India, US trade deal 'very near'; both sides engaged on pending issues: Comm Secy
New Delhi (PTI): India and the US are "very near" to finalising the trade agreement, and it would be announced when both sides are ready, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Thursday.
The negotiating teams of both sides are discussing virtually all pending issues, he said.
"Its very near, but we can not put a deadline because that will happen...when both sides are ready and they feel that this is the right time to announce," he told reporters here.
The talks between India and the US had never broken down, and both sides remained engaged, he added.
In the last week of December, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal held a virtual meeting with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
The December meeting between Goyal and Greer happened after the visit of a delegation led by Deputy USTR Rick Switzer on December 10 and 11.
In his arrival speech on January 12, the US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor asserted that both sides are actively engaged to firm up a trade deal.
The imposition of steep 50 per cent tariffs by the Trump administration has strained the bilateral relations.
Apart from the additional import duty issue, relations witnessed a severe strain on many other issues, including Trump's claim of ending the India-Pakistan conflict in May last year and Washington's new immigration policy.
"The United States and India are bound not just by shared interests, but by a relationship anchored at the highest levels. Real friends can disagree, but always resolve their differences in the end," Gor has said.
The Ambassador has noted that India and the US are actively engaged on the proposed bilateral trade deal days after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested Washington was not very keen to seal the deal soon.
Agrawal also said the bilateral trade between the countries is registering positive growth.
When asked if it is possible that there may not be a trade deal, the commerce secretary said: "We get into all (trade pact) negotiations with a very positive and optimistic mindset....we are engaged with the US. Both sides are engaged. So, I think both sides feel that this can be done".
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'Protecting those in power': Netizens slam ANI for deleting tweet showing rats in UP hospital
New Delhi: News Agency Asian News International (ANI) reportedly removed a video from its official X (formerly Twitter) handle that showed rats roaming freely inside a patient ward of a government hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Gonda district, triggering criticism from social media users.
The now-deleted video allegedly showed rats moving around inside the orthopaedic ward of Gonda Medical College.
Fact Checker and Journalist, Mohammed Zubair questioned the ANI Editor Smita Prakash on why the tweet was deleted and a clarification of the Superintendent of the hospital was posted instead.
In a post on ‘X,’ he wrote, “Hello @smitaprakash, Why did your News agency delete the tweet showing Rats roaming around inside a patient ward in Govt hospital in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh? You instead shared a clarification by Superintendent of the hospital.” (SIC)
Hello @smitaprakash, Why did your News agency delete the tweet showing Rats roaming around inside a patient ward in Govt hospital in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh?
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) January 14, 2026
You instead shared a clarification by Superintendent of the hospital pic.twitter.com/9rZWSDt7Yc https://t.co/Bc3SarJJ8H
#WATCH | Gonda | On viral video showing rats roaming in hospital, Dr DN Singh, Superintendent, Autonomous State Medical College & Babu Ishwar Sharan hospital, says, "We have constituted a committee, and on the basis of its report, we will take further action. The existing… pic.twitter.com/2JjP1Krc80
— ANI (@ANI) January 14, 2026
Reacting to the development, a user @makhdoom_irfani wrote, “Journalism should question power, not protect it.”
Journalism should question power, not protect it.
— Makhdoom Irfani (@makhdoom_irfani) January 14, 2026
Many other users echoed similar concerns. Reacting to the post, one user commented, “clarification??? In which universe can rats in a hospital be clarified ..???”
“Today's journalism is shame!,” said another.
Another user drew a comparison with the National Medical Commission’s decision to shut down a medical college in Kashmir over an alleged overwhelming number of Muslim students admitted to medical courses. The user wrote, “The Medical Council will not cancel the licence of this college because not many Muslim students are studying here.”
The Medical council will not cancel the license of this college, because not many Muslim students are studying here.
— Zahur (@Zahur82446025) January 15, 2026
“Deleting evidence and posting a “clarification” doesn’t fix the problem. It only raises questions about credibility and selective journalism,” remarked another.
@ANI deleted the tweet showing Rats roaming around inside a patient ward in Govt hospital in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh.
— Sanjay-সঞ্জয় (@BhaiOfTotla) January 15, 2026
pic.twitter.com/1zWwbK1HC8
What is the issue ?
The controversy began after a video showing rats moving freely inside the orthopaedic ward of Gonda Medical College surfaced on social media.
The video reportedly recorded two days before went viral across social media.
Following the circulation of the video, the district magistrate ordered an inquiry into the incident. According to a PTI report, anti-rodent medicines were sprayed across the wards as an immediate measure.
The principal of the medical college, responding to the incident, stated that food brought into hospital wards by attendants attracts rodents.
He added that medicines had been sprayed in all wards and claimed that rats were no longer visible, while assuring that the administration would not tolerate any negligence related to patient safety. A detailed investigation into the matter is currently underway.
