Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- The remains of four Indian nationals killed in Qatar’s Ras Laffan gas explosion have been sent to India
- Muslims in India are observing the significant Islamic holy day of Ashura
- ‘Cockroach’ movement founder Abhijeet Dipke has claimed that BJP workers attacked reporters at protest site
Here are the latest developments from India on Friday, June 26
Skip next section India discloses names of six soldiers killed during ‘Operation Sindoor’06/26/2026June 26, 2026
India discloses names of six soldiers killed during ‘Operation Sindoor’
For the first time India has publicly revealed the names of six Indian soldiers who died during last year’s four-day military conflict with Pakistan, Indian media reported on Friday.
The names of five Indian army soldiers and one Air Force personnel have been published in the ‘Roll of Honour’ section of the National War Memorial website.
The personnel have been identified as Pawan Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Dinesh Kumar, Murali Naik, Sunil Kumar Singh of the Army and the Air Force’s Surendra Kumar.
According to reports from The Times of India, Hindustan Times and NDTV, the names of the soldiers will also be permanently inscribed at the National War Memorial located at the iconic India Gate Circle in New Delhi.
On May 7 2025, India launched military strikes — dubbed “Operation Sindoor” — on what it said was “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
India’s military operation was in retaliation to a deadly militant attack in India-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam days earlier which had left 26 Indian tourists, mostly Hindu men, dead.
India blamed Pakistan for backing the militant group behind the attack. Islamabad denied New Delhi’s claim.
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https://p.dw.com/p/5G7SUSkip next section India sends assistance to quake-hit Venezuela on two Air Force planes06/26/2026June 26, 2026
India sends assistance to quake-hit Venezuela on two Air Force planes
India has dispatched humanitarian aid to Venezuela after two major earthquakes struck the Latin American nation seconds apart on Wednesday, leaving death and devastation in their wake.
Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar on Friday announced the assistance under “Operation Amistad.”
Amistad is the Spanish word for friendship.
The cargo, which is being carried by two Indian Air Force C-17 aircraft, includes over 35 tons of relief supplies, medicines and medical equipment.
“India is committed to support the government and people of Venezuela in this difficult time,” Jaishankar said.
A 41-member contingent of the Indian Army’s Field Hospital unit has also been deployed for the relief operation.
“Responding swiftly to the devastating earthquake in northern Venezuela, India has launched Operation Amistad, deploying a specialised medical contingent to support humanitarian relief efforts,” the Indian Army said in a statement.
According to figures from the Venezuelan government, at least 235 people have been killed and nearly 50,000 are unaccounted for after the twin earthquakes rattled areas in and around the capital Caracas.
https://p.dw.com/p/5G7BtSkip next section WATCH — Beating India’s heat with an ancient cooling hack06/26/2026June 26, 2026
WATCH — Beating India’s heat with an ancient cooling hack
A series of brutal heat waves have left residents of New Delhi gasping but a low-cost, 3000-year-old cooling method is saving lives.
Find out how:
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https://p.dw.com/p/5G7E1Skip next section Modi sends message as Muslims observe Ashura in India06/26/2026June 26, 2026
Modi sends message as Muslims observe Ashura in India
Indian Muslims on Friday observed Ashura — which falls on the 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic lunar calendar.
Ashura holds a high importance particularly among Shia Muslims, who commemorate it as a solemn day of mourning marking the martyrdom of Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Hazrat Imam Hussain in the Battle of Karbala in A.D. 680.
Tazia processions carrying a symbolic representation of the mausoleum of Hussain are taken out on the occasion.
Some Shiite Muslims self-flagellate, even with chains. Rituals also inculde the beating of the chest and walking barefoot on fire to symbolize sharing in the suffering of Hussain.
Sunni Muslims observe Ashura as a day of voluntary fasting and gratitude.
On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared a post talking about the sacrifices made by Hussain.
“The sacrifice of Hazrat Imam Hussain (AS) continues to inspire many people to remain steadfast in the pursuit of truth and justice. It is also a reminder of the enduring power of courage and conviction,” Modi wrote on X.
https://p.dw.com/p/5G6xZSkip next section How eggs sparked a row in West Bengal06/26/2026June 26, 2026
How eggs sparked a row in West Bengal
West Bengal’s freshly-elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state government plans to engage the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) — a global Hindu organization also known as the Hare Krishna movement — to provide cooked midday meals in schools that come under the purview of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation.
The decision was announced as West Bengal Finance Minister Swapan Dasgupta presented BJP’s maiden budget for the state on Monday.
The move has led to a political firestorm as reports say that the new school dinner could be purely vegetarian. Eggs, which have long been a vital source of affordable nutrition in government school meal programs across India, could be off the menu.
Eggs were provided one to two days a week in the state’s school meal plan and are now expected to be swapped with vegetarian items such as paneer, rajma and soy-based foods, Kolkata-based daily, The Telegraph, reported.
Some opposition critics also see the decision as an attempt by Prime Minister Narenra Modi’s Hindu nationalist BJP to alter the food habits in West Bengal, whose culinary tradition consists of a non-vegetarian diet.
A local member of the Rajya Sabha, the lower house of the national parliament, also weighed in on the controversy.
“Throw eggs at rivals. But DEPRIVE CHILDREN of nutrition by taking eggs off from midday meals. Imposing vegetarianism. Bengal rejects this.” said All India Trinamool Congress’ MP Derek O’Brien, in a post on X.
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has called the change in school menu a “nutritional and hygiene-focused reform.”
“We are giving the responsibility of cooking midday meals to ISKCON. If you have an objection, do not say ‘Hare Krishna’ – no one will force you. You will get good food to eat. You will get pure food, nothing to worry about,” Indian media quoted Adhikari as saying.
The midday meal scheme was launched in 1995 for India’s government schools and has since been providing a mandatory, free school lunch to improve the nutritional levels among students.
https://p.dw.com/p/5G6ePSkip next section Modi sends birthday wishes to education minister amid public ire06/26/2026June 26, 2026
Modi sends birthday wishes to education minister amid public ire
Amid the “Cockroach” protests, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent birthday greetings to Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday.
“He is making commendable efforts towards the implementation of the National Education Policy, which seeks to make India a hub for knowledge, learning and innovation,” Modi praised Pradhan in a post on X.
The protest-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) had previously given the Modi government an ultimatum saying that either Pradhan should resign “respectfully” or the prime minister should “sack him.”
https://p.dw.com/p/5G6JnSkip next section CJP’s Abhijeet Dipke alleges assault by BJP workers06/26/2026June 26, 2026
CJP’s Abhijeet Dipke alleges assault by BJP workers
The founder of India’s viral Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has alleged that workers from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) physically assaulted reporters at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, where the movement has been holding a sit-in protest calling for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
“BJP goons physically assaulting reporters and people at Jantar Mantar,” Abhijeet Dipke wrote on X on Friday.
He shared a video purportedly from the protest site, in which Delhi police officials are seen and a voice is heard saying in Hindi: “Our CJP members have been slapped and the Delhi Police is just watching.”
The footage does not show visuals of an assault.
There has been no statement from the BJP on the allegations,
Since June 20, the CJP has been leading an indefinite sit-in demonstration in the national capital over its long-standing demand that Pradhan step down following a flurry of following exam paper leaks and cancellations.
Dipke founded the satirical political movement in May after India’s Chief Justice Surya Kant reportedly likened some unemployed young people to “cockroaches” and “parasites.”
The parody party quickly became an online sensation, striking a cord among India’s discontented youth.
https://p.dw.com/p/5G6IZSkip next section Four bodies from Qatar gas explosion repatriated to India, say officials06/26/2026June 26, 2026
Four bodies from Qatar gas explosion repatriated to India, say officials
The mortal remains of four Indian victims of last week’s deadly explosion at Qatar’s Ras Laffan industrial hub have been repatriated, the Indian Embassy in Doha said.
A total of 12 Indian nationals were among the 13 people killed in a blast at the Barzan gas processing facility on June 21.
Qatari authorities said 66 people were also injured in what they described as a “technical accident”.
The Embassy said in its statement that it was hoping to repatriate the remaining bodies to India soon and was in touch with families of the deceased.
It added that it was also in touch with the Indian nationals who were wounded in the incident.
https://p.dw.com/p/5G5wGSkip next section Welcome to our coverage
06/26/2026June 26, 2026
Welcome to our coverage
Good morning! This is Dharvi Vaid Dhulia from DW’s studio in New Delhi, bringing you our daily round up of all the biggest headlines and events that have got India talking.
It’s a sweltering morning in the national capital and my coffee order has more ice than caffeine — for once I am not complaining.
However, a shift in temperatures could be on the horizon. If weather forecasters are right, monsoon rains are closing in on New Delhi and could likely hit the region in the next few days.
Political heat, meanwhile, is soaring in West Bengal over eggs! A prominent Hindu organization has been made in-charge of providing mid-day meals in Kolkata municipal schools. Reports say that the new menu is expected to be vegetarian, meaning eggs — which have been hailed as a key nutrition component of government school meal programs — could be out.
In more news, the bodies of four out of 12 Indian nationals killed in an explosion at Qatar’s Ras Laffan gas facility have been repatriated.
Stay tuned as we bring you all this and more.
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