The Times of India

In a landmark achievement for preventive healthcare, Novaneo Hospital on Wednesday entered the Guinness Book of World Records by collecting the highest number of cervical cancer (Pap/HPV) screening gut samples within an eight-hour window, underscoring the growing role of hospital-led initiatives in large-scale disease prevention.

Perhaps, Pakistan felt it had returned to its older role of indispensable intermediary as New Delhi remained the insouciant child who refused to bow to Trumps diktats. Overnight, the illusion shattered as Trump announced the US had reached a trade agreement with India lowering tariffs on Indias exports to 18%. While most of the details about the deal are still being worked out, that didnt stop a full-blown meltdown on Pakistani (or South Asian) Twitter.

Parliament witnessed repeated disruptions on Wednesday as opposition protests and clashes with ruling party MPs led to multiple adjournments in the Lok Sabha. Opposition members raised allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and criticized the India-US trade deal, while Union Minister Piyush Goyal defended it. Heated exchanges also occurred between Rahul Gandhi and Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu.

Security forces neutralised one terrorist in Kishtwar during Operation 'Trashi-I'. This follows a series of encounters targeting Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad militants. Separately, two Pakistani terrorists, including a top JeM commander, were killed in a cave in Udhampur during Operation 'Kiya', concluding a prolonged gunfight.

Rahul Gandhi's 'traitor' remark against MP Ravneet Singh Bittu ignited a political firestorm, demanding an apology. Lok Sabha witnessed heated exchanges over remarks on the Gandhi family. Meanwhile, Ghaziabad mourned three sisters' deaths, with online gaming addiction a focus. The Supreme Court heard Mamata Banerjee's plea against Bengal's voter roll revision, as Putin and Xi hailed strong Russia-China ties.

Three minor sisters, aged 12, 14, and 16, died after jumping from the ninth floor of their Ghaziabad residence. Police are investigating the incident, focusing on the girls' alleged addiction to a Korean online game and excessive mobile phone use. Family members had recently restricted their phone access, reportedly causing distress.

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Delhi minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa have strongly condemned Rahul Gandhi's 'traitor' remark against former Congress MP Ravneet Bittu. Puri defended Bittu, a respected Sikh leader, stating he is not a traitor and that Gandhi's slur is an affront to the Sikh community.

The Supreme Court heard West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee's plea challenging the Election Commission's electoral roll revision, noting two key points in her petition. The court observed that timelines might need extension due to pending cases and issued notices to the EC and CEO for further hearing.

Three minor sisters tragically died after jumping from a ninth-floor Ghaziabad flat early Wednesday. An eyewitness reported one sister appeared to plan the jump, while the other two fell trying to stop her. Police are investigating their alleged addiction to an online gaming app and a handwritten note found at the scene.

A heated exchange occurred between Rahul Gandhi and Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu on Parliament steps, escalating into a political war of words. This confrontation happened amidst Opposition protests and the Lok Sabha's adjournment due to the suspension of eight MPs for disrupting proceedings.

Rahul Gandhi presented excerpts from former Army Chief General MM Naravane's unpublished memoir, alleging Prime Minister Modi shirked responsibility during the 2020 Ladakh clashes. Gandhi claimed the book states the PM told the Army Chief to do whatever he wants, leaving him feeling alone.

Three minor sisters, aged 16, 14, and 12, died after allegedly jumping from a ninth-floor balcony in Ghaziabad. Police are investigating the role of a Korean 'love game' they were reportedly addicted to and had refused to give up. The girls had been excessively playing the task-based game since the Covid-19 period.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has authored a book of 26 poems, titled 'SIR: 26 in 26', as a literary protest against the Election Commission's intensive revision exercise. The collection, released at the International Kolkata Book Fair, expresses her resentment and alleges a elentless campaign of fear in Bengal.

India has launched its first nationally developed, evidence-based guidelines for lung cancer treatment and palliation. These guidelines aim to standardize care, improve early diagnosis, and reduce treatment gaps across the country. They offer a common clinical framework for both public and private healthcare systems, emphasizing patient-centric care and quality of life.

West Bengal chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee approached the Supreme Court to contest the Election Commission's special intensive revision exercise. She had previously met with the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to voice her objections, alleging humiliation during the encounter. A Supreme Court bench is set to hear the matter.

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla alleged his mother was deliberately run over by a car in Pune, leaving her seriously injured. The accused reportedly fled the scene. Poonawalla's mother is set to undergo surgery, and he has appealed to the Pune police for the swift arrest of the perpetrator.

Security forces neutralized 364 Naxals, arrested 1,022, and saw 2,337 surrender last year as Left-wing extremism incidents dropped significantly. The number of affected districts has fallen to 32 from 61 since 2019, with a substantial dip in violence and casualties. The government aims to eradicate Naxalism by March 31, 2026.

Arunachal Pradesh villages along the China border are witnessing reverse migration, a positive sign for the Vibrant Villages Programme. The initiative, aimed at boosting living conditions and livelihoods, has seen significant investment. Over 8,500 activities were conducted nationwide, with Arunachal Pradesh receiving the largest share of funds for development projects.

The first is the India-Pakistan re-hyphenation Trump has brought upon India through his courting of Rawalpindi. It is here US ambassador to India Sergio Gor, who seems to have found a way out of the trade impasse within weeks of arrival, may have an important role to play. Suspense still looms over his dual role as Trumps special envoy for south Asia and any false move bracketing India with Pakistan, let alone playing sheriff, will be met with resistance.

In recognition of his contribution, he was offered an ex gratia lump sum amount of Rs 6,32,000, payable after 18 months from the date of cessation of employment, subject to the condition that from the date of cessation he would not join competing companies, namely Philips India Limited or Bajaj Electricals Ltd.

A division bench of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice AK Chaudhary passed the verdict on a PIL filed by Motilal Yadav in 2013, seeking direction against holding of caste-based rallies by political parties. In an interim order in July 2013 itself, a bench of Justice Uma Nath Singh and Justice Mahendra Dayal had stayed caste-based rallies with immediate effect throughout UP.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha held that the family courts order showed no illegality or defect warranting interference by the HC. The HC noted that when the husband had filed a petition seeking restitution of conjugal rights, the woman could have returned to her matrimonial home to resume marital life.

A litigant who approaches the court must get to know what judgment is given on his plea, the CJI said. The same HC judge, Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay, was found to have kept several judgments pending for years, even in cases where the convicts had appealed against their capital and life sentences. The judge had delivered the verdicts in those cases only after SC took judicial notice of the same.

Keen to project a message of ethnic reconciliation in the north-eastern state, which was rocked by Meitei versus Kuki violence, BJP is considering appointing two deputy CMs one each from the Kuki and Naga communities, with Singh being a Meitei. Nemcha Kipgen, a Kuki figure and former minister, is likely to be one of the deputy CMs.

The first grounding occurred on Feb 1 after a malfunction was registered by the crew of B787 (VT-ANX) during engine start to operate flight AI-132 from London to Bengaluru. The incident was critical as the fuel control switch locking mechanism has been at the centre of the investigation into the June 12 Air India Ahmedabad crash.

The burden was highest among urban metro residents, people aged 40-49 years, and those from lower-income groups. Regionally, pollution-linked depression showed stronger associations in eastern India, while anxiety was more prominent in the western region. Risks also peaked during the post-monsoon season, when pollution levels typically rise. he study went beyond overall PM2.5 levels to examine individual chemical constituents of air pollution.

Referring to the activists speech, the solicitor general said he had stated that Ladakhis could not choose their own representatives while China and Tibet etc have autonomous rights which is highly objectionable. This is a preventive action so that he doesnt keep repeating the things he (Wangchuk) said. The detention strikes at the very purpose for which the NSA was enacted. It will have a contextual meaning. Every state has region specific sensitivities, Mehta said.

Peacocks in Himachal Pradesh are generally found at altitudes of 1,000m but some thrive in areas up to 1,500m. Himachal Pradesh has become significantly warmer in the last 124 years. According to meteorological department, the state has recorded a rise of 1.5 degrees Celsius in average mean temperature since 1901.

Speaking at a pharma conclave in the city on Tuesday, he said restoring public confidence was as big a challenge as tackling crime after 2017. Yogi said he had seen how criminals mocked the law and made the people of the state suffer between 2003 and 2017, adding that law and order was his biggest challenge when PM Narendra Modi delegated the responsibility of UP to him in 2017.

Dealing with appeals by WhatsApp, its parent company Meta which also owns Facebook, challenging a NCLAT decision that upheld Competition Commissions finding of abuse of dominant position against the social media giant, a bench of CJI Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi scorched it with admonitions for violating right to privacy of Indian citizens.

The United States is set to host the inaugural critical minerals ministerial on Wednesday (local time) in Washington DC, bringing together delegations from more than 50 countries to deepen cooperation on securing and diversifying global critical mineral supply chains, according to a notice issued earlier by the US State Departments Office of the Spokesperson.

When the health cess was introduced, the understanding was that it would boost health expenditure by topping up what the govt was already allocating. Clearly, that has not happened. Instead, cess is masking what would otherwise be a steep cut in the share of health in total Budget and in GDP. From 0.32% of the GDP in 2019, the year before Covid struck, the share has fallen to 0.27% even with the cess component.

The MoU was signed in the presence of defence secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and A Anbarasu, DG (acquisition) in the department of defence (MoD), who called the collaboration a strategic marriage. It comes just a week after the Adani company and Brazilian aerospace major Embraer announced a strategic collaboration for setting up a fixed-wing aircraft manufacturing facility in India.