01 May 2026
In Maharashtra's Nagpur, the Congress initiated a unique approach to fundraising during a rally on Thursday. As part of the 'Donate for Desh' campaign, a Congress Crowdfunding initiative launched earlier this month, barcodes were affixed to the back of all chairs on the ground. Attendees of the 'Hain Taiyyar Hum' rally were encouraged to contribute by scanning the barcodes.
With Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza showing no signs of abating and Iranian proxies targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, the situation on the high seas off West Asia remains on razor’s edge, officials monitoring the developments said on Thursday.
Karnataka will soon pass an ordinance directing all commercial establishments to use signboards and name plates with at least 60% Kannada signage on them, chief minister Siddaramaiah said on Thursday, doubling down on a fractious language issue that triggered violent protests by a fringe group a day ago.
Union minister and senior BJP leader Giriraj Singh on Thursday claimed that a 'chakravyuh' (trap) has been laid for Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar by ally Lalu Prasad, the RJD president.
Talking to reporters here, Singh alleged that Prasad wanted to see his son Tejashwi Yadav, currently the deputy chief minister, in the highest seat of power in the state without much delay and there was a "200 per cent" likelihood that the JD(U) leader will be forced to step down and make way.
Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Wednesday said that there is no need to panic over
the JN.1 variant of COVID-19, which is a sub-variant of Omicron and causes mild infection. He
said that this variant is spreading in south India and Delhi has reported its first case of JN.1
infection. “JN.1 is a mild infection. There is no need to panic. It causes mild sickness,”
Bharadwaj told ANI. He added that out of the three samples sent for genome sequencing, one
was found to be JN.1 and the other two were Omicron.
