India stands in solidarity with Bangladesh, ready to help: PM Modi on Dhaka air crash
The incident occurred while classes were underway at the school, intensifying the scale of injuries and disruption. Authorities have not yet confirmed the total number of students affected, but the initial toll includes at least one fatality and over a hundred injuries.Bangladesh chief adviser Muhammad Yunus said the government would investigate the cause of the accident and ensure all forms of assistance."The loss suffered by the Air Force, students, parents, teachers, and staff of Milestone School and College, as well as others, in this accident is irreparable. This is a moment of deep sorrow for the nation," he said.- EndsMust Watch
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Indian Express
9 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Amit Shah claims Nehru bid ‘bye bye to Assam' during 1962 war: What former PM said, in what context
Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday (July 29) accused former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of bidding goodbye to Assam during the 1962 war. Speaking in the Lok Sabha during the Operation Sindoor debate, Shah addressed Assam Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, saying, 'Gogoiji has been saying a lot of things…do you know what he [Nehru] did to Assam? He waved bye bye to Assam on Akashvani…There is a recording of this.' This is not the first time the BJP has used Nehru's 1962 radio address to claim that Nehru had virtually surrendered Assam to China during the war. Last year, at an election rally in Lakhimpur, Shah had said, 'During the Chinese aggression of 1962, Nehru had said 'bye-bye' to Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. People of these states can never forget that.' In March 2024, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had written in The Indian Express, 'When Jawaharlal Nehru, as a Prime Minister abandoned Assam amidst the 1962 Indo-China war while claiming his heart went out to the people of Assam, Prime Minister Modi repeatedly called the region Ashtalakshmi and Bharat's growth engine.' What exactly did Nehru say in the radio address, and did he bid 'bye bye' to Assam? What did he say about the 1962 war in Parliament? What was his remark about not a blade of grass growing in Aksai Chin? We explain. The 1962 war lasted for barely a month, from October 20 to November 21. China invaded India from two sides, in the west around the Ladakh region and in the east in the Northeast Frontier Agency (today's Arunachal Pradesh and parts of Assam). On both fronts, its victories were swift and decisive. It managed to capture the strategically crucial Tawang (in the present Arunachal Pradesh), and advanced further. It was in this context that Nehru addressed the nation on November 19, 1962, in Hindi. The 'heart goes out to Assam' line goes thus, 'Is waqt kuch Assam ke upar, Assam ke darwaaze par, dushman hai, aur Assam khatre mein hai. Isliye khas taur se hamara dil jata hai hamare bhai air bahinon par, jo Assam mein rehtein hain, unki hamdardi mein, kyunki unkon taqleef uthani pad rahi hai…Hum unki poori madad karne ki koshish karenge aur karenge, lekin kitni bhi hum madad karein, hum unko taqleef se nahin bacha lenge is waqt. Haan, ek baat ka hum pakka irdada rakhtein hain…hum is baat ko aakhiri dum tak chaleyenge jab tak Assam aur sara Hindustan bilkul dushman se khaali na ho jaaye,' [Selected works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Volume 79]. The translation from the Selected Works, of a larger section of the speech, is, 'Huge Chinese armies have been marching in the northern part of the North East Frontier Agency and we have suffered reverses at Walong, on the Sela Ridge and today Bomdila — a small town in NEFA has also fallen. In the North also in Ladakh, in the Chushul area, the Chinese have been attacking fiercely, though they have been held. Now what has happened is very serious and very saddening to us and I can well understand what our friends in Assam must be feeling because all this is happening on their doorstep, one might say. I want to tell them that we feel very much for them and that we shall help them to the utmost of our ability. We may not be able always to succeed in what we are trying now because of various factors and of the overwhelming numbers of the Chinese forces, but I want to take a pledge to them, here and now, that we shall see this matter to the end and the end will have to be victory for India.' Thus, the speech asserts that the government would drive the enemy out of Assam, and when the PM spoke of his heart going out, he was acknowledging the troubles the people of Assam would have to suffer. Aditya Mukherjee, retired Professor of Contemporary History and Director, Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Advanced Study, JNU, told The Indian Express, 'To read Nehru's 1962 AIR speech as 'bidding goodbye to Assam' does not stand scrutiny. While it is a stretch to read 'my heart goes out' as abandoning Assam, the rest of the speech makes it clear that Nehru was determined to fight for every inch of Indian land. The speech does not show any intention of surrendering, instead, it shows a resolve to keep fighting a difficult fight.' Nehru's comments on the war on other occasions Nehru spoke about the 1962 war multiple times in Parliament, giving information and answering the Opposition's questions even when the fighting was on. The speeches have the common theme of not surrendering to the enemy. For example, in Parliament on November 19, 1962, after giving details of the defeats suffered by the Indian Army, Nehru said, 'I should like to add that in spite of the reverses suffered by us, we are determined not to give in in any way and we shall fight the enemy, however long it may take to repel him and drive him out of our country.' Amit Shah Tuesday also said that Nehru gave 'non-serious' replies in Parliament, citing as example his comment about not a blade of grass growing in Aksai Chin. Nehru's Aksai Chin remark was made in August 1959, before the India China war, and he had clarified it in Parliament. Here's that exchange [(Jawaharlal Nehru: Selected Speeches, Volume 4]. Speaking about Chinese incursions into Ladakh, Nehru said in Lok Sabha, 'When we discovered in 1958, more than a year ago, that a road had been built across Yehcheng in the north-east corner of Ladakh, we were worried. We did not know where it was. Hon. Members asked why we did not know before. It is a relevant question, but the fact is that it is an uninhabitable area, 17.000 feet high. It had not been under any kind of administration. Nobody has been present there. It is a territory where not even a blade of grass grows. It adjoins Sinkiang.' Jaswant Singh later said, 'The Prime Minister stated a little while ago that this portion of Ladakh is absolutely desolate and unfertile and that not even a blade of grass grows there. Even then, China is attaching importance to the area and is building a road there. I would like to know, when China is attaching so much of importance to this desolate bit of land, why, when the territory is ours or is under dispute even, do we not attach any importance to it?' Nehru then replied, 'I talked only about the Yehcheng area, not about the whole of Ladakh… Presumably the Chinese attach importance to this area because of the fact that the route connects part of Chinese Turkestan with Gartok-Yehcheng.'
Hans India
9 minutes ago
- Hans India
PM Modi's Maldives visit reinforces India's commitment to ‘neighbourhood first' policy
Male: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recently concluded two-day state visit to the Maldives is being lauded as an "extremely productive and defining moment", demonstrating a significant turnaround in bilateral ties, after a period of strained ties characterised by Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu's "India Out" campaign." Through the two-state visit to the Maldives, PM Modi reiterated India's commitment to its 'Neighbourhood First' policy. PM Modi, who was the Guest of Honour for the 60th Independence Day celebrations, demonstrated India's role as a trusted friend and "First Responder" in the Indian Ocean region. PM Modi's visit to the Maldives was the first by any Head of State or government since Muizzu assumed office, successfully navigating a period of strained bilateral ties characterised by the "India Out" campaign, Asian News Post reported. During the visit, the two leaders reiterated their shared goals of peace, stability, and prosperity, laying the roadmap for a comprehensive economic and maritime security partnership. During the visit, PM Modi announced a Line of Credit worth INR 4,850 crore for infrastructure development in the Maldives, notably extended for the first time in Indian Rupee. The financial assistance announced by India is set to bolster critical sectors of the Maldives, including education, healthcare and housing and enhance the security capabilities. In addition, an amendatory agreement was signed to reduce annual debt repayment obligations from USD 51 million to USD 29 million for alleviating the Maldives' debt burden, marking a 40 per cent reduction. India and the Maldives announced the initiation of negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and expressed commitment to finalising a bilateral investment treaty. The two nations also signed several agreements across various sectors, including fisheries, meteorology and digital infrastructure. PM Modi also handed over 3300 housing projects and inaugurated a roads and drainage system project, along with six high-impact community development projects. In addition, India will provide 72 heavy vehicles to the Maldivian Ministry of Defence, boosting their defence capabilities. PM Modi and President Muizzu released a commemorative stamp marking 60 years of diplomatic ties between the two nations. PM Modi has consistently expressed India's unwavering commitment to bolstering cordial ties with neighbouring nations and elevating regional cooperation to a new vision. The renewed bonhomie with the Maldives showcases a powerful demonstration of this vision. PM Modi's visit to the Maldives offers valuable lessons in leveraging India's rapid economic growth. Sri Lanka, by aligning its economic strategies and strengthening partnerships with India, can benefit significantly from increased trade, investment, and collaborative development initiatives, contributing to its stability and prosperity in the South Asian landscape.
Hans India
9 minutes ago
- Hans India
Govt has opened 1 million sq km of new offshore area to step up oil & gas hunt: Hardeep Puri
New Delhi: India is witnessing a renewed surge in oil and gas exploration with the opening of nearly one million square kilometres of erstwhile 'No-Go' offshore areas in 2022, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, informed the Parliament on Tuesday. "This move has unlocked significant exploration frontiers, especially in deepwater and frontier regions such as the Andaman-Nicobar (AN) offshore basin, and has been instrumental in triggering the current momentum in offshore activity," the minister said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha. Since 2015, Exploration and Production (E&P) companies operating in India have reported 172 hydrocarbon discoveries, including 62 in offshore areas. The minister highlighted the geological significance of the AN basin, which lies at the junction of the Andaman and Nicobar Basins within the Bengal-Arakan sedimentary system. The tectonic setting, located at the boundary of the Indian and Burmese plates, has led to the formation of numerous stratigraphic traps that are conducive to hydrocarbon accumulation. This geological promise is further amplified by the basin's proximity to proven petroleum systems in Myanmar and North Sumatra. The region has attracted renewed global interest following significant gas discoveries in South Andaman offshore Indonesia, underlining the geological continuity across the region, the minister said. While the favourable geology sets a strong foundation, Puri emphasised that the real breakthrough has come from the government's strategic policy interventions and a new exploration approach. The revised strategy has enabled aggressive acquisition of seismic data, initiation of both stratigraphic and exploratory drilling, and increased engagement with international exploration partners, several of whom have shown keen interest in the newly accessible frontier blocks, he stated. In a significant development, ONGC and Oil India Ltd (OIL) have launched an ambitious exploration campaign in the Andaman ultra-deepwater region. For the first time, drilling operations are targeting depths of up to 5,000 metres. One such wildcat well, ANDW-7, drilled in a carbonate play in the East Andaman Back Arc region, has yielded encouraging geological insights. These include traces of light crude and condensate in cutting samples, heavy hydrocarbons like C-5 neo-pentane in trip gases, the minister further stated. These findings establish, for the first time, the existence of an active thermogenic petroleum system in the region, comparable to those in Myanmar and North Sumatra. While commercial reserves remain to be established, this campaign has validated the presence of a working petroleum system and laid the foundation for focused exploration in the area, the minister said. Providing an overview of the exploration outcomes so far, the minister informed that the ONGC has made hydrocarbon discoveries in 20 blocks, with an estimated reserve of 75 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent (MMTOE). OIL, on its part, has made seven oil and gas discoveries over the past four years, with reserves estimated at 9.8 million barrels of oil and 2,706.3 million standard cubic meters of gas. Govt has opened 1 million sq km of new offshore area to step up oil & gas hunt: Hardeep Puri
