Source: THE HINDU

Trump gives Elon Musk Oval Office sendoff, crediting him with ‘colossal change’

President Donald Trump bid farewell to Elon Musk in the Oval Office on Friday (May 31, 2025), providing a cordial conclusion to a tumultuous tenure for the billionaire entrepreneur. Mr. Musk is leaving his position spearheading the Department of Government Efficiency, and he’ll be rededicating himself to running his businesses, including electric automaker Tesla, rocket company SpaceX and social media platform X.

Trump administration orders extra vetting of all visa applicants linked to Harvard University

The U.S. State Department ordered all its consular missions overseas to begin additional vetting of visa applicants looking to travel to Harvard University for any purpose, according to an internal cable seen by Reuters on Friday (May 30, 2025), in a move that significantly expands President Donald Trump’s crackdown against the academic institution.

Trump says he plans to double steel tariffs to 50%

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday (May 30, 2025) said he planned to increase tariffs on foreign imports of steel from 25% to 50%, ratcheting up pressure on global steel producers and vowing to deepen his trade war. “We are going to be imposing a 25% increase. We’re going to bring it from 25% to 50% the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States,” he said at a rally in Pennsylvania.

Supreme Court lets Trump end humanitarian parole for 5,00,000 people from 4 countries

The Supreme Court on Friday (May 30, 2025) again cleared the way for the Trump administration to strip temporary legal protections from hundreds of thousands of immigrants, pushing the total number of people who could be newly exposed to deportation to nearly 1 million.

French Open: Defending champion Alcaraz labors into fourth round

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz reached the fourth round of the French Open after labouring past Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the Friday (May 30, 2025) night session. The second-seeded Spaniard had never before played Dzumhur, a 33-year-old Bosnian who had never been past the third round at any major tournament.

Additional instalment of tax devolution to be released to States on June 2: Finance Ministry

The government on Friday (May 30, 2025) approved an additional instalment of ₹81,735 crore as tax devolution to States, which will be released on June 2. This release is in addition to the regular monthly instalment of tax devolution of ₹81,735 crore, which will be released on June 10, 2025.

LCA fighter planes production will be increased for timely deliveries to IAF: HAL CMD Sunil

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Chairman and Managing Director D. K. Sunil said that the production of the indigenous fighter aircraft Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk1A will be increased to ensure timely deliveries to the Indian Air Force (IAF) with the establishment of a fourth production line here in Hyderabad.

India will never give in to nuclear blackmail: Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday (May 30, 2025) asserted that India will never give in to “nuclear blackmail.” Speaking at a convocation ceremony of foreign students of Parul University in Vadodara, Mr. Jaishankar also said it was imperative that those who sponsor, nurture and utilize the “service of terrorism” pay a high cost.

Rising ‘black carbon’ heating Himalayan snow: Study

Levels of black carbon — ultra-fine particles of carbon that come from vehicles, stoves and wood-fire — in the Himalayas have been rising for most of the past two decades, according to a study by the think-tank Climate Trends. This is contributing to warmer snow, increasing the risk of unseasonal flooding by glacier-fed rivers, it said.

Pakistan announces to upgrade ties with Afghanistan, appoint Ambassador to Kabul

 Pakistan on Friday (May 30, 2025) announced to upgrade its diplomatic ties with Afghanistan and appoint an Ambassador to the country, a major indicator of improvement in ties between the two neighbours.

GDP growth slows to 6.5% in 2024-25, slowest since the pandemic

While a significant uptick in economic activity in the fourth quarter of financial year 2024-25 pushed GDP growth for the full year to 6.5%, as per the provisional estimates for 2024-25 released by the government on Friday (May 30, 2025), this is the slowest since the pandemic year 2020-21. As per data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, real GDP growth in Q4 of 2024-25 accelerated to 7.4%, the fastest quarterly growth in the year. Quarterly GDP growth stood at 6.4% in Q3. Nevertheless, growth in Q4 of 2024-25 was slower than the 8.4% seen in the fourth quarter of the previous financial year. The agriculture sector continued its strong performance in Q4, leading to a relatively strong showing for the full year.

Justices Anjaria, Vijay Bishnoi, Chandurkar take oath as Supreme Court judges

The Supreme Court got three new judges in Justices N.V. Anjaria, Vijay Bishnoi and A.S. Chandurkar, who were sworn in by Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai in a short ceremony on Friday (May 30, 2025). The swearing-in ceremony had only about half the Supreme Court judges seated on the dais, but the new judges take the number of judges of the court to its sanctioned strength of 34. This would continue until the retirement of Justice Bela M. Trivedi in a few days, on June 9. Justices Anjaria, Bishnoi and Chandurkar were welcomed with warm handshakes by Chief Justice Gavai after they were read their oath of office.

Shashi Tharoor ‘disappointed’ that Colombia expressed sympathies with Pakistan during Operation Sindoor

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has said India was disappointed with the Colombian government for expressing condolences over the loss of lives in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, rather than sympathising with the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack. The Congress MP, who is leading a multiparty delegation to Colombia, said India was only exercising its right to self-defence. “We were a little disappointed in the reaction of the Colombian government, which apparently expressed heartfelt condolences on the loss of lives in Pakistan after the Indian strikes, rather than sympathising with the victims of terrorism,” he said.

U.S. proposes 60-day ceasefire for Gaza; Hamas to review plan

A U.S. plan for Gaza seen by Reuters on Friday (May 30, 2025) proposes a 60-day ceasefire and the release of 28 Israeli hostages alive and dead in the first week and the release of 125 Palestinian prisoners sentenced to life and the remains of 180 dead Palestinians. The plan, which says it is guaranteed by U.S. President Donald Trump and mediators Egypt and Qatar, includes sending aid to Gaza as soon as Hamas signs off on the ceasefire agreement. The plan stipulates that Hamas will release the last 30 hostages once a permanent ceasefire is in place. The White House said on Thursday (May 29, 2025) that Israel has agreed to the U.S. ceasefire proposal. The Palestinian militant group Hamas told Reuters it was reviewing the plan and will respond on Friday or Saturday (May 30 or 31, 2025.)

Pakistan enacts law to curb child marriages

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday (May 30, 2025) signed into law a bill fixing the minimum age for marriage at 18 years to curb child marriages despite opposition from right-wing clerics. The Islamabad Capital Territory Child Marriage Restraint Bill, seeking to protect the rights of children and eventually eradicate marriages of children under the age of 18, was sent to the President’s approval on May 27 after sailing through both houses of Parliament. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Sherry Rehman shared on X a presidential notification related to the approval of the legislation. “The Islamabad Capital Territory Child Marriage Restraint Bill, 2025 is assented to, as passed by the Parliament,” the notification read.

Japan to give $1.06 billion to Bangladesh in budget support, says Dhaka

Japan will provide $1.063 billion in support to Bangladesh for budget assistance, railway upgrades and education, Dhaka said on Friday (May 30, 2025), as interim head Muhammad Yunus visits Tokyo to strengthen ties between the two countries. The package includes $418 million as a development policy loan to Bangladesh to help with economic reforms and climate resilience, Mr. Yunus’ press office said in a statement. Japan Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Friday (May 30, 2025) met with Nobel Peace laureate Yunus, who took over as interim head of the South Asian country last August.

France to ban smoking at beaches, parks and outside schools to protect children

“France plans to ban smoking on beaches, in parks, outside schools and in other locations from July to protect children,” the government said. The ban, which follows similar measures across an increasingly smoking-averse Europe, will exempt cafe outdoor terraces and will not apply to electronic cigarettes. “Where there are children, tobacco must disappear,” Health and Families Minister Catherine Vautrin said in an interview with the Ouest France newspaper late on Thursday (May 29, 2025). “From July 1, beaches, public parks and gardens, school areas, bus shelters, and sports facilities will be smoke-free throughout France. Smoking will therefore be prohibited there, to protect our children.”

Trump holds Pennsylvania rally to promote deal for Japan-based Nippon to ‘partner’ with U.S. Steel

President Donald Trump is holding a rally in Pennsylvania on Friday (May 30, 2025) to celebrate a details-to-come deal for Japan-based Nippon Steel to invest in the U.S. Steel, which he says will keep the iconic American steelmaker under U.S. control. Though Mr. Trump initially vowed to block the Japanese steelmaker’s bid to buy Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel, he changed course and announced an agreement last week for what he described as “partial ownership” by Nippon. It’s not clear, though, if the deal his administration helped broker has been finalised or how ownership would be structured. Mr. Trump stressed the deal would maintain American control of the storied company, which is seen as both a political symbol and an important matter for the country’s supply chain, industries like auto manufacturing and national security.