Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Uzbekistan for bilateral talks
- Hundreds of Indians remain missing in Nepal floods
- Indian opposition claims Sonia Gandhi’s memoir dropped by Penguin India over Modi, RSS and China
- Controversial Hindu nationalist group chief Mohan Bhagwat set to deliver speech in NYC
Here are the biggest headlines from India on Saturday, August 29, and Sunday, August 30.
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Skip next section Modi lands in Uzbekistan en route to Russia-Asia summit08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Modi lands in Uzbekistan en route to Russia-Asia summit
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted pictures of himself and Uzbekistan‘s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to social media on Saturday, thanking his political counterpart for the warm welcome and writing on X: “Landed in Tashkent to a warm welcome by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. Grateful to him for the special gesture.”
Modi went on to emphasize, “This is my fourth visit to Uzbekistan, reflecting the depth and growing momentum of our bilateral relations.”
Modi is scheduled to attend dinner with Mirziyoyev on Saturday.
The two will hold bilateral meetings on Sunday before departing for the Kyrgyz Republic and the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit.
Modi is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Kyrgyz summit.
https://p.dw.com/p/5JcYvSkip next section Kolkata Police file First Information Report against former West Bengal Chief Minister Banerjee08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Kolkata Police file First Information Report against former West Bengal Chief Minister Banerjee
Wesley Dockery Editor
Kolkata Police on Saturday registered a First Information Report (FIR) against former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for allegedly violating a Calcutta High Court order on a students’ wing rally held on Friday.
A FIR is written document informing police of a crime and gives the authorities necessary information to launch an investigation.
Several Indian media outlets reported on the FIR. A Hindustan Times report said that the city’s high court had permitted Banerjee to celebrate the foundation day of her party’s youth wing on Cathedral Road in central Kolkata but had directed that one side of the road be kept operational.
Local police said that the flank was not left open and the court-specified time-limit was exceeded.
The FIR was filed against Banerjee and organizers of the rally, officers quoted by news agency Press Trust of India said.
“The FIR has been registered for the alleged violation of the court’s order. The role of all those involved in the violation will be examined during the course of the investigation,” the officer said.
The police also claimed the student wing supporters “breached barricades and jostled with police personnel deployed for maintaining law and order,” PTI reported.
Banerjee is the leader of the Trinamool Congress Party, a major regional party in the eastern state of West Bengal. She is the former chief minister of the state and was unseated earlier this year by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party — after 15 years in power.
Incidentally, at the rally, Banerjee had claimed that the police had turned into a “monstrous entity” under BJP rule and pledged to stop “police atrocities” on her supporters.
https://p.dw.com/p/5JcI4Skip next section WATCH — Basmati rice: India, Pakistan and the EU dispute08/29/2026August 29, 2026
WATCH — Basmati rice: India, Pakistan and the EU dispute
The fight over basmati rice has become one of the most complex disputes in the global food trade.
Both India and Pakistan claim the premium, aromatic rice as part of their agriculture and cultural heritage, and both are seeking European Union recognition for its geographical origin.
But years after the first application was filed in 2018, the EU has yet to decide how the name should be protected and by whom.
Basmati is among the world’s most valuable rice varieties, generating significant export revenues and carrying strong historical ties to the Punjab region, which spans both countries.
Meanwhile, experts warn that widespread misuse of the name on international markets could undermine future protection altogether. As Brussels weighs its options, the outcome could have far-reaching consequences.
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https://p.dw.com/p/5Jc1YSkip next section Congress slams Penguin India for backing out of Sonia Gandhi’s memoir08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Congress slams Penguin India for backing out of Sonia Gandhi’s memoir
Leaders of India’s largest opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC), alleged that publishing house Penguin India was pressured to back out of publishing veteran politician Sonia Gandhi’s memoir due to portions related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a Hindu nationalist group, and China’s alleged occupation of Indian territory under Modi’s rule.
Sonia Gandhi has been a leading figure in Indian politics for decades. She was the president of the INC from 1998 to 2017 and is the party’s longest-serving chief.
Earlier this month, Alfred A. Knopf announced that Gandhi’s “Belonging: A Journey of Love” will be published on November 10. Knopf is a publishing imprint under Penguin Random House.
“Suppressing the book of Sonia Gandhi, a person of such stature, a senior leader of the nation, and former Leader of the Opposition, under pressure is tantamount to the murder of freedom of Expression,” senior INC leader Ashok gehlot said in a post on X.
“The real issue is that pressure was put on Penguin India to remove the portions related to Modi, the RSS, and the occupation of Indian territory by China during Modi’s rule. This is the murder of democracy,” he said.
In another post, Gehlot said “there’s some kind of pressure. It could be from the PMO [Prime Minister’s Office] or someone else — that time will tell.”
This comes a day after Penguin India released a statement of clarification: “Any suggestion that Penguin Random House India decided not to publish ‘Belonging’ because the author declined editorial changes does not accurately reflect the circumstances.”
The statement was referring to a report by The Indian Express which said the publishing house would not publish the book in India because “editorial changes and deletions” were turned down by the author.
“As a publisher, it is both our prerogative and our responsibility to fact check and provide authors with recommendations that are in best interests of their books,” Penguin India said in its statement, adding that it “remained willing and keen to publish the book.”
https://p.dw.com/p/5JbzhSkip next section India monitors glaciers after Nepal disaster08/29/2026August 29, 2026
India monitors glaciers after Nepal disaster
Days after deadly flash floods triggered by a glacial collapse swept through the Tibet-Nepal border, India stepped up monitoring of the glaciers in its Himalayan region bordering Nepal and China.
Although the exact cause of the collapse remains unclear, global warming has increased the likelihood of such disasters.
“Since we share a border with Nepal, as a neighbor, and also have a similar geographic situation… we have asked our department to monitor all the glaciers and known glacial lakes in the region,” said Madan Kaushik, state disaster management minister in India’s Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.
“We have asked our teams to be vigilant and monitor if a similar situation is emerging anywhere in the state,” he added.
Kaushik’s state is one of India’s most ecologically sensitive regions with over 1,266 glacial lakes.
https://p.dw.com/p/5JbwISkip next section Indian Hindu nationalist group’s chief set to address thousands in NYC08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Indian Hindu nationalist group’s chief set to address thousands in NYC
Mohan Bhagwat, the chief of a controversial right-wing Hindu nationalist group in India closely associated with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is set to address about 5,000 members of Indian American groups in New York City on Saturday.
The event titled “Universal Oneness Celebration” is being held at the Infosys Theater in Madison Square Garden and is organized by American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue.
It is being met with protests, a denunciation from the city’s mayor Zohran Mamdani and a call for sanctions by a US panel on religious freedom.
Bhagwat’s link with Modi
Bhagwat is the chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, or RSS. Also referred to as the Sangh, it is Hindi for “National Volunteer Organization.”
The group describes itself as a “Hindu-centric civilizational, cultural movement” focused on uniting Hindus. It disputes accusations that it promotes intolerance.
The RSS is the ideological parent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the prime minister has had a longstanding association with the organization.
Why is the RSS controversial?
In recent years, the organization has launched a global campaign to counter perceptions that it is a paramilitary group involved in violence against minority communities.
However, several interfaith and civil rights groups — including Hindus for Human Rights, the Indian American Muslim Council and the Interfaith Center of New York — have criticized the event over Bhagwat’s involvement and the RSS’s history.
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a government advisory body, has called the RSS an “umbrella organization whose sub-groups have perpetrated attacks on religious minorities, including Christians and Muslims.”
Recently, it called for the US government to impose targeted sanctions on RSS members, including Bhagwat, and Indian officials who support the group.
The Ministry of External Affairs in India quickly rejected the commission’s remarks, calling the body biased and lacking in credibility.
United Nations bodies and human rights groups have also pointed to a rise in abuses against India’s religious minorities in recent years, citing hate speech, a religion-based citizenship law, demolitions of Muslim-owned properties, the revocation of autonomy for Muslim-majority Kashmir, and more.
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https://p.dw.com/p/5JbscSkip next section WATCH: Nepal village buried in mud08/29/2026August 29, 2026
WATCH: Nepal village buried in mud
DW correspondent Adil Bhat reports from a village in Nepal’s Nuwakot district that was buried in mud after severe flooding.
https://p.dw.com/p/5JblqSkip next section Over 300 Indians still missing in Nepal-Tibet floods08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Over 300 Indians still missing in Nepal-Tibet floods
At least 320 Indian nationals were still unaccounted for in the Nepal-Tibet floods as of Friday evening, according to the latest update from India’s foreign ministry.
A glacier collapse on Wednesday unleashed a huge torrentof rock, ice, mud and debris through Himalayan mountain river systems, killing more than 600 people in Nepal and China’s Tibet. Over 2,000 people are missing.
Here’s the latest update on Indian nationals:
- 84 Indian nationals have been rescued so far, including 21 from Tamil Nadu who have returned to India and 63 who were working at the Trishuli-I power project in Nepal
- 149 crossed over into Nepal from China
- Around 400 are safe in China, the Indian Embassy in Beijing is working on their evacuation
- 320 are missing or unreachable
Meanwhile, India dispatched a third flight carrying relief supplies to Nepal on Friday evening. The flight also carried an 11-member medical and tunnel rescue team, who are now working on the ground, according to India’s Foreign Minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
https://p.dw.com/p/5JblKSkip next section Modi is en route to Uzbekistan for bilateral talks08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Modi is en route to Uzbekistan for bilateral talks
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for a state visit to Uzbekistan, where he is set to discuss ways of deepening cooperation with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
Ahead of departure, Modi said he looked forward to his discussions with the Uzbek president to “further deepening our cooperation in trade and investment, digital connectivity, defence, energy, and on advancing our shared visions of Viksit Bharat and Yangi Uzbekistan.”
“Viksit Bharat” roughly translates to “Developed India” and is a commonly used term by Modi and his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. “Yangi Uzbekistan” translates to “New Uzbekistan” and is a political slogan used by Mirziyoyev.
On Saturday, Modi will attend a dinner hosted by Mirziyoyev, followed by bilateral engagements with him on Sunday at the Presidential Palace.
After his two-day state visit to Uzbekistan, Modi will travel to the Kyrgyz Republic to attend the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, where he is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with the Russian President, Vladimir Putin.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Jbh0Skip next section Welcome to our coverage08/29/2026August 29, 2026
Welcome to our coverage
Mahima Kapoor | Dmytro Hubenko Editor
Hello and welcome to DW’s India blog!
This is Mahima Kapoor reporting from the Delhi studio and I will be your guide through the chaotic news cycle of the world’s most populous nation.
Hundreds of Indians remain missing in the devastating Nepal-Tibet flash floods, as of the Indian foreign ministry’s last update. Most of those unaccounted for or stranded were either working in Nepal or were pilgrims visiting the Kailash Mansarovar site in China’s Tibet.
Indian embassies in Kathmandu and Beijing are working closely with local authorities, and Delhi has sent at least three tranches of aid.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a four-day official trip to Central Asia. He will first visit Uzbekistan to hold bilateral discussions and further cooperation between the two nations. Modi will then attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Kyrgyzstan for the last two days of his tour.
Stay tuned for all of this and more!
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