On location to cover the ongoing SAARC summit, Sheela Bhatt strolls through the valleys of this tranquil wonderland called Thimphu; and meets interesting personalities amidst ethereal surroundings.
Less than a year after their controversial engagement in Sharm-el-Sheikh, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani will meet in Thimphu on with little expectations of any breakthrough. The two leaders shook hands twice during the opening day of the SAARC Summit today and Singh is expected to convey India's strong demand for action by Pakistan against the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack to Gilani.
The two leaders, who will be present in Ufa to attend the SCO summit, will be meeting on the sidelines of it.
The government must create a National Technology Acquisition Fund to increase technology infusion in micro, small and medium enterprises.
Priced at $22.2 million, Hawker 4000 has redefined standards for business aviation.
China's profile as the South Asia's leading interlocutor highlights India's inability to lead its own sub-region. This is the stark message that the Indian establishment needs to cull from the Thimpu SAARC summit.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Wednesday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during meeting with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaj Sharif on September 29 in New York will obviously send 'some significant signals' to Islamabad about India's concerns on cross-border terrorism.
Pakistan agreed to a change in the format for future talks with India in return for New Delhi's consent to resume broad-based engagement with it, diplomatic sources said on Friday.
The reach of China in other South Asian states has been extraordinary. India's protectionist tendencies have allowed China to don the mantle of regional economic leader. The sooner Indian policy makers realise this and take steps to redress this the better, writes Harsh V Pant
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday emphasised the need for all political parties in Nepal to sink their differences and come together to push the peace process as he met his Nepalese counterpart Madhav Kumar Nepal.
India on Wednesday announced setting up of a fund that would help South Asia effectively meet urgent adaptation and capacity building needs posed by climate change and also proposed establishment of innovation centres in the region to develop sustainable energy technologies.
India supports "a fresh SAARC position on Climate Change for COP (Conference of Parties) 16 in accordance with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Chnage principles and the Bali Action Plan," External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said, addressing the SAARC Council of Ministers.
Sources in the Indian Intelligence Bureau told rediff.com that Madhuri Gupta, who was working in the press wing of the Indian High Commission in Pakistan, was passing on sensitive information to Pakistani intelligence agencies for kickbacks.
The SAARC summit on Interior/Home affairs had a cold start on Thursday when the Indo-Pak interior secretaries had miscommunication in their one on one meeting and the delegates failed to approve few key proposals to cooperate in the fields of police and immigration.
India has maintained that there can be no talks with Pakistan unless it stops supporting terrorists.
The Bangladeshi prime minister said that India's sudden decision to stop onion exports has led to a bit of difficulty for her countrymen.
Hours after an Indian court convicted Ajmal Kasab for involvement in the Mumbai attacks, Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday said his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh had told him that he trusted Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the carnage to justice.
Prime Minister Singh left on Friday morning for New Delhi from Paro International airport, about 60 km from Thimphu, the Bhutanese capital.
On the eve of a crucial meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani, the United States on Wednesday said that it encourages such development which is good for the region.
Pakistan's request for access to Kasab was contained in its response to the three Indian dossiers provided to it during the February 25 Foreign Secretary-level talks in New Delhi, official sources told PTI.
ISRO is focusing on more launches including that of a communication satellite from French Guiana next month.
This would be Karzai's first visit to India after his re-election as President. It assumes importance as it is taking place just before Karzai holds a Grand Jirga to reconcile with the so-called 'Good Taliban'.
'It is perplexing to see the leader of the First World with a first rate medical infrastructure come up short on its foresight to handle the pandemic,' notes Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).
Pakistan High Commissioner Shahid Malik today met Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and discussed the possibility of a bilateral meeting between Foreign Secretaries of the two countries on the sidelines of the SAARC ministerial meeting in Colombo this week.
Low-cost carrier SpiceJet Airlines, promoted by a group of investors led by the Kansagra family and Delhi-based Ajay Singh, is working on a plan to start international operations next year, making it the third private Indian carrier after Jet Airways and Kingfisher to fly overseas.
After India, Afghanistan was among three other countries which pulled out of the SAARC summit to be hosted by Pakistan.
The instructions followed monthly review of the progress of eight major infrastructure sectors -- Civil Aviation, Ports and Inland Waterways, Railways, Roads, Telecom, Power, Coal, and New and Renewable Energy.
The range will also be gradually introduced in South Korea, South Africa, the SAARC countries and the Middle East. "The developing infrastructure in India makes it possible for transporters to reap the benefits of trucks with higher power, speed and carrying capacity. The new range from Tata Motors will meet those needs and will help us penetrate international market more effectively and competitively," Tata Sons and Tata Motors Chairman Ratan Tata said.
As ever, this is the major factor holding Saarc back and neither of the two countries seems to have an initiative.
On the sidelines of the SCO visit in Ufa, the two heads met and decided to revive dialogue and find ways to expedite the trial of the Mumbai attacks.
'Like Nehru, too, Modi has found dealing with Beijing more and more difficult and has adopted an increasingly assertive approach towards managing India's northern neighbour.'
India's full membership of the grouping would extend its reach to the Central Asian region in whose peace and stability it is a major stakeholder, says Sana Hashmi.
In her maiden Independence Day address as Chief Minister, Mehbooba made an emotional appeal to the youth indulging in violence, telling them not to be misled by the "vested interests" who want to keep Kashmir burning, and prevent the beautiful valley from turning into another Syria or Afghanistan.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held talks with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif. Modi was accompanied by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh among others during the talks with Sharif, who arrived in New Delhi to attend Modi's swearing-in on Monday.
Even as India battles the COVID-19 threat on a war footing, it cannot lose sight of the threat building up in Kashmir, cautions Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
Modi's meeting with Dr Singh, totally unexpected and unique in all respects, will take place perhaps after Monday's swearing-in ceremony, and before his bilateral meeting with visiting Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday.
Terrorism is the biggest threat to South Asia's stability, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation summit on Saturday."Terrorists and extremists don't know borders. We must act with determination to fight terrorism. We cannot lose the battle against ideologies of hatred," said Dr Singh.Terrorism is expected to be one of the main topics of discussion during the three-day summit, which started today in Colombo.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to meet his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Reza Gilani on the sidelines of the 15th SAARC Summit in Colombo against the backdrop of a spurt in terrorist activities against Indian installations and infiltration across the Line of Control.
Pak warned of "appropriate action" if India violates the Indus Water Treaty and said it is closely monitoring the situation, amid reports that New Delhi may revisit the key water sharing accord.
The government and people of Pakistan extend their 'heartfelt condolences' to Vajpayee's family and to the government and people of India, the spokesman said.
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