India and Central Asia’s biggest state Kazakhstan have signed an extradition treaty on Tuesday to combat cross-border international crime and terror
The document was signed by Prosecutor General of the Republic of Kazakhstan Berik Assilov and Ambassador of India to Kazakhstan Y.K. Sailas Thangal.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved an additional two-year engagement period for Agniveers not selected for regular service after their initial four-year tenure, creating a pathway for all willing personnel to join the regular armed forces, subject to meeting selection criteria.
The existing provision to offer regular employment to 25 per cent of Agniveers based on merit will continue. The remaining 75 per cent will be offered a further two years of service, depending on their willingness. After completing this period, they will be eligible for enrolment as regular soldiers, subject to their willingness and fulfilment of selection criteria.
The second engagement period will carry higher remuneration, an enhanced Seva Nidhi package and seniority benefits, according to the government.
Bhutan, which raised 108 Buddhist Stupas in just nine hours, has set a Guinness World Record for the highest number of stupas consecrated in a single day, Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) governor Dr Lotay Tshering announced on Tuesday.
The country on Sunday erected and consecrated 108 Buddhist Stupas, also called Jangchub Chortens, within nine hours at the upcoming GMC.
The monumental undertaking was completed in just nine hours, with work beginning at 3 am. Volunteers, who were divided into teams of 20 to 23 members, worked simultaneously across designated sites to raise the 108 Stupas as a huge gathering of citizens chanted Buddhist mantras along the banks of the Mau Chu River.
The Indian troika of Ravinder Singh, Saurabh Chaudhary and Amanpreet Singh clinched the team gold in the men’s 50 metre pistol competition of the ongoing ISSF World Championships in Doha today. Ravinder also won the silver medal in the individual competition of the shooting event that is not on the Olympic roster. Indian trio of Elavenil Valarivan, Sonam Uttam Maskar, and Shambhavi Shravan Kshirsagar bagged the silver medal in the women’s 10 metre air rifle team event.
Ravinder was India’s top scorer with 559 points. Saurabh, a multiple-time World Cup gold-medallist, scored 551, while Amanpreet added 549 to the tally, the Indian combined score of 1659. China’s Zhang Bingchen, Lyu Junyi and Feng Linlang totalled 1648 for the silver medal, five points clear of the bronze-winning Korean combination of Hong Suhyeon, Choe Boram and So Seung Seob. In the individual event, the gold went to Russia’s Anton Aristarkhov, who shot 561. Roumania’ Luca Joldea claimed the bronze.
India are currently placed second in the table with one gold and two silvers. China are at the top with five medals, including three golds.
Indian motorsport has a new continental champion, with Hyderabad racer Jeet Jhabakh being crowned the 2026 FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) champion, marking a historic achievement in his debut international season.
Partnering with co-driver Musa Sherif, Jhabakh has not only secured the overall drivers’ championship but also created history by becoming the first driver in the competition’s 38-year history to win the overall title in a two-wheel-drive car.
The achievement marks a significant milestone for Indian motorsport, with Jhabakh and Sherif becoming the first all-Indian driver-co-driver pairing to win the prestigious continental championship. Sherif also secured the 2026 APRC co-drivers’ championship, making it a landmark season for the Indian duo.
Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla inaugurated the first North East Waree Leeba Festival 2026 at Irom Meijrao Mamang Community Hall in Imphal West on Tuesday.
During the programme, the Governor paid floral tributes to the portraits of three departed Waree Leeba gurus and felicitated gurus from Assam and Tripura.
The five-day festival is being organised by the Repertory of Waree Leeba, Khurai, in association with Irom Meijrao Women for Cultural Centre.
Addressing the inaugural session, the Governor congratulated the Repertory of Waree Leeba, Manipur, for bringing together artists from across the North Eastern region to celebrate and preserve this unique storytelling tradition. He observed that Waree Leeba is not merely a form of entertainment but a living tradition through which the knowledge, beliefs, myths and legends of ancestors are passed down from one generation to another.
Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Dr Virendra Kumar will launch the ‘Vayo Samman Rashtriya Abhiyan’ – National Intergenerational Bonding Campaign in the national capital on Wednesday under the Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana (AVYAY), with an initiative to mobilise citizens aged 18 years and above as volunteers for the welfare, care and social inclusion of senior citizens.
The campaign aims to strengthen intergenerational solidarity by promoting meaningful and sustained engagement between senior citizens and younger generations, fostering mutual respect, understanding, companionship and shared responsibility.
A senior official in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment said the campaign seeks to institutionalise intergenerational solidarity as a nationwide social movement, recognise senior citizens as contributors to society and encourage youth participation in promoting dignified ageing.
Sikkim’s Soreng district has become India’s first notified Organic Fisheries Cluster under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), with the Centre launching a standard operating procedure (SOP) for organic certification of fisheries in the Northeast to promote chemical-free fish production and improve market access.
Union Fisheries Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh launched the SOP and inaugurated fisheries projects worth Rs 3.75 crore during his visit to Sikkim to review the implementation of fisheries development initiatives.
The projects cover critical infrastructure, including hatcheries, feed mills and cold storage facilities, besides production technologies such as Biofloc and Recirculatory Aquaculture Systems (RAS). The initiatives aim to strengthen the fisheries value chain, from production to processing and marketing.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday released a ₹250 commemorative coin to mark the 250th birth anniversary of Muthuswami Dikshitar, one of the greatest composers of Carnatic classical music, at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Varanasi.
The Centre of Excellence for Indian Knowledge Systems at the Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) organised the programme, according to a statement issued by the institute. The Reserve Bank of India issued the commemorative coin, with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) supporting the initiative under its corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme.
During the event, Sitharaman highlighted Dikshitar’s contribution to Indian classical music and the country’s cultural heritage. She also interacted with students and schoolchildren, explaining the traditions of Carnatic music, the distinctive features of musical instruments and the composer’s lasting influence on Indian music.
India’s double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker is set to contest the elections for the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Athletes Committee for the 2026–2030 term, having been nominated as a candidate in the Pistol category.
At the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Manu became the first Indian athlete in independent India’s history to win two medals in a single edition of the Olympics, securing bronze in the women’s 10m Air Pistol and the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team event alongside Sarabjot Singh.
“It is an honour to be nominated for the ISSF Athletes Committee. Having competed at the highest level, I have experienced first-hand both the opportunities and challenges that come with being an international athlete. I believe that athletes should not just be participants in the sport but also active voices in shaping its future,” Manu was quoted in a media release.