Ladakh has become India’s first fully organic Union Territory, Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena said on Sunday, marking a major step in the region’s drive to eliminate chemical fertilisers , protect its fragile Himalayan ecosystem and promote sustainable agriculture.

In a post on X, Saxena credited farmers for the achievement, saying their dedication and hard work had made the milestone possible.

He said the transition to organic farming reflected the administration’s commitment to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of chemical-free agriculture, environmental conservation and sustainable livelihoods.

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) today announced that Ahmedabad will host the Senior World Weightlifting Championships in 2029. This will be the first time that India hosts the senior edition of the prestigious global event. The decision was taken at the IWF Executive Board meeting held in Ningbo, China. The IWF also awarded the hosting rights for the 2030 Senior World Weightlifting Championships to Moscow, the capital of Russia. Additionally, the IWF Executive Board decided to award the hosting rights for the 2028 World Youth Championships to Prishtina, Kosovo, and the World Junior Championships to Caracas, Venezuela.

ISRO Chairman V Narayanan has said that India will expand its space operations significantly with four functional launch pads by the year 2029. Mr. Narayanan said, these include a 2000 acre dedicated Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) complex at Kulasekarapattinam in Tuticorin district of Tamil Nadu and a third launch pad at Sriharikota, to meet the global demand for satellite launches. He was addressing convocation of a private university at Porur near Chennai.

The ISRO chief said that the upcoming Kulasekarapattinam spaceport facility will feature crucial infrastructure such as integration buildings, launch pads, rail-track systems, telemetry, tracking, and command systems.

Mr. Narayanan stated that ISRO plans to conduct the first uncrewed Gaganyaan test within the next two months, followed by two subsequent uncrewed tests before the crewed mission. These preliminary tests will evaluate environmental control, safety systems, crew escape mechanisms, and module interiors under varying pressure, temperature, and humidity conditions. ISRO successfully conducted approximately 8 thousand ground-based experiments for the mission, and four astronaut-designates are currently undergoing specialised training.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated a Rs 150 crore textile manufacturing plant of Ahmedabad-based Arvind Limited in Khochwan, Mirzamurad, in his parliamentary constituency, Varanasi.

Built on around 7-8 acres, the facility is the company's first large manufacturing plant in the Purvanchal region and is expected to generate employment opportunities for local residents.

During his visit, the Prime Minister interacted with women workers undergoing training and enquired about their work, the challenges they face and the manufacturing activities at the facility.

Chef K Damodaran, popularly known as Chef Damu, a Padma Shri awardee who brought the joy of cooking into Tamil households through television and earned a special place in the hearts of the Tamil diaspora, died at a private hospital in Chennai on Sunday morning at the age of 72, following a brief illness. His demise leaves behind an irreplaceable void, along with the loss of his signature expressions, “top-notch” and “fantabulous”.

Damu appa. That is how a vast majority of the Tamil diaspora across the world affectionately refers to the chef, who set a Guinness World Record in 2010 for the longest cooking marathon by an individual. Yet, it was not his awards and accolades that earned him the endearing title of ‘appa’. It was his kindness, charm, mentorship and ever-smiling face, familiar to audiences through more than two decades on reality television.

Shabari Naturals, a Maharashtra government initiative to promote products associated with tribal communities and forest gatherers, has won the prestigious ‘G-Mark - Global Design Award’ for its attractive packaging inspired by traditional art forms, officials said.

In his monthly radio broadcast ‘Mann Ki Baat’ on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the global honour for the social enterprise managed by the Nashik-headquartered Shabari Tribal Finance and Development Corporation (STFDC) and lauded the global recognition for the initiative.

The brand packaging includes Warli, Gond and Chitrakathi art as well as various legends of tribal culture. It has given a premium look to the products and brought the richness and sustainability of tribal life to global consumers through the design, the officials said.

India’s top-ranked doubles player Yuki Bhambri captured his first ATP Tour title of the 2026 season on Sunday, teaming up with American Ryan Seggerman to overcome Austria's top seeds Lucas Miedler and Neil Oberleitner in a thrilling Almaty Open final.

The fourth-seeded Indo-American pair prevailed 7-6(3), 6-7(1), [10-2] in the final of the ATP 250 tournament, securing Bhambri's fifth career doubles title on the ATP Tour.

The victory added another title to Bhambri's steadily growing ATP trophy collection, having previously won ATP 250 crowns in Mallorca in 2023, Gstaad and Munich in 2024, and the ATP 500 Dubai tournament in 2025.

An Indian wildlife photographer has earned international recognition for an image that captures an easily overlooked moment in the desert: a scorpion digging into the sand to escape the rising heat.

Sitaram Raul wins ‘Oscars of Wildlife Photography’

Sitaram Dinkar Raul won the Behaviour: Invertebrates category at the 2026 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, organised by London’s Natural History Museum. His photograph, titled Shifting Sand, was selected from more than 65,000 entries submitted from around the world.

Former Japanese prime minister Yasuo Fukuda, known for trying to build stable ties with China, has died at the age of 90, a ruling party official said on Monday.

Fukuda passed away on October 22, the official from the Liberal Democratic Party told AFP.

He led Japan for a year from September 2007 after replacing the late premier Shinzo Abe, who's first term ended after just 12 months.

During his stint in power, he sought to improve relations with China and invited then-Chinese president Hu Jintao to visit Japan.

Hu's trip in May 2008 made him the first Chinese head of state to visit the country in a decade.

Pavani Pasumarthi, a Carnatic music faculty member at Acharya Nagarjuna University (ANU), has received the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar from the Sangeet Natak Akademi for her contribution to Kuchipudi music.

The award was presented by Union Minister for Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat at a ceremony held at Rabindra Bhavan in New Delhi on October 19, 2026.