Satwiksairaj and Chirag, right, in action against Malaysia’s Kang Khai Xing and Aaron Tai during their men’s doubles round of 32 match on day two of the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham, England, Wednesday March 4, 2026.
| Photo Credit: AP

Medal winning athletes at the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships in Oregon, USA, — Basant Kumar Meghwal, Ashish Yadav and Shahnavaz Khan — at a press conference in New Delhi, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.
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New Delhi:

A stampede occurred at New Delhi Railway Station, resulting in the loss of 15 lives on Saturday. The incident happened around 10 pm when thousands of devotees were heading to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh 2025 festival, causing severe overcrowding at the station.

An eyewitness, an Indian Air Force (IAF) sergeant on Sunday recounted that despite announcements and efforts to convince people to avoid gathering in large numbers, the crowd remained unmanageable. He said the administration attempted to control the crowd, but people didn’t listen.

Speaking to the news agency ANI, Ajit said, “We have a tri-service office at the railway station. When I was returning after my duty, I couldn’t go as there was a huge crowd… I tried to convince people and also made announcements appealing to people to avoid gathering on the platform in large numbers. The administration was working hard to prevent any mishap, but no one was listening… I also helped the injured people with the help of one of my friends.”

Another eyewitness recounted the horror, saying that the crowd was beyond the limit.

“The crowd was beyond the limit, people were gathered at the (foot over) bridge… Such a huge crowd wasn’t expected. I have never seen such a massive crowd at the railway station, even during the festivals. People from the administration and even NDRF personnel were there, but when the crowd exceeded the limit, it wasn’t possible to control them,” he said.

One of the victim’s brothers at the LNJP hospital, who lost his sister in the stampede, said, “We were 12 people going to Maha Kumbh. We hadn’t even reached the platform but were at the stairs… My family, including my sister, were stuck in the crowd. We found her after half an hour, and by the time she was dead.”

Another eyewitness described the chaos, stating that the crowd came from both sides after an announcement about a train platform change, leading to the stampede.

“There was no one to control the crowd… It was announced that the train coming on platform number 12 would come on platform number 16. So the crowd came from both sides and a stampede occurred…some people were taken to the hospital…,” he said.

Delays in train departures and the sale of around 1,500 general tickets exacerbated the situation and contributed to the overwhelming crowd.

Among the affected passengers, Pappu, a resident of Bihar’s Patna, shared his grief, saying, “My mother died in the stampede. We were on our way home.”

NDRF Commandant Daulat Ram Chaudhary confirmed that the situation was now under control. “…The situation is under control now. The injured have been evacuated…We received information about a stampede at platform no. 14 at the station… We are carrying out the rescue operations…”

DCP Railway KPS Malhotra stated that while the authorities had anticipated a large crowd, the incident unfolded within moments.

“We expected the crowd, but it all happened in a fraction of time, and hence this situation occurred. The fact-finding will be done by the Railways… After inquiry, we will get to know the reason behind the incident,” he told ANI.

Meanwhile, the Railway Board, on Sunday, informed that a two-member high-level committee had been formed to investigate the matter and determine the cause of the stampede at New Delhi railway station.

“A two-member high-level committee has been formed to investigate the matter… The situation is under control, and the passengers have been sent by special train… Train movement at the railway station is normal now,” Dilip Kumar, Executive Director of Information & Publicity (ED/IP), Railway Board.

According to Mr Kumar, the station was experiencing an unusually high volume of passengers, prompting the railways to operate four additional special trains to manage the crowd.

To regain control of the situation, entry to the railway station was temporarily blocked.

“The number of passengers was relatively very high today at the New Delhi railway station, and so we ran four more special trains. We received information that a few people fainted – they have been admitted to a local hospital. We blocked entry to the railway station for a while, but the situation is under control now,” added Mr Kumar.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Railway, KPS Malhotra, the incident occurred when a large number of passengers gathered on platform no. 14, where the Prayagraj Express was stationed. Additionally, delays in the departures of Swatantrata Senani Express and Bhubaneshwar Rajdhani led to further congestion at platforms 12, 13, and 14.

In the era of artificial intelligence-generated photos, a picture of India Gate’s Kartavya Path that shows visitors’ gutkha spits “painted” on it is becoming viral on social media. A post on the microblogging platform X (formerly known as Twitter) showcases several images where paan and gutkha stains are visibly marked on the red granite of Kartavya Path, previously known as Rajpath.

The caption of the post reads, “Kartavya Path, New Delhi,” and it has garnered over 350,000 views and more than 7,000 likes. The post has sparked significant discussion among social media users, with many emphasising the need to improve the understanding and practice of good civic sense among Indians.

Kartavya Path, New Delhi https://t.co/EWSAyo5Uec pic.twitter.com/kaHVURJhqE

— Kirat (@811GK) November 19, 2024

“We as citizens always blame the government for everything, but we don’t follow basic civic behaviour and expect the government to do everything. First we should learn some basic public behaviour, and then we can complain about the government,” commented a user.

“Isn’t this a high time to bring a bill to punish the people littering in public places and also hold accountable the departments responsible for public place cleanliness?” wrote another user.

“Heavy fine/manual labour, whichever is possible, is the only way forward to make these people understand civic sense,” commented a third user.

The post has gone viral and continues to gain increasing traction among users. However, authorities have yet to respond to it.

New Delhi:

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday arrested an Assistant Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for accepting bribes of Rs 20 lakh in the national capital.

The arrested ED official has been identified as Sandeep Singh Yadav. He was accepting a bribe from a jeweller in lieu of giving relief to the jeweller’s son in the case registered in ED.

A senior CBI official confirmed that the ED official has been arrested from the Lajpat Nagar area in Delhi.

CBI received a complaint and acting on the same, a trap was laid and the ED official was caught red-handed while accepting the bribe.

CBI is in the process of getting an FIR registered in the case, said officials.

More updates on the matter are awaited.

Notably, in Aug 2023, the CBI arrested an Assistant Director of ED along with six other officials for accepting bribes of Rs 5 crore to save Delhi businessman Aman Dhall in the Delhi liquor scam case.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Venues for different ceremonial functions, Rashtrapati Bhavan’s iconic ‘Durbar Hall’ and ‘Ashok Hall’ were on Thursday renamed ‘Ganatantra Mandap’ and ‘Ashok Mandap’, respectively.

Rashtrapati Bhavan, the office and the residence of the president of India, is a symbol of the nation, and an invaluable heritage of the people.

“Continuous efforts are being made to make it more accessible to people. There has been a consistent endeavour to make the ambience of the Rashtrapati Bhavan reflective of the Indian cultural values and ethos,” a statement issued by the President’s Secretariat said.

Accordingly, President Droupadi Murmu is pleased to rename two of the important halls of Rashtrapati Bhavan — ‘Durbar Hall’ and ‘Ashok Hall’ — as ‘Ganatantra Mandap’ and ‘Ashok Mandap’, respectively, it said.

‘Durbar Hall’ is the venue of important ceremonies and celebrations such as the presentation of national awards.

“The term ‘Durbar’ refers to courts and assemblies of Indian rulers and the British. It lost relevance after India became a Republic, that is, ‘Ganatantra’. The concept of ‘Ganatantra’ is deeply rooted in Indian society since ancient times, making ‘Ganatantra Mandap’ an apt name for the venue,” the statement said.

‘Ashok Hall’ was originally a ballroom.

“The word ‘Ashok’ connotes someone who is ‘free from all sufferings’ or is ‘bereft of any sorrow’,” the statement said.

Also, ‘Ashoka’ refers to Emperor Ashok, a symbol of unity and peaceful co-existence, it said.

“The national emblem of the Republic of India is the lion capital of Ashok from Sarnath. The word also refers to the Ashok tree, which has deep significance in Indian religious traditions as well as arts and culture. Renaming ‘Ashok Hall’ as ‘Ashok Mandap’ brings uniformity in language and removes the traces of anglicisation while upholding the key values associated with the word ‘Ashok’,” it said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has notified the appointment of Lok Sabha MP Bansuri Swaraj as a member of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).

Bansuri Swaraj, daughter of the late BJP stalwart Sushma Swaraj, currently represents the New Delhi constituency in the Lok Sabha.

This appointment follows Bansuri Swaraj’s electoral debut from the New Delhi seat, succeeding Meenakshi Lekhi, who held the position for the past decade but was not included in the BJP’s candidate list for the upcoming elections.

The MHA made the declaration to appoint Bansuri Swaraj as a member of NDMC in a notification issued on July 3 evening.

A member of the NDMC plays a significant role in the governance and administration of the New Delhi municipal area. The NDMC members contribute to the formulation and implementation of policies related to urban planning, including land use, zoning regulations, and infrastructure development.

The members of the NDMC are also responsible for overseeing the provision and maintenance of essential public services such as water supply, electricity, sewage, and waste management. They ensure that these services are delivered efficiently and meet the needs of the residents.

Ensuring public health standards are met by overseeing sanitation services, managing healthcare facilities, and implementing public health campaigns are also among the key responsibilities of an NDMC member.

Supervising the management of municipal schools and welfare programs aimed at improving the quality of life for residents, including schemes for marginalized communities, as well as enforcing building codes, health regulations, and other municipal bylaws to ensure orderly development and compliance with legal standards, are other responsibilities of the NDMC members.

Participating in the budgeting process, approving expenditures, and ensuring financial discipline within the council’s operations are other key focus areas of NDMC members, along with serving as a liaison between the citizens and the council, addressing public grievances, and ensuring that the concerns of the residents are heard and addressed in council meetings.

Encouraging public participation in municipal governance through community meetings, consultations, and feedback mechanisms are other major responsibilities of an NDMC member.

By fulfilling these roles, NDMC members contribute to the overall development, maintenance, and governance of New Delhi, ensuring it remains a well-managed and vibrant urban area.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)