News

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the states and union territories to file within three weeks their compliance reports in a matter relating to the lack of functional CCTV cameras in police stations across the country. A bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta passed the directions after being told that only 11 states have responded to the queries that the court had raised. Senior advocate Siddharth Dave, the amicus curiae in the matter, further informed the bench that the

NEW DELHI: At the request of the Centre, the Gujarat government submitted a concept note outlining a model aimed at making the public distribution system (PDS) cashless and more transparent. However, implementation of this Gujarat model of a transparent and efficient PDS has encountered opposition from the national fair price shop (FPS) dealers association, which perceives it as a strategy to eliminate PDS dealerships. The concept note, seen by this newspaper, outlines how the state government w

NEW DELHI: Learning from years of stalled excavations and delayed reports, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is preparing a structured framework to ensure that major archaeological projects no longer hinge on individual officers or collapse when they are transferred or retire. The proposed guidelines, officials said, will clearly define objectives for every excavation, establish continuity regardless of personnel changes, and impose stricter accountability across branches. At present, exc

BENGALURU: One of Indias most accomplished and quietly influential diplomats, Ambassador P S Raghavan passed away on November 24 at his home in Bengaluru after a resolute battle with cancer. He leaves behind his wife, their two sons, and a large circle of colleagues, protgs and friends who felt enriched simply by having known him. Those who met Amb Raghavan rarely forgot the experience. He carried seniority lightly, with an easy graciousness that disarmed even the most nervous visitor. Yet benea

AYODHYA: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday hoisted the Dharma Dhwaj (sacred flag) atop the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, marking its formal completion. Calling it a moment of healing for the wounds of centuries and an answer to the prayers of lakhs of devotees, he said saffron flag hoisted atop the spire of the temple was not just a flag but a symbol of Indias cultural renaissance. Reflecting on the significance of the event, he said: Centuries of wounds are healing, centuries of pain is finally

AYODHYA: Reflecting on the fulfilment of a Ram temple dream in Ayodhya through tireless efforts and countless sacrifices, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Tuesday called upon the countrymen to unite in building an India that embodies supreme glory, spreads happiness and peace, and delivers the fruits of development. This is what the world expects from us and fulfilling it is our bounden duty, the RSS chief said. Joining PM Narendra Modi in hoisting the Dharm Dhwaja on the spire of the temple, Bhagwat

Lucknows Sahara Shahr, which used to be thronged by whos who of the country, today remains sealed telling the story of a shattered empire of business tycoon late Subrat Roy. Now, his wife Swapna Roy and 18 other residents of his mansions in the township are set to lose their voting rights. During SIR, BLO teams found not a single voter present in the township as the residents vacated it after its acquisition by the Lucknow Municipal Corporation on October 6. Of 19 registered voters in the area,

NEW DELHI: Tensions flared between the Election Commission (EC) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Tuesday, following the ECs invitation to a five-member TMC team for a Friday meeting over the contentious SIR of electoral rolls in West Bengal. While the EC wrote to West Bengal CM and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee on Monday that a five-member delegation can meet its top brass on Friday, TMC insisted that the party would dispatch a 10-member delegation. In a letter to EC on Tuesday, TMC Rajya Sabha l

NEW DELHI: Delhi continues to record some of the highest air pollution levels in the country, with a new nationwide satellite assessment indicating that the crisis extends far beyond the capitals borders. According to a report released on Tuesday by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), the city has emerged as Indias most polluted state, with annual population-weighted PM2.5 levels touching 101 g/mtwo-and-a-half times the national standard and 20 times the World Health Organiza

BHOPAL: Forty-one years after he performed the last rites of several people who died in the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy, a 68-year-old advocate, Shiv Kumar Verma, died by suicide at his residence in the Madhya Pradesh capital, due to threats from cyber fraudsters who claimed he would be implicated in the funding of the Pahalgam terror attack. Before hanging himself on Monday late night at his house in the Barkhedi area under Jahangirabad police station limits, Verma left behind a suicide note statin

NEW DELHI: The chaos in Indian skies on Monday night, triggered by the volcanic eruption in Ethiopia and the eastward drift of ash, subsided on Tuesday after the ash cloud moved towards China. While Air India cancelled seven of its domestic flights as a precautionary move, other airlines have reported normal operations. An Air India statement said the following six domestic flights stood cancelled on Tuesday (November 25) - AI 2822 ChennaiMumbai; AI 2466 HyderabadDelhi; AI 2444 MumbaiHyderabad a

NEW DELHI: Marking this years Constitution Day celebrations, the Government will release translated versions of the Constitution of India in nine languages, including Nepali, enabling people in neighbouring Nepal, with whom India shares deep cultural and religious ties, to access the document in their own language, officials said. The other languages include Malayalam, Marathi, Punjabi, Bodo, Kashmiri, Telugu, Odia and Assamese. The translations have been prepared by the Legislative Department o

GUWAHATI: Two reports, one official and another unofficial, held contradictory views on the large-scale violence in Assam in 1983 during the height of the six-year-long anti-immigrants agitation, commonly known as the Assam Agitation. The state government on Tuesday tabled the non-government Justice (retd) T U Mehta Commission report in the Assembly and distributed copies of the Tribhubhan Prasad Tewari Commission report among the members of the House. The unofficial Mehta commission, formed by

NEW DELHI: Nearly one in four adults in India is now obese, and worrying trends are also emerging among children, according to a new report released on the eve of Anti-Obesity Day on Tuesday. The report by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) warned that the situation is set to worsen in the coming decades, with almost one-third of the countrys population projected to be obese by 2050, driven primarily by sedentary lifestyles, high-calorie diets and genetic susceptibility. Obesity is

DEHRADUN: Facing relentless landslides in one of India's top 10 most vulnerable districts, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is now turning to an advanced biological solution, hydroseeding, to stabilise a critical stretch of the Badrinath Highway near Kameda in Gauchar. This shift comes after earlier engineering interventions allegedly failed to contain the erosion that has long threatened this vital route. The 120-metre stretch near Kameda, located in the highly landslide-prone Ru

Breaking the silence over his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said he is not the sort of person who goes to Delhi to complain against state BJP leaders. He said that any issues within the Mahayuti alliance will be sorted at the state level. Shinde's clarification came after reports that he was unhappy at being sidelined in the decision-making of the BJP-led Mahayuti government and had hence rushed to Delhi to express his grievances to S

NEW DELHI: The Centre on Tuesday launched the fourth edition of a national campaign aimed at strengthening community action against gender-based violence and promoting womens safety, dignity, and economic empowerment across rural India. The month-long campaign, Nayi Chetna 4.0, was launched by Rural Development and Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Government is consistently working towards realising this vision by strengthening womens empowerment and expanding oppo

NEW DELHI: Continuing the series of high-level bilateral military engagements, General Upendra Dwivedi, the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka from 12 December 2025. The visit, the Indian Army said, takes place amid strong strategic convergence between India and Sri Lanka. The upcoming visit aims to reinforce Indias Neighbourhood First policy by emphasising partnership, stability and cooperation with Sri Lanka, the Army said on Tuesday. The Army added that the visit

PATNA: It came as a double shock for Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief and former Chief Minister Lalu Prasad and his family after the newly elected NDA government, led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, served a notice on Tuesday asking them to vacate their official bungalow. The 10 Circular Road bungalow has been allotted to former chief minister and Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Council, Rabri Devi, in which Lalu and his younger son, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, live with their famil

NEW DELHI: Following the landing of a KabulDelhi flight on the wrong runway on Sunday, the aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), on Monday rostered the airports Air Traffic Control controller, according to sources. The official had failed to alert the Flight Captain that the flight was approaching the wrong runway before it landed. Flight AFG-311, operated by Ariana Afghan, was given clearance to land on RWY 29L, explained an official. However, the aircraft landed

RAIPUR: A total of 28 cadres, including 19 women, of the banned outfit CPI (Maoist) surrendered under the initiative Poona Margham: From Rehabilitation to Reintegration in Narayanpur district, about 350 km south of Raipur, on Tuesday. They were carrying a cumulative reward of 89 lakh, Bastar police said. With this, as many as 287 Maoist cadres in Narayanpur have abandoned the violent path and joined the mainstream this year. Three Maoist cadres among the 28 formally handed over their weapons, a

RANCHI: In a setback to Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the Jharkhand High Court on Tuesday vacated the interim order issued on 4 December 2024, which had exempted him from personal appearance before the Ranchi MP/MLA Court in a case related to allegedly disobeying summonses issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Justice Anil Kumar Chaudhary also directed the Ranchi MP/MLA Court to continue the trial process and proceed with the case. During the hearing, the state government requested addition

NEW DELHI: Soldiers of the Indian Army and Nepalese Army on Tuesday began the joint military exercise Exercise SURYAKIRAN XIX - 2025 at Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand. The 14-day exercise is being conducted from November 25 to December 8. It is the 19th edition of this institutionalised bilateral Army exercise. The soldiers, apart from the conventional training exercise, will also be undergoing simulation of situations demanding the use of niche technologies. The Indian Army in a statement said, Thi

RAIPUR: The state has received investment proposals of over Rs 6,321 crore in industries and Rs 505 crore in tourism sector and is expected to generate employment for over 3,000 people. During the event, Invitation to Invest letters were handed over to all participating companies by Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai to enable them to begin work promptly. Addressing the investors, CM Sai said that Bastar is witnessing a remarkable turnaround, with Maoist violence declining and improvemen

GUWAHATI: Assam government on Tuesday tabled a new bill banning polygamy in the state Assembly on the first day of the Winter Session. The Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill, 2025 prescribed seven years of rigorous imprisonment for offenders, ban on contesting elections and deletion of names from list of beneficiaries of government schemes. The polygamy law will not apply to the Sixth Schedule areas and to the members of any Scheduled Tribe community. When the bill was introduced, some members o

NEW DELHI: An intensive social media awareness campaign highlighting features of the new highway projects will become a regular exercise as mandated by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). The campaign will take off as soon as the proposals are given official approval. The authority will use videos, maps and graphics to showcase the proposed works and demonstrate their potential benefits. A day-wise action plan has already been drawn up to disseminate targeted messages and activities

NEW DELHI: The National Security Guard (NSG) alerted authorities about the recent spike in the use of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) by 'terror groups' due to easy availability of individual components and chemicals. The NSP submitted a report in this regard to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), requesting for implementation of stricter checks on such materials. Security officials said that the NSG made an assessment following the Red Fort blast and identified the easy availability of

CHANDIGARH: Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal issued a passionate appeal for unity among all Panthic factions, asserting that only collective strength could help Sikhs regain political power and protect their institutions. Addressing the gathering at the 350th martyrdom anniversary event of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur, organised by the SGPC at Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib in Anandpur Sahib, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal appealed to the Sikh community to unite under

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday issued a detailed data list on the number of enumeration forms distributed among electors and their digitisation in the past 21 days since the exercise was launched on November 4. Out of the total 50,97,44,423 existing voters, 50,54,82,771 of them have been handed over the pre-filled forms, clocking 99.16 per cent, and over 28 crore (56.34 per cent) of them have been digitised. According to the ECI data, among the States, the maximum o

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday assured citizens that the Trinamool Congress will not allow the BJP Commission to take away their right to vote, during a rally at Bonagon, a bellwether constituency along the Indo-Bangladesh border. Mamata alleged that the BJP is strategically using the SIR drive to create panic among the masses. But dont get trapped by BJP. Dont be panicked at all. We wont let you leave. No one can get you out with panic when we the Trinamool Congr

KOLKATA: The Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday urged the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar to remove biased police officers from poll duty during the forthcoming assembly elections likely to be held in May next year in the state. Suvendu, who became an MLA on a BJP ticket after defeating the Chief Minister as well as Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram assembly seat in East Midnapore district in 2021,

AHMEDABAD: Former BJP cabinet minister Jawahar Chavda has triggered a political storm in Gujarat politics with a fiery 'Employment Assistance Campaign', unleashing a direct attack on the States unemployment crisis, paper leaks, and systemic failures. His videos, interactions with youngsters, and bold admission, stating, we too have failed somewhere, have electrified Saurashtras political ground, triggering fresh tremors inside an already divided BJP ahead of the 2027 polls. Chavda becoming sudde

CHANDIGARH: A day after the Punjab assembly unanimously passed a resolution declaring Anandpur Sahib, Talwandi Sabo and the walled city of Amritsar as holy cities. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday announced that a world-class university in the name of the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur will be set up at Anandpur Sahib. Addressing a gathering at the concluding ceremony of the government-organised Sarv Dharam Sammelan at Guru Ka Bagh, Baba Budha Dal Cantonment, held to commemorate the

PATNA: The newly formed Bihar cabinet at its first meeting on Tuesday discussed on State governments plans to generate one crore job opportunities for the youngsters over the next five years. Briefing media persons after the meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Bihar chief secretary Pratyaya Amrit said that the discussion at the cabinet meeting focused on extensive employment creation and industrial expansion. He said that a defence corridor, semiconductor manufacturing park, global c

The Supreme Court on Tuesday sharply criticized a Christian Army officer who was dismissed for refusing to enter a gurdwara during a regimental ceremony, calling him a cantankerous man and a misfit. The Court upheld the Armys decision to remove him for failing to show respect for the faith of the Sikh soldiers under his command, reports said. The Supreme Court described the former Christian army officer Samuel Kamalesan's conduct as incompatible with military discipline. What kind of message has

The Calcutta High Court has held the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and other state authorities responsible for serious lapses and negligence that led to the deaths of four labourers during a sewer-desilting operation in South Kolkata in February 2021. Expressing strong concern, a division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Chaitali Chatterjee Das observed, It is disheartening to see cases of death and severe injury due to manual scavenging still plying in courts t

BEED: A woman who, along with her husband and two minor daughters, was injured after a vehicle in the convoy of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar rammed into their motorcycle in Beed district, died on Monday, police said. The accident occurred on Telgaon-Dharur Road in Dharur tehsil on November 22, they said. Deputy CM Pawar was travelling from Partur in Jalna district to Ausa in Latur district when a fire brigade vehicle in his convoy hit a motorcycle on which the couple and their tw

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked petitioners seeking a probe into alleged instances of sexual abuse in schools run by ISKCON to approach the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights with their grievances. A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and R Mahadevan said if such representations are made to the state child rights commissions in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, the same shall be considered in a reasonable time. We dispose of this petition by reserving liberty to the peti

GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told the state assembly on Tuesday that singer Zubeen Gargs death in Singapore on September 19 was a plain and simple murder, not culpable homicide. A special investigation team (SIT) added Section 103 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to murder, within three days of the incident. After preliminary probe, the Assam Police was sure that it was not a case of culpable homicide, but it was a plain and simple murder, Sarma said. Th

NEW DELHI: Amid strong objections from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the Election Commission of India has invited a Trinamool Congress delegation for a meeting at Nirvachan Sadan on November 28 to hear the partys grievances. In a letter to the TMC chairperson, a copy of which is with this newspaper, the ECI noted that TMC parliamentary leader Derek OBrien had sought an appointment for a delegation of MPs. The Comm

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the wounds and pain of centuries are healing today as he ceremonially hoisted a saffron Dharma flag atop the newly built Ram temple in Ayodhya, marking the formal completion of its construction. Describing the moment as the fulfilment of a 500-year-old resolve, PM Modi said the flag embodied the ideals of Lord Ram and symbolised the triumph of truth and righteousness. Modi was joined by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday ceremonially hoisted a saffron flag atop the newly constructed Ram temple in Ayodhya, an event that marked the formal completion of the temples construction. Modi was joined by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during the flag-hoisting ritual. The event took place during the Abhijit Muhurat, a period regarded as auspicious in Hindu tradition. The right-angled triangular flag, measuring 10 fe

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Tuesday recalled that B R Ambedkar had moved the resolution in the Constituent Assembly 76 years ago for the formal adoption of the draft Constitution and claimed that Ambedkar as well as the Constitution, were then subject to a ferocious assault by the RSS, which has continued since. Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, also recalled that in his closing speech before moving the resolution, Ambedkar had hailed the role of the Congress

Indian carriers Air India and Akasa Air have canceled several flights following the eruption of Ethiopias long-dormant Hayli Gubbi volcano, which sent ash plumes high into the atmosphere, with the ash now drifting over portions of Indian airspace, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Air India has cancelled 13 flights since Monday after Indias aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), issued an advisory instructing carriers to avoid routes affected

SRINAGAR: Disgruntled National Conference MP Aga Ruhullah has given the Omar Abdullahled government in Jammu and Kashmir a December 20 deadline to resolve the contentious reservation issue, warning that he will join youth-led protests if the matter remains unaddressed. Ruhullahs ultimatum has intensified tensions around the reservation policy, which has already triggered widespread anger among students and job aspirants from the Open Merit category across the UT. Expressing frustration over the

Delhi recorded the highest PM2.5 pollution levels in India, with an annual average concentration of 101 micrograms per cubic metre, 2.5 times the national limit and 20 times the WHO guideline, according to a new satellite-based assessment by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). Chandigarh logged the second-highest PM2.5 level at 70 micrograms per cubic metre between March 2024 and February 2025, followed by Haryana (63) and Tripura (62). Several other states, including Assam (

RANCHI: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has registered a fresh FIR against IAS officer Vinay Chaubey and seven others, including his relatives and close associate Vinay Singh, over allegations of large-scale corruption, fraudulent transactions and amassing disproportionate assets through a network of family members and associates. Apart from Chaubey, the FIR names his wife Swapna Sanchita, friend and key investor in alleged illegal assets Vinay Singh, Singhs wife Sanchita Singh, Chaubeys brothe

GUWAHATI: An adjournment motion moved in the Assam Assembly by the opposition to discuss the death of singer Zubeen Garg was allowed by the Speaker at the request of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Tuesday, the first day of the winter session. As the House met for the day's business after obituary references, Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia and Independent MLA Akhil Gogoi stood up with a request to allow their adjournment motions on the same issue. As Speaker Biswajit Daimary wa

KOLKATA: High drama unfolded as a group of BJP workers came face to face with protesting members of a booth-level officers' forum in front of the West Bengal CEO's office here around midnight, while a police force stood as a barrier between the two groups, a senior officer said on Tuesday. Several members of the BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee were on a sit-in outside the CEO's office since the afternoon hours on Monday, alleging excessive work pressure and unmanageable workload during the ongoing

SRINAGAR: Winter has arrived early in Kashmir this year, with bone-chilling temperatures gripping the Valley weeks ahead of schedule. A prevailing dry spell combined with the La Nia effect has pushed night-time temperatures in Srinagar down to 3.1C, and forecasters warn of even colder nights ahead. Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu & Kashmir, recorded 3.1C on Sunday night, a sharp deviation from the seasonal norm of around 0.1C. This marks the second consecutive night that temperatures in th