India-US Trade Deal: Trump Announces Tariff Cuts on India, India to End Russian Oil Purchase

US President Donald Trump announced the new US-India trade deal on social media, stating that the US will slash the existing tariffs on Indian goods from 50% to 18% following a call with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in exchange for India halting its oil trade with Russia and potentially buying oil from the US and Venezuela, reported Reuters. 

India has also agreed to buy defence goods and aircraft from the U.S., while partly opening up its agriculture sector under a trade deal. According to Reuters, India has also agreed to lower tariffs on imported cars to address U.S. demands to conclude the first tranche of the deal.

Budget 2026-27: Centre plans dedicated  rare earth corridors, duty on RE, N-energy materials and critical minerals exempted 

Union budget 2026 announced dedicated rare earth corridors in Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to overcome global supply chain restrictions. This first-of-its-kind initiative has a financial outlay of  ₹7,280 crore aiming to establish 6,000 metric tonnes per annum of integrated rare earth permanent magnet manufacturing, HT reported. 

Centre provided Customs duty exemptions aimed at strengthening India’s critical minerals and clean energy infrastructure. The mineral-rich states will receive support to promote mining, processing, research and manufacturing of rare earths, HT reported, adding that the government will exempt customs duties on capital goods required for processing critical minerals and various renewable and nuclear energy materials. 

Union budget 2026-27: wildlife conservation schemes budget at ₹290 cr, up from ₹153 cr; afforestation budget at 170cr up from ₹124 cr

Wildlife conservation programmes, Project Elephant and Project Tiger, saw a combined allocation of Rs 290 crore, nearly double the Rs 153 crore recorded as revised estimate (RE) for 2025-26. Biodiversity conservation saw an outlay of Rs 10 crore, a nearly three-fold rise from last year’s RE of Rs 4 crore. Allocation of the Green India Mission-National Afforestation Programme rose to Rs 170 crore from the Rs 124 crore recorded as RE for 2025-26. The National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board has been allocated Rs 4.99 crore, up from Rs 3.2 crore marked as RE for 2025-26, DTE reported. 

The outlet added that the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) also saw a rise in outlay at Rs 32.18 crore, as against last year’s RE of Rs 25.16 crore. This is, however, a drop from 2025-26 of Rs 36.75 crore. The report pointed out that the 

The budget for forest fire prevention and management has increased to Rs 40 crore, from RE 2025-26 of Rs 33.25 crore. The budget estimate for 2025-26 was Rs 50 crore.

“Mother of all deals” India-EU Free Trade Agreement locks in market access, but climate compliance looms large

India and the European Union (EU) have concluded talks for a long-anticipated free trade agreement (FTA) expected to double bilateral trade—currently at €124 billion ($136 billion)—within five years, reported Carboncopy. 

The deal, dubbed as  the “mother of all deals”,  will give preferential entry for 99 percent of Indian goods exported to the EU apart from allowing opportunities for skilled & semi-skilled Indians. It also unlocks €4 billion ($4.4 billion) in annual tariff savings and will slash tariffs up to 10 percent on India’s goods worth $33 billion, according to the government. This offers India strategic insulation against a renewed wave of US tariffs under a second Trump administration, while for the EU, it secures long-term access to a growing consumer and industrial market at the center of the Indo-Pacific, the report said. 

The DTE reported that the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), the world’s first carbon tariff on imports also surfaced during the negotiations. 

CBAM, currently in a transitional phase, is expected to become fully operational in 2026 and could impose additional compliance costs of $2-4 billion annually on Indian exporters, particularly in carbon-intensive sectors such as steel, aluminium and cement.

India made CBAM a key issue during negotiations, and the agreement reflects partial safeguards. According to a statement by the Centre, CBAM-related provisions include a forward-looking most-favoured nation assurance, ensuring that any flexibilities extended to third countries will also apply to India.

Great Nicobar tribes’ elected body allege they are being pressured  to ‘give up’ villages for mega project

Members of the elected Tribal Council of Great Nicobar rejected  the Andaman and Nicobar administration’s proposal to give up claims to some of the villages in which they used to live before the 2004 tsunami –– because the old villages are an integral part of their culture and heritage, reported the HT. 

In a press meeting members referred to a January 7 meeting at Andaman Public Works Department Guest House in Campbell Bay with the UT’s administration, which included officials from the deputy commissioner’s office and the Andaman Adim Janjati Vikas Samiti (AAJVS), a registered society monitoring and overseeing the welfare and protection of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs). The Tribal Council members who addressed the press include: Barnabas Manju, Chairman, Tribal Council; Titus Peter, 1st Captain, Pulo Bhabi; Hosie Phillp, 2nd Captain, Pulo Bhabi and Burnet, resident, Chingenh.

The council members said they were verbally told to issue a “surrender certificate” for some ancestral villages. The land of these villages will be utilised for the Great Nicobar Holistic Development project which has four major components: an International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICCT); an international airport; a power plant; and a township, for which an area of 166.10 sqkm is required. Of this, forest area is about 130.75 sqkm and tribal land is 84.10 sqkm. The total cost of the project is estimated at  ₹81,800 crore, the newspaper reported. 

India’s per capita power use to grow to 4,000kWh by 2047 says Draft policy, requiring over 10% GDP growth per year

India’s per-capita consumption of electricity will increase from 1,395 units (kilo watt hour or kWh) in 2023-24 to 2000 units by 2030 and over 4,000 units by 2047, when India is a $30 trillion economy, says the draft National Electricity Policy 2026, reported the HT ,adding that this will require the country’s GDP to grow by over 10% a year.

The newspaper said citing the policy draft that coal will continue to play a significant role in meeting base load demand, and ensure the country’s energy security. Existing coal-based plants, wherever feasible, should be retrofitted to enable flexible operation and equipped with storage systems to support integration of variable renewable energy, it said.

By 2047, over 80% of the installed capacity and nearly two thirds of total electricity generation in the country will be from non-fossil sources, according to the draft. The share of electricity in total energy consumption is also projected to double. Variable renewable energy (VRE), primarily solar and wind, now account for around 37% of the total installed generation capacity in India. However, their intermittent nature necessitates integration with firm sources and energy storage systems.

National Wildlife Board clears 17 Defence projects: Centre

The standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife cleared 17 defence-related proposals, primarily located in the Union Territory of Ladakh and the State of Sikkim, relating to strategic infrastructure in border and high-altitude areas, the union environment ministry said, reported the HT. 

The outlet said the government considered 70 proposals relating to public utility services, defence requirements and infrastructure development located in and around Protected Areas, Wildlife Sanctuaries, Tiger Reserves and Eco-Sensitive Zones, in accordance with the provisions of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.

China: Nation voices concerns over EU’s discriminatory label on Chinese firms

China’s commerce ministry has expressed “grave concerns” and “firm opposition” to an EU proposal to label certain Chinese tech firms as “high-risk suppliers” and restrict them from critical sectors, including energy, reported China Daily. The proposal, part of revisions to the EU’s cybersecurity act, may include Chinese-made solar inverters, although this has not been confirmed.].  Global Times urged the EU to “seriously consider” closer cooperation, highlighting that China and the EU played a “significant leading role in addressing global challenges, such as climate change and biodiversity conservation”. 

Dutch government discriminated against Bonaire islanders over climate adaptation, court rules

A court in the Hague ruled that the Dutch government “discriminated against people in one of its most vulnerable territories” by not helping them to adapt to climate change, reported the Guardian. The court ordered the Netherlands to “develop a proper adaptation plan for Bonaire and put in place tougher greenhouse gas targets.” The newspaper said: “The court ruled that the government was breaching articles eight and 14 of the European convention on human rights, which protect the right to respect for private and family life and prohibit discrimination.” The Associated Press said the court “ruled that the government discriminated against the island’s 20,000 inhabitants by not taking ‘timely and appropriate measures’ to protect them from climate change before it’s too late”.