The Ministry of Home Affairs in India has amended the Model Prison Manual and Model Prisons and Correctional Services Act to address caste-based discrimination in prisons. This move, following a Supreme Court directive, aims to ensure no discrimination in prisoners' duties based on caste and prohibits manual scavenging within jails.
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Bootleggers in Gujarat attempted a novel smuggling operation by exploiting the Indian postal service to transport liquor from Diu. They believed using postal channels would evade police scrutiny at the Diu-Gujarat border. However, police intercepted a suspect carrying liquor-filled parcels with official postal stamps, revealing the involvement of a postmaster who facilitated the scheme.
A consortium of US-based Indian tech executives, including CEOs from Microsoft, Google, and Adobe, won a £295 million bid to co-own 49% of the London Spirit franchise in The Hundred cricket tournament. This winning bid involved an e-auction process and marks significant involvement of tech leaders in the sport.
Qari Abdul Rehman, a member of the banned anti-Shia outfit ASWJ, was killed in a targeted attack by masked assailants in Karachi's Qaid Abad. The incident, believed to be sectarian in nature, has heightened concerns over Pakistan's sectarian violence. The ASWJ condemned the act as terrorism.
For JioStar, the newly minted behemoth, the ambition is clear: reach a billion viewers across platforms in 2025. “IPL always had the immense potential to go from where it was to unseen heights,†Sanjog Gupta, JioStar Sports CEO, told K Shriniwas Rao, Head of Content (Sports), Times Internet. The scale is staggering — 170 experts, 25+ feeds, 12 languages. But behind the slick packaging is a larger story: of a media empire staking its claim on India's cultural centrepiece.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget speech announced tax exemption for salaries up to Rs 12 lakh, leading to applause and chants of 'Modi, Modi' in the BJP benches. However, opposition parties protested over the Kumbh stampede and eventually walked out. The session, marked by divided reactions, reflected the political split and customary reactions in the 75-minute address.
Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP of plotting to use the Maha Kumbh to promote Yogi Adityanath as a Prime Ministerial candidate and fostering societal division. This accusation follows BJP MP Nishikant Dubey's controversial remarks criticizing the Supreme Court, which the BJP has distanced itself from, emphasizing they were Dubey's personal views.
A sessions court in Kolkata sentenced former traffic police volunteer Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment for the rape and murder of a junior doctor. The court resisted calls for the death penalty, deeming the case not the 'rarest of rare'. Roy was also fined and compensation was awarded to the victim's family.
A family from Kozhikode, Kerala, experienced a horrific incident during a zip-lining adventure in Baisaran. Nihal, while filming his cousin, inadvertently captured footage of terrorists opening fire on innocent people. Gunshots disrupted the scenic meadow as tourists fled in terror. The chilling video later revealed a man being fatally shot, highlighting the unexpected violence that shattered their vacation.
A constable from Beed police, Uddhav Gadkar, was arrested on charges of raping a woman who he summoned under the pretext of an International Women's Day event. The victim's complaint and medical examination led to the constable's immediate arrest and remand in police custody until March 12.
TikTok faces a potential shutdown in the U.S. by April 5, 2025, unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells its U.S. operations to a non-Chinese buyer. President Trump is negotiating a possible deal, with major companies like Oracle and Microsoft as potential buyers, amidst national security and geopolitical concerns.