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India on Saturday welcomed the Alaska summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, emphasizing the world’s hope for an early end to the Ukraine conflict, Firstpost reported.

The Ministry of External Affairs praised the leaders’ efforts, calling progress through dialogue and diplomacy “highly commendable.”

While the summit did not yield a ceasefire, Trump plans to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington to pursue a full peace agreement, with European leaders backing further talks and potential sanctions against Russia, according to Firstpost.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit India from Monday to Wednesday for talks on the disputed Himalayan border, Beijing confirmed on Saturday.

It will be only the second high-level meeting since the deadly 2020 clash between Indian and Chinese troops. Relations have recently improved after an agreement last October eased the long-running standoff that strained trade and travel, according to Reuters.

The visit comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to China later this month, where he is expected to meet President Xi Jinping during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit — his first visit to China in seven years.

At least 60 people have died and over 200 remain missing after a cloudburst struck Chositi village in Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir, on Thursday.

The sudden downpour triggered a landslide, destroying roads and bridges and hindering rescue efforts. Authorities described the situation as challenging, with teams working to reach those affected in the remote area, according to Xinhua.

The disaster occurred about 290 km southeast of Srinagar, the region’s summer capital.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday urged greater self-reliance in manufacturing, from fertilizers to jet engines and EV batteries, while vowing to protect farmers amid rising trade tensions with Washington, according to Reuters.

In his Independence Day address, Modi promoted “Swadeshi” goods, announced lower GST rates from October, and said India would soon launch homegrown semiconductor chips and boost critical mineral exploration.

The remarks follow US President Donald Trump’s steep new tariffs — up to 50 percent on some Indian exports — over New Delhi’s continued Russian oil imports. The move hit key sectors like textiles and jewellery and came after trade talks collapsed over farm and dairy market access. While avoiding direct mention of the US, Modi pledged to shield farmers from any harmful policy, Reuters reported.

Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba has extended best wishes to the Indian government and the people there on the occasion of the 79th Independence Day of India. 

Mentioning her Indian counterpart Dr S. Jaishankar on social media, she has stated that Nepal gives high value to its long and sustainable partnership with India. 

"On India's Independence Day, we wish for the prosperity, unity, and harmony of the Indian people to continue, and may India remain a shining example of democracy, inspiring countries around the world,” the Foreign Minister wrote on X.

New Delhi is gearing up for India’s 79th Independence Day on Friday, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hoist the national flag and deliver his 12th consecutive address from the historic Red Fort. This year’s celebrations follow the theme ‘Naya Bharat’, reflecting the government’s vision of a developed India by 2047, Firstpost reported.

The Prime Minister will be received by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, MoS Sanjay Seth, and Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh. Flying Officer Rashika Sharma will assist in the flag hoisting, after which flower petals will be showered from two Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopters, one carrying the national flag and the other the flag of Operation Sindoor, whose success is expected to be celebrated.

Around 5,000 guests, including winners of international sports events, the Special Olympics 2025 contingent, and Khelo India Para Games gold medalists, will attend the event. According to Firstpost, ahead of Independence Day, the Ministry of Culture also launched the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign, encouraging citizens to bring the national flag into their homes as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.

India and China are discussing resuming border trade five years after it was halted, foreign ministry officials on both sides have said, as US tariffs disrupt the global trade order. Past trade across the icy and high-altitude Himalayan border passes between the neighbours was usually small in volume, but any resumption is significant for its symbolism. The two major economic powers have long competed for strategic influence across South Asia, AFP reported.

But caught in global trade and geopolitical turbulence triggered by US President Donald Trump’s tariff regime, the countries have moved to mend ties. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected for talks in New Delhi on Monday, according to Indian media, after his counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar visited Beijing in July. That, as well as agreements to resume direct flights and issue tourist visas, has been seen as an effort to rebuild a relationship damaged after a deadly border clash in 2020 between their nations’ troops.

“For a long time, China-India border trade cooperation has played an important role in improving the lives of people living along the border,” China’s foreign ministry said in a statement to AFP on Thursday. It added that the two sides have “reached a consensus on cross-border exchanges and cooperation, including resumption of border trade.”

New Delhi’s junior foreign minister, Kirti Vardhan Singh, told parliament last week that “India has engaged with the Chinese side to facilitate the resumption of border trade.” No restart date was given by either side. Successive US administrations have seen India as a longstanding ally with like-minded interests when it comes to China. India is part of the Quad security alliance with the United States, as well as Australia and Japan, according to AFP.

But ties between New Delhi and Washington have been strained by Trump’s ultimatum for India to end its purchases of Russian oil, a key source of revenue for Moscow as it wages its military offensive in Ukraine. The United States will double new import tariffs on India from 25 percent to 50 percent by Aug 27 if New Delhi does not switch crude suppliers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to Indian media, might also visit China in late August. It would be Modi’s first visit since 2018, although it has not been confirmed officially. Beijing has said that ‘China welcomes Prime Minister Modi’ for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit opening on Aug 31, AFP reported.

India plans to allow private companies to mine, import, and process uranium, ending decades of state monopoly, Reuters reported. The move aims to attract investment and support the government’s goal to expand nuclear power capacity and its expansion twelvefold by 2047.

The government will still manage spent fuel reprocessing and plutonium waste. Private firms may also supply critical equipment for nuclear plants. Domestic uranium covers only about 25 percent of future demand, so imports and expanded processing are needed.

The policy, expected this fiscal year, requires changes to five laws, including mining, electricity, and foreign investment regulations. Experts call it a “major and bold” step, though legal and political challenges remain.

Several major Indian companies are already planning investments, according to Reuters.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned that Washington could increase secondary tariffs on India, BBC reported.

He said the decision would depend on the outcome of President Donald Trump's meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.

"We've put secondary tariffs on Indians for buying Russian oil. And I could see, If things don't go well, then sanctions or secondary tariffs could go up," Bessent said in an interview to Bloomberg TV on Wednesday. 

Earlier this month, Trump imposed a 25% penalty on India in addition to 25% tariffs for buying oil and weapons from Russia, according to BBC.

The Kathakali Dance was performed in Birgunj on Wednesday evening on the eve of the Indian Independence Day. 

The program was organized by the Embassy of India in Kathmandu and India's Consulate General based in Birgunj.  

Nine Indian performers from Kerala performed this very popular Indian dance, which is based on the story of the Mahabharat.  

The event was attended by Minister for Sports and Social Welfare of Madesh Province, Pramod Jaiswal, Mayor of Birgunj Metropolitan City Rajesh Man Singh, Indian Consul General Devi Sahai Meena and others. 

On the occasion, Minister Jaiswal said that the centuries old cultural and people to people ties between Nepal and India should be further strengthened and mutual goodwill and harmony should be established. 

Likewise, Consul General Devi Sahai Meena recalled the remarkable contributions made by Nepal in the Indian Independence Movement. 

He said India was committed to further strengthening the cultural ties between Nepal and India.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said that Nepal is exporting 1,000 MW of electricity to India.

Taking to social media , Prime Minister Oli shared that Nepal will earn Rs 80.027 billion by exporting the electricity to India.

“We are exporting 1,000 MW of electricity to India. From this, Nepal will earn Rs 80.027 billion,” the Prime Minister said..

India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will visit Moscow on August 21 to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and discuss bilateral and international cooperation. The visit follows National Security Advisor Ajit Doval’s trip to Russia and comes as US President Donald Trump imposes 50 percent tariffs on Indian imports of Russian oil, according to Firstpost.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit India later this year, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the SCO Summit in China, which Putin is also likely to attend. Analysts caution that while India could seek alternatives to the US market through Russia and China, such arrangements may favor China, especially as India-China ties remain tense over trade restrictions and the Ladakh standoff.

The Home Ministry of India has revised rules for Overseas Citizens of India (OCI), allowing cancellation of registration for those convicted of serious crimes, including abroad if the act is recognized under Indian law. OCI status can be revoked for sentences of two years or more, or charges carrying seven-year jail terms, Firstpost reported.

OCI cards grant lifelong, multiple-entry travel and certain economic and educational benefits but no voting rights. The move, under the Citizenship Act, 1955, aims to curb criminal or anti-national activities among cardholders.

Recent statistics show a worrying rise in the smuggling of illegal drugs into Nepal from abroad. Majority of couriers caught in such cases are Indian nationals, according to police.

The number of Indian citizens involved in drug trafficking through Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) has increased sharply, with over 80 percent of suspects caught smuggling drugs by air being Indian. According to the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) of Nepal Police, 45 Indian nationals in possession of drugs have been arrested in TIA from mid-July last year to mid-July this year. All of them were arrested for attempting to bring marijuana from Thailand. Seven of them are women.

Firoz Ahmad (35) from Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, used to work as a laborer on construction sites. An acquaintance offered him a job in Laos with a monthly pay of InRs 25,000 and a plane ticket included. When he reached Laos, he did not get the promised job. Instead, his contact asked him to travel back via Nepal and hand over a bag in Kathmandu. The bag contained four kilograms of heroin.

Similarly, Mouleswar Nanjundamurthy (32) from Erode, Tamil Nadu, an electrician by trade, was also taken to Laos with promises of high earnings. On his return, he was given a bag holding 3.8 kilograms of heroin and told to travel via Nepal. Both men are now in police custody, facing charges under the Narcotics Control Act.

According to NCB Chief Krishna Koirala, the two were arrested in the space of one day in the first week of August when they arrived in Kathmandu from Laos via Bangkok. The heroin was hidden inside chocolate packets. Police believe the mastermind, who recruited the two, could be the same person, and the drugs were intended to be smuggled into India via land routes from Nepal. Over the past year, police have arrested 307 Indian citizens and 18 from other countries for drug offences. A total of 5,001 drug offense cases have been filed in fiscal year 2024/25. About 52 tons of marijuana, 829 kilograms of hashish, 49 kilograms of heroin and over 20 kilograms of cocaine were seized during the year.

Another case involved 49-year-old Abdus Samad Jamil Mansuri (49) from Mumbai. With no steady work, he readily accepted offers for odd jobs. One day, he was promised payment to travel to Azerbaijan and bring back a suitcase. On arrival in Nepal, his suspicious behavior drew the attention of security personnel. When police searched him, they found 3.4 kilograms of cocaine hidden in plastic bags. He claimed that someone in Azerbaijan had asked him to take it to India.

Similarly, just days earlier, another Indian national, Rakesh Ohawal (65), was arrested with 6.5 kilograms of heroin hidden in his luggage.

In the past, most foreign nationals arrested in Nepal for drug trafficking were in transit to third countries. Recently, however, Indian nationals have been found smuggling drugs from Thailand to India via Nepal. One major drug smuggled is Thailand’s marijuana, which is specially cultivated and chemically treated. NCB officials say this drug is long-lasting and highly potent, and is in high demand in both Nepal and India.

NCB spokesperson Janak Bahadur Shahi said Indian nationals smuggling drugs by air are often poor and unemployed, lured with fixed payments to act as carriers. “Trafficking rings send them to Thailand as tourists and then hand them drug-filled bags when they return,” he added.

A few weeks ago, a young woman from Manipur, India, was arrested at TIA with Thai marijuana. She had been promised Rs 50,000 by traffickers.

Nepal’s role as a drug transit point is not new. For years, traffickers have used Nepal to move drugs to third countries. The question remains: is this because Nepal’s security is weak?

NCB chief Krishna Koirala explains that drug trafficking is an organized, international crime with a complex network. Smugglers do not rely solely on Nepal; they also operate via Indian airports. Security checks at TIA are strict, and police monitor passenger lists from high-risk countries to identify potential smugglers.

Nepal Police Spokesperson Binod Ghimire said the nationality of traffickers is less important than their role in the crime. While Africans are more often involved in cocaine and heroin smuggling, Indians now dominate cases involving Thai marijuana. Police say traffickers are favoring Indian nationals due to practical reasons. “Nepal and India share an open border, and Indian citizens do not need a visa to enter Nepal. Security checks for Indians are generally less stringent, making them easier targets for recruitment,” Ghimire said. “After increased scrutiny of couriers from other countries, traffickers seem to have begun using Indian couriers.”

Many of these carriers do not know the full extent of the operation, nor who owns the drugs they carry.  According to Ghimire, traffickers use multiple routes simultaneously to move drugs, and the high prices on the international market make the trade extremely lucrative for organized crime syndicates.

In today’s global economy, tariffs have evolved from mere protectionist barriers to tools of geopolitical strategy. The US-China tariff war, which began during Donald Trump’s first term in 2018, has already brought about a decisive shift in global trade flows.

The latest US decision to extend targeted tariffs on selected Indian goods has been framed as a ‘leveling measure’. Yet, it has also created new impetus for India to deepen market access discussions with Washington and strengthen its position as a reliable trading partner. This move could be a catalyst for India to negotiate more favorable long-term terms by demonstrating its manufacturing flexibility.

Nepal also has many goods on the top list of goods imported from neighboring India. This means that the new US customs policy will inevitably have an impact on Nepal-India trade and the overall economy of Nepal. After the upgrade to a developing country, Nepal’s preferential market access facility (GSP) period has expired and the country has started to face a 10 percent customs duty, which seems to be an opportunity for the country not to increase it.

After this, it can be expected that investment will flow into Nepal from abroad and exports will increase. A large part of Nepal's trade—both exports and imports—depends on India. According to the data of the Customs Department, 64 percent of Nepal’s imports in the fiscal year 2024-25 came from the Indian market.  Similarly, India accounted for 67 percent of total exports. Since this is the case, changes in the US-India trade policy are certain to affect Nepal.

The US has imposed a 50 percent reciprocal tariff on India and a 10 percent tariff on Nepal, which is expected to give Nepal a competitive advantage in trade, but Nepal needs to take concrete steps from product development to export promotion to produce the quantities it can export to the US.

Looking at the past, the US is Nepal’s second largest export destination after India. Nepal exported goods worth Rs 18.32bn to the US in 2024-25, which is six percent more than the previous year.

This should be taken as an encouraging and positive step. In addition, to make all this sustainable and increase further, it is necessary and imperative for Nepal to create a joint mechanism between the government and the private sector to reduce transshipment risks and take advantage of customs rates.

There should be no delay on this front. The US has imposed only 10 percent reciprocal customs duty on Nepal. In such a situation, if trade negotiations with India fail and a 50 percent customs duty is imposed on India, there will be a 40 percent difference in customs rates between Nepal and India.

Even if the recently-imposed additional 25 percent customs duty is withdrawn, the difference in customs rates between these two countries will be 15 percent. Even a 15 percent difference in customs rates is very large in international trade. Nepal should be able to use this situation to its advantage.

Nepal’s main exports to the US are woolen carpets, rugs, ready-made garments, felt goods, clay and other metal utensils and handicrafts. In addition, apart from India, the US has imposed a 19–20 percent customs duty on other countries in the region—Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka—which gives Nepal a competitive advantage.

In short, India has been exporting more goods such as carpets, textiles and rugs to the US than to Nepal. Similarly, Bangladesh is the largest exporter of ready-made garments in South Asia.

And, the US is also importing from it. Nepal also uses Indian land for trade with third countries. Although the trade war between India and the US could also bring uncertainty to Nepal’s trade routes with third countries, its likelihood is low.

The new US tariff policy seems to make Indian goods more expensive in the US market. As a result, Indian manufacturers may have to restructure their production systems. If India starts losing the US market, the Nepali market will also become more expensive, given chances of India adopting a policy of reducing production. Most of the industries operating in Nepal import raw materials from India and this means our production costs may go up. Machinery parts, industrial equipment, clothing and agricultural products from India are most likely to become more expensive in Nepal, exposing the Nepali populace to the risk of a high inflation. 

In addition, the Indian rupee will weaken further as India’s exports are affected and dollar income decreases. This problem will be further complicated by the fact that Nepal’s currency is ‘pegged’ with the Indian currency. This is also the reason why Nepal’s monetary policy has not been independent.

This will naturally have an impact on the Nepali rupee. As a result, not only will Nepal’s dollar income decrease, payments will also become more expensive. In that case, the interest on foreign loan assistance will be expensive and so will the repayment.

The Nepali market may also benefit from the Indo-US trade war. If Indian products cannot enter the US market easily, India may adopt a policy of reducing prices and seeking alternative markets. Nepal can benefit from that. If India adopts this policy, the price of Indian goods imported into Nepal, such as food, industrial raw materials, and machinery parts, may decrease. According to public data, Nepal currently exports ready-made garments worth around Rs 4bn to the US. There is no doubt that this is likely to increase many times over in a few years if the existing customs duty remains in place.

If this policy works in the long term, the ‘backward forward linkage’ of the export-oriented Nepali industry is certain to become even stronger. After the 2015 earthquake, the US had given Nepal preferential market access to 77 different items. The Nepal government should take the initiative for similar preferential market access. For now, it is too early to analyze how Trump’s policies will pan out. But if implemented, India’s export earnings will decrease. The direct impact of this will be a decrease in dollar income for India as well as Nepal, making foreign payments expensive. This will ultimately mean a surge in inflation. There is also the danger of the US aggressive ‘tariffs’ triggering a global economic recession. 

A cargo plane experienced an engine fire on Tuesday while landing in Chennai. The aircraft, arriving from Kuala Lumpur, was safely brought down, and the fire on its fourth engine was promptly extinguished by fire tenders. No injuries were reported, according to Firstpost.

Separately, a passenger plane caught fire after an accident at Kalispell City Airport in Montana on Monday. The pilot and three passengers survived, with only two sustaining minor injuries.

In related news, Air India announced the suspension of Delhi-Washington DC flights due to a temporary fleet shortage amid retrofitting of Boeing 787-8 aircraft and operational challenges caused by continued closure of Pakistani airspace, Firstpost reported.