Charles Darwin, the English naturalist whose scientific theory of evolution by natural selection became the foundation of modern evolutionary studies, is considered the father of evolution. And, his evolutionary theory, despite many contradictions later, gave the most rational explanation of the formation of new species then.

Therefore Darwin Day is not only a celebration to commemorate the birthday of the doyen of science on February 12, 1809, but also as a day to highlight his contributions to science and to draw inspiration to promote scientific developments in general.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and Meta have jointly launched a pan-India program to help students manage stress ahead of their exams.

Announcing the launch of the program, NCPCR chairperson Priyank Kanoongo said, "Exams can be a stressful time for children. They are often subjected to parental pressure, and peer pressure as they prepare for their examinations. In line with the Prime Minister's ParikshaPeCharcha programme, NCPCR is celebrating the sixth edition of ParikshaParv aiming at changing the outlook of children, parents and teachers towards exam stress and overcoming their anxiety during exams."

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday inaugurated a Construction Skill Training Centre at Gogamukh in Dhemaji district of Assam for building and other construction workers Welfare Board-registered construction workers and their family members.

A joint initiative of the Government of Assam and Larsen & Toubro, the Construction Skill Training Centre has been established to provide skill training enhancement for registered construction workers, align trained resources in the construction industry from workmen to supervisors, connect trainees with future skills and modern technology, and training of unemployed youths with employable construction skills.

Pyarelal Sharma, one half of the iconic composer duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal, has been felicitated with the Lakshminarayana International Award.

The award was presented to the My Name Is Lakhan composer by musicians L Subramaniam and Kavita Krishnamurthy Subramaniam as part of the Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival. Recently, Pyarelal was announced as a recipient of the Padma Bhushan, India’s third highest civilian honour, on the eve of Republic Day.

Pyarelal is one of the most successful music composers in Hindi cinema in his career spanning over eight decades.

Under the agreement, the Bengaluru-based Dynamatic Technologies will manufacture and assemble the cargo, passenger and service doors along with the over-wing emergency exit doors for the A220 family aircraft

Airbus will manufacture and assemble aircraft doors of the A220 family in Bengaluru, thus giving a significant push to the government’s ‘Make In India’ vision, the company announced on Thursday as it signed an agreement with Bengaluru-based Dynamatic Technologies in presence of Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in New Delhi. The first set of doors will be delivered by early next year, Airbus said.

Abu Dhabi-headquartered Etihad Airways has announced its partnership with Chennai Super Kings for the next three years. The company didn’t mention value of the agreement and expected it to be for a longer period.

Name of the carrier will be displayed in the back of CSK Jersey. They will be on boarding and other displays. CSK, one of the richest cricket franchises in India, will get about 100 crore from all sponsorships. Etihad, eyeing increased share from the Indian market, announced Katrina Kaif as brand ambassador last year.

“The two things that are pan-Indian are cricket and Bollywood,” said Arik De, chief revenue and commercial officer of Etihad. He said the company grew 30% in India since the pandemic, in terms of number of flights.

The chief minister announced opening of the office of block development officer in Surani, division of Jal Shakti department in Jawalamukhi and subdivision in Majheen, besides announcing the upgrade of Majheen and Lagdu sub-tehsils. He also announced the opening of sub-tehsil in Bhadoli and opening of Patwar circles in Luthan and Hiran.

Chief minister (CM) Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday presided over the ‘Sarkar Gaon Ke Dwar’ programme at Amb-Pathiyar under Jawalamukhi assembly constituency and interacted with the people to know their grievances.

Tamil Nadu’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Minister T.M. Anbarasan on Wednesday launched ‘Smart Cards’ for startups.

According to details provided by Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (StartupTN), the Smart Card offers a comprehensive selection of products and services at subsidised rates, specially tailored to meet the needs of startups in their early stages. Startups can significantly enhance and expedite their business growth by making use of the products and services at an affordable cost.

StartupTN has collaborated with various partners to provide a diverse range of products and services to equip startups with essential resources and support at a reduced cost. The products and services have been broadly classified into six different categories: legal and compliance, marketing / business consulting, finance and insurance, human resource and smart workspace, software and IT/ITES.

India was declared the winner of the SAFF U19 Women’s football final over Bangladesh with a coin toss after the game was tied 11-11 on penalties. The match officials later announced both sides as the joint winners of the tournament.

India took the lead early on in the 8th minute of the match and was ahead at half-time. Bangladesh pulled one back in stoppage time right before the full-time whistle and the game went on to penalties.

Interestingly, all the 11 players of both sides, including the goalkeepers, converted their penalty kicks.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi House on Thursday passed a budget of Rs 16,683 crore for 2024-25 financial year without a vote amid accusations of corruption against the mayor.

The MCD passed the budget estimates for 2023-24 and 2024-25.

AAP councillors stood guards at Delhi mayor Shelly Oberoi's podium as she announced the budget, with their BJP and Congress counterparts surrounding it. The house could function for no more than five minutes as Oberoi read the budget above shouts of accusations and hurried out.