Eyes of the India

 India-US Talks: Recent public statements from Washington warning India about consequences for purchases of weapons and discounted oil from Russia are contrary to private discussions between the two sides. India is optimistic about talks next week with the US on military cooperation even as the Biden administration becomes more vocal in rebuking New Delhi over its reluctance to criticize Russia’s war in Ukraine, people familiar with the matter said. Recent public statements from Washington warning India about consequences for purchases of weapons and discounted oil from Russia are contrary to private discussions between the two sides, the people said, asking for anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the talks. They cited conversations in New Delhi last month with US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, who offered help in finding alternative sources of weapons that could be used to counter neighbors Pakistan and China. India informed Nuland that the alternative...

  Shares of India’s largest digital payments service provider remain roughly 70% below its IPO price Paytm, India’s largest digital payments service provider, aims to break even on an operating basis by September 2023, as it struggles to appease investors following a disappointing initial public offering in November 2021. The company, which is backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group and China’s Ant Capital, said on Wednesday that its monthly transacting users exceeded 70 million in the fourth quarter of its fiscal year that ended on March 31, 2022, and projected strong growth prospects. Paytm’s shares were up 5 per cent to 642 rupees ($8.5) at 11.24am UAE time, following the announcement. “We are encouraged by our business momentum, scale of monetisation and operating leverage,” said Vijay Sharma, founder and chief executive of Paytm. “We expect this to continue, and I believe we should be operating Ebitda [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation] break even i...

 U.S.-India bilateral relations for decades had more form than substance. Gauzy rhetoric about “shared democratic values” papered over tensions rooted in differences over the Cold War. The U.S. wanted India to choose sides; Indian leaders, fresh from an anti-colonial struggle, preferred charting an independent course to being trapped in the slipstream of others’ disputes. But if India’s leading role in the Nonaligned Movement — and its arms deals with the Soviet Union — put a ceiling on the bilateral relationship, the American public’s generally positive view of India’s struggle for freedom and commitment to democracy established a floor. As a result, even when political tensions arose, the U.S. provided development assistance to India, people-to-people exchanges expanded, and scientific cooperation grew. The collapse of the Soviet Union signaled an opportunity for a new chapter in the  bilateral relationship. The respective governments in the 1990s in Washington and New Delhi...

 An Indian High Court has ruled that the traditional hijab is not a critical part of Muslim religious practice, after a petition was filed to challenge a government ban on wearing the headscarves in educational institutions. Six Muslim students had petitioned the Karnataka High Court to declare the hijab as part of their essential religious practices after a row erupted in the southern state over the use of religious symbols in schools and colleges. The court dismissed three petitions and upheld the government ban. “ Wearing of hijab is not essential religious practice of Islamic faith,” said Chief Justice Rituraj Awasthi. The court had earlier passed an interim order banning any religious clothing in education institutions and had reserved its ruling on February 25 after daily hearings for nearly two weeks. Before Tuesday's verdict, the state had banned large gatherings for a week in several parts of the state including capital Bengaluru "to maintain public peace and order...