Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government Thursday issued an eight-point directive mandating virtual official meetings wherever possible, compulsory use of electric vehicles (EVs), and a 10 per cent reduction in fuel consumption across departments. The directives were issued on the instructions of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who had earlier reduced the size of his official convoy following Prime...

Bhubaneswar: Police Thursday rescued a boy who was kidnapped from the previous day by six students, an officer said. According to police, the accused kidnapped the 17-year-old boy in a four-wheeler Wednesday evening, around 6:30 pm, from an isolated place near Kalinga Nagar Square here under the Bharatpur police station area. Subsequently, the boy's father received a...

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Rural Development, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water (PR&DW) Minister Rabi Narayan Naik Thursday reiterated the state government’s commitment to providing piped drinking water facilities to all villages in Odisha by March 2027, stating that all necessary measures are being taken to achieve the target. The minister made the remarks during his address to the media...

Baripada: A melanistic tiger, popularly known as a black tiger, has allegedly been poached in Similipal National Park, with Forest officials arresting three persons while they were reportedly attempting to sell the animal’s skin, an official said Thursday. During a press briefing during the day, Deputy Director (South) of the Similipal Tiger Reserve, Sumit Kumar Kar, said...

Bhadrak: A 19-year-old college student was found hanging inside the bathroom of his house in Odisha's Bhadrak district Thursday, police said. The deceased was identified as Sambit Biswal, a second-year Commerce student of a local degree college. The incident took place at Patharadi village in the Charampa area under the jurisdiction of Bhadrak Town police station. According...

Ahmedabad: Opener Sai Sudharsan and skipper Shubman Gill struck fluent half-centuries to power Gujarat Titans to 229 for four in an Indian Premier League match Thursday. The duo shared 125 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for the total after being invited to bat. While Sudharsan made 84 off 53 balls, Gill scored 64...

New Delhi: US Ambassador Sergio Gor Thursday expressed immense confidence regarding the finalisation of a landmark bilateral trade deal between Washington and New Delhi in the "coming weeks and months".Speaking at the Annual Leadership Summit of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) here, Ambassador Gor said, "President Trump's goal is to facilitate bilateral trade in a way...

Hyderabad: Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru Director of Cricket Mo Bobat confirmed skipper Rajat Patidar’s availability for Friday’s league‑stage clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad, after he missed the clash against Punjab Kings in Dharamshala due to being hit on the head while facing Kolkata Knight Riders in Raipur. “Rajat’s good to go. We were cautious and didn’t take...

New Delhi: Several members of Parliament grilled top NTA officials Thursday, with the agency's director general telling them that the NEET-UG paper was not leaked through their system and the CBI is probing the matter, sources said. During a meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports, several MPs questioned the National...

Keonjhar: At least three persons were killed, and another was injured when a tent house in which they were resting collapsed during a nor'wester that wreaked havoc in Odisha's Keonjhar Thursday, police said. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed grief over the incident and announced an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each for the next of...