Making progress towards normal ties after border peace: India, China

Underlining that "peace and tranquility in the border areas" has enabled "progress towards gradual normalisation of bilateral relations", Indian and Chinese officials have held talks in Beijing on delimitation, border management, mechanism building and cross-border cooperation.

EC must answer but SC gives it free pass & more

The Supreme Court ruling on petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls spends far too many words in underlining that which is uncontestable the Election Commission has a constitutional mandate to ensure free and fair polls. And that which is unexceрtionable - the electoral rolls on which the polls rest must be accurate and reliable. No one, no political party, has questioned either of the above principles or pieties. There is no doubt that the EC plays a leading role in the India story, and its monitoring of the sprawling electoral exercise in a country of diversities burnishes that story immeasurably.

India's West Asia challenge: Stay agile, stay connected

For India, West Asia is not a straight line. It is a Rubik's Cube. Every move shifts another face. There is no single West Asia for New Delhi to align with. 

Three-hour rule will turn digital arena into echo chamber

Deepfakes are a threat to our social fabric and misinformation can have deadly consequences.

But the solution cannot be built on fear. True safety online comes from transparency, digital literacy, and judicial oversight.

The quiet work that sustains Quad

Minilateral Arrangements have multiplied, but only a few acquire durability. The Quad foreign ministers' meeting is a good occasion to ask why this grouping has lasted when many remain fragile. India, Japan, Australia and the US have all had to respond to China's assertiveness, and the Quad gives them a way to coordinate without a formal alliance. But China alone does not explain its endurance. It has held through political change in Australia and Japan, shifts in US strategic posture, and India's balancing across partnerships. A purely strategic arrangement would have been more exposed to electoral cycles. 

Europe heat will abate soon, but El Niño looms

The 'heat dome' effect

The unusual heat in Europe right now is being attributed to the formation of a "heat dome" that is preventing warm air near the ground from rising and dissipating. This is leading to an increase in surface temperatures. 'Heat dome' is just a fancy way to describe how heatwaves normally occur. Heatwaves anywhere, including over India, are caused by the emergence of high-pressure air systems in the mid-troposphere, about 7-10 km above Earth's surface, that trap the heated surface air near the ground. They push down the air and compress it, increasing the temperature in the process.

Iran and US trade fire, plan for 60-day ceasefire extension awaits Trump nod

The United States and Iran reached an agreement on Thurs-day to extend their ceasefire pending the approval of President Donald Trump, after Iran had targeted a US air base in Kuwait following US strikes on what Washington called an Iranian drone operation. 

Ukraine, Sweden ink defence deal as Kyiv moves to buy fighter jets

Ukraine Will buy 20 new Gripen fighter jets and Sweden will donate 16 of an older model next year, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said at a joint press conference on Thursday. 

New blood test may detect Alzheimer's years before symptoms appear

For the first time, researchers have identified blood bio-markers for Alzheimer's Disease that correlate with subtle cognitive differences in middle-aged adults who do not yet show memory problems. This means that Alzheimer's-related brain changes may be detectable years before symptoms emerge.

A new study led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) found that blood biomarkers measuring tau and amyloid proteins -hallmarks of Alzheimer's Disease - were associated with a greater likelihood of future cognitive decline.

The study was published in The Lancet and primarily funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Anti-dumping duties on chemicals a key 'concern'

India's Chemical Industry associations and several government ministries have begun pushing for a suspension or pause in anti-dumping investigations into several chemical intermediaries due to a surge in prices and shortages caused by the ongoing war in West Asia.

Why SC online gaming tax verdict could be a final death blow to sector

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the constitutional validity of the government's retrospective 28% Goods and Services Tax (GST) levy on online gaming companies, delivering a massive setback to the country's real-money gaming sector.

The verdict effectively revives tax demands running into nearly Rs 2.5 lakh crore against gaming firms, fantasy sports platforms and casinos, and could well spell the end of the road for the online gaming sector, already reeling under a ban imposed by the government in 2025.