The 45-day Maha Kumbh 2025, billed as the world's largest gathering of humans, began on Monday with the first major bathing ritual or 'Shahi Snan' at the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati rivers in Prayagraj, India. This edition of the Kumbh is being held after 12 years, with the Uttar Pradesh government expecting over 35 crore devotees to visit. The event is being touted as a 'Digi-Kumbh' with Artificial Intelligence (AI) being used for various aspects, including security and cleanliness. The Maha Kumbh will be held from January 13 to February 26, and is expected to transform the area into the world's largest temporary city. Thirteen Akharas of seers from different sects are participating in the event, attracting attention from those seeking to learn about Indian spiritual beliefs.
Given the high priority accorded to the manufacturing sector, several policy initiatives around the theme of Atmanirbhar Bharat have been set in motion to address its competitiveness and growth. Some notable examples include the PLI scheme and the employment-linked incentive scheme announced in the recent Union Budget. The Budget also announced the setting up of 12 industrial parks under the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme (NICDP).
This is the first time that the two indigenously built warships have been launched concurrently.
The Budget should undertake further reductions in import tariffs and seriously consider an announcement of India's intention to join one or both of the two Asian mega-regional free trade agreements, suggests Shankar Acharya, former chief economic adviser to the Government of India.
Local officials said no casualties have been reported due to Wednesday's quake that hit the Madoi County in Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai province of northwest China at 3:44 pm (Beijing time), tremors for which were also felt in north-eastern Nepal.
'It took us 75 years to reach a per capita income of $2,730.' 'According to IMF projections, it will take only five years to add another $2,000.'
The National Security Strategy document should flag all major issues concerning security strategy and provide guidelines to concerned departments to work out suitable action plans. Since the global and regional geopolitical canvas is dynamic, the NSS document should be deliberated at length before formulation and should be reviewed periodically, recommends Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The coaching-tuition-profiteering model built on the back of a broken education system is a scandal and an abomination, and must go, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
'By his words, actions, and body language during their joint press appearance wanted to convey his personal respect and, more broadly, his desire to work closely with India.'
'Our business continues to roll out its strategy, the role of this GDTC continues to grow.'
Even though the NIA claims that more than 90 per cent of cases charge-sheeted have ended in conviction, the figure is likely misleading. To date, very few cases investigated by the NIA have resulted in a completed trial, points out former CBI joint director Navneet Rajan Wasan.
He was colourful. He was dramatic. He was The Master of His Craft. There never will be an editor as versatile as Pritish Nandy, notes Nikhil Lakshman.
India's tactical and operational response demonstrated its ability to prosecute tri-service operations, even without a formal tri-service doctrine or the higher command structure needed to coordinate it, points out Ajai Shukla.
The water crisis could jeopardise more than half of the world's food production and cause an average global GDP loss of 8 per cent by 2050, with lower-income countries facing up to a 15 per cent loss, according to a new report.
From powering mobile devices, US chip designer Qualcomm has tied up with Ola Electric to power its electric scooters. Qualcomm is providing the key 4G connected octa core android platform which provides connectivity, computing capabilities and enables rich immersive displays with power saving software.
In a dazzling showcase at Apple Park, Apple on Monday introduced its latest technological marvels, including the much-anticipated iPhone 16 lineup. The event, held at the newly inaugurated Observatory building, featured an array of exciting updates that promise to redefine the smartphone experience.
'It has remained around 38 per cent over the past four to five quarters.'
ISRO said the upper stage of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle - C37 (PSLV-C37) re-entered the earth's atmosphere on October 6, 2024 and the impact point was the North Atlantic Ocean.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, which pulled off a hat-trick of wins in Haryana by bucking anti-incumbency, managed to make significant inroads into the Dalit seats and Jat strongholds.
Addressing an event in New Delhi, Gen Pande also said the recent global developments have underscored that the security of the nation can neither be outsourced nor be dependent on the largesse of others.
Mahatransco (Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Limited - MSETCL) Chairman and Managing Director Dinesh Waghmare said Tata Power's plants took time to start generating electricity following the grid collapse on Monday morning, resulting in the specially created 'islanding' system not working.
There is nothing to be worried about as bilateral ties are robust with solid foundations. Both are on the same page on the economic and defence/security ties bilaterally and globally and that shall continue irrespective of change in political dispensation in either country, points out Dr Rajaram Panda.
Commissions paid to mutual fund distributors (MFDs) increased by over 20 per cent for most large fund houses in 2023-24 (FY24), driven by a sharp market rally and strong inflows. The largest fund house, SBI Mutual Fund (MF), which now manages nearly Rs 10 trillion in assets, paid Rs 2,025 crore to its major distributors - 21 per cent higher than the Rs 1,675 crore payout in 2022-23 (FY23).
The decision by the Reserve Bank of India to introduce a unified regulatory framework on connected lending for all the regulated entities (RE) is expected to reduce the influence of business conglomerates in the Indian lending space, said bankers and experts. "Connected lending pertains to lending to related parties within the same business group. "While the RBI might appear more agreeable to allowing business conglomerates to own banking licenses, it deems it crucial to bolster regulations that would prevent conglomerate-owned banks from gaming the system," said Shivaji Thapliyal, head of research and lead analyst, YES Securities.
The Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which was taken over by Russian forces last month, has stopped transmitting data to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations atomic watchdog has said, expressing deep concern for the staff working under Russian troops at the nuclear site in northern Ukraine.
Jobs requiring AI skills carry a significant wage premium, with some roles offering up to a 25 per cent increase in wages, notes Manoj Nagpal, vice president, professional services, OpenText, an information management company.
There is a limit to ignoring genuine aspirations of the people and suppressing their legitimate voice in running the affairs of the state, notes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
This would give BJP the chance to explore Constitutional options for government formation if there is no clear-cut mandate, explains Sheela Bhatt.
No great achievement or discovery or invention has been achieved without hard work. While the inspiration may have been an insight, it needs work to flesh the insight which requires hard work, asserts Mudit Jain.
Commencing final arguments on a batch of pleas against the verdict, the bench, heard senior lawyers including Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Salman Khursheed and Menaka Guruswamy for the petitioners.
What stood out in his 15-year journey as a member of the political executive at the Centre was his glowing record as India's most successful and effective finance minister. Both as prime minister and finance minister, he understood the importance of gradualism, except when the economy or the polity was in a crisis.
'How can the voting percentage be higher than the actual polled votes?'
Ahmedabad-based firm's 'intelligent energy monitoring unit' enables firms to keep a tab on power consumption.
The Akash weapon system, which will be deployed facing the western borders, employs command to line of sight guidance and relies on sophisticated radars and control systems to guide the missile to its targets.
The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) Ship 'Sajag' was commissioned by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
In March 2021, Ola Electric founder Bhavish Aggarwal was seen surveying an empty 500-acre land surrounded by shoe factories, temples, bakery shops, coconut trees and dusty roads in Pochampalli town of Krishnagiri district, Tamil Nadu. Many excavators and workers were busy at the construction site to build the Ola Futurefactory for electric vehicles.
If approved, yoga could debut as a demonstration sport in the 2026 Games in Nagoya, Japan, marking a significant milestone in its journey from a spiritual practice to a recognised competitive discipline.
Political parties and leaders wait with bated breath for the Haryana and Jammu-Kashmir assembly poll results on Tuesday.
'They were ahead of their times. We don't expect this from a civilisation of the first century AD.'
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances