Mundane as it may seem, this is in some ways a metaphor for the challenges facing the nation, argue Arvind Subramanian and Devesh Kapur in their new book, A Sixth Of Humanity.
'You cannot 'clear' your way to peace.' 'You need intelligence, calibrated force, impartial law enforcement, political neutrality, humanitarian returns and a sustained reconciliation plan.'
'One Chinese interlocutor said India should realise that "China can do without India, but India could not do without China", pointing to its inability to do without Chinese intermediates and components,' former foreign secretary Shyam Saran discovers on a visit to China.
The Centre's new interlocutor for Naga peace talks, A K Mishra, has held an 'informal' meeting with the Working Committee of the Naga National Political Groups (NNPGs), the bloc said on Thursday.
'People's expectations were very high.' 'We felt both sides had understood each other.' 'But the removal of Article 370 triggered apprehensions within the Naga people.'
The government stated that Operation Sindoor was launched in response to a 'barbaric' attack by 'Pakistan-sponsored terrorists,' focusing on dismantling terror infrastructure and neutralizing terrorists likely to be sent across to India.
"I'm very glad you raised this, Ishaan. I didn't plant it. I promise you. This guy does this to his dad," Tharoor replied amid laughter from the audience.
In a post on X, Sherman said that he 'emphasised to the Pakistani delegation the importance of combatting terrorism, and in particular, the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, who murdered my constituent Daniel Pearl in 2002'.
The announcement came after Hamas consulted with other Palestinian factions. It precedes a planned visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington, where U.S. President Donald Trump is pushing for an end to the war, now in its 21st month, Al Jazeera reported.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday said his article on Operation Sindoor's global outreach was not a sign of his 'leaping to join' Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party but a statement of national unity, interest and standing up for India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's energy, dynamism and willingness to engage remains a 'prime asset' for India on the global stage but deserves greater backing, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said on Monday, in remarks that are likely to irk his party and widen the growing cracks in his ties with its leadership.
Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi told US Vice President JD Vance on May 9 that Indian response will be "more forceful, stronger, devastating" in response to Pakistani actions, the sources said.
All-party parliamentary delegations on Monday met with the leaders of several countries and highlighted India's resolve to combat terrorism, which they stressed must be eradicated in the interests of all humanity.
In a significant step towards restoring peace in Manipur, representatives of the warring Meitei and Kuki communities met face-to-face for the first time since ethnic violence erupted nearly two years ago. The meeting, facilitated by the Union Home Ministry, aimed to enhance trust and cooperation between the communities and find a roadmap to restore normalcy in the state.
The Nagaland cabinet has decided to meet both the NSCN-IM and the Government of India to push for a resolution to the Naga political dialogue. This comes after the NSCN-IM threatened to return to the jungles due to delays in the resolution, and demanded third-party intervention. The Nagaland cabinet will meet with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi to press for expediting the negotiations. The NSCN-IM has accused the Centre of refusing to honour key provisions of the Framework Agreement, specifically the recognition of the "Naga national flag and constitution." The state cabinet is also scheduled to meet with the NSCN-IM leadership before their trip to Delhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US Vice President JD Vance have expressed satisfaction with the progress made in negotiations for a bilateral trade agreement. The two leaders met in New Delhi and discussed a range of bilateral issues, including cooperation in energy, defense, strategic technologies, and other areas. They also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.
India needs another shot of difficult reform, of the kind only possible at gunpoint. Mr Trump holds that gun to our heads now. A drastic reduction in tariff protection, other elements of sarkari wet-nursing will force entrepreneurial India to become competitive again, argues Shekhar Gupta.
Putin is keen on establishing a good personal rapport with Trump and anchor a meaningful US-Russia partnership, realistic enough to accept that Trump is as good an American president as Russia would ever get, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
After the 1962 War with China, there was a demand to forge greater defence cooperation between India and the West. One such voice was that of Sudhir Ghosh, a distinguished MP, to tie up strategic cooperation with the USA immediately after the Chinese attack on India, recalls Rup Narayan Das.
Assam government on Thursday asked the Centre to appoint an interlocutor for peace talks with the anti-talk faction of National Democratic Front of Bodoland led by its jailed chairman Ranjan Daimary.
Around 20 MLAs belonging to the warring Meitei and Kuki communities of Manipur met in New Delhi on Tuesday for the first time since ethnic violence broke out in the northeastern state 17 months ago, in a bid to hammer out a peaceful solution to the ongoing conflict.
The government is likely to announce the names of interlocutors to begin the process of dialogue with all sections of people in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday and the chairman of the group will enjoy the rank of a Union Cabinet Minister.
'My one recommendation would be to first quell the violence and then encourage dialogue and build the trust among the different communities.' 'This is not easy but necessary, for violence cannot be the way forward.'
Chairman of the moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Moulvi Umar Farooq rejected the report saying 'it is wastage of time'.
'They only bring pieces. Dialogue is the only way forward.' 'We should get people who have influence to bring the community leaders to sit across the table and talk.' 'Otherwise, our adversaries across the borders will add fuel to the fire. Let's not give them a chance.'
"The group should not be of bureaucrats or retired officers but comprised of political persons having full knowledge of Jammu and Kashmir. The team should come with open mind and interact with people in Kashmir, Jammu, Leh and Kargil," Omar Abdullah said in the state assembly.
Militants in Jammu and Kashmir have expressed their willingness to present a "peace plan" during their meeting with the group of interlocutors appointed by the Centre, a move seen as "something important" by Dilip Padgaonkar, who led the three-member team.
'Everyone is unhappy with the lieutenant governor's administration, which is ignorant, high-handed, and inaccessible.'
The interlocutors on Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday submitted their report to Union Home Minister P Chidambaram after their maiden visit to the state, with their leader Dileep Padgaonkar saying he is "hopeful" of a solution of the issue but did not have a "magic formula".
The Centre on Monday extended the ceasefire agreements with three insurgent groups of Nagaland for one more year till April next year.
The road, which connects Noida to south east Delhi and further to Faridabad in Haryana, was closed for traffic in the wake of the anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protest at Shaheen Bagh since December 15.
'Das is friendly, but he finally does what he does. The quality of engagement is very good.'
The NSCN-IM, which resumed talks to find a solution to the decades-old Naga political issue after a gap of almost two years, said in a statement on Friday that the problem is "deeply rooted in India's malicious pleasure, violating the historical and political rights of the Naga people".
The NSCN-IM delegation, led by senior leader V S Atem, met interlocutor A K Mishra at an undisclosed location in the national capital.
The scaling up of the India-US strategic partnership to the level of non-NATO ally with defence deals, sharing and transfer of defence technology, interoperability, joint collaboration and joint production of defence equipment has exacerbated Moscow's anxiety, notes Rup Narayan Das.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Thursday pledged to stand with Israel in its "darkest hour" and welcomed the opening of a humanitarian corridor into Gaza as he held talks with the country's top leadership during his two-day visit to the Middle East aimed at preventing further escalation of conflict in the region.
While arithmetic political stability is a reality, the end result of politics in Maharashtra is hard to predict.
Former West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar's subsequent elevation set a new benchmark for the actions of those who occupy Raj Bhavans, observes Aditi Phadnis.
In a major setback to the efforts to woo the anti-talks faction of National Democratic Front of Bodoland led by Ranjan Daimary to dialogue with the government of India, the outfit has re-elected its 'National Council' dropping Daimary from the new panel.
Three weeks after Nagaland governor and Centre's interlocutor for Naga peace talks R N Ravi said in the assembly that political negotiations have concluded, the NSCN-IM has claimed that his assertion was "reckless" and talk are back on the table.
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