FIR Filed Against Arvind Sawant Over Derogatory Remarks Against Shaina NC

Punjab recorded 379 farm fires on Saturday, with Sangrur district witnessing the highest number of 66 such incidents, taking the total case count in the state past 3,900.

The state registered the current season's biggest spike in farm fires on Friday with 587 cases. Sangrur had reported the highest number of 79 cases.

From September 15 to November 2, the state has seen 3,916 farm-fire cases, according to data from the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre.

Ferozepur district reported 50 farm fires on Saturday, Tarn Taran 42, Amritsar 27, Bathinda 28, Moga 26, Patiala 21 and Kapurthala and Ludhiana 15 each.

The districts with farm-fire cases in single digits included Fazilka (one), Rupnagar (two), Hoshiarpur (two), Faridkot (six), Jalandhar (eight), Malerkotla (five), Barnala (six) and SBS Nagar (three).

Punjab reported 484 farm fires on Thursday, with Sangrur recording the highest number of 89 cases.

There has been a steep jump in the number of farm fires over the last few days.

The state recorded 219 farm fires on Tuesday, taking the season's count on that day to 2,356.

Paddy procurement is underway in the state.

Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana after the harvesting of the paddy crop in October-November is often blamed for the rise in air pollution levels in Delhi.

Hoshiarpur Deputy Commissioner Komal Mittal on Saturday visited Bhoolpur village in the district to raise awareness against stubble burning.

During her visit to the fields where stubble bales are being prepared, Mittal said that 32 teams have been formed to monitor and spread awareness against stubble burning, of which 10 are active specifically in the Tanda block of Hoshiarpur district.

Mittal, who was accompanied by Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Surendra Lamba and other officials, encouraged the farmers to manage paddy straw both in-situ and ex-situ, pointing to the various mechanised techniques available for handling crop residues.

She also said that district administration teams are visiting different blocks to educate the farmers on the harmful effects of stubble burning on soil fertility, the environment, and human health.

On Saturday, Punjab witnessed 379 farm fire cases though only two were reported from Hoshiarpur district.

On Friday, Punjab witnessed this season's biggest spike in farm fires with 587 cases being reported from across the state.

During her visit to the village, Mittal also interacted with the farmers, informing them of the administration's efforts to facilitate crop residue management by making the necessary machinery available.

In J-K's Budgam area, militants shoot two UP residents in the sixth terrorist attack since October 18.

The Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in Punjab has constituted five flying squads to ensure seamless and equitable availability of DAP and other fertilisers, quality seeds and pesticides for the Rabi season.

According to Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian, these teams will monitor supplies, maintain standards and ensure quality control through regular checking and sampling.

The flying squads will also conduct raids to check illegal hoarding and black marketing of fertilisers.

Khudian said in a statement that the flying squads will visit retail and wholesale dealers, as well as manufacturing and marketing units of seeds, fertilisers and pesticides to monitor the rates at which they are sold to the farmers.

Sharing data of the quality control drive undertaken by the agriculture department from April 1 to October 31, Khudian said the department has collected as many as 2,063 samples of pesticides, resulting in the cancellation of 43 licences for misbranding and registration of three FIRs.

Additionally, 1,751 samples of chemical fertilisers, 100 samples of biofertilisers and 40 samples of organic manures have been taken, according to the statement.

Samples collected in connection with the death of 10 elephants in a span of three days this week in Madhya Pradesh's Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve are being sent to ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute in Uttar Pradesh and the forensic laboratory in Sagar, an official said on Friday.

On Tuesday, four wild elephants were found dead in Sankhani and Bakeli under Khitoli range of the reserve, while four died on Wednesday and two on Thursday.

"We are sending all the samples we have collected from the field as well as organic, like viscera, liver, kidney etc to the IVRI in Izatnagar in UP's Bareli as well as the MP forensic laboratory in Sagar," Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) L Krishnamoorthy.

Eight people suffered burn injuries and six vehicles were gutted as 57 fire incidents due to bursting of firecrackers were reported here on Diwali night, officials said on Friday.

There were no reports of loss of life but property worth lakhs of rupees was destroyed in the fires.

Among the injured, five are receiving treatment in civil hospital, while three were referred to Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital, a senior officer said.

While most of the fires were reported from spots with garbage, two houses, a warehouse, a Mother Dairy booth and a salon also reported fires.

In around 30 spots, sparks from firecrackers caused fires in garbage kept nearby, the officer said.

"To control the incidents of arson in time, vehicles were deployed at ten places. There were no casualties in the fire incidents," said Gulshan Kalra, Deputy Director of the fire department.

A day after Diwali, the Gorakhnath temple here was lit up in memory of martyrs on Friday. The first lamp in the Bheem Sarovar area of the temple was lit by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Gorakshpeethadhishwar Yogi Adityanath.

The chief minister later paid an emotional tribute to the martyrs by putting flowers on their pictures on the Muktakashi stage, according to a press statement.

The Gorakhnath temple complex hosted the 'Ek Diya Shaheedon Ke Naam' programme on Friday evening. The atmosphere was radiant with the glow of 11,000 earthen lamps as Adityanath ceremoniously inaugurated the event.

Punjab on Friday witnessed the current season's biggest spike in farm fires with 587 total cases being reported across the state.

From September 15 till November 1, Punjab has seen 3,537 farm fire cases, according to the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre data.

Among the districts, Sangrur reported 79 cases, Ferozepur saw 70 farm fire cases, Tarn Taran 59, Amritsar 40, Bathinda 34, Kapurthala 43, Mansa 47 and Patiala 40.

Fazilka, Rupnagar and Pathankot reported an incident each of farm fire.

The previous highest spike of the current season was reported on Thursday with 484 cases, with Sangrur district reporting a maximum of 89 cases followed by Ferozepur with 65 cases and Mansa with 40 cases.

Notably, there has been a steep jump in farm fire incidents during the past few days.

Punjab had recorded 219 fresh farm fire incidents on Tuesday, taking the season's count on that day to 2,356.

Paddy procurement is underway in Punjab.

Around 528 candidates are in the fray for the second phase of Jharkhand assembly polls after 32 aspirants withdrew their nominations on Friday, an election official said.

In all, 38 assembly constituencies will go to polls in the second phase on November 20.

Initially, 634 aspirants submitted nomination papers from October 22 to 29, but after scrutiny, 74 nominations were rejected. On Friday, 32 candidates withdrew their papers leaving 528 nominees in the fray, Chief Electoral Officer K. Ravi Kumar said.

Dhanwar assembly constituency registered the highest number of candidates at 24, while Deoghar recorded the lowest at 7, he said.

In 2019, 583 candidates from 38 seats contested the polls.

Disgruntled BJP leader and former Jharkhand minister Satyanand Jha 'Batul' also withdrew his nomination on Friday, reportedly following a meeting with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who urged him to step aside in favour of the BJP.

The elections to the 81-member assembly will take place in two phases on November 13 and 20, with counting of votes to take place on November 23.

In all, 1,211 candidates are vying for the 81 assembly seats.

For the first round, 683 candidates, including 73 women and one transgender, are set to contest 43 seats.

The air quality in Delhi remained in the "very poor" category on Friday, despite relentless bursting of firecrackers during Diwali celebrations the previous day, thanks to above-normal temperatures and favourable winds that helped in the dispersion of pollutants.

A thick layer of haze blanketed the national capital, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) recorded at 362 at 9 am as people defied a citywide ban on firecrackers on Diwali.

However, the condition improved and the city's 24-hour average AQI recorded at 4 pm was 339, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The capital also saw an increase in the noise-pollution levels between 6 pm and midnight on Diwali, data from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) showed.

It was anticipated that Delhi's air quality would enter the "severe" category due to the bursting of firecrackers on Diwali, but it remained "very poor".

"Despite the ban, firecrackers were burst in Delhi-NCR. However, the air quality did not reach the severe category as the winds helped improve the situation," environmentalist Vimalendu Jha told PTI.

Jha, however, said in the coming days, there is a possibility of a spike in pollution levels in the capital due to unfavourable weather conditions.

On Friday, the maximum temperature was recorded at 33.6 degrees Celsius, three notches above normal, while the minimum temperature settled at 18.4 degrees Celsius, 2.3 notches above normal.

Of the 40 weather-monitoring stations in the city, 32 recorded "very poor" air quality, the data showed.

After Diwali celebrations in the national capital left the streets littered with firecracker waste, Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi directed officials to undertake an immediate clean-up of specific parts of the city.

Oberoi held a high-level meeting on Friday with additional commissioner, deputy commissioners and sanitation superintendents of all 12 zones of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to review the city's cleanliness following Diwali fireworks.

She directed officials to ensure clearance of garbage from parts of the city that had more firecracker remnants, besides regular lifting of waste, the civic body said in a statement.

The mayor also expressed concern over the inadequate number of sanitation workers on the ground, particularly during the festival season.

Himachal Pradesh witnessed the third driest October in 123 years with 97 per cent rain deficit as the state received 0.7 mm of rain against a normal of 25.1 mm, the weather department said on Friday.

As per the data, Hamirpur, Bilaspur, Solan, Sirmaur, Kullu and Chamba received 100 per cent deficient rain, Shimla and Lahaul-Spiti 99 per cent, Kinnaur 98 per cent, Kangra 94 per cent, Mandi 83 per cent, and Una 54 per cent in the month of October.

With weak rainfall activity on most days, Himachal Pradesh received the third lowest rainfall in the month of October since 1901.

The highest rainfall in the month of October was recorded in 1955 at 413.5 mm, the Met department said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Koksar in Lahaul-Spiti received traces of snow on October 9 and 10.

The weather remained mainly dry across the state on most of the days barring October 6 when some areas witnessed widespread rain.

“Chhath Puja is an important festival. Unfortunately, it won’t be possible to celebrate it this time. I took a dip in Yamuna a few days ago and exposed that the entire river is poisonous,” says Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva.

“Diwali and Chhath are very special festivals, in which we see a huge surge of passengers in Indian Railways. Last time we did a record of 4,500 special trains. This year, we have exceeded that record to 7,435 specials. Very elaborate arrangements have been made. Holding areas are being created. Ticketing machines are provided outside the stations. We are also involving the civil society organisations,” says Union Minister of Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw as he visits New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS).

"India is the world's fastest growing economy, and that's why we need to implement uniform civil code. Besides, we also need to implement NRC," says Union Minister Giriraj Singh

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday said the Congress stands "badly exposed" in front of people for promising to them what the party knows it will never be able to deliver.

Modi launched a fierce attack on the opposition party as he seized on its president Mallikarjun Kharge's comments that the Congress' state units should make promises that are properly budgeted and do not lead to financial troubles amid reports of fiscal problems the party-ruled states are facing in keeping some of their pre-poll announcements.

The prime minister said, "The Congress party is realising the hard way that making unreal promises is easy but implementing them properly is tough or impossible. Campaign after campaign they promise things to the people which they also know they will never be able to deliver. Now, they stand badly exposed in front of the people!"

“It’s an irreplaceable loss. His sudden death is unfortunate and not only BJP, but the entire Jammu and Kashmir is hurt,” says J&K BJP president Ravinder Raina as he attends the last rights of party MLA Devender Singh Rana at Shastri Nagar cremation ground in Jammu.

Last rites of BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana being performed at Shastri Nagar cremation ground in Jammu. 

He passed away at a private hospital in Haryana's Faridabad on Thursday.

"The Mumbai Police has registered an FIR under BNS Section 79 and Section 356(2). When you outrage the modesty of a woman, do you think that she will stay silent? Women of Maharashtra will give a befitting reply to this," says Shiv Sena candidate from Mumbadevi, Shaina NC on filing an FIR against Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Arvind Sawant over his controversial remarks.

"Wishing you a joyful #Diwali! Just as the cosmos lights up our universe with endless wonder, Diwali illuminates our homes and hearts. In this image, @NASAHubble captures a hotbed of star formation within M17, aka the Omega Nebula," posts NASA

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has directed the administration to set up old-age homes at places of religious importance in the state, including Ujjain, Orchha, Omkareshwar and Chitrakoot.

He also asked it to provide all the facilities required for the elderly people and reserve beds in hospitals for the individuals residing in old-age homes.

The chief minister celebrated Diwali with the inmates of Anand Dham old-age home here on Thursday. Speaking on the occasion, he said, "Parents are considered next to God. Though my parents have gone to Devlok (heaven), by coming to Anand Dham, I feel that I am with my parents only." According to an official, the chief minister directed the social justice and empowerment department to set up old-age homes at places of religious importance, like Ujjain, Orchha, Omkareshwar and Chitrakoot with all necessary facilities for the elderly persons.

CM Yadav also directed officials to reserve beds in hospitals for elderly persons residing in the government-run Anand Dham, especially for those whose children work abroad, in case of need.

The BJP on Friday claimed Delhi's air quality had worsened due to AAP and Arvind Kejriwal's failure to repair the city's damaged roads by October 31 and not the firecrackers burst on Diwali.

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta, who visited the Shastri Park area on Friday, claimed hundreds of roads in the city were lying in disrepair despite promises by former chief minister Kejriwal and his successor Atishi to repair them before Diwali.

"AAP should stop indulging in politics and blame game and focus on local sources of pollution such as dust that are more responsible for the hazardous air quality in Delhi," Gupta said.

Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah arrives at the residence of BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana in Jammu. 

59-year-old Rana, BJP MLA from Jammu and Kashmir's Nagrota and brother of Union minister Jitendra Singh, passed away on Thursday at a private hospital in Haryana's Faridabad. Rana was undergoing treatment at the hospital. He is survived by his wife, Gunjan Rana, their daughters Devyani and Ketki, and son Adhiraj Singh.

Shiv Sena leader Shaina NC arrives at Mumbai's Nagpada Police Station to file an FIR against Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Arvind Sawant over his controversial remark.  

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju interacted with Chinese soldiers at Bumla Pass as he celebrated Diwali with Indian Army personnel in Arunachal Pradesh's Tawang district.

"After talking to Chinese soldiers and seeing the infrastructures, everyone will feel proud of India's border development now," he said in his post on X.

Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami visits Kedarnath Temple.

KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed grief over the death of noted economist Bibek Debroy on Friday describing him as a "brilliant son of Bengal and a scholar of repute"

Debroy, chairman of Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM), died in New Delhi.

The Indian Army began patrolling at Demchok on Friday, days after Indian and Chinese troops completed disengagement at the two friction points in eastern Ladakh, Army sources said.

A boy was seriously injured when an object he was playing with exploded in the southern part of Kolkata's Patuli area on Friday, police said.The class 9 boy found the object in a playground and thought it was a ball.      The boy was admitted to a Baghajatin State General Hospital.

 ISRO on Friday said that its analogue space mission has taken off at Leh in Ladakh.This mission will simulate life in an interplanetary habitat to tackle the challenges of a base station beyond Earth, the space agency said in a post on 'X'."India's first analog space mission kicks off in Leh!" ISRO said.

'Congress Makes Reckless Announcements': Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad

 Senior bureaucrat Rajesh Kumar Singh took over as defence secretary on Friday.The 1989-batch IAS officer from the Kerala cadre assumed charge at the South Block, where the ministry is housed.Before taking charge, Singh laid a wreath and paid homage to the fallen heroes at the National War Memorial.

The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on Diwali:

“Today, we join millions of people in Canada and around the world to celebrate Diwali.

“Diwali celebrates the triumph of good over evil, of knowledge over ignorance. On this day, families will gather to pray at mandirs, exchange gifts, and take part in festivities across the country. Homes will be lit with candles and diyas. Fireworks will embrace the sky. This is a holiday of hope, and the bright lights of Diwali encourage us all to defeat darkness and find purpose.

Around 25 garment shops were gutted in a fire that broke out in a market in Odisha's Bhubaneswar during Diwali celebrations early on Friday, police said.No one was injured in the incident but garments were damaged due to the fire, a senior officer said."Around 25 garment shops were severely damaged in the fire that engulfed the underground market at Unit-I Market Building area late on Diwali night," he said.

Two persons were killed in a head-on collision between two cars in Assam's Guwahati on Friday, police said.Two persons were also injured in the collision that took place early in the day on GS Road in Khanapara area when one of the two SUVs was making a U-turn and the other was coming from the opposite direction, a senior officer said.

Kolkata Police arrested 292 people for bursting banned firecrackers and disorderly conduct from different parts of the city, an officer said on Friday.The police also seized over 500 kg of banned firecrackers on Thursday, the officer said.Kali Puja and Diwali were celebrated in West Bengal on Thursday, with colourful lights and decorated pandals creating a festive spirit across the state.

nion Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday greeted the people of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Haryana, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh on their statehood day, saying they had contributed immensely to nation-building.In separate messages on X, Shah expressed hope that the states would continue the journey of progress and development uninterrupted in the coming years.

Chairman of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council and Economist Bibek Debroy passed away at 69.

Dr. Bibek Debroy is an economist and was educated in Ramakrishna Mission School, Narendrapur; Presidency College, Kolkata; Delhi School of Economics and Trinity College, Cambridge. Presently, he is Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, Government of India.

The nomination papers of 7,994 candidates filed across the 288 assembly constituencies in Maharashtra, where polling will take place on November 20, were found valid after scrutiny, election officials have said.

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday expressed shock at the death of BJP MLA and veteran Jammu and Kashmir leader Devender Singh Rana.

The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) has received over 300 calls reporting fire-related accidents on Diwali. As per an official on  Friday no life threatening cases were reported. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday greeted the people of Karnataka on their state formation day - 'Kannada Rajyotsava'.Taking to the social media platform 'X', he said that 'Kannada Rajyotsava' is a very special occasion, recognising the exemplary culture and traditions of Karnataka.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Friday conveyed his foundation day greetings to the residents of Kerala, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, highlighting each state's unique cultural heritage and spirituality.     The chief minister took to social media platform X to convey his greetings in Hindi.

A 40-year-old man and his teenaged nephew were shot dead while his 10-year-old son was injured after two armed men opened fire outside their residence in Delhi's Shahdara on Thursday, an official said.
While Akash Sharma alias Chottu and his nephew, Rishabh Sharma (16), were killed in the incident, Krish Sharma (10) sustained bullet injuries, the official said, adding that the victims were celebrating Diwali outside their house in Shahdara's Farsh Bazar area when they were attacked around 8 pm.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday greeted the people of Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Haryana and Chhattisgarh on their states' formation day.

In posts on X, PM Modi highlighted various features of these states as he extended his wishes to the people living there.

PM Modi noted that Madhya Pradesh is blessed with bountiful natural resources and cultural heritage and described Chhattisgarh as a state known for its impressive folk traditions and tribal culture, wishing the states continued development.

Oil marketing companies have revised the prices of commercial LPG gas cylinders. The rate of 19 KG commercial LPG gas cylinders has been increased by Rs 62 with effect from today. 

India has launched its updated biodiversity action plan with a goal to protect at least 30 percent of its terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas by 2030, in line with global biodiversity targets.The updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), unveiled at the 16th UN Biodiversity Conference in Cali, Colombia, outlines 23 national targets aligned with the 23 global goals set under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM-GBF), which was adopted at the 15th UN Biodiversity Conference in Canada in 2022.

Several places in Haryana reported air quality index (AQI) in the 'poor' and 'very poor' categories on Diwali night on Thursday.Many places in Punjab as well as in the Union Territory of Chandigarh reported air quality index in the 'poor' category. 

At least 78 calls regarding fire incidents were received by the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) on Thursday evening, an official said."These calls were received between 4 pm and 9 pm. No major incident was reported from anywhere except two people getting injured in a fire on a bus," a DFS official said.