A male leopard was captured about 40 hours after it escaped from a quarantine centre located near a zoo in Pune on Tuesday night in a multi-team operation involving at least 100 personnel and deploying thermal drone cameras, an official said.

The big cat entered one of the cages set up to trap the animal with bait at around 9:15 pm, he said.

"Officials found the leopard missing from the quarantine centre situated near the Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Park at around 9 am on Monday, following which an extensive search operation involving over 100 personnel from the zoo, quarantine centre, forest department, and fire department. Multiple thermal drone cameras were deployed to trace the wild animal," the Pune civic body official said.

The leopard, born at a zoo in Karnataka, was recently brought to the zoological park in Katraj area of Pune, he added.

 A labourer died and three were injured when a mound of mud fell on them at a construction site in the South City 1 area here on Tuesday, police said.

All four labourers are part of the same family. The injured have been hospitalised, they said.

Eleven labourers, including Lala Ram alias Lalu, his wife Nirmala alias Lali and two other family members Monika and Sonia, were engaged in digging work at the construction site when the mound of mud fell on them around 3 pm, police said.

The other labourers informed police.

The four labourers were pulled out after an hour-long rescue operation. They were taken to a hospital where Monika was declared dead. The other three are undergoing treatment and are said to be out of danger, police said.

 In an apparent reference to the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said it was time to "liberate" Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar from "new Nizams".

Speaking at a rally in the central Maharashtra city, he also targeted opposition parties for promoting dynasties, and claimed that Congress leader Sonia Gandhi wanted to make her son Rahul Gandhi prime minister.

"The entire Marathwada region was under the Nizam rule. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel liberated Marathwada from Nizam, and now it is time to liberate Sambhajinagar from the new Nizams," Shah said.

In the 2019 general elections, AIMIM's Imtiyaz Jaleel defeated undivided Shiv Sena's Chandrakant Khaire, supported by the BJP.

"Sonia Gandhi wants to make her son Rahul prime minister of the country. Sharad Pawar wants to make his daughter chief minister of Maharashtra. How can the heads of political parties who are helping only their family members ever do anything to benefit their country or make Bharat safe?" the BJP leader further said.

The people of Maharashtra gave the Bharatiya Janata Party (and its ally Shiv Sena) more than 41 out of 48 Lok Sabha seats in 2014 and 2019, Shah said, adding, "I want more than 45 Lok Sabha seats this time." Coming down heavily on former ally Uddhav Thackeray, Shah said, "Uddhav Thackeray should be ashamed of joining hands with those who opposed the surgical strike." Thackeray parted ways with the BJP in 2019 and formed a government in the state with the Congress and undivided NCP.

Targeting Sharad Pawar further, Shah said the NCP leader and his allies should have a debate about their achievements of the last 40 years when they were in power, against the achievements of the Narendra Modi government in the last ten years.

Any worker of the BJP youth wing was ready to have an open debate with Sharad Pawar, and "our work of ten years will definitely carry the day," he said.

From 2004 to 2014, the UPA government gave Rs 1.91 lakh crore to Maharashtra, while the Modi government gave Rs 7.15 lakh crore to the state, the Union minister claimed.

Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis criticised Uddhav Thackeray over the renaming of Aurangabad as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, claiming that Thackeray "tried to take the decision" to rename the city only on the last day of his government, on the day it lost majority.

"But we took the decision in the very first cabinet meeting, and it was sent to the Center. Home Minister Amit Shah approved it," Fadnavis said.

The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of the Customs on Tuesday seized about 368 grams of gold worth more than Rs 20 lakh from a beautician after she landed at Indore airport from Sharjah, an official said.

Acting on specific inputs, the AIU of Indore Customs Commissionerate intercepted the female passenger who travelled on an Air India Express flight.

The woman was hiding the sprayed gold powder between the layers of the leggings she was wearing during the journey, the official said.

The woman, a resident of Delhi, claimed to have brought the foreign gold to India for her financial gain.

Further investigation is underway.

Smuggling of gold in any form is restricted under the Customs Act, of 1962, the official added. 

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday inaugurated a Rs 15-crore Shiitake Mushroom and Training Centre in Upper Shillong.

The project is being funded by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Ministry of DoNER and the Meghalaya government.

Speaking on the occasion, Sangma said around 1,000 farmers will benefit from the mushroom centre.

He said Shiitake Mushrooms can be farmed in three cycles every year, with income generation of Rs 1 lakh per cycle.

"With a basic calculation, we can derive that in just three years our farmers will be able to earn revenue of around Rs 117 crore," he said.

He encouraged the farmers to take up Shiitake Mushroom farming as it requires less space and basic maintenance.

He asserted that there is a market for Shiitake Mushroom and the state would be able to supply to the rest of the country.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought details of the persons arrested by Pune police in the last month's mephedrone drug haul case, a senior official said here on Tuesday.

City police in February seized more than 1700 kilograms of mephedrone valued at about Rs 3600 crore in illicit markets across Pune, Delhi, and Sangli. Eleven persons, including the owner of a manufacturing unit in Kurkumbh MIDC (near Pune) where the contraband was allegedly produced, were apprehended.

"We received a letter from the ED on Monday, seeking information about the accused. Given the magnitude of the drug racket, it was expected that the ED would seek details," said the crime branch officer.

The central agency asked for information about the accused, their bank accounts and the locations where searches were conducted. "Based on the information, the agency will investigate money trails and suspected hawala transactions involving the accused," added the officer.

Police have arrested 11 persons in the case so far, with five now in judicial custody and six in police custody. "Four suspects, including the mastermind Sandip Dhunay who has fled the country, are wanted in the case," he said.

 Gautam Buddh Nagar District Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma on Tuesday raised concern over low cash-deposit ratio in several banks of Noida and Greater Noida, directing officials to send letters to regional managers of all such branches.

The DM raised the concern at a meeting with the bankers in Surajpur held to discuss the various government schemes and loan facilities extended to the eligible beneficiaries, according to an official statement.

"During the review process in the meeting, the District Magistrate found that the cash-deposit (CD) ratio of the district was 66.19 per cent in the last quarter, for which he appreciated the work of the officers concerned but also noted that the CD ratio of many bank branches is 'very less' -- even less than 60 per cent," the statement said.

"In this regard, he has given strict instructions that a letter should be sent by the district administration to the regional manager of the banks whose CD ratio is less," it added.

A gang of cyber fraudsters was busted with the arrest of three of its members from Rajasthan for allegedly cheating people on the pretext of providing better investment opportunities, police said here on Tuesday. A minor was also apprehended.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (Cyber) Priyanshu Dewan said the matter came to light when a Gurugram resident filed a complaint at the Manesar police station of having been duped of Rs 1 lakh.

According to the police, the gang's mastermind Yogesh Meena of Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district was training people to commit cyber frauds. He would teach them methods to commit fraud via various messaging and social media apps.

The other two people arrested have been identified as Dayaram alias Diyaram Meena (19) and Vikas Meena (21), the ACP said.

Three men have been booked in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district for circulating fake threat messages from a terrorist commander to implicate two acquaintances in a false terror case, officials said on Tuesday.

Jahangir Ahmed, a Malikot resident, complained to the police that he had received a threat from an area commander of a terrorist organisation, warning him of dire consequences over some matrimonial issue, they said.

During the investigation, the needle of suspicion started to turn towards the complainant.

"It was found that the complainant along with two more men hatched a conspiracy to implicate their rivals Shokat Ali and Bashir Ahmed in a false terror case," a police official said.

The accused created a fake terror threat message by impersonating a terror commander, allegedly known to Shokat Ali and Bashir Ahmed, and circulated it from one mobile phone to another to give it a realistic look, the official added.

The New Delhi Municipal Council in a meeting on Tuesday approved providing piped water connection in slum clusters, funds for construction and demolition waste disposal and cleaning of Kushak drain, officials said.

Addressing a press conference, New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) vice-chairman Satish Upadhyay said the council has approved the draft of the Right of Way policy for underground infrastructure and over-ground telecommunication infrastructure.

It also approved the proposal of creating posts of an additional five senior residents and four junior residents for the Dental Care Clinic on Dharam Marg in view of increasing numbers of patients, he said.

"Through 'Har Ghar Jal Yojana', water supply will be provided to every JJ cluster households in the NDMC area. Rs 12.73 crore has been accorded for the work of individual piped water connections in the JJ cluster and remaining unauthorised colonies under the AMRUT 2.0 scheme. The work has been initiated in Sanjay Gandhi Camp and Vivekananda Camp.

Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma said on Tuesday that the ZPM government will introduce a new healthcare scheme by scrapping the existing scheme.

During a general discussion on the state's budget, Lalduhoma said the proposed new healthcare scheme will provide cashless health insurance to beneficiaries.

The existing Mizoram State Health Care Scheme introduced by the Zoramthanga-led Mizo National Front (MNF) government in 2019, will be abolished, he said.

The new healthcare scheme, which is being chalked out, will be much better than the existing scheme, he said.

The chief minister also said the government has released Rs 50 crore on Tuesday to clear all pending healthcare bills as more than Rs 45 crore was pending for release to the beneficiaries.

 The Haryana Cabinet on Tuesday granted approval for the formulation of a policy for giving proprietary rights for residential plots to occupants in four villages in Hisar district, an official statement.

Under the policy, occupants with constructed dwellings on more than 234 acres of Government Livestock Farm land, as of March 31, 2023, in Hisar will be eligible for ownership rights.

These villages are Dhandoor, Peeranwali, Jhiri (Chikanwas), and Babran (Basti and Diggi Tal), according to a statement issued after a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.

The residents who have raised construction on an area of up to 250 square yards of land will be granted ownership rights after paying a fee of Rs 2000 per square yard.

Those who have constructed a house on an area ranging from 250 square yards to 500 square yards will receive ownership rights upon payment of Rs 3,000 per square yard.

Two Naxalites, one of them carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head, on Tuesday surrendered before the police and security forces in Sukma district in Chhattisgarh, an official said.

Podiyam Ganga (36) and Uika Nanda (23) turned themselves in, citing disappointment with the "hollow" and "inhuman" Maoist ideology, he said.

Ganga, who carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh, was the president of Gachchanpalli Panchayat Dandakaranya Adivasi Kisan Majdoor Sangh (DAKMS) under the Burklanka Revolutionary People's Council (RPC) of the outlawed Maoist organization, the official said.

Nanda was active as a medical team/party member under the Partapur Area Committee, he added.

They will be rehabilitated as per the state government's rehabilitation policy, he said.

 Kerala is poised to make waves in the digital entertainment realm with the launch of CSpace, India's inaugural government-backed OTT platform.

Set to debut this Thursday, the platform aims to deliver a unique blend of informative and entertaining content tailored for the masses, an official statement said here on Tuesday.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will launch the OTT platform at Kairali Theatre on March 7 at 9.30 am. Cultural Affairs Minister Saji Cherian will preside.

"CSpace is essentially a response to the growing imbalances and multifarious challenges in the OTT sector in terms of content selection and propagation," said Shaji N Karun, noted film director and Chairman, Kerala State Film Development Corporation (KSFDC), at a press conference here.

Asserting that women empowerment has been a pivotal focus of the NDA government at the Centre, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that India was moving ahead with the vision of women-led development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

She was speaking after inaugurating a credit outreach programme at the Jai Prakash University in Bihar's Saran district.

"Our PM has done a lot for the empowerment of women in the country, be it providing them with gas cylinders under Ujjwala Yojana, constructing houses and toilets in villages or getting the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam passed in Parliament. Today, the entire world is accepting the fact that the women of India are progressing a lot under the leadership of Modi ji," she said.

Three people, including a seven-year-old girl, died and six were injured when their speeding car collided with a stationary truck here on Tuesday, police said.

Circle Officer (CO), Sirathu, Awadhesh Kumar Vishwakarma said the occupants of the car were returning after attending a wedding when their driver fell asleep and crashed the vehicle into the truck parked on the roadside near the Kasiya village under the Kokhraj police station area.

The injured passengers were taken to the district hospital, where three of them -- Divyanshi (7), Harendra Sharma (55) and Rajkumar (45) -- were declared brought dead, the CO said.

Of the six injured, four were seriously wounded and admitted to a hospital in Prayagraj, Vishwakarma said.

He said a case has been registered in the matter.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday attacked the Congress, saying it was 'scared' to promote young leaders and appeared to take a veiled dig at AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge when he said the party was appointing people over 75-80 years.

Modi,who addressed a BJP rally here arrived at the venue in an open-top four-wheeler and was given a grand welcome by the people who strew flower petals on him.

In his address, Modi also said the "dynastic parties" were targeting him as he was exposing their "scams worth several thousands of crores of rupees." Modi said he never made any personal attack but raised his voice against dynasty politics.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday thanked the Supreme Court for dismissing a money laundering investigation against him, which was initiated in 2018.

He said the central agencies are planning to file an appeal against the order, but he is equally prepared for it.

"I prostrate before the judges in the Supreme Court from here. I have been saying that I did nothing but yet I faced numerous problems," Shivakumar, who is Congress Karnataka unit president said.

The deputy chief minister said he would soon let people know how the CBI targeted him.

"I got information about the relief from the Supreme Court. I learnt that the cases framed against me were found wrong. Today is a day of joy after many difficulties in life," he said.

When asked whether he felt that the journey is now easy, Shivakumar said he never felt the journey was difficult.

"I went to jail confidently. The more they trouble me, I will only rise politically," he said.

 The Maharashtra government on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court verdict acquitting former Delhi University professor G N Saibaba in a case in which he was accused of having links with the banned CPI (Maoist).

Earlier in the day, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court acquitted Saibaba, noting that the prosecution failed to prove the case against him.

The high court also set aside the life sentence imposed on Saibaba, 54, and acquitted five other accused in the case.

"The prosecution has failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the case against the accused persons," the high court said.

It held as "null and void" the sanction procured by the prosecution to charge the accused under anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Saibaba, who is wheelchair-bound due to physical disability, is lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail since his arrest in the case in 2014.

In a setback to the Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha Sabha polls, its prominent leader from Uttar Pradesh Rajesh Mishra joined the BJP here on Tuesday, hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.

Mishra, a former Congress MP from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat, joined the BJP here in the presence of senior party leaders, including national general secretary Arun Singh and Ravi Shankar Prasad.

Addressing a joint press conference here, Mishra expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, party chief JP Nadda and other leaders for his induction into the BJP and asserted that he will continue to remain with the saffron party for the rest of his political life.

National Commission for Women chairperson Rekha Sharma met President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday and recommended President's rule in West Bengal over the Sandeshkhali violence.

Previously, other bodied including the National Commission for Scheduled Caste, National Commission for Scheduled Tribe and the National Human Rights Commission also recommended President rule in the TMC-ruled state.

Speaking to PTI after meeting the President, Sharma said the situation in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali is still very dire.

"Sandeshkhali is not an isolated incident. Previously also many incidents of violence have been reported in the state and no action has been taken by the state government. Hence, NCW recommended to President Droupadi Murmu to impose President's rule in the state," she said.

Bharat Jodo Nyaya Yatra, being organized under the leadership of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, reached Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh today. Rahul Gandhi also offered prayers at Mahakal temple in Ujjain. But Rahul Gandhi could not go to the sanctum sanctorum and have darshan. Actually, due to Shivratri, he was not allowed to go to the sanctum sanctorum and worship. Other Congress leaders including Kamal Nath were also present along with Rahul. 

Modi-Modi" slogan raised by some people during Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's visit to the Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates, dedicates to the nation and lays the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth over Rs 19,600 crore in Chandikhole, Odisha. The projects relate to sectors including Oil & Gas, Railways, Road, Transport & Highways and Atomic Energy.

Prime Minister will inaugurate, dedicate to the nation and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth over Rs 19,600 crore.

The Calcutta High Court transferred the probe against arrested TMC leader Shahjahan in the alleged attack on ED officers, to the CBI. 

The Chief Justice led bench orders read, "Case papers of the said case be handed over to the CBI forthwith. Custody of Sheikh to be handed over to the CBI by 4:30 PM today.”

The Mumbai Police Crime Branch on Tuesday said that a man was arrested for allegedly making an objectionable remark against Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar.

The man has been sent to 5-day custody by the Court.

The Delhi High Court granted custody parole to Yogesh Tunda for his wedding. Tunda is a member of Gogi Gang and was accused in Tillu Tajpuria murder case in Tihar jail. He is also accused in an MCOCA case.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is protesting outside the Delhi Assembly against Arvind Kejriwal's government.

Addressing a huge crowd in Sangareddy, PM said, "They say that they have ideological differences with me. They believe in 'Family First', and I believe in 'Nation First'. For them, their family is everything; for me, my country is everything.  They sacrifice the Nation for the welfare of their family; I have sacrificed myself for the welfare of the Nation..."

"We had promised to revoke Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir. The BJP fulfilled that promise in such a way that a movie, 'Article 370', has been made on this issue. The movie is getting popular. This is the first time that people are showing interest in such issues, thanks to movies like these. We had also promised to welcome Lord Ram in a grand temple in Ayodhya. This promise has also been fulfilled."

While launching an attack on the Opposition over corruption, PM Modi, during his public rally in Telangana's Sangareddy district said, “Opposition says family first, Modi says nation first.”

Prime Minister Modi holds a massive roadshow in Sangareddy before addressing a mass gathering.

The Maharashtra Governor received an email from the Email ID of the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker stating  that "There's a need to act against Few MLAs who are not working properly."

However, the Speaker later confirmed that no such e-mail was sent by him. Hence, a complaint has been filed by Maha Speaker with Mumbai Police. The Mumbai Police is investigating the case.

Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema presented the state budget for the financial year 2024-25. While presenting  the proposal he said, "Health and education focus areas of the government."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation for development projects worth over Rs 7,200 crore at Sangareddy.

These projects are related to multiple key sectors such as road, rail, petroleum, and natural gas.

He said, In the last 10 years, the central government has been working to take Telangana to new heights. Yesterday, from Adilabad, I inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of development projects worth more than Rs 56,000 crores. Today, I am in Sangareddy to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of development projects worth more than Rs 7,000 crores..."
 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulates Shehbaz Sharif on being sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for the second time.
 

At least two people died in a road accident on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway at Battery Chashma of Ramban after the car they were travelling fell into a deep gorge about 150 metres at midnight, ANI reported citing Jammu and Kashmir Police.

The two were shifted to DH Ramban Hospital where both were declared brought dead.

A case under relevant sections has been registered at PS Ramban.

The three men who were arrested by the Karnataka police for allegedly being involved in the pro-Pakistan sloganeering inside Karnataka’s Vidhana Soudha, have been sent to 2-day police custody by a state court.  However, the police had reportedly requested for a 3-day extension of the custody, but the court ruled for 2 days only. 

The three accused will be produced before the court on March 6th.  The accused identified as Iltaj, a resident of Delhi, Munnawar from Karnataka’s RT Nagar, and Mohammed Shafi Nashipudi were arrested by the Vidhana Soudha police in Bengaluru.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the Kaziranga National Park in Assam on March 8, said the Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. This will mark his maiden visit to the national park. PM Modi is expected to arrive at the park on March 8 evening and stay at night.

An earthquake of Magnitude 3.2 hit Himachal Pradesh's Mandi on Tuesday.

All eyes are on Punjab, as Finance Minister Harpal Cheema will be presenting the Budget proposals for 2024-25, ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Earlier, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann that there would be no new taxes imposed on people.

Although, the announcement of Rs 1,000 assistance to be given to women over 18 years of age in the Delhi Budget has raised expectations of all to see if a similar announcement will be made for women in Punjab.

As per reports, the budget is likely to to focus on education, health, sports.

The Uttar Pradesh government led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is likely to expand its cabinet on Tuesday (March 5), a week after the saffron party won 8 seats in the recent Rajya Sabha elections on February 27.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate and lay the foundation for several development projects worth Rs 26,400 crores in Odisha and Telangana. 

In the morning, the Prime Minister will launch and lay the foundation for projects worth more than Rs 6,800 crore, related to multiple key sectors such as road, rail, and petroleum, followed by a public address in Telangana's Sangareddy.

However, as per officials, the PM will then leave for Bhubaneswar in a special plane of the Indian Air Force (IAF) from Telangana in the afternoon and will then proceed to Chandikhol in a helicopter to lay foundation stones for projects oil, gas, railways, road, transport and highways and atomic energy sectors worth over Rs 19,600 crore in Odisha's Chandikhole.