Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday had a conversation with Nepal’s Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) chairman Rabi Lamichhane and Balendra Shah, who is poised to lead the next government in the Himalayan nation.. PM Modi on Monday spoke with Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) chairman Rabi Lamichhane and Balendra Shah. (PTI). In a social media post, PM Modi said he congratulated both leaders on their electoral victories and RSP’s resounding success in the Nepal elections.. “Had warm telephone conversations with Mr. Rabi Lamichhane, Chairman of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and Mr. Balendra Shah, Senior Leader of the RSP,” Modi said in post on X.. He added that he conveyed India’s commitment to work with Nepal’s new government for the prosperity and well-being of both the nations.. “Congratulated both leaders on their electoral victories and RSP’s resounding success in the Nepal elections. Conveyed my best wishes for their forthcoming new Government and India’s commitment to work with them for mutual prosperity, progress and well-being of our two countries,” he wrote.. “I am confident that with our joint endeavours, India and Nepal relations will scale new heights in the years ahead,” he added.. Also read: What Balen Shah’s win in Nepal means for New Delhi. Modi’s conversation with the RSP leaders come days after Nepal held its general elections last week on Thursday, March 5 , after the country’s government was ousted as a result of widespread protests led by the youth of the country.. 35-year-old rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah’s RSP emerged as the biggest winner with a landslide victory, pointing to Nepal’s shift from the traditional “old guard” parties.. The results of Nepal’s elections were reflective of its population’s frustration with issues such as political instability, corruption and youth unemployment.. In regards to India, the RSP has maintained that it intends to have strong relations with both its neighbours but aims to remain independent of any direct influence.. Balendra Shah also has a personal connection with India as he hails from Madhesi community and did his Masters in structural engineering from Karnataka. 

 India on Monday issued an advisory for citizens in Iran, warning them against travelling outside the country without coordinating with the Indian Embassy in Tehran, as the conflict in West Asia entered its second week.. The Indian Embassy’s advisory noted that once any Indian national crosses Iranian territory and is unable to enter a third country, the embassy will not be able to provide assistance. (AFP). The embassy also asked Indian nationals to not go near any land border without explicit guidance.. “Indian nationals are hereby advised not to approach any of the land borders of Iran for travel outside the country without prior coordination with the Embassy. Any movement towards land border points should be undertaken only after obtaining explicit guidance from the Embassy,” the Embassy said in the advisory on Monday, March 9.. Further, the advisory also noted that once any Indian national crosses Iranian territory and is unable to enter a third country, the embassy will not be able to provide assistance.. “It may please be noted that the Embassy will not be in a position to extend assistance once individuals have exited Iranian territory and are unable to enter the third country concerned,” it said before mentioning emergency contact helplines for Indian nations in Iran which includes mobile numbers — +98 912 810 9115, +98 912 810 9102, +98 912 810 9109, +98 993 217 9359 — and email: cons.tehran@mea.gov.in. India’s fresh advisory for its nationals in Iran comes as the condition in the country remains volatile even though the Islamic Republic got its new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the assassinated Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.. United States President Donald Trump, as expected, called Mojtaba’s elevation as Iran’s new Supreme Leader ‘unacceptable’ and has demanded Iran’s unconditional surrender.. With no de-escalation in the ongoing war in sight even with appointment of Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Iran’s defence council said in a statement, “We will obey the commander-in-chief until the last drop of our blood.” 

 The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Monday released the first National Highways Green Cover Index (NH-GCI), establishing a baseline for measuring vegetation along the country’s highway network using satellite-based assessment.. The first assessment cycle has covered around 30,000 kilometres of national highways across 24 states. (Image sourced from Doordarshan). Subsequent annual cycles will track year-on-year changes along the same highway stretches, enabling monitoring of improvements in roadside vegetation over time, NHAI said in a statement.. The index was prepared in coordination with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) after a memorandum of understanding was signed by both agencies in January 2024 to develop a scientific and quantitative framework for assessing plantations along national highways.. The index uses high-resolution satellite sensors to detect chlorophyll content along highway corridors, enabling an estimate of vegetation within the right of way on both sides of the road.. The first assessment cycle has covered around 30,000 kilometres of national highways across 24 states for the period between July and December 2024.. Also Read: NHAI to build bridge, 2 km road to ease traffic at Masani Barrage. According to NHAI, the index is a technology-based approach for macro-level estimation of green cover along highways and could help identify stretches with relatively lower vegetation levels where plantation management may require attention. The framework also enables comparison and ranking of highway sections based on green cover. It said the use of satellite data offers a cost-effective and time-efficient method for monitoring vegetation along the expanding national highway network.. The release of the NH-GCI report follows NHAI’s publication of its sustainability report in July 2025, which outlined the agency’s sustainability initiatives and environmental performance across highway development and operations site. 

 India’s Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Monday postponed Class 12 board exams scheduled from March 12 to 16 in several West Asian countries amid the Iran–US–Israel conflict and will review the situation on March 14 before deciding on exams from March 16 onwards.. Riyadh in Saudi Arabia has seen damage as Iran retaliates to US-Israeli conflict by attacking their bases in its neighbouring countries. (Reuters Photo). Follow: Live updates on the US-Iran conflict. In its fifth circular since March 1, CBSE said that after a “critical review of the current situation” in parts of the Middle East (or West Asia), including Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the board has decided to postpone the examinations. The board stated that “the new dates shall be announced later”.. “The board will review the situation on March 14 and take appropriate decisions with regard to examinations scheduled from March 16 onwards,” said CBSE controller of exams Dr Sanyam Bhardwaj in the latest circular, which lists the Indian ambassadors to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iran, as well as the consul general of India in Dubai, among those copied for information and necessary action.. In the fourth circular dated March 7, CBSE had postponed Class 12 board exams scheduled from March 9 to 11. In its third circular dated March 5, 2026, the board cancelled all Class 10 examinations scheduled from March 2 to March 11 and stated that it will later notify the mode of result declaration for thousands of affected students.. There are over 150 CBSE-affiliated schools in West Asia.. In the same circular, the board had postponed the Class 12 examination scheduled on Saturday, March 7.. In its first and second circulars dated March 1 and 3, CBSE had postponed board examinations scheduled on March 2, March 5 and March 6.. “All students are advised to remain in close contact with their schools and follow official announcements carefully,” Bhardwaj said in the latest circular.. The UAE and Saudi Arabia, in particular, host a large number of Indian expatriate families, and CBSE schools there account for a significant share of overseas candidates appearing for the board examinations each year.. CBSE conducts the Class 10 and 12 board exams annually in India and at select foreign centres where its affiliated schools operate.. The Gulf region constitutes the largest overseas cluster of CBSE schools, with Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Riyadh among examination hubs.. The postponements and cancellations mark a rare mid-session disruption to overseas board examinations. In recent years, the CBSE altered schedules mainly during extraordinary circumstances, most notably in 2020 and 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic.. In isolated cases, the board has also deferred exams in specific centres due to extreme weather, local emergencies or security-related concerns, while maintaining the broader national time 

 An Iranian missile attack on Israel on Sunday resulted in an Indian national getting injured and undergoing surgery in Tel Aviv.. Israeli security forces inspect an area damaged during an airstrike in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (AP). This came on the ninth day of the war between the Israel-US alliance and Iran, which began on February 28, and has since almost escalated into a full-blown regional war in West Asia.. The Indian man was critically injured after shrapnel from an Iranian missile struck him in the neck. He underwent surgery at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv and is now in stable condition.. “He arrived yesterday in critical condition with a neck injury. The medical team at Ichilov fought to save his life, and he underwent a long surgery. Thankfully, he is now stabilising,” a spokesperson for the hospital told news agency PTI.. The officials quoted in the report said that the Indian Embassy in Tel Aviv “is monitoring the situation and visited the hospital to check on his well-being.. The Embassy is also in touch with Indian nationals in Israel regularly amid the ongoing hostilities in the region, the officials elaborated.. So far, at least 11 people have died in Israel due to Iranian missile attacks, with Iran not letting up the barrage even though Tel Aviv claimed that its forces destroyed most of Tehran’s missile launchers.. After the Saudi Arabian authorities on Sunday said that an Indian national was among the two people who died as the military projectile struck a residential compound belonging to a maintenance and cleaning company in Al-Kharj, the Indian Embassy in the country clarified that there was no Indian fatality in the incident.. “It is a matter of relief that there has been no Indian fatality in the unfortunate incident at Al Kharj yesterday evening,” the mission said in a social media post.. The embassy added that an Indian national injured in the incident on Sunday is undergoing treatment at a government hospital.. The embassy said it has been in touch with the concerned Saudi authorities regarding the matter, adding that Counsellor (Community Welfare) Y Sabir visited Al-Kharj on Sunday night and met the injured Indian national involved in the incident.. The Saudi Civil Defence also clarified that the person initially believed to be Indian was actually a Bangladeshi national.. “After completing all final procedures, it has been determined that the two fatalities are of Bangladeshi nationality, (11) injured persons of Bangladeshi nationality, and (1) injured person of Indian nationality,” it said in a post on X.. Starting February 28, the US and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran, which came after days of build-up with US President Donald Trump ramping up the pressure on Tehran to agree to a new deal on its nuclear programme. Iran’s retaliation escalated the war to the entire Gulf region.