A regular morning alive with the chatter of students assembling for prayers quickly turned into tragedy on Friday when a portion of their government school building collapsed, killing seven children and injuring 27, some of them critically.
India on Thursday said it expects the United States to consider visa applications of Indian students on merit amid growing concerns over the Trump administration halting new student visa interviews.
The first flight carrying 110 Indian students, who were evacuated to Armenia from war-torn Iran, landed in Delhi in the early hours on Thursday.
The speech he gave in which he accused the Congress of getting black money in tempos from Ambani and Adani is remarkable.' 'It is a self-goal for sure, but indicates someone who has lost control, someone who is rattled.'
Opposition parties in India, including the Congress, Left parties, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (SP), have unanimously hailed the armed forces' "Operation Sindoor", a retaliatory strike against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The operation, which involved missile and drone strikes, was conducted in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. Despite political differences, all parties expressed support for the government and the armed forces, stressing the importance of national unity and integrity in the face of terrorism. While emphasizing the need for diplomatic avenues to prevent further escalation, some parties also called for caution in attributing political credit for the strikes.
The opposition party's criticism came after the BJP hit out at the UPA government's approach in dealing with Pakistan.
GST 2.0 may cushion consumers against US tariffs, but like the 2019 corporate tax cut, it risks being another tactical fix rather than a structural growth strategy, expects Debashis Basu.
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi has criticized the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, calling it a 'brazen assault' on the Constitution and part of the BJP's strategy to keep society in a 'permanent state of polarization.' She also spoke out against the One Nation, One Election Bill, calling it a 'subversion of the Constitution.' Gandhi further accused the Modi government of ignoring the women's reservation bill and other demands for reservation, and of 'dragging the country into an abyss' where the Constitution will only exist on paper. She also criticized the government for limiting the speaking time of the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and for not allowing discussions on important issues like the working of the defense and external affairs ministries and the challenges posed by China on the border.
The External Affairs Ministry claimed that more than mere courtesies were exchanged between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China President Xi Jinping at Bali G20 Meet in November 2022.
At least 12 people died and 34 persons were injured in a pharma plant explosion in Sangareddy district of Telangana on Monday, State Minister Damodara Raja Narasimha said.
'The ruling elite are supporting those attacking the people of Gaza.' 'As a nation we should not cooperate with the oppressor regime that is allowing mass starvation as a weapon of war.'
For now, Modi's government appears singularly focussed on demonstrating that it is not in any way inhibited by the BJP's loss of a majority, and will continue along its patented path of bulldozing all opposition and doing just as it likes, asserts Prem Panicker.
'India's farmers will be unable to compete with the US, given the subsidies that the latter provides its farmers.'
Malik had served as the 18th governor of Goa between November 3, 2019, and August 18, 2020.
'It is important India to stay focussed on its primary national objectives: Combating terrorism; not losing sight of other security and strategic concerns (on the Sino-Indian front for instance); ensuring a strong economy and registering growth which includes improving the lot of common people; and finally making certain that the social fabric remains intact and harmony among people is not jeopardised, at least any further,' asserts Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
An Indian delegation led by the BJP's Ravi Shankar Prasad will tour key European capitals to expose Pakistan's role in cross-border terrorism and State-sponsored extremism.
India and the United States will be signing a new defence framework during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ongoing visit to the US, which will give a further fillip to the partnership between the two countries, a senior White House administration official said on Thursday.
No single individual, institution, or action is to blame for this. The BJP is responding in kind -- definitely not without checking with its government. And they wait for Mr Trump, notes Shekhar Gupta.
On June 26, for the likes of me, the music died. Any impression of potential change held forth by the outcome of the 2024 general election, was vaporised, reveals Shyam G Menon.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday came out strongly in defence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Arun Shourie's attack on his government and said he was a "fair weather friend" and could be having a "grouse" over not getting positions.
As an IAS officer in Kerala, Gyanesh Kumar -- who the Congress described as Amit Shah's 'right hand man' -- had a good working equation with the state's Congress and Left leaders.
US Vice President JD Vance called on India to drop non-tariff barriers, give greater access to its markets and buy more American energy products and military hardware. Vance, in a speech in Jaipur, highlighted the need for a stronger US-India partnership for a prosperous and peaceful 21st century. He emphasized the importance of working together to address global challenges and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, describing him as a "special person." Vance also urged India to provide greater market access to American products and buy more defense platforms and energy from the US. He suggested that India consider dropping some of the non-tariff barriers for American access to the Indian market and highlighted the benefits of closer India-US defense collaboration, advocating for New Delhi to procure more military hardware from the US. He cited the example of American fifth-generation F-35s, arguing they would give the Indian Air Force the ability to defend its airspace and protect its people like never before. Vance also welcomed the Modi government's budget announcement to amend India's civil nuclear liability laws, paving the way for US producers to export small modular reactors and build larger US-designed reactors in India. He emphasized the importance of energy security for India's AI ambitions, stating "there is no AI future without energy security and energy dominance." Vance's visit comes amid growing global concerns over the US's tariff war.
The Union health ministry is urging all ministries and departments to display 'oil and sugar boards' in common areas to raise awareness about hidden fats and sugars in everyday foods and promote healthier lifestyles.
'The Modi Model we see now is still the old Gujarat Model.' 'But with an acknowledgement that governing India is more challenging than governing Gujarat,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday apologised to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and those hurt by the collapse of the warrior king's statue in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district, an act coming in the backdrop of a huge row over the crash which provided ammunition to the opposition to target the Mahayuti government ahead of assembly polls.
It said a small group of Khalistani extremists are continuing to use Canada as a base for fundraising and planning of violence primarily in India.
The real intention of the 'Tariff Man' (as Trump calls himself) may not even be to put the 'Tariff King' (as he describes India) on the mat with a knockout punch but to arm-twist the Indian leadership to agree to some multi-billion dollar mega arms deal, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Former separatist leader Bilal Gani Lone criticizes the Hurriyat Conference for its irrelevance and Pakistan for creating problems in Jammu and Kashmir, urging a new approach for the region's future.
For UK automakers, market access to India will be limited by quantity caps and phased tariff cuts, especially on petrol, diesel and electric vehicles.
"We saw missiles in the sky and heard bombs in our neighbourhood... We were petrified," said MBBS student Mir Khalif, his voice still trembling with fear, as he stepped out of the Delhi airport after being evacuated from war-hit Iran under Operation Sindhu.
The prime minister took no names but made an apparent reference to reports about "rate card" for different government jobs in the Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal and prevalence of "cut money" in the state.
Eight persons were killed and five others rescued after several vehicles fell into a river following the collapse of a portion of a four-decade-old bridge in Gujarat's Vadodara district on Wednesday morning, police said.
Modi said that those who call themselves the biggest sympathisers of the backward communities are in reality their biggest enemies.
The BJP is the preferred choice because it offers what the Mughals and later British offered in their time: A stable polity and an environment in which business could function, explains T N Ninan.
For the first time, Modi is eyeball to eyeball with his bete noire, sitting a few feet across him. Given the last 10 years, a confrontation between them was unavoidable, inevitable, points out Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
'The BJP's numbers in this government are almost the same as those enjoyed by the Congress under P V Narasimha Rao when the reform process was kicked off in 1991.' 'As before, the only constraints on the prime minister's actions are internal, not external.' 'They come from his own assessment of the political consequences of any action,' points out Mihir S Sharma.
The term of the current 17th Lok Sabha ends on June 16.
'It was more than ego.' 'It carried with it a sincere belief that he was the quintessence of the country, that the country's destiny was irrevocably intertwined with his destiny.' An excerpt from T J S George's The Dismantling of India: In 35 Portraits.
'I don't know whether the top Gujarati leaders of Indian politics (Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah) in Delhi realise that the narrative of HindiHinduHindustan will eventually destroy their own language too.'
This State-corporate 'cooperation' didn't begin with the arrival of the Modi government.
Many of the big licences, contracts, and even environmental clearances for the Adani group had come in the UPA's time, points out Shekhar Gupta.
