Home Minister Amit Shah Chairs Northern Zonal Council Meeting in Faridabad
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah today chaired the 32nd meeting of the Northern Zonal Council (NZC) in Faridabad, Haryana. The Northern Zonal Council comprises the states and UTs of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Chandigarh. At the beginning of the meeting, tributes were paid to those who lost their lives in the recent car bomb blast in Delhi and the explosion at Nowgam Police Station in Jammu and Kashmir. During the meeting, the Home Minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, eliminating terrorism from its roots is government’s collective commitment. He said that in the culprits of the Delhi bomb blast will be traced even from the netherworld, brought before the country’s judicial system, and given the strictest possible punishment.
Mr Shah said that strong states create a strong nation, and Zonal Councils play a very important role in translating this into reality on the ground. He added that Zonal Councils are extremely important for dialogue, cooperation, coordination, and policy synergy. He said, many types of problems have been resolved through these councils. He said, safety of women and children is government’s top priority and for this the number of Fast Track Special Courts should be increased. The Union Minister said that Ministry of Cooperation has initiated 57 measures across the country to strengthen the cooperative sector.
Home Minister Amit Shah Chairs Northern Zonal Council Meeting in Faridabad
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah today chaired the 32nd meeting of the Northern Zonal Council (NZC) in Faridabad, Haryana. The Northern Zonal Council comprises the states and UTs of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Chandigarh. At the beginning of the meeting, tributes were paid to those who lost their lives in the recent car bomb blast in Delhi and the explosion at Nowgam Police Station in Jammu and Kashmir. During the meeting, the Home Minister said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, eliminating terrorism from its roots is government’s collective commitment. He said that in the culprits of the Delhi bomb blast will be traced even from the netherworld, brought before the country’s judicial system, and given the strictest possible punishment.
Mr Shah said that strong states create a strong nation, and Zonal Councils play a very important role in translating this into reality on the ground. He added that Zonal Councils are extremely important for dialogue, cooperation, coordination, and policy synergy. He said, many types of problems have been resolved through these councils. He said, safety of women and children is government’s top priority and for this the number of Fast Track Special Courts should be increased. The Union Minister said that Ministry of Cooperation has initiated 57 measures across the country to strengthen the cooperative sector.
Storm Claudia leaves 3 dead in Portugal, causes severe flooding in UK
Violent weather brought on by Storm Claudia killed three people and injured dozens in Portugal, authorities there said on Saturday, while in Britain rescue workers were organising evacuations due to heavy flooding in Wales and England.
Portugal and parts of neighbouring Spain have faced days of extreme conditions brought on by Storm Claudia, which had reached parts of Britain and Ireland by Saturday.
Rescue workers found the bodies of an elderly couple inside their flooded home in Fernao Ferro, across the River Tagus from Lisbon, on Thursday. They had apparently been sleeping and were unable to flee as the water rose during the night.
India Signs One-Year Deal to Import 2.2 Million Tonnes of LPG from the US
Indian public sector oil companies have signed a one-year deal to import Liquefied Petroleum Gas, LPG, from the United States. In a social media post, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the companies will import around 2.2 million tonnes per annum of LPG, which will be sourced from the US Gulf Coast. He said the government has been diversifying its LPG sourcing to provide secure, affordable supplies of LPG to the citizens. Mr Puri informed that a team of officials from Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited had visited the US and engaged in discussions with major US producers over the last few months.
The Minister underscored that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Indian PSU oil companies have been providing LPG at the lowest global prices to people in the country. Mr Puri emphasised that even as global prices soared by over 60 per cent last year, Prime Minister Modi ensured that the Ujjwala consumers continued to receive LPG cylinders at just 500 to 550 rupees, whereas the actual cost of the cylinder was over one thousand one hundred rupees. The Minister said the government of India incurred the cost of over 40 thousand crore rupees last year to ensure that the women of the country did not feel the burden of rising international LPG prices.
India’s Labour Force Participation Hits Six-Month High at 55.4% in October
Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) among persons of age 15 years and above increased for the fourth successive month to 55.4 per cent in October this year, hitting a six-month high. The LFPR in rural areas also increased to 57.8 per cent last month while in urban areas it dipped to 50.5 per cent. LFPR is an estimate of the number of people actively engaged in the workforce, in Current Weekly Status (CWS).
According to Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) monthly labour force and unemployment data, India’s Unemployment Rate (UR), remained unchanged at 5.2 per cent in October, for individuals aged 15 years and above. As per the data, a marginal decline in the rural unemployment rate, from 4.6 per cent in September to 4.4 per cent last month, coupled with a moderate rise in urban UR from 6.8 per cent to 7.0 per cent, resulted in overall stability in the unemployment rate. The overall unemployment rate for female declined marginally to 5.4 per cent while the male unemployment rate remained stable at 5.1 per cent.
The overall Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for individuals aged 15 years and above continued to rise, standing at 52.5 per cent led by rise in the female workforce in rural areas.
India’s Exports Rise 4.8% to $491.8 Billion in April–October Period
India’s total exports, combining merchandise and services, rose over 4.8 per cent to 491.8 billion US dollars during April to October period of current fiscal as compared to same period in last fiscal. According to provisional data released by the Commerce Ministry, merchandise exports grew 0.62 per cent while imports rose 6.37 per cent. A key contributor to this overall momentum has been the consistent rise in non-petroleum exports. During the first seven months of 2025, non-petroleum exports were valued at 219.9 billion US dollars, registering a 3.92 per cent increase. Total imports are estimated at 569.95 billion US dollars, during the same period.
However, country’s merchandise trade deficit widened by 41.68 billion US dollars in October, up from 32.15 billion US dollars in September, driven largely by an increase in gold and silver imports. In October, gold imports registered a growth of 199.2 percent.
Meanwhile, Merchandise exports last month declined by 11.8 per cent to 34.38 billion US dollars on an annual basis. Meanwhile, merchandise imports rose 16.63 per cent to 76.06 billion US dollars during the same period.
PM Modi hails India’s record-breaking performance at Asian Archery Championships 2025
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated India’s Asian Archery Championships 2025 medal winners on Monday for delivering the country’s best-ever result at the tournament, finishing with a total of 10 medals.
India clinched six gold medals, including a historic gold in the men’s individual recurve — the first for the country in 18 years.
In a post on X, the Prime Minister said, “Congratulations to our Archery team on their best ever performance at the Asian Archery Championships 2025. They have brought home 10 medals, including 6 Golds. Notable among these was the historic Recurve Men’s Gold after 18 years. At the same time, there were strong showings in individual events and successful Compound title defenses too. This is indeed a very special feat, which will motivate many upcoming athletes.”
Jannik Sinner beats Carlos Alcaraz to retain ATP Finals title before his home fans
The final instalment of the “Sincaraz” rivalry for 2025 went to Jannik Sinner.
The second-ranked Sinner beat top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (4), 7-5 for the ATP Finals trophy on Sunday in the sixth meeting this year between the two players who are dominating men’s tennis.
Sinner defended the title before his home Italian fans for only his second victory over Alcaraz this year after also beating the Spaniard in the Wimbledon final.
“It was an incredible season,” Sinner said. “To finish it this way, before my Italian fans, is very special for me.”
Alcaraz had already secured the year-ending No. 1 ranking and was contesting his first final at the event for the year’s top eight players.
Sheikh Hasina sentenced to death by Bangladesh tribunal for 'crimes against humanity'
Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) on Monday sentenced deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina to death after finding her guilty of alleged crimes against humanity committed during last year’s student-led agitation that led to the fall of her Awami League government.
The three-member tribunal also delivered its judgment against two of Hasina’s aides — former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun — over the same charges. Al-Mamun was produced before the tribunal.
The former Bangladesh prime minister was "found guilty on three counts" of preventing justice, ordering the killing of protesters and failing to take measures to stop punitive killings.
DRDO unveils new-generation man-portable AUVs for mine countermeasure missions
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully developed a new generation of Man-portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (MP-AUVs) designed to strengthen India’s naval mine countermeasure capabilities. The breakthrough comes from the Naval Science & Technological Laboratory (NSTL), Visakhapatnam, which led the development of the advanced underwater systems.
The MP-AUV system features multiple compact AUV units equipped with Side Scan Sonar and underwater cameras as primary payloads for real-time detection and classification of mine-like objects. The vehicles leverage onboard deep learning-based target recognition algorithms that enable autonomous classification, significantly reducing operator workload and accelerating mission timelines.