West Asia war causes shipment delays, cancellations for India’s livestock industry
The war in West Asia has disrupted India’s livestock exports to Gulf countries that are heavily dependent on meat from India, leading to shipment delays and cancellations. “With livestock exports to the region estimated at $2.3-$2.5 billion in FY25, the sector remains closely linked to stability in West Asia.”Gulati said the livestock sector is highly sensitive to grain and fertiliser prices. As of mid-March 2026, effective export volumes reaching West Asia have contracted sharply because of escalating conflict in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, he said. “Since the disruption of key shipping lanes in early 2026, industry reports suggest a 15-20% drop in immediate shipment fulfilments to West Asia,” Gulati said. Shipping lines have also imposed “contingency surcharges” of up to $4,000 per 40-foot container on shipments to West Asia, exporters said.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 07:58 UTC
Haryana refuses sanction to prosecute Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, tells Supreme Court
The Haryana government on Monday informed the Supreme Court that it has decided not to grant sanction to prosecute Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad over his social media posts on Operation Sindoor, saying it was showing “one-time magnanimity” in the matter. ADVERTISEMENT"Showing one-time magnanimity, we have closed the issue and have refused to grant sanction," Raju told the bench. Taking note of the submission, the bench said that since the state had not granted sanction to prosecute Mahmudabad, the proceedings pending before the concerned trial court would stand closed. On January 6, the apex court had extended its order restraining the trial court from taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the Haryana SIT in the FIR against Mahmudabad. The FIRs — one based on a complaint by Haryana State Commission for Women chairperson Renu Bhatia and another by a village sarpanch — were lodged by Rai police in Sonipat district.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 07:35 UTC
Trump urges seven nations to deploy warships to protect Iran's Strait of Hormuz
President Donald Trump said Sunday that he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, but his appeals have brought no commitments as oil prices soar during the Iran war. Trump said China gets about 90% of its oil from the strait, while the U.S. gets a minimal amount. Trump didn't directly answer whether his administration is talking about selling oil futures as a way to cap surging oil prices. In just 10 days, more than 800,000 people - nearly one out of every seven residents of Lebanon - have been displaced. Israel's military says Iran is firing cluster bombs that can evade some air defenses and scatter submunitions across multiple locations.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 07:28 UTC
US-Israel-Iran war: Tehran wants to 'negotiate badly'? Donald Trump claims Iranian leadership not prepared, says 'still not declaring it over'
US President Donald Trump has stated that Tehran maintains a strong desire to "negotiate badly", though he suggested the Iranian leadership is not yet prepared to meet American conditions. We are doing very well with respect to the whole situation in Iran," Trump noted. The President further asserted that the Iranian military has been so heavily damaged that it would take the country a decade to rebuild. Trump maintained that US military operations have "essentially defeated Iran" by eliminating its air forces and air defence systems. Araghchi defended Iranian strikes on US military assets in Gulf countries and vowed that Tehran would continue its military actions until the US concludes what he described as an "illegal war".
Source:dna
March 16, 2026 07:15 UTC
Iran threats leave Kolkatans in Dubai anxious, many staying indoors - Telegraph India
Many Calcuttans living in Dubai said on Sunday they were on edge following threats by Iran on Saturday. Those who had booked short trips to the Gulf are cancelling their plans, tour operators in the city said. Several Dubai residents said they were mostly staying indoors and often hearing fighter jets of the UAE military circling overhead. Dubai airport has been hit by drones several times since February 28,” said a woman staying in Meena Bazar, Bur Dubai. We have been asked not to go out unless necessary,” said a worker from Calcutta staying in the Jebel Ali area.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 07:04 UTC
Bengal poll dates out, uncertainty persists for lakhs of voters under adjudication
Hours before the Election Commission of India on Sunday announced the two-phase schedule for the Bengal Assembly election, several poll aspirants from different parties began their grassroots outreach. None of the major political formations has yet released its list of candidates for the Assembly elections. Still, many from the Trinamool Congress, CPM and BJP were seen stepping up public meetings even amid uncertainty over nominations. In Nadia’s Chakdaha Assembly seat, Trinamool youth leader Jishu Singha — son of veteran party leader and former MLA Sankar Singha — met people amid strong buzz that he might get a party ticket. In Sonarpur South, MLA Lovely Moitra led a large bike rally despite uncertainty surrounding her renomination over factionalism.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 06:58 UTC
Oil prices reflect geopolitical risks, not only supply
In the aftermath of the war in West Asia, crude oil prices surged to as high as $118 a barrel last week. However, the global oil market is once again operating under a profound geopolitical shadow. Currently, however, the impact on physical supply is so drastic that prices continue to climb without a visible peak. Global oil demand still exceeds 105 million barrels per day, and petrochemicals account for a rising share of incremental consumption. Geopolitics will continue to influence oil prices by shaping perceptions of safety, reliability, and continuity, as well as affecting the physical flow of oil.
Source:The Hindu
March 16, 2026 06:47 UTC
Vodafone Idea shares jump 5% as JSW, ST Telemedia eye stake in the telco
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Source:Economic Times
March 16, 2026 06:42 UTC
‘Never seen anything like this’: Residents recall vandalism near Shashi Panja’s home
Two north Calcutta residents who saw the vandalism near minister Shashi Panja’s residence on Saturday said they had never witnessed anything like it in their neighbourhood in decades. One is a 60-year-old man who lives with his elderly parents on the fourth floor of a building adjoining Panja’s house. Some of them headed towards minister Panja’s house next to ours. They started tearing flexes outside the house, shouting in foul language and pelting stones. They started tearing flexes outside minister Panja’s house, shouting slogans and using foul language.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 06:40 UTC
Election Commission replaces Bengal, Kolkata police top brass after chief and home secretaries
The Election Commission has also appointed Ajay Ranade as the ADG (Law and Order). On Sunday night, the Election Commission had removed Bengal’s chief secretary Nandini Chakravorty and home secretary Jagdish Prasad Meena. Dushyant Nariala was appointed chief secretary and Sanghamitra Ghosh as home secretary. “In the dead of night, the chief secretary, home secretary of Bengal were removed by the Election Commission. In protest against what the chief election commissioner is doing, we, all India Trinamool Congress are walking out for the day,” said Derek O’Brien, Trinamool leader in the Rajya Sabha.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 06:34 UTC
Asia Africa agri alliance to boost trade, investments, tech
A new institutional platform Asia Africa Agri Alliance has been formed to boost trade, agricultural cooperation, investment and technology exchange. The Asia Africa Agri Alliance has been established as a Section 8 not-for-profit institution to create structured frameworks for trade partnerships, policy alignment, technology exchange and investment mobilisation across the agri-food value chain. Platforms such as the Asia Africa Agri Alliance can help convert this complementary strength into scalable partnerships that benefit farmers, industries and consumers across both regions,” he noted. Dr Ashok Dalwai, Chairman of the Karnataka Agriculture Price Commission and former CEO of the National Rainfed Area Authority, said India’s engagement with African nations in agriculture has steadily expanded over the years and the newly formed Asia Africa Agri Alliance can help deepen partnerships through knowledge exchange. According to Kailash Singh, Convenor, the Asia Africa Agri Alliance will also support initiatives such as the Asia–Africa agri corridors, farm-to-market linkages, technology partnerships and investment facilitation platforms aimed at strengthening agricultural ecosystems across both continents.
Source:The Hindu
March 16, 2026 06:31 UTC
CCI getting ready to act against potential anti-competitive ways in AI space: Chairperson
Competition Commission is getting ready to take action against anti-competitive practices that might emerge in the artificial intelligence front, including algorithmic collusion, the regulator's chief Ravneet Kaur said on Monday. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) keeps a tab on unfair business practices in the market place. "... we are getting ready to take action even on any anti-competitive practices which might emerge in the AI front. "So, we've identified potential anti-competitive conduct... which would be concentration in the AI value chain. "We get antitrust matters from all across.
Source:The Hindu
March 16, 2026 06:27 UTC
Trump urges allies to secure Strait of Hormuz; Japan, Australia decline naval deployment
"I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory because it is their territory," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on the way from Florida to Washington. In a weekend social media post he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate. Australia, another key Indo-Pacific ally to the U.S., said it had not been asked and will not send naval ships to assist in reopening the strait either. “I think China should help too because China gets 90% of its oil from the Straits,” Trump said. Drones cause fire, disrupt traffic at Dubai airportThe disruption to energy markets caused by the Iran war is an "abject lesson" in the risks of relying on fossil fuels, according to the U.N. climate secretary.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 06:22 UTC
Nine arrested for attack on Minister Shashi Panja’s house after Girish Park violence
Nine people were arrested between Saturday night and Sunday morning in connection with the violence at Girish Park and the attack on Bengal minister Shashi Panja’s residence. ADVERTISEMENTThe suspects were reportedly caught on camera pelting stones at Panja’s house and smashing windows. The outside of Panja’s house bore visible marks of the violence on Sunday, with dents on the door, torn flex banners and broken glass windows. Shashi Panja’s injury also raised suspicions. Sources said police investigations found that BJP supporters travelling in the bus had stopped at the Girish Park crossing at a traffic signal when several men got down and began attacking the minister’s house.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 06:22 UTC
US and China move to finalise managed trade, agriculture deals in Paris ahead of Xi–Trump summit
Spokespersons for the U.S. Treasury and the U.S. Trade Representative's office declined to characterize the talks, while Chinese officials left on Sunday without speaking to reporters. The Paris talks follow several meetings to ease tension last year between Bessent, He, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Chinese chief trade negotiator Li Chenggang. Technical talks on the proposed U.S.-China "Board of Trade" and "Board of Investment" were expected on Monday. But with little time to prepare and Washington's attention focused on the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, prospects for such major trade breakthroughs were limited, in Paris or at the Beijing summit, trade analysts said. These meetings include a potential visit to Washington for Xi, a China-hosted APEC summit in November and a U.S.-hosted G20 summit in December.
Source:The Telegraph
March 16, 2026 06:22 UTC