Kolkata: A popular Hindi film industry number featuring superstars Aamir Khan and Madhuri Dixit has become the tool of the Election Commission of India (ECI) to spread the message of the Commission’s determination to ensure free and fair and violence-free elections in the forthcoming two-phase polls in the state. The song is “Hum Pyar Karne Wale Duniya...

Surendranagar: Seven members of a pilgrim group from the Bharwad community were killed and several others injured after a speeding truck ran over them on the Lakhtar-Viramgam highway in Gujarat's Surendranagar district in the early hours of Monday. The accident took place between Chharad and Bhaskarpara villages near Lakhtar at around 1.20 a.m., when a group of...

Raipur/Nuapada: In a significant breakthrough in the ongoing fight against Left-Wing Extremism, security forces have recovered a large cache of explosives and bomb-making materials from the dense Dhekunpani forest along the Chhattisgarh-Odisha border, successfully thwarting a potential major terror strike in the region. A team of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), operating from the Komna police...

Noida: A protest by workers in Phase 2 of Noida in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddha Nagar escalated into violence Monday, as demonstrators demanding a salary hike clashed with authorities and vandalised property outside a private company. The agitation, which had been ongoing for the past three days in the form of a sit-in protest, intensified as thousands...

Mathura: The death toll in the Mathura boat accident has risen to 15 after rescue teams recovered two more bodies of missing persons from the Yamuna River, officials said Monday. One of the deceased has been identified as Yash Bhalla, also known as Yuvraj, a resident of Punjab. The other victim has been identified as Monica. Yash...

Morada/Rasgovindpur: As many as 128 students of a government-run Ashram school, under the Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste Welfare department, at Kakabandh in Rasgovindpur block of Mayurbhanj district, fell ill Sunday and were admitted to a hospital, officials said. The students complained of stomach pain and vomiting, triggering tension at the Rasgovindpur Community Health Centre, where they...

Talcher: Residents of Dharampur panchayat in Talcher block of Angul district detained a drilling machine and its driver belonging to Rungta Company, protesting what they alleged was unauthorised borewell work in Sareilo village, a report said Sunday. According to villagers, a truck carrying the drilling machine entered Sareilo to begin borewell operations. On being informed, men and...

Cairo: The US military announced it will begin a blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas Monday, tempering President Donald Trump's earlier vow to entirely block the strategic Strait of Hormuz as early reports indicated that ships had stopped crossing the waterway. The move came after marathon US-Iran ceasefire talks in Pakistan ended without an agreement,...

Paikmal: Seven pilgrims who lost their way in the forested hills of Gandhamardan near Nrusinghanath in Bargarh district were rescued Saturday, officials said. The rescued pilgrims were identified as Gourang Nayak, Bhagyadhar Nayak, Shanti Nayak, Jashoda Nayak, Rajendra Nayak, Dharmendra Nayak and Mohan Nayak; all members of a family from Gadabandh village under Narla police limits in...

Satamile: A female elephant was found dead in the Hindol forest range of Dhenkanal district Sunday, officials said. The carcass was discovered in the Bargoj reserve forest under the Sinkol range of the Hindol forest division during the morning hours, triggering concern among forest officials. According to sources, the elephant had been unwell for the past few...