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Tree-felling near Taj Mahal under the scanner: NGT seeks final report by 16 December

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The National Green Tribunal has directed the local commissioner, probing illegal felling of 4,000 trees in the Eco-Sensitive Zone near the Taj Mahal, to submit the final inspection report by 16 December. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar gave this direction to advocate M C Mehta, who was appointed as local commissioner […]

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The irony of Udaya Prakash: Hounded for returning award; now slammed for praising Modi

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“The speech given by our Prime Minister Narendra Modi today in Parliament on Constitution has importance of a historical inscription, an important stately document. I have not heard in my life such a democratic, inclusive, liberal and polite speech in my life, at least in such an effective manner. He spoke without any bias, so

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Never said India was unsafe for tourists, clarifies Russia

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The Russian Information Centre in Panaji on Sunday dismissed media reports which claimed that India and Goa have been ‘struck off’ from the list of ‘safe’ travel destinations recommended for Russian citizens, saying its earlier statement was “misconstrued”. Issuing a clarification this evening, the Russian Information Centre (RIC) head Ekaterina Belyakova stated that the First

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Thirteen SSB troops released after being detained by Nepal police

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Nepal on Sunday briefly detained 13 personnel of India’s Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), who allegedly entered the country with arms while chasing suspected smugglers near Jhapa district, bordering Bihar. Nepal’s Armed Police Force (APF) personnel deployed at the Border Account Post at Kechana Village in Jhapa district, bordering Bihar’s Kishanganj district, arrested the SSB jawans

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Greenpeace crackdown, clean energy roadmap: Questions await PM Modi at Paris climate summit

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When Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted about a talkathon on climate change on Friday morning, he was not just promoting an online event; he was actually making a strong political statement — this time for an international audience. Criticised by many international bodies for cracking down on NGOs such as Greenpeace, the government of India

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An apolitical solution for GST imbroglio and 5 reasons why PM Modi should take it up

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It’s pretty much obvious that a few select, perhaps just a couple of, parties are holding up the proposed implementation of the GST. The BJP cannot really maintain a holier-than-thou attitude as they blocked the passage when they were in opposition. The political situation in India is so disastrous that whether the Congress wins or

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Pakistan spy racket busted: BSF man, ISI-linked handler arrested from Jammu

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A BSF personnel and a Pakistani intelligence operative have been arrested for obtaining secret information related to India’s national security and sharing it with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), police said on Sunday. Kafaitullah Khan alias Master Raja (44) and Border Security Force (BSF) head constable Abdul Rasheed were arrested from Jammu on 26 November. Khan

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No longer a five-day game: It’s time to stop producing rank turners and do away with toss

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Tests in India can no longer be referred to as the five-day game. We have the fantastic (please note sarcasm) pitch curators to thank for that. Just like the first Test in Mohali, and the three Tests in India before that – last test to go for more than three days was the third test

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Both sides of the argument are flawed: Why the great secularism debate is a waste of time

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The great secularism debate begins all over again. Rest assured, it will take us nowhere. There will be plenty of theoretical drivel from both sides of the secular divide justifying respective positions. And as usual there won’t be a point of convergence. Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Congress president set the ball rolling on day

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Hopes of thaw on GST bill? Sonia, Manmohan put forth concerns to Modi over tea

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Hopes of a thaw on the GST bill emerged on Friday night with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaching out to the Congress leadership, which will discuss within the party the government’s response to its three objections on the measure. The government will establish “fresh contact” with the Congress once the party completes its internal

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Large Chinese military fleet flies near Japan islands: Reports

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Japan scrambled jets after 11 Chinese military planes flew near southern Japanese islands during what Beijing said was a drill to improve its long-range combat abilities, reports said Saturday. The planes — eight bombers, two intelligence gathering planes and one early-warning aircraft — flew near Miyako and Okinawa on Friday without violating Japan`s airspace, the

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Varanasi villagers blame Coca-Cola for water scarcity woes

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Eighteen village councils in Uttar Pradesh are demanding a local Coca-Cola bottling plant be prohibited from extracting water from the ground, claiming its over usage has led to water scarcity in the area, said an environmental campaign group. The villages, which are located in Mehdiganj area of Varanasi district — the constituency of Prime Minister

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Mumbai gangrape: Woman files FIR after video of her niece emerges on WhatsApp

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A 15-year-old girl was gangraped by her friend and three others over a fortnight ago. The details of the crime emerged after the girl’s aunt received a video clip of the incident on WhatsApp. Reports says that the boys, who were between the ages of 15 and 16, were from the same neighbourhood as the

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Arun Jaitley invokes emergency, Adolf Hitler; Ghulam Nabi Azad talks of intolerance

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The issue of intolerance underpinned arguments of the government and Opposition during the discussion on commitment to Constitution in the Rajya Sabha on Friday. While finance minister Arun Jaitley invoked the Emergency excesses to make light of the present brouhaha over intolerance, the Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad charged the BJP leadership with patronising

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Nawaz Sharif Grants Permission To Pakistan Team For India Series

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Pakistani cricket officials have announced that they need their government’s permission before going ahead and finalising the details of their “home” series against India. “#NoCricketWithPakistan” was the top Twitter trend on Thursday evening. BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said on Wednesday that the board had made a formal request to the ministry of external affairs (MEA)

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Russia Didn’t Give Downed Jet’s Flight Plan to US: US Officials

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Russia did not inform the U.S. military of its jet’s flight plan before Turkey shot it down on Tuesday, despite assertions to the contrary by Russian President Vladimir Putin, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Friday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Putin has suggested some degree of U.S. culpability in the aftermath of the incident,

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Haryana minister defends move to walk out of meet after spat with woman police officer

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Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij, who has been accused of being on a power trip as he walked out of a meeting following a verbal spat with a woman police officer, has defended his move. The Haryana minister has held the woman DSP responsible for the incident. Vij has claimed that the woman officer tried

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Indian Muslims follow real Islam, says Mehbooba Mufti

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Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti on Friday said Indian Muslims practised real Islam because there was tolerance in Hinduism and lashed out at those who responded with calls of “go to Pakistan” every time there was an ideological disagreement. She was speaking in the Lok Sabha during the discussion commemorating the Constitution and

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s outreach likely to prevent winter session from washout

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s outreach to the opposition may have averted the threat of the winter session being washed out, a possibility that gained ground in view of protests over “intolerance” and Bihar election results. The talks between the PM and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and former premier Manmohan Singh marked a rare development given

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3 Killed in Shooting at Colorado Family Planning Center, Gunman Surrenders

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Three people were killed and nine injured when a gunman opened fire at a family planning center in Colorado on Friday. The standoff dragged on for five hours before the gunman surrendered. “I want to convey to the loved ones of the victims, this is a terrible, terrible tragedy that occurred here in Colorado Springs

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B-town pays tribute to martyrs on the seventh anniversary of 26/11 Mumbai attacks

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Superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar and Priyanka Chopra today paid tribute to martyrs on the seventh anniversary of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. On November 26, 2008, 10 Pakistani terrorists arrived by sea route and opened fire indiscriminately at people killing 166, including 18 security personnel, and injuring several others, besides damaging property

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Tamasha review: Ranbir is powerful, Deepika is luminious, but the film is neither

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Imtiaz Ali and Ranbir Kapoor’s second collaborative effort, Tamasha, is a bit of an enigma. It reveals less about its two protagonists than it withholds. It is tightfisted about emotional outflow. But still creates a very dramatic case history for its protagonists. Many parts of the film read (and I deliberately use this word in

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Remembering Phil Hughes: A year on, cricket looks much the same but deep down we know it is anything but

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One year ago, the cricket world was in collective mourning after precocious Australian batsman Phil Hughes tragically died. The 25-year-old was felled by a bouncer from paceman Sean Abbott during a Sheffield Shield game two days earlier. Hughes lost consciousness immediately and was placed in an induced coma. Hearing the tragic news of his death

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PCB gets clearance from PM Sharif for Indo-Pak series in Sri Lanka

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Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has granted permission to the PCB for a bilateral cricket series against arch-rivals India in Sri Lanka. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Indian Cricket Board (BCC) had proposed the series and approached their respective governments for clearance. Official sources in the ministry of inter provincial coordination said that the Prime

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