The BRICS Report

Newspaper offices have been targeted in a shooting in Maryland, United States. An immigration cloud hangs over Brussels ahead of the European Union (EU) Summit.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Anjana Pasricha, Voice of America correspondentSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Guest: Professor Victor Sonkin : Lecturer at Moscow State University and freelance Journalist See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A radiation cloud, and a mystery, from Russia is again raising alarms Last month, French and German radiation safety officials identified the southern Ural Mountain region, home of Mayak, as the likely source of a cloud of a radioactive isotope, ruthenium 106, that they detected wafting over Europe. The plant at Mayak reprocesses spent fuel and produces isotopes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While Brazil’s economy as a whole is barely growing, but its e-commerce sector is thriving.   Thousands of Brazilian workers and members of trade unions took to the streets of Sao Paulo in protest , decrying government austerity measures and new labour laws due to come into effect.   Seaborn Networks has announced plans to build a cable system to connect South Africa with Brazil and onward to the US, while interconnecting with another new system, the IOX Cable, which will run from South Africa to India, connecting various Indian Ocean islands along its route.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Delhi is facing an air pollution crisis.   The LGBT community held its annual queer march parade in Delhi.   India is promoting a staple, simple dish as its brand food across the globe.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China is churning out a new billionaire every 5 days The US might be the wealthiest country in the world, but it's not churning out the most billionaires. That title goes to China, which added 67 new billionaires in 2016, or one about every five days, according to a report on billionaires by UBS and PwC released Thursday. For the first time ever, Asia had more billionaires (637) than the US (538), the report found. Still, the US maintained a higher concentration of billionaire wealth, but Asia top that measure in the next three to four years.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

American President Donald Trump’s adviser, George Papadopoulos, has pleaded guilty to lying to the F.B.I. about meeting a Professor with close ties to the Russian government, highlight the coordination between the Trump campaign and Russian government’s meddling in the 2016 elections; and Kseniya Sobchak, a young glamorous woman, announced her decision to run for President.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stephen speaks to Professor Lyal White about how Brazil is outperforming South Africa, how Mr. Jair Bolsonaro is the Donald Trump of Brazil and a new transportation app for women that is gaining momentum.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stephen speaks to Dr Martin Davies  Managing Director for emerging Markets and Africa Deloitte about Sinopec no longer taking over Chevron/Caltex leaving Glencore to take a chance. China’s anti-corruption drive nets former Justice Minister and Alibaba’s latest retail offering live crabs in vending machines .  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

‘Super Wednesday’ Purge Snares Brazil’s Powerful Wednesday was a dramatic day for Brazil. It began with the arrest of Wesley Batista, the CEO of the world’s largest meat company, JBS SA. Then a former governor of Rio de Janeiro was yanked off-air by police mid-way through his morning radio show. In the afternoon, it was former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s turn to testify in court for a second time on corruption charges.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A controversial Indian guru convicted of rape on Friday has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. Indian media reported that Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's followers set a vehicle alight just ahead of sentencing. The self-styled holy man was found guilty of sexually assaulting two female followers and jailed for 10 years for each, to run consecutively. And    India’s Supreme Court recently delivered an interesting judgment making privacy a fundamental right.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PetroSA signs $400m deal with Russian company The Russian-government owned geological company, Rosgeo, has landed a 400-million USD deal to develop oil and gas blocks off the Cape south coast.   Thousands in Russia's Chechnya protest for Burma's Rohingya Muslims   Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Russia’s predominantly Muslim Chechnya to protest what the Chechen leader called “genocide of Muslims” in Myanmar. Myanmar’s security officials and Muslim Rohingya insurgents are accusing each other of atrocities in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, where nearly 400 people, most of them insurgents, have died in clashes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told Reuters on Wednesday that his recent conviction for corruption might mean that his Workers Party will have to field a candidate other than him in next year’s election. Lula’s 2003-11 government lifted millions from poverty and polls show he is still one of Brazil’s most popular politicians.   Brazil scraps an Amazon Reserve to allow mining   The government of Brazil has abolished a vast national reserve bigger than the size of Denmark to open the area to commercial mineral exploration, drawing sharp criticism from environmentalists and political opponents. The area, which straddles the northern states of Amapa and Para, is thought to contain rich deposits of gold, iron, manganese and other minerals.   Brazil is looking to offload its Olympic facilities   Brazil will try once more to rid itself of part of Rio de Janeiro’s Olympic Park, after the city government failed to find a buyer last year, according to two people directly involved in the negotiations. In an effort to find an operator for the park, the ministry of sport will work with the state development bank, BNDES, to determine how the concession will be run.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Chinese government has made the move to serve notice on the country’s foreign investment spree in football clubs, skyscrapers and Hollywood as it moves to curb rising levels of debt among domestic companies.   South Africa has finally launched the African Regional Centre of the New Development Bank. In 2015, the New Development Bank was launched with the opening of the head office in Shanghai, China   Last year, Beijing banned any more "bizarre" buildings. Now, China's State Administration for Industry and Commerce has continued the government's crusade for normalcy with restrictions on such names as 'scared of wife' or 'prehistoric powers'.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India is marking the 70th anniversary of its freedom from British rule today.  It was in February 1947 that Prime Minister Clement Atlee announced the British government would grant India its independence and self-governance. How does the country measure its progress in these seven decades?   When British rulers divided the subcontinent into two nations, it prompted the greatest mass migration of people in history and unleashed a wave of violence that claimed more than a million lives. Seventy years have passed since the partition of India and Pakistan, and years on the partition and the violence that accompanied it continues to shape India and Pakistan.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former President Lula was sentenced to nearly 10 years for corruption…   The former president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, was found guilty of corruption and money laundering on Wednesday and sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison, a stunning setback for a politician who has wielded enormous influence across Latin America for decades. The case against Mr. da Silva, who raised Brazil’s profile on the world stage as president from 2003 to 2010, stemmed from charges that he and his wife illegally received about $1.1 million in improvements and expenses from a construction company for a beachfront apartment.   Only in Brazil: Congressman by day, Jailbird by night   For many politicians, a jail sentence means the end of your career, but not for lawmaker Celso Jacob. He still comes each day to Brazil’s National Congress straight from prison. Each morning he gets up at 5:00 am in the Papuda jail near Brasilia and waits for a car to take him to work. In the evening he returns and changes from his suit back into white prisoner’s overalls.   Brazil’s army is becoming a de facto police force   Brazil maintains the world’s 15th-biggest standing army, and spends more on defence than Israel does. The last time a big Brazilian city was attacked was in 1711, when a French corsair briefly captured Rio de Janeiro. The country’s official defence review states that “at present, Brazil has no enemies”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China is boosting Ghana’s government’s ‘One District One Factory’ initiative with a funding facility worth up to $2 billion. And Over the next three years, local authorities in China are planning to build more than 900 airports for general aviation — the segment of the industry that includes crop dusting and tourism and Lastly China is shifting from exporting to importing,” Alibaba CEO Jack Ma said in Detroit on Wednesday.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tesla takes off in China   Both production and sales in new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China soared in May despite a cut in government subsidies, while the growth of the overall auto market remained tepid, industry data showed. It's safe to say that Tesla has emerged as one of the next powerhouses in the car market. That looks like it's going to continue thanks to one of the booming markets that desire the Tesla-style electric car, China   China’s college exam takers now have to compete against AI   Humans worried about being replaced by machines needn’t fret too much just yet, at least not if they’re among the thousands of anxious teenagers set to take China’s national college entrance exam, known as the “gaokao,” over the next two days. In what’s being billed as a first in China’s nearly 1,500-year-old exam-taking history, a robot powered by artificial intelligence, or AI, will sit the math portion of the test at a special session attended by scientists and reporters in Chengdu, capital of interior China’s Sichuan province  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India has rejected U.S. President Donald Trump's comments that it had linked its accession to the Paris climate control accord to receiving foreign aid and said it was committed to protecting the environment on its own. An American exit could prompt other countries to withdraw from the pact or rethink their emissions pledges, making it much harder to achieve the agreement’s already difficult goal of limiting global warming to a manageable level. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched its most powerful and heaviest rocket yet on Monday (June 5), called the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV MkIII). The new rocket lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India, at 7:58 a.m. EDT (1158 GMT), successfully delivering the massive GSAT-19 communications satellite into orbit.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Russian director receives a prestigious award at the Cannes Film Festival Renowned Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev has been awarded the jury prize at the 70th Cannes Film Festival for his drama, 'Loveless' ('Nelyubov'). Acclaimed Spanish film director Pedro Almodovar presided over the jury panel this year.   Investigation into arrest of boy caught reading ‘Hamlet’ Russia's Investigative Committee has launched a pre-investigation check into the actions of police officers after a video of a crying boy being forcefully led away and shoved into a police car in central Moscow gained the attention of the online community and human rights advocates. The boy was reading 'Hamlet' out loud detained in Moscow. His parents were detained and citizens are questioning whether it is police brutality.   Russian students win the software programming competition in the US (again) A team of programmers from the St. Petersburg University of IT, Mechanics and Optics have once again won the annual ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC), setting a new record with their 7th champions cup. The Champion Cup of 2017 was raised by Russian students of the department of computer technologies – Vladimir Smykalov, Ivan Belonogov and Ilya Zban.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Xolani Gwala speaks to director at the Centre for Dynamic Markets at Gordon Institute of Business Science, Prof Lyal White. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India has banned the use of red lights on VIP vehicles India will ban ministers and senior officials from using red beacons on their cars to speed through traffic from the 1st May. Under the new rule, only emergency vehicles, ambulances, fire engines and police cars can use flashing blue lights.   4 convicted in fatal gang-rape get death penalty The Supreme Court judgment upholding death penalty for four men in the 2012 infamous gang rape case of a 23-year-old student that shocked the world. The court held that the nature of the crime, which triggered massive protests across India, made it a fit case for the death penalty. It described the assault as "most brutal, barbaric and diabolical," according to the Press Trust of India news agency. The victim's father said he was happy with the court judgment and demanded that the convicts be hanged quickly.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stephen Grootes  speaks to Dr Martyn Davies,Managing Director at Emerging Markets & Africa about China’s GDP first quarter growth at 6.9% . Chinese buyers fuel Brooklyn, NYC real estate boom and Chinese investors continue to buy into European soccer clubs now AC Milan .    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

St Petersburg terrorist blast At least 11 people were killed in a blast on the St Petersburg Metro Monday, three state-run Russian news agencies said. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev described the attack as a "terrorist act." The explosion tore through a train as it was traveling between two stations in Russia's second-largest city. President Vladimir Putin, who had been in St. Petersburg earlier in the day, laid roses at a makeshift memorial with candles outside the bombed metro station.   Russia Arrests more Anti-Corruption Protesters Nearly 40 protesters were detained on Sunday as Russia’s youth continued to protest against corruption and lack of opportunities, media reported Monday.  The protests were significantly smaller than the massive demonstrations which hit over 90 cities in Russia a week before, prompting President Vladimir Putin to publicly reaffirm his commitment to fight corruption.   Russia’s PhD scandals In December 2015, a prominent member of Vladimir Putin's party was accused of plagiarising a large portion of his economic dissertation. This strange news story spurred Russian-born journalist Leon Neyfakh to investigate Russia's massive black market in plagiarism.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A massive scandal in Brazil is hitting two Brazilian meat giants Food giants JBS SA and BRF SA took out full-page newspaper ads and paid for prime-time television spots to reassure consumers their meat is safe to eat after finding themselves at the centre of Brazil’s latest corruption probe. Both companies saw their share prices tumble for a second day after federal authorities announced Friday they’re investigating evidence producers bribed government officials to approve the sale of spoiled meat.   Inequality increased in Brazil and human development is slowing: UNDP UNDP report reveals how disparities in income, education, health and between men and women are slowing down progress in region and around the world Latin America’s strong growth in human development indicators over the last 25 years has been uneven and slow for disadvantaged groups, a UN body has found, saying that the inequality that reigns in the region has severely undermined progress.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Xolani speaks to Dr  Martyn Davies,Managing Director and  Emerging Markets & Africa about China seeking  to restrict overseas investment .President Paul Kagame of Rwanda visiting  China and  the Chinese customs seizing  luxury goods worth US$540m.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's huge mid-term victory in regional elections Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party won a landslide victory in the politically crucial northern state of Uttar Pradesh, giving the Indian leader a huge boost half way through his term.   World’s heaviest woman in India for life-saving surgery Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty, who previously weighed around 500kg, had not left her house in Egypt in over two decades until arriving in Mumbai last month for bariatric surgery.   India launched most satellites in the world in a single launch An Indian PSLV rocket launched from Sriharikota, India, carrying a gigantic haul of satellites into space. The mission was confirmed to be successful by the Indian Space Research Organization just after 12AM ET on February 15th. On top of the vehicle were up to 104 satellites — the largest crop of satellites to ever launch on a single rocket at once.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Public march in honor of opposition politician murdered two years ago took place in Moscow on Sunday Thousands of Russians marched through Moscow on Sunday shouting slogans such as "Russia will be free!" and "Putin is war!" to mark two years since opposition leader, Boris Nemtsov was gunned down outside the Kremlin. Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister, was a fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin.   Young man sentenced for breaking the rules of demonstrations was set free by the Supreme Court Russian political activist Ildar Dadin has been released from prison, days after the Supreme Court overturned his conviction. The Presidium of Russia’s Supreme Court on February 22 set aside Dadin's conviction on charges of participating in multiple unsanctioned protests and ordered his release from custody.   Russia's Permanent Representative for the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, dies suddenly Russian officials say its ambassador to the United Nations has died suddenly in New York City. Vitaly Churkin was 64. Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador, Vladimir Safronkov, told The Associated Press that Churkin became ill in his office at Russia’s U.N. mission and was taken to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, where he died Monday. A Russian Embassy spokesperson told CBS News that they believe Churkin died of a heart attack but they do not yet have official word on the cause of death.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brand outlets hope weak pound, extra flights from China and easing of visa system will drive sales and fill the tills over the year of the rooster. Chinese shoppers are particularly good news for the UK’s retail sector as they are big spenders, spending an average of £2,174 each during their stay – about three and a half times the average of other visitors.   China’s new auto industry players have had to confront tough questions. Some had to decide between partnering with traditional automakers and focusing on complementary services such as auto-computer software, or taking the far-riskier but potentially more-lucrative road less traveled by building cars on their own. Electronics maker and video-streaming service provider LeEco, for example, decided to design and build its own electric cars from scratch, while e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. chose to partner with traditional automakers.   The humble bicycle is seeing a revival in China as a new generation of startups help tackle urban congestion and pollution with fleets of brightly colored two wheelers. The bike-share concept has attracted huge venture capital as fledgling firms wrestle for market share. Such has been the success of this made-in-China business model, which is using smartphones to reignite the nation's passion for cycling, companies are hatching plans to export the idea worldwide.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Techies in India are worries that Trump's crackdown on immigration will include restrictions on so-called H-1B visas, which India's IT sector uses to send thousands of highly-skilled workers to America every year. Analysts say the issue also threatens to sour Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's burgeoning relationship. The leaders have extended mutual invitations to visit their respective countries but are heading for a clash on visas. The Ministry of Finance’s annual survey of the economy, released Tuesday, explores how the country might replace its various welfare programs with a universal basic income, or a uniform stipend paid to every adult and child, poor or rich. Guaranteeing all citizens enough income to cover their basic needs would promote social justice, the survey says, and empower the poor to make their own economic choices. In northern India, an increasing number of young women are learning to compete in the sport of wrestling. Until recently, few girls and women trained for wrestling in the northern state of Haryana. The area has a strongly patriarchal culture. Men there appear to be in control of the government and much of society.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A traffic policeman jumped into the freezing water of the Moskva River to rescue a girl who lost control of her car, skidded over the river’s high granite embankment and plummeted into the water, trapped in her vehicle. Russia has launched flight tests of its latest lightweight fighter, MiG-35. The military aircraft, which has been constructed to be potentially equipped with laser weapons, will in the near future replace previous generation jets in the Russian Air Force. Russian figure skater Yevgenia Medvedeva on January 27 set a new world record in terms of total scores upon the results of the short programme and the free skate in ladies at the European Figure Skating Championships in Ostrava, the Czech Republic. She scored 229.71 points.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brazilian authorities have confirmed the deaths of at least 33 prisoners in the northern state of Roraima just days after 56 inmates were killed during a fighting between rival drug gangs in the neighbouring state of Amazonas. His country mired in recession, Brazilian President Michel Temer's government ordered more than $400,000 worth of food, including 500 cartons of Haagen-Dazs ice cream and nearly 1.3 tonnes of chocolate cake, for his official plane trips in 2017 only to cancel the order hours later amid public outrage. Greek diplomat Kyriakos Amiridis, 59, hadn’t even been ambassador to Brazil for a year when he was murdered, stuffed into his rental car, and set on fire by Sergio Moreira, a 29-year-old military police officer who confessed to killing the ambassador and sleeping with the ambassador’s 40-year-old wife.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Obama warns Trump to trust US intelligence over Putin who he calls an ‘adversary’ Speaking to ABC's George Stephanopoulos after the release of the intelligence community’s declassified assessment of the alleged Russian interference in the US presidential race, Obama again reiterated his firm belief that Moscow was somehow involved in propelling Trump into the Oval Office.   Russian President orders lending rate to be cut for Russian regions Putin has given bankers two months until March 1 to cut the key rates. Russian Central Bank head Elvira Nabiullina, who was named as the best European central bank governor in 2016, has been given the task of seeing it through.   Russia says it's fully committed to strengthening ties with India Amid unease in the Indian establishment over Pakistan warming up to Russia, Moscow today conveyed to India it is "fully committed" to further strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the two leaders discussed strategic issues and continued progress in the civil nuclear energy sector.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since taking office back in May, President Michel Temer has led an administration riddled with bad news and corruption allegations. Even when the government gets a win, it is overshadowed by new corruption scandals. This time, the President himself is at the center of the accusations. Marcelo Odebrecht, the former CEO of Latin’s America’s largest construction company, has confirmed that Temer asked for “undeclared” funds.   Brazilians are getting their bumper stickers ready: Marina Silva 2018. The latest polls for the 2018 presidential election show the ex-Minister of Environment as the clear leader. The environmentalist would take office even in a face-off with Brazil’s beloved Lula, currently under criminal investigation.   The fact that impeached Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff was named among the women of the year by the Financial Times certainly raises eyebrows, political analyst Nilson Melo told Sputnik Brazil. The Financial Times put her on par with such political figures as UK Prime Minister Theresa May and "former presidential candidate" Hillary Clinton, as well as "the world's best gymnast" Simone Biles.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

US Elections have resulted in uncertainty: Brazil Central Bank Brazil's Central Bank (BC) President Ilan Goldfajn said Monday (Nov. 21) that the outcome of the US presidential election, won by magnate Donald Trump, brought an element of uncertainty to markets, but reiterated that the institution has kept a close watch on the development of international markets and worked to prevent the effects of "external shocks" from threatening macroeconomic stability.   The Trump victory adds pressure to pass crucial reforms in Brazil and soon! Donald Trump's U.S. election victory and the ensuing market volatility should encourage Brazilian policymakers to push ahead with ambitious economic reforms that help cushion the country from global turmoil, business executives and bankers said on Tuesday.   IMF outlook suggests Brazil is clawing its way out of recession slowly While there are signs that the recession is nearing its end, Brazil’s economic prospects hinge on the new government’s ability to implement ambitious structural reforms to restore fiscal sustainability, the IMF said in its annual review on the state of the Brazilian economy. According to the report, Latin America’s largest economy has suffered its deepest recession in decades.   Brazil to Increase Culture Ministry Budget by 40 Percent The Brazilian Ministry of Culture will have a 40% budgetary increase in 2017 – hardline government is appeasing some of the protesters. President of Brazil, Michel Temer, announced this week that his administration would be increasing the Ministry of Culture’s budget by more than forty percent. The ministry was the focus of one of the first ‘conflicts’ between Temer and the Brazilian population when the then interim leader announced it was nesting the ministry into the Ministry of Education.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Russian parliament members have labelled a recent call to exclude Russia from the UN Human Rights Council mere speculation, adding that the move reminds them of the biased approach to terrorists in Russia’s North Caucasus territories. Over 80 NGOs call for Russia to be dropped from UN rights council over Syria.   Over half of Russians think that the outcome of the upcoming US presidential election is important for their country, and many expect US-Russian relations to worsen further if Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton is victorious in November. According to the latest survey conducted by state-run public opinion centre VTSIOM, 57 percent of Russian citizens think that the results of the looming US presidential elections will be important for their country, while 38 percent don’t think they will have any impact on relations between the two nations, either way.   The world's largest professional network LinkedIn could soon be blocked in Russia. The company has failed to comply with a law that obliges companies to keep data on Russian users in the country. Apart from not moving servers to Russia, LinkedIn collects and sends information about people who are not users of the network without their consent, according to the Russian internet watchdog Roskomnadzor. According to the spokesman, Moscow’s Tagansky District Court has ruled in favor of the watchdog, but LinkedIn has appealed to a higher court. LinkedIn is the world's largest business and employment oriented social network. As of 2015, it had 400 million users with 5 million people registered in Russia.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Violent protest in Rio de Janeiro emerging, again Riot police cracked down and fired tear gas on thousands of protesters in central Rio de Janeiro Monday night as marches flooded the streets to reject unelected President Michel Temer’s proposed 20-year freeze on public spending that critics argue will spell disaster in the cash-strapped country.   18 Prisoners were killed in Riots last week At least 18 inmates died in clashes in two separate penitentiaries in Brazil's Amazon region and more than three dozen escaped after a third prison riot caused a large fire in a complex outside Sao Paulo, officials said Monday. Authorities were investigating a possible connection between the first two uprisings in the jungle states of Rondonia and Roraima, police said.   Eduardo Cunha has been arrested The central figure behind the impeachment of former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has been arrested on corruption charges. The office of Judge Sergio Moro and police officials said on Wednesday that former Congressman Eduardo Cunha, accused of pocketing millions of dollars in bribes from contractors with the oil company Petrobras, has been arrested.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hundreds are being questioned by Indian police in connection with a massive fraud ring that may have duped Americans out of tens of millions of dollars over the course of a single year. Reports surfaced earlier this week that police in India had raided a series of call centres and arrested at least 70 people on charges of extortion, impersonation and information technology crimes, according to The Associated Press. Employees at the call centre are believed to have sent out thousands of calls and messages each day, posing as U.S. tax collectors and threatening to involve American authorities if they weren't promptly paid.   11 Heads of State from BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) countries will attend the meeting. The BRICS summit will start on October 15 and will end the next day, following which there will be a retreat, in which BIMSTEC countries will take part, according to officials.   On Sept. 29 the Indian Army conducted a military strike against terrorist targets in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The strike was a retaliation for a series of recent terrorist attacks against Indian military installations by Pakistan-based terrorist groups, reminding the world of this rivalry, which dates back to the creation of the two countries in 1947. India and Pakistan have engaged in direct military conflict four times in the past 70 years, and there are some fears that the current dispute may escalate to that point once again. This new period of heightened tensions highlights the failure of recent efforts by the two nations' leaders to ease tensions, and underscores their different domestic and diplomatic trajectories.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brazil’s Ex-President Lula to be tried for corruption. President Temer says he is spending political capital to truly reform Brazil. Brazil run of Mega events finally comes to an end after nearly 1200 days of build ups and events…See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Olympic champion Ryan Lochte has been charged for falsely claiming that he and his three team-mates had been robbed at gun point during the Rio Olympics. It was later revealed that Lochte had made up the story. Brazil, South America’s largest economy, is finally poised to realise its long-anticipated potential as a global player, economists say, as the country rides its biggest economic expansion in three decades. Growth is being felt in nearly all parts of the economy, creating a new class of super rich. A juror for the International Tribunal for Democracy in Brazil wrote a scathing editorial this week denouncing what she calls the illegal government of interim President Michel Temer formed in an attempt by leading members of the opposition Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) to avoid enhanced enforcement of the country’s corruption laws.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Beijing Auto to invest in Coega The Coega Development Corporation has signed a R11bn investment deal with the Beijing Automobile International Corporation for a completely knocked down automotive manufacturing plant in the Coega Industrial Development Zone (IDZ). Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said in a media statement the investment was "significant" and deepened SA’s economic relationship with China. In a golf training club in the city's Tianhe district, a five-day training course for children is recruiting students during the summer vacation. A coach surnamed Deng told a Xinhua reporter that the course teaches basic knowledge and movements, as well as the etiquette of golf, "aiming to cultivate the physical and mental endurance of children." According to a staff member of the agency, it offers classes that develop "CEO characteristics" in children aged 3 to 12 years old. The cost is staggeringly high at 50,000 yuan ($7,500) a year for one or two sessions weekly.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A month before parliamentary elections, President Vladimir Putin has replaced his long-time ally Sergei Ivanov as Kremlin chief of staff, appointing a low-profile former diplomat in his place on Friday. Putin named Anton Vaino, 44, to the important post which involves drafting laws for the president to submit to parliament, monitoring their enforcement and conducting analysis of domestic and foreign affairs for the president. Two-time Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva says she will never accept or forgive the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to uphold her ban from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Current world record holder Isinbayeva says that first place at the Games will forever be in question because of her exclusion. Heavy rain in Moscow has caused a river to burst its banks and flooded streets, trapping people in cars and buses. Russian state news organizations said about 200 people had to be evacuated from stalled vehicles on Monday. No injuries were reported. The weather service said that by early evening 92 millimeters (3.7 inches) of rain had fallen in Moscow, which is well over the monthly average for August.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Defense Minister Raul Jungmann on Sunday officially kicked off the security operations for the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Brazilian Army, Navy and Air Force will make more than 22,000 men available to take care of defense and security of athletes, local residents, and tourists in Rio during the two events. Former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has filed a petition with the UN human rights committee outlining alleged abuses of power in the corruption case he is embroiled in. Chinese consumers are eating more beef than the country can produce, and that’s led to a sales bonanza for exporters in Brazil. About a year after recovering from a mad-cow scare, Brazil has supplanted Australia as the biggest seller of beef to China, where a production deficit is widening and imports are heading for a record.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An international tribunal in The Hague overwhelmingly backed the Philippines in a case on the disputed waters of the South China Sea, ruling that rocky outcrops claimed by China cannot be used as the basis of territorial claims. North Korea’s fifth underground nuclear test, when it happens sometime later this year, will occasion dread and set off the usual flutter of apprehension in the West. China has said it will help developing nations implement the UN's 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Indian cricket is set to change dramatically, after the judiciary ordered far-reaching changes in the functioning of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Customers in India’s southern state of Kerala will have to dig deeper into their pockets each time they want to order a juicy burger, a cheese-laced pizza or other fast food such as doughnuts and tacos. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Monday directed the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Delhi to de-register with immediate effect all diesel vehicles which are more than 10 years old.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A sweeping new Russian antiterrorism bill has raised fears among the country’s telecoms and internet companies that they will face significant costs to implement its data storage provisions. Hundreds of Russian and Ukrainian women have been sharing stories of sexual harassment, violence and rape on social media, after a post by a Ukrainian journalist went viral earlier this week. Russian reviewers have responded with both praise and barely concealed amusement to the BBC’s adaptation of War and Peace, with reviewers describing it as a “medium-budget soap opera” and a “classic with cleavage”.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Olympic and Paralympic Village consists of 31 apartment buildings, some as high as 17 storeys. In total, there are 3 604 apartments, which will be home to more than 17 000 athletes and team officials during the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and 6 000 during the Paralympic Games.   The microcephaly epidemic in Brazil has been speculated to be caused by the Zika virus. However, a study published on June 15 in the New England Journal of Medicine claims Zika may not be the real cause of microcephaly after all so further research is still needed to verify this.   It appears that UberCOPTER thinks they can offer solution. In partnership with European plane maker Airbus, Uber is running a month-long trial in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Uber users can use the app to hail a helicopter and pay $17-80 for a ride between airports, to their hotel or to conference centers. The service is operating from five helipads and four hotels, Fabio Sabba, Uber's communications director in Brazil, told the Canadian Press.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At least 98 people were killed and 800 more were injured after a tornado - accompanied by hailstorms, thunderstorms and lightning - hit eastern China early Thursday afternoon, the government said.   Giant factories, a wide range of advanced locomotives and a modern exhibition centre may have impressed foreign visitors to one of China’s biggest bullet train producers – but it will take more than that to clinch deals. China is at an early stage of its push to export its high-speed rail technology, and there is much Beijing needs to address.   The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Saturday held a "White Romance Beach Party" for 51 Chinese honeymoon couples in Thailand's southern province Surat Thai, in a bid to attract more Chinese honeymooners. Runjuan Tongrut, Director of TAT's East Asian Region said, this is part of activities under the "honeymoon campaign in Thailand", which attracts high-end tourists and raise awareness of Thailand as a honeymoon destination.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India’s yoga-loving prime minister Narendra Modi proclaimed the ancient Indian practice the “biggest mass movement in the world” as he rose early on Tuesday to lead 30,000 devotees through a series of complex asanas in the city of Chandigarh.   Baba Ramdev, one of India’s most-celebrated yoga gurus and an outspoken critic of Western capitalism, has built a consumer-goods empire using his fame to peddle an ever-expanding portfolio of products based on traditional Indian medicine. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., the company he founded in 2006 near his ashram on the Ganges in this Hindu holy city, has blossomed into one of India’s biggest brands by making creams, cleansers and supplements infused with centuries-old Ayurvedic remedies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.