The Congress party has selected VD Satheesan as the next Chief Minister of Kerala, following the United Democratic Front's assembly election victory. The six-time MLA will take the oath of office on May 18. In international diplomacy, the US and Chinese Presidents met in Beijing to discuss global trade, Taiwan, and the reopening of the Hormuz Strait. Domestically, the CBI investigation into the NEET-UG paper leak has expanded across multiple states, including Maharashtra, where suspects like Shubham Khairnar were detained. Economic measures include the Indian government capping duty-free gold imports at 100 kilograms per licence and the Delhi government implementing a two-day work-from-home policy for employees. In Maharashtra, agricultural distress led an onion farmer to burn his crop after receiving low-price offers. Additionally, severe storms in Uttar Pradesh have resulted in over 100 fatalities.
In our 'Get Real India' segment, watch this story about how a farmer in Maharashtra's Chintaraj village in Dharashiv district set his entire onion stock of six hundred sacks on fire after traders offered a price of just one rupee per kilo for the produce.
US President Donald Trump's high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing concluded with optics of warmth but no major breakthroughs on the West Asia war, Taiwan, or trade.
After an eleven-day deadlock, the Congress high command has appointed a new Chief Minister for Kerala, ending intense lobbying and factional disputes.
The edition of India First covers significant global and domestic developments. At the BRICS Foreign Ministers meeting in Delhi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar emphasised the necessity of unimpeded maritime flows through the Strait of Hormuz and criticised unilateral sanctions.
