The disbursement of the second tranche comes on a day when the International Monetary Fund is holding virtual discussions on Pakistan's upcoming budget, as the visit of its mission to Islamabad was delayed due to security concerns in the region.
A senior government official confirmed that after a meeting with other stakeholders, the decision has been taken and airlines and airport authorities have been informed about it.
The Border Security Force (BSF) has scaled down the retreat ceremony held at Attari, Hussainiwala and Sadki along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab following the Pahalgam terrorist attack. The BSF's Punjab frontier said it was suspending the symbolic handshake of the Indian guard commander with the counterpart and the border gates will remain closed during the ceremony. The move is seen as a response to the recent terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, in which 26 people were killed.
Shaken by the abrupt suspension of their previous match due to the India-Pakistan conflict, a struggling Delhi Capitals will look to regroup and address bowling concerns when they face table-toppers Gujarat Titans in a reverse-leg IPL clash in Delhi on Sunday to keep their play-off hopes alive.
Pakistan have sealed their spot in the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2025 after a flawless campaign in the Qualifiers - but their participation has already stirred controversy.
Pakistani drones were intercepted by Indian air defence in Jaisalmer. Explosions were heard and flashes seen in the sky.
'Will this near-war, India's strongest military response so far, buy India another seven years of deterrence?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
The Border Security Force (BSF) has lodged a protest with Pakistan Rangers after a BSF jawan was apprehended by the Rangers last week after he mistakenly crossed the international border in Punjab. The incident comes amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack.
'Pakistan is economically very weak and will not be able to sustain a war for long.'
India has accused Pakistan of breaching an understanding reached earlier on Saturday to stop military actions. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said there have been repeated violations of the understanding since the evening, and that the Indian armed forces are giving an appropriate response.
UN Secretary-General Antnio Guterres expressed concern over the heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, calling for maximum restraint and urging both countries to step back from the brink. Guterres offered his "good offices" to both governments in the service of peace and condemned the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, emphasizing the need to bring those responsible to justice. He also stressed that a military confrontation would be detrimental and could easily spin out of control. His remarks came hours before a closed consultation of the UN Security Council on the matter, requested by Pakistan. The UN Secretary-General highlighted the need for de-escalation, diplomacy, and a renewed commitment to peace.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called on "brotherly" countries, including Saudi Arabia, to urge India to de-escalate tensions after the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Sharif met with ambassadors from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Kuwait, reiterating Pakistan's commitment to peace in South Asia. He rejected India's accusations linking Pakistan to the attack, emphasizing Pakistan's own history as a victim of terrorism. The meeting comes amidst heightened tensions between the two countries.
'Fears in Washington began to intensify when it was realised that subsequent Pakistani and Indian attacks on major military facilities -- which were significant in terms of geographic scope and intensity -- could rapidly take both sides to where neither actually wanted to go.' 'The US objective was to stop the fighting as soon as possible. Everything else was secondary.'
'India has gone some way to meeting its objectives because it has established a deterrent value that Pakistan will have to take into account when it plans future terrorist attacks.'
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who faced trolling on social media in the wake of India and Pakistan reaching an understanding on May 10 to halt all military actions, has received support from veteran diplomat Nirupama Menon Rao, a body of Indian diplomats and a host of politicians from several parties.
As has been the case with ICC events, India and Pakistan have been clubbed in the same group which also has New Zealand and Bangladesh.
30% of Indian employees report experiencing daily stress in their workplace. This high stress level is compounded by anger, with 34% of Indian employees experiencing daily anger at work -- a figure significantly higher than many other countries.
'...by saying since you have come say everything against your party.'
India's strikes on Pakistan damaged runways and structures across at least six airfields, according to a visual analysis by The Washington Post, which experts said were the most significant attacks of their kind in decades of simmering conflict between the two nations.
'They thought nobody would hit Bahawalpur and Muridke because they have nuclear weapons.' 'They used to think India cannot touch our military targets because we are a nuclear weapons country.' 'After Operation Sindoor we have called their bluff.'
Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro and ICICI Bank were also among the Sensex gainers. HCL Tech, UltraTech Cement, Nestle and Hindustan Unilever were among the laggards.
Fascinating numbers from the India-Pakistan iconic cricket rivalry.
Shah, the son of India's Home Minister Amit Shah, will have his task cut out as the ICC looks to find an acceptable solution to implement the 'Hybrid Model' for the Champions Trophy originally scheduled in Pakistan.
'We are too important to want to be paired with Pakistan but too intensely connected to it to successfully detach ourselves,' asserts Aakar Patel.
'India's letter to Pakistan on April 24 (2025; two days after the Pahalgam terrorist attack) didn't tear up the treaty -- but it did put it on ice.'
'Every decision India makes along the LoC, it must also consider implications along the LAC.'
Pakistan was waiting for an opportunity to bring the Jammu and Kashmir issue to the global agenda and resorted to the terrorism route to provoke India, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Terrorism and insurgency in J&K had subsided when India demolished East Pakistan -- for the simple reason that Pakistan understands power. We need to follow Chanakya's dictum of Saam, Daam, Dand, Bhed for strategising against Pakistan, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd). The ground truth is that unless we are prepared to acknowledge our shortcomings, including massive intelligence failures, punish those responsible and take corrective actions, we will continue in the same vein, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd).
'India enjoys conventional superiority, but nuclear deterrence imposes clear boundaries.'
'Surgical strikes or air strikes, or both, are likely on the table.'
An ardent cricket fan told me he was 118,000th in the queue, and within minutes, he received the disappointing news that his hopes of securing a ticket had vanished with all tickets sold out.
'Everyone with a low BMI will not get Type 5 diabetes.'
'Even known names and social media handles went berserk by stating that Karachi has been attacked and an F-16 was shot down.'
Rohit Sharma's career has been a mix of brilliant moments and inconsistencies. While his Test record may not be impressive, his white-ball dominance and leadership qualities make him a legend.
'It is typical of China's strategic deception of making virtue out of necessity,' observes Rup Narayan Das.
Here's a look at the biggest disappointments of IPL 2025 -- the players who've cost crores but delivered crumbs.
India has slammed Pakistan at the United Nations, accusing the country of illegally occupying the territory of Jammu and Kashmir and demanding its immediate vacation. India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, made these remarks during a UN Security Council Open Debate on Advancing Adaptability in UN Peace Operations. He asserted that Jammu and Kashmir was, is, and will always be an integral part of India. Harish's statement came after Pakistan raised the issue of Jammu and Kashmir during the UNSC open debate, prompting a strong retort from India. He further stated that Pakistan's repeated references to the issue neither validate their illegal claims nor justify their state-sponsored cross-border terrorism. India, however, said it will refrain from exercising a more elaborate Right of Reply, suggesting a measured approach to the situation. Relations between India and Pakistan have been strained since India abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution in 2019, revoking Jammu and Kashmir's special status.
'Had Haji Pir and/or Skardu been taken, the message would have gone out not just to General Asim Munir and his cohort in the Pakistan army but to the Pakistani people that every terrorist incident in India would lead to substantial loss of territory in PoK.'
Authorities in Kashmir have launched a massive crackdown on terrorists and their sympathisers in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, razing homes of the ultras, raiding their safe havens and detaining hundreds of overground workers for questioning, officials said on Saturday.
It has been 18 years since arch-rivals India and Pakistan have locked horns in a bilateral hockey Test series.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances