WORLD

In a move that has both spiritual and foreign policy implications, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the Dalai Lama on his birthday on Tuesday. This is the first time Modi openly acknowledged contact with the Tibetan spiritual leader in years. Coming at a time when India-China relations are at their most tenuous, the PM’s action on Tuesday will resonate both in Beijing and other parts of the world.

"Spoke on phone to His Holiness the @DalaiLama to convey greetings on his 86th birthday. We wish him a long and healthy life." Modi’s message is innocuously phrased but it carries a lot of weight given India’s unique place in Tibetan affairs and its relations with China.

India has sent its first export consignment of coal to Bangladesh, after Coal India’s (CIL) policy amendment last month allowing traders, lifting coal from e-auction, to export. The first coal-laden rake left for Bangladesh on July 2 and the coal send was of below 2,200 gross calorific value (GCV), meant for the 1,320 MW Rampal thermal power station, an NTPC and Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) JV, at Khulna in Bangladesh.

Although CIL couldn’t disclose the name of the exporter or the FOB (free on board) price at which the coal was exported because of its non-disclosure agreement with the e-auction conductor (mjunction), it said the coal exported was purchased under spot e-auction from Dahibari siding of Bharat Coking Coal.

The Taliban's march through northern Afghanistan gained momentum overnight with the capture of several districts from fleeing Afghan forces, several hundred of whom fled across the border into Tajikistan, officials said on Sunday.

More than 300 Afghan military personnel crossed from Afghanistan's Badakhshan province as Taliban fighters advanced toward the border, Tajikistan's State Committee for National Security said in a statement.

The Afghan troops crossed over at about 6:30 p.m. local time Saturday.

Following the international weather news in June, we are probably still trying to process the astounding reports of record-breaking heat wave in some of the coldest places on the planet.

From Canada to Russia, temperatures have been soaring with the attendant threat to flora and fauna sparking concern among experts and the public alike. And, now, there is news that Antartica, too, has registered a new high. If you're wondering what is happening, read on.

When was the high for Antarctica recorded? The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), a United Nations body, announced on 1 July that the new record for the maximum temperature for the southernmost continent is now 18.3 degrees Celsius, eclipsing the previous high of 17.5 degrees Celsius in March 2015.

The United Arab Emirates announced on Thursday a travel ban on citizens to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Namibia, Zambia, Congo, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Liberia, South Africa and Nigeria, state news agency (WAM) reported.

The Foreign Ministry and the National Emergency, Crisis and Disaster Management Authority stressed that, with the start of the travel season, citizens need to comply with all precautionary and preventive measures related to COVID-19, WAM added.

In a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) on Sunday, the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) stated that entry from 13 countries, including India and Pakistan, was banned due to the coronavirus pandemic.