logo
Shashi Tharoor-led all-party delegation to visit Panama on May 27

Shashi Tharoor-led all-party delegation to visit Panama on May 27

The Hindu26-05-2025
An all-party Parliamentary delegation led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor will visit Panama from Tuesday (May 27, 2025) to convey India's strong message of zero-tolerance for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. The delegation will reach here from Guyana.
During the three-day visit, the delegation will interact with Panamanian leadership and key interlocutors from the media, strategic community, Indian community and diaspora, and friends of India in Panama, the Embassy of India in Panama, Nicaragua and Costa Rica posted on X.
🇮🇳 India Panama 🇵🇦
Press Release
Parliamentary delegation, led by Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Hon'ble Member of Parliament, will be visiting Panama from 27-29 May to convey
India's strong message of zero-tolerance for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. pic.twitter.com/17tGQF5EdG — India in Panama, Nicaragua, Costa Rica (@IndiainPanama) May 26, 2025
'It will underline India's strong message of unity and brotherhood as well as India's collective resolve to fight against the scourge of terrorism,' it said.
The delegation members include Sarfaraz Ahmad (JMM), Gants Harish Madhur Balayogi (TDP), Shashank Mani Tripathi (BJP), Bhubaneswar Kalita (BJP), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), Tejasvi Surya (BJP), and India's former Ambassador to the U.S. Taranjit Sandhu.
As part of India's diplomatic outreach, seven multi-party delegations are travelling to 33 global capitals to reach out to the international community on Pakistan's designs and India's response to terror, especially in view of the April 22, 2025 Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people dead.
Tensions between India and Pakistan
India carried out precision strikes as part of Operation Sindoor on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in the early hours of May 7, 2025, following which Pakistan attempted to attack Indian military bases on May 8, 9, and 10. The Indian side responded strongly to the Pakistani actions.
The on-ground hostilities ended with an understanding of stopping the military actions following talks between the Directors General of military operations of both sides on May 10, 2025.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

EC must stop SIR, says opposition; calls it ‘exercise of exclusion'
EC must stop SIR, says opposition; calls it ‘exercise of exclusion'

Time of India

time32 minutes ago

  • Time of India

EC must stop SIR, says opposition; calls it ‘exercise of exclusion'

NEW DELHI: Ahead of SC hearing on special intensive revision (SIR) of Bihar's electoral rolls, opposition INDIA bloc on Sunday alleged it is an "exercise of exclusion", questioning data released by Election Commission after SIR's first phase that 66 lakh people might be excluded on grounds such as "deceased, permanently shifted or untraceable. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now " Congress functionary Abhishek Singhvi said EC should not show "institutional arrogance" with INDIA bloc parties from Bihar urging the poll panel to stop SIR as it will result in "large-scale disenfranchisement of poor and marginalised sections". "Recent pressers of EC and refusal to accept Aadhaar, EPIC, and ration card as valid documents clearly point towards the fact that the entire SIR process is a citizenship verification process," he alleged. EC responded by asking why opposition parties are trying to create "an impression that the draft list is the final list, which it is not, as per SIR order. " It said it is not able to understand the big fuss now, when a full one month period from Aug 1-Sept 1 is available to point out wrongful inclusion or wrongful exclusion of any name. "Why don't the parties ask their not 1.6 lakh booth level agents to submit claims and objections from Aug 1-Sept 1 ?" it asked. Gearing up to step up the protests both inside and outside Parliament, Congress, RJD, CPM and CPI (ML)-Liberation leaders at a presser expressed fear that many more people will be excluded from rolls during the verification process ahead due to lack of documents like birth, caste and domicile certificates. RJD MP Manoj Jha said the whole SIR process is based on presumptions. "Clearly, opacity has become the hallmark of EC functioning," Jha said. "There is no time or option for the right to appeal for people who will be excluded in the whole process. There are also numerous reports of people found alive who are included in the dead list," he alleged. On the number of deceased, CPI (ML)-Liberation Dipankar Bhattacharya said, "Does this mean that in just six months, around 22 lakh people have passed away? So, does this mean the EC's January 2025 summary revision was a flop?"

No Entry For GM Crops, Says New Delhi; India-US Trade Talks Hit A Sacred Wall
No Entry For GM Crops, Says New Delhi; India-US Trade Talks Hit A Sacred Wall

India.com

time41 minutes ago

  • India.com

No Entry For GM Crops, Says New Delhi; India-US Trade Talks Hit A Sacred Wall

New Delhi: Genetically modified (GM) crops will not be crossing India's borders anytime soon, no matter how urgently the United States knocks. As trade negotiations between New Delhi and Washington enter a crucial phase, insiders say one red line is not up for discussion. 'There are things that are not about negotiation. Some things are a matter of principle,' said a senior official close to the development. That principle, sources say, is GM corn and soy. While American negotiators have made agricultural access a central demand, pressing India for a wider entry gate for U.S. farm goods, New Delhi is not blinking, especially on GM imports. Over the years, the issue has mutated from a mere trade disagreement into a symbolic fight over sovereignty, food safety and grassroots politics. The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has repeatedly flagged India's restrictions on GM products, calling them 'non-tariff barriers'. But Indian authorities remain unmoved, largely because of the hardline stance taken by domestic groups closely aligned with the ruling establishment. Last month, the message from Sangh affiliates was if America insists on forcing GM crops into the Indian market, there may be no trade deal at all. Carried in Business Standard, that warning echoed the sentiments of influential groups such as the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) and the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), which have long opposed agricultural concessions to Washington, particularly in sectors like dairy and GM crops. Their argument? Food security. The BKS has often warned that allowing U.S. crops into India, especially without clear labelling or transparency, could sabotage domestic farming ecosystems and compromise health safety standards. On the other hand, the SJM sees this as a direct attack on economic self-reliance. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking. U.S. officials have privately hinted at the urgency of the moment, pointing to a deadline set by President Donald Trump, who is seeking a revival of his trade agenda. Trump has marked August 1 as a red-letter day. If no interim deal is inked by then, India could be hit with reciprocal tariffs, potentially as high as 26 percent. Indian trade negotiators are not indifferent to that pressure. But according to officials involved in the process, the sixth round of talks will only happen in the second half of August after Trump's deadline expires. Any hope for a short-term resolution seems, at best, unrealistic. As one official put it, 'We are not looking at compromise in areas that touch the lives of millions.' In other words, GM corn is off the table. And perhaps, so is the deal, at least for now.

RRU helps set tune in martial music's Indian homecoming
RRU helps set tune in martial music's Indian homecoming

Time of India

timean hour ago

  • Time of India

RRU helps set tune in martial music's Indian homecoming

1 2 3 Ahmedabad: The next time you see the armed forces on a parade ground, chances are high that you might hear 'Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja,' the anthem of the Indian National Army, instead of 'Colonel Bogey March' from 1914. Marking a cultural shift, the armed forces bands in 2022 embraced 'Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo' during the Beating Retreat ceremony at Kartavya Path instead of the traditional 'Abide with Me'. Aiming to take the initiative further is the newly inaugurated School of NCC and Police Martial Music Band (SNPMMB) at Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU). At the RRU school, officials aim to train the state police and central armed police forces (CAPFs) in newly created Indian tunes and compose new ones to 'Indianize martial music. ' This is the first such school in a university setting in the country. Until now, bands in uniformed services were traditionally trained at special colleges and training schools. Senior RRU officials say the inspiration is Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to make the music of India 'not merely entertainment, but a vehicle for expression, connection, and identity'. The initiatives started in 2016 with the use of Indian tunes on major occasions, they added. Major (Retd) Ashok Kumar, principal of the school and former director of music at the Joint Services Training Institute, AEC Training College & Centre, Pachmarhi — which trains musicians for the armed forces — says that military bands are traditionally taught tunes that have been part of military tradition for over a century. "We have over 200 such tunes which are used for different functions and ceremonies. In the past decade or so, Indian experts have been creating several notations and tunes that are rooted in our culture. Our aim would be to both create new tunes for the bands of CAPF and police forces and to teach the newly created Indian tunes to these bands," says Major Kumar. Some examples of such tunes include 'Veer Bharat' and 'Amar Senani', composed by Indian military musicians. These are now played regularly at various state and armed forces events. 'INS Vikrant,' 'Veer Bharat,' 'Desh Pukare,' 'Vayu Shakti,' 'Hindustan,' and 'Priyadarshini' are some more examples that reflect a rich Indian voice. Renjith G, senior instructor at SNPMMB, says the school is attempting to go a step further and create Indian raga and taal-based music in a global musical language. "Our initiative is to create original Indian tunes rooted in the country's rich musical heritage and legacy," he adds. Dr Gaurav Singh Kushwah, in-charge director of the school, calls Indianizing martial music tradition in India a major initiative. "Our aim is to teach Indian tunes primarily to CAPF and state police bands. We aim to provide trained musicians to security forces who will learn the Indian tunes and notations," he says. The first batch of 40 musicians from Rajasthan Police Central Band is already being trained at the university. RRU officials say that the courses are designed both for in-service musicians and aspiring candidates at multiple levels – from diploma to PhD. Students will be taught Indian and Western musical systems, orchestration, band drill protocols, ceremonial etiquette, and theoretical training. The first initiative for the overhaul will be the formation of the National Music Classification Forum that will attempt to find Indian alternatives for Western bugle calls like Reveille, Last Post, and Retreat.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store