New Delhi: The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on Monday refuted Congress’s claim that Instagram has “blocked” Rahul Gandhi’s reel and photo with newly appointed Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay, and alleged that the ministry is actively restricting the voice of opposition leaders in the country.Sources told news agency ANI that the ministry had nothing to do with the action and the platform’s internal systems had mistakenly marked the post for blocking.Sources said, “It has been wrongly claimed by some social media handles that some of LoP’s posts were banned by MeitY. It has been clarified that MeitY has nothing to do with this action; it happened because the platform’s own internal system had mistakenly marked the post for blocking, which has now been restored on the platform.”This came after former Youth Congress national campaign chief Srivatsa claimed that the reel had received 12 million views in less than an hour, while the viral photo post reached 46 million people.“Instagram has blocked the reel and picture post of LOP Rahul Gandhi at today’s swearing-in ceremony, which he and Thalapathy Vijay attended. The viral reel was viewed 12 million times in less than an hour and the viral picture post had already reached 46 million people,” Srivatsa said.He said, “Meta has not provided any reason as to why his account has become inaccessible. The ‘glitch’ is due to MeitY rules. Rahul Gandhi’s social media accounts have been suppressed for a long time. His X reach, YouTube views and Instagram followers have all been suppressed. This is how the voice of opposition leaders in India is suppressed.”This happened when Vijay took oath as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on Sunday. Rahul also attended the function and later shared several pictures with the actor-politician on social media.Congress, with five MLAs, supported Vijay’s TVK, which emerged as the single largest party in the Tamil Nadu assembly elections.Earlier, Tamil Nadu witnessed one of the most dramatic political transitions in its modern history when actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay was sworn in as the 13th Chief Minister of the state, ending the decades-long political dominance of the DMK and AIADMK and ushering in “a new era of genuine, secular and social justice”.As thousands of supporters cheered, Tamil Nadu Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Vijay and his cabinet colleagues.In his emotional first speech as chief minister, Vijay repeatedly highlighted his humble background and rejected any larger-than-life political image around him. “My dear people, my own family… I am not a divine messenger or prophet. I am an ordinary person living a normal life. I will never betray you with false promises. I will only promise what is possible,” he said to deafening applause.Thanking the young voters and children who enthusiastically campaigned for him, Vijay made a special mention of his Gen Z supporters, saying, “Special thanks to those little friends who call me ‘Vijay Mama’. It is because of them all this has happened. I will repay your debt of gratitude by working for your future. Rest assured – this Vijay Mama will always be there for you.”This line immediately became the biggest attraction of the online ceremony.Describing his victory as “a new beginning”, the TVK founder declared, “Let us all come together to give a new government to Tamil Nadu. This is the beginning of a new era of genuine, secular and social justice.”

Hyderabad/New Delhi Amid disruptions in global energy supplies, PM Narendra Modi on Sunday urged people to use public transport and revive work from home, reduce dependence on petrol and diesel – which largely comes from imported crude – and conserve foreign exchange by avoiding foreign weddings and holidays as well as unnecessary gold purchases.The suggestions, seen as the harshest call given by the Prime Minister at an event in Hyderabad, come as the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz nears completion of 75 days, with the government using multiple sources to procure oil and gas whose supply has been hit, pushing up crude oil prices for Indian refiners for the third consecutive month. So far, oil companies have not increased pump prices but are expected to do so in the next few days.

‘Need to save FGN exchange amid war crisis’

While many countries have resorted to WFH and other options to reduce fuel consumption apart from increasing fuel prices, India has so far avoided such steps. In recent months, higher energy and gold and silver prices have widened India’s trade deficit as export growth has also slowed.Modi asked people to avoid non-essential gold purchases for a year and stop unnecessary foreign travel, and called for bringing back Covid-era efficiency measures like WFH arrangements in the national interest. He also urged businesses to opt for moving goods by rail, and asked individuals to avoid unnecessary travel and car pools and use EVs.“If we make some small changes for a year, we can save enough foreign exchange,” he said.Amid the impact on fertilizer supplies, he also suggested that farmers halve the use of chemical fertilizers and in some cases turn to natural farming.

The PM called for patriotism, arguing that it is not just about sacrificing one’s life for the country, but also about living responsibly and fulfilling duties towards the country during difficult times. He called for collective participation to help India cope with rising prices due to global economic disruptions, supply chain challenges and international conflicts.He said, “The need of the hour today is to use petrol, gas, diesel and similar resources sparingly. We should use imported petroleum products only as per requirement. This will not only save foreign exchange but will also reduce the adverse effects of war.” India imports about 90% of its crude oil requirement as domestic production is declining. PM Modi proposed reducing cooking oil consumption by 50%, he remarked, which would improve health.

PM Narendra Modi called for collective participation to help India face rising prices due to global economic disruptions, supply chain challenges and international conflicts.“Today, the need of the hour is to use petrol, gas, diesel and similar resources sparingly. We should use imported petroleum products only as per requirement.” This will not only save foreign exchange but also reduce the adverse effects of war.” India imports about 90% of its crude oil requirement as domestic production is declining.The PM said his government initially focused on achieving universal LPG coverage for the poor and is now expanding affordable piped gas connections across the country. “By using these resources wisely, we can save significant foreign exchange over the next year. Our government is making tireless efforts to deal with these challenges. In other countries, the price of a bag of urea is around Rs 3,000, but our farmers are getting it for just Rs 300.Modi also asked people to support ‘Make in India’ products and choose Indian alternatives for everyday items like toothpaste and advocated the use of electric vehicles and solar-powered pumps as an alternative to diesel-powered vehicles. In another suggestion, Modi proposed reducing cooking oil consumption by 50%, which he remarked would improve health.

The Indian Embassy in Spain on Sunday said two Indian crew members aboard the hantavirus-hit Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius are “healthy and asymptomatic” and have been flown to the Netherlands for quarantine under health safety protocols. In a statement, the embassy said the Dutch-flagged ship, carrying about 150 people, including two Indian nationals, had arrived in Spain after anchoring off the Canary Islands following the Hantavirus outbreak. The embassy said, “02 Indian nationals are healthy and have no symptoms. As informed by the Spanish National Center for Emergency Monitoring and Coordination (CENEM), 02 Indian nationals who were traveling as crew members have been evacuated to the Netherlands where they will be quarantined in accordance with the relevant health protection protocols.” The embassy said the Indian Ambassador was in close touch with the Spanish authorities and Indian citizens and was regularly monitoring the situation to ensure their safety and well-being. The statement said passengers on board the ship were disembarked in accordance with protocols set by the World Health Organization and Spanish authorities. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization issued a technical note regarding the disembarkation and management of passengers and crew linked to the outbreak. WHO advised Member States to “implement a risk-based approach to identify, monitor and manage contacts of probable or confirmed Andes virus (ANDV) cases from the MV Hondius cruise ship and those related to the incident on that cruise ship. ANDV is associated with limited human-to-human transmission, usually associated with close and prolonged contact.” According to WHO, as of May 8, eight cases of hantavirus had been reported, including three deaths. Six cases were laboratory confirmed as Andes virus infection. In India, health experts tried to downplay concerns over the outbreak linked to two Indian crew members. Dr Naveen Kumar, director of the ICMR-National Institute of Virology in Pune, said these cases do not indicate community spread in India. He said, “At present, the infections reported among Indian nationals aboard a cruise ship appear to be isolated imported cases and do not indicate community spread in India. Since hantavirus transmission is primarily rodent-borne and does not easily spread between humans, the immediate public health risk remains low.” Dr Kumar also said that human-to-human transmission of hantavirus is extremely rare.

New Delhi: BJPIts maiden victory in West Bengal with more than two-thirds of the seats and its growing numbers in the Rajya Sabha, a landslide victory in the assembly elections, will allow the party to set the terms in next year’s presidential election, after losing majority in the Lok Sabha elections had cast doubt on its dominant performance since 2014.Its overwhelming dominance in the assemblies along with allies in big states like Maharashtra, Bengal and Bihar – the three assemblies with the most weight among the states after UP in the electoral college for the presidency – will be effective in neutralizing the loss in the Lok Sabha, where its strength has fallen from 303 to 240 in 2024. All elected members of Parliament and Legislative Assemblies, excluding nominated MPs, form the electoral college. Parliament and Assemblies have equal voting shares, but while the value of each MP’s vote is the same (it was 700 in 2022), the importance of an MLA’s vote varies depending on the size (as per 1971 census) of the population that his Assembly represents.The vote of an MLA from UP at a value of 208 was almost 30 times the vote of an MLA from Sikkim, valued at 7 in 2022. This figure is likely to remain more or less the same next year as the census data is stable and the strength of the Assembly, barring vacancies, is also stable. The existence of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, which was dissolved in 2018 and was not part of the last presidential election, will be a factor, however minor.The decline in the Lok Sabha led to a decline of 44,100 in BJP’s votes in the electoral college, from a total of 10,86,431 in 2022. A poor performance in the assembly elections could have compromised its right to dictate terms, even with allies, as has been the case with previous governments when the dominant party, BJP or Congress, fell short of a majority.After the Lok Sabha elections, when the BJP was dependent on TDP and JD(U) to cross the 272-mark for majority, the opposition termed the two regional parties as its “crutches” for survival and predicted that the government would soon fall, claiming that the results would prove to be an inflection point in its strong run since 2014 and that the assembly elections would bring grim news.BJP has been in a good position for more than two years.

Uttar Pradesh holds key position in Presidential elections with votes of over 83,800 MLAs

All elected members of Parliament and Assemblies, excluding nominated MPs, form the electoral college. Parliament and Assemblies have equal voting shares, but while the value of each MP’s vote is the same (it was 700 in 2022), the importance of an MLA’s vote varies depending on the size (as per 1971 census) of the population that his Assembly represents.The vote of an MLA from UP at a value of 208 was almost 30 times the vote of an MLA from Sikkim, valued at 7 in 2022. This figure is likely to remain more or less the same next year as the census data is stable and the strength of the Assembly, barring vacancies, is also stable.The decline in the number of Lok Sabha seats led to a decline of 44,100 votes for the BJP in the electoral college, which stood at 10,86,431 in 2022. A poor performance in the assembly elections could have compromised his authority to dictate terms, even with allies.After the Lok Sabha elections, when the BJP was dependent on TDP and JD(U) to cross the 272-mark for majority, the opposition termed the two regional parties as “crutches” for survival and predicted that the government would soon fall, claiming that the results would prove decisive in its strong run since 2014.BJP has been in a good position for more than two years. It won massively in Haryana despite adverse conditions and the NDA’s strength in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly increased from 150 to 237 during the last presidential elections and from 125 to 202 in the 243-member Bihar Assembly. It now has 207 MLAs compared to 77 in West Bengal. Ahead of the presidential election in July next year, UP is the most important with more than 83,800 votes in the electoral college.

Sironj: “brown” for fair-skinned foreigners. “Zucchini” for restless movements. British surveyors mapped a continent from this range. From here came the numbers measuring the world’s highest mountain. mount everest It was recorded in history but the brown zucchini slipped from it. The name remained and the science faded. Today thieves measure stones here.Located on a windswept hill in Kalyanpur village near Sironj in central Madhya Pradesh, about 100 km north-east of Bhopal in Vidisha district, Brown Tori once beat like the geographical heart of undivided India. From this rocky outcrop, British surveyors determined coordinates, tracked stars and pieced together one of the most daring scientific enterprises in history: the Great Trigonometrical Survey (GTS).Today, the stones have been loosened. The walls are stained. The pendulums have disappeared. The black stone observatories are ruined under the open sky, where astronomers once mapped a continent and made calculations involving measuring the height of Mount Everest. History lives on in fragments here.Records of the Survey of India show that the then Surveyor General, Colonel George Everest, adopted the trigonometric station of Kalyanpur in 1840 as the “core of calculations” for the GTS – a massive 19th-century project that mapped areas spanning present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Sri Lanka with mathematical precision that was unprecedented for its era.Long before satellites and GPS, surveyors made series of triangulations in forests, deserts, and mountains. A measured baseline, paired with angles and trigonometry, unlocks distances of thousands of kilometers. Started by William Lambton in the early 1800s and later expanded by Everest, Andrew Scott Waugh and James Walker, GTS transformed cartography and geodesy. Mathematician Radhanath Sikdar later calculated the height of Mount Everest in the 1850s using survey data generated through this massive scientific grid.The brown zucchini sat near its intellectual center of gravity.Historical accounts describe that about 700 workers camped on the hill for about two years with four elephants, 42 camels and 30 horses, while the observatory structures were built of black stones. The yellow color and fiery activity of British officers inspired the name brown zucchini.“This is our hidden hero, who has been completely ignored,” said Shaoub Ghazi, a local history buff who has been promoting the site through social media. He said Everest chose Kalyanpur because it was at a strategic midpoint between Great Arc measurements and Prime Meridian calculations. “It was placed in exactly the right place to split the longitudinal difference between the Great Arc and the Prime Meridian,” he said.

The structure still gives hints of the scientific choreography that was once performed here. The roofless black stone circle has recesses in the north-south walls designed for astronomical observations. The open sky served as the roof of the laboratory. Gas lanterns pointed to telescopes mounted on poles in the nearby village of Surantal for triangulation.Two pendulum-driven structures were later added nearby. Now only hollow shells remain.The pages of the 1917 volume Triangulation in India and Adjacent Countries place Bhuri Tori within the broader geodetic framework underpinning surveys throughout South Asia. Coordinates determined from this mountain range rippled outward through maps, military charts, and administrative boundaries for decades.Now, entropy has taken over. Fragments of masonry have gone missing. The weather gnaws away at the exposed stone. Heritage watchers say vandalism and theft have eroded the site faster than officials admit.Sironj is located at a distance of about two hours by road from Bhopal. Yet the brown gourd is largely absent from tourism circuits and conservation plans. Sironj chief municipal officer Ramprakash said the matter was outside the urban body’s jurisdiction as the site fell under gram panchayat limits.The silence at the hilltop weighs more heavily than the bureaucracy below. When asked about the conservation efforts, Vidisha Collector Anshul Gupta said, “Since it is an archaeological matter, only the agencies concerned can answer it.” As India moves deeper into the age of satellites and remote sensing, the brown zucchini poses a stubborn question: Can a nation preserve the landmarks that first taught it to measure itself?