News Dabba for 17 February 2026: Five stories for a balanced news diet

Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from Macron's Mumbai meet with Modi, Tarique Rahman's oath ceremony, to heavy rain in New Zealand.

Hindustan Times on Macron's meet with Modi in Mumbai

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted French President Emmanuel Macron for bilateral talks in Mumbai on Tuesday, to discuss key issues of mutual interest and strengthen Delhi-Paris relations. French President Macron is on an official visit to India from February 17 to 19 at the invitation of PM Modi to participate in the AI Impact Summit hosted by India in Delhi, besides the bilateral summit in Mumbai. The report says that France is seeking to expand its military partnership with New Delhi, with discussions expected on a potential contract for 114 additional French fighter jets. Read the full report here.

Tarique Rahman takes oath as Bangladesh PM, Indian Express

In a historic shift for the nation’s political trajectory, Tarique Rahman sworn-in as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh on Tuesday afternoon. Indian Express reports that earlier today, Rahman, along with all elected BNP MPs, took oath at the National Parliament building in Dhaka. This landmark ceremony follows the 13th Parliamentary Elections held on February 12, where the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) secured a landslide victory, the report adds. Rahman is the first male Prime Minister in over 30 years. Read the full report here.

Khamenei takes aim at Trump as nuclear talks begin, Al Jazeera reports

Al Jazeera reports that Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei says US will not be able to destroy the Islamic Republic as the second round of nuclear talks between the US and Iran kicks off in Geneva, Switzerland. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will negotiate with US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner via Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad al-Busaidi. While the US has sought to expand the scope of talks to non-nuclear issues like Iran’s missile stockpile, the report adds that Tehran says it is willing to discuss only curbs on its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief and will not accept zero uranium enrichment. Read the full report here.

Fire in coach of New Delhi-Chennai Express train in Maharashtra, NDTV reports

A coach of the New Delhi-Chennai Grant Trunk Express caught fire in Maharashtra's Wardha district on Tuesday morning, NDTV reports. There were no casualties, railway officials said. Train 12616 New Delhi-Chennai (Tambaram) Grant Trunk Express left from Nagpur in the morning. While it was heading towards Sindi railway station in Wardha, smoke was detected in the last guard coach of the train at 11.09 am. The cause of the fire will be known after a detailed investigation, the report adds. Read the full report here.

Heavy rain batters New Zealand’s South Island, triggers flood warnings: The Straits Times

Heavy rain pummelled New Zealand’s South Island on Feb 17, triggering flooding and forcing the closure of roads and bridges, The Straits Times reports, as a powerful storm that caused widespread destruction in the capital Wellington since the weekend moved south. New Zealand’s weather bureau said a low pressure system off the east coast could bring further bursts of heavy rain through Tuesday, warning that rivers and streams could rise rapidly and that landslips were possible. Large waves and dangerous sea conditions are also expected, MetService New Zealand said in its latest update. Read the full report here.