State

Noted Malayalam film and serial actor Meghanadhan, known for his villainous roles, passed away at a hospital in Kozhikode in the early hours of Thursday, according to film industry sources.

He was 60.

He appeared in over 50 films, including notable works such as Chamayam, Chenkol, and Ee Puzhayum Kadannu. He died at 2 am while undergoing treatment for respiratory-related ailments, they said.

Meghanadhan was the son of the renowned actor Balan K Nair.

Meghanadhan began his acting career in 1983 with the film Astram, directed by P N Menon.

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Wednesday launched the 'Delhi Solar Portal' as a single-window solution for installing rooftop solar panels by people in the national capital.

Delhiites can now become 'prosumers' (power consumers who generate extra solar power) by installing rooftop solar panels with the help of the portal. In a post on X, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal said people can now instal solar panels on their rooftops with the help of the portal, while sitting at home. He said the rooftop solar panels will not only render power bills zero but also help earn Rs 700-Rs 900 per month.

Atishi launched the portal at Delhi secretariat and said it will help achieve the target of 750 MW rooftop solar power generation, as per the solar policy of the AAP government launched on March 14 this year. Rooftop solar panel installation will help consumers having over 400 units of monthly power consumption to also enjoy subsidy benefits, the Delhi chief minister said at a press conference.

The portal will provide all information required for installation of rooftop panels. It will have a solar calculator to estimate solar power generation capacity at a specific rooftop, savings to be made, list of vendors and rate of solar plants, she said.

The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted searches at the Chhattisgarh premises of an auditing company employee, allegedly linked to a political Bitcoin transactions case in Maharashtra, as part of a money laundering investigation, official sources said.

The house of Gaurav Mehta in Chhattisgarh's capital city Raipur is being covered under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.

The ED action comes when polling for the Maharashtra Assembly elections is underway. The BJP on Tuesday played purported voice notes of NCP (SP) leader and Baramati MP Supriya Sule and Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole alleging attempts were being made to encash Bitcoins to influence the elections.

ED sources said the agency has widened its ongoing money laundering probe into a crypto (Bitcoin) assets ponzi scam and is investigating the "links" of Mehta and some others with politicians, politically exposed persons and bureaucrats.

The agency attached assets worth Rs 98 crore of actor Shilpa Shetty and her husband Raj Kundra in April as part of this crypto-ponzi probe. The couple challenged the ED action and got relief from the Bombay High Court. Sharing some audio clips, in which voices and signal chats purportedly of Sule and Patole allegedly indicate that Bitcoins were used for funding the poll campaign, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said it is clear that the MVA has seen the writing on the wall that it will be defeated in the polls.

Sule has denied the charges and said she has filed a complaint with the Election Commission and the cybercrime department of the state against the false allegations. She told reporters on Wednesday that she "did not know Gaurav Mehta".

Patole also dismissed the BJP's allegations and said, "The voice in the clip being circulated is not mine. Even (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi recognises my voice."

The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted searches at the Chhattisgarh premises of an auditing company employee, allegedly linked to a political Bitcoin transactions case in Maharashtra, as part of a money laundering investigation, official sources said.

The house of Gaurav Mehta in Chhattisgarh's capital city Raipur is being covered under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.

The ED action comes when polling for the Maharashtra Assembly elections is underway. The BJP on Tuesday played purported voice notes of NCP (SP) leader and Baramati MP Supriya Sule and Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole alleging attempts were being made to encash Bitcoins to influence the elections.

ED sources said the agency has widened its ongoing money laundering probe into a crypto (Bitcoin) assets ponzi scam and is investigating the "links" of Mehta and some others with politicians, politically exposed persons and bureaucrats.

The agency attached assets worth Rs 98 crore of actor Shilpa Shetty and her husband Raj Kundra in April as part of this crypto-ponzi probe. The couple challenged the ED action and got relief from the Bombay High Court. Sharing some audio clips, in which voices and signal chats purportedly of Sule and Patole allegedly indicate that Bitcoins were used for funding the poll campaign, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said it is clear that the MVA has seen the writing on the wall that it will be defeated in the polls.

Sule has denied the charges and said she has filed a complaint with the Election Commission and the cybercrime department of the state against the false allegations. She told reporters on Wednesday that she "did not know Gaurav Mehta".

Patole also dismissed the BJP's allegations and said, "The voice in the clip being circulated is not mine. Even (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi recognises my voice."

The 45-day-long decennial exposition of the holy relics of St Francis Xavier in Old Goa will start on Thursday, November 21. It is expected to be attended by over 80 lakh pilgrims.

Fr Henry Falcao, convenor of the exposition committee, told PTI that the decennial display will continue till January 5. The last exposition was held in 2014.

Fr Falcao said that the holy relics of the Saint, preserved at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa, would be carried in a procession to Se Cathedral Church, located a few metres away, after a mass at 9.30 am.

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has condemned the killing of six people by suspected Kuki militants in Jiribam district last week. 

Calling it a "crime against humanity," Singh assured that those responsible would be brought to justice soon. 

In his first statement following the recent surge in violence in the state, Singh said search operations are actively underway to track down the perpetrators. The victims' bodies were recovered from a river in Jiribam, sparking widespread outrage. "Today, I stand here with profound sadness and anger to condemn the horrific killings of three innocent children and three innocent women by Kuki terrorists after being taken hostage at Jiribam," Singh said in a video posted on X.

"Such barbaric acts have no place in any civilised society. Let me assure you that the hunt for these terrorists is currently underway and they will be brought to justice very soon. We will not rest until they are held accountable for their inhuman actions," he added.

The administration of Khairthal-Tijara district in Rajasthan has announced that all schools will hold online classes for students of classes 1 to 5 for four days starting Wednesday due to alarmingly high pollution levels in Delhi-NCR.

The order was issued by District Collector Kishore Kumar on Tuesday following the Supreme Court's directions to all states in the Delhi-NCR area to decide on conducting physical classes for students up to class 12 amid the dire situation. Khairthal-Tijara, which was carved out of Alwar in August 2023, falls under the National Capital Region (NCR).

The order is only applicable to students, teachers are required to come to school to conduct online classes.

Curfew was relaxed in three Imphal Valley districts on Tuesday and the suspension on broadband internet lifted with conditions, even as Chief Minister N Biren Singh blamed the Congress for the present crisis in Manipur and NDA MLAs called for a "mass operation" against militants responsible for the killing of six women and children.

Peaceful rallies were also staged across the state, with hundreds taking to the streets with empty coffins in Churachandpur district, demanding justice for those killed in a gunfight with the security forces in Jiribam, and members of various civil society organisations bringing out a procession in Imphal West district to protest the reimposition of AFSPA in parts of the state. Prohibitory orders were relaxed in Imphal East and West, and Kakching districts from 5 am to 10 am to facilitate the purchase of essential items "in view of improvement in law and order". 

However, restrictions on large scale gatherings or movement of persons or sit-ins continued to remain imposed.

The recently released Hindi film 'The Sabarmati Report', based on the 2002 Godhra train burning incident in Gujarat, was declared tax-free in Haryana, with Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini making the announcement after watching the film on Tuesday evening.

Chief Minister Saini watched the film with its starcast, presenter Ektaa Kapoor and producer Amul Mohan in Chandigarh. Subsequently, he announced that ‘The Sabarmati Report’ will be tax-free in the state, thus exempting it from entertainment levy.

Other BJP-ruled states Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh have already given tax-free status to the film, which hit theatres on November 15.