The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Wednesday approved two major railway projects worth ₹2,781 crore in Gujarat and Maharashtra, aimed at easing congestion, improving services and boosting regional connectivity.

The projects include
• Devbhumi Dwarka (Okha)–Kanalus doubling of 141 km
• Badlapur–Karjat 3rd and 4th line covering 32 km

Together, the projects will add 224 km to the Indian Railways network, benefiting nearly 585 villages with a combined population of about 3.2 million.

The Punjab government has decided to accord holy city status to towns having three out of five Takhts, including Amritsar walled city, Talwandi Sabo in Bhatinda and Sri Anandpur Sahib in Ropar. The sale and use of meat, liquor, tobacco, and other intoxicants will be prohibited in these cities to fulfil the long-pending demand of the devotees. A decision to this effect was unanimously passed during the special session of the Punjab Assembly that took place at Sri Anandpur Sahib, yesterday. The session was dedicated to the 350th Martyrdom Day of the Ninth Guru, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji.

Our Correspondent reports that the Chief Minister moved this resolution in the assembly. An interfaith committee related to all religious institutions will also be formed in these holy cities to tackle issues related to them. A series of spiritual and cultural events will continue today, also as part of the three-day commemoration event with the Atmaras Kirtan Darbar and Sarbat da Bhala programme scheduled to be held. A large number of devotees from across the country and abroad are visiting Sri Anandpur Sahib to pay their respects to ‘Hinfld Di Chadar-Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji.

India wrapped up their Deaflympics shooting campaign in Tokyo with a massive haul of 16 medals including seven gold, six silver and three bronze. The Indians dominated the shooting ranges in Tokyo, winning 16 out of the total 39 medals in the discipline over 10 days of competition.

The most successful shooter was riflewoman Mahit Sandhu who won four medals, including two gold and two silver. She was followed by pistol exponents Abhinav Deshwal and Pranjali Prashant Dhumal who bagged two gold and one silver medals. Dhanush Srikanth also won two gold medals in 10 metre air rifle individual and mixed team events while Mohammed Murtaza Vania got one silver and bronze and Komal Milind Waghmare bagged two bronze medals. Anuya Prasad won gold in the women’s 10 metre air pistol event while Shourya Saini won silver in 50 metre 3 positions and Kushagra Singh Rajawat won bronze in 50 metre rifle prone event.

Indian shooters won a total of five medals including three gold and two bronze at the last Games at Caxias do Sul in Brazil.

In Cricket, India’s top men’s T20 domestic cricket tournament Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is set to begin today. The opening match will be played between Mizoram and Nagaland from 9 AM at Deccan Gymkhana Ground in Pune. Started in 2007, the 2025 season will mark the 18th edition of the tournament with 38 teams in action. The Elite competition will feature 32 teams, while six teams will compete in the Plate tournament. Meanwhile, the tournament will feature some of the star players from international level and IPL. Defending champions Mumbai will be led by new skipper Shardul Thakur in this season. Bengal will feature Mohammed Shami, while Sanju Samson will captain Kerala. The 14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi will be the vice-captain of Bihar. The final match of the tournament will be played in Indore on 18th of December. Tamil Nadu are the most successful team in the competition’s history with three titles.

Brazil’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro to begin a 27-year prison sentence for a coup plot against his successor, a climax to years of political turmoil and legal battles over his contentious legacy in Brazilian democracy.

The top court formally concluded the case against Bolsonaro on Tuesday, making his conviction final, pending confirmation by a four-member Supreme Court panel in the evening. The panel already rejected his appeal this month.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes told Bolsonaro to start serving his sentence in the Federal Police Superintendency in Brasilia, where he has been detained since Saturday after he tampered with his ankle monitor while under house arrest in a separate case.

Researchers in Australia have found that Parkinson’s disease causes significant and progressive changes in the brain’s blood vessels, offering new insights into the neurological disorder and potentially opening avenues for future treatments.

While Parkinson’s disease is known for the accumulation of alpha-synuclein protein deposits, the new findings suggest that region-specific vascular changes in the brain may play a key role in disease progression, Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) said in a media release on Tuesday.

“Traditionally, Parkinson’s researchers have focused on protein accumulation and neuronal loss, but we have shown the impacts on our cerebrovasculature — the blood vessels in our brain,” said NeuRA postdoctoral researcher Derya Dik, who led the study.

Russia on Tuesday successfully launched a set of undisclosed military satellites aboard an Angara-1.2 light launch vehicle from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, the defence ministry said.

The launch took place at 4:42 pm Moscow time (7:12 pm IST) from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, the world's northernmost spaceport located in the Arkhangelsk region, the state-run TASS news agency reported, citing a defence ministry statement.

The ministry did not reveal the number or nature of the satellites placed in orbit, saying only that the mission was carried out "in the interests of the defence ministry" by a combat crew of the Aerospace Forces.

The Indian Navy’s indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant arrived today at the Port of Colombo, responding to an invitation from the Sri Lanka Navy to join the forthcoming International Fleet Review 2025 (IFR). The harbour is alive with excitement as a large crowd – including many children and members of the Indian diaspora – gathered to greet the towering warship, marking a significant moment of maritime diplomacy and public fascination.

INS Vikrant, commissioned in 2022 as India’s first fully indigenous aircraft carrier, represents a major milestone for the Indian Navy. The visit continues a long tradition of goodwill between India and Sri Lanka, cementing mutual trust and cooperation.

The Sri Lanka Navy is conducting its fleet review as part of its 75th-anniversary celebrations and will bring together ships from several countries, reflecting Colombo’s ambition to underscore its growing role in regional maritime diplomacy.

The arrival of INS Vikrant is not only a diplomatic gesture but also a strategic symbol of India’s enhanced maritime capabilities in the Indian Ocean region.

Soldiers of the Indian Army and Nepalese Army on Tuesday began the joint military exercise "Exercise SURYAKIRAN XIX - 2025" at Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand. The 14-day exercise is being conducted from November 25 to December 8. It is the 19th edition of this institutionalised bilateral Army exercise.

The soldiers, apart from the conventional training exercise, will also be undergoing simulation of situations demanding the use of niche technologies.

The Indian Army in a statement said, "This edition of Exercise SURYAKIRAN-XIX will focus on incorporating niche and emerging technologies, including Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), drone-based ISR, AI-enabled decision support tools, unmanned logistic vehicles and armoured protection platforms, enabling both armies to refine and adapt Tactics, Techniques and Procedures for operating in counter terrorism environment aligned to prevailing global dynamics."

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and UNICEF have announced a new agreement that it said will make the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccines significantly more accessible and affordable, paving the way to protect more children.

The deal, backed by Gavi and executed by United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), is expected to generate up to $90 million in savings for Gavi and countries, equivalent to more than 30 million additional doses — enabling the full vaccination of nearly seven million more children against malaria over the next five years. The deal is financed by Gavi through an advance payment enabled by the innovative International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm) mechanism.

The lower price of the vaccine — at $ 2.99 per dose — is anticipated to take effect in approximately one year.