Month: July 2026

How will U.S. visa policy changes affect students, media professionals, and exchange visitors | Explained

July 18, 2026 admin

The story so far: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Thursday (July 16, 2026) issued an order announcing amended immigration rules that blamed the so-called “Duration of Status loophole”, which allegedly allowed “foreign students, exchange visitors and media representatives to remain in the U.S. indefinitely without routine government oversight”. The order will hit the knowledge sector,…

World

Surprise inspections held at eateries in Kochi

July 18, 2026 admin

Surprise inspections were conducted at eateries in Kochi jointly by the Health department, Food Safety department, Health wing of the Kochi Corporation, and the police on Saturday (July 18, 2026) evening. The Inspections were held at hotels, street-side stalls, and roadside eateries. District Medical Officer Dr. R. Shahirsha said that inspections would continue in more…

Nation

Chennai Grand Masters | Arjun downs Niemann; Nihal holds Firouzja

July 18, 2026 admin

Dominant show: Arjun forced Niemann to resign. | Photo Credit: B. VELANKANNI RAJ Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi outwitted American Hans Niemann in the third round of the Chennai Grand Masters at The Westin Velachery on Saturday for his first win. The top-ranked Indian took his tally to two points with the victory while Frenchman Alireza Firouzja continued to top the…

Sports

Lionel Messi vs. Lamine Yamal: From a 2007 baby photo to the World Cup final, football’s perfect full-circle story

July 18, 2026 admin

Who will bathe in glory? The 20-year-old Messi and the five-month-old Yamal at a photoshoot in Barcelona in 2007. The two will now vie for football’s greatest honour. | Photo Credit: AP Some old photographs gather dust, some others gather meaning. When Lionel Messi held a five-month-old Lamine Yamal during a charity calendar shoot around…

Sports

Five booked for alleged assault on YouTuber

July 18, 2026 admin

The Kalamassery police have booked five unidentified people for allegedly assaulting controversial YouTuber Aju Alex, 44, who is known by his social media name ‘Chekuthan’. The police registered the case on a complaint filed by Mr. Alex, a native of Thiruvalla in Pathanamthitta, following an alleged incident that took place on Thursday (July 16, 2026)…

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ENG vs. IND third ODI | Rohit’s future and the series on the line

July 18, 2026 admin

FILE PHOTO: India’s Rohit Sharma walks back to the pavilion after losing his wicket in the first ODI vs England at Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham, Britain – July 14, 2026. Action Images via Reuters/Ed Sykes/File Photo | Photo Credit: ED SYKES At a time when every bilateral white-ball fixture acquires meaning only in the context…

Sports

Special team under supervision of retired judge should investigate fake drug manufacturing cases in Puducherry, demands DMK

July 18, 2026 admin

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has demanded an investigation into manufacturing of spurious drugs by a special team under the supervision of a retired judge in Puducherry. Party convenor R. Siva in a statement said several cases pertaining to manufacturing of counterfeit medicines have surfaced in Puducherry during recent times. Last year, the police unearthed a…

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Venue concerns have been addressed for World Championships: BAI

July 18, 2026 admin

The official mascot, Peacko, and the anthem for the global event were unveiled in New Delhi on Saturday. | Photo Credit: Sushil Kumar Verma In January, the India Open badminton tournament at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here was in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. From poor air quality to lack of cleanliness at the venue, multiple…

Sports

Former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda’s wife Chennamma passes away

July 18, 2026 admin

Former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda’s wife Chennamma passed away following a cardiac arrest at a private hospital in Bengaluru on Saturday (July 18, 2026). She was 89. She had been admitted to Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru on Wednesday night (July 16, 2026) with breathing complications, chest congestion and other age-related complications. “Ms. Chennamma suffered…

Nation

Project Vaani steps up inclusivity with dataset for atypical speech in three languages

July 18, 2026 admin

Project Vaani aims to capture India’s diverse languages, dialects, and speech patterns and build a corpus of 150,000 hours of natural speech data from around 1 million people across nearly 800 Indian districts. It was while working on this project that the team began exploring technology for atypical speech. | Photo Credit: Getty Images While…

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