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External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday observed that a "democratisation of global order" was being witnessed across the world, which was "becoming more multi-polar" since many cultures and societies were "making their voices heard". The remarks were made in his brief speech to the convocation ceremony of Nalanda University at Rajgir in Bihar, which was attended, among others, by President Droupadi Murmu. "The world is becoming more multi-polar because there are many more societies and many more cultures that are making their voices heard. The Nalanda tradition can be a powerful influence in this democratisation of world order", said Jaishankar, referring to the ancient seat of learning which was known to attract students and scholars from far and wide. He added, "the very term Nalanda evokes memories of India's intellectual heritage and cultural grandeur. A revival of that tradition in this institution is an indicator of the rise of not just India but Asia itself". The .
Amid the West Asia conflict, a total of 1,043 Indian nationals, including 717 students, have crossed out of Iran with the assistance of the mission in Tehran, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Wednesday. At an inter-ministerial briefing here on the West Asia situation, Aseem R Mahajan, Additional Secretary (Gulf), MEA, also said the overall flight situation continues to improve, and that around 4.26 lakh passengers have returned from the region to India since February 28. "During this period, a total of 2,149 flights, including scheduled and non-scheduled flights of Indian as well as foreign carriers, have operated from the region to India," he said. The MEA said it continues to closely monitor the evolving situation in the Gulf and the West Asia region. "We are according the highest priority to ensure the safety, security, and well-being of the large Indian community in the region," Mahajan said. The ministry's dedicated Control Room remains operational to address queries
Amid the escalating West Asia conflict, the government on Wednesday said around 2.6 lakh people have returned from the region to India since February 28. At an inter-ministerial briefing here on the West Asia situation, Additional Secretary (Gulf), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Aseem R Mahajan, said that on Wednesday, around 70 flights were expected to operate from various airports in the UAE to different destinations in India. The flight situation is "reassuring," he said. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal spoke about a telephonic conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Tuesday. "The two leaders discussed the current situation in West Asia. The prime minister reiterated India's strong condemnation of all attacks on the UAE that have resulted in loss of innocent lives and damage to civilian infrastructure," he said. The two leaders agreed on the importance of "ensuring safe and free navigation through the Strai
India on Monday said it hasn't engaged in bilateral talks with the US to ensure safe transit of merchant vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. The remarks by the Ministry of External Affairs came against the backdrop of US President Donald Trump calling on several countries to send warships to keep the strategically key shipping route open. Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas). In a social media post, Trump hoped that China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and other countries affected by Iran's attempted closure of the Strait of Hormuz, will send warships to the region to keep the shipping route "safe and open". There has not been any concrete response by the leading countries. In its reaction, China called on all sides to immediately stop military operations in West Asia to help k