Sabarimala: Former TDB president files plea in Kerala High Court demanding removal of current chief

Former Travancore Dewaswom Board President Prayar Gopalakrishnan on Wednesday moved the Kerala High Court seeking to remove current board President KP Sankardas. Gopalakrishnan claimed that Sankardas had violated the customs of the Sabarimala temple.

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HAL is not contending to be offset partner, focus is on manufacturing aircraft, says its chairperson

State-run Hindustan Aeronautic Limited’s Chairperson and Managing Director R Madhavan on Wednesday said the aircraft manufacturing company is not contending be an offset partner of any original equipment manufacturer. He said HAL’s focus was on manufacturing of aircraft, helicopters, aircraft accessories, repair and overhaul, and not in the offset business.

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Kerala: Court agrees to consider the murder of Dalit Christian a case of ‘honour killing’

An Additional Sessions Court in Kerala’s Kottayam on Wednesday observed that the death of a 24-year-old Dalit Christian was a case of “honour killing”. The court also directed to complete the trial within six months.

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Uttar Pradesh: Six people booked for beating tigress to death in Dudhwa reserve

The Uttar Pradesh forest department has lodged a First Information Report against six people and a few unidentified people in connection with the killing of a tigress in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. The tiger reserve’s field director Ramesh Pandey said the FIR was filed on Monday, a day after villagers had mowed the tigress and beat her to death after it purportedly killed a 50-year-old man in the tiger reserve.

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Uttar Pradesh CM Adityanath confirms plan to build statue of Ram in Ayodhya

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath on Wednesday confirmed the state government’s plan to build a statue of Hindu deity Ram in Ayodhya. Surveying and consultations with architects for possible designs of the statue are on, he said.

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Jammu and Kashmir seeks Centre’s assistance to compensate losses caused by snowfall to crops

The Jammu and Kashmir government on Tuesday assessed an estimate of Rs 500 crore in losses to the state’s agriculture and horticulture sectors caused by unprecedented snowfall in the state. Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam requested the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre to send a team to assess the damage and expedite the release of financial assistance to the affected farmers.

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Maharashtra: Fresh polls should be held if NOTA gets most votes, says state election commission

The Maharashtra State Election Commission announced that fresh elections from the nomination stage itself will be held if the None Of The Above option or NOTA were to get the maximum number of votes. In an order released on Tuesday, the state election commission said none of the candidates in such a scenario will be declared elected and NOTA will be considered a “fictional electoral candidate”.

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US midterm polls: Democrats set to take control of House of Representatives, Republicans keep Senate

The United States’ Democratic Party appears set to take control of the 435-member House of Representatives in the mid-term elections held on Tuesday, projections showed. The Senate, however, remains with the Republican Party, which may even extend its slim 51-49 majority.

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At least 36 Gir lions under observation after vaccination, says forest department official: Report

The Gujarat forest department will continue to keep under observation 36 Asiatic lions rescued from the Gir sanctuary after an outbreak of the canine distemper virus killed at least 17 other lions. But officers are yet to come up with plans for their rehabilitation, Junagadh wildlife circle Chief Conservator of Forests Dushyant Vasavada said.

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Internal mechanism needed to correct agitation in institutions like CBI and SC, says Venkaiah Naidu

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has said that controversies at institutions such as the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Supreme Court are “internal issues” and demand “internal correctives”.

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Former Bihar minister Manju Verma’s lawyer moves court against plea to give her ‘absconder’ tag

Former Bihar minister Manju Verma’s lawyer on Tuesday moved a court against a police petition to declare her a “proclaimed offender” in an Arms Act case, PTI reported. A sub-divisional court had issued a non-bailable warrant against her on October 31, a day after the Supreme Court asked police why Verma had not been arrested yet over the recovery of ammunition from her in-laws’ house.

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Delhi: Air quality improves to ‘poor’ ahead of Diwali celebrations

The air quality in Delhi improved to the “poor” category on Wednesday morning, from “very poor” a day earlier. The Air Quality Index was recorded at 268 at 10 am, according to the Central Pollution Control Board. Authorities have warned of a spike in the pollution levels after Diwali on Wednesday even if “partially toxic crackers” are burnt compared to last year.

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RBI refuses to tell how much it spent on shredding demonetised currency notes

The Reserve Bank of India has declined a Right-To-Information request to know the cost of shredding the currency notes that returned to banks after being demonetised in 2016. The central bank told the RTI applicant that the information was unavailable and providing it would “disproportionately divert its resources”.

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Maharashtra seeks central assistance of Rs 7,000 crore as drought relief

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said the government will request the Centre for financial assistance of Rs 7,000 crore to help in drought mitigation. A proposal will be sent to the Union government on Wednesday, he said.

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Gujarat: ‘We are ready to rename Ahmedabad as Karnavati,’ says deputy chief minister

Hours after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath announced that the state’s Faizabad district will be renamed Ayodhya, the Gujarat government on Tuesday said it would consider changing Ahmedabad’s name to Karnavati.

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Delhi Police file three cases over brawl between BJP and AAP workers at bridge inauguration

The Delhi Police on Tuesday filed three cases in connection with the clashes between workers of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party during the inauguration of the Signature Bridge in the city on Sunday, PTI reported.

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