Todays top 15 news across the world for 19 December 2025 brings you 8 key India‑focused headlines and
🇮🇳 Oman Confers Highest Civilian Honour on PM Modi
As part of todays top 15 news across the world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Muscat has been marked by a major
diplomatic gesture as Oman conferred on him its highest civilian honour. The award recognises New Delhi’s
deepening strategic partnership with the Gulf kingdom in areas such as energy security, defence, logistics and the welfare
of a large Indian diaspora. Officials say the honour reflects Oman’s confidence in India as a long‑term partner at a time
when Gulf states are diversifying their economic ties and looking for reliable, stable allies beyond traditional Western
powers.
Source:
Leverage Edu – School Assembly News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 India and Oman Sign CEPA to Boost Trade and Mobility
India and Oman have signed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) in Muscat, aiming to expand duty‑free
trade and investment flows between the two countries over the coming decade. The pact is expected to open up
smoother access for Indian exports in sectors such as engineering goods, pharmaceuticals, food products and services, while
also easing mobility for professionals and blue‑collar workers. Analysts note that the deal strengthens India’s presence in
the Gulf supply chain and supports its ambition to become a manufacturing and services hub bridging Africa, West Asia and
the Indo‑Pacific.
Sources:
Leverage Edu – School Assembly News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
;
The Economic Times – School Assembly News, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 Parliament Passes VB‑G RAM G Bill Amid Protests
Parliament has passed the Viksit Bharat – Gram Rozgar Avsar Mapping and Guarantee (VB‑G RAM G) Bill, which
will replace the long‑running MGNREGA rural jobs scheme with a new framework promising up to 125 days of work. Supporters
in the government argue that the bill will modernise rural employment, link workers more closely with local asset creation
and plug leakages through tighter digital tracking. Opposition MPs, however, staged protests both inside and outside the
House, warning that the overhaul could dilute legal guarantees, reduce flexibility for states and erode a safety net that
millions of poor households rely on.
Sources:
India Today – School Assembly News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
;
The Indian Express – Today News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 Indian Railways Announces Passenger Relief for Year‑End Rush
With Christmas and New Year holidays triggering a spike in travel, Indian Railways has announced additional trains
and special passenger relief measures to ease congestion on key routes. The plan includes festival specials on
high‑demand corridors, extra coaches on popular trains and instructions to zones to closely monitor waiting lists to add
capacity wherever possible. Officials say the objective is to reduce ticket scarcity and curb overcharging by touts, while
also maintaining punctuality and safety amid dense fog in North India and heavy traffic across the network.
Source:
JagranJosh – School Assembly Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 Delhi Workers Protest Over Proposed Changes to Minimum Wages
In Delhi, trade unions and worker groups staged demonstrations against what they see as attempts to undermine
minimum‑wage protections through changes in calculation methods and enforcement rules. Protesters say the capital’s
rapid rise in living costs, especially housing and food, means any dilution of wage norms will hit informal and low‑income
workers hardest. They are demanding stronger labour‑law implementation, timely revisions linked to inflation and tougher
penalties for employers who underpay staff or misclassify full‑time workers as contractors to skirt legal obligations.
Source:
JagranJosh – School Assembly Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 Odisha BJP Urges CM to Roll Back MLA Salary Hike Proposal
In Odisha politics, the state BJP unit has urged Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to withdraw a proposal to hike MLAs’
salaries, arguing that such a move sends the wrong signal when many citizens are struggling with inflation and
unemployment. Party leaders say any additional resources should be directed towards farmers, youth employment schemes and
cyclone‑resilience projects rather than legislators’ pay packets. The debate reflects a wider national conversation about
political accountability and whether elected representatives should accept significant pay increases without stronger links
to performance and transparency.
Source:
The Indian Express – Today News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 Indian Food‑Delivery Sector Emerges as Major Economic Driver
A new analysis of India’s digital economy highlights the food‑delivery platform industry as one of the
fastest‑growing contributors to output and employment, fuelled by urban lifestyles and smartphone penetration. Platforms
connecting restaurants, cloud kitchens and gig‑economy couriers have created lakhs of jobs, including part‑time work for
students and migrants, while giving small eateries access to a wider customer base. Economists say the challenge now is to
balance flexibility with better social security for delivery workers, and to ensure that rising platform commissions do not
squeeze restaurant margins or lead to unsustainable discount wars.
Sources:
Leverage Edu – School Assembly News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
;
The Economic Times – School Assembly News, 19 Dec 2025
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🇮🇳 Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi Score Big Wins in Top‑Level Chess
Indian chess continues its golden run as grandmasters D. Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi notched impressive
victories in their latest international tournaments, strengthening India’s position among the world’s elite chess nations.
Their performances build on a wave of young talent that has emerged in recent years, inspired by Viswanathan Anand and
nurtured by online tournaments, academies and sponsorship support. Commentators say India’s depth in classical and rapid
formats now rivals traditional powerhouses, and that continued success could translate into more world‑title challenges and
greater mainstream popularity for the sport at home.
Source:
The Indian Express – Today News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🇪🇺 EU to Loan €90bn to Ukraine After Marathon Summit
In Brussels, European Union leaders have agreed to provide Ukraine with a €90 billion loan package for 2026–27,
ending days of tense negotiations and sending a signal that financial support for Kyiv will continue. The loan will be
funded through jointly issued EU bonds rather than direct use of frozen Russian assets, after member states failed to reach
consensus on the more controversial reparations‑style plan. European officials say the deal gives Ukraine greater budget
certainty for the next two years, though debates will continue over how to unlock profits from Russian reserves and how to
share the long‑term repayment burden.
Sources:
Bloomberg – EU Agrees to Use Joint Bonds to Loan €90 Billion to Ukraine
;
BBC – Ukraine War Live: EU agrees €90bn loan for Ukraine
;
CGTN Europe – EU secures €90bn loan for Ukraine
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🇷🇺 Putin Signals War Will Continue While Touting Battlefield Gains
At a marathon year‑end news conference in Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin touted battlefield gains
in eastern Ukraine and insisted that Russia would pursue its war aims, signalling that a quick political settlement remains
unlikely. He accused Western countries of “making Russia the enemy” and warned that continued arms supplies to Kyiv would
only prolong the conflict, even as he hinted that Moscow remained open to talks that recognise its territorial claims.
Analysts say the remarks are meant to project confidence at home and test Western unity just as the EU and US debate
long‑term funding packages for Ukraine.
Sources:
Euronews – Putin touts battlefield gains, signalling war in Ukraine will continue
;
Reuters – Putin sticks to Russian demands on Ukraine
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🇵🇰 Saudi Arabia Deports 56,000 Pakistani Beggars in 2025
Saudi Arabia has deported around 56,000 Pakistani nationals this year for involvement in organised
begging, according to figures shared with Pakistan’s parliament and reported by regional media. The deportees were largely
rounded up in holy cities such as Mecca and Medina, where authorities have cracked down on groups exploiting pilgrims and
misusing Umrah visas. The unprecedented scale of deportations has embarrassed Islamabad and prompted Gulf countries to
tighten visa scrutiny for Pakistani travellers, citing concerns about criminal networks and reputational damage.
Sources:
India Today – Saudi Arabia deports 56,000 Pak beggars
;
Republic World – 56,000 Pakistani Beggars Deported by Saudi Arabia
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🇵🇰 Pakistan Faces Global Scrutiny Over Organised Begging Networks
The Saudi deportations have shone a harsh spotlight on organised begging rackets operating out of Pakistan,
which send vulnerable people abroad on short‑term visas with the promise of easy money. Pakistani authorities told a
parliamentary panel that over 66,000 passengers were offloaded from outbound flights in 2025 after being flagged as likely
to join such gangs, yet many still managed to reach Gulf states and Europe. Critics say the phenomenon reflects deep
poverty, weak law enforcement and corruption at multiple levels, and warn that unless Islamabad cracks down on traffickers
and expands livelihood options at home, its citizens will face tighter travel curbs and stigma overseas.
Sources:
India Today – Saudi Arabia deports 56,000 Pak beggars
;
Pakistan Today – Over 50,000 Pakistanis deported for begging this year
;
NDTV – Saudi Arabia Deports 24,000 Pakistani Beggars
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🇪🇺 Europe Debates Risks of Not Using Frozen Russian Assets
Even after agreeing on the €90bn loan, European policymakers are still arguing over the unresolved question of
frozen Russian assets, which some had hoped to tap directly for Ukraine’s reconstruction. Commentaries note that
the EU’s failure to finalise a legally watertight scheme reflects concerns about financial stability, possible retaliation
and the precedent for other reserve‑holding states. Think‑tank reports warn that if Moscow ultimately escapes paying for
war damage while European taxpayers shoulder the bill, it could undermine the deterrent effect of sanctions in future
conflicts and erode domestic support for Ukraine‑related spending.
Sources:
The Economist – Europe finds €90bn for Ukraine – but not from Russia
;
ECFR – Seven things to know about the EU’s €90bn loan
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🇦🇺 Police Foil Planned Terror Attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach
Australian police say they have foiled a planned terror attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, arresting suspects
who allegedly intended to target large holiday crowds at the iconic coastal hotspot. The operation followed intelligence
monitoring of online activity and in‑person surveillance, and comes months after an earlier mass‑shooting incident at Bondi
was formally classified as a terrorist act. Authorities are using the case to justify expanded counter‑terrorism powers and
closer cooperation with social‑media platforms, even as civil‑liberties groups call for strong oversight of new surveillance
tools.
Source:
The Indian Express – Today News Headlines, 19 Dec 2025
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🌍 Global Markets Watch Ukraine Funding Deal and Gulf Migration Crackdown
Rounding off todays top 15 news across the world, global investors are closely watching the combination of the EU’s
long‑term loan for Ukraine and Gulf states’ migration crackdowns, seeing them as signals of how geopolitics will
shape capital flows and labour markets in 2026. The Ukraine package reassures markets that Kyiv will not face an immediate
fiscal cliff, even though uncertainty persists over the war’s trajectory and future sanctions policy. At the same time,
Gulf deportations of foreign workers involved in begging or informal labour highlight how host countries are becoming more
selective, which could affect remittance‑dependent economies like Pakistan and influence how South Asian governments manage
overseas employment.
Sources:
Bloomberg – EU Loan Deal for Ukraine
;
India Today – Gulf Deportations of Pakistani Beggars
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