ModiWatch: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for an AIIMS and inaugurated projects worth more than ₹12,000 crore ($1.4 billion) in Bihar.

PM Modi showered accolades on Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar saying he pulled the state out of “jungle raj” (primitive rule).

PM Modi will visit Bihar again on November 15 to inaugurate development projects worth over ₹6,640 crore ($796.8 million) aimed at uplifting tribal communities.

First phase of voting

First phase of voting completed in Jharkhand: According to officials, the first phase of voting in Jharkhand's 43 Assembly constituencies saw a voter turnout of 64.86% yesterday.

High voting turnout in by-elections: In Lok Sabha by-elections, 31 Assembly seats across 10 states saw high voting turnout.

Opposition questions PM on caste census: With questions about Bihar, the Congress criticized PM Modi asking if he believes a caste census will cause division and if he will take firm action to lift the "arbitrary" 50% cap on reservations for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and OBCs.

Parliamentary affairs

Parliamentary panel questions the government: The members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Welfare of Other Backward Classes questioned the government's decision not to change the "creamy layer" ceiling for OBC applicants taking the UPSC exam for the past seven years.

Slow urban spending in India

Inflation rise in India: Indians are reducing their spending across a wide range of products, from snacks to fast food, as persistently high inflation puts pressure on middle-class household budgets.

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World Bank and ADB approve loan for Indian state: The World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) have agreed to provide a $1.6 billion loan to develop Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh's capital.

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JSW-Shield AI deal for drones: JSW Defence and US-based Shield AI announced a partnership to manufacture an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS), locally in India with a commitment of $90 million over two years.

Swedish firms to invest in Tamil Nadu: According to Jan Thesleff, Sweden's ambassador to India, four Swedish businesses—including IKEA—are thinking about setting up a base in Tamil Nadu.

Foreign Minister's meet with Saudi counterpart

Discussions with Saudi Foreign Minister: To strengthen collaboration on military, security, and counterterrorism initiatives, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met with Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, in New Delhi.

Foreign Minister expresses concern for West Asia: The Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, during his opening remarks in a meeting with the Saudi Foreign Minister, expressed concerns for West Asia and said India has always believed in a two-state solution.

Nuclear power and long range missiles

India looking to expand nuclear power plants: India's Power Minister Manohar Lal asked the states that are away from coal resources to consider setting up nuclear-based power plants.

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India tests long-range land attack missiles: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted the first flight test of a Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile (LRLACM), with a range of 1,000 km in Odisha.

Guidelines for coaching centres and MoU

Centre releases guidelines to regulate misleading educational advertisements: The Center published new rules to control deceptive advertising by coaching centres. These rules forbid making exaggerated claims such as 100% job security or 100% selection.

Ministry of Mines signed a MoU for critical minerals: The International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Ministry of Mines signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on collaboration in the field of critical minerals.

Growth, imports and predictions

Growth in renewable energy capacity: India's total capacity for renewable energy grew 13.5%, or 24.2 GW, in a single year, from 178.98 GW in October 2023 to 203.18 GW in October 2024.

No hope for rate cuts by central bank: Retail inflation in India unexpectedly increased from 5.5% in September to a 14-month high of 6.2% in October, further postponing the possibility of monetary easing by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

India saving on coal imports: India saves over ₹12,929 crore ($1.5 billion) in coal imports due to a 5.79% rise in domestic coal production.

US report classifies sugarcane labour as forced labour: Industry participants have strongly reacted to a report by the US government's labour department that classified sugarcane harvesting in Maharashtra's Beed district as forced labour, claiming it "was drawn up based on incomplete information."

India-US dialogue

India-US Ocean Dialogue: The first-ever US-India Indian Ocean Dialogue is scheduled for today, to strengthen the current collaboration in the Indian Ocean Region.

Views from the Op-Eds: Maharashtra state elections.

Harish S Wankhede (The Hindu) writes if the BJP-led alliance wins the elections in Maharashtra, a non-Maratha leader could become the Chief Minister, thus challenging the historical hegemony of the Maratha elite. The most powerful social and political forces in Maharashtra politics are the Marathas. However, with BJP’s brand of politics, Maratha’s domination has witnessed many challenges. He concludes by saying that the election will be a difficult test for the Marathas to retain their socio-political domination.

The editorial team (Telegraph) writes pledges made by the competing political alliances in poll-bound Maharashtra are an example of populism’s irresistible pull on India’s political parties. The state has to repay ₹2.75 lakh crore ($33.1 billion) in terms of debt in seven years, this could leave very little "elbow room" for the new government in terms of spending on public welfare.

Vinay Sahasrabuddhe (The Indian Express) believes that the last five years have been a highly politically unstable time for Maharashtra. He credits Machiavellian tactics by Sharad Pawar to be the reason behind Udhhav Thackeray’s fallout with the BJP. “If politics in Maharashtra today is seen as muddled, Uddhav Thackeray cannot escape the blame.” Apart from a clear lack of cohesion in the ideological viewpoints of the opposition constituents, factors like difficulty in seat sharing and blatant squabbles over the CM's face, have shattered their confidence to win the elections, he adds.

Delhi Today: Plenty of sunshine.

Air quality turns “severe”: Delhi's air quality turned 'severe' for the first time this season, with the Air Quality Index soaring to 418.

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