Author: Indmedia

Andy Burnham is focused on preventing the release of child sexual abuse perpetrators as part of the government’s early release scheme, as urgent talks on which serious criminals could be exempted go down to the wire.Government ministers are understood to have 24 hours to assess which criminals can be released early to free up prison space, with every exemption weighed up against the threat of the criminal justice system’s collapse.The prime minister halted controversial plans to release thousands of killers, rapists and sex offenders from prison in September, intended to ease critical prison overcrowding, during his second week in the…

NEW DELHI: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke, in an interview with journalist Barkha Dutt, said he received a scholarship from Boston University and also took an education loan to pursue his studies in the United States amid questions raised by RTI activist Amit Tiwari over his education expenses.Dipke’s remarks came after Tiwari sought an investigation into the finances of Bhagwanrao Dipke, Abhijeet Dipke’s father, questioning how a junior engineer’s salary could have supported his son’s higher education in the US.Addressing the controversy, Dipke said his education was funded through a combination of a scholarship and a loan. He…

The NMMC move comes after building collapse incidents in various parts of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, including the Bhiwandi building crash on July 30 Navi Mumbai: Following the recent building collapse incidents in various parts of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) released a list of 34 ‘highly dangerous’ structures under its jurisdiction and asked occupiers to vacate them immediately. Of the 34 ‘highly dangerous’ buildings, Turbe ward had the highest number with 15 such structures.According to the NMMC, the owners, occupiers and residents of these buildings were informed that they have received written instructions and…

New Delhi: Two women and a three-year-old girl had a narrow escape after a fire broke out at their residential building in west Delhi’s Rajouri Garden Sunday.The trio used sarees as a makeshift rope to climb down from the second-floor balcony to the first floor. The three-year-old girl, her paternal grandmother (60), and her mother (32) were trapped as smoke spread through the building.According to Delhi Fire Service (DFS), a call regarding the fire was received around 4.10 pm. Six fire tenders with around 35 fire personnel, led by Station Officer Batti Lal, were rushed to the spot.By the time…

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) Sunday claimed it successfully conducted the civil police constable recruitment examination across the state. However, the otherwise incident-free examination witnessed controversy at one centre in Vijayapura district, prompting KEA to seek a detailed report.According to KEA executive director H Prasanna, the recruitment examination was conducted at 884 centres across Karnataka, including 149 in Bengaluru. Candidates from residual parent cadre (RPC) appeared for the morning session, while those from the Kalyana Karnataka Cadre (KKC) wrote the examination in the evening.Of the 3.8 lakh candidates who had applied under the RPC, 92.5% appeared for the examination.…

TN to withdraw cases against students booked during NEET protests Chennai: TVK govt said on Sunday that it will withdraw all cases registered against students who took part in protests demanding a ban on NEET.School education minister A Rajmohan said on X that the decision was taken based on directions from chief minister C Joseph Vijay. “As per the directions from our chief minister, all cases registered against students who protested against the NEET examination will be withdrawn. Further details will be announced shortly,” Rajmohan said.The decision came days after Supreme Court directed that coercive action should not be taken…

Prayagraj: With the onset of the holy month of Shrawan, faith is drawing groups of young kanwariyas to the banks of the Ganga, where they begin their barefoot pilgrimage after collecting the sacred Gangajal to offer at the Kashi Vishwanath temple.Young devotees, including women, from Prayagraj as well as neighbouring districts such as Kaushambi, Banda, Chitrakoot and Pratapgarh have started arriving at the city’s ghats to fetch the holy water for jalabhishek of Lord Shiv. Carrying decorated kanwars on their shoulders, they have embarked on the long journey to Kashi, chanting devotional slogans along the way.“I wanted to reach the…

Forest officials and researchers track gharial using satellite antena Bhubaneswar: The city forest division has launched a marathon tracking operation to save endangered gharials swept downstream by the swelling Mahanadi river. Officials fear that the aquatic reptiles could become entangled in fishing nets or get killed by locals who might mistake them for dangerous predators such as muggers or crocodiles.Forest authorities said that the gharials, released in the Mahanadi gorge within Satkosia Tiger Reserve under a species recovery programme by Nandankanan zoo in March, were displaced by strong currents during the ongoing floods.So far, two have been tracked to the…

To deter dumping, protective fencing has been installed on both sides of the Perur Road Noyyal bridge Coimbatore: Ahead of Aadi Perukku celebrations on August 3, Siruthuli, an NGO is making arrangements at Perur Padithurai (river bank) to ensure devotees perform rituals safely, without polluting the Noyyal river.Aadi Perukku, observed on the 18th day of the Tamil month of Aadi, is a festival that expresses gratitude to rivers and water sources and marks the monsoon rise of rivers, symbolising prosperity and harmony with nature. Devotees perform rituals at riverbanks to mark the occasion.Siruthuli trustee J Sathish said the group is…

Itanagar: Scripting history with resilience and determination, January Tali and Hachu Lombo have become the first women from Arunachal Pradesh to scale the 7,077-metre Mt Kun in Ladakh’s Zanskar range.The duo reached the summit at 6am on July 27 after an arduous 11-day high-altitude expedition organised by Cho Expedition. Tali hails from Yingkiong in Upper Siang district, while Lombo is from Anini in Dibang Valley district.Considered one of India’s most demanding technical climbs, Mt Kun presents steep ice walls, crevassed glaciers, unpredictable weather and extreme oxygen deprivation. Only four members of the nine-member team, excluding Sherpas, reached the summit, while…