Author: Indmedia

The reassurance comes amid a rise in seasonal influenza cases in Delhi.(Representative image) NEW DELHI: Setting to rest concerns behind the recent rise in H1N1 cases, senior scientists at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said no new strain of the virus has been detected in the country and there is no cause for panic. The viruses currently circulating are seasonal strains that have been in circulation since 2025 and are well matched with vaccine strains recommended for northern hemisphere.The Influenza A (H1N1)pdm09 viruses currently circulating in India belong to the A/Missouri/11/2025 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus strain and fall under clade…

Boardroom to backstage: Performances by Bengaluru’s corporate professionals; about 90% of people in the city’s theatre groups are part-timers and have a day job By: Jahnavi SanjeevWorking professionals in the city are happily squeezing rehearsals and performances around their demanding day jobs. Bengaluru’s inclusive theatre community gives many of them a space to pursue their passion for acting, directing and storytellingSindhu Savanur, 29, who works as a senior financial modelling analyst with HSBC, always wanted to pursue theatre. But while growing up, it was at the bottom of her priority list due to practical reasons.“I was always too focused on…

Hyderabad: A faculty member has moved the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) against Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad (JNTUH), alleging that the university’s 10% cap on interdisciplinary faculty teaching emerging technology courses violates AICTE norms. The council has asked the university to examine and address the grievance.“AICTE rules permit qualified faculty members from core engineering branches to teach courses in emerging areas. However, JNTUH is restricting this option to a limited number of faculty members by imposing a 10% cap. This is against the rules, and the cap must be removed,” said Ome Narella, the faculty member who…

Madurai: TVK minister R Nirmalkumar on Sunday sought to play down TNCC president Manickam Tagore’s remarks that some in TVK were still functioning with a “fan-club mindset”, saying the criticism was aimed at statements made by a few “individuals” and not at chief minister C Joseph Vijay.Tagore had made the remark while responding to TVK functionaries projecting Vijay as a future PM despite being an ally of Congress, which has been positioning Rahul Gandhi as PM candidate.Responding to questions in Madurai, Nirmalkumar said, “What he said was based on interviews and remarks made by some of our ministers, among others.…

Ahmedabad: The growth of Harappan cities may have influenced not only where people lived and worked but also what they ate and how their food was prepared, according to a new study by an international team of researchers.The study analysed 22 human teeth recovered from archaeological sites at Juna Khatiya village in Gujarat’s Kutch district (12 samples) and Rakhigarhi in Haryana (10 samples). Researchers examined microscopic wear patterns on the teeth to reconstruct dietary habits and assess differences in food consumption between the two populations.The findings suggest that people living at Juna Khatiya between 3200 BCE and 2600 BCE consumed…

Gurgaon: National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed MCG to provide a clear timeline for bridging the gap between the city’s daily municipal waste generation and treatment and bringing it down to zero.The direction was issued by the tribunal while considering the handling of solid waste at the Bandhwari landfill. While a large quantity of accumulated waste remains to be processed, the landfill continues to receive fresh waste.NGT also noted that MCG’s latest status report did not disclose a timeline for clearing the entire legacy waste at the site. The tribunal directed MCG to file a report giving details of the…

Kanpur: Thieves broke into the locked house of BJP Backward Class Commission member Ashok Kumar in Sudarshan Housing Society under the Rawatpur police station area and stole cash, jewellery and other valuables worth around Rs 15 lakh. The robbery came to light late Saturday when Kumar returned from Lucknow.Kumar lives in the society with his wife, Asha. His son, Parijat, lives in Gurgaon with his wife and works for a private company. Asha had gone to Gurgaon about a month ago.Kumar said he had gone to Lucknow on the evening of Aug 18 to attend a meeting. When he returned…

Residents living near these facilities say the widespread absence of fire safety clearances highlights a serious regulatory gap Decades of inaction have allowed illegal scrapyards to proliferate across the state, where recurring fires expose glaring regulatory failures and mounting public riskPanaji: On June 24, another unauthorised scrapyard at Colvale went up in flames, with the blaze tearing through tightly packed piles of highly inflammable plastic, rubber and scrap metal. No one was injured, but thick black smoke and the wail of fire engines served as a reminder that the state’s growing scrapyard problem remains unresolved.The Colvale fire is far from…

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann Chandigarh: Former additional deputy comptroller and auditor general (CAG) Onkar Nath questioned the Punjab govt’s claims of a “sikhya kranti” and its implementation on the ground. He urged chief minister Bhagwant Mann to ensure that children of ministers, MLAs, senior bureaucrats and other govt employees study in state-run schools.In an Aug 22 letter addressed to the chief minister, Nath said the govt had repeatedly projected Punjab’s govt schools as having undergone a major transformation.“If this claim is truly justified, the govt should take a simple but powerful step by ensuring that children of Punjab’s ministers,…

Lucknow: Thousands of cook-cum-helpers working under the PM Poshan (Mid-Day Meal) Scheme welcomed the govt’s decision to increase their monthly honorarium by ₹1,000 and provide cashless health treatment of up to ₹5 lakh for them and their families.Thanking the CM, Rita Devi of Saharanpur said the hike in monthly honorarium reflects recognition of the hard work and dedication of cook-cum-helpers and would boost their morale.Vimlesh, a cook from Meerut, said the increased honorarium would ease household expenses, while the cashless treatment facility would reduce worries about healthcare costs.Asha Devi from Agra said, “The CM understood the needs and struggles of…