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The Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday banned the sale of halal-certified products after Lucknow police booked some organisations for providing forged certificates to retailers. “In the interest of public health, production, storing, distribution and sale of halal certified edible items banned in Uttar Pradesh with immediate effect,” the official order stated. Uttar Pradesh | Food Commissioner’s Office issues order, “In the interest of public health, production, storing, distribution and sale of halal certified edible items banned in Uttar Pradesh with immediate effect.” pic.twitter.com/G9GXLPj83n — ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) November 18, 2023 The move comes after Lucknow police on Friday registered a case against a company and a few other organisations for allegedly exploiting people’s religious sentiments to boost sales by providing forged halal certificates. According to a separate UP government decree, pharmaceuticals, medical gadgets, and cosmetic items bearing hal

As Telangana is set to hold Assembly elections on November 30, The Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched the BJP manifesto in Hyderabad on Saturday and promised free crop insurance to farmers through PM Fasal Bima Yojana, besides providing 4 gas cylinders free of cost annually to Ujjwala beneficiaries, free laptops for girl students who are entering undergraduate degree or professional college courses and free Ram Mandir and Kashi Yatra for senior citizens among others. He said that the assurances made in the manifesto were ‘PM Modi guarantee’ to the public. According to the party’s manifesto, BJP has decided to officially commemorate Hyderabad Liberation Day on September 17th every year. “We will observe August 27 as Razakar Horrors Remembrance Day to pay homage to the martyrs of Bairanpally and Parkal. Further, on assuming office, will establish a museum and a memorial in Hyderabad, to document the brave struggle of the people of Telangana against the Razakars and the Nizams,” B

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh made a brief stopover in Singapore on Saturday during his return journey from Indonesia. During his visit, Singh paid respects to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose by placing a wreath at the Indian National Army (INA) marker, as announced by the defence ministry. The Defence Minister had recently concluded a two-day trip to Jakarta, Indonesia, where he participated in a meeting of the 10-nation ASEAN and engaged with some of its dialogue partners. According to the ministry’s statement, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose himself proposed the construction of a monument to honour the “Unknown Warriors” of the INA, laying the foundation stone in July 1945. Singh acknowledged this legacy by paying homage at the INA Memorial marker in Singapore, expressing heartfelt tributes to the INA’s ‘Unknown Warriors’ in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. Paid homage at the INA Memorial marker in Singapore. My heartfelt tributes to the ‘Unknown Warriors’ of the INA. pic.twitter

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday announced that the BJP would ensure a free visit to the Ram temple in Ayodhya for all the residents of Telangana if the saffron party was voted to power in the coming assembly elections. Addressing an election rally at Gadwal, he alleged that the Congress has hindered and delayed the construction of the Ram temple for the last 70 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had performed the ‘Bhumi Puja’ of the temple and the ‘pran pratishtha’ would be done on January 22, 2024, he said. Shah urged the gathering to elect the BJP to power in Telangana and said the party-led government would arrange the darshan of Lord Ram in Ayodhya free of cost to all. Targeting the K Chandrasekhar Rao-led BRS government in Telangana, he said it gave religion-based reservations to Muslims, which is “unconstitutional”. The BJP has decided to abolish religious reservation and increase the quota to OBCs and STs, should it form the next government in the state, he said.

One of the only methods to save the nurse from Kerala on death row in Yemen is to negotiate a deal involving “blood money” with the kin of the victim, said the lawyer who has requested a Delhi court to allow her mother to travel to the country. Nimisha Priya faces the death penalty for the murder of a Yemeni national and their Supreme Court has dismissed her appeal. A direct negotiation with the victim’s family now remains the only way forward under the Shariah law prevalent in Yemen, lawyer Subhash Chandran said. However, that too is easier said than done. “There is a travel ban to Yemen since 2016 due to which Indian citizens cannot visit Yemen without the permission of the Indian government. So we are not able to reach out to the victim’s family for the blood money negotiation,” said Chandran, who is part of the forum comprising politicians, businessmen, activists, and expatriates seeking justice for Nimisha. “Blood money” is the compensation to be decided by the victim’s family

On Saturday morning, there was a slight improvement in the air quality of New Delhi, shifting from the ‘severe’ category to ‘very poor.’ The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital decreased from 461 on Friday at 7 am to 398 this morning. Despite this marginal improvement, residents found little relief as a dense and toxic haze continued to envelop the city. The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR-India) reported an AQI of 398 at Ghazipur at 7:15 am on Saturday. #WATCH | Delhi: Air quality in ‘Very poor’ category; drone visuals from Ghazipur (Visuals shot at 08:00 am) pic.twitter.com/gVrBX6HMoS — ANI (@ANI) November 18, 2023 Expressing concern over the escalating air pollution, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai sought the intervention of the Centre on Friday to address the city’s deteriorating air quality. Rai highlighted that this situation extended beyond Delhi, affecting 12 districts in Haryana, 14 locations in Rajasthan,

In his address at the BJP’s Diwali Milan programme, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grave concerns over the misuse of artificial intelligence to create deepfake videos. He deemed it a “big concern” and announced measures to combat the rising threat. PM Modi disclosed that he has directed the ChatGPT team to actively flag deepfakes and issue warnings when such manipulated videos circulate on the internet. “During the times of Artificial Intelligence, it is important that technology should be used responsibly,” he asserted, highlighting the need for ethical AI practices. “I saw a video recently where I was singing. People who like me forwarded it,” he said addressing journalists at BJP’s Diwali Milan programme at the party’s headquarters here. The Prime Minister urged the media to play a role in educating the public about the potential dangers of deepfake technology. He emphasized the responsibility of all stakeholders, including technology developers and media outlets, to ensur

13:03 (IST) Chattisgarh LIVE Updates Raipur Northern constituency gets all-women adminstration For the first time in Chhattisgarh, the Raipur Northern Assembly constituency election will witness an all-women administration. This also marks the first time in the country's democratic history that women will shoulder the entire responsibility of an election. As part of ‘Sangwari booths’ initiative women officers take sole responsibility for the Raipur North Assembly constituency election. They will oversee tasks ranging from mock polls to the submission of election materials. Madhya Pradesh had a voter participation of 27.62 percent, while Chhattisgarh had a turnout of 19.65 percent in the second phase till 11 a.m. on Friday, according to the Election Commission. Polling for the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly and the 70-member Chhattisgarh House is presently ongoing. While all seats in Madhya Pradesh are now being voted on in a single round, the first phase of Chhattisgar

Huge new challenges are emerging from the conflicts in West Asia and it is time for the countries of the Global South to talk in one voice for greater global good, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. In his address at the second edition of the India-hosted virtual Voice of Global South Summit, PM Modi said New Delhi has stressed on dialogue and diplomacy along with restraint to deal with the situation arising out of the Israel-Hamas war. India condemned the barbaric October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, he said. At the same time, the prime minister said India strongly condemned death of civilians in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. “We are seeing that new challenges are emerging from developments in West Asia,” he said. India hosted the first edition of the ‘Voice of Global South Summit’ in January to flag concerns and challenges facing the developing countries. “The Voice of Global South is the most unique platform reflecting the c

With an aim to help reduce dependence on China, and shift production of critical sectors and key goods to member countries, India, the US and 12 other members of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework For Prosperity (IPEF) grouping have signed a supply chain resilience agreement that would provide benefits such as potential shifting of production centres in critical sectors and mitigating risks of economic disruptions from supply chain shocks. India and the United States, along with 12 other countries, are recognized as supply chain resilience partners within the IPEF. The list includes Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. This international agreement on supply chain resilience is perceived as a response to the imperative of reducing overdependence on China, especially in the wake of substantial supply disruptions following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The proposed

The Enforcement Directorate has sent summons to American millionaire Neville Roy Singham in China via Ministry of External Affairs in connection with the NewsClick terror case, sources said. Singham’s name first surfaced in a New York Times report, which alleged that the US millionaire was involved in spreading Chinese propaganda worldwide, including in India through news outlet NewsClick . Singham has previously rejected allegations that he is running a financing network connected to the Chinese government’s propaganda arm in order to disseminate China’s talking points globally, including in India through news outlet NewsClick . The Delhi Police’s special cell has named him as an accused in the case, in which the editor and an employee of NewsClick were arrested. Close to 100 persons, including journalists and activists, were also raided last month. The Delhi Police’s Special Cell also arrested Prabir Purkayastha, the editor-in-chief of the portal, along with its human resources

In a recent announcement, the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) operating under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has issued a crucial alert regarding the security of older Android devices, specifically those running Android versions 13 and below. The advisory, posted on the official CERT website, emphasizes a series of vulnerabilities within the Android operating system that pose significant threats to users. CERT-In has classified the identified vulnerabilities in the Android OS as ‘Critical,’ indicating the potential for severe consequences if exploited. The government agency cautions that exploitation of these vulnerabilities could empower attackers to execute their own code on the device, acquire elevated privileges, access sensitive user data, and even trigger a denial of service (DoS) situation, rendering the device inoperable. In simpler terms, these security loopholes could enable hackers to seize control of Android devices, compromise data int

The NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) is set to be launched in the first quarter of 2024 after a few tests, particularly those related to vibration, NASA officials have said. “ISRO is projecting the first quarter of next year. So, I mean, that’s ready,” NASA NISAR Project Manager Phil Barela said during a media interaction here on Wednesday. He is expecting the launch of NISAR (spelt as ‘Naisar’) “not earlier than January” from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota aboard the ISRO Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-II. The mission, which has three-year duration, aims to survey all of Earth’s land and ice-covered surfaces every 12 days. This will start after a 90-day satellite commissioning period. Regarding the key tests that are pending to be undertaken, Barela said, “The vibration testing that’s underway, but there’s a whole slew of performance tests that we need to do.” Battery and simulation tests have to be done to make sure that the system works fi

The poisonous haze blanketing Delhi thickened on Wednesday with the air quality across Delhi continuing to be in the ‘severe’ category. According to the Central Pollution Control Board, AQI in Anand Vihar touched 430, 417 in RK Puram, 423 in Punjabi Bagh, and 428 in Jahangirpuri. An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 and 100  ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200  ‘moderate’, 201 and 300  ‘poor’, 301 and 400  ‘very poor’, 401 and 450  ‘severe’ and above 450  ‘severe plus’. According to IQAir, a Swiss company that specialises in air quality monitoring, Delhi was the most polluted city in the world on Tuesday, followed by Dhaka, Lahore and Mumbai. According to a system developed by the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology to identify the contribution of different pollution sources, stubble-burning accounted for 12 per cent of the air pollution in the capital on Tuesday. It is likely to be 14 per cent on Wednesday and six per cent on Thursday. An official of the Com

Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister and state Congress President Kamal Nath on Tuesday attacked the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government for converting a progressive state like MP into a “Chaupat Pradesh”.   #WATCH | Morena, Madhya Pradesh: While addressing a public meeting, former CM and Madhya Pradesh Congress President Kamal Nath says, “…This election is for the future of Madhya Pradesh…They have made this ‘Chaupat Pradesh’… What kind of state do you want?… The biggest… pic.twitter.com/lnxCC1hKJx — ANI (@ANI) November 14, 2023 Addressing a public meeting in MP’s Morena,  Kamal Nath said,”…This election is for the future of Madhya Pradesh…They have made this ‘Chaupat Pradesh’… What kind of state do you want?” He said that the biggest challenge is the future of youth and at least 1 crore youths in the state are unemployed. “How will they (BJP govt) form the future of Madhya Pradesh if their own future is in darkness?…,” asked Nath. Polls to the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assemb

As the campaigning for polls in Madhya Pradesh draws to a close tomorrow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the Congress leaders don’t know what to say to people and therefore have accepted their fake promises won’t stand a chance in front of Modi’s guarantees. #WATCH | Betul, MP: Prime Minister Narendra Modi says, “…Some of the Congress leaders are sitting at home, they don’t even feel like going out, Congress leaders don’t know what will they say to people. Congress has accepted that their fake promises don’t stand a chance in front… pic.twitter.com/MnhOwupxtE — ANI (@ANI) November 14, 2023 Addressing a rally in MP’s Betul, PM Modi said, “…Some of the Congress leaders are sitting at home, they don’t even feel like going out, Congress leaders don’t know what will they say to people. Congress has accepted that their fake promises don’t stand a chance in front of Modi guarantees…” PM Modi said this election is to stop the palm of Congress’s corruption and loot f

According to a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office, on November 14 and 15, 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make his first visit to Ulihatu Village, the birthplace of Bhagwan Birsa Munda in Jharkhand. At approximately nine in the morning on November 15, Prime Minister Modi will pay a floral tribute at the statue of Bhagwan Birsa Munda at the Bhagwan Birsa Munda Memorial Park/Freedom Fighter Museum in Ranchi. From there, he will travel to Ulihatu Village, the village where Bhagwan Birsa Munda was born. According to the release, PM Modi will also take part in a programme commemorating the third Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas, 2023, in Khunti, starting at around 11:30 AM. ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra’ and the Pradhan Mantri Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) Mission will be launched by him during the programme. According to the official announcement, the PM will also unveil the fifteenth installment of PM-KISAN, inaugurate, dedicate to the country, and lay the corn

Delhi’s relief from bad air was short-lived. The city and its neighbourhoods are back to battling pollution and they have no one else to blame but its residents. On Diwali, the Supreme Court’s firecracker ban was violated across Delhi and the National Capital Region. And now the consequences are for all to see. There has been a spike in pollutants and the Air Quality Index (AQI) is in “poor quality”. We take a look at how defying the ban will impact the city. Also read: Living in ‘gas chambers’: What is making Delhi’s air so toxic? How bad is Delhi’s air quality? On Monday, Delhi-NCR was enveloped in a thick blanket of smog. It was a sharp contrast from Sunday when the region recorded its cleanest air on Diwali in eight years with blue and clear skies. But hundreds cared not to abide by the firecracker ban which has caused the pollution levels to spike . Delhi recorded a massive 140 per cent jump in PM2.5 , the major pollutant that affects the lungs and causes other health issue

City of joy Kolkata and financial capital of Mumbai have joined New Delhi to be among the world’s worst 10 for pollution on Monday morning, with smoke heavy in the air a day after revellers let loose with firecrackers for Diwali. According to Reuters , citing Swiss group IQAir, New Delhi took, as it often does, the top spot with an air quality index (AQI) of 420, putting it in the ‘hazardous’ category. The national capital was also joined in the top 10 by Kolkata, which came in fourth with an AQI of 196, while Mumbai was eighth with an AQI of 163. A level of 400–500 on the AQI affects healthy individuals and poses a threat to those who already have illnesses, whereas a level of 150–200 causes pain for those who have heart, lung, and asthma issues. A score of 0 to 50 is regarded as good. A thick layer of smog had begun to circulate in New Delhi from Sunday night, sending its AQI to an alarming 680 a little after midnight. Every year authorities impose bans on firecrackers in the ca

Officials on Monday said that rescuers working overnight to save around 40 workers trapped after an under-construction tunnel on the Brahmakhal-Yamunotri National Highway collapsed in Uttarkashi have established contact with them and all the workers are said to be safe. The workers are being supplied with food and water with the help of compressors. Speaking to ANI news agency, Anshu Manish Khalko, Director, National Highway and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited, said,”…The situation is better now… The workers are safe… We are providing food and water…There are nearly 40 people inside…We are trying our best…” #WATCH | Uttarakhand | On the Uttarkashi Tunnel accident, Anshu Manish Khalko, Director, NHIDCL (National Highway & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited), says,”…The situation is better now… The workers are safe… We are providing food and water…There are nearly… pic.twitter.com/lALMXvwGoi — ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) November 13, 2023 A p

Air quality in Delhi and surrounding cities reached hazardous levels a day after Diwali due to the widespread violation of the firecracker ban across the National Capital Region (NCR) on Sunday raising serious environmental concerns. Realtime air monitoring platforms on Monday morning pegged the air quality index (AQI) above 500, with some places touching as high as 900. Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium recorded an AQI of 910, Lajpat Nagar 959 and Karol Bagh 779 at about 6 am, according to aqi.in. The average AQI was around 300 at most places, showed data recorded by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The level of PM2.5 pollutants crossed 500 at most places across the city during the day. Air quality index is an indicator to measure air pollution. An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, 401 and 450 ‘severe’ and above 450 ‘severe plus’. The Supreme Court last week clarified that