Diplomacy and Global Politics

  By Dr. Somita Chakraborty Today, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Union Budget 2026-27 in the Parliament. This is the first Budget prepared in Karavya Bhawan. The budget is inspired by 3 main kartavyas, 1)       To accelerate and sustan economic growth by enhancing productivity and competitiveness, and building resilience to volatile global dynamics. 2)       To fulfil aspirations of people and build their capacity, making them strong partners in India’s path to prosperity 3)       aligned with vision of Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas, is to ensure that every family, community, region and sector has access to resources, amenities and opportunities for meaningful participation. A quick glimpse of the budget 1)       Scaling up manufacturing in 7 strategic and frontier sectors, they are, Biopharma, Semiconductor, electronic...

  By Dr. Somita Chakraborty Today, Prime Minister Modi received a delegation of Foreign Ministers of Arab countries, Secretary General of the League of Arab States and Heads of Arab delegations. The delegation arrived India for the second India-Arab Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. The MEA statement stated that Mr. Prime Minister highlighted the deep and historic people-to-people ties between India and the Arab world, which have continued to inspire and strengthen Indo-Arab relations over the years. While outlining his vision for the India-Arab partnership in the years ahead, Prime Minister Modi reaffirmed India’s commitment to further deepen cooperation in diverse areas, including trade and investment, energy, technology, healthcare and other priority areas, for the mutual benefit of the people. Prime Minister Modi also reiterated India’s continued support for the people of Palestine and welcomed ongoing peace efforts, including the Gaza peace plan . Prime Minister Modi ex...

                                                                               By  Dr. Somita Chakraborty On humanitarian and livelihood concern, India and Bangladesh released fishermen in a reciprocal manner. Total 128 Bangladeshi fishermen and 23 Indian fishermen, who inadvertently crossed international maritime boundary line, have been arrested by Indian and Bangladesh authorities, respectively. On 29 th  January, 2026, both the governments concluded the release and repatriation of these fishermen, along with their operable vessels. India expressed high concern towards safety and security of Indian innocent fishermen, who accidentally crossed international maritime boundary line and were arrested by Bangladeshi authority. During the period of imprisonment in Bangladesh Indian H...

  By Dr. Somita Chakraborty On Sunday, 2 nd November, 2025, Indian Women Cricket team created history in Dr. Dy Patil Stadium of Navi Mumbai, by winning their first ever ICC World Cup trophy. In the final match, Indian Women team defeated South Africa Women by 52 runs. The grand win of Indian Women Cricket team, however, was not a fluke. This trophy is only a small part of a broader picture – steady march of Indian Women Cricket team to claim their rightful place in the world of Cricket. Five decades ago, Indian Women Cricket (IWC) came into being. Within few years of IWC’s beginning, the Indian Men Cricket team won Prudential Cup in 1983. The unexpected triumph of Indian Men Cricket team changed and dominated India’s cricket perspective for the last four decades. The overhyped and well promoted ups and downs of Indian Men Cricket team overshadowed the hard struggle of Indian Women Cricket team. In the last two decades, the Indian Women Cricket team continuously uplifted...

  By Dr. Somita Chakraborty Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel, H.E Mr. Gideon Sa’ar is in India for a two-day visit to India. According to MEA statement, during the visit, Mr. Sa’ar met with EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. Dr. Jaishankar and Mr. Sa’ar held a productive and detailed discussions including the entire spectrum of the India-Israel Strategic Partnership. Both the Ministers also reviewed the ongoing India-Israel cooperation in different areas including, political, security, agriculture, trade and investment, defence, critical and emerging technologies, semiconductors, cyber security etc. Both the Ministers also discussed various other global developments. They also discussed issues to enhance cooperation in different multilateral platforms. Both India and Israel are handling tremendous challenges of terrorism. Regarding the issue, both the Ministers reaffirmed ensuring a global approach of zero-tolerance towards terrorism in all...

  By Dr. Somita Chakraborty Union Minister of State [MoS (PM)] for External Affairs and Textiles, Mr. Pabitra Margherita is going to visit Ecuador, Bolivia and Cuba. He is scheduled to visit these three countries of Latin America and Caribbean Region from 4 th to 10 th November, 2025. During his visit, the MoS (PM) will review preparations for establishing a resident Indian Mission in Quito, Ecuador. In the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Mr. Margherita will represent the Government of India at the inauguration of the newly elected President in the administrative capital La Paz. In Cuba, MoS (PM) would discuss to strengthen various areas of bilateral relations, for example, health and medicine, digital public infrastructure and capacity building. During his visit, Mr. Margherita is expected to meet with political leaders of these three countries. He is expected to discuss issues of mutual interest, review progress in bilateral relations, promote trade, technology, t...