Continuing his spree to set up state-of-the-art libraries in the state, the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Thursday inaugurated 14 new ultra modern libraries constructed at a cost of 14.62 crore in the Sangrur district

The Chief Minister said these libraries will act as a harbinger of growth and prosperity in the state adding that this path breaking initiative is aimed at inculcating reading habits amongst the youth of the state. He said that this step will go a long way in empowering the youth and making them an equal partner in the social-economic development of the state.

“These will transform the destiny of the youth and produce bureaucrats, scientists, doctors, technocrats and others,” said Mann.

Byrnihat in Meghalaya topped the list of the most polluted cities in India in 2023, closely followed by Begusarai in Bihar and Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh, according to a report released on Wednesday.

Delhi, known for its persistently high air pollution levels during winter, ranked as the eighth most polluted city, the report by independent think tank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said.

Sunil Dahia, South Asia's analyst at CREA, said 227 cities with air quality data available for over 75 per cent of the days in 2023 were studied.

The Government of Maharashtra has declared a new Conservation Reserve in the forest land of Sangli district namely 'Atpadi Conservation Reserve'. The newly formed Atpadi Conservation Reserve connects the Maini Conservation Area in the west with the Maldhok Bird Sanctuary in the northeast. This will help in the protection of wildlife corridors and preserve the habitat of wolves, deer, foxes, civets and other mammals in the area.

This newly declared Conservation Reserve hosts three types of forest cover, Semi-evergreen, moist deciduous and dry deciduous. 36 tree species, 116 herb species, 15 shrub species, 14 vine species and 1 parasitic plant are found in this area. The Atpadi Conservation Reserve will help preserve the habitat of wolves, jackal, deer, foxes, civets, rabbits and other mammals in the area.

As a teenager, Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik felt uncomfortable being in the spotlight and wondered whether there was any way he could avoid becoming king.

Such doubts have been swept aside as the 55-year-old takes over the crown on Sunday, January 14, 2024 from his mother, Queen Margrethe II, who is breaking with centuries of Danish royal tradition and retiring after a 52-year reign. The crown prince will become King Frederik X.

An athlete, decorated military officer and rock music fan, Frederik has a more informal style than his mother but is equally popular in the Scandinavian country.

Tamils from about 58 countries participated in the two-day World Tamil Diaspora Day celebrations, inaugurated by Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development Udhayanidhi Stalin here on Thursday.

Ministers, people’s representatives, industrialists and writers, among others, took part in the event.

During the inauguration ceremony, held at Chennai Trade Centre, Mr. Udhayanidhi underlined the strong link that Tamils living abroad have with the State and the functions of the Commissionerate of Rehabilitation and Welfare of Non-Resident Tamils.

For months on, Indian wrestling’s biggest prodigy, Aman Sehrawat, had to suffer a snippy taunt at his akhara – dheela.

It had nothing to do with his relaxed demeanour. Rather, that was how Sehrawat’s coaches described – at times sarcastically, sometimes in a caustic way but always out of frustration – his wrestling style in the opening few exchanges of a bout. The barb would have perhaps rung in his ears on Wednesday.

While he went on to win the 57kg title at the UWW Ranking Series in Zagreb, beating China’s Wanhao Zou 10-0 in the gold medal bout, Sehrawat was a little slow off the blocks earlier in the day in the opening round.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd, India’s second-largest carmaker, has signed an agreement with IIT- Madras to establish a dedicated ‘Hydrogen Valley Innovation Hub, with an investment of ₹180 crore.

The objective is to help foster a worldwide Hydrogen Society by making hydrogen readily used for everyone, everything and everywhere, according to a statement.

This facility will act as an incubation cell to develop a framework for the localisation of the hydrogen ecosystem. The initiative is also expected to generate employment and support skill development in the region, it said.

The Karnataka High Court has ruled that 100 per cent reservation for women as laid down in Section 6 of the Military Nursing Services Ordinance of 1943 is unconstitutional.

Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde of the court’s Dharwad bench passed the order on January 5 in response to a petition that challenged the reservation provision arguing that Article 15(3) of the Constitution (special provisions for women and children) cannot override Article 16(2) (right against discrimination on grounds such as religion, sex etc).

It was also argued that the reservation in this case was not a reasonable classification, and there was no “rational nexus” between it and the object it seeks to achieve. It was further pointed out that the ordinance was a measure for the emergency of the day (World War II) and had no relevance in the modern context.

On Thursday, as the ‘who is who’ of the sugar industry of Maharashtra gathered at Pune’s Vasantdada Sugar Institute (VSI) to felicitate the best among them, Deepa Bhandare, in a quiet way created history of sorts.

Bhandare, who won the best Environment Officer Award conferred by VSI Chairman Sharad Pawar, is the only woman in the long history of the sugar industry to win the award.

Bhandare, who is associated with Shri Datta Cooperative Sugar Factory (SSK) in Shirol taluka of Kolhapur, is one of the very few women officers associated with the state’s sugar industry.

The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs appointed Maheshwar Rao as the full-time managing director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) on Thursday. An order from the ministry states that the managing director will not be given any other or additional assignment by the Karnataka government without its consent.

Since former MD Anjum Parvez was given the charge of the additional chief secretary of rural development and panchayat raj last year, the appointment of a full-time MD for BMRCL has been a long-standing demand of mobility activists, especially given that major metro works are to be completed on a war footing in order to decongest Bengaluru traffic, reduce vehicle pollution and boost public transport.