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Hans India
12 minutes ago
- Hans India
India must transform into a 'Lion', not just remain a 'Golden Bird': Mohan Bhagwat
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday called for India to become a strong and economically self-reliant nation, asserting that the world recognises and respects power. Speaking at the 'Gyan Sabha', a national education conference organised by the Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas — an RSS-affiliated body — Bhagwat said that India must move beyond the symbolism of being the 'golden bird' and instead become a 'lion'. 'The world understands power. Therefore, Bharat must become strong. It must also grow rich in economic terms,' Bhagwat said, stressing that strength and prosperity are essential for India to find its rightful place in the global order. Touching on the theme of national identity, Bhagwat made a strong case for preserving the name 'Bharat' without translation. 'Bharat is a proper noun. It should not be translated. 'India is Bharat' — that's true. But Bharat is Bharat. In every context — whether personal or public, while speaking or writing — we should say Bharat,' he emphasised. He added that Bharat's identity must be upheld and respected for what it stands for. 'If you lose your identity, then regardless of your other merits, the world will neither respect nor protect you. That's the fundamental rule,' Bhagwat noted. The RSS chief also spoke at length about the purpose and values of education, stating that true education empowers an individual to live independently while inculcating a spirit of sacrifice and selflessness. 'Education that teaches selfishness is not real education,' he declared. He further said that education is not confined to schools alone but extends to the home and society. 'The environment in which children grow up plays a crucial role. Society must reflect on what kind of atmosphere is needed to raise a confident and responsible generation,' Bhagwat said. The conference was attended by Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, along with several senior academicians and vice-chancellors from across India. President of Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas, Dr Pankaj Mittal, Secretary Dr Atul Kothari, Coordinator A Vinod, Chairman of Cochin Shipyard Madhu Nair were also present. The event focused on reshaping the country's educational framework in alignment with Indian cultural values and preparing the youth to face future challenges with clarity and confidence.
The Hindu
12 minutes ago
- The Hindu
MEA ‘nearly lost the plot' on Indus Treaty negotiations, says former Finance Secretary Subhash Garg
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) nearly 'lost the plot' over the Indus Water Treaty talks with Pakistan in 2016, as senior MEA officials entered into a tussle with the World Bank, before the issue was retrieved — the claim is made by former Finance Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, India-appointed Executive Director at the World Bank (2014-2017), in his latest book, which recounts for the first time the tensions between the Modi government and World Bank President Jim Kim over the Kishenganga hydropower project. The point of contention was whether the World Bank, which has a limited role in guiding any disputes or differences between India and Pakistan, would decide to appoint the 'court of arbitration' Pakistan had asked for, or a 'neutral expert', as India wanted. After his controversial first book about his unceremonious exit from the Union Finance Ministry, Mr. Garg has now taken aim at the MEA in his new book, No, Minister: Navigating Power, Politics and Bureaucracy with a Steely Resolve, where he says he was sidelined during the initial stages of the Indus Water Treaty negotiations in 2016. He also claims that he was told to 'keep off the matter', and only attend meetings to be led by India's Deputy Chief of Mission Taranjit Sandhu (later the Ambassador to the U.S. before he retired and joined politics). '[However], by the middle of November, the MEA team was getting nervous. It was not able to nudge the World Bank team in the direction it wanted, i.e., to appoint a neutral expert and began to sense that the Bank was tilting towards Pakistan,' Mr. Garg wrote, in the chapter titled 'Bringing Indus Waters Arbitration Back From the Brink'. At this point, the book claims that Mr. Jaishankar made a visit to Washington and asked Mr. Garg to take charge of matters. Mr. Garg accepted the request, but insisted that no MEA official join the discussions, and even turned back then MEA Joint Secretary Gopal Baglay (now India's High Commissioner to Australia) from the meeting with Mr. Kim, although he had travelled non-stop for 20 hours to reach Washington. According to Mr. Garg, it was his own intervention, in a one-on-one meeting with Mr. Kim, that eventually helped ensure a neutral expert, Ian Solomon, was appointed, after the World Bank accepted Pakistan's demand for a court of arbitration at The Hague. The MEA did not respond to a request for comments on Mr. Garg's claims. The Hindu also reached out to Mr. Sandhu and Mr. Baglay for a comment, and they did not respond to or deny the claims. In Washington, World Bank officials privy to the negotiations confirmed the tussle between the World Bank and the Indian government, but said they could not comment on whether it was Mr. Garg's meeting with the World Bank chief or other interventions that eventually changed the course of events. The World Bank first ruled that having a neutral expert and court together could lead to 'contradictory outcomes'. However, subsequently, it facilitated the setting up of both an expert as well as a Chairperson to the Court of Arbitration. India has refused to attend the proceedings in the Court of Arbitration at The Hague. Pakistan has maintained that it is working within the terms of the treaty, whereas India says the treaty does not allow such parallel dispute mechanisms. When asked by The Hindu, Mr. Garg said this should not have been an 'institutional turf battle', and that he did not want India's case to be 'compromised' even as the World Bank, the U.S. and the U.K. had gone ahead with appointing experts to take the Pakistan application for arbitration forward. Allowing Pakistan's diplomats to continue the process unchallenged would have an impact on other negotiations, he added. After the Pahalgam terror attacks in April this year, India has decided to 'suspend' the Indus Water Treaty, but some of the book's revelations are significant for future decisions on similar issues. The book recounts Pakistan's campaign against the Kishenganga and Ratle hydropower projects in Jammu-Kashmir; India's objections to the International Monetary Fund/World Bank funding of the Gulpur hydropower project in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir; and China's objections in 2010 to multilateral funding for a hydropower project in Arunachal Pradesh, leading Mr. Garg to conclude that the government and the World Bank needed better communication between themselves. Mr. Garg also pointed out that Mr. Kim and Mr. Modi had a good relationship, and Mr. Kim's plan to fund schemes for 'stunted' or malnourished children had not gone down well with Mr. Modi. In Parliament this week, the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development said that about 37% of children under five years registered on their tracker were found to be stunted. 'I believe India's approach of not fine-tuning its stance in line with World Bank policies has harmed its own interests more than serving it,' Mr. Garg, who moved to India as Economic Affairs Secretary after his tenure at the World Bank ended, said. Differences with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman led to his transfer as Secretary in the Union Ministry of Power in August 2019. He applied for voluntary retirement that same day, and retired after serving the mandatory notice period on October 31, 2019. (With inputs from Jacob Koshy and T.C.A. Sharad Raghavan in New Delhi.)
Hindustan Times
17 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Trump's prosecution demand for Beyonce, Oprah Winfrey trolled by netizens: 'Deflecting from Epstein files'
President Donald Trump has accused Oprah Winfrey and Beyoncé of taking millions from the Democratic Party in exchange for endorsing candidates during the 2024 election. Trump claimed the two celebrities received a combined $14 million from Democrats, while TV personality Al Sharpton was paid a smaller amount, according to a Newsweek report. President Donald Trump claimed the two celebrities received a combined $14 million from Democrats and Al Sharpton was paid a smaller amount.(AP) Earlier, Trump alleged that Beyoncé got $11 million to briefly appear at a campaign event and endorse Kamala Harris without performing. On Saturday evening, he posted on Truth Social that he plans to investigate the payments. Also Read: Trump blasts California wildfire aid, questions missing $100 million FireAid money Donald Trump slams endorsement decision In his post, Trump wrote, 'I'm looking at the large amount of money owed by the Democrats, after the Presidential Election, and the fact that they admit to paying, probably illegally, Eleven Million Dollars to singer Beyoncé for an ENDORSEMENT (she never sang, not one note, and left the stage to a booing and angry audience!), Three Million Dollars for 'expenses,' to Oprah, Six Hundred Thousand Dollars to a very low-rated TV 'anchor,' Al Sharpton (a total lightweight!), and others to be named for doing, absolutely NOTHING!' He added, 'These ridiculous fees were incorrectly stated in the books and records. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PAY FOR AN ENDORSEMENT. IT IS TOTALLY ILLEGAL TO DO SO. Can you imagine what would happen if politicians started paying for people to endorse them.' Trump concluded the post with "All hell would break out! Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted!" Also Read: Trump to prosecute Beyonce, Oprah and Kamala Harris? POTUS warns 'All hell would break out!' Netizens react to Trump's claim Netizens on X shared their reactions, where one of the users asked, "What crime are you gonna charge Beyonce/Oprah for? Harris, sure. But what "crime" did the two H'wood demons commit?" Another user wrote, 'He is trying to distract from child rape." A user quipped, 'The contents of the Epstein files must really be damaging." Another user chimed, 'Trump falsely claimed Beyoncé and Oprah were 'illegally' paid to endorse Biden and said Kamala Harris should be prosecuted. No proof. Just distraction.' One user wrote, 'e paid the Chick-fil-A lady, he paid the original crowd when he came down the escalator, he also filled the black church with MAGAets. And let's not forget he paid Stormy Daniels, to name a few. So GTFOH with those accusations and stop deflecting from the Epstein files.' How much campaign pay Beyoncé? Federal Election Commission records do not show an $11 million payment from the Harris campaign to Beyoncé. However, the campaign did make a $165,000 payment to Parkwood Entertainment, Beyoncé's company, on November 19. That was a few weeks after she endorsed Harris at a rally in Houston. At that rally, Beyoncé said, "I'm not here as a celebrity. I'm not here as a politician. I'm here as a mother—a mother who cares deeply about the world my children and all of our children live in, a world where we have the freedom to control our bodies, a world where we're not divided." So far, the White House has not said whether any legal action will be taken.
