While six of them have been held from Punjab, five were nabbed from neighbouring Haryana, and one from Uttar Pradesh.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has announced that India and China have reached an understanding to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in 2025. While an understanding has been reached, the modalities of the pilgrimage are yet to be firmed up. The Yatra has been suspended since 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak and non-renewal of Yatra arrangements by the Chinese side.
The government has also suspended movement of all types of passengers through international border points with Pakistan from 00:00 hours of March 16 in view of the threat from coronavirus.
Stressing that tourist bonanza, pilgrimage travel, religious fervour are needed, but can wait for a few more months, the IMA, in a statement, said global evidence and the history of any pandemic suggest that 'the third wave is inevitable and imminent'.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a holy dip in the Triveni Sangam at the Maha Kumbh on Wednesday. Holding 'rudraksha' beads and chanting mantras, the prime minister offered prayers while standing in the river. Modi took a boat ride with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to reach Triveni Sangam -- the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati. The Maha Kumbh, being held after 12 years, has so far drawn over 38 crore pilgrims from across India and the world.
After a review meeting held at the Pathanamthitta District Collectorate to assess the situation, Rajan and state health minister Veena George said at a press conference that it has been decided to open the Kakki dam to release around 100-200 cumex water which would increase the water level of Pampa river by around 15 centimetres.
Ahead of India's Test and T20I series against Bangladesh, Head Coach Gautam Gambhir made a pilgrimage to the Kamakhya temple in Guwahati.
Saudi Arabia said on Sunday that as many as 1,301 people died during the Hajj pilgrimage, with 'numerous cases' due to heat stress and 'unauthorised' trips accounting for over four out of five of the deaths, CNN reported.
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has stated that the US administration under President Donald Trump is moving towards multipolarity, which aligns with India's interests. He also revealed that India and the US have reached an agreement on the need for a bilateral trade pact. Jaishankar touched upon various foreign policy issues including India's role in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the trajectory of the BRICS grouping, and relations with China during a session at the Chatham House think-tank in London.
"From President Trump's perspective, the one big shared enterprise that we have is the Quad, which is an understanding where everybody pays their fair share. There are no free riders involved. So that's a good model which works," he said. The Quad alliance consists of the US, India, Australia and Japan.
The dastardly dimensions of the attack are gradually sinking in even as the Government of India announced its immediate diplomatic and other retaliatory measures. It is generally expected to be followed up with punitive military action across the LoC, sooner than later, observes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
Landslides at Dabrani and Nalupani areas cut off Gangotri in Uttarkashi district from the rest of the country, stranding nearly 300 pilgrims in the middle of nowhere.
The Uttar Pradesh government has announced a special Rs 10,000 bonus and the 'Maha Kumbh Seva Medal' for 75,000 police personnel who served during the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath praised the police force's efforts in managing the grand religious event, highlighting the event's economic impact and the transformation of the UP Police into a "Mitra Police." He also emphasized the state government's commitment to police welfare and infrastructure development, citing increased recruitment and budget allocation.
Over 1.5 million Muslims from around the world have flooded into the holy cities of Mecca and Medina for the annual Haj pilgrimage.
The former J-K CM said Shardapeeth in Pak-administered Kashmir is an outstanding relic of Kashmir's glowing history.
The long queue outside Cellular Jail is a testimony to its place in India's national consciousness. The Andamans is also where the only British viceroy was assassinated and where Bose unfurled the Tricolour for the first time in 1943.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that forcibly seizing someone's faith and trampling over their beliefs is "unacceptable," especially "when we know the truth about Sambhal" which predates Islam, with the Vishnu temple there being destroyed in 1526. He said that Sambhal has been mentioned in scriptures that are 5,000 years old, which contain references to Lord Vishnu's future incarnation. He also mentioned that a temple of Lord Vishnu in Sambhal was demolished in 1526, and two years later, in 1528, the Ram temple in Ayodhya was destroyed, both acts carried out by the same person.
Promising to positively consider several representations of Christians including site for cemetries, Palaniswami, in an apparent reference to his party's alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party for assembly polls likely in April, said electoral tie-ups were different from ideology.
India has successfully evacuated all of its citizens who wished to return home from Syria following the overthrow of President Bashar Assad's government by rebel forces. The evacuation process, which began on Tuesday, saw 77 Indian nationals brought back to safety. The Indian Embassy in Syria continues to function and is monitoring the situation closely, advocating for a peaceful and inclusive political solution.
The Indian tennis icon, who is pregnant with her first child, had first visited the holy shrine with her father Imran, mother Nasima and sister Anam on Friday last.
Every Indian must visit the National War Memorial in Delhi where every soldier who made the supreme sacrifice for the Motherland is remembered in gold letters.
The Haj Committees and Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam Ltd, which organise the religious pilgrimages will not have to Service Tax.
While Sachin Tendulkar's 2013 farewell became a national pilgrimage, a vibrant celebration befitting a cricketing deity, the exits of many other Indian icons this century have been quieter journeys into the twilight.
Billionaire Gautam Adani's younger son Jeet will wed next month in a simple and traditional ceremony, without any pomp and show and celebrity stars. Adani, on Mahakumbh pilgrimage with his family, scorched speculations of a star-studded wedding of his son Jeet with Diva Shah, daughter of Surat diamond merchant Jaimin Shah. "It will be a very simple, traditional marriage... just like common people," he told reporters in Prayagraj.
'It seems that the order was taken without much thought and the government is adamant on it because the decision has been taken'
Despite recent fatal stampedes at the Kumbh Mela and a Delhi railway station, pilgrims, driven by faith, continue to participate in the holy gathering in Prayagraj. Despite safety concerns, pilgrims from across India are undeterred by the tragedy and are taking the holy dip at the Triveni Sangam.
Jaishankar said that both sides also exchanged views on the next steps in the India-China bilateral ties.
The recent stampede at New Delhi Railway station, which claimed the lives of at least 18 people, highlights a recurring issue in India: deadly stampedes. This tragedy is not an isolated incident, as numerous stampedes resulting in significant casualties have occurred over the years. This article explores some of the most devastating stampedes in India, including the deadly event at the Mahakumbh in Prayagraj just a few weeks ago, the 2024 tragedy at a 'satsang' in Hathras, and the 2013 stampede during Navratri festivities in Madhya Pradesh.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath accused Opposition parties of trying to divide society, drawing a parallel between the violence against religious minorities in Bangladesh and historical events in Ayodhya and Sambhal. He criticized those who indulge in caste-based politics and said they are responsible for the current situation. Adityanath's comments come amid widespread violence against religious minorities in Bangladesh following the toppling of the Sheikh Hasina government.
Describing the Amarnath yatra as the most secular pilgrimage in the world, Jammu and Kashmir Governor S K Sinha said it symbolises the pluralistic ethos of Kashmir.
Thousands of widows of Vrindavan and women abandoned by their families celebrated Diwali by lighting earthen lamps at the Keshi Ghat on the Yamuna river in Mathura.
The Uttar Pradesh government has said that over 65 crore people visited the sacred site in Prayagraj since the Maha Kumbh began on January 13.
Fourteen people were killed and 24 sustained injuries in two separate road accidents in Karnataka's Uttara Kannada and Raichur districts on Wednesday. The first accident occurred when a truck carrying 29 fruit sellers fell into a 50-meter-deep valley in Yellapura. The second accident occurred near Araginamara Camp in Sindhanur, where a vehicle carrying students of Mantralaya Sanskrit Pathashala overturned due to a tyre burst. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah expressed condolences and announced compensation for the families of the deceased.
Billionaire Gautam Adani's younger son Jeet on Friday married fiance Diva Shah at a small and intimate, traditional ceremony with a close group of friends and family in attendance.
Here is a list of some of such major tragedies that have taken place in the country in recent years.
On June 20, the Jain temple in Elmhurst, Queens, New York, ceased to be just another temple.
In the talks, China emphasised that the two sides should proceed from the fundamental interests of China, India and adhere to the strategic height and long-term perspective of China-India relations, the readout said.
The home minister will also review the preparation for the annual Amarnath pilgrimage set to start on June 29.
Several families continue their desperate search for their loved ones.
Through history, the Mela has held different meanings for ascetics, the colonised, colonisers, and tourists, but all have been moved by its grandeur points out Atanu Biswas.
