The New Indian Express News

KOLKATA: The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls conducted by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday revealed about 59 lakh deletions of dead, duplicate, permanently shifted, and absent voters in West Bengal. Besides the deletion of such a massive number of voters, the ECI has also found some serious discrepancies after analysing data from enumeration forms (EFs) in the state. In Bengal, 11 December was the last day for submitting EFs under the SIR exercise. The date re

SRINAGAR: In the wake of the Delhi car blast, police have launched a massive Kashmir-wide crackdown on vehicles operating without mandatory ownership transfers following sale or purchase. The drive targeting outside-UT registration numbers is aimed at streamlining vehicle ownership records, curbing misuse of non-transferred or non-local registrations, and enhancing overall road safety. A police spokesman said vehicle checking was intensified across Awantipora in south Kashmir as part of an enfor

PATNA: The Janshakti Janata Dal (JJD), led by former Bihar minister and Lalu Prasads estranged son Tej Pratap Yadav, on Friday announced that it will contest forthcoming assembly elections in West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. Speaking to the media after launching the partys membership drive in Patna, Tej Pratap said the party will field candidates in the upcoming assembly elections in both states, with the state committee set to take the final decision. The assembly polls in West Bengal are schedul

BHOPAL: A day before his government completes two years in power, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav termed the end of naxal cadres through the elimination and surrenders policy as the biggest achievement of his government so far. The naxal menace is as old as 37-38 years. Various naxal dalams had been formed way back in 1988-89. In 1995, an entire bus carrying 17 police personnel was blown into pieces. Four years later, a minister in the then Congress government (transport minister Li

RAIPUR: Ten cadres of the banned CPI (Maoist) on Friday surrendered in Sukma in south Chhattisgarh. After surrendering, the red rebels handed over one AK-47 rifle, two self-loading rifles, one .303 rifle, one BGL launcher, and one Sten gun to the security forces. Among those who surrendered were six women Maoists, collectively carrying a bounty of Rs 33 lakh. They later planted saplings at Vayan Vatika (meaning Garden of Hope and Future in Gondi) rehabilitation centre in Sukma as a symbol of rei

The BJP and Shiv Sena have sealed a seat-sharing formula for the polls to Asias richest civic body, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which is scheduled for January, said Maharashtra BJP chief Ravindra Chavan on Friday. In the 277-member BMC, the BJP is likely to contest 130 to 140 seats, while the DCM Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena will contest 80 to 90 seats. The remaining seats will be given to other partners in the Mahayuti including the DCM Ajit Pawar-led NCP. The seat-sharing arra

JAIPUR: As the Bhajanlal Sharma government approaches its two-year mark on December 15, the Chief Minister on Thursday released a performance report, claiming that 70 per cent of poll promises have been fulfilled and Rajasthan now ranks first in 11 national projects. Citing government data, Sharma said that out of 392 resolutions, 274 have either been completed or are currently underway, and that 73 per cent of the announcements made over the last two years have been implemented. With what he de

LUCKNOW: In a major development, Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Mukti Nirman Trust moved the Allahabad High Court with an application seeking inclusion of Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, Peethadheshwar of Bageshwar dham, as a spiritual witness in this case. In the application, it was claimed that Dhirendra Shastri had good knowledge of religious traditions as well as historical evidences of this case. According to the trust, there is no reference to Eidgah in the records of Mathura Municipal Corporation. M

NEW DELHI: Concerned with the slow implementation of water body rejuvenation projects under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0, a Parliamentary Panel has asked the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) to accelerate the completion of all sanctioned projects and set annual progress targets. As per the report of the Standing Committee of Lok Sabha presented in Parliament on Friday, only 678 out of 3,032 projects have been completed. It also noted that despit

GUWAHATI: President Droupadi Murmu on Friday wrapped up her two-day visit to ethnic violence-hit Manipur with a call to all communities to keep supporting the efforts for peace even as a Kuki-Zo organisation resented that she did not visit a Kuki area. Addressing a gathering in Naga-majority hill district Senapati after laying the foundation stones and inaugurating various developmental projects, the President said Manipurs strength lies in its diversity its culture, languages, and traditions.

NEW DELHI: The Indian Embassy in Bangkok is maintaining close communication with Thai authorities regarding the detention of Saurabh Luthra and Gaurav Luthra in connection with the Birch by Romeo Lane fire in Goa that killed 25 people . Sources said that following the Embassy's intervention, the two brothers have been detained by Thai authorities in Phuket. Thai officials are currently proceeding with action under local laws, including arrangements for sending both individuals back to India, a s

NEW DELHI: India and the US federal investigative agencies have jointly busted a transnational cybercrime network in Noida, where scammers based in India allegedly defrauded US nationals of USD 8.5 million, the CBI said on Friday. Acting on inputs from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Central Bureau of Investigation arrested six accused from Uttar Pradeshs Noida and dismantled a cybercrime syndicate that had been targeting US citizens since 2022. The accused have been identified as

BHOPAL: Already in the eye of a storm following his controversial public statements about Brahmin girls and the judiciary, Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Santosh Verma now faces possible dismissal from the IAS cadre. In a late Thursday night development, the state government said the general administration department (GAD) has decided to move a proposal to the central government for Vermas dismissal from the IAS cadre. It has been found that his promotion from the State Administrati

PATNA: The political temperature in Bihar has heated up once again after leaders of the NDA's two major partiesthe Bharatiya Janata Party and Janata Dal (United)claimed on Friday that as many as 18 MLAs of the Opposition Mahagathbandhan are in constant touch with them and ready to switch sides. Senior BJP leader and state health minister Mangal Pandey said that the rift within Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasads family was a clear indication about growing discontent among party leaders

NEW DELHI: The total number of cases involving deaths of Indian citizens working or residing abroad has he Centre on Friday told Parliament that deaths of Indian citizens working or living abroad have not witnessed any significant increase in recent years, and said 5,897 mortal remains were brought back to India between January and October this year. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, responding in the Lok Sabha, was also asked whether the government tracks the time taken to repatriate mort

NEW DELHI: The External Affairs Ministry on Friday informed Parliament that the total strength of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) stood at 954 officers as of December 1, 2025, with significant representation from SC/ST, OBC and women cadres. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said the IFS currently includes 200 SC/ST officers, 217 OBC officers and 263 women officers. He added that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) does not mainta

Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu on Friday told the Lok Sabha that capping airfares year-round is neither practical nor in the long-term interests of the civil aviation sector, emphasising that a deregulated market ultimately keeps fares competitive and benefits passengers. Naidu said airfares naturally rise during festive seasons due to route-specific demand spikes, and such fluctuations cannot be capped for an entire year. He added that deregulation, introduced to open up the market and encou

NEW DELHI: A new US-led strategic initiative, named Pax Silica, which aims to build a secure, prosperous, and innovation-driven global silicon supply chain, has been launched without the inclusion of India amidst crucial trade negotiations between the two countries. The US State Department defined the initiative as focused on the entire silicon supply chain, from critical minerals and energy inputs to advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, AI infrastructure, and logistics. The inaugural Pax Sil

LUCKNOW: While government agencies are conducting raids and cracking the whip on those allegedly involved in illegal diversion of codeine-based cough syrup and trafficking of narcotic-category medicines, the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) has shot of letters to 31 district magistrates (DMs) across Uttar Pradesh to book the alleged syndicate operators under the UP Gangsters Act. The FSDA has told the DMs to initiate action under the laws provisions that include seizure of properties d

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Friday cleared a Bill to repeal 71 laws which have outlived their utility in the statute books, officials said. Out of the 71 laws, 65 are amendments to principal Acts and six are principal laws. At least one law proposed to be repealed is of the British era, the officials said. The proposed repeal and amendment bill is not aimed at striking off colonial laws but to remove Acts which have outlived their utility, an official said. Once an amendment is passed by Par

NEW DELHI: Moving towards conducting the National Census 2027, the NDA government on Friday approved a proposal at its Union Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to carry out the Census of India 2027 at a cost of 11,718 crore. Billed as the worlds largest statistical exercise, the Census of India will be conducted in two phases. Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw, sharing details of the Cabinet decision, said that the first phase of Census 2027 wi

KOLKATA: West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Friday recommended a three-point proposal to ensure the safety and security of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) who are involved in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state. Expressing serious concern over the safety and security of the BLOs, the Lok Bhavan proposed that the Mamata Banerjee government take three protective measures for them. The Governor urged every district administration to take adequate security measures f

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Friday called Congress MP Rahul Gandhi jhooth ki dukan and said he along with others in the opposition benches was looking away when the Congress was exposed by the treasury benches under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah during debates on Vande Mataram and election reforms in Parliament. This came after Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, hailed his party members' performance during the debates on the two topics i

AHMEDABAD: A bamboo structure supporting the construction of a new bridge on Kailash Road in Gujarat's Valsad collapsed on Friday morning, injuring five workers. The collapse occured around 9 am, between two pillars over the Auranga river, where a work crew was levelling a temporary bund. The fire department was the first to reach after a 9.20 am distress call. Fireman Lalit Parmar, recounting the rapid response, said, We reached immediately and shifted four labourers for treatment. Later, we in

NEW DELHI: RJD MP Sanjay Yadav on Friday said in the Rajya Sabha that farmers in Bihar are unable to get the fair prices for their produce due to an acute shortage of food-processing facilities in the state. Raising the issue during Question Hour, he highlighted that between 30% to 50% of Bihars papaya crop and around 25% of its banana production go to waste each year because the state lacks adequate processing units. He further noted that although Bihar produces approximately 65 lakh tonnes of

The Supreme Court has sought a reply from the Madras High Court on the rules being followed in listing and hearing cases, observing that something wrong appears to be happening there, NDTV reported. A bench of Justices JK Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi made the observation while hearing the Karur stampede case, taking note of a report submitted by the Registrar General of the Madras High Court. The notice also made the Registrar of the Madras High Court a party to the case linked to Actor Vijays T

NEW DELHI: A sample of red chilli powder manufactured by Uttarakhand-based manufacturing unit of Patanjali Foods was declared unsafe, the centre said in the Lok Sabha on Friday. In a written reply, Minister of State of Health and Family Welfare, Prataprao Jadhav, said, During a sampling drive on spices in 202425, a sample of red chilli powder collectedfrom the Uttarakhand-based manufacturing unit of Patanjali Foods was declared unsafe, as the detected pesticide residue levels exceeded the prescr

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor was again absent from a meeting of the partys Lok Sabha MPs chaired by Rahul Gandhi on Friday, extending a pattern of non-attendance that has drawn internal attention in recent weeks. The Thiruvananthapuram MP, already under scrutiny for remarks viewed by some colleagues as favourable to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has now missed three consecutive key meetings of the Congress parliamentary strategy groups. Party sources said Tharoor had informed the leadership of his

RANCHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday raided the official and residential premises of Dhanbad-based coal trader Manoj Agrawal at Bhelatand and Dhansar. The action is said to be part of an investigation into alleged money laundering through illegal coal trade. According to local sources, the ED teams arrived at both locations simultaneously at around 7 am and cordoned off the premises before they entered the residence and started the search. On November 21, ED teams from Kolkata had

IMPHAL: Former Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh on Friday said the BJP central leadership has asked the party MLAs to come to Delhi to discuss issues related to the state. Singh told reporters, BJP is a national party. Party leaders have asked the MLAs to come to discuss issues related to the state on Sunday. I believe it may be related to government formation, but we are yet to have any confirmation. Many of us are leaving. Singh also expressed hope that a popular government may be formed s

NEW DELHI: BJP MP Anurag Thakur on Friday lodged a written complaint with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, demanding action against a TMC lawmaker for allegedly smoking an e-cigarette inside the House. Thakur had on Thursday raised the issue in Lok Sabha without naming the TMC MP. In his complaint, the Hamirpur MP said, A Member of Parliament belonging to the All India Trinamool Congress was seen openly using an electronic cigarette while seated in the House during the sittings. The act was clearly v

NEW DELHI: Don't bring down the judiciary by filing such cases, the Supreme Court on Friday remarked while expressing strong displeasure over a plea challenging its earlier decision granting exemption to minority schools from the provisions of the Right to Education Act. Imposing a cost of Rs 1 lakh on the petitioner, a bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan said let this be a message to others. You cannot do this to Supreme Court. We are enraged. This is against the entire system of ju

HUBBALLI: Tibetan spiritual leader the 14th Dalai Lama arrived at Hubballi Airport on Friday and travelled by road to the Doeguling Tibetan Settlement in Mundgod, Uttara Kannada district, for what is expected to be one of his longest stays in the Tibetan camp. Sources in the Tibetan camp had earlier said it would be a primarily spiritual visit, with limited public interactions. At the airport, the 14th Dalai Lama was received by Dharwad Deputy Commissioner Divya Prabhu and officials from the Tib

NEW DELHI: Fair trade watchdog CCI is examining whether the country's largest airline, IndiGo, violated competition norms, a senior official said on Friday amid the carrier facing regulatory scrutiny over significant flight disruptions. IndiGo, which has a domestic market share of over 65 per cent, cancelled hundreds of flights starting from December 2, causing hardships to thousands of passengers, and the situation is stabilising now. While aviation safety regulator DGCA is probing the flight d

NAGPUR: Seven districts of Maharashtra recorded 14,526 child deaths over the past three years, Public Health Minister Prakash Abitkar told the legislative assembly on Friday, citing government records. Abitkar shared the data in a written reply to a question raised by BJP legislator Sneha Dubey. According to the minister, between 2022-23 and 2024-25, Pune, Mumbai, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nagpur, Amravati, Akola and Yavatmal districts collectively reported 14,526 child deaths. The figure inclu

GUWAHATI: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Assam Police filed the charge sheet in the high-profile Zubeen Garg murder case in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup (Metro), on Friday. The charge sheet was prepared after nearly three months of investigation, during which the SIT recorded the statements of more than 300 people, including a few Singapore-based Assamese expats. The music icon Garg (52) had died mysteriously on September 19 while swimming in the sea in Singapore. He t

NEW DELHI: Aviation safety regulator DGCA has suspended four Flight Operations Inspectors (FOIs) following major operational disruptions at IndiGo that left thousands of passengers stranded and led to the cancellation of thousands of flights. On Friday alone, more than 50 IndiGo flights were cancelled at Bengaluru Airport. FOIs are senior officials within the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, responsible for regulatory and safety oversight. They are deployed to monitor airline operations an

NEW DELHI : The Congress on Friday termed as a latant lie Home Minister Amit Shah's vote chori charge against Jawaharlal Nehru as he cited eminent historian-author Rajmohan Gandhi's comments that people were very happy with Nehru becoming the prime minister and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel himself was in favour of it. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared on X a video clip of Rajmohan Gandhi, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, in which he clarifies that the Pradesh C

Proceedings began in both Houses of Parliament on Friday as the Winter Session resumed at 11 am on its tenth day. Ahead of the sitting, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi chaired a review meeting of Congress MPs. Today's proceedings follows a heated debate in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday over 'Vande Mataram' , with BJP President JP Nadda saying the national song is tied to nationalism and that the country should resolve to accord it the same status as the national anthem and t

PUNE : A male adult leopard that had been intermittently moving within the Pune Airport premises since late April has been darted and captured safely, forest officials said on Friday. The feline was captured following a multi-agency operation led by the Forest Department, in collaboration with RESQ Charitable Trust, the Indian Air Force and Pune Airport authorities, they said. The presence of the big cat was first confirmed on April 28. On November 19, the leopard was spotted once again. Forest

NEW DELHI: Once considered a power-starved state, Bihar is now gaining recognition for its sustained progress in the electricity sector. The Bihar State Power Transmission Company Limited (BSPTCL) was recently honoured with two prestigious awards at the Powerline Trans-Tech India Awards 2025, marking a notable milestone in the states transmission infrastructure development. Presented at Delhis Yashobhoomi India International Convention and Expo Centre (IICC), the awards highlighted the advanceme

NEW DELHI: Indian Railways (IR) has deactivated more than 3 crore suspicious user IDs since January 2025 and introduced new Aadhaar-based verification measures to allegedly curb misuse and strengthen the online ticket reservation system. Officials describe the reservation platform as a robust and highly secure IT system equipped with industry-standard, state-of-the-art cyber security controls. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday informed the Rajya Sabha that about 3.02 crore susp

NEW DELHI: In a move to strengthen the ticket reservation system, Indian Railways (IR) has deactivated more than 3 crore user IDs since January 2025 and introduced anti-bot measures to ensure genuine bookings. The reservation system is described as a robust and secure IT platform equipped with industry-standard cyber security controls. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday said Indian Railways has taken several steps to improve the performance of the reservation system and increase

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday raided multiple locations across several states as part of a money-laundering investigation into an alleged illegal cough syrup trafficking racket in Uttar Pradesh, officials said. The searches, which began around 7:30 am, are being conducted at 25 premises in Lucknow, Varanasi, Jaunpur and Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, as well as in Ranchi (Jharkhand) and Ahmedabad (Gujarat). The ED has registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hosted a dinner for all NDA MPs from both Houses at his 7, Lok Kalyan Marg residence. The dinner, which featured a range of dishes including several millet-based items, doubled as a show of unity within the NDA under Modis leadership, which he described as a family working towards a Viksit Bharat and a self-reliant nation. Speaking on the meeting, the Prime Minister said the NDA represents a shared commitment to good governance, national develo

BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government has sent a proposal to the Centre recommending the dismissal of IAS officer Santosh Verma, state president of the Scheduled Castes and Tribes Officers and Employees Association (AJAKS), for his undignified remarks. In addition, Verma has been removed from his post as deputy secretary of the Agriculture Department and attached to the General Administration Department without any department or work. According to an official statement released on Thursday, the

KOLKATA: West Bengal's Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari has felicitated the three men arrested for allegedly assaulting two chicken patty vendors at the Gita recital event in Kolkata, after they were released on bail. Adhikari said he stood by them as a Hindu performing his duty. The three persons, arrested on Wednesday night for allegedly attacking two vendors at the 'Gita Paath' programme on December 7 at the Brigade Parade Ground, were granted bail by the Bankshall court on personal

Senior Congress leader and former Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil passed away at his home town Latur in Maharashtra on Friday morning. Patil, 90, passed away at his residence 'Devghar' after a brief illness, family sources said. He is survived by his son Shailesh Patil, daughter-in-law Archana, who is a BJP leader, and two granddaughters. The Congress leader was Union Home Minister from 2004 to 2008 and the 10th Speaker of the Lok Sabha from 1991 to 1996. He was the Governor of Punjab and also

NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha witnessed uproar on Thursday after BJP MP Anurag Thakur accused an unnamed Trinamool Congress member of smoking an e-cigarette in the Lok Sabha premises. The ruling party attacked the TMC, alleging that its lawmaker has set a new record of lowering the dignity of Parliament with his conduct. During the Question Hour, Thakur asked the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla if e-cigarettes, which are banned in the country, have been allowed in the House, stating, The TMC member has be

NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha on Thursday witnessed a protest during Zero Hour from the CPI(M) over allegations of spurious and substandard medicines in Kerala. The protest began when Congress MP Jebi Mather Hisham launched a blistering attack on Keralas drugs control department, claiming that recent raids across the state had exposed the widespread availability of counterfeit and poor-quality medicines. As soon as Congress MP Hisham made her allegations, CPI(M) MP John Brittas and others sharply o