It will be interesting to see what shifts have been recorded in the last decade-and-a-half -- from the effects of demonetisation and Covid's second wave to the drop in fertility and increase in farm workers -- but we will only know this if and when the Census is conducted, points out Aakar Patel.
However, copious oil supplies amid growing global output and slowing Chinese oil consumption will put India in a better bargaining position with Gulf suppliers.
India's imports of crude oil from Russia touched a new high of 1.64 million barrels per day in March and is now double of the purchases from Iraq - the nation's traditional top oil supplier. But the purchases appear to have plateaued as growth has slowed. Russia continued to be the single largest supplier of crude oil, which is converted into petrol and diesel at refineries, for a sixth straight month by supplying more than one-third of all oil India imported, according to energy cargo tracker Vortexa.
Standing at the edge of Dholavira is witnessing history textbooks crammed in school coming to life. One is suddenly standing face to face with a 4,000-year-old civilisational site that is now but a ruin.
It was good fortune for India to have Atal Bihari Vajpayee lead the government at a crucial moment in our history. He avoided India meeting the fate of Iraq or Ukraine, asserts military historian Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
China was India's top import source with $65.89 billion, a 9.8 per cent year-on-year increase, worth of inbound shipments during the April-October period of this fiscal, according to the commerce ministry data. Exports to China, however, dipped by 9.37 per cent to $8 billion. During the period, the US emerged as the top export destination for the country with outbound shipments increasing by 6.31 per cent to $47.24 billion.
A resurgence in Saudi Arabian supplies of crude oil to India coupled with an attack on an Iraqi tanker in August carrying crude to Europe may result in improved bargaining power for India with West Asian and Russian suppliers for winter supplies. Shipments of Saudi oil rebounded in September from August, surging to the highest since March while Russian oil shipments rose marginally as Saudi Arabia tried to claw back market share in Asia, according to industry sources and ship tracking data.
Rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani addressed Syrians at the Ummayad mosque in Damascus after Bashar al-Assad resigned as president and fled Syria, December 8, 2024.
A year after a Hamas attack against Israel on October 7 and the ensuing Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, India's trade with most West Asian countries has largely escaped any major disruption, except with countries like Israel, Lebanon, and Jordan. However, repeated flare-ups of geopolitical tensions in the region continue to drive up shipping and logistics costs.
Flights from Delhi or Bengaluru, while they may still fly over Iran, depending on the route, have alternative paths that may take them through Central Asia or northern routes.
The head of Syria's main opposition group abroad Hadi al-Bahra Syrian said that Damascus is now "without Bashar al-Assad" according to Reuters.
Japan's march to the 2026 World Cup continued on Tuesday as Hajime Moriyasu's side handed China a 3-1 defeat in Xiamen while Iran eked out a late 3-2 win over Kyrgyzstan and South Korea were held to a 1-1 draw by Palestine.
'Trump has no more elections to fight and his soaring ambition, which is no secret, will be to carve out a presidential legacy that outshines by far all his mediocre predecessors.' 'Trump's turnaround on the H-1B visa debate shows that he can take tough decisions and there are no holy cows in his domain,' asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
A four-term Congresswoman, 2020 presidential candidate and NYT bestselling author, Gabbard is a veteran with three deployments to war zones in the Middle East and Africa. She recently moved from being a Democrat to a Republican member.
It said a "sudden rise" in terrorist-financing investigations was seen in 2023 and this was attributed to events arising out of incidents in Manipur that led to such probes in more than 50 cases.
The fall of the Assad regime that brutalised, tortured and killed thousands of innocent Syrians over the past half a century is a historic opportunity for the people of the country, outgoing United States President Joe Biden said on Sunday.
Hosts France secured a second straight victory as Kiliann Sildillia struck for a 1-0 success over Guinea, while Spain and Japan reached the quarter-finals in the second matchday of the men's Olympic soccer tournament on Saturday.
Exports to eight out of India's top 10 destinations, including the Netherlands, the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK), witnessed positive growth during the first six months of FY25, despite muted global demand amid geopolitical challenges, commerce department data showed.
Lt Gen Ghai said as for the process of documenting these weapons and informing those who need to know about them, "that is definitely continuing, and I can definitely authenticate that".
President-elect Donald Trump announced a slate of key Cabinet nominations, including tapping former Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as his Secretary of Health and Human Services and former Congressman Doug Collins of Georgia as Secretary for Veterans Affairs. Trump also named Jay Clayton as US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Todd Blanche as Deputy Attorney General, and Dean John Sauer as Solicitor General of the United States.
In days of smart, networked technology and no shame over collateral damage, what will blow up next -- cars, mobile phones, TV sets, refrigerators? And where?, asks Shyam G Menon.
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka has decided to temporarily shut its embassies in Norway and Iraq, as well as the country's consulate general in Sydney, the ministry of foreign affairs said on Tuesday.
United States President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the nomination of popular Fox News host and Army veteran Pete Hegseth, 44, as his defence secretary.
'Even now, investors are not bothered about the war but are more concerned whether it will remain localised or not.' 'In case things are contained, markets can stage a bounce back in the next few days.'
Rongali, who had won a silver in the Asian Para Games last year in China, produced a personal best of 10.63m but that was enough for a fifth-place finish in a top-class field.
A substantial deposit of petroleum and natural gas has been discovered in Pakistan's territorial waters, a cache so large its exploitation could change the country's destiny, according to a media report. A three-year survey was undertaken in collaboration with a friendly country to verify the presence of the oil and gas reserves, DawnNewsTV quoted a senior security official as saying on Friday.
An Indian national was among six people killed in a rare shooting attack by Islamic State militant group near a Shia Muslim mosque in Oman's capital.
Khamenei, who has the last word on all state matters and is also the commander in chief of the armed forces, instructed military commanders from the Revolutionary Guards and the army to prepare plans for both an attack and a defence in case the war expands and Israel or the US strike Iran, the officials said.
Savings for Indian refiners from purchasing Russian oil have decreased to a third of what they were in the years following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which triggered global crises, sanctions, and discounted Russian oil seeking buyers. Despite this, savings from importing cheap Russian oil were significant enough to help Indian refiners tide over frozen petrol and diesel pump prices.
The medals tally at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, led the prayers at assassinated Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's funeral in Tehran, on August 1, 2024, a rare honour for someone who is not Iranian.
The United States had received intelligence from a human source about an Iranian plot to kill Donald Trump weeks before the assassination attempt against the former US President on Saturday, according to national security officials.
It said two of the key accused were Islamic State of Iraq and Syria radicals, who used fraudulently obtained "Indian SIM cards and Indian bank accounts" besides "various Indian and Bangladeshi Identity documents downloaded from the dark web (which is accessible only through specialised browsers) in carrying out their nefarious activities.
The NIA had originally chargesheeted three persons in March 2023 and filed its supplementary chargesheet before the special court at Patiala House in New Delhi on Monday against 17 others, of whom 15 are from Maharashtra and one each from Uttarakhand and Haryana, it said.
At least 11 people were killed and 35 others injured in the accident in Balochistan province, over 100 km from Karachi.
'He is convinced that this will help him in the next election.' 'But as we know, the best laid plans of mice and men can go awry.'
The 20-year-old arrested accused, Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, allegedly planned a terrorist attack in New York City around October 7 "with the intent of slaughtering in the name of ISIS, as many Jewish people as possible," attorney general Merrick B Garland said, as per the statement.
Introducing Vance, a junior United States senator from Ohio, to their fellow Americans, Usha described the love and affection of her husband.
'...or go to jail.' 'The government is getting them silenced.'
Boxing's already uncertain Olympic future was thrown into further jeopardy after the sport's Asian governing body voted against leaving the suspended International Boxing Association (IBA) to join the rival association.
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