THE HEADLINES:
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi hails new Waqf law as a significant step towards social justice.
- Prime Minister Modi to attend Navkar Mahamantra Divas in New Delhi.
- President Droupadi Murmu arrives in Slovakia after concluding a successful state visit to Portugal.
- In Dominican Republic, at least 66 people killed after a nightclub roof collapsed in the capital.
- US hikes tariffs on Chinese imports to 104 percent after Beijing refuses to withdraw retaliatory tariff.
- In Shooting, Vijayveer Sidhu becomes first Indian to win gold in men’s 25-meter rapid fire pistol event of ISSF World cup in Argentina.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, in Parliament is a significant step toward social justice. Mr. Modi congratulated the Parliament for enacting a remarkable law that serves the interests of all communities, including the Muslim community. Addressing an event organized by a private media house, the Prime Minister stated that the sanctity of Waqf will now be preserved, and the rights of marginalized Muslims, women, and children will be safeguarded.
Talking about the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit- WAVES Summit to be held in Mumbai next month, the Prime Minister said, the Government is organising it to encourage art and culture.
Accusing Congress of practicing appeasement politics, the Prime Minister said that such politics is fundamentally against the core concept of social justice in India. He also criticized some parties for using it as a tool for vote-bank politics.
Underscoring the significant progress made in combating Naxalism and fostering peace in the Northeast, the Prime Minister remarked that over 125 districts were once engulfed in violence, with government boundaries effectively ending where Naxalism began.
During the event, the Prime Minister also unveiled the ‘Samadhan’ document, a compendium of solutions and proof of concepts developed by selected youth and colleges across India.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi is participating in Navkar Mahamantra Divas in New Delhi. The Prime Minister will also address the gathering on the occasion. Navkar Mahamantra Divas is a significant celebration of spiritual harmony and ethical consciousness, aiming to unite people through the collective chanting of the Navkar Mahamantra – the most revered and universal chant in Jainism. Participants from more than 108 countries have joined the global chant for peace and togetherness.
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President Droupadi Murmu arrived in Slovakian capital, Bratislava early morning today after concluding her successful state visit to Portugal. The President’s visit to Portugal was the first state visit in 27 years marking a significant milestone in diplomatic relations. Briefing the media, Secretary (West), Ministry of External Affairs, Tanmaya Lal said, the President had a fruitful meeting with Portugal’s Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro.
Our Correspondent has details on the President’s Portugal visit:
The State Visit of the President is historic. The visit is taking place after the gap of 29 years. There will be delegation level talks and meeting between the President of India and the President of Slovakia, Peter Pellegrini. There will also be a meeting with the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico. The President will also meet the Speaker of the National Council of Slovakia, Richard Rasi. Pooja P. Vardhan, Akashwani News Bratislava.
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Union Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman has stated that the government remains committed to continued reforms and maintaining macroeconomic stability. The Union Minister stated this while delivering her address during a fireside chat on the ‘Opportunities and challenges for India’s quest to become a developed economy by 2047’, at India House in London last night. The Minister added that PM GatiShakti National Master Plan is strengthening multimodal connectivity, streamlining trade, and reducing logistics costs.
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Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting will be concluded today after the key benchmark decisions announcement made by Governor Sanjay Malhotra. Apart from the repo rate, the RBI Governor will also talk about growth projection, state of inflation, CPI inflation and GDP growth outlook for the Indian economy among other things. The MPC meeting started on April 7th.
“All eyes are on the RBI’s decision on the repo rate at which the central bank lends short-term funds to commercial banks. Since the last MPC meeting, both positive and negative changes are observed. Inflation has come down, and growth has started to pick up, there are fresh worries about the global economy. This is mainly due to trade tensions triggered by the tariff moves from US President, which could have an impact on India’s exports and overall growth. Bhavana, Aakashwani news, Mumbai.”
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The United States said that 104 percent duties on imports from China will take effect today. Initially, China was set to face a 34 percent tariff increase as part of President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs package. However, after Beijing refused to withdraw its promise to impose 34 percent retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods, the U.S. president escalated the situation by adding another 50 percent in duties. This brings the total tariff increase on China to a staggering 84 percent.
The White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, countries like China, who have chosen to retaliate and try to double down on their mistreatment of American workers, are making a mistake.
Earlier, China’s Commerce Ministry said it firmly opposes the additional 50 percent tariffs on Chinese imports, calling it a mistake upon a mistake. The ministry vowed to escalate its retaliation on US exports.
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Asian markets opened lower this morning as investor risk appetite weakened due to the White House moving forward with broad tariffs on trading partners. Japan’s Nikkei has continued its losing streak, opening more than 3.5 per cent down while the South Korean index Kospi fell nearly 1 per cent. Other Asian markets like Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australian share market are also trading in Red this morning. US stocks experienced another turbulent session yesterday as the S&P 500 ended the day 1.6 per cent down.
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In the Dominican Republic, at least 66 people have been killed including a provincial governor after the roof of a famous nightclub in the capital, Santo Domingo collapsed. The catastrophe has left at least 150 people injured. The head of the emergency operations centre has said, efforts to rescue those trapped under the debris are underway.
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The death toll from the devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar has risen to 3,645 with 5,017 people injured and 148 still missing, the State Administration Council’s information team revealed last evening. The UN humanitarian affairs coordination office reported that more than 5 lakh people across the country have been left without access to life-saving health care. Meanwhile, India launched the ‘Operation Brahma’, positioning itself as a first responder in line with its ‘Neighbourhood First’ and ‘Act East’ policies. Under the operation, India has dispatched tonnes of medical supplies and relief materials to Myanmar.
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Karnataka-based writer, activist and lawyer Banu Mushtaq’s short story collection ‘Heart Lamp’, has been shortlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025. The work has been translated from Kannada to English by Deepa Bhasthi.
“This is for the first time a Kannada title has made it this far in the race for the coveted literary prize. Shortlisted among six worldwide titles, Mushtaq’s work appealed to the judges for its witty, vivid, colloquial, moving and excoriating style of capturing portraits of family and community tensions. The 12 stories, published originally between 1990 and 2023, will now go head-to-head with authors from across the world. In a statement, Penguin Random House India said, this achievement marks a historic moment, with Heart Lamp becoming one of the very few Kannada-language works to be recognised at this level. With Bimal Mohapatra, Manik Sharma, Akashvani News, Delhi.”
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The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heat wave conditions over northwest India to abate from tomorrow. According to the IMD, heat wave conditions will prevail over parts of Saurashtra, Kutch, Vidarbha, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi today and over Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat till tomorrow. Meanwhile, heavy rainfall will likely be over Assam and Meghalaya today.
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In shooting, Vijayveer Sidhu has became the first Indian to win gold in the men’s 25-meter rapid fire pistol event, of ISSF World cup in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In Womens category Suruchi Singh claimed her maiden gold in 10-meter air pistol event. The double golds put India on top of the medals tally with four gold, one silver and a bronze.
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In the IPL T20 Cricket, hosts Punjab Kings defeated Chennai Super Kings by 18 runs in Chandigarh last night.
With this victory, Punjab Kings have climbed to fourth place in the points table, while Chennai Super Kings remain second from the bottom. Delhi Capitals, with 6 points, currently sit at the top of the table.
In today’s fixture, Gujarat Titans will face Rajasthan Royals in Ahmedabad. The match is scheduled to start at 7:30 PM IST.
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TODAY’S NEWSPAPERS headline,
- All the dailies have mentioned the Asian and European stocks re-entering the Green Zone. The Economic Times headline says “Markets take a calming breath after rollercoaster.”
- “With-holding of bills by the governor is illegal and unconstitutional” rules the top court as it sets timeline for state governors to decide on bills sent to them, writes The Indian Express.
- “Draft EV policy suggests ban on fossil fuel-powered two wheelers in the National Capital as Delhi goes full throttle on electric vehicles from 2026” notes Financial Express.
- “Delhi records hottest April day in three years; Najafgarh hits 41.9 degree celcius” reports The Times of India.
- The Pioneer writes about a report by a think tank saying “India becomes third largest generator of wind and solar power, overtaking Germany.”
- And finally, “India gets its first Grade 1 karting circuit as Madras International Karting Arena receives the certification, placing it among the elite karting circuit in the world, cites The Hindu.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN:
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi hails new Waqf law as a significant step towards social justice.
- Prime Minister Modi attends Navkar Mahamantra Divas in New Delhi.
- President Droupadi Murmu arrives in Slovakia after concluding a successful state visit to Portugal.
- In Dominican Republic, at least 66 people killed after a nightclub roof collapsed in the capital.
- US hikes tariffs on Chinese imports to 104 percent after Beijing refuses to withdraw retaliatory tariff.
- In Shooting, Vijayveer Sidhu becomes first Indian to win gold in men’s 25-meter rapid fire pistol event of ISSF World cup in Argentina.
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