SC Adjourns Hearing For Oct 4 In Tirupati Laddu Case

India on Thursday welcomed the UK's decision to hand over the sovereignty of Chagos Islands including strategically located tropical atoll of Diego Garcia to Mauritius under a historic agreement.The UK is giving up the rights of the islands after more than 50 years which London said demonstrated its commitment to safeguarding global security and averting threats to peace in the Indian Ocean and wider Indo-Pacific.

Two wagons of a goods train derailed near a railway yard in Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday night, an official said.Though no one was hurt in the incident, it had affected rail traffic on the down line, he added."Efforts are on to restore the route," the official said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security on Thursday to discuss the outbreak of fresh hostilities in West Asia, sources said. The sources said the West Asia conflict and its impact on trade and supply of petroleum products was discussed in the meeting.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said he was "extremely glad" the Union Cabinet has conferred classical language status on Assamese, Bengali, Marathi, Pali and Prakrit, and asserted his government cherishes India's rich history and culture.The government said classical languages serve as a custodian of Bharat's profound and ancient cultural heritage, embodying the essence of each community's historical and cultural milestone.

 The ceasefire with Pakistan along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir has sustained and exceptions to any activity taken by the other side is brought to notice through various means, a top Army officer said on Thursday. Speaking at a press conference, General Officer Commanding (GoC) of the Army's strategic Srinagar-based Chinar Corps, Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, said when the ceasefire understanding with Pakistan came into effect at the beginning of the year 2021, the situation was tenuous on the northern borders with China

 The government on Thursday approved National Mission on Edible Oils-Oilseeds with an outlay of Rs 10,103 crore to boost domestic production and make India self sufficient in cooking oils. India imports more than 50 per cent of its annual edible oil requirement. "The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the National Mission on Edible Oils-Oilseeds (NMEO-Oilseeds), a landmark initiative aimed at boosting domestic oilseed production and achieving self-reliance in edible oils," an official statement said.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Central government’s decision to accord the “classical language” tag to Marathi.The Union Cabinet has approved conferring classical language status to Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese and Bengali languages.

 The Union Cabinet on Thursday  approved payment of productivity linked bonus of 78 days for Rs 2028.57 crore to over 11.72 lakh railway employees, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said. The amount will be paid to various categories of Railway staff like track maintainers, loco pilots, train managers (guards), station masters, supervisors, technicians, technician helpers, pointsman, ministerial staff and other Group XC staff, an official statement said later.

The first state-sponsored leopard census conducted in Odisha has revealed the presence of 696 leopards in different forest areas of the state, officials said.The census report was released by the state’s Forest, Environment and Climate Change Minister Ganesh Ram Singh Khuntia during an event to celebrate the State Wildlife Week here on Thursday.

The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday directed the CBI to take over the investigation into the role of police officers in Dhanbad, alleged to have been involved in the illegal mining and sale of coal in the district.Justice Sanjay Kumar Dwivedi, while pronouncing his judgement in a case filed by a journalist, said the allegations leveled in the petition are fit to be investigated by the central probe agency.

 Rupee depreciated 14 paise to settle at 83.96 against the US dollar on Thursday, as volatile geopolitical situation triggered a surge in crude oil prices and dragged down by a steep fall of over two per cent in domestic equity markets. According to forex traders, a strong American currency and unabated outflow of foreign funds fuelled by the bullish Chinese markets also accelerated the rupee's slide.

Several doctors' associations condemned the murder of a 55-year-old medic on Thursday, saying "doctors are sitting on deathbeds" and called for immediate action to ensure their safety. According to police, Javed Akhtar, a Unani (BUMS) practitioner was shot dead in his hospital cabin at NIMA Hospital in southeast Delhi's Kalindi Kunj area around 1.45 am. The accused, both juveniles, had come for treatment.

India and Nepal will work closely to initiate operations against tiger trafficking networks smuggling animal parts to China, officials said on Thursday.The two countries will use Interpol channels to collaborate with law enforcement agencies in other countries affected by the illicit trade to tackle the networks, they said.

 Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday said that a Draft Sports Policy, aimed at "modernizing and updating" the current framework in line with India's evolving sporting landscape, has been released for public consultation. Mandaviya informed that the draft has been released on the ministry's website and added that the stakeholders, including the governments of states and union territories, as well as the general public, are invited to submit their feedback.

 German NSA Jens Plötner on Thursday held separate talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar as part of preparation for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's trip to India later this month.Scholz is visiting India to hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi under the framework of India-Germany Inter Governmental Commission (IGC).

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, despite being an MP from whom "high degree of responsibility" is expected, did not take "care and caution" while making certain statements, a Mumbai court said while convicting him in a defamation case filed by BJP leader Kirit Somaiya's wife Medha Somaiya.

A court here on Thursday sent to 14-day judicial custody two persons arrested in a case related to the killing of a Delhi Police constable, who was allegedly mowed down by a car and dragged along for 10 metres. The judge sent Dharmender and Rajnish to custody after they were produced before the court on expiry of their police custody granted earlier.

In a landmark verdict, the Supreme Court on Thursday banned caste-based discrimination like division of manual labour, segregation of barracks and bias against prisoners of de-notified tribes and habitual offenders by holding as "unconstitutional" the jail manual rules of 10 states for fostering such biases.

Eight people were arrested here for allegedly preparing to organise a procession without permission and raising slogans against the killing of Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut, police said on Thursday.The arrests were made on Wednesday night in the Jais police station area, Inspector Rajol Singh said.

In a setback to the BJP, senior party leader and former MP Ashok Tanwar joined the Congress at Rahul Gandhi's rally in Mahendragarh district in Haryana on Thursday, two days before the state goes to polls.As Gandhi was winding up his speech at the rally in Bhawaria, an announcement was made from the stage asking the audience to wait for a few minutes.

Voter turnout of 69.69 per cent has been recorded in phase-3 of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls, with women outnumbering men in casting votes, the Election Commission said on Thursday. Overall, 63.88 per cent turnout has been recorded at polling stations, as against 58.58 per cent in the Lok Sabha polls, the poll panel noted.

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tanked over 2 per cent each on Thursday, dragged by a decline in heavyweight stocks Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank and spiralling conflict in the Middle East. Falling for the fourth day running, the BSE Sensex tumbled 1,769.19 points or 2.10 per cent to settle at 82,497.10. During the day, it plummeted 1,832.27 points or 2.17 per cent to 82,434.02.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on Thursday told the Delhi High Court that climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and his associates have been released from detention.The senior law officer also said that the Delhi Police order prohibiting assembly and protests in various parts of Delhi has also been withdrawn.

Gold and Silver prices rebounded on Thursday due to fresh demand from stockists and retail consumers for the ongoing festival. The precious metal rose Rs 200 to revisit the all-time high level of Rs 78,300 per 10 grams, according to the All India Sarafa Association.

Supreme Court adjourns for October 4 the hearing of a batch of petitions seeking a court-monitored investigation into the allegations of use of animal fat to make laddus to serve as prasadam at the Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh, where Lord Venkateswara is worshipped.

EAM Dr S Jaishankar will be visiting Sri Lanka on Friday, October 4, to strengthen ties between the two countries. 

On Thursday, October 3, a 22-year-old man was allegedly killed and another injured after some people stabbed them following an altercation in West Delhi.

Amid reports of some terrorists hiding in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district, security forces on Thursday launched an anti-terror operation in the Chatroo area. According to reports, an exchange of fire between terrorists and security forces was also underway.

Security forces have launched searches in upper reaches of kishtwar districtto nab them. Notably, this is the same area where terrorists attacked Indian Army patrol on September 13 in which Army personnel lost their lives.

The BJP launched a scathing at Congress over Rs 5,000 crore drug haul's mastermind's link with the party.

BJP spokesperson and MP Sudhanshu Trivedi said that "Yesterday in Delhi, drugs worth Rs 5,600 crores were seized. This quantity is important as during the UPA government (2006-2013) only drugs worth Rs 768 crores were seized across India."

"The BJP government from 2014-2022 has seized drugs worth Rs 22,000 crore. The main accused and kingpin in the drug syndicate, Tushar Goyal is the chief of Indian Youth Congress RTI Cell...What relations does the Congress party have with him (Tushar Goyal)?... Was this money being used in elections by the Congress party?... Does some leaders of the Congress have any arrangements with the drug peddlers?... Congress especially the Hooda family should reply what is your connection with Tushar Goyal?..." he added further

The Supreme Court on Thursday, October 3, put a stay on the Madras High Court's order which sought a report from the Tamil Nadu government on all criminal cases registered against Sadhguru and Isha Foundation. Furthermore, the apex court has transferred the case to itself and asked the police to file a status report. 

Sadhuguru's Isha Foundation moved the Supreme Court to challenge the Madra High Court's order which sought a report from the Tamil Nadu government on all the criminal cases against him and the organisation. 

The Enforcement Directorate summoned activist Snehamayi Krishna, who is a petitioner in the alleged MUDA scam and asked him to produce all the documents and records pertaining in the case. 

Pankaj Yadav, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) senior leader and State General Secretary was shot by criminals during his morning walk in Munger.

The attack occurred early on Thursday morning while Yadav was walking near Munger Airport, after leaving his home in Navtolia.

Travellers faced difficulty on Wednesday after services were halted on Delhi Metro's Blue Line for over 30 minutes after a drone was spotted lying on the tracks between Uttam Nagar East and Uttam Nagar West metro stations, as per the officials, PTI reported.

The train services, however, were regulated from 2:50 pm to 3:29 pm and the drone was removed from the tracks.

During this period, train services were not available between Uttam Nagar East and Uttam Nagar West.

The death toll in the blast at a firecracker factory in UP's village rose to 5 after two more people succumbed to their injuries.  

The explosion that occurred in the Sirauli Police Station area around 4 pm also caused damage to some adjoining buildings.

Police said they are verifying the cracker unit licence.

Given the upcoming elections, the Aam Janata Party (AAP) witnessed a setback to AAP after it's Nilokheri (reserve) seat candidate Amar Singh joined the Congress.

After joining the party, Singh on Wednesday said only Congress can defeat the BJP government which has been "unjust to farmers, women, Dalits, and minorities".

A doctor was shot dead by two individuals at Nima Hospital in Jaitpur area of the national capital, said police on Thursday morning.  

The locality where the shooting incident took place falls under the jurisdiction of Kalindi Kunj police station.

On the first day of Navratri, a long queue of devotees was seen to offer prayers at Vaishno Devi temple in Jammu and Kashmir's Katra.

A class 9 student lost his life after being knocked down by an excavator in south Kolkata’s Bansdroni area on Wednesday morning, said police. The incident took place near the Dinesh Nagar auto stand when the boy was heading to his tuition classes. Local residents took the boy to Bangur Hospital in Tollygunge, but he was declared dead upon arrival by doctors.

The Supreme Court will resume hearing on Tirupati laddu case on Thursday, October 3.