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Centre issues new Immigration and Foreigners

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(Exemption) Order, 2025

The Central Government has notified the Immigration and Foreigners (Exemption) Order, 2025, pointing out some major exemptions from requirements related to valid passports, travel documents, and visas for specific categories of individuals and carriers. Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notified the Immigration and Foreigners (Exemption) Order, 2025, exercising powers under Section 33 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025. The new order supersedes the Registration of Foreigners (Exemption) Order, 1957 and the Immigration (Carriers' Liability) Order, 2007, except in cases where actions had already been taken under those provisions. The order, which came into force with its publication, defines some exemptions from the provisions of sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) of section 3 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 and rules 7, 8 and 9 of the rules with regard to requirement of valid passport or other valid travel document and valid visa for entry into, stay in and exit from India.

Over 400 Himalayan glacial lakes expanding, need

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vigorous monitoring

 More than 400 glacial lakes within India are showing worrying expansion trends and demand vigorous monitoring for disaster purposes, the Central Water Commission (CWC) has revealed in its latest monitoring report. In the monthly monitoring report of Glacial Lakes and Water Bodies for June 2025 which was recently made public, the CWC said 432 glacial lakes spread across Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh have been flagged for vigorous monitoring because of their potential to unleash sudden and destructive floods. According to the CWC report, the total glacial lake area in India has grown by over 30 per cent since 2011 -- rising from 1,917 hectares to 2,508 hectares. There is a 30.83% increase in area. (Out of 100GLs, only 55 GLs were considered for this interpretation. The remaining lakes include 40 SDC lakes which have no inventory details as well as lakes which were not analysed/have been merged during the month of June, 2025.)," the report said. Arunachal Pradesh accounts for the highest number of expanding lakes (197), followed by Ladakh (120), Jammu and Kashmir (57), Sikkim (47), Himachal Pradesh (6) and Uttarakhand (5). Stressing the need for urgent preparedness, the CWC recommended the installation of real-time monitoring systems, satellite-based alerts and early-warning mechanisms for downstream communities. It also called for closer coordination between the Ministry of Jal Shakti, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and state disaster management authorities, alongside transboundary cooperation with Nepal, Bhutan and China, given that many expanding lakes lie across borders but feed Indian rivers. 

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