&w=3840&q=100)
This Week in Explainers: Can India do without Russian oil amid Trump threats?
India is staring at a 25 per cent tariff on its goods exported to the United States. Announcing higher rates for India than more than 50 other countries, President Donald Trump has also threatened New Delhi with a 'penalty' for buying Russian crude.
The Indian government has confirmed that the three terrorists killed in Operation Mahadev were behind the Pahalgam terror attack. Hashim Musa, the reported mastermind of the April 22 massacre, was among those killed by Indian security forces in a joint operation this week.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Nisar, an Earth-observation satellite built by India and the US, was launched into space. The mission will study minute changes on the Earth's surface.
Here's all this and more in our weekly wrap from India.
1. The US imposed 25 per cent tariffs on Indian imports from August 1. American President Trump has been railing against India's 'high tariffs' and the massive trade deficit between the two countries.
Trump's high tariffs against India come even as New Delhi and Washington continue to negotiate a bilateral trade deal. As the taxes on Indian goods imported to the US come into effect, Americans will face the brunt immediately. India's GDP could also take a hit. We take a look at the impact in this report.
2. Trump has threatened a 'penalty' tariff on India for buying Russian crude oil. The US president has so far failed to achieve a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. India has maintained a neutral stance in the war and continued to buy discounted fuel from Moscow despite pressure from the West.
Russia accounted for just 0.2 per cent of India's imports of crude oil before the Ukraine war began in February 2022. Today, India is among the top buyers of Russian oil. How did this shift happen? And can India do without Russian crude? Here's our report.
3. The week that the Parliament held a discussion on Operation Sindoor, reports came that three terrorists who carried out the Pahalgam attack had been killed. Home Minister Amit Shah told the Parliament that those killed were indeed the Pahalgam attackers and this was established with the aid of forensic and ballistic tests.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
He also confirmed that all three terrorists were Pakistani citizens, who were killed in Operation Mahadev, a joint effort by the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). The encounter between the security forces and the terrorists took place in the upper reaches of Dachigam Forest, which is in Srinagar's Harwan area. Read our report to know more.
4. Nisar, or Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar, was launched into a 747 km sun-synchronous polar orbit this week. It lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, onboard Isro's GSLV Mk-II rocket.
Weighing 2,392 kilos, Nisar was jointly developed by Isro and Nasa. It has two frequencies — Nasa's L-band and Isro's S-band, which will equip the mission to observe changes more accurately than any other satellite. Nisar will scan the globe every 12 days, providing detailed images of the Earth's surface. We take a look at what makes it special.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
5. A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court announced its verdict in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, acquitting all seven accused, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit. The explosion near Bhikku Chowk in Maharashtra's Malegaon town had killed six people and injured 101 others.
Pragya Singh Thakur has been acquitted in the Malegaon blast case. File Photo/PTI
The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) had arrested the accused nearly 17 years ago. However, all have been out on bail for years. The special NIA court has now acquitted all the accused. But why? Here's our detailed report.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
6. An elderly woman accused of the murder of her husband had recently gone viral after her video defending herself in a courtroom with the help of science surfaced. Mamta Pathak, 65, made headlines again this week after the Madhya Pradesh High Court upheld her life sentence for killing her husband by electrocution.
Dr Neeraj Pathak was found dead at his Loknathpuram house in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur in April 2021. But how did the police arrest his wife, a former chemistry professor? Why did she murder her husband? Here's our story.
This is all we have for you this week. If you like how we analyse news, you can bookmark this page.
PS. In a highly rare pregnancy, the foetus of a woman in Uttar Pradesh is growing in her liver instead of the uterus. Read this report to know more.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
13 minutes ago
- Economic Times
He has his reasons for saying so...: Shashi Tharoor on Rahul Gandhi's 'dead economy' remark
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday refused to comment on party leader Rahul Gandhi's endorsing US President Donald Trump's 'dead economy' remark about India and said the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha may have had his "own reasons" for saying so. The remarks came after Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Thursday agreed with US President Donald Trump's statement that the Indian economy is "dead" and said he is "glad" that the US President has stated a fact. Speaking to the mediapersons, Tharoor said, "I don't want to comment on what my party leader has said. He has his reasons for saying so. My concern is that our relationship with the US, as a strategic and economic partnership, is important for us. We are exporting around 90 billion worth of goods to America. We can't be in a position to lose that or have it diminish significantly.""We must wish our negotiators strength to get a fair deal for India. We should also be talking to other regions for exporting our goods. Then we could make up for some of what we might lose in the US. We have to support our negotiators," he added. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Thursday agreed with US President Donald Trump's statement that the Indian economy is "dead" and said he is "glad" that the US President has stated a fact. Speaking to reporters, Rahul Gandhi said that the whole world knows the Indian economy is "dead" except for the Prime Minister and Finance Minister."Yes, he is right. Everybody knows this except the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister. Everybody knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact. The entire world knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. BJP has finished the economy to help Adani," Rahul Gandhi Wednesday, US President Donald Trump made a shocking statement on his social media platform Truth Social after the announcement of 25 per cent tariffs against India and threatened an additional "penalty" for importing Russian oil.
Time of India
15 minutes ago
- Time of India
'You can believe what you want…': Kennedy blasts Murray over ‘Qatari jet bribe' claim against Trump
After Republicans voted no on an amendment to ensure a gifted Qatari jet doesn't transfer to Trump after his presidency for his personal use, Patty Murray called this the "most corrupt administration in history." Senator John Kennedy pushed back during a Senate Committee on Appropriations hearing, saying "I don't think it's productive. It's up to you, this is America, you can say and believe what you want. But if you're going to say somebody has been bribed, you need to say specifically by whom? For what?" Show more Show less
Hindustan Times
15 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
India ramps up US energy imports as Trump pushes balanced trade
Washington: India has dramatically increased its energy purchases from the US since Donald Trump returned to office in January, with crude oil imports surging 51% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year, according to data cited by people aware of the trade specifics between the two nations. The surge follows a February agreement between Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Washington, where both leaders committed to expanding energy cooperation. (PTI) The energy buying spree reflects New Delhi's commitment to rebalance trade ties with Washington, a key demand of the Trump administration. Liquefied natural gas imports have nearly doubled from $1.41 billion in FY2023-24 to $2.46 billion in FY2024-25. The surge follows a February agreement between Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Washington, where both leaders committed to expanding energy cooperation. India pledged to boost American energy imports to $25 billion from $15 billion in 2024, while bilateral trade is targeted to more than double from $200 billion to $500 billion by 2030. 'The leaders reaffirmed their commitment to increase energy trade, as part of efforts to ensure energy security, and to establish the United States as a leading supplier of crude oil and petroleum products and liquefied natural gas to India,' the joint statement said. The momentum has accelerated significantly. Indian crude purchases from America jumped 114% to $3.7 billion in the first quarter of FY2025-26 from $1.73 billion in the same period the previous year. In July alone, imports rose 23% month-on-month, pushing America's share of India's total crude imports from 3% to 8%. 'This trend is increasing further from July this year. So, in July 2025 India imported 23% more crude oil from the US compared to June 2025,' said one of the people who analysed the data. 'Also, in India's overall crude imports, while the US share was earlier only 3%, in July that share increased to 8%.' American LNG has emerged as particularly attractive to Indian companies. 'Buying LNG from America is a very attractive proposition for many Indian companies,' said Prashant Vashisht, senior vice president at ratings agency ICRA. 'Firstly, US LNG, which is priced based on the Henry Hub benchmark, is very competitive price-wise compared to other sources. Second, a large number of LNG projects are coming online in the United States, which will mean that more Indian companies will look closely at the American market for tying up long-term contracts.' The timing aligns with America's plans to rapidly expand oil and gas exports. Trump reversed the Biden administration's pause on processing LNG export licences soon after taking office. The US Energy Information Administration expects North America's LNG export capacity to double by 2028, with America providing most of the increase. India's growing appetite for American energy comes as the country is poised to become the world's largest driver of oil demand growth. The International Energy Agency estimates India will surpass China as the major driver of global oil demand growth by 2030, with LNG demand expected to jump 78% to reach 64 billion cubic metres annually. 'Additional long-term LNG contracts worth tens of billions of dollars are being discussed. Indian oil and gas majors are in discussions with their US counterparts for long-term purchase of US oil and gas,' another person familiar with the matter said. 'India considers the US as among the most reliable partners for India's energy security.' However, energy ties remain a point of contention, particularly regarding India's continued purchases of Russian crude oil. The Trump administration has pressed New Delhi to reconsider its energy relationship with Moscow to pressure President Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
