National News

NDMC to take over Central Vista road upkeep after nearly two decades

The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) will now take over the maintenance of major roads in the Central Vista area, including Janpath, Rafi Marg and Man Singh Road, from the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), according to officials. An order issued by the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry on August 7 said the NDMC would be responsible for the upkeep, resurfacing, cleaning and other municipal works on the roads, while Kartavya Path would continue to be maintained by the CPWD. The move changes an arrangement that had been in place since March 2007, when the maintenance of roads in the Central Vista area was transferred from the NDMC to the CPWD through a 2006 ministry order, officials said. According to officials, the move marks a shift towards a more localised system of civic management in Lutyens' Delhi, with the council taking over the upkeep of roads in the Central Vista area from the CPWD, except Kartavya Path. "The arrangement will bring road maintenance, cleaning,

'Honey-trapped' IAF officer held on charges of sharing defence information

A wing commander of the Indian Air Force allegedly passed defence information to a woman suspected to be a Pakistan intelligence operative

Variable speed limits to be tested on Delhi-Meerut Expressway from Aug 15

In a first-of-its-kind project, commuters using the Delhi-Meerut Expressway will encounter different speed limits depending on the travel hour from August 15, officials said on Wednesday. Passing through the key NCR cities such as Ghaziabad and Noida, the Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) has had the same speed limits for cars and heavy vehicles. Under the 'variable speed limit' pilot project, speed limit on the Delhi side of the expressway will be subject to the congestion on the road. "The variable speed limit project will be implemented from August 15 between the Akshardham and Sarai Kale Khan stretch of the expressway in the first phase. This will be first such project in the country," Satish Chandra, professor, Civil Engineering Department, IIT Roorkee, told PTI. As per the plan, between 12 and 7 am, the speed limit will be 65 kmph for cars and 50 kmph for heavy vehicles (HVs). From 7 am to 5 pm, it will be 55 kmph for cars and 45 kmph for HVs. Between 5 pm and 12 am, it will be 6

'Strategic autonomy' in AI key, avoid reliance on single-source: IT secy

India should pursue "strategic autonomy" by building enough domestic capability in key parts of the AI ecosystem and avoid overdependence on any single technology source or location, while remaining firmly integrated into trusted and verified global supply chains, IT Secretary S Krishnan said on Tuesday. Krishnan said India has an opportunity to emerge as a global leader in building AI-powered applications and solutions for the world. He said India should leverage inputs from multiple sources while avoiding overdependence on any single country or source, and build sufficient capabilities to become an indispensable part of the global AI value chain. "Sovereign has a particular context. I think in the Indian context, even in a global context today, the appropriate term would be strategic autonomy. So, we need to have autonomy in the way in which we build these structures," Krishnan said. He was speaking at the launch of an independent multimodal AI evaluation platform by AI4Bharat ..

OMCs regularly monitoring fuel quality at retail outlets, says govt

The government said only two cases of chloride contamination were found in the entire country

'No third-party insurance, no fuel': SC asks Centre to launch pilot project

In a significant verdict, the Supreme Court on Tuesday took serious note of a large number of vehicles plying without third-party insurance cover and directed the Centre to evolve a pilot project by which fuel for vehicles can be refused at petrol pumps until valid insurance is obtained. The top court took note of the number of road accidents on national highways and also the effect of long queues at toll plazas, and directed the Centre to implement pilot projects on certain corridors, substituting the process of stopping at toll plazas with automatic detection of vehicles passing through toll points. A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra, which flagged the lack of compliance of provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act requiring all vehicles to have a valid insurance policy covering third parties, said it is shocking to learn that nearly 56 per cent of vehicles plying on Indian roads remain uninsured according to the Report of the Standing Committee on Finance ...

NIA court frames charges against Sachin Waze, others in Antilia case

A special NIA court here on Saturday framed charges against ten persons including former policemen Sachin Waze and Pradeep Sharma in the 2021 Antilia bomb scare and businessman Mansukh Hiran murder case. The accused will face trial for offences under the Indian Penal Code related to muder, extortion, destruction of evidence and criminal conspiracy as well as relevant provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Explosive Substances Act. Special National Investigation Agency court judge Chakor Baviskar framed the charges after the accused pleaded not guilty. Besides Waze and Sharma, the other accused in the case are Riyazuddin Kazi, Sunil Mane, Vinayak Shinde, Anand Jadhav, Satish Tirupati Mothkuri, Manish Vasantbhai Soni, Naresh Gaur and Santosh Shelar. Kazi, Mane and Shinde are also former policemen. The prosecution has accused all ten persons of forming a "terrorist gang" and entering into a criminal conspiracy between February and March 2021. An SUV with ...

Karnataka HC's Dharwad bench holds rare all-women Bench and Bar sitting

The Dharwad Bench of the Karnataka High Court held a rare all-women sitting, with women judges presiding over every Bench and an all-women government legal team representing the State

Air Marshal Tejpal Singh takes charge as new Deputy Chief of Air Staff

Air Marshal Tejpal Singh, a fighter pilot with over 3,500 hours of flying experience, on Saturday took charge as the new Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, officials said. The air officer succeeds Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti, who superannuated on Friday after 39 years of distinguished service to the nation. Air Marshal Singh laid a wreath at the National War Memorial and paid homage to soldiers who laid down their lives in service of the nation. Air Marshal Singh who was commissioned on June 16, 1990, as a fighter pilot has over 3,500 hours of flying experience, the defence ministry said in a statement. He is a Cat 'A' Qualified Flying Instructor and an Experimental Test Pilot. The air marshal has held key operational, command and staff appointments in the Indian Air Force.

Tehseen Poonawalla alleges house arrest ahead of march against E20 policy

Activist Tehseen Poonawalla on Saturday alleged that he was placed under house arrest, without any written order, in Greater Kailash by the Delhi Police ahead of his proposed solo march and hunger strike against the BJP-led Centre's E20 fuel policy. Poonawalla had announced on July 27 that he would walk alone from APJ Abdul Kalam Marg to Gandhi Smriti on Tees January Marg - the site where Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated - and observe a day-long hunger strike on Friday against the policy. Sharing several videos on his X account, Poonawalla claimed that around 9.30 am, about half an hour before he was scheduled to leave for the march, several Delhi Police personnel, including women officers, arrived at his house and stopped him from stepping out. He said that the police neither showed him any order nor provided any documents for detaining him. Poonawala further alleged that officers told him they were preventing him from leaving because thousands of people were expected to join the ..

Centre releases additional tax devolution of ₹1.09 trillion to states

The finance ministry on Saturday said the Centre has released additional instalment of tax devolution to state governments amounting to Rs 1.09 lakh crore, which is in addition to the normal monthly amount. Currently, 41 per cent of taxes collected by the Centre is devolved in 14 instalments among states during a fiscal year. "The Union government has released additional instalment of tax devolution to state governments amounting to Rs 1,09,019 crore on 1st August 2026, which is in addition to the normal monthly devolution to be released on 10th August 2026," the ministry said in a statement.

LPG imports from US hit record high in July amid West Asia disruption

The US accounted for over 73 per cent of India's LPG imports in July as supplies from Gulf producers remained constrained amid the West Asia conflict

Govt extends IFSC Authority Chairman K Rajaraman's tenure till Oct 2028

: The government has extended the tenure of the Chairman of the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), K Rajaraman, for 27 months. The Central Government hereby re-appoints K Rajaraman to the post of Chairperson, IFSCA, for a period beyond July 31, 2026 till attaining the age of 65 years, or until further orders, whichever is earlier, the finance ministry said in a gazette notification dated July 30. Rajaraman will be attaining 65 years on October 24, 2028. He was appointed in 2023 for an initial period of three years. Prior to appointment as the Chairman, Rajaraman was Secretary, Department of Telecommunications, Government of India. IFSCA was established in April 2020 under the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019. It is headquartered at GIFT City, Gandhinagar. IFSCA is a unified authority for the development and regulation of financial products, financial services and financial institutions in the International Financial Services Cen

SC grants bail to two UAPA accused after 12 yrs, cites Article 21 violation

Top court says prolonged incarceration without any realistic prospect of an early trial conclusion violates the fundamental right to personal liberty

Govt defines letter, parcel categories; notifies new Speed Post rates

Any written, drawn, printed, or a package containing complimentary items or items having no resale value will fall under the letter category, and the rest of the items will be classified as parcel items, a government notification clarifying postal items said on Monday. The Department of Post has also notified rates of 24 Speed Post and 48 Speed Post for retail and bulk customers. According to the notification, banking, financial services and insurance items like welcome kits or letters, passbooks, cheque books, bank statements, plastic cards, debit cards and credit cards will fall under the category of letter. The letter category will also include government documents such as PAN Cards, Aadhaar cards, Electoral Photo Identity cards, passports, driving licenses and items, up to 500 grams, like Rakhi envelopes or packages, greeting cards or packages, except merchandise or commercial items. All items other than the items referred to in Note 1 shall be dealt with under parcel category,

Maharashtra to receive second RKVY instalment of ₹335 crore from Centre

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday said the Maharashtra government will get the second instalment of Rs 335 crore under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY). According to an official statement, the minister chaired a virtual review meeting to assess the utilisation of funds released under the RKVY and to consider the issuance of the Second Installment (Second Mother Sanction) to the Government of Maharashtra. The meeting was attended by Dattatray Bharane, Minister of Agriculture, Government of Maharashtra, senior officials of the Department of Agriculture, Government of India, and officers of the Government of Maharashtra. During the review, Chouhan said the Centre had earlier released Rs 335 crore as the first installment under RKVY to Maharashtra. The state has utilised about Rs 260 crore, exceeding the prescribed 75 per cent utilisation benchmark, thereby becoming eligible for the second installment. He said the process for release of the second ...

Gujarat unveils shipbuilding policy, eyes more than ₹27,000 cr investment

The Gujarat government on Monday launched its shipbuilding policy aimed at developing the state into India's leading maritime manufacturing hub through fiscal incentives, infrastructure development and skill creation, an official said. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel launched the Gujarat Shipbuilding and Repair Policy 2026, which envisages setting up two Integrated Mega Shipbuilding Parks, increasing the state's shipbuilding capacity to more than 50 lakh Deadweight Tonnage (DWT) and attracting investments worth over Rs 27,000 crore, a government release stated. DWT is the maximum weight a ship can carry safely. The policy also aims to provide skill development and capacity-building training to over five lakh people. Speaking at the launch, Patel said, "This policy will create a globally competitive shipbuilding ecosystem in Gujarat and strengthen the state's role in achieving the vision of Viksit Gujarat 2047 and Aatmanirbhar Bharat." According to the state government, the policy .

Delhi SIR: Digitisation crosses 6.6 million, covers over 45% of electors

Digitisation of enumeration forms under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Delhi's electoral rolls crossed the 66-lakh mark on Saturday, while the door-to-door distribution exercise was virtually complete, with nearly all electors having received enumeration forms. According to the Chief Electoral Officer's status report, 66,06,924 enumeration forms have been digitised, covering 45.53 per cent of Delhi's 1,45,10,298 electors. Outer North continued to lead all districts in digitisation with 59.36 per cent of forms uploaded, followed by South West (55.67 per cent), North West (52.29 per cent), North Delhi (51.94 per cent) and Central North (50.60 per cent). At the other end, South East recorded the lowest digitisation at 31.94 per cent, followed by East (37.50 per cent) and South (38.88 per cent). The distribution of enumeration forms also edged closer to completion, with 1,44,89,074 forms distributed, covering 99.85 per cent of Delhi's electorate. Eight districts - South East,

Mizoram govt, church bodies to move Centre to change FCRA amendment bill

The Mizoram government and the state's apex church bodies on Saturday decided to jointly submit a memorandum to the Centre, recommending changes to the proposed Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, maintaining that the legislation in its present form is unacceptable. The decision was taken at a meeting between Chief Minister Lalduhoma and leaders of the Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee (MKHC) and the Council of Churches in Mizoram (CCM) at the CM's official residence. During the meeting, the participants held detailed discussions on the proposed amendments to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) and unanimously expressed the view that the bill, in its current form, was unacceptable, officials said. It was decided that the state government would prepare a memorandum recommending amendments to the proposed legislation. The meeting also resolved that Lalduhoma would seek an appointment with Union Home Minister Amit Shah to facilitate a visit by a join

First phase of SIR completed in Haryana, draft electoral roll on July 31

The draft electoral roll will be published on July 31 as the first phase of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has been completed in Haryana. Haryana Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) A Sreenivas said here on Saturday that 20,629 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) distributed enumeration forms to more than 2.06 crore electors, out of which about 1.72 crore enumeration forms have been digitised. However, the names of over 33.84 lakh could not be recorded. Of these, nearly 13.75 lakh had permanently shifted, 7.66 lakh were found to have passed away, 2.04 lakh were already registered as electors, 9.36 lakh were found absent, while nearly 1 lakh electors did not submit their enumeration forms due to other reasons. Sreenivas said the draft electoral roll will be published on July 31 and will be made available on the official website and at all designated publication centres. He said that claims and objections may be filed from July 31 to August 30. If the name of any elector does not appear in the .