Bengaluru: City Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh has issued a stern warning that any police personnel found associating with criminals will face strict action.

Speaking after receiving the guard of honour during the monthly parade held at the CAR grounds in Thanisandra, he said, “If police staff are seen mingling with criminals, it sends a wrong message to society. Such behaviour will not be tolerated. Everyone must work together as one team and perform their duties with commitment.”

The commissioner also pointed out lapses during recent bandobast duties, saying many staff had not carried helmets and lathis. “This cannot be accepted. Maintaining law and order is the most important responsibility at every stage. Officers must ensure proper checking of staff before sending them for duty,” he instructed.

He added that the Home Department is extending facilities to the police force, and personnel must make proper use of them. “Work with honesty and dedication so that Bengaluru city earns a good name. Balance both professional and personal life responsibly,” he said.

Singh also spoke about health initiatives for the force. “A health check-up drive named ‘Khushi Abhiyan’ has been launched for all police personnel. Everyone should undergo the tests and safeguard their health. If successful, the campaign will be held once every three months,” he announced.

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Mumbai (PTI): India is engaging with international partners more intensively and from a "position of strength", External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Tuesday, citing a string of recent trade agreements as evidence of the country's growing economic clout.

In an address at the Global Economic Cooperation conference, Jaishankar highlighted the successful negotiation of several high-profile deals, including a significant trade pact with the United States.

The Global Economic Cooperation is an event organised by the Future Economic Cooperation Council in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Government of Maharashtra.

Describing the current international landscape as perhaps the most turbulent in living memory, the minister warned that the world is witnessing the "weaponisation" of production and finance, alongside tightening export controls and volatile market shifts.

"The established global order is clearly changing. Replacements are hard to create, and we appear to be headed to a long twilight zone. This will be messy, risky, unpredictable, perhaps even dangerous," he said.

Long-standing assumptions and expectations have now become questionable, the minister pointed out.

Key dimensions are transforming simultaneously, be it strategic, political, economic or technological. Solutions lie in derisking and diversifying across multiple domains. This approach is increasingly visible in the policy of nations, the EAM said.

Jaishankar stressed that the "reform express" will continue to roll on.

"From a position of strength, India is engaging international partners more intensively. This is demonstrated in the recently concluded trade deals," he said.

Economic security is best served through stronger self-reliance and more trusted partners, the minister added.

Following a phone conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump, both sides recently announced a reduction of US tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent.

However, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has alleged that the government "sold Bharat Mata" through the trade deal with the US, saying it was a "wholesale surrender", with India's energy security handed over to America and farmers' interests compromised.

Last month, India and the European Union (EU) concluded negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA), which will help boost two-way commerce and strengthen economic ties between the two sides. Over the last year, India has also finalised trade deals with the UK, New Zealand and Oman.

Jaishankar said that the world has entered a volatile and uncertain era, possibly the most turbulent in living memory.

He emphasised that India will also be more salient in the global calculus of production, on services, technology, skills and knowledge.

Economics will give way to politics and security when it comes to making choices and technology in the age of AI (Artificial Intelligence), he noted.

The minister further said that the US is determined to reindustrialise at any cost, and this is central to its tech future.

China's manufacturing and export focus continues unabated and may even expand, he added.

Technology competition is intensifying and polarising. Energy trade flows are being significantly redefined. New mindsets are encouraging greater risk-taking, including through military means. Migration and even mobility are getting contentious, he pointed out.

"Each nation and each society will respond as per their interests and calculations," Jaishankar said.