Cycling is an extremely fun and low-impact workout routine. More than anything, bicycles are a sustainable mode of transportation. They help in reducing pollution and are great for the body as well. Cycling regularly helps in strengthening the leg muscles and reducing Cholesterol levels, thereby promoting good heart health. Every year, World Bicycle Day is observed to urge people to shift to the sustainable mode of transportation. World Bicycle Day also raises awareness about the many benefits of cycling every day. As we celebrate World Bicycle Day today (June 3), here is a list of the most scenic cycle routes in India that you must explore.

The central government has given another gift to its employees. After increasing the Dearness Allowance (DA) by 4 per cent, the government has now decided to raise the gratuity limit. The retirement and death gratuity limit has been increased by 25 per cent. This raises the limit from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 25 lakh. The new gratuity limit will be effective from January 1, 2024.

An Office Memorandum dated May 30, 2024, announced this decision. This follows the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission. The maximum limit for retirement and death gratuity under the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 2021, or the Central Civil Services (Payment of Gratuity under National Pension System) Rules, 2021, is now Rs 25 lakh. The decision was originally made on April 30, but it was stayed by a circular on May 7.

Gratuity is a reward given by a company to an employee who has worked for a long time. It is given in addition to salary, pension and Provident Fund (PF). An employee is entitled to gratuity only if they have worked for at least five years in the company.

The world’s highest polling station in Tashigang, located in the Spiti Valley at an altitude of 15,256 ft has been declared a model polling station.

There are a total of 62 voters in Tashigang — 37 men and 25 women.

“Tashigang polling station is special because it is the highest polling station in the world,” assistant returning officer Rahul Jian. This polling station was set up for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, when a 100% polling was recorded.

Located close to the China border, both Tashigang and Giu polling booths have been declared sensitive centres, and separate security arrangements have been put in place.

Bruhat Soma, a 12-year-old Indian-American student from Florida, scripted history on Thursday (local time) as he won the Scripps National Spelling Bee after he spelt 29 words correctly in 90 seconds.

The boy won the contest and got USD 50,000 (approx Rs 41.64 lakh) in cash and other prizes. The contest saw a nail-biting finish as Soma correctly spelt 29 words, including those that were complex and tricky, in 90 seconds, comfortably beating one Faizan Zaki, who spelt 20 words in the lightning round.

His championship word was "abseil", which is defined as "descent in mountaineering by means of a rope looped over a projection above".

Anant Yardi, an Indian-origin software tycoon, has become the new CEO of WeWork after acquiring a majority stake in the company. This change in leadership comes as WeWork navigates bankruptcy.

Mr Yardi, an IIT-Delhi alumnus, has invested over $200 million in equity and debt into WeWork over the past two years, according to the Financial Times. Founded in 2010 by Adam Neumann and Miguel McKelvey, WeWork once had a peak valuation of $47 billion but filed for bankruptcy in November 2023, dropping its valuation to $750 million by April 2024.

World Milk Day 2024: Milk is an integral part of our culture. It is extremely nutritious and is easily accessible to all. The dairy industry ensures that everyone has abundant access to milk and other dairy products. In many cultures, milk and dairy products are regularly consumed. From drinking to cooking to making different edible food items, milk is important. Every year, World Milk Day is observed to create awareness about the significance of the dairy industry. As we gear up to celebrate the special day, here are a few things that we should keep in mind.

Conceptualised 12 years ago, India’s first Multimodal Logistics Park at Mappedu near Chennai will see the limelight as Reliance Industries starts construction in June, according to multiple sources. In 2022, the company beat Adani Group to win the bid for the Rs 1,424 crore project on 184.27 acres of land in Tiruvallur district.

The project aims to facilitate efficient, cost-effective and value-added logistics services such as cargo aggregation and disaggregation, distribution, intermodal transfer, sorting, packing, and repacking. However, it did not take off due to the poor response from the private sector on issues like connectivity.

‘Made of Chennai’, a brand campaign by The Hindu won in the ‘Best in Audience Engagement’ category at the WAN-IFRA 2024 Digital Media Awards Worldwide in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The awards ceremony held on May 27 acknowledged excellence and groundbreaking digital innovation across a range of categories that recognise the changing way people receive and engage with news.

In the online press release by WAN-IFRA, the jury members said: “The campaign is an amazing project connecting people and the city via comprehensive touch points across various media. A testament of how powerful a media platform could be when it’s used in a very creative way!”

The Shanghai authorities proposed "One Person, One File" (OPOF) mass surveillance program represents an escalation of China's efforts to create a ruthless digital censorship. Under this prospective system, Shanghai aims to triple its deployment of facial recognition cameras, compiling exhaustive personal data files on every single resident, China experts told ET.

The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-Bombay) has entered a strategic partnership with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to develop India’s first Quantum Diamond Microchip Imager.

This advanced sensing tool will hold the potential to unlock new levels of precision in the examination of semiconductor chips, reduce chip failures and improve the energy efficiency of electronic devices.

Over the next two years, experts from TCS will work with Dr. Kasturi Saha, Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering of IIT Bombay, to develop the quantum imaging platform in the PQuest Lab.