development Bank (NDB), where India has significant stakes.
How BRICS would be help to India
- India’s strategic interest must be in the continued existence of an open economic order and, as a rising power, liberal internationalism serves its interests best.
- India needs space within the old order to respond to its unique development and specific needs.
- It also needs to acquire weight within these institutions that would allow it to reshape the old establishment to work for new stakeholders and respond to contemporary realities.
- India cannot do this by itself. Given its fiscal and geopolitical constraints, it must engage with all stakeholders who could aid in this endeavour. India’s involvement with BRICS — and the NDB — should be read in this context.
What is BRICS from India perspective
- BRICS is a strategic geo-economic alliance that is very different from the traditional alliance which emerged from the Bretton Woods institutions, towards alternative models of development and governance
- BRICS helps create new instruments for global relevance and influence for each of its members, and is itself one.
- The development of BRICS institutions and the effectiveness of the NDB is what will define the success of the coalition in the coming years.
- For India, the success of the NDB and the AIIB may also ironically allow it a greater role in the institutions established in the middle of the last century.
Why is India important to BRICS
- BRICS should be an integral part of India’s grand strategy, and a vehicle in India’s journey from being a norm taker to a norm shaper.
- The bloc offers New Delhi greater bargaining space as India seeks to gain more prominence in institutions of global governance
- Actions taken by India in its own developmental interests have the unintended consequence of strengthening the plurilateral economic agenda because it has adhered to the norms of the Washington Consensus.
- BRICS gives India the room to continue being an important player in the liberal international order
- As with the AIIB, India should not hesitate to join or create other BRICS initiatives that may have strategic implications for global trade, finance, cyberspace, and the larger economic system.
- India is the best bet that the international community has to “slingshot” past the illiberal impulses in geopolitics.
- The Atlantic powers need to recognise that India’s role within BRICS is an important against such impulses, and encourage its leadership in similar plurilateral forums.
GS PAPER 3
[1]. In holi gift, Centre hikes DA by 6 percent
News
Dearness allowance increased by 6 % to 125% of Central government employees and pensioners basic pay from January
Beneficiary
50 lakh employees and 58 lakh pensioners
Why?
To Mitigate the impact of inflation
Pensioners will get dearness relief (DR)
Accordance with?
Sixth Central Pay Commission’s report
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