Month: May 2025

[ad_1] US secretary of state Marco Rubio Secretary of state Marco Rubio announced on Wednesday that US will begin revoking visas of some Chinese students, "including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.” Rubio announced in a post on X, saying the state department would “aggressively” revoke visas. China is the second-largest source of international students in the US. During the 2023–2024 academic year, over 270,000 Chinese students were enrolled in UAS institutions, nearly a quarter of all international students.Growing uncertainty for international studentsThe announcement follows a series of actions this week that have added to growing uncertainty for international students. On Tuesday, Rubio suspended the scheduling of new visa interviews as the state department drafts stricter guidelines, including increased surveillance of students' social media activity.The crackdown has intensified concerns among international students, who […]

[ad_1] NAINITAL: To address Nainital's parking crisis, MHA Wednesday issued formal directives allocating the premises of the Metropole Hotel to the Uttarakhand government for temporary use as a parking facility.Built in 1880, the hotel once belonged to the Raja of Mehmoodabad, who migrated to Pakistan. A luxury destination in its prime, it famously hosted figures such as Pakistan's founding father, Mohd Ali Jinnah, who spent his honeymoon there. It was designated 'enemy property' in the early 1960s.MHA's decision follows a request by CM Pushkar Singh Dhami, who cited the town's acute parking shortage and proposed using the hotel's expansive grounds, capable of accommodating over 1,000 vehicles, for public parking. According to a state govt communique, home minister Amit Shah responded positively, confirming MHA's approval in an official letter to the CM. Thanking Shah, Dhami said the move would "significantly ease […]

[ad_1] Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan NEW DELHI: India's foodgrain production is estimated to have increased 6.6%, the fastest pace of expansion in the last eight years, to reach a new high of 354 million tonne (MT) in 2024-25. All major crops, including paddy, wheat, maize, groundnuts and soybean, reported record output during the crop year. Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attributed the all-time record foodgrain output in 2024-25 to the Centre's farmer-friendly policies, including fair pricing, loss compensation and low-interest loans, and their proper implementation by state governments."Overall foodgrain production is increasing continuously...Pulses and oilseeds output has to be increased further, for which efforts are being made," Chouhan said while releasing the third advance estimates of the overall foodgrain output.According to the estimates, wheat output was revised upward to 117 MT for 2024-25, compared with an earlier […]

[ad_1] JAISALMER: A state government employee was detained on Wednesday in Rajasthan on suspicion of spying for Pakistan's spy agency ISI amid a widening crackdown on espionage networks across the country after Operation Sindoor.Sakur Khan Mangaliyar, employed with the state's employment department, was picked up by a joint team of CID and intelligence agencies from his office in Jaisalmer. Mangaliyar is expected to be transferred to Jaipur for further questioning.Authorities are also probing a suspected connection between Mangaliyar and a senior Congress politician from the border region. Security agencies have withheld comment on political links. Sources said Mangaliyar served as a personal assistant to a Congress functionary during the previous Congress-led state govt.Mangaliyar, a resident of Mangaliya's Dhani in Baroda village near the Pakistan border, had been under surveillance for several weeks. Investigators found multiple Pakistani phone numbers in his […]

[ad_1] Maharashtra CM Fadnavis, his deputies Shinde and Pawar, and others at the Ahilyadevi Holkar memorial in Chondi earlier this month MUMBAI: The cash-strapped Maharashtra government granted approval for plans worth Rs 2,954 crore for preservation and renovation of memorials and temples in the state on Wednesday.This includes clearance for a development plan worth Rs 681.3 crore for the preservation of the memorial to the 18th-century warrior queen Ahilyadevi Holkar at her birthplace in Chaundi village in Ahilyanagar. The project was announced at a cabinet meeting held at Ahilyanagar on May 6 and comes ahead of the ruler's 300th birth anniversary. The work is to be completed over the next three years.At the same cabinet meeting, development plans worth Rs 5,503 crore were cleared for seven major pilgrimage centres in the state. This included Rs 147.8 crore for Ashtavinayak temples, […]