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young people are reluctant to join up. And it is not just Europe that is struggling with recruitment. In and around the world’s conflict hotspots the question of how to get more people into uniform is vital.

Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi made a polite handshake following the election of NDA's candidate Om Birla as the Lok Sabha speaker. The two leaders accompanied Birla to the Speaker's chair. That's because Rahul Gandhi now holds a constitutional position which is opposite to PM Modi's. While PM Modi has been elected the leader of the house in the Lok Sabha, Rahul has become the leader of the opposition. Though Rahul has been seen as the main opponent of PM Modi for long, he was never acknowledged formally as the topmost leader of the opposition. The INDIA bloc of opposition parties led by the Congress did not choose its prime-ministerial candidate ostensibly due to the presence in the opposition bloc of more senior leaders than Rahul such as Sharad Pawar and Mamata Banerjee. But now, since the Congress has emerged as the biggest opposition party by winning 99 seats, a big improvement over its 2019 tally of 52, the opposition has to accept Rahul as its tallest leader.

India House at the Paris Olympics will be a «home away from home» for the travelling national contingent and will also provide a glimpse into the country's «rich cultural and sporting heritage», IOA President P T Usha and IOC member Nita Ambani have stated. The India House will commemorate the completion of 100 years of country's Olympic participation. The India House will be located at the Parc de la Villette in Paris, which has been designated as the 'Park of Nations' during the Games and will be surrounded by 14 other hospitality houses including those from Netherlands, Canada, Brazil and France. The India House has been established by the Reliance Foundation in partnership with the IOA (Indian Olympic Association) and will showcase «India's storied past, vibrant present, and exciting future alongside advances in technology and digitalisation», a press release said.

visa applications in 2023. Out of the 151,752 visa requests filed by Indian nationals, a substantial number were denied. This led to an estimated loss of €12.1 million in visa application fees for Indian applicants, highlighting the financial burden on those attempting to travel to Schengen countries. In 2023, Schengen states rejected a total of 1.6 million visa applications, resulting in €130 million in generated funds, according to SchengenNews. Among the affected nationalities, Indian applicants faced significant financial losses due to high visa rejection rates. Other nationalities facing high rejection rates included Turks, Algerians, Moroccans, and Chinese. Turkish nationals experienced the highest monetary loss, with €13.5 million spent on rejected visa applications. Algerians followed closely, losing €13.3 million, while Moroccans lost €10.9 million, and Chinese applicants faced losses of €4.8 million despite having one of the highest approval rates.

State Bank of India (SBI) on Wednesday raised Rs 10,000 crore through its fifth infrastructure bond issuance. The country's largest lender raised the funds at a coupon rate of 7.36 per cent. The issue attracted overwhelming response from investors with bids in excess of Rs 19,884 crore and was oversubscribed by around four times against the base issue size of Rs 5,000 crore, SBI said in a regulatory filing.

Mint. The strategic move is part of India's broader effort to diversify its trade partnerships and reduce its dependency on traditional markets. The scope of India's trade ties with New Zealand and South Africa, which is a key constituent of the South African Customs Union (SACU), is huge as India already shares robust trade relationships with both the countries.

prime minister Narendra Modi said that the event ‘highlighted how the democracy was strangled’ and ‘exemplified what a dictatorship looks like.’Taking to X (previously Twitter), the PM said, “I am glad that the Honourable Speaker strongly condemned the Emergency, highlighted the excesses committed during that time and also mentioned the manner in which democracy was strangled. It was also a wonderful gesture to stand in silence in honour of all those who suffered during those days."“The Emergency was imposed 50 years ago but it is important for today's youth to know about it because it remains a fitting example of what happens when the Constitution is trampled over, public opinion is stifled and institutions are destroyed.

Public Provident Fund (PPF), Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY), Mahila Samriddhi Saving Certificate, Kisan Vikas Patra, National Savings Certificate (NSC), and Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS) have their interest rates due for review. The government determines the interest rates for these small savings schemes every quarter.The government had kept the interest rates on small savings schemes unchanged for the April-June quarter.Ashish Aggarwal, Director at Acube Ventures, suggests that a hike in interest rates would signal a move towards encouraging household savings, which have been stagnant in recent years.

DafaNews, West Indies veteran cricketer Chris Gayle said that international cricket should not overlap with the Indian Premier League (IPL).Gayle has been a legendary player in the IPL and first started out on the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team in 2009. He moved to the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2011 and proved instrumental for the team's performance, eventually finishing his IPL journey with Punjab Kings in 2021.

By Deepak Pahwa

The asbestos-based roofing players are expected to record PBIT margins at around 8- 9 per cent in FY2025 and FY2026, an improvement of 100-200 bps, stated a report by ICRA. This, it added, will be backed by estimated steady growth in volumes and marginal improvement in realisations. The asbestos fibre prices increased at a CAGR of 9.6 per cent during the FY2018- FY2024 period compared to the modest rise in realisations at a CAGR of 3.1 per cent during the same period, thereby impacting the profitability of the companies.

In a landmark move towards environmental sustainability, India’s real estate sector is poised for a significant transformation driven by ambitious government policies aimed at achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2047. The latest initiatives underscore a vital shift towards green growth, aligning with global sustainability goals and signaling a new era for urban development in the country.

Information Technology) segment. Historically, the majority of India’s IT service importers include North America and Europe, but there has been a lot of interest and potential coming from Asia, Africa, and Latin America, says experts. Register for the ET MSME Day 2024 here

This initiative aims to help Delhi regain share of domestic liquor sales following the closure of the private-operated premium liquor stores due to the rescission of Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 in September 2022, the report (by Atul Mathur) said. The arrival and departure areas of T3 currently have duty-free shops where international travelers can purchase liquor. However, domestic terminals will soon join the fray with their own shops following this new development. At its peak, the Delhi airport's domestic terminals housed six premium liquor stores, run by private entities, under the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22. After the policy was withdrawn amid investigations by the CBI and ED for alleged irregularities, the Delhi government decided to return to the old excise regime, pushing the retail liquor business to four government corporations.

Tata Steel aims at having a minimum of 25 per cent of its workforce made up of diverse groups, including gender minorities, marginalised communities, persons with disabilities and LGBTQIA+ individuals, within the next few years, a company official said. It is one of the first companies in the country to roll out a special recruitment drive for transgender talent, having recruited over 100 members from the community for various roles across different locations, the official claimed. «Continuing this drive, we aim to have 25 per cent of our workforce from diverse groups in the next couple of years,» the official said.

Nitin Gadkari stated on Tuesday that highway agencies should not charge tolls if roads are not in good condition, emphasizing that poor road quality and prolonged wait times at toll plazas are unacceptable, a TOI article stated. Speaking at a global workshop on satellite-based tolling, set to be implemented over 5,000 km this financial year, Gadkari underscored the necessity for highway agencies to provide efficient services before collecting toll fees. “If you don’t provide good services, you should not charge toll,” Gadkari asserted. “We are in a hurry to start tolling to collect user fees and protect our interest. When the condition of any road is not good I get numerous complaints and there are social media posts all over...You should collect the user fee where you provide the best quality road. If you collect toll on roads with potholes, mud, then there will be a backlash from people. We (political leaders) face people’s ire.” Gadkari emphasized that field officers of National Highway (NH) agencies must be sensitive to the public's pain caused by delays at toll plazas, advocating for a mechanism to quickly address grievances. The minister's remarks reflect a growing frustration among commuters regarding the state of highways and toll collection practices.

Bajaj Auto, India’s largest exporter of two and three wheelers has inaugurated its new manufacturing plant in Manaus, Brazil, it said in a statement on Wednesday. This will be the company’s first manufacturing facility outside India. In all the other markets in which it has a presence the company follows a distribution-led model – the distribution partners manage local operations, including assembly. Bajaj now sells vehicles in 100 countries. The Bairro Tarumã-based factory with an area of 9600 square meters has a capacity to produce engine assembly, vehicle assembly, and testing facilities has a production capacity of 20,000 units per annum on a single shift. It can be expanded further in due course to accommodate additional production capacity to up to 50,000 units per year. Initially, the plant will focus on manufacturing Dominar models and later Pulsar models when they become available for introduction. «With the establishment of our own plant in Brazil we have achieved a quantum shift in our local capability to fulfil demand. Our Dominar brand has received an outstanding reception since its launch 18 months ago. The new manufacturing capabilities will enable us to build a wider distribution network, introduce new products and meet growing expectations of our customers.” Rakesh Sharma, Executive Director of Bajaj Auto said in the statement.

Taipei: Taiwan, on Wednesday, reported that a total of 18 China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft and 6 People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels were detected operating around Taiwan as of 6 am (local time), Taiwan News reported. According to the Ministry of National Defence, of the 18 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, five crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the northern, southwestern, and eastern sectors of the country's air defence identification zone (ADIZ). In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor PLA activity, as per Taiwan News.

visit Russia in July. However, he refused to comment on the development until the visit was publicly confirmed by the two governments. Asked about the US reaction as PM Modi is expected to visit Russia to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin next month, Miller responded, «So we've seen those reports. I haven't seen a visit publicly confirmed by either of the countries. So, I think I'll wait to decline comment until I see them publicly actually confirmed by the governments in question.» His remarks came after reports claimed that India and Russia are making arrangements for an upcoming visit by PM Modi to Russia. Russian Foreign Policy Adviser Yuri Ushakov confirmed the development, Russia-based RIA Novosti reported.

Two years ago, the British government decided to spend big to outsource a migration problem. To deter migrants seeking asylum from illegally entering the country, it announced a radical plan: Those smuggled on makeshift dinghies to British shores would be sent to Rwanda, a small country in central Africa, where they would remain. The U.K.

liquified natural gas export plant on British Columbia’s coast is poised to go ahead.On Tuesday, the Hasila Nation and its partner Pembina Pipeline Corporation announced a green light with their final investment decision in the Cedar LNG plant.The $US3.4 billion project will see the construction of a floating LNG facility in Haisla territory in Kitimat.The nation is a majority owner in the project with a 50.1 per cent stake.“With Cedar LNG, we have proven that Indigenous communities can successfully forge a path to economic independence and generational prosperity,” Haisla Chief Councillor Crystal Smith said in a statement.“We have created a model for how sustainable energy development should be done, with Indigenous Nations as owners, balancing environmental interests with global demand for cleaner energy.”The project has already secured all major regulator approvals and has signed an agreement with the Coastal GasLink Pipeline for the delivery of 400 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, once it is up and running.Cedar LNG estimates the project will be in service by late 2028.B.C.