Page 108 - India

India built world's tallest rail bridge, 35 mt more than Eiffel Tower: CNN

The Ministry of Railways has said that the bridge will be open to visitors by the end of December 2023 or January 2024

IMF raises Asia's growth forecast to 4.6%; India, China to be key drivers

The agency, however, slashed next year's growth forecast for Asia by 0.2% to 4.4%

Ukraine apologises for Goddess Kali tweet, says it respects Indian culture

Ukraine Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova on Tuesday expressed "regret" after an image of a female above blast smoke was tweeted by the country's defence ministry triggering outrage with social media users pointing out the resemblance of the image to the depiction of Goddess Kali.The country's deputy foreign minister Emine Dzhaparova said that Ukraine "regrets" the defence ministry's depiction of goddess Kali in a "distorted manner" and that the European country "respects unique Indian culture and highly appreciates support from India".She added the depiction had been removed."We regret @DefenceU depicting #Hindu goddess #Kali in distorted manner. #Ukraine & its people respect unique #Indian culture & highly appreciate support.The depiction has already been removed. is determined to further increase cooperation in spirit of mutual respect & friendship," Dzhaparova tweeted.On April 30, Ukraine's Defence Ministry tweeted with the caption "Work of art," and shared a .

Sanctions on Indian agencies over 'violation' of religious freedom sought

A federal US commission has urged the Biden administration to impose targeted sanctions on Indian government agencies and officials responsible for severe violations of religious freedom in the country by freezing their assets. The US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) also recommended to the Congress to raise the issue of religious freedom during US-India bilateral meetings, and hold hearings on it. In its annual report on religious freedom, the USCIRF asked the US State Department to designate India as a country of particular concern on the status of religious freedom along with several other nations. The USCIRF has been making similar recommendations to the State Department since 2020, which have not been accepted so far. The recommendations of USCIRF are not mandatory for the State Department. In its India section of the report, USCIRF alleged that in 2022, religious freedom conditions in India continued to worsen. Throughout the year, the Indian governmen

DRDO conducts validation trial of underground ammunition storage structure

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully conducted a trial of design validation of a state-of-the-art underground ammunition storage facility. The Centre for Fire, Explosive and Environment Safety (CFEES), a Delhi-based laboratory of the DRDO, has designed and developed the vertical shaft-based underground storage facility. "The design validation trial of this underground ammunition storage structure was successfully conducted on April 30," the defence ministry said. "The instrumented blast trial was carried out in presence of the armed forces by detonating 5,000 kg of TNT in one of the chambers of the underground facility," it said in a statement. The ministry said the CFEES team conducted the trial with precision and utmost safety measures in place. "All the parameters recorded during the trial matched with estimated values. This facility will ensure that an explosion within will not cause damage to the adjacent chamber and also ensure full ...

Govt revises format of bidders from countries sharing border with India

India has revised the format of the application for bidders for public procurement having beneficial ownership in countries which share land borders with the country. Accordingly, applicants are informed that now one hard copy in the prescribed format is required to be submitted to the Office of Joint Secretary (Public Procurement Division) in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). An office memorandum of the DPIIT stated that as per the revision, bidders have to provide details of manufacturer, service provider, contractor and entity providing transfer of technology (ToT) if they are different from bidder, for security clearance. They have to share details of sensitive sectors and technologies in cases of ToT arrangement. Sensitive sectors are categorised into two groups - atomic energy, defence and space, among others are in category-1 while 10 sectors including civil aviation, electronics, agriculture and pharma are in the second one. Sensitive ...

Govt decides to extend Smart Cities Mission deadline till June 2024

The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has decided to extend the deadline for the Smart Cities Mission till June 2024, following requests from some cities that sought more time to complete their ongoing projects, officials said on Monday. The existing deadline of the Mission was June 2023. An official said that it would be inequitable to grant an extension merely to "a selected subset of cities". "The extension is being granted not only to complete projects but to complete documentation, dissemination, institutionalisation of all best practices, templates, innovations created under the Mission so that they can be taken up for replication across the country," the official told PTI. The Narendra Modi government launched its flagship Smart Cities Mission (SCM) on June 25, 2015 and 100 cities were selected for redevelopment through two-stage competition from January 2016 to June 2018. The official said that on-ground project execution began at least 18 months post city ...

China calls for representation of developing countries in UNSC reforms

China has maintained its stance on the UN Security Council reforms, saying there should be more representation for developing countries, especially the small and medium countries, but avoided a direct response to India and other countries' call for its expansion and their inclusion. Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee met Tareq M A M Albanai and Alexander Marschik, co-chairs of the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on UNSC reforms, in Beijing on Saturday and outlined China's stand on the reorganisation of the top organ of the world body. China is one of the five veto-wielding members of the 15-member UNSC along with France, Russia, the UK and the US. The remaining 10 members are elected as non-permanent members for two-year terms and do not have veto powers. India has been at the forefront of the years-long efforts to reform the Security Council, saying it rightly deserved a place as a permanen

Ciena appoints Amit Malik as India head to help firms meet 5G demands

He was previously Co-chair of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) (IT committee) and Vice Chair for the American Chamber

India is termed cultural continuum because of its oneness: TN Guv RN Ravi

The DNA of every culture in India has been 'one and the same', and that is why this country is called a 'cultural continuum', Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi said here on Monday. People are called migrants or immigrants when they move from one place to another. But there was no concept of migration in India in those days, he said at an event here. The Governor made the remarks while delivering the presidential address at the celebration of foundation day of Gujarat and Maharashtra states at Raj Bhavan. "The oneness of creation, oneness of humanity has spread over a vast land and though the country has beautiful regional variations, the core of the DNA of this country is one and same and that is why we say Bharat is a cultural continuum", he said. Noting that migration of people from one part of the country to another has been going on for several years, Ravi said, "there was no concept of migration or immigration in India." "People move from one part of the country to another unmindf

India logs 4,282 new Covid-19 cases, active infections down by over 1,750

India on Monday reported 4,282 coronavirus infections, while the number of active cases dropped by over 1,750 to stand at 47,246, according to the latest Health Ministry data. The death toll has increased to 5,31,547 with 14 more fatalities, which includes six reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am showed. On Sunday, India had reported 5,874 coronavirus cases, while the number of active cases was 49,015. The daily positivity rate recorded on Monday was 4.92 per cent while the weekly positivity was pegged at 4.00 per cent. The total tally of Covid cases was recorded at 4.49 crore (4,49,49,671) The active cases now constitute 0.11 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has been recorded at 98.71 per cent, according to the health ministry website. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease rose to 4,43,70,878 while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.18 per cent. According to the ministry's website, 220.66 crore dose

G7 biz group endorses India's G20 theme 'One Earth, One Family, One Future'

Top business executives of G7 countries have endorsed India's G20 theme of 'One Earth, One Family, One Future' and said it is essential to achieve sustainable growth that is compatible with the protection of the global environment. Unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year, the theme of India's G20 Presidency - 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' or 'One Earth, One Family, One Future' - is drawn from the ancient Sanskrit text of the Maha Upanishad. Essentially, the theme affirms the value of all life - human, animal, plant and microorganisms - and their interconnectedness on the planet Earth and in the wider universe. Representative business federations of the G7 - Japan, Italy, Canada, France, the US, the UK, Germany, and the European Union - held the B7 Tokyo Summit on April 19-20, ahead of the G7 Summit meeting in Japan later this month. "Through creating a problem-solving society that is equipped with both digital technology and creativity and imagination of diverse people, it is

Vaccine market to reach valuation of Rs 252 bn by 2025: Jitendra Singh

Highlighting the country's strides in the pharma and biotechnology sector, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the Indian vaccine market is expected to reach a valuation of Rs 252 billion by 2025

A pain in neck for authorities, here's how Chinese firms scam Indians

The Chinese scammers in India are sending thousands of crores of rupees back to China

India to join international climate action in civil aviation from 2027

Among them are a two per cent annual fuel efficiency improvement through 2050, carbon neutral growth and net zero by 2050. The ICAO has clubbed them under CORSIA and LTAG

Nepal's PM visit to India delayed till June due to internal reasons

Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda's proposed visit to India has been delayed further due to internal reasons, including the jolt in the recent by-polls, and it is unlikely that his first foreign visit will take place before June, according to his top aide. This is the second time that Prachanda's visit to India has been postponed due to internal reasons. The visit to India would have been his first foreign trip after he assumed charge as Prime Minister for the third time in December last year. Nepal government is preparing to present its annual budget for the coming fiscal year towards May-end and the Prime Minister's visit to India will take place only after that, the top aide close to Prime Minister Prachanda told PTI on Saturday. The proposed visit by the Prime Minister has been further delayed due to internal reasons and it is unlikely that the first foreign visit will take place before June, the aide, who did not want to be quoted, said. Earlier, the government

India logs 7,171 new Covid-19 cases, active infections decline to 51,314

India saw a single-day rise of 7,171 new coronavirus cases, while the active cases have decreased to 51,314, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Saturday. The death toll increased to 5,31,508 with 40 deaths, which included 15 reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated. The total tally of Covid cases was recorded at 4.49 crore. The active cases now comprise 0.11 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate has been recorded at 98.70 per cent, according to the health ministry website. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,43,56,693 while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.18 per cent. According to the ministry's website, 220.66 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far.

Trade turnover between India, Dominican Republic has reached $1 bn: EAM

On the agreement signed between India and Dominican Republic, the EAM said the two countries concluded talks on a joint economic and trade cooperation JETCO mechanism

India, US discuss export control issues related to dual-use items: Kendler

India and the US discussed export control issues related to items of dual use, US Assistant Secretary for Export Administration Thea D Rozman Kendler said here on Friday. Talking to reporters, Kendler said the two sides are also engaged in the final planning for the India-US Strategic Trade Dialogue, to be held in Washington next month. "Our strategic trade dialogue, shared commitment to export controls paves the way for this high tech cooperation... And I think we're at a new stage in our relationship where we see tremendous opportunity and a closer relationship and hope that throughout our new dialogue, we can explore ways of enhancing high tech commerce," the senior US official said. She informed there were also roundtable discussions with the Indian industries, including with the Indian Electronics Semiconductor Association, the US India Business Council, NASSCOM and the American Chamber of Commerce. "...the purpose of having these industry meetings was to learn about the tech

Need to rise above differences in order to strengthen country: Sharad Pawar

There is a different kind of situation prevailing in the country, which is a cause of concern to many, and there is need to rise above political ideologies to strengthen the nation and end hatred, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar said on Friday. Addressing his party's minority department meeting in Delhi, Pawar said brotherhood and humanity are needed in society to overcome problems faced by it. "Today there is a different kind of situation prevailing in the country, which is a cause of concern to many. When there is a problem, lot of hard work is needed to find a solution. If we don't strengthen brotherhood and humanity in society, the problem will not be resolved," Pawar asserted. "We may have differences and have different political ideologies. We may belong to different religions and castes but we will have to work together to end hatred and create an atmosphere of brotherhood," the former Union minister said.