Watch: Pahalgam attack updates, PM Modi chairs CCS meet, public pay tributes to Pope Francis & more | News Wrap

From the latest updates on the Pahalgam terrorist attack to the World Bank cutting India’s growth rate, here are the top headlines of the day.

Forces continue massive manhunt for the assailants

Indian forces launched a massive manhunt to find the perpetrators who shot and killed at least 26 tourists in the scenic the Bisaran Valley near Pahalgam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on April 22. This is one of the worst terror attack on civilians in the Kashmir valley in decades.

Tens of thousands of armed police and soldiers fanned out across the region and erected additional checkpoints. They searched cars and in some areas summoned former militants to police stations for questioning, reports said.

Many shops and businesses in Jammu and Kashmir closed to protest the killings.

Security agencies also released sketches of three men suspected to be involved in the attack. The men, all three Pakistanis, are Asif Fauji, Suleman Shah and Abu Talha, officials said. They had code names — Moosa, Yunus and Asif — and were involved in terror related incidents in Poonch.

Authorities are working on a plan to have a permanent deployment of army and paramilitary forces in the mountains overlooking the tourist destination in the Kashmir valley to avoid such attacks in the future. Officials told PTI that a realignment of the security forces was also required ahead of the annual Amarnath pilgrimage, which begins July 3.

There are no security forces in the immediate vicinity of the meadows of the Bisaran Valley which is ringed by dense forests. The nearest is a unit of the third battalion of the Rashtriya Rifles of the Army and a company of the 116th battalion of the CRPF, the sources told PTI. It takes time for the troops to reach this place from their locations and Bisaran is only approachable on foot or on horseback, they said.

Meanwhile, the government announced additional flights will be operated from Srinagar to help tourists who want to return from the Union territory in the aftermath of the Phalagam terror attack. The government said that the airfares on the route would be kept at reasonable levels. As many as 3,337 passengers flew out of Srinagar in 20 flights between 6 a.m. and 12 p.m.

IndiGo, Air India and SpiceJet are operating a total of seven extra flights in addition to their normal scheduled services from Srinagar.

PM Modi chairs meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security, Amit Shah in visits attack site

The Cabinet Committee on Security met in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Besides the prime minister, the Cabinet Committee on Security comprises Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Sitharaman is on her way back from the United States after she cut short her official visit.

PM Modi cut short his visit from Saudi Arabia and returned early Wednesday. He held a meeting at the airport soon after his arrival and discussed the attack with Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. Foreign Secretary Vikram Mistry was also part of the meeting.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited the site of the terrorist attack and interacted with senior army and police officers.

He was given a briefing by security officials. The home minister was told about the sequence of events and the possible routes the terrorists took to reach the popular tourist spot, which is surrounded by thick pine forests, PTI reported.

Top officers, including Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police Nalin Prabhat and GoC of the Army’s 15 Corps Lieutenant General Prashant Srivastava, were present at the site, which is around 110 km from Srinagar. He also took an aerial view of the area.

Earlier, the Home Minister attended a wreath-laying ceremony for the victims of the terror attack at the police control room in Srinagar where he asserted that the country will not bend to terror and that those responsible for the killings will not be spared. He visited Government Medical College Hospital in Anantnag and met some of the injured admitted there.

The Home Minister was accompanied by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Tangmarg area of Kulgam following information about the presence of ultras there. An encounter broke out after the terrorists opened fire on the security personnel, officials said.

No casualties have been reported in the exchange of fire so far, at the time of recording.

Earlier today, two terrorists were killed as an infiltration bid was foiled along the Line of Control in Baramulla. The security forces are on high alert after yesterday’s terror attack.

India, U.S. trade talks to being in Washington from today

Indian and U.S. officials will begin deliberations on the proposed bilateral trade agreement in Washington from today.

The U.S. has stated that the pact with India will help open new markets for American goods and create new opportunities for workers, farmers, and entrepreneurs in both countries.

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, who is on a four-day visit to India, said he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi made progress on trade talks during their discussions on Monday, and confirmed that both sides had finalized the terms of reference for the trade negotiation — a vital step towards setting the road map for the final agreement.

The terms of reference cover around 19 chapters, such as tariffs, non-tariff barriers, and customs facilitation.

An official said these talks would lead to the formal launch of negotiations for the bilateral trade agreement (BTA).

India’s chief negotiator, Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce Rajesh Agrawal, is leading the team for the first in-person talks between the two countries.

Meanwhile, Vance, accompanied by his family, visited the iconic Taj Mahal in Agra today. He was received by U.P. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. On his first day of visit, Vance held a meeting with Modi where both of them discussed ways to increase cooperation in energy, defence and strategic technologies. The family will leave India on April 24.

Pope Francis’ body transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica for 3 days of public viewing

The body of Pope Francis was transferred from the Vatican hotel where he lived to the St. Peter’s basilica, escorted by a procession of solemn cardinals and Swiss Guards through the same piazza where the pontiff had greeted the faithful from his popemobile just days before.

Pallbearers carried the simple wooden coffin on their shoulders through the Vatican’s archway gates, out into St. Peter’s Square and into the basilica, the cardinals in their scarlet cassocks, bishops in their purple robes and the Swiss Guards in their golden and blue uniforms processing slowly behind.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who is running the Vatican temporarily until a new pope is elected, led the procession, with clouds of incense preceding him as the church choir chanted the Litany of Saints hymn.

The three days of public viewing in the basilica will allow ordinary Catholics to grieve the 88-year-old pope, who died on Monday after suffering a stroke. The basilica would be kept open until midnight to accommodate the crowds and the mourning period will end on Friday at 7 p.m., when Francis’ casket is closed and sealed.

Several heads of state are expected to attend the Pope’s funeral which is set for Saturday in St. Peter’s Square.

Francis’ death and funeral inaugurates a carefully orchestrated period of transition in the 1.4-billion-strong Catholic Church. Cardinals will gather and enter into a conclave, which is a secretive ritual voting in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new pope. There are 135 cardinals under age 80 and eligible to vote in the conclave, and the new pontiff will likely come from within their ranks. The conclave is not expected to begin before May 5.

World Bank lowers India’s growth forecast

The World Bank has lowered India’s growth forecast for the current fiscal by 4 percentage points to 6.3% amid global economic weakness and policy uncertainty.

In its previous estimate, the World Bank had projected India’s growth at 6.7% for the fiscal year 2025-26.

In India, growth in FY24-25 disappointed because of slower growth in private investment and public capital expenditures that did not meet government targets, the World Bank said in its twice-yearly regional outlook.

On Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund also lowered India’s GDP forecast for the current fiscal to 6.2% from its January estimates of 6.5%.