HEADLINES::
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses Indian community at Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago; Says, they were not just migrants but messengers of a timeless civilisation.
- Information and Broadcasting Ministry proposes amendments to rules for TV rating agencies to open up TRP market.
- Delhi government seeks pause on fuel ban for end-of-life vehicles, Says, such vehicles will not be impounded.
- Chhattisgarh government to install over 5000 mobile towers, particularly in tribal dominated Surguja and Bastar regions.
- US Congress passes President Donald Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.
- Indian chess prodigy D Gukesh beats World No.1 Magnus Carlsen to take sole lead in third leg of Grand Chess Tour 2025 in Croatia.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the journey of the Indian community in Trinidad and Tobago is about courage. Addressing an Indian community event in Trinidad and Tobago this morning, Mr Modi said their ancestors faced hardships with hope and carried Ramayana in their hearts. He said they were not just migrants but messengers of a timeless civilisation.
Prime Minister announced that citizens of Indian origin in Trinidad and Tobago will now be eligible for Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cards, allowing them to live and work in India without restrictions. He encouraged the India community to visit their ancestral land and deepen their connection with India.
Mr Modi praised the cultural contributions of Indian community and said it was an honour to bring with him a replica of the Ram Mandir and holy water from the river Sarayu in Ayodhya. Prime Minister recalled the Indian community’s earlier gesture of sending ‘shilas’ and sacred water for the temple’s construction.
Prime Minister reached Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago for the second leg of his five-nation tour last night.
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In the next leg of his 5-nation visit that aims to reinforce India’s engagement with the Global South, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Argentina, on the invitation of President Javier Milei. Argentina is a key economic partner for India in Latin America and is a close collaborator in the G20. The engagements on 4th and 5th July will mark the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Argentina in 57 years, making it a historic occasion.
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Now, we go over live to Port of Spain, where we have our correspondent Sakshi Singh covering Prime Minister’s visit to Trinidad & Tobago.
Sakshi, what were the highlights of Prime Minister’s address to Indian community in Port of Spain?
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Information and Broadcasting Ministry has proposed amendments to the policy guidelines for Television Rating Agencies, originally issued in 2014. The proposed draft has removed some restrictive provisions for media houses to allow more players to democratise and modernise the television audience measurement ecosystem in the country. Currently, Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) is the only agency providing TV ratings.
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The Delhi government has requested the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to place on hold the enforcement that mandates the denial of fuel to end-of-life vehicles in Delhi. Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa has written a letter to CAQM in this regard. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Mr. Sirsa said that the Delhi government will clean the environment of the national capital and will not allow the vehicles of the city to be confiscated.
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Chhattisgarh government plans to install more than 5,000 mobile towers, particularly in tribal dominated Surguja and Bastar regions.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has emphasized on giving new pace to digital revolution in Chhattisgarh to achieve the goal of developed Chhattisgarh along with developed India by the year 2047. During the review of the projects of the Department of Electronic and Information Technology of the State Government. The Chief Minister directed the officials to expedite the works like installing new mobile towers in remote areas of the state, especially Bastar and Surguja divisions and laying of fiber network lines. In the coming time, a target has been set to install more than 5 thousand mobile towers in the state within the time limit. The Chief Minister said that 250 other offline services will also be converted into online services by expanding online services of various departments through e-district 2.0. He said that if people get the benefit of schemes online from home, then it will save time and the expenses. Vikalp Shukla, Akashwani News, Raipur.
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Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia highlighted that India Post has evolved far beyond traditional mail delivery and now operates the country’s largest logistics network, with over 1.64 lakh service points across the country. In a podcast with Akashvani News, he informed that the organization has appointed its first-ever Chief Technology Officer, and postmen are now equipped with handheld devices, enabling real-time digital tracking of every transaction.
The podcast will be released this evening on Akashvani’s official YouTube channel NEWSONAIROFFICIAL.
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Since the arrival of monsoon in Himachal Pradesh on June 20, heavy rainfall has continued unabated. Incidents of cloudbursts, flash floods, and landslides have severely affected normal life across several parts of the state. Meteorological Department has issued a Yellow Alert for heavy rainfall today, and an Orange Alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall from July 5 to July 9.
In the past 24 hours, Pachhad in Sirmaur district recorded the highest rainfall at 133 millimeter. Apart from this, Barsar in Hamirpur district received 92 millimeter, Jubbarhatti near the capital Shimla recorded 59, while Una district registered 55 millimeter of rainfall. Meanwhile, traffic remains disrupted on 246 roads across the state. Additionally, 404 power transformers and 784 drinking water supply schemes have been affected, causing significant water and electricity shortages for the public. So far, 69 people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents, 110 people have been injured, and 37 are still reported missing. In view of the forecast of continued heavy rainfall till July 9 and the possibility of floods in several districts, the Meteorological Department has appealed people to stay away from rivers and streams, avoid unnecessary travel, and strictly follow the instructions issued by the administration. Ritesh Kapoor, Akashvani News, Shimla.
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The US Congress has passed President Donald Trump’s sprawling tax and spending bill in a significant and hard-fought victory for the President and his domestic agenda. After a gruelling session on Capitol Hill, the House of Representatives passed the bill by a vote of 218 to 214 last night. It was approved in the Senate on Tuesday by the margin of one vote.
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In sports, we have updates from Chess, Cricket, Boxing.
In Chess, World Champion D. Gukesh caused another sensation by defeating World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen in the sixth round of the rapid section of the 2025 Grand Chess Tour in Croatia last night.
Carlsen, playing with the white pieces, built a promising position in the opening. However, Gukesh turned the tide with a strong counterstrike in the middlegame. Under time pressure, Carlsen blundered and resigned on move 49. With three straight wins on Day Two, Gukesh emerged as the sole leader, entering the blitz phase with 10 points. Speaking about his game, Gukesh said, it’s always nice to beat Magnus.
“This win turned out to be an apt response by the Classical World Champion after Carlsen had labelled him one of the presumably weaker players.
Moving to World Boxing Cup in Kazakhstan, India’s Hitesh Gulia and Sakshi secured their semi-final spots. Hitesh, a gold medalist from the Brazil leg earlier this year, scored a dominant 5-nil win over Kazakhstan’s Almaz Orozbekov in the men’s 70kg quarter-finals, while in the women’s 54kg category, Sakshi defeated her Brazilian opponent via unanimous decision.
In Cricket, England will resume play at overnight score of 77 for 3 on 3rd day of the second Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham. The match will start at 3:30 PM. Earlier, Indian captain Shubman Gill’s sensational 269-run knock helped India post a 587-run total in the first innings against hosts England.Speaking at a press conference, senior all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja said that Shubman Gill had demonstrated the maturity and composure expected of a Test captain in this match.WITH BIMAL MOHAPATRA, CHIRAG JHA, SPORTS DESK.”
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TODAY’S NEWSPAPERS HEADLINE,
- The Tribune on its front page carries a photograph of Prime Minister Modi receiving ‘The Officer of the Star of Ghana’, highest state honour, from President John Dramani Mahama in Accra. The caption above reads “Ghanaian Honour”. “RSS pracharaks to meet for 3 days in Delhi from today” informs The Asian Age.
- “In snub to China, India says only Dalai Lama can pick successor” leads The Times of India.
- And finally,” In unconquered Edgbaston, Shubman Gill’s dazzling 269 breaks raft of records” reports Hindustan Times.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN,
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses Indian community at Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago; Says, they were not just migrants but messengers of a timeless civilisation.
- Information and Broadcasting Ministry proposes amendments to rules for TV rating agencies to open up TRP market.
- Delhi government seeks pause on fuel ban for end-of-life vehicles, Says, such vehicles will not be impounded.
- Chhattisgarh government to install over 5000 mobile towers, particularly in tribal dominated Surguja and Bastar regions.
- US Congress passes President Donald Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.
- Indian chess prodigy D Gukesh beats World No.1 Magnus Carlsen to take sole lead in third leg of Grand Chess Tour 2025 in Croatia.
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