Bhubaneswar: Asserting that Odisha's BJP government never accorded political protection to any criminal during its 18 months of rule in the state, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Thursday said he is equally worried over any crime against women. Majhi said this while replying to a debate on demands for the grant of the home department in the...

Jajpur: Odisha Police Thursday said they busted an armed burglary gang by arresting 14 people and recovering stolen items worth Rs 40 lakh from their possession. Police also seized several weapons, a four-wheeler, two motorcycles and 15 mobile phones used in the crimes. The arrested persons hail from Jajpur, Kendrapara and Cuttack districts, police said. Speaking to...

Bhubaneswar: A guest faculty of Odisha government-run Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya in Bhubaneswar was arrested Thursday for allegedly sexually harassing a girl student, police said. The accused person was arrested on the basis of a written complaint filed by the principal of the college at Kharvelnagar police station here, ACP Ramesh Chandra Bisoi said. The drama teacher of...

Bhadrak: A college student was killed in an accident in Odisha's Bhadrak district Thursday, prompting locals to block National Highway-16 for several hours, officials said. The deceased, identified as Shradhanjali Panda, a student of Bhandaripokhari College, was cycling to her campus when she was allegedly hit from behind by a sand-laden tractor, police said. The impact dragged...

New Delhi: A team of officials from the US is expected to visit India next week for talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement, sources said Thursday. The visit is crucial as India and the US are working to finalise the first tranche of the pact. "The team is likely to come next week. Dates are being...

Islamabad: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Thursday formally asked President Asif Ali Zardari to appoint Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir as the first Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) of Pakistan. Last month, the parliament passed the 27th Constitutional Amendment providing for the creation of the post of CDF with the objective of creating...

New Delhi: The BJP Thursday dismissed as a "blatant lie" Rahul Gandhi's allegation that the government does not let foreign dignitaries meet him, the Leader of Opposition, saying he had met many foreign guests, including the prime ministers of New Zealand and Mauritius, this year. In a post on X, BJP chief spokesperson Anil Baluni shared pictures...

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Assembly Thursday saw after BJD and Congress members protested an alleged objectionable remark on Mahatma Gandhi by BJP MLA Santosh Khatua. Soon after Khatua made the objectionable comment, BJD and Congress legislators rushed to the well of the House demanding an apology. They also urged the Speaker to expunge the remarks from the official...

Bhubaneswar: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has introduced several measures, including a digital consent acquisition framework and the Do Not Disturb (DND) mobile app, to protect subscribers from spam and fraudulent calls and messages, TRAI chairman Anil Kumar Lahoti said Thursday. Speaking to PTI on the sidelines of a workshop, Lahoti said India has about...

New Delhi: The Union government Thursday refuted a news report that claimed India has signed a deal to lease a $2 billion nuclear-powered submarine from Russia. Terming the report as "misleading", the Press Information Bureau (PIB) said in a fact-check post on X that no new deal had been signed between the two countries. The PIB statement...