New Delhi [India] September 10 (ANI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Wednesday issued a travel advisory for Indian citizens in view of the prevailing situation in Nepal.

In its statement, the MEA urged Indians to avoid non-essential travel to Nepal until the situation stabilises. Those already in the country have been advised to remain indoors, avoid stepping out on the streets, and follow all local safety advisories issued by the Nepalese authorities and the Embassy of India in Kathmandu.

The ministry also shared emergency contact numbers for assistance. The Embassy of India in Kathmandu can be reached on these contact numbers: +977-980 860 2881 (also available on WhatsApp) and +977-981 032 6134 (also available on WhatsApp).

“Indian citizens presently in Nepal are advised to shelter in their current places of residence, avoid going out onto the streets and exercise all due caution,” the MEA statement said.

Meanwhile, the government held a meeting of the Cabinet Committee to discuss developments in Nepal. The meeting was held after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s return from his aerial survey of flood-affected areas of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

PM Modi said in a post on X that the violence in Nepal is heart-rending and he is anguished that many young people have lost their lives. He said stability, peace and prosperity of Nepal are of utmost importance to India and urged “brothers and sisters in Nepal to support peace”.

“On my return from Himachal Pradesh and Punjab today, a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security discussed the developments in Nepal. The violence in Nepal is heart-rending. I am anguished that many young people have lost their lives. The stability, peace and prosperity of Nepal are of utmost importance to us. I humbly appeal to all my brothers and sisters in Nepal to support peace,” PM Modi said.

There is unrest in Nepal following anti-government protests and Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has resigned.

Over the past two days, Gen Z demonstrations have escalated sharply, resulting in at least 19 deaths and more than 500 injuries in clashes around the Federal Parliament and other parts of Kathmandu. Demonstrators torched several government buildings, including the parliament. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

In view of the developing situation in Nepal, Indian citizens are advised to defer travel there until the situation has stabilised. Indian citizens presently in Nepal are advised to shelter in their current places of residence, avoid going out onto the streets and exercise all due caution. They are also advised to follow local safety advisories from Nepal authorities as well as the Embassy of India in Kathmandu. In case of any assistance required, please call the Embassy of India, Kathmandu, on the following helpline numbers:

1. +977 – 980 860 2881 ( WhatsApp call also)

2. +977 – 981 032 6134 ( WhatsApp call also )

New Delhi

September 09, 2025

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Students gain real-world international business skills through Global Classroom project

How we communicate is always evolving. A hundred years ago, getting a message to someone a town over could take hours. Today, we can speak to people on the other side of the world with the tap of a screen.

Subir Bandyopadhyay, Indiana University Northwest professor of marketing, knows this better than most. He has a deep knowledge of international business and has traveled all the way to India as a Fulbright Scholar to continue his research.

During his time in India, he came up with a new idea: a project that would allow students to collaborate with peers across the world.

“I made a lot of good connections with the faculty members in India, and we talked about the types of teaching we do,” he said. “This idea came up because with technology, we don’t always need cultural exchange programs to move a class to another country. Why not do a virtual trip?”

To set his idea in motion, Bandyopadhyay needed funding, and it came in the form of an IU Global Classroom Fellow grant. With those funds, he was able to travel to India and meet with Bikramjit Rishi, a professor at Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence.

“As an educator, I am constantly seeking opportunities that enrich students’ learning beyond traditional classroom boundaries,” Rishi said. “The Global Classroom project offered a unique chance to immerse students in a truly intercultural, collaborative experience.”

The project takes a fundamental topic in business and marketing communication and puts an international spin on it.

“IU students evaluated a local company’s product mix and thought of how to market in India,” Bandyopadhyay said. “The target market strategy here in the United States may not match the target market over there.”

To best understand the right appeal and marketing approach that would work best in India, Bandyopadhyay’s students collaborated directly with Rishi’s students – separated by more than 7,000 miles – via Zoom and WhatsApp.

“Their Indian counterparts would act as consultants about the Indian consumer, and IU students then acted as their consultants about the U.S. market,” Bandyopadhyay said.

IU students worked in tandem with students in India to really understand each other’s culture and how a marketing plan would be affected by those norms. In the end, students on both sides of the project came away with a deeper understanding of how cross-cultural communication works in the real world.

“Beyond learning how to conduct marketing research in a cross-cultural setting, I hoped that students internalized the importance of empathy, active listening and open-mindedness. These (skills) are foundational to any successful global collaboration,” Rishi said.

After Bandyopadhyay and Rishi began the project, several challenges arose. Time zones were one of the biggest — students at Shiv Nadar were 10-and-a-half hours ahead of Central Time. Students also adjusted to different academic expectations, project approaches and work ethics.

“These challenges became valuable learning opportunities,” Rishi said.

Over the course of the project, students became more adaptable, sensitive to cultural differences and able to resolve conflicts.

“It’s similar to a real job situation,” Bandyopadhyay said. “More and more corporate jobs are global in nature. You have to work with people from different cultures, and as undergraduate students, learning those things is a unique experience.”

Despite some of the challenges, the Global Classroom project was a resounding success, with many students excelling at communicating with their peers in India. In fact, Bandyopadhyay has plans to offer the project in future sections of his consumer behavior course.

“This is a very small way we instill in our students the importance of working with people from other cultures and countries,” he said.

However, it’s no small feat to help students gain an international perspective without ever leaving home. Rishi sums the project up best as a microcosm of the global workplace.

“Ultimately, it prepares students to be more agile, inclusive and globally competent professionals,” he said.