FirstUp: Jaishankar in Ireland, Emergency EU Summit in Brussels and other news today

Today is Thursday (March 6) and a lot is lined up.

External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar will travel to Ireland and meet his Irish counterpart, Simon Harris.

The leaders of the 27 European Union countries are holding an emergency summit today to discuss additional support for Ukraine and Europe’s security guarantees and how to pay for European defence needs.

Intuitive Machines’ Athena lunar lander is also set to land on the Moon’s south polar region.

Here’s how the day will unfold.

EAM Jaishankar in Ireland

External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar will travel to Ireland and meet his Irish counterpart, Simon Harris, along with other officials and members of the Indian diaspora.

According to reports, he will open a new Indian consulate general in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

He is also expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for diplomat exchange programme.

Emergency EU summit on Ukraine and defence in Brussels

The leaders of the 27 European Union countries are holding an emergency summit today to discuss additional support for Ukraine and Europe’s security guarantees and how to pay for European defence needs.
European Council President Antonio Costa speaks as he gives a press statement with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Brussels, Belgium February 12, 2025. Reuters
European Council President Antonio Costa, is convening the summit in Brussels.

The summit comes as US President Donald Trump has started talks with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine, but without inviting Ukraine or the European Union to the table.

MoS for External Affairs to visit Nicaragua

Minister of State for External Affairs and Textiles, Pabitra Margherita, who is currently on his last leg of the four-nation visit, will be in Nicaragua.

During his first-ever visit to the nation, he is expected to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts.

Private Athena moon lander expected to touchdown

Intuitive Machines’ Athena lunar lander is set to land on the Moon’s south polar region on Thursday.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Launch Complex-39A carrying the Nova-C lunar lander Athena as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload initiative from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Reuters
The mission is significant because the lander, a part of Nasa’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative and the Artemis campaign, aims at establishing long term human presence of the Moon.

India-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission Framework in Kolkata

The Bangladeshi delegation, led by Muhammad Abul Hossen, are set to hold a two-day meeting under the aegis of the India-Bangladesh Joint River Commission on March 6 and 7.

The meeting will focus on the renewal of the 30-year-old treaty for sharing the waters of the trans-boundary river.

As per the Ministry of Jal Shakti, the two countries share 54 rivers.

Select Committee to examine Income-Tax Bill

The Select Committee of the Lok Sabha, under the chairmanship of BJP MP Baijayant Panda, will examine the Income-Tax Bill on Thursday and Friday.

Today, the committee will summon the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and Ernst and Young.

It will record oral evidence of representatives of ICAI and EY.

Crucial court hearings

• A special MP/MLA court to hear defamation case against Leader of Opposition and Rae Bareli MP Rahul Gandhi
• Supreme Court to hear bail plea of MLA Abbas Ansari accused of allegedly operating a gang in state’s Chitrakoot district
• Delhi HC to hear Kuldeep Sengar’s appeal in Unnao custodial death

Odisha to release 5th phase Subhadra Yojana assistance

The first instalment in the fifth phase of the Subhadra Yojana will be released today.

The scheme, rolled out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September last year, aims to empower the low-income women and make them financially independent.

As per reports, the government will spend over Rs 55,825 crore on the scheme in five years.

Deadline for surrender of looted, illegal arms in Manipur

Today is the last day of voluntarily surrendering the looted arms from security forces and other illegal weapons in Manipur.

Earlier, Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla had urged groups to surrender weapons on February 20 within a seven-day window. During this period, over 300 firearms were turned in.

A day to remember

• Birth anniversary of Italian sculptor and painter Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni
• Birth anniversary of Colombian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate Gabriel García Márquez
• Birth anniversary of film director Rajesh Touchriver
• Pharma company Bayer registered ‘Aspirin’ as a trademark in 1899
• Ghana became the first sub-Saharan African country to gain independence from the British