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New Delhi, Feb 14: Just about a month after canceling government subsidised Haj pilgrimages, the BJP is offering Christians free trips to Jerusalem if elected to power in Nagaland, reported northeastern news outlets. It's unclear if the BJP is offering this to all of India's Christians, or only to Christians in the northeast, or only to Christians in Nagaland. The BJP's offer comes in the run-up

Kuwait City, Feb 14: Kuwait’s ruling Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah said on Wednesday that his nation will give $1 billion in loans and $1 billion in direct investments to help rebuild Iraq. The stunning donation, as only a decade ago Saddam Hussein invaded the small, oil-rich nation, shows the deep interest Kuwait has in making sure Iraq becomes a peaceful, stable country after the war

Islamabad, Feb 14: Under pressure to act against banned groups, Pakistan has launched a crackdown on seminaries and health facilities run by Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed, a media report said on Wednesday. The action came after a high-level UN sanctions team visited last month to review progress against groups and individuals banned by the world body. Following orders by the Punjab

Krishnagar, Feb 14: Bengal became the first state to opt out of the National Health Protection Scheme unveiled in the Union Budget, with CM Mamata Banerjee announcing on Tuesday the state will not “waste” its hard-earned resources to contribute its share to the programme. “The Centre has drawn up a health plan in which 40% of the fund has to come from states. But why should the state spend on

Mumbai, Feb 14: The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) decision to tighten norms for resolution of stressed loans, currently estimated at over Rs10 trillion, will improve recovery prospects from bad loans but keep banks’ provisioning requirement at an elevated level, analysts said. Late on Monday, the central bank withdrew a host of norms such as strategic debt restructuring (SDR) and scheme for

NEW DELHI, Feb 13: The Indian Premier League (IPL), which started as a sideshow by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2008, is now set to account for nearly 95 percent of the board’s surplus. Captains-coaches meeting date advanced by BCCI BCCI’s projections of its income and spending in the coming financial year suggest that the IPL will earn a surplus of Rs 2,017 crore, while the

WASHINGTON, Feb 13: China is coercing its neighbours to reorder the Indo-Pacific region, the Pentagon told Congress in its annual budget proposals for the fiscal 2019, beginning October 1 this year. Trump administration on Monday released their proposal for the fiscal year 2019 budget. Fiscal years are different from calendar years. The budgetary proposal covers October 1, 2018, through September

Jammu, Feb 13: The body of another soldier was today recovered from the encounter site inside the Sunjuwan Military camp here, taking the death toll in the terror attack to 10, including six Army personnel and three terrorists of the JeM. The body of the Army jawan was recovered during the clearance operation at the camp last night, Jammu-based Army Public Relation Officer Lt Col Devender Anand

The Philippine government has officially put a stop to the deployment of Filipino workers to Kuwait on Monday. The move is in response to a series of incidents that led to the deaths and injuries of a number of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the Gulf state. The head of the country’s Department of Labour and Employment (Dole), Secretary Silvestre Bello III, issued an order to enforce the

Karachi, Feb 12: Laying emphasis on friendly relationships between neighbouring countries Congress Party leader Mani Shankar Aiyar has said that he loved Pakistan as much as India. Speaking at a function in Karachi over the weekend, Aiyar said the need of the hour was for both countries to engage in uninterrupted dialogue. Aiyar said that while Islamabad has accepted the policy of and need for