- Wednesday, February 08, 2023
Ajay Piramal, chairman of the Piramal Group and Pratham Education Foundation, on January 18 released the 17th Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2022 in New Delhi, India. ASER is an annual survey which aims to give reliable estimates of children’s enrolment and basic learning levels for each district and…
In the wake of fatalities among children linked to cough syrups and medicines made by manufacturers based in India and Indonesia, the WHO has issued an "urgent call to action” to countries to detect and respond to incidents of falsified medical products and protect children from contaminated medicines. The World…
Viewed as India’s most eligible bachelor by some, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi says he’ll get married when the right girl comes along and part of the problem is that his parents' “really lovely marriage” has set the bar very high. In a free-wheeling, light-hearted chat on food and travel platform…
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's advice to his party workers to stop commenting on movies comes late as the "mob is out of control now". According to party sources, in his address at the BJP national executive on Monday, PM Modi had suggested party workers…
The Congress Thursday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should break his "silence" on the sexual exploitation allegations against BJP MP and Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, and asked why resignations of those involved have not come in till now. The opposition party's attack came after…
The search for the last missing person in the Nepal plane crash resumed on Wednesday after rescuers on Tuesday pulled out one more body from the crash site where a Yeti Airlines aircraft carrying 72 people, including five Indians, had plunged in a river gorge in the resort city of…
India is expected to overtake China as the world's most populous country this year even though its population growth has been slowing down, United Nations says. Following are some key points about India's demography, according to government data: - India estimates its population at 1.38 billion, compared to China's 1.4…
Nepalese authorities on Tuesday started handing over to family members the bodies of those killed, two days after Yeti Airlines' aircraft with 72 people, including five Indians, crashed in the resort city of Pokhara, as the death toll rose to 71. As two more bodies were recovered from the accident…
Prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday (13) flagged off the world's longest river cruise MV Ganga Vilas, which will cover 3,200 km across 27 river systems in five states in India and Bangladesh in 51 days. MV Ganga Vilas is the first-ever cruise vessel to be made in India and…
A huge mansion in the elite Cape Town suburb of Constantia that was seized from the Gupta family, originally from Uttar Pradesh, is now being offered for sale with a price tag of $1.1 million. The property is part of assets worth $301m that were seized by the National Prosecuting…
Suniel Shetty recently met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and urged him to help the industry get rid of the 'Boycott Bollywood' trend. On Thursday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath met members of the Bollywood fraternity in Mumbai, Suniel Shetty, Subhash Ghai, Jackie Shroff, Rajkumar Santoshi, Manmohan Shetty,…
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday pitched his state as a safe investment destination and also interacted with prominent Bollywood personalities during his visit to Mumbai, where Maharashtra's Opposition parties targeted him over his roadshow. Adityanath assured industrialists of a strong law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh,…
President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and leaders cutting across the political spectrum on Friday condoled the death of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Hiraben, recalling her simple and compassionate life that was an inspiration for all. Hiraben, Hiraba to many, passed away at an Ahmedabad hospital on Friday…
A day after Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid termed his film a "propaganda", "The Kashmir Files" director Vivek Agnihotri in a cryptic social media post said truth is the most dangerous thing as it can make people lie. Agnihotri's reaction comes after veteran actor Anupam Kher, who starred in "The Kashmir…
The Uttar Pradesh's police in northeastern India in a report submitted to a special Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (1985) court stated that rats ate over 1102 pounds of confiscated marijuana stored in the warehouses of Shergarh and Highway police station. The statement by the police was made after…
Multiple award-winning Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddique is presently in news for his upcoming film Haddi, where he plays the central character of a transgender woman. Today, the actor took to social media to drop a couple of pictures of himself from the sets of the noir revenge drama. In the…
The latest offering from Rajshri, one of the most respected film production houses in India, promises to warm our hearts this winter by taking us to the Himalayas. Uunchai is the story of friendship, adventure, and reaching one’s own heights in the course of life. The story tackles many aspects…
Actor, producer and entrepreneur Priyanka Chopra Jonas says she has a bigger dream every day, refusing to be daunted as she climbs the ladder of success, step by step. Priyanka, who grew up in the Uttar Pradesh town of Bareilly and has made a global name for herself, said her…
After her brief stint in India, Priyanka Chopra is off to Los Angeles. Priyanka shared a photo of herself on her Instagram story revealing that she is flying back to Los Angeles. Priyanka was in India to promote her haircare brand alongside a visit to some rural areas in Uttar…
Priyanka Chopra recently made her first visit to India from the US to promote her hair care brand. She visited her home country after a long gap of 3 years and took to her Instagram handle to share with fans her hectic Mumbai schedule for a day. On Sunday, she…
Afloral waste project which converts flowers dispersed into the river Ganga into sustainable leather called Fleather and a greenhouse-in-a-box solution for small farmers are among this year’s finalists from India for Prince William’s Earthshot Prize, dubbed the Eco Oscars. Phool and Kheyti are among 15 worldwide projects in the running…
Hundreds of Indian Americans gathered at river banks, lakes and makeshift water bodies across the United States to worship the Sun God as they celebrated the popular Hindu festival of Chhath Puja on Sunday. Several states across the US, including California, Arizona, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Texas, North Carolina and…
The Indian mission in Australia is providing consular assistance to a 28-year-old student from the north-western city of Agra who was stabbed multiple times in Sydney and is under "serious but stable" condition after undergoing surgery at a local hospital. "The Indian Consulate in Sydney has provided consular assistance to…
A cab driver was arrested for allegedly playing with himself in front of a UK-based woman and her friend while ferrying them to a hotel in south Delhi, police said on Sunday, adding the duo left the country after the incident. The accused, Maakhan Lal, a native of Lalganj district…
An Indian cricket fan from Uttar Pradesh who received death threats for wearing a Pakistan jersey during the India-Pakistan in Dubai has said that he wore it as the Indian the jersey was sold out by the time he reached the stadium. Sanyam Jaiswal, 42, had travelled all the way…
The Indian Consulate in New York City has expressed grief over the death of Mandeep Kaur, an Indian-origin who committed suicide and said that it will render all kinds of assistance required. This comes after Kaur, who was tortured at the hands of her husband, allegedly committed suicide on August…
AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi hit out at the BJP on Wednesday over the showering of flower petals on Kanwariyas in Uttar Pradesh, saying this warmth is not for Muslims, whose houses are bulldozed. Talking to reporters in the Parliament complex, the Hyderabad MP said all communities should be treated equally.…
The South African government on Monday said it has submitted a formal extradition application to the United Arab Emirates for Rajesh Gupta and Atul Gupta of the wealthy India-born brothers of the Gupta family.The two brothers, along with their elder brother Ajay, have been in self-exile in Dubai since the…
The winners of India’s 68th National Film Awards were announced on July 22, 2022, in New Delhi. Established in 1954, the prestigious National Film Awards are administered by the Government of India’s Directorate of Film Festivals. What made the 68th National Film Awards special was the fact that the ceremony…
Every day, Indian octogenarian Kaleem Ullah Khan wakes at dawn, prays, then ambles about a mile to his 120-year-old mango tree, which he has coaxed into producing more than 300 varieties of the beloved fruit over the years. His footsteps quicken as he draws nearer and his eyes light up…
Police have busted a gang conducting a fake T20 cricket tournament here in Gujarat to take bets from Russian bookies by live-streaming the matches and arrested four of its members, an official said on Monday. To create an impression of an Indian Premier League (IPL)-like major tournament, key accused Shoeb…
India’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been left with no Muslim parliamentarians following the exit of union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi. His resignation followed the expiry of his term as a member of the Rajya Sabha or the Upper House of Parliament. Naqvi, who headed…
Microblogging site Twitter has removed the controversial July 2 tweet of filmmaker Leena Manimekalai. Leena had released the poster of the film Kaali via a tweet which led to outrage in India. The poster of her film depicted a woman dressed in a costume portraying the goddess and smoking. Reacting…
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra on Tuesday stirred a controversy by saying that she has every right as an individual to imagine Goddess Kali as a meat-eating and alcohol-accepting goddess, as every person has the right to worship God and goddess in his or her own way. While the BJP…
The Indian High Commission in Canada on Monday urged the Canadian authorities to withdraw the ‘disrespectful depiction of Hindu Gods’ in the poster of Kaali, a film showcased as part of the 'Under the Tent' project at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto. The poster that was tweeted last Saturday…
For foreign dignitaries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has often chosen gifts that showcase India's rich cultural and artistic traditions, and it was no different this time as he picked a variety of products for the heads of governments at the G7 Summit. It was distinct artistic products identified with different…
India-Russia defence Joint Venture BrahMos Aerospace is capable of making hypersonic missiles and will be able to have its first such missile in five to six years, BrahMos Aerospace informed on Monday."BrahMos Aerospace is capable of making hypersonic missiles. In five to six years, we will be able to have…
Protests broke out in some states on Friday including outside Delhi's Jama Masjid over the controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad by two now-suspended BJP functionaries with demonstrators in Jharkhand injuring a few policemen while authorities in Jammu imposed a curfew in a few areas and parts of Kashmir observed a…
Central agencies are "seriously" looking into the threat letter sent by terror outfit Al-Qaeda regarding suicide attacks in Delhi, Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat to "fight for the honour of the Prophet", said top agency sources.Alerts have been issued across Delhi, Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat through law enforcement agencies…
The South African government has announced that the UAE has arrested Rajesh Gupta and Atul Gupta, the two of the three wealthy India-born brothers of the Gupta family, who were at the centre of political corruption under former president Jacob Zuma.The two brothers were arrested in Dubai and it remains…
Founder of Isha Foundation Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev said that there is a "lot of heat" in television studios, which is being exaggerated to suggest that there is rising religious intolerance in the country while underlining that the last one decade has been free of major communal violence. In an exclusive…
The Uttar Pradesh Police Saturday booked 500 people for rioting and violence in Kanpur that left 40 injured, official said, as an uneasy calm prevailed in the affected areas this morning. Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and order) Anand Prakash Tiwari said 18 people have been arrested so far over…
ALLEGING that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh participated in the demolition of Babri Masjid "disrespecting" the Supreme Court and later defended the action saying it was necessary for "historic reasons", AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi questioned if the RSS would follow a similar method in the Gyanavapi issue. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's…
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday said he favours a strong opposition in the country but slammed dynastic politics, saying it kills talent. He also said his statements on dynastic politics are often misunderstood by people, and added his criticism of "pariwarvad" was not aimed at any party or individual. "I…
The much-anticipated Bollywood film Samrat Prithviraj, which opens in cinemas on June 3, has been banned in Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar. The high-profile historical war drama stars superstar Akshay Kumar in the lead role. Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar makes her silver screen debut with the film. Directed by Chandra…
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who attended a special screening of the period action drama Samrat Prithviraj with his cabinet colleagues, on Thursday declared the movie tax-free in the state. The screening of the movie was held at Lok Bhawan here, and Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, female lead Manushi…
THE All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi has said that "India belongs to Dravidians and Adivasis", and not to him, or Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, NCP head Sharad Pawar and prime minister Narendra Modi. Addressing a rally in Bhiwandi town here in Maharashtra on Saturday (28) evening, the…
Inspired by Hollywood flick 'The Fast and the Furious' three men stole over 40 luxury cars using hi-tech tools, including scanners and GPS jammer, police said on Friday after arresting them.The accused have been identified as Manish Rao (42) and Jagdeep Sharma (43), both residents of Uttam Nagar here, and…
FRESH bouts of legal battles over places of worship in India have raised concerns that they could potentially turn religious flashpoints in the Hindu-majority country.The disputes over the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi and another structure in Mathura – both in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh – are decades old.…
INDIA's Supreme Court overturned a local order to ban large Muslim prayer gatherings in a high-profile mosque in north India after a survey team said it found relics of the Hindu god Shiva and other Hindu symbols there. The top court on Tuesday (17) in an interim order stated Muslims'…
South Asia was in the grip of an extreme heatwave on Friday, with parts of Pakistan reaching a temperature of 50 degrees Celsius as officials warned of acute water shortages and a health threat. Swathes of Pakistan and neighbouring India have been smothered by high temperatures since April in extreme…
INDIA's Supreme Court on Wednesday (11) suspended a colonial-era sedition law that activists say is often used by prime minister Narendra Modi's government to target free speech and dissent. Modi's critics say that the law, which was once used by Britain to target independence hero Mahatma Gandhi, has been abused…
AN Indian police officer has been arrested after being accused of raping a 13-year-old girl who went to his station to report she had been gang-raped. The alleged incident is the latest to spotlight the high levels of sexual violence in the world's largest democracy, where a woman is raped…
INDIA'S electricity demand touched a record high in April as its northern states reeled under the hottest pre-summer months in decades, with a surge in the use of air conditioning triggering the worst power crisis in more than six years.Power demand grew 13.2 per cent to 135.4 billion kilowatt hours…
INDIA’S most sought-after election strategist said the Congress - the country’s oldest political party - is “capable of reviving itself” without his help.Prashant Kishor’s comment came in a television interview days after he turned down a “generous offer” to join the party and “take responsibility” for the next parliamentary elections…
AMID a punishing heatwave building up in large parts of India, Delhi saw a jump of two to three degrees Celsius in the maximum temperature at most places on Wednesday (27).Extreme heat continued to scorch large swathes of south Asia this week, offering no reprieve after the hottest March on…
An Indian court granted bail Wednesday to three students jailed for celebrating India's defeat to arch-rival Pakistan in a T20 World Cup cricket match last year, their lawyer said. The students were arrested in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in October and charged with sedition just days after…
An all-women team of smartphone-toting, low-caste reporters who chronicle India's hardscrabble heartland may give the cinema-mad country its first Oscar-winning film, after their own story became a critically lauded documentary. The journalists of Khabar Lahariya (Waves of News) have built a huge following across Uttar Pradesh, a northern state with…
HARDLINE Hindu groups are demanding restrictions on wearing the hijab in classrooms in more Indian states after a court upheld a ban on the traditional Islamic head-scarf in Karnataka state, worrying Muslim students who had protested against the ban. The Karnataka High Court decision on Tuesday (15), backing the southern…
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday praised filmmaker Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files, a film based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley in the 1990s. He said the film is "bringing the truth in its correct form" and history has to be presented in…
INDIA’S opposition Congress has unanimously decided that Sonia Gandhi should continue as its president till organisational polls after she expressed readiness to "make any and every sacrifice" in the party's interest.The Congress suffered heavy losses in the recently held elections in five states, including in Punjab where the party was…
TOP officials of India's ruling Hindu nationalist party and an army of its supporters bombarded voters with disinformation as key states went to the polls, specialists say. The five state votes held over several weeks starting February 10 set the stage for the next general election in 2024, and the…
AUTHOR Geetanjali Shree's novel ‘Tomb of Sand' is among 13 books from across the world longlisted for the International Booker Prize, the first Hindi language work of fiction to make the cut for the prestigious literary prize, unveiled in London on Thursday (10).Shree's book, translated into English by Daisy Rockwell…
PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi's party won India's most populous state with a big majority, according to the count on Thursday (10) of a state assembly vote that could offer clues to the national mood before a 2024 general election. The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had won or was…
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist party was set for a resounding victory but a reduced majority at elections in the country's most populous state Uttar Pradesh, exit polls forecast Monday. Exit polls are not always reliable in India, but an average of four indicated that the Bharatiya Janata…
INDIA will raise petrol and diesel prices soon for the first time in more than four months as global crude prices soar after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, three government officials said, amid growing concern about inflation. Asia's third-largest economy, which imports 80 per cent of its oil needs, faces retail…
A regional Indian party has claimed it will unseat Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in provincial elections in Uttar Pradesh state, the most crucial test for Modi before a general election in two years. The Hindu nationalist BJP has maintained it will retain power in the bellwether…
INTERPOL has issued red notices against Atul and Rajesh Gupta - two of the three Indian-origin Gupta brothers - who fled South Africa with their families amid investigations into their alleged role in corruption. However, Interpol has declined a request from the South African government to issue red notices against…
Prime minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on the Ukraine crisis on Sunday (27) and asserted that ensuring the safety of Indian students and evacuating them is the government's top priority, official sources said. It was also decided at the meeting to further enhance cooperation with the neighbouring countries…
INDIAN students in Ukraine have spoken of their despair as they hope to make their way out of the country following the military attack by Russia. It is estimated that some 16,000 Indians are currently stuck in Ukraine; New Delhi is making arrangements to evacuate them from the border regions…
Bibhu Prakash Swain believed in soulmates and true love, or so he told at least 18 women he allegedly married and conned across India before his arrest -- weeks before his next two weddings. The diminutive 67-year-old scoured marriage websites posing as a 51-year-old doctor and persuaded professors, lawyers, medics…
A dispute over restrictions on the wearing of the hijab by female students in a southern Indian state has now reached India's most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, with a group of youngsters asking a college to ban the head covering. Authorities closed colleges in Karnataka in India's south last…
FACEBOOK’S parent Meta on Thursday (10) outlined its resolve to curb hate speech, harmful content and misinformation on its platforms as five Indian states go to polls.The social media giant said it will activate its Elections Operations Centre to watch out for potential abuses that could emerge across its platforms.Meta,…
INDIA's most populous state of Uttar Pradesh began voting on Thursday (10) in the first of a series of local elections that will be a key test of the popularity of prime minister Narendra Modi and his ruling party. With a population almost as big as that of Brazil, keeping…
HINDU hardliner Yogi Adityanath, who is seeking re-election as chief minister of India's most populous state, touted his record on fighting crime and putting law and order above religion and caste in a rare interview with Western media. The 49-year-old monk from prime minister Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party…
IN a shocking development, frontline health workers engaged in India’s Covid vaccination drive have said that people are being officially certified as double vaccinated even when they have not completed the course of two jabs in order to meet government targets. According to a report by The Guardian, the workers…
Angry mobs in eastern India set fire to train carriages on Wednesday in protests over access to railway jobs that have seen police violently disperse crowds with tear gas and baton charges. Bihar state has been on edge since the start of the week over claims by young job applicants…
AN Indian idol dating to the 10th century, which was illegally removed from a village temple in Uttar Pradesh more than 40 years ago and which was recently found in a garden in England, was returned to India on the occasion of Makar Sankranti (14). India’s High Commissioner to the…
HUNDREDS of thousands of Hindu worshippers gathered on the banks of India's Ganges river on Friday (14) for a holy bath despite a 30-fold rise in coronavirus cases in the past month. Hindus believe a bath in the holy river on the Jan. 14 Makarsankranti festival washes away sins. A…
UTTAR PRADESH, India's most populous state and a key battleground for prime minister Narendra Modi and opposition groups, will hold elections in seven phases starting from Feb. 10, chief election commissioner Sushil Chandra said on Saturday (8). The outcome of the election in the northern state, currently ruled by Modi's…
INDIA began administering booster doses of Covid-19 vaccine to frontline workers and vulnerable elderly people on Monday (10), with the fast-spreading Omicron variant fuelling an almost eight-fold rise in daily infections since the start of the year. India reported 179,723 new cases on Monday (10), most of them in the…
ELECTION rallies were cancelled in India's heartland Thursday (6) as authorities fret over a sudden Covid surge, driven by the Omicron variant, which has seen confirmed infections nearly triple in two days. Teeming crowds have thronged campaign events for next month's poll in Uttar Pradesh -- the country's most populous…
SOUTH AFRICA’S former president Jacob Zuma allowed an Indian business family to plunder state resources and influence policy decisions, an investigation has found. The first report of the South African Commission of Inquiry into State Capture highlighted Zuma’s influence in supporting the now-defunct newspaper The New Age (TNA) amid what was described as "systemic…
INDIAN tax officials have seized nearly £26 million in banknotes stashed in buildings belonging to a perfume tycoon in Uttar Pradesh, The Times reported. The haul recovered from the businessman also included 23kg of gold, 250kg of silver and drums of sandalwood oil worth £750,000. The businessman was identified as…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (2) laid the foundation stone for a sports university in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. Major Dhyan Chand Sports University will be established at Salawa and Kaili villages on the outskirts of the Sardhana town of Meerut district at an estimated cost…
Indian tax officials have seized more than $30 million in cash and gold in raids on suspected tax evaders this week including a record haul of 1.94 billion rupees ($26 million) and 23 kg of gold ahead of assembly elections in five states. The raids triggered a flurry of accusations…
AN Indian court urged prime minister Narendra Modi's government to suspend political rallies and election campaigns in poll-bound states amid the rising number of Omicron cases, a variant of Covid-19. Judges of the Allahabad High Court in the country's most populous Uttar Pradesh (UP) state said on Thursday (23) the…
INDIA'S Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Monday (13) removed a controversial comprehension passage and the accompanying quotations from the English examination paper of Standard 10 and decided to award full marks for it to the students. The board took the decision following an outrage over it allegedly promoting…
Indian farmers formally ended year-long mass protests on Thursday (9) after prime minister Narendra Modi abandoned his push for agricultural reforms, defusing one of the biggest challenges faced by his government. Thousands of people have been camped on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi since last year to campaign…
INDIA'S parliament voted on Monday (29) to scrap agricultural reform laws that sparked a year of huge protests by farmers, after a surprise U-turn by prime minister Narendra Modi. Thousands of farmers have been camped out on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi since last year - one of…
What the success stories of Asian Business Awards winners have in common Business of the Year Award: Bestway Group One of Britain’s most successful companies, Bestway was founded by Sir Anwar Pervez and his school friends. The group today operates the UK’s second largest wholesale chain and the Well Pharmacy…
THOUSANDS of people in India’s capital and hundreds of thousands across the nation are currently battling dengue fever, The Telegraph reported. As a result, beds hastily converted for Covid-19 earlier this year are now being repurposed for dengue, the report added. In India’s ongoing outbreak, which first erupted in late…
INDIA will scrap three agricultural reform laws that sparked almost a year of huge protests by farmers, prime minister Narendra Modi said on Friday (19) in a stunning and rare U-turn by his government. Thousands of farmers have been camped out on the borders of the capital New Delhi since…
INDIA'S Supreme Court told authorities on Monday (15) to shut offices in the capital and nearby cities, allowing millions to work from home as officials seek ways to reduce hazardous air pollution that led to the closure of schools. Its action came after city authorities in New Delhi, which has…
A left-wing Indian opposition party has launched a perfume with what it calls the "fragrance of brotherhood, love and socialism" that will "end hatred". The product was unveiled by the Samajwadi Party in the hopes of wooing voters in elections in early 2022 in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.…
AT LEAST 89 people, including 17 children, have tested positive for the Zika virus in a surge of cases in the Indian city of Kanpur, its health department said on Monday (8). First discovered in 1947, the mosquito-borne virus Zika virus reached epidemic proportions in Brazil in 2015, when thousands…
THE demand for weather prediction will increase from various sectors in the future and artificial intelligence and machine learning will play a key role in this transition, the head of India’s premier weather agency has said. Dr M Mohapatra is the director-general of meteorology at the India Meteorological Department (IMD).…
INDIAN police have arrested three Muslim students and a teacher for celebrating the Pakistan cricket team's crushing victory over arch-rivals India at the Twenty20 World Cup, officials said on Thursday (28). The students, originally from Kashmir, were taken into custody on Wednesday (27) in the northern city of Agra for…
ANANDIBEN Patel, the governor of the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, on Sunday (17) concluded her three-day visit to Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh in the neighbouring state of Uttarakhand. The visit coincided with Navratri, the nine-day Hindu festival that celebrates the divine feminine energy. Patel observed Navami and…
INDIAN political, faith and community leaders took part in a special online appeal for hand hygiene and health to mark Global Handwashing Day Friday (15). Uttar Pradesh governor Anandiben Patel joined His Holiness Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji (HH Pujya Muniji), the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance’s faith leaders and Unicef’s India’s…
Filmmaker Shadab Siddiqui had never dreamt of becoming a part of showbiz. He was working as a carpenter when he met a fellow from the industry who worked in the production department in films. A brief encounter with him led Siddiqui to quit carpentry and enter the industry as a…
ASHISH MISHRA, son of junior home minister Ajay Mishra Teni, has been arrested on accusations he ran over and killed four protesting farmers last week, a senior police official said. The farmers, killed on Oct. 3 in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, were part of India's longest-running agricultural protest,…
FARMERS in India have vowed to intensify their months-long protest against laws aimed at liberalising agriculture as tension flared a day after eight people were killed in clashes between growers and ruling party supporters. Four of the eight were killed when a car linked to a senior ruling party official…
MAHANT Narendra Giri, president of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP), the largest grouping of sadhus in India, was found dead on Monday (20) at Baghambari Math in Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad) in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The police said a seven-page ‘suicide note’ was found in which the…
Swara Bhasker, Shikha Talsania, Meher Vij, and Pooja Chopra have finished shooting for their upcoming film Jahaan Chaar Yaar. The film was being shot in Goa, where it went on floors earlier this year. The team wrapped up production on Sunday night. Filming had paused in the wake of the…
INDIA on Friday (17) made a record 22 million coronavirus jabs in a day as part of a special vaccination drive for the birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Authorities set up special vaccination centres in stadiums, shopping malls, clinics and other venues as it sought to boost the lagging…
TO curb air pollution levels, Delhi authorities have ordered a ban on the storage, use and sale of firecrackers in the Indian capital ahead of the Diwali festival. India is among the most polluted countries in the world, and air quality in Delhi and neighbouring northern states normally begins to deteriorate…
AS Bhupendra Patel took charge as the chief minister of Gujarat from Vijay Rupani, there was speculation as to what led to the change of guard in the western Indian state. The perceived “mismanagement” of Covid-19 by the Rupani government and his differences with other leaders of the ruling Bharatiya…
THE author of a new book on Narendra Modi has warned that India's transformation to an “ethnic democracy”, in which religious minorities are relegated to second class citizenship, may reach the “point of no return”. Christophe Jaffrelot, a Frenchman who is professor of politics and sociology at King’s college London, has…
INDIAN authorities are restricting major religious festivals that start this week and attract huge crowds, warning that a new Covid-19 wave had already begun in the financial capital Mumbai. State governments across the country of 1.3 billion people, which saw a devastating coronavirus surge in April-May, are clamping down on…
Facing pressure from their own families to marry before completing education, several young women in India have started writing letters to prime minister Narendra Modi to raise the marriage age for girls to 21 from 18, as it is in case of the country's men. One such woman is Sonam…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (1) released a Rs 125 commemorative coin to honour Srila A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) on his 125th birth anniversary. Modi, who unveiled the coin through a video conference, praised Srila Prabhupada’s effort…
Vilified by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's party for its high COVID-19 cases, Kerala's apparent poor record may actually hold crucial lessons for the country in containing the outbreak as authorities brace for a possible third wave of infections. The opposition-ruled, densely populated southern state is currently reporting the most…
THE death of a 24-year-old woman, who had set herself ablaze last week in Indian capital New Delhi after alleging harassment by police and law at the behest of a parliamentarian she had accused of raping her, has brought the focus back on the country’s treatment of its girls. On…
SOUTH AFRICAN president Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday (11) said he chose to "remain but resist" rather than resign as deputy president when allegations about widespread corruption surfaced under his predecessor Jacob Zuma. Ramaphosa, who served as deputy president from May 2014 to February 2018, has made the fight against corruption…
SOUTH African president Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday (12) conceded for the first time that rifts within the country’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) stopped appropriate action from being taken against the influential Gupta family from India for its alleged involvement in a huge state capture. While appearing before the State…
Pratik Gandhi, who shot to overnight fame with the runaway success of his SonyLIV streaming show Scam 1992: The Hansal Mehta Story (2020), has added a new exciting project to his resume. The young actor has signed on to topline producers Bhushan Kumar, Shaailesh R Singh and Hansal Mehta’s next…
The alleged rape and murder of a nine-year-old, low-caste girl sparked a third day of protests in India's capital on Tuesday (3), in the latest case to spotlight the country's high levels of sexual violence. Hundreds of demonstrators have taken to the streets in New Delhi, holding banners reading "give…
THE Narendra Modi government came under fierce criticism on Thursday (22) after India’s tax authorities conducted raids against a popular newspaper and television channel that have been critical of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic in the country. While there was no official remark on…
THE Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which represents 40,000 trade organizations in the country, will launch an e-commerce portal for customers, its national secretary told Eastern Eye. In an exclusive interview, Sumit Agarwal revealed around 100,000 traders in the country have already registered and 10,000 of them have created…
INDIA’S most populous state, Uttar Pradesh announced a draft law for population control on Saturday (10), as per which those having more than two children will be devoid of any special concessions or benefits. It proposes denying government jobs, promotions, subsidies and the right to contest local elections to anyone…
ALL eyes were set on Indian prime minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (7) over an impending cabinet reshuffle in his government. This will be the first reshuffle since Modi took oath as the prime minister for the second time in 2019 and the final decision was expected to come around…
FOUR top south Asian leaders including Narendra Modi and Imran Khan have been accused of being "predators" who are “cracking down on press freedom”. Reporters Without Borders (RSF), a global free media advocacy group, has featured the duo in their 2021 "Press freedom predators gallery – old tyrants, two women…
INDIA'S legal sector has been hit by the Covid-19 pandemic like every other field and most courts in the country have been functioning virtually since March 2020 when a long lockdown was imposed by its government throughout the nation to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. But the virtual…
TENS of millions of people in India were suffering Friday (2) under a severe heatwave that has pushed the temperature to a nine-year high in Delhi as monsoon rains run behind schedule. Heatwaves have killed over 6,500 people in the world's second-most populous nation since 2010, and scientists say climate change…
MORE THAN a dozen ground and mid-level members of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have said that they are disillusioned with the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic that has devastated the country. Besides, six state lawmakers in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, have written letters criticising the…
A HINDU female priest living in the US, who offers nuptials and other religious services to LGBTQ people, has described how she is one of a kind and has officiated over a dozen same-sex couple weddings. Sushma Dwivedi juggles her role as a priest with her other job, as the…
MORE corpses are washing up on the banks of the Ganges in India's most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, as rains swell the river and expose bodies buried in shallow graves during the peak of the country's latest wave of coronavirus infections. Videos and pictures in May of bodies drifting…
Indian police have summoned Twitter's top local executive over a viral video on the site of a Muslim man being assaulted, with authorities accusing the US social media giant of stoking sectarian tensions. The order comes as a battle rages between foreign tech giants and the Indian government over new…
A boatman in India has been praised after he rescued a baby girl found floating in a wooden box in the Ganges river. The infant was found in a wooden box decorated with images of Hindu deities. Police said the box had a birth horoscope card which had the time and…
POLITICAL developments in the North Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which will go to Assembly elections next year, saw a dramatic turn on Tuesday (15) when a number of suspended lawmakers of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) met Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav. Speculation was rife following the meeting…
TAJ Mahal, one of the world’s top tourist attractions located in India, will reopen on Wednesday (16), more than two months after it was shut owing to the deadly surge in Covid-19 infections that swept the country. Cases and deaths rose exponentially in the world’s second most populous nation in…
RASHTRIYA Lok Dal (RLD) chief Jayant Chaudhary on Sunday (13) said the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) alleged “apathy” towards protesting farmers will make it pay in next year’s key Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. He said "artificial" issues like love jihad and cow terror will not save the saffron…
A leading charity has joined efforts in combating the Covid-19 pandemic and alleviating the suffering in India during the second wave. BAPS Charities, through its global network and partner hospitals, has so far supported the treatment of over 3,800 victims to full recovery from Covid-19 in the country, a statement…
THE Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has recently joined hands with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) for the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections and both parties described the move as “historic”. This is not the first time that the two outfits have come together to fight an election. In the 1996 Lok…
When a movie or a web series is released, some scenes or characters become memes and start trending on social media. The Family Man season two released on 4th June 2021, and while viewers are praising the series, it has also attracted memes on social media. Chellam Sir, a character…
SOME of India's states are easing lockdown restrictions as coronavirus infections subside, with the world's second most-populous nation on Saturday (5) logging its lowest daily case count in nearly two months. India saw 120,529 new coronavirus infections emerge over the last 24 hours, while deaths rose by 3,380. The country's…
INDIA on Wednesday (2) reported a daily rise in new coronavirus infections of 132,788 cases over the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 3,207. The South Asian nation's tally of infections now stands at 28.3 million, while the death toll has reached 335,102, health ministry data showed. The daily…
LOW PAY, 24-hour shifts and severe shortages of staff and protective gear have left many doctors on the frontlines of India's brutal pandemic surge near breaking point and fearful for their lives. Coronavirus infections have killed at least 165,000 people in the vast South Asian nation -- home to some…
INDIA reported on Tuesday (1) its lowest daily rise in new coronavirus infections since April 8 at 127,510 cases over the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,795. The new Covid-19 cases is the lowest in 54 days, while the daily positivity rate dropped to 6.62 per cent. The…
INDIA reported on Monday (31) its lowest daily rise in new coronavirus infections since April 11 at 152,734 cases over the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 3,128. The South Asian nation's tally of infections now stands at 28 million, while the death toll has reached 329,100, health ministry…
INDIA recorded a single-day rise of 1,65,553 new Covid-19 cases, the lowest in 46 days, taking the country's infection tally to 2,78,94,800, according to union health ministry data on Sunday (30). The daily positivity declined to 8.02 per cent, remaining below the 10 per cent mark for the sixth consecutive…
THE single day rise in coronavirus infections in India fell below the two-lakh mark for the second time this month. The total tally of Covid-19 cases in the country has climbed to 2,75,55,457 out of which 2,48,93,410 patients have recuperated, according to the union health ministry data on Friday (28).…
MORE than 1,600 teachers in India died from Covid-19 weeks after their polling duty between April and May. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, schools in India remained closed, therefore hundreds of thousands of government teachers were asked to monitor polling booths as some states across the country held elections. A letter to…
INDIA'S recovery rate went up to 90 per cent while daily Covid-19 infections of 2,11,298 took the total tally to 2,73,69,093, according to the union health ministry data on Thursday (27). The death toll due to Covid rose to 3,15,235 with 3,847 new fatalities being reported in a span of…
INDIAN farmers agitating at three Delhi border points observed 'black day' on Wednesday (26) to mark the completion of six months of their protest against three new agriculture laws. They raised black flags, shouted anti-government slogans, burnt effigies and took out protest marches at the three border points -Singhu, Ghazipur…
THE daily rise in coronavirus cases in India remained below the three lakh-mark for the sixth consecutive day, with 2.57 lakh new cases recorded in a single day, the union health ministry said on Saturday (22). With the fresh cases, India's tally of Covid-19 cases climbed to 2,62,89,290. The death…
INDIA reported on Friday (21) 259,551 new coronavirus infections over the last 24 hours, while deaths rose by 4,209. The South Asian nation's infection tally stands at 26.03 million, with a death toll of 291,331, health ministry data showed. New Covid-19 cases remained below 300,000-mark for the fifth consecutive day…
ABOUT 270 medical professionals have died in India since the deadly second wave of pandemic hit the country, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) said on Tuesday (18). On average, 20 doctors are dying due to Covid-19 in the second wave in the country. The data released by the IMA, India’s…
MORE than 20.55 lakh Covid-19 tests were conducted in a span of 24 hours, the highest-ever conducted in a single day in India, while the daily positivity rate stands at 13.44 per cent, the union health ministry said on Thursday (20). Cumulatively, 20,55,010 tests were conducted on Wednesday (19) in…
By: Mohnish Singh Actor Randeep Hooda, who can be currently seen in Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai (2021), is now looking forward to his much-awaited streaming show Inspector Avinash. While Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai starred him as a drug lord, Inspector Avinash sees him in the role of a…
India's total Covid-19 caseload surged past 25 million on Tuesday (18) as a powerful cyclone complicated the health crisis in one of the states where the disease is spreading most quickly. Covid-19 tests were administered to 200,000 people evacuated from coastal districts of the western state of Gujarat before the…
BODIES of Covid-19 victims have been found dumped in some Indian rivers, a state government said in a letter seen by Reuters, the first official acknowledgement of an alarming practice it said may stem from poverty and fear of the disease in villages. Images of corpses drifting down the Ganges…
AVOIDING any public comments for weeks on India’s devastating conronavirus wave, prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday in his televised address said, he feels the pain of all Indians battling with the pandemic. The government has been throbbed by criticism of its handling of the virus. The country of 1.3…
INDIA'S tally of coronavirus infections climbed past 24 million on Friday (14), amid reports that the highly transmissible variant first detected in the South Asian nation was spreading across the globe. The Indian B.1.617 variant has spread to Canada and the United States, said Jairo Mendez, an infectious diseases expert…
INDIA recorded more than 4,000 Covid-19 deaths for a second straight day on Thursday (13), while infections stayed below 400,000 for a fourth day, though the virus has become rampant in rural areas where cases can go unreported due to a lack of testing. Experts remain unsure when numbers will…
BACHCHAN STARRER MARKS 40TH ANNIVERSARY by DHARMESH PATEL THIS month marks the 40th anniversary of classic Bollywood film Laawaris, which was originally released on May 22, 1981. The action-drama starring Amitabh Bachchan was a huge blockbuster that ran in cinemas for many months and has since become a cult classic,…
AUTHORITIES in northern India said they have installed a net across the Ganges river after the bodies of dozens of suspected Covid-19 victims washed up. The discovery of 71 corpses in Bihar state stoked fears that the virus was raging unseen in India's vast rural hinterland where two-thirds of its…
INDIA'S coronavirus deaths crossed a quarter million on Wednesday (12) in the deadliest 24 hours since the outbreak of the pandemic, as the contagion rampaged through the countryside, overwhelming a fragile rural healthcare system. Boosted by highly infectious variants, the second wave erupted in February to inundate hospitals and medical…
BHARAT BIOTECH has commenced direct supply of its Covid-19 vaccine 'Covaxin' to 14 states, including Delhi and Maharashtra, with effect from May 1, according to the company's joint managing director, Suchitra Ella. The Hyderabad-based firm has started supplying its Covid-19 treatment vaccine to the states based on the allocations received…
FORMER union minister and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) leader Ajit Singh died aged 82 at a Gurgaon hospital on Thursday (6) morning battling Covid-19, his family said. Singh, a prominent farmer leader and son of former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, had tested positive for Covid-19 on April 20, the…
INDIA reported a record 412,262 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday (6) and a record 3,980 daily death toll, as a second wave of infections swamps the health system and spreads from cities into the vast countryside. Covid-19 infections in the world's second most populous nation have surged past 21 million,…
By: Mohnish Singh While her maiden streaming show Fallen is yet to premiere, Sonakshi Sinha has signed on to topline two more digital projects. Buzz has it that the Dabangg (2010) actress plays a pivotal part in the high-profile web series Heera Mandi, backed by eminent filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali.…
THE first emergency medical supplies trickled into Covid-stricken India on Tuesday (27) as part of a global campaign to staunch a catastrophic wave in the latest pandemic hotspot, with the US also pledging to export millions of AstraZeneca vaccine doses. India's infection and death rates are growing exponentially, overwhelming hospitals,…
New infections at record for fifth day Neighbouring Bangladesh closes border for 14 days Tech hub of Bengaluru faces lockdown from Tuesday INDIA's new coronavirus infections hit a record peak for a fifth day on Monday (26). The southern state of Karnataka, home to the tech city of Bengaluru, ordered…
INDIA's daily coronavirus death toll passed a new record Saturday (24) as the government battled to get oxygen supplies to hospitals overwhelmed by the hundreds of thousands of new daily cases. Queues of Covid-19 patients and their fearful relatives are building up outside hospitals in major cities across India, the…
By air, by train and by road, India is scrambling to move large quantities of medical oxygen to hospitals in its capital New Delhi and other areas hit hard by a record surge of COVID-19. ARE HOSPITALS RUNNING OUT OF OXYGEN? The main problem is that medical oxygen is not…
Delhi hospitals issued desperate appeals for oxygen on Friday and 13 Covid-19 patients died in a fire, as India's healthcare system buckles under a new wave of infections. The surge, blamed on a new virus variant and recent "super spreader" public events, brought 330,000 new infections -- a world record…
INDIA recorded the world's highest daily tally of 314,835 new Covid-19 infections on Thursday (22) as a second wave of the pandemic raised new fears about the ability of crumbling health services to cope. The health ministry data on Thursday is the most of any country since the pandemic began,…
Poor Indians are bearing the brunt of "pandemic policing" as the country struggles to contain a deadly second wave of COVID-19 cases by imposing stricter curfew rules and curbs on movement, rights advocates said. Hawkers, slum dwellers, food couriers and migrant workers are most likely to fall foul of lockdown…
India, the country currently being hit hardest by the pandemic, on Tuesday (20) reported its worst daily death toll, with large parts of the country now under lockdown amid a fast-rising second wave of infections. The health ministry said 1,761 people had died in the past day, bringing India's toll…
A Hindu seer has died from coronavirus and 80 other holy men have tested positive after attending a vast Indian religious festival where millions of pilgrims have been ignoring Covid-19 advice despite a national surge in infections. The announcement from authorities in Haridwar, Uttarakhand state, came as India recorded more…
AN INTERNATIONALLY acclaimed Indian musician has spoken about the difficulties faced by visually impaired artists, revealing his own struggles after he lost his sight when he was an infant. Award-winning performer Baluji Shrivastav has released 12 albums during his extensive career and has become known as one of the world’s…
Tennis legend Andre Agassi-led education technology firm Square Panda will invest $50 million in India over a period of three years to strengthen early child education for five million primary school children. The company has already rolled out early learning project ''Aarambh'' in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Uttar Pradesh and now…
INDIAN authorities clamped down on one of the country's biggest Hindu festivals on Monday (29) as the country passed 12 million coronavirus cases with financial hub Mumbai recording its highest-ever rise in daily infections. Public celebrations to mark Holi -- a popular festival where people smear colour on each other…
FORMER deputy governor of India's central bank KC Chakrabarty, 68, passed away on Friday (26) morning due to a heart attack. He was deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from June 2009 to April 2014, resigning three months before his term concluded. He is known for his…
A New report has revealed that 32 of the 40 most-polluted cities in the world last year are in India. The report, compiled by the Swiss air-monitoring group IQAir, said that New Delhi is the most-polluted capital. The western Chinese desert city of Hotan, blighted by dust storms, was the…
By Sattwik Biswal INDO-CANADIAN YouTube star Lilly Singh extended her support to the farmers' agitation in India by wearing a "I stand with farmers" mask at the red carpet of 2021 Grammy Awards. The 32-year-old tweeted an image and wrote that the red carpet of Grammy Awards gives her an…
By: Mohnish Singh Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, who recently wrapped up Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment’s Bachchan Pandey, is moving on to shoot his next film, titled Ram Setu. Also starring Jacqueline Fernandez and Nushrratt Bharuccha in lead roles, the high-profile project is being directed by Abhishek Sharma, while well-known writer-director Dr.…
India as a democracy has guaranteed the right to protest throughout and the farmers’ protests over agricultural reforms is an issue that is “absolutely and totally” a matter for the government of India, UK minister Lord Tariq Ahmad said on Friday (12) ahead of his visit to New Delhi. A…
INDIAN AMERICAN hotel owners were shot during an argument with a guest at their New Eastern Inn in Elkton, Maryland, in the US last week. Usha and Dilip Patel, both 59, were shot last Friday (5) in the lobby following an argument with a guest, possibly over payment, reports said.…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCtuoLygv0k By Murtuza Iqbal Horror-comedy is surely a tough genre. It's not easy to make the audience laugh as well as scare them at the same time. But, the 2018 release Stree was a perfect horror-comedy. The movie ended with a cliffhanger and we all have been waiting for Stree…
THE high commission of India in London has condemned false assertions in a 'distinctly one-sided discussion' among a group of British parliamentarians on Monday (8) on the issue of peaceful protests and press freedoms in India. The high commission pointed out that foreign media, including British media, had been present…
THE new British high commissioner to India Alex Ellis on Friday (5) said that the farmers' protest is India's 'internal issue' and it is for it to resolve. "I think the foreign secretary (Dominic Raab) said it when he was in India 'your politics is our politics'. In other words,…
INDIAN farmers who have been protesting for months against deregulation of produce markets plan to block a major expressway outside New Delhi on Saturday (6), the 100th day of their campaign, they said. Tens of thousands have been camped outside Delhi since December, demanding prime minister Narendra Modi repeal three…
India's top court on Thursday said it favoured a screening mechanism for online video streaming services, dominated in the country by Amazon and Netflix and which currently are aired freely. The US streaming platforms have faced complaints from lawmakers belonging to prime minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationlist party and others…
By: Mohnish Singh Shikha Talsania, Swara Bhasker, Pooja Chopra, and Meher Vij are set to star in the upcoming Hindi film Jahaan Chaar Yaar, which revolves around four housewives who are stuck in lackluster marriages and embark on a journey to become more daring and break the monotony of life.…
A LEADING Indian spiritual leader, His Holiness (HH) Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji (HH Pujya Muniji), gave a cheque of Rs 5,100,000 (around £50,000) towards the rebuilding of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, north India. During his meeting last week with the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state Yogi Adityanath, HH…
Chafing from a dispute with Twitter, India plans to oblige social media companies to erase contentious content fast and assist investigations, according to a draft regulation. New Delhi's planned "Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code" - a copy of which was seen by Reuters - come as various nations…
By: Mohnish Singh Akanksha Puri, who shot to fame with Sony Entertainment Television’s successful mythological show Vighnaharta Ganesh, is set to take a plunge into the digital world with Jio Studios’ upcoming streaming show Inspector Avinash. Set in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, Inspector Avinash is inspired by the…
India's decision to export millions of coronavirus vaccine doses to Saudi Arabia has rankled its vast expat community, locked out by the kingdom's months-long flight ban that sparked tense diplomatic wrangling. The plight of Indian workers, who make up the kingdom's biggest expatriate community, underscores the turmoil caused by tightening…
By Amit Roy THE apparent suicide of the 25-year-old British Indian actress, Jiah Khan, in Mumbai in 2013 was analysed in a harrowing three-part BBC Two documentary, Death in Bollywood, last week. Did she really hang herself with a dupatta from a ceiling fan in the spare bedroom of her…
by LAUREN CODLING THE author behind a true-crime book focusing on the alleged murders of two teenagers in India has revealed her motivations for covering the story, claiming she was “compelled” to understand the level of violent crimes against women in the country. The Good Girls: An Ordinary Killing explores…
Renowned Indian classical musician Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan passed away at the age of 89 on Sunday (17( afternoon at his residence in Mumbai, his family said. Khan's daughter-in-law Namrata Gupta Khan said the veteran breathed his last at 12.37pm at his Bandra home. "He was fine in the morning...…
An Indian state ruled by prime minister Narendra Modi's BJP party on Wednesday (30) passed a law abolishing all Islamic schools, saying they provided sub-standard education. Opposition politicians criticised the move and said it reflected the government's anti-Muslim attitude in the Hindu-majority country. More than 700 of the schools, known as…
In India's most populous state, the Hindu nationalist BJP government is on a mission against "love jihad", the conspiracy theory that Muslims are luring Hindu brides with the aim of conversion and eventually national domination. While interfaith marriage remains rare in the Hindu-majority nation, this zealous drive in Uttar Pradesh…
Murtuza Iqbal Govinda has been in the industry for more than three decades. The actor ruled the big screen in the 90s and early 2000. He is known for his amazing comic timing and fantastic dance moves. Today, as the veteran actor celebrates his 57th birthday, let’s look at the…
By: Mohnish Singh Talented actor Randeep Hooda, who was most recently seen in American action thriller Extraction (2020) alongside Hollywood star Chris Hemsworth, is set to make his web-series debut with Jio Studios’ Inspector Avinash. As the title aptly suggests, Inspector Avinash is a cop thriller based on real-life events…
An Indian state has criminalised 'forced' religious conversions by marriage, a first of its kind move in the country. India's most populous state Uttar Pradesh this week has approved a decree laying out prison terms for anyone compelling others to convert their faith or luring them into these conversions through marriage.…
By: Mohnish Singh Janhvi Kapoor, who received rave reviews for her excellent performance in Dharma Productions’ biographical drama Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl (2020), is reportedly set to star in the official Hindi remake of the successful Malayalam film Helen (2019). According to reports, Janhvi Kapoor’s father, Boney Kapoor, has…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) is likely to make gains in Bihar assembly elections. The fight in Bihar is down to two coalitions led by regional rivals - one of them is the incumbent Janata Dal (United) or JD-U, the BJP's partner. The alliance, led by Chief…
PAKISTAN has said that it will 'vehemently' oppose India's application to the EU for sole geographical indication (GI) status for its homegrown long-grain aromatic basmati rice as it will 'adversely affect Pakistani exporters'. GI status is used to mark a product out to consumers as having “qualities, reputation or characteristics…
By: Mohnish Singh The makers of Satyameva Jayate 2 have commenced the first shooting schedule of their upcoming film in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. The movie is a sequel to the 2018 vigilant actioner Satyamev Jayate and stars John Abraham and Divya Khosla Kumar as central characters. Milap Zaveri wields…
The makers of Chhalaang on Friday shared a brand-new poster of their upcoming film ahead of its trailer launch on Saturday. Starring Rajkummar Rao and Nushrat Bharucha in central characters, the movie is set to premiere on 13th November on leading streaming media platform Amazon Prime Video. Unveiling the new…
The victim of India's latest alleged gang rape faced the double discrimination of being born female and low caste, says her family, fearing she will get no justice in death either. They say it would all have been different if the 19-year-old victim of a brutal attack came from an…
Teenage batsman Yashasvi Jaiswal sold street food and lived in tents to pursue his cricket dream, and now he is playing with top stars in the Indian Premier League. The 18-year-old left-hand batsman scored 400 runs in six one-day matches for India at this year's Under-19 World Cup, but it…
Award-winning Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who is currently seen in Netflix’s Serious Men (2020), is waiting to resume work after staying at home for more than six months due to the ongoing pandemic. However, he is not in a desperate hurry to face cameras as everybody’s safety comes first for…
Indian police on Tuesday (6) accused foreign human rights groups and Muslim organisations of inciting caste tensions after widespread protests against their handling of a gang-rape and murder of a young Dalit woman. The assault last month of an "untouchable" Dalit teenager has sparked outrage across the country against rampant…
A court in India has ordered police to protect the family of a woman allegedly gang-raped and killed by four high-caste men, as her brother said they feared reprisals over the accusations. The 19-year-old woman was attacked in mid-September and died this week, sparking outrage and shining the spotlight again…
INDIAN POLICE imposed emergency laws on Thursday(1) in a village barring gatherings of more than five people after clashes erupted following the cremation of the gang-rape victim. The 19-year-old victim died from her injuries on Tuesday(29), having been attacked and gang-raped on September 14 in a field near her home…
The death of a 19-year-old young girl in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh after a brutal gangrape has shaken the entire country. Several celebrities from different realms of life have condemned the horrific incident which has brought back the chilling memories of the Nirbhaya gangrape of 2012. National Film…
A woman from the lowest rung of India's caste system died on Tuesday (29) weeks after authorities said she was raped by a group of men, triggering protests in New Delhi with hundreds gathering at the hospital where her body lay. Her case was the latest in a string of…
Thousands of farmers in India blocked roads and railway tracks on Friday (25) in a protest against new legislation that they say could pave the way for the government to stop buying grain at guaranteed prices, leaving them at the mercy of private buyers. Prime minister Narendra Modi's government has…
A man has been arrested in northern India after slashing his pregnant wife's stomach with a sickle, leaving her critically ill and causing the death of their unborn baby boy, police and her relatives said. The woman was in intensive care in a hospital in the capital, New Delhi, said…
INDIA's coronavirus infections surged past 5 million on Wednesday(16), piling pressure on hospitals grappling with unreliable supplies of oxygen that they need to treat tens of thousands of critical patients. In the big states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, that are also some of the worst-affected by the virus,…
MANTASHA BANO was 28-weeks pregnant when her cries of sudden, unbearable pain prompted neighbours to call an ambulance in the rural Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It never came, and Bano's baby was stillborn. Medical workers in the northern state have reported a marked increase in stillbirths as the coronavirus…
INDIA's top tourist attraction the Taj Mahal is set to reopen more than six months after it was shut, officials said Tuesday (8), even as the vast nation battles soaring coronavirus infections. India, home to 1.3 million people, on Monday(7) overtook Brazil to become the world's second most-infected nation with…
Rushing from one home to another in a village in western India, health worker Ashwini Mhaske cannot afford to take a breather. Working to keep COVID-19 at bay while caring for mothers and babies, Mhaske races between households to meet job targets and earn bonuses for a average monthly wage…
INDIAN politician and BJP MP Varun Gandhi described himself as a 'centre-left thinking person' in his new book and claimed that his writings prove the 'consistently progressive liberal record' of himself. In his recently launched book- India, Tomorrow: Conversations with the Next Generation of Political Leaders-Gandhi reveals that he is…
PRINCE CHARLES has lauded the Hindu community and BAPS volunteers for supporting the needy and the most vulnerable during the pandemic in a special video message to mark the 25th anniversary of the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in London. Starting off with "namaste" and "Jai Swaminarayan", the Prince of Wales…
Until late March, Ashish Kumar was helping to make plastic boxes for Ferrero Rocher praline chocolates and the plastic spoons tucked inside Kinder Joy eggs to scoop out the milky sweet cream inside. With a diploma in plastic mould technology, the 20-year-old had a foot on his chosen career ladder.…
INDIA’s government grapples with the Covid-19 outbreak that threatens to become the world’s most severe, reports The Times. India is the third-worst-hit country for Covid-19 cases, and catching up quickly with the US and Brazil in first and second place. Over 50,000 Indians have died since the outbreak began —…
Filmmaker Anees Bazmee has confirmed that the entire team of his forthcoming directorial Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 has decided against resuming shoot amid the rising cases of Coronavirus. The team, which had to put the shoot on hold after India went into complete lockdown in the month of March, was looking…
By Amit Roy THERE will be more to say by and by about Kavita A Jindal’s debut novel, Manual For a Decent Life, which was published in February this year (Brighthorse Books; £14.65 from Amazon). Maybe I have led too sheltered a life, but I have to admit I…
INDIA'S ability to rein in a surging coronavirus outbreak hinges on its 10 most populous states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday (11), urging regional leaders to ramp up testing and contact tracing. India has more than 2.2 million confirmed coronavirus infections, the third highest tally after the US and…
Long before anyone had dreamed of the IPL's glitz and glamour, a provincial cricket tournament played in India's searing summer heat brought some of the country's greatest cricketers to national prominence. The annual Sheesh Mahal tournament in Lucknow ended after 59 years in 2010, just as the Indian Premier League…
Sarthak Anand says his neighbours treated him like a "criminal" when he got coronavirus, a common experience in India's vast hinterland where the pandemic -- and stigmatisation -- are now raging. "Even though I have recovered fully, no one wants to come near me," Anand, a government employee, told AFP…
INDIAN PRESIDENT Ram Nath Kovind said on Wednesday (5) that laying of the foundation stone of Ram Temple in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya defines India's spirit of social harmony and people's zeal. He said it will be a testimony to ideals of 'Ram Rajya' and a symbol of modern India "Felicitations…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (5) started the construction for a Hindu temple on a site in northern India where a 16th century mosque was demolished by supporters of his Hindu nationalist party in 1992. The events in Ayodhya sparked communal riots in several parts of India. About…
INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi has kicked off the construction of a Lord Ram temple in the north Indian city of Ayodhya on a spot where a mosque was demolished nearly three decades ago. The event fulfils a long-standing promise by Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party, and marks the…
NARENDRA MODI will on Wednesday (5) lay the foundation for a temple at a flashpoint holy site exactly a year after imposing direct rule on Muslim-majority Kashmir -- twin triumphs for his Hindu nationalist government. The site of Ayodhya and divided Kashmir have been two of the most divisive communal…
AS Hindus prepare to celebrate the groundbreaking of a long-awaited temple at a ground in northern India, Muslims say they have no firm plans yet to build a new mosque at an alternative site they were granted to replace the one torn down by Hindu hard-liners decades ago. Wednesday's (5)…
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi will attend a foundation-laying ceremony for a Hindu temple on Wednesday (5), organisers said, even though his interior minister has contracted COVID-19. Amit Shah, who is Modi's top lieutenant as well as India's interior minister, was admitted to a private hospital near Delhi on Sunday,…
INDIAN politician and former Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh was cremated at the Chhatarpur crematorium in New Delhi in the presence of family members and relatives on Monday (3). The 64-year-old 'kingmaker' politician died in a Singapore hospital, where he was undergoing treatment for kidney-related ailments, on Saturday (1). Daughters…
An Indian traditional-medicine doctor jailed for life for murdering truck drivers and feeding their remains to crocodiles has been caught after jumping parole while on release for good behaviour, Indian police said. Devendra Kumar Sharma, 62, was arrested by Delhi police in the capital late Tuesday. In January he failed…
REMARKABLE STORY OF THE MUGHAL-E-AZAM MASTERPIECE AND ITS INCREDIBLE LEGACY by ASJAD NAZIR THIS week marks the 60th anniversary of Bollywood’s greatest film K Asif’s Mughal-e-Azam, which smashed box office records and set new benchmarks when it released to great fanfare on August 5, 1960. The K Asif directed epic…
Spurning free air tickets, accommodation and higher pay, millions of migrant workers who fled India's cities when coronavirus hit are too scared to return, with grim implications for the already crumbling economy. Migrant labourers form the backbone of Asia's third-biggest economy toiling in every sector from making consumer goods and…
By Amit Roy KAILASH NATH BUDHWAR, a broadcaster, writer, director and presenter who died last Saturday (11) at Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow, aged 88, was head of Hindi and Tamil at the BBC from 1979-1992, the first Indian to be appointed to the post. In those days, when the…
INDIA's total coronavirus cases reached 968,876 on Thursday (16) with a record 32,695 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. The death toll went up to 24,915, including 606 fatalities in a day. As many as 20,783 patients were cured on Wednesday (15), taking the recovery rate to 63.25…
INDIA's IT hub Bangalore will go back into lockdown Tuesday (14) as the number of coronavirus cases in the country surged towards a million with about 500 people dying daily. After imposing one of the world's strictest lockdowns in late March, India has been steadily easing rules to lessen the…
INDIAN police shot dead on Friday (10) a man who had been accused of ordering the killing of eight policemen when he tried to flee from officers who had taken him into custody after he surrendered, officials said. Vikas Dubey, who was on the run for over a week after…
THOUSANDS of workers at the famed diamond units of Surat in Gujarat are leaving the city as the pandemic has left them in penury. Over 600,000 people were employed in more than 9,000 stone-cutting and polishing units in Surat, known worldwide for its $24 billion diamond industry. With the national…
India has withdrawn a planned reopening of the Taj Mahal, citing the risk of new coronavirus infections spreading in the northern city of Agra from visitors flocking to see the 17th century monument to love. Local authorities issued a new advisory late on Sunday ordering an extension of lockdown curbs…
A few days ago, during an Insta live chat Alia Bhatt announced that her film Sadak 2 will be releasing on Disney+ Hotstar soon. The movie is directed by Mahesh Bhatt and also stars Pooja Bhatt, Sanjay Dutt, and Aditya Roy Kapur. After announcing the film on the Insta live,…
INDIA reported the highest single-day Covid-19 deaths at 507 on Wednesday (1) and fresh cases stand at 18,653. The total number of cases in the country jumped to 585,493 with 17,400 deaths. Maharashtra, Delhi and Tamil Nadu accounting for over 70 per cent of the fatalities, according to the health ministry. For…
After a hiatus of almost three months in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, Bollywood is gearing up to resume production in a couple of days. The much-awaited Hindi film Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, which is a sequel to the superhit 2007 horror-comedy Bhool Bhulaiyaa, still has 35 days of the…
India made significant efforts towards the elimination of human trafficking in 2019, but did not fully meet the minimum standards, according to a US report. As such India remained on Tier 2 of the Congressional-mandated 2020 Trafficking in Persons report of the state department. Pakistan has been downgraded to the…
INDIA reported 17,296 Covid-19 cases on Friday (26), the country's highest single-day tally so far. With this India's tally jumped to 490,401, and the death toll climbed to 15,301 with 407 new fatalities. India registered over 14,000 cases for the seventh day in a row and witnessed a surge of 299,866…
INDIA reported 16,922 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday (25), its highest single-day tally so far. With this, the total cases in the country climbed to 473,105. A total of 271,696 patients have been cured so far of coronavirus in India. The recovery rate in the country is 57.42 per cent…
INDIA reported nearly 16,000 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours. With this the total tally surged to 456,183 on Wednesday (24). A total of 10,495 Covid-19 patients have recovered in a day, the health ministry said. The country reported 15,968 positive cases and 465 deaths in the last…
DOZENS of girls from a state-run shelter for runaways and victims of sexual abuse -- including seven who are pregnant -- have tested positive for coronavirus, Indian officials said, raising fears about its spread in institutional homes. A probe was launched after almost 60 out of 171 vulnerable girls contracted…
INDIA's Covid-19 cases reached 425,282 on Monday (22) with 14,821 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. The death toll rose to 13,699 with 445 new fatalities, according to the health ministry. The country crossed the 400,000-mark on Sunday (21) eight days after recording 300,000 Covid-19 cases and has…
INDIA on Saturday (20) saw another record spike of 14,516 new Covid-19 cases in a single-day, pushing the tally to 3,95,048, while the death toll rose to 12,948 with 375 new fatalities, according to the health ministry. The number of recoveries continued to surge with 213,830 patients cured so far,…
INDIA saw another record spike of 13,586 new Covid-19 cases in a single-day on Friday (19), pushing the tally to 380,532, while the death toll rose to 12,573 with 336 new fatalities, according to the health ministry. The number of recoveries crossed the 200,000-mark and stands at 204,710, while there…
INDIA registered 12,881 new Covid-19 cases as on Thursday (18), the highest single day tally so far. With this, the total cases jumped to 366,946 and the death toll reached 12,237, the health ministry said. At least 334 people succumbed to death in the last 24 hours. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu…
INDIA's official coronavirus death toll leapt by more than 2,000 to reach 11,903 on Wednesday (17) as Germany advised its nationals to consider leaving the country because of growing health risks. Mumbai revised its toll up by 862 to 3,165 because of unspecified accounting "discrepancies" while New Delhi saw a…
INDIA reported its biggest single-day jump in Covid-19 cases on Saturday (13), adding 11,458 confirmed infections and taking total count to 308,993,, according to data from the health ministry. The death toll rose to 8,884 with 386 new fatalities, it said. The country has 145,779 active cases while 154,329 people…
THE Ealing Council has said it will launch a statutory consultation over renaming a road in Southall -- known as "Little Punjab" -- after the founder of Sikh faith, Guru Nanak. The proposal to rename a section of Havelock Road as "Guru Nanak Road" came to the fore as Sadiq…
THE death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 8,102 and the number of cases climbed to 286,579 in India after the country registered the highest single-day spike of 357 fatalities and 9,996 cases on Thursday (11). According to the health ministry, the number of recoveries remained more than the active…
by ASJAD NAZIR IN HIS younger days, Amitabh Bachchan became the biggest commercial Bollywood star in history, but in his latter years, he has perhaps become the most versatile and delivered a range of roles never seen before by contemporaries. The 77-year-old’s roles range from playing a 12-year-old with progeria…
INDIA's Covid-19 cases climbed to 276,583 on Wednesday (10) with 9,985 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. The country registered 279 fatalities in a day. The death toll now stands at 7,745, the health ministry said. India is the fifth worst-hit nation by the Covid-19 pandemic after the…
THE death toll due to the Covid-19 pandemic in India rose to 7,135 and the number of cases climbed to 256,611, after it registered 206 fatalities and a record single-day spike of 9,983 cases till Monday (8), the health ministry said. Now, India is the fifth worst-hit nation by the…
INDIA went past Italy to become the sixth worst-hit nation by the Covid-19 pandemic with the country registering a record single-day spike of 9,887 cases which pushed the nationwide tally to 236,657. India's death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 6,642 with a record increase of 294 deaths in the…
INDIA saw a record single-day jump of 9,851 Covid-19 cases and 273 deaths on Friday (5), pushing the nationwide infection tally to 2,26,770 and the death toll to 6,348, according to the health ministry. India stood seventh among the nations worst hit by the Covid-19 pandemic after the US, Brazil,…
THE Covid-19 cases in India saw a record single-day jump of 9,304 cases on Thursday (4) pushing the total tally to 2,16,919, while the death toll climbed to 6,075 with 260 new fatalities, according to the health ministry. India stood seventh among the nations worst hit by the Covid-19 pandemic…
It was past midnight on Sunday when tailor Faruk Mansoori, his last savings exhausted by the coronavirus lockdown, made up his mind to cycle from Mumbai to his village 1,500 kilometres away. In a last-ditch cry for help, his friend tweeted actor Sonu Sood after seeing pictures on Facebook of…
INDIA registered a record jump of 8,909 Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the tally to 207,615 on Wednesday (3), while the toll rose to 5,815 with 217 more deaths, the health ministry said. The number of active cases mounted to 101,497 and 100,302 people have recovered, while…
Nearly 200 migrant workers died in road accidents in India while returning to their village homes during the world's longest coronavirus lockdown, a charity said on Tuesday (2). Tens of thousands of people walked home from India's big cities after losing their jobs when one of the world's strictest lockdowns…
THE death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 5,394 and the number of cases climbed to 1,90,535 in India on Monday (1). The country reported record 230 deaths and 8,392 cases in the past 24 hours, the health ministry said. India is now seventh among the nations worst hit by…
A deadly thunderstorm that rolled across parts of northern India damaged sections of the Taj Mahal complex, including the main gate and a railing running below its five lofty domes, officials said Sunday (31). One of the New Seven Wonders of the World, India's top tourist attraction has been shut…
BREAKOUT STAR SALONI GAUR ON COMEDY AND HER SUCCESS by Asjad Nazir WHILE most of the entertainment industry has been sitting idly at home during the global lockdown, incredible heroes have emerged and one of the biggest has been young Indian sensation Saloni Gaur. The 20-year-old from Bulandsahar in Uttar…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 4,531 and the number of cases climbed to 1,58,333 in India on Thursday (28). The country reported 6,566 cases and 194 deaths in the last 24 hours, the health ministry said. The number of active COVID-19 cases stand at 86,110 while 67,691 people…
INDIA is wilting under a heatwave, with the temperature in places reaching 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) and the capital enduring its hottest May day in nearly two decades. The hot spell is projected to scorch northern India for several more days, the Meteorological Department said, "with severe heat…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 4,337 and the total number of cases climbed to 1,51,767 in India on Wednesday (27). The country has reported 170 deaths and 6,387 new cases in the last 24 hours, the health ministry said The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at…
INIDA, the second largest populous country after China, reported 6,535 new COVID-19 cases and 146 fresh deaths in the last 24 hours. With this, the number of cases climbed to 1,45,380 and the death toll reached 4,167 on Tuesday (26). India now stands 10th in terms of number of infections…
INDIA registered biggest single day spike of COVID-19 cases for the fourth consecutive day on Monday (25) with 6,977 new infections, reported in the last 24 hours, taking the country's tally to 1,38,845. The deadly virus has claimed 4,021 lives in the country, the health ministry said. A total 154 deaths…
THE COVID-19 cases in India saw the biggest spike for the second consecutive day on Saturday (23) with 6,654 new infections in the last 24 hours, taking the tally to 125,101. With 137 fresh deaths, the toll rose to 3,720, the health ministry said. The active cases rose to 69,597,…
Nawazuddin Siddiqui starrer Ghoomketu was announced in 2014. The film has been in the pipeline from the past six years and today, finally it has got a digital release on the OTT platform Zee5. The movie revolves around a writer named Ghoomketu (Nawazuddin Siddiqui). He is from Mahona, a small…
THE TALENTED ACTOR ON RAMADAN, HIS EID PLANS AND A UNITED BELIEF IN HUMANITY by MOHNISH SINGH BOLLYWOOD actor Saqib Saleem has always celebrated Eid with his family, but due to the coronavirus lockdown, he may not be able to do the same this year. The rising star is currently…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 3,435 and the number of cases to 1,12,359 in India on Thursday (21), registering an increase of 132 deaths and 5,609 cases in the last 24 hours, according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 63,624, while…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 3,303 and the number of cases climbed to 1,06,750 in India on Wednesday (20), registering an increase of 140 deaths and a record spike of 5,611 cases in the last 24 hours, according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19…
INDIA's COVID-19 cases touched 100,000 mark on Tuesday (19). It took 64 days for the country to reach this level from 100 cases. India reported its first infection on January 30 in the Southern state of Kerala. The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 3,163 and the number of…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 3,029 and the number of cases to 96,169 in the country on Monday (18), registering an increase of 157 deaths and a record jump of 5,242 cases in the last 24 hours, according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19…
Nawazuddin Siddiqui traveled from Mumbai to his native place Budhana in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. The actor had taken the travel pass and along with a few family members he traveled in a private car from Mumbai to UP. According to a report in IANS, Nawazuddin reached Budhana on 15th May…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 2,752 in India and the number of cases climbed to 85,940 on Saturday (16). The country reported 103 deaths and 3,970 cases in the last 24 hours, said the health ministry. The country now crossed China's tally in total number of infections.…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 2,649 in India and the number of cases climbed to 81,970 on Friday (15), the health ministry said. The country has reported 100 new deaths and 3,967 new cases due to coronavirus in the last 24 hours. India, second largest populous country…
Narendra Modi's grand announcement of a $265-billion rescue package for India is little comfort to Manish Verma, one of millions left destitute and desperate 50 days into a crippling coronavirus lockdown. "I don't trust Modi. We don't understand such big figures," Verma told AFP, trudging out of New Delhi under…
THE total number of COVID-19 cases in India has jumped by 3,722 in past 24 hours, increasing the total number of confirmed cases to 78,003 on Thursday (14), said the health ministry. The country is likely to surpass China in total number of cases soon. The overall confirmed cases on…
AS India is all set to enter into the fourth phase of its lockdown imposed to contain the spread of COVID-19, the number of infections has jumped to 74,281 on Wednesday (13), the health ministry said. The deadly virus has claimed 2,415 lives so far in the country. India has…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 2,293 and the number of cases climbed to 70,756 in the country on Tuesday (12). The country reported 3,604 new cases and 87 fresh deaths in the past 24 hours, said the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases in the…
INDIA on Monday (11) registered a record 4,213 new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours in the country. With this the number of cases jumped to 67,152. As many as 2,206 people have died of the disease, with 97 fresh fatalities in a day, the health ministry said. The number of…
AS India enters the last week of its official lockdown imposed to contain the spread of the COVID-19, the country reported nearly 60,000 cases as on Saturday (9). India reported its first case of infection in the Southern state of Kerala on January 30. The death toll due to the…
The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 1,886 and the number of cases climbed to 56,342 in India on Friday (8). The country reported 3,390 new cases and 103 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 37,916. While…
INIDA registers drastic increase in COVID-19 cases in the country in the past few days. The death toll due to COVID-19 in the country rose to 1,783 while the number of cases climbed to 52,952 on Thursday (7), registering an increase of 89 deaths and 3,561 cases in a day,…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 1,694 and the number of cases climbed to 49,391 in India on Wednesday (6), registering an increase of 126 deaths and 2,958 cases in the last 24 hours, the health ministry said. This is the second continuous day that the country reports…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 1,568 and the number of cases climbed to 46,433 in India on Tuesday (5), the health ministry said. The number of active cases stood at 32,138, while 12,726 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, it said. The total number of…
INDIA has recorded 2,293 new COVID-19 cases and 71 deaths in the last 24 hours, said the health ministry. With this the total number of cases now stand at 37,336, and the virus claimed 1,218 lives as on Saturday (2). Maharashtra continued to remain the most-affected Indian state with a…
THE death toll due to the novel coronavirus pandemic rose to 1,147 with 72 more fatalities and the number of cases climbed to 35,043 in India on Friday (1), the health ministry said. The ongoing lockdown in the country is set to end on Sunday (3). The active COVID-19 cases…
INDIA is likely to extend the lockdown in hotspots as death toll due to novel coronavirus pandemic rose to 1,074 on Thursday (30). Only three days left to end the 40-day lockdown announced by the country to contain the spread of the deadly virus. The country reported 66 more fatalities in…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 1,007 and the number of cases climbed to 31,332 in India on Wednesday (29), according to the health ministry. The states have recorded over 1,897 cases in last 24 hours, highest number of fresh cases reported in a single day since the…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 775 and the number of cases climbed to 24,506 in the country on Saturday (25), according to the health ministry. The number of active cases stood at 18,668 while 5,062 people were cured and discharged, and one patient has migrated, the ministry…
INDIA's death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 718 and the number of cases to 23,077 on Friday (24), said the health ministry. A total of 32 deaths were reported since Thursday evening, of which 14 fatalities were from Maharashtra, nine from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh and two each from…
INDIA's health ministry on Thursday (23) said that the country's total COVID-19 cases have jumped to 21,393 with 681 deaths. A total of 29 deaths were reported since Wednesday evening, of which 18 fatalities were reported from Maharashtra, eight from Gujarat, two from Rajasthan and one from Delhi, the ministry…
INDIA has reported 1,383 fresh COVID-19 cases and 50 deaths in a day across the country. The total number of cases in India has gone up to 19,984, according to the data from the ministry of health on Wednesday (22). The death toll risen to 640. Currently, there are 15,474…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 590 in India and the number of cases climbed to 18,601 on Tuesday (21), according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 14,759 while 3,251 people have been cured and discharged, and one patient has migrated, the…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 543 and the number of cases climbed to 17,265 in the country on Monday (20), according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 14, 175 while 2,546 people have been cured and discharged, and one patient has…
Gujarat in western India became the sixth state to cross the 1,000 mark in COVID-19 cases in the country. The number of coronavirus positive cases in Gujarat rose to 1,272 after 176 new cases were reported on Saturday (18), a health department official said. Ahmedabad reported 142 new COVID-19…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 437 and the number of cases to 13,387 in India on Friday (17), according to the health ministry. While the number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 11,201, as many as 1,748 people have been cured and discharged, and one had migrated,…
Millions of people in rural India will be allowed back to work next week despite a nationwide coronavirus lockdown, the government said Wednesday, as it conceded the hardships of shutting its vital farming economy were too great. Restrictions on movement in the world's second-most populous nation of 1.3 billion people…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 414 in India on Thursday (16) and the number of cases stands at 12,380 , said health ministry. While the number of active COVID-19 cases is 10,477, as many as 1,488 people have been cured and discharged and one had migrated, it…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 in India rose to 377 while the number of cases climbed to 11,439 on Wednesday (15), according to the health ministry. As many as 24 deaths have been reported since Tuesday evening, of which 18 were reported from Maharashtra, two each from Delhi and…
Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan on Monday (13) provided 25,000 PPE kits to the frontline medical staff in Maharashtra fighting to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic in the state. Rajesh Tope, minister of public health and family welfare of Maharashtra, said the actor's contribution will help the healthcare workers immensely.…
The death toll due to COVID-19 pandemic rose to 308 on Monday (13) in India after 35 new fatalities were reported, while the number of cases climbed to 9,152, according to the health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 7,987, as many as 856 people have been…
THE death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 239 and the number of cases to 7,447 in India on Saturday (11), according to the health ministry. The 7,447 figure includes 71 foreign nationals. The death toll on Friday evening was 206. While the number of active COVID-19 cases is 6,565,…
The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 199 in India and the number of cases stands at 6,412 on Friday (10), according to the health ministry. While the number of active COVID-19 cases is 5,709, as many as 503 people were cured and discharged and one had migrated, it…
THE death toll due to the novel coronavirus rose to 166 in India and the number of cases stands at 5,734 on Thursday (9), according to the health ministry. As many as 17 new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours across the country, the ministry said. The…
India has told Facebook and Chinese video app TikTok to remove users found to be spreading misinformation about the coronavirus following concern about videos intended to mislead Muslims, according to a government source and a letter seen by Reuters. The move follows a report by Delhi-based digital analytics firm Voyager…
THE death toll due to the novel coronavirus rose to 149 and the number of cases to 5,194 in India on Wednesday (8), according to the health ministry. While the number of active COVID-19 cases is 4,643, as many as 401 people were cured and discharged and one had migrated,…
INDIA’s health ministry on Monday (6) said that 109 people in the country have died of COVID-19 so far and there are 4,067 confirmed cases. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 3,666, as many as 291 people were cured and discharged, and one has migrated, it said. The…
THE number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,965 in the country on Thursday (2) while the death toll rose to 50, according to the Union health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 1,764, of which 150 people were either cured or discharged and one migrated to another…
The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,071 in India on Monday (30), while the death toll rose to 29, according to the union health ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 942, while 99 people were either cured or discharged and one had migrated, the ministry stated.…
THE number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 873 in India on Saturday (28) with the death toll rising to 19, according to the Health Ministry. The two fresh deaths occurred in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Thus, deaths have so far been reported from Maharashtra (5), Gujarat (3), Karnataka (2), Madhya…
India's 1.3 billion people will go under "total lockdown" for 21 days to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, prime minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday, sparking panic buying with shoppers clearing out shelves. "From 12 midnight today (1830 GMT Tuesday), the entire country will be in lockdown, total lockdown,"…
POLICE officers in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh are making citizens who break its lockdown hold up signs reading "I am a friend of coronavirus" or "I am the enemy of society", before posting their pictures on Twitter. Social media was also going abuzz with videos of policemen caning people…
India reported two COVID-19 deaths on Monday, taking the death toll to nine, and the number of cases climbed to 468 after 95 people tested positive for coronavirus, the highest jump in one day, as Maharashtra and Punjab were put under statewide curfews, the rest of the country in lockdown…
In an effort to stop the spread of coronavirus, India has decided to suspend all inter-state buses, passenger trains and metro services across the country till March 31. However, goods trains are exempted. Besides, 80 districts where COVID-19 cases were reported have been completely locked down. These are in Uttar…
THE number of COVID-19 cases in India has increased to 415 on Monday (23) from 360 cases on Sunday evening, , the health ministry said. The figure includes 41 foreign nationals and seven deaths. In the wake of the alarming situation, Indian government on Monday asked state governments to strictly…
India reported one more coronavirus death on Sunday (22), taking the death toll to five even as the railways announced suspension of all its passenger services from March 22 midnight to March 31 midnight to help check the spread of the virus. Bihar also reported its first death due to…
WHEN Bollywood singer Kanika Kapoor was tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday (20), it sent panic waves among Indian parliamentarians. At the latest count, four Indian politicians are already under self-isolation. Reports state that the number may go up and even the president of India likely to be quarantined. The…
Sanya Malhotra was last seen in filmmaker Ritesh Batra’s Photograph (2019) opposite National Award-winning actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui. It has been more than a year since she has not graced the silver screen. The Dangal (2016) actress will next be seen in an upcoming biopic, titled Shakuntala Devi. The film is…
THE number of coronavirus cases in India rose to 43 on Monday (9) with four people, including a three-year-old child in Kerala who had returned from Italy, testing positive for the disease, Health Ministry officials said. Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu reported one case each, officials said. The new data suggests the spread…
Thousands of Indians welcomed spring in a rainbow of colours Thursday, celebrating the annual festival of Holi even as prime minister Narendra Modi said he would stay away from festivities due to the coronavirus outbreak. The ancient Hindu festival of Holi, which heralds the end of winter and the victory…
A 'pandemic' of air pollution shortens lives worldwide by nearly three years on average, and causes 8.8 million premature deaths annually, scientists said Tuesday. Eliminating the toxic cocktail of molecules and lung-clogging particles cast off by burning oil, gas and coal would restore a full year of life expectancy, they…
Starring Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor in lead roles, Roohi Afzana is one of the most-awaited movies of 2020. The film, produced by Dinesh Vijan of Maddock Films, is a horror-comedy set in a small-town of Uttar Pradesh. While Rajkummar Rao has previously starred in a successful horror-comedy called Stree…
THE Geological Survey of India (GSI) on Saturday (22) refuted reports on the discovery of gold deposits estimated to be about 3,000 tonnes in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. "Such data was not given by anybody from GSI.... GSI has not estimated such kind of vast resource of…
INDIA has discovered at least 3,000 tonnes of gold deposits, worth about Rs 14 trillion, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The volume of ore estimated by the Geological Survey of India at two mining blocks in Sonbhadra ditrict is nearly five times India’s official gold reserve of 626 tonnes.…
LORD SHIVA had a berth reserved for Him probably for the first time ever on a train, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the Kashi Mahakal Express from Varanasi on Sunday (16). Railways authorities are mulling if they should make the reservation for the "Bhole Baba" a permanent feature of the…
INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the government’s decision to set up a temple trust to build the Ram temple at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday (February 5). The government has also decided to transfer the 67.703 acres of land to the trust. The trust will be called ‘Sri…
Police shot dead a man holding around 20 women and children hostage at his house in northern India after a 10-hour standoff, state officials said on Friday (31). The hostages who were held at gunpoint were safe, principal secretary home Awanish Kumar Awasthi said after the raid at the house…
Police in northern India on Sunday (26) bid goodbye to the historic British-era bolt-action rifles after using them for one last salute during the annual Republic Day parade. The Lee-Enfield .303 rifle was the main firearm of British colonial military forces and, despite being designated "obsolete" around 25 years ago,…
Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan, and Kajol starrer Tanjahi: The Unsung Warrior has taken the box office by storm. The film has collected Rs 75.68 crore in four days and it is expected to do well at the box office in the coming days. Recently, the Uttar Pradesh government declared…
Tens of thousands of people protested across India on Friday (3) against a citizenship law passed by the Hindu nationalist government that critics say discriminates against Muslims. Some 30,000 marched in the southern city of Bangalore, more than 20,000 in Siliguri and thousands in Chennai, while big rallies were also…
After dropping out of school aged 12, transgender woman Guddi Kinnar resorted to dancing at weddings and other religious ceremonies to earn money, acutely aware that her lack of education was a major obstacle to obtaining a regular job. To ensure other youngsters don't end up in the same predicament,…
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi in Lucknow on Monday (30) hit out at Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, saying there is no place for violence or "revenge" in the country. In a jibe at the chief minister days after he had said that those who had damaged public assets would…
Abhimanyu Dassani, the son of former Bollywood actor Bhagyashree, made his acting debut with RSVP Movies’ Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota. Though the film did not leave the cash registers jingling, people appreciated Dasaani’s performance and hard work that he put into perfecting his character in it. After Mard Ko…
INDIAN mobile operators are losing around Rs 24.5 million or £267391 in revenue every hour they are forced to suspend internet services on government orders to control protests against a new citizenship law, a top lobby group said on Friday (27). Countrywide protests have raged for three weeks after India's…
Thousands protested in rival demonstrations in India on Friday (27) as tensions deepen over a citizenship law seen as anti-Muslim, with authorities deploying huge numbers of riot police in the country. Twenty-seven people have died in two weeks of at times violent demonstrations after Hindu nationalist prime minister Narendra Modi's…
Zaheer Ahmed had just returned home from work in northern India last Friday afternoon and stepped out for a smoke before lunch. Minutes later, he was dead, shot in the head. His death, and the killing by gunfire of four other Muslim men the same afternoon in the mainly Muslim…
Prime minister Narendra Modi sought on Sunday (22) to reassure India's Muslims over a new citizenship law that has sparked deadly protests and put his Hindu nationalist government under pressure like never before. At least 25 people have died in almost two weeks of demonstrations and violence after Modi's government…
Six more protesters died in India Friday in fresh clashes between police and demonstrators, taking the death toll to 15 in more than a week of unrest triggered by a citizenship law seen as anti-Muslim. The law -- which makes it easier for persecuted minorities from three neighbouring countries to…
A COURT sentenced a former lawmaker from India's ruling party to life imprisonment for raping a teenager, his lawyer said on Friday (20), the highest-ranking Indian politician to get such a significant jail term in recent years. Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator in the northern state…
Indian authorities cut cellphone access in parts of Delhi on Thursday (19) and fresh violence erupted elsewhere, as thousands of protestors nationwide defied bans on assembly in growing anger at a new citizenship law seen as anti-Muslim. Police and demonstrators clashed in Uttar Pradesh state as security forces bundled demonstrators…
A former ruling party lawmaker was convicted on Monday (16) of raping a teenager in a high-profile case that underscored India's rampant sexual violence and the impunity enjoyed by the elite. Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a powerful four-time state legislator for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), was found guilty of raping…
The hangman at the Meerut prison on Friday (13) indicated that he is ready to carry out the execution in the Tihar Jail of the men convicted of raping and murdering Nirbhaya in 2012. Pawan Jallad, who is a third-generation hangman, said his grandfather had carried out the hanging of…
THE mortal remains of the 14 Indians identified so far after the horrific fire tragedy at a ceramics factory here last week will be sent to India from Tuesday (10), according to the Indian mission in Sudan. The Indian Embassy, citing reports, had earlier said that 18 Indians were among…
Indian police shot dead four men on Friday (6) who were suspected of raping and killing a 27-year-old veterinarian near Hyderabad city, drawing applause from her family and hundreds of citizens outraged over sexual violence against women. The men had been in police custody and were shot dead near the…
A 23-year-old rape victim was set ablaze by a gang of men, including the alleged rapist, as she made her way to court in the northern India on Thursday, police said, stirring public outrage and shame over the scourge of crimes against women. During the past week, thousands of Indians…
OVER half of Indians (51 per cent) paid bribe to government officials, including the police, in the country last year, latest data showed. The report has come when the government vows to create a system without corruption. Those who responded to the survey questionnaire said bribes were most commonly asked…
AMID a growth slowdown and unemployment issues, India's politics will be increasingly shaped by the economic insecurity of its vast youth population, the Economist Intelligence Unit said in a research note on Friday (22). The issue of unemployment and underemployment has been an unavoidable topic in India's politics and slower…
Two leading Muslim groups said on Sunday (17) they will file petitions in India's top court challenging its decision to award Hindus control of a bitterly disputed holy site that has sparked deadly inter-religious violence. The Supreme Court ruled on November 9 that the holy site in Ayodhya, where Hindu…
CITIES and towns across India are on a state of alert ahead of a crucial Supreme Court verdict on Ayodhya tomorrow (9). More than 5,000 paramilitary force members and police have been deployed in the northern town of Ayodhya, where an ancient mosque was razed in 1992 by hardline Hindus…
India has deployed thousands of additional security forces and roped in about 16,000 "digital volunteers" to sanitise social media of inflammatory posts ahead of a crucial Supreme Court verdict on a disputed religious site. Hindus and Muslims have for decades been bitterly divided over the 16th-century Babri mosque in Ayodhya,…
SOUTH AFRICAN authorities are to launch a fresh attempt to seize the billions of rands that Indian-origin Gupta brothers illegally took out of the country after allegedly acquiring it through irregular deals with state departments, a media report said. According to the report in Sunday Times, the Asset Forfeiture Unit…
The end, perhaps, is now nigh in the epic legal dispute over a religious site that has sparked thousands of deaths, with India's top court wrapping up hearings on Wednesday. Judges are now expected to rule on the ownership of the area claimed by both Hindus and Muslims in Ayodhya…
A man digging a grave in northern India found a newborn girl buried alive, police said Monday (14), in the latest case to shine a spotlight on female infanticide in the country. Hitesh Sirohi had gone to bury his own daughter, who died a few minutes after birth on Wednesday,…
Ananya Panday, who entered showbusiness with Dharma Productions’ college-caper Student of the Year 2 (2019), will be next seen in her second outing Pati Patni Aur Woh. The actress had signed the film even before the release of SOTY 2. The major part of the film has been shot in…
AYESHA KHAN, a native of northern Indian city of Gorakhpur, won the ‘High Commissioner for a Day’ competition and the chance to be the UK’s top diplomat to India. She spent the day overseeing the UK’s largest overseas network, chairing briefing sessions, networking with dignitaries, and meeting project beneficiaries. Khan,…
India-born Asim Umar, the chief of the Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), has been killed during a joint US-Afghan raid on a Taliban hideout in Afghanistan's Helmand province, Afghan officials said on Tuesday (8). Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri had announced the formation of the AQIS to take the fight…
An Indian man accused of rape and murder in the UK ten years ago has been charged with the crimes as he landed in London after being extradited from India, Scotland Yard said. Aman Vyas, 35, landed at Heathrow Airport on Friday (4) night and will appear before Uxbridge Magistrates'…
THE heaviest monsoon rains to lash India in 25 years have killed more than 1,600 people since June, government data showed on Tuesday (1), as authorities battled floods in two northern states and muddy waters swirled inside a major city. The monsoon, which typically lasts between June and September, has…
THE death toll in eastern India from torrential late monsoon rains has risen to nearly 140, officials said Tuesday (1) as hospitals and schools were inundated with dirty rainwater. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said the current monsoon has been the heaviest since 1994, classifying it "above normal", and…
HEAVY rains have killed at least 113 people in India's Uttar Pradesh and Bihar states over the past three days, officials said on Monday (30), as floodwaters swamped a major city, inundated hospital wards and forced the evacuation of inmates from a jail. India's monsoon season that begins in June…
AT LEAST 44 people were killed and thousands moved to relief camps because of flooding caused by torrential rains in northern India's Uttar Pradesh state, officials said Saturday (28). Densely populated regions on the banks of two main rivers in the state, which are overflowing because of incessant rainfall in…
INDIAN company Radico Khaitan’s Rampur is launching a new expression, Rampur Double Cask Indian Single Malt Whisky, this weekend (September 28-29) at the Whisky Show in London. Available from October, Rampur Double Cask Single Malt is a handcrafted single malt whisky matured in hand-selected American Bourbon barrels, as well as…
INDIA gets maximum foreign students from Nepal followed by Afghanistan while Karnataka is the favourite city for foreigners to pursue higher education in India, according to the data from country’s ministry of human resource development (HRD). The number of males is higher than that of female students from foreign countries…
Indian police on Friday (20) arrested a former minister from prime minister Narendra Modi's party after he was accused of sexually assaulting a 23-year-old woman. Swami Chinmayanand, 73, a former internal affairs minister, is the second senior member of the Bharatiya Janata Party to face sex charges in recent months.…
Popular television actress Meera Deosthale, who was last seen in Colors’ long-running show Udaan, is quite excited about her new show Vidya on the same channel. The television series, which premiered on 9th September, stars the actress in the role of an English teacher who does not know the language.…
Jimmy Sheirgill is surely one of the most underrated actors of Bollywood. He has been a part of many films where he has impressed us with his performance. He will next be seen on the big screen in a film titled P se Pyaar F se Farraar which is based…
Crown princess of Bollywood Alia Bhatt has ruled the box office with successful films and conquered the hearts of fans around the world. One of her most dedicated admirers is super fan Khushi Agarwal from Uttar Pradesh in India. Eastern Eye caught up with Khushi to find out more. What first…
The Hrithik Roshan starrer Super 30 (2019) is unstoppable at the domestic box-office. Released on 12th July, 2019, the film is currently running in its fourth week, drawing audiences from every section of the society. After entering the coveted ₹ 100 crore club in ten days, Super 30 is now…
PEPSICO India has announced its plan to invest Rs 5.14 billion (£61 million) over three years, to set up a greenfield snacks manufacturing plant in Northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The new investment plan is in line with PepsiCo’s goal to double its snacks business in the country by…
Thousands of Indian tourists, pilgrims and workers began leaving the disputed region of Kashmir after a local government alert over possible militant attacks, and India said it killed at least five militants who were trying to attack its forces. Indian security officials said on Friday they had found evidence of…
India's Supreme Court on Thursday (1) moved the rape trial of a powerful regional politician to the capital, New Delhi, to allay fears he could influence the outcome, a further embarrassment for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The case against Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a BJP legislator from northern Uttar…
Fresh protests erupted in India on Tuesday (30) amid growing public fury over a car crash that critically injured a teenager who accused a lawmaker from the ruling party of rape and harassment. Two of the 19-year-old's aunts were killed and her lawyer was badly injured when a truck collided…
An Indian teenager who accused a senior politician of rape is fighting for her life after being critically injured in a car crash that killed two relatives, raising suspicions of foul play. Her lawyer was also badly injured in the accident, which occurred in northern Uttar Pradesh state Sunday when…
Janhvi Kapoor has become one of the most sought-after actresses in Bollywood despite the fact that she has done only one film so far. The daughter of veteran actress Sridevi and filmmaker Boney Kapoor, Janhvi made her acting debut with Dharma Productions’ Dhadak (2018) alongside Ishaan Khatter. The movie turned…
SEVERE floods and lightning have claimed the lives of more than 650 people across India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, officials said Monday (22) as the annual monsoon took its toll on the rainfed region. More than 10 million people in the South Asian countries have been affected by the deluge,…
Hrithik Roshan starrer Super 30 is doing quite well at the box office. In its second weekend, the film collected Rs 23.75 crore and the till date total collection is around Rs 99 crore. The movie will enter the 100 crore club today and recently while talking to a daily,…
SHEILA Dikshit was one of the tallest leaders of the Congress who had the distinction of being Delhi's longest serving chief minister and giving the national capital Delhi its modern look. A warm and affable politician, she was a loyalist of the Gandhi family. She was handpicked by Rajiv Gandhi…
Avantika Khattri plunged into Hindi films with the 2013 war-comedy War Chhod Na Yaar, also featuring Sharman Joshi and Soha Ali Khan in central characters. Though being in front of the camera always fascinated her, acting was not the only thing that she had on her mind when she entered…
Janhvi Kapoor, who made her silver screen debut with Dharma Productions’ Dhadak in 2018, will be next seen in Kargil Girl, which again is a Dharma Productions’ film, produced by Karan Johar. Kargil Girl is a biopic on IAF officer Gunjan Saxena, the first woman combat aviator who entered the…
Sonakshi Sinha is one actress who has a very clean image and she has always been away from controversies. But recently, the actress was in the news as the UP police visited her place. Well, last year, an event organiser had accused Sonakshi of not attending an event in Delhi…
Mumbai monsoon is wreaking havoc on everyone! With the city witnessing the heaviest rainfall in over ten years, the normal life has come to a halt. Heavy monsoon has claimed several lives so far with a number of incidents of accidents, wall collapse, and land caving being reported all across…
INDIA'S Rahul Gandhi today (3) resigned as president of the main opposition Congress, taking responsibility for the party's second-straight landslide defeat to prime minister Narendra Modi in national elections. "As president of the Congress party, I am responsible for the loss of the 2019 election," he said in a statement…
The kind of loyal audience base that Ayushmann Khurrana has built over the past few years is unheard of even for actors twice his experience in Bollywood. Look at his filmography, and you will find a diverse range of characters that get etched on your mind forever if you happen…
In Bollywood films, we have seen many characters that belong to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and inequality has been showcased in many movies. Remember Kachra from Lagaan or Jalebi from Delhi 6. But now, we have a whole film that talks about the people of the Scheduled Castes…
A LEADING Indian spiritual leader who was in hospital following breathing problems passed away today (25) at 8.30 am at his cottage in Haridwar, north India. His Holiness Pujya Swami Satyamitranand Giriji Maharaj, 87, was admitted to a Dehradun hospital last week and put on a ventilator. He was later…
UK-BASED rapper Taran Kaur Dhillon, also known as Hard Kaur, has been booked for sedition for allegedly posting objectionable remarks against Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on social media, police said Thursday (20). A written complaint was filed by a local lawyer, Shashank Shekhar,…
A LEADING Indian spiritual leader who was in hospital following breathing problems has been moved to a cottage in north India after doctors said there was no improvement in his condition. His Holiness Pujya Swami Satyamitranand Giriji Maharaj, 87, was admitted to a Dehradun hospital last week and put…
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who impressed everyone with his power-packed performance in his recent release Badla (2019), has some exciting projects in hands right now. One of them is a quirky comedy titled Gulabo Sitabo. The film will be directed by award-winning filmmaker Shoojit Sircar. It reunites the two creative forces…
A journalist jailed for making derogatory comments on social media against a chief minister with the ruling-right wing party was ordered released by India’s Supreme Court on Tuesday (11). Prashant Kanojia, a freelance journalist, was arrested Saturday after he uploaded and commented on a video of a woman claiming to…
A gun battle between supporters of India's ruling right-wing party and a regional rival has killed four people in West Bengal, police said on Sunday (9), as violence raged in the tinderbox state. At least 18 others were injured in the clashes that broke out Saturday in the eastern state…
A 33-year-old man died after a fight over water in southern India, police said Friday (7), as the country gasped from extreme heat and storms that killed 24 in the north. The argument broke out on Wednesday when a 48-year-old man and his three sons were allegedly syphoning large quantities of…
Indian police have sent reinforcements to a northern city to head off tensions after the murder of a two-year-old girl over an unpaid $144 loan. Police said two suspects have been detained after the girl's body was discovered on a rubbish dump in Aligarh, in Uttar Pradesh state after she…
The trailer of Ayushmann Khurrana’s upcoming film Article 15 grabbed a lot of eyeballs on social media within hours of its release. Several people praised it for its hard-hitting concept and realistic approach. While the majority of people have liked the trailer and are looking forward to watching the movie…
A group of Hindu seers met on Monday (3) to outline a plan to urge India prime minister Narendra Modi to press for early construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying "Hindus" have reelected him with a huge majority to complete the task. The meeting was organised in Faizabad by…
Sonia Gandhi was once again elected leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) at a meeting of party MPs at the Central Hall of Parliament on Saturday (1). The meeting was attended by the party's 52 newly elected Lok Sabha MPs and Rajya Sabha members. Gandhi, who represents Uttar Pradesh's…
Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, offered to resign on Saturday (25) after his Congress party was trounced in a second straight national election but the gesture was rejected, party officials said. While prime minister Narendra Modi triumphantly accepted pledges of allegiance from members of allied…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi will hold talks on Friday (24) to form a new cabinet to tackle a stuttering economy and other challenges facing his second term after winning a big majority. Official data from the Election Commission showed Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party had won 296 of the 542…
In its landslide victory, the BJP has seen its vote share soar past 50 per cent in at least 13 states and Union territories, a feat which the rival Congress could manage only in Puducherry. Besides, the main opposition party's voting percentage has remained in single digits in politically important…
CONGRESS chief Rahul Gandhi has conceded an embarrassing defeat in his family stronghold Amethi in the state of Uttar Pradesh to Union Minister and BJP candidate Smriti Irani. "Smriti Irani has won in Amethi and I congratulate her. The people of Amethi have given their mandate," Gandhi told a news…
THE Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally Apna Dal (Sonelal) are leading in 61 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, according to Election Commission trends at 03.30 pm Indian standard time. Prime minister Narendra Modi is leading by a huge margin of over 400000 votes in…
Honest, intelligent and open to new ideas is how officials of India's main opposition Congress describe their leader, Rahul Gandhi, but the party's election performance has been so poor he now risks losing even his family's traditional seat. As vote-counting trends on Thursday (23) showed prime minister Narendra Modi's ruling party…
The BJP and its ally Apna Dal (S) surged ahead of their rivals in 58 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh with Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading in Varanasi by a margin of 1.22 lakh votes, according to Election Commission trends. The BJP was ahead in 57…
India began Thursday (23) the mammoth process of counting the roughly 600 million votes cast in the world's biggest election, with results due later in the day. Exit polls had pointed to a victory for prime minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist government, but the opposition are clinging to…
INDIA'S mammoth election, the biggest in the world, was a frequently bad-tempered affair and awash with insults. Ahead of the vote counting and results due on Thursday (23), here is a look back at the worst of the mudslinging during almost six weeks of campaigning. Thief Versus Prince Prime minister…
THE fate of 724 women candidates in the just-concluded Lok Sabha polls will be decided on Thursday (23) when the results are announced. A total of 7,928 candidates were in the fray in the parliamentary polls. The Congress had fielded the maximum of 54 women candidates. The opposition party was…
WITH opposition parties expressing doubts over the security of EVMs, the Election Commission (EC) officials said all arrangements have been made for smooth counting of votes on Thursday (23) for 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. Security personnel have been deployed in large numbers across the state for the…
INDIA'S main opposition parties Tuesday (21) alleged voting fraud in the country's general election, days after exit polls predicted a comfortable win for prime minister Narendra Modi's ruling party. Members of as many as 22 parties called on the poll watchdog and demanded that electronic machines used to record votes…
A HINDU temple on a disputed site, life in jail for killing cows and ending the autonomy of India's only Muslim-majority state are some demands Hindu groups plan to push prime minister Narendra Modi on if he wins the general election as expected. The ruling coalition led by Modi's Hindu…
A DAY after exit polls forecast a return of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre, enthused state BJP leaders predicted Uttar Pradesh would give them more than 74 of its 80 seats to enter lower house of the Indian parliament, a claim dismissed by the…
OPPOSITION leaders took swipes at prime minister Narendra Modi for not taking any questions at a press conference and diverting them to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah on Friday (17). Former Uttar Pradesh (UP) chief minister and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Akhilesh Yadav tweeted a picture of three…
BSP president Mayawati termed the Bahujan Samaj Party- Samajwadi Party- Rashtriya Lok Dal (BSP-SP-RLD) alliance as a combination of ideas and said it will not sit silent till the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh state and the Narendra Modi government in the Centre were uprooted. “Unlike the Bharatiya Janata…
EXIT polls painted a grim picture for the Congress but party workers remain unfazed, asserting that the results on May 23 would not be one-sided as shown projected, and their party would perform better. Most exit polls Sunday forecast another term for prime minister Narendra Modi, with some of them…
Voting ended on Sunday (19) in India's most acrimonious election in decades that will decide whether prime minister Narendra Modi gets a second term in power. As the final polling booths closed, a huge security cordon was thrown around the voting machines and boxes of paper votes used in the…
IF Uttar Pradesh were a country, it would be one of the world's most populous. And this poverty-stricken northern melting pot of over 200 million people is the biggest prize in India's election ending on Sunday (19). Uttar Pradesh (UP) has 80 parliamentary seats, the most of any state, and…
At their usual evening gathering, six retired Muslim academics outdo each other with gloomy predictions if Narendra Modi is re-elected prime minister in India's polls ending Sunday. "We are one step away from being turned into second-class citizens," Mohiuddin Azad told AFP in Azamgarh, a northern city long associated with…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday (17) condemned a firebrand Hindu election candidate from his ruling party who called the assassin of independence hero Mahatma Gandhi a "patriot". The conservative prime minister was forced to act as a backlash grew over comments by Pragya Singh Thakur, already dogged by…
EVERY morning around dawn, dozens of people gather by the dusty banks of a stream snaking through Shikrawa village, two hours south of India's capital, New Delhi, to do the same thing: defecate in the open. "There are close to 1,600 houses in Shikrawa. And I know for a fact…
In January, India's main opposition Congress party seemed poised for a strong fight back against prime minister Narendra Modi after victories in three heartland states late last year. But just over four months later, even Congress officials admit the attempt to unseat Modi in the ongoing general election has suffered…
WHATSAPP clones and software tools that cost as little as £11 (Rs 1,000) are helping Indian digital marketers and political activists bypass anti-spam restrictions set up by the world’s most popular messaging app. The activities highlight the challenges WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook Inc, faces in preventing abuse in…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi's ruling coalition is confident of a second term in office but opposition parties are talking to each other to seal an alliance, hoping to topple him after general election results are announced on May 23. The seven-phase election started on April 11 and ends on…
INDIA'S northern heartland began voting on Monday (6) in the fifth phase of a staggered general election, with prime minister Narendra Modi hoping his record on national security will win him a second five-year term. More than 87 million people across seven states are eligible to vote on Monday, including in the northern state of Jammu…
Suspected militants shot dead a local leader of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party in disputed Kashmir ahead of the latest round of polling, highlighting bloodshed that has marred India's mega-election. The killing in Anantnag district of India's only Muslim-majority state is the latest in a string of attacks to…
With the counting day for the Lok Sabha polls less than three weeks away, the Congress on Friday urged the Election Commission (EC) to take various safeguards regarding electronic voting machines (EVMs). It also urged the EC to issue certain guidelines to ensure electoral integrity and free-and-fair polls in Amethi.…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi's re-election bid received a big fillip on Wednesday (1) after a UN Security Council committee blacklisted Masood Azhar, the head of a Pakistan-based militant group, a decade after New Delhi first demanded such an action. Azhar's Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb attack…
WEST BENGAL state, crucial for prime minister Narendra Modi's hopes of retaining power, took centre stage in India's staggered general election on Monday (29) after clashes broke out between supporters of his party and a regional bloc. Security forces chased away people wielding sticks after workers from Modi's Hindu nationalist…
BILLIONAIRES and Bollywood stars took their turn with Mumbai's slum dwellers Monday (29) to vote in India's marathon election as prime minister Narendra Modi steps up his nationalist campaign to sway the 900 million electorate. India's film and finance capital took centre stage in the fourth of seven rounds of…
Congress leader Sam Pitroda on Friday said it was Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's own decision not to contest against prime minister Narendra Modi for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat. Speculation over Priyanka Gandhi's electoral debut from Modi's constituency ended Thursday when the Congress fielded Ajay Rai from there.…
Prime minister Narendra Modi staged a show of strength on Thursday (25) in the city of Varanasi, one of the most sacred places for India's majority Hindu population, as the country's 39-day staggered general election neared its mid-point. Dotted with ancient temples and sitting on the banks of the Ganges…
CONGRESS leader Priyanka Gandhi on Wednesday (24) termed prime minister Narendra Modi as "Pradhan Prachar Mantri" and accused the BJP of "wasting drinking water" to clean roads in Banda, an arid town in Uttar Pradesh's Bundelkhand region. Priyanka's comments drew a sharp reaction from chief minister Yogi Adityanath who said…
India prime minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (24) took a veiled dig at Congress president Rahul Gandhi, saying people looking at a mirror ten times a day and aspiring to become prime minister cannot even win assembly constituencies in their Lok Sabha seat. He said the Congress-led opposition, which has…
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday lashed out at the Congress over its "big ego" while continuing his attack on the BJP, suggesting that voters will walk away this time from the tea being offered by the 'chaiwala' prime minister Narendra Modi. Mocking Modi at a public meeting in Hardoi,…
The Health Ministry is grappling with paucity of meningitis vaccines for Haj pilgrims as the only firm manufacturing them was asked to stop production last year after contamination was detected in their oral polio vaccines. According to sources in the Health Ministry, the only firm which manufactured the vaccines and…
Polling will be held on Tuesday (22) for the third and largest phase of Lok Sabha election in 116 seats, including all constituencies in Gujarat and Kerala, with BJP president Amit Shah, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and several Union ministers among prominent candidates in the fray. The stakes are high…
Amitabh Bachchan [caption id="attachment_65710" align="alignnone" width="530"] Amitabh Bachchan (Photo: NIKLAS HALLE'NAFPGetty Images).[/caption] INDIA'S one of the leading Bollywood actors, Amitabh Bachchan contested in 1984 parliamentary election as a Congress party candidate. The veteran actor contested from Allahabad constituency against former Uttar Pradesh chief minister HN Bahuguna. He defeated his rival…
An Indian man chopped off his index finger in desperation after voting for the wrong party in the country's national election. Pawan Kumar became confused by the symbols on the electronic voting machine and voted for prime minister Narendra Modi's party instead of its regional rival in Uttar Pradesh state…
CONGRESS president Rahul Gandhi on Monday (15) accused AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal of doing an "U-turn" on the alliance talks between the two parties and said the doors of the Congress are open, but time is running out. However, Kejriwal claimed that the talks are still on and accused Gandhi…
INDIA'S election watchdog on today (15) banned two outspoken politicians from campaigning in the country's national vote for making provocative speeches which it said could stir communal unrest. The measures came after the Supreme Court called on the election commission to get tough on hate speech during the world's biggest…
Coming down heavily on the BJP, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Sunday (14) said the Constitution is not respected and an attempt is being made to destroy it by the present dispensation. Holding a roadshow in Silchar in support of Congress candidate and sitting MP Sushmita Dev, she also…
INDIANS thronged to vote on Thursday (11) at the start of a mammoth general election, with prime minister Narendra Modi seeking a second term after campaigning on a plank of national security following hostilities with neighbouring Pakistan. People trekked, rode bicycles and drove tractors to polling stations in the world's…
CLASHES between followers of rival parties left at least two dead and several injured on the first day of India's huge election today (11), media reports said. Suspected Maoist rebels also triggered blasts in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states in a bid to disrupt voting. Activists of the Telegu Desam Party…
THE scion of the Gandhi dynasty told Indians that the country's "soul" was at stake on Thursday (11), as millions braved the hot sun to vote on day one of the world's biggest election. Opinion polls put prime minister Narendra Modi as favourite to win, but he faces a possible…
CONGRESS president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday (10) filed his nomination for the Lok Sabha elections from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. He was accompanied by mother Sonia Gandhi, sister Priyanka and brother-in-law Robert Vadra. The three-term MP will take on Union minister and BJP candidate Smriti Irani. Rahul Gandhi reached the…
INDIA'S prime minister is rallying his nationalist base as the world's biggest democracy begins a general election on Thursday (11), but it has become tighter than anticipated, thanks to dwindling incomes for farmers and scarce jobs. Polls predict prime minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) alliance will just win…
Don 3, the third instalment of Excel Entertainment’s Don (2006) franchise, is one upcoming project that keeps hitting headlines every now and then. Rumours were rife lately that Shah Rukh Khan, who played the titular role in Don and Don 2 (2011), would return to the franchise to take it…
PRIYANKA Gandhi Vadra became the latest member of India's storied Nehru-Gandhi dynasty to enter politics in January, but the boost she brings the opposition campaign may not turn the tide against prime minister Narendra Modi, polls show. After years of speculation, the charismatic Vadra joined Congress to help its leader,…
Congress president Rahul Gandhi will file his nomination from the Amethi Lok Sabha seat on April 10 and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi will do the same from the Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency on April 11, party sources said on Thursday (4). Newly-appointed Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will be…
CHILDREN from lower-income backgrounds, where mothers also had a low level of education, have weaker brain activity, a survey conducted in India showed. A team from the University of East Anglia (UEA) studied the brain function of children aged between four months and four years in rural India. The results…
INDIA is vying to become the world's top sugar producer, but for its millions of sugarcane growers life is far from sweet as the country prepares for its mega-election from next week. Their woes are part of a deep crisis in rural India, with debts and drought driving thousands of…
PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi officially launched his party's general election campaign on Thursday (27) with a rally in India's most populous state, promising development with national security in seeking votes for another term. A coalition led by Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is widely expected to retain power in a…
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi has once again chosen to contest the country's upcoming elections from the Hindu holy city of Varanasi, his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced Thursday (21). The Hindu nationalist leader successfully won his first national election in 2014 from northern Uttar Pradesh state's historic city, situated…
THE newest star in India's Nehru-Gandhi dynasty wrapped up a pre-election boat tour along the Ganges river on Wednesday (20), disembarking in Narendra Modi's home constituency to attack the prime minister's record. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, sister of Rahul Gandhi who wants to unseat Modi in elections starting on April 11,…
INDIA prime minister Narendra Modi's 'Main bhi chowkidar' campaign on Monday (18) drew more ridicule from Congress president Rahul Gandhi and party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Raising the Rafale issue, Rahul said Modi was attempting to convert the whole country into chowkidar after being "caught", while Priyanka said chowkidar are…
TECHNOLOGY titan Google agreed to pay its former India-born top executive Amit Singhal a whopping $45 million as an exit package when he resigned from the company in 2016 after being accused of sexual harassment, according to a media report. The previously undisclosed amount was in the separation agreement for…
After working together on Manmarziyaan (2018), Taapsee Pannu and Anurag Kashyap came together for a women-centric film called Saand Ki Aankh, which is currently being shot in Uttar Pradesh. Also starring Bhumi Pednekar in the lead role, the movie is based on the lives of world's oldest sharpshooters - Chandro…
India will hold a general election in seven stages starting on April 11, the election commission said on Sunday (10), in what will be the world's biggest democratic exercise with prime minister Narendra Modi likely to benefit from tensions with Pakistan. About 900 million citizens will be eligible to vote,…
India is not just the world's biggest democracy, its elections are also the most gruelling -- with nearly six weeks between the first round of voting on April 11 and the last. Rival politicians are permanently at daggers drawn and if prime minister Narendra Modi is to win another five-year…
INDIA'S Supreme Court appointed an arbitration panel on Friday (8) to mediate in a decades-long dispute over a controversial plan to build a Hindu temple on the ruins of a 16th-century mosque in the northern town of Ayodhya. With a general election looming in coming months, conservative Hindu allies of…
Sonia Gandhi, former leader of India's main opposition Congress party, will contest the 2019 general election from the Rae Bareli seat, a family stronghold in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh that has voted for her since 2004. The Italian-born 72-year-old, who forged a Congress-led coalition government for two successive…
After delivering two back-to-back blockbusters – Andhadhun and Badhaai Ho – in 2018, versatile Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana has now started shooting for his next film titled Article 15. The movie is being helmed by well-known director Anubhav Sinha and talks about inequalities in Indian society. The team started its…
After the humongous success of their last collaboration Stree (2018), which prides on being one of the highest grossing films of all times, actor Rajkummar Rao and producer Dinesh Vijan have joined forces once again for yet another horror comedy. Titled Rooh-Afza, the film will be jointly produced by Dinesh…
Janhvi Kapoor, who debuted with Shashank Khaitan’s Dhadak (2018), started shooting for her second film Kargil Girl in Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) last week, and now we have learnt that actor Angad Bedi has also joined the cast of the much-awaited movie. In the film, Janhvi plays the role of Gunjan…
A FILM based on young women in an Indian village fighting the stigma associated with menstruation won an Oscar last night (24) for best documentary short. Period. End of Sentence. narrates the story of women leading a revolution against the taboo surrounding menstruation. The 26-minute film follows girls and women in a…
INDIA'S powerful Nehru-Gandhi dynasty on Monday (11) unleashed its newest star with thousands turning out to see Priyanka Gandhi Vadra speak at her first rally as the country gears up for a general election. Crowds showered rose petals on the great-granddaughter of India's founding leader Jawaharlal Nehru as she took an open…
CAMPS to protect children from human traffickers have been set up for the first time at the world's biggest religious festival, the Kumbh Mela in northern India's Uttar Pradesh state. During the event, as many as 150 million people are expected to visit the festival city of Prayagraj to bathe…
PRIYANKA Gandhi Vadra, the popular sister of the head of India's main opposition Congress party, made her political debut on Monday (11) with a roadshow drawing thousands in the most populous state months before a general election due by May. Congress president Rahul Gandhi pulled a surprise last month by appointing…
AT LEAST 99 people have died and scores have been hospitalised in northern India after drinking toxic alcohol, triggering a crackdown against bootleggers, officials said Monday (11). News of the deaths in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand has trickled in over the past three days, with police suspecting the moonshine…
Several thousand activists paraded through a West Bengal town on Sunday (10) with the body of a politician whose killing opened a campaign of violence ahead of India's general election. Satyajit Biswas, from the eastern state's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), was shot dead at point blank range by unidentified gunmen…
Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar are set to team up for the first time for renowned filmmaker Anurag Kashyap’s next production venture. Earlier the movie was titled Womaniya, but now the makers have rechristened it Saandh Ki Aankh. For the uninitiated, the film is a biopic based on gold medallist…
Fresh from the thunderous success of his debut film Uri: The Surgical Strike (2018), which is still minting money at the cash counter, actor Mohit Raina has now signed a digital series, titled Bhaukaal, which means impressive and robust. The series, which is being produced by Applause Entertainment, is inspired…
by MOHNISH SINGH THERE is no denying that 2018 was a dream year for Vicky Kaushal and a huge turning point in his flourishing career. Winning performances in Raazi, Sanju and Manmarziyaan changed everything for the actor and brought him global recognition and respect as a performer. The rising star…
by Amit Roy PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA, 47, Rahul Gandhi’s younger sister by a year, has caused much excitement in India by entering politics as Congress general secretary for the central state of Uttar Pradesh. There are only a few weeks to go before India’s 17th general election, which will be…
A couple of days ago, we had reported that renowned filmmaker Anubhav Sinha, who last helmed critically acclaimed Mulk (2018), had wrapped up his satirical comic-caper Abhi Toh Party Shuru Huyi Hai and began work on his next project. The latest we hear that the director has signed on the…
There is nothing certain in Bollywood! Anything can happen at any time. A couple of days ago, we had reported that actress Taapsee Pannu was set to begin work on her next film Womaniya, to be helmed by filmmaker Anurag Kashyap. The latest we hear that the project has been…
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's ruling coalition will emerge as the largest group in a parliamentary election expected in the next few months but will fall short of a majority required to rule, two surveys showed on Thursday (24). The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance is forecast to win 233…
India's Priyanka Gandhi officially entered politics Wednesday (23) ahead of a looming national election, joining the opposition campaign in a crucial state where the party her family founded hopes to unseat prime minister Narendra Modi. Priyanka, whose father, grandmother and great-grandfather were all prime ministers was appointed Congress party chief in…
Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui on Tuesday (22) described Mumbai as a "city of dreams" that has helped several outsiders like him pen their success stories. The Uttar Pradesh born actor's next release is Thackeray, a biopic on Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray who advocated the "Maharashtra for Maharashtrians" plank in the…
India's opposition parties drew half a million supporters to Kolkata's streets on Saturday (19) for the largest show of force yet against prime minister Narendra Modi as a national election looms. Police in the eastern city said 500,000 people turned out for the massive "Unite India" rally, which saw leaders…
More than 20 million Hindu pilgrims ritually bathed in India's holy rivers on the opening day of the Kumbh Mela, a gigantic festival billed as the world's largest human gathering. [caption id="attachment_58786" align="alignnone" width="578"] Men take part in a religious procession towards the Sangam area (Photo: Sanjay Kanojia/ AFP/ Getty…
Filmmaker Tigmanshu Dhulia, who last helmed the Sanjay Dutt and Jimmy Shergill starrer Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3 (2018), is ready with his next directorial venture Milan Talkies. The film, which has been in the making for more than five years, has locked March 15, 2019, for its theatrical release. Milan…
Pilgrims of more than 12 countries took the sacred bath in the Sangam of Prayagraj under the leadership of Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, president Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh and founder, Ganga Action Parivar and Global Interfaith WASH Alliance, to mark the beginning of the Kumbh Mela on January 15. Before the…
Hindu devotees began gathering Sunday (13) in northern India for the world's largest religious festival, with millions of pilgrims travelling to bathe in holy rivers for the spectacular Kumbh Mela. State authorities in Uttar Pradesh are expecting 12 million visitors to descend on Allahabad for the centuries-old festival, which officially begins Tuesday…
National award-winning filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, who last helmed the Kirti Kulhari starrer Indu Sarkar in 2017, is returning to wield the megaphone after a gap of two years. The filmmaker has picked up a quirky cop-drama, tentatively titled Inspector Ghalib. “The film will be set against the backdrop of sand…
The Uttar Pradesh government on Monday (7) said that Prayagraj, which is hosting this year’s Kumbh Mela, will have the largest temporary city in the world. The city will have 250km long roads and 22 pontoon bridges, and the Kumbh Mela area will be brightened up with over 40,000 LED…
Actor-filmmaker Satish Kaushik, who last directed Gangs of Ghosts in 2014, is set to return behind the camera once again. He has started work on his next directorial venture, titled Kaagaz. The film stars talented actor Pankaj Tripathi in the lead role. Kaagaz, which started shooting in October in the…
Taapsee Pannu, who impressed critics and cinephiles with powerful performances in Mulk (2018) and Manmarziyan (2018) last year, has begun preparing for her next movie Womaniya. To be produced by filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, the movie will be helmed by writer-turned-director Tushar Hiranandani. Womaniya stars Taapsee Pannu in the role of…
Varanasi Varanasi also known as Banaras, or Kashi, is an ancient city on the banks of the river Ganga in India’s Northern state, Uttar Pradesh. Varanasi is a major religious hub in the country and is the holiest of the seven sacred towns (Sapta Puri) in Hinduism and Jainism. Varanasi…
Top Indian golfer Jyoti Randhawa was arrested Wednesday for poaching at a forest reserve, an official said. Randhawa, who was ranked in the world top 100 between 2004 and 2009, was taken into detention at the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in Uttar Pradesh state. The 46-year-old and a companion killed a…
Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah's comments on mob violence have sparked yet another controversy. A section of people have labelled him a traitor for pointing out about rising communal sentiments in India. Responding to criticism, Shah said he spoke as a "worried Indian" and that has the right to express concerns…