 "Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), in New Delhi on Wednesday. ANI")
It is set to be a busy Thursday with several events lined up for the day.
Firstly, the Narendra Modi government will hold an all-party meeting to discuss the Pahalgam terror attack. It will also be the last day for tens of thousands of immigrants allowed to live and work in the United States under the Biden administration to leave. Meanwhile, China is set to launch its Shenzhou-20 mission to the Chinese space station.
South Korea’s finance minister Choi Sang-mok will visit Washington for high-level tariff talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be visiting South Africa for the first time today. Karnataka High Court will hear petitions on caste census.
Here is all that is set to take place throughout the day.
Government calls all-party meeting
Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union government has called an all-party meeting today, in the wake of the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam hill station.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to chair it. Singh is expected to brief leaders of different parties on the brutal terror attack targeting tourists that left at least 26 persons dead.
As many as 26 civilians, mostly tourists, were killed in the attack that was carried out in Baisaran valley, five kilometres from main market in Pagalgam, in South Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Tuesday afternoon. Home Minister Amit Shah and Singh are speaking to leaders of various parties on the issue, sources said.
Earlier, several opposition parties, including the Congress, had demanded that the government should convene a meeting of all parties over the issue.
Deadline for thousands of immigrants to leave US
April 24 is the last day for tens of thousands of immigrants, who had been allowed to temporarily live and work in the United States under the Biden administration, to leave.
This development follows the termination of the humanitarian parole program, a Biden-era initiative that provided temporary legal status and work permits to individuals fleeing crises in their home countries.
The abrupt enforcement of this policy has led to widespread confusion and concern. Many affected individuals have received sudden notices from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), instructing them to leave the US immediately or within a short timeframe.
China to launch Shenzhou-20 mission
China has set the launch date for its Shenzhou-20 mission that will carry three astronauts to the Chinese space station today.
The event will take place today at 5:17 pm local time (IST 2:47 pm), reported state media. The main purpose of the mission is to complete the in-orbit rotation with the Shenzhou-19 crew which is scheduled to return to the Dongfeng landing site on April 29, reported According to news agency Reuters quoting officials.
They will conduct space science and application experiments, install a space debris protection device as well as extravehicular payload and equipment, and perform recovery tasks.
South Korea’s finance minister Choi Sang-mok to visit Washington
South Korea’s Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok will be in Washington today to hold high-level trade talks with United States officials. This development coincides with the new country’s ongoing efforts to avert or minimize the impact of tariffs implemented or proposed by the Trump administration.
Arriving in Washington on Tuesday (April 22), he vowed to “do my best.” He is set to meet Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer along with Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun for the “two plus two” trade consultations to be held today.
“I will do my best,” he said at Dulles International Airport.
Zelenskyy to visit South Africa
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be visiting South Africa for the first time today. He will meet South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria in an effort to strengthen ties between the two nations.
In June 2023, Ramaphosa led an African peace mission to Ukraine and met Zelenskyy and others, as well as with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. Experts suggest that South Africa will be holding a peace deal with Ukraine. In recent months, Zelenskyy has met with the United States, the European Union and the United Nations (UN) in the hope of reaching a ceasefire deal with Russia.
Karnataka HC to hear petitions on caste census
The Karnataka High Court is set to hear petitions relating to the caste census report today. Earlier, the counsel for the petitioners submitted their main argument stating that a census is a central subject. “The writ was filed in 2015. The caste census was conducted in 2014 under the Backwards Classes Act. Now, the state govt is hurriedly implementing a 10-year-old census,” counsel for the petitioner argued.
During an earlier hearing, the counsel pointed out that in 2023, the govt released a new quota order which was questioned in the Supreme Court. “In this new quota order, some percentages for some OBCs were increased. When this came up before the SC, the state govt gave an undertaking that the earlier regime relating to reservation, notification dated March 30, 2002, will continue to hold till the next date of hearing.”
With inputs from agencies