Browsing: India

Thiruvananthapuram: Environmental clearance to the proposed Thiruvananthapuram Outer Ring Road (ORR) connecting Vizhinjam and Navaikulam has been deferred after the expert appraisal committee (EAC) of Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) insisted on a site inspection before taking a final decision.The matter came up before EAC at its hearing on Wednesday, where members reviewed the proposal, including the revised alignment featuring multiple tunnels. The committee decided that a field visit was necessary before granting environmental clearance, citing concerns arising from the recent landslip at the under-construction Anakkampoyil-Kalladi twin-tunnel project in Wayanad.EAC observed that the Wayanad incident underscored…

Audit at private institutes Kolkata: The state higher education department on Wednesday formed teams to visit private institutes, including BEd colleges, primary teachers training institutes and degree colleges, and evaluate classroom teaching, student enrolment and attendance. The inspection is meant to verify if private college students, who first pay high admission fees and then hefty semester fees, are receiving quality education.During the inspection, the teams will audit the institutes’ biometric entry systems, if any. At colleges that still follow a manual attendance system, the teams will verify the numbers against the total enrolment for each course. Officials will check CCTV…

Srinagar, Jul 15: The damage to Kashmir’s wetlands is no longer confined to shrinking water bodies, disappearing birds or encroaching settlements. Increasingly, the scars of human activity are being found beneath the surface — in the very soil that sustains these fragile ecosystems.A new study published in the prestigious journal Scientific Reports has revealed alarming signs of ecological degradation in some of the Valley’s most important wetlands, with urbanisation, waste disposal, tourism, grazing and agricultural activities steadily eroding soil health and microbial diversity.The study, titled “Demystifying the impacts of anthropogenic activities on physicochemical characteristics of soil in four wetlands of Kashmir Valley, India”, was…

The Israel Defense Forces removed soldier Shira Braun from its international communications unit and imposed a suspended jail sentence after she appeared in a livestream with controversial influencer Braden “Clavicular” Peters. The IDF said the action was based on her conduct, not misuse of official systems. Peters, known for his ties to polarizing internet figures and controversial content, drew criticism during his Israel visit, prompting debate over military standards, influencer culture, and institutional accountability. Israel’s military has removed a soldier from its international communications unit after she was seen in a livestream with controversial influencer Braden Peters, also known online…

A chimney rests on a pyre after it fell during the last rites of a 70-year-old man on Wednesday. Mira-Bhayander: A portion of a chimney at a civic crematorium in Mira Road collapsed onto a burning funeral pyre on Wednesday morning, triggering panic among mourners.The deceased’s relatives, who were standing close to the pyre during the last rites, had a narrow escape and no injuries were reported.The incident occurred around 11 am at the Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) crematorium near Mira Road railway station.The funeral of 70-year-old Girish Shingare, a resident of Poonam Sagar in Mira Road, was underway when…

New Delhi: A Delhi court has allowed jailed activist Umar Khalid to resume two weekly video meetings (e-mulakats) with his family, accepting his plea that the facility had been reduced to one session a week from May 2026 despite there being no violation of prison rules on his part.Khalid had sought restoration of the earlier arrangement, submitting that he had been permitted two meetings every week for the past six years, but “all of a sudden since May, 2026” the facility was curtailed to one video meeting a week.Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai passed the order on July 13, restoring…

Emergent co-founders (L-R) Madhav Jha and Mukund Jha Bengaluru: AI startup Emergent has raised $130 million in a funding round that values the company at $1.5 billion, making it a unicorn less than a year after its public launch. The company, which enables users without coding skills to build web and mobile applications using AI, plans to use the capital for product development and global expansion.Private equity firm Creaegis led the round, with Manipal Group chairman Ranjan Pai’s family investment office Claypond Capital and Sentinel Global joining as co-lead investors. Existing backers Khosla Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Lightspeed and…

Hyderabad: Telangana will add another five lakh metric tonnes of warehousing capacity over the next two years to strengthen scientific storage facilities for farmers, agriculture minister Tummala Nageswara Rao said on Wednesday.Reviewing the functioning of the Telangana State Warehousing Corporation (TGSWC), Markfed and HACA at the secretariat, the minister directed officials to prepare a comprehensive district-wise assessment of warehouse requirements for the next 20 years and align future construction plans accordingly.He also asked officials to adopt scientific storage practices to prevent deterioration in the quality of commodities and urged govt corporations to reduce interest liabilities while improving their financial health…

Chennai: Employers are increasingly hiring AI talents and talking about paying a premium over compensation for other talent, but workers are yet to witness the impact, according to a report by Indeed. It noted that while 66% of employers state they offer substantial salary premiums for AI-skilled roles, 54% of AI-exposed workers report that their compensation has either stagnated or actually decreased over the past year. It is based on a survey of 1,267 employers and 2,541 employees across India.Organizations state that AI-skilled positions command an 11%–30% and 31%-50% premium over non-AI roles, but 36% professionals saw zero change in…

Vadodara/Ahmedabad: After making global headlines for slowing ships in the Persian Gulf during the Strait of Hormuz crisis, barnacles—tiny shell-covered marine creatures that cling to rocks and ship hulls—are now exposing alarming levels of microplastic pollution along Gujarat’s coastline.A study by researchers from Hemchandracharya North Gujarat University (HNGU) and the Maharaja Sayajirao University (MSU) has found that among 13 locations surveyed along the state’s coast, Shivrajpur recorded the highest concentration of microplastics in barnacles. Ironically, Shivrajpur is Gujarat’s Blue Flag-certified beach, internationally recognised for meeting the highest environmental, safety and cleanliness standards.Located about 12 km from Dwarka, the beach attracted…