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Heavy rains lashed Sri Lanka on Friday, hampering a major clean-up operation after severe flooding and landslides last week killed nearly 500 people, officials said.Authorities reported up to 132 millimetres of rainfall in southern Sri Lanka over a 15-hour period ending Thursday night.But while the deluge was intense, they said the large-scale flooding seen since last week had begun to subside.The Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said 486 people had been confirmed killed and another 341 were still unaccounted for after Cyclone Ditwah left the island on Saturday.The number of people in state-run refugee camps has dropped to 170,000 from a peak of 225,000 as floodwaters receded in and around the capital Colombo.Record rainfall triggered floods and deadly landslides, with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake saying it was the most challenging natural disaster to hit the island in its history.Residents evacuated from the landslide-prone central hills have been told not to return immediately to their homes, even if they were unaffected by the slides, as the mountainsides remained unstable.In the central town of Gampola, residents worked to clear the mud and water damage.”We are getting volunteers from other areas to help with this clean-up,” Muslim cleric Faleeldeen Qadiri told AFP at the Gate Jumma Mosque.”We have calculated that it takes 10 men a whole day to clean one house,” said a volunteer, who gave his name as Rinas. “No one can do this without help.”The top official in charge of the recovery, Prabath Chandrakeerthi, Commissioner-General of Essential Services, said authorities were paying 25,000 rupees ($83) to clean a home, with costs of reconstruction as much as $6-7 billion.A further 2.5 million rupees ($8,300) is being paid to begin rebuilding destroyed homes. More than 50,000 houses had been damaged as of Friday morning, officials said.Chandrakeerthi’s office said nearly three-quarters of the electricity supply across the country had been restored, but some parts of the worst-affected Central Province were still without power and telephones.President Dissanayake declared a state of emergency on Saturday and has vowed to rebuild with international support.

Santosh Devi is proud to have brought light — and hope — to her hamlet in western India, taking up solar engineering through a programme for women like her whose husbands suffer chronic disease from mining work.Her husband is bedridden with silicosis, a respiratory illness caused by inhaling fine silica dust which is common across some 33,000 mines in Rajasthan state, where the couple and their four children live.Santosh, 36, has joined seven other women for a three-month course at Barefoot College in Tilonia, a two-hour drive from her village in the desert state’s Beawar district.There, the group learned the basics of solar engineering — installing panels, wiring them, and assembling and repairing lamps — to help light up homes and provide electricity for anything from charging phones to powering fans.With their sick husbands out of work, the training has allowed these women to make a living and support their families.Barefoot College has trained more than 3,000 women from 96 countries since it was set up in 1972, according to Kamlesh Bisht, the technical manager of the institute.The college offers rural women new skills with the aim of making them independent in an environment where jobs are scarce and healthcare generally inaccessible.Santosh, who is illiterate, said she wants to “offer a good education and a better future” to her children, aged five to 20.She now earns a small income by installing solar panels, and hopes to eventually make the equivalent of $170 a month.The time away from her family was tough, but Santosh said it was worth it.”At first, I was very scared,” she recalled. “But this training gave me confidence and courage.”She showed with enthusiasm the three houses where she had installed a photovoltaic panel powering lamps, fans and chargers.- Slow killer -Her husband used to cut sandstone for pavers exported around the world.But now he can barely walk, needs costly medication and relies on a meagre state allowance of $16 a month.Wiping away tears with the edge of her bright red scarf, Santosh said she has had to borrow money from relatives, sell her jewellery and mortgage her precious mangalsutra, the traditional Hindu wedding necklace, to make ends meet.The family share a similar fate with many others in Rajasthan state’s mining belt, where tens of thousands of people suffer from silicosis.According to pulmonologist Lokesh Kumar Gupta, there are between 5,000 and 6,000 cases in just a single district, Ajmer.In Santosh’s village of 400 households, 70 people have been diagnosed with silicosis, a condition that kills slowly and, in many cases, has no cure.An estimated 2.5 million people work in mines across Rajasthan, extracting sandstone, marble or granite for less than $6 a day.Those using jackhammers earn double but face even higher exposure to toxic dust.Vinod Ram, whose wife has also graduated from the Barefoot College course, has been suffering from silicosis for six years and struggles to breathe.”The medication only calms my cough for a few minutes,” said Vinod, 34, who now weighs just 45 kilos (99 pounds).He started mining at age 15, working for years without a mask or any other protective gear.- No choice but to work -His wife Champa Devi, 30, did not even know how to write her name when she arrived at Barefoot College in June.Now back home, at a village not far from Santosh’s, she is proud of her newfound expertise.But her life remains overshadowed by illness and poverty.Champa, who has dark circles under her eyes, has installed solar panels in four nearby homes but has not yet been paid.For now, she earns about 300 rupees ($3.35) a day working at construction sites — hardly enough to cover her husband’s medical bills, which come up to some $80 a month.The couple live in a single dark room with thin blankets covering the floor, and the near-contact sound of detonations from nearby mines.”There is no treatment for silicosis,” said pulmonologist Gupta.Early treatment can help, but most patients come only after five to seven years, he said.Under state aid schemes, patients receive $2,310 upon diagnosis, and their families get another $3,465 in the case of death.Ill miners, who are physically capable, sometimes continue to cut sandstone for a pittance to support their families, despite the dire health risks.Sohan Lal, a 55-year-old mine worker who suffers from shortness of breath and severe cough, sees no other option but to keep working.”If I were diagnosed, what difference would it make?” he said.

When Bahara was four months pregnant, she went to a Kabul hospital to beg for an abortion. “We’re not allowed,” a doctor told her. “If someone finds out, we will all end up in prison.”Abortion in Afghanistan is illegal and you can be locked up for having or assisting one. But Bahara was desperate. Her jobless husband had ordered her to “find a solution” — he did not want a fifth daughter.”We can barely afford to feed” the girls as it is, Bahara, 35, told AFP. “If it was a boy, he could go to school and work.” But there are no such prospects for a girl, with women banned from secondary schools, universities and most jobs since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.So Bahara took a neighbour’s advice and bought — for the equivalent of two dollars — a herbal tea at the market made from a type of mallow that induces contractions.The bleeding was so bad she had to go back to the hospital. “I told them that I had fallen, but they knew I was lying because I had no marks on my body. They were angry but did not report me,” said the mother-of-four. “They operated and removed the remains of the foetus. Since then I have felt very weak.”The plant she used can be “very risky”, said ethnobotanist Guadalupe Maldonado Andrade from the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. A wrong dose can cause organ damage and severe haemorrhaging. Bahara’s is not an isolated case.Two other women AFP talked to during our months-long investigation also risked their lives to abort. Nesa took tablets toxic to the embryo and Mariam crushed her stomach with a heavy stone.Of the dozen women AFP talked to about their clandestine abortions, only five agreed to be interviewed on condition we protected their anonymity and changed their names. Even outside Taliban circles, the fear of being stigmatised, and arrested, is strong in Afghanistan’s deeply conservative society.- More ‘miscarriages’ -With such a taboo, and no real statistics, Sharafat Zaman of the Afghan health ministry insisted “few” women are affected. The Taliban — who follow a strict interpretation of Islam — did not change the abortion laws when they returned to power in 2021.But officials check more often that terminations are not being carried out in hospitals, panicking doctors and pushing women to have abortions in secret, according to many health sector workers AFP interviewed.Several doctors said the number of miscarriages has increased since 2021, which they suspect may conceal clandestine abortions given the injuries patients present and their psychological state. Two international medical organisations also said they noticed the same trend, while access to contraception has become more difficult. “Budget constraints and the forced closure of family planning services endanger access to modern contraception,” a UN source told AFP, saying less than half of Afghan women have access to methods such as condoms, implants or pills.Afghanistan has one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the world, with young women banned from training as midwives or nurses in medical schools since last year.While health ministry spokesman Zaman acknowledged the dangers of clandestine abortions, and that some women face “problems”, he said it was not the government’s fault.Abortion is permitted when the life of a pregnant woman is in grave danger. However, in practice it is rarely granted. For the Taliban abortion is “taking a life”, Zaman said.- He didn’t want another girl -“Before (the Taliban’s return) we were able to perform more abortions, there were NGOs helping us and no government checks,” said a 58-year-old gynaecologist in Kabul. “Now doctors are afraid because if they check prescriptions at a pharmacy, it’s very dangerous” for them.Women are afraid to ask for a termination in hospital, she said, “so more are trying it at home, and then they go to hospital saying they have had a miscarriage.” Some pharmacies sell them the abortion drug misoprostol without a prescription, the doctor said.While some healthcare workers are compassionate, others can demand exorbitant sums in what is one of the world’s poorest countries.Nesa, a mother of eight daughters and one son, found out she was pregnant with another girl at four months.”I knew if my husband found out, he would throw me out. He thinks we do better with boys,” the 35-year-old farmer said.”I begged a clinic to help me. They asked for 10,000 Afghanis (130 euros), which I didn’t have. I went to the pharmacy without a prescription and they gave me a malaria drug, saying it would help.”The only antimalarial drugs available in Kabul pharmacies are chloroquine and primaquine, drugs that should not be used during pregnancy, according to the French agency for medicine safety (ANSM), because they are potentially toxic to the foetus.”I started bleeding and lost consciousness,” Nesa said. “I was taken to the hospital and I begged the doctors not to report me and they removed the remains of the foetus.”- Constant pain -Mariam, 22, had an affair. While abortion is a source of shame in Afghanistan and weighs on the entire family, sex outside marriage is often dangerous, sometimes leading to femicides known as “honour killings”. One month into her pregnancy, “my mother contacted a midwife, but she asked for too much money. So my mother brought me home, placed a very heavy stone on my belly and crushed my stomach. “I screamed and started bleeding,” Mariam said. “I went to the hospital and they told me the embryo was gone. Now I am depressed and constantly have stomach pain.”Only one third of women globally live in countries where abortion is allowed on demand, according to the US NGO Center for Reproductive Rights. Illegal abortions result in 39,000 deaths a year worldwide, it estimates. A Kabul midwife told AFP she feels “helpless and weak for not being able to help (women) more.” A gynecologist in the Nangarhar region in the east of the country was equally despairing. “I feel for these women — I vowed to help them by becoming a doctor. But we can’t,” she said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in India on Thursday for a two-day visit aimed at deepening defence ties, as New Delhi faces heavy US pressure to stop buying oil from Moscow.Prime Minister Narendra Modi was at the airport to welcome the Russian leader in person, greeting him on the red carpet with a hug, before riding together in the same car.Putin, on his first visit to India since the Ukraine war, is accompanied by his Defence Minister Andrei Belousov, with possible deals on fighter jets and air defence systems expected to be discussed.In an interview with India Today, Putin said he was “very happy” to be meeting “my friend” Modi.”The range of our cooperation with India is huge,” he said in remarks translated by the broadcaster, citing ship and aircraft manufacturing, nuclear energy and space exploration.The Indian premier said he was “delighted to welcome my friend, President Putin to India”.”Looking forward to our interactions later this evening and tomorrow,” Modi said in a post on X.He will host Putin for a private dinner on Thursday evening, followed by a summit meeting on Friday.”India-Russia friendship is a time tested one that has greatly benefitted our people,” Modi added, posting a picture of them from inside the car.Trade relations are expected to feature prominently as India walks a diplomatic tightrope — relying on strategic Russian oil imports while trying not to provoke US President Donald Trump during ongoing tariff negotiations.- Energy imports -Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said talks to expand the supply of Russia’s advanced S-400 air defence systems had an “important place on the agenda”.Indian media reports suggested Moscow may also offer co-production of Russia’s Su-57 fighter jets.India is one of the world’s top arms importers, and Russia has long been a principal supplier.But New Delhi has also sought alternative suppliers, as well as boosting domestic production — with the Russian share of India’s arms imports falling from 76 percent in 2009-13 to 36 percent in 2019-23, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.Putin’s visit comes after Trump imposed 50-percent tariffs on most Indian products in August, citing Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian oil — revenue Washington argues helps fund the war in Ukraine.India, the world’s most populous nation, has become a major buyer of Russian oil, saving itself billions of dollars and providing Moscow with a much-needed export market after it was cut off from traditional buyers in Europe because of the war.But Delhi has recently cut down on crude imports under pressure from sanctions on Russia’s top oil producers Rosneft and Lukoil.The Indian government fears any fresh energy or defence deals with Russia could irk Trump, with possible ramifications on trade negotiations with Washington.Peskov said Moscow wanted to “maintain and increase the volume of our bilateral business with India, without allowing anyone to interfere”.Nandan Unnikrishnan, of the New Delhi-based think-tank Observer Research Foundation, told AFP: “There may be some reduction in energy purchases — under US pressure — but the overall direction of the ties will be maintained because both countries need each other at the strategic level.”- ‘Critical moment’ -A senior Indian foreign ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was a need to address the trade imbalance “one way or the other”.Bilateral trade reached $68.7 billion in 2024-25 — almost six times higher than the pre-pandemic levels — but Indian exports accounted for only $4.88 billion.Delhi has been pressing Moscow for expanded market access for its key industries including pharmaceuticals, automobiles and the service sector.Harsh V Pant, a professor of international relations at King’s College London, said the visit was an attempt by the two countries “to reset their relationship at a critical geopolitical moment for both”.”For India, the optics is a statement of intent for strategic autonomy, and Putin, who rarely travels, is sending a message about the importance of the relationship by travelling here,” Pant told AFP.The Indian foreign ministry official described the ties between Moscow and Delhi as the “most stable relationship in modern times”.The official acknowledged the global geopolitical significance, but insisted that the meeting should be seen in the context as “just another annual summit”.The Russian president, in an interview shared by India Today on Thursday, acknowledged that the ongoing talks on Ukraine with the United States were complicated, but said they should be pursued.”This is a complex task and a challenging mission that President (Donald) Trump took upon himself,” Putin said in the remarks translated by the broadcaster.”Achieving consensus among competing parties is no easy task, but President Trump, truly, I believe — he sincerely tries to do this,” he added. “I think we should engage with this effort rather than obstruct it”.

Electrician V. K. Muthukrishnan ran to help when a lightning-fast mudslide flattened his neighbour’s home in rural Sri Lanka — only to see his own house swept away minutes later.A friend whom he directed to the disaster site to aid rescue efforts was also killed in the second cascade of mud and boulders.”I have nightmares, thinking that I sent my friend to his death,” a tearful Muthukrishnan said as he showed AFP reporters the wreckage of his modest home, destroyed on November 27.”But it could have been more.”AFP was among the first news outlets to enter the stricken central province of Kandy, where the main road had been cut off for over a week due to falling boulders and landslides.Reporters managed to get in when the road opened briefly on Thursday, before it shut again for urgent repairs.In picturesque Hadabima village, surrounded by mountains on one side and a river on the other, 24 people were buried in last week’s mudslides.That is a fraction of the national toll of 481 deaths, more than half in the tea-growing central hills. Heavy rains triggered by Cyclone Ditwah had saturated the mountainsides and made them unstable.- ‘A cemetery now’ -Tailor Adish Kumaran, 41, said his sister and brother-in-law were buried when they rushed to rescue a neighbour whose home was damaged.”They were also caught up in a second slide,” Kumaran told AFP, adding that six bodies had not yet been recovered.”This is a cemetery now. We don’t want to live in this village anymore,” he said.Nationwide, some 345 people remain missing, according to official figures.The government has said about 25,000 houses have been damaged or completely destroyed and has promised state help to rebuild.But the main agency dealing with the recovery effort says Sri Lanka will need up to $7 billion for the task, much of it from international donors.It is a vast sum for the island of 22 million people, still reeling from an economic meltdown in 2022.Tea factory worker Mariah Sivakumar, 39, said her immediate priority was her three school-going children.”All their books and clothes have been lost in the floods,” she said from a relative’s home after authorities warned her own house was at risk from a landslide.She said there was no way she and her husband — also a tea factory worker — could afford to buy new uniforms and textbooks for the children, let alone build a new house.- Unprecedented floods -In the nearby town of Gampola, dozens of young volunteers worked to clear up after the river burst its banks.Hundreds of families were sleeping at a local mosque, going out during the day to clean their homes, said cleric Faleeldeen Qadiri.”We have seen floods before, but nothing this severe,” he said.The state is providing shelter for over 170,000 people, while additional private donations pour in.A. M. Chandraratna, 70, owned a bed and breakfast overlooking the river in the town of Peradeniya.But his restaurant had been completely washed away, and he was left trying to salvage what he could.”I was born and brought up here,” he told AFP. “I thought I knew how this river behaves.”

Rain forecasts on Thursday raised fears of more damage in flood-hit Indonesia and Sri Lanka, after earlier deluges killed more than 1,500 people in four countries.In Indonesia, the weather agency warned the three hard-hit provinces on the island of Sumatra would see “moderate to heavy” rain between Thursday and Friday.The downpour started overnight and while it has not reached the same intensity as last week, it has frayed nerves in a region traumatised by flash floods and landslides.”We are afraid that if it rains suddenly, the flood will come again,” 54-year-old Sabandi told AFP at a shelter in Pandan, North Sumatra.The death toll in Indonesia rose to 836 on Thursday, with the majority killed in North Sumatra and Aceh provinces, national disaster mitigation agency spokesman Abdul Muhari told a press briefing.More than 800,000 people are displaced and over 500 remain missing, with patchy communications and electricity making it hard to confirm their whereabouts, the spokesman added.Sabandi, who goes by one name, said she was stranded on her roof for two days without food or water before she could evacuate.”My house was filled with mud,” she said — so high she couldn’t enter.- Losing sleep -Seasonal monsoons bring rainfall that farmers across Asia depend on, but climate change is making the phenomenon more erratic, unpredictable and deadly.Two separate weather systems drenched all of Sri Lanka, Sumatra, parts of southern Thailand and northern Malaysia last week.The scale of the disaster has made relief efforts challenging.In Indonesia’s Banda Aceh, an AFP reporter said the line for fuel at one gas station extended four kilometres (2.5 miles).The provincial governor led a relief group to the devastated Aceh Tamiang region late Wednesday, delivering 30 tons of necessities including drinking water, rice, instant noodles, biscuits, eggs and medicine, according to a statement.In nearby Langsa city, 49-year-old Erni sheltered with her family in an Islamic prayer hall after floods devastated their home.They had received enough drinking water and food aid to last a few days, but power outages and irregular access to clean water were making it difficult to clean up, Erni said.”The wardrobe, table, refrigerator — all are ruined,” she told AFP.”We honestly can’t sleep, constantly thinking about what if the flood comes again.”Elsewhere, survivors reported food shortages, price gouging and looting.- ‘This village is a cemetery’ -In Sri Lanka, forecasters said the northeast monsoon was due to arrive from Thursday afternoon.Landslide alerts were renewed for some of the worst-hit areas of the central Kandy region, and residents were advised not to return home as the saturated slopes could collapse under more rainfall.But some were searching for the missing on Thursday in the village of Hadabima, where 18 bodies have been pulled out of six homes flattened by landslides, survivor VK Muthukrishnan told AFP.Six people remained unaccounted for, the 42-year-old electrician said.”We can’t live here anymore because this village is now a cemetery,” Muthukrishnan said.At least 479 people have been killed in Sri Lanka, and hundreds remain missing, with the president appealing for international support.Authorities estimate they will need up to $7 billion to rebuild homes, industries and roads, a tough ask for a country still emerging from its worst-ever economic crisis three years ago.burs-sco/ami

Russian President Vladimir Putin was due in India on Thursday for a two-day visit aimed at deepening defence ties, as New Delhi faces heavy US pressure to stop buying oil from Moscow.Putin, on his first visit to India since the Ukraine war, is accompanied by his Defence Minister Andrei Belousov, with possible deals on fighter jets and air defence systems expected to be discussed.In an interview with India Today ahead of his trip, Putin said he was “very happy” to be meeting “my friend” Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”The range of our cooperation with India is huge,” he said in remarks translated by the broadcaster, citing ship and aircraft manufacturing, nuclear energy and space exploration.Modi is due to host Putin for a private dinner on Thursday evening, followed by a summit meeting on Friday.Beyond defence, trade relations are expected to feature prominently as India walks a diplomatic tightrope — relying on strategic Russian oil imports while trying not to provoke US President Donald Trump during ongoing tariff negotiations.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said talks to expand the supply of Russia’s advanced S-400 air defence systems had an “important place on the agenda”.Indian media reports suggested Moscow may also offer co-production of Russia’s Su-57 fighter jets.India is one of the world’s top arms importers, and Russia has long been a principal supplier.But New Delhi has also sought alternative suppliers, as well as boosting domestic production — with the Russian share of India’s arms imports falling from 76 percent in 2009-13 to 36 percent in 2019-23, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.- Energy imports -Putin’s visit comes after Trump imposed 50-percent tariffs on most Indian products in August, citing Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian oil — revenue Washington argues helps fund the war in Ukraine.India, the world’s most populous nation, has become a major buyer of Russian oil, saving itself billions of dollars and providing Moscow with a much-needed export market after it was cut off from traditional buyers in Europe because of the war.But Delhi has recently cut down on crude imports under pressure from sanctions on Russia’s top oil producers Rosneft and Lukoil.The Indian government fears any fresh energy or defence deals with Russia could irk Trump, with possible ramifications on trade negotiations with Washington.Peskov said Russia was not concerned about US tariffs.”What concerns us is how we are going to maintain and increase the volume of our bilateral business with India, without allowing anyone to interfere,” he said Tuesday at a briefing for Indian media organised by Sputnik India.Nandan Unnikrishnan, of the New Delhi-based think-tank Observer Research Foundation, told AFP: “There may be some reduction in energy purchases — under US pressure — but the overall direction of the ties will be maintained because both countries need each other at the strategic level.”- ‘Critical moment’ -A senior Indian foreign ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was a need to address the trade imbalance “one way or the other”.Bilateral trade reached $68.7 billion in 2024-25 — almost six times higher than the pre-pandemic levels — but Indian exports accounted for only $4.88 billion.Delhi has been pressing Moscow for expanded market access for its key industries including pharmaceuticals, automobiles and the service sector.Harsh V Pant, a professor of international relations at King’s College London, said the visit was an attempt by “to reset their relationship at a critical geopolitical moment for both”.”For India, the optics is a statement of intent for strategic autonomy, and Putin, who rarely travels, is sending a message about the importance of the relationship by travelling here,” Pant told AFP.The Indian foreign ministry official described the ties between Moscow and Delhi as the “most stable relationship in modern times”.The official acknowledged the global geopolitical significance, but insisted that the meeting should seen in the context as “just another annual summit”.

India are all in a spin after losing a scarcely believable 20 coin tosses in a row in one-day internationals — at odds of more than a million-to-one.Stand-in captain KL Rahul admitted he was flummoxed at the run of bad luck that goes all the way back to the 2023 World Cup final in Ahmedabad, when Rohit Sharma was in charge.”I’ve been practising, but clearly it’s not working,” said Rahul after losing the flip again in the second one-day international against South Africa in Raipur on Wednesday.The odds against losing 20 consecutive coin tosses are 1,048,576 to one, a statistical anomaly that Rahul wants to end in the third and final South Africa ODI on Saturday in Visakhapatnam.”Honestly, that’s the most pressure I’ve had because we haven’t won a toss in a long time,” Rahul said after seeing opposite number Temba Bavuma call correctly, yet again.Three Indian captains — Rohit, regular ODI skipper Shubman Gill and Rahul — have all tried and failed to win a toss since the last correct call against New Zealand on November 15, 2023, at the World Cup semi-final in Mumbai.”Rahul said that he’d been practising, but how do you know what the opposition captain is going to call?” batting great Sunil Gavaskar told broadcaster JioStar.”Because you know, for the first game, it was Aiden Markram who was captain. “So Markram might be a person who likes opting for ‘heads’, and Temba Bavuma might be a captain who likes to opt for ‘tails’.”Former South Africa pace bowler Dale Steyn said Faf du Plessis once asked Bavuma to toss for him after a lengthy losing sequence.”It’s the first time I have ever seen a captain ask one of the other players to come and do a toss,” said Steyn.”Temba also lost that toss.”

President Vladimir Putin is set to begin a two-day visit to India on Thursday, seeking to deepen defence ties even as New Delhi faces growing US pressure to stop buying Russian oil.The Russian leader, making his first trip to India since the start of the Ukraine war, will be accompanied by a delegation that includes his Defence Minister Andrei Belousov, with media reports saying a fighter jet deal may be on the table.Putin is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday for a private dinner, followed by a summit meeting and a business gathering the next day.Beyond defence, trade relations are expected to be on the agenda as Delhi treads a tightrope, relying on strategic Russian imports while seeking to avoid angering US President Donald Trump amid ongoing tariff negotiations.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the supply of Russia’s advanced S-400 air defence systems had an “important place on the agenda”.India currently has three S-400 units, with delivery of two more pending under a 2018 deal stalled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and ensuing Western sanctions.Media reports in India suggested Moscow may also offer co-production of Russia’s Su-57 fighter jets.India is one of the world’s top arms importers, with Russia being one of its main suppliers historically, but Delhi in recent years has sought to boost domestic production.The Russian share of India’s arms imports fell from 76 percent in 2009-13 to 36 percent in 2019-23, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.- Energy imports -Putin’s visit comes after Trump slapped 50 percent tariffs on most Indian products in August as punishment for Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil, which Washington claims helps finance the war in Ukraine.India, the world’s most populous nation, has become a major buyer of Russian oil, saving itself billions of dollars and providing Moscow with a much-needed export market after it was cut off from traditional buyers in Europe because of the war.But Delhi has recently cut down on crude imports under pressure from sanctions on Russia’s top oil producers Rosneft and Lukoil.The Indian government fears any fresh energy or defence deals with Russia could irk Trump, with possible ramifications on ongoing trade negotiations with Washington.Peskov said Russia was not concerned about US tariffs.”What concerns us is how we are going to maintain and increase the volume of our bilateral business with India without allowing anyone to interfere,” he said Tuesday at a briefing for Indian media organised by Sputnik India.Nandan Unnikrishnan of the New Delhi-based think-tank Observer Research Foundation told AFP: “There may be some reduction in energy purchases — under US pressure — but the overall direction of the ties will be maintained because both countries need each other at the strategic level.”Even if Delhi cuts back on its Russian energy purchases, Moscow would still remain a critical source of spares for the bulk of its legacy military hardware.- ‘Critical moment’ -A senior Indian foreign ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was a need to address the trade imbalance “one way or the other”.Bilateral trade reached $68.7 billion in 2024-25 — almost six times higher than the pre-pandemic levels — but Indian exports accounted for only $4.88 billion.Delhi has been pressing Moscow for expanded market access for its key industries including pharmaceuticals, automobiles and the service sector.Unnikrishnan said the visit by Putin — who last travelled to India in December 2021 — would provide the two leaders an opportunity to discuss the “global situation, as well as what is happening in Ukraine”.Harsh V Pant, a professor of international relations at King’s College London, said the visit was an “attempt by the two sides to reset their relationship at a critical geopolitical moment for both”.”For India, the optics is a statement of intent for strategic autonomy, and Putin, who rarely travels, is sending a message about the importance of the relationship by travelling here,” Pant told AFP.The Indian foreign ministry official described the ties between Moscow and Delhi as the “most stable relationship in modern times”.The official acknowledged the global geopolitical significance, but insisted that the meeting should “be seen in its bilateral context”.”This is just another annual summit between two countries with a steady relationship.”

New Delhi recorded more than 200,000 cases of acute respiratory illnesses at six state-run hospitals between 2022 and 2024, government numbers showed, highlighting the adverse effects of toxic air on health.Delhi, with its sprawling metropolitan region of 30 million residents, is regularly ranked among the world’s most polluted capitals.India’s health ministry told parliament on Tuesday that air pollution was one of the triggering factors for respiratory ailments.”Analysis suggests that increase in pollution levels was associated with increase in number of patients attending emergency rooms,” junior health minister Prataprao Jadhav said in a written reply.  More than 30,000 people with respiratory illnesses had to be hospitalised in the three years.Acrid smog blankets Delhi’s skyline each winter, when cooler air traps pollutants close to the ground, creating a deadly mix of emissions from crop burning, factories and heavy traffic.Levels of PM2.5 — cancer-causing microparticles small enough to enter the bloodstream — sometimes rise to as much as 60 times the UN’s daily health limits.A study in The Lancet Planetary Health last year estimated that 3.8 million deaths in India between 2009 and 2019 were linked to air pollution.The United Nations children’s agency warns that polluted air puts children at heightened risk of acute respiratory infections.The health ministry, however, added that air pollution could not alone be blamed for the hospitalisations.  “Health effects of air pollution are synergistic manifestation of factors which include food habits, occupational habits, socio-economic status, medical history, immunity, heredity, etc,” it said.