New Delhi, Oct 14: Prime Minister NarendraModi will inaugurate and dedicate to the nation five major development projects worth around Rs 3350 crore in Ladakh on Thursday at around 12:30 pm via video conferencing.

He will also address the gathering on the occasion.

The five projects will strengthen connectivity, improve energy infrastructure, conserve cultural heritage and enhance water security in the region.

Prime Minister will inaugurate the New Passenger Terminal Building at KushokBakulaRimpochee Airport, Leh, built at a cost of Rs 640 crore.

Spread over 23,800 square metres, the modern terminal is designed to handle 35 lakh passengers annually.

Incorporating geothermal energy to enhance energy efficiency and reduce its carbon footprint, the facility reflects the importance of sustainable infrastructure in Ladakh’s ecologically sensitive environment.

Blending modern passenger amenities with elements of Ladakh’s rich cultural heritage, the terminal will improve passenger convenience and strengthen air connectivity with the rest of the country.

Prime Minister will dedicate to the nation the 298-km-long Nimmu-Padum-Darcha Road, constructed by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO).

Connecting Nimmu in Leh with Darcha in Himachal Pradesh through the remote Zanskar Valley, the road provides an alternative connectivity corridor to Ladakh, supplementing the Srinagar-Leh and Manali-Leh highways.

Traversing challenging Himalayan terrain, including the high-altitude Shinkun La Pass, the road marks a significant engineering achievement.

Its strategic importance lies in enhancing operational mobility and strengthening logistical support for the armed forces.

It will also benefit residents of Zanskar by improving access to healthcare, education, markets and essential services.

As part of efforts to strengthen energy security and harness Ladakh’s renewable energy potential, Prime Minister will inaugurate the 9 MW Hanu Small Hydroelectric Project and the 66 kV Double-Circuit Dah-Hanu-Khaltsi Transmission Line. The projects will strengthen power evacuation infrastructure and improve the reliability of Ladakh’s electricity network. They mark an important step towards harnessing the region’s hydropower resources and strengthening its energy infrastructure.

Recognising the importance of preserving Ladakh’s ancient archaeological heritage, Prime Minister will inaugurate India’s first Petroglyph Conservation Park at SindhuGhat, Leh.

Ladakh is home to hundreds of prehistoric rock art sites featuring carvings of wildlife, human figures and symbolic representations that offer valuable insights into thousands of years of human history.

These petroglyphs are an irreplaceable record of the region’s cultural and civilisational past.

The conservation park will provide a dedicated space for protecting these vulnerable archaeological remains, raising public awareness and encouraging responsible heritage tourism.

Prime Minister will also inaugurate 40 water bodies developed across 40 villages under Project Him Sarovar, an initiative aimed at addressing Ladakh’s unique geographical and climatic challenges through water conservation, in line with the objectives of Mission AmritSarovar.

Agriculture in Ladakh faces a seasonal imbalance between water availability and demand.

Farmers often experience water scarcity during the crucial sowing season, even as snowmelt and glacial runoff provide substantial water resources during other periods.

Project Him Sarovar seeks to address this challenge by conserving water when it is available and ensuring its availability when required, thereby supporting irrigation, sustaining agricultural livelihoods and strengthening long-term water security in the region.

New Delhi, Oct 14: India on Wednesday condemned the string of attacks on civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, saying the “totally unacceptable” acts need to cease immediately, even as it asserted that New Delhi remains committed to doing the best for the welfare and well-being of Indian nationals abroad.

At his bi-weekly media briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal also said that according to the wishes of the family of an Indian national who died on October 11, a day after suffering injuries in the Riyadh airport attack, his last rites were performed in the Saudi capital, assisted by the Indian Embassy there.

The attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport last Saturday was the latest of several strikes targeting the facility in the past week. Eleven Indians were among those injured in the attack that claimed 12 lives.

“Out of the 11 Indians injured, three have been discharged while eight continue to be in the hospital, including four in the ICU. Our embassy officials are regularly visiting the injured. They are also in touch with their families. We remain committed to doing our best for the welfare and well-being of our nationals abroad,” the MEA spokesperson said.

The Indian Embassy in Riyadh said in a social media post on Sunday that one Indian national injured in the Riyadh attack had lost his life.

“There have been a string of attacks in Saudi Arabia, which we have condemned. Yesterday, the Aramco headquarters was attacked. We condemn all such attacks on civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. Such attacks need to cease immediately. They are totally unacceptable.

“We stand in solidarity with the people and the government of Saudi Arabia in defence of their sovereignty. We hope peace and normalcy return to the region soon,” he said.

Jaiswal’s comments in response to a query followed fresh escalation in attacks on Saudi infrastructure, including airports and oil facilities, by Iran-backed Houthis.

Saudi airports, including the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and the Abha airport, have been repeatedly targeted by Houthi attacks this month, disrupting flights and causing casualties.

Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said a limited fire broke out in an administrative building at an Aramco facility in the kingdom’s Eastern Province after it was targeted in an attack – even though no injuries were reported.

The incident came amid an exchange of attacks between the Houthis and a Saudi-led coalition on Tuesday night, marking a fresh escalation in the widening crisis in West Asia.

Jaiswal was asked about the number of Indians impacted by the attacks in Saudi Arabia, and the efforts being made to assist them.

“We have a large diaspora there. Our embassy in Saudi Arabia has been in regular touch with our community members for their welfare. It has also issued advisories.

“A lot of Indians travel between Saudi Arabia and India, and some of them have been impacted by disruptions in flight schedules after the attacks on the airports there,” Jaiswal said.

He added that Indian carriers have also been impacted by the disruptions, even though several flights are now being operated by the Saudi airlines.

“The flights which have been disrupted include those originating or going to Riyadh, Dammam and Medina, and to one or two more airports, including Jeddah. The Indian Embassy is providing updated information to our travellers who are stuck there,” Jaiswal said.

New Delhi, Oct 14: IDBI Bank Ltd. is a scheduled commercial bank regulated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Due to its poor financial health, the Bank required repeated infusion of capital, initially provided by the Government of India and later by the LIC. On 5th May, 2017, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) put the IDBI Bank under the Prompt Corrective Action Framework and imposed several restrictions in view of its non-performing assets and losses incurred by the Bank. After considering the improvement in the Bank’s financial health, the RBI later, vide its letter dated 10th March, 2021, lifted the restrictions imposed on the IDBI Bank subject to certain conditions and continuous monitoring.

It was against this backdrop that the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved strategic restructuring of the IDBI Bank Ltd., and in compliance thereof, it was decided that an aggregate 60.72% of the equity stake in the IDBI Bank Ltd be sold to a Strategic Buyer, of which, the GoI share would be 30.48% and the LIC share would be 30.24%, leaving a residual shareholding of 15% with the GoI and 19% with the LIC.

The decision of the CCEA was implemented through a two-stage, competitive bidding process supported by a multi-layered, collective decision-making mechanism consisting of the Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG), the Core Group of Secretaries on Disinvestment (CGD) and the Alternative Mechanism (AM) consisting of an empowered Group of Cabinet Ministers.

The Preliminary Information Memorandum (PIM) inviting Expression of Interest (EoI) from all interested parties was issued on 07.10.2022. Only the parties found ‘Fit and Proper’ by the RBI and granted security clearance by the MHA could participate in the bidding stage, for which a Request for Proposal was issued for inviting technical and financial bids from the Qualified Interested Parties (QIPs). Of the five parties who initially submitted their expression of interest, four parties qualified as per the eligibility criteria and disqualification conditions prescribed therein, of which, two finally submitted their techno-financial bids and became Qualified Bidders (QBs) for this Transaction.

After comprehensive evaluation by the CGD and after considering the recommendations of the Alternative Mechanism, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) in its meeting held on 14/10/2026 approved M/s 10955230 Canada Inc. (parent entity M/s Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.) as the Strategic Buyer for this Transaction for a purchase consideration of Rs.52,878.0806181 Crores (in words Rupees Fifty-Two Thousand Eight Hundred Seventy-Eight Crore Eight Lakh Six Thousand and One Hundred Eighty-One only) for the acquisition of 60.72% stake in the IDBI Bank Ltd, comprising 30.48% equity shareholding held by the Gol and 30.24% equity shareholding held by the LIC.

In such transactions, there is no a-priori benchmark for bidding. The bidders do their own valuation and submit their bids in sealed envelopes in a confidential manner. Independent agencies are hired to do a fair valuation of the enterprise contemporaneously, which is then used as a comparator to assess the reasonableness of the bids submitted.

Under this transaction, the initial bids were invited in the financial year 2025-26. For comparison, a reserve price of Rs.94.42 per share was fixed at that time, which was directly and indirectly influenced by the impacted market price. The unimpacted counter-factual was not visible at that time, except that the unimpacted pre-EoI price of the IDBI stock was Rs.42.40 per share on the last trading day before the issue of the PIM/EoI on 07.10.2022. In contrast, the impacted price was Rs.108.12 per share on the last trading day before the invitation of initial bids on 08.01.2026. The initial bids fell short of the reserve price arrived at that time and were not approved. When it became known that the initial bids have not succeeded, the impacted stock market price itself corrected, and fell significantly below the discovered bid price of Rs.75 per share.

Subsequently, in exercise of the powers delegated and conferred upon the collective decision-making mechanism, and to enhance the value of the transaction as far as possible, sealed bids reflecting their best offers were invited from the qualified bidders in the financial year 2026-27. The stock price of the IDBI Stock was Rs.70.38 per share on the trading day last before the invitation of best offer bids on 18.05.2026.

The stock market price of the narrowly traded IDBI stock continued to be volatile and fluctuated both above and below the bid discovered price with a high-low range of Rs.118.38 to Rs.61.01 per share over the valuation period. The stock market price was consequently disregarded, as it tended to misalign valuation with the intrinsic value of the enterprise. Instead, Relative Valuation by the Market Multiple Method, which overcomes this problem, was used to determine the fair market value of the enterprise on the basis of 31st March, 2026 closing accounts of all public sector banks. Additionally, the Asset Valuation Method, which considers both tangible and intangible assets, including land and properties along with the liabilities, was used to determine the fair net asset value of the enterprise as per the 31st March, 2026 audited accounts of the IDBI Bank Ltd.

Accordingly, the fair valuation of the enterprise was carried out by two professional valuation agencies using two independent methodologies as explained above. The average of these fair valuations was Rs.75.99 per share, which served as the benchmark price for the evaluation of the qualified bids. Since the winning best offer bid of Rs.81 per share was above the benchmark price, as well as fair value estimates of both the independent valuation agencies, it was adjudged to be reasonable and approved.   

The successful bidder will be required to present its credentials to the Reserve Bank of India in accordance with the Fit and Proper Assessment conducted at the EoI stage and submit its roadmap for the compliance of regulatory conditions prescribed therein. Once completed, this will be the largest FDI in the financial sector of our economy so far.

The CCEA has also delegated powers to the Alternative Mechanism to undertake minority stake sales of the GoI residual shareholding (15% of the total shareholding of the IDBI Bank Ltd.) through the open market in accordance with the standard operating procedure. The LIC will be free to manage its residual shareholding in accordance with its internal procedures while ensuring compliance with the directions of its regulators.

New Delhi, Oct 14: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has once again unearthed a large-scale scheme to circumvent India’s prohibition on the import of goods originating in or exported from Pakistan under “Operation Deep Manifest”.

DRI detected the import of 295 containers carrying 7,311 metric tonnes of Pakistan-origin Industrial/Himalayan Rock Salt, with an estimated market value of around Rs. 30 crore. The consignments were routed through Colombo Port, Sri Lanka, and falsifying their origin by using fabricated certificates of origin and invoices issued by UAE-based entities. 

Acting on specific intelligence, DRI launched a coordinated, fortnight-long operation between 26 September and 11 October 2026, conducting searches at linked premises in Gandhidham, Adipur, Veraval, Panipat, Pune, Patiala, Delhi and Mumbai.  

Investigation revealed that nine importers had brought in the 295 containers through Mundra and Kandla ports since March 2026, in violation of the prohibition. Out of the total 295 containers detected, five containers carrying 140 MT of Industrial/Himalayan Rock Salt, valued at Rs. 24.41 lakh, have been seized at Kandla Port. In addition, sales proceeds amounting to Rs. 20.96 lakh held in the importers’ bank accounts have been seized.

Preliminary investigation has uncovered a transnational network involving entities owned by Pakistani, UAE, Sri Lankan and Indian nationals. The network allegedly coordinated the shipments and supporting documentation to disguise the Pakistani origin of the goods. Fabricated invoices issued by Dubai-based firms were used to support the transactions. Significantly, Bills of Lading relating to the Pakistan–Sri Lanka leg of the shipments and customs declarations filed with Sri Lanka Customs expressly mentioned Pakistan as the country of origin and India as the final destination. The Certificates of Origin submitted by the importers were found to be fabricated.

Four persons have been arrested under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962: two proprietors/partners of importing firms, a Customs Broker’s G-card holder, and the owner of a Dubai-based supplier who had also established and operated an importing firm in his father’s name.

In a similar crackdown last month, DRI seized over 362,000 kg of Pakistan-origin dry dates packed in 13 containers imported by a Mumbai-based firm at CFS Ambad, Nashik.

These cases highlight the evolving methods used by transnational networks to circumvent India’s import prohibition on Pakistani origin goods through third-country routing, false declarations of origin, fabricated trade documents and opaque financial arrangements. DRI remains committed to identifying and dismantling such networks and safeguarding India’s economic and national security interests.

Following the Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025, the Government of India imposed a complete prohibition on the direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan, in the interest of national security and public policy, vide DGFT Notification No. 06/2025-26 dated 02.05.2025.