Morning Digest: Climate change a common challenge, says Centre on Nepal Minister’s compensation demand; Trump calls Iran conflict 'small potatoes', says he agrees with Vance that it's not 'war', and more

U.S. President Donald Trump. File | Photo Credit: AP Climate change a common challenge, says government on Nepal Minister’s compensation demandClimate change is a “common challenge”, and developed nations that are “historically” the highest emitters must lead the process of finding a solution to this crisis, said the official spokesperson of the External Affairs Ministry, Randhir Jaiswal, on Friday (September 4, 2026). The remarks came in response to Nepal Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal, who said that as the three biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, the U.S., China, and India should bear responsibility for climate change, and sought compensation from the three countries following the flash flood in Nepal last month.Trump calls Iran conflict ‘small potatoes’, says he agrees with Vance that it’s not ‘war’U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday (September 4, 2026) said the conflict in Iran is “small potatoes” as he defended Vice President JD Vance for asserting that months of on-and-off attacks in West Asia are not a “war.” Asked during an Oval Office exchange about Mr. Vance’s comments made a day earlier, Mr. Trump noted that U.S. strikes on Iran are now “intermittent” and seemed to downplay the intensity of a war that’s cost U.S. taxpayers more than $37.5 billion and left 18 U.S. service members dead.NTA takes AICTE help to map facilities for setting up testing centresThe National Testing Agency (NTA) has sought the help of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to map IT infrastructure and vacant spaces in government institutions to establish standard testing centres (STCs). These centres will facilitate computer-based testing (CBT) for NTA examinations, including the high-stakes National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET).Air India sacks Delhi-Phuket flight pilot who tested positive for drugsAir India on Friday (September 4, 2026) sacked the pilot-in-command (PIC) of a Delhi-Phuket flight for testing positive for psychoactive substance. The flight momentarily lost altitude on August 4, injuring 24 passengers. The decision comes in the wake of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau’s (AAIB) preliminary report recommending that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) take action against the pilot on priority.OBC groups say Centre’s rationale for not using OBC lists in caste Census is ‘fundamentally flawed’The argument that Other Backward Classes (OBC) lists cannot be used for caste enumeration because they list “classes, not castes” is “fundamentally flawed”, associations representing the interests of OBC communities said on Friday (September 4, 2026), a day after The Hindu reported that this was part of the rationale for the Union government to not draw caste names and codify them from the readily available Central and State OBC lists for the caste enumeration component of the 2027 Census.Supreme Court pushes for raising retirement age in district judiciary to 62 as case backlog exceeds five croreAs 5.18 crore cases lie pending in district courts across the country, the Supreme Court has sent a distress call to States to enhance the retirement age of experienced judicial officers from 60 to 62 years. The court said the “crying need of the hour” is to stop the attrition of the experienced judicial talent lest access to justice remain a mere chimera due to unfilled posts.‘Reflection of people’s trust’: Modi hails Meloni on becoming Italy’s longest continuously serving PMPrime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni on Friday (September 4, 2026) as she became Italy’s longest continuously serving postwar Prime Minister, calling the historic feat a clear sign of the Italian people’s trust and confidence in her leadership.Coal stock management emerges as key challenge for thermal power producersIndia’s thermal power sector faces a growing fuel-management dilemma with generators that maintain adequate coal inventories risk being disadvantaged when limited domestic supplies are redirected to plants that fall below prescribed stock norms. While such emergency interventions may be necessary to keep vulnerable plants operational and safeguard grid reliability, industry stakeholders warn that repeated redistribution could undermine incentives for generators to plan and maintain adequate fuel stocks. Published - September 05, 2026 08:25 am IST