Morning Brief: Eternal Vigilance Call To Safeguard Democracy; Trump Set To Meet ‘True Friend’ Modi

Good morning, dear reader! Here’s your morning news and views brief for today.

Modi Says Eternal Vigil Is Key To Preserving Democracy: As India marked the forty-second anniversary of the 1975 Emergency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for “eternal vigilance” to preserve democracy. Recalling the 21-month period of emergency imposed by former prime minister Indira Gandhi, Modi said: “Democracy is not only a system. It is our culture… Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” Addressing the nation through his monthly radio programme Mann ki Baat, he said: “Such a black night cannot be forgotten by any lover of democracy. No Indian can forget that.”

Trump Ready To Meet ‘True Friend’ Modi: Setting the tone for a productive meeting, US President Donald Trump called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a “true friend”. Thanking Trump for the warm personal welcome, Modi said he was looking forward to a meeting with him. Besides deepening defence ties, the Afghanistan-Pakistan situation, Pakistan’s role in sponsoring terror in South Asia, and China’s ambitions in the Asia-Pacific region will be the other key strategic issues that will be on the agenda. It is also an opportunity for both sides to set their priorities, building on achievements from the George W Bush and Barack Obama years.

Modi Woos Top US Firms To Invest In India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India has now emerged as a business-friendly destination, more so with the upcoming implementation of landmark goods and services tax beginning next month, while asking chief executives of top US companies to invest in the country. During an interaction with a group of chief executives of top 20 American firms, Modi said India attracted largest foreign direct investment as a result of the National Democratic Alliance government policies in the last three years. He also spoke about his government's "stain-free" reputation and augmented international clout.

Kashmir School Encounter: Two Terrorists Gunned Down: Ending an encounter of more than 14 hours in which two Army men were injured, security forces on Sunday gunned down two terrorists holed up inside a school on the outskirts of Srinagar. The terrorists had entered the Delhi Public School located close to the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway on Saturday evening after attacking a Central Reserve Police Force party in the nearby Pantha Chowk, killing one officer and injuring a constable. “All injured army personnel are stable and out of danger,” a police source said.

Delhi Metro’s Driverless Trains To Start Operations Soon: Residents in the capital city will be able to travel in Delhi Metro's first 'driverless' trains on the Magenta Line from Janakpuri West to Botanical Garden. A Delhi Metro Rail Corporation spokesperson said that the Magenta Line is going to be thrown partially open to the public in October, with trial runs on two sections of the corridor of Phase III well in progress. "Both sections will be offered for safety inspection to Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety after successful signalling trials. The sections will be opened for public after all the clearances," the spokesperson added.

World’s Highest Rail Track Survey Set To Start: The Indian Railways is set to embark on a survey for world's highest (3,300 metres) rail track at Leh in Jammu and Kashmir. The Defence Ministry-funded Leh rail network, expected to be 498 km long, is one of the four important railway connectivity projects identified by the ministry along the China border. The strategically important rail project, Bilaspur-Manali-Leh line, is touted to become the highest rail track in the world, overtaking China's Qinghai-Tibet Railway. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu will inaugurate the work for the final location survey on 27 June at an estimated cost of Rs 157.77 crore.

Army Rethink On Sahayak System: In the wake of rising cases of jawans coming out openly against the Sahayak system, the Indian Army is now actively considering recruiting civilian staff in peace stations to do away with the colonial-era practice. “We are looking at getting civilian staff to replace Sahayaks in peace stations,” the official said. A top Army official, however, said the Sahayaks or buddy system – whereby a solider is attached to officers — will continue to be deployed in key bases and field areas as they have defined military duties.

Afghan Gun Battle: 14 Killed Near Dam Built By India: At least 10 security personnel and four Taliban militants were also killed in a gun battle in Afghanistan’s Herat province near Salma Dam, which was built by India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in June 2016 jointly inaugurated the Salma dam, a Rs 1,700 crore showpiece infrastructure project by India in strategically important Herat province, reflecting India's strong commitment to reconstruction of the war-ravaged country. Taliban insurgents first stormed a check post in Chesht district and managed to get away with most of the security forces’ weapons, before attacking the dam, said reports.

MUST READ OPINIONS/COLUMNS

PM Modi Must Convince Trump In Today’s Meeting That India Is A Great Opportunity: In betting on the US thus far, Prime Minister Modi, like his predecessors, has made a wise investment. Now he needs only to protect it by showing Trump how India can be a strategic success for him, or in words the property mogul-turned-president might better understand, the ‘real deal’.

Government And Industry Should Team Up To Minimise Disruption Due To GST Implementation: Every stakeholder in the central and state governments have worked tirelessly for months to get ready for this milestone, and it’s time for all to collectively embrace this reform and manage this massive change with hopefully limited disruption.

Reforming The Income Tax Tribunal: The draft 2017 Income Tax Appellate Tribunal rules seek to make the tribunal more time-efficient by limiting the number of times a hearing can be adjourned. The redrafting of the rules provides an opportunity for the tribunal to demonstrate its ability to be one of the leading dispute resolution forums in India.

Can Agri-Based Start-Ups Transform The Rural Economy? India suffers from low farm productivity due to a host of factors, not in the least, the lack of access to technology. Farming-as-a-service, or FaaS, could transform the farm sector by making it more efficient, productive and market-driven.

SWARAJYA SPECIAL

Killing Of Mohammed Ayub Pandith: Hard Decisions Needed In Kashmir: Kashmir is all about decisions, taking them in time and keeping all imponderables in mind. The lynching of Deputy SP Mohammad Ayub Pandith has changed things in Kashmir, and the time to take hard decisions is now.

We hope you enjoyed reading our morning brief. Have a great day ahead!

SUBSCRIBE NOW: The June issue of our magazine is out now. Next month, Narendra Modi is going to be the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Israel. We present a special report on the Jewish state – Passage To Israel. Get a copy home and enjoy reading Swarajya in print. Subscribe here to start receiving your copies for just Rs 349.

Swarajya Apps: Enjoy reading morning brief and all other articles from Swarajya on your mobile. Download our app here on Android and iOS.