Monday, Mar 08, 2021 | Last Update : 12:01 PM IST

Top Stories

PM Narendra Modi addresses supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) during a mass rally ahead of the state legislative assembly elections at the Brigade Parade ground in Kolkata. (Photo: AFP)

Modi mocks Mamata, claims she is headed for a ‘big fall’ in Nandigram

DC CORRESPONDANT | PTI

PM tears into TMC’s ‘Olympics of Corruption’; plays BJP’s industry card

Shah hoped that the coming elections would be a game-changer. (Photo: PTI)

Shah optimistic of AIADMK-BJP govt in TN

DC CORRESPONDANT | PTI

He also commenced the BJP’s door-to-door campaign in the Kanyakumari district

The Chief Minister chaired a meeting at Pragathi Bhavan on Saturday to give final touches to the Budget for 2021-22. (Photo: Twitter @TelanganaCMO)

TS Budget to fulfill KCR poll promises

DC CORRESPONDANT | PTI

Outlay likely to be between Rs. 1.60 lakh cr and Rs. 2 lakh cr

Telangana suffered Rs 1 lakh crore loss due to COVID-19 pandemic, says CM

The main focus of the government in the second part of the session is to get various demands of grants for the financial year 2021-22 passed along with the Finance Bill which carries various tax proposals. (Photo: PTI)

Curtailment of Parliament session on cards amid assembly polls in various states

KTR reminded journalists that none of the four MPs of the BJP from the state had taken part in the struggle for statehood but were now criticising the architect of the new state, Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao. (Photo: Twitter @trspartyonline)

KTR bonhomie at media event

Chandrababu Naidu campaigning in Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) areas in support of TD candidates. (Photo: DC/Narayana Rao)

Chandrababu Naidu turns red in anger while campaigning in VMC, warns people

Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee (C) along with Indian supporters of All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) take part in a protest rally against the rise in prices of petroleum products, in Siliguri on March 7, 2021 ahead of the upcoming West Bengal's legislative assembly elections. (Photo: AFP)

Didi: Why hike fuel prices?

The SIP project is being coordinated by Union ministries of Jal Shakti, urban affairs, tourism and culture, and the respective state government. (DC File Photo)

Centre to make Golconda a true iconic structure

In her most-recent find, D'silva Danira and her partner have completed 4,828m of drilling and have estimated 16.2 MT resource of copper (Cu) at 0.6per cent Cu grade in the Machanur block. — DC Image

Geology no more a male preserve

NewsThe Kotepally dam with its kayaking has been attracting tourists from nearby districts ever since the government allowed water sports and skills development programmes in 2016.

Kotepally, a reservoir for tourism

In view of Women's Day the state government has declared a government holiday on March 8, Monday. (Representational Photo: DC)

Telangana Women staff gets holiday today

Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao ordered both officials to appear on March 26 and adjourned all issues related to the case to the same date. (Photo: PTI)

Telangana HC summons 2 top TS officials, pulls them for ignoring court directions

The first list of 57 names, which came a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first election rally in the state, also has names of former Indian cricketer Ashoke Dinda and ex-IPS officer Bharati Ghosh. (Twitter)

BJP releases first list of candidates for West Bengal Assembly polls

The third phase of immunisation is going on without any major health issues among beneficiaries. — Representational Image/DC file photo

Phase 3 to see more COVID vaccinations in Andhra Pradesh

Congress MLA from Mulugu, Danasari Anasuya alias Seethakka. (Photo: Facebook @Danasari Anasuya)

Times have changed but not our attitude to women: Seethakka

Mayor Gadwal R. Vijayalakshmi. (Photo: Twitter @GadwalvijayaTRS)

Rise in protest against all injustices, Hyderabad Mayor tells women

Telangana state Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan. (DC Image)

Women's Special | A five-capsule prescription for women and society

Union Home Minister Amit Shah being greeted by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami at a programme in Chennai. (PTI File Image)

AIADMK gives Kanyakumari LS seat, 20 assembly segments to BJP

MORE TOP STORIES

Union Home Minister Amit Shah being greeted by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami at a programme in Chennai. (PTI File Image)

AIADMK gives Kanyakumari LS seat, 20 assembly segments to BJP

The focus of DBSE will be on understanding (of concepts) and personality development, says Kejriwal. — PTI file photo .

Delhi to have own school education board: Arvind Kejriwal

While people can offer milk and water, the dogs do not have place to rest in the shade. — PTI representational image

Keeping water available for animals sparks off objection in housing colonies

In a fire-fighting operation towards the same evening, Nani’s daughter Swetha with TD senior leader Nettem Raghuram went to the house of Umamaheswara Rao. (Representational Photo: Twitter @kesineni_nani)

TD leaders’ revolt against MP Nani resolved within hours

The textbooks were printed based on the 2019-20 data, with a 5 per cent buffer, but it still created a shortage. (Representational Photo: AFP)

Overwhelming response to state schools creates textbooks shortage in AP

A single-judge bench, headed by Battu Devanand, summoned the special chief secretary, BC welfare K. Praveen Kumar and BC welfare director B. Rama Rao in a contempt of court case to be present before the court on March 5.

Two senior Babus of AP get NBWs in contempt case

During Durga Shankar Mishra's visit, the official took stock of the progress achieved in urban schemes in the state namely Housing for All, PMSvanidhi, Swachh Bharat Mission, Smart City Mission and AMRUT. (Twitter/@Secretary_MoHUA)

Centre lauds Telangana for implementation of PM SVANidhi, AMRUT

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan. (AFP)

Pakistan PM Imran Khan wins trust vote; Opposition demands resignation

MOST POPULAR

Berlinale: A teacher, a porn clip and the hypocrisy of a nation

Radu Jude’s film - Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn

The new-age Indian woman is a wonderful mix of being bold and yet rooted in reality

Ami Sata, Founder, Amouve

Berlinale: Sharlto Copley's bravura act as Unabomber makes 'Ted K' stand out

The South African actor, known for his performance as Wikus van der Merwe in the 2009 science fiction film 'District 9', carries 'Ted K' with a meticulously studied but intense act that is as discomforting as it is impressive.

Rats, mice, rabbits, hamsters and monkeys - The true heroes in Covid-19 battle

While the rats, mice, rabbits and Syrian hamsters were lab-bred, the rhesus macaques that were used in testing Covaxin candidates were caught in the wild in Maharashtra. (Representational Image/AFP)

Two Hyderabad doctors work on genomic medicine

Dr Hima Challa and Dr Kalyan Uppuluri (By arrangement)

NTR, unlike Chiranjeevi, never took people for granted: Biographer

An objective assessment of the late leader, the book has been well-received for its critical insight and diligent research.

Hyderabad's city lights killing astronomy, enthusiasts, scientists complain

Light pollution is a menace in the city of Hyderabad which is killing the joy of looking up to the night sky, astronomy enthusiasts and scientists have complained. (Representational Image/PTI)

Sex & the single mum

A farewell to @realDonaldTrump, gone after 57,000 tweets

The suspended Twitter account of President Donald Trump. On Friday, the social media company permanently suspended Trump from its platform, citing "risk of further incitement of violence." (AP)

Top 10 Indian Best Selling Books: Fiction and Non Fiction

This cover image released by Grove shows "Shuggie Bain," a novel by Douglas Stuart. The Scottish writer has won the Booker Prize for fiction for his novel about a boy’s turbulent coming of age in hardscrabble 1980s Glasgow. Stuart won the prestigious 50,000 pound ($66,000) award for his first published novel. (Grove via AP)

ADVERTISEMENT

Columns

Sanjaya Baru | Competitive politics & competitive economy

If the regional parties and the Congress in Assam manage to defeat BJP, these elections will mark a turning point in national politics

Shikha Mukerjee | Mamata’s long game: Women’s status in Bengal is transformed

Shikha Mukerjee

If Narendra Modi and his 56-inch chest is the epitome of male power, the barely 60-inch frame of Ms Banerjee is the epitome of woman power

Shikha Mukerjee

Pavan Varma | Freedom, conspiracy and other anti-national sins

Frankly, in my view, Freedom House, the Washington based global democracy watchdog, should be booked by our ever-vigilant govt for sedition

Pavan K Varma

Anita Katyal | On Azad, Cong misfired twice; how’s Tomar for new MP CM?

It may appear far-fetched but there is a connection between the West Bengal election and Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s future

Anita Katyal

South

The Congress is attacking both the state and Union governments for their alleged failure on various fronts. — Representational Image/AFP

Explainer | How dark horses may mar chances of party candidates in TS' MLC polls

Dr Soundararajan, who is currently holding additional charge as Lt. Governor of Puducherry, will accept the honour through a virtual mode from Puducherry. — DC file photo

Telangana Governor among Top 20 Global Women of Excellence Award 2020

Vishakapatnam stood 15th in Ease of Living Index with 57.16 score points in the same category. (Photo:DC)

Vizag, Tirupati among top 10 cities in MPI index

SEC will hold regional conferences at Tirupati, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam on February 27, 28 and March 1 respectively, to review preparedness of the district administrations for conducting elections. (Photo: DC)

All set for AP urban local body polls on March 10

In May last year, Chief Minister K Palaniswami had increased the retirement age of government employees to 59 from 58 years. (PTI)

Tamil Nadu govt enhances retirement age of its employees to 60 years

Tension had been brewing in the area following a march organised by the SDPI recently in protest against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's Kerala visit. (Representational image)

RSS worker murder: 8 SDPI activists held in Kerala

Bandi Sanjay Kumar, MP&BJP State President, addresses the media at BJP State Office, Nampally in Hyderabad.(DC image/SSR)

Dejected Telangana Congress leaders stream into ‘buoyant’ BJP

According to police, the incident took place at Hirenagavalli near Peresandra. (Image credit: ANI)

Six killed while disposing of explosives meant for quarrying in Karnataka

Entertainment

malayalam actor dev mohan

Samantha’s Shakuntala finds her Dushyanta in Dev Mohan

Varalaxmi Sarathkumar

Varalaxmi to headline a comic thriller

Rana Daggubati

Haathi Mere Saathi has changed me as a human being: Rana Daggubati

Actress Hari Teja

Motherhood is the most beautiful thing: Hari Teja

Radu Jude’s film - Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn

Berlinale: A teacher, a porn clip and the hypocrisy of a nation

‘This film has changed me as a human being’

Sports

M. S. Dhoni in this file photo. -- AFP

IPL 2021: Starts April 9, no home games, no crowds at 6 venues including Mumbai

Indian cricket team players pose with the trophy after defeating England in the third day’s play of the 4th Test at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday. -- PTI

India crush England inside three days to clinch Test series 3-1

Gundappa Vishwanath in this file photo. -- Twitter

Vishy officiating as match referee in Road Safety World Series

India’s Rishabh Pant celebrates his century against England during the second day of the fourth Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday. — PTI

Rishabh’s splendid century puts England under the pump

India's middle and long distance coach Nikolai Snesarev of Belarus in this file photo. -- Twitter

Athletics coach Nikolai Snesarev found dead at NIS Patiala hostel room

West Indies star player Kieron Pollard. -- AFP

Bowler becomes nervous after 4-5 sixes are hit successively, says Pollard's coach

Neeraj Chopra in this file photo. -- Athletics Federation of India

Olympic-bound Chopra shatters own javelin throw national record at IGP

Axar Patel of India appeals for England’s Zak Crawley’s wicket during Day Two of their third Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday. — BCCI

Axar 'straightens' England with 11/70, India win 3rd Test

Lifestyle

Indian students pose with their faces painted on the occasion of International Women's Day celebration at a college in Chennai. (Representational Image/AFP)

'I am asked why I study when I already have a job'

Deepika in the latest Levi's ad

Plagiarism row back with Deepika’s latest Levi’s ad

Ami Sata, Founder, Amouve

The new-age Indian woman is a wonderful mix of being bold and yet rooted in reality

Jwala Gutta and Vishu Vishal during their holiday in Maldives

Maldives holiday was rejuvenating: Jwala Gutta

Rangesh Vel, Founder, Life Seedz

Young business wonders

Ana Sneeringer with her artworks

Painting the woman’s world

The Indian Meteorological Department said in its summer forecast for March to May that a likelihood of below normal temperatures in south and adjoining central India. (Representational Image:AFP)

Above normal summer temperatures likely across country except South, central India

The academic standards of Urdu-speaking population will not improve unless they have Urdu philosophers. — Representational Image/AFP

Experts call for quality promotion of Urdu

Technology

Twitter had already banned some COVID-related misinformation in December, including falsehoods about how the virus spreads, whether masks are effective and the risk of infection and death. (AFP)

Twitter cracks down on COVID vaccine misinformation

The Unctad report finds that a few developing nations are exhibiting stronger capabilities to use, adopt and adapt frontier technologies than their per capita GDPs would suggest. (Representational image)

India top over-performer in frontier technologies

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (Twitter@satyanadella)

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella bats for global regulation on privacy

ISRO, MapmyIndia join hands to take on Google Maps/Earth Koo crosses 3 million users, popularity surges amid Twitter row Explainer: The Indian Twitter rival staging a Koo

ADVERTISEMENT

South Entertainment

Pellissery's "Jallikattu" is based on the short story Maoist by Hareesh and stars Antony Varghese, Chemban Vinod Jose, Sabumon Abdusamad and Santhy Balachandran.(Twitter/@Athul16824448)

India's official entry 'Jallikattu' fails to make the cut at Oscars

The Tamil language film follows an alcoholic abusive husband who, after his long-suffering wife runs off, sets out with his young son to find her and bring her back. Pebbles team (Image credit : Twitter/@PsVinothraj)

India's 'Pebbles' wins top prize at International Film Festival Rotterdam

Vijay said he is 'glad' that the fans can enjoy the film on Amazon Prime Video in India and across the world. (Image credit: Twitter)

'Master' to release on Amazon Prime Video on January 29

Ragini Dwivedi. (Image: Instagram)

SC grants bail to Kannada actress Ragini Dwivedi in drugs racket case

Lean is the new cool in Tollywood

, Visakhapatnam North MLA Ganta Srinivasa Rao skipped the death anniversary meeting organised in TDP urban office on Monday. — filmibeat.com

Rich tributes paid to NTR on his death anniversary

World

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan. (AFP)

Pakistan PM Imran Khan wins trust vote; Opposition demands resignation

Chinese staffers adjust the U.S. and Chinese flags before the opening session of trade negotiations between U.S. and Chinese trade representatives. (Representational Image/AP)

Chinese cyber-espionage unit on US hacking spree: report

The budget hike was announced by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the country's Parliament, the National People's Congress. (AP)

China hikes defence budget to USD 209 billion, 6.8 per cent increase

It lays out a vision for how the United States can seize what we view as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to renew America's advantages at home and abroad, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference. (AP/Evan Vucci)

Will ensure that America not China sets the international agenda: White House

US President Joe Biden gestures as he speaks during a virtual call to congratulate the NASA JPL Perseverance team on the successful Mars landing, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC on March 4, 2021. (MANDEL NGAN / AFP)

Indian-Americans taking over US, says Biden at NASA meet

Anti-coup protesters with makeshift shields stand in Yangon, Myanmar on March 3, 2021. (AP)

UN: 38 died on deadliest day yet for Myanmar coup opposition

The agency said it reviewed USD 7.8 billion spent since 2008 on buildings and vehicles. Only USD 343.2 million worth of buildings and vehicles were maintained in good condition, said the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, which oversees American taxpayer money spent on the protracted conflict. (Representational Image/AFP)

US wasted billions on cars, buildings in Afghanistan: Report

The bill that has been referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labour among other things suspends the F-1 OPT program, which grants all foreign students extendable work permits and exacerbates job market competition among American graduates. (Representational image)

Legislation on H-1B visas introduced in US Congress

Business

The government has already indicated that it expects to complete BPCL privatisation by the first half of the fiscal beginning April (2021-22). — Representational image

BPCL to sell NRL stake to OIL, EIL for Rs 9.9K cr

The positive growth — though not very strong yet — has taken the Indian economy out of the recession. (Photo: PTI)

Indian economy in +ve zone, grows 0.4%

JGLS, a part of the O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU), has jumped from the 101-150 bracket in the previous year. (Image credit : Twitter/@MPNaveenJindal)

Jindal Global Law School enters global top 100 in the world

The top 5 sectors in which the scheme is invested in are IT, consumer discretionary, health care, financials, and industrials. — Representational image

SBI MF’s international fund to tap top S&P 500 firms

About 2,308.80 MHz of spectrum, that carry telecom signals, in seven bands worth nearly Rs 4 lakh crore at the reserve or start price, was offered for bidding in the auction that began on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

Rs 77,146 cr bids for spectrum on Day 1; Govt says response better than expected

Twitter is also considering allowing users to join communities devoted to topics via a feature seemingly similar to Facebook's "groups." (AP/Matt Rourke, File)

Twitter considers charging users for special content, in revenue push

Representational Image (AP)

IT sector continues to see sequential growth in hiring in January: Report

A section of the investor community believes that depositories and regulators disclosing such investment break-up will help retail investors take more informed decisions. (Representational Image: PTI)

15 Chinese biggies among portfolio investors

Science

Most of the wards showed a similarly uniform range of seroprevalence, from 50-60 per cent. (Representational Image/AFP)

54% of Hyderabad's population estimated to have COVID-19 antibodies

While the rats, mice, rabbits and Syrian hamsters were lab-bred, the rhesus macaques that were used in testing Covaxin candidates were caught in the wild in Maharashtra. (Representational Image/AFP)

Rats, mice, rabbits, hamsters and monkeys - The true heroes in Covid-19 battle

The symptoms were controlled and the disease did not become full-blown in 81 per cent of the cases, it said.

Covaxin 81 per cent effective against Covid-19: Survey

NASA releases Mars landing video: 'Stuff of our dreams' NASA's Perseverance rover lands on Mars, will search for signs of life Second dose of COVID-19 jab will see more adverse effects: Experts

ADVERTISEMENT

Cartoon of the day

Counter Point

ADVERTISEMENT

Opinion

Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee. (PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Mamata’s long game: Women’s status in Bengal is transformed

Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah waves at supporters during his election campaign roadshow at Nagercoil, Kanyakumari, Sunday, March 7, 2021. (PTI)

Sanjaya Baru | Competitive politics & competitive economy

Anita Katyal | On Azad, Cong misfired twice; how’s Tomar for new MP CM?

Farrukh Dhondy | Of ‘patriotism’ & ‘nationalism’: It may be time to do a rethink Lekha Shankar | Thailand’s 2nd annual cannabis expo begins today Pavan Varma | Freedom, conspiracy and other anti-national sins Shashi Warrier | Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who’s the most civilized of ’em all? Shobhaa De | I’ve vaxxed… Have you? ‘Jab’ as a status symbol Karan Thapar | The tragedy of Suu Kyi: Almost Shakespearean DC Edit | To draw votes, Khattar’s quota sacrifices growth Dilip Cherian | Diplomatic pool to get eight new joint secys soon DC Edit | Spectrum auction a failure?

ADVERTISEMENT

Editors' Picks

The Congress is attacking both the state and Union governments for their alleged failure on various fronts. — Representational Image/AFP

Explainer | How dark horses may mar chances of party candidates in TS' MLC polls

Claims that MNS was 'successful' in its campaign against Karachi Bakery, soon followed with its leader Haji Saif Shaikh, who led the stir, taking credit on Twitter for the closure of the bakery in Mumbai. (Twitter/@mnshajisaif)

Its good-bye for Mumbai's iconic Karachi Bakery

SEC Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar announced forming ‘Shadow Teams’ to prevent forcible unanimous elections and also to monitor everything at the ground-level. — By arrangement

Nothing ‘unanimous’ about gram panchayat elections in Andhra Pradesh

The game plan of the opposition for the next assembly polls, particularly the Bharatiya Janata Party, drawn over the past several months, was finalised keeping K. Chandrasekhar Rao as the prime target, which will go awry if KTR takes charge. (Photo:Facebook @KTRTRS)

Why is BJP wary of KT Rama Rao as Chief Minister?

The decision has fired up a rather well-worn-out discussion around the value of a homemaker’s contribution to society. (AFP)

Adding value to home

Trump supporters participate in a rally in Washington. Far-right social media users for weeks openly hinted in widely shared posts that chaos would erupt at the U.S. Capitol while Congress convened to certify the election results. (AP)

Traditional masculinity stereotypes may help explain the support Trump is getting

Anand K. Sahay | At the Singhu border: An agitation like none other

Sundeep Bhutoria | Why are fat cats being so reckless in Covid times?