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Fire breaks out on serial set in Mumbai’s Film City No casualty reported

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Mumbai: A fire broke out on the set of a serial at the Film City in Mumbai on Monday morning, civic officials said.

There was so far no report of any casualty, they said.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s fire brigade received a call about the blaze in a tent area of the Annapurna set, behind the Marathi Bigg Boss set, located at Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari in the Film City in Goregaon (East) area at 6.10 am, they said.

Four fire engines and as many jumbo tankers were rushed to the spot. An assistant divisional fire officer and three station officers were deployed at the site where fire-fighting was underway, a civic official said.

No person was reported to be injured so far, the official added.

Cong asks govt to show moral courage slams it for not condemning US bombing

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New Delhi: US President Donald Trump’s decision to unleash American air power on Iran makes a “mockery” of his own calls for the continuation of talks with Iran, the Congress said on Monday and slammed the Modi government for neither criticising nor condemning the US bombing and Israel’s aggression.

The opposition party reiterated the absolute essentiality of immediate diplomacy and dialogue with Iran.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said President Trump’s decision to unleash US air power on Iran makes a mockery of his own calls for the continuation of talks with Iran.

“The Indian National Congress reiterates the absolute essentiality of immediate diplomacy and dialogue with Iran. The Government of India must demonstrate greater moral courage than it has so far,” he said.

“The Modi Government has unequivocally neither criticised nor condemned the US bombing and Israel’s aggression, bombings and targeted assassinations,” Ramesh said on X.

It has also maintained a deafening silence on the genocide being perpetrated on the Palestianians in Gaza, he added.

His remarks come after the US bombed three major nuclear sites — Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan — in Iran, bringing itself into the Israel-Iran conflict.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday conveyed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian India’s “deep concern” over Iran’s conflict with Israel and called for immediate de-escalation of the situation through “dialogue and diplomacy”.

The US attack on the Iranian nuclear facilities has triggered fears of a wider regional conflict, with many leading countries and blocs calling for restraint.

Samajwadi Party expels three MLAs for anti-party stance ideological deviation

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Lucknow: The Samajwadi Party on Monday expelled three of its MLAs for allegedly siding with ideologies opposed to the party’s core values and working against public interest.

Those expelled from the party are Abhay Singh (MLA from Gosainganj), Rakesh Pratap Singh (Gauriganj) and Manoj Kumar Pandey (Unchahar), the SP said in an official statement shared on its social media handles.

The party said the legislators were removed for endorsing “communal, divisive, and negative ideologies” that go against the Samajwadi Party’s inclusive and progressive principles.

The party accused the expelled leaders of supporting forces that are anti-farmer, anti-women, anti-youth, anti-business, anti-employment, and against the rights of the marginalised.

The SP said these leaders were earlier given a “grace period” for self-correction, but that time had now lapsed. It added that there is no room in the party for individuals acting against public welfare or its core ideological framework.\

The statement concluded with a warning that in the future, those engaging in “anti-people activities” or opposing the party’s foundational values will face permanent expulsion.

“Be trustworthy wherever you are. Best wishes,” the note ended.

Bengal: TMC takes early lead in Kaliganj bypoll as counting underway

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Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress took an early lead over its rivals as counting for the by-election to Kaliganj assembly seat in West Bengal’s Nadia district was underway on Monday.

After the first round of counting, TMC candidate Alifa Ahamed secured 4,545 votes, while her nearest rival, Congress candidate Kabil Uddin Shaikh, backed by the CPI(M), bagged 1,830 votes. BJP nominee Ashis Ghosh was trailing in third position, securing 1,112 votes, election officials said.

Counting began at 8:00 am with the postal ballots. The process is underway peacefully, they added.

The bypoll was necessitated following the sudden demise of sitting TMC MLA Nasiruddin Ahamed in February this year. His daughter, Alifa Ahamed, has been fielded by the party to retain the seat.

Polling for the by-election was held on Thursday, with a voter turnout of 69.85 per cent recorded till 5:00 pm. Barring a few isolated incidents, voting remained largely peaceful.

Air India cancels 3 international flights due to maintenance technical and other issues

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Air India cancels 3 international flights due to maintenance, technical and other issues

Mumbai: Air India has cancelled three of its international flights on Wednesday owing to various reasons, including maintenance and technical issues.

Two of these flights were cancelled after the passengers had already boarded the aircraft, the airline said.

The airline said it had to cancel its Toronto-Delhi flight AI188 of June 18 due to extended maintenance and consequently operating crew coming under regulatory flight duty time limitation norms.

Passengers, who had already boarded the aircraft, were disembarked following cancellation of the flight, it said.

Also, flight AI996 from Dubai to Delhi on June 18, 2025 was cancelled due to technical reasons and passengers were disembarked after boarding, as per Air India.

However, the airline’s flight AI2145 from Delhi to Bali was cancelled after it was advised to return to Delhi mid-way due to reports of volcanic eruption near the destination airport Bali, in the interest of safety, Air India stated.

The flight safely landed back in Delhi and all passengers were disembarked.

Air India said its teams on the ground are making alternative arrangements for the passengers to fly to their respective destinations at the earliest.

Full refunds on cancellation or complimentary rescheduling have also been offered to passengers.

Air India said it is anticipating some disruptions (in its flight operations) due to the continuing enhanced checks on the airline’s Boeing 787 fleet coupled with airspace restrictions and inclement weather.

On June 13, a day after the B787-8 crash that killed 241 people on board, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation ordered enhanced surveillance of Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet, comprising 26 787-8 and seven 787-9 planes.

Since the Ahmedabad crash, Air India cancelled 66 flights to be operated with Boeing 787 between June 12th and June 17th. Multiple flights have been cancelled or delayed citing technical issues.

At a review meeting with top executives of Air India and Air India Express, aviation safety regulator DGCA flagged concerns regarding recent maintenance-related issues reported at Air India and “advised the airline to strengthen internal coordination across engineering, operations, ground handling units and ensure availability of adequate spares to mitigate passenger delays.

It however said that recent surveillance on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet “did not reveal any major safety concerns”.

“The aircraft and associated maintenance systems were found to be in compliance with existing safety standards,” DGCA said in a post-review meeting statement.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejects call to surrender as Israel strikes Tehran

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Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejects call to surrender as Israel strikes Tehran
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Dubai: Explosions were heard in Iran’s capital as Israeli warplanes pounded Tehran overnight and into Wednesday. Less than a week into the conflict, Israel says its aircraft have free rein over the city’s skies.

Iran launched a small barrage of missiles at Israel with no reports of casualties, and Israel has eased some restrictions for civilians. Meanwhile, fear has gripped the Iranian capital as the streets are empty, businesses closed and communications patchy at best. Thousands have fled.

Iran’s supreme leader on Wednesday rejected US calls for surrender and warned that any military involvement by the Americans would cause “irreparable damage” to them.

US President Donald Trump initially distanced himself from Israel’s surprise attack on Friday that triggered the conflict, but in recent days has hinted at greater American involvement, saying he wants something “much bigger” than a ceasefire. The US has also sent more military aircraft and warships to the region.

Here’s the latest:

The internet is down in Iran

Late Wednesday afternoon, internet access across Iran crashed.

Authorities offered no immediate explanation.

Giant plume of smoke seen in eastern reaches of Tehran

Just after 4 pm local time, a likely Israeli airstrike sent a giant plume of gray smoke skyward in the eastern reaches of Tehran.

It wasn’t immediately clear what was targeted.

Israel eases some restrictions for civilians

Israel is easing some restrictions for civilians that have frozen the country in place over the past week, the military announced on Wednesday, six days into the confrontation with Iran.

While schools are still closed, people will begin returning to workplaces where there is access to shelters.

Restrictions are being eased further in areas along Israel’s periphery, which have been targeted fewer times than the country’s centre.

“This decision to gradually open the economy in the various regions is a message of victory over the Iranian enemy,” Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday. Iran has fired fewer missiles as the conflict has worn on, allowing Israeli air defence systems greater accuracy with interceptions.

Iran state TV airs footage of Khamenei giving statement

State television has aired footage of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei giving a statement that was read out by a TV anchor a short while ago.

The footage strikingly contrasted against the high-quality recording typically produced of his speeches, with his voice echoing as he sat in a room with beige curtains behind him.

A portrait of Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who Khamenei succeeded, was over his left shoulder, with an Iranian flag to his right.

Khamenei warned the United States that joining the Israeli strikes targeting the Islamic Republic will “result in irreparable damage for them.”

Germany says Europe is open to negotiating with Iran

Germany’s foreign minister has underlined European countries’ willingness to talk to Iran about a solution to the crisis over its nuclear program. But he says there needs to be movement from Tehran.

Johann Wadephul said Wednesday that “it is never too late to come to the negotiating table, if you come with honest intentions”.

He spoke two days after he held a call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi along with his French and British counterparts and the European Union foreign policy chief.

Wadephul said the European officials made clear that their countries — which were part of Iran’s 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers — “still stand ready to negotiate on a solution”.

But he added that “Iran must now move urgently. Iran must take confidence-building and verifiable measures,” including a credible statement that Tehran is not striving for a nuclear weapon.

Over 400 EU citizens evacuated from Israel

The European Union has helped evacuated about 400 its citizens out of Israel via Jordan and Egypt as part of its efforts to coordinate emergency response to the conflict within the 27 nations of the bloc.

“Up till now, we have an estimate that over 400 EU citizens were repatriated via this civil protection mechanism of the EU,” said Eva Hrncirova in Brussels on Wednesday.

She said the EU was fielding requests by Slovakia, Lithuania, Greece and Poland for assistance in evacuating from the Middle East.

“Member states coordinate the list and we co-finance these flights up to the 75% of the transport costs,” she said.

Iran’s supreme leader warns US that joining Israeli strikes will result in ‘irreparable damage for them’

Iran’s supreme leader has warned the United States that joining the Israeli strikes targeting the Islamic Republic will “result in irreparable damage for them”.

The comments by 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei came in a statement read out by a state television anchor against a still image of the leader.

“Any military involvement by the US in this field will undoubtedly result in irreparable damage for them,” the statement said.

In the message, Khamenei also urged officials to “continue their work with strength and trust in God”.

“God will certainly and surely make the Iranian nation… victorious,” he said.

State television said that a video of Khamenei giving the same address would be aired later.

141 Greeks and other nationals evacuated from Israel via Egypt

Greece’s Foreign Ministry says the evacuees included citizens of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Germany, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.

They were flown to Athens early Wednesday from Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh on board two military transport planes, the ministry said.

Nandini outlets to come up at Metro stations says Deputy CM Shivakumar amid Amul row

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Nandini outlets to come up at Metro stations says Deputy CM Shivakumar amid Amul row
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar

Bengaluru: Amid a controversy over the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) allowing dairy giant Amul to open retail outlets at Metro stations here, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) has been asked to initiate the process of setting up Nandini outlets at such stations.

Shivakumar’s response comes in the wake of criticism from several organisations, who accused the state government of allegedly favouring Amul over KMF’s own dairy brand, Nandini.

“The KMF has been instructed to submit an application to BMRCL to open Nandini outlets at eight Metro stations,” he told reporters here.

“BMRCL had issued a global tender and Amul was the sole applicant. We have now directed KMF to apply as well. KMF will open Nandini outlets in eight Metro stations.

“Amul has already opened outlets at two stations. It is not appropriate to shut down existing ones. We’ve asked BMRCL to allow Nandini outlets at the remaining stations,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.

A BMRCL official said that Amul currently operates outlets at Benniganahalli and Byappanahalli Metro stations.

Additional outlets are planned at Pattandur Agrahara, Indiranagar, Trinity Circle, Sir M Visvesvaraya, Jayanagara, Majestic, National College, and Banashankari stations.

The official added that Nandini had previously opened outlets at MG Road, Mahalakshmi, and Vijayanagar stations. Of these, only the Vijayanagar outlet remains operational. “For us, both Nandini and Amul are equal. Whoever pays the rent will be allowed to operate,” the official said.

The move has reignited the debate between Amul and the KMF’s flagship brand Nandini.

Tensions over Amul’s presence in Karnataka first escalated in December 2022, following Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to KMF facilities in Mandya. It triggered concerns among farmers and political parties about a possible attempt by the Gujarat-based dairy giant to expand its footprint at the expense of Nandini.

During his visit, Shah called for cooperation between Amul and KMF, suggesting joint efforts could lead to primary dairies in every village within three years. He also mentioned the possibility of technical support from Amul to Nandini.

Four boys drown in Gandak river in Bihar’s Begusarai

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Begusarai (Bihar): Four boys drowned while bathing in Gandak river in Bihar’s Begusarai district on Wednesday afternoon, officials said.

The deceased have been identified as Raushan Kumar (12), twins Avinash Kumar and Abhishek Kumar (both 17), and Nitish Kumar (14).

Khodawandpur SHO Mithilesh Kumar told reporters that eight boys had gone for a swim at Nurullahpur Sahni Tola ghat of Gandak river. “While four managed to reach the riverbank safely, the others were swept away by strong currents in a deeper section,” he added.

Locals alerted police immediately, and with the help of local swimmers, a rescue operation was launched.

Illegal madrasas demolished in UP’s Shravasti

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Illegal madrasas demolished in UP's Shravasti

Shravasti (UP): Four madrasas, allegedly built on government land, were razed on Wednesday here, officials said.

The demolition was ordered by the Jamuhna tehsildar (revenue officer) on May 28, an official statement said.

Two of the madrasas were located on government land in the Fatehpur Bangai village, while a third, Madrasa Gausia Tajul Uloom, in Rampur Basti, was voluntarily dismantled by its management.

Similarly, in Nagai village, under the same gram panchayat, the Madrasa Gausia Faizane Raza Shamshul was also voluntarily razed by the management.

No room for privatisation of ESCOM’s as long as we are in power: DyCM DK Shivakumar

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No room for privatisation of ESCOM’s as long as we are in power: DyCM DK Shivakumar

Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Wednesday assured that the electricity supply companies (ESCOMs) in the state will not be privatised as long as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and he remain in power.

Karnataka has five electricity supply companies, namely, Mangalore Electricity Supply Company (MESCOM), Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM), Gulbarga Electricity Supply Company Limited (GESCOM), Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESCOM), and Hubli Electricity Supply Company Limited (HESCOM).

Shivakumar was speaking at the 60th Diamond Jubilee Celebrations of the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) Employees’ Association and the launch of the Vajrajyoti commemorative issue held at Palace Grounds in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

“After I became the Energy Minister, the BJP government came to power at the Centre. ESCOMs in various cities across the country, including Mumbai and Delhi, were handed over to private companies. I was pressured to do the same in Bengaluru. But I told them that our employees, engineers, and board of directors are highly competent and can run the ESCOMs efficiently. As long as D.K. Shivakumar and CM Siddaramaiah are in power in the state, we will not allow the privatisation of ESCOMs,” he said.

“When I took charge of this department, the transmission loss stood at 19–20%. We have brought it down to 10%. This is a model for the country. Even today, other states report a loss of 17–18%. The Energy Department is growing stronger due to the efforts of all of you. Minister K.J. George has now taken over the department and is leading it in a transparent and excellent manner. We had taken many revolutionary decisions in the past,” he added.

“When I took charge of the Energy Department, Karnataka was generating 11,000 MW of electricity. By the time I left the department, the state was generating 23,000 MW. I also recruited 24,000 employees transparently, without accepting a single rupee in bribe. Earlier energy ministers used to take money for appointments. I am proud that I avoided that and provided jobs at your doorsteps,” he said.

“We made several decisions regarding wind power, solar power, and gas production in Bengaluru city. As a result, investors showed interest in our state. We are launching a new pumped storage power plant, which we plan to build in Savadatti and Varahi. We have also decided to generate 20–50 MW of electricity in each taluk to provide power to farmers during the daytime.

“When the Pavagada Solar Power Station was established, the price of agricultural land there was just ₹50,000 per acre. Instead of purchasing the land, we implemented the project by paying ₹18,000 per acre annually as rent to the farmers. Today, they are receiving ₹26,000–₹27,000 per acre per year. Even now, the farmers remain the landowners,” he explained.

“Your demands are being given due attention. OPS (Old Pension Scheme) is also part of our manifesto. Do not worry about it. In the past, when the issue of promotion arose, I resolved it on the very same day. Whenever the Congress government comes to power, it will work for your welfare. Remember, the salary of an IPS officer is the same as that of the KPTCL and ESCOM Chief Engineers. May your love and trust continue to be with us,” he stated.

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