J-K CM Omar Abdullah visits shelling affected areas, promises help to rebuild houses
Srinagar (PTI): Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday assured every possible help to rebuild homes of people affected by Pakistani shelling near the Line of Control and said "the pain of my people is deeply personal".
Abdullah visited the shelling affected areas of Uri, including Salamabad, Lagama, Bandi and Gingal in north Kashmir's Baramulla district.
He was accompanied by his advisor Nasir Aslam Wani, MLA Uri Sajad Uri and senior officials of the district administration.
The chief minister has been visiting the shelling affected areas of the Union Territory to take stock of the situation, get a first-hand account of the losses suffered by the people, and share their pain.
"It is our responsibility to provide you help from the government so that your houses are rebuilt," Abdullah said while interacting with the families whose houses were damaged by the shelling in Uri.
The chief minister said the people of Uri have endured pain several times but have risen every time with courage and resilience.
"Visited shelling affected areas of Uri including Salamabad, lagama, Bandi and Gingal. This land has endured so much -- from the impact of the 2005 earthquake to the pain of cross-border shelling. Yet, its people rise every time, with courage in their hearts and resilience in their spirit," Abdullah said in an X post.
In an earlier post, Abdullah said the pain of the people of Jammu and Kashmir "is deeply personal".
"Heading to Uri today to meet those affected by the recent shelling. Over the past few days, I have witnessed immense pain, loss and unimaginable courage of our people. These visits should have been to share joy and to speak of development, not to offer condolences. The pain of my people is deeply personal," he said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
