National

    Sierra Leone national arrested at Mumbai airport with cocaine worth Rs 20 crore

    The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) Monday arrested a woman from Sierra Leone, who was in possession of 1,979 grams of cocaine worth Rs 19.79 crore at the Mumbai international airport, an official said. The woman, who had landed in the maximum city from the Kenyan capital city of Nairobi, was taken into custody on Sunday on a tip-off, the official added. “We found the items she was carrying, like shoes, moisturiser bottle, shampoo bottle etc, were heavy and rigid. When we checked them, we found white powder concealed in these items,” the DRI official said. When the powder was tested using a field kit with the apprehending team, it was found to be cocaine, the statement said. “We seized 1,979 grams of cocaine worth Rs 19.79 crore from the illicit market. She was placed under arrest and has been remanded in judicial custody. Further probe into the smuggling network…
    International

    Israel’s war on Gaza live: Tanks ‘crushed bodies’ at al-Shifa Hospital

    Palestinians who fled the ongoing Israeli siege of al-Shifa Hospital say Israeli tanks and armoured bulldozers drove over at least four bodies and ambulances. Israeli forces have also surrounded al-Amal and Nasser hospitals in southern Gaza. Israel informed the UN it would no longer approve UNRWA food convoys to north Gaza, where 70 percent of people face an extreme level of food scarcity. Mediation efforts to end the bloodshed in Gaza appear to be struggling, with a Hamas official telling Al Jazeera that Israeli negotiators have rejected their latest proposals for a ceasefire. At least 32,226 Palestinians have been killed and 74,518 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The revised death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attack stands at 1,139, with dozens taken captive.
    Telangana

    Reach out to farmers hit by hailstorms: Harish Rao

    Hyderabad: BRS leader and MLA T Harish Rao on Tuesday demanded that State government immediately reach out to farmers who suffered extensive crop losses due to untimely rains in several districts in the State. Appealing to the government on ‘X’ to extend help to the affected farmers, he said hailstorms had wreaked havoc on paddy, maize and sorghum crops. Even horticultural crops, including papaya and mango, were also damaged in a big way in the districts of Adilabad, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Karimnagar, Rajanna Sircilla, Medak, Siddipet and Rangareddy. He wanted the Congress government to rise to the occasion and stand by the farming community. The government should take up immediate enumeration of the crop losses and ensure payment of compensation of Rs.10,000 per acre. He wondered why the government did not respond to the situation even as the rains continued to damage the crops for the last two to three days. When untimely rains caused crop losses in a big way last year, the…
    International

    Russia-Ukraine war live: Border shelling intensifies after Putin reelected

    Russian President Vladimir Putin says his country will not be intimidated as he cements his grip on power in a landslide election victory. Allies such as China were quick to congratulate Putin but Western countries denounced what they called an illegal election. Ukraine says residents are being evacuated from border settlements in the northeastern region of Sumy due to increased Russian shelling. Russia claims downing eight Vampire, two Alder and one Grad multiple-launch rocket system shells over its Belgorod region.
    International

    Half-a-dozen people killed in Pakistan’s airstrikes in Afghanistan

    Kabul: Pakistani military aircraft carried out airstrikes in the Barmal district of Paktika province and the Afghan Dubai area of Sepera district in Khost province. Tragically, these strikes targeted civilian homes, resulting in the loss of six lives and destruction of property, a spokesperson for Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, Zabihullah Mujahid, said in a statement. Reports indicate that six individuals, including three women and three children, lost their lives in Paktika, while two women perished in Khost due to a collapsed house. “Last night at around 3 o’clock in the Barmal district of Paktika province and in Afghan Dubai area of Sepera district of Khost province, Pakistani planes bombed the houses of civilians, as a result, 6 people including 3 women and 3 children were martyred and a house destroyed in Paktika, as well as, two women were martyred due to the collapse of a house in Khost province,” the statement said. Notably, the purported…
    National

    EC orders removal of Home Secretaries in six states to ensure fair elections

    New Delhi: In a decisive move towards upholding the principles of free, fair and transparent elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued orders for the removal of Home Secretaries in six states namely Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Additionally, the Secretary of the General Administrative Department in Mizoram and Himachal Pradesh have also been removed. The commission has directed all the State Governments to transfer the officers connected with election-related work, who have completed three years or are in their home districts. Maharashtra had not complied with the directions in respect of few Municipal Commissioners and some Additional / Deputy Municipal Commissioners in Maharashtra. While conveying displeasure to the Chief Secretary, the Commission directed transfer of BMC and the additional / Deputy commissioners with the direction to report by 6pm today. The Chief Secretary was further directed to transfer all the similarly placed Municipal commissioners…
    Telangana

    Telangana Governor Tamilsai Soundararajan resigns; might contest Lok Sabha

    Hyderabad: Tamilisai Soundarajan has tendered her resignation as Governor of Telangana and Puducherry on Monday and the same has been sent to President Draupadi Murmu’s office. Her resignation came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Hyderabad. She is likely to visit Chennai later in the evening today. Soundararajan would have completed five year’s in office as Telangana governor in September this year and the decision to submit resignation has triggered speculations about her political aspirations, especially contesting the Lok Sabha elections. Political circles are abuzz with speculations that she might contest from Central Chennai or Puducherry. In December last, the Governor had categorically denied any plans to contest the elections. She had said there were no such plans and stated that no request either was made to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership.
    National

    Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Take a look at state-wise schedule of the 7-phase polls

    Hyderabad: The Election Commission of India announced the schedule for Lok Sabha Elections 2024 on Saturday. In a press conference, the ECI has stated that the polls will be held in seven phases, with the first phase being held on April 19 and the seventh phase on June 1. Counting of the votes has been announced to take place on June 4. Following the press conference, the ECI has shared a map depicting 7 phases of the Lok Sabha elections.
    Telangana

    Telangana: ENT surgeon supplying drugs to addict in Hyderabad nabbed

    Hyderabad: An ENT surgeon who runs a hospital in Jagtial town was arrested on charges of supplying narcotic and psychotropic drugs to an alleged addict using courier services, a press release from the Drugs Control Administration (DCA) said here on Saturday. Officials of different wings involved in combating drug menace raided a place in Sainkpuri and seized huge stocks of drugs stored in a house. The DCA in association with local police units, TS Anti-Narcotics Bureau (TSNAB) raided different places in Hyderabad and Jagitial to expose what was being described as most clandestinely run drug racket involving Dr Madanmohan, the ENT surgeon who operated Mamatha ENT Hospital in Jagitial. The official teams initially raided a residential building in Sri Saibaba Officers Colony in Sainikpuri where they found huge stocks of narcotic drugs, which included different brands of Morphine injections and tablets in addition to psychotropic drugs in the form of injections and tablets.…
    National

    Is India part of Apple’s Vision Pro global roll out plan? Find out

    Apple is may soon make its Vision Pro available in more regions outside America. The tech giant is planning to introduce 12 new languages to the virtual keyboard ahead of the launch, according to a report on MacRumors. While the virtual keyboard currently supports only English (US) and Emoji, limiting it to the United States now, the addition of more languages suggests the expansion of the Vision Pro’s reach to other countries. Will India be a part of the expansion plan? The list of 12 languages that may be supported by the Vision Pro are Cantonese, Simplified Chinese, French, French for Canada, German, Japanese, Korean and English variants UK, Canada, Australia, Singapore and Japan. Going by the speculated list of language options being made available on the device, an Indian launch does not seem to be a part of the scheme at this point of time. That said, Apple may launch their…

    POLITICS

    • May- 2023 -
      12 May

      State is exploiting farmers, says Naidu

      TD chief N. Chandrababu Naidu started his padayatra as part of Rythu Porubata from Tanuku to Iragavaram village by foot. He organised a Rachabanda programme with farmers. KAKINADA: Telugu Desam President and the former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the state government was exploiting farmers in the purchase of paddy. Naidu arrived in Tanuku and went to the former TD leader late Y.T. Raja who died during Covid-19 period  at Tanuku in West Godavari district and consoled the family members. Later, he started his padayatra as part of Rythu Porubata  from Tanuku to Iragavaram village by foot. He organised a Rachabanda programme with farmers. Naidu alleged that four to five kg of extra paddy were taken by buyers from…

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    • 12 May

      OPINION

      Dilip Cherian | What’s Kishor’s next move? Can he actually pose threat to Nitish? Prashant Kishor. What are retired IAS and IPS officers doing with ace poll strategist-turned-neta Prashant Kishor? Given the man’s track record of working with some of India’s biggest political parties, including the BJP, Congress and TMC, it is not surprising that there is speculation about his next move, after his year-long padyatra through seven districts of Bihar under his Jan Suraj Abhiyan. Some observers believe that he may be waiting for the right opportunity to present itself before jumping back into the fray. Another possibility is that Kishor may be exploring new avenues for political engagement through activism or advocacy work. The news of six retired IAS…

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    • 12 May

      OPINION

      Abhijit Bhattacharyya | When will Indians counter China’s rising arrogance? Once again, the vainglorious and obnoxious arrogance of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), a wing of the Communist Party of China, and the country’s defence minister Gen. Li Shingfu and foreign minister Qin Gang, were on full display in the past few weeks, in New Delhi and Goa, as the two attended different meetings of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. As Gen. Li came to New Delhi, after detailed consultations in Beijing on the “regional security situation” with Pakistan’s Army Chief Gen. Syed Asim Munir, and nonchalantly blurted out cunningly-crafted words of deception prompted by wolf-warrior diplomats that the “India-China border is generally stable”, foreign minister Qin Gang audaciously chose to…

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    • 12 May

      Smuggled gold worth 8 crore seized in Vijayawada

      Four persons carrying 13kg gold with them were arrested under provisions of the Customs Act 1962. Representational. VIJAYAWADA: The Customs here has made a huge seizure of smuggled gold worth 8 crores in an early morning operation. Commissioner of the customs commissionerate (preventive) K. Engineer said the carriers of smuggled gold were split into teams and travelling in a car and in private buses from Chennai to Vijayawada. “They were waylaid at Kaza Toll Plaza and Bollapalli Toll Plaza in the wee hours of Thursday. A huge quantity of gold was seized from them,” he said. The commissioner said 13 kg of gold was seized from the gang. Their foreign imprints were deliberately erased to try and camouflage the process of…

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    • 12 May

      Solar dryers to relieve woes of Kurnool onion farmers

      A woman beneficiary processing onions at Thadakanapalle. KURNOOL: The Kurnool administration is providing a “solar solution” to farmers towards addressing the problem of excess moisture content in the onion and tomato produced in the district. Officials are promoting the use of home-based solar drying equipment at Thadakanapalle village in Kallur mandal.  Women groups are being encouraged to do the drying of the onion and tomato stocks in a hygienic manner. “The onions cultivated here have excess moisture content. This is preventing farmers from storing or transporting them to other places. Onion harvesting season in the region is from August to March,” officials said. Onion is grown in an area of 44,600 hectares in Andhra Pradesh with a productivity of 16.2 tonnes…

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    • 12 May

      Cabinet reshuffle, PTR gets IT

      Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan. CHENNAI: State Finance and Human Resources Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan was allotted the Information Technology and Digital Services portfolio in the first ever Cabinet reshuffle made by Chief Minister MK Stalin on Thursday when TRB Rajaa, who was sworn in as a new Minister by Governor RN Ravi, was entrusted with Industries. Thangam Thennarasu, who was hitherto taking care of the Industries Ministry and was behind the organization of investors meets, will now handle Finance and Human Resources Management, an official press release said. Soon after Rajaa was sworn in at the Raj Bhavan in a brief function, the DMK top brass, along with the new minister, visited the Anna Samadhi and the M…

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    • 12 May

      TD slammed for politicising Jagan’s mega penance

      MLA Malladi Vishnu. VIJAYAWADA: AP state planning board vice-president Malladi Vishnu objected to the politicisation of Chandi, Rudra, Raja Syamala, Sudarshana Sahita Sri Lakshmi maha yagnam by Telugu Desam and other opposition leaders. He claimed that Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government was committed to the welfare of the people and development of the state. This mega penance was towards this, Vishnu said adding that the yagnam, which features 450 rituals, will be written in golden letters in the state’s history. The MLA contended that TD’s obstruction was nothing but aimed at restraining the state’s prosperity, much like the way demons did when gods were performing yajnas. Recalling the demolitions of Hindu temples during the TD government, Vishnu said that…

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    • 12 May

      India’s missile technology 95 per cent indigenous: NSTL chief

      VISHAKHAPATNAM: Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed India’s missiles and torpedoes with components that are nearly 95 per cent indigenous, disclosed Dr. Y. Sreenivasa Rao, outstanding scientist and director of Naval Science and Technological Laboratories (NSTL), Visakhapatnam. Speaking as chief guest at the National Technology Day celebrations organised at the NSTL premises on Thursday, he expressed the strong belief that with joint endeavour, public and private organisations, along with academic institutions; can make India a top country in research and development. National Technology Day is celebrated on May 11 every year to commemorate the successful nuclear test – Operation Shakti (Pokhran-II) – conducted on May 11, 1998 in Pokhran, Rajasthan. An exhibition has been held on the occasion during…

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    • 12 May

      Nitish, Pawar discuss strengthening opposition unity ahead of LS polls

      Mumbai: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and NCP president Sharad Pawar on Thursday discussed efforts to strengthen opposition unity ahead of next year’s Lok Sabha elections, the two leaders said. Kumar, who visited Pawar at the latter’s residence in south Mumbai along with deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, told reporters that what the ruling BJP is doing is not in the interest of the country. Earlier, he met Uddhav Thackeray at the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader’s Bandra home. What the BJP is doing nowadays is not in the interest of the country. In such a situation, if more and more opposition parties unite, it would be better for the country, he said. Kumar said many parties have got in touch with them.…

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    • 12 May

      Int’l Commission on Irrigation and Drainage to meet TS irrigation officials

      Officials will discuss participation of Telangana in the 25th International Congress on Irrigation and Drainage and the 74th International Executive Council meeting to be held at Visakhapatnam from November 1 to 8. Hyderabad: Representatives of the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) will meet Special Chief Secretary (Irrigation) Rajat Kumar and Engineer -in- Chief Muralidhar here on Friday. They will discuss participation of Telangana in the 25th International Congress on Irrigation and Drainage and the 74th International Executive Council meeting to be held at Visakhapatnam from November 1 to 8. The Congress has key issues such as tackling water scarcity in agriculture, alternative water resources for irrigated agriculture and new farm techniques that can be adopted to help increase water productivity on its agenda. Dr…

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