Hyderabad, Jul 12 (PTI) Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Saturday expressed serious concern over the heavy burden on state finances due to the loans borrowed at a high interest rate by the previous BRS government. In a meeting with S Mahendra Dev, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, he said the high-interest loans are impeding the state's development. "The CM brought to the notice of the Advisory Council Chairman that all the income generated by the stat...Read More
Gonda (UP), Jul 12 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Saturday targeted opposition parties, especially the Samajwadi Party (SP), saying its "PDA" is basically a "parivar development agency", in which Akhilesh Yadav is the chairman and his family members are directors. Maurya said this while talking to reporters after he paid tributes to former king of Mankapur state and former Uttar Pradesh minister late Kunwar Anand Singh in Gonda district. The deputy chief minis...Read More
Kolkata, Jul 12 (PTI) A woman was allegedly raped by a student inside a hostel of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, police said on Saturday. The accused has been arrested on the basis of an FIR lodged by the woman at Haridevpur police station, they said. The alleged incident took place inside the boys' hostel of IIM Calcutta on Friday, a police officer said. "The woman stated in the FIR that she was called to the hostel for a counselling session. She then became unconscious after c...Read More
New Delhi, Jul 12 (PTI) Assets worth more than Rs 762 crore of PACL (the Pearls Group) and its promoters have been attached under the anti-money laundering law in a case linked to an alleged Rs 48,000 crore Ponzi scheme, in which numerous investors were duped, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Saturday. A provisional order has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to attach the 68 immovable properties located across Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Maharashtra, and in Au...Read More
New Delhi/ Mumbai, Jul 12 (PTI) The preliminary probe report on the fatal Air India aircraft crash has turned the spotlight on the action of pilots, while the absence of any recommendation for Boeing 787-8 operators seems to have left several questions unanswered as the investigation progresses, experts said on Saturday. Switches that feed fuel into the aircraft's engines being cut off within a gap of one second, subsequent loss of thrust and altitude before crashing into a building in Ahmedaba...Read More
Chandigarh, Jul 12 (PTI) The BJP's Punjab unit on Saturday held demonstrations at many places in the state against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's remarks criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign visits. The BJP leaders and workers shouted slogans against Mann and also burnt his effigies. Party leader Tarun Chugh slammed the CM's remarks as "vile and disgraceful". Chugh said Mann is "drunk with power and arrogance" to the point where he doesn't even know what he is saying. "He's atta...Read More
Kolkata, Jul 12 (PTI) The West Bengal unit of the BJP on Saturday claimed that an "alarming demographic shift" is taking place in the state under "political patronage", and the number of voters has increased by more than 40 per cent in 46 assembly constituencies between 2011 and 2021. In seven of those 46 seats, the increase is over 50 per cent, the party claimed in a post on X. "The dream of turning Bengal into an Islamic state, once crushed by forefathers like Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Ji and ...Read More
Srinagar, Jul 12 (PTI) The Srinagar district magistrate on Saturday rejected the ruling National Conference's plea seeking permission to pay homage to the 22 people "martyred" by the forces of the Dogra Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, Hari Singh, on July 13, 1931. The party, in an application sent to the district magistrate, had said that NC president Farooq Abdullah and other senior functionaries intend to visit the graveyard of "martyrs" at Naqshband Sahib near Nowhatta on Sunday. "The Distri...Read More
Bhubaneswar, Jul 12 (PTI) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday met President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital and discussed different issues relating to the state's development. Majhi, who is on a tour of Delhi, expressed his gratitude towards the prime minister and said he was grateful for his unwavering support for Odisha's development. "On this occasion, important discussions were held regarding various developmental activities in Odish...Read More
Mumbai, Jul 12 (PTI) Seconds before Air India flight 171 crashed while ascending from Ahmedabad, the fuel control switches of both its engines were cut off, a preliminary investigation report said on Saturday, suggesting a catastrophic pilot error. The Airlines Pilots Association of India disagreed with the report, saying the investigation is "shrouded in secrecy" appears to be biased against the pilot and has come to a conclusion hastily. The report by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bure...Read More
Palakkad (Kerala), Jul 12 (PTI) Two children succumbed to the serious burns they suffered a day ago when a car parked in the courtyard of their house exploded and was engulfed in fire in the northern Palakkad district, police said on Saturday. The deceased children were identified as Alfred (6) and Emilina (4), natives of Polpully here. The condition of their mother Elsy (39), who suffered 60 per cent burns, is also slated to be serious, Chittoor police said. According to police, the tragedy ...Read More
Kota (Rajasthan), July 12 (PTI) Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday slammed rapidly growing coaching centres, terming them "poaching centres" and "black hole" for talent. Dhankhar was speaking as the chief guest at the fourth convocation of the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in Kota's Ranpur area. A total of 189 students were conferred degrees on the occasion. "I urge civil societies (and) public representatives to appreciate the urgency of this disease (coaching). W...Read More
Balasore, Jul 12 (PTI) A woman student of a college in Odisha's Balasore district, who had lodged a sexual harassment complaint against a teacher, on Saturday allegedly set herself on fire in the educational institute campus and sustained 90 per cent burn injury, police said. Another male student, who attempted to save her, also sustained injury and both were rushed to the District Headquarters Hospital here. Later, she was referred to AIIMS Bhubaneswar for advanced treatment. A 12-member doct...Read More
Pune, Jul 12 (PTI) Star long jumper Murali Sreeshankar made a stupendous return to competition after recovering from a knee surgery in April last year as he leaped 8.05m to win the title at the Indian Open Athletics Meet here on Saturday. Sreeshankar had injured his left knee while training in Palakkad in April last year and underwent a surgery in Doha the same month. It ruled him out of the Paris Olympics in July-August despite qualifying for the Games. At the Savitribai Phule Pune University...Read More
Leh, Jul 12 (PTI) Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, received a grand welcome upon his arrival here on Saturday on a month-long tour to the Union Territory of Ladakh, officials said. Dressed in traditional attire, hundreds of people, including women, children and monks, lined up on both sides of the road from the airport to Shewatsel Phodrang to catch a glimpse of the 14th Dalai Lama, they said. The Dalai Lama reached Leh Technical Airport from Himachal Pradesh's Dharamshala and was rec...Read More
Gurugram, Jul 12 (PTI) In a new revelation in tennis player Radhika Yadav's murder case, her uncle said on Sunday that accused Deepak Yadav had confessed to him about killing his daughter and said he should be hanged. Talking to reporters here, Vijay Yadav, the elder brother of Deepak Yadav, also categorically denied that Radhika Yadav had a tennis academy. "Deepak's family was well off. Deepak had realised his mistake and there can be no greater punishment for someone than repentance. The who...Read More
New Delhi, Jul 12 (PTI) The Congress on Saturday claimed that the Election Commission "cannot reject per se" Aadhaar, ration card and voter card as valid identity proof after the Supreme Court's interim order on Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, and alleged that "disinformation" is being spread on the issue. The opposition party also demanded that the EC shelve its plan for a nationwide special intensive revision, calling it "unconstitutional". This came after the BJP said the Supreme...Read More
New Delhi, Jul 12 (PTI) Indian students, tourists, business travellers and those working in technology firms planning to head to the United States may soon have to pay more than double the existing visa fee due to a new 'visa integrity fee' being imposed by the US, according to immigration service consultants. The 'visa integrity fee' finds a mention in the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' (now an Act) signed by President Donald Trump on July 4. Immigration domain watchers and firms facilitating stude...Read More
Gurugram, Jul 12 (PTI) VinFast Auto India, a subsidiary of Vietnam-based electric vehicle maker VinFast, has signed agreements with 13 dealer groups for opening 32 dealerships across 27 cities, a statement said on Saturday. VinFast, which is gearing up to launch its electric vehicles in the Indian market, aims to establish 35 dealerships across the country by the end of 2025, according to the statement. These collaborations underscore VinFast's commitment to establishing a robust 3S (sales, se...Read More
Bengaluru, Jul 12 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh's Simran and Preeti Pal were the standout performers on the final day of the 7th Indian Open Para Athletics Championship, bagging the women's 200m gold in the T12 and T35 categories here on Saturday. Simran clocked an excellent time of 24.80 seconds to win her event and she was followed by Damor Tejal of Gujarat, who claimed silver with 25.80 seconds, and Odisha's Janaki Oram, who took bronze in 30.00 seconds. Later Preeti joined her state-mate with gold i...Read More
Srinagar, Jul 12 (PTI) Women-led development is key to overcoming challenges like terrorism and drug addiction, and building a peaceful and prosperous Jammu and Kashmir, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said on Saturday. Sinha attended the valedictory function of the women's vocational training course at the Army Goodwill School in Balapur in south Kashmir's Shopian. He felicitated the women trainees who completed their vocational training and life enhancement skill courses at the school and fi...Read More
New Delhi, Jul 12 (PTI) The opposition must not support any move by the government to impeach Justice Yashwant Varma till an inquiry is set up under impeachment proceedings against Justice Shekhar Yadav for his "communal" remarks, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal said on Saturday. In an interview with PTI, Sibal contended that the case of Varma, who is embroiled in a row following the discovery of burnt wads of currency at his residence after a fire incident, was not one of corruption and so the part...Read More
Itanagar, Jul 12 (PTI) Curfew was imposed in Roing town in Arunachal Pradesh's Lower Dibang Valley district as tensions flared after a migrant youth from neighbouring Assam was lynched by a mob for allegedly sexually assaulting several girls, police said. The 19-year-old man, identified as Riaz-Ul Kurim from Bongaigaon, was taken into police custody on Friday after it came to light that he had allegedly sexually assaulted several girls of a school. The parents of the girls, who filed a complai...Read More
Bhopal, Jul 12 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav will visit Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and Spain between July 13 and 19 to showcase the state as a prime investment destination, officials said on Saturday. He will interact with companies and shed light on MP's friendly policy for attracting investment, they added. Yadav's sojourn will be another significant move in Madhya Pradesh's global investment attraction strategy, an official release said. In Dubai, Yadav is slated t...Read More
Goalpara, Jul 12 (PTI) An eviction drive to clear encroachment of around 135 hectares of land in the Paikan Reserve Forest in Assam's Goalpara district was conducted smoothly on Saturday, an official said. Goalpara District Commissioner (DC) Khanindra Choudhury told PTI that the operation concluded peacefully. "The structures were dismantled. It went off peacefully," he said. As many as 40 excavators were pressed into action, along with heavy security deployment to ensure peaceful eviction op...Read More
New Delhi, Jul 12 (PTI) Seconds before Air India flight 171 crashed while ascending from Ahmedabad, the fuel control switches of both its engines were cut off, a preliminary investigation report said on Saturday, suggesting a catastrophic pilot error in the cockpit of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The Airlines Pilots Association of India raised the issue with the report, saying the investigation is "shrouded in secrecy," appears to be biased against the pilot and has come to a conclusion hastily. ...Read More
Chennai, Jul 12 (PTI) Public sector Indian Overseas Bank must have a Vision for 2047 aligning with India's growth aspirations, M Nagaraju, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Union Ministry of Finance, said. He urged the city-headquartered bank to continue serving the evolving needs of its customers with 'innovation and integrity.' Launching some of the key banking services at an event on Friday evening in the presence of the bank's Managing Director and CEO Ajay Kumar Srivastava, Naga...Read More
Pune, Jul 12 (PTI) After the Enforcement Directorate (ED) named him as an accused in the alleged Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam, NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar on Saturday claimed he has not done anything wrong and that he was being targeted with political motives. Pawar said he was being singled out despite 97 others being named in the FIR, and added that since the matter is now in the court, he will fight out the case legally and win it. The ED named Pawar, who represents the Karja...Read More
Chennai, Jul 12 (PTI) Chennai Police Commissioner A Arun on Saturday denied that the police threatened a manager of a private company who allegedly died by suicide in Madhavaram on July 9. The manager identified as Naveen took the extreme step in a hut in Puzhal here. He was reportedly accused of swindling money. His hands were found tied loosely and the case appeared to a be suicide based on scientific evidence but investigation was underway, Arun said. "Its a classic case of suicide - the w...Read More
Chennai, Jul 12 (PTI) The disagreement between PMK founder Dr S Ramadoss and his son Anbumani continued to widen threatening to shadow the Vanniyar dominated party's prospects at the hustings. Party's senior leaders opine that a divided house would be a setback in facing the Assembly elections next year. Underscoring the importance of remaining together, a senior leader who is a supporter of Dr S Ramadoss says both the leaders should sink their differences and keep the party united. Another s...Read More