Thane: A firefighter and a security guard lost their lives and two others sustained severe burn injuries after a massive fire broke out early Thursday morning in Thane, Maharashtra, officials said. According to officials from the Thane Municipal Corporation, the fire erupted around 3:45 a.m. at the Gamdevi Vegetable Market building located on Gokhale Road in the...

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair an important meeting of the Council of Ministers Thursday at Sewa Teerth in Delhi. This meeting will bring together key members of the Union Cabinet to review governance performance and the implementation of major policy decisions. The meeting is being held as the first Council of Ministers gathering of...

Kolkata: In an absolutely peaceful repolling for the Falta Assembly constituency in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district Thursday, a high voting percentage of 20.47 was recorded in the first two hours till 9 a.m. Not a single report of violence, tension or electoral malpractices surfaced from any of the 285 polling booths within Falta. With the...

United Nations: India highlighted Afghan civilian deaths and injuries caused by cross-border violence by Pakistani military forces, saying such "heinous acts" of aggression should not come as a surprise from a country that bombs its own people and conducts systematic genocide. In a strong retort at the UN Security Council Wednesday, India called out Pakistan's "long-tainted record"...

Chennai: The C. Joseph Vijay-led Tamil Nadu government will undergo its first Cabinet expansion Thursday, with Congress likely to formally join the ministry in a move aimed at strengthening the ruling coalition and filling several key portfolios that have remained vacant since the government assumed office. The swearing-in ceremony for the new ministers is scheduled to take...

Jajpur/Kaliapani: Nearly a decade after the Nagada child deaths, concerns over malnutrition and mysterious illnesses have resurfaced in the mining belt of Sukinda in Jajpur district. Six children of a family from a Juang hamlet in Tikarpada under Kansa panchayat are reportedly suffering from severe malnutrition and an unidentified disease. Although the government pumps in huge amounts...

Rayagada: Hundreds of residents from villages in Kashipur block of Rayagada district and the Sijimali mining-affected region have appealed to the district administration to prevent outside organisations from entering the area and disturbing the peaceful environment of the region. In a representation submitted to the authorities, local villagers emphasised that Kashipur has traditionally remained peaceful and development-oriented,...

Chhatrapur/Ganjam: Two persons, including a cluster resource centre coordinator (CRCC), were killed in a road mishap near Biripur Chhak in Karapada panchayat under Ganjam police limits Wednesday. The deceased were identified as Raghunath Pradhan, 48, a teacher at Gangapur High School and CRCC from Hanspur village, and Jogendra Das, 54, of Humbar village. Reports said Raghunath, a...

Baliapal: A man of Taladhanda village under Baliapal police limits in Balasore district was arrested late Tuesday night and produced before a court Wednesday on charges of circulating explicit, obscene videos and photographs of his wife on social media. The accused, Biswanath Giri, allegedly used his business associate, identified as Vivek, based in Jharkhand, to upload intimate...

Bhawanipatna: Junagarh police in Kalahandi district busted a major motorcycle theft gang and recovered 44 stolen bikes and arrested six persons involved in the racket. The accused, identified as Suraj Kaibarta, 18, Pawan Kaibarta, 23, Akash Kaibarta, 19, all from Gantayatpada in Junagarh; Alok Barik, 19, of Hinjilibahali Pada; Chand Naik, 21, of Mundaraguda; and Sameer Durga,...