Once counted among most feared dacoits of Chambal ravines and now the septuagenarian husband of a village sarpanch in Guna district, Malkhan Singh Rajput is planning to campaign for Congress in the Vidhan Sabha polls in Gwalior-Chambal region. Nicknamed the “Bandit King of Chambal” in the 1970s and early 1980s before his surrender in 1982, Malkhan, who is equally famous for his signature handlebar moustache was seen in the massive crowd at Congress’s Jan Akrosh Maha Rally in Gwalior on July 21.

The fate of over 2,500 Afghan students, enrolled in different universities across India, hangs in limbo: not just are their visas not being renewed, they are also being denied online classes, leaving most of them feeling rudderless. While some are exploring admissions elsewhere, many continue to wait for their Indian visas to be renewed.

Many International students studying in India are granted admissions under the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). ICCR awards over 3,000 scholarships under 21 different schemes to foreign students from about 180 countries. Consular services haven’t begun in Indian Embassy in Kabul since Taliban government took over two years ago. That’s one of the reasons for the non-renewal of visas. Some e-visas have been granted for people with medical emergencies, but few students have managed it.

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani held a meeting with visiting Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe to discuss multiple projects in the island nation.

The discussions included the development of the Colombo Port West Container Terminal (WCT), the industrialist said. Wickremesinghe is on a two-day visit to India.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones Ltd (APSEZ), a key subsidiary of the diversified Adani Group, in March 2021 received a Letter of Intent (LOI) from Sri Lankan authorities for the development and operations of West Container Terminal (WCT) in Colombo.

APSEZ will partner with John Keells Holdings PLC, Sri Lanka's largest diversified conglomerate, and with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) as a part of the consortium awarded this mandate.

The WCT will be developed on a Build, Operate and Transfer basis for a period of 35 years as a public-private partnership.

The project is expected to boost WCT's container handling capacity and further consolidate Sri Lanka's locational advantage as one of the world's top strategic nodes along the busiest global transhipment route.

The Colombo Port is already the most preferred regional hub for transhipment of Indian containers and mainline ship operators with 45 per cent of Colombo's transhipment volumes either originating from or destined to an Adani port terminal in India.

A decline in foreign direct investment (FDI) amid a global slowdown has the government worrying as it is trying every possible measure to attract investors.

The only concern before the country's economy at present is a likely decline in FDI in the current fiscal. Other economic indicators such as inflation, fiscal deficit, and current account deficit are faring well compared with other countries.

To boost investor sentiments, the official pointed out, the government has listed “Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2023” to reduce the compliance burden and ease the backlog of court cases. The bill seeks to decriminalize minor offences by amending 183 provisions across 42 acts administered by 19 ministries.

The centre is already pushing for infrastructure development, simplification of the taxation system, digitization and easing of trade regulation to boost investors’ sentiments.

FDI to India dropped 22% to $46 billion in FY23, following a fall to $58.77 billion in the previous year from $59.63 billion in FY21.

The latest decline was owing to a decrease in inflows in computer hardware, software and the automobile industry.

In a recent written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Prakash had pointed to "various protectionist measures" adopted by major countries after the pandemic to reduce their dependence on foreign countries as a possible reason affecting investor sentiments towards India.

He further stated that there has been a decline in the real GDP growth rates of Singapore, the US and the UK, which are the major source countries for FDI.

Chinese mobile manufacturers in India evaded custom duty worth Rs 7,966 crore in the past five years, according to government data. Chinese companies -- Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi -- captured the majority of the mobile market in India and also evaded goods and services tax (GST) worth Rs 1,109 crore during the same period.

Minister of State Electronic and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar, in a written reply to Rajya Sabha, said the government managed to recover Rs 604.55 crores out of the total customs duty evasion and Rs 1,025 crore GST.

Major Chinese mobile handset brands, which are operating in India are Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi, Transsion (operates three brands in India viz. Itel, Tecno and Infinix), Realme and Oneplus, informed the minister. They hold more than 73% market share in the smartphone segment. These companies either have their own manufacturing units or work with contract manufacturers like Bharat FIH Limited and DBG Technology (India) Private Limited, also which have set up Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) operations in India.

Following the Galwan clash in 2020 with Chinese troops, the Indian investigation agency came down heavily on Chinese companies.

Days after the Supreme Court stayed Gauhati High Court order that stalled the election process of the Wrestling Federation of India, the ad-hoc panel granted recognition to the Assam Wrestling Association (AWA). Interestingly, during the hearing of the AWA’s petition in Gauhati HC on July 17, no one represented the ad-hoc committee. 

Q1. Name the  country’s second-largest private lender which  has  reported a 40% rise in net profit to Rs 9,648 crore in the quarter that ended June this year, driven by higher interest income and loan growth ?

1. SBI
2. ICICI Bank
3. HDFC Bank
4. HSBC
5. None of These

Q2. Name the anti-collision device which the Indian Railways said  that it equipped more than a hundred locomotives , especially in the South Central Railway route where the horrific triple-train mishap at Balasore in Odisha had occurred on June ?

1. Dhanush
2. Chakara
3. Kavach
4. Gandiv
5. None of These

Q3. Name the  grounded carrier which  may chart history and become the first airline to bounce back after suspending operations as the country’s civil aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has conditionally accepted its resumption plan which was submitted late last month ?

1. Alliance Air
2. AirAsia
3. IndiGo
4. SpiceJet
5. None of These
6.  Ans -Go First

Q4. The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup  is jointly hosted by

1. Australia and New Zealand
2. The  US and Canada
3. Germany and Belgium
4. England and France
5. None of These

Q5. Name the capital  of United Arab Emirates ( UAE)  ?

1. Sharjah
2. Ajman
3. Dubai
4. Abu Dhabi
5. None of These

Over 17.50 lakh Indians have renounced their citizenship between 2011 and June 2023, according to data tabled by the Ministry of External Affairs in the parliament.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar informed the Lok Sabha  that as many as 87,026 Indian nationals have renounced their citizenship till June this year.

He also cited that 2.25 lakh Indians renounced their citizenships in 2022, 1.63 lakh in 2021, 85,256 in 2020; 1.44 lakh in 2019; 1.34 lakh in 2018; 1.33 lakh in 2017; 1.41 lakh in 2016; 1.31 lakh in 2015; 1.29 lakh in 2014; 1.31 lakh in 2013; 1.20 lakh in 2012 and 1.22 lakh in 2011.

Recognising that the Indian community abroad is an asset to the nation, Jaishankar said, the government has brought about a transformational change in its engagement with the diaspora.

Sharing the names of countries whose citizenship is being acquired by Indians, the minister further said that there are 135 countries wherein Indians are seeking citizenship. This includes the US, the UK, Australia, Belgium, Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Canada, Denmark, Fiji, Ghana, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Japan, Russia, Poland, South Africa, Spain and the UAE among others.

Interestingly, Indians are also taking up citizenship in countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Iran, Iraq, Jordon, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Qatar, Serbia, Sudan, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, and Vietnam.

Yearwise data on Indians renouncing citizenship

2022 - 2,25,620

2021 - 1,63,370

2020- 85,256

2019- 1,44,017

2018- 1,34,561

2017- 1,33,049

2016- 1,41,603

2015 - 1,31,489

2014- 1,29,328

2013- 1,31,405

2012 - 1,20,923

2011 - 1,22,819