The House swiftly approved $95 billion in foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies in a rare Saturday session as Democrats and Republicans banded together after months of hard-right resistance over renewed American support for repelling Russia’s invasion.

With an overwhelming vote, the $61 billion in aid for Ukraine passed in a matter of minutes, a strong showing as American lawmakers race to deliver a fresh round of U.S. support to the war-torn ally. Many Democrats cheered on the House floor and waved blue-and-yellow flags of Ukraine.

Aid to Israel and the other allies also won approval by healthy margins, as did a measure to clamp down on the popular platform TikTok, with unique coalitions forming to push the separate bills forward. The whole package will go to the Senate, which could pass it as soon as Tuesday. President Joe Biden has promised to sign it immediately.

“We did our work here, and I think history will judge it well,” said a weary Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who risked his own job to marshal the package to passage.

Biden, in a statement, thanked Johnson, Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and the bipartisan coalition of lawmakers “who voted to put our national security first.”

“I urge the Senate to quickly send this package to my desk so that I can sign it into law and we can quickly send weapons and equipment to Ukraine to meet their urgent battlefield needs,” the president said.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine said he was “grateful” to both parties in the House and “personally Speaker Mike Johnson for the decision that keeps history on the right track,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.

“Thank you, America!” he said.

The scene in Congress was a striking display of action after months of dysfunction and stalemate fueled by Republicans, who hold the majority but are deeply split over foreign aid, particularly for Ukraine. Johnson relied on Democrats to ensure the military and humanitarian funding — the first major package for Ukraine since December 2022 — won approval.

The morning opened with a somber and serious debate and an unusual sense of purpose as Republican and Democratic leaders united to urge quick approval, saying that would ensure the United States supported its allies and remained a leader on the world stage. The House’s visitor galleries were crowded with onlookers.

“The eyes of the world are upon us, and history will judge what we do here and now,” said Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee

Passage through the House cleared away the biggest hurdle to Biden’s funding request, first made in October as Ukraine’s military supplies began to run low.

The GOP-controlled House struggled for months over what to do, first demanding that any assistance for Ukraine be tied to policy changes at the U.S.-Mexico border, only to immediately reject a bipartisan Senate offer along those very lines.

Reaching an endgame has been an excruciating lift for Johnson that has tested both his resolve and his support among Republicans, with a small but growing number now openly urging his removal from the speaker’s office. Yet congressional leaders cast the votes as a turning point in history — an urgent sacrifice as U.S. allies are beleaguered by wars and threats from continental Europe to the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific.

“Sometimes when you are living history, as we are today, you don’t understand the significance of the actions of the votes that we make on this House floor, of the effect that it will have down the road,” said New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “This is a historic moment.”

Opponents, particularly the hard-right Republicans from Johnson’s majority, argued that the U.S. should focus on the home front, addressing domestic border security and the nation’s rising debt load, and they warned against spending more money, which largely flows to American defense manufacturers, to produce weaponry used overseas.

Still, Congress has seen a stream of world leaders visit in recent months, from Zelenskyy to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, all but pleading with lawmakers to approve the aid. Globally, the delay left many questioning America’s commitment to its allies.

At stake has been one of Biden’s top foreign policy priorities — halting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s advance in Europe. After engaging in quiet talks with Johnson, the president quickly endorsed Johnson’s plan, paving the way for Democrats to give their rare support to clear the procedural hurdles needed for a final vote.

“We have a responsibility, not as Democrats or Republicans, but as Americans to defend democracy wherever it is at risk,” Jeffries said during the debate.

While aid for Ukraine failed to win a majority of Republicans, several dozen progressive Democrats voted against the bill aiding Israel as they demanded an end to the bombardment of Gaza that has killed thousands of civilians. A group of roughly 20 hard-right Republicans voted against every portion of the aid package, including for allies like Israel and Taiwan that have traditionally enjoyed support from the GOP.

At the same time, Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has loomed large over the fight, weighing in from afar via social media statements and direct phone calls with lawmakers as he tilts the GOP to a more isolationist stance with his “America First” brand of politics.

Ukraine’s defense once enjoyed robust, bipartisan support in Congress, but as the war enters its third year, a majority of Republicans opposed further aid. Trump ally Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., offered an amendment to zero out the money, but it was rejected.

The ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus has derided the legislation as the “America Last” foreign wars package and urged lawmakers to defy Republican leadership and oppose it because the bills did not include border security measures.

Johnson’s hold on the speaker’s gavel has also grown more tenuous in recent days as three Republicans, led by Greene, supported a “motion to vacate” that can lead to a vote on removing the speaker. Egged on by far-right personalities, she is also being joined by a growing number of lawmakers including Reps. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who is urging Johnson to voluntarily step aside.

The package included several Republican priorities that Democrats endorsed, or at least are willing to accept. Those include proposals that allow the U.S. to seize frozen Russian central bank assets to rebuild Ukraine; impose sanctions on Iran, Russia, China and criminal organizations that traffic fentanyl; and legislation to require the China-based owner of the popular video app TikTok to sell its stake within a year or face a ban in the United States.

Still, the all-out push to get the bills through Congress is a reflection not only of politics, but realities on the ground in Ukraine. Top lawmakers on national security committees, who are privy to classified briefings, have grown gravely concerned about the tide of the war as Russia pummels Ukrainian forces beset by a shortage of troops and ammunition.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced the Senate would begin procedural votes on the package Tuesday, saying, “Our allies across the world have been waiting for this moment.”

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, as he prepared to overcome objections from his right flank next week, said, “The task before us is urgent. It is once again the Senate’s turn to make history.”

The Senate on March 8 approved a $460 billion package of spending bills in time to meet a midnight deadline for avoiding a shutdown of many key federal agencies, a vote that gets lawmakers about halfway home in wrapping up their appropriations work for the 2024 budget year.

The measure contains six annual spending bills and has already passed the House. It now goes to President Joe Biden to be signed into law. The White House said he would do so Saturday, and “agencies will not shut down and may continue their normal operations”.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are negotiating a second package of six bills, including defence, in an effort to have all federal agencies fully funded by a March 22 deadline.

“To folks who worry that divided government means nothing ever gets done, this bipartisan package says otherwise,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

He said the bill’s passage would allow for the hiring of more air traffic controllers and rail safety inspectors, give federal firefighters a raise and boost support for homeless veterans, among other things.

The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 75-22. The chamber laboured to get to a final vote just hours before the midnight deadline for the first set of appropriations bills. Lawmakers sought votes on several amendments and wanted to have their say on the bill and other priorities during debate on the floor. It was unclear midday if senators would be able to avert a short shutdown, though eventual passage was never really in doubt.

“I would urge my colleagues to stop playing with fire here,” said Sen. Susan Collins, the top-ranking Republican member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “It would be irresponsible for us not to clear these bills and do the fundamental job that we have of funding government. What is more important?”

The votes this week come more than five months into the current fiscal year after congressional leaders relied on a series of stopgap bills to keep federal agencies funded for a few more weeks or months at a time while they struggled to reach agreement on full-year spending.

In the end, total discretionary spending set by Congress is expected to come in at about $1.66 trillion for the full budget year ending September 30.

Republicans were able to keep non-defence spending relatively flat compared to the previous year. Supporters say that’s progress in an era when annual federal deficits exceeding $1 trillion have become the norm. But many Republican lawmakers were seeking much steeper cuts and more policy victories.

The House Freedom Caucus, which contains dozens of the GOP’s most conservative members, urged Republicans to vote against the first spending package and the second one still being negotiated.

Democrats staved off most of the policy riders that Republicans sought to include in the package. For example, they beat back an effort to block new rules that expand access to the abortion pill mifepristone. They were also able to fully fund a nutrition program for low-income women, infants and children, providing about $7 billion for what is known as the WIC program. That’s a $1 billion increase from the previous year.

Republicans were able to achieve some policy wins, however. One provision, for example, will prevent the sale of oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to China. Another policy mandate prohibits the Justice Department from investigating parents who exercise free speech at local school board meetings.

Another provision strengthens gun rights for certain veterans, though opponents of the move said it could make it easier for those with very serious mental health conditions like dementia to obtain a firearm.

”This isn’t the package I would have written on my own,” said Sen. Patty Murray, the Democratic chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “But I am proud that we have protected absolutely vital funding that the American people rely on in their daily lives.”

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said one problem he sees with the bill is that there was too much compromise, and that led to too much spending.

“A lot of people don’t understand this. They think there is no cooperation in Washington and the opposite is true. There is compromise every day on every spending bill,” Sen. Paul said.

“It’s compromise between big-government Democrats and big-government Republicans,” he added.

Still, with a divided Congress and a Democratic-led White House, any bill that doesn’t have buy-in from members of both political parties stands no chance of passage.

The bill also includes more than 6,600 projects requested by individual lawmakers with a price tag of about $12.7 billion. The projects attracted criticism from some Republican members, though members from both parties broadly participated in requesting them on behalf of their states and congressional districts. Sen. Paul called the spending “sort of the grease that eases in billions and trillions of other dollars, because you get people to buy into the total package by giving them a little bit of pork for their town, a little bit of pork for their donors”.

But an effort by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla, to strip out the projects mustered only 32 votes with 64 against. Murray said Scott’s effort would overrule “all the hard work, all the input we asked everyone to provide us about projects that would help their constituents”.

Even though lawmakers find themselves passing spending bills five months into the fiscal year, Republicans are framing the process as improved nonetheless because they broke the cycle of passing all the spending bills in one massive package that lawmakers have little time to study before being asked to vote on it or risk a government shutdown. Still, others said that breaking up funding into two chunks of legislation war hardly a breakthrough.

The first package now making its way to Mr. Biden’s desk covers the departments of Justice, Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Interior and Transportation, among others.

Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., leaves the House floor after being ousted as Speaker of the House at the Capitol in Washington on October 3, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

Kevin McCarthy becomes the first speaker ever to be ousted from the job in a U.S. House vote

Speaker Kevin McCarthy was voted out of the job Tuesday in an extraordinary showdown, a first in U.S. history that was forced by a contingent of hard-right conservatives and threw the House and its Republican leadership into chaos. Mr. McCarthy’s chief rival, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, forced the vote on the “motion to vacate,” drawing together more than a handful of conservative Republican critics of the speaker and many Democrats who say he is unworthy of leadership.

Delhi Police arrest NewsClick founder, HR head in alleged terror case

The Delhi Police on October 3 arrested Prabir Purkayastha, founder and Editor-in-Chief of news portal NewsClick and its Human Resources head Amit Chakraborty in an alleged terror case. Deputy Commissioner of Police (PRO) Suman Nalwa said that a total of 46 “suspects”, including nine women, were questioned and their phones, laptops and devices seized for further examination. She added that proceedings were on and two persons had been arrested thus far.

Arguments in EWS verdict may serve as a shot in the arm for seeking more quota post Bihar caste survey

Arguments employed by the Supreme Court in its majority verdict to uphold the 10% economically weaker sections (EWS) quota for the “poorest of the poor” among forward castes can paradoxically become a stimulus for the backward classes to seek reservation over and above the 50% ceiling limit on the basis of the data published after the Bihar caste-based survey. The EWS judgment had excluded the “poorest of the poor” among the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Other Backward Classes from the ambit of 10% quota.

PM draws BJP campaign lines for Assembly polls, one rally at a time

The dates for the Assembly polls in the States of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram are yet to be announced but Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s public rallies and meetings have already set the contours of the BJP election campaign.

Despite early gains of Swachh Bharat Mission, toilet use declining since 2018-19: World Bank paper

A departmental working paper by the World Bank on the progress of the Swacch Bharat Mission – Gramin (SBM-G) has now found that despite “breathtaking” gains made by the programme to bring toilet access to rural India since 2014-15, when it began, there has been a clear trend of regular toilet use declining in rural India from 2018-19 onwards, with the largest drop being seen among Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe socio-economic groups.

Black day for Indian democracy: TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee after release from police detention

“Today is a black day for Indian democracy,” TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said as he and other party leaders were released by the police on Tuesday night, hours after being detained during a sit-in at the Union Rural Development Ministry office here. Mr. Banerjee said Tuesday’s incident will stand as an example of ‘New India’ as public representatives were “dragged and manhandled” by Delhi Police and journalists questioning the government were booked under the anti-terror law UAPA.

IAF looking at procurement contracts worth over ₹2.5 lakh crore, says Air chief

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is looking at procuring 97 additional indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)-Mk1A fighter jets at an estimated cost of ₹1.15 lakh crore, Air Chief Marshal V. R. Chaudhari said on October 3. The procurement will take the LCA-MK1A fleet strength to 180. The IAF is looking at several contracts worth ₹2.5 lakh crore to ₹3 lakh crore in the next few years, he said.

Armenia’s parliament votes to join the International Criminal Court, straining ties with ally Russia

Armenia’s Parliament voted on Tuesday to join the International Criminal Court, a move that further strains the country’s ties with its old ally Russia after the court issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin over events in Ukraine. Moscow last month called Yerevan’s effort to join the ICC an “unfriendly step,” and the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Armenia’s ambassador.

Trudeau says Canada not looking to ‘escalate’ situation, vows to engage constructively with India

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said Canada was not looking to “escalate” the situation with India amid the diplomatic row between the two countries over the killing of a Khalistani separatist and asserted that his government will continue to have “constructive relations” with New Delhi. Speaking to reporters in Ottawa, Mr. Trudeau also said that it’s important for Canada to have diplomats on the ground in India, amid a report by London-based Financial Times that New Delhi wants as many as 41 of 62 remaining Canadian diplomats out of the country, the Toronto Sun newspaper reported.

Maldives president-elect says he’s committed to removing the Indian military from the archipelago

The President-elect of the Maldives said he will stick to his campaign promise to remove Indian military personnel stationed in the archipelago state, promising he would initiate the process. Mohamed Muizzu told his supporters gathered Monday night at a celebration of his election victory that he wouldn’t stand for a foreign military staying in the Maldives against the will of its citizens.

Indian outbound tourism market to cross $15 billion in 2023, says NIMA chief

Post Covid, the outbound tourism market has been growing steadily and this growth momentum is expected to continue till about 2032, an industry executive said. “India’s outbound tourism market is surging and set to reach $15.2 billion in 2023, with an anticipated 11.4% CAGR through 2032,” said Gajesh Girdhar, Chairman, Network of Indian MICE Agents (NIMA) at travel show BLTM 2023. “This growth is driven by Indians, particularly millennials, eager to explore international destinations,” he added.

Hangzhou Asian Games | Tejaswin shatters decathlon national record to win silver

Ten events over two days in competitive sports sounds fanciful unless one is talking about decathlon, perhaps the most difficult of athletic events. On October 3, Tejaswin Shankar broke the 12-year old national record in decathlon en route to winning silver at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, becoming the only Indian to hold national records in two different field events.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy was voted out of the job Tuesday in an extraordinary showdown, a first in U.S. history that was forced by a contingent of hard-right conservatives and threw the House and its Republican leadership into chaos.

McCarthy’s chief rival, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, forced the vote on the “motion to vacate,” drawing together more than a handful of conservative Republican critics of the speaker and many Democrats who say he is unworthy of leadership.

Next steps are uncertain, but there is no obvious successor to lead the House Republican majority.

Stillness fell as the presiding officer gavelled the vote closed, 216-210, saying the office of the speaker “is hereby declared vacant.”

Moments later, a top McCarthy ally, Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., took the gavel and, according to House rules, was named speaker pro tempore, to serve in the office until a new speaker is chosen.

The House then briskly recessed so lawmakers could meet and discuss the path forward.

It was a stunning moment for the battle-tested Mr. McCarthy, a punishment fuelled by growing grievances but sparked by his weekend decision to work with Democrats to keep the federal government open rather than risk a shutdown.

An earlier vote was 218-208 against tabling the motion, with 11 Republicans allowing it to advance.

The House then opened a floor debate, unseen in modern times, ahead of the next round of voting.

Mr. McCarthy, of California, insisted he would not cut a deal with Democrats to remain in power — not that he could have relied on their help even if he had asked.

Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a letter to colleagues that he wants to work with Republicans, but he was unwilling to provide the votes needed to save Mr. McCarthy.

“It is now the responsibility of the GOP members to end the House Republican Civil War,” Mr. Jeffries said, announcing the Democratic leadership would vote for the motion to oust the speaker.

As the House fell silent, Gaetz, a top ally of Donald Trump, rose to offer his motion. Gaetz is a leader of the hard-right Republicans who fought in January against Mr. McCarthy in his prolonged battle to gain the gavel.

“It’s a sad day,” Republican Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma said as debate got underway, urging his colleagues not to plunge the House Republican majority “into chaos.”

But Gaetz shot back during the debate, “Chaos is Speaker McCarthy.”

Mr. McCarthy’s fate was deeply uncertain as the fiery debate unfolded, with much of the complaints against the speaker revolving around his truthfulness and his ability to keep the promises he has made since January to win the gavel.

But a long line of Mr. McCarthy supporters, including Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a founding leader of the conservative Freedom Caucus, stood up for him: “I think he has kept his word.” And some did so passionately. Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., waved his cellphone, saying it was “disgusting” that hard-right colleagues were fundraising off the move in text messages seeking donations.

At the Capitol, both Republicans and Democrats met privately ahead of the historic afternoon vote.

Behind closed doors, Mr. McCarthy told fellow Republicans: Let’s get on with it.

“If I counted how many times someone wanted to knock me out, I would have been gone a long time ago,” Mr. McCarthy said at the Capitol after the morning meeting.

Mr. McCarthy insisted he had not reached across the aisle to the Democratic leader Jeffries for help with votes to stay in the job, nor had they demanded anything in return.

During the hourlong meeting in the Capitol basement, Mr. McCarthy invoked Republican Speaker Joseph Cannon, who more than 100 years ago confronted his critics head-on by calling their bluff and setting the vote himself on his ouster. Cannon survived that takedown attempt, which was the first time the House had actually voted to consider removing its speaker. A more recent threat, in 2015, didn’t make it to a vote.

Mr. McCarthy received three standing ovations during the private meeting — one when he came to the microphone to speak, again during his remarks and finally when he was done, according a Republican at the meeting who was granted anonymity to discuss it.

At one point, there was a show of hands in support of Mr. McCarthy and it was “overwhelming,” said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., a member of the House Freedom Caucus.

Gaetz was in attendance, but he did not address the room.

Across the way in the Capitol, Democrats lined up for a long discussion and unified around one common point: Mr. McCarthy cannot be trusted, several lawmakers in the room said.

“I think it’s safe to say there’s not a lot of good will in that room for Kevin McCarthy,” said Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass.

“At the end of the day, the country needs a speaker that can be relied upon,” said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. “We don’t trust him. Their members don’t trust him. And you need a certain degree of trust to be the speaker.”

Removing the speaker launches the House Republicans into chaos, as they try to find a new leader. It took Mr. McCarthy himself 15 rounds in January over multiple days of voting before he secured the support from his colleagues to gain the gavel. There is no obvious GOP successor.

Mr. Trump, the former president who is the Republican front-runner in the 2024 race to challenge Biden, weighed in to complain about the chaos. “Why is it that Republicans are always fighting among themselves,” he asked on social media.

One key Mr. McCarthy ally, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., took to social media urging support for “our speaker” and an end to the chaos that has roiled the Republican majority.

Republicans were upset that Mr. McCarthy relied on Democratic votes Saturday to approve the temporary measure to keep the government running until Nov. 17. Some would have preferred a government shutdown as they fight for deeper spending cuts.

But Democrats were also upset with Mr. McCarthy for walking away from the debt deal that he made with Biden earlier this year that already set federal spending levels, as he emboldened his right flank to push for steep spending reductions.

Women take part in a candlelight vigil against the “killing” of two missing students by unknown miscreants and demand peace in Manipur, Imphal. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

Four arrested in Manipur for abduction, killing of two Meitei students

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday arrested four people, including two women, for their alleged role in the abduction and killing of two Meitei students in Manipur in July. They were arrested from the hill district of Churachandpur. The suspects were identified as Paominlun Haokip, S. Malsawm Haokip, Lhingneichong Baite, and Tinneilhing Henthang. They were flown to Guwahati from Imphal by a joint team of the CBI and Manipur Police.

No shortage of TB drugs in India: Union Health Ministry

There is no shortage of anti-tuberculosis medicines in India, the Union Health Ministry said on Sunday, slamming media reports claiming that such a shortage exists as “false, motivated and misleading”. In a sharp statement, the Ministry asserted that there is a sufficient stock of all anti-TB drugs in the country. The Centre proactively undertakes regular assessments to evaluate the stock positions at various levels, from central warehouses to peripheral health institutes, it said.

Over 9.2 lakh sites host cleanliness drive; PM appeals for swachhata

More than 9.2 lakh sites across the country hosted a mega cleanliness drive on Sunday in which people from across the spectrum, including politicians, celebrities, and students participated. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took part in this cleanliness drive along with fitness influencer Ankit Baiyanpuria.

AFSPA extended in four districts of Assam, withdrawn from four others

The Assam Police on October 1 said the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act or AFSPA has been extended in four districts of the State for six more months. At the Assam Police Day 2023 celebrations in Guwahati, DGP Gyanendra Pratap Singh said the ‘disturbed area’ tag, which allows enforcement of the AFSPA, has, however, been withdrawn from four other districts.

Congress, AAP back protest seeking restoration of old pension scheme

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said that he has requested the Union government to implement the old pension scheme (OPS) for Delhi government employees. He voiced his support on a day when thousands of protesters gathered at Ramlila Maidan in the capital for an agitation against the new pension scheme (NPS). Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely also participated in the rally and offered his support to the protesters.

Students make 154 sculptures of Mahatma Gandhi

To observe the 154th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Chembrakanam Chitra Shilpakala Academy and Thrikaripur St. Paul’s School are jointly conducting a four-day Chitra Shilpakala Camp, which began on Saturday. The camp saw the creation of 154 sculptures of Gandhi, each meticulously crafted from 1 kg to 5 kg of clay by students. As many as 154 students from over 17 schools participated in the camp.

Demand for inquest into Khalistan activist’s death in Birmingham likely on October 2

The Sikh Federation UK (SFUK) plans to make a formal demand, likely on Monday, for a coroner’s inquest into the death of Khalistani activist Avtar Singh Khanda in Birmingham last June, according to sources aware of the plan. Pro-Khalistani Sikhs also plan to hold a demonstration outside the Indian High Commission in London on October 2, accusing the Indian government of involvement in the death of a pro-Khalistan activist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Canada. The protest is part of a coordinated strategy by Sikh separatists in various countries.

Biden says there’s ‘not much time’ to keep aid flowing to Ukraine and Congress must ‘stop the games’

President Joe Biden said Sunday that American aid to Ukraine will keep flowing for now as he sought to reassure allies of continued U.S. financial support for the war effort. But time is running out, the President said in a warning to Congress. “We cannot under any circumstances allow American for Ukraine to be interrupted,” Mr. Biden said in remarks from the Roosevelt Room after Congress averted a government shutdown by passing a short-term funding package late Saturday that dropped assistance for Ukraine in the battle against Russia.

Turkiye strikes suspected Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq after suicide attack in Ankara

The Turkish Defence Ministry says its warplanes have carried out raids on suspected Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq on Sunday following a suicide attack on a government building in the Turkish capital. A Ministry statement said some 20 targets of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) were “destroyed” in the aerial operation, including caves, shelters, and depots. Earlier, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive device near an entrance of the Ministry of Interior Affairs, injuring two police officers. A second assailant was killed in a shootout with police on Sunday, the interior minister said.

Indonesia to launch China-funded high-speed rail, first in Southeast Asia

Indonesia is set to launch Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway on Monday, a delayed multibillion-dollar project backed by China that will cut travel between capital Jakarta and another major city by hours. The Chinese-made bullet train named “Whoosh” is built to take more than 600 people to and from Jakarta and the Javan city of Bandung in 45 minutes and is part of China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.

GST revenue growth slowed to 10.2% in September

Growth in India’s gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenues slowed to a 27-month low of 10.2% in September, from around 10.8% in the previous two months. However, collections improved 2.3% over August revenues to touch ₹1,62,712 crore. Revenues from domestic transactions, including services imports, were 14% higher than the tax collected from these sources during September 2022. This is the fourth time that the gross GST kitty has crossed the ₹1.60 lakh crore mark in 2023-24, the Finance Ministry said. 

Hangzhou Asian Games | Abhay’s performance in the final is one for the history books

Abhay Singh is a proud product of the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai. The 23-year-old made his alma mater proud by rising from the ashes to help India regain the men’s team gold medal in Hangzhou with a dazzling performance in the third and final rubber against Pakistan in the summit clash. It was an outstanding performance that will go down in history books as one of India’s finest wins in the Asian Games.

Teams deal with warm-up games conundrum

Not much to gain for us. Priority is to look after the players. Just a formality.” That was the crux of India captain Rohit Sharma’s brief chat with the host broadcaster after winning the toss against England in Saturday’s World Cup warm-up match. No wonder then that India would not have been too disappointed when a thunderstorm that started minutes before the start of play washed the game out. As a result, India left for Thiruvananthapuram for its last warm-up game with only four players training on the pre-match day.

The U.S. House approved a 45-day funding bill to keep federal agencies open as Speaker Kevin McCarthy dropped demands for steep spending cuts and relied on Democratic votes for passage to send the package to the Senate.
| Photo Credit: AP

Afghanistan Embassy in India announces decision to cease operations from October 1

The Afghanistan Embassy in India announced Saturday night that it is ceasing its operations from October 1, citing a lack of support from the host government, failure to meet expectations in serving Afghanistan’s interests and reduction in personnel and resources. In a statement, the Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi said it regrets to announce the decision to cease its operations, effective October 1, 2023.

Threat of government shutdown ends as Congress passes a temporary funding plan and sends it to Biden

The threat of a federal government shutdown ended late Saturday, hours before a midnight deadline, as Congress approved a temporary funding bill to keep agencies open and sent the measure to President Joe Biden to sign.

NIA arrests one from Manipur’s Churachandpur for ‘waging war against India’ 

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday arrested a 51-year-old man from the hill district of Churachandpur in a case related to a transnational conspiracy by terror outfits based in Myanmar and Bangladesh to “wage war” against the Government of India by exploiting the current ethnic unrest in Manipur. The accused has been identified as Seiminlun Gangte. The case was registered suo moto by the NIA on July 19 at New Delhi.

Modi attacks Congress, says party is against OBCs

In an attempt to counter the Congress’ recent pitch to other backward classes (OBC), Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday accused the principal Opposition party of being anti-backward, citing its repeated attacks on him. Addressing a poll rally in Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh, a State dominated by tribals and OBCs, Mr. Modi said that the Congress “hated” the poor, Dalits, tribals, and OBCs. For the BJP, on the other hand, social justice was a way to ensure everyone’s participation and lay the foundation of a developed India, he said. 

Punjab govt.’s anti-pollution promise set for ‘field trial’

As paddy harvesting gains momentum in parts of Punjab, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s immediate challenge is to curb stubble burning – which every year causes a spike in air pollution in the northern States, including the national capital. AAP’s Delhi government over the years has invariably kept blaming successive governments in Punjab for not making sincere efforts to solve the problem of stubble burning. With the party governing both the States now, shifting the blame may not be an option this time around.

Centre seeks ‘seamless transition’ of education system using regional languages

The Union Education Ministry has emphasised the need to promote technology in Bharatiya bhasha (regional languages), including in their teaching, training, examination and translating educational materials. On the first day of a two-day summit on Indian languages in New Delhi on Saturday, organised by the Ministry, directions were given to facilitate a “seamless transition” from the present education ecosystem to one rooted in the country’s languages.

TIPRA’s 12-hour strike over statehood demand peaceful

The dawn-to-dusk general strike called by the TIPRA Motha on Saturday to demand a separate State – Greater Tipraland – evoked huge response in areas under the tribal autonomous district council in Tripura. Although the strike was peaceful amid heavy deployment of security forces, normal life and business were disrupted. Vehicles did not ply in some sections of the Assam-Agartala National Highway.

Omar Abdullah launches campaign for Kargil hill council polls, targets BJP

National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah on Saturday launched its election campaign for the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Kargil (LAHDC-K) polls, weeks after the party won a legal battle to retain the party symbol, plough, for the Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh. During the road trip of the region on Saturday, Mr. Abdullah, while referring to BJP MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal’s statements, said, “The BJP MP had claimed our party symbol has been removed forever from this region. Our symbol won’t go so easily. It is etched on the hearts of the people. That MP will be forgotten, not our symbol”.

Opposition candidate Muizzu beats India-friendly Solih in Maldives presidential run-off

Front runner and Opposition candidate Mohamed Muizzu was elected President of the Maldives on Saturday, as he beat the India-friendly incumbent, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, in a closely fought contest. The outcome signals a likely shift in both domestic governance and foreign policy of the island nation. Mr. Muizzu garnered about 54% of the vote, while Mr. Solih secured nearly 46%, according to the provisional results published by Male-based media.

Hangzhou Asian Games badminton: Indian men one win away from first-ever team gold

Kidambi Srikanth rallied his way to a thrilling win in a tense decider as India kept alive their hopes of winning a first-ever gold medal at the Asian Games, reaching the men’s team championships final with a 3-2 win over South Korea in Hangzhou on September 30. This is India’s maiden entry into the final of the team event at the continental showpiece.

Hangzhou Asian Games athletics | Kartik wins silver, Gulveer claims bronze in 10,000m

When Kartik Kumar bolted away from the rest of the pack at the start of the men’s 10,000 meter Asian Games race, his countryman Gulveer Singh was meant to be up with him and not back with the group behind him. At least, that was the plan devised by their coach.