Veteran freedom fighter P. Vasu, widely remembered as ‘Socio Vasu’, passed away at his home in Cheruvannur, Kozhikode, on Thursday, October 8. He was 103.

Born in January 1923, Vasu was drawn to the national movement at a young age. His interest in the struggle for Independence grew after he attended a public meeting addressed by Mahatma Gandhi during Gandhi’s 1934 visit to Kozhikode.

Vasu became actively involved in the Quit India Movement of 1942. He organised and led a protest procession from Kundayithode to Cheruvannur, an action that brought him under the watch of the British authorities. He was taken into custody, assaulted by the colonial police and later sentenced to three-and-a-half months in prison.

India’s first high-altitude snow leopard wildlife safari was launched in the cold desert of Ladakh on Wednesday, offering visitors a rare opportunity to witness the region’s elusive snow leopard and distinctive high-altitude wildlife in their natural habitat.

Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena flagged off six vehicles for the Ladakh Snow Leopard Safari.

The safari is being conducted by the Snow Leopard and High-Altitude Nature Conservation (SHAN) Society in collaboration with the Department of Forest, Ecology and Environment, UT Ladakh.

The decision to introduce wildlife safaris in Ladakh was announced by the Ladakh administration on August 5 this year.

Anne Carson is a celebrated Canadian poet, essayist, translator, and classicist who has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature. The Swedish Academy honoured the 76 year old author for her "bold and inventive oeuvre that, in playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature".

Canadian poet, essayist and classicist Anne Carson won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature for creating bold, inventive works that bring classical traditions into conversation with contemporary literature. Known for blurring the boundaries between poetry, prose, translation and visual art, Carson has built a distinctive literary career that defies easy categorisation.

She Studied Ancient Greek Literature: Carson’s fascination with classical literature began during her studies at the University of Toronto, where she specialised in ancient Greek. She earned her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees there, developing the classical scholarship that would become central to her writing. Rather than treating ancient texts as distant relics, she continually finds ways to connect them with modern experiences.

Serbian tennis icon claimed a record-extending seventh China Open title and his career 102nd tour-level title after Alex de Minaur retired during the second set at Beijing on Tuesday.

Djokovic, the former world number one, won the first set 7-6(3), and both players took a medical timeout, with de Minaur leaving the court due to groin issues; upon returning, he retired after winning the first game of the second set.

Now, with this 102nd title win, Djokovic is just one title away from equaling former rival Roger Federer's 103 titles for second-most tour-level titles in the Open era, with both of them behind Jimmy Connors' 109. The 39-year-old has a flawless record of 34-0 at Beijing, as per the ATP Win-Loss Index.

India is among the top 10 leading emerging-market performers in artificial intelligence (AI) readiness and is well positioned to harness the technology, helped by its large technical workforce, globally integrated IT sector and digital public infrastructure, the World Bank said on Tuesday.

In its latest report titled 'India and Artificial Intelligence: Seizing the Development Opportunity', the World Bank said private investment in AI in India more than tripled to USD 4.1 billion in 2025 from USD 1.2 billion in 2024.

At the same time, the number of professionals employed by Global Capability Centres (GCCs) rose to 2.36 million in 2025 from 1.9 million a year ago, it said.

To further strengthen community participation in India’s fight against tuberculosis (TB), the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will launch JOSH (Joint Squad for Health) Teams in New Delhi tomorrow. The initiative to be launched by Health and Family Welfare Minister J P Nadda seeks to enable young people to become active partners in the TB response, providing them with a defined platform to contribute to awareness generation, social mobilisation and community engagement.

In the first phase, JOSH Teams will be rolled out across 55 districts in 11 States, with the objective of strengthening youth-led community mobilisation and taking the message of TB Mukt Bharat to the grassroots. Mr Nadda will lead the national launch of JOSH Teams in the presence of Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya.

Mahesh Kakde, a mathematics professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, has won the Ramanujan Prize 2026 for his research in algebraic number theory. The prestigious award recognises young mathematicians from developing countries for outstanding contributions to mathematics.

Kakde’s research focuses on algebraic number theory, a field that uses algebraic methods to study numbers and their relationships.

Kakde’s main research area is Iwasawa theory. His work includes important results in non-commutative Iwasawa theory, as well as research related to the Gross-Stark and Brumer-Stark conjectures.

His research also connects with David Hilbert’s 12th problem. In 1900, German mathematician David Hilbert presented 23 major unsolved problems in mathematics. The 12th problem focused on understanding certain extensions of number fields. Kakde’s work has contributed to research in this area.

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to French chemist Henri B. Kagan and Japanese chemist Kenso Soai for their pioneering discoveries of non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences today said Kagan and Soai solved a century-old mystery of how molecular asymmetry, or homochirality, can emerge spontaneously in nature.

Many molecules, including amino acids, exist in two mirror-image forms. While these variants are chemically similar, living organisms overwhelmingly use only one form. For decades, scientists struggled to understand how such selectivity emerged naturally.

According to the Nobel Committee, chemists traditionally obtained equal amounts of both mirror-image molecules during laboratory synthesis. The discoveries by Kagan and Soai demonstrated how chemical reactions can be steered toward producing predominantly or even exclusively one mirror image.
This is a breakthrough with major implications for modern chemistry, particularly pharmaceutical development where the correct molecular form is often crucial for therapeutic effectiveness. Kagan made a major breakthrough in 1986 by developing a method to influence chemical reactions to produce a higher excess of one molecular mirror image, while Soai built on this work with a groundbreaking reaction in 1995 and in 2003 demonstrated a reaction producing only one of the two possible mirror-image forms.

Elon Musk-led satellite communications firm Starlink has developed India-specific security controls and has built 20 gateway sites in India, said Lauren Dreyer, Vice President, Starlink Business Operations, SpaceX, adding, the company is “keeping Indian users’ data within India.”

Speaking at India Mobile Congress 2026, Dreyer said Starlink has invested in building the infrastructure required to serve the Indian market. The Indian government has granted licences to three satellite communication companies, including Starlink, to offer services in the country.

“We've built our Starlink operations specifically for India in recognition of Indian security requirements and other regulations, establishing controls at every layer for India, and keeping Indian user data within India,” she said.

In a country-first milestone, Kochi-based marine robotics and AI deep-tech startup EyeROV has developed and delivered two EyeROV TROUT military-grade underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) systems for the Indian Navy, ramping up India’s efforts to build indigenous capability in advanced underwater robotic technology.

TROUT, the first military-grade ROV built in India, has been designed, developed, manufactured and qualified to military standards for naval operations.

The delivery forms part of the Indian Navy's order for five EyeROV TROUT systems and marks the transition of the platform from an indigenous defence innovation, developed through the iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) ecosystem.