US President Barack Obama Monday criticised India for shying away from condemning rights abuses in repressive states, saying those states with global aspirations should not remain silent and ignore "gross violations" in other countries.

"If I can be frank, in international fora, India has often shied away from these issues," Mr. Obama said.

“Speaking up for those who cannot do so for themselves is not interfering in the affairs of other countries. It is not violating the rights of sovereign nations, it is staying true to our democratic principles."

New Delhi has an 'overriding strategic interest' in developing better relations with China, Indian National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon said this week.

As we face the big issues, we do this in a cooperative manner so that we can negotiate solutions to the problems. We have an overriding strategic interest in letting relations grow in a healthy manner,” Menon was quoted as saying by IANS.

Ahead of Tuesday’s mid-term elections in the United States, the question of what the outcome might mean for US foreign policy seems to have a consensus answer: no change. An analysis in the GlobalPost website says most political analysts believe there will likely be no significant change in the direction of the Obama administration’s foreign policy.

A Chinese company, Shanghai Electric Co Ltd, has secured a $10bn contract to supply coal-fired generators to India’s Reliance Power Ltd, in a deal financed by Chinese banks, business press reports said. 

Shanghai Electric is China’s biggest power-equipment maker by market value, and Reliance Power’s order may be the world’s largest for generators, Bloomberg reported.

Noting that the question of what is - now - driving China’s seemingly relentless economic growth is one of significance to international policy makers and business executives alike, a leading business journal has conducted new research.  Arguing that conventional wisdom of export-led growth is wrong, the McKinsey Quarterly report says :