Bhubaneswar: Former Odisha cadre IAS officer V K Pandian Monday said that he visited the earthquake-hit Venezuela and met President Delcy Rodriguez, and shared the eastern state's disaster preparedness. Pandian had joined the then-ruling BJD around six months before the 2024 Odisha Assembly elections and announced his withdrawal from active politics after the party was trounced by...

Kolkata: West Bengal Police Monday arrested the key accused in the alleged rape-murder of a girl in South 24 Parganas district's Baruipur, taking the total number of apprehended persons in the case to three, a senior officer said. The accused, identified as Anand Sardar, was picked up by the Baruipur district police from the town's market area...

Bhubaneswar: Amid rising water levels in the Baitarani river due to continuous rainfall in its catchment areas and the possibility of flooding, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari Monday chaired a high-level review meeting at the Office of the Special Relief Commissioner (SRC). The meeting reviewed the river’s water level, the emerging flood situation, vulnerable areas...

Bhubaneswar: In a significant step towards promoting environmental conservation and biodiversity, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has launched Odisha’s first Bee Corridor along the Tangi–Ichchapuram stretch of NH-16. The initiative was inaugurated by NHAI Regional Officer Pradeep Kumar Lal in the presence of PIU Bhubaneswar Project Director Suraj Kumar Singh. As part of the first...

Bhubaneswar: In a major boost to rail connectivity between Odisha and Gujarat, the Brahmapur–Udhna (Surat) Amrit Bharat Express has been upgraded from a weekly to a daily service. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw jointly flagged off the inaugural daily service Monday. The train, which originates from Brahmapur and passes through western...

Redmond (Washington): Microsoft is cutting 4,800 jobs, about 2.1 per cent of its global workforce, including a large number of workers at its Xbox video game business. The layoffs included 1,600 Xbox workers, with more to come this year in a broader reorganization designed to "reset" Xbox as it faces heightened competition, company said Monday. "Our business...

Bhubaneswar: AIIMS Bhubaneswar Monday said it has ranked as the 10th top medical college in India in a recent survey. The institute also said it has secured the second position among the top five 'Most Improved Medical Colleges' in the country. "This milestone reflects AIIMS Bhubaneswar's unwavering commitment to academic excellence, cutting-edge research, and compassionate patient care,"...

Colombo: The foundation stone for an India-backed 10,000-home project was laid Monday in Sri Lanka's Badulla district, the Indian High Commission said. "With grant assistance of over INR 18 billion, the foundation stone has been laid for 57 new housing units at Cannavarella Plantation Estate in Badulla under Phase IV of the Indian Housing Project," the Indian...

Washington: US President Donald Trump Monday said that Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky want to end their war as Moscow launched a fresh wave of attacks on Kyiv, killing at least 18 people. "President Putin wants it to end. I will tell you that very strongly. Good call. And President Zelensky actually wants it to...

Kyiv: Russia unleashed waves of missiles and drones at Ukraine early Monday, killing at least 21 people in attacks that exposed widening gaps in country's air defences more than four years into Moscow's full-scale invasion, authorities said. All of the ballistic missiles launched by Russia struck their targets, underscoring Kyiv's need for more US-made Patriot interceptor missiles...