NEW DELHI: A day after a joint statement on the India-US interim trade deal was released, Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday said it will “give new wings to dreams of farmers”, and rejected Congress’ criticism, saying the deal fully protects agriculture sector and farmers’ interests, with key farm products kept out. The minister also shared a detailed list of Indian farm produce that will be exported to the US at zero duty. The list of such produce also includes spices, tea, coffee, coconut, coconut oil, betel nut, cashew, vegetable wax, avocado, banana, guava, mango, kiwi, papaya, pineapple, mushroom, and some grains. On Congress’ claim that the agreement could turn India into a “dumping ground” for US goods, Chouhan, while rejecting the assertion, said opposition is creating unnecessary fear, and accused the party of failing to link farmers to global markets or ensuring economic stability despite governing the country for long. Addressing a press conference in Bhopal, Chouhan said the trade deal is an excellent example of diplomacy, development and dignity. “It is not just a commercial agreement but also a symbol of India’s growing global prestige. This deal will strengthen our economy while also providing it new direction,” the minister said. “The biggest concern was that our major grains should remain secure, and they have all been kept completely secure. No door has been opened for the US for major grains, major fruits and dairy products,” said Chouhan, allaying apprehensions in certain quarters about the deal’s adverse impact on farmers. He said several American agricultural products will not be able to enter the Indian market. “De-husked grains, flour, wheat, corn, rice, millet, potato, onion, peas, beans, cucumber, mushroom, pulses products, frozen vegetables, oranges, grapes, lemon, strawberry and mixed canned vegetables will not come to India,” he said. He further added that no dairy products – such as liquid milk, powder, cream, yogurt, buttermilk, butter, ghee, butter oil, paneer and cheese – will get entry into India. He said India will also not import black pepper, cloves, dry green chilli, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, asafoetida, ginger, turmeric, carom seeds, fenugreek, cassia, mustard, rye, husk and other powder spices from the US. “The meaning is clear – our spices and our farmers are completely secure,” he said. He also highlighted the reduced tariffs on Indian textiles compared to competing countries, which he said will boost exports and benefit cotton farmers.

NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump’s threat to bring back the 25% “penalty” if India does not stop buying Russian crude has deepened the question mark on the operations of Nayara refinery in Jamnagar. The crisis facing the refinery has triggered talks about change of ownership. While the refinery, under normal circumstances, would qualify to be a good buy, US’s hardline stance may prove to be a dampener for prospective buyers, something which is going to persist unless there is a dramatic breakthrough in the talks to get Russia to pause its aggression against Ukraine. Rosneft – Russia’s state-run energy giant that has been sanctioned by the Trump administration in order to pressure Vladimir Putin into agreeing to pause his offensive against Ukraine – owns majority stake in the 20 million metric tonnes per annum refinery. Located at Vadinar (Gujarat), Nayara, the country’s second-largest single-site refinery, specialises in processing heavy crude. Until the US sanctions were imposed, it was almost entirely dependent on Russian crude as feedstock. Analysts said with the immediate future of the refinery in mind, India may continue negotiating with the Trump administration to allow import of smaller volumes of Russian crude. Indian refineries have been cutting down on purchase of Russian crude. Though observers said India cannot immediately halt purchases even if it decides to reduce dependence on Urals as refiners have already booked Russian cargoes for the next eight to 10 weeks and cancelling them is not feasible, it does not remove the uncertainty about the fate of Nayara. “My sense is that India will still bargain with the US to import some amount of oil from Russia, especially for Nayara refinery,” said Prashant Vasisht, senior V-P at ratings agency ICRA. Energy expert Narendra Taneja said India will continue importing oil from Russia too, though volumes would decline. “India will continue to get oil supplies from Russia for two reasons – to assert its strategic autonomy and to maintain the right optics for domestic political consumption,” he said. “Since India has to make purchases of $500 billion from the US over a period of five years – imports of oil, gas and LPG are the best way to clock the numbers up quickly, which overall is not a bad idea since what we are going to back in return (capital, technology and bigger access to American markets) is quite attractive,” he said. India imports almost one-third of its crude from Russia, and purchases fell to $2.7 billion in Dec 2025 – the lowest monthly value of shipments in the last three years – and nearly 27% lower than the $3.7 billion recorded in Nov, according to commerce department data. Despite the decline, Russia remained the largest crude supplier to India in 2025-26, accounting for 31.5% of purchases worth $105.1 billion during April-Dec.

India’s Tejaswin Shankar during the men’s decathlon event (PTI Photo/Gurinder Osan)

NEW DELHI: India ended its campaign at the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships with five medals and one gold, finishing sixth overall in the medal standings. Tejaswin Shankar delivered the standout performance for India by winning the men’s heptathlon gold, which was the country’s only gold medal at the event.Shankar scored 5993 points to win the heptathlon, breaking his own national indoor record of 5650 points set in 2021. He led from the first day and maintained his dominance across all seven events. On the final day, he clocked 8.02 seconds in the 60m hurdles, earning 977 points. He then cleared 4.20 metres in the pole vault, adding 673 points, before finishing strong in the 1000m race with a time of 2:43.91, which took his total score to 5993. Shankar is already India’s national record holder in the outdoor decathlon and won silver at the 2023 Asian Games, further proving his status as one of India’s top multi-event athletes.India’s other medal winners also impressed. Pooja won silver in women’s high jump with a clearance of 1.87 metres. Tajinderpal Singh Toor secured silver in men’s shot put with a season-best throw of 20.05 metres, narrowly missing gold. Ancy Sojan claimed bronze in women’s long jump with a best effort of 6.21 metres. Earlier in the competition, Aadrash Ram Jothi Shankar had won a bronze in high jump.China dominated the championships with 34 medals, including 10 golds, finishing comfortably on top of the table. Despite missing out on more golds, India’s athletes delivered strong performances, with several personal and season-best marks, highlighting the country’s growing strength in athletics on the Asian stage.

NEW DELHI: India’s auto component industry is set for a significant boost following the India-US trade deal, with the agreement providing preferential tariff treatment for Indian auto parts exports, including zero-duty access for some products. The joint statement said India will receive a preferential tariff rate quota for automotive parts currently covered under US national security tariffs, creating a pathway for Indian exporters to access the US market at lower or zero duties. They had previously been affected due to steep tariffs with certain auto components facing duties up to 50%. Vikrampati Singhania, president of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA), said the move signals a clear intent to strengthen bilateral manufacturing and supply chains. “These measures will lead to enhanced export competitiveness, deepen technology collaboration, and reinforce India’s role as a trusted partner in resilient global automotive supply chains.” Auto component maker Uno Minda said the agreement opens a new phase of export-led growth for the sector. “For Uno Minda, this opens up compelling opportunities to further scale our footprint, strengthen supply-chain agility and expand our contribution to the US market while proudly reinforcing India’s position as a world-class manufacturing hub,” said Ravi Mehra, MD at Uno Minda. Tenneco India said the reduction in US tariffs will significantly improve the cost competitiveness of India-made components. “This will significantly enhance the cost competitiveness of our premium products like shock absorbers and exhaust systems in the US market, positioning us to grow our presence, scale volumes, and strengthen integration within the supply networks of American OEMs,” said Arvind Chandra, whole-time director and CEO, Tenneco India. Bharat Forge described the deal as a “game changer” for Indian industry, adding that it strengthens India’s position in global supply chains. In 2024-25, exports to the US were to the tune of $6.2 billion, while in the first half of this year, it has reached $3.1 billion, according to ACMA.

TimesofIndia.com in Mumbai: In a positive development, Washington Sundar is all set to join India’s T20I squad in Delhi ahead of the World Cup fixture vs Namibia on February 12. India captain Suryakumar Yadav revealed this after the win over USA in Mumbai, informing that the all-rounder is “good.““Washi (Washington Sundar) is joining us in Delhi. He’s good. Everything is fine,” said Surya at the post-match presentation.

Sundar last played a competitive fixture nearly a month ago during the ODI series vs New Zealand. The all-rounder injured himself while bowling in the 1st ODI in Vadodara and went on to miss the remainder of the series, and the five T20Is which followed. As TimesofIndia.com had reported on January 28, the left-hander resumed batting at the BCCI Centre of Excellence and got his workload gradually increased in the coming days.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The BCCI didn’t mention the exact nature of his injury but TimesofIndia.com has learnt that it was a mild fracture in addition to the side strain which delayed the return to match fitness. He even consulted Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala before checking into the Bengaluru facility and the initial few days were more about pain management and allowing the injured area to heal. Even the first batting session, which lasted around 30 minutes, was done with some tenderness around the injured rib region.“Washington Sundar underwent scans after reporting an acute onset discomfort in his lower rib area while bowling during the first ODI against New Zealand at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara, on 11 January. This was followed by an in-person consultation with an expert. He has been diagnosed with a side strain and has been advised rest for a few days, following which he will report to the BCCI Centre of Excellence (COE) for further management of his injury,” read a BCCI statement on January 16.On the reported lines, the Indian management played the waiting game and was in no rush to replace the all-rounder from the World Cup squad. His addition is unlikely to affect the Playing XI dynamics but gives the management an interesting match-up card up their sleeve.

Jasprit Bumrah, Abhishek Sharma under the weather

Bumrah missed the tournament opener due to illness and even opener Abhishek didn’t take the field during the second innings of the fixture vs USA. The left-hander wasn’t spotted in the dugout, forcing the Indian management to assign fielding coach T Dilip to drinks duties.Abhishek was nowhere to be seen even during the post-match handshakes, and Surya later confirmed that both are still under the weather.

“Bumrah, he was having high fever due to because of weather, like how Abhishek was under the weather,” said Surya.Mohammed Siraj, however, revealed the Abhishek has an upset stomach but assured his return in the next game vs Namibia.“Everything is fine. His stomach was a little upset, so he didn’t come out to field. He’ll be back in the next match and show his magic with the bat,” said Siraj.

NEW DELHI: In a giant leap for the Indian space sector, domestic aerospace company Azista Space has demonstrated a new indigenous capability in space by taking images of objects in orbit from another satellite, a first by any space company in the country. This is often called “in-orbit snooping or space watch”.Using its 80-kg earth-observation satellite ABA First Runner (AFR), Azista Space took images of the International Space Station (ISS), which is orbiting at an altitude of around 400 km from the Earth’s surface.AFR, which was launched in space by SpaceX’s Falcon-9 as part of the Transporter-8 mission on June 13, 2023, has already completed 2.5 years in orbit.In a post of X, Azista Space, which has a manufacturing facility for satellites and payloads in Gujarat’s Sanand, said it has “successfully executed a challenging near-horizon demonstration targeting the ISS. Operating in sunlit conditions at ranges of approximately 250 km and 300 km, the AFR sensor was precisely tasked to track ISS, capturing it in 15 distinct frames. Two independent attempts were conducted, both achieving 100% success.”“The resulting acquisition resulted in the image with 2.2m sampling, validating our tracking algorithms and imaging precision. To our knowledge, AFR is the only Indian built and operated satellite to have demonstrated such a feat,” said the company, which is Asia’s first private satellite factory that annually produces 50 satellites.India currently has more than 50 operational satellites — for communication, navigation, earth observation, and surveillance purposes. Protecting these space assets requires timely information about the activities of other satellites in the vicinity, especially during heightened geopolitical tensions.The rare feat is a key step towards strengthening India’s space situational awareness (SSA), which means comprehensive monitoring, tracking and prediction of man-made satellites, space debris, and natural objects (like asteroids) in Earth’s orbit. It is critical to ensure the safety and sustainability of space activities by analysing potential collisions and enabling avoidance maneuvers. “Azista Space also brings strong electro-optical payload, image processing and satellite bus engineering capabilities, enabling the design, development, and delivery of end-to-end SSA satellites and payloads tailored to customer mission requirements,” the company said.The company undertakes design, development, manufacturing and integration of satellites, space-borne systems and payloads, and also manufactures tailored-made satellites and satellite subsystems. Its personnel are also involved in over 12 Isro missions.

In a tournament where clinical precision is the gold standard, Pavan Rathnayake’s dismissal during Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup 2026 clash against Ireland on February 8, 2026, has sparked intense criticism. Chasing momentum in a sluggish middle-over phase at the R. Premadasa Stadium, Rathnayake fell victim to what many are calling a moment of tactical madness.

Careless shot costs Pavan Rathnayake his wicket in Sri Lanka vs Ireland T20 World Cup 2026 game

The defining moment of Rathnayake’s short-lived stay occurred on the first ball of the 11th over (10.1). Facing Irish left-arm spinner George Dockrell with Sri Lanka struggling to accelerate at 68/2, Rathnayake attempted an audacious ramp shot against a delivery that demanded a much straighter bat. Getting down on one knee too early, he looked to guide the ball toward third man, but his lack of footwork and poor execution were exposed as the ball stayed low and skidded through.

Attempting to be overly creative, he seemed caught between an inside-out drive, a late cut, and a possible ramp; the result was a complete loss of shape as the ball held its line and crashed into the stumps. Having labored to just 5 runs off 9 balls, Rathnayake was clean bowled for a disappointing single-digit score, leaving Sri Lanka reeling at 68/3 and effectively ending any hopes of a rapid acceleration during the middle overs.

This braindead moment was particularly frustrating for the Colombo crowd, as he had just begun to settle, but his departure instead forced Dunith Wellalage to the crease much earlier than planned, shifting the massive burden back onto the senior batters to repair the damage.

Here’s the video:

#SLvsIRE pic.twitter.com/J4DimaKy52

— Aman (@Amanriz78249871) February 8, 2026

Also WATCH: Nepal players salute Wankhede crowd with lap of honour after heartbreaking T20 World Cup 2026 loss to England

T20 World Cup 2026: Ireland’s spin trap chokes Sri Lanka in Colombo

The dismissal of Rathnayake was the centerpiece of a masterful bowling display by Dockrell, who dismantled the Sri Lankan top order with surgical precision. Dockrell’s spell was nothing short of elite, as he had already claimed the vital wicket of Pathum Nissanka (24) just an over earlier. Ireland’s spinners capitalized on a surface that offered significant grip and low bounce, making it nearly impossible for the Sri Lankan batters to rotate the strike or find the boundary.

However, the late stages of the innings saw a dramatic shift in momentum. Despite being choked for runs for the majority of the middle phase, Kamindu Mendis launched a sensational counter-attack, smashing a brisk 44 off just 19 balls. Alongside Kusal Mendis, who anchored the innings with a gritty 56, the pair took advantage of sloppy Irish fielding, including two dropped catches, to hammer 21 runs off the 17th over. This ‘jailbreak’ allowed Sri Lanka to recover from the depths of 86/4 to a much more competitive 163/6 at the end of their 20 overs. While Ireland’s disciplined approach, spearheaded by Dockrell (2/17) and Gareth Delany, dictated the middle overs, the late surge from the Mendis duo has set up a thrilling second-innings chase in Colombo.

Also WATCH: T20 World Cup 2026: Tim Siefert and Finn Allen’s funny collision leads to Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s lucky escape during NZ vs AGF clash