Business

New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI) A delegation of over 25 European Union MPs on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval ahead of their planned visit to Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday, sources have said.

The delegation was briefed about the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and cross-border terrorism emanating from across the border, they said.

The delegation of EU members of parliament will meet Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday evening.

Patna, Oct 26 (PTI) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday launched around 35,000 schemes worth over Rs 1,600 crore, as part of his ambitions 'Jal-Jeevan-Hariyali' campaign that seeks to boost green cover and the water table in the state.

Foundation stones were laid for 32,781 schemes worth Rs 1,359.27 crore, while another 2,391 involving an expenditure of Rs 291.27 crore were inaugurated by Kumar at a function organised at the Samrat Ashok Convention Centre here.

Srinagar, Oct 27 (PTI) The shutdown in Kashmir, following the abrogation of Article 370, has crippled the valley's economy as the business community has suffered losses amounting to over Rs 10,000 crore in three months, a trade body said here.

The deadlock in Kashmir, after the Centre announced the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, completed 84 days on Sunday with the valley in shutdown as the main markets continued to remain shut and public transport off the roads.

LONDON (AP) — Two British opposition parties want to hold elections even earlier than Prime Minister Boris Johnson has proposed as they try to ensure the country doesn’t leave the European Union without an agreement.

The Scottish National Party and the Liberal Democrats say they will push for a Dec. 9 election, three days earlier than Johnson has proposed and years earlier than the next scheduled vote in 2022.

They also plan to ask EU leaders to extend the Brexit deadline to at least Jan. 31 to provide more time to debate Johnson’s withdrawal agreement.

ISTANBUL, Oct 26 (NNN-ANADOLU) – Turkey is preparing to strengthen its national defence industry, through a boron carbide plant, to be built by a Chinese company, and operational in 2021, in the northwestern province of Balikesir, Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Fatih Donmez, said.

The groundbreaking ceremony of the plant, undertaken by China Machinery Engineering Corporation, was held in the district of Bandirma.

New Delhi, Oct 25 (PTI) German Chancellor Angela Merkel will pay a day-long visit to India on November 1 during which she will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a focus on strengthening ties in key sectors such as trade, energy and defence.

Prime Minister Modi and the German chancellor will co-chair the Fifth Biennial Inter Governmental Consultations (IGC) during the visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. and Chinese officials are “close to finalizing” some parts of a trade agreement after high-level telephone discussions on Friday, the U.S. Trade Representative’s office and China’s Commerce Ministry said, with talks to continue.

The USTR provided no details on the areas of progress.

“They made headway on specific issues and the two sides are close to finalizing some sections of the agreement. Discussions will go on continuously at the deputy level, and the principals will have another call in the near future,” a statement said.

BAKU, (AZERBAIJAN), Oct 25 (NNN-Bernama) — Multilateralism is more important than ever, and it is the responsibility of the Non-Alignment Movement (NAM) to protect this asset, said Azerbaijan Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.

Mammadyarov said NAM, as the second-largest international political organisation after the United Nations, is definitely one of the main driving forces of multilateral cooperation.

BAKU, Oct 25 (NNN-Bernama) — The 18th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit opened Friday in this capital city of Azerbaijan, gathering the leaders of more than 120 member countries at a time when the world faces new challenges including a trade war.

At this summit, Azerbaijan, helmed by President Ilham Aliyev, takes over the chairmanship of NAM for the next three years from Venezuela.

Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad is among more than 20 top leaders attending the two-day summit being held at the Baku Congress Centre.

LUXEMBOURG, Oct 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The EU’s top court ruled on Thursday that France has persistently exceeded the threshold limit for nitrogen dioxide, a polluting gas from diesel motors that causes major health problems.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, referred the matter to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in May 2018 after almost a decade of warnings that went unaddressed.