Author: Indmedia

No-frills airline EasyJet has agreed to be taken over in a £5.7bn deal by US firm Apollo after a rival bidder dropped out.The takeover was agreed after US investment firm Castlelake, which had made a series of offers for the carrier, said it was withdrawing from the bid battle.Apollo said it does not intend to cut any jobs in the first 12 months after the takeover has been completed, implying that passengers can expect largely the same service.EasyJet is one of Europe’s largest airlines. It employs more than 19,000 people, and flies around 1,200 routes across 35 European countries. It…

A reported Pentagon dispute over dwindling US missile stocks has raised questions about whether munitions shortages could constrain America’s military options TOI Correspondent from Washington: A reported clash between Donald Trump and his Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over dwindling stock of missiles and munitions that purportedly led to the U.S President calling off “the biggest attack since World War II” on Iran has briefly eclipsed the war itself.Trump angrily confronted Hegseth during a meeting at Camp David after learning that America’s stocks of key missiles and interceptors had fallen to dangerously low levels despite earlier assurances that the problem had…

Hello and welcome to Regions Calling, your guide to developments from beyond the Russian capital by The Moscow Times. On Monday, seven beachgoers were killed and 47 others injured in a Ukrainian drone strike on the Black Sea resort town of Arkhipo-Osipovka, marking one of the deadliest attacks on the Krasnodar region since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor. Though the moment the drone crashed on a crowded beach was captured on video, eyewitnesses claimed they did not hear sirens warning of an incoming attack. Attacks similar to that in Arkhipo-Osipovka are becoming increasingly frequent, but are…

The new rules explicitly target legal ambiguities used in the past by liquor traders. MUMBAI: In a major win for urban residents across Maharashtra, the state government has officially handed cooperative housing societies the power to veto liquor shops from moving into their premises. Under a fresh notification issued by the Home Department, liquor vendors looking to relocate their outlets to residential or residential-cum-commercial complexes will now strictly require a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the registered housing society.The decision comes after years of friction between housing societies and liquor vendors in urban hubs like Mumbai, Thane, and Pune. Residents have…

A Delhi-based YouTuber faces arrest for allegedly assaulting and blackmailing a 16-year-old girl. (Representational image) NEW DELHI: A 16-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted and blackmailed with objectionable videos by a Delhi-based YouTuber, who was arrested and booked under the POCSO Act after her family approached police earlier this week.Police said the complaint was received on August 4 after the girl’s mother disclosed that the alleged abuse had continued for nearly a year. The family initially approached police over a domestic dispute, but during counselling and questioning, they disclosed the alleged sexual exploitation and blackmail.According to a senior police officer,…

Priests from temples under Karnataka’s Muzrai Department submit their grievances to then Muzrai Minister Ramalinga Reddy. (File) Bengaluru: Before the recent cabinet expansion, Karnataka’s Muzrai dept (which handles temples and charitable endowments) was hardly a prize portfolio. Overshadowed by power ministries like finance, home, revenue, and energy, it rarely figured in cabinet negotiations or political chatter. Ministers seldom lobbied for it and there was never a public campaign by priests seeking a particular minister to head the department. But that has changed dramatically.In an unprecedented development, the otherwise low-profile portfolio has become the focus of a statewide campaign. More than…

Hyderabad: In order to modernise mining technology, enhance safety, and explore potential collaborations to support Telangana’s coal-to-clean-energy transition, Telangana deputy CM Bhatti Vikramarka and senior SCCL officials visited the Caterpillar Demonstration & Learning Centre at Tucson, Arizona, and the Komatsu Mining Corporation facility at Longview, Texas.At Tucson, the delegation reviewed live demonstrations of Caterpillar’s latest heavy earth-moving equipment, including autonomous and tele-remote operated machinery, and discussed operator training and safety systems relevant to opencast coal mining operations. At the Komatsu facility in Longview, the delegation inspected the manufacturing and assembly of large-scale mining machinery and held discussions on technology collaboration,…

Chennai: Chennai Metro Rail Ltd on Wednesday achieved its 24th tunnel boring machine breakthrough in the Phase II project, with ‘Nilagiri’ completing tunnelling on the 819m up-line section between Madhavaram High Road and Moolakadai stations.This is the 11th breakthrough on the 9km underground section between Madhavaram Milk Colony and Kellys on Corridor 3, being executed by Tata Projects.The machine had to pass beneath Buckingham Canal, a busy traffic corridor and 14 borewells along the alignment, making it one of the most challenging stretches under the contract, said CMRL. Alternative water sources were provided during construction, while continuous instrumentation and monitoring…

BJD president Naveen Patnaik Bhubaneswar: Biju Janata Dal (BJD), which lost power in Odisha in the 2024 assembly elections, reported a sharp rise in declared donations in FY 2024-25, receiving Rs 60 crore through just four donations above Rs 20,000, according to an analysis by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).The party had reported no such donations in the previous financial year, making it one of the biggest gainers among regional parties in terms of funding growth.The ADR report, which analysed donations above Rs 20,000 declared by 40 regional political parties, found that the value of contributions to regional parties…

COIMBATORE: A 22-year-old labourer was murdered with deadly weapons by two youths, including a teenager, at Sikkalampalayam in Coimbatore district in the early hours of Thursday. The suspects recorded themselves assaulting the labourer with a hammer and took a few photos, including their selfies with the dead body, and shared the video and photos on a social media platform before fleeing the scene.The murdered has been identified as S Ashwin of Kamaraj Colony in Solavampalayam near Kinathukkadavu. According to police, Ashwin returned from work on Wednesday evening and met his friend Vishnu, 19. He stayed at Vishnu’s house at Sikkalampalayam.Around…