All 26 victims were men.
'For the first time in this country, perhaps the first time anywhere, we are going to use backwardness index.' 'It is a fundamental shift in the discourse in the country's social justice.'
Hours after the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed in Parliament, 50 individuals embroiled in land disputes in Kerala's Munambam joined the BJP, hoping for a resolution to their claims. The residents, who have been protesting for 174 days, allege that the Waqf Board is claiming ownership of their properties. BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar assured them of the party's support and a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to express gratitude. The BJP capitalized on the Catholic Church's support for the legislation, accusing the Congress and the Left of appeasement politics. The opposition, however, questioned the impact of the bill on the Munambam issue.
During Operation Kagar, 350 Naxalites have been killed so far, including some of the movement's top leaders.
With its age-old fascination for education, southern states have done better than the North. Start-ups, IT hubs, and industry majors setting up shop have changed the face of the South. Nearly 79% of global offices set up by international conglomerates in India are in the South. Almost 46% of tech unicorns are from the South. The GDP per person in the South is 4.2 times higher than the North. None of these indicators can be ignored by any central government, whatever the political compulsions, notes Ramesh Menon.
Bypolls will be held on Wednesday in 15 assembly seats spread across Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Kerala and Uttarakhand. The bypolls, however, will not have any direct impact on the respective legislative assemblies. The results will be declared on November 23. In Uttar Pradesh, polling will be held in Katehari, Karhal, Meerapur, Ghaziabad, Majhawan, Sisamau, Khair, Phulpur and Kundarki. Ninety candidates are in the fray in these seats with the maximum of 14 in Ghaziabad. This will be the first electoral test of the INDIA bloc as well as the NDA in the politically-crucial state after the Lok Sabha elections. In Punjab, bypolls will be held in four assembly seats - Gidderbaha, Dera Baba Nanak, Chabbewal (SC) and Barnala. The bypolls were necessitated after MLAs representing them were elected to the Lok Sabha. Polling will also be held for the Palakkad seat in Kerala and Kedarnath in Uttarakhand.
A 'man-eater' tiger that killed a woman two days ago was found dead in Kerala's high-range district of Wayanad on Monday and an autopsy on the dead cat revealed the presence of the victim's hair, dress, and a pair of earrings in its stomach, forest officials said.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has criticized the BJP for its allegations that elements in the American "deep state" were behind attempts to destabilize India, saying this "attack-dog" behavior is an embarrassment to India. Tharoor's comments come after the US rejected the BJP's allegations, describing them as "disappointing" and asserting that the US government is a champion of media freedom. The BJP had alleged that the US deep state colluded with the media portal OCCRP and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to "damage" India's image.
The Kerala health department on Friday said another Mpox case was reported in the state and urged those who have symptoms to seek treatment.
The conditions that lead to landslides, including soil texture, soil moisture and slope are known, and it is important to put all this knowledge into an operational system, he said.
Before being elected as secretary general for the 2021-25 term, Kalita had served as the treasurer of the apex boxing body.
A suspected case of mpox infection has been reported from Malappuram district of Kerala after a man who recently returned from Dubai showed symptoms of the disease.
Narivetta takes its cue from real-life incidents and fictionalises the ordeal through the experiences of a young cop caught in the crossfire between the police and tribals up in arms, notes Arjun Menon.
'Today when I see them talking to people from different countries confidently, I realise that education does not come from classrooms alone but from life experiences too.'
Until they were arrested on charges of murdering their husbands. That they were women from small towns who broke out of stereotype in the most brutal way possible led to sensational headlines, frantic curiosity and also gave fodder to a series of misogynistic memes and jokes.
The Enforcement Directorate on Friday detained Bahubali Shah, one of the owners of the leading Gujarati newspaper Gujarat Samachar, following a raid on their premises in Ahmedabad, sources said.
Cadaver dogs from the Kerala Police are being sent to Hyderabad to assist in the rescue operation for eight people trapped in a tunnel collapse at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) project in Telangana. The dogs, specially trained to locate missing humans and bodies, will join the rescue effort led by the NDRF, Indian Army, and Navy.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said the Centre had sent multiple advance warnings to the Kerala government about possible floods and landslides in the state, starting as early as July 23, and nine National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams were rushed to the state the same day.
Four cardinals from India, including two from Kerala, are eligible to vote in the upcoming conclave to elect the new Pope. Only cardinals under the age of 80 are eligible to vote, as per the regulations. Anthony Poola, the Archbishop of Hyderabad; Filipe Neri Cardinal Ferrao, the Archbishop of Goa and Daman; Cardinal Baselios Cleemis of the Syro-Malankara Church; and George Koovakkad, the newly appointed cardinal, are the four who can cast votes in the upcoming conclave.
JD-U MP Sanjay Kumar Jha heads a diplomatic mission to Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan and Singapore, to seek international cooperation after the Pahalgam attack while highlighting Pakistan's role in cross-border terrorism.
In the months immediately following the 2024 tragedy, reporting on the landslide per se had been a straightforward affair. On one side was death and destruction. On the other side, survivors and the business of survival. It was black and white. What direction to take was clear. Rehabilitation in comparison, felt like a complex situation. One that is fraught with shades of grey. As grey as human life, explains Shyam G Menon.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor welcomed the revival of long-stalled India-UK FTA negotiations, posting a selfie with Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and the UK's Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds. Tharoor's post comes amid a row over his recent article praising the Kerala government's investment climate, which drew criticism from some Congress leaders.
The drop is seen as a significant demographic indicator, reflecting the toll of the pandemic on the nation's population.
The chief minister's office said the special team will be headed by IG Sparjan Kumar and will include four senior women IPS officers of the state.
The KPCC made this decision simultaneously as Sarin announced a press conference in Palakkad, declaring his intention to work with the Left Democratic Front moving forward.
The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider listing for urgent hearing the petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025.
The Kerala unit of the Congress instantly gets a headache when Shashi Tharoor lets loose one of his observations showering flowers on enemy territory. With every such action triggering controversy within a nervous Congress party, some feel it is high time Tharoor showed a degree of solidarity with the ideals of his party, notes Shyam G Menon.
The Kerala High Court has quashed a case booked under the POCSO Act against six journalists of Malayalam news channel Asianet for allegedly disclosing the identity of a minor victim of sexual assault in a program on the ill effects of drug abuse. The court said that the channel's intention was not to disclose the victim's identity and that the program was intended to alert the public about the increasing drug abuse among youngsters in Kerala. The court also criticized some media outlets for reporting allegations without proper investigation or inquiry.
At least one commentator felt that both the BJP's reach and popularity had been underestimated in Kerala. They have shown systematic gain; one that seems personality-neutral and therefore institutionalised, explains Shyam G Menon.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday urged various banks to write off the loans availed by landslide victims and survivors in Kerala's Wayanad.
India conducted nationwide civil defence mock drills simulating multiple hostile scenarios like air raids, fire emergencies, and rescue operations across several states and union territories. The drills, dubbed 'Operation Abhyaas,' aimed to enhance emergency preparedness in light of recent terror attacks. The exercises involved coordinated efforts by various agencies, including civil defence personnel, police, fire and emergency services, and the military. Mock drills were conducted at various locations, including railway stations, malls, and high-rise buildings, showcasing the response capabilities of authorities in different emergency scenarios. The drills highlighted the importance of public awareness and cooperation in dealing with real-time emergencies.
Covid is growing milder with time but an occasional surge in cases is expected because the virus that causes it is now endemic and constantly evolving, say scientists while assuring that there is no cause for concern.
The scare of communicable diseases seems to be gripping the country with Maharashtra reporting 28 Zika cases this year, the highest since 2021.
Several petitions were filed in the apex court challenging the Act, contending that it was discriminatory towards the Muslim community and violated their fundamental rights.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches against Chennai-based 'lottery king' Santiago Martin, the single biggest donor to political parties with over Rs 1,300 crore in electoral bonds, as part of a money laundering investigation. The action comes after the Madras High Court allowed the ED to proceed against Martin following a police decision to close the initial FIR against him.
Kerala Chief Minister and veteran Marxist leader Pinarayi Vijayan intensified his attack on the Congress, alleging that its general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, is contesting the Wayanad Lok Sabha by-election with the backing of Jamaat-e-Islami.
With Piravi, Shaji N Karun joined the select group of great masters of film. Malayalam once upon a time used to produce such films. Today, it is only mindless violence, politics and grotesque humour. The films have no soul, although they are technically quite good. With Shaji's passing, and earlier with his mentor G Aravindan's untimely death, an era is coming to an end. Rajeev Srinivasan salutes the master, who passed into the ages on April 28.
Anandu Krishnan, a 26-year-old man, has been arrested for allegedly defrauding people of several crores by promising scooters, sewing machines, home appliances, and laptops at half price using fake CSR funds from major companies. The total fraud is estimated to be around Rs 600-700 crore. Krishnan was operating the scam since 2022 by registering societies and convincing people that he was the National Coordinator of the National NGO Federation and that he had been entrusted with managing the CSR funds of various companies. He collected money through 62 "seed societies" and used his political links to convince the victims. The police are investigating the role of certain political leaders in the fraud.
Heart-breaking stories of sorrow and shock began emerging from various parts of Kerala as people learned about the death of their loved ones.
"L2: Empuraan", the second part of the "Lucifer" movie, a trilogy planned by the Prithviraj-Mohanlal team, has become a topic of hot debate over its critique of right-wing politics and the covert mention of the Gujarat riots.
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