For weeks, the war skirted the edge of catastrophe without tipping over. Missiles flew, there was much destruction, commanders were assassinated, cities across the Gulf and even in Israel struggled to absorb the shock. But one line held: Energy infrastructure, the arteries of the global economy, remained largely untouched. That is no longer true. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Fight on toward goals that keep receding, or exit with most objectives unmet. Trump is agitated, his poll numbers falling below the Plimsoll line, his base fractured between those who back the war and those who remember that he campaigned on ending them.
What we are watching is something different: A fog manufactured and maintained by the people who started the war, so that the question of why it was started never has to be answered, observes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the war in the Middle East.
Larsen & Toubro Ltd (L&T) is deepening its push into data centres and defence manufacturing while keeping an eye on emerging opportunities in nuclear and thermal power, chairman and managing director SN Subrahmanyan said. The engineering and construction conglomerate has invested around Rs 2,200 crore in data centres, with 32 megawatts (Mw) already operational.
Despite four disarmament section talks and six strategic dialogues between the two foreign ministries, China's intransigence on recognising Indian nuclear status resulted in no confidence building measures in the nuclear field between the two, says Srikanth Kondapalli.
The purge in Washington does not pause the war. Strikes continue, Hormuz remains closed, and Brent crude is still dancing around $109 a barrel. For India, the command chaos in the Pentagon is another layer of uncertainty piled on five weeks of conflict that was already straining every buffer Delhi has.
Citing the example of the Tarapore nuclear plant facing acute shortage of nuclear feedstock, the minister said we need an assurance from the west that it will not put impediments on the way to supply fuel to India.
The country is planning to increase its nuclear power generation by about 60,000 mega watts (Mw) within the next 25 years. This planned capacity addition is being executed by the state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL). Its head, Chairman and Managing Director SK Jain, tells P B Jayakumar about his plans and expectations.
Israel and the United States had a plan. Iran punched back. And now the Gulf is reeling, the world is beginning to feel the pain and, as on date, no one in Washington or Tel Aviv appears willing to admit that the punch has landed, notes Prem Panicker, continuing his must-read blog on the war in the Middle East.
To investigate the Kaiga episode, we need a truly independent committee, composed of external experts, radiation biologists, safety specialists and representatives of workers and citizens liable to be affected by nuclear mishaps.
AAERB's permission for RAPP-7 paves the way for the subsequent phases of reactor commissioning leading to its commercial electricity generation.
Iran is fighting a different war: Older, slower, and in some ways more dangerous. Iran doesn't need to shoot down an F/A-18. It only needs to make the Strait of Hormuz feel dangerous long enough for insurance markets, shipping companies, and oil futures traders to do the rest. Prem Panicker continues his must-read daily blog on the war in the Middle East.
60 years ago, on January 24, 1966, Dr Homi J Bhabha, the father of India's nuclear programme, died in an air crash on Mont Blanc. The official inquiry said the plane went off course in bad weather, but coincidences, missing evidence, and later unproven claims have kept conspiracy theories alive. A fascinating excerpt from Bakhtiar Dadabhoy's book, Homi J Bhabha: A Life.
The slow-moving disaster at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan that is spreading a cloud of anxiety across the world has forced most nations to either suspend or review their nuclear power programmes, but not India.
Budget 2026 sticks to fiscal discipline, shuns populist measures despite five key state elections coming up, but ends up rattling stock markets with a higher transaction tax on derivatives trading.
One key development is the direct cargo connection between Chennai and Vladivostok, a crucial Russian port on the Northern Sea Route.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Skyroot's Infinity Campus, highlighting government reforms and the rise of private space companies in India. He also unveiled the company's first orbital rocket, Vikram-I.
The Indian government is dealing with the matter having in mind the national interests of this country in the first place, he said.
As Japan's earthquake and tsunami triggers the global nuclear industry's worst crisis, it is time for India to rethink it ambitious nuclear power programme, says Praful Bidwai
India's second nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine was commissioned into the Navy on Thursday in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh who said this will further strengthen the country's nuclear triad and enhance nuclear deterrence.
'Some success has been achieved in raising the costs of terrorism for Pakistan.'
Anti-nuclear activist S P Udayakumar has sent a legal notice to the Union home ministry seeking action against an official for allegedly defaming him by "leaking" a secret report recently.
'The RSS, that advocated military strength, remained in the ideological doghouse for over half a century. Many of the RSS' responses even today carry the burden of this past,' points out Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
While nuclear engineers cheer KNPP's first full operation, on nine other sites which house atomic reactors, scientists spend sleepless nights.
Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed optimism about Russia-US relations, citing potential cooperation in the Arctic and Alaska. He acknowledged the current low level of relations but sees improvement with President Trump's administration. Putin also emphasized the importance of Russia's sovereignty and the role of its nuclear industry.
'4 lakh to 5 lakh people graduating in computer science getting jobs in software companies will not happen.'
The crises of the 21st century, 9/11, the economic meltdown, COVID-19, Russia-Iran war and the Hamas-Israel war seem to be never ending. In this situation, Iran might be contemplating a nuclear deterrent to defend itself, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan, the distinguished long-time Rediff contributor who turns 80 on June 17..
'The heat shield technology for re-entry vehicles was first mastered in DRDO for the Agni missile.' 'This is why the Americans were so opposed to Agni in the 1980s, unlike other missiles -- it was a re-entry vehicle.'
Although the credit for acquiring the technological skill must be given to India's outstanding nuclear scientists, the decision to go nuclear was a political one that entailed clarity of vision, courage and resolve, points out Rup Narayan Das.
'He was deeply committed to nurturing young talent and encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration.'
Trump's remarks came a day after the US launched Operation Midnight Hammer, targeting three of Iran's key nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.
Veteran atomic scientist and former chairman of Atomic Energy Commission Dr Sekhar Basu succumbed to Covid-19 early on Thursday at a private hospital in Koklata, a health department official said. He breathed his last just three days after turning 68.
India will publish its revised Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the 2035 period by December, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said on Monday, while urging developed nations to achieve net zero targets ahead of their current timelines.
The status of the current submarine force level is alarming and we need to address the threat perceptions expeditiously. Critical decisions pertaining to national security cannot be delayed any further due to the rapidly changing maritime threat perceptions and growing strategic importance of the Indian Ocean region, asserts Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The Pakistan government, as well as the country's military establishment, have come under severe criticism from netizens on social media for recommending United States President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
China's official media on Sunday criticised United States bomb attacks on Iranian nuclear sites as a further step toward the abyss, while experts in Beijing said the American bunker-buster bombs used in strikes may not be enough to destroy Iran's nuclear plants hidden deep underground.
The prime minister made it clear that no constraint had been placed on India's right to construct new facilities for strategic purposes.
The move by Westinghouse, which is to build six reactors in India under the Indo-US civil nuclear deal inked in 2008, has raised uncertainties over the future of the implementation of the historic pact.
Pakistan has alleged that India was pursuing conventional, nuclear and missile development programmes which can lead to nuclearisation of the Indian Ocean and can disturb the "balance of power" in the region.
Terrorism is a global menace to be addressed by humanity in unison was the all-party delegation's message to Algeria as it concluded its visit to the North African country on Sunday.
