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Scroll. in, November 4, 2019 Monsanto versus Farmers: In Brazil, the agribusiness giant has won a $7.7 bn lawsuit A Brazilian appeals court has decided in favour of Monsanto, the global agribusiness conglomerate, in a landmark class-action lawsuit filed by Brazilian farmers’ unions. The court’s nine justices unanimously ruled on October 9 that farmers cannot save seeds for replanting if the seeds are harvested from Monsanto’s patented Roundup Ready soybeans, which are genetically engineered to withstand direct application of the company’s Roundup herbicide. The Brazilian ruling aligns with similar decisions in the US and Canada. Courts in all three countries determined that, as a product of genetic engineering, Roundup Ready soybeans are protected by domestic patent law. In a public statement, Monsanto – which was acquired by Bayer in 2018 – said the decision will strengthen “agricultural innovation in Brazil”. How strict patenting of seeds affects innovatio...

Dawn, November 4, 2019 Analyst research gives wide range for Aramco valuation: sources Analysts provided wide valuation estimates for Saudi Aramco, ranging between $1.2 trillion and $2.3 trillion, fund managers who have seen research notes said, as the oil giant kick-started its initial public offering (IPO) on the local bourse. Bank analysts started showing IPO research to fund managers soon after Aramco, the world's most profitable company, on Sunday announced its intention to float on the domestic bourse in what could be the world's biggest listing. The research reports highlight the challenge faced in hitting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's initial valuation target of $2 trillion for the world's largest oil producer, with some banks having said it could be about $1.5 trillion. Bank of America (BOFA) Merrill Lynch estimates Aramco's valuation could range from a low of $1.2 trillion to a high of $2.3 trillion, while EFG Hermes has an equit...

The Telegraph, November 3, 2019 Karnataka: Tape shocker on Supreme Court & Amit Shah, voice suspected to be Yediyurappa's The Congress plans to approach the Supreme Court with a video that purportedly shows Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa predicting a verdict favourable to the Congress and Janata Dal Secular MLAs whose defection had brought the BJP to power in July but earned them disqualifications. The video, which purportedly shows Yediyurappa talking to BJP workers in Hubli, doesn’t show his face but the speaker’s voice resembles his. “I alone was not involved in the operation to lure away the Congress MLAs, who were kept in a Mumbai hotel — the national president of the party was managing things,” the voice says. It adds: “The Supreme Court judgment is coming; the disqualified MLAs will be allowed to contest.” The BJP did not deny the voice was Yediyurappa’s. Party spokesperson Go Madhusudan told PTI: “Nobody knows in what context the chief m...

The Telegraph, November 3, 2019 Pakistan rejects fresh maps issued by India The Pakistan government on Sunday rejected the latest political maps issued by India, which showed the entire Kashmir region as part of India, calling them "incorrect and legally untenable". India on Saturday released fresh maps of newly created Union Territories (UTs) of Jammu and Kashmir, and  Ladak h and the map of India depicting these UTs. In the maps, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is part of the newly created Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, while Gilgit-Baltistan is in the UT of Ladakh. "Pakistan rejects these political maps, which are incompatible with the United Nations' maps," the Foreign Office said. Pakistan said that no step by India can change the "disputed" status of Jammu and Kashmir, which has been "recognised by the United Nations". In a statement on Sunday, the Pakistan Foreign Office said, "(The political maps)...

MoneyControl, November 3, 2019 Two parliamentary panels to take up WhatsApp snooping case Two parliamentary panels headed by Congress leaders have decided to examine the WhatsApp snooping case and will seek details from top government officials including the Home Secretary. Describing the entire WhatsApp hacking episode as worrisome, Congress leader Anand Sharma, who chairs the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs, said this issue will be taken up at the panel's next meeting on November 15. Shashi Tharoor, who heads the parliamentary standing committee on information technology, said cybersecurity is a major issue and it will be seeking clarifications from the government, adding "we must not, at any price, become a surveillance state like China" Facebook-owned WhatsApp on Thursday said Indian journalists and human rights activists were among those globally spied upon by unnamed entities using an Israeli spyware Pegasus. The Home Secretary is...

Business Line, November 3, 2019 Pakistan has failed to limit the LeT and the JeM from raising money: US State Department report The US has said the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) continued to be a threat to India and slammed Pakistan for allowing candidates affiliated with the LeT front organisations to contest the country’s last general elections. The US State Department’s ‘Country Reports on Terrorism 2018’, published on Friday, also said the Pakistani authorities have failed to uniformly implement the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Action Plan on money laundering and counter-terrorism, and the UN sanctions related to designated entities and individuals such as terror group LeT and its affiliates, which continued to make use of economic resources and raise funds. “Regionally focused terrorist groups also remained a threat in 2018. For example, Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba — which was responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks — and Jaish-e-Moham...

MoneyControl, November 3, 2019 India among top 10 FDI destinations, $5 trillion economy to be reality soon: PM Modi Highlighting India's economic growth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on November 3, said the country is among the top 10 destinations for foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world and had received $286 billion of FDI in the last five years. He was speaking at an event in Bangkok, to mark golden jubilee of the Aditya Birla Group's presence in Thailand. PM Modi said it was the best time to be in India and that many things such as foreign direct investment, ease of doing business, ease of living and productivity are rising while tax rates, red-tapism, corruption, cronyism are on a decline. “All of what I have said just now makes India one of the world's most attractive economies for investment. India received 286 billion US dollar FDI in the last five years. This is almost half of the total FDI in India in the last twenty years,” Modi said.  ...

The Hindu, November 4, 2019 Iraq protests ramp up, shutting roads, offices and schools The Qasr port, one of the main conduits for food, medicine and other imports into Iraq was also closed Protesters in Iraq's capital and the country's south shut down streets and government offices in a new wave of civil disobedience on November 3, escalating their month-long movement demanding wholesale change of the political system. Demonstrations broke out on October 1 in outrage over rampant corruption and unemployment in Iraq. They were met with a violent crackdown that left dozens dead. Since resuming late last month, the protests have swelled again with the support of students and trade unions, who jointly announced a campaign of non-violent resistance on November 3. In Baghdad, university-age demonstrators parked cars along main thoroughfares to block traffic on the first day of the working week in the Muslim-majority country, as police officers looked on. Othe...

Money Control, November 3, 2019 India among top 10 FDI destinations, $5 trillion economy to be reality soon: PM Modi Highlighting India's economic growth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on November 3, said the country is among the top 10 destinations for foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world and had received $286 billion of FDI in the last five years. He was speaking at an event in Bangkok, to mark golden jubilee of the Aditya Birla Group's presence in Thailand. PM Modi said it was the best time to be in India and that many things such as foreign direct investment, ease of doing business, ease of living and productivity are rising while tax rates, red-tapism, corruption, cronyism are on a decline. “All of what I have said just now makes India one of the world's most attractive economies for investment. India received 286 billion US dollar FDI in the last five years. This is almost half of the total FDI in India in the last twenty years,” Modi said....

Money Control, November 3, 2019 Two parliamentary panels to take up WhatsApp snooping case Facebook owned WhatsApp has over 1.5 billion users globally, of which India accounts for about 400 million. Two parliamentary panels headed by Congress leaders have decided to examine the WhatsApp snooping case and will seek details from top government officials including the Home Secretary. Describing the entire WhatsApp hacking episode as worrisome, Congress leader Anand Sharma, who chairs the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs, said this issue will be taken up at the panel's next meeting on November 15. Shashi Tharoor, who heads the parliamentary standing committee on information technology, said cybersecurity is a major issue and it will be seeking clarifications from the government, adding "we must not, at any price, become a surveillance state like China" Facebook-owned WhatsApp on Thursday said Indian journalists and human rights activist...