LIVE: India wants peace, friendship, but sovereignty is supreme, says Modi

Rajya Sabha elections 2020 across eight states will be held today. Catch LIVE updates on the latest news

2:51 AM

Galwan clash: Govt looks beyond China to source APIs

With tension growing at the India-China border, the government is actively looking for alternative sources for bulk drugs, which are used to make medicines, to avoid any crisis in the domestic market for its reliance on the hostile neighbour. Price and capacity constraints, however, would be big impediments. Read on...

2:46 AM

Modi's strategic moment

Modi, like his predecessors, tried to break out of India-Pak-China triangulation and failed. Whatever he decides to do next will mean new compromises, writes Shekhar Gupta Read on...

 

2:43 AM

China releases 10 Army personnel after three days of negotiations

Ten Indian Army personnel including two Majors were released by the Chinese military on Thursday evening following three days of negotiations, people familiar with the development said in New Delhi. China said that “presently”, it has not detained any Indian soldiers, amidst reports that the Chinese military took some Indian troops captive after a deadly clash in the Galwan Valley on June 15. Read on...

12:52 AM

Nation wants revenge against China: Nitish Kumar at all-party meet

There is outrage across the country against China's "dastardly act" in Ladakh and the nation is united in its desire for revenge, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Friday.

 

Kumar, who heads the JD(U), made the remarks at the all-party meeting convened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

 

Paying tributes to the 20 Army personnel who lost their lives in a faceoff with Chinese troops at the Galwan valley in eastern Ladakh, he pointed out that five of them hailed from Bihar.

11:58 PM

Pompeo tears into China for 'escalating' border tension with India

The US on Friday criticised the Chinese Army for "escalating" the border tension with India and described the ruling Chinese Communist Party as a "rogue actor."

 

Launching a scathing attack on the Chinese government, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the Chinese Communist Party wants to undo all the progress the free world has made through institutions like NATO and adopt a new set of rules and norms that accommodate Beijing.

 

"The PLA (People's Liberation Army) has escalated border tensions with India, the world's most populous democracy. It's militarising the South China Sea and illegally claiming more territory there, threatening vital sea lanes," Pompeo said, a day after he expressed deep condolences to India on the death of 20 soldiers in violent clashes with Chinese troops at Galwan Valley in Ladakh early in the week.

 

In his virtual address on "Europe and the China Challenge" during the 2020 Copenhagen Democracy Summit on Friday, the top American diplomat said that for many years, the West, in an era of hope, believed they could change the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and improve the lives of the Chinese people along the way.

 

Along the way, the CCP took advantage of our goodwill while assuring us they wanted a cooperative relationship. As (former Chinese politician) Deng Xiaoping said 'Hide your strength, bide your time.' I've talked in other venues about why this happened. It's a complicated story. It's no one's fault," Pompeo said.

10:54 PM

IPL governing council meeting next week to review sponsorship deals

Taking note of the border skirmish that resulted in the martyrdom of our brave jawans, the IPL Governing Council has convened a meeting next week to review IPL’s various sponsorship deals

10:51 PM

'No intelligence failure' in Galwan Valley face-off: Rajnath Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said that 'there was no intelligence failure' in the violent face-off in Ladakh's Galwan Valley, which claimed the lives of 20 Indian Army soldiers.

 

"There was no intelligence failure," Singh said in the all-party meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on India-China border issue, as per sources.

 

In the meeting, Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi asked if there was an intelligence failure.

 

Gandhi targetted the government over its handling of "intrusions" by China in Eastern Ladakh, saying it lost time, "failed" to use all avenues which resulted in the loss of lives of 20 soldiers in the violent face-off in Galwan Valley and asked if there was an intelligence failure.

10:48 PM

Amarinder Singh urges Centre to issue ultimatum to Beijing to vacate' Galwan Valley territory

10:25 PM

Will support PM on India-China border issue: Andhra CM

YSR Congress Chief and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday said his party will fully support whatever strategy Prime Minister Narendra Modi will adopt to resolve the India-China border issue.

 

In the digital all-party meeting chaired by the Prime Minister, Reddy did not give any specific suggestion but expressed confidence that Modi through his diplomatic connections will find a solution to this predicament as well in an amicable manner.

 

"I stand by you in these testing times..I would like to convey wholehearted support of the 6 crore people of my state.All of us are behind you....

10:17 PM

No hasty decision should be taken against China: Telangana CM

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Friday suggested to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to pursue long-term and short-term strategies to deal with the neighbouring country of China.

 

Rao said there should not be any hasty decisions from India and at the same time its interests need not be compromised.

 

This is what Telangana Rashtra Samithi president told Modi at the all-party meeting held through video conference.

 

"We should prepare long-term and short-term strategies to face China's aggressive attitude. There should not be any hasty act from our side under any circumstances," an official press release quoted the chief minister as saying during the meeting.

 

10:12 PM

India completes construction of key bridge over Galwan river in eastern Ladakh

India has completed construction of a strategically important bridge over the Galwan river in eastern Ladakh, notwithstanding strong opposition to it by the Chinese military, government sources said on Friday.
 

The construction of the bridge was one of the reasons behind the aggressive behaviour by China's People's Liberation Army in the region that triggered the six-week standoff between the two sides.
 

The 60-metre bridge is around four kilometres east of the confluence of Shyok and Galwan rivers, and links the narrow mountainous region to the Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi road.

10:05 PM

All-party meeting shows PM's commitment to take all political stakeholders along: Amit Shah

9:58 PM

India is one when it comes to national security: Amit Shah

9:39 PM

India should not allow entry of Chinese firms in telecom, railway, aviation sectors, Mamata Banerjee tells all-party meet on LAC face-off

9:19 PM

Our forces are doing what they have to do to protect country, whether it is deployment, action or counter-action: PM Modi at all-party meet

9:15 PM

PM Modi thanks all parties for their suggestions

9:14 PM

The areas which were not really monitored earlier, even there our jawans are now able to monitor and respond well: PM Modi

9:13 PM

National interest is our top priority, India has never tolerated external pressure: PM Modi

9:13 PM

India is seeing eye-to eye with China on every issue: PM Modi at all-party meeting

 

 

 

9:12 PM

The country has immense faith in our soldiers. I want to assure our soldiers that the entire country is with them: PM Modi at all-party meet

9:11 PM

India wants peace and friendship, but won't compromise on our security: PM Modi

9:09 PM

Our Army is doing every thing to protect our borders: PM Modi

9:01 PM

Our patrolling capacity has increased due to newly built infrastructure: PM Modi

Our patrolling capacity has increased due to newly built infrastructure, especially along LAC, said PM Modi at all-party meet on Ladakh face-off.

8:58 PM

Our forces are doing what they have to do to protect country, whether it is deployment, action or counter-action: PM Modi at all-party meet.

8:56 PM

Neither have they intruded into our border, nor has any post been taken over by China: PM Modi

8:47 PM

India should not allow entry of Chinese firms: CM Mamata

India should not allow entry of Chinese firms in telecom, railway, aviation sectors, Mamata Banerjee tells all-party meet on LAC face-off.

8:35 PM

There was no intelligence failure: Defence minister Rajnath Singh

8:34 PM

Wall Street rises in early trading, tracking gains worldwide

Wall Street is rallying in early trading Friday, putting the S&P 500 on pace to close out a winning week after encouraging reports raised hopes for a coming economic recovery.
 

The S&P 500 was up 1.1 per cent, following up on similar gains in European markets and more modest ones across Asia. Treasury yields also rose in a signal of improved optimism.
 

The gains were widepsread, with some 90 per cent of stocks in the S&P 500 higher, led by energy companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 272 points, or 1.1 per cent, at 26,346, as of 9:51 am.
 

Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was up 1.1 per cent.

8:24 PM

Not the right time to question handling of situation: Akali Dal

8:17 PM

PSBs disburse Rs 21,029-cr loan to MSMEs under credit guarantee scheme

The finance ministry on Friday said public sector banks have disbursed Rs 21,028.55 crore under the Rs 3-trillion Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) for the MSME sector reeling under stress due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown.
 

Public sector lenders have sanctioned loans worth Rs 40,416 crore under the 100 per cent ECLGS for the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), starting June 1.
 

The scheme is the biggest fiscal component of the Rs 20-trillion 'Self-Reliant India Mission' package announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman last month.
 

"As of 18 June 2020, #PSBs have sanctioned loans worth Rs 40,416 crore under the 100% Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme, out of which Rs 21,028.55 crore has already been disbursed," Sitharaman said in a tweet.