Akshita Kapoor

[ad_1] AHEMEDABAD: The road to the American dream has hit a fresh speed-breaker - visa appointments have suddenly gone off the radar for thousands of students from Ahmedabad planning to fly to the US this summer. While the Jan intake went smoothly for students securing visa appointment slots well in time, the situation over the past 20-25 days is starkly different.According to travel industry experts, since mid-March the unavailability of visa interview appointments has left aspirants as well as visa consultants in a fix."Students had received April slots when they booked appointments in Feb or early March. Now, appointment dates for May are not available at all. They've secured admissions and I-20 forms from universities but are under tremendous stress due to the uncertainty in scheduling visa interviews," said Maulin Joshi, a city-based visa consultant." The post-election period late last […]

[ad_1] Justice Kurian Joseph (File Image) NEW DELHI: Appointed by Tamil Nadu as head of a high-level committee to explore ways & means for greater autonomy for states in a federal governance structure, Justice Kurian Joseph on Wednesday said the endeavour would be to find solutions within constitutional parameters and without compromising the nation's unity and integrity.Justice Joseph, who retired from the Supreme Court in Nov 2018 after spending more than 18 years as a judge of constitutional courts, told TOI that the issue had been the subject matter of debate right from the 1970s, leading to setting up of Sarkaria Commission in 1983 to examine the Centre-state relationship and balance of power between the Centre and states.In its 1988 report, the Sarkaria Commission had given 247 recommendations, including greater financial autonomy for states and appointment of impartial governors. In […]

[ad_1] US Vice President J D Vance with his wife Usha Vance and Prime Minister Narendra Modi US Vice President J D Vance will pay an official visit to India from April 21 to 24, govt said. He will be accompanied by Second Lady Usha Vance, their children and senior members of the Trump administration. This will be Vance's first visit to India. He will meet PM Modi on April 21. "The Vice President and his delegation will have other engagements in Delhi and are also scheduled to visit Jaipur and Agra before departing for Washington DC on April 24," the govt said in a statement. According to govt, the visit will provide an opportunity for both sides to review progress in bilateral relations and implementation of the outcomes of the India-US joint statement issued on Feb 13 during Modi's […]

[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Observing that it will not hesitate to go out of the way to protect the environment and ecology, Supreme Court on Wednesday took strong exception to Telangana govt felling trees and removing green cover from over 100 acres in Kancha Gachibowli forest in Hyderabad and said govt had only two options - either restore the green cover or be ready for some of its senior-most officers being sent to jail for violation of court orders.As senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the state, said any error was "bonafide and unintentional" and assured that govt would follow the court's direction, a bench of Justices B R Gavai and A G Masih responded that if govt wanted to save its chief secretary and other officers from going to jail, then it has to come up with revival plan […]

[ad_1] SRINAGAR: The BJP-led Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC-Leh) has unanimously passed a bill that seeks to provide 33% reservation to women in the hill council.LAHDC-Leh chief executive councillor Tashi Gyalson said the passage of the bill on Tuesday was a move towards “inclusive development and gender equity in one of the remotest and most strategic regions” of India. “We have demonstrated that the remotest regions of the country are ready to lead by example in empowering their women,” he told TOI.“For a region like Ladakh, known for its stunning landscapes, yet challenged by geographical remoteness and limited infrastructure, the unanimous approval of the women’s reservation bill is more than just a policy decision. It symbolises a shift in mindset and a decisive push toward inclusive governance,” Gyalson said.The Ladakh region has two hill councils — LAHDC-Leh and LAHDC-Kargil. […]

[ad_1] SRINAGAR: National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah rejected Wednesday former RAW chief AS Dulat’s claim that he privately supported the abrogation of Article 370, calling the assertion “misleading and inaccurate”.“His book has so many mistakes that I cannot describe them,” Abdullah told reporters. “He calls me a friend, but a friend cannot write such things.” He called the suggestion illogical, saying he and other politicians were detained the night Article 370 was revoked on August 5, 2019. “We were in jail. That very night, we were charged under Public Safety Act,” he said.Dulat’s claim appears in his forthcoming book “The Chief Minister and The Spy”, which has triggered a political storm in J&K. The former intelligence officer, who has written about his long friendship with Abdullah in earlier work, alleged that the NC chief supported the constitutional move in […]

[ad_1] Profsssor Muhammad Yunus with Prime Minister Narendra Modi NEW DELHI: India has no intention of getting itself embroiled in a trade war with Bangladesh even though the signalling from Dhaka on trade issues remains far from positive. While Bangladesh has been reported to have blocked yarn imports through land borders from India, Indian government sources maintain that India’s recent withdrawal of the trans-shipment facility extended to Bangladesh in 2020 was meant to ease congestion at Indian ports and airports.India has ensured that this action does not impact Bangladesh's exports to Nepal and Bhutan transiting through Indian territory.Amid a series of anti-India statements and also actions by Dhaka that bordered on trade hostilities, PM Narendra Modi had urged Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus in their recent meeting in Bangkok to avoid rhetoric that could vitiate the atmosphere. The Indian side […]

[ad_1] It’s not every day you catch a glimpse of a creature that’s eluded human eyes for nearly 100 years — let alone one that could grow to the size of a school bus.In a moment that stunned ocean researchers, a juvenile colossal squid was captured on camera in its natural habitat for the first time since the species was discovered in 1925. The historic sighting happened in March, nearly 2,000 feet below the surface of the South Atlantic Ocean, and was made possible by a remotely operated underwater vehicle from the Schmidt Ocean Institute.Despite its intimidating name, the young squid spotted was just about one foot long — but don’t let its size fool you. As it matures, it could eventually stretch to 23 feet and weigh over 1,100 pounds, making it the heaviest known invertebrate on Earth.“This is […]

[ad_1] Tristan Stubbs and KL Rahul celebrate after the thrilling Super Over win. (Pic credit: IPL) NEW DELHI: In trouble? Call Mitchell Starc. That’s exactly what Axar Patel did when things got tense. With just 9 runs to defend in the final over, he turned to his strike bowler — and Starc delivered.Yorker after yorker, Starc kept the pressure high and the fans on edge. Dhruv Jurel and Shimron Hetmyer managed to survive the heat but couldn’t find the boundaries needed. The match ended in a thrilling tie, pushing the contest into the first Super Over of IPL 2025.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Starc returned for the Super Over, taking the ball once again with ice in his veins. Rajasthan Royals managed just 11 runs, setting Delhi Capitals a target of 12.Enter KL Rahul and Tristan […]