By Harshabardhan Behera, OP Jajpur: Poor sanitation and inadequate infrastructure have left students of Khandahata Government Primary School in Ward 26 of Byasanagar Municipality in Jajpur district studying in an unhealthy and unsafe environment, with parents expressing concern over the lack of basic facilities at the 54-year-old institution. Established in 1972, the school has 46 students from...

Bhubaneswar: Major irregularities have been detected in the implementation of minor irrigation (MI) projects in Odisha, with several projects being abandoned midway and crores of rupees rendered unfruitful, according to a report of Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG). The report, tabled in the Assembly, found irregularities at various stages of project implementation, including planning, land...

Brahmapur: Scientists at the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Gopalpur, have identified a new species of fish, Bathymyrus perplexus, from the coastal waters off Paradip. The species was first collected from the Paradip coast in 2021. Between 2021 and 2025, researchers recorded 32 specimens from Paradip, West Bengal, the Godavari region and Kakinada. Although the specimen collected...

Bhubaneswar: The Nabanirman Yuva Chhatra Sangathan (NYCS) has called for a 12-hour Odisha bandh Wednesday from 6am to 6pm, urging shops and markets to remain closed and vehicles to stay off the roads during the period. The organisation said the bandh would be peaceful and would be supported by students, farmers, labourers, workers and intellectuals. NYCS founder...

Bhubaneswar: Bike theft gangs have become active in Bhubaneswar ahead of the puja season, with more than 40 cases of two-wheelers being stolen reported at various police stations in September, the police informed. The thieves are targeting crowded places, particularly markets, hospitals and bus stands, and fleeing with parked bikes. Police register cases after receiving complaints, but...

Bhubaneswar: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought an Action Taken Report from the Mayurbhanj District Magistrate on alleged illegal stone quarrying in the foothills of Similipal National Park, including areas near Saratchandrapur and Bankasahi villages. In an order dated September 28, the NHRC directed the DM to inquire into the allegations and submit a report...

Patana: A 42-year-old businessman, whose wife is a police constable, was shot dead by unidentified assailants near Bhimapada forest on the Kendeiposi-Patana road. The incident took place late Monday night. Sources said the suspected robbers also attacked him with sharp-edged weapons and fled with his cash bag. The incident has triggered panic in the area. The deceased...

Daron Acemoglu Following repeated security debacles at OpenAI and Anthropic—both of which have developed agents that ended up hacking external systems—AI safety researchers within both firms have either announced their resignations or (finally!) conceded that the breathless race to advance the “frontier” is irresponsible. In response to negative media attention, top industry leaders—including Google’s Demis Hassabis, Anthropic’s...

Lately, the Supreme Court’s intervention in high-profile cases does not necessarily arouse confidence and reassurance that wrongs may be righted. It happened when the apex court suo motu took up the rape and murder case of Abhaya in the RG Kar College and Hospital, Kolkata. The victim’s parents are still crying for justice and have alleged delay...

Melvin Durai If you love to read, give yourself a pat on the back. Reading is one of the most important things you can do for your brain health, as scientific research has shown. It doesn’t really matter what you read or how you read it, as long as you enjoy it. That’s what researchers at the...