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PARIS: United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday said Iran was facing “extraordinary economic pain” from the sanctions imposed by America, while adding that he sees no need to resume major combat operations against Tehran at present....more
WASHINGTON: Iran on Tuesday urged the United States to meet its demands for reopening of Strait of Hormuz, even as US President Trump spoke of “positive momentum” towards ending the eight-month conflict. Trump's remarks came after he met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. Qatar and Pakistan are leading diplomatic efforts to end the conflict....more

UNITED NATIONS: India has voted in favour of a United Nations General Assembly resolution calling for an end to the US economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba, urging Washington to lift restrictions that it says are undermining the that country’s access to essential services. The 193-member General Assembly adopted the resolution on Wednesday, with 130 countries voting in favour, 17 against and 25 abstaining....more
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday extended Diwali greetings to the nation through a video message, highlighting the festival as a symbol of light’s triumph over darkness and expressing hope for happiness, peace and prosperity for all citizens. He also said he would continue his tradition of celebrating Diwali with the Indian soldiers, without disclosing where he plans to spend the festival this year....more

By Deepak Arora
NEW YORK: Shudh Parkash Singh’s journey from Punjab to the United States began with a family crisis, not a business plan. He came to America nearly four decades ago to seek life-saving treatment for his elder brother. He eventually stayed, took a low-paying job, drove a gypsy cab and entered the gas station business with his brothers. Today, he is the founder and president of JGroup, with interests in commercial real estate, hospitality, retail and restaurants....more
BAGDOGRA: Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday reviewed the army’s operational preparedness along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Sikkim, focusing on border infrastructure development and the deployment of advanced military equipment and emerging technologies to sharpen combat effectiveness. He was briefed at the Sukna-headquartered 33 Corps, near Siliguri....more

NEW DELHI: The hourly air-quality readings missing from Delhi’s official record for Diwali night were released by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) around 8pm on Monday. They show PM2.5, the fine particles that firecracker smoke fills the air with, at up to 3,744 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m³), more than 60 times the national 24-hour standard of 60....more
PARIS: United States secretary of state Marco Rubio on Tuesday described the Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi as "very productive", adding that Washington hopes to eventually expand the negotiations to include European countries in a trilateral format....more

NEW DELHI: VFS Global, the global leader in trusted technology services, has announced the opening of a new Visa Application Centre in Guwahati, reinforcing its commitment to expanding access to international mobility solutions across Northeast India. According to a press release, the centre was jointly inaugurated by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma; Minister for Tourism Ajanta Neog; Minister for Transport Charan Boro; and Chief Operating Officer, South Asia, VFS Global Yummi Talwar....more
SRIHARIKOTA: The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) on Friday successfully launched NVS-03, India's next-generation navigation satellite, in a major boost to the country's indigenous navigation capabilities....more

NEW DELHI: A team of US officials visited India earlier this month for talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA) as New Delhi and Washington remain engaged for an early conclusion of the first tranche of the deal, an official said on Tuesday. The two sides discussed issues pertaining to customs and trade facilitation last week in New Delhi, the official said requesting anonymity....more
TEL AVIV: Israeli President Isaac Herzog will formally give Yashar Party leader Gadi Eisenkot the mandate to form the next government on Sunday at 5 pm local time (8:30 pm IST) after he received the support of 67 lawmakers, compared with 46 who supported Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud-led bloc....more

LISBON: Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo has announced his retirement from international football. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner confirmed his decision through a video shared on social media. Ronaldo led Portugal to Euro 2016 glory and signed off as international football's all-time leading goalscorer and most-capped player, with 146 goals in 234 appearances....more
SAN FRANCISCO: A San Francisco startup offered people $20 an hour to walk robot dogs through city streets, not for exercise but to help train artificial intelligence (AI) systems to navigate real-world environments. According to a report by The New York Times, robotics startup Dimensional advertised for people to operate four-legged robots on outdoor routes lasting four to six hours. The unusual job required no previous robotics experience and included paid training....more |