Russia-Ukraine war: External affairs minister S Jaishankar told Rajya Sabha that the evacuation efforts were undertaken at a time when artillery shelling and airstrikes on Ukrainian cities were underway.
Category: Leaders, on the World Stage – Politics
** Midnight’s Daughters: Women who fought for the idea of India and her freedom
International Womens Day – Today – March 08th
Little-known stories of women who took to the streets during independence struggle.
Read on the articles for names >>>>.
theweek.in
** Indian envoy Mukul Arya passes away, Palestinian Authority “closely monitoring” cause of death
** With three of our men in Portugal’s government, there’s much to be said about Goa’s relationship with its former coloniser
Portugal’s prime minister, finance minister and planning minister are all of Goan origin in a delightful little twist of history
Election results aren’t due for India’s smallest State until March 10, but the biggest victory for any Goan politician was announced on January 30. That’s when results came out from Portugal’s snap elections, validating the go-for-broke political instincts of Prime Minister António Costa. The charismatic 60-year-old leader of the centre-left Partido Socialista had preferred to appeal to voters rather than submit to the increasingly strident demands from far-left parties in his coalition government. The electorate rewarded him handsomely, with an unexpected majority of 119 out of 230 seats.
But here’s the twist. This famously personable former Mayor of Lisbon, who looks visibly desi, is Goan; his father was the anti-colonial Goan novelist Orlando da Costa. One wing of the family remains rooted in Margao. It is an intimate, flourishing connection, which both India and Portugal have been eager to celebrate. In 2017, during the first-ever standalone bilateral visit by any Indian prime minister to Lisbon, the Portuguese leader was embraced by Narendra Modi, who personally handed him his Overseas Citizen of India card.
The story doesn’t end here: Costa isn’t the only Goan at the pinnacle of government in Portugal. His finance minister is another — João Leão earned his Ph.D in economics from MIT, where his thesis advisor was economist Abhijit Banerjee. His planning minister is Nelson de Souza (who was actually born in India in 1954, just a few years before Nehru’s troops decapitated the 451-year-old Estado da India colonial state in 1961).
** India, France sign roadmap to enhance bilateral exchanges on blue economy and ocean governance
Agreement was signed during External Affairs Minister Jaishankar’s three-day visit to France which began on February 20 with bilateral talks with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian
India and France have inked a roadmap to enhance their bilateral exchanges on the blue economy and forge a common vision of ocean governance based on the rule of law and cooperate on sustainable and resilient coastal and waterways infrastructure.
** Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag finds his ancestral roots in Bihar
Purryag is scheduled to visit Wajitpur village in Punpun block of Patna district to get a feel of the place that his ancestors had left behind to sail to Mauritius decades ago.
Heads of foreign governments continue to discover their roots in Bihar . After the Prime Ministers of Mauritius and Trinidad and Tobago, it is now the turn of Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag to visit the land of his forefathers in the state.
** India, UAE sign comprehensive trade pact – February 18th, 2022
The agreement will herald a new age in India-UAE finacial ties, says PM Modi
India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed a bilateral “comprehensive” trade pact on Friday. Announcing the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), the biggest trade pact of the last seven years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed investment from the Gulf country into Jammu and Kashmir and said the initiative would open new routes for regional trade and connectivity and advance “collective interests” of India, Israel, the UAE and the United States. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said the CEPA would have strong anti-dumping measures.
“This agreement will herald a new age in our financial relations. Our trade in the next five years will increase from $60 billion to $100 billion,” said Mr. Modi, thanking Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan who participated in the summit virtually.
** Jaishankar lauds Indian community’s key role in shaping positive image in Australia
Melbourne has a vibrant Indian community with Indian-born migrants making up 3% of the city’s total population. Since 2001, the number of Indian-born migrants in Melbourne has more than tripled.
** Gaddam Meghana, a Telugu girl in New Zealand’s Youth Parliament
Accustomed to the Telugu cutlure, Meghana participates in most of the cultural and traditional celebrations with utmost love and respect.
: Gaddam Meghana (18), a Non-Resident Indian teenager became the first Indian-Telugu origin youth to get elected as New Zealand’s Youth Parliament member representing Waikato Parliament segment in the country. With the prestigious achievement, she became one of the youth icons of the country.
Around 21 years ago, Gaddam Ravikumar, Meghana’s father, went to New Zealand along with his wife and got settled in Waikato as a real estate businessman.
Meghana was born and brought up in New Zealand, and she has recently completed her ‘International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme’ (IBDP) from St Peter’s, Cambridge, in New Zealand. Since her childhood Meghana was a clever student and was a successful class head too.