Indian Sub-continent

Kolkata, Oct 30 (PTI) In a bid to bring down air pollution, the West Bengal government is set to launch nearly 1,200 electric buses in Kolkata over the next two years, of which 400 will be operational by January 2023, a senior transport official said.

The transport department is also working to introduce CNG-run buses in the northern and western parts of the state, he said.

New Delhi, Oct 29 (PTI) Citing media reports, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday claimed that the Modi government plans to scrap nearly 300 science awards and asked why it is so averse to grooming scientific temperament.

Taking to Twitter, Kharge shared media reports which claimed that more than 300 government awards for scientists from ministries of science, space, health and family welfare, and earth sciences have been discontinued.

New Delhi, Oct 30 (PTI) Delhi recorded its air quality in the 'very poor' category on Sunday morning and forecasters said slow wind speed and an increase in stubble burning, especially in Punjab, may push it to the 'severe' zone.

With pollution levels worsening, the Centre's air quality panel on Saturday directed authorities to impose a ban on construction and demolition activities in Delhi-NCR, except in essential projects, and other curbs under stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan.

KABUL, Oct 29 (NNN-ANA) – Provincial administration has decided to rebuild the buildings of nine schools, in Afghanistan’s eastern Logar province, the state-run Bakhtar news agency reported, today.

The buildings would be reconstructed at a cost of 100,000 U.S. dollars and the reconstruction work would start soon, said provincial education directorate spokesman, Shah Poor Arab, the report said.

Many schools and colleges had been destroyed or damaged during the past 20 years of the U.S.-led so-called “war on terror” in Afghanistan, which ended in Aug, last year.

NEW DELHI, Oct 29 (NNN-PTI) – At least 30 people were injured today, after a fire broke out inside a residential building, in the eastern Indian state of Bihar, officials said.

The fire broke out in the Shahganj locality of Aurangabad district, about 94 km south of Patna, the capital city of Bihar.

According to officials, an electric short circuit led to the massive fire, and triggered a gas cylinder blast.

NEW DELHI (AP) — India will contribute half a million dollars to the United Nations’ efforts to counter global terrorism as new and emerging technologies used by terror groups pose fresh threats to governments around the world, the foreign minister said Saturday.

The money will go toward the U.N. Trust Fund for Counter Terrorism and will further strengthen the organization’s fight against terrorism, S. Jaishankar said as he addressed a special meeting of the U.N. Counter Terrorism Committee in New Delhi.

Kanpur: A seven-year-old girl student got buried under the debris of a dilapidated house on Hirman Ka Purwa coming under Beconganj police station here on Saturday afternoon.

While breaking the slab, a large part of the debris came down suddenly thereby burying a little girl named Maria Farid, d/o who was passing by the corridor after school.

After a struggle of about half an hour, the relatives with the help of local people rescued the girl and took her to a private hospital.

MUMBAI, Oct 28 (NNN-PTI) – India’s central bank has called for a special meeting of its monetary policy committee on Nov 3, to prepare a report on inflation, a statement by the Reserve Bank of India said yesterday.

India failed to meet the inflation target, with its inflation above the upper tolerance limit of six percent for the past three consecutive quarters.

India’s retail inflation accelerated to 7.4 percent in Sept, from 7 percent in Aug, which had compelled the central bank to raise the repo rate by 190 basis points since May this year.

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan and thousands of supporters started a long-promised march on Friday to the nation’s capital, Islamabad, to challenge the government of his successor and demand early elections.

Khan maintains that his ouster in a parliament no-confidence vote in April was unlawful, and a conspiracy by his political opponents orchestrated by the United States — a charge denied by both Washington and Pakistan’s new premier, Shahbaz Sharif.

Kanpur: The implementation of the Chief Minister's order to make the roads pothole-free does not seem to be completed within the deadline of November 15.

There are only 19 more days left in this. Patchwork was done on some roads of the city, but many roads in the south are still in bad shape.

The tender for patchwork of 56 roads will be invited with a amount of Rs 4.5 Crores, said the municipal commissioner here today.

There are big potholes on the crumbling roads. Many two-wheeler riders are often getting chuckled by falling.