India news: Modi, Trump 'very close' to trade deal

Skip next section Indian government blasts 'Frankenstein' Telegram, defends temporary ban June 18, 2026

Indian government blasts 'Frankenstein' Telegram, defends temporary ban

India's central government on Thursday defended its recent decision to temporarily block access to the messaging platform Telegram in the country until June 22 over accusations that it had been used to leak a copy of this year's National Medical School Entrance Exam, or NEET.

The government told the Delhi High Court that Telegram, which sued over the temporary ban, had grown into a monster — allowing criminals to use it much like the dark net to pursue criminal activities.

"This platform, because of its architecture," said Attorney General R. Venkataramani, "is a Frankenstein."

"If a country like ours cannot take preventative measures, then where do we go?" Venkataramani asked the court, noting that nations must be allowed to act before damage occurs.

Telegram argued that its treatment by the government was unfair and disproportionate, saying that all Telegram users in the country were being disadvantaged due to the actions of a few.

The government said due process had been followed in making the decision and that the Cabinet secretary had led discussions on the matter.

Authorities say that they were able to collect substantial material evidence indicting abuse regarding the exam leak and that it is important to keep the best interests of the nation as a whole in mind.

https://p.dw.com/p/5FeLe

Skip next section China's foreign minister is coming to BRICS June 18, 2026

China's foreign minister is coming to BRICS

China announced Thursday that it would be sending its top diplomat to a BRICS meeting in India next week.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi will attend the 16th meeting of ‌BRICS national ‌security advisers ​and high representatives on ​national security is taking place in ⁠India from ​June ​22 ​to 23.

The overarching theme for India's rotating presidency in 2026 is "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation, and Sustainability."

The main summit is scheduled for September.

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Skip next section Greenpeace study finds India's heat governance is 'deeply fragmented' June 18, 2026

Greenpeace study finds India's heat governance is 'deeply fragmented'

As Indians suffer through unforgiving temperatures and prolonged heat waves, a Greenpeace study has found that the government's response to the crisis remains deeply fragmented, largely reactive and overall inadequate.

"Of the Rs 8.57 lakh crore (Rs 8.57 trillion or $91 billion) tracked across 130 schemes in 2026-27, only about 10% goes to schemes that have the potential to directly address heat-related risks and impacts," the recently published report said.

"Even this spending carries no earmarked heat-related allocation, as currently there is no scheme exclusively addressing the heat wave crisis in India," it added.

According to the report, the gaps are seen across the board, including the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Labor.

"Key ministries like Science and Technology have seen their heat-relevant budget allocations drop to zero from 2025-26 onwards. Meanwhile, the only scheme (DAY-NULM) that had the potential to directly support urban informal workers has been effectively discontinued," it said.

The report's authors suggest India recognize heat waves as a standalone disaster under the Disaster Management Act and use earmarked funds for nationwide relief.

Among several recommendations, it also urged inter-ministerial coordination to establish roles, financing arrangements and accountability.

How a 'super El Nino' could change global weather

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Skip next section WATCH — India's gene-edited rice revolution June 18, 2026

WATCH — India's gene-edited rice revolution

India is the first country to approve gene-edited rice to boost food security. Can this homegrown innovation help farmers weather climate change?

India's gene-edited rice revolution

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Skip next section Ram Mandir donations must be disclosed, as temple trust gets legal notice June 18, 2026

Ram Mandir donations must be disclosed, as temple trust gets legal notice

The trust overseeing the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya was served a legal notice on Thursday seeking disclosures on donations received and how they were spent, amid allegations of fraud.

The notice demands that the trust provides a complete, itemized, and year-wise account of donations to the temple and expenditures for the last five financial years, the Times of India reported. The notice was filed by a rival party leader.

The Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir is a mammoth temple built under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist government and has been central to the Bharatiya Janata Party's campaign to establish India as a 'Hindu rashtriya,' aka land of Hindus.

While Hindus make the make up about 80% of the country's population, India's constitution terms it as a secular nation where state and religion are separated.

The temple, built in place of the Babri mosque, which was demolished in 1992, remains a pain point for Muslim minorities and a point of pride for Modi's supporters.

Allegations of donation fraud are casting a shadow on that pride.

Last week, the temple's trust welcomed Uttar Pradesh’s decision to open a special investigation into the matter, saying it would restore their credibility. The trustees claim the allegations are meant to malign the temple and hurt the religious sentiments of millions of devotees.

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Skip next section Family of killed India sailor holds US responsible June 18, 2026

Family of killed India sailor holds US responsible

In the farming village of Sirauli in Deoria district, eastern Uttar Pradesh, time seems to have stopped. There is a pall of grief that has gripped this village. Outside a small, unplastered brick house, relatives sit on plastic chairs in the summer heat with questions about Shivanand Chaurasia's death still lingering. Inside, Chaurasia’s wife Sushila and his mother have barely eaten in a week.

He left home around eight months ago to work for a foreign shipping company as a fitter engineer. He was one of three Indian sailors killed in a US strike near the Strait of Hormuz.

His death has devastated the family. For the last nine days, they have been waiting for his body to arrive. They spend their days desperately waiting for a phone call, or a sign that tell them that the body is on its way home.

The grief is now turning into anger directed at politicians and their silence over the death of their son. Sirauli lies in the wider Gorakhpur region, the political stronghold of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Relatives say no senior leader has visited the family to give condolence. They hold the US responsible for the killing of Shivanand. "Modi is quiet because he cannot take a stand for poor people like us in front of Trump," Chaurasia's wife told DW.

Watch out for the full DW video and story, which will be out on our website soon.

https://p.dw.com/p/5Fc57

Skip next section Testing agency tells NEET students to keep calm June 18, 2026

Testing agency tells NEET students to keep calm

The National Testing Agency (NTA), a body responsible for public entrance exams in India, told India's NEET-UG students to "stay calm, rest well, and focus," ahead of the controversial retest.

The agency is at the center of the controversy which has unfolded since the NEET-UG, an all-India pre-medical entrance test, was canceled after the question paper was leaked.

Students, their parents, and critics have acccused the NTA of corruption and allegedly running cheating networks. Some have called for the body to be dismantled altogether.

"The difficult decision taken on May 3 was made solely in your interest. The moment a problem was identified, we acted to protect the fairness of the process for every sincere candidate. We have carried those lessons forward and strengthened the system further this time," the agency said in a post on X.

It asked students not to get swayed by rumors of a delay in the retest and assured them that the test's integrity was their highest priority.

The agency's advice and claims of integrity did not sit well with many in the replies online. Some users claimed that the retest papers would likely be leaked, too. Some suggested it focus on its job to keep the question papers safe.

Others pleaded that the exam be postponed by a month as they were still recovering from the stress of the latest attempt being canceled.

"Every year it's the same promises: 'safe, secure and fair.' Students want results, not statements," one user said.

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Skip next section Family of killed Indian sailor seeks compensation, martyr status June 18, 2026

Family of killed Indian sailor seeks compensation, martyr status

Family members of deceased Indian seafarer Shivanand Chaurasia, killed on board a commercial vessel attacked by the US Navy near the Strait of Hormuz, are seeking martyr status for him.

Chaurasia is one of the three Indian sailors killed in US strikes on commercial ships near the Strait of Hormuz, last week.

The US Central Command said American forces warned the crew before firing on the ship, which allegedly attempted to breach its naval blockade with a shipment of Iranian oil.

Speaking to DW's Adil Bhat at their family home in the state of Uttar Pradesh, the sailor's wife said she sought Rs 1 crore compensation, employment and education for their son.

News agency ANI later reported that the deceased's brother sought martyr status for his brother.

https://p.dw.com/p/5FbPx

Skip next section India's air force delivers leaked exam's retest papers June 18, 2026

India's air force delivers leaked exam's retest papers

The Indian Air Force has carried out nearly 200 sorties over a three- to four-day period to deliver the question papers for the retest of an all-India pre-medical exam.

The IAF used its Mi-17 helicopters and transport aircraft to ferry the sealed question papers, Indian news outlets reported.

"The use of IAF aircraft is aimed at guaranteeing foolproof, time-bound delivery," the Times of India reported, citing an official.

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Undergraduates (NEET-UG) exam for 2026 was originally conducted in early May with about 2.2 million students in attendance. It is a pen and paper test which is taken at the same time across India. But this year's exam was canceled after the question paper was allegedly leaked. A retest is scheduled for June 21.

India's opposition had earlier criticized the government's decision to rope in the IAF, saying it was "emergency scaffolding" and did not address the root cause.

This is not the first time the crucial examination's question paper has been leaked. Critics blame corrupt bureaucracy, inadequate security measures, and poor action to quash cheating networks.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is facing severe backlash from the opposition, student bodies and India's youth in general for the emotional and mental strain on students. Many have demanded the resignation of India's education minister, without success.

Thousands of NEET-UG aspirants across the country have been protesting the leaked paper, with reports of student suicides

On Wednesday, news channel NDTV reported that a 19-year-old took her own life because she had already appeared twice and was afraid to take the exam again.

India's Gen Z 'Cockroaches' protest national exams fraud

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Skip next section Modi at G7: Global South cannot be left alone to bear the brunt of Iran war June 18, 2026

Modi at G7: Global South cannot be left alone to bear the brunt of Iran war

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday urged the Group of Seven (G7) nations and their financial institutions to aid the Global South's recovery from the disruption of the Middle East conflict.

"The disruptions to fuel, fertilizer, and food supply chains caused by the crisis in West Asia will continue to have a significant impact on the Global South for some time," Modi said in a speech in France.

"If we are truly committed to strengthening international solidarity, the most vulnerable countries should not be left to bear the burden of these crises alone," he said, calling on international financial institutions to "develop support mechanisms that help developing countries absorb such shocks and sustain their economic resilience."

India's economy, among several other Asian nations, has been hit by the conflict which disrupted the supply chain of key raw materials to the continent. Moreover, the oil price shock has strained several industries.

Iran conflict disrupts Asia's plastic supply chain

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Skip next section How is Modi's relationship to Trump? June 18, 2026

How is Modi's relationship to Trump?

In the past, Modi and Trump have shown warmth and friendship towards each other, including bear hugs and periodic praises. But ties between Washington and New Delhi cooled over a series of issues, one of the largest being Trump's 50% tariffs on India.

More recently, the US Navy attacked several vessels on the Strait of Hormuz, killing three Indian sailors. India's foreign minister lodged a "strong protest" with Washington, while US State Secretary Marco Rubio released a statement which didn't go down well with Indians.

Trump appeared to smooth that out in front of reporters in France.

"He's a very tough negotiator, one of the toughest, actually. So you look at this man, I'll give you a lesson," the US president said, speaking of Modi.

"He's the most beautiful looking man. He looks so nice. He's like an angel, but actually he's a killer."

https://p.dw.com/p/5FakE

Skip next section Modi, Trump hail 'significant progress' in trade talks, but no deal signed June 18, 2026

Modi, Trump hail 'significant progress' in trade talks, but no deal signed

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump made "significant progress" in the long-awaited trade deal as they met in France, India's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"The leaders noted with particular satisfaction the significant progress made in negotiations towards an interim Bilateral Trade Agreement and instructed their officials to work towards a balanced, mutually beneficial, and commercially meaningful agreement at the earliest," India's Ministry of External Affairs said in a press statement.

When a reporter asked Trump when the deal would be signed, the president said they were "very close."

New Delhi and Washington are currently operating on an interim trade deal, arrived at in February after a phone call between Modi and Trump.

A final deal was supposed to be negotiated by March, but has been delayed over Washington’s desired access to India’s farm sector, strained diplomatic ties, and fresh tariff threats from the US.

Many hoped that the in-person meeting between Trump and Modi would do the trick.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will be visiting India next week.

https://p.dw.com/p/5Faby

Skip next section Welcome to our coverage June 18, 2026

Welcome to our coverage

Good morning! and welcome to DW's India news blog.

This is Mahima Kapoor from the New Delhi bureau, here to give you sharp and clear insights into what's happening in the world's most populous country. We will cover the latest news points, what people are talking about and what the bureau has it's eye on.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is fresh from his meeting with US President Donald Trump, on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in France. Despite strained diplomatic relations and Washington's growing snubs to New Delhi, the two leaders seemed as friendly as ever.

The meeting also seems to have pushed a critical and pending trade deal forward.

At home, India is gearing up for the retest of the NEET-UG examinations. That's a national medical entry test taken by over 2.2 million students every year. The original exam, in May, was canceled after the paper was leaked, leading to several students committing suicide, the emergence of a youth movement demanding the education minister's resignation and a temporary ban on the messaging platform Telegram.

Now all eyes are on the retake, which will also test India's capability to conduct the large-scale exam without failing its students.

Meanwhile, India's eastern state of West Bengal appears to be operating on chaos. That's a month after Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party won power in the state for the first time in history, ending the rule of Indian political veteran Mamata Banerjee. Now, the survial of Banerjee and her party hangs in the balance.

Stay tuned for all of that and more!

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