Itanagar, Aug 17 (IANS) Arunachal Pradesh Governor Lt. General K.T. Parnaik (Retd.) on Sunday congratulated Kabak Yano for her remarkable achievement of summiting Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in Russia and Europe. A Raj Bhavan official said that she successfully reached the summit on August 16 at 5.20 a.m. (Russian time).The Governor, who had earlier flagged off Yano for her Seven Summits Challenge, expressed pride in her determination and confidence that she would complete the mission success…

New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) The Election Commission on Sunday dismissed charges of ‘vote chori’, levelled by the Congress party, saying that the poll panel stands firm with the voters like a rock and will never compromise with the electoral process and protocols, even in the face of adversity. Addressing a press conference, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar also rejected allegations of any bias in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) drive in Bihar and said that its doors are open for a…

New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) Tensions are growing in Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan region between local communities and the increasingly dominant China-Pakistan trade apparatus, according to reports.Social media footage widely circulated showed Chinese nationals blocking a key road in protest, and within hours, Pakistani traders responded by staging a sit-in that effectively brought cross-border movement at the Sost town at the Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) immigration point to a standstill on July 31.Accor…

Patna, Aug 17 (IANS) The ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav began from Sasaram on Sunday with a massive rally at the Airport Ground. The event saw the presence of senior leaders, including RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rabri Devi, CPI-ML General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, Bhupesh Baghel and VIP chief Mukesh Sahani.Flagging off the yatra, Lalu Prasad Yadav briefly addressed the crowd with his trademar…

Amaravati, Aug 17 (IANS) Alleged remarks by a TDP MLA calling for a boycott of a movie of Tollywood superstar Jr NTR triggered a row with the actor’s fans staging a protest demanding his apology. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MLA from Anantapur Urban, Daggupati Venkateswara Prasad, allegedly used derogatory words for Jr NTR and called for a boycott of his film ‘War2’ in Anantapur.An audio clip allegedly featuring the MLA surfaced online, triggering protests from the actor’s fans. The fans on Sunday s…

New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) The Finance Ministry has called a meeting of the chiefs of public sector banks (PSBs) on Wednesday to review their financial performance for the first quarter of the current financial year.The meeting will be chaired by Financial Services Secretary M. Nagaraju, according to reports.Public sector banks have posted strong earnings in the April–June quarter of 2025-26 (Q1 FY26). Together, the 12 PSBs reported a record profit of Rs 44,218 crore — reflecting an 11 per cent…

Raipur, Aug 17 (IANS) In a major success for anti-LWE operations in central India, four notorious Maoists surrendered before security forces in Gariaband district, marking a significant setback for the insurgent network active in the region. Among those who laid down arms was Deepak a.k.a. Bhima Mandavi, a divisional committee member (DVCM) with a reward of Rs 8 lakh.The total bounty on the surrendered cadres stood at Rs 19 lakh, senior police officials said.The other three included Kailash a.k….

New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday issued a strong rebuttal to allegations questioning the credibility of the Election Commission of India (ECI), indirectly countering remarks made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over alleged irregularities in Karnataka’s Mahadevapura constituency and in Maharashtra Assembly elections.Addressing a packed press conference at the National Media Centre in New Delhi, the CEC underlined that the ECI functions under a …

Amaravati, Aug 17 (IANS) Buoyed by the Telugu Desam Party’s clean sweep in the by-elections to two ZPTC seats in YSR Congress Party president Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s home constituency, Pulivendula, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu may go aggressively against him in the YSR family’s traditional stronghold. Four years ago, it was Jagan Mohan Reddy who had stormed the TDP president and Chief Minister Naidu’s constituency, Kuppam, by winning rural and urban local body polls. Now,…

New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that the country’s citizens will receive a double bonus during Diwali this year through the next generation GST reform that is being planned to bring down the prices of goods and services to benefit the poor and middle class.In his address at the inauguration of two major highway projects in Delhi, the Prime Minister said: “For us, reform means the expansion of good governance, and continuous focus is being placed on reforms….