-- Seven suicide bombers believed to be members of an Islamist extremist group carried out the series of explosions. -- Police have so far arrested 24 people - mostly members of an Islamist extremist group - in connection with the blasts
In a bid to further deepen ties with India, Australia is looking forward to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he is expected to attend the G20 Summit in Brisbane.
'The book has immense value because it reveals the inner workings of the think-tank which appears to provide facts and insights to Modi, though he himself takes the final decisions and articulates them in his characteristic rhetorical style,' says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Rediff.com digs into Parliamentary archives to gauge how the government has responded on the issue.
His remarks without naming any country came against the backdrop of tension between India and Pakistan after New Delhi revoked Jammu and Kashmir's special status.
Modi also made a call for European Union unity and said India would play a positive role in enhancing that through Germany.
Cricket South Africa Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said the franchise based league will have teams from top cities like Johannesburg, Cape Town and that they are looking at potential Indian investors.
In view of the differences, Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan referred the matter to a larger bench of the apex court.
'Here in Delhi, the Modi government is supposedly looking at 'options' to hit back at Pakistan in any whichever way it can, while in Washington, the Obama administration is looking for ways to strengthen US military cooperation with Pakistan,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Until India fully absorbs the fundamentals of international relations, it will continue to get evil for good,' says Brahma Chellaney.
Even as the polity find ways and means to address the genuine concerns and fears of the society, the Sri Lankan State apparatus would have to unravel these mystery-questions with convincing answers, and a road-map to the future, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The highest number of confirmed cases are from Maharashtra (748), followed by Tamil Nadu at 571 and Delhi with 523 cases. Cases in Telangana have gone up to 321, in Kerala to 314, in Uttar Pradesh to 305, while the number of cases has gone up to 274 in Rajasthan.
'There was never really a doubt, but now it can be conclusively stated that the prime minister has unusual mental and physical stamina,' says Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com who is covering Narendra Modi's visit to the United States.
Flynn appeared before a federal court on Friday morning to plead guilty after ex-FBI director Robert Mueller, who is investigating allegations of Russian interference in the presidential election as a special counsel, announced that Flynn was charged with "wilfully and knowingly" making "false, fictitious and fraudulent statements" to the Federal Bureau of Investigation about his conversations with Russia's then ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak.
However, the US praises India for its significant counter-terrorism actions.
China's intended role for AIIB is not so different from the existing Western lenders like the World Bank.
'Modi's promise of change during the election campaign was on the domestic front, but his first year in office focused on foreign policy beyond all expectations,' says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, were found collapsed after being poisoned last week. Both remain in a serious condition along with a police officer who came in contact with the same substance.
'The Modi government would chaff at the very idea of holding talks with Pakistan, facilitated by Washington and under close US monitoring, when the 2019 poll is sailing into view.' 'But in politics and diplomacy, there may be moments when drinking from the chalice of poison is necessary,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
A combination of externalities such as global trade wars and slowing growth, continuing glitches in accessing offsets under the GST regime, which has created a liquidity crunch for smaller exporters, and the growing competitiveness of smaller countries are causing the slowdown.
'India appears to have stood its ground on strategic autonomy by resisting US pressure on Russia, China and Iran, but succumbed to the temptation to walk into a tighter embrace in defence cooperation, a high priority of the Trump administration,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Indian Premier League chairman Rajeev Shukla said Rajasthan Royals will wait and see what sanctions the ICC imposes on Steve Smith before taking a call on his future as the franchise's captain, following a ball tampering scandal that prompted, among others, even Australia's prime minister to react.
Incumbent Hassan Rouhani faces stiff competition from hardline cleric Raisi.
US trade body says, India's business climate is improving due to economic reforms.
Five longtime Republicans -- K V Kumar, Puneet Ahluwalia, Suhail Khan, Ajay Kuntamukkala and Harry Walia -- have been named to the GOP's Asian Pacific American Advisory Council.
Export growth picked up mainly owing to rising global crude prices, which pushed up processed petroleum exports by nearly 40 per cent, apart from a broad-based improvement in exports of major foreign exchange earners such as engineering goods and gems and jewellery.
PM Modi also called for a strong action plan for combating extremism.
Sweden's backing to India was conveyed to President Pranab Mukherjee, who is in Stockholm on a state visit.
'Kim has once again shown astuteness and statesmanship by securing China's support precisely just when it matters most to him,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Women in India cannot act as surrogates for more than three successful births, including of their own children, and it would be mandatory for surrogate mothers to have a minimum two-year interval between two deliveries to ensure they remain healthy.
The US wants to split Sino-India ties, says the Chinese media.
Inputs available from different agencies suggest that Dawood, a prime accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, has bases in Pakistan and keeps changing his location from time to time, Minister of State for Home Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary told the House.
Israel threatened to wipe out Hamas if current truce in Gaza collapsed as time ran out on Wednesday on the 72-hour ceasefire with no breakthrough in indirect talks between Israeli and Palestinian negotiators due to "significant disagreements".
Vice President Hamid Ansari on Monday embarked on a five-day visit to Morocco and Tunisia as part of efforts to build on diplomatic gains from the India-Africa Summit and lay platform for a future partnership.
Next week, US Secretary of State John Kerry travels to India for the fourth annual US-India Strategic Dialogue
The Supreme Court on Monday witnessed sharp exchanges when it took exception to Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi using the phrase "judges appointing judges" to attack the collegium system and observing that B R Ambedkar would have turned in his grave at the way the power was taken away from the executive.
Apart from key bilateral issues, the two leaders also discussed situation in the region, particularly in wake of the increasing threat of terrorism and extremism from various sources including the Islamic State militant group.
Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan on Monday admitted that the planned series between the two nations in the United Arab Emirates in December is in 'real danger' and said that he plans to travel to India next month to discuss the issue.
The govt plans to seek Centre's help for a re-assessment by the World Bank.
Nepal's Cabinet on Monday passed a special resolution asking India to open the border entry points to ease supplies of essential goods like medicines, gas and petroleum to the landlocked country, reeling under acute shortage due to blockade of key trade points.
