Junior Digest

July 31,2025: Lithuania’s Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas has stepped down following investigations into his business dealings that prompted protests in the Baltic country’s capital calling for his resignation.

The country’s president, Gitanas Nauseda, announced Paluckas’ resignation to the media on Thursday morning.

Paluckas confirmed the news in a statement sent by his Social Democrat Party.
Paluckas ascended to the role late last year after a three-party coalition formed following parliamentary elections in October.

His resignation is now likely to bring down the whole government, with his cabinet expected to also resign. New coalition talks are expected to start soon.
Paluckas has faced scandals over his business dealings, including some that occurred more than a decade ago. Media investigations revealed that he had never paid a significant part of a 16,500-euro ($19,000) fine after he was convicted in 2012 of mishandling the bidding process for the capital Vilnius’s rat extermination services.

Paluckas, at the time, was Vilnius’s municipal administration director, and judges ruled that he had abused his official position by illegally granting privileges to the company that offered the highest bid.
He was sentenced to two years in prison but was ultimately not imprisoned.

Since the media investigations, Lithuania’s anticorruption and law enforcement agencies have also launched their probes into Paluckas.

He has denied any wrongdoing and instead called the attacks on his business dealings parts of a “coordinated attack” by political opponents.
The resignation of the prime minister comes only weeks before a planned joint military exercise between Lithuania’s neighbours, Russia and Belarus, highlighting the precarious position the country finds itself in.

New Delhi, July 31,2025: Day after announcing 25 percent tariff with ‘’penalty’’ against India for
buying military equipment and energy from Russia, US President Donald Trump today said a trade deal with Pakistan had been concluded and both countries (India and Russia) could take their ‘’dead economies’’ down together.
He said the US had just concluded a trade deal with Pakistan where Pakistan and US could work together on developing their massive oil reserves and may be they (Pakistan) will sell their oil to India.

‘’We have just concluded a deal with the country of Pakistan whereby Pakistan and the United States will work together on developing their massive oil reserves. We are in the process of choosing the oil company that will lead this partnership. Who knows may be they’ll be selling oil to India some day.’’
He said he does not care what India does with Russia. ‘’They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care,’’ he said in a series of tweets on his social media platform.

President Trump had yesterday announced on Truth Social that 25 per cent tariff would be imposed on India along with ‘’penalty’’ from August one for buying military equipment and energy from Russia.
‘’All things are not good! India will therefore be paying a tariff of 25 percent plus a penalty starting August one,’’ he said. Describing India as ‘’our friend,’’ he said US had done relatively little business with India because their (India’s) tariffs are too high.

Commenting on Trump’s tariffs an official spokesman here said the Government attaches utmost importance to protecting and promoting the welfare of our farmers, entrepreneurs and MSMEs and will take all necessary steps to secure our national interest.
‘’The Government will take all steps necessary to secure our national interest, as has been the case with other trade agreements including the latest Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with the UK,’’ the spokesman said.

He said the Government had taken note of the statement by the US President on bilateral trade. The Government is studying its implications.

The spokesman said India and the US have been engaged in negotiations on concluding a fair, balanced and mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement over the last few months and India remains committed to that objective.
Trump said he is ‘’very busy’’ in the White House working on Trade Deals and he had spoken to the leaders of many countries all of whom wanted make the United States ‘’Extremely Happy.’’

In another tweet he said the US has a ‘’massive trade deficit with India.’’ The US had done very little business with India, their tariffs are too high among the highest in the world.

‘’Russia and the US do almost no business together. Let’s keep it that way,’’ he said.

Mumbai July 31,2025: Seventeen years after a bomb blast rattled Malegaon, a Special Court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) today acquitted all the seven accused including former BJP MP Paragya Singh Thakur and others who stood trial in the political sensitive terrorism case.

BJP leader and former MP Pragya Singh Thakur, Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, Major Ramesh Upadhyay (retired), Ajay Rahirkar, Sameer Kulkarni, Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sudhakar Dhar Dwivedi all stand acquitted.
Special Judge AK Lahoti, who presides over the NIA court, announced the acquittals.

“Terror has no religion because no religion can advocate violence,” the special NIA court judge, AK Lahoti, said.

Advocate Ranjit Nair said, “I was representing accused number 11 Sudhakar Chaturvedi. Court has acquitted him. The Court has observed that prosecution cannot present any proof against accused.”
Briefing the media, Advocate Prakash Salsingikar said, “The court has said that this incident is very bad. However, the loss of victims can’t be fulfilled but the court has asked for compensation to all those people.”

Significant security measures have been implemented around the Sessions Court in South Mumbai ahead of the ruling, with a heavy police presence deployed outside the courthouse complex.
The explosion on the night of September 29, 2008, near Bhikku Chowk in Malegaon, killed six people and injured over a hundred. A low-intensity bmb fitted to a motorcycle detonated near a busy intersection, triggering panic and chaos in the communally sensitive town.
Initially investigated by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), the case was taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2011. The NIA re-registered the offence and conducted further investigations. Since then, multiple chargesheets and supplementary reports have been filed. The trial began in 2018 after charges were formally framed against seven accused.

New Delhi, July 30,2025: Foreign Minister S Jaishankar today reiterated that US President Donald Trump had no role in stopping India’s military operation against Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha while resuming the discussion on “India’s strong, successful, and decisive Operation Sindoor in response to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam,” Jaishankar said there was no conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump to halt the military action. He added, “There was no telephonic conversation between the two leaders from April 22 to June 16.”
Rejecting opposition allegations of diplomatic failure during Operation Sindoor, the Foreign Minister stated that Indian diplomacy was perfectly on track given that the BRICS summit condemned the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

“The BRICS countries condemned the conspirators behind the Pahalgam attack and cross-border terrorism, whereas in the BRICS summit statement after the Mumbai attacks, cross-border terrorism was not mentioned,” he said. He also highlighted that Germany, France, Russia, and the European Union condemned the Pahalgam attack.
Jaishankar informed that the United Nations Security Council issued a statement condemning the Pahalgam terrorist attack on April 25, when Pakistan was still a member of the Council and India was not a member of the global body.

Praising the valour of Indian armed forces during Operation Sindoor, he said the military struck terrorist hideouts in Bahawalpur and Muridke with precision. “These were strongholds of terrorism in Pakistan. Several Pakistani airports were also targeted. This was a major success of Operation Sindoor,” he said.
Addressing those demanding proof of the Operation’s success, he suggested watching videos on YouTube showing terrorists’ funerals after they were killed, which would reveal the nature of the Indian Army’s action.

Acknowledging the closeness between Pakistan and China, Jaishankar said both countries have come closer over time, not overnight. Referring to incidents during Congress governments, he pointed out that Pakistan-China relations have had moments of proximity in the past as well.
Taking a swipe at former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, the Foreign Minister recalled that during the Indus Waters Treaty, Nehru was more concerned about Pakistani farmers than Indian farmers. He said Nehru had stated in the Lok Sabha that the water agreement would benefit farmers in West Punjab, which was then part of Pakistan.

Jaishankar also appreciated the role of Members of Parliament in various all-party delegations sent to different countries to clarify India’s position on Operation Sindoor. He mentioned that India’s delegation visited 33 countries, with MPs like Shashi Tharoor, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Sanjay Jha, Supriya Sule, and Srikant Shinde effectively presenting India’s viewpoint to the world.

London, July 29,2025: Frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin for not agreeing to the terms of ceasefire with Ukraine, US Donald Trump has presented a new, shorter deadline of “10 or 12 days” for Russia to agree to a ceasefire over the war in Ukraine from Monday, which Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky has called “extremely significant”.

The US president said there was “no reason” in waiting any longer as no progress towards peace had been made, reports BBC.
Two weeks ago, Trump said President Putin had 50 days to end the war or Russia would face severe tariffs.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Scotland yesterday, Trump again expressed his disapproval at Putin’s actions in Ukraine, where war rages on three and a half years into Russia’s full-scale invasion.

July 22,2025: Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi has said that Tehran cannot give up on its uranium enrichment programme, which was severely damaged by waves of US and Israeli air strikes last month.

“It is now stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe, but obviously, we cannot give up our enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists, and now, more than that, it is a question of national pride,” Araghchi told the US broadcaster Fox News in an interview aired on Monday.
Araghchi said at the beginning of the interview that Iran is “open to talks” with the United States, but that they would not be direct talks “for the time being”.

“If they [the US] are coming for a win-win solution, I am ready to engage with them,” he said.

“We are ready to do any confidence-building measure needed to prove that Iran’s nuclear programme is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever, and Iran would never go for nuclear weapons, and in return, we expect them to lift their sanctions,” the foreign minister added.
“So, my message to the United States is that let’s go for a negotiated solution for Iran’s nuclear programme.”

Araghchi’s comments were part of a 16-minute interview aired on Fox News, a broadcaster known to be closely watched by US President Donald Trump.
“There is a negotiated solution for our nuclear programme. We have done it once in the past. We are ready to do it once again,” Araghchi said.

Mumbai, July 21,2025: In a judicial verdict that has sent shockwaves through the legal community, the Bombay High Court on Monday acquitted all 12 suspects previously convicted in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts case, declaring that the prosecution had “utterly failed” to establish their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
The judgment, delivered 19 years after the terror attack that claimed over 180 lives and left hundreds injured, was pronounced by a special bench comprising justices Anil Kilor and Shyam Chandak. The bench categorically stated that the evidence presented was insufficient to sustain convictions, observing it was “hard to believe that the accused committed the crime.”
The court quashed both the death sentences awarded to five individuals and life imprisonment terms given to the remaining seven.

The horrific incident occurred on July 11, 2006, when seven coordinated bomb explosions ripped through Mumbai’s suburban railway network during evening rush hour, targeting first-class compartments of Western Railway trains.

The blasts occurred over an 11-minute span (6:24 pm to 6:35 pm) at locations including Khar Road-Santacruz, Bandra-Khar Road, Jogeshwari-Mahim Junction, Mira Road-Bhayander, Matunga-Mahim Junction, and Borivali. Pressure cooker bombs designed to maximize casualties killed 189 people and injured over 700.
Following an extensive investigation by Maharashtra’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), a special MCOCA court convicted all twelve defendants in September 2015. Five – Ehtesham Qutbuddin Siddiqui, Kamal Ansari, Faisal Atta-ur-Rehman Sheikh, Asif Bashir, and Naveed Hussain – received death sentences. Seven others – Muhammad Ali Sheikh, Sohail Sheikh, Zameer Latif-ur-Rehman, Dr. Tanveer, Muzammil Atta-ur-Rehman Sheikh, Majid Shafi, and Sajid Marghub Ansari – were sentenced to life imprisonment.

July 18,2025: The government of the tiny, landlocked African country of Eswatini has confirmed that it received five individuals deported from the United States under President Donald Trump.
In a statement on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Eswatini government said the deportations were “the result of months of robust high-level engagements”.
“The five prisoners are in the country and are housed in Correctional facilities within isolated units, ‘where similar offenders are kept’,” spokesperson Thabile Mdluli wrote.
“As a responsible member of the global community, the Kingdom of Eswatini adheres to international agreements and diplomatic protocols regarding the repatriation of individuals, ensuring that due process and respect for human rights is followed,” Mdluli said.
Her statement also indicated that Eswatini would work with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) “to facilitate the transit of the inmates to their countries of origin”.
The deportations are part of a wider trend under the Trump administration of deporting foreign nationals to countries outside of their own.

Chennai, July 18,2025: The prestigious eagerly-awaited launch of NISAR mission, a Indo-US joint collaboration between NASA and ISRO, is likely to take place by the end of this month.

Both the space agencies have discussed about NISAR’s readiness for launch and potential opportunities for future cooperation including professional exchange in technical areas and space exploration.

NASA and ISRO are collaborating on one of NASA’s biggest project–the NASA-ISRO SAR Mission (NISAR), a joint Earth-observing mission.

NISAR will be launch from the Second Launch Pad from the Satish Dhawan Space Center, SHAR

Range in Sriharikota, into a near-polar orbit at an altitude of 747 km with an inclination of 98.4 deg.

ISRO will be using its heaviest home grown rocket GSLV-MkII/LMV for the mission.

Though sources said the mission is likely on July 30 or 31, the exact date was expected to be

announced on July 21.
The NISAR Mission will measure Earth’s changing ecosystems, dynamic surfaces and ice masses providing information about biomass, natural hazards, sea level rise and groundwater and will support a host of other applications.
NISAR will observe Earth’s land and ice-covered surfaces globally with 12-day regularity on ascending and descending passes, sampling Earth on average every 6 days for a baseline 3-year mission.
NISAR will map global land biomass, the amount of organic material from plants, every 12 days.

Jammu, July 17,2025:The Indian Army today rescued about 500 Amarnath pilgrims who were stranded because of landslides triggered by heavy rains and shifted them to safer places.

“Yesterday around 7:25 pm, persistent rain triggered a landslide at Z Morh, between Rayalpathri and Brarimarg, resulting in the halting of Yatra movement and stranding a large number of pilgrims,” said Jammu-based defence spokesperson Lt Col Suneel Bartwal.

“Responding to the situation, the Army detachment deployed at Brarimarg swung into action,” he added.

Around 500 yatris stranded in the area were accommodated in tents and provided with tea and drinking water, adding, “additionally, another 3,000 pilgrims found refuge in langars located between Brarimarg and Z Morh, which offered essential shelter and sustenance.”

The Indian Army Quick Reaction Teams (QRTs) rescued a critically ill stranded yatri by undertaking a manual stretcher evacuation under adverse weather conditions and safely transported the patient to Rayalpathri from where an ambulance moved the individual for further medical care, he added.

The spokesperson said the camp director at Brarimarg and the company commander of the Indian Army are present at the site and have assessed the situation as stable and under control, adding, “efforts continue to ensure the safety and well-being of all yatris in the area.”

As per weather prediction, light rains at both Rayalpathri and Brarimarg are likely, and the Army remains on high alert to respond to any evolving situation, he said.

“These prompt actions are yet another testament to the Indian Army’s professionalism, dedication, and humanitarian commitment during Amarnath Yatra 2025, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with every pilgrim through every challenge”, said the spokesperson.

New Delhi, July 16,2025: The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today cleared the ‘Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana’ for a period of six years, beginning 2025-26 to cover 100 districts.

The programme introduced in the Union Budget 2025-26, will converge 36 existing schemes across 11 departments, a first-of-its-kind focusing exclusively on agriculture and allied sectors.

Sharing details about the decision taken at the Union Cabinet, I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, with a total outlay of Rs 24,000 crore over six years, the scheme aims to benefit 1.7 crore farmers through focused interventions in areas such as crop productivity, irrigation, storage infrastructure, credit access, and the promotion of sustainable agricultural practices.

He said, 100 districts will be identified based on three key indicators of low productivity, low cropping intensity, and less credit disbursement. The number of districts in each state/UT will be based on the share of Net Cropped Area and operational holdings. However, a minimum of one district will be selected from each state.

Committees will be formed at district, state and national levels for effective planning, implementation and monitoring of the scheme. A district agriculture and allied activities plan will be finalized by the District Dhan Dhaanya Samiti, which will also have progressive farmers as members. The district plans will be aligned to the national goals of crop diversification, conservation of water and soil health, self-sufficiency in agriculture and allied sectors as well as expansion of natural and organic farming, said an official statement here.

Progress of the scheme in each Dhan-Dhaanya district will be monitored on 117 key performance indicators through a dashboard on monthly basis. NITI Aayog, the government’s think tank, will also review and guide the district plans. Besides, Central nodal officers appointed for each district will review the scheme on a regular basis, as per the statement.

MOSCOW, July 14,2025: Russia and China’s foreign ministers on Sunday discussed their relations with the United States and the prospects for ending the war in Ukraine, China and Russia’s foreign ministries said in a statement.
President Vladimir Putin’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Beijing on Sunday. Lavrov is due to attend a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) foreign ministers in China.
“The parties also discussed relations with the United States and prospects for resolving the Ukrainian crisis,” Russia’s foreign ministry said.
“The importance of strengthening close coordination between the two countries in the international arena, including in the United Nations and its Security Council, the SCO, BRICS, the G20 and APEC, was emphasized,” the ministry said.
The close contact between the two countries was to “promote the development and revitalisation of each other, and jointly respond to the challenges brought about by a turbulent and changing world,” China’s Foreign Ministry said.
Both sides also exchanged views on the Korean Peninsula and the Iranian nuclear issue, China’s Foreign Ministry said.
China and Russia declared a “no limits” partnership in February 2022 when Putin visited Beijing, days before he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Putin has sometimes described China as an “ally”.
The U.S. casts China as its biggest competitor and Russia as its biggest nation-state threat.

New Delhi, July 12,2025: A Preliminary report on the Air India flight AI171 crash in Ahmedabad on June 12 today revealed that fuel cutoff switches were moved from ‘run’ to ‘cutoff’ within a second of each other which led to the tragedy.

The crash led to i270 people loosing their lives.

The report reveals that within 90 seconds of take off, both engines of the aircraft shut down unexpectedly during the initial climb leading to a loss of thrust and rapid descent. After the switches of both engines flipped, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner immediately shut down mid-air seconds after take-off and began to lose thrust and sink down, the report by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau AIB) said.

“The aircraft achieved the maximum recorded airspeed of 180 Knots IAS at about 08:08:42 UTC and immediately thereafter, Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 sec. The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off,” the 15-page report said.

The pilots attempted to restart the engines by moving the fuel control switches back to the ‘run’ position. Engine 1 started to recover but Engine 2 was unable to arrest core speed deceleration despite repeated attempts to reintroduce fuel and increase core speed acceleration.

The report also revealed that just seconds before the aircraft lost power and went down near Ahmedabad airport, one pilot asked the other why he had cut off fuel to the engines, the second pilot reportedly denied, saying, “did not do so.”

“In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why he cut off. The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” the report said.

“The EAFR recording stopped at 08:09:11 UTC At about 08:09:05 UTC, one of the pilots transmitted “Mayday Mayday Mayday ”. The Air Traffic Controller (ATC) enquired about the call sign but did not get any response and saw the aircraft crashing outside the airport boundary.

Significantly the report rules out any doubt about the fitness of the pilots to operate the ill-fated flight. ‘’The crew of flight AI171 arrived at the airport and underwent preflight Breath Analyzer test at 06:25 UTC and were found fit to operate the flight. The crew is seen arriving at the boarding gate in the CCTV recording at about 07:05 UTC (12:35 IST).’’

It also rules out any shortage of fuel or bird activity in the adjoining areas.

“Fuel on board was 54,200 Kgs and as per the load and trim sheet of the flight, the Take-off Weight was 2,13,401 Kgs (Max. allowed – 2,18,183 Kgs). The take-off weight was within allowable limits for the given conditions.’’

“There was no ‘Dangerous Goods’ on the aircraft.”

The report also ruled out any bird activity saying ‘’No significant bird activity is observed in the vicinity of the flight path.’’

Boeing in its initial rection to the catastrophe said they would ‘’continue to support’’ the investigation and the customers. The aviation company said it would defer to the AIIB probe to provide information about AI 171, id adherence with the United Nations International Civil Organization Protocol.’

‘Our thoughts remain with the loved ones of the passengers Nd crew on board Air India Flight 171 as well as everyone affected on the ground in Ahmedabad. We continue to support the investigation and our customer. We will defer to the AAIB to provide information about AI 171 in adherence with the United Nations International Protocol known as Annex 13,’ it said in a statement.

Air India in a statement acknowledged that it had received the preliminary report by AAIB and is working closely with stakeholders and would continue to fully cooperate with AAIB and other authorities as their investigation progresses.

“We stand in solidarity with the families and those affected by the AI171 accident. We continue to mourn the loss and are fully committed to providing support during this difficult time. We acknowledge receipt of the preliminary report released by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) today, 12 July 2025. Air India is working closely with stakeholders, including regulators. We continue to fully cooperate with the AAIB and other authorities as their investigation progresses.”

Air India, however, did not comment on the findings of the report saying ‘’Given the active nature of the investigation, we are unable to comment on specific details and refer all such enquiries to the AAIB.’’

The Report said ‘’Investigation is continuing and the investigation team will review and examine additional evidence, records and information that is being sought from the stakeholders.’’

Moscow/Washington, July 10,2025: Reiterating its warning to the United States, Russia has said that Washington’s move to resume weapons supplies to Ukraine will only further prolong the war and risk “uncontrolled escalation” of conflict, closing rooms for diplomatic engagement, reports state media TASS.

The statement comes amid the US’ move to resume its weapon supplies to Kyiv after they had to stop them due to a decline in domestic stockpile, as well as the Pentagon’s strategic shift to West Asia.

The supply includes an urgent consignment of the Patriot MIM-104 interceptor missiles for the Patriot missile defence system, guided multiple launch rocket system (GMLRS) rockets, Hellfire missiles, Stinger man-portable air-defence systems, HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems), Howitzer artillery guns, and more, which form the backbone of Kyiv’s air defences.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova, talking about the resumption, said “We have repeatedly said that the supply of weapons to the terrorist regime of Zelenskyy leads to a prolongation of hostilities, literally to the destruction of Ukraine and Ukrainians.

“It could also increase the risk of an uncontrolled escalation of the conflict, the proliferation of uncontrolled weapons and their falling into the hands of, including international terrorists, and in general does not contribute to the search for ways to peacefully resolve the conflict in Ukraine,” she said.

Calling the move counterproductive to a peace process and possibly shutting windows for diplomatic engagement, she added “The consequences of such steps have yet to be assessed. What can be said for sure is that the continued pumping of the Kyiv regime with weapons is not facilitating a peaceful solution to the conflict, to put it mildly, while this is what the international community, including the West, is calling for.”

Trump had stated that Washington will continue its supplies to Ukraine for its “defensive capabilities”, but has shown increasing frustration with both Russian President Vladmir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over their inability to reach a settlement, even threatening to pull out of the peace process.

While the US President has praised Putin repeatedly, and has a friendly relationship with him, the Russian president has likewise shown considerable respect for Trump and thanked him for his mediation efforts. However, Trump has now voiced disappointment in the Russian leader’s decision to continue fighting.

COPENHAGEN/BRUSSELS, July 9,2025: Around 2,300 people died of heat-related causes across 12 European cities during the severe heatwave that ended last week, according to a rapid scientific analysis published on Wednesday.

The study targeted the 10 days, ending July 2, during which large parts of Western Europe were hit by extreme heat, with temperatures breaching 40 degrees Celsius (104°F) in Spain and wildfires breaking out in France.

Of the 2,300 people estimated to have died during this period, 1,500 deaths were linked to climate change, which made the heatwave more severe, according to the study conducted by scientists at Imperial College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

“Climate change has made it significantly hotter than it would have been, which in turn makes it a lot more dangerous,” said Dr Ben Clarke, a researcher at Imperial College London.

The study covered 12 cities including Barcelona, Madrid, London and Milan, where the researchers said climate change had increased heatwave temperatures by up to 4 degrees Celsius.

The researchers used established epidemiological models and historical mortality data to estimate the death toll, which reflects deaths where heat was the underlying reason for mortality, including if exposure exacerbated pre-existing health conditions.

The scientists said they used peer-reviewed methods to quickly produce the estimated death toll, because most heat-related deaths are not officially reported and some governments do not release this data.

New Delhi, July ,2025: India abstained from voting at the UN on a Resolution on Afghanistan saying a “business as usual” approach without new and targeted initiatives is unlikely to deliver the outcomes the international community envisions for Afghan people.

The UNGA resolution on the ‘Situation in Afghanistan’ last night was moved by Germany.” The vote was 116 in favour and two against. Twelve countries including India, Russia, China and Iran abstained.

India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador P Harish, said in his speech that any coherent policy to address a post-conflict situation must combine a mix of policy instruments — incentivising positive behaviour and disincentivising harmful actions.

“An approach focused only on punitive measures is unlikely to succeed,’’ Ambassador Harish cautioned. He said the United Nations and the broader international community had adopted more balanced and nuanced approaches in other post-conflict contexts. However, no new policy instruments had been introduced to address the worsening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan since August 2021.

“A business-as-usual approach, without new and targeted initiatives, is unlikely to deliver the outcomes the international community envisions for the Afghan people,’’ he said.

The international community must direct its coordinated efforts towards ensuring that entities and individuals designated by the UN Security Council, Al Qaeda and their affiliates, ISIL and their affiliates, including Lashkar-i-Tayyiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, along with their regional sponsors who facilitate their operations, no longer exploit the Afghan territory for terrorist activities.

India is closely monitoring the security situation in Afghanistan, he asserted.

Welcoming Afghanistan’s strong condemnation of the terrorist killings at Pahalgam in Kashmir on April 22, he said External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar had recently spoken with the Acting Foreign Minister of Afghanistan. The conversation followed a meeting between India’s Foreign Secretary and the Acting Foreign Minister where both sides discussed various bilateral issues and regional developments.

Ambassador Harish said India’s approach to Afghanistan, as its contiguous neighbour with deep historical and cultural ties, has always been guided by longstanding friendship and special relationship with the Afghan people. As a long-standing partner, India has direct stakes in ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan.

He said that since the UNGA last considered this issue in November 2022, India has been actively engaging with regional and international stakeholders to promote peace, stability and development in Afghanistan.

“We believe that international and regional consensus and cooperation on key issues concerning Afghanistan are essential. Our participation in UN meetings in Doha and other regional forums reflects our ongoing efforts, including our recent participation in the meetings held in Doha last week,’’ he said.

The Ambassador said India’s immediate priorities in Afghanistan include the provision of humanitarian assistance and the implementation of capacity-building initiatives for the Afghan people.

India has been working closely with UN agencies to support the Afghan people in critical areas such as health, food security, education and sports. Also, India’s commitment to Afghanistan’s reconstruction is demonstrated through more than 500 development partnership projects across all provinces.

Since August 2021, India has supplied around 50,000 MTs of wheat, over 330 MTs of medicines and vaccines, 40,000 litres of the pesticide Malathion, and 58.6 MTs of other essential items, supporting millions of Afghans in dire need of humanitarian assistance.

In partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), India provided 84 MTs of assistance and medicines and 32 MTs of social support items for drug rehabilitation programmes in Afghanistan, particularly those focused on women.

India also continues to offer scholarships and fellowships to Afghan students. Since 2023, we have provided scholarships for undergraduate and postgraduate courses to 2,000 Afghan students, including nearly 600 girls and women.

Reiterating India’s historic ties with the people of Afghanistan and enduring commitment to meeting their humanitarian and developmental needs, Mr Harish said India remains committed to continued engagement with all relevant stakeholders and broadly supports the international community’s efforts towards a stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan.