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Chaos erupted at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Saturday as spectators, who had paid hefty amounts for tickets to see Argentine football icon Lionel Messi, protested after being unable to catch a clear glimpse of the soccer player. Messi arrived at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan around 11.30 am along with long-time strike partner Luis Surez and Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul, and was the first to take the ground. He briefly moved around and waved at the crowd. However, he remained surrounded by VIPs, organisers and security personnel throughout his round, effectively cutting off the spectators' view from the galleries. Fans claimed that they could not see Messi properly, either directly or on the stadium's giant screens, despite waiting since morning. Frustration mounted as chants of We want Messi echoed across the stands. Tempers flared when the Argentine star was escorted out of the stadium within minutes, well before several invited dignitaries arrived. Disappointed
Thousands braved the December chill and waited past midnight to give a rousing welcome to Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi as he arrived in Kolkata for his whirlwind three-day, four-city GOAT India Tour 2025. The Barcelona legend's 2.26 am touchdown in the early hours of Saturday sent the city into an frenzy. Gate 4 of the international arrivals turned into a roaring sea of chants, flags and flashing phones, with fans sprinting between gates for even a fleeting glimpse of their favourite sports star. Children perched on shoulders and drums rolled as Messi was whisked out through the VIP gate under massive security. A heavy convoy then escorted him to his hotel, where another huge crowd was waiting deep into the night. Barricades, police deployment, and non-stop cheering completed a citywide eruption of "Messi mania." Messi arrived with long-time strike partner Luis Surez and Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul. Over the next 72 hours, he will zip across Kolkata, Hyderab
A total of 2,208 booths in West Bengal are under the scanner after all the distributed enumeration forms were returned filled up, indicating that there is not a single dead, duplicate or untraceable voter in these booths, EC sources said. Among such booths, the highest 760 is in South 24 Parganas district, followed by 228 in Purulia and 226 in Murshidabad, they said. Howrah district has 94 such booths and Kolkata one. West Bengal currently has a little over 78,000 booths, spread across 294 assembly constituencies. "We have asked for reports from the officials of these districts and areas. Apart from the absence of any dead voter, these booths don't have any duplicate or untraceable voter... these booths are under the scanner," an EC source said. The EC said 7,65,62,486 forms were distributed till Monday afternoon, the 27th day of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which was launched on November 4. That is 99.90 per cent of the total electorate. The EC said a tot
West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose on Saturday implemented a central government directive and renamed the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata to 'Lok Bhavan'. In an official notification, Bose said that on March 27, 2023, President Droupadi Murmu handed over a symbolic key of the then Raj Bhavan to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on the request of the governor, heralding a new era of people's Raj Bhavan -- The Jana Raj Bhavan. "In pursuance of the communication from the Ministry of Home Affairs dated 25.11.2025, it is hereby notified that the name of the holdings of 'Raj Bhavan' in Kolkata, Flagstaff House and Darjeeling, has hereby been modified and renamed as 'Lok Bhavan'," the notification said. This notification comes into force with immediate effect, it said. In a post on X, Bose said, "The 'Jana Raj Bhavan' conceptualisation by the then Raj Bhavan, Kolkata, was prompted by the urge to make the establishment alive to the needs of the people, their aspirations and hopes, their
A major hurdle in the construction of the Kolkata Metro's Purple Line (Joka-Park Street) was resolved after the project's implementing agency, Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), and the Consulate General of Nepal signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to exchange land parcels. Under the agreement, 409.53 sq. metres of land owned by the Consulate General of Nepal will be exchanged with 526.34 sq. metres of adjoining Metro Railway land, facilitating the construction of a ramp between Mominpur and Kidderpore for the proposed Mominpur-Esplanade underground section. This 409.53 sq. metres of land is urgently required for construction of a ramp between Mominpur and Kidderpore, officials said. He recalled that several meetings took place from 2022 to 2025 between the Nepal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, India's Ministry of External Affairs, Metro Railway, and RVNL in Kathmandu, New Delhi, and Kolkata to ensure smooth land exchange. "After multiple rounds of discussions, the Nepal governme
The association of bus operators on Sunday welcomed the West Bengal government draft notification, which stated that over-15-year-old stage carriers registered in the Kolkata Metropolitan Area will be allowed to ply with bi-annual fitness certificates. The state government presented the draft notification before the Calcutta High Court. The court held that there is no scope for further adjudication in a petition filed by a private bus owners' association, as their grievances were mitigated in the draft notification presented before it by the government. Disposing of the petition on Friday, Justice Rai Chattopadhyay gave liberty to the West Bengal government to publish the draft notification as submitted before the court at the earliest point in time. The draft notification said, "Stage carriage buses registered in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA) only shall be allowed to ply beyond 15 years of age from the day of initial registration." Welcoming the order, the Secretary of Joint ...
State Bank of India is reinforcing its trade finance operations through a centralised digital hub for the east and northeast, aiming to expedite processing, bolster compliance, and enhance customer experience, the state-owned lender said. During a visit to the Global Trade Finance Centre (GTFC) in Kolkata, Chairman C S Setty said on Saturday stated that it is a strategic move to handle trade finance and international banking transactions for the bank's branches across eastern and northeastern India. "The bank is reimagining its trade finance capabilities to meet the evolving needs of businesses across India and beyond," Setty said in a statement. "Combining cutting-edge technology with deep domain expertise, we aim to set new benchmarks in speed, security and customer experience," he said. The GTFC, which features over 300 skilled professionals, is driving SBI's transition from paper-based to digital processes, officials said. The bank is leveraging technologies like artificial ..
A major fire broke out on Saturday morning in a multi-storey building in the central part of the city's Ezra Street area, police said. No one was injured in the fire, the police said. At least 20 fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze that originated in an electronics goods warehouse and quickly spread through the congested area, they said. The fire has not yet been brought under control, even six hours after it broke out, they said. "The fire broke out at around 5.30 am, and 20 fire engines were deployed to control the blaze. Our firefighters began operations on arrival, but despite several hours of continuous effort, the fire has not yet been fully contained," a senior official of the state Fire Services department said. "There is no increase in the number of fire tenders. But the fire is yet to be brought under control," the official told PTI. "No casualties were reported, no individuals were trapped inside the building at the time of the incident. Emergency
Hospitals across Kolkata have reported a significant rise in respiratory illnesses among people and complications among pregnant women and IVF patients after Diwali and Kali Puja celebrations, with doctors attributing the surge to heightened air and noise pollution caused by bursting of firecrackers. Pulmonologists and gynaecologists observed an uptick in both outpatient and inpatient visits between October 20 and 22, with pollution levels soaring well beyond safe limits. Several medical professionals warned of serious health risks for vulnerable groups, including those with pre-existing respiratory conditions and expecting mothers. Dr Mrinmoy Mitra, senior consultant pulmonologist at ILS Hospital, Dumdum, reported a 10-15 per cent increase in hospital admissions for respiratory illnesses and a 20 per cent rise in OPD visits during the festive period. "Most patients came in with aggravated asthma, AECOPD, chest tightness, wheezing, and nasal blockage. Diwali smoke and firecracker .
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday conducted search operations at six locations in Kolkata, including a property belonging to West Bengal minister Sujit Bose, in connection with its probe into the alleged irregularities in the recruitment of a civic organisation, a senior official said. The ED teams raided the minister's residence-cum-office in Salt Lake, and the houses of former officials of the Dum Dum Municipality, he said. "Today's raids are aimed at collecting documents linked to corruption. The office of the minister was not originally on our list," the ED official told PTI. The central agency had earlier conducted a raid at Bose's residence and questioned him for over 12 hours in connection with the same case in January 2024.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah will take part in Durga Puja festivities in Kolkata on Friday. He arrived in the metropolis on Thursday night and was received at the airport by senior state BJP leader Rahul Sinha. Shah will inaugurate the pandal of the Santosh Mitra Square Sarbojanin Durgotsab Samity in north Kolkata on Friday. Organised by BJP councillor Sajal Ghosh, the Durga Puja pandal has showcased 'Operation Sindoor'. Shah will then visit the Kalighat temple in south Kolkata and offer puja. Later, he will inaugurate the Durga Puja pandal of the BJP-backed Paschim Banga Sanskriti Mancha at the Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre (EZCC) in Salt Lake. He will leave the city in the evening.
At least 11 people have died in heavy downpour which lashed the city and nearby areas on September 23 morning, even as life limped back to normal in city on Wednesday with improvement in weather, a senior official said on Wednesday. Till filing of this report, several areas, particularly Patuli, Santoshpur, Ballygunje, Salt Lake and pockets of north and central parts of the city, remained waterlogged. The official said while nine people died of electrocution in the city since Tuesday, two deaths were reported in neighbouring districts. As on Tuesday, there were reports of 10 deaths by electrocution, including one from an adjoining district. On Wednesday, news of another casualty came in from South 24 Parganas district's Rajpur-Sonarpur, the official added. While water was pumped out of low-lying areas of Kolkata and adjoining areas through the night, life limped back to normal in majority of the areas barring Patuli, Santoshpur, Ballygunje and Bidhannagar, where waterlogging ...
Truncated services were run on the Howrah Maidan-Salt Lake Sector V corridor of Metro Railway Kolkata for half an hour on Thursday during peak office hours due to a technical snag, an official said. Services along the entire stretch resumed from 11 am after the technical problem was fixed by engineers, the Metro Railway spokesperson said. "Due to a technical problem, trains were run between Howrah Maidan-Esplanade and Sealdah-Salt Lake Sector V from 10:30 am to 11 am. After the glitches were rectified, the services resumed along the entire 16.6 km stretch, called the Green Line," he said. This is the second consecutive day that truncated services were run on the Green Line due to a technical glitch, less than a month after the full stretch was made operational. On Wednesday, a glitch was detected around 10.34 am, following which services were suspended on both lines, and services resumed on the Howrah Maidan-Sealdah section around 11.46 am. The snag was fully repaired, and the enti
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the three-day Combined Commanders' Conference (CCC) of the armed forces at the Eastern Command headquarters here on Monday. The conference is the apex brainstorming forum of the armed forces, bringing together the nation's top civil and military leadership to exchange views at the conceptual and strategic levels, a Defence official said. Coming in the backdrop of Operation Sindoor, this year's meet will focus on reforms, transformation, change, and operational preparedness. The theme is 'Year of Reforms Transforming for the Future.' "The focus of the conference reflects the armed forces' commitment to institutional reforms, deeper integration and technological modernisation, while sustaining a high level of multi-domain operational readiness," the official added. The PM arrived here on Sunday evening from Assam and will leave the city in the afternoon for Purnea in Bihar. Operation Sindoor, which was conceived as a punitive and targete