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India and Germany on began their 2nd round of Inter-Governmental Consultations today. Germany is India's largest economic partner in Europe and one of the key global partners for trade, investment and technology. Germany as the leading state of European Union and as a strong economy, India has a special interest with its relationship with Germany. Germany also sees India as a good trade partner. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who will co-chair the Consultations with German Chancellor Angela MerkelDr. Singh is accompanied by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid, Renewable Energy Minister Farooq Abdullah, Human Resource Development Minister M.M. Pallam Raju and Science and Technology Minister S. Jaipal Reddy.Commerce Minister Anand Sharma . Terming Germany as a 'key partner' for India in areas like infrastructure, manufacturing, science, technology and clean and renewable energy, Prime Minister Singh had said, 'We expect to sign a number of agreements and Memorandums of Understanding in these areas.' Indo-German bilateral trade had registered an increase of 18.4 per cent and reached € 18.37 billion in 2011.However, due to global economic slowdown, bilateral trade saw a dip of 5.5 percent last year.India has already made it clear it expects a 'strong political thrust' from Germany, a key member of 27-nation European block, for the inking of the Bilateral Investment and Trade Agreement (BITA). .

In a historic meeting, Pope Francis visited retired Pope Benedict XVI, with the new Pope telling his predecessor 'we are brothers'. The new Pope set off from the Vatican by helicopter to Castel Gandolfo, a 15 minute flight away, where retired pope Benedict was waiting to greet him, according to a statement from the Vatican. Both popes, dressed in white, embraced warmly. The historic meeting of two popes lasted over two hours, and included a 15 minute prayer session, followed by a private meeting in the Pope emeritus' library, and a lunch with advisors. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said 'When Pope Francis arrived, the Pope Emeritus approached him and there was a beautiful hug between the two. Upon arrival, the two went into the chapel to pray. In the chapel, the Pope emeritus offered the place of honour to Pope Francis, showing his respect and obedience to the new pope, but he said : 'We are brothers,' and he insisted they knelt together at the same table, a Vatican spokesman said. Francis also brought a gift to Benedict, an icon of the Madonna, and told him that it's known as the 'Madonna of Humility.'Benedict has been living at the villa, which is the papal summer retreat, since he officially retired on February 28, the first pope to step down in 600 years. Father Lombardi told reporters the meeting was 'the culmination' of major events in the life of the church over the past month, the prayerful and successful transition of the papacy. The meeting, he said, was 'a sign of communion.'

Pope Francis who is known as the champion of the poor has celebrated mass with the cleaners and gardeners of Vatican in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae. It was a simple celebration to which the Pope invited employees of the garden and cleaning services of the Governorate of Vatican City State. He gave them a brief homily, focused in particular on the Gospel passage of John which recounts the episode of the Jews who wanted to stone Jesus. L'osservatore Romano reported Concelebrating were Cardinale Raúl Eduardo Vela Chiriboga, Archbishop emeritus of Quito, Ecuador, Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary of the College of Cardinals and of the Congregation for Bishops, Mons. Alfred Xuereb and Mons. Battista Ricca, Director of the Domus. Also present were sisters of three communities of women religious who work in Vatican City : the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul of the Santa Marta Paediatric Dispensary; the Daughters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary – Ravasco Institute of the Casa San Benedetto, the home for retired apostolic nuncios; and the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Temple – who come from Krakow – of the Holy Father's private storeroom. L'osservatore Romano reported

Vatican : Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio an Argentine has been elected as the new pope. He is from Jesuit congregation and the first Latin American to become the pope. He will be known as pope Francis. Bergoglio becomes the first pope to choose a name in tribute to Saint Francis of Assisi. This reflects his love to the poor. White smoke seen from the Sistine Chapel shortly after 19 :00 CET on March 13, signalling the election of a new pope.Then bells rang out over St. Peter's Square in Rome, a crowd of thousands gathered over there cheered. It was after one hour of the election the identity of the new pontiff was revealed from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica by French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran. After few minutes Pope Francis stepped forward to deliver his first public address and blessing to the crowd , asking for the prayers of 'all men and women of good will' to help him lead the Catholic Church. Speaking in Italian the new pope asked the world to set off on a path of love and fraternity. He concluded by bidding the huge crowd : 'Good night and have a good rest.'