West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday condemned the assault on two food vendors at a recent Gita recital in Kolkata, asserting that such acts of intimidation would not be tolerated in the state. Addressing a public meeting in Krishnanagar in Nadia district, the chief minister said, "All of them (accused) have been arrested. This is West Bengal, not Uttar Pradesh. They beat up patty sellers... we arrested everyone last night." She accused the BJP of trying to import a culture of communal division into the state. Training her guns on the saffron party, Banerjee said, "I do not believe in communal divisions. I want to walk with all religions. What is the need to hold a public meeting just to read the Gita? Those who pray to God or seek blessings from Allah do so in their hearts." Taking a dig at "those invoking religious texts for political mobilisation", she added, "I want to ask those who keep chanting 'Gita, Gita' -- what did Sri Krishna say about dharma? Dharma means to uphold, not to divide. They want to destroy West Bengal. They want to capture the state and stop people from speaking in Bengali. We all read and recite the Gita. What is the need to hold a meeting for that?" Kolkata Police arrested three men on Wednesday night for allegedly assaulting two food vendors at the 'Paanch Lokkho Konthe Gita Paath' (Gita recitation in five lakh voices) at Brigade Parade Ground here on December 7. The arrests were made on the basis of two complaints lodged at Maidan police station, a senior officer said. The complainants, hailing from Topsia in Kolkata and Arambagh in Hooghly district, had gone to the venue to sell chicken patties when they were allegedly attacked. The accused reportedly threw away their stock and forced them to perform sit-ups while holding their ears. A video of the incident went viral on social media. Police said the arrests were made after verification of footage and other evidence. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.
11 December,2025 06:23 PM IST | Kolkata | PTIDelhi's Karkardooma Court on Thursday granted bail to Umar Khalid to attend his sister's wedding. Umar Khalid is an accused in the North East Delhi riots larger conspiracy case. As reported by news agency ANI, Umar Khalid’s sister, Ayesha Fatima Syeda, is scheduled to marry on December 27 in New Delhi. Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Sameer Bajpai has reportedly granted interim bail to Umar Khalid from December 16 to December 29. While granting the interim bail to Umar, the court has directed him to surrender on the evening of December 29. While passing the interim bail order, the court has also directed that Umar Khalid will not contact any witness or person connected with the case. The accused in the North East Delhi riots has also been directed not to use social media during the interim bail. During the interim bail period, Umar shall meet only his family members, relatives, and friends, the court directed while passing his interim bail orders. The court also added that “He shall remain at his home or at the places where the ceremonies of marriage, as mentioned by him, will take place,” as reported by ANI. Umar Khalid had earlier sought interim bail from December 14 to 29. Counsel for Umar Khalid submitted that the function of marriage will commence on December 17. Furthermore, it was also submitted that the applicant's father is 71 years old and his mother is 62 years old, and during the period of interim bail, the applicant will see and spend some time with his parents, as per ANI. The counsel arguing for Umar also said, “He has been in custody since September 13, 2020, approximately 5 years and three months, and will be able to meet his elder sister and her children, as per ANI. Earlier, two years ago, Umar Khalid was granted an interim bail for his other sister's wedding. He has been charge-sheeted in a case under UAPA. While the Delhi High Court and Karkardooma Court had already rejected his earlier bail pleas, his bail plea is still pending before the Supreme Court. In relation to the Delhi riot case, Sharjeel Imam, Tahir Hussain, Shifa Ur Rehman, Abdul Khalid Saifi, Meeran Haider, Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita and the other accused along with Umar Khalid. (With inputs from ANI)
11 December,2025 06:18 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondentBJP member Anurag Thakur on Thursday accused an unnamed TMC MP of smoking an e-cigarette in the Lok Sabha, with Speaker Om Birla assuring action. During Question Hour, while asking a supplementary, Thakur wondered whether e-cigarettes are allowed in the House. When Birla replied in the negative, the BJP MP said a TMC member has been "constantly smoking e-cigarettes in the House for the past several days". Several BJP members then demanded action against the opposition MP. Amid uproar, Birla urged member to maintain dignity of the House. He said if a written complaint is lodged, he will take action. E-cigarettes were banned in the country a few years ago. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.
11 December,2025 05:58 PM IST | New Delhi [India] | PTIAir India on Thursday announced a new unilateral interline partnership with Scoot, the low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines (SIA), expanding its connectivity across Southeast Asia, North Asia, and Australia via Singapore. The collaboration enables Air India passengers to seamlessly access most of Scoot’s network — covering over 70 destinations across 18 countries — through convenient transfers at Singapore Changi Airport. As part of the expanded network access, passengers flying with Air India will now be able to travel to several destinations not previously covered under any of the airline’s partnerships. These include Macau SAR (China), Padang and Labuan Bajo (Indonesia), Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Langkawi, Ipoh, Kuantan, Miri, Sibu, Malacca, and Kota Bharu (Malaysia), Davao and Iloilo City (Philippines), Koh Samui, Chiang Rai, and Chiang Mai (Thailand), and Nha Trang and Phu Quoc (Vietnam). Passengers will be able to fly non-stop from Delhi, Mumbai or Chennai to Singapore and take onward connections operated by Scoot. To enhance convenience, the airlines have also activated inter-airline through check-in (IATCI), allowing travellers booked on a single ticket to receive boarding passes for both Air India and Scoot flights at the origin airport. Baggage can be checked through to the final destination, subject to local regulations. “Asia Pacific remains the world’s fastest-growing region for aviation, with intra-regional air travel demand surging at significant rates,” said Nipun Aggarwal, chief commercial officer, Air India. “Our new interline partnership with Scoot taps into that momentum, meeting the rising Indian traveller appetite for seamless access to far-flung corners of the continent — from Malaysia’s rainforests to Vietnam’s beaches and Indonesia’s emerging cities,” he added. Scoot’s Chief Commercial Officer, Calvin Chan, said, “This partnership marks an important step in broadening travel options for customers in India to discover unique destinations across Scoot’s extensive network via Singapore. We look forward to welcoming Air India customers onboard and connecting them to new experiences with Scoot.” Air India currently operates 49 weekly flights to Singapore, including thrice-daily services from Delhi, twice-daily services from Mumbai and twice-daily services from Chennai. The airline also has an existing codeshare agreement with Singapore Airlines, offering seamless connectivity to over 60 destinations worldwide. The new Air India–Scoot interline itineraries will be progressively rolled out across Air India’s booking channels, including its website, mobile app and travel agents globally.
11 December,2025 05:43 PM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentAadhaar-based OTP verification for online Tatkal ticket booking is now active in 322 trains, helping curb misuse and improve fairness in the system, the Parliament was informed on Thursday, reported the IANS. According to the government, the introduction of the verification method has increased the availability window for confirmed Tatkal tickets by around 65 per cent in these trains. Aadhaar OTP verification for Tatkal bookings at reservation counters is also being implemented in phases and is currently operational in 211 trains as of 4 December. Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told the Lok Sabha in a written reply that, because of this measure, confirmed Tatkal ticket availability time has risen in nearly 95 per cent of the 96 most popular trains, according to the IANS. The minister further said that strict revalidation and verification of user accounts had been carried out. Since January 2025, approximately 3.02 crore suspicious user IDs have been deactivated. Anti-bot solutions such as AKAMAI have been deployed to block non-genuine users and ensure smooth booking for legitimate passengers, the news agency reported. Complaints regarding suspiciously booked PNRs were being submitted to the National Cyber Crime Portal, he added. Ashwini Vaishnaw also stated that the use of several protective layers, including network firewalls, intrusion prevention systems, application delivery controllers and web application firewalls, to safeguard the ticketing system from cyber threats, as per the IANS. The reservation system is hosted in a dedicated, access-controlled data centre equipped with CCTV surveillance and end-to-end encryption. The centre holds certification under the ISO 27001 Information Security Management System (ISMS) standards, he said. To further reinforce cyber security, RailTel Corporation of India Ltd. provides advanced threat intelligence services, including take-down services, threat monitoring, deep and dark web surveillance, and digital risk protection. These services offer early warnings on emerging cyber threats and enable quicker incident response. The reservation system also undergoes regular security audits by CERT-In-empanelled Information Security Audit Agencies. Additionally, internet traffic related to the ticketing platform is continuously monitored by CERT-In and the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) to detect and prevent potential cyberattacks, the IANS reported. (with IANS inputs)
11 December,2025 04:51 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondentA 40-year-old private school teacher died after his neck was slit by banned Chinese kite string while he was riding his motorcycle here on Thursday, police said. The incident occurred around 8 am on the Shastri Bridge in the Kotwali area shortly after Sanjeev Tiwari dropped his daughter at school, Superintendent of Police (City) Ayush Srivastava said. Tiwari, a resident of Umarpur Haribandhanpur, had just crossed the bridge when a sharp kite string hanging over the road wrapped around his neck, causing a deep cut. He lost control of the motorcycle and collapsed on the spot with severe injuries, Srivastava said. Locals rushed to help and called an ambulance. He was taken to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead during treatment, officials said. Police reached the spot, took the body into custody and sent it for postmortem. Meanwhile, residents have demanded strict action and an enforcement drive to completely curb the sale of banned Chinese 'manjha' (kite string coated with powdered glass) in the district. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.
11 December,2025 03:46 PM IST | Jaunpur (UP) | PTIIndiGo on Thursday said it has initiated all the necessary refunds for flights cancelled during the recent operational disruption, adding that most amounts have already been credited to customers, with the remaining refunds set to reflect shortly. The airline said refunds for bookings made through travel partners have also been actioned, but passengers may need to write to customer.experience@goindigo.in if their complete details are not available in IndiGo’s system. The airline acknowledged that a section of passengers travelling on December 3, 4, and 5 were stranded for several hours at various airports and that a number of them were “severely impacted” due to congestion. The airline announced it will offer travel vouchers worth Rs 10,000 to such passengers, which can be used for any future IndiGo journey over the next 12 months. This compensation will be in addition to the amount mandated under government regulations, which entitles customers to Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 depending on the flight’s block time if their service was cancelled within 24 hours of departure. Reiterating its commitment to restoring customer confidence, IndiGo said it remains focused on delivering the safe, smooth and reliable experience expected from the airline. “Thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve you again,” the statement added.
11 December,2025 02:49 PM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentIndiGo flight delays and cancellations continued to disrupt passengers at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad on Thursday, with 18 flights — nine arrivals and nine departures — cancelled by 8 am, reported news agency ANI. Airport authorities clarified that there were no issues with terminal or airside operations and said that passenger assistance measures were in place to ensure orderly handling. Earlier in the week, passengers had expressed frustration over prolonged delays and inadequate communication from the airline. Khuman Singh, one of the affected passengers, said his flight had been delayed by nearly 12 hours. He added that despite contacting IndiGo’s helpline repeatedly for two days, he did not receive any satisfactory response. "I had to go to Chennai and booked a round-trip flight. I did not have an issue while arriving, but while returning, my flight was scheduled for 2 AM on 9th December. I got a message that it has been rescheduled for 9 PM. Now I will have to wait for 12 hours here. I have been trying on the helpline for 2 days, but did not get a satisfactory response," said Singh. Meanwhile, taking serious note of large-scale passenger inconvenience faced by passengers due to widespread flight cancellations and delays by IndiGo Airlines in recent days, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has constituted a dedicated Oversight Team to be stationed at the airline's corporate office in Gurugram, ANI reported. In an internal order, the aviation regulator stated that the move was necessitated "in view of passenger inconvenience caused due to large-scale disruptions in the operations of IndiGo Airlines at various airports across the country". The eight-member team is headed by Capt Vikram Sharma, Deputy Chief Flight Operations Inspector (Airlines). Other members include Capt Kapil Mangalik, SFOI(A); Capt VP Singh, SFOI(A); Capt Apoorva Agarwal, SFOI(A); Capt Swati Loomba, SFOI(A) , Capt Aman Suhag, SFOI(A); Capt Nitya Jain, FOI(A), and Capt NJ Singh, FOI(A). Two members of this team will remain deployed on a daily rotational basis at IndiGo's Corporate Office at Emaar Capital Tower 2, Gurugram, reported ANI. They have been tasked to scrutinise critical operational parameters, including total fleet strength, average stage length, total number of pilots, network details, crew utilisation hours, deadheading, crew under training, split duties, unplanned leaves, daily flight-to-crew ratio, sectors affected due to crew shortage, and standby crew availability for both cockpit and cabin crew at each base. (With ANI inputs)
11 December,2025 02:44 PM IST | Ahmedabad | mid-day online correspondentA fire broke out at a multi-storey building near the police station in Sadar Bazar late Wednesday night, an official of the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) said. The DFS received a call at 9.23 pm about flames erupting inside a building that houses multiple storage units, the official said, reported news agency PTI. "Three water tenders and one water bowser were initially rushed to the spot. At 9.42 pm, two additional water bowsers were sent following a request," he said. The blaze had spread to a polythene godown on the second floor and a plastic bottles storage area on the third floor of the building, which is about 100 square yards and comprises ground plus three floors, he added, reported PTI. The fire was brought under control and doused at 1.45 am. Cooling operations were underway, he added. Gujarat: Massive fire erupts in Surat’s Raj Textile market; 22 fire tenders deployed A massive fire broke out at Raj Textile Market in Surat on Wednesday. At least 22 fire tenders reached the spot to control the blaze after receiving information, news agency ANI reported. Basant Parik, chief fire officer, Surat, while briefing about the incident, said that the fire control room received the information at 7.14 am. Following the call, fire tenders from three nearest locations were sent to the spot to control the situation. "We got a call in the Fire Control room at 7:14 am, after which we sent the fire tenders from the three nearest fire stations...Dumbhal Fire Station, Dindoli Fire Station, and Man Darwaja Fire Station... When the fire officials reached the location of the incident, they noticed that the entire market building was covered under dense smoke...", he further said. Around 20 to 22 fire tenders reached the spot as the fire was massive, Parik informed. "The third, fifth, and top floors were engulfed in flames. The firefighters had to use breathing apparatus to enter the building because of the intensity of the smoke,” he stated. The chief fire officer further added that the flames had spread to the third, fifth, and top floors of the building. "The brigade was declared as the fire was severe; around 20-22 fire tenders have reached the spot... The firefighters used breathing apparatus as the smoke was too much and controlled the fire," he said. "Blazes on the third and fifth floors are completely neutralised... Now the situation is under control," Parik added. The chief fire officer further highlighted that there are over 100 firefighters working to control the fire in the building. The cooling procedure is completed on the third and fifth floors, ANI reported. However, it is still underway on the top floor, as the storage room there is still burning. Briefing more about the incident, he said, "There is still fire in the storage room on the top floor; it is difficult to go in there as there is a lot of material there..." The cooling process is completed on the third and fifth floors and is underway on the top floor... It may take some time, but there is nothing to worry about... There are around 100 to 125 firefighters working against the fire right now." (With Agency inputs)
11 December,2025 02:27 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondentMaharashtra Minister of State for Home Pankaj Bhoyar on Thursday said that an investigation is underway into the origins of the drug racket uncovered in Wardha district a few days back, news agency PTI reported. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, in a recent breakthrough, busted a mephedrone manufacturing unit. The DRI also seized 128 kg of the banned drug, valued at Rs 192 crore in Wardha. “Three persons, including the alleged mastermind who also acted as the financier and chemist, were arrested during the operation conducted on Sunday and Monday,” an officer told PTI. When asked about such a huge quantity of contraband found in Wardha, Maharashtra, the Minister of State said that the authorities have sealed the unit. The minister, while talking to the media, further said, "An investigation is underway to trace the roots of this drug racket." Bhoyar also informed that he had already held a meeting with the local police and given them the necessary directions for action in the matter. The operation by the DRI was conducted on December 7 and 8. Along with mephedrone, 245 kg of precursor chemicals, raw materials, and a complete drug-processing setup were also seized. The DRI officers acted on specific intelligence and carried out discreet surveillance before raiding a remote area in Karanja (Ghadge), about 60 km from Wardha. As per reports, the factory was hidden in dense shrubland and operated from a temporary, modular structure designed to evade detection. An official statement further stated, “Officers recovered a fully functional drug-processing setup, including makeshift reactors and vessels used to manufacture mephedrone.” The statement also noted that three suspects, including the mastermind, who also financed and chemically supervised the operation, were arrested along with two associates. All three were actively involved in the manufacturing and distribution network of mephedrone and face charges under the NDPS Act, 1985. This was the fifth clandestine drug factory dismantled by the DRI this year, the statement further noted. DRI seizes 11.88 kg gold in Mumbai Earlier in November, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) had also busted a gold smuggling and melting network in Mumbai under “Operation Bullion Blaze.” The DRI officials in a major crackdown seized 11.88 kg of gold worth Rs 15.05 crore and 8.72 kg of silver. Eleven people, including the mastermind, were arrested in the large-scale illegal bullion operation. (With inputs from PTI)
11 December,2025 02:17 PM IST | Nagpur | mid-day online correspondentThe Delhi Police District Investigative Unit (DIU) conducted a raid in the Alipur area after receiving information about an illegal factory allegedly involved in manufacturing infringed Castrol products, officials said. Based on information, a raiding team was constituted under the guidance of Narender Khatri, ACP/DIU, and the supervision of Hareshwar Swami, IPS, DCP/OND. Officials from Castrol Limited were also included in the raiding team. The DIU/OND team acted promptly, following due procedure, and, along with officials of M/s Castrol Limited, conducted a thorough search at the factory located in Alipur, Delhi. A large quantity of finished and packaged infringing products from Castrol Limited was recovered. In total, 239 litres of infringed oil were ready for supply in the market, 304 empty bottles meant for packing infringed oil, 3,000 Castrol barcode stickers, 706 Castrol bottle caps and 11,220 MRP stickers of different Castrol products were seized. Additionally, one sealing machine, one iron, one plastic funnel, one 1-litre measuring tool, one oil pump, one gauge, and one litre of orange-coloured liquid dye used in manufacturing the infringing products were also recovered. The recovered infringed products were found under the brand name "Castrol Limited". Due to the prompt action taken, a large recovery was made. The team comprising IO/SI Deepak, SI Rakesh, ASI Babinder, HC Mahesh and Ct. Praveen acted under the guidance of Narender Khatri, ACP/DIU, and the supervision of Hareshwar Swami, IPS, DCP/OND. During the investigation, it was found that the factory was being run by Ajay Bhardwaj, Devender Bhardwaj (27), and Sachin Sharma (22). They had been manufacturing infringing Castrol products in Alipur for the past six months and supplying them across Delhi. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 December,2025 01:39 PM IST | New Delhi | ANIADVERTISEMENT
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