Two interviews of Opposition leaders were taken off air, another one was cancelled at the last minute In recent weeks, Pakistan has seen interviews of two high-profile Opposition leaders being taken off air, raising fears of growing censorship of media by the government. After former President Asif Ali Zardari’s interview …
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India hands over 250 homes for Rohingya
According to a senior official involved in the disbursement, the Myanmar government has also handed over a list of 21 other projects that it wants India to fund as part of the agreement, including the construction of small villages, culverts and school buildings. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya, mostly Muslim, …
Read More »Modi, Xi to balance ties on the Ganga
A boat ride likely to be included in summit schedule, which is yet to be finalised The details of the second informal summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi in Varanasi, the Prime Minister’s Lok Sabha constituency, are yet to be finalised. A boat ride by the two …
Read More »No Chinese intrusion: Rawat
Clarifies that a few Chinese had only come to witness a local festival in Ladakh There was no transgression by China in the Demchok sector in Ladakh recently when banners were waved during a local festival on the Indian side along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the Chief of …
Read More »A call for heritage status for artefacts on moon
Includes 3 rovers, 6 U.S. flags, probes Three rovers, six U.S. flags, dozens of probes that either landed successfully or crashed, tools, cameras and trash: the Moon is dotted with hundreds of objects as a result of space exploration. Some experts are calling to grant them heritage status to protect …
Read More »U.S. will consider ‘301 probe’ on India, says trade official
The U.S. will consider a “301 investigation”, a probe employed as a precursor to tariffs and other trade measures against a country, against India if the trade issues between the two countries are not resolved quickly, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jeffrey Gerrish said on Thursday. Mr. Gerrish also said …
Read More »Russia’s top missile system has many buyers
The Russian Army began using the S-400 missile defence systems, designed to intercept and shoot down any threat from the sky, in 2007. According to its producer, the state-owned Almaz-Antey company, it has a range of 400 km and can be deployed within just five minutes. It consists of several …
Read More »China to impose sanctions on U.S. firms for Taiwan arms sale
$2.2 billion deal violates international law, says Beijing China on Friday said it would impose sanctions on U.S. companies involved in a potential arms sale worth $2.2 billion to self-ruled Taiwan — a move that has infuriated Beijing. “The U.S. arms sale to Taiwan has severely violated the basic norms …
Read More »South China Sea agreement should be binding: Vietnamese envoy
China-U.S. confrontation has made the situation more “complex and unpredictable”, he says[Or]Code under negotiation between ASEAN and China should be binding, he says SCS agreement should be binding, says envoy The China-U.S. confrontation has made the situation in the South China Sea (SCS) more “complex and unpredictable,” said Vietnamese envoy …
Read More »No discriminatory decision will be taken while preparing RIIN: Nagaland govt
RIIN won’t discriminate: Nagaland government The Nagaland government has said it will not take any decision that is discriminatory or goes against the interest of people or any community while preparing the Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland (RIIN). The government assured the people that it would not take any …
Read More »Central Universities Bill passed by LS
Central university and tribal university proposed in Andhra Pradesh Central Universities Bill passed by Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha on Friday passed the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2019, with Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal, who introduced the Bill, stating that preparations were on for filling vacancies in the next …
Read More »Pak. asks India to pull back its fighter jets
Pakistan has told India that it will not open its airspace for commercial flights until New Delhi removes its fighter jets from forward bases, Pakistan’s Aviation Secretary Shahrukh Nusrat has informed a parliamentary committee. And for the fifth time, it extended the ban till July 26, its civil aviation authority …
Read More »India, U.S. teams hold talks on trade ties
Enhanced engagement discussed Commerce Ministry officials on Friday met trade officials from the U.S. and discussed ways to improve trade relations been the two countries. “A delegation led by Assistant United States Trade Representative (AUSTR) Christopher Wilson visited India on July 11-12 to explore potential for enhanced bilateral trade and …
Read More »Govt. in a spot over Bill seeking quota in RS
YSR Congress MP stages walkout The government on Friday was caught in an embarrassing position as the entire Opposition backed YSR Congress MP Vijaya Sai Reddy’s private member’s Bill seeking reservations for the Other Backward Classes in the Rajya Sabha and the Assemblies on the lines of the reservations available …
Read More »Poetry in Muslim ‘dialect’ kicks up a storm in Assam
It allegedly portrays the Assamese as xenophobic A group of people accused of portraying the Assamese as xenophobic through poetry, in a dialect associated with Bengal-origin Muslims, has asserted that controversy was being manufactured at a time when the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was being updated in Assam. On …
Read More »First-timers brought to the fore in Lok Sabha
Biggest change is in the fact that parliamentary responsibilities and positions in parties are being delegated to new MPs The 17th Lok Sabha may not have topped the figure of the previous one for first-term MPs, with 313 in 2014 compared to the 267 now, but in terms of prominence …
Read More »India, Pak. officials to meet at Wagah for talks on Kartarpur
Will discuss modalities to bridge the gaps in corridor project Indian and Pakistani officials will meet at the Attari-Wagah border on Sunday to discuss issues, including ways to bridge gaps related to the Kartarpur Corridor that is to be made operational by November, ahead of the commemoration of the 550th …
Read More »Chinese men unfurl banner near LAC
At the time, ISRO was grappling with the task of indigenously executing the cryogenic stage for its GSLV Mk-II rocket. Any thought of sending a moon lander was a distant dream of low priority. Equipping the LTTF and making it look and feel like being on the moon was the …
Read More »SC tells Speaker to defer call on Karnataka MLAs
Court orders status quo, schedules hearing for Tuesday The Supreme Court on Friday pressed the pause button in the legal battle for power in Karnataka, asking Assembly Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar to refrain from deciding on the disqualification or resignation of 10 rebel Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) MLAs for the time …
Read More »Leak found in nuclear Soviet sub
Small leak found in Soviet nuclear sub A small radiation leak from a Soviet nuclear submarine that sank 30 years ago has been found, Norwegian researchers said on Thursday, but it poses no risk to people or fish. The institute said that findings were around 100 Becquerel (Bq) per litre …
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