Hong Kong voters are casting ballots Sunday in their second legislative election since a 2021 overhaul of the system eliminated the pro-democracy opposition in the Chinese territory. The poll, coming less than two weeks after an apartment fire that killed at least 159 people, is a possible test of public sentiment about the government’s handling of the tragedy. The focus is on voter turnout, which fell to about 30% in the last election in 2021, after the overhaul dampened interest. Some analysts believe mounting public anger over government accountability in the blaze could suppress turnout further. City leader John Lee has called on citizens to vote, saying Friday it would send a signal on promoting reforms. He said he would put forth a proposal to the new legislature on how to support the victims, many who have been left homeless by the fire. The polls close at 11:30 pm. Deadly blaze stalled get-out-the-vote efforts Election campaigning was suspended after the fire and remained

Govt wants industry to make investments in facilities, and large contractors are expected be able to do this, Steve Parker, Chief Executive Officer of Boeing Defense, Space & Security said

The agency noted that the New Safe Confinement (NSC) was “severely damaged” during a February attack and has “lost its primary safety functions, including the confinement capability

The extra trains aim to ensure smooth travel and provide adequate connectivity for passengers during the busy travel period

At least 23 persons were killed in a blaze at a nightclub in North Goa following a cylinder blast late Saturday night, police said. Most of the dead were the club’s kitchen workers, and included three women, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said. There were three to four tourists among those killed, he added. Sawant, who rushed to the spot, told reporters that of the 23, three succumbed to burn injuries and the others died due to suffocation. As per initial information, the nightclub had not abided by the fire safety norms, the chief minister said. The fire broke out at Birch by Romeo Lane after midnight. The popular party venue at Arpora village, around 25 km from the state capital Panaji, opened last year, We will take action against the club management and also against the officials who allowed it to operate despite flouting safety norms, Sawant said. This is an unfortunate incident during the peak tourist season in the coastal state, Sawant said. We will conduct a detailed …

For the past two Christmases, John Juka’s family restaurant looked about the same as any business in Bethlehem: shuttered and eerily empty. But on Saturday evening, it bustled with families and was lit by strings of red lights, a hopeful change in the Palestinian city that’s been reeling since war broke out in Gaza. Christmas celebrations are slowly returning to the traditional birthplace of Jesus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. While a shaky ceasefire holds in Gaza, Palestinians hope the festivities are a step toward a more peaceful future in a region shaken by tragedy. “It’s not like it was before the war,” 30-year-old Juka said. “But it’s like life is coming back again.” Muslim-majority city thrives on Christmas Tourism and religious pilgrims have long been a prime economic engine for Bethlehem. Around 80 per cent of the Muslim-majority city’s residents live off it, according to the local government. Those earnings ripple out to communities across the West Bank, a territor

Aviation watchdog DGCA on Saturday issued a show cause notice to IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers seeking an explanation for the massive flight disruptions, according to sources. For five days in a row, IndiGo has seen significant flight disruptions with hundreds of flight cancellations and delays, causing hardships to thousands of passengers. In the notice, the regulator said the large-scale operational failures indicate significant lapses in planning, oversight and resource management, the sources said. “… as the CEO, you are responsible for ensuring effective management of the airline but you have failed in your duty to ensure timely arrangements for conduct of reliable operations and the availability of requisite facilities to the passengers,” the notice read. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has also asked Elbers to reply within 24 hours. The notice also mentioned that the primary cause of the flight disruptions is non-provisioning of adequate arrangements to cater

Former Chief Justice of India B R Gavai on Saturday said he faced criticism from his own community for stating in a judgement that the creamy layer principle should be applied to reservation for the Scheduled Castes. In Dr B R Ambedkar’s view, affirmative action was like providing a bicycle to someone who is lagging behind, he said, asking whether Ambedkar thought that such a person should never give up the bicycle. Ambedkar did not think so, he claimed. Gavai, who retired as CJI recently, was delivering a lecture on “Role of Affirmative Action in Promoting Equal Opportunity” at Mumbai University. Paying tributes to Ambedkar on his death anniversary, Gavai said the iconic leader was the architect of not only the Indian Constitution but also of the affirmative action enshrined in it. “Babasaheb, in so far affirmative action is concerned, was of view that it is like providing a cycle to those who are lagging behind….suppose somebody is at tenth km and somebody at zero, he (the …

Indian envoy on Saturday met Sri Lankan Minister of Foreign Affairs Vijitha Herath and discussed cooperation in the reconstruction and rehabilitation process in the aftermath of cyclone Ditwah that wreaked havoc in the Island nation. At least 618 people have died, and 209 are missing as of Saturday evening 8 pm, due to the catastrophic floods and landslides caused by extreme weather conditions since November 16, according to Sri Lanka’s Disaster Management Centre (DMC). India was the first country to respond to Sri Lanka’s international appeal for assistance under its Operation Sagar Bandhu. High Commissioner Santosh Jha met Vijitha Herath and discussed the ongoing Indian assistance to Sri Lanka under #OperationSagarBandhu High Commission of India in Colombo posted on social media on Friday. He also discussed avenues of cooperation during the reconstruction and rehabilitation phases in the aftermath of #CycloneDitwah, it added. Jha also briefed Sri Lankan corporate leaders about N

Five days after the IndiGo flight disruptions that left thousands of passengers stranded at airports pan-India, Tata Group-owned Air India on Saturday said it has taken several measures to “help” fliers, including introducing a special waiver on change or cancellation fees on eligible domestic bookings. It also said Air India, along with its subsidiary Air India Express, has “proactively” capped economy airfares on non-stop domestic flights from December 4 to prevent the usual demand-supply dynamics applied by automated revenue management systems. It also said both carriers are also in the process of ensuring compliance with the latest directive on airfare caps announced by the Civil Aviation Ministry on Saturday. To provide greater flexibility, Air India and Air India Express have introduced a special waiver on change or cancellation fees on eligible domestic bookings, the airline said. With this, customers who booked their flights with either carrier until December 4 for travel .

Authorities will take appropriate action in the matter of IndiGo flight disruptions, depending on the inquiry committee findings, a senior government official said on Saturday. As flight disruptions continued for the fifth straight day, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu, along with senior civil aviation ministry officials, held a “serious meeting” with IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers to review the situation and address the issues, the official said. The meeting, held in the national capital on Saturday, was attended by Civil Aviation Secretary Samir Kumar Sinha, and DGCA chief Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, among others. The official told PTI that the immediate priority is to restore normalcy in flight operations and the airline has been asked to ensure prompt refund of tickets. Against the backdrop of a large number of flights cancelled and delayed at various airports, causing hardships to thousands of passengers, aviation regulator DGCA has set up a four-member inquiry panel to ascertain the

Arsenal’s Premier League title challenge was hit on Saturday after Emiliano Buendia struck in stoppage-time to seal a 2-1 win for Aston Villa. Villa cut the gap to first-place Arsenal to three points and gave Manchester City the chance to close in on Mikel Arteta’s team. Buendia fired into the roof of the net in the fifth minute of added time at Villa Park to leave the visitors stunned. In the manner that happened at the end, obviously, (it is) really difficult to take, Arteta told TNT Sports. It was the third time in succession that Arsenal has dropped points away from home after recent draws with Sunderland and Chelsea. Those results have opened the door to rivals like City and Villa to put pressure on at the top. Villa provisionally moved up to second in the standings after a ninth win from its last 10 games. That was after a dire start to the campaign when Unai Emery’s team was winless after five games. At the minute we’re on a great run, said Matty Cash, who put Villa ahead

Normalcy is restored at airports across the country and all necessary facilities are being provided to passengers, the Civil Aviation Ministry said on Saturday. Amid massive disruptions in flight operations due to crew shortage, IndiGo cancelled hundreds of flights, including 1,600 on Friday and over 800 on Saturday, since the crisis started earlier this week, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at airports across the country. IndiGo operates 2,300 flights across the country in a day. “Normalcy is restored at airports across the country and all necessary facilities are provided to passengers. Check-in and check-out are happening smoothly,” the ministry said in a statement. Meanwhile, Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) said it has made arrangements to accommodate 25 grounded IndiGo aircraft at its facility. In a statement, MIAL further said it has implemented a range of initiatives to support passengers stranded at the terminal due to flight cancellations and operational

Max Verstappen took pole position for the title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix ahead of Formula 1 title rivals Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri on Saturday. The thrilling three-way battle will be decided on Sunday at the Yas Marina Circuit. The McLaren driver Norris is 12 points ahead of Red Bull’s Verstappen and 16 ahead of McLaren teammate Piastri. Verstappen is aiming for his fifth straight F1 title Norris and Piastri are chasing their first. All three drivers have won seven races. Pole position is crucial in Abu Dhabi, with every driver winning from pole since 2015. Verstappen had already set the fastest lap on his first go but went even quicker on his second attempt and set a lap time of 1 minute, 22.207 seconds, making him .201 faster than Norris and .230 quicker than Piastri. That was insane, Verstappen said over team radio after his eighth pole of the season and 48th overall. Yes. Lovely. Verstappen kissed his girlfriend, Kelly Piquet, and shook hands with McLaren CEO Zak .

Chief Justice John Roberts has led the Supreme Court’s conservative majority on a steady march of increasing the power of the presidency, starting well before Donald Trump’s time in the White House. The justices could take the next step in a case being argued Monday that calls for a unanimous 90-year-old decision limiting executive authority to be overturned. The court’s conservatives, liberal Justice Elena Kagan noted in September, seem to be raring to take that action. They already have allowed Trump, in the opening months of the Republican’s second term, to fire almost everyone he has wanted, despite the court’s 1935 decision in Humphrey’s Executor that prohibits the president from removing the heads of independent agencies without cause. The officials include Rebecca Slaughter, whose firing from the Federal Trade Commission is at issue in the current case, as well as officials from the National Labor Relations Board, the Merit Systems Protection Board and the Consumer Product .

According to airport data accessed on Saturday, several major hubs reported significant cancellations by IndiGo. Hyderabad Airport recorded 69 planned cancellations

Hong Kong’s national security police arrested a man on Saturday in the first publicly confirmed arrest relating to criticism of authorities over a high-rise apartment blaze that killed at least 159 people. Police said he had been accused of posting information with seditious intention on social media. That mainly included (materials intending to) incite hatred among (others) toward the Hong Kong government and the central government, Steve Li, chief superintendent of the police National Security Department, told reporters. For example, he pointed to the Hong Kong and the central governments as instigators of exploiting the tragedy to cause chaos and turmoil, he said. That’s something totally impossible. Local media reported other arrests earlier but authorities have not confirmed them. The fire, which broke out November 26 at the Wang Fuk Court housing complex, has prompted a debate about government accountability. Authorities have warned against attempts to use the fire to try t

Domestic carrier IndiGo on Saturday said it operated only 700 flights on Friday against its usual number of 2,300, suggesting 1,600 cancellations during the day. The airline had said it had cancelled “over 1,000 flights” on Friday, when IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, after maintaining a stoic silence on the crisis for three days, finally acknowledged that it was cancelling flights in big numbers. Besides cancelling a record number of flights in a day by any Indian carrier in the country’s aviation history, IndiGo’s on-time performance hit rock bottom at 3.7 per cent on Friday, triggered by disruption in operations amid the transition to the second phase of new flight duty and rest period norms for pilots, as per the Civil Aviation Ministry website. The second phase of these norms, which came into force from November 1 and consist of change in night definition to 12am-6pm from 12 am-5 pm earlier, and restricting number of night landings to two from six earlier, applies to all domestic …

With large scale flight cancellations by Indigo airlines leaving passengers stranded, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday urged the Centre to act immediately and bring the situation under control. He called the IndiGo fiasco a the direct result of the govt’s monopoly model. Taking to social media platform ‘X’, Shivakumar said India is witnessing the worst aviation meltdown in its history. “Thousands of flights cancelled – leaving our people stranded everywhere”. “The IndiGo fiasco is the direct result of the govt’s monopoly model. And as always, it is ordinary Indians who are paying the price,” he said. Shivakumar said that the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, which is India’s 3rd busiest airport with nearly 40 million travellers a year, is in complete chaos. “This is hurting families, businesses and our national reputation. I urge the Union Government to act immediately and bring this situation under control. Our people deserve better,” he …

The Supreme Court has directed all the states and Union territories to establish a robust, independent and accessible grievance redressal mechanism specifically designed for prisoners with disabilities. The apex court said the mechanism shall ensure prompt registration, effective monitoring and timely resolution of complaints so as to safeguard the inmates from “systemic neglect, abuse and discriminatory practices”. A bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said appropriate facilities be created to ensure that prisoners with disabilities have meaningful access to inclusive education within the jail system. “No inmate shall be deprived of the opportunity to pursue educational programmes solely on account of disability, and suitable adjustments shall be made to facilitate their effective participation,” the bench said in its December 2 order. The bench passed the order on a petition seeking exhaustive directions for providing appropriate legal framework and facilities to pers

Chinese forces fired three flares from an island toward a Philippine plane undertaking a routine patrol Saturday in the disputed South China Sea, but the incident did not cause any problem and the aircraft proceeded with its surveillance mission, the Philippine coast guard said. It was not immediately clear how far the flares that Filipino officials said were fired from the Chinese-occupied Subi Reef were from the Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft of the Philippine fisheries bureau. Chinese officials did not immediately comment on the incident, Beijing has claimed virtually the entire South China Sea, a key global trade route, and has vowed to staunchly defend its sovereignty. Chinese forces has fired flares from its occupied islands and from its aircraft as a warning for foreign planes to move away from what it calls its airspace in the disputed waters. The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources aircraft recorded video footage of three flares fired from the reef toward the aircraft

Kohli admitted that the Ranchi hundred held deeper meaning, especially since he had not played competitive cricket since the Australia tour.

Delhi’s air pollution nearly doubled in November, pushing the national capital to the fourth spot among the most polluted cities in the country, according to a report. A report released by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) on Saturday highlighted that while the impact of stubble burning on Delhi’s air quality was significantly lower compared to last year, pollution levels in the city remained severe. Delhi ranked as the fourth most polluted city in the country in November, recording a monthly average PM2.5 level of 215 micrograms per cubic metre — nearly double its October average of 107 micrograms per cubic metre. The national capital witnessed 23 ‘very poor’ days, six ‘severe’ days and one ‘poor’ day during the month. Despite the deteriorating air quality, the contribution of stubble burning averaged only 7 per cent in November, compared to 20 per cent last year. Peak stubble-burning contribution touched 22 per cent, significantly lower than the 38 per cent

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Saturday said Telangana ranks first in the country in paddy production and in maintaining law and order, including curbing the drug menace. Addressing a public meeting at Devarakonda in Nalgonda district as part of the Congress government’s second-anniversary celebrations, he said no other state in the country, including BJP-ruled states, distributes fine-quality rice under the Public Distribution System (PDS). “Some say it is available in other states. I challenge those who make such comments. Whether it is Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthanany state under Narendra Modi ji’s ruleonly in Telangana are we giving fine rice. The poor are not getting fine rice even in Gujarat,” he said. He said the government aims to make Telangana a national role model and develop a Telangana model’ of growth. In a sharp attack on the opposition BRS, he dismissed party president K Chandrasekhar Rao’s remarks that the party would see “good days” …

As much as 87 per cent of respondents of a survey conducted on IndiGo passengers said they wanted service deficiency of the airline to be put under Class Action provision of the CP Act 2019, a statement said on Saturday. A class action provision is a legal mechanism that allows a group of people with a common grievance to collectively sue a company for acts like mismanagement or fraud. The survey was conducted by LocalCircles in the wake of domestic carrier IndiGo cancelling hundreds of flights in the last four days, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at various airports in the country, as airfares hit the skies. There have been class-action (or proposed class-action) lawsuits — mostly outside India — against airlines over refund, cancellation, compensation and related issues, it said. Beyond cancellations and delays, many IndiGo fliers raised serious concerns about refund integrity (deductions and delays), failed “zero-cancellation/insurance” promises, shifting itinerarie

A thick blanket of pollution hung over the capital on Saturday as Delhi’s air quality stayed locked in the ‘very poor’ category, with the 24-hour average AQI settling at 330. Among the 40 monitoring stations, 31 stations remained in the ‘very poor’ levels in the evening, with Nehru Nagar reporting the highest AQI at 369, according to CPCB’s Sameer App. Earlier, Delhi woke to another choking morning with the AQI at 335 at 9 am. A total of 36 stations were in the ‘very poor’ category, with Mundka recording the worst levels at 387. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), an AQI between 0 and 50 is ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’ and 401 to 500 ‘severe’. According to the Decision Support System for Delhi’s air quality management, transport within the city remained the highest local contributor at 14.8 per cent, followed by industries in Delhi and surrounding areas at 7.3 per cent, residential sources at

Congress’ deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Deepender Hooda and A Bimol Akoijam are likely to be among the party’s speakers during the debate on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram in Lok Sabha on Monday, party sources said. The party is also likely to field Praniti Shinde, Prashant Padole, Chamala Reddy and Jyotsana Mahant during the debate, they said on Saturday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will initiate the debate on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram in the Lok Sabha on December 8 while Home Minister Amit Shah will begin the discussion in the Rajya Sabha on December 9. According to sources, Prime Minister Modi will initiate the debate on the national song at noon in the Lower House while Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and several other ministers will also participate in the day-long debate. The last speaker in the Lok Sabha debate will be someone from the ruling BJP, they said. A meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Modi on October

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Saturday said his government has been able to restore public life to normalcy within a very short period after Cyclone Ditwah devastated the island nation and took over 600 lives. Dissanayake’s claim came a day after he announced a massive relief package to all those affected by Cyclone Ditwah and requested the IMF for an additional USD 200 million to meet excess expenditure to cope up with the disaster. The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Colombo office on Saturday said the request would be considered at the global lender’s executive board on December 15. The island nation has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse following Cyclone Ditwah, which has also acutely strained the country’s disaster-response capacity. As many as 611 people had died and over 200 remained missing even as search operations for those buried under landslides continued a week after the cyclone struck the …

Mitchell Starc has been menacing England with the ball in this Ashes series. Now he’s doing damage with the bat, too. At stumps on Day 3 of the second test, England was teetering on 134-6 in its second innings and still needed to score 43 runs to make Australia bat again. Starc was voted player of the match for his 10-wicket haul in Australia’s thumping eight-wicket win in the series opener at Perth last month. Now he’s in line for another award in the day-night test in Brisbane. After taking six wickets in England’s first innings of 334 on Days 1 and 2, Starc scored an innings-high 77 as Australia responded with 511 on Saturday afternoon and then took two wickets in the night session. England’s hopes now rest on skipper Ben Stokes, who will resume Sunday on 4. Starc’s day outThe 35-year-old Starc made England’s bowlers toil all afternoon in sunny, subtropical conditions at the Gabba as he led Australia to a 177-run first-innings lead. With the lights on and the pink ball startin

Union Minister of Science and Technology Jitendra Singh on Saturday said India’s scientific progress must move beyond laboratories and focus on meaningful engagement with citizens, students and youth. Addressing a gathering at the four-day India International Science Festival (IISF) here, he said the festival was conceived not as a routine academic gathering but as an open, public-facing platform that brings science closer to people. The festival encourages direct interaction between scientists and beneficiaries of scientific research, he said, emphasising the government’s push for greater coordination among science ministries and departments. Reiterating that the IISF is built on the three C’s – Celebration, Communication and Career – the minister said the event celebrates India’s scientific achievements, communicates scientific knowledge beyond academic spaces and helps young participants explore careers in research, startups and industry. He said students, researchers and …