1. India’s third moon mission all set to be launched today
Chandrayaan-3 at the launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on Thursday.PTI
Chandrayaan-3 will lift off at 2.35 p.m.; the ISRO has completed all pre-launch activities and the 25.30-hour countdown commenced at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on Thursday
India’s third moon mission, Chandrayaan-3, is all set to be launched at 2.35 p.m. on Friday.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has completed all pre-launch activities and the 25.30-hour countdown commenced on Thursday at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3) will take off from the second launch pad of the space station in Sriharikota.
India will once again make an attempt to do a soft landing on the lunar surface for the second time, having failed in 2019 with the Chandrayaan-2 mission.
So far only three countries, the U.S., Russia and China, have successfully soft-landed on the moon.
After the LVM3 lifts off from the launch pad, the satellite separation will take place and the integrated module will be placed in an Elliptic Parking Orbit (EPO).
The Chandrayaan-3 consists of an indigenous propulsion module (PM), a lander module (LM) and a rover with an objective of developing and demonstrating new technologies required for inter-planetary missions. The PM will carry the lander and rover from injection orbit till the 100-km lunar orbit. It carries a Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planetary Earth payload to study the spectral and polarimetric measurements of earth from the lunar orbit.
“Chandrayaan-3 will start its journey after its launch on Friday; it will reach around earth, then will travel towards moon slowly over the next one month. If everything is all right, it will land on the moon on August 23,” ISRO Chairman S. Somnath said.
2. With PM flying to Paris, India approves plan to buy 26 Rafale-M jets
Adding teeth: The decision to purchase Rafale-Ms for the Navy follows the acquisition of 36 Rafale jets for the Air Force.AFP
22 single-seat fighters will join aircraft carriers and the remaining four will be twin-seater trainers; purchase of three more Scorpene-class diesel-electric submarines from France also gets approval
Hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to land in Paris on Thursday, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, accorded approval for the procurement of 26 Rafale-M fighters, which will be operated off the aircraft carriers, and three additional Scorpene-class diesel-electric submarines from France.
“The DAC granted acceptance of necessity [AoN] for procurement of 26 Rafale Marine aircraft, along with associated ancillary equipment, weapons, simulator, spares, documentation, crew training and logistic support for the Indian Navy from the French government based on Inter-Governmental Agreement [IGA],” a Defence Ministry statement said. “The price and other terms of purchase will be negotiated with the French government after taking into account all relevant aspects, including comparative procurement price of similar aircraft by other countries.”
Customisation clauses
Further, integration of Indian-designed equipment and establishment of a maintenance, repair and operations hub for various systems will be incorporated into the contract documents after due negotiations, the Ministry said.
The DAC granted the AoN for procurement of three additional Scorpenes under the Buy (Indian) category. The submarines will be constructed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders. “The procurement of additional submarines, with a higher indigenous content, will not only help in maintaining required force level and operational readiness of the Indian Navy, but also create significant employment opportunities in the domestic sector,” the statement said.
In addition, the DAC approved a proposal to lay down guidelines for achieving the desired indigenous content in all categories of capital acquisition cases. This, the Ministry said, would help in achieving Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) in critical manufacturing technologies and lifecycle sustenance of defence platforms and equipment through indigenous manufacturing.
The 26 Rafale-M fighters will include 22 single-seater jets and four twin-seater trainers, defence officials said. However, the Rafale trainers are not carrier-compatible. In March, the Navy chief, Admiral R. Hari Kumar, said both Boeing’s F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and Dassault Aviation’s Rafale-M fighters met the requirements of the Navy and a selection between them was a government’s decision. Rafale-M, he said, had commonality with the Indian Air Force.
3.River water permeates city roads as swollen Yamuna widens its embrace
NDRF personnel rescuing Old Usmanpur residents on Thursday. PTI
Outer Ring Road turns into canal; borders partially shut; schools, colleges to remain closed till Sunday; NDRF, Delhi Police continue rescue operations
The national capital witnessed unprecedented scenes on Thursday after Yamuna waters left parts of the city submerged with the busy Ring Road resembling a canal. The Inter State Bus Terminal (ISBT) was inundated and boats were seen helping evacuate people. Educational institutions and non-essential government offices have been shut till Sunday and those working in private offices have been advised to work from home by the Delhi government.
As water began to gush in past midnight, it reached the walls of the Red Fort by morning and prominent areas like ITO, Kashmere Gate, stretch of Outer Ring Road between Rajghat and Manju Ka Tila, and Civil Lines could be seen completely inundated. Several vehicles were also seen partially or fully submerged in water and stranded on flooded roads. In central, north and eastern Delhi, water entered houses, government offices and shelter homes.
Rescue operations continued in low-lying areas with several teams of the NDRF and the Delhi Police evacuating people and cattle, and moving them to safer areas. According to an estimate by Delhi Police, around 37,000 people reside in these low-lying areas that are vulnerable to flooding. As many as 16 NDRF teams were deployed in the city, which rescued 1,349 stranded people and evacuated another 2,905 to safer places. The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) also rescued 434 people and several animals across the city. Meanwhile, Delhi Police came to the aid of 3,259 people and more than 400 animals in the North and North East districts, which are severely affected by floods.
Emergency meeting
At an emergency meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) chaired by Lieutenant-Governor V.K. Saxena and attended by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, decisions were taken to shift people to nearby government schools and provide them with sufficient food, drinking water and toilets.
The DDMA announced that inter-State buses from Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttarakhand that terminate at the ISBT, Kashmere Gate, where services have been suspended, will be stopped at the Singhu border and passengers will be ferried by DTC buses from there.
Entry of all commercial vehicles has been restricted at Singhu, Bhopura, Chilla, Badarpur and Loni borders to ease traffic in the city. However, vehicles carrying essential commodities like medicine, vegetables, fruits, grains, milk, eggs, rice and tankers carrying petroleum products, will be allowed, an order from the Transport Department said.
Bhairon Marg, Rajghat, Ring Road opposite IGI stadium, Hanuman Setu, Monkey Bridge and Monastery Market were reportedly submerged in floodwater, making it difficult for commuters to travel.
However, there was some respite as the Pragati Maidan tunnel, which had been shut for five days due to waterlogging, opened to traffic. Vehicular traffic coming from the trans-Yamuna side and going towards Kashmere Gate was also restricted on the Signature Bridge due to heavy flooding between Majnu Ka Tila and Rajghat.
Traffic snarls
A traffic police officer said traffic was impaired at three locations—MG Marg between IP flyover and Chandgi Ram Akhara, between Kalighat Marg and Delhi Secretariat, and on Outer Ring Road between Wazirabad Bridge and Chandgi Ram Akhara.
ITO witnessed massive traffic snarls as most roads were shut due to waterlogging. Meanwhile, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) closed the Yamuna Bank metro station due to rising water level near the station. “However, interchange facilities are still available and services on [the] Blue Line are running normally,” the DMRC said in a tweet.
4. Maamannan: a mirror to the ideological bankruptcy of Dravidian politics
A screengrab from the Maamannan trailer.
The political heir of DMK playing the protagonist’s role raises hope that the acknowledgement of caste-based discrimination within progressive parties will lead to more interventions in reaffirming the founding principles of equality and justice within the Dravidian movement
There has always been a long-lasting conjugal relationship between the Tamil celluloid industry and Dravidian politics. Cinema has been the umbilical cord of Dravidian parties for mobilisation and political propaganda. Many leaders and Chief Ministers have cultivated voting citizens based on their images from the celluloid world. As Tamil film historian Thodore Baskaran said, films are an essential part of mass campaigns by political parties.
The focus of Dravidian parties in its initial days were on non-Brahmin movements, self-respect, democracy and equality. Even though Tamil films dealt with many similar topics related to social reforms, the caste conflict between non-Brahmins and Dalits was yet to be fully explored in depth. The recent movie Maamannan was one such significant attempt in critically evaluating the position of Dalits within dominant Dravidian political parties.
A reflection of current parties?
Mari Selvaraj’s third movie Maamannan has received many positive reviews and generated a multi-layered discussion on intra-party dialectics on casteism. The protagonists of the film — namely Vadivelu as Maamanan, Udhayanidhi Stalin as Athiveeran, Keerti Suresh as Leela and Fahadh Fazil as Rathnavelu — portray the objective condition of casteism within Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu. It lays bare the weakness of Dravidian parties in formulating a path towards annihilation of caste or at the very least eradicating the practice of untouchability among their leaders and cadres through ideological orientation.
The movie has generated debate and discussion among the public as well as in political circles. It unravels the hidden truth about Dravidian party leaders’ treatment towards their colleagues who belong to the Dalit community. Though there have been narratives about this reality in a few Tamil literary fictions, particularly by writers such as Imayam, Perumal Murugan, Sivagami and others, this movie has opened up such discussions among the public. This is, indeed, the major success of the movie.
Some have identified the movie with the experience of former Assembly Speaker P. Dhanapal of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) party, while in some others the movie invoked memories of how Thol. Thirumavalavan, Member of Parliament and President of the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), was restricted from entering certain villages in the Chidambaram constituency from where he contested the Lok Sabha elections. Furthermore, some are even speculating whether the main caste Hindu character in the movie is a senior leader of the AIADMK.
Major themes
Certain situations in the movie are poignantly depicted through dialogue such as the helplessness of Maamannan with respect to his caste Hindu mentor Salem Sundaram. Later, the heated argument between Rathnavelu and Athiveeran about sitting at par with each other turns into an assertion of self-respect in the face of continued hegemonic caste practices. Rathnavelu tells Athiveeran that the reason why he offered him a seat to sit along with him is because of his politics (arasiyal) while the same offer is not extended to Athiveeran’s father due to his own dominant caste Hindu identity (adayalam). It is rare for Tamil cinema to show so daringly such a sequence which showcases the everyday nature of caste politics. Similarly, the movie holds conversations about reserved constituencies, Dalit political representatives and how and why caste Hindu leaders invest and groom Dalit leaders to control Dalit self-assertion. The director and the actors deserve our appreciation for insistently depicting naked caste politics in commercial cinema.
The film examines how for the sake of ‘caste pride’, casteist Hindu leaders will go to any extent through violence or even murder. These instances remind the audience of the protracted on-going caste killings in the State. Additionally, Mari Selvaraj captures the politics of name calling in a casteist society. He exposes how fellow caste Hindu leaders address Dalit leader Maamannan as Maanu meaning soil, (in a derogatory manner) by cloaking it under the pretence of affection. Only his son, Athiveeran, calls him by his full name.
The depiction of women in this movie is also perceptive. Particularly, the eyes of Maamannan’s wife, Veerayi and Rathnavelu’s wife, Jothi speak volumes.
Caste in the Kongu region
In the past, a few movies like Muthal Vasantham, Chinna Thambi Periya Thambi and Chinna Gounder have portrayed the casteism of western Tamil Nadu. These movies were either satirical or glorified the feudal system prevailing in the Kongu region. In fact, unlike other regions — south or north of Tamil Nadu — the western region has caste fanatics, who are active outside the domain of politics in other spheres. It is well-known that caste Hindus hold a monopoly over ownership of land, businesses, educational institutions and government positions along with enormous political power in this region. The disparity between the caste Hindus and Dalits is huge and challenging them is not easy. In fact, the Kongu region is the epitome of caste Hindu supremacy.
Additionally, Salem, Namakkal, Dharmapuri, Erode, Karur and Kovai are known for its various residential private educational institutions mostly owned by caste Hindus, which Perumal Muragan once called “poultry schools”. Therefore, it is no mystery why the director made the central conflict around free coaching centres and private commercial institutions. The rift begins when Leela and her friends start running a free coaching centre for poor students which is seen as detrimental to private commercial institutions.
Even though various researchers have explored the position of Dalits within Dravidian parties and the kind of discrimination they face, the film medium has not explored this domain to its full potential. As Hugo Gorringe has highlighted, in his book Untouchable Citizens: Dalits Movements and Democratization in Tamil Nadu, land reforms and other social reforms of the 1960s mainly benefited the intermediate caste.
The continuation of spatial segregation in the form of cheris (slums), denying access to social spheres like temples, crematorium, land and other public facilities still continue without concrete intervention. Gorringe highlights that in the 2001 elections, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) cadres stayed away from supporting the Dalit Panther of India party at the ground level even though it stood under the DMK symbol.
Eminent Dravidian politics expert the late M. S. S. Pandian noted that Dalits in Tamil Nadu consider DMK politicians as people who betrayed them. Maamannan thoroughly exposes this political scuffle between the caste Hindus and Dalits within the party.
A ray of hope
The movie also registers positive messages. Dalits should come out of their fear psychosis and submissive attitude. They should learn to resist indignity by upholding self-respect. For self-defence, they should learn martial art and discipline.
Furthermore, the movie is able to drive home the point that despite prevalence of caste rigidity, there is still hope. They are people who overcome such rigid boundaries and support genuine leadership which leads to the victory of Maamannan amid all hindrances. The movie shows that there is still space and scope to promote a radically different kind of politics for the future.
The political heir of DMK playing the protagonist role raises hope that the acknowledgement of caste-based discrimination within Dravidian politics will lead to more interventions in reaffirming the founding principles of equality and justice within the Dravidian movement. But it is not so easy to bring out such a radical reform within Dravidian parties. The film has kept the hope alive, but realising it will be an arduous journey.
C. Lakshmanan is retd. Associate Professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies and Venkatanarayanan S. teaches at Christ University, Bengaluru
5.India’s January-June trade with China declines amid slowdown
Imports from China slid 0.9% to $56.53 bn in H1 2023, while India’s exports to its northern neighbour declined by 0.6% to $9.49 bn; India’s trade deficit — the largest it has with any country — did not narrow much as weak demand hurt exports
ANANTH KRISHNAN
India’s trade with China declined in the first half of 2023 after more than two years of record growth, part of a broader slump in China’s trade performance that has underlined a sharp slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy
Two-way trade reached $66.02 billion in the first half, data from China’s General Administration of Customs (GAC) showed on Thursday. India’s imports from China slid 0.9% to $56.53 billion, while exports to its northern neighbour fell by 0.6% to $9.49 billion.
India’s imports of Chinese goods were $57.51 billion in the first half of 2022.
However, India’s trade deficit — the largest it has with any country — did not narrow much because exports to China also fell due to weak demand. The January-June trade deficit stood at $47.04 billion, marginally narrower than H1 2022’s $47.94 billion.
China’s exports shrink
China’s overall first-half exports declined by 12.4%, a contraction that exceeded most economists’ expectations. The trade slump is expected to reinforce concerns that China’s brief recovery, after emerging in January from three months of harsh COVID-19 restrictions, is already running out of steam.
India’s trade with China in 2023 may see a rare decline after years of breakneck growth, with the first year of the pandemic being an exception. Trade rebounded to historic highs in 2021 and 2022.
In 2022, trade reached a record $135.98 billion, driven by a 21% rise in imports into India. The trade deficit crossed $100 billion for the first time last year.
India’s biggest imports from China have included active pharmaceutical ingredients, chemicals, machinery, auto components, and medical supplies.
