There will be situations our perspectives may differ... but there's place for India, EU to deepen ties: Jaishankar

Stating that the world order is in the midst of a profound change, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Tuesday said even though India and the EU may not have identical perspectives at times, there is a place for the two to forge deeper ties

In a first, NREGS spend capped at 60% for first half of FY26

For the first time, the government has capped spending under the MGNREGS at 60% of its annual allocation for the first half of the financial year 2025-26, The Indian Express has learnt. Until now, there was no such spending limit on the rural jobs guarantee scheme which has operated as a demand-driven programme.

1 in 3 adult Indians face unintended pregnancies, shows UNFPA report

One in three adult Indians (36%) face unintended pregnancies while 30% experience unfulfilled desire for having either more or fewer children. Notably, 23% faced both, according to the United Nations Population Fund's (UNFPA) 2025 State of World Population (SOWP) Report released Tuesday morning.

"Vast numbers of people are unable to create the families they want," Dr Natalia Kanem, executive director of UNFPA said. "The issue is lack of choice, not desire, with major consequences for individuals and societies. That is the real fertility crisis, and the answer lies in responding to what people say they need: paid family leave, affordable fertility care, and supportive partners," Kanem said.-

Old continent rising

External affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar's visit to Europe this week and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's travel to Canada for the G7 summit present an opportunity to engage with the growing divergence within the West in the Trump era. Modi is also visiting Cyprus and Croatia, highlighting India's growing interest in Mediterranean Europe.-

MAKING THE CASE FOR INDIA

In the post-truth era, where stories can be fabricated in hours, the presentation of facts is as important as the facts themselves. When 26 precious lives were lost in the Pahalgamattack, India faced not only a security challenge but a diplomatic imperative: To document, demonstrate, and deliver irrefutable evidence of Pakistan's state-sponsored terrorism to important international stakeholders before disinformation could blur judgement.-

Bridging the chasm in Kashmir

Bridges are not just made of steel. They are built of intent, of imagination, and will. The Chenab Bridge, the world's highest railway arch, unveiled last week in Jammu and Kashmir by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is a triumph of engineering. But it is also something more: A national statement. That India will connect, invest, include - even in the face of terror, trauma and turbulence.

The Valley is no stranger to moments of hope disrupted by violence. The recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam was not just an act of brutality, it was a message. The timing was no accident. Terror knows when to strike: Just when peace feels plausible.-

From dreams to deeds

A new bharat is taking shape - where progress is measured not only in GDP, but in dignity and opportunity. Annam Lakshmi Bhavani, a homemaker from Kadapa, secures the Mudra loan to start a successful jute bag manufacturing unit. Jagdev Singh in Haryana makes decisions related to his crops using an Al app. And Meera Manjhi gets an LPG connection under Ujjwala, ensuring a smokeless kitchen and more quality time with her children. These are everyday realities of villages, towns, and cities across Bharat. These transformations stem from structural reforms and a leadership that believes in empowering the last citizen.-

The new normal post-Sindoor

A month after the launch of Operation Sindoor, it is an opportune moment to step back and assess the broader strategic insights emerging from this short but intense conflict. Much of the public conversation so far has remained fixated on tactical details such as counting destroyed targets, comparing aircraft losses, and evaluating the performance of weapon systems.

World Bank retains 2025-26 GDP growth forecast for India at 6.3%

The Indian economy is seen growing by 6.3 per cent in 2025-26, with the World Bank on Tuesday retaining its GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal -having cut it by 40 basis points (bps) in April 2025 - even as it warned that the pace of investments is likely to slow down due to global uncertainty. However, even at the projected 6.3 per cent, India will remain the fastest growing large economy, the World Bank said in its Global Economic Prospects report.-

Apple research shows how popular Al models 'collapse' at complex problems

A new research paper by a group of people at Apple has said that artificial intelligence (Al) 'reasoning' is not all that it is cracked up to be. Through analysis of some of the most popular large reasoning models in the market, the paper showed that their accuracy faces a "complete collapse" beyond a certain complexity threshold.-

Unclaimed amounts: Expedite process of refund to rightful owners, says FM

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday urged financial sector regulators and various departments to speed up the refund process of unclaimed amounts to rightful owners.

The minister, who chaired the 29th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) in Mumbai, asked regulators and departments to hold special district level camps to expedite the refund process of unclaimed amounts.-

How astronauts reach International Space Station

The axiom-4 Mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will launch from the Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Wednesday.

The mission will take a crew of four astronauts - American Peggy Whitson, Indian Shubhanshu Shukla, Polish Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, and Hungarian Tibor Kapu - to the ISS aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft which will be launched by the company's Falcon 9 rocket. Shukhla is set to become only the second Indian to venture into space.

What will his journey to the ISS look like? How much time will it take to reach the space station? And once there, how will the Dragon capsule dock with the ISS?-

WHY KERALA WANTS WILDLIFE ACT AMENDED TO KILL SOME ANIMALS

Kerala has sought the Union government's nod to kill wild animals that pose a threat to human life and property. The state wants the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 amended to allow the killing of certain wild animals that foray into human habitats

Voyage of Rakesh Sharma: The last time an Indian travelled to space

Indian Air Force officer Shubhanshu Shukla on Wednesday will become only the second Indian to travel to space. The first was Rakesh Sharma, whose Soyuz T-11 spacecraft lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Soviet Kazakhstan on April 3, 1984-exactly 15,044 days ago. Here's the story