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Iran rejects flexibility as long as US demands surrender, talks continue

He also warned that "if the situation gets out of control, Iran's allies will also close the Bab El-Mandeb Strait"

Iran frees French detainees after 3.5 years; return underway: Macron

Iran has allowed two French former detainees, Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, to leave the country, French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday. They had been holed up in French diplomatic premises there since their release from prison. "CEcile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on route toward French territory, after three and a half years of detention in Iran," Macron tweeted. The green light for them to leave Iran, long sought by France, signalled how Iran is differentiating between nations, treating some favourably and others as foes, in the context of the Iran war. Macron has distanced France from the conflict, saying his country wasn't consulted in advance about the US-Israel strikes and didn't want the war. Macron thanked Oman for playing a mediation role. "It's a relief for us all and obviously for their families," Macron wrote.

Retail industry post 20% growth in Q4 on strong demand, store expansion

Leading retail players reported strong double-digit revenue growth in the fourth quarter of FY26 on the back of a stable demand environment and resilient macroeconomic conditions. Listed retail companies as Trent, Avenue Supermarts (D-Mart) and V-Mart, in their recent quarter updates reported around 20 per cent year-on-year growth in their latest quarterly updates, aided by aggressive store additions and steady consumption trends. Trent, a Tata group firm reported around 20 per cent growth in standalone (domestic) revenue to Rs 4,937 crore in the March quarter of FY26. It was at Rs 4,106 crore in the corresponding January-March period a year ago. "Revenue from sale of merchandise (excluding other operating income) grew 21 per cent and 19 per cent during the quarter and the year ended March 2026, respectively," said Trent, which operates popular fashion outlets under the Westside and Zudio retail format. Trent has opened 22 Westside stores and 109 stores of its value retail format o

Turkish police kill gunman in shootout near Israeli consulate in Istanbul

The diplomatic mission is located in Levent, one of Istanbul's main financial districts, and surrounded by office towers, shopping malls and heavy foot traffic

Ola Electric launches LFP cell for EVs, rollout to begin next quarter

Ola Electric on Tuesday announced readiness of its in-house developed lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cell, marking a key milestone in its mission to accelerate electric mobility and build a full-stack energy ecosystem. Developed as part of Ola's vertically integrated battery innovation efforts, the new '46100' format LFP cell is bigger than the current NMC 4680 Bharat Cell and represents a step-change in scale, cost efficiency, and applicability across both mobility and energy storage solutions, and will begin entering its products starting next quarter, the company said in a statement. The announcement comes as Ola Electric's Gigafactory ramp continues to progress strongly, with thousands of vehicles powered by its 4680 Bharat Cells already on Indian roads, collectively clocking millions of kilometers in real-world conditions, it added. This growing on-road validation underscores the reliability and performance of Ola's indigenous cell technology while demonstrating the company's ...

Oil hovers near $110 as Trump's Iran deadline looms over Hormuz reopening

Typically WTI trades at a discount to Brent, but this has reversed in a market where barrels for earlier delivery command a higher price

India, New Zealand likely to sign FTA on April 24, says official

India and New Zealand are expected to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on April 24 here, which will provide tariff-free access to domestic exporters for their goods in the island nation's market, and will bring in USD 20 billion of investment over the next 15 years, an official said. The two countries on December 22 last year announced the conclusion of negotiations for the trade deal which aims at doubling bilateral trade to USD 5 billion in the next five years. The official said that the pact is likely to be signed on April 24 in Bharat Mandapam. While India will get zero-duty market access on 100 per cent of its exports, the agreement will eliminate or reduce tariffs on 95 per cent of New Zealand's exports to India, including items ranging from wool, coal, wood, wine, to avocados and blueberries. However, New Delhi has made no duty concessions on allowing imports of dairy like milk, cream, whey, yoghurt, and cheese; onions, sugar, spices, edible oils and rubber to protect farme

Gold rises 0.6% as dollar eases, oil dips amid hopes of de-escalation

The US dollar edged 0.2 per cent lower, making greenback-priced gold slightly cheaper for holders of other currencies

India plans sovereign guarantees to back Gulf shipping insurance: Report

The plan includes a $1.5 ​billion sovereign guarantee fund to provide insurers with reinsurance support and liquidity should insurance costs remain high, said ‌one government source

Manipur CM chairs high-level meeting after 2 children die in bomb attack

Manipur Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh on Tuesday chaired a high-level meeting to review the law and order situation in the state, after two children were killed in a bomb attack in Bishnupur district. Singh said his government is committed to restoring peace and stability at the earliest. "Chaired a high-level meeting with Hon'ble MLAs today at the secretariat to review the prevailing situation and deliberate on necessary measures to de-escalate tensions," he said in a post on X. "While peace and normalcy have been disturbed, we remain firmly committed to restoring stability at the earliest. The government is actively exploring all viable options and taking decisive steps to bring back peace, ensure public safety, and uphold law and order across the state," he said. The incident occurred around 1 am when a bomb was hurled by suspected militants at a house in Moirang Tronglaobi area, killing a five-year-old boy and a six-month-old girl, a senior police officer said. Locals stage

Manipur govt suspends internet in five districts for 3 days after attack

The Manipur government on Tuesday ordered suspension of internet and mobile data services, including Broadband, VSATs and VPN in five valley districts for three days, an official statement said. The Commissioner Home N Ashok Kumar, signed the order banning internet and mobile data services in five districts from Tuesday, it said. A Home department statement said, "In view of the prevailing law and order situation in five districts of Manipur - Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal, Kakching and Bishnupur and to stop the spread of disinformation and false rumours ... the government has decided to order temporary suspension of internet services and mobile data services including Broadband, VSATs and VPN services in five districts." Two children were killed, and their mother was injured in a bomb attack in Manipur's Bishnupur district on Tuesday, triggering protests by locals, police said. The incident occurred at around 1 am when a bomb was hurled by suspected militants at a house in ...

Jaishankar to host Bangladesh FM for talks on bilateral ties in Delhi

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will host his Bangladeshi counterpart Khalilur Rahman on Wednesday for wide-ranging talks in a significant initiative to repair the bilateral ties following an over 18-month period of heightened diplomatic tension. Rahman's three-day trip to New Delhi from Tuesday is the first high-level visit by a senior member of the new Bangladesh Nationalist Party government led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. The relations between India and Bangladesh witnessed major downturn after the interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus came to power following the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government in August, 2024. The two sides initiated efforts to stabilise the relations after Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, accompanied by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, represented India at the inauguration of Tarique Rahman as the prime minister in Dhaka on February 17. Tarique Rahman became the prime minister following his party's landslide victory in the parliamentary .

Top 10% rural households control 44% of land in India, says report

The top 10 per cent rural households of India own 44 per cent of land, while 46 per cent of rural households are landless, according to a working paper released by World Inequality Lab. The paper, titled 'Land Inequality in India: Nature, History, and Markets', further said that the top 5 per cent households own 32 per cent of land, while 18 per cent of rural land ownership is held by the top 1 per cent. The paper is jointly authored by Nitin Kumar Bharti, David Blakeslee and Samreen Malik, drawing on one of the largest datasets ever assembled on land ownership in India, covering around 650 million people across 2,70,000 villages. "The average village land Gini (an index measuring landholding inequality on a scale of 0-100) reaches 71 when landless households are included, and 46 per cent of rural households are landless," the paper said, adding that on average, the largest landholder controls about 12 per cent of village land, and in some villages a single owner controls more than

DGCA temporarily relaxes pilot duty time limits for long-haul long flights

Airline regulator DGCA has temporarily relaxed pilot flight duty time limitation (FDTL) for long-haul flights, a senior official said on Tuesday. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) move is aimed at ensuring pilot availability for smooth operations, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Asangba Chuba Ao, told reporters during a media briefing.

CBI flags ₹73,000 cr fraud in Anil Ambani Group probe; ED flags IBC issues

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing bank loan frauds cumulatively worth Rs 73,000 crore in seven cases registered against the Reliance Anil Ambani Group, according to a status report filed in the Supreme Court in February. The CBI informed the court that it is actively investigating seven cases, and is probing the roles of certain public servants as well. After reviewing the status report filed by the CBI and its financial investigations counterpart, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the apex court issued an order on March 23. "...the losses in the other cases also come to several thousands of crores, totalling claims of approximately Rs 73,006 crore," the apex court order said, referring to the CBI probe. A response from the Reliance Group to a query sent by PTI regarding this development is awaited. The ED told the court that it seized certain documents that speak about a purported "Project Help", indicating that insolvency proceedings were "deliberately" starte

OpenAI urges grid, safety net spending to prepare for AI-driven changes

Many of the proposals are tied to social change driven by AI, which some fear could lead to widespread job losses

UAE's $3 billion loan recall adds strain to Pakistan's fragile economy

Pakistan managed to stabilize its economy in recent years with the help of loans from the International Monetary Fund and friendly donors like the UAE

Delhi Assembly security breach accused's family claims he's mentally ill

Uttar Pradesh Police on Monday reached the residence of a man accused of breaching security at the Delhi Assembly and questioned his family members in Pilibhit, officials said. Station House Officer of Puranpur Kotwali, Pawan Kumar Pandey, said the family members of the accused claimed that he was suffering from mental health issues and was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Shahjahanpur. The accused, identified as Sarabjeet Singh, a resident of Puranpur area, allegedly drove an SUV through one of the boundary gates of the Delhi assembly and placed a flower bouquet in the Speaker's vehicle parked on the porch before fleeing, triggering a security alert in the national capital. He was later detained along with two others from north Delhi's Roop Nagar. "Family members informed that his mental condition is not stable. We are verifying all aspects of the case," SHO Pandey said. According to police, after Sarabjeet was identified, Circle Officer Prateek Dahiya and SHO Pandey visited

Over 1,700 Indians exit Iran via land borders amid West Asia conflict: MEA

Over 1,700 Indian nationals have left Iran through land border crossings in Armenia and Azerbaijan since the start of the West Asia conflict over a month ago, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Monday. "Our embassy in Tehran has so far facilitated the movement of 1,777 Indian nationals to exit Iran through Armenia and Azerbaijan," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a media briefing. The Indian nationals are flying back home from Armenia and Azerbaijan. Jaiswal said the Indians who returned home included 895 students and 345 fishermen. "The Indian fishermen were employed by various companies in Iran and they flew home from Armenia on March 4," he said.

INA, warts and all: The Forgotten Prisoners offers a needed rebalancing

Mr Hazarika notes that despite Bose's electrifying oratory, only 2,000 men of the 27,000 POWs outside the INA joined; the rest opted for the purgatory of Japanese POW camps