In what was perhaps the most critical meeting before full-scale war broke out, Shastri defined India's immediate war objectives to his defence minister, army, and air force chiefs: 'To defend against Pakistan's attempts to grab Kashmir by force and to make it abundantly clear that Pakistan would never be allowed to wrest Kashmir from India; To destroy the offensive power of Pakistan's armed forces...' A fascinating excerpt from Shiv Kunal Verma's must-read 1965: A Western Sunrise India's War With Pakistan.
Tamil Nadu is set to protest against the National Education Policy (NEP) on February 18, with the ruling DMK and its allies announcing a demonstration. The state government has been at odds with the Centre over the implementation of the NEP and the three-language formula proposed in the policy. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan dismissed the state's opposition as "politics" and asserted that the Centre is committed to implementing the NEP across the country. The DMK, however, accused the Centre of encroaching on the state's rights and using the office of the Governor to push the NEP.
The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Grameen has the highest unutilised amount (Rs 13,111 crore) compared to any other centrally sponsored scheme.
In a first, the New York State Senate has formally adopted a resolution honouring the Indian Constitution on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, recognising it as a guiding framework for India's ongoing progress as a nation and celebrating the country's democratic values.
Pradhan, who is also the skill development minister, said he has received positive feedback from students on the plan to conduct board exams twice a year.
Gurindervir, Kujur, Manikanta, Amlan set new 4x100m relay national record
In 2023-2024, 95 scheduled commercial banks received over 10 million complaints from their customers. The process of KYC at many banks has become 'HYC' -- harass your customer, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The Odisha Assembly Speaker, Surama Padhy, suspended 12 Congress MLAs for seven days for indiscipline in the House. The suspension followed a motion moved by the government Chief Whip, Saroj Pradhan. The suspended MLAs include the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader, Rama Chandra Kadam, and other prominent figures. The Congress members protested the decision, playing gongs and demonstrating in the assembly. The opposition BJD condemned the move, calling it motivated to suppress the voice of opposition. The Congress party demanded the withdrawal of the suspension order and criticized the government's actions. The House was adjourned multiple times amid the pandemonium.
The National Testing Agency is facing criticism on social media for alleged errors in the answer keys for the JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) Main Session 2, 2025.
Besides the national capital, polling will be held Saturday in 14 seats in Uttar Pradesh, all 10 seats of Haryana, eight seats each in Bihar and West Bengal, six seats in Odisha, four seats in Jharkhand and one seat in Jammu and Kashmir. Simultaneously, polling will be held for 42 assembly constituencies in Odisha.
Several areas in Muslim-majority Murshidabad, including Suti, Dhulian, Jangipur and Shamsherganj, have witnessed violent protests against the Waqf (Amendment) Act that spiralled into communal violence, sparking the exodus.
Shakti Dubey has topped the civil services examination 2024, with Harshita Goyal and Dongre Archit Parag getting the second and third ranks, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) announced on Tuesday. The top five successful candidates comprise three women and two men. The civil services examination is conducted annually in three stages -- preliminary, main and interview -- by the UPSC to select officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others. A total of 1,009 candidates -- 725 men and 284 women -- have been recommended by the UPSC for appointment to various services.
Seven people have died after allegedly being treated by a fake cardiologist at a missionary hospital in Damoh, Madhya Pradesh, India, prompting the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to launch a probe. The alleged fake doctor, identified as Narendra Vikramaditya Yadav, is accused of misrepresenting himself as "Dr. N John Camm", a renowned cardiologist from the United Kingdom. The complaint also alleges that the hospital, covered under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Yojana, misused government funds.
'Unless banks focus on the Rs 10-15 lakh loan segment, growing affordable housing will remain a challenge.'
In his notice to the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the Congress leader alleged that the home minister had made unfounded allegations against chairperson of Congress parliamentary party with "a premeditated motive to malign her reputation."
Mohun Bagan Super Giant (MBSG) defeated Kerala Blasters 2-1 to advance to the Super Cup semifinals.
Prem Bihari Narain Raizada wrote 145,000 words in flowing italic styles. It took him 6 months and hundreds of nibs.
The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment has received Rs 13,611 crore in the Union Budget announced on Saturday, while the allocation for disability welfare now stands at Rs 1,275 crore.
Three crew members were killed after a helicopter of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) crashed and caught fire at an airport on the outskirts of Gujarat's Porbandar city, police said.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced a 66 per cent hike in the Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana (PMAY) outlay to Rs 79,000 crore.
The Rural Development Ministry has been allocated Rs 1.88 lakh crore in the Union Budget for 2025-26, around 5.75 per cent more than the allocation in the previous budget.
In a significant policy shift aimed at boosting agri-productivity and rural prosperity, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced six new agricultural schemes while increasing the subsidised Kisan Credit Card loan limit to Rs 5 lakh from the existing Rs 3 lakh, benefiting 7.7 crore farmers, fishermen, and dairy farmers.
The Supreme Court of India has upheld a Bombay High Court order reinstating a woman as the sarpanch of a Maharashtra village, stating that bureaucrats cannot be allowed to "frustrate grassroot democracy." The court criticized instances of bureaucrats misbehaving with elected representatives and attempting to disqualify them by reopening old cases. The case involved Kalavati Rajendra Kokale, whose resignation from the sarpanch's post was withdrawn, but the Raigad district collector declared a vacancy and conducted a fresh election. The court found the collector's actions illegal and upheld Kokale's reinstatement, highlighting the importance of respecting the democratic process and elected representatives at the grassroots level.
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar countered a US senator's claim that democracy does not put food on the table, citing India's PMGKAY program which provides food to 800 million people. Jaishankar argued that different parts of the world have different experiences with democracy and that the model of globalization has contributed to issues with democracy in some regions. He emphasized that India's democratic system effectively delivers food security, highlighting the PMGKAY program as an example.
East Bengal maintained their newfound form with a 3-1 thumping of Punjab FC in their Indian Super League (ISL) match.
India's women's hockey team, led by captain Salima Tete, is confident of an improved performance in the upcoming Bhubaneswar leg of the FIH Pro League.
Pune, India, has reported 59 suspected cases of Guillain-Barr syndrome (GBS), an immunological nerve disorder. The sudden rise in cases has prompted the state health department to form a team to investigate. GBS is a rare condition that causes sudden numbness and muscle weakness. Most suspected patients are within the age group of 30 years. Authorities are investigating the cause of the outbreak and have collected samples for testing. Doctors have assured the public that GBS is not contagious and most patients recover fully with treatment.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin said on Wednesday that the DMK will not oppose Hindi if it is not "imposed" on Tamil Nadu, stating that forcing the language on Tamils amounts to playing with their self-respect. Stalin's remarks come amidst an intense language row in the state, with the DMK alleging that the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre was trying to impose Hindi through the three-language formula in the National Education Policy (NEP), a charge denied by the union government.
In the video, the SUV is seen dragging the motorcycle under it, causing sparks on the road. A BJP sticker reading 'gram pradhan' is pasted on the rear windshield of the speeding SUV.
According to a parliamentary response by the Union health ministry in 2023, around 654,000 families in Delhi are eligible to enrol under the scheme.
Annapurna Devi, Subhas Sarkar and Rajkumar Ranjan Singh will be the new ministers of state for education.
Do we have enough trained oncologists and medical professionals in India to man these over 4,500 beds in the public sector?
Mohun Bagan Super Giant defeated Punjab FC 3-0 to become the first team to qualify for the play-offs of the Indian Super League (ISL) this season.
'Today, let us reaffirm our commitment to strive to realise Gandhiji's dreams. His watchwords, truth and nonviolence, will continue to remain relevant for the whole world. He also taught us that rights and duties are but the two sides of the coin - indeed, the true source of rights is duty. Today we recall his lessons in compassion too - compassion not only for our human neighbours but also for our other neighbours, namely, flora and fauna, rivers and mountains.'
Glimpse what our politicians were doing at the beginning of 2025.
If the DMK is able to sustain the momentum until the assembly polls, the AIADMK especially and the PMK and possibly the infant TVK too would find it hard to sign up with the BJP, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Why should children, who are already burdened with so many subjects, be over-burdened with three languages?'
Days after Jayant Chaudhary's terse 'not a coin, won't flip' response to the BJP's apparent attempt to woo him, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the Rashtriya Lok Dal chief was a 'kid with little knowledge of history'.
The Union health ministry has been allocated Rs 99,858.56 crore in the Budget 2025-2026, an around 11 per cent hike over the Rs 89,974.12 crore in the budget (revised estimates) of 2024-2025 with the government announcing setting up daycare cancer centres at all district hospitals over the next three years.
Olympic medallist Lovlina Borgohain and six-time Asian champion Shiva Thapa secured impressive victories in their respective boxing bouts at the 38th National Games in Dehradun.