INDIA AND THE WORLD

Pakistan violates ceasefire yet again

• In yet another ceasefire violation, the Pakistani Rangers resorted to small arms firing on forward Border Outposts (BoPs) along the international border in Jammu district.
•  “The incident occurred in Pargwal sectors of Jammu district around 10.30 a.m.,” District Magistrate of Jammu Ajeet Kumar Sahu said. “Their aim was to prevent farmers from harvesting their crops,” he claimed. As per reports, the areas which came under firing included JamanBela, Rajpurs, Maljudh, ChakPhagwari, Deora and Himarpur Kona BoPs in Pargwal and Jourian areas of Akhnoor.
•  The BSF troops retaliated, the District Magistrate said, adding that there was no loss of life or injury. There have been five cases of ceasefire violation in the past three days.

Substandard ‘India-made’ drugs in Africa

•  A group of researchers chasing the theory that Indian drug manufacturers cut corners and make substandard drugs for markets with non-existent or substandard regulations say they have evidence to bolster it.
•  In a working paper published on the website of the National Bureau of Economic Research, Roger Bate, Ginger Zhe Jin, AparnaMathur and Amir Attaran have found that in a qualitative appraisal of 1,470 drugs claimed to be “made in India,” 10.9 per cent failed a basic assessment of active pharmaceutical ingredients. This pilot study seeks to focus on drugs that are labelled “made in India,” as these are among the most commonly used in developing countries.
•  The samples that had the Indian label were from 14 unique manufacturers. But the authors remind us that the label “made in India” does not necessarily mean the actual manufacturer is an Indian firm.
•  “In a few instances, we obtained information that samples were faked by organised criminals in China,” they say.

India, China agree to step up military interaction

•  India and China have agreed to take solid steps to improve border management, including the establishment of a hotline between the two Army headquarters and designating additional border posts for meetings between local commanders.
•  Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson HuaChunying disclosed that both countries have decided to step up military-to military interaction during last week’s Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) held in New Delhi.
•  She said that during their meetings that commenced on October 16, the two delegations reached a broad consensus on steps that would yield peace and stability in the border areas, following candid, amicable and constructive consultations.
•  “Both sides agreed to establish a regular meeting mechanism between the two military headquarters of neighbouring military areas and border troops, set up new meeting posts in the border areas and have hotlines between military headquarters,” the spokesperson observed. Analysts say the decision will intensify communications between the two militaries, and provide a better institutional framework for border management.
•  However, this is an incremental step, and talks on clarification of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) or towards a final border settlement are yet to surface on the agenda. Ms. Hua said the consensus is a demonstration of strong political will and positive attitude by the two countries in tackling their differences, and safeguarding stability of border through cooperation.

India wins another term at UNHRC

•  India received the most number of votes in the Asia-Pacific group of the U.N. Human Rights Council, winning a second consecutive two-year term at the world body.
• This was a reflection of India’s standing in the world. India was a committed supporter of the U.N. human rights system and would continue to work towards strengthening of the Council.

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