- 16 YOUTUBE CHANNELS BLOCKED FOR SPREADING ‘HATE, FAKE NEWS’
HIGHLIGHTS:
- The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting blocked 16 YouTube news channels for allegedly spreading misinformation related to India’s national security, foreign relations and public order.
- It blocked 10 Indian and six Pakistan-based YouTube channels using emergency powers under the IT Rules, 2021, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, 2021.
- The blocked social media accounts were observed spreading fake news over social media on matters related to national security, India’s foreign relations, communal harmony in the country, and public order.
- They did not furnish the digital news/ information to the Ministry as required under Rule 18 of the IT Rules, 2021.
- The content published by some of the India-based YouTube channels referred to a community as terrorists, and “incited hatred among the members of various religious communities”.
- It spread false claims related to announcement of a pan-India lockdown due to Covid-19, thereby threatening the migrant workers and fabricated claims alleging threats to certain religious communities, etc.
- YouTube channels based in Pakistan were found to have been used in a coordinated manner to post fake news about India on various subjects such as the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir, and India’s foreign relations in the light of situation in Ukraine, etc.
- Recently, the Ministry had also advised private TV news channels against making false claims and using scandalous headlines. Government of India remains committed to ensure a safe and secure information environment in India across print, television and online media.
SOURCE: The Indian Express, The Hindu
2. CENTRE, STATES HAVE TO ALIGN MORE TO BOOST INVESTMENTS: CII Chief
HIGHLIGHTS
- The Confederation of Indian Industry President and TATA STEEL, MD & CEO, TV Narendran said that “greater alignment” between the Centre and states, and policy stability, are “very important” to encourage investments in the country.
- For the industry, this alignment and stability are very necessary because foreign investors have to struggle to understand these complexities.
- To encourage investments, alignment between Centre and states is required because if anything impacts investments or the industry sentiments, then CII has to work with both the states and the Centre to find a solution.
- He said that the Russia-Ukraine war has presented Indian steel exporters with an opportunity in the sector. Russia and Ukraine are the 5th and 12th largest steelmakers in the world, respectively, and cumulatively account for around 10% of the global steel trade.
- And India has “great potential to be a big steel exporter because most of the big steel exporting countries don’t have the strength” that the country has in the form of “raw materials and a large market”.
- Countries export a major portion of their steel production to other countries, for example: Russia- 45%, Ukraine- 75%, Japan/Korea – 30-40%, whereas India only exports 15-20% its production and thus has a huge potential. The current exports are limited by the fact that demand in India is quite strong, so we need to keep building capacity faster than the demand growth in India so that we can export.
SOURCE: The Indian Express
3. LABOUR PARTICIPATION DIPS FROM 40% TO 46% IN 6 YEARS
HIGHLIGHTS:
- The survey is carried out by Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) annually.
- Only 40% of Indians of legal working age were employed or were looking for jobs in 2021-22.
- Currently, about 1085 million Indians are aged 15 or above and can be legally employed.
- Among men, the participation rate declined to 67% from more than 74%.
- It dipped for women to 9.2% from 15%.
- The dip in participation rate was higher in urban areas as compared to rural areas.
- Of the 24 states except Rajasthan, 23 saw rate decline in March 2022 compared to March 2016.
- Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu witnessed the sharpest declines and fell to 54% and 56% respectively.
Source: The Hindu
4. INDIA 3rd HIGHEST MILITARY SPENDER
HIGHLIGHTS:
- World military spending continued to grow in 2021, reaching a record $2.1 trillion despite the economic fallout of the pandemic.
- India’s individual spending rose to $76.6 billion which ranked 3rd highest in the world. This was up by 0.9% from 2020 and by 33% from 2012.
- The five largest spenders in 2021 were the U.S., China, India, the U.K. nad Russia. All of them together accounted for 62% of expenditure.
- The U.S. and China alone accounted for 52% of the expenditure.
- India has prioritised the modernisation of its armed forces and self-reliance in arms production amid the ongoing tensions and border disputes with Pakistan and China.
- The data reports that military spending in Asia and Oceania totalled %586 billion in 2021 showing a continuous upward trend since 1989.
- Both Russia and Ukraine have upped their military spending by 2.9% and 72% respectively in prosects of the ongoing war.
- The data is published by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on an annual basis.
Source: The Hindu, Mint
