Modi Meets Finnish Prime Minister On Margins Of AI Summit

23 Feb 2026 CW Team

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi met with His Excellency Mr Petteri Orpo, Prime Minister of the Republic of Finland (the Finnish Prime Minister), in New Delhi on 18 February 2026 on the margins of the artificial intelligence (AI) Impact Summit. The meeting brought together leaders to discuss bilateral cooperation across technology and sustainability. The two leaders reviewed recent developments in India-European Union relations and bilateral ties.

Both leaders welcomed the recent conclusion of the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement (India-EU FTA) at the 16th India-European Union Summit and said the accord would act as a catalyst for shared progress and prosperity. They affirmed a commitment to continue efforts to further enhance bilateral relations in the spirit of the India-European Union Strategic Partnership (India-EU Strategic Partnership). The discussion identified opportunities to deepen economic engagement and investment.

The leaders underscored the pivotal role of digitalisation and sustainability in driving future economic growth and development and recognised the expanding presence of leading technology companies from each country through greater operations and partnerships. The Finnish Prime Minister expressed support for India's vision of just and inclusive artificial intelligence development and both sides called for doubling bilateral trade alongside greater technology collaboration. Areas for co-development identified included quantum technologies, sixth generation mobile technology (6G), renewable energy, circular economy approaches and defence cooperation.

They exchanged views on regional and global developments and on enhancing cooperation in global governance. The leaders looked forward to strengthening bilateral engagement and agreed to meet again at the third India-Nordic Summit later this year. The meeting concluded with a mutual emphasis on continued collaboration to advance shared strategic and economic objectives.

Infrastructure Transport

07 Apr 2026

Tunnelling Begins for Thane, Borivali twin tunnel project

Tunnelling work has commenced for the 11.84-km Thane–Borivali Twin Tunnel, set to be India’s longest urban road tunnel, marking a key milestone in Mumbai’s infrastructure development.As per a post shared by Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority on social media platform X, the tunnel boring machine (TBM) ‘Nayak’—the country’s largest single-shield hard rock TBM for an urban tunnel—was launched by Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday. The event was attended by Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, among other dignitaries. A second TBM, ‘Arjuna’, is expected to be launched so..

Large Format Store Planned At M G Road Metro Station

M G Road station in Bengaluru is set to host the city’s first large-format commercial and experience space, with planning led by Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited. BMRCL has invited proposals to develop and operate a central business district destination at the Purple?Pink Line interchange. The plan positions the station as a commercial hub designed to serve a broad commuter base across the city. The proposal is part of a broader effort to activate transit nodes commercially. Tender documents set a minimum monthly rental of Rs 0.944 million (mn), inclusive of GST, for the large-format..

Government Cancels Auction Of Eleven Critical Mineral Blocks

The government has cancelled the auction of 11 critical and strategic mineral blocks after receiving a poor investor response and failing to attract a sufficient number of qualified bidders. The decision represents a setback to plans to ramp up domestic exploration and production of critical minerals amid global supply chain disruptions and rising demand for materials used in clean energy and advanced technologies. The mines ministry issued an annulment notice setting out the reasons for the cancellations. The annulment notice indicated that the auction process for five mineral blocks was canc..