West Asia on edge, India calls for restraint, says avoid Iran travel

As tensions soared across West Asia after Iran's missile barrage on Israel which threatened retaliation, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Washington DC and India, while calling for "restraint by all concerned and protection of civilians", advised all its nationals to "avoid all non-essential travel to Iran".

In a statement "on the evolving situation in West Asia", the Ministry of External Affairs said, "We are deeply concerned at the escalation of the security situation in West Asia and reiterate our call for restraint by all concerned and protection of civilians."

"It is important that the conflict doesn't take a wider regional dimension and we urge that all issues be addressed through dialogue and diplomacy," the Ministry said. 

India's worry: Long trade routes, high shipping rates, Corridor risks

As the conflict in West Asia enters a new and unstable phase, both global and Indian traders are bracing for a prolonged disruption in trade. 

The vital Red Sea shipping route may remain inaccessible to global shipping lines for a much longer duration than previously anticipated, potentially keeping freight rates uncomfortably high.

The potential widening of the conflict has increased the risk of trade disruptions, as the Lebanon-based Hezbollah shares close ties with the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are responsible for the majority of the attacks on ships traversing the Red Sea route.

This assumes significance for India as it relies heavily on this route through the Suez Canal for its trade with Europe, the US, Africa and West Asia, as these regions accounted for over $400 billion in FY23, according to Crisil Ratings. 

Muizzu starts India visit, plans are being drawn up for 3 cities

Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu is likely to visit India from October 6 to 10. 

While Muizzu attended Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this will be his first 'standalone' bilateral visit to India, almost a year after he assumed office in Male.

Muizzu is expected to hold bilateral talks with Modi on October 7, sources said. He is likely to travel to three cities - Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru - and arrangements for a packed schedule are being worked out.

A mission's next step

The release of the first India-made commercial system-on-chip for secure IoT environments, the world's first "Digital Entomologist", and the creation of the first-of-its-kind testbeds in India for autonomous navigation and security operations of critical infrastructure.

All of them are successful outcomes from the Government of India's Department of Science and Technology's ambitious National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS). 

Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December 2018 with a budget outlay of Rs 3,660 crore, it aims to establish India as a global leader in Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) - merging the physical world with computational systems, driving breakthroughs in areas like AI/ML, robotics, cybersecurity, and autonomous navigation. 

Food safety laws in states

The Uttar Pradesh government last week made it mandatory for food establishments to "prominently" display to customers the names of "the operator, proprietor, manager, and other relevant personnel". 

Himachal Pradesh minister Vikramaditya Singh said that in his state too, "every eatery and fast food cart will have to display the owner's ID".

On July 22, the Supreme Court stayed similar orders passed by police in UP and Uttarakhand for this year's Kanwar yatra. The court said that the "competent authority" under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSSA) could indeed issue such orders, but police could not "usurp" this power.

Targeting the US dollar is not India's economic policy, but looking for 'workarounds': EAM

As India actively pushes for international trade in its domestic currency with several trade partners, including sanction-hit Russia, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that while India is pursuing its trade interests, avoiding the use of the US dollar is not part of India's economic policy.

Jaishankar noted that US policies often complicate trade with certain countries, and India is seeking "workarounds" without intending to move away from using the dollar, unlike some other nations. However, the minister added that a multipolar world will eventually be reflected in "currencies and economic dealings".-

India's Saudi oil imports jump as Riyadh looks to claw back share lost to Russia

India's Crude oil imports recovered sequentially as a few under-maintenance refineries are slated to come back on stream in October. 

Notably, the sequential recovery in import volumes was led by Saudi Arabia, which has reduced its prices in a bid to claw back some of its lost market share in India, according to ship tracking data and industry watchers. 

Oil imports from Russia Delhi's largest source market for oil also rose in September as India's overall oil demand expanded.