"On behalf of the American people, I wish to extend my deepest condolences to the people of India on the passing of former Indian President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam," Obama said in a statement.
He has served in the military and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, before becoming the founder and director of the country's Information Network and Security Agency, which is responsible for cyber-security in a country where the government has always exercised tight control over the internet.
It takes only two hours - roughly the time it takes for a plane to fly from Delhi to Mumbai - for a pair of pilots to complete their training on the 737 MAX simulator at Boeing's centre in Noida, the only one of its kind in India. Going by this estimate, all the 90 Spicejet pilots who the civil aviation regulator barred from flying the 737 MAX can be retrained in 90 hours.
She can't quite recollect the names of either the films or the actors but Ethiopia's World and Olympic 10,000m champion runner Almaz Ayana says Bollywood movies are her favourite indulgence whenever she gets some time to herself.
Cameroon goalkeeper Charles Itandje made several sparkling saves to help his side force a 0-0 draw in Tunisia on Sunday in the first leg of their World Cup playoff.
About 350 Boeing 737 Max 8 are currently in service with airlines around the world, with thousands more on order. Boeing insists it has no reason to pull the popular aircraft from the skies.
With full-service carrier Jet Airways and budget airline SpiceJet operating 737 MAX planes, the DGCA has decided to seek information about the aircraft from Boeing as well as the two domestic carriers in view of the air crash in Ethiopia.
About 350 Boeing 737 Max 8 are currently in service with airlines around the world, with thousands more on order. Boeing insists it has no reason to pull the popular aircraft from the skies.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Prakash Bhandari salutes the spirit of Abebe Bikila who twice won the Olympic Marathon in record times.
If you aren't living under a rock, it would be hard to miss reading or hearing about the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft being grounded by over 50 nations. For those who are in the dark or still confused about the entire episode, here's a simple FAQ on the issue and what's happening around the world.
United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon on Monday expressed concern over restrictions imposed on travelers returning from Ebola-affected countries, saying people who develop infections should be "supported, not stigmatised".
SpiceJet has been most affected by the grounding of 737 Max 8 aircraft as it has 12 of them in its fleet.
India's rural employment guarantee programme MNREGA has been ranked as the world's largest public works programme, providing social security net to almost 15 per cent of the country's population, the World Bank has said.
Rediff.com has compiled a few photographs to show you the kind of selfies our world leaders have taken a fancy to. Different strokes for different folks, eh?
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday
Ethiopian silver medalist Feyisa Lilesa, who did not return home after staging a protest against his government at the Rio Olympics, said on Thursday he feared for his life if he went back and vowed to keep up his fight for land rights.
Ethiopia ended the hopes of 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa from making next year's finals in Brazil after a dramatic round of African group stage qualifying matches on Sunday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday.
Srinu Bugatha, Sudha Singh win Indian Elite category.
Vistara is keen to take to global skies.
"The return fare on economy class to most European capitals from Mumbai are close to 50,000 plus. If an LCC can offer direct connectivity for a basic fare of 25,000 with additional top ups for meals, baggage and blankets, which further takes the fare to, say, 35,000, it is still a value deal."
'China's moves are of direct significance to India, which will closely monitor Chinese naval activity in the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean not least because of Chinese maps depicting claims over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.'
'In the end, investing is about people.' 'If you get the right people, they make things happen,' Mengistu Alemayehu tells Shyamal Majumdar.
Srikanth Kondapalli on what to expect from the seventh BRICS summit meeting to be held in Russia in July.
But the Abu Dhabi-based airline would first bolster its own network with traffic from India before Jet's turnaround.
The decision to not attend the forum attended by 28 heads of state and 130 national delegations is a clear break from its usual policy of going along with the crowd.
'It is in electronics that the gap between where we are and where we need to be is most obvious and most persistent.' 'It is not only a national security issue, but also a commercial issue,' argues Rajeev Srinivasan.
We sorted through countless photographs taken around the world to come up with the top photos of 2019. Together these images tell the story of the year -- capturing moments of hope and heartbreak, triumph and tragedy.
'Once, when I was standing around on the set one day, whining about something -- you know we were gonna work through supper or the long hours or whatever, Tommy Lee Jones said to me, 'Isn't it such a privilege, Meryl, just to be an actor? Yeah, it is, and we have to remind each other of the privilege and the responsibility of the act of empathy. We should all be very proud of the work Hollywood honours here tonight.'
Five inspiring women who travelled thousands of miles to Hyderabad recently to grow their business and skills share their tales of global entrepreneurship. Vaihayasi Pande Daniel listened in.