India is very important inspiration: UN cheif Guterres

Agencies
June 9, 2018

United Nations, Jun 9: Describing India as a "very important inspiration" for the international community, UN chief Antonio Guterres has commended the country for its leadership in a development partnership fund with the UN that he said has emerged as a vital example of deepening South-South cooperation.

Guterres thanked India for its "strong commitment to multilateralism" and to partnership with the United Nations, which he said is expressed in many ways across the global agenda and seen through the activities of this "important" fund.

“India played a very important role in shaping the Sustainable Development Goals. And even before the Goals were crystallized, India’s own development efforts and vision reflected many of the same priorities and aspirations. India is, for all of us, a very important inspiration,” Guterres said in his remarks to an event marking the first anniversary of the India-UN Development Partnership Fund.

“The Fund shows the further deepening of South-South cooperation, an increasingly valuable dimension of our work for development,” the Secretary General said.

The UN Chief, who is expected to visit India later this year, commended India for its “leadership and solidarity”, saying he looks forward to further engagement with the country on the fund.

“And I will have the opportunity soon in Delhi to congratulate the Indian government on this very very important initiative,” he said at the event here yesterday attended by several UN Ambassadors and diplomats.

The India-UN Development Partnership Fund was launched last year with the aim of assisting projects for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in partner countries. It supports Southern-owned and led, demand-driven, and transformational sustainable development projects across the developing world, with a focus on least developed countries and small island developing states.

The fund is managed by the UN Office for South-South Cooperation and UN agencies implement the Fund’s projects in close collaboration with partnering governments. The Indian Government has committed an amount of 100 million dollars over ten years.

In April 2018, the Government of India established a separate Commonwealth Window under the Fund aimed at partnership with developing countries in the Commonwealth. Under this window, an additional sum of USD 50 million over the next five years has been committed for partnerships with developing country members of the Commonwealth. Projects supporting biomedical waste management in Grenada, clean energy in Tuvalu and census data collection in Vanuatu have been approved under this window.

Guterres said that South-South cooperation between developing nations is not an instrument aimed at replacing North-South cooperation between developed and developing nations.

“South-South cooperation is not an instrument for the commitments that were made by developed countries now to be put aside. South-South cooperation must be a stimulus for an intensified North-South cooperation, for the Addis Ababa agenda to be fully implemented and for everybody to assume their responsibilities in the context of a world in which we want a fair globalization, in which justice prevails in international relations,” he said.

India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said that from the first project of a million dollars, the annual contribution and portfolio of projects has multiplied several times within the first year of the fund’s operation.

Calling for a “1-2-3 process”, Akbaruddin urged the Secretary General to ensure that the speed of implementation of projects entrusted to the UN agencies is enhanced.

Explaining the 1-2-3 process, Akbaruddin said funds are put up up-front and the mechanisms for assessing a project from the partner countries and accepting it in consultation with the South-South Fund has been cut down to less than a month. “So that is part 1,” he said. He added that Part 2 entails that each of the projects in this Fund are implemented quickly and completed within a two-year period, none going beyond the 3rd year.

“Only then can we call it the 1-2-3 process with true meaning and effectiveness. We look forward to the reformed system being put in place from January 1, 2018 providing greater efficiency and effectiveness to the UN’s facilitation of sustainable development efforts across the world and ensuring a 1-2-3 process for triangular cooperation with the Global South,” Akbaruddin said.

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Agencies
February 8,2020

New Delhi, Feb 8: A 26-year-old woman sub-inspector (SI) of the Delhi Police was shot dead near Rohini East Metro station on Friday night, officials said.

The SI, Preeti Ahlawat, was posted in Patparganj Industrial Area Police Station, police said.

A call about the incident was received around 9.30 pm, they said, adding she received gunshot wounds on her head.

"We have identified the suspects and CCTV footage of the area has been collected," said SD Mishra, Additional Commissioner of Police (Rohini).

Three empty cartridges were found from the spot, the officer said, adding a case has been registered and a probe is on.

Personal enmity is suspected to be the reason behind the killing, the officer said.

Ahlawat joined the Delhi Police in 2018.

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Agencies
April 28,2020

United Nations, Apr 28: UN chief Antonio Guterres has warned that extremist groups are taking advantage of the COVID-19 lockdowns and intensifying efforts on social media to recruit youths online by exploiting their anger and despair, asserting that the world cannot afford a lost generation due to the unprecedented global health crisis.

The UN Secretary-General made the remarks on Monday during a video conference to review the five years since its adoption of a landmark resolution on youth, peace and security.

We can already see such groups taking advantage of the COVID-19 lockdowns, intensifying their efforts on social media to spread hatred and to recruit young people who may be spending more time at home and online, he said.

Guterres told the Security Council that even before the current crisis, young people were facing enormous challenges.

Listing startling numbers, he said one of every five young people was already not in education, training or employment and one of every four is affected by violence or conflict. Every year, 12 million girls become mothers while they themselves are still children.

These frustrations and, frankly, failures to address them by those in power today, fuel declining confidence in political establishments and institutions. And when such a cycle takes hold, it is all too easy for extremist groups to exploit the anger and despair, and the risk of radicalisation climbs, he said.

Issuing a call to action on youth, peace and security, Guterres said the world cannot afford a lost generation of youth, their lives set back by COVID-19 and their voices stifled by a lack of participation. Let us do far more to tap their talents as we tackle the pandemic and chart a recovery that leads to a more peaceful, sustainable and equitable future for all.

With over 1.54 billion children and youth out-of-school and young people acutely feeling the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, Guterres said countries must do more to harness the talents of young people to address the crisis and its aftermath.

In presenting his first report on the Security Council resolution, the UN chief said youth were already confronting numerous challenges even before the pandemic, including in accessing education, or through being affected by violence and conflict. Those pressing for peace or upholding human rights have been threatened.

Despite these obstacles, young people across the world have joined the common fight against the coronavirus disease, supporting both frontline workers and people in need. And they continue to push for change.

UN Youth Envoy Jayathma Wickramanayake spoke of the need for more meaningful partnerships between young people and the civil society organisations and government institutions that work on the youth, peace and security (YPS) agenda.

To date, there are no national action plans on YPS but I'm pleased to note that in some countries, these are in the process of development, she said.

For a national roadmap to be successful, a participatory, transparent and youth-led process with adequate resources are needed, she said.

Issuing his four-point call to action for the Council, Guterres urged members to do more to address the various challenges facing young people.

He also called for investment in youth participation, but also in their organisations and initiatives.

We must strengthen human rights protections and protect the civic space on which youth participation depends, he said. And fourth, we must emerge from the COVID-19 crisis with a determination to recover better - massively increasing our investment in young people's capacities as we deliver the Sustainable Development Goals.

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News Network
February 16,2020

New Delhi, Feb 16: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Saturday said everyone is unhappy in the society and constantly agitating notwithstanding a "many-fold rise" in materialistic comforts and pleasures.

Addressing a gathering of Sangh workers and intellectuals here in Gujarat, Mr Bhagwat also said that even political parties who are not in power are also agitating.

"Inspite of increase in comforts and materialistic pleasures, everyone is unhappy and is staging agitations. Be it owner or servant, a party in opposition, the common man students, teachers, everyone is unhappy and dissatisfied," the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief said.

He was speaking on the topic "India's Role in the Present World Context".

Mr Bhagwat further said that bigotry, violence and terrorism are on the rise in the present world.

"India has to give 'dharma'  (wisdom) to the world so that knowledge spreads but humans do not become robotic. We have always talked about the concept of global family but not global market," he said.

The lecture was organised by "Madhav Smruti Nyas", an organisation backed by the RSS.

"To think that we are living in a better world is a half truth. Facilities are not evenly distributed. Rule of Jungle is prevailing. A capable person is crushing the weak to climb up. Knowledge is used more for the destruction of the world," the Sangh chief said.

Mr Bhagwat said people are also misusing social media by spreading "false information" to create controversies.

He also stated that trying to put "everyone into one uniform" is also a form of bigotry.

"US and Russia are super powers. China would become a super power too. Now, what super power nations did to others? They just took control of other countries for their own selfish agenda. These super powers gave it back only when they were asked to do so. Otherwise, they never gave anything to others," said Mr Bhagwat.

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