The Hindu (Kochi)
U.S. sinks Iranian vessel near Sri Lanka
AU.S. submarine attacked an Iranian warship on Wednesday, which sank in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Sri Lanka, bringing the West Asian conflict closer to the Indian subcontinent. At least 83 people were killed in the torpedo attack. U.S. Defense...
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Battered Iran attacks oil infra targets in West Asia
Iran stepped up its attacks on economic targets and U.S. missions across West Asia on Tuesday as U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S.Israel strikes have inflicted wide damages on the Islamic Republic while warning it was “too late” for it to seek...
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West Asia war escalates, spikes oil, strands flyers
Iran and allied armed groups fired missiles at Israel, Arab states, and U.S. military targets around the region on Monday, while Israel and the U.S. pounded the West Asian country as the war expanded to several fronts and death toll grew on all...
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CM inaugurates Wayanad township’s first phase
Hailing the reconstruction efforts in landslideshit Wayanad as the latest instance of the ‘Kerala model,’ where people beyond all religious differences come together to support each other in distress, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday...
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U.S., Israel launch strikes on Iran
The U.S. and Israel launched a major attack on Iran on Saturday, and U.S. President Donald Trump called upon the Iranian public to “seize control of your destiny” by rising up against the Islamic leadership that has ruled the West Asian nation since...
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Kejriwal, 22 others walk free in excise policy case
In a major victory for the Aam Aadmi Party, a special court on Friday discharged party chief and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodia, and 21 others in the politically charged liquor policy case. Mr. Kejriwal hailed...
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AkkulamChettuva waterway a milestone in inland navigation: CM
The 280km AkkulamChettuva waterway, a milestone in inland navigation in Kerala, will contribute significantly to the making of a new Kerala and redefine the tourism prospects of the State, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said. After inaugurating...
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India ‘stands firmly’ with Israel, Modi tells Knesset
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his address to the Knesset on Wednesday, extended a firm hand of friendship to Israel and condemned the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023 as a “barbaric terrorist attack”. Speaking at the Israeli parliament, the Prime...
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SC expands judicial team to aid Bengal SIR process
The Supreme Court on Tuesday moved in quickly to swell the ranks of judicial officers deployed to aid the Election Commission (EC) in the completion of the special intensive revision (SIR) in West Bengal, even alerting neighbouring Odisha and Jharkhand...
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Centre unveils policy to tackle terrorism threats
The Union Home Ministry on Monday released the country’s firstever antiterror policy, emphasising that other than terror sponsored from across the border, “criminal hackers and nation states continue to target India through cyberattacks”. The...
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Time for nations facing tariffs to unionise: Lula
Instead of negotiating with the U.S. on tariffs separately, countries should form “negotiating blocs”, Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said here on Sunday, advocating for “unionisation” of those suffering from the tariffs. Mr. Lula,...
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YC workers trespass on Veena’s residence, lay funeral wreath
A group of Youth Congress (YC) workers stormed the official residence of Health Minister Veena George on Saturday morning, catching the Thiruvananthapuram City police unawares and eliciting strong protest from the Communist Party of India...
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U.S. Supreme Court halts Trump’s sweeping tariffs
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s farreaching global tariffs on Friday, handing him a significant loss on an issue crucial to his economic agenda. The 63 decision centres on tariffs imposed under an emergency powers law,...
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SIR in 22 States and U.T.s expected from April: EC
The Election Commission (EC) has informed State poll authorities that the special intensive revision (SIR) of voter lists in the 22 States and Union Territories, where it has not yet been conducted, is expected to begin in April. The 22 remaining...
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DGCA proposes swift ban on disruptive passengers
Airline operators may soon be empowered to directly impose a flying ban of up to 30 days on unruly or disruptive passengers without referring the matter to the competent authority. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has proposed...
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Political leaders, officials must foster fraternity: SC
Political leaders must foster fraternity and high public officeholders should live up to the ideals of the Constitution, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday. The court was hearing a petition highlighting instances of Chief Ministers, senior bureaucrats,...
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NGT clears ₹92,000cr. Great Nicobar project
ABench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Monday cleared the way for the ₹92,000crore Great Nicobar Island megainfrastructure project, noting that “considering the strategic importance” of it and “other relevant considerations”, “we do not find...
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Ahead of SC hearing, LDF, UDF spar over women’s entry to Sabarimala
The ruling front and the Opposition appeared poised to draw new battle lines over the contentious issue of allowing women of menstruating age into the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple. The Supreme Court’s decision to hear a series of petitions challenging...
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New Urban Challenge Fund to tap market for infra push
The Union Cabinet has approved the launch of the Urban Challenge Fund (UCF), a new Centrally sponsored scheme of the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry with ₹1 lakh crore Central assistance. In a statement on Saturday, the government said the...
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BNP secures landslide victory in Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party, led by chairman Tarique Rahman, is set to return to power in Dhaka after two decades, following a landslide victory in the February 12 parliamentary election, winning an absolute majority of seats, according to the...
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Zero tariff textiles exports to U.S. possible for India: Goyal
India will receive the same benefits on textiles exports under its interim trade agreement with the U.S. as Bangladesh gained through its own deal, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday. “Just as Bangladesh has a facility that if raw...
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Centre plans guidelines for books by defence personnel
Amid the controversy surrounding the unpublished memoir Four Stars of Destiny, of former Army chief General M.M. Naravane ((retd), the Defence Ministry is working on detailed guidelines for serving and retired armed forces personnel who wish to publish...
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Centre mandates label for photorealistic AI content
The Union government has notified amendments to the Information Technology Act, 2021, requiring photorealistic AIgenerated content to be prominently labelled. The changes, which will come into force on February 20, also significantly shorten timelines...
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‘Restrictive’ software tools being used for SIR, says SC
The Supreme Court on Monday said the Election Commission (EC) was using “very restrictive” software tools, at least in the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal, with scant tolerance for “natural” differences and inconsistencies...
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India, Malaysia ink pacts to expand strategic ties
India and Malaysia on Sunday vowed to expand their ties in the highpriority sectors of trade and investment, defence, energy, advanced manufacturing and semiconductors with Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserting that both sides are committed to peace...
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India, U.S. unveil framework for deal
India will remove or reduce tariffs on all industrial goods and a “wide range” of agricultural goods imported from the United States, according to the joint statement issued by the two countries on Saturday morning. In return, the U.S. will reduce its...
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India’s oil imports from Russia hit 38-month low
The value of India’s crude oil imports from Russia fell to a 38month low of $2.7 billion in December 2025, with Russian oil making up less than a quarter of India’s imports, down from 34% just a month before, an analysis of the latest official data...
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18 killed in blast at illegal coal mine in Meghalaya
An explosion in an illegally operated rathole coal mine in Meghalaya’s East Jaintia Hills district killed 18 miners on Thursday, officials said. This is one of the biggest miningrelated tragedies since July 2012, when 15 miners died in a flooded...
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Manipur President’s Rule ends; Khemchand new CM
The installation of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)led National Democratic Alliance government, with a Meitei leader at the helm, brought an end to nearly a year of President’s Rule in Manipur on Wednesday. Around 6 p.m., Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar...
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U.S. deal will not include sensitive sectors: Goyal
The trade deal with the United States, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media late on Monday night, will exclude sensitive agricultural items and dairy, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday,...
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U.S. tariff on India reduced to 18%, say Modi and Trump
Indicating a positive turn in a bilateral relationship that had been under strain because of multiple issues, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that “Made in India” products would “now” attract a “reduced tariff of 18%” in the U.S., after a...
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Simpler process Budget 2026:
While acknowledging the strains created by the external global environment, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday presented the Union Budget 2026 in Parliament, with the aim of increasing productivity across sectors and ensuring...
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Sunetra Pawar sworn in as Deputy CM of Maharashtra
Aday after the conclusion of the threeday State mourning for late Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar, who died in an air crash in Baramati on January 28, his wife Sunetra Pawar was sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra...
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Menstrual health in schools is integral to right to life: SC
The Supreme Court on Friday declared that the right to menstrual health and access to menstrual hygiene management (MHM) measures in educational institutions is part of the fundamental right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the...
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Balagopal serves a populist treat in poll-bound Kerala
Presenting the final Budget of electionbound Kerala’s incumbent CPI(M)led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government on Thursday, Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal unfurled a populist mix of bigticket announcements and welfare sops, notably a proposal to...
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Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, 4 others dead in plane crash; govt. denies foul play
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party supremo Ajit Pawar was killed in a plane crash in Baramati on Wednesday morning, along with four others on board. The Learjet 45 aircraft, belonging to Delhibased charter company VSR...
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‘Mother of all deals’: India and EU finalise FTA
After almost two decades of negotiation, India and the European Union (EU) finalised a free trade agreement (FTA) on Tuesday billed as the “mother of all deals”, that will see the EU drop tariffs on 99.5% of Indian exports to the 27nation bloc. India...
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Parties allege plot to exclude Assam voters
Leaders of the Congress and five other Opposition parties in Assam on Sunday submitted a memorandum to the State’s Chief Electoral Officer, alleging that fake objections were being filed to remove voters from the draft rolls during the special revision...
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Vizhinjam a new chapter in infra development, says CM
The commencement of the second phase of development of the Vizhinjam International Seaport has created a new chapter in the history of infrastructure development in the State, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said. Speaking after inaugurating the...
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Only double-engine govt. will benefit Kerala: PM
Appealing to the people of Kerala to provide a “decisive mandate” to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said the State needs a “double-engine government” for it to draw the entire...
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Tension rises in Manipur after Meitei man’s killing
A29yearold man was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Churachandpur district of Manipur on Wednesday night, security officials said. The killing was recorded on camera. Mayanglambam Rishikant Singh, a resident of Kakching, belonged to the...
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ED freezes Unnikrishnan Potti’s assets worth ₹1.3 crore in Sabarimala theft case, seizes gold bar from Chennai firm
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Wednesday froze eight immovable properties of Unnikrishnan Potti, the prime accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case, valued at approximately ₹1.3 crore under Section 17 (1A) of the the Prevention of Money...
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Governor altered policy address, says Kerala CM
The Kerala Legislative Assembly saw extraordinary scenes on Tuesday after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar had made changes to the policy speech prepared by the State government while delivering the customary...
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SIT report shows need for deeper inquiry into affairs of Sabarimala temple for two decades: HC
The scientific findings in an interim report submitted on Monday by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) looking into the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala temple ‘disclose suspicious and disturbing circumstances surrounding the...
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PM launches ₹6,957crore Kaziranga corridor work
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday cited the outcome of the Bihar Assembly election and the Mumbai civic polls to claim that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has become the first choice of the people in the country. After laying the foundation...
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CM attributes State’s secular harmony to efforts of LDF govt.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday asserted that the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government succeeded in preventing communal clashes and preserving secular harmony in Kerala, even as several parts of the country grappled with deepening communal...
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Devotion peaks at Sabarimala as thousands witness Makaravilakku
Amid an unprecedented surge of devotees who had been camping in and around the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple for the past several days, the Makaravilakku festival was celebrated at the hill temple on Wednesday. Braving the massive crowds, thousands of...
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India, Germany agree to shore up defence cooperation
India and Germany will enhance defence trade with an eye on ‘coproduction and codevelopment,’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday, as the two sides signed an agreement to strengthen bilateral defence industrial cooperation. Welcoming German...
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State hopeful of package for fiscal correction, rare earth corridor in Union Budget
Kerala’s expectations from the Union Budget 2026-27 include a ‘Special Fiscal Correction Package’ to make up for “a severe resource gap of over ₹21,000 crore arising from the current year’s borrowing constraints,” the establishment of a defence...
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Mamata, ED lock horns over search at consultancy firm
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Thursday accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of removing evidence from two locations during a raid against the political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (IPAC) in Kolkata. The...
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EC says it has constitutional duty to bar foreigners from voter rolls
The Election Commission of India (EC) began its defence of the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls before the Supreme Court on Tuesday by dismissing claims that it is conducting a “parallel” National Register of Citizens (NRC)...
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Maduro pleads not guilty, says he is still President of his country
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro pleaded not guilty to charges of narcoterrorism in a New York court on Monday, two days after being snatched along with his wife, Cilia Flores, by U.S. forces from Caracas. “I'm the President of the Republic of...
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VACB recommends CBI probe against Satheesan
The Vigilance and AntiCorruption Bureau (VACB) has recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation based on its findings that Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan, may have violated the Foreign Currency Regulation Act, (FCRA) 2010,...
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T.N. announces assured pension scheme for State govt. staff
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday announced the new Tamil Nadu Assured Pension Scheme (TAPS) for State government employees. Under the new arrangement, State government employees will be provided with an assured pension equal to 50% of...
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Centre’s tobacco tax rejig to take effect from Feb. 1
The Union Finance Ministry on Thursday issued a series of notifications that will give effect to the new taxation regime for tobacco products from February 1. The Central Excise (Amendment) Act, 2025, passed in the recently concluded Winter Session of...
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Vodafone-Idea gets relief on AGR dues
The Union Cabinet, at its meeting on Wednesday, approved the freezing of Vodafone Idea Ltd. (VIL)’s adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, amounting to ₹87,695 crore, for a period of five years. The relief, however, may be partial as a note from the...
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EC gives one more week for U.P. SIR in another extension
The Election Commission of India (EC) on Tuesday revised the schedule for the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Uttar Pradesh yet again, extending it by a week. Now the draft list will be published on January 6, instead of...
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SC pauses its judgment on Aravalli, moots new panel
The Supreme Court on Monday kept in abeyance its November 20 judgment upholding a government expert panel definition restricting the world’s oldest surviving mountain system, the Aravalli Range, to hills sporting an elevation of 100 metres or above,...
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EC conditionally halts voter hearing under SIR in Bengal
The Election Commission of India (EC), in a fresh set of instructions, has asked district election officials (DEOs) in West Bengal not to summon for hearings those voters identified as “unmapped”, but whose names or ancestral connections were present...
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10.56 lakh names cut on draft rolls in Assam
The names of 10.56 lakh voters have been deleted on the draft electoral rolls of Assam which were published on Saturday after a housetohouse verification of the voter lists during the special revision exercise conducted by the Election Commission in...
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Dhaka braces for return of BNP leader ahead of polls
After nearly 18 years in exile in the United Kingdom, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman will return to Dhaka on Thursday, formally marking the official launch of the party’s campaign for the February 12 general...
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Over 24 lakh voters out of SIR draft roll in State
A little over 24 lakh voters in Kerala have been excluded from the draft electoral roll published by the Election Commission of India (EC) on Tuesday under the special intensive revision (SIR) under way in the State. The draft electoral roll has 2.54...
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India, New Zealand wind up FTA talks, set to boost trade
India and New Zealand on Monday concluded discussions on a free trade agreement (FTA) that will give India tarifffree access to the island nation’s markets, bring in $20 billion in investments over 15 years, and help double bilateral trade to $5...
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Keeping a close watch on Bangladesh events: India
India on Sunday described the killing of a Hindu youth in Bangladesh as a “horrendous act”, and expressed “strong concern” about the safety of minority communities in the neighbouring country. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal...
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U.S. wants India’s nuclear norms globally aligned
Two days after Parliament cleared the SHANTI Bill, which allows private participation in India’s nuclear sector and eases liability norms by capping operator liability for a nuclear incident to ₹3,000 crore, U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed...
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Consider ‘ground realities’ in various States, SC tells EC
The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Election Commission of India (EC) to take a “sympathetic view” of representations to extend the enumeration phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, taking into consideration the “ground realities”...
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LS passes nuclear energy Bill allowing privatisation
The Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025, despite demands by several Opposition parliamentarians for referring the legislation to a parliamentary...
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Sydney beach shooter was Indian citizen, say officials
Sajid Akram, one of the two Bondi Beach attackers who killed at least 16 people at a Jewish event in Australia on Sunday, was an Indian citizen from Hyderabad, government officials who ran a background check on the deceased told The Hindu. He last came...
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With new Bill, demand-led job scheme set to turn supply-driven
The Union government is set to introduce the Viksit Bharat — Guarantee For Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005 in the Lok Sabha. The move will mark a shift from...
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11 dead, 29 injured as gunmen fire on Jewish event in Sydney
At least 11 people were killed and 29 wounded when gunmen fired on a Jewish holiday event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday in what Australian police and officials described as a terrorist attack. One suspected gunman was killed and another was in a...
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All 6 convicts in 2017 actor rape case get 20 years of rigorous imprisonment
The six convicts in the 2017 actor rape case were on Friday awarded life imprisonment for 20 years each on two counts for gang rape (IPC 376 D) and criminal conspiracy [IPC 120 (b)] among other punishments. However, all the punishments of the convicts...
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EC extends deadline for SIR in five States, one U.T.
The Election Commission has extended the schedule of the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in five States and one Union Territory: Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, and the Andaman and Nicobar...
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Illegal immigrants will be detected, deported: Shah
The National Democratic Alliance government will “detect, delete and deport” illegal immigrants from the country, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Wednesday, as the Lok Sabha witnessed a faceoff during a discussion on electoral reforms, leading...
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Citizenship under CAA only if claims verified: SC
The Supreme Court on Tuesday said conferment of rights associated with Indian citizenship to people claiming to be religious minorities who fled persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh and protected under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act,...
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Dileep acquitted in 2017 actor assault case; six found guilty
Atrial court in Kerala acquitted actor Dileep in the 2017 actor rape case on Monday, while convicting six others. The verdict was delivered in a packed hall in the Ernakulam District and Sessions Court. Those pronounced guilty on Monday are N.S....
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