Budget 2018-19

  Modi and Putin emphasised the central role of the UN in Afghanistan India and Russia on Monday underlined that the Afghan soil should not be used for sheltering, training, planning or financing any terrorist groups including the ISIS, the Al-Qaeda and the  Lashkar-e-Taiba  (LeT), and decided to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people. In their summit talks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin also pitched for the formation of a truly inclusive government in Kabul and reiterated their strong support for a peaceful, secure and stable Afghanistan, according to a joint statement. The mentioning of LeT in the statement assumes significance as it reflects Russia’s understanding of India’s concerns over the possible risk that the Pakistan-based terror groups pose after the Taliban’s capture of power in Kabul. The statement said the leaders welcomed the close coordination between India and Russia on Afghanistan, including thr...

  India and Russia discussed the evolving situation in Afghanistan, especially the security situation and its implications in the region, as they condemned the cross-border movement of terrorists India and Russia on Monday discussed the evolving situation in Afghanistan, especially the security situation and its implications in the region, as they condemned the cross-border movement of terrorists and inked a deal for joint production of over six lakh  AK-203 rifles  in Uttar Pradesh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President  Vladimir Putin  held the 21st annual summit on Monday, hours after the two nations held their maiden 2+2 dialogue. During Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “short but highly productive and substantive” visit for the annual summit, India and Russia signed 28 MoUs and agreements including that on a programme of the Military-Technical Cooperation from 2021-2031. In his opening remarks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India and Russ...

  A caste verification committee has asked NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede to appear before it on December 14, according to Bhim Army leader Ashok Kamble A caste verification committee here has asked Narcotics Control Bureau’s (NCB) zonal director  Sameer Wankhede  to appear before it on December 14, according to Bhim Army leader Ashok Kamble, who is the complainant in the matter. Kamble had filed the complaint with the Mumbai district caste verification committee against Wankhede for allegedly forging documents and presenting himself as member of the Hindu Mahar (Scheduled Caste) community to secure the government job. We presented all the documents to the committee and asked it to take up the matter further. The committee told us that Wankhede will be asked to depose before it on December 14, Kamble said on Wednesday. Notably, Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik had also earlier alleged that Wankhede was born a Muslim, but he forged his documents to get the government j...

The directives will allow direct entry of fully vaccinated expatriates without the need to spend 14 days in transit outside their countries before entering the Kingdom Saudi Arabia has announced that it will lift a travel ban on expats from six countries including India and Pakistan that was introduced to contain the spread of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. The directives will allow direct entry of fully vaccinated expatriates without the need to spend 14 days in transit outside their countries before entering the Kingdom, Arab News reported.  Saudi Arabia ‘s Ministry of Interior issued the directive saying that changes will commence at 1 am on December 1. The English-language newspaper said that expats arriving from these countries must spend five days in quarantine regardless of their Coronavirus vaccination status outside the Kingdom. Earlier in February, the direct entry ban was imposed due to a global spike in Covid-19 caThe ban covered Lebanon, UAE, Egypt, Turkey, the U...

  Air pollution is estimated to cost the global economy upwards of $2.9 trillion per year due to fossil fuel emissions alone Air pollution continues to present one of the world’s biggest health hazards to people everywhere, contri­buting to about 7 million premature deaths annually. 600,000 of these deaths are children. Compounding this staggering health crisis, air pollution is estimated to cost the global economy upwards of $2.9 trillion per year due to fossil fuel emissions alone, while also contrib­uting to a range of severe environmental probl­ems. Air quality is determined by the levels of air pollut­ants PM2.5, PM10, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide. In 2020, India had 46 of the world’s 100 most polluted cities, followed by China (42), Pakistan (6), Bangladesh (4), Indonesia (1), and Thailand (1), according to air quality tracker IQAir. All these cities had a PM2.5 air-quality rating of over 50. Nine out of the top 10 most polluted cities are in I...

  After making its mark as a trusted source in pharmaceuticals, IT, among others, Modi said India is now ready to play a role in the supply chain for clean technology. Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined three critical aspects ‘3Ts — Trusted Source, Transparency and Time frame for improving global supply chains at the Summit on Global Supply Chain Resilience’ on the sidelines of the  G20 Summit  at Rome. After making its mark as a trusted source in pharmaceuticals, IT, among others, Modi said India is now ready to play a role in the supply chain for clean technology. The Summit on ‘Global Supply Chain Resilience’ was convened by US President Joe Biden to discuss the ways in which governments can alleviate pressure points in the global supply chain ecosystem. Recalling the initial months of the Covid-19 pandemic when all countries faced paucity of medicines, health equipment and raw materials for preparing vaccines, Modi said, “Now when the world is on path to economic...

  Rawat said history is witness to the fact that whenever a country neglects its armed forces, the external powers are quick to exploit it. The territorial ambitions of China and Pakistan require the Indian armed forces to remain alert and deployed along disputed borders and coastal areas round the year, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Bipin Rawat said on Sunday. The CDS stated this while delivering the Sardar Patel Memorial Lecture at All India Radio. “The quintessential visionary that  Sardar Patel  was, he had assertively voiced the need of an independent Tibet as a buffer state between India and China, as can be found in his correspondence with the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru,” he said. Rawat said history is witness to the fact that whenever a country neglects its armed forces, the external powers are quick to exploit it. In the 1950s, India overlooked this important lesson of history and allowed the security apparatus to drift and the Chinese shook the c...

  The Pentagon official said Indians want to work with the US on this issue, by sharing intelligence and cooperating India is concerned about the current situation in  Afghanistan , a top Pentagon official has told US lawmakers here. “As I’m sure you’re aware, they (Indians) are concerned about the situation in Afghanistan. They’re concerned about the intersection between instability there and their counterterrorism concerns,” Colin H Kahl, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee during a hearing on Afghanistan, South and Central Asia Security. “They (Indians) want to work with us on those issues, sharing intelligence, cooperating where we can,” he said, adding that there is a tremendous convergence between US and Indian national interests right now “It provides a lot of opportunity for us to cooperate with India, not just on Afghanistan and counterterrorism, but on broader regional security questions, in the Indian Ocean and ...

  The 13th round of military talks between India and China did not produce any resolution of the remaining issues in eastern Ladakh, the Indian Army said on Monday a day after the dialogue. The 13th round of military talks between India and China did not produce any resolution of the remaining issues in eastern Ladakh, the Indian Army said on Monday a day after the dialogue. It said the Indian side made “constructive suggestions” for resolving the remaining areas but the Chinese side was not agreeable to them and also could not provide any forward-looking proposals. “The meeting thus did not result in resolution of the remaining areas,” the Army said in a statement. The talks took place on the Chushul-Moldo border point on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh on Sunday and they lasted for around eight-and-half hours. The Army said the Indian side pointed out that the situation along the LAC had been caused by “unilateral attempts” by the Chinese si...

  Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday stated that the Centre has sanctioned 17.3 lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and over 8.8 lakh beneficiaries have been given houses so far Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday stated that the Centre has sanctioned 17.3 lakh houses under the  Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana  and over 8.8 lakh beneficiaries have been given houses so far. Speaking at ‘Azadi@75 – New Urban India: Transforming Urban Landscape’ Conference-cum-Expo, the Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs said: “Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana has sanctioned 17.3 lakh houses. 8.8 lakhs beneficiaries have been given houses so far. More will be given today by the Prime Minister.” “From 2004 to 2014, Rs 1.57 crore was invested in the urban development under central schemes. In the last 6 years, under the leadership of Prime Minister  Narendra Modi , the investment in urban development has been increased to seven-folds. Today Rs 11.83 crore ha...

  Pakistan has seen 35 attacks that left at least 52 civilians dead in August, the highest since February 2017, according to data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal Deadly terrorist attacks in  Pakistan  have increased to the highest level in over four years as U.S. troops left Afghanistan and the Taliban took power, a sign of growing instability in the region that could hurt business and investments. Pakistan has seen 35 attacks that left at least 52 civilians dead in August, the highest since February 2017, according to data compiled by the South Asia Terrorism Portal. Most of the violence has been attributed to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, an offshoot of the Afghan militant group that has been encouraged by developments next door. The Pakistani militant group “has been emboldened further by what happened in Afghanistan,” Umar Karim, a visiting fellow at the London-based Royal United Services Institute, said over the phone. “The terrorist group had already been ...

  Prime Minister Narendra Modi has commended Indian Diaspora for distinguishing itself across the world as he received a warm welcome from the community on his arrival here. Prime Minister  Narendra Modi  has commended Indian Diaspora for distinguishing itself across the world as he received a warm welcome from the community on his arrival here. He was greeted by groups of Indian Americans at the airport soon after his plane landed here Wednesday and later at the hotel where he had an interaction with the members of the community. Grateful to the Indian community in Washington DC for the warm welcome. Our diaspora is our strength, Modi said in a tweet along with a set of pictures of his interaction with the Indian American CEOs. It is commendable how the Indian diaspora has distinguished itself across the world, Modi said. One of the signature events of the Prime Minister’s overseas visit has been his meetings with the diaspora community in large gatherings. However, due ...

  Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday laid the foundation stone and inaugurated over 300 development projects of the Public Works Department (PWD) in the state Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh  Bhupesh Baghel  on Sunday laid the foundation stone and inaugurated over 300 development projects of the Public Works Department (PWD) in the state. Over the past three years, the state government is continuously working hard for the development of Chhattisgarh, despite facing many challenges during COVID-19 times. Speaking at the inaugural ceremony, Baghel said, “We faced many difficulties during COVID-19 pandemic, but still, development projects did not stop in the state. Today, we are inaugurating around 332 new projects at the PWD department worth Rs. 28,000 crores.” “Following the decline in COVID-19 cases in the state during the second wave, we immediately ramped up the developmental projects from June,” he added. According to him, these 332 projects are bei...

  In view of a protest march organised by members of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) against the Centre’s farm laws, the Delhi Traffic Police on Friday alerted commuters about closure of specific roads In view of a protest march organised by members of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) against the Centre’s farm laws, the Delhi Traffic Police on Friday alerted commuters about closure of specific roads and suggested diversions to avoid any inconvenience. Taking to Twitter, the  Delhi Traffic  Police informed about closure of roads at Jharoda Kalan border and suggested commuters to refrain from using these routes in view of the farmers’ movement. A senior police officer said, “Members of Shiromani Akali Dal have gathered at Gurudwara Rakab Ganj on Friday morning in view of a protest march organised by them against the farm laws.” The SAD under the leadership of its President Sukhbir Singh Badal had given a call to take out a the march starting from Gurdwara Talab Ganj Sahib to Par...

  Under new IT rules, large digital platforms – with over 5 million users – will have to publish periodic compliance reports every month, mentioning the details of complaints received and action taken Google received 36,934 complaints from users and removed 95,680 pieces of content based on those complaints in July, the tech giant company said in its monthly transparency reports released on Tuesday. In addition to reports from users, Google also removed 5,76,892 pieces of content in July as a result of automated detection. The US-based company has made these disclosures as part of compliance with India’s IT rules that came into force on May 26. On Tuesday, Google said it had received 36,934 complaints in July from individual users located in India via designated mechanisms, and the number of removal actions as a result of user complaints was 95,680 – the highest so far. In June,  Google  had received 36,265 complaints and removed 83,613 pieces of content as a result of us...

  The Taliban wants to maintain Afghanistan’s trade, economic and political relations with India, senior leader Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai said while describing it’s an important nation in the region The Taliban wants to maintain Afghanistan’s trade, economic and political relations with India, senior leader of the outfit Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai has said while describing it as an important country in the region. In a video address in Pashto, Stanekzai said consultations with various groups and political parties are going on to form a government in  Kabul  that will have representations from people from “different walks of life”. “We attach great importance to our trade, economic and political relations with India and want to maintain that relation,” Stanekzai said on Saturday. “We also need to keep the air trade open,” he was quoted as saying by Pakistani media outlet Independent Urdu. The Taliban leader was referring to the air corridor between India and Afghani...

  India was trying to evacuate as many people as possible from Afghanistan, the minister said Evacuating Indian personnel from Afghanistan, where the situation is “critical”, was a top priority, the government said on Thursday at the all-party meet, convened to brief on the Afghan situation. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar briefed the leaders on the latest situation in  Afghanistan  after the Taliban captured power there last week. Besides Jaishankar, Union minister and Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Piyush Goyal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi were also present during the briefing in the Parliament House Annexe. India was trying to evacuate as many people as possible from Afghanistan, the minister said and asserted that evacuating Indian personnel was a “top priority”, according to some of the participants at the meeting. The government also described the situation in the war-torn country as “critical” and said the Taliban has broken the promi...

  Officials said since Indian missions in Afghanistan are shut, the applications will be examined and processed in New Delhi The Union home ministry on Wednesday announced that all Afghan nationals henceforth must travel to India only on e-Visa in view of the prevailing situation in Afghanistan. The decision comes days after the government introduced a new category of visa called “e-Emergency X-Misc visa” for the Afghan nationals after the  Taliban  captured power in that country. “Owing to the prevailing security situation in Afghanistan and streamlining of the visa process by introduction of the ‘e-Emergency X-Misc visa’, it has been decided that all Afghan nationals henceforth must travel to India only on e-Visa,” a home ministry statement said. The home ministry also announced that keeping in view some reports that certain passports of Afghan nationals have been misplaced, previously issued visas to all Afghan national...

  CJI N V Ramana recused himself from hearing the plea of Andhra Pradesh which alleged that Telangana has deprived it of its legitimate share of drinking and irrigation water from River Krishna Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana on Wednesday recused himself from hearing the plea of Andhra Pradesh which alleged that Telangana has deprived it of its legitimate share of drinking and irrigation water from  River Krishna.  The bench, which also comprised Justice Surya Kant, took note of the submissions of the counsel appearing for Andhra Pradesh that the state wanted adjudication of the case by the apex court bench instead of opting for mediation. Then let the matter be listed before another bench, the CJI ordered. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, said that the central government has no objection if the CJI-led bench hears the plea of Andhra Pradesh. Earlier, the top court had suggested mediation to  Andhra ...

  India remains on the red list under the international traffic system, which bans travel and imposes a compulsory 10-day hotel quarantine for returning British residents Fully vaccinated travellers from the US and European Union (EU) countries will be able to avoid a 10-day compulsory quarantine when they arrive in England from next Monday, the UK government said on Wednesday. Currently, only people who received their Covid-19 vaccine in the UK can avoid quarantine when arriving from these “amber list” countries under the government’s traffic list travel system. “We’ve taken great strides on our journey to reopen  international   travel  and today is another important step forward. Whether you are a family reuniting for the first time since the start of the pandemic or a business benefiting from increased trade — this is progress we can all enjoy,” said UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps. “We will of course continue to be guided by the latest scientific data but th...