Mon Jan 06 01:33:25 UTC 2025: ## India-France Finalizing Major Defence Deals; Political Tensions and Health Concerns Dominate Headlines

**New Delhi, January 6, 2025** – India and France are on the verge of finalizing significant defense agreements, including the purchase of Rafale fighter jets and Scorpene submarines, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s anticipated visit to Paris in February. This development comes amidst a flurry of other significant news from across India.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar reiterated his regret over his past alliances with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), stating he made a “mistake twice” and will not repeat it. This follows RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s recent overtures to include Kumar in the INDIA bloc.

In other news, a senior Hezbollah official revealed that the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike last year. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is navigating a delicate balance between upholding farmers’ leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal’s right to protest through a hunger strike and the state’s responsibility to preserve his life. Several farm outfits are calling for Prime Minister Modi’s intervention in the matter.

Delhi-NCR has seen the revocation of stage 3 curbs under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) due to improved air quality. A political spat erupted between the BJP and Congress over the issue of Chinese annexation of Indian territory, with the BJP blaming the Congress for past incursions during Jawaharlal Nehru’s tenure.

The political scene continues to heat up ahead of Delhi’s Assembly elections, with Prime Minister Modi launching a scathing attack on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) at a BJP rally, while AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal responded in kind.

Furthermore, the Centre has urged all states to quarantine animals potentially infected with bird flu after the recent deaths of a tiger and leopard in Maharashtra, marking India’s first case of avian influenza among animals. Finally, Independent MLA P.V. Anvar was arrested following a day-long standoff related to a tribal youth’s death in an elephant attack.

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