- Friday, May 03, 2024
Campaigning concluded on Wednesday evening for the second phase of India's elections in 89 seats across 13 states set for 26 April. The initial phase, held last Friday for 102 seats across 21 states and Union territories, witnessed over 64 per cent voter turnout. The upcoming phase covers constituencies in…
Campaigning officially ended on Wednesday evening for the first phase of India's general elections, involving 102 Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) seats across 21 states and Union territories. This initial phase is set for 19 April, with key political figures from both the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA (National Democratic…
India's Supreme Court has admonished the head of a state drugs regulator for failing to take action against a popular yoga guru Baba Ramdev's firm which claimed its traditional ayurvedic medicines can cure diseases such as diabetes and asthma. The top court said on Wednesday the state drugs department had…
Energy management and automation major Schneider Electric plans to invest Rs 32 billion by 2026 to make India its manufacturing hub for domestic sales and exports. Under the plan, Schneider Electric on Thursday (21) inaugurated a facility in Bengaluru with Rs 1 billion investment to produce cooling solutions for data…
AS MANY AS 1,200 yoga lovers from 75 countries are expected to participate in the International Yoga Festival (IYF) at Parmarth Niketan in Rishikesh, India, which started on Friday (8). Governor of Uttarakhand state, Lt Gen (Retd) Gurmit Singh, will inaugurate the event on Saturday (9) which is being organised…
INDIA’S Assam state has scrapped an 89-year-old law that allowed marriage involving underage Muslims, against opposition from leaders of the minority community, who called the plan an attempt to polarise voters on religious lines ahead of elections. Assam, which has the highest percentage of Muslims among Indian states at 34…
SHAYARA BANO heaved a sigh of relief last Wednesday (7) at the enactment of a law banning polygamy in her Indian state, the culmination of a years-long effort, including her own case before the nation’s Supreme Court. “I can now say that my battle against age-old Islamic rules on marriage…
Holy water from the Rivers Ganga and Yamuna, pink sandstone from Rajasthan, furniture made from wooden trunks used to transport stones from India - the first Hindu stone temple in Abu Dhabi has been built with contributions from different parts of India. Temple authorities said the place of worship features…
Uttarakhand, a small northern Indian state governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist party, is set to pass a bill to replace religion-specific civil laws with a Uniform Civil Code, which could be used as a template by other states. The bill, being debated by Uttarakhand's legislature on Wednesday,…
THREE people were killed in India and dozens more injured after religious clashes sparked by the destruction of a madrassa, officials said Friday (9), the latest in a spate of demolitions targeting Islamic structures. Hindu nationalist groups have been emboldened in their campaign against Muslim religious structures since prime minister…
AN INDIAN state where prime minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in power is set to introduce contentious common personal laws that will apply across religions this month, a template other state officials said they will look to follow. Currently, India’s Hindus, Muslims, Christians and large tribal populations…
AN INDIAN national extradited from the UK pleaded guilty to operating a global dark web enterprise to sell “deadly and dangerous drugs to communities across America” and agreed to forfeit approximately $150 million (£118m) in cryptocurrency. According to court documents, Banmeet Singh – originally from Haldwani in India’s Uttarakhand state,…
A head-on collision between a truck and a bus claimed the lives of at least 12 people, leaving 38 others injured in Assam's Golaghat district on Wednesday (3). The collision occurred amidst dense fog that blanketed sections of eastern, northern, and central India, severely limiting visibility. Delhi experienced a bone-chilling…
India’s union home minister and member of parliament, Amit Shah, was warmly welcomed, along with his accompanying delegation on Saturday (9) at Parmarth Niketan Ashram, in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, better known as the yoga capital of the world. This visit followed his participation in the Global Investors Summit held in Dehradun,…
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said India needs a movement like 'Wed in India' on the lines of 'Made in India' and asked affluent industrialists to hold at least one destination wedding in their families each year in Uttarakhand, saying it will help the hill state emerge as…
AFTER 17 days trapped inside a collapsed Himalayan road tunnel they were building, Indian workers described the horror of their ordeal, and the hopes and prayers that kept them strong. "We were really scared, every moment felt that death was standing nearby," rescued worker Deepak Kumar said on Wednesday (29).…
The Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Wednesday (29), met with the workers rescued from the Silkyara tunnel and presented Rs 1 lakh, equivalent to around £ 950 to each of the workers. He visited the rescued workers at a hospital in Chinyalisaur, where they are under medical observation.…
Indian rescuers on Tuesday (27) pulled out all 41 construction workers trapped inside a collapsed tunnel in the Himalayas for 17 days, hours after drilling through the debris of rock, concrete and earth to reach them, officials said. The evacuation of the men - low-wage workers from some of India's…
Indian military engineers were gearing up to dig by hand on Monday (27), in an attempt to reach 41 workers who have been trapped in a collapsed road tunnel for 16 days. The rescue operation has faced multiple setbacks. Soldiers plan to use a so-called "rat-hole mining" technique, digging by…
INDIA's military brought in specialised equipment on Sunday (26) as efforts to free 41 trapped workers entered a third week, with digging ongoing in three directions after repeated setbacks to the operation. The Indian air force said Sunday that they were "responding with alacrity", as they flew in their third…
INDIAN rescuers brought in a new digging machine on Saturday (25) to open a vertical shaft to free 41 workers trapped inside a collapsed road tunnel for two weeks, after efforts through another route hit snags just metres from reaching the men. In the latest setback in frantic attempts to…
Indian rescuers on Tuesday (21), publicly released the first video footage featuring the workers confined within the Silkyara tunnel for the past ten days. The visuals were captured using an endoscopic camera sent in through the alternative 6-inch food pipeline. In the video, the workers, wearing yellow and white helmets,…
Efforts are underway by rescuers to deliver cooked food and establish a phone connection to the 41 workers trapped for eight days in a collapsed tunnel in the Indian Himalayas. Officials mentioned on Monday (20) that they are exploring new rescue strategies after earlier attempts faced obstacles. The men have…
INDIAN authorities were exploring five new plans to rescue workers trapped inside a collapsed tunnel in the Indian Himalayas after a week of failed attempts. Forty-one men, stuck in the highway tunnel in Uttarakhand state since November 12, are safe and being fed through a pipe, the authorities say. The…
INDIAN rescuers said Saturday (18) they had paused efforts to reach 41 men trapped in a collapsed road tunnel after a cracking sound created a "panic situation" over the possibility of a further cave-in. Excavators have been removing debris from the under-construction road tunnel in the northern Himalayan state of…
Indian rescuers cautioned on Friday (17) that it might require an additional two days of clearing debris before they can reach the 40 workers who have been trapped in a collapsed tunnel for nearly a week. Excavators have been removing debris since Sunday morning to create an escape route for…
Indian rescuers announced on Thursday (16), the deployment of a powerful new drilling machine as they entered the fifth day of their efforts to rescue 40 workers trapped in a collapsed road tunnel. Excavators have been removing debris since Sunday morning from the site of the collapse in the Himalayan…
Indian rescuers reported on Wednesday (15), that they had sent medicine to the 40 men trapped after the road tunnel they were constructing collapsed, marking the fourth day of frenzied efforts to free them. Officials said that there was sufficient oxygen reaching the tunnel for the trapped men to survive…
In northern India, over a hundred rescuers faced challenges for a third consecutive day on Tuesday (14) as they tried to rescue workers trapped underground following the collapse of the road tunnel they were constructing. Excavators have been removing debris since Sunday morning from the site in the Himalayan state…
Rescue teams in northern India announced on Monday (13) that they were able to establish contact with 40 workers who had been trapped for more than 24 hours following the collapse of the road tunnel they were constructing. "All the 40 workers trapped inside the tunnel are safe," Karamveer Singh…
AT LEAST 40 construction workers were trapped Sunday (12) after the road tunnel they were building collapsed in northern India, with rescuers scrambling to reach them beneath piles of debris. The collapse occurred early Sunday morning in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand when a group of workers were moving out…
TUESDAY, September 26, 2023, will go down in the history of the Hinduja family as a spectacular night to remember. On that day, the Princess Royal unveiled a plaque to mark the reincarnation of the Grade II-listed Old War Office (OWO) in Whitehall, London, as the OWO Raffles hotel and…
I feel I’ve just been in an Indiana Jones’s movie and the swashbuckling leader was Pujya Morari Bapu (Bapu), donning his black shawl and with the Ramayan in hand. For three weeks of my life, I wasn’t fully aware of what was about to come – travelling through the depths…
Investing in infrastructure to develop the tourism potential of Uttarakhand is a priority for the north Indian state, its chief minister, Pushkar Singh Dhami, has said. In an exclusive interview with Eastern Eye, Dhami revealed the state government’s plans to work with the hospitality sector to enhance the appeal of…
INDIAN activist Partha Chaudhury is on a war footing as he strides out of the ruling BJP’s regional headquarters in Kolkata armed with passion and pages of voter lists. “We need to meet each and every BJP supporter, and all of this has to be done in less than 300…
The 69th National Film Awards will be announced on Thursday during a press conference by the Jury at the National Media Center, New Delhi. Many names are going around and the official announcement is awaited. This year Alia Bhatt and Kangana Ranaut’s names are doing the rounds on social media…
Rescuers conducted searches on Tuesday (15) for individuals who were potentially unaccounted for in the wake of floods and landslides that have resulted in the death of at least 58 in India, including nine who were killed in the tragic collapse of a well-known temple in Shimla. Days of torrential…
THE horror stories of ethnic violence emerging from the northeastern Indian state of Manipur have greatly distressed the British artist, Marcus Hodge, because the place had appeared like a peaceful paradise to him when he was there in November last year painting polo ponies. Hodge was in Imphal, the state…
THE water level of the Yamuna in Delhi breached the danger mark again on Wednesday (19) morning, less than 12 hours after it dropped below the threshold, amid rains in the national capital and the upper reaches of the river. The central water commission's data showed the water level reached…
THE RIVER running through India's capital New Delhi has reached a record high due to monsoon floods, authorities said on Friday (14) as army engineers were deployed to try to contain the waters. The Yamuna river was flowing in an "#EXTREME FLOOD SITUATION", India's central water commission tweeted, having reached…
Days of intense monsoon rains across northern India have left at least 29 people dead, rendering many areas inaccessible with bridges smashed and roads blocked, officials said Monday. Television footage showed flash floods and landslides triggered by torrential rain, washing away vehicles, demolishing buildings and ripping down bridges in the…
The G20 delegates of the Infrastructure and Finances Working Group were honoured with a unique meditation and yoga session on Wednesday (28), organised by Parmarth Niketan at Maharishi Mahesh Yogi ashram (commonly known as Beatles Ashram) in Rishikesh in the north Indian state of Uttarakhand. Although pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji,…
Director Sudipto Sen and producer Vipul Shah, the duo behind The Kerala Story, on Monday announced their next project Bastar. According to the makers, Bastar, based on a "true incident", will hit the screens on April 5, 2024. Shah's Sunshine Pictures, the banner behind the upcoming movie, shared the announcement…
The 9th International Day of Yoga was celebrated at Parmarth Niketan in Rishikesh, in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, bringing together yoga enthusiasts from across the globe. HH Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, president of Parmarth Niketan, graced the occasion and joined in the morning yoga practice. The atmosphere was filled…
UNUSUAL weather patterns, including unexpected rainfall, strong winds, hailstorms, and a mild May, have resulted in a bleak outlook for India's mango production, reported The Times. The absence of typical scorching heat in northern India during May has led to approximately 40 per cent of this year's crop being harmed,…
Telugu star Varun Tej and actor Lavanya Tripathi have announced their engagement. The two actors, who have featured together in the films Mister and Antariksh 9000 kmph, shared the news on their official Instagram handles. "Found my Lav @itsmelavanya," wrote 33-year-old Tej along with photos from the ceremony, which was…
Akash Madhwal was working as an engineer and playing tennis-ball cricket just a few years ago, now he is in the Indian Premier League (IPL) record books. The 29-year-old fast bowler returned stunning figures of 5-5 in the playoffs to lead five-time champions Mumbai Indians to victory over Lucknow Super…
The G-20 Meeting of the Anti-Corruption Working Group commenced with a remarkable gathering at Parmarth Niketan, the largest ashram in Rishikesh and one of India's leading spiritual institutions. On Wednesday (24), 200 delegates representing all 20 G-20 countries, along with representatives from around the world, participated in a special Ganga…
Authorities in an Indian state want to ban polygamy as part of a bid by the Hindu-nationalist central government to standardise the civil code across the country. Polygamy, the practice of having more than one spouse, is illegal under the Indian Penal Code but Muslim men are allowed to have…
Thousands of Britons are travelling to remote locations in India and Sri Lanka for a “digital detox”, research found. Sinharaja Rainforest in southwest Sri Lanka and the Valley of Flowers in Uttarakhand. which is popular with hikers, have been named as among the most popular hotspots for people aiming to…
India and the UK on Thursday (27) began a two-week military exercise in Britain's Salisbury Plain as part of efforts to consolidate their military ties. Soldiers of the 2 Royal Gorkha Rifles from the UK and Indian Army troops from the Bihar Regiment are participating in the 'Ajeya Warrior' exercise,…
The 35th International Yoga Festival (IYF) hosted at Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh has welcomed yoga enthusiasts from almost 90 countries. Organised by Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, with the support of Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India, the festival…
Two SNP MPs who have south Asian connections are among the possible contenders to succeed Nicola Sturgeon as the first minister of Scotland.Sturgeon announced her resignation dramatically Wednesday after more than eight eventful years in office, setting off the race for a new leader to deliver on her party's faltering…
India and Nepal agreed on Monday to further bolster their economic and development cooperation as Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra met his Nepalese counterpart Bharat Raj Paudyal and reviewed the wide-ranging bilateral partnership. Foreign Secretary Kwatra arrived here on a two-day official visit to hold talks with the country's top…
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…
Scientists have found that vulnerability of the highway stretch in Uttarakhand between Joshimath and Rishikesh to landslides is likely to increase, owing to continued vegetation removal and destabilising of slopes. An average landslide density of 1.25 landslides per km was recorded by scientists for the 247-km-long stretch on NH-7 highway.…
Cricketer Rishabh Pant has been shifted from the ICU to the private ward of the Max Hospital in Dehradun, the capital of India's northern state of Uttarakhand, following an improvement in his condition. He was shifted to the private ward on Sunday evening as his condition improved but the pain…
Star Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan extended his wishes and prayers to Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who met with a car accident on Friday. Pant escaped the near-fatal accident on Friday with burn injuries among others that will require plastic surgeries and he could be airlifted to Delhi if required. He…
India cricketer Rishabh Pant fell asleep while driving from Delhi to Roorkee that caused his car to collide with a divider on the Narsan border of Roorkee near Hammadpur Jhal in northern state of Uttarakhand, police said. The cricketer has been admitted to a hospital in Dehradun with injuries on…
A Hindu couple had fled Afghanistan nearly three 30 years ago when the first Taliban regime in that country was ready to take control. Three decades later, the duo have found their fate linked to the religious fundamentalist group again as it has returned to power in Kabul again in…
On the occasion of World Human Rights Day on Saturday (10), the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance (GIWA) and Parmarth Niketan in Rishikesh in India's Himalayan state of Uttarakhand came together with faith leaders, scholars, academics, and artists from across the society to discuss how gender equality must go hand in…
The devastating floods that affected lives and economy in the South Asian nation of Pakistan this year have rung the warning bells across the globe. Environmentalists and conservationists have raised serious concerns over the deadly disaster that has killed nearly 1,700 people and displaced almost eight million people. The extreme…
A 13-year-old Indian schoolgirl travelled to London to receive her Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition (QCEC) Prize from Queen Consort Camilla for a true story based on the Forest Man of India, Jadav Molai Payeng. Maulika Pandey from India's northern state of Uttarakhand was named the Junior Runner-up for her essay…
A state in northern India will revoke its previous order banning five products made by billionaire yoga guru Baba Ramdev's company after the firm alleged an 'anti-Ayurveda drug mafia' behind the decision. Earlier, the Uttarakhand Ayurveda and Unani Services authority banned the production of five drugs-Divya Madhugrit, Divya Eyegrit Gold,…
HOT right now actress Janhvi Kapoor froze herself for newly released movie Mili. The gripping Hindi remake of hit 2019 Malayalam movie Helen sees her portray a young woman who gets trapped ina giant freezer overnight and must find a way to stay alive. The survival thriller adds to diverse…
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 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…
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday said that the floods in the state's Godavari region were triggered by the cloudburst which is suspected to be a "foreign conspiracy". Addressing the press at Badrachalam, KCR said, "A new phenomenon Cloud Burst has emerged. There is a conspiracy behind it.…
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…
HH Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati has met Indian vice president Venkaiah Naidu at his residence in New Delhi. Pujya Swamiji invited him to the Ganga Aarti and presented him with a Rudraksha plant and angavastram, a statement said. He also shared details about the recent International Yoga Day celebrations held at…
THE chief minister of Uttarakhand led the state’s Yoga day celebrations from Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, with Yoga gurus HH Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji and Pujya Sadhvi Bhagawatiji on Tuesday (21), according to a statement. Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, along with cabinet ministers Subodh Uniyal, Premchand Aggarwal, state lawmakers Renu…
A NUMBER of distinguished guests came together at the Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh in the northern Indian state if Uttarakhand on Tuesday (7) – the fifth day of the week-long celebrations that are underway in the honour of the 70th birth anniversary of His Holiness (HH) Pujya Swami Chidanand…
The week-long celebration over His Holiness Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati’s 70th birth anniversary was inaugurated on Friday (3) at a star-studded event held on the banks of River Ganges. Besides saints and government luminaries, noted personalities from Bollywood, the Indian film industry, assembled on the stage at Parmarth Niketan Ashram in…
INDIA has installed Asia's largest liquid-mirror telescope at Devasthal, Uttarakhand to track space debris and asteroids, an official statement said. It employs a 4-meter-diameter rotating mirror made up of a thin film of liquid mercury to collect and focus light and can identify transient and variable objects such as supernovae,…
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…
A Special Consultation with Faith Leaders and Stakeholders dedicated to the Keeping Mother Ganga Clean was held at Parmarth Niketan, Uttarakhand on Thursday (26) in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) and Namami Gange, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India, together with Ganga Action Parivar, Global…
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…
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…
While shooting for his new film Goodbye in Rishikesh, legendary Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan along with director Vikas Bahl, actress Elli Avram, as well as the rest of the cast and crew of the production joined for a special meeting with HH Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, Pujya Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji…
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…
EMOTIONS ran high as Indian students, evacuated from the embattled Ukrainian city of Sumy, came out of the Delhi airport on Friday (11) and hugged their waiting parents.Some of the parents distributed sweets and garlanded their children while others welcomed them with bouquets and hugs as they arrived at the…
PAMARTH NIKETAN, a spiritual centre in the north Indian city of Rishikesh, honoured women on Tuesday (8) to mark International Women's Day. The centre’s president, HH Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati (HH Pujya Muniji), presented them with Rudraksha mala - a sacred Ashoka plant - and a certificate of appreciation for…
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…
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…
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…
SEVEN decades since they were hunted to extinction by the British colonists, cheetahs are set to return in India, thanks to their reintroduction in the country’s wild from southern Africa. The action plan for the project, which was conceived in 2009, was released last week. According to The Telegraph, the…
Sara Ali Khan remembers her first co-star, late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, as her debut film Kedarnath clocks three years of its release on December 7. The actress recalled how Singh was a constant support during the making of the film. Directed by Abhishek Kapoor, Kedarnath is romantic drama disaster…
HINDU hardliners attacked and set fire to the house of a former Indian overseas minister, police mentioned, within the newest incident of spiritual violence that critics say has been infected beneath prime minister Narendra Modi. Salman Khurshid, a Muslim from the primary opposition Congress party, has written a book in…
In 2019, a Gujarati film titled Chaal Jeevi Laiye had hit the big screens. The movie starring Siddharth Randeria, Yash Soni and Aarohi Patel became the highest-grossing film of Gujarati cinema. Recently, while talking to PTI, the producer of the film, Rashmin Majithia, revealed that they were in talks with…
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi will meet Pope Francis in Rome for the first time this weekend when he visits for the G20 summit, officials said Thursday, in what could be a thorny encounter. Activists say that religious minorities in Hindu-majority India have faced increased levels of discrimination and violence…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJoEX6Peqhw TAAPSEE PANNU DISCUSSES HER LATEST FILM NEWLY released ZEE5 film Rashami Rocket is powered by a perfect lead performance by acclaimed actress Taapsee Pannu. The versatile star has once again shown off her remarkable range in the role of a gifted athlete who finds herself in an unexpected battle,…
NEARLY 200 people have died in floods and landslides in India and Nepal, officials said Thursday (21), with whole families buried in their homes and two young girls swept away as forecasters warned of yet more heavy rain. Experts say that they were victims of the ever-more unpredictable and extreme…
SPIRITUAL leader Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award by US president Joe Biden for her lifelong commitment to volunteer service. The award has been given by the US president along with Americorps. The certificate that was awarded to her was signed by Biden. Sadhvi Bhagawati…
THE India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Tuesday (19) sounded an orange alert for Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, and other districts for Wednesday (20) in rain-battered Kerala. Other districts that have been issued with an orange alert include Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Kannur districts. A yellow alert has…
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…
Today, the topic of the environment has become a focal point of debate more than ever before. It needs our attention and our participatory concern for its betterment. What better way to draw people's attention towards subjects related to all living things environmental other than the medium of cinema. After…
Netflix’s supernatural thriller Bulbbul, produced by Anushka Sharma under Clean Slate Filmz, turned out to be a game-changer for newcomer Tripti Dimri and the actor is confident that her next film with director Anvita Dutt will also garner the same response from the audiences. The actor-director duo is currently working…
Some 200 men armed with rods and sticks stormed a church in northern India during Sunday (3) prayer service, police said, in the latest anti-Christian violence in the officially secular country. At least five people were injured in the attack allegedly carried out by members of hardline Hindu vigilante groups…
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…
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 consulate general of India in New York, the US, recently organised an event to honour 'Hollywood to the Himalayas: A Journey of Healing and Transformation', the memoir of Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, secretary-general of Global Interfaith WASH Alliance, Parmarth Niketan Ashram located in Rishikesh in the northern Indian state of…
SENIOR BJP leader Bhupendra Patel will become the next chief minister of Gujarat. He will succeed Vijay Rupani who resigned on Saturday (11) in a surprise move. Patel along with Rupani and state BJP president CR Paatil handed over the government formation claim to governor Acharya Devvrat on Sunday evening.…
THE English artist Marcus Hodge, who is holding an exhibition of his Indian paintings at the Osborne Studio Gallery in London’s Belgravia next month, has revealed how India has profoundly influenced his own life and that of several generations of his family. The forthcoming exhibition will feature mainly “representational” images…
VIJAY Rupani resigned as the chief minister of India’s state of Gujarat on Saturday (11), more than a year before the state goes to the polls. Elections are due in December 2022 to elect 182 members of the Gujarat assembly where prime minister Narendra Modi’s party BJP has been in…
INDIA'S Covid pandemic has become a money-making scheme for some local officials who have wrongly declared people dead from the disease and allegedly pocketed compensation of £2,000, according to one report. The suspected scam has forced 23 people from Borkhedi village in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh to…
At least three Indian states are denying passports and government jobs to people because of their social media posts or participation in protests, human rights activists said. In a move that could jeopardise the futures of tens of thousands of vocal young Indians, authorities in Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar and…
INDIA on Friday (13) evacuated at least 2,000 people after a massive landslide in the ecologically fragile Himalayan north blocked a major river, officials said. The people were evacuated from 13 villages in the Lahaul area of Himachal Pradesh as a "preventative measure" in case of flash floods, said a…
AS MILLIONS of Indians cheered their country’s sports stars performances at the recently concluded Olympics, some of the players and their families endured abuse because they were from lower castes and the so-called “untouchables”. India's hockey captain Rani Rampal last weekend criticised the "shameful" racist abuse of a team member's…
India's hockey captain Rani Rampal on Saturday (7) criticised the "shameful" racist abuse of a team member's family that she said was damaging the country's quest to boost its sporting image. New Delhi saw a hockey renaissance at the Tokyo Games with the men taking third place -- their first…
A TOP Israeli diplomat in India, Rony Yedidia-Clein, visited Parmarth Niketan in Rishikesh in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand and exchanged ideas with ashram president His Holiness (HH) Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji on water conservation and environmental preservation. Yedidia-Clein, the Charge d’affaires of the Embassy of Israel, presented a…
AN INVESTIGATION has been launched in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand following media reports that private labs faked Covid-19 tests. Private labs were hired by the Uttarakhand government to screen visitors for the virus ahead of the Kumbh mela Hindu festival. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of Uttarakhand…
Over the past few years, Neena Gupta has mostly grabbed headlines for her riveting performances in a number of commercially and critically successful films, including Badhaai Ho (2018), Mulk (2018), and Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan (2019). She is back in news again, but this time around for a completely different…
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 Indian adaptation of The Night Manager has been in the news for the past few months. There have been reports that Hrithik Roshan will be seen playing the lead role in it, and it was also said that actor Manoj Bajpayee will portray the role of an antagonist in…
FAITH leaders, health experts, yoga instructors, mental health practitioners and fitness enthusiasts offered insights into the transformative practice of yoga during the pandemic at a three-day international yoga summit held virtually from May 28-30. The conclave was inaugurated by one of India’s leading spiritual leaders, His Holiness (HH) Pujya Swami…
INDIA's official tally of daily infections of coronavirus fell to the lowest in nearly six weeks in the past 24 hours, offering hope that a devastating second wave is ebbing, but government leaders said shortages of vaccines were a big concern. Barely three per cent of the country's 1.3 billion…
A voluntary group of doctors and professionals in the US and India has launched an initiative to help healthcare workers in rural India. The ‘Project Madad' will provide virtual, time-sensitive information to healthcare workers on treating Covid-19 patients, real-time details on hospital bed availability and counter vaccine misinformation. The Madad team…
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’S noted environmentalist and pioneer of the Chipko Movement against deforestation in the 1970s, Sundarlal Bahuguna died of Covid-19 in Uttarakhand this afternoon. He was 94 years old. Bahuguna is known to the world as the man who taught Indians to hug trees to protect the environment. In Hindi, chipko…
BLACK fungus is now emerging as a new concern in Covid-battered India as at least nine Indian states have now declared the disease as an epidemic. The cities of New Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Bangalore have opened special wards to treat black fungus patients. The Union Health Ministry on Thursday…
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…
AS India battles its second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, a leading Indian spiritual leader has initiated projects to provide help for Covid-19 patients in Uttarakhand, north India. His Holiness (HH) Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji (HH Pujya Swamiji) is president of the Parmarth Niketan Ashram, in Rishikesh. Under his leadership,…
INDIAN villagers are rejecting Covid-19 vaccine amid rumours of infertility and heart attacks. They are shunning the coronavirus vaccine because of the growing belief that it is deadly or will prevent them from having children, reported The Times. These fears reflect the slow pace of the country's vaccination campaign as…
At least two Indian states have said they plan to give their populations the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin to protect against severe Covid-19 infections as their hospitals are overrun with patients in critical condition. The move by the coastal state of Goa and northern state of Uttarakhand, come despite the World…
AFTER India's new coronavirus cases and deaths held close to record highs on Monday (10), there was increased pressure on the government of prime minister Narendra Modi to impose nationwide lockdown. The 366,161 new infections and 3,754 deaths reported by the health ministry, takes India's tally to 22.66 million with…
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…
By Amit Roy PAKISTAN, like India, suffers from a rape pandemic. It was therefore highly irresponsible for the Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan to recommend purdah as way in which women could avoid unwelcome attention from men. During a question and answer session on how Pakistan should combat a surge…
India's coronavirus epicentre Maharashtra went into a state-wide weekend lockdown on Saturday as the country battled exploding infection numbers and shortages of vaccines, drugs and hospital beds. Having let its guard down with mass religious festivals, political rallies and spectators at cricket matches, India is experiencing a ferocious new wave…
MANY Indian state leaders have asked prime minister Narendra Modi to open up vaccinations to most of the country's hundreds of millions of adults, following a second surge in infections that has eclipsed the first wave. India breached the grim milestone of 100,000 daily infections for the first time on…
By Amit Roy THE Daily Telegraph’s fashion editor, Tamara Abraham, has explained to me why she has ridiculed Tirath Singh Rawat, the chief minister of Uttarakhand, who equated women wearing ripped jeans with moral decay. Tamara said: “Mr Rawat’s comments were problematic for so many reasons – the idea…
By: Mohnish Singh The makers of the upcoming Hindi film Dispatch had to halt the shoot recently after lead actor Manoj Bajpayee and director Kanu Behl tested positive for the coronavirus. Ever since the diagnosis, Bajpayee and Behl have been in self-quarantine at their respective homes. The latest we hear…
India's prime minister Narendra Modi called for increased testing and local restrictions to halt an "emerging second peak" of the coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday, as fresh daily cases hit a three-month high. The world's third most infected nation with more than 11.4 million cases, India recorded a peak of just…
By: Mohnish Singh Filmmaker Abhishek Kapoor’s much-loved film Kai Po Che, which released on February 22, 2013, has clocked eight years. Based on Chetan Bhagat's popular novel The 3 Mistakes Of My Life (2008), the film marked the silver screen debut of Sushant Singh Rajput, an incredibly gifted artist who…
INDIA's federal government on Saturday (6) asked local authorities to prioritise Covid-19 vaccinations in several districts of eight states including New Delhi that have seen a spike in coronavirus cases in recent weeks, it said in a statement. More than 60 districts across New Delhi, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Himachal…
Nineteen states and union territories in India have not reported any death due to COVID-19 in a span of 24 hours, while India's active cases stood at 146,907 accounting for 1.33 per cent of the total number of infections, the union health ministry said on Wednesday. A total of 13,742…
THE MUSIC LEGEND DISCUSSES HIS AMAZING CAREER AND TOP NEW TRACK by ASJAD NAZIR GREAT British music artist Bally Sagoo ruled the charts and found global success throughout the 1990s, as well as inspiring a generation with his unique brand of cross-cultural commercial music. The history-making hero toured with Michael…
As protests against agricultural reforms catch global attention, India's neglected women farmers are seizing the moment to dust off their own long-standing demands - from land rights and farm credit to grains subsidies. Hundreds of miles from the sit-in demonstrations near the capital, Ponnuthai said the protests were helping her…
By: Mohnish Singh When the Coronavirus pandemic brought the entire world to its knees last year, singer Jubin Nautiyal retreated to his hometown in the mountains of Uttarakhand. The singer safely returned to his family before Indian went into a complete lockdown and took the opportunity to keep his fans…
Indian rescue workers battled through tonnes of rock and mud on Tuesday (9) searching for survivors in a choked Himalayan tunnel after a deadly flood -- apparently triggered by a glacial burst -- smashed through two mountain dam projects. More than 170 people were still missing, two days after a…
INDIAN rescuers searched on Monday(8) for more than 200 people missing after part of a remote Himalayan glacier broke away, sweeping away bridges, breaking dams and sending a torrent of water, rocks and construction debris down a mountain valley. Sunday's(7) disaster below Nanda Devi, India's second-highest peak, swept away the…
HINDU PILGRIMS flocked to the Ganges river in India on Wednesday(13), shrugging off the risk of coronavirus a day before the start of the Kumbh Mela -- a religious festival that attracts millions each time it is held. Despite India having the second most coronavirus infections in the world --…
New Delhi and other major cities across India on Thursday (31) ordered curfews for New Year's Eve as they stepped up efforts to head off a new coronavirus wave. In the capital, the curfew would run for two days from 11:00 pm until 6:00 am with gatherings limited to five…
By: Mohnish Singh Things do not seem to be going well for the makers of the upcoming Hindi film Jersey. In January earlier this year, the shoot of the sports drama came to a screeching halt when its leading man Shahid Kapoor suffered a head injury and underwent 13 stitches…
Murtuza Iqbal We all know that Ali Abbas Zafar is all set to direct India’s first female superhero film with Katrina Kaif in the lead role. It is said to be a two-part franchise, and currently, the pre-production of the film is going it. The makers have not yet announced…
By: Mohnish Singh According to reports, Alia Bhatt is in consideration to headline celebrated Hindi filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj’s next film franchise based on the works of British mystery writer Agatha Christie. The Raazi (2018) actress is racing ahead in the race to bag the plum project and if she manages…
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…
Murtuza Iqbal Filmmaker Ali Abbas Zafar and Katrina Kaif are all set to team up for a superhero film. The movie has been in the news from the day it has been announced and Katrina’s fans have been eagerly waiting to see her in the superhero avatar. Recently, while talking…
By: Mohnish Singh Filmmaker Ali Abbas Zafar, who boasts of some of the most successful Hindi films of recent times on his directorial resume, including Sultan (2016), Tiger Zinda Hai (2017), and Bharat (2019), recently added a new feather to his cap by turning producer with Ananya Panday and Ishaan…
EVERYONE may be in a lockdown and not able to go on a holiday, but that doesn’t stop people from dreaming about a getaway to somewhere nice. With that in mind, popular TV stars recalled their favourite holiday destinations in India and in the process, gave some ideas for when…
A FRENCH woman has been arrested for making a video of herself naked on a holy bridge in the sacred north Indian city of Rishikesh, police said on Saturday (29). The 27-year-old now faces charges under India's internet law with a maximum sentence of three years jail if found guilty. She was…
A player for India's national wheelchair cricket team has been forced into work as a manual labourer as millions across the country are left jobless by the coronavirus pandemic. Rajendra Singh Dhami previously earned a living from prize money and sponsorship, supplemented by income from working as a coach, despite…
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…
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 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…
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…
MILLIONS of people across the globe marked the International Yoga Day (IYD) on Sunday (21) as they joined virtual gatherings and shared online their pictures and videos highlighting the importance of the ancient practice for the world as it battles the coronavirus pandemic. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the celebrations…
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'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…
THE lower house of Nepal's parliament on Saturday (13) approved a new map of the country, including areas disputed with India, the speaker of the national legislature said. The move signals a hardening of Nepal's position over a decades-long border row that has strained ties between the South Asian neighbours.…
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 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…
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…
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…
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…
THE number of Covid-19 cases in India surged to 173,763 on Saturday (30). For the second straight day, the number of daily coronavirus cases in the country hit a new high at 7,964. The deadly virus has claimed 4,971 lives so far in the country. At least 265 new deaths…
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…
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,…
INDIA has reacted sharply to Nepal releasing new map saying that the action is unjustified cartographic assertion. India's reaction came hours after the Nepal government released a revised political and administrative map of the country. A cabinet meeting on Monday (18) in Nepal decided to publish a new map that includes…
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…
NEPAL has drawn-up a new political map that includes strategically important territory it disputes with India, officials said, as the Himalayan country takes a tougher stance against its giant neighbour. Protests have been staged in Nepal since India earlier this month inaugurated an 80-kilometre (50 mile) road in Uttarakhand state…
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…
Award-winning filmmaker Tigmanshu Dhulia, who last directed Irrfan Khan in his critically and commercially successful film Paan Singh Tomar (2012), was planning to reteam with the actor for a new film. Buzz has it that the director has now shelved the project after the untimely death of the great actor.…
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…
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…
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,…
UK universities have urged distressed Indian students -- whether still in Britain or in India -- to get in touch with their varsity support services if they need help or guidance during the pandemic lockdown. On Monday, the Indian government announced plans to begin phased repatriation of its citizens stranded…
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…
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…
INDIA is likely to continue lockdown in hotspots as COVID-19 cases are increasing fast. The novel coronavirus has claimed 872 lives and there are 20,835 active COVID-19 cases in the country, according to the health ministry data released on Monday (27) Morning. The total number of cases in India is…
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…
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…
Six foreign tourists who tried to sit out the coronavirus pandemic in an Indian cave have been sent to quarantine at an ashram near a town made famous by the Beatles after running out of money, police said Sunday. The four men and two women -- from France, the United…
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,…
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…
OVER a hundred Indian diaspora organisations here issued a letter of solidarity with India, and urged their compatriots caught up in the current lockdown to show patience to curb the spread of coronavirus pandemic in the country. The 107 organisations, including charities, temple associations and state-wise representative bodies, lauded the…
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 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 Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Ruchi Ghanashyam, on Sunday (29) appealed to Indian citizens stranded in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic to beware of fake news doing the rounds about Air India evacuation flights planned next week. Ghanashyam posted a copy of the fake news being…
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 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…
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…
AN INAUGURAL ceremony was held in the northern Indian city of Rishikesh to plant the first 15 of the 200,000 saplings by Parmarth Niketan and the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance. The programme led by Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji aims to plant 200,000 saplings this year. The inaugural ceremony of the planting…
Fast-rising Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen claimed his fourth title in three months, bagging the Scottish Open with a thrilling win over Brazil's Ygor Coelho in the men's singles summit clash in Glasgow. The top-seeded Indian overcame his Brazilian opponent 18-21, 21-18, 21-19 in a 56-minute final on Sunday night. The…
INDIAN authorities were engaged in a major search and rescue operation Monday (16) to find 39 people missing after their tour boat capsized in a fast-flowing swollen river. Police said that eight bodies have been recovered, down from a previous tally of 12, after the accident on the Godavari river…
Starring Salman Khan and Alia Bhatt in lead roles, Inshallah is a film which has been in news even before its official announcement. Since Inshallah marks the reunion of Salman Khan with filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali after a massive gap of two decades, the audience is waiting for the big-ticket…
THE Indian government on Thursday (4) warned in a study that its population is going to start to age and it needs to be prepared to merge schools and raise the retirement age. While India should be set to benefit from the so-called "demographic dividend" over the next decade as…
The bodies of seven climbers killed on India's second-highest mountain were retrieved Sunday (23), capping a nearly month-long search by mountaineering experts in treacherous Himalayan terrain. The eight-person group that went missing in late May included four Britons, two Americans, one Indian and one Australian. They had set out to…
SPIRITUAL GURU His Holiness Swami Satyamitranand Giriji Maharaj has been admitted to a hospital in Dehradun, in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, following issues with his respiratory system. He is currently on ventilator. Swami Satyamitranand is the founder of Bharat Mata Mandir, a famous temple in Haridwar, which was inaugurated…
FIVE bodies were spotted high on a mountain in the Indian Himalayas on Monday (3) during an aerial search for eight climbers feared swept away in an avalanche last week, a government official said. The climbers - four from Britain, two from the US, and one each from Australia and…
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…
AFTER spending the night in a cave near Uttarakhand's Kedarnath temple, prime minister Narendra Modi Sunday (19) thanked the Election Commission for granting him permission for the visit, saying he remained entirely cut-off from the outside world and got two days of "rest". Modi reached Kedarnath on Saturday and after…
Prime minister Narendra Modi embarked on a spiritual break Saturday (18) as India's acrimonious marathon election wound to a close after almost seven weeks awash with insults, violence and fake news. On the eve of the seventh and final day of voting in the world's biggest democratic exercise, local media…
A TEAM of dental students from the UK will move to northern India to deliver essential health services to the people with limited access to basic healthcare facilities. Led by Dr Upen Patel and Dr Ketan Patel, 10 dental students from the School of Dentistry at Birmingham are volunteering with…
INDIA'S Supreme Court on Friday (22) ordered bolstered protection for Kashmiris who have faced a violent backlash from a suicide bombing in the troubled territory that killed 40 paramilitaries. More than 700 Kashmiri students, workers and traders have returned to the Himalayan region from the rest of India to escape…
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…
The Sundarbans National Park The Sundarbans National Park is a national park, Tiger Reserve, and a Biosphere Reserve located in India’s Eastern State, West Bengal. The national park is a part of Sundarbans on the Ganges delta, and adjacent to the Sundarban Reserve Forest located in India’s neighbouring country, Bangladesh.…
Saif Ali Khan's daughter Sara Ali Khan's debut film Kedarnath has landed in trouble after Hindu outfits accused the film of hurting religious sentiments. In Uttarakhand, a state in northern India, the film has been banned in seven districts. Set against the backdrop of the 2013 deluge, the film depicts…
Filmmaker Abhishek Kapoor’s latest offering Kedarnath, which revolves around high rainfall and flooding of Uttarakhand in 2013, has opened to good reviews. Apart from Sara Ali Khan and Sushant Singh Rajput, actor Tarun Gahlot is also seen playing an important role in the movie. Talking about his role in the…
THE big Bollywood release of the week is romantic drama Kedarnath. The latest film from director Abhishek Kapoor is a love story set to the backdrop of the devastating Uttarakhand floods that created havoc in the state in 2013 and killed thousands. The filmmaker has overcome a number of obstacles…
There is nothing new in Bollywood offspring following in their successful parents’ footsteps to make their own career and, if luck favours, become big stars themselves. In the past few years, many star-kids have set their foot in filmdom – some hit a home run while others faded into obscurity. After…
In a surprise to brave soldiers, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi celebrated the festival of lights, Diwali, with Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel at Harsil located near India-China border in Uttarakhand on Wednesday (7). Greeting the soldiers on the occasion, the prime minister said that their devotion…
Celebrated filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and his elder daughter Pooja Bhatt flew off to the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand in India to recce locations for their highly-anticipated forthcoming film Sadak 2. As the title of the movie suggests itself, Sadak 2 is a sequel to Mukesh Bhatt’s 1991 musical hit Sadak,…
India’s home minister Rajnath Singh has said that India would be listed among the first three economies of the globe by 2030 if it kept up its current pace of growth. The minister was speaking at the concluding session of the two-day investors’ summit on Monday (9) in Dehradun, the…
India prime minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Uttarakhand's first investors summit Sunday, saying India is the ideal investment destination in the world today with major social and economic changes sweeping the country. Addressing the country's top business leaders and industrial houses at 'Destination Uttarakhand: Investors Summit 2018', Modi said the country…
He may have proved his mettle as a performer with films such as Kaminey, Haider and Padmaavat, but Shahid Kapoor says initially it was not easy for him to score versatile characters. The 37-year-old actor, who made his Bollywood debut with college romance Ishq Vishk, said it was tough for…
"Rat fever" and other diseases have killed 14 people in the southern Indian state of Kerala after the worst floods in almost a century, authorities said on Tuesday (04). The separate death toll from the monsoon floods that forced more than a million people from their homes in Kerala last…
There are only a few actresses in Bollywood, who get to play characters which are equally important and powerful as their male counterparts’. Shraddha Kapoor, daughter of iconic Hindi film actor Shakti Kapoor, is one of those actresses who has built a strong resume with some remarkable roles, and that…
Sustainable living and tackling pollution were on the agenda as faith and spiritual leaders joined politicians at a three-day Kumbh Conclave last week in Allahabad, north India. The protection of greenery in the city, promotion of eco-friendly choices and increasing awareness of a plastic and pollution-free Kumbh Mela were some topics…
Shahid Kapoor’s hotly anticipated social drama movie Batti Gul Meter Chalu, which also stars Shraddha Kapoor and Yami Gautam in lead roles, has shifted from 31st August to September 14, 2018. The makers announced the new release date on Monday. The movie, which has been shot extensively in Uttarakhand, revolves…
TENS of thousands of people - from the Himalayan region of Ladakh to the deck of an aircraft carrier - joined India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi today (21) to celebrate the fourth International Day of Yoga, with a few wearing masks to highlight poor air quality. Modi pushed for the…
Shahid Kapoor, who was last seen in the hugely successful period film, Padmaavat (2018), is teaming up with well-known filmmaker Raja Krishna Menon for the first time for a sports-based film. We have learnt from sources that the movie will start rolling from the month of December. Shahid, who is…
1. Ganga River, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand Rishikesh is the undisputed leader among the best river rafting destinations in India. The 16 km stretch of River Ganga from Shivpuri to Lakshman Jhula, makes the ideal place for river rafting, guaranteeing an adventurous ride, abounding in rapids and whirlpools, with curious names like…
Magnetic Hill Magnet Hill is a "Cyclops hill" located near Leh in Ladakh, India. The Magnetic Hill is a natural wonder where illusion seems to defy the rules of gravity. Also known as the Gravity Hill, this place pulls vehicles in an upward direction, creating an optical illusion. The hill…
by NADEEM BADSHAH UK CAN FOLLOW THE DOON’S EXAMPLE SCHOOLS in England can learn from India on how to nurture talented kids and keep them motivated, it has been claimed. Channel 4’s recent show, Indian Summer School, saw five under-achieving kids from the UK attend The Doon School in Uttarakhand to…
The two-day Summit of Solutions for Ganga hosted by Global Interfaith WASH Alliance and Ganga Action Parivar, Parmarth Niketan, in Rishikesh, saw Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat applauding the efforts taken to save river Ganga from pollution. “We have awakened on time, it is not too late, and for this…
Saif Ali Khan and Amrita Singh's daughter, Sara Ali Khan, was set for her launch in Bollywood with Abhishek Kapoor's forthcoming film, Kedarnath. Based on the catastrophic floods of June 2013 in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand, the film was being bankrolled by KriArj Entertainment in association with Balaji Motion Pictures. However, the…
Abhishek Kapoor is currently busy with the shoot of the forthcoming Sushant Singh Rajput and Sara Ali Khan starrer Kedarnath. Recently, as per the reports in a leading Indian daily, KriArj Entertainment which is headed by Prernaa Arora and Arjun N Kapoor, have backed out of the production of Kedarnath.…
Filmmaker Shree Narayan Singh, who debuted in Bollywood with the release of his highly successful film Toilet Ek Prem Katha, has started shooting for his second outing, Batti Gul Meter Chalu. The film stars Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor and Yami Gautam in lead roles. Actor Shahid Kapoor, who is on…
1] Ganga River, Uttarakhand The Alaknanda river is among the best river for white water rafting in India as well as in the world due to its high rafting grade. Alaknanda River is the source stream of the Ganges and meets the Bhagirathi River at Devprayag. Bhagirathi River is also one…
1] Munsiyari The trekkers paradise is a hill station nestled in the snow capped peaks of the great Himalayas in the Pithoragarh District of Uttarakhand. Munsiyari is the base point for various treks of the great Himalayan mountain ranges. 2] Zanskar Valley -Ladakh The Zanskar Valley is one of the remotest places…
The controversies surrounding Sanjay Leela Bhansali film Padmavati, which has now been renamed Padmaavat, refuse to die down. On Thursday, the Supreme Court of India lifted the ban imposed by six states -- Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand, Haryana and Gujarat -- on the movie. But these states…
Padma Shri awardee and veteran film, television and theatre actor, director and writer Tom Alter passed away on late on Friday night after battling with stage four skin cancer. He was 67. A native of Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, Alter was bestowed with Padma Shri for his service to the field of arts…
Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. (Jio) and Roy Kapur Films (RKF), a leading film and media production company founded by Siddharth Roy Kapur, today announced an association wherein original digital video content for the Jio platform will be curated, developed, commissioned and creatively produced by Roy Kapur Films. This will include…
Going by the buzz, Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput has been approached to star in the Hindi remake of popular Hollywood film, The Fault In Our Stars which originally featured Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort in lead roles. Rajput, who was last seen in Dinesh Vijan’s directorial debut, Raabta, is currently shooting for…
The confirmed death toll passed 700 and more than a million were driven from their homes as large swathes of South Asia reeled under monsoon floods on Sunday (20), officials said. At least 100 deaths were reported overnight across India and Bangladesh following the latest in a series of deluges since August…
A nine-year-old girl has filed a legal case against the Indian government for failing to take action on climate change, highlighting the growing concern over pollution and environmental degradation in the country. In the petition filed with the National Green Tribunal (NGT), a special court for environment-related cases, Ridhima Pandey…
Nepal and parts of northern India are battling their worst forest fires in years that have devastated thousands of hectares of woodland, killed at least 18 people and sent a pall of smoke across the southern Himalayas that can been seen from space. In Nepal, 11 people have died while…
Thousands of labourers backed by water-carrying helicopters were battling to control fires that have killed two people in India’s northern Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, officials said Sunday. Fires have swept through more than 1,900 hectares (4,700 acres) of forest but have so far not threatened towns in Uttarakhand which draws…
THE DEATH toll from landslides and flooding in northern India has risen to 25 after rescuers found more bodies buried under debris, officials said last Saturday (2). Dozens more are missing after torrential rains triggered landslides and floods in the Himalayan states of Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh. Some 15 people…
India’s Supreme Court on Monday (23) rejected a petition to delay the annual federal budget, which finance minister Arun Jaitley is scheduled to deliver on February 1, dismissing concerns about potential giveaways ahead of critical state polls. A panel headed by Chief Justice J.S. Khehar found no merit in a…
India prime minister Narendra Modi faced his biggest electoral test since coming to power when the battleground state of Uttar Pradesh, which he swept three years ago, starting its elections starting on Saturday (11) In the biggest democratic exercise on the planet this year, voting will take place in seven…
Millions of Indians went to the polls on Saturday (4) in the opening round of regional elections seen as the first major test of prime minister Narendra Modi’s party after his controversial move to ban high-value notes. Five Indian states will elect new governments over the next five weeks, with…
Five Indian states representing more than 160 million voters will go to the polls in the next two months, officials said on Wednesday (3), a key test for the prime minister after his shock currency move. They include India’s most populous state Uttar Pradesh, where Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party…
India unveiled a budget on Wednesday (1) to help the poor with hikes in government spending and cuts in taxes as prime minister Narendra Modi seeks to win back the sympathy of voters hit hard by his recent crackdown on “black money”. Finance minister Arun Jaitley announced increases in spending…
Millions of Indians went to the polls on Saturday (4) in the opening round of regional elections seen as the first major test of prime minister Narendra Modi’s party after his controversial move to ban high-value notes. Five Indian states will elect new governments over the next five weeks, with…
India unveiled a budget on Wednesday (1) to help the poor with hikes in government spending and cuts in taxes as prime minister Narendra Modi seeks to win back the sympathy of voters hit hard by his recent crackdown on “black money”. Finance minister Arun Jaitley announced increases in spending…
Millions of Indians went to the polls on Saturday (4) in the opening round of regional elections seen as the first major test of prime minister Narendra Modi’s party after his controversial move to ban high-value notes. Five Indian states will elect new governments over the next five weeks, with…