SOURCE: pti

The delay in implementation of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) in view of the current situation in West Asia is a matter of ”concern” and the expectation generated following firming up of the initiative in September last has to be “adjusted” a bit now, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said.

In an exclusive interview to PTI, Jaishankar said all the stakeholders of the IMEC — a ship-to-rail transit network — are committed to it as they feel it is a ”great” initiative. “It has definitely been a source of concern for us and the kind of expectation we had when the agreement was signed in September, we have had to adjust it a bit,” he said when asked whether the ongoing crisis in West Asia would delay the project by at least a few years.

SOURCE: PIB

Director General Defence Intelligence Agency (DG DIA) Lieutenant General DS Rana has proceeded on an official visit to the United Republic of Tanzania. The aim of this visit, scheduled from 13-15 May 2024, is to further reinforce the robust defence ties between the two nations and discuss opportunities for regional security collaboration.

During his visit, the DG DIA is scheduled to interact with senior military leadership of Tanzania, including the Chief of Defence Staff of Tanzania Peoples’ Defence Force, General Jacob John Mkunda, and his counterpart Maj Gen MN Mkeremy, Chief of Defence Intelligence. In his visit to the Tanzanian National Defence College, he will discuss India’s Security Perspective with future leaders of the TPDF. The meetings will be aimed to foster mutual understanding and strengthening bilateral defence cooperation.

SOURCE: ANI

 Political activist from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) Amjad Ayub Mirza said India cannot remain aloof from the current situation in PoJK and must act now. He called on India to focus on PoJK as the situation is getting out of hand there.

Mirza said people of PoJK, particularly the younger generation are confronting Pakistani forces on the streets. He said that Pakistani forces have been shooting people and at least two people have been reportedly killed recently. He said that one police SHO is rumoured to be killed and the situation is getting out of hand.

SOURCE: ANI

The Indian Naval Ship, INS Kiltan, arrived at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, on Sunday, where it received a warm welcome from the Vietnam People’s Navy and the Indian Embassy there.

The visit is part of the Operational Deployment of the Indian Navy’s Eastern Fleet, and is poised to further bolster the longstanding friendship and cooperation between India and Vietnam, the Indian Navy said.

SOURCE: IANS

An FIR has been filed after pro-Khalistan graffiti and slogans targeting India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were spotted in the national capital on pillars beneath the Karol Bagh and Jhandewalan Metro stations in central Delhi.

An official said that steps to remove the graffiti and slogans from the pillar have been initiated while an FIR has been registered in this connection. “We have formed teams to probe the matter. Police teams are scanning CCTV cameras in the area and on the metro stations to identify the culprits and nab them. A case under relevant sections of the IPC has been registered and graffiti and slogans have been removed,” a senior police officer said.

SOURCE: PTI

A fourth Indian national has been arrested by Canadian authorities in connection with the killing of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in this country, a week after police arrested three Indians linked with the high-profile case that has severely strained India’s relations with Canada.

Amardeep Singh, 22, a resident of Brampton, Surrey, and Abbotsford areas of Canada, has been charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

SOURCE: PTI

India on Friday voted in favour of a draft UN General Assembly resolution that said Palestine is qualified and should be admitted as a full member of the United Nations and recommended that the Security Council “reconsider” the matter “favourably”.

The 193-member General Assembly met in the morning for an emergency special session where the Arab Group resolution ‘Admission of new Members to the United Nations’, in support of the State of Palestine’s full membership in the UN, was presented by the United Arab Emirates, as Chair of the Arab Group in May.

SOURCE: ANI

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attacked the Congress on Saturday, claiming that the party’s approach towards terror has always been “weak and soft” and that terror incidents were tolerated during the Congress’ tenure without a serious response.

Ms Sitharaman said, “You saw it during the ten years of Congress rule how terror attacks were tolerated, proper response was not given. They believed in sending dossiers to Pakistan. The attitude and approach of the Congress party towards terror has always been weak and soft.”

SOURCE: ANI

At least one police officer was killed and 90 others were wounded after violent clashes erupted in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) during the ongoing protests and shutter down strike across the region, Dawn reported on Saturday. According to the report which cited Mirpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kamran Ali Sub-inspector Adnan Qureshi succumbed to a gunshot wound in the chest in the town of Islamgarh where he was deployed along with other police personnel to stop a rally for Muzaffarabad via Kotli and Poonch districts under the banner of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC).

The JAAC, which has traders at the forefront in most parts of the region, has been seeking the provision of electricity as per hydropower generation cost in PoJK, subsidised wheat flour and an end to the privileges of the elite class.

SOURCE: PTI

 Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Sunday said that a state Cabinet sub-committee had detected 2,480 illegal immigrants in 2023 but the campaign was cut short after violence broke out on May 3 last year.

Addressing a press conference Singh said concerned with increasing deforestation and setting up of new villages by illegal immigrants, a Cabinet sub-committee was formed in February 2023 after a cabinet meeting attended by two Kuki ministers Letpao Haokip and Nemcha Kipgen.

SOURCE: PTI

Eight Bangladeshi nationals were arrested for entering India illegally at the Agartala railway station in Tripura on Saturday, police said.

Acting on a tip-off, a trap was laid at different points of the station by the railway police, they said. “Around 7.40 am, we spotted a group of women proceeding towards the Kanchanjungha Express, which was set for departure around 8 am. On suspicion, nine people were detained,” said Tapas Das, the officer-in-charge of GRP Agartala.

SOURCE: IANS

A couple in Assam’s Tinsukia district reportedly abandoned their ancestral home to join the proscribed outfit United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I), leaving behind their four-year-old daughter, sources said on Saturday.

According to police sources, the couple has been identified as Mamata Neog and her husband Achyut Neog.

SOURCE: PTI

BSF personnel opened fire on Friday night to shoot down a Pakistani drone near the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir’s Samba district, officials said. Troops of the Border Security Force (BSF) detected the movement of the drone from the Pakistan side late in the night and fired nearly two dozen rounds, they said on Saturday.

The drone, however, was flown back to the Pakistani side, the officials said. They said a search operation was launched in Narayanpur in the Ramgarh sector on Saturday morning to sanitize the border outpost area to ensure the drone did not drop any weapons or narcotics.

SOURCE: PTI

ISRO’s commercial arm NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) on Friday invited industry partners to develop heavy lift rocket Launch Vehicle Mark-3 in public-private partnership mode. In a bid to cater to growing demand for launching heavy satellites or mega constellations of low earth orbit satellites, the NSIL is looking forward to produce four-six LVM3 class rockets every year against the existing capability of two vehicles per year.

“NSIL has released the Request for Qualification (RFQ) to invite responses from potential bidders who would end-to-end realize ISRO’s heavy lift launcher LVM3,” the NSIL said in a statement. The NSIL said it was exploring options to partner with Indian industry through a PPP framework to produce LVM3 in large numbers over a period of 10 to 15 years.

SOURCE: PTI

Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday released the sketches of six terrorists, who infiltrated from Pakistan into Basantgarh area of Udhampur district and killed a village defence guard in a gunfight before fleeing deep into the forest, officials said.

Udhampur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Joginder Singh announced the first breakthrough in the case with the arrest of an overground worker, who had provided logistic support to the terrorists. Singh said the sketches of the six terrorists, two of whom are believed to be brothers, were prepared based on the inputs from various agencies, the public and questioning of the suspected persons.