ICMR rings alarm bell: India’s waistline is in danger. india news
New Delhi: To tackle rising obesity in India, ICMR has launched a nationwide exercise to find out what really works to reduce weight and associated health risks, at a time when almost one in four adults in the country is overweight or obese.The scale of the problem is becoming hard to ignore, with more than 25% of India’s adult population facing excess weight, leading to a rise in diabetes, hypertension and heart disease in both urban and rural areas.Despite years of research and a proliferation of diet plans, fitness regimes and awareness campaigns, there is still no clear, unified answer to which approach works best – or for whom. To bridge this gap, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has invited researchers to contribute data from all studies for a large-scale analysis.The aim is to compare the effectiveness of different strategies – from diet and physical activity to behavioral and multi-component interventions – and to understand how they perform in different population groups.The analysis will go beyond weight loss to track blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, reflecting growing concern that obesity is closely linked to a broader set of lifestyle diseases.The main focus will be to identify why the same intervention works for some people but not others, with the researchers examining variation across age, gender, income level and geography, including rural areas where undernutrition is persistent as well as obesity.Experts say the challenge is becoming more complex, with weight alone no longer a reliable indicator of health risk. Increasingly, metabolic disorders are appearing in normal weight individuals, while some people who are overweight may not have immediate complications.This initiative is expected to generate India-specific evidence to guide future treatment guidelines and public health strategies, as policymakers grapple with the rapidly growing health challenge across age groups and regions.
robert vadra According to Kaushiki Saha’s report, he and eight other accused were directed to appear on May 16 in a money laundering case related to Gurgaon’s Shikohpur land deal.The ED’s prosecution complaint (equivalent to a chargesheet), filed in July 2025, portrayed the deal as a sophisticated scheme to generate and launder the proceeds of crime, with Vadra as the main beneficiary. Vadra has denied any wrongdoing, calling the case a “political vendetta” against him and his family, including his wife, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.Apart from Vadra, summons were issued to Kewal Singh Virk, Skylight Hospitality LLP, Sky Light Realty Pvt Ltd, Real Earth Estates LLP, Blue Breeze Trading LLP, North India IT Parks LLP, Lambodar Art Enterprises India LLP and SGY Properties Pvt Ltd (earlier Omkareshwar Properties Pvt Ltd). However, the court did not summon another accused, Satyanand Yaji, saying there was no material to proceed against him.The case pertains to a February 2008 transaction in which Skylight Hospitality, where Vadra was previously a director, purchased 3.5 acres of land in Shikohpur for Rs 7.5 crore. The company sold this land to DLF in September 2012 for Rs 58 crore.Additional Sessions Judge Sushant Changotra, examining the ED’s prosecution complaint, underlined the “very narrow” scope of investigation at this stage, saying the court only needed to comprehensively examine the documents and satisfy itself that prima facie, there were “sufficient grounds to proceed further in the case”.The court said that Vadra, as a “major shareholder and primary director/partner”, had allegedly played an active role in the offenses under sections 3 and 4 of the PMLA.
Amit Shah Made several promises on Wednesday targeted at North Bengal, including withdrawal of “false” cases against Gorkha representatives and inclusion of Rajbanshi language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, which recognizes official languages in India.He said the Center was already working on a solution to the Gorkhaland issue, for which it had appointed an interlocutor and held three meetings in Delhi to find a solution, but CM Mamata Banerjee had refused to attend it. He said, “The people of Darjeeling are true patriots. They deserve their rights and justice, which have been denied to them.” Addressing an election rally in Jalpaiguri, Shah said the BJP government would withdraw every false case registered against political workers, regardless of party affiliation, and end what he called “police raj” in Bengal. He specifically mentioned the Gorkha representatives facing hundreds of cases. Shah also warned Trinamool workers against violence on polling day and referred to the attack on the convoy of BJP candidate Rathindranath Bose. He said, “I am warning Trinamool goons to stay indoors on April 23. Otherwise they will be behind bars after May 5.” He said the BJP would end “mafia raj”. At a rally in Falakata, Shah accused the state government of “step-motherly” behavior towards North Bengal and promised to increase the wages of tea garden workers by Rs 500 and create a dedicated battalion in the state police for the region. Raising the issue of women’s safety, Shah cited the incidents of RG Kar, Sandeshkhali and Durgapur Medical College. He said, “If BJP forms the government, women will be able to move around freely even at midnight.” 
