'If the Chinese intent is to be gauged based on its aggression in the South China Sea, greater forays in the Indian Ocean, a hawk's attitude towards Taiwan, flying its fighters repeatedly over the Senkaku islands in the East China Sea and creating strategic assets globally, there would be a requirement for strategic partnerships for India,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
'This Budget has a one-year agenda, which you can call the sprint, and the marathon is towards Viksit Bharat.'
Sonia Gandhi has criticised the Modi government's silence on the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader, arguing it raises doubts about India's foreign policy direction and credibility.
'For those in for the long haul, this is a God-given opportunity.' 'Your market is falling despite strong fundamentals, and such a clear roadmap has been announced.'
'Some success has been achieved in raising the costs of terrorism for Pakistan.'
'China's opaque defence allocation processes are shrouded in mystery and have triggered security dilemmas among its neighbours and others,' notes China expert Srikanth Kondapalli.
Stock market is gearing up for an eventful week ahead where key triggers such as quarterly earnings from corporates, the US Fed interest rate decision and the upcoming Union Budget for 2026-27 would grab the limelight, analysts said.
Rijiju, however, did not specify when and who will give notice for privilege motion against Gandhi. It is believed that someone from treasury benches in the Lok Sabha will do so.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has accused Congress MPs of abusing Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla in his chamber, alleging that senior Congress leaders were present and encouraging the behavior. The accusation follows days of disruptions in the Lok Sabha over Rahul Gandhi's attempt to discuss excerpts from a former Army chief's unpublished memoir.
China hiked its annual defence budget by 7.1 per cent.
The government rejected the opposition's demands for discussions on the VB-G RAM G Act and the SIR in the Budget session of Parliament, stating that the issues had already been debated.
India fully utilised its military modernisation budget in 2024-2025 -- the first time in five years -- and signed a record Rs 2 trillion defence contracts.
Rs 193,407 crore provision made for defence services in 2012-13.
China on Friday hiked its defence budget to $209 billion, maintaining a single-digit growth for the sixth consecutive year with a 6.8 per cent increase in 2021.
Delhi Police are investigating the alleged leak of General M M Naravane's unpublished memoir, questioning Penguin India representatives and probing potential coordinated efforts to bypass defense ministry clearances.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleges he was prevented from quoting from former army chief MM Naravane's book in Parliament, claiming it criticizes PM Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's handling of the 2020 conflict with China.
China last year pegged its defence budget at 1.45 trillion yuan, a 7.1 per cent increase. This year the defence spending is increased to 1.55 trillion yuan.
The outlay for defence sector almost remained unchanged compared to what was allocated in the interim budget on February 1.
The House has been witnessing uproar after Rahul Gandhi was disallowed to cite an article based on excerpts from an unpublished 'memoir' of former Army chief General M M Naravane (retd).
China is the second largest spender on defence after the US. T
Ajit Pawar, who was the finance and planning minister, would have tabled his budget for 2026-27 next month when the state legislature's budget session begins in Mumbai on February 23.
Expressing determination to eliminate "all delays" in modernisation of the armed forces, the government on Thursday hiked the defence budget by a whopping 23 per cent to Rs 77,000 crore as against the revised estimates of Rs 63,000 crore.
When Gandhi started quoting the from unpublished book, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh questioned as to how material which is not published can be cited in the House.
Rahul Gandhi said that had an INDIA Bloc government negotiated the trade agreement with the US, it would have told US President Donald Trump that he should treat India as an equal.
While many areas compete for resources, defence, education, and adaptation deserve focus for maximum impact, suggests Laveesh Bhandari.
Amid disruptions in the Lok Sabha, opposition parties are protesting the denial of speaking rights to the Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, during discussions on the President's address. The Congress party draws parallels to a similar incident in 2004 when then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was prevented from speaking.
The Madras High Court has raised concerns about actor Vijay's film 'Jana Nayagan', citing references to foreign powers creating conflict in India and potential communal disharmony. The court has set aside an order to grant the film a censor certificate, pending further review.
The Pakistani government has allocated an additional amount of Rs 35 billion for the defence budget for 2009-10 claiming expenses on anti-militancy operations and the need to acquire modern equipment to counter a perceived threat from India, according to a media report.
Just ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's reply to the debate on Motion of Thanks on the President's Address, the Chair adjourned the House for the day soon after it reassembled at 5 pm.
'The tools of warfare are changing. The MoD must deepen its engagement with technology thinkers that can present compelling visions of where warfare may be heading.'
The State Council, China's cabinet, has proposed the country's top legislature approve a 247.7 billion yuan (29.98 billion US dollars) national defence budget for 2005, a hike of over 12 per cent.
This is the second-worst performance by the pack during this period over the last five years since CY20.
Unimaginative increments, persistent refusal of funds have turned the military into an underfed child scared to ask for a full meal.
'People become guided by emotions, fear of missing out, and greed. They tend to invest in booming sectors that may prove exceptionally expensive.' 'Typically, that represents the peak, and subsequently, they lose substantially.'
The govt hiked defence budget by 7.81 per cent over last year's Rs 2.74 lakh crore.
The capital outlay to cover the modernisation programmes have got a hike of 10.05 per cent.
Gandhi held up Naravane's unpublished "memoir" and said he would like the youngsters in India to know that this 'book' exists despite the government claiming otherwise.
The hike in the budget is the lowest increment in recent years apparently due to the heavy disruption caused to its economy by the COVID-19, according to the official media.
'The first and most basic responsibility of any government is to protect its people from external threats and internal harm.' 'Budget 2025-2026 has to focus on meeting this responsibility,' asserts R Jagannathan.
Top Pentagon leaders have warned US lawmakers against including their "pet projects" in the annual defence budget, particularly at a time when it is struggling to save money in view of the tough economic environment.
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