India: Last Week

National Summary:
Politics:
The Congress secured the highest number of 16 seats in the just-concluded biennial election of 55 Rajya Sabha seats from 13 States and the by-election to one seat from Rajasthan. But there is nothing much to celebrate for the Congress as in effect it lost two seats as many as 18 of its members are retiring in the next two weeks. The Bharatiya Janata Party equalised its figure with 11 members getting elected. The major loser is the Samajwadi Party as it could get only two of its members elected though seven of its MPs are retiring. The BSP secured seven seats (only three are retiring) and the DMK got three (with none retiring).
The BJP reiterated its demand for an apology from the Congress as former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Arjun Singh said he had no role to let Warren Anderson leave the country after the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
Jaswant Singh rejoins the BJP. Singh was expelled over his controversial take on Mohammad Ali Jinnah in his book on Pakistan's founding father.
Insurgency Movements:
West Bengal chief minister Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said there was no easy solution to the Maoist challenge and the issue has become "very complicated" due to support to the rebels by the main Opposition Trinamool Congress and others.
With the tribal mass-movement spilling into the whole tribal hinterlands of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia, Maoists are using this to induct teenage youths in their fold with promises of food and better life in camps. Amidst conversations with different youths and senior tribals of Lalgarh, Binpur, Belpahari, Jhargram and Salboni over the past four days, it was revealed that Maoists leaders who are leading the Lalgarh and Salboni squads have already prepared a Child Liberation Army (CLA). This child army squad, comprising teenagers aged between 12 and 18 years, has been trained by the Maoists who have already started the induction process.
The threat of Maoist attacks is hampering coal mining in several states, keeping production lower than the demand from growing industries, Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal said. With the Maoist rebels controlling vast swathes of mineral-rich areas, the government has often struggled to transport coal to power and steel firms. Jaiswal said the central and the eastern Indian states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal were some of the coal-rich states that needed to beef up the security for mines.
Economy:
India assured US Inc. that its concerns on infrastructure, investment restrictions and other impediments would be addressed expeditiously, and a road map prepared for discussions ahead of President Barack Obama's visit in November. Seeking the support of U.S. investors for bridging an estimated $250-300 billion gap in the infrastructure investment needs of India in the next five years. India's hope of double-digit economic growth by 2012, up from an estimated over 8.5 per cent in the current fiscal.
India's high net worth individuals (HNWIs) prospered just over 120,000 in number, or 0.01% of the population, their combined worth is close to one-third of India's Gross National Income (GNI). HNWIs, in this context, are defined as those having investable assets of $1 million or more, excluding primary residence, collectibles, consumables, and consumer durables. According to the firms' 2010 World Wealth Report, India now has 126,700 HNWIs, an increase of more than 50% over the 2008 number. it seems safe to assume that as a class not only have India's super-rich recouped their 2008 losses, they have even made gains over their pre-crisis (2007) positions. Meanwhile, in 2009 alone, an estimated 13.6 million more people in India became poor or remained in poverty than would have been the case had the 2008 growth rates continued, according to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA). Also, an estimated 33.6 million more people in India became poor or remained in poverty over 2008 and 2009 than would have been poor had the pre-crisis (2004-7) growth rates been maintained over these two years.
Indian Occupied Kashmir:
The Kashmir Valley on Monday observed a strike to protest against the killing of two youths. In another development, a militant attack in north Kashmir's Sopore town left 12 people injured, including four policemen.
The youth in Kashmir have fallen into the net of drugs, with such cases increasing by 35-40 per cent in the last few years. Mostly youth in the 18-35 age group have fallen in the trap. Deaths are reported in young men because of drug use,"
Social Issues:
The Supreme Court issued notice to the Centre and eight States for a direction to explain the steps taken to prevent honour killings at the national level and in the respective States. A vacation Bench comprising Justice R.M. Lodha and Justice A.K. Patnaik, after hearing counsel Ravi Kant, issued notice to Haryana, Punjab, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh asking them to respond to the plea of the petitioner, Shakti Vahini, to submit a National/State Plan of Action to combat honour crimes. It alleged that the State governments had failed to take action to curb such feudal tendencies of killing couples and individuals for the sake of honour. The petition said that in the last one year, Shakti Vahini, an NGO, had been studying the cases on honour killings. It said the number of cases had been on the rise in recent times, and when the State governments concerned remained a mute spectator, there was a lot of fear among couples who were married and those intending to get married that they might face the wrath of feudal forces. The petition noted that the pressure was often so intense that some couples resorted to suicide.
India is expected to reduce its poverty rate from 51 per cent in 1990 to 24 per cent in 2015, slashing the number of extremely poor by 188 million, according to a United Nations report on the Millennium Development Goals for 2010.
About 77% Indian kids face negative situations online and only 27% parents control the cyber activities of their kids, says a global family survey on children's online lives and safety issues released on Wednesday. But a very interesting finding is that children have their own rules and regulation for surfing internet. Only 50% Indian parents thought their kids had faced an unpleasant experience online. Only 1%of the 500 adults considered, admitted not knowing what their children got up to online. But 23% of the 200 kids who took the poll felt their parents were clueless. And here's the clincher: 76% — 30% "strongly" — felt they are more careful online than their parents or guardians.
Regional Summary
East Bengal:
CPM general secretary Prakash Karat has finally held both his party — the CPM, and the Left Front government responsible for the recent electoral setbacks in West Bengal.
By-elections to 10 assembly seats in Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh will be held on 27 July, the Election Commission announced. Bypolls will be held in Sirpur, Chennur (SC), Mancherial, Yellareddy, Nizamabad (Urban), Koratla, Dharmapuri (SC), Huzurabad, Siddipet and Warangal west Assembly constituencies, the EC said.
West India:
Reacting to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar returning the aid money the Gujarat government had given to that state as flood relief, the Congress said that it was “CM's lust for publicity that has given an opportunity to the Bihar CM to insult Gujarat”.