Afghanistan is part of Modi's five-nation trip beginning June 4 which will also cover Qatar, Switzerland, the United States and Mexico.
'China's growing nexus with Pakistan and the two countries' unresolved territorial disputes with India continue to pose a formidable national security threat to India,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Profile of the Golden State Warriors, who beat the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday to win their second NBA championship in three seasons.
'How do we ensure that the unlocking, which is desperately needed for earning income and livelihood, will not create ugly spikes in the infection rates?' 'And if it does, what then?'asks Omkar Goswami.
In a two-hour exclusive interview with the Time magazine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi' tears up as he speaks about his "first inspiration", talks tough on terrorism and with pride reflects on his ambitions from India. Here are a few takeaways.
With incessant rains and the hot sun adding to the miseries of quake victims in Nepal, India on Thursday rushed 8,450 tents to its disaster-struck eastern neighbour.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are planning to work towards becoming 'financially independent'.
While the number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 6,039, as many as 515 people have been cured and discharged, and one had migrated, it said. The total number of cases include 71 foreign nationals.
In his address at the Plenary session of the 18th SCO summit in Qingdao, Modi coined an acronym 'SECURE' which he explained: 'S' for security for citizens, 'E' for economic development, 'C' for connectivity in the region, 'U' for unity, 'R' for respect of sovereignty and integrity, 'E' for environment protection.
'Like General Patton, possibly the greatest exponent of the art of war, Vajpayee had the ability to be always on the offensive,' assesses Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Currently, the Department of Agriculture runs two crop insurance schemes, one of which is weather-based.
While Mukherjee has received number of honorary degrees, it is first such honour accorded to him by a country.
The low fares will come with a discernible sea-change in service quality and minus the luxury which comes as an essential part of any long-haul travel
'The attacks made clear to all the Gulf States that Pakistan was the nursery and sanctuary of extremist violence and that this violence threatened all the countries in the region.'
Modi may take satisfaction from his display of considerable political skill in managing a mercurial, temperamental and unpredictable US president and nudging him into uncharacteristic restraint and even carefully orchestrated remarks. This personal chemistry will come in handy if Trump returns as president in the November elections, says former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
SAARC countries are facing common challenges and they should cooperate with each other to address them, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday, underlining that India is committed to reviving the grouping as a major forum to promote active regional collaboration.
'Having consumed thousands of the sickly sweet chenna globes of varying textures over the years, I must demur,' says Uttaran Das Gupta.
'The objective is not to make India into a one religion place, but to ensure that there is harmonious and peaceful co-existence of all faiths with each of them having their cultural personality.'
The judgment could impact not only Ramdev's widespread ayurveda and herbal products business, but also that of many other pharmaceutical, ayurveda, herbal and cosmetic product manufacturers.
Cyberspace is a battleground as important as the traditional domains of air, land, sea and space, says US Defence Secretary Ash Carter, who visits India next week.
'If there is lesser number of elections, populism will naturally be restricted.' 'Decisions will be taken speedily because there won't be the spectre of adverse electoral impact of the decisions because elections will be held once in five years or maximum two times in five years.'
The bogey of the 1962 defeat must be laid to rest with a finality that is unquestionable. The myth of Chinese invincibility is a tall tale that belongs to an era gone by, says Vivek Gumaste.
As someone with nostalgia for the good cheer and friendly feelings of Brazilian people, former Ambassador to Brazil B S Prakash can only hope that when they see on their TV screens their President being feted on Rajpath, they will sense India's goodwill for Brazil.
The Constitution amendment bill for roll-out of GST is pending in Rajya Sabha for a long time.
'Anything that is anti-growth is demonised because growth is the biggest religion.' 'Growth is synonymous with progress. In fact, it is the opposite.' 'Exponential growth is cancer.'
Behold the breathtaking winning and shortlisted images from one of the world's most prestigious photography contests. The amazing shots are from the open competition of the Sony World Photography Awards 2020, which received 193,000 entries from photographers in over 200 territories. Scroll down and feast your eyes on our pick of the shortlisted and category-winning entries.
Mumbai has fastest 4G speed, Ahmedabad most consistent, says wireless coverage mapping firm OpenSignal
In an Independence Day Special series, Rediff.com celebrates India through the lives of her people. Today: Dr Ruveda Salam, the first IPS officer from the Kashmir Valley.
'We demonise the Others.' 'We are constantly reminded that they are different and are an existential threat to Us.' 'The toxin of Nellie in 1983, Delhi in 1984 and Gujarat in 2002 is not yet flushed out of our body politic,' says Shreekant Sambrani.
Gandhi said India has been devastated by demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
'This confrontation could have been avoided by a less arrogant administration that initially listened, used whatever negotiating skills they had and tried to be more credible,' observes Ramesh Menon.
The victory in the assembly elections, the first in Telangana after its formation in June 2014, might well act as a springboard for the leader, often accused of perpetuating family rule and promoting nepotism, to realise his ambition of playing a greater role in national politics.
'A couple of Pulwamas will bring the two nations to war and it will be limited to J&K itself.'
Stunning images from the Underwater Photography competition
The manner in which assembly seats were distirbuted among Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh so far, has ensured that residents of the Valley rule the state forever, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
Jaitley said the geographical expansion of the BJP in Kerala, after Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in the South, and the 11 per cent vote share in West Bengal were 'important milestones'.
'Awareness should be raised; protocols and procedures, and reporting mechanisms must be put in place to protect both men and women in the workplace,' notes Jael Silliman.
The South African government and large pharmaceutical companies are in combat mode regarding the proposed national policy on intellectual property that hopes to improve access to medicines for the poorer sections of the population.
Travel bloggers Amrita Das and Rutavi Mehta list out their recommendations.
On its 250th birthday, the Survey of India will send 30 mountaineers, armed with the most modern equipment, to measure the height of Mount Everest.
