A 19-year-old man was killed after a car speeding on the wrong side of a road hit his motorbike in Maharashtra’s Pune district, police said on Sunday.

The accident took place at around 9.30 pm on Saturday at Mauje Eklahare village on Pune-Nashik road in Ambegaon taluka. The car driver was arrested late night, they said.

The victim was identified as Om Bhalerao, the police said.

A case has been registered against the accused at Manchar police station, an official said.

“The accused was driving a Fortuner car on Pune-Nashik road. He was driving the car on the wrong side of the road while travelling to Manchar village when the vehicle had a head-on collision with the motorbike. The two-wheeler rider was seriously injured in the accident and lost his life,” a senior police official said.

“Both the vehicles were badly damaged in the incident. The car driver has been arrested and a case has also been registered against him. We are conducting further probe into the incident,” he added.

This mission simulated the approach and landing interface and high-speed landing conditions for a vehicle returning from space, reaffirming the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) expertise in acquiring the most critical technologies required for the development of a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV), the space agency said.

The third and final test in the series of Landing Experiment (LEX-03) was conducted at 07:10 1ST at the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) in Chitradurga, Karnataka.

Following the success of the RLV LEX-01 and LEX-02 missions, ISRO in a release said, RLV LEX-03 re-demonstrated the autonomous landing capability of the RLV under more challenging release conditions (cross range of 500 m against 150 m for LEX-02) and more severe wind conditions.

The winged vehicle, named ‘Pushpak’, was released from an Indian Air Force Chinook Helicopter at an altitude of 4.5 km “from a release point 4.5 km away from the runway. Pushpak autonomously executed cross-range correction manoeuvres, approached the runway and performed a precise horizontal landing at the runway centreline,” it said.

Due to this vehicle’s low lift-to-drag ratio aerodynamic configuration, the landing velocity exceeded 320 kmph, compared to 260 kmph for a commercial aircraft and 280 kmph for a typical fighter aircraft, it added.

ISRO said, after touchdown, the vehicle velocity was reduced to nearly 100 kmph using its brake parachute, after which the landing gear brakes were employed for deceleration and stop on the runway.

During this ground roll phase, Pushpak utilises its rudder and nose wheel steering system to autonomously maintain a stable and precise ground roll along the runway, it said.

According to the space agency, this mission simulated the approach and landing interface and high-speed landing conditions for a vehicle returning from space, reaffirming ISRO’s expertise in acquiring the most critical technologies required for the development of a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV).

Through this mission, the advanced guidance algorithm catering to longitudinal and lateral plane error corrections, which is essential for the future Orbital Re-entry Mission has been validated, the space agency noted.

The RLV-LEX uses multi-sensor fusion including sensors like Inertial sensor, Radar altimeter, Flush air data system, Pseudolite system and NavIC, it said, adding “Notably, the RLV-LEX-03 mission reused the winged body and flight systems as such without any modification, from the LEX-02 mission, demonstrating the robustness of ISRO’s capability of design to reuse flight systems for multiple missions.”

The mission, led by Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), was a collaborative effort involving multiple ISRO centres — Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) and Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota.

The mission received significant support from the Indian Air Force, Aeronautical Development Establishment, Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment, Regional Centre for Military Airworthiness under Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification, National Aerospace Laboratories, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, Indian aerospace industrial partners, Indian Oil Corporation of India and Airport Authority of India.

S Somanath, Chairman, ISRO/Secretary, Department of Space, congratulated the team for their efforts in maintaining the success streak in such complex missions.

Dr S Unnikrishnan Nair, Director of VSSC, emphasised that this consistent success boosts ISRO’s confidence in the critical technologies essential for future orbital re-entry missions.

J Muthupandian is the Mission Director and B Karthik is the Vehicle Director for this successful mission.

A fire broke out in a scarp godown in Rajasthan’s Barmer district early Sunday, police said.

No casualties have been reported.

The godown is located in a residential area and the fire caused panic among the locals, police said.

Several fire tenders were pressed into service to control the fire.

 Hundreds of people died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia as the faithful faced intense high temperatures at Islamic holy sites in the desert kingdom, officials said on Wednesday as people tried to claim their loved ones’ bodies.

Saudi Arabia has not commented on the death toll amid the heat during the pilgrimage, required of every able Muslim once in their life, nor offered any causes for those who died.

However, hundreds of people had lined up at the Emergency Complex in Al-Muaisem neighbourhood in Mecca trying to get information about their missing family members.

One list circulating online suggested at least 550 people died during the five-day Hajj. A medic who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss information not released publicly by the government said that the names listed appeared genuine. That medic and another official who also spoke on condition of anonymity said they believed at least 600 bodies were at the facility. The list offered no cause of death.

Each year, the Hajj draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from low-income nations, “many of whom have had little, if any, pre-Hajj health care,” an article in the April edition of the Journal of Infection and Public Health said. Communicable illnesses can spread among the gathered masses, many of whom saved their entire lives for their trips and can be elderly with preexisting health conditions, the paper added.

However, the number of dead this year suggests something caused the number of deaths to swell. Already, several countries have said some of their pilgrims died because of the heat that swept across the holy sites at Mecca including Jordan and Tunisia.

Temperatures on Tuesday reached 47 degrees Celsius (117 degrees Fahrenheit) in Mecca and the sacred sites in and around the city, according to the Saudi National Center for Meteorology. Onlookers saw some people faint while trying to perform the symbolic stoning of the devil.

Others, including many Egyptians, lost track of their loved ones in the heat and the crowds. More than 1.83 million Muslims performed the Hajj in 2024, including more than 1.6 million pilgrims from 22 countries, and around 222,000 Saudi citizens and residents, according to the Saudi Hajj authorities.

On Wednesday at the medical complex in Mecca an Egyptian man collapsed to the ground when he heard the name of mother among the dead. He cried for some time before grabbing his cellphone and calling a travel agent, shouting: “He left her to die!” The crowd tried to calm the man.

Security appeared tight at the complex, with an official reading out names of the dead and the nationalities, which included people from Algeria, Egypt and India. Those who said they were kin of the dead were allowed inside to identify the deceased.

The AP could not independently confirm the cause of death at the complex. Saudi officials did not respond to questions seeking more information.

The kingdom’s ruling Al Saud family maintains a major influence in the Muslim world through its oil wealth and management of Islam’s holiest sites. Like Saudi monarchs before him, King Salman has taken the title of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, referring to the Grand Mosque in Mecca home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that Muslims pray towards five times a day, and the Prophets mosque in the nearby city of madina

Saudi Arabia has spent billions of dollars on crowd control and safety measures for those attending the annual five-day pilgrimage, but the sheer number of participants makes ensuring their safety difficult.

Climate change could make the risk even greater. A 2019 study by experts at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that even if the world succeeds in mitigating the worst effects of climate change, the Hajj would be held in temperatures exceeding an “extreme danger threshold” from 2047 to 2052, and from 2079 to 2086.

Islam follows a lunar calendar, so the Hajj falls around 11 days earlier each year. In 2030, the Hajj will occur in April, and over the next several years it will fall in the winter, when temperatures are milder.

A 2015 stampede in Mina during the hajj killed over 2,400 pilgrims, the deadliest incident to ever strike the pilgrimage, an AP count showed. Saudi Arabia has never acknowledged the full toll of the stampede. A separate crane collapse at Mecca”s Grand Mosque, which preceded the Mina disaster, killed 111 people.

The second-deadliest incident at hajj was a 1990 stampede that killed 1,426 people.

In his letter addressed to Lok Sabha Speaker and Rajya Sabha Chairman, he said the statues of national leaders have been relocated to a separate corner “artbitrarily” without any consultation and this amounts to violation of the basic spirit of democracy.

He said he has written in the context of relocation of statues of major leaders in the Parliament House complex and the statues have been removed from their prominent places and relocated to a separate corner.

“I wish to emphasise at the very threshold that such removal of the statues  arbitrarily, without any consultation, violates the basic spirit of our democracy. Needless to mention that the statues of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and other national leaders were situated at prominent locations after due deliberation and consideration. Each statues and its location across the Parliament House complex held immense value and significance,” Kharge said in his letter sent separately to the Speaker and RS Chairman.

He said thestatues  of Mahatma Gandhi in a meditative posture originally installed on October 2, 1993 in front of the old Parliament building held immense significance for India’s democratic polity.

Over the decades, this space had assumed sacrosanct value and members of Parliament (MPs) as well as visitors paid their respects to Mahatma Gandhi imbibing within themselves the spirit of the Mahatma.

“It is at this place that Members sought to voice concerns of the people in a democratic manner to draw the attention of the government seeking due redressal,” he noted.

In this context, he also drew the attention to the statues of Ambedkar which was installed on April 2, 1967 in the Parliament House precincts and its placement facilitated seamless movement of people paying their tributes to him on his birth and death anniversaries.

“The location of the statues had also proved to be quite convenient vis-à-vis general public’s movement and security concerns. The vantage point at which the statue was installed as well as the posture of the statue held great significance,” the Congress chief said.

The message which the statue of Babasaheb sought to convey was to extol the generations of parliamentarians to steadfastly hold on to values and principles enshrined in the Constitution of India, he said.

Kharge, in his letter, recalled that during his student days in mid-1960s he was at the forefront of demanding installation of the statues in the precincts of the Parliament House and noted that such concerted efforts eventually resulted in installing of Babasaheb Ambedkar’s statues at the place where it was hitherto before placed.

“I am constrained to state this with anguish that all this has now been brought to a naught in an arbitrary and unilateral manner,” the Congress leader said.

The Congress chief, who is also the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, pointed out that there is a dedicated committee for installing portraits and statues of national leaders and MPs in the Parliament House Complex – “Committee on the Installation of Portraits and statuesof National Leaders and Parliamentarians in the Parliament House Complex” but the panel has not been reconstituted since 2019.

“Hence, such decisions made without any proper discussion and deliberation with relevant stakeholders are against the rules and traditions of our Parliament. Therefore, I demand that the  statuesof Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and other national leaders who greatly contributed for the unity and integrity of our nation must be relocated to their original locations with due respect and regard,” he wrote.

The Congress has taken strong objection to the shifting of the statues

The opposition parties have often held protest marches and agitations within the Parliament complex before the statues of Gandhi and Ambedkar.

Ranchi: The Jharkhand government on Wednesday approved a proposal to increase the salaries and other perks of the chief minister, leader of opposition, speaker, ministers, and legislators by up to 50 per cent.

While legislators will receive a maximum salary hike of 50 per cent, CM and ministers will see increases of about 25 per cent and 31 per cent, respectively. The approval was granted during a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Champai Soren.

Cabinet Secretary Vandana Dadel confirmed the approval, stating, “The cabinet has approved the hike in salaries, allowances, and other perks for legislators, ministers, the Speaker, Leader of Opposition, Chief Minister, and Assembly officials.”

The basic salary of the CM has been increased from Rs 80,000 per month to Rs 1 lakh. Ministers’ salaries have been raised from Rs 65,000 to Rs 85,000, and legislators’ pay from Rs 40,000 to Rs 60,000.

The Speaker’s basic salary has increased from Rs 78,000 per month to Rs 98,000, the leader of opposition’s from Rs 65,000 to Rs 85,000, and the chief whip’s from Rs 55,000 to Rs 75,000.

In addition to salary hikes, allowances and other perks were also approved.

The area allowance for the CM was increased from Rs 80,000 to Rs 95,000 per month, and the refreshment allowance from Rs 60,000 to Rs 70,000.

Ministers will now receive a kshetra bharta (area allowance) of Rs 95,000, up from Rs 80,000, and refreshment allowance of Rs 55,000, up from Rs 45,000. Legislators’ area allowance was raised from Rs 65,000 to Rs 80,000 per month, and their refreshment allowance from Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 per month.

The decision followed the recommendations of a five-member panel set up to review the salaries and perks of the Chief Minister, ministers, Speaker, leader of opposition, chief whip, and whip.

The panel submitted its report in December last year, recommending a 25 per cent salary hike for the CM and about 31 per cent for other ministers.

Additionally, in August last year, another committee proposed raising the basic salary of MLAs from Rs 40,000 to Rs 60,000 and suggested increases in other perks for legislators.

 A man was allegedly lynched here by a mob that accused him of theft, triggering communal tension.

Six people were arrested after the mob attack on Fareed (35) on Tuesday night in Mamu Bhanja locality, police said. Seven people, part of the mob, have been identified.

According to a complaint filed by the victim’s family, Fareed was returning home from work when he was mobbed and thrashed by some residents on Tuesday night in the Mamu Bhanja locality over suspicion of theft, Superintendent of Police City M Shekhar Pathak said.

By the time police reached the spot, Fareed was seriously injured and was rushed to the Malkhan Singh Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, the SP said.

As the news of the incident spread, many people gathered at the hospital and demanded the arrest of the accused, he said.

Pathak said the arrests have been made based on CCTV footage, and some other unidentified people have also been booked. Further investigation is underway.

SSP Sanjay Suman told the reporters that all precautionary measures have been enforced. Police and RAF (Rapid Action Force) have been deployed in sensitive localities including Subzi Mandi and Abdul Kareem Chowk.

The sector scheme has been enforced in all sensitive areas of the city, he added.

Meanwhile, people from both Hindu and Muslim communities gathered at some spots in the old city near Railway Road and some shops shut down their shutters, he said.

Police patrolling has been intensified in some areas identified as “sensitive spots”, he added.

Several BJP leaders led by the city MLA Muktar Varshney staged a “dharna” near the Railway Road, demanding that no innocent person should be arrested based on fabricated evidence.

SP Pathak assured that arrests will be made following the due process of law.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray

 Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday asserted he will never go with those who tried to “finish off” his party, putting paid to speculation about a possible reconciliation with the BJP post the Lok Sabha polls.

Addressing an event organised here on the 58th Foundation Day of the Shiv Sena, Thackeray said the Narendra Modi government, which took office on June 9, will collapse and it will replaced by an INDIA bloc-led dispensation.

On the BJP’s performance in the just held Lok Sabha polls, the former CM maintained the national party was trying to hide its failure by spreading news that the Shiv Sena (UBT) will join the ruling NDA.

“We will never go with those who tried to finish off the Shiv Sena,” Thackeray declared, responding to speculation that he will realign with the BJP.

Thackeray said no poll should be held for 11 seats of the Legislative Council, where MLAs will be voting, till the Supreme Court rules on disqualification pleas related to some members of the lower house.

Polls for 11 seats of the Legislative Council are slated for July 12.

Thackeray accused the BJP of abandoning Hindutva and asked whether the national party’s alliance with regional outfits TDP and the JDU was organic.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) president dubbed BJP’s Hindutva as “regressive” and described the one professed by his party as “progressive”.