New Delhi, Oct 22: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday inaugurated 10 projects and laid the foundation stone for 33 others worth Rs 8,941 crore for the rejuvenation of the Yamuna in Delhi, expressing confidence that the river would be cleaned by May 2029.

Delhi Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta were present at the event.

Amit Shah said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had directed the Delhi government to prioritise the river’s purification soon after the formation of the BJP government in the national capital. He said the projects included upgrading existing sewage treatment plants (STPs), setting up new plants, rehabilitating sewer lines and connecting households to the sewerage network.

He said the Centre and the BJP-led governments in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh had prepared time-bound plans to clean the Yamuna, with the broader aim of restoring the river from Yamunotri to the Sangam.

Amit Shah also said the Delhi government had cleared 2.17 crore metric tonnes of garbage and freed 100 acres of land from waste. Claiming that the garbage mounds at Okhla and Bhalswa had been reduced by 30 to 40 metres and the Ghazipur mound by 10 to 15 metres, he said gardens would come up at these sites in the next two years.

Targeting opposition parties, Amit Shah accused them of making excuses over governance and election results, including allegations of vote theft. He said protests could not substitute for work on public issues and urged opposition parties to address people’s grievances. He also alleged that drug trafficking had flourished in Punjab under the state government and said his party would work to end the drug trade there by 2029.

New Delhi, Oct 22: Indian embassy in Riyadh and consulate in Jeddah are actively engaging with concerned airlines and tour operators to facilitate early return of affected Indian pilgrims from Saudi Arabia, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.

The MEA’s assurance comes after one Indian national died and two others were injured in an attack on Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport.

According to the MEA, about 3,000 stranded Umrah pilgrims have returned from Saudi Arabia to India on available flights.

Earlier, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi said that “4,000 pilgrims from India are stuck in Makkah and Madina” after airlines suspended flights to Saudi Arabian cities due to the security situation in the region and urged the Centre to take measures for the pilgrims to return home.

Owaisi also tagged three airlines in his post on X, as also the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, and said the DGCA must permit airlines to arrange flights in larger aircraft so that the stranded pilgrims can return to India, if not at least specified flights must be arranged to bring them back.

In a post on X, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “Our Embassy in Riyadh @IndianEmbRiyadh and the Consulate in Jeddah @CGIJeddah are actively engaging with concerned airlines and tour operators to facilitate the early return of affected pilgrims.”

“Over the past week, about 3,000 stranded Umrah pilgrims have travelled from Saudi Arabia back to India on available flights. This is in addition to more than 10,000 normal Umrah pilgrims who were booked on the available flights and have travelled back to India over the past week,” Jaiswal said.

“Arrangements are being discussed to facilitate the return of other Umrah pilgrims at the earliest,” he said.

The Indian embassy and consulate, with the support from community volunteers are extending all possible welfare assistance, he said, adding that 24×7 control rooms have been established to help Indian nationals and regular advisories are being issued.

In Islam, Makkah and Madina are two of the holiest places on earth, and its followers undertake pilgrimage to the two sites once a year as part of Haj, or as Umrah pilgrims any time of the year.

Owaisi in a thread post further said, “The Indian pilgrims have been abandoned by their travel agents. This needs your urgent intervention; in the meanwhile necessary support must be provided to the stranded pilgrims.”

He also tagged External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri in the post.

MEA spokesperson Jaiswal in his post also shared contact details of the 24×7 control rooms at Embassy of India, Riyadh and Consulate General of India, Jeddah.

“Embassy of India, Riyadh: Telephone: +966-554412016; +966-542126784 Toll-free: 8002471234 (calls from within KSA only) WhatsApp: +966-536216082 (Messages only) Consulate General of India, Jeddah: Telephone: +966-12-2614093; +966-556122301 WhatsApp: +966-536209704 (messages only),” he added.

New Delhi,Oct 22: The Road Ministry has proposed mandating Advanced Emergency Braking Systems (AEBS) for all new car models starting October 2030 to curb road accidents.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), in a draft notification dated October 19, 2026, said that for pre-2030 still-in-production models, AEBS would be mandatory from October 2032.

AEBS provides automatic braking in the event of failure of the driver to respond to emergency situations to either avoid a crash or reduce the impact of a collision.

“Provided that, M1 category of vehicles manufactured on and after 1st October 2030 in the case of new models and 1st October 2032 in the case of all models shall be fitted with Advanced Emergency Braking System, conforming to AIS-185, as amended from time to time,” the draft notification said.

The government has mandated multiple measures, especially focused on braking systems, to enhance the safety of medium and heavy-duty vehicles.

To enhance brake performance, a revised braking standard has been mandated for trucks effective October 1, 2027.

Braking systems have been advanced with the mandatory implementation of electronic stability control systems (AIS 162) for trucks from October 1, 2027, which provide stability, especially in the event of braking at curves.

The draft rules will be taken into consideration after the expiry of thirty days from the date on which the copies of this notification, as published in the Gazette of India, are made available to the public.

New Delhi, Oct 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday received a telephone call from his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, during which the two leaders exchanged views on recent developments in West Asia and underscored the urgent need to restore peace and stability in the region.

Modi and Netanyahu also welcomed the sustained momentum in India-Israel relations and reaffirmed their shared commitment to further strengthening the Special Strategic Partnership between the two countries.

“The leaders also exchanged views on recent developments in West Asia and underscored the urgent need to restore peace and stability in the region. Prime Minister Modi reiterated India’s call for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement.

In a post on X, Modi said he received a phone call from the Israeli prime minister.

“We reviewed the sustained momentum in our bilateral ties and reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthening our partnership. We also exchanged views on recent developments in West Asia and underscored the urgent need to restore peace and stability in the region,” he said.

Prime Minister Modi had made a state visit to Israel from February 25 to 26. The two leaders had then agreed and decided to elevate the Strategic Partnership to a new level — ‘A Special Strategic Partnership for Peace, Innovation and Prosperity’.

Modi had then said that India’s security interest was linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supported the Gaza Peace Initiative.

They also had telephonic talks during the US-Iran and Iran conflict.

Earlier this month, Netanyahu had called Indian pilot Smit Machchhar a “hero of the entire world” for foiling an alleged attempt by his co-pilot to crash an Israel-bound flight, as he spoke with him over the phone.

Captain Machchhar was attacked and seriously injured by his co-pilot in the cockpit of flydubai flight FZ1073 while the aircraft was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv last month.

New Delhi, Oct 22: Gold prices fell by Rs 1,000 to Rs 1.48 lakh per 10 grams in the national capital on Thursday, while silver tumbled Rs 5,900 to a 10-month low of Rs 2.07 lakh per kilogram amid weak trends in the international markets.

The yellow metal of 99.9 per cent purity closed at Rs 1.49 lakh per 10 grams on Wednesday.

Silver also plunged Rs 5,900 to Rs 2,07,500 per kilogram, inclusive of all taxes, from the previous close of Rs 2,13,400 per kg, according to the All India Sarafa Association.

The white metal previously traded around these levels at Rs 2,07,600 per kg on December 18, 2025.

“Gold continued its weak trend in the domestic markets on Thursday as sentiment remains under pressure amid concerns over the West Asia conflict,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst – Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities.

In global markets, spot gold slipped below the USD 4,100 per ounce level, declining by USD 68.98, or nearly 1.7 per cent, to USD 4,072.30 per ounce.

Silver also dropped nearly 4 per cent to USD 55.72 per ounce in global markets.

New Delhi, Oct 22: India and Poland on Thursday agreed to deepen ties in defence, space, and nuclear energy domains, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk pledging to boost bilateral strategic partnership amid growing global instability.

Following the talks, Modi said both sides believe in democratic values and the rule of law and that India will continue to support every meaningful effort in bringing peace to Ukraine and West Asia.

Tusk is on a three-day visit to India amid renewed global push to end the conflict in Ukraine.

“Today we have agreed to deepen ties in defence, space, and nuclear energy. We invite Polish companies to engage in co-development and co-production with India in all these strategic areas,” Modi said.

“In critical minerals and coal gasification too, we will develop new partnerships with Polish expertise,” he added.

Modi said the friendship between India and Poland is based not only on diplomatic relations but also on a shared heritage of humanity and compassion.

“During World War II, the royal families of Jamnagar and Kolhapur sheltered thousands of Polish children and families in India.”

“Poland also extended this spirit of humanity by supporting the safe return of our students from Ukraine in 2022,” he added.

In his media statement, Modi also made a mention of the growing economic engagement between the two countries.

“The world is going through a period of uncertainty and change. Even at this time, both India and Poland are emerging as important centres of growth, technology, and innovation,” he said.

The prime minister said the growing economic strength of the two countries has created new opportunities for India-Poland partnership.

“And the India-European Union free trade agreement has further expanded these opportunities. Upon entry into force, this agreement will open up new opportunities for exports of machinery, chemicals, plastics, and engineering goods from India to Poland,” he said.

“Additionally, we will attract new investments from Poland in sectors such as railways and mobility, advanced manufacturing, food processing, and biotech,” he said.

Modi also exuded confidence that India and Poland will work together to develop trusted supply chains for the world, and also realise the shared goal of doubling bilateral trade by 2030.