Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 1 8 the Politique K nowledge and the ability to use t h a t k n o w l e d g e f o r t h e development of the society is what separates us from those with whom we walk and share the Earth with. A n d n e w s i s o n e o f t h e messengers of knowledge delivering wisdom to us. With “the Politique”, we strive to bring the readers every important bulletin of the globe in a concise and unstrained manner. the Politique is a product of the s o l i d e f f o r t , e x t e n s i v e b r a i n s t o r m i n g , u n a b a t e d dedication and consistent toil of 4 boys from a leading Indian boarding school, Mayo College. In the fi rst edition of the Politique we discuss the importance and effectiveness A lesson from Mass-Shootings Pg: 2 DPRK’s Political Crackdown Pg: 3 Agneepath - A step towards a better line of defence? Pg: 5 Nupur Sharma & a Tale of Fragile Diplomacy Pg: 4 Monthly Economic Forecast Pg: 7 Boris Johnson faces Tory Vote of gun restrictions and control after a look back at the events in the United States, the economic and social conditions of Russia and it’s citizens, throw some light on the blueprints of a political crackdown in North Korea, report on the development of life expectancy rates in India over the past decade, tackle the Nupur Sharma debacle, Boris Johnson facing vote of no con fi dence within his party earlier last month, give an insight on the proposed Agneepath system of recruitment of the Indian Army. Our Economic Section tells us of the monthly economic forecast, and about the buying of Flipkart’s stakes by Chinese fi rm Tencent. Challenged by his own party members, British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson faced a vote of no con fi dence on June 6 after 15 percent of his fellow Tory Parliamentarians requested for a challenged to the leadership. Although the outcome of the vote was in favour of the British Premier, his leadership is undoubtedly under question as 41 percent of his party members voted against his l e a d e r s h i p . T h i s d r a s t i c f a l l i n comradeship within the Tory Party comes a f t e r t h e m a n y a l l e g a t i o n s o f mismanagement under Boris’ helm and especially the rather recent disclosing of the “Partygate Scandal” where the Prime Minister and his of fi cials violated l o c k d o w n p r o t o c o l s o n m u l t i p l e occasions, throwing “booze” parties at 10 Downing Street. - Apoorv Agarwal Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 2 8 Editorial Team: @Aarjav Mehindratta @Apoorv Agarwal @Bhavamanyu Shekhawat @Dhruv Pratap Messages from the Editors Bhavamanyu Shekhawat - Being from a military background, I have always had a front row seat in witnessing a plethora of complexities that a simple life has to offer- the hardships as well as the luxuries. I have grown up in an environment where discipline has always been considered an integral part of everyone’s life and I wish to inculcate the same ideologies in my behaviour everyday. Having to continuously switch houses and fi nding a “home” in a new place every 2 years, adaptability has never been a concern for me. As a result, I have gathered a number of valuable lessons and unique experiences from many different regions of the country and I wish to showcase them here. Moreover, owing to the countless places that I’ve visited over the years, I’ve had the chance to interact with some very interesting and insightful people holding extremely diverse yet thought provoking views on an assortment of topics concerning areas that I intend to incorporate in the Politique. With this one of a kind newsletter, we aim to make our peers, seniors and the people around us aware of relevant global issues. They say there’s always two sides to every story which is why we, the Politique team, promise to bring you both the sides with absolute transparency, along with each editor’s completely neutral yet individualistic take on the matter; as we realise the sensitivity of every issue discussed in our newsletter. Aarjav Mehindratta Dear reader, the Politique is a brainchild of 4 Class XI students who came together to provide everyone with political and fi nancial literacy. Our aim is to reach a wider audience and help people with the daily economics. I am Aarjav Mehendiratta and I am the editor of the economic section. Ever since I was young I’ve been accustomed to the business acumen. Both my parents are business icons in their own lane and I have adapted their ways of daily money making and gathering knowledge into my basket.I have learnt the importance of saving from my mother and she has always taught me to save even when its 10 or 1000 rupees. I hope reading this newsletter helps you in your daily life. Apoorv Agarwal- The world and the funny lines that divide it to form countries never stop to amuse me. These countries are so similar yet so different. Sometimes so close yet so far and the contrary too! How wars, alliances, diplomacy and trade collectively form International Relations, a twine that holds all these far off and unlike countries together. I from a very young age had a curiosity of these funny lines and the governance that shape them. My knowledge of the working of countries and their relations, has helped me gain a lot of con fi dence, as it helped me develop a sense of understand of the right and wrong, morally and factually. Discovering my passion and interest helped me to discover myself. I know for a fact that knowledge and experience don't just land you at good jobs and positions but help you develop yourself into the person you have always wanted to be. While we can with no doubt consider ourselves literate, it’s a long road for us to become truly educated. And the aim of this newsletter is just that, to educate it’s audience with the understanding of the world they live in. Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 3 8 urban regions than in rural ones when it comes to life expectancy at birth. Nationally, the difference in urban-rural life expectancy at birth is around 4.7 years, and the difference in urban-rural life expectancy at age 70 is about 1.6 years. Except for Bihar and Jharkhand, almost all States and UTs, both rural and urban, have a higher female life expectancy in 2015-19. Female life expectancy at birth is more than two years higher than male life expectancy at birth. Males have a life expectancy of 68.4 years and females have a life expectancy of 71.1 years at the national level. Men in Delhi (74.3 years) and females in Kerala (78.0 years) have the highest life expectancy, while males in Chhattisgarh (63.7 years) and females in Uttar Pradesh (66.2 years) have the lowest. -Dhruv Pratap Singh After ten years, India fi nally sees an increase in its average life expectancy. The country's life expectancy at birth has spiked by two years to 69.7 from 2015 to 2019, shows a report by Sample Registration System (SRS). Despite this, the fi gure remains well below the estimated global average life expectancy of 72.6 years. According to the demographic survey's fi ndings, high infant and under- fi ve mortality may be one of the reasons India is struggling to improve life expectancy at birth. Overall, the country's life expectancy at birth has increased signi fi cantly, from 49.7 in 1970- 75 to 69.7 in 2015-19, a 20-year increase in the last four decades. From 1970-75 to 2015-19, the gap between rural and urban life expectancy has reduced dramatically. Except for Kerala, most states have reported higher life expectancy in India Reports Highest Life Expectancy In Ten Years, But Still Below Global Average Buffalo, Uvalde & Tulsa. What do we take back from these tragedies? where gun laws are among the the most lenient in the world, we don’t often hear gun crimes, but while USA had a federal assault weapon ban from 1994 to 2004, along with a rising sense of unity of nationalism in the wake of a national tragedy inform the World Trade Centre Attacks, failed to bring down gun violence. Talking again about the United States where gun-ownership rates and gun-violence reports are the highest in the developed world, the lawmakers cannot make up a mind with so much money spent on lobbying for both gun rights and gun control. -Apoorv Agarwal Surely, we learn from our mistakes. After all, we are taught to. Why then do we still not learn from the many tragedies that have costed many their family members or closed ones. The Uvalde and Buffalo attacks were just the tip of a much bigger, unseen and neglected iceberg. The m a j o r i t y o f t h e s e s h o o t i n g s g o unreported, and we never care to learn about them. While gun-control and restrictions are bound to help bring the number of such incidents under control, its not complete* solution. There are countries with no or bare gun restrictions with no abuse of guns and there are countries with gun restrictions where mass shootings and gun violence is a common occurrence. In Switzerland, Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 4 8 North Korea Plans Crackdown As Kim Pushes for Internal Unity North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his top deputies have pushed for a crackdown on of fi cials who abuse their power and c o m m i t o t h e r “ u n s o u n d a n d n o n - revolutionary acts," state media reported Monday, as Kim seeks greater internal unity to overcome a COVID-19 outbreak and economic dif fi culties. Kim and other senior p a r t y s e c r e t a r i e s discussed “waging a more intensive struggle against unsound and non-revolutionary acts including abuse of power and bureaucracy revealed among some party of fi cials,” the of fi cial Korean Central News Agency said. Kim ordered the authority of the party’s auditing commission and other local discipline supervision systems to be bolstered to promote the party’s “monolithic leadership” and “the broad political activities of the party through the strong discipline system,” KCNA said. Kim has previously occasionally called for struggles against “anti-socialist practices” at home in the past two years amid outside worries about his country's fragile economy that has been battered by pandemic-related border shutdowns, U.N. sanctions and his own mismanagement. The North's elevated restrictions on movement in the wake of the COVID- 19 outbreak could cause a further strain on the country's economic dif fi culties, some experts say. North Korea on May 12 admitted the omicron variant of the coronavirus had infected p e o p l e , a n d i t subsequently has said about 4.5 million people — more than 17% of its 26 million people — have fallen ill with fevers and o n l y 7 2 h a v e d i e d . Foreign experts widely doubt the outbreak was North Korea's fi rst, and they believe the statistics being disclosed in state media are manipulated to prevent political damage to Kim while bolstering internal control and promoting his leadership. During a Workers’ Party conference last week, Kim claimed the pandemic situation has passed the stage of “serious crisis” and o r d e r e d o f fi c i a l s t o r e m e d y “ t h e shortcomings and evils in the anti-epidemic work” and take steps to build up the country’s anti-pandemic capability. - Dhruv Pratap Singh Russian Gas - Fuelling the War As the Kremlin launched an of fi cial attack on the nation of Ukraine on February 24 this year, among the many strategies adopted by the Western Bloc was the implication of sanctions and boycott Russian Gas (Oil). The West with this move hopes to strip Russia off it’s main source of revenue, Oil and Gas Exports which account for 40 percent of their revenue, generating almost 400 Billion USD in 2021. As American Think-Tank predicts, this move can cost Russia more than $1Billion each day. Such sanctions and embargos are salient against Russian force as they deprive Moscow of Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 5 8 vital funds for their military Campaign. Despite united effort of a plurality of nations, a 100 percent boycott is nearly impossible as many countries are heavily depended on Russian supplied gas to generate energy, which include global giant Germany which receives the majority of it’s Oil and Gas through Pipelines from Russia. Although Germany has stalled the constructions of any more pipelines including Nord Stream 2. China and India remain as prominent buyers of Russian Gas, opting for a more neutral stance on the con fl ict. -Apoorv Agarwal Nupur Sharma & a Tale of Fragile Diplomacy “Prophet Muhammad married a six year old and had sex with her when she was 9 years old.” The statement made by the suspended BJP leader shook the entire world and the minority in India. Nupur Sharma, former BJP spokesperson, made the infamous statement in a heated debate which has left the world and especially the gulf region in a state of havoc ever since. Following that, she was handed out her suspension letter from the Bharatiya Janta Party. The leader had then withdrawn her statement and publicly apologised for the same. Naveen Jindal, who was a primary member of the same party, was also expelled after making comments which could cause communal disharmony. Both the statements were made in response to hurtful comments made about the Shivling. As a result, more than 20 countries including Qatar, Pakistan, Malaysia, Egypt, UAE and Turkey condemned Nupur Sharma and barred her entrance from the respective nations. The Gulf Cooperation C o u n c i l a n d t h e O r g a n i s a t i o n o f Islamic Cooperation a l s o d e m a n d e d answers from the ruling party in India. Nupur Sharma has also been banned from travelling via Qatar Airways. This in turn caused riots in the country between the two religious groups, leaving the nation in pandemonium. - Bhavamanyu Singh Shekhawat Chinese conglomerate Tencent has bought a 0.72% stake in Flipkart from its co founder Binny Bansal through its European subsidiaries.The stake is worth about $264 million and has left the co founder with a 1.84% stake in Flipkart post deal. Bengaluru based Flipkart is aiming for a $60-70 billion valuation for its IPO having raised $50 billion earlier. US giant Walmart had bought about 77% stake in fl ipkart for $16 billion.This is a great deal considering many foreign companies are investing in our country’s booming startup ecosystem. - Aarjav Mehendiratta Chinese Giant Tencent Buys Stake In Flipkart Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 6 8 Agneepath - A step towards a better line of defence? The Union Cabinet took a historic decision by approving a fresh recruitment scheme for India’s youth to serve in the armed forces called Agneepath on June 14. Agneepath is going to help the armed forces recruit younger and fi tter soldiers as the average age in the Indian Army would drop down from 32 to 26 years. With 25% of the soldiers getting selected after being trained for 6 months and a service of total 4 years, every one in four soldiers would get to serve the 15 year time period in the forces. This scheme would help reduce unemployment, as well as it would give the Agniveers a chance to serve the nation and would help them with post release job opportunities. A package of Rs 11-12 lakhs, partly funded by their monthly contributions, with a skill certi fi cate and bank loans would be provided to the ones released, for help in their second careers. After release these Agniveers would be given priority when signing up for paramilitary forces which are The Assam Ri fl es and Special Frontier Force in addition to Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force and many more. The scheme would result in civil society h a v i n g w e l l - d i s c i p l i n e d a n d skilled youth with military ethos, but like every story, this one also has 2 sides to it. The training period of 6 months would be inadequate to get accustomed with the practices of the armed forces and the modern military equipment. Taking an example of the Indian Army, the battle- winning factor is the regimental system, where soldiers, with their association to their regiment over a period of time start taking pride in the history and battle achievements of the regiment. This enables soldiers to remain steadfast in life threatening s i t u a t i o n s i n t h e e n v i r o n m e n t o f t h e battle fi eld with guns blazing all around. This regimental system which is at the core of the battle- winning factor will totally b r e a k d o w n w i t h t h e transitory Agniveers, leading t o a f a i l u r e o f m i l i t a r y missions. With this policy, in the next 15 years, all regiments will have 75% of inadequately trained Agniveers, with their regimental service ranging from one day to three and a half years, making the army no better than a conscript army. A poor quality human resource, an inadequately trained and poorly paid Agniveer lacking any motivation with a broken regimental system will be a sure recipe for disaster for national security while fi ghting the battle-hardened soldiers of our western neighbours. The 4 year time period Is also very less for the Agniveers to understand the hierarchy and thus would result in disputes within the army between the newly commissioned Agniveers and the senior JCO’s. As only 25% of the soldiers would get recruited, many of the rest 75% who would have predicted that their future doesn’t lie with the forces would cause ruckus, leaving a well run organisation disorganised. Post release the weapon training could also result in increase of criminal activities. The biggest worry would be the breakdown of unit cohesion. Within a combat unit, it is Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 7 8 impossible for soldiers to operate together when on different employment contracts. The seasoned soldier won’t trust the intern with his life, and the intern will reciprocate by not taking a risk with his life. Since its release, the scheme hasn’t received a very positive response as protests broke down in many parts of the country. “Hooligans are not required in the forces, those who are protesting today shouldn’t be guarding the Russian Central Bank Wants To Accept Cryptocurrency As Mode For International Transactions The First Deputy Governor Of Russia’s Central Bank, Ksenia Yudaeva said on May 31 that the government is interested in allowing cryptocurrencies as mode of payment for international transactions.This move could help Russia evade sanctions imposed by the West.Russia has been working towards a crypto framework for a long time.The Ministry Of Finance has made amendments towards crypto mining a n d o t h e r i m p o r t a n t a s p e c t s o f cryptocurrencies.The country has eased its stance down from its earlier stringent polices of cryptocurrency regulation but Yudaeva says the bank still believes that the widespread use of cryptocurrency still poses a fi nancial threat to the currency. - Aarjav Mehendiratta Word of the Edition Tory - A Tory is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The Tory ethos has been summed up with the phrase "God, Queen, and Country”. border of the country tomorrow.” This was the response of the former Indian Army Chief, General VP Malik to the riots. Many can say, that the scheme has worked well with our not so friendly neighbours China, but China is in control of a dictator. Whether it will work in India or not, a curse or a boon, only time can tell. - Bhavamanyu Singh Shekhawat Crossword Across: 3. The west hopes to strip Russia of its main source of revenue of this export. 5. 2. Healthy monsoon coverage, gradually rising _________ sowing is expected to ease food, and thereby headline, in fl ation. 7. Mode of payment for internal transactions in Russia con fi rmed by the First Deputy Governor of Russia's Central Bank. 8. The Kremlin launched an of fi cial attack on this nation on February 24 earlier this year. 9. The epitome of Affordable modern comforts, suspended its operations in Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine. 10. This US giant had bought 77% stake in fl ipkart for $16 billion. Down-wards: 1. A country where mass shootings are a rare sight despite of the lenient laws for guns. 2. Post release the Agniveers would be given priority when signing up for these forces. 3. Airlines which has banned Nupur Sharma from travelling via their aircrafts. 4. In the Indian army, this system is the battle winning factor. Issue #1 1 JULY 2022 Page of 8 8 Monthly Indian Economic Forecast facilitated by the Production- Linked Incentive Scheme. W h i l e i n fl a t i o n w i l l gradually decline, the current account de fi cit will widen due to the surge in energy import costs. In fl ationary pressures took an upturn in May 2021 with headline in fl ation (CPI- C) and WPI in fl ation touching a high of 6.3 percent and 12.94 per cent respectively. Supply side disruptions in states and unfavourable base effects d r o v e t h e b r o a d - b a s e d momentum in retail in fl ation across food, fuel and core categories. On the other After recording the strongest GDP rebound in the G20 in 2021, the Indian economy is p r o g r e s s i v e l y l o s i n g momentum as in fl ationary expectations remain elevated due to rising global energy and food prices, monetary policy normalises and global conditions deteriorate. Real GDP is projected to grow b y 6 . 9 % i n fi s c a l y e a r ( F Y ) 2 0 2 2 - 2 3 and 6.2% in FY 2023-24, d e s p i t e a p i c k - u p o f corporate investment h a n d , e l e c t r i c i t y a n d m a n u f a c t u r e d p r o d u c t s in fl ation led the uptick in wholesale in fl ation. Healthy m o n s o o n c o v e r a g e , gradually rising Kharif sowing and unlocking of states is expected to ease food, and thereby headline, in fl ation. However, risks due t o g l o b a l d e m a n d - l e d recovery in commodity p r i c e s a n d i n p u t c o s t pressures remain. - Aarjav Mehendiratta After 3 Months Of War Life In Russia Has Profoundly Changed W h e n V l a d i m i r P u t i n announced the invasion of Ukraine, war seemed far away from Russian territory. Yet within days the con fl ict came home — not with cruise missiles and mortars b u t i n t h e f o r m o f u n p r e c e d e n t e d a n d unexpectedly extensive volleys of sanctions by Western governments and economic punishment by corporations. Three months after the Feb. 24 invasion, many ordinary Russians are reeling from t h o s e b l o w s t o t h e i r livelihoods and emotions. Moscow’s vast shopping malls have turned into eerie e x p a n s e s o f s h u t t e r e d storefronts once occupied by Western retailers. M c D o n a l d ’s — w h o s e opening in Russia in 1990 was a cultural phenomenon, a shiny modern convenience coming to a dreary country ground down by limited choices — pulled out of Russia entirely in response to its invasion of Ukraine. I K E A , t h e e p i t o m e o f affordable modern comforts, suspended operations. Tens of thousands of once-secure jobs are now suddenly in question in a very short time. Major industrial players including oil giants BP and Shell and automaker Renault walked away, despite their huge investments in Russia. Shell has estimated it will lose about $5 billion by trying to unload its Russian assets. While the multinationals were leaving, thousands of R u s s i a n s w h o h a d t h e economic means to do so were also fl eeing, frightened by harsh new government moves connected to the war that they saw as a plunge into full totalitarianism. Some young men may have also fl ed in fear that the Kremlin would impose a mandatory draft to feed its war machine. -Dhruv Pratap Singh