Midday News -

THE HEADLINES:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon hold talks in New Delhi; Agreements on Defence, Education, horticulture, sports and other areas signed.
Prime Minister to inaugurate 10th edition of Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi this evening.
Waqf (Amendment) Bill is in favour of poor Muslims, says, Chairman of JPC on Bill, Jagdambika Pal.
Encounter breaks out between security forces and terrorists in North Kashmir’s Kupwara district.
IMD issues red warning for heatwave in three districts of Odisha as temperature soaring in different parts of country.
And Kabaddi World Cup 2025 to kick off in England this evening.

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India and New Zealand today exchanged five agreements in the fields of Defence, Education, Sports, Horticulture, and Forestry. Both sides also exchanged authorised economic mutual recognition agreement. Prime Minister Narendra Modi today held talks with his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon in New Delhi. The discussions covered various aspects of India-New Zealand relations. Mr Modi will also host a lunch in honour of the visiting dignitary.

In his press statement, Mr Modi said, they had detailed discussions on various aspects of the bilateral relations and both sides decided to strengthen and institutionalise the defence and security partnership.

Mr. Modi, along with Joint Exercises, Training, and Port Visits, a roadmap will be prepared for mutual cooperation also in the defence industry. The Prime Minister said, it has been decided to initiate negotiations on a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement between the two countries which will boost the potential for mutual trade and investment.

The Prime Minister said, India and New Zealand will continue to cooperate against terrorist, separatist and radical elements. He said, both sides support a Free, Open, Secure, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific and believe in the policy of development, not expansionism.

In his statement, Mr Luxon said, both sides is looking forward to achieve mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement. He said, New Zealand will increase its diplomatic presence in India.

Mr Luxon will call on President Droupadi Murmu today evening at Rashtrapati Bhawan. Earlier today, the Prime Minister of New Zealand paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at his samadhi in Rajghat.

Mr Luxon’s visit aims to strengthen the bilateral relationship between both the countries, reaffirming their commitment to deepen ties across all sectors and foster people-to-people connections.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 10th edition of Raisina Dialogue 2025 in New Delhi today. Prime Minister of New Zealand, Christopher Luxon, will join the inaugural session as the Chief Guest, and deliver the keynote address. The three-day Dialogue will be held till Wednesday. More from our correspondent:

“The 10th Raisina Dialogue will witness participation of representatives from about 125 countries. The participants include Ministers, former Heads of State and Heads of Government, Military Commanders, Captains of Industry, Technology Leaders, Academics, Journalists, Scholars on Strategic Affairs, Experts from leading Think Tanks, and Youth. Over 3500 participants will be joining the Dialogue in-person, and the proceedings will be viewed by millions across the world on various digital platforms. The Raisina Dialogue is India’s premier conference on geopolitics and geoeconomics committed to addressing the most challenging issues facing the global community. WITH Anand Kumar, Suparna Saikia, Akashvani News, New Delhi.”

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U.S. President Donald Trump today shared Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s podcast interview with US based podcaster and AI researcher Lex Fridman on his Truth Social platform. During the interview, Mr. Modi spoke extensively about his relationship with President Trump, praising his resilience and dedication to America. He emphasised that Trump is “far more prepared” for the presidency this time than he was in his first term.

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Chairman of Joint Committee of Parliament on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill Jagdambika Pal has said the Bill is in favour of the poor Muslims. On All India Muslim Personal Law Board protest over the Waqf Amendment Bill, Mr Pal told reporters in New Delhi that there is a conspiracy to create a fake narrative among minority communities against the government. He said, the government referred the bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee to consult with the Muslim organizations and other stakeholders to frame a fair and balanced legislation.

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President Droupadi Murmu has said that at a time when global geopolitical tensions are rising, the countries are enhancing maritime cooperation and undertaking joint exercises. She said, with India acquiring a bigger role at global stage, the officers of Naval Material Management Service and Naval Armament Service would play an important role in supporting the Indian Navy. The President said this while interacting with the officer trainees of Indian Naval Material Management Service and Indian Naval Armament Service at Rashtrapati Bhavan today.

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In Jammu and Kashmir, an encounter broke out between security forces and terrorists in Kupwara district this morning.

A police spokesperson told Akashvani News that on the basis of specific inputs about the presence of terrorists hiding in Krumhoora, Zachaldara Rajwar area, a search operation was launched by a joint team of police and other security forces personnel. He added that as the forces reached the suspected spot, the hiding terrorists fired upon security forces which was retaliated, triggering an encounter.

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Delhi Police have arrested seven Bangladeshi immigrants in a special drive. District Commissioner of Police, East District, Abhishek Dhania said, all of them had come to India through river routes near India-Bangladesh border and they were residing at various locations in Delhi-NCR to evade detection. DCP Dhania said, their deportation process has been initiated.

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The Lok Sabha has taken up discussion on the Demands for Grants under the Ministry of Railways for 2025-26. Varsha Gaikwad of Congress initiated the discussion. She alleged that this year’s Budget is a failed budget and questioned the government over passengers’ amenities in railways and rail accidents in the country. The Congress leader attacked the Centre over the recent stampede incident at New Delhi railway station. She also accused the government of conspiring to privatise the Indian Railways.

On the other hand, Janardan Singh Sigriwal of BJP said, the Union Budget has made an allocation of two lakh 65 thousand crore rupees to strengthen infrastructure and modernisation of railways as well as for safety and security of passengers.

Satabadi Roy of TMC highlighted the challenges faced by passengers while booking online rail tickets. She also criticized the government over the rail accidents in the country.

The discussion is underway.

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Government has said that over 20 thousand cases are pending so far under the Companies Act and Insolvency Bankruptcy Code. Replying to supplementaries in the Lok Sabha today, Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Harsh Malhotra said, the government has taken several steps to facilitate expeditious disposal of the cases. This includes implementation of e-court and hybrid court projects, regular colloquiums for capacity building of members and filling up of vacancies.

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Opposition parties today staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha in protest of disallowing discussion on issuance of duplicate voter ID numbers and other issues.

As the House met for the day, Deputy Chairman Harivansh disallowed the adjournment notices moved by the Opposition parties’ MPs over various issues. In protest, MPs of Congress, DMK, Trinamool Congress, RJD, Left, Aam Aadmi Party and others raised slogans demanding discussion on the issuance of duplicate voter ID numbers. Amid din, the Deputy Chairman urged the protesting members to go back to their seats and allow the House to function. Later, the members of opposition parties walked out from the House.

Earlier, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar resumed his responsibilities in Rajya Sabha after recovering from illness. Leader of the House JP Nadda and Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge prayed for the well-being of Mr. Dhankhar.

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The Shiv Sena, the NCP and partners in the ruling Mahayuti alliance, have announced one candidate each for the 27 March bypolls to five seats in the Maharashtra Legislative Council. The BJP had earlier announced the candidature of Sandeep Joshi, former mayor of Nagpur and a close aide of Fadnavis, along with Sanjay Kenekar, state BJP general secretary, and former MLA Dadarao Keche for three seats.

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Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Dr Debendra Pradhan passed away this morning at the age of 84 in New Delhi. Dr Pradhan is survived by his son Union Minister for Education Dharmendra Pradhan and his wife. A life member of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Dr Pradhan joined BJP in 1980 as a Mandal president and was elected to the Lok Sabha from Deogarh parliamentary constituency in Odisha in 1998 and 1999.

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Temperatures are soaring in different parts of country with India Meteorological Department forecasting gradual rise in maximum temperatures by 2 to 4 degrees Celsius in Northwest India in next 3- 4 days.

In Odisha, many districts of the state continue to swelter since this morning with the rising mercury showing no signs of a let-up. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red warning for the heat wave conditions in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, and Kalahandi districts of the state. Heat wave conditions are also being felt in some places over the districts of Sundargarh, Sonepur, Kalahandi, Boudh, and Bolangir as the IMD has issued an orange warning for these districts.

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The Kabaddi World Cup 2025 is set to begin in England this evening. The Indian Men’s team will start their campaign against Italy at Wolverhampton. The match will begin at 5:30 PM IST.

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In our bilingual live phone-in programme “Public Speak” at 9.30 tonight, we will bring a discussion on the “Birth Defects and Related Issues”. Professor of Paediatric Surgery, AIIMS, Delhi, Dr. Prabudh Goel, and HOD, Paediatrics & Neonatology of Swami Dayanand Hospital, Delhi, Dr. Surender Singh Bisht will be present in the studio, to answer the queries of the listeners.

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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon hold talks in New Delhi; Agreements on Defence, Education, horticulture, sports and other areas signed.
Prime Minister to inaugurate 10th edition of Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi this evening.
Waqf (Amendment) Bill is in favour of poor Muslims, says, Chairman of JPC on Bill, Jagdambika Pal.
Encounter breaks out between security forces and terrorists in North Kashmir’s Kupwara district.
IMD issues red warning for heatwave in three districts of Odisha as temperatures soaring in different parts of country.
And Kabaddi World Cup 2025 to kick off in England this evening.