New Delhi, August 7: In a strong message against the tariffs imposed by the United State, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asserted that farmers remain India’s top priority and that the country would never compromise their interests.

“For us, the interest of our farmers is our top priority. India will never compromise on the interests of farmers, fishermen and dairy farmers. I know we will have to pay a heavy price for it and I am ready for it. India is ready for it,” said PM Modi.

His remarks come amid chaos over the Trump administration doubling the tariff imposition to 50 per cent on goods from India. During trade negotiations the United States was pushing for greater access to India’s agricultural market, specially corn, soybeans, and cotton.

However, India has so far resisted opening of the agricultural sector, and dairy products, due to concerns about domestic livelihoods and potential impacts on farmers. Earlier on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on imports from India.

According to the order issued by the White House, Trump cited matters of national security and foreign policy concerns, as well as other relevant trade laws, for the increase, claiming that India’s imports of Russian oil, directly or indirectly, pose an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the United States. After the order, the total tariff on Indian goods will be 50 per cent. While the initial duty becomes effective on August 7, the additional levy will come into effect after 21 days and will be imposed on all Indian goods imported into the US, except for goods already in transit or those meeting specific exemptions.

The Executive Order also allows for modifications based on changing circumstances, including potential retaliation by other countries or steps taken by Russia or India to address the national emergency.

Meanwhile, economists feel the US additional tariff move could dent the India’s GDP growth in FY26 by 0.4 per cent. Sonal Badhan, Economics Specialist at Bank of Baroda, told ANI, “We had initially priced in approx. 0.2 per cent impact (on GDP growth) of 25-26 per cent tariffs imposed by the US on imports from India. The additional 25 per cent hike will come into effect after 21 days. During this time or in the coming months, there is a likelihood that lower rates may be negotiated.”

She added that depending on the final trade agreement, the total impact of these tariffs on GDP growth may range between 0.2-0.4 per cent. Sectors likely to be affected include garments, precious stones, electronics, pharma, auto parts, and MSMEs.

While the executive order imposes tariffs on most Indian imports, some items have been excluded under Annex II of Executive Order 14257. These include certain mineral substances, metallurgical ores, fuels, industrial chemicals, and pharmaceutical precursors.

California, Aug 7: The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), one of the top US public universities, said Wednesday that the Trump administration has suspended 584 million US dollars in federal grants for the university.

“Currently, a total of approximately $584 million in extramural award funding is suspended and at risk. If these funds remain suspended, it will be devastating for UCLA and for Americans across the nation,” UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk said in a statement.

“The suspension of these funds is not only a loss to the researchers who rely on critical grants. It is a loss for Americans across the nation whose work, health and future depend on our groundbreaking research and scholarship,” Frenk noted.

Last week, UCLA said that the Trump administration suspended its federal research funding over claims of “antisemitism and bias.”

The suspension came after a US Department of Justice civil rights investigation alleged that UCLA had been “deliberately indifferent” to widespread harassment of Jewish and Israeli students during 2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses, reports Xinhua news agency.

The University of California (UC) President James Milliken on Wednesday also released a statement on research grant suspensions at UCLA, which has the largest enrollment among the ten campuses within the UC system.

Milliken said that the UC has agreed to “engage in dialogue with the federal administration,” and their “immediate goal is to see the $584 million in suspended and at-risk federal funding restored to the university as soon as possible.”

“These cuts do nothing to address antisemitism. Moreover, the extensive work that UCLA and the entire University of California have taken to combat antisemitism has apparently been ignored,” said Milliken.

Last week, the university agreed to pay 6.45 million dollars to settle a lawsuit over the treatment of Jewish students and a professor during the protests.

Sixty universities, including Harvard, Yale, Brown, Columbia and Stanford, are among the top universities in the country under investigations into alleged antisemitic discrimination and harassment on their campuses.

New Delhi, Aug 07: U.S. President Donald Trump said there was a “very good chance” of a summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, raising hopes of a potential diplomatic opening to end the Russia-Ukraine war. His remarks followed a three-hour meeting in Moscow between Putin and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, although Trump acknowledged there had been no “breakthrough” in those talks.

According to CNN, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday that the discussions with Putin were “very good” and hinted that a meeting with the Russian leader could happen “very soon.” “There’s a good chance that we could be ending – the ending, the road ending, the end of that road,” he said, while noting that the path to peace remains long and uncertain.

Despite the absence of a concrete outcome from Witkoff’s visit to Moscow, Trump’s aides have reportedly begun preparing for a possible summit with Putin as early as next week, CNN reported, citing White House officials. These talks could be followed by trilateral negotiations involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The CNN report also quoted White House officials saying that during his meeting with Witkoff, Putin indicated his willingness to meet with Trump. Trump has directed his team to expedite preparations, although a venue has not yet been finalised. The discussions are tentatively expected within the next two weeks. In a statement, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “The Russians expressed their desire to meet with President Trump, and the president is open to meeting with both President Putin and President Zelensky. President Trump wants this brutal war to end.”

The development comes against the backdrop of renewed U.S. pressure on Moscow. The Putin-Witkoff meeting occurred after Trump imposed a deadline on Russia to agree to a ceasefire or face secondary sanctions, including a 100% tariff on countries purchasing Russian oil. Trump wrote on social media following the Moscow talks that “great progress was made,” though he avoided giving specifics. It remains unclear whether Washington will proceed with sanctions if Russia fails to meet the ceasefire demand by the end of the week.

Putin last met a U.S. president in 2021 during a summit with Joe Biden in Geneva. Trump, who returned to the White House in January, has repeatedly said he would be willing to meet with Putin. The potential Trump-Putin meeting, if it takes place, would be a major diplomatic moment as the Russia-Ukraine war is entering its fourth year.