Rohit's men start overwhelming favourites but Shaheen, rain pose threat
India's sprawling digital public infrastructure received a glowing endorsement from billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates on Wednesday as he praised the country's "great" digital network, reliable and low-cost connectivity, and said this will be the cheapest 5G market. Under the G20 presidency of India, a session on 'Building resilient and inclusive economies- the Promise of Digital Public Infrastructure' was held on Wednesday in New Delhi, where the Microsoft co-founder spoke of India's digital identity Aadhaar, its payment infrastructure, and rapid strides that the country has taken in bringing more people into formal banking system. "India in particular, by laying the groundwork for digital public infrastucture starting with identity system, allows people to build on top of that.
Khan, however, evaded a question on whether Pakistan has no control over the Taliban anymore.
The two leaders reaffirmed that the United States and India 'will take concerted action against all terrorist groups, including groups proscribed by the UNSCR 1267 Sanctions Committee'.
The two sides also inked four pacts to expand cooperation in areas of railways and energy.
Leaders of several opposition parties were stopped by the police at Vijay Chowk in New Delhi as they took out a protest march from Parliament House to hand over a complaint to the Enforcement Directorate on the Adani issue.
Nepal witnessed political turbulence in 2022 that dramatically turned rivals into allies and throned former guerrilla leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' as the prime minister for a third time, as Kathmandu made efforts to balance ties with immediate neighbours India and China with high-profile talks and visits.
As it winds down its retail bank in the country, American lender Citi on Tuesday said it will be hiring 80 bankers in India over the next three years for its commercial banking vertical. The move is part of a plan to hire 350 bankers in Citi Commercial Bank Asia Pacific over the next three years, as per a statement. As per reports, the bank, which had taken a decision to exit the retail banking business in most of the markets globally, is in advanced stage of selling the business in India, with Axis Bank leading the race.
The sentencing of Saeed came just four days ahead of a meeting of global anti-terror watchdog Financial Action Task Force in Paris to review Pakistan's compliance of an action plan prescribed by it to contain terror groups in the country.
On average, about 60 cases were filed by the agency in 2019 and 2020, officials said.
Aijaz Ahmad, presently based in Afghanistan, is one of the chief recruiters of Islamic State Jammu and Kashmir.
The resolution, drafted by France and Tunisia, 'demands a general and immediate cessation of hostilities in all situations on its agenda and supports the efforts undertaken by the Secretary-General and his Special Representatives and Special Envoys'.
Jaishankar, who presided over the UNSC Briefing: Global Counterterrorism Approach: Challenges and Way Forward, described terrorism as an existential threat to international peace and security and said it knows no borders, nationality, or race.
The Centre has also listed 24 bills, including the Cantonment Bill, the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill.
Foreign Direct Investment into India rose by 13 per cent in 2020, boosted by interest in the digital sector, and while fund flows "declined most strongly" in major economies such as the UK, the US and Russia due to the Covid-19 pandemic, India and China "bucked the trend", the UN has said.
India believes no country would emerge victorious in the Russia-Ukraine war as all will suffer losses and there will be a "more serious" impact on developing and poor countries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday after holding talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as both leaders reiterated the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will take the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor forward with new vigour, vitality and in a rejuvenated manner, ensuring the multifaceted development of the flagship project of China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, a top leader of the ruling PML-N has said.
The main elements of the programme are bilateral meetings with the US leadership, participation in the Quad Leaders' Summit, address at the UN General Assembly and business interactions.
The charge sheet has been filed in a case registered on November 7 last year, they said.
Describing China as its 'most important partner', the Afghan Taliban has said it looks to Beijing to rebuild Afghanistan and exploit its rich copper deposits as the war-ravaged country faces widespread hunger and fears of an economic collapse.
The United States has announced a bounty of $30 million for information leading to the location of five key leaders of the Haqqani militant network, held responsible for several attacks on civilians and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
'The digital age has forced diplomats to be less formal and more accessible, reaching out to ordinary people both within and outside their countries, combining statecraft with streetcraft,' says former foreign secretary Ambassador Shyam Saran.
A cross-border business plan competition will be launched to connect entrepreneurs from India, Pakistan and facilitate investment and collaboration.
Let's take a look at some of the most secretive economies in the world.
ISI chief Faiz Hameed coerced the Taliban to announce an interim government guaranteed to preserve Pakistan's control over the levers of power in Kabul, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Nearly two million e-mandates for recurring payments have been registered with banks and card networks after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made it mandatory from October 1 to take prior consent of a customer before debiting her account, sources in know of the matter said. Industry estimates peg the recurring transactions at approximately 2.5 per cent of the total volume of transactions, and about 1.5 per cent in terms of value. Of these, around 75 per cent of domestic recurring transactions, and about 85 per cent international recurring payments are below Rs 5,000.
Data localisation, an overarching theme across recent government policy proposals, has been a thorny issue with industry
The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to the Afghan Taliban and their allies, the Haqqani network.
Nepal PM said it maintain close ties with India, China while pursuing independent foreign policy.
The five-nation grouping BRICS on Tuesday resolved to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, and vowed to step up joint efforts in building support for an India-backed global framework to effectively deal with the menace.
One in five Indian students now prefer new and unconventional study destinations like Ireland, Turkey and Spain. The number of Indian students in Germany grew by 20.85 per cent in the winter semester to stand at over 25,000.
Following the closure of a crucial ground line of communication by Pakistan in retaliation to the death of its 24 soldiers in a NATO cross border fire, the use of Northern Distribution Network is costing US an additional $38 million per month, a US Senator has said.
India has said that terror groups like Lashkar-e-Tayiba do not "live on love and fresh air", expressing regret that they receive funds despite being slapped with sanctions by the United Nations, as the world body reaffirmed the need to cut the monetary lifeline of terrorists.
Specially designated global terrorist Sirajuddin Haqqani, who carries a reward of $10 million US bounty on his head, is the acting interior minister while his uncle -- Khalil Haqqani -- has been named as acting minister for refugees.
The award committee recognised his contribution to the growth of Indian and global economies, crediting 'Modinomics' for reducing social and economic disparity between the rich and the poor.
While the two leaders have met earlier when Biden was the Vice President of the country, this is for the first time that Biden will be meeting Modi after he became the 46th president of the US in January.
Modi, while addressing students at the Tsinghua University in Beijing, asserted that India and China face instability in their 'shared neighbourhood' that can threaten the security and slow down the economies of the two countries.
The Taliban had promised an 'inclusive' government that represents Afghanistan's complex ethnic makeup, but there is no Hazara member in the cabinet.
The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the federal economic snoop agency under the Union finance ministry, sent 289 legal requests to its counterparts across the globe during 2018-19 as compared to 177 in 2017-18 and 138 in 2016-17.
It also asked Pakistan to act tough on terror.
