Two more India-flagged LPG carriers, BW Tyr and BW Elm, started transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, a person aware of the development said, requesting anonymity.. Iran has maintained that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed for vessels linked to the United States and Israel,. The ships are not disclosing their destination ports through transponders for security reasons, and more details can’t be immediately revealed, the person said. Both ships loaded their cargo in the Persian Gulf more than a fortnight ago and were looking for safe passage by Iran, the person added.. If this latest pair transits the strait, six LPG carriers will have been permitted safe passage by Iran. No other details were immediately available.. Track live updates of Iran-US war here. So far, four India-flagged LPG carriers have reached the country after being cleared by Iranian authorities to transit the Hormuz waterway, a vital sea conduit through which a fifth of the world’s crude passes, along with gas and precious commodities.. Iran has attacked several vessels in the strait, effectively shutting the channel critical for global maritime trade, in retaliation for the US and Israel’s strikes.. Also read: Iran’s message to Gulf neighbours it is bombing: ‘If you want security…’. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian twice since the hostilities began, calling for de-escalation and dialogue. On Tuesday, he called for the crucial strait to “remain open for the world” for the passage of essential commodities and energy.. India imports nearly 60% of the cooking gas, most of it from the Persian Gulf countries. It has ramped up production of liquefied petroleum gas by nearly 50% to tide over energy shortages due to the West Asian war, a petroleum ministry official said, briefing reporters this week. 

 The government on Friday introduced in the Lok Sabha the second edition of the Jan Vishwas bill seeking to amend certain provisions to decriminalise a host of minor offences to promote ease of doing business.. The government introduced the second edition of the Jan Vishwas bill seeking to amend certain provisions to decriminalise a host of minor offences to promote ease of doing business. (ANI). The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026, which was introduced by minister of state for commerce and industry Jitin Prasada, proposes to amend 79 central acts administered by 23 ministries.. A total of 784 provisions are being proposed to be amended, out of which 717 provisions are being decriminalised to foster ease of doing business, and 67 provisions are proposed to be changed to facilitate ease of living.. Also Read: ₹1,000 fine for dog owner if pet found without leash on street under proposed DMC Act revision. The bill proposes to remove imprisonment in 57 provisions and fines in 158 provisions. Also, imprisonment is proposed to be reduced in 17 provisions, and imprisonment and fine are proposed to be converted to a penalty in 113 provisions.. 1. The government has proposed amending the Motor Vehicles Act to introduce a 30-day grace period after a driving licence expires, during which it will still be considered valid.. 2. Under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the proposed amendment reduces the maximum jail term for tampering with seized items (such as food or vehicles) from six months to three months.. 3. The 153-year-old Cattle Trespass Act is set for a major overhaul, with key offences being decriminalised, jail terms replaced by monetary penalties, and collected fines directed towards animal welfare.. 4. Amendments to the Electricity Act propose removing imprisonment for non-compliance with official orders, while increasing penalties up to ₹10 lakh. The bill also removes provisions related to penalties for extinguishing public lamps and simplifies existing penal clauses.. 5. The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) Act, 1994, will see a restructuring of property tax into two components—building tax and vacant land tax, replacing the existing framework under Section 61.. 6. Under the Slum Areas (Improvement and Clearance) Act, 1956, offences will attract fines of up to ₹10,000 per instance instead of imprisonment. Continued violations will incur an additional 1,000 per day, capped at ₹1 lakh.. 7. In relief to homebuyers, the amendment removes the provision of up to one-year imprisonment for allottees failing to comply with Real Estate Appellate Tribunal orders. Instead, a penalty of up to 10% of the property cost may be imposed.. 8. For unauthorised occupation of government premises, penalties will be significantly increased. Offenders may have to pay up to 40 times the licence fee in the first month, with a 10% monthly increase thereafter. Illegal occupation of public non-residential land may also attract up to six mo 

 The Delhi high court has protected the personality rights of Gautam Gambhir, head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team, restraining entities from using his persona without his consent.. Gautam Gambhir, the head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team. (X). A bench of Justice Jyoti Singh in a March 25 order, released on Saturday, observed that Gambhir is among India’s most decorated cricketers, and that unauthorised content and merchandise deriving commercial value from his considerable goodwill and reputation amounts to a violation of his personality and publicity rights.. The court directed the entities to take down the infringing content within 36 hours. “…[Gambhir] has represented India in 242 international matches across Tests, ODIs, and T20Is and is most remembered for his match-winning innings in the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 Final and 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup Final…”. Justice Singh said after retirement, Gambhir transitioned into a different role of mentorship and coaching and was appointed head coach in July 2024. “…under his stewardship, India won the ICC Champions Trophy, 2025, Asia Cup, 2025, and ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, 2026,” the court said.. Gambhir sought protection of personality rights, citing a coordinated campaign involving digital impersonation, AI-generated deepfakes, and unauthorised commercial exploitation of his persona. He said there has been a sharp rise in fabricated digital content relating to him across platforms such as Instagram, X, YouTube, and Facebook since 2025.. Gambhir said multiple accounts used AI tools, including face-swapping and voice-cloning technologies, to create realistic videos falsely portraying him as making statements he never made. He referred to a fabricated “resignation announcement” that reportedly garnered over 2.9 million views. Gambhir said e-commerce platforms were facilitating the sale of posters and merchandise bearing his name and likeness without authorisation. 

 Ahead of the Puducherry Legislative Assembly elections, former Congress leader AV Subramanian on Friday resigned from all Congress party positions.. File photo of Congress leader AV Subramanian (ANI). In a letter addressed to V Vaithilingam, President of the Puducherry Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC), Subramanian cited “private reasons and unavoidable circumstances” as reasons for the decision.. His decision comes after Puducherry Congress president V Vaithilingam released the party’s list of 16 candidates for the upcoming elections earlier in the day.. According to the list, DPR Selvam will contest from Mannadipattu, while P Karthikeyan has been fielded from Oosudu. Other prominent candidates include N Raja Kumar from Indiranagar, V Vaithilingam from Thattanchavady, PK Devadas from Kamarajnagar, and M Vaidyanathan from Lawspet. G Rajendran will contest from Muthialpet, J Vijayalakshmi from Ariyankuppam, and RKR Anandaraman from Manavely.. The party has also fielded M Kandasamy from Embalam, G Anparasan from Nettapakkam, Dinesh Kumar from Nedungadu, R Kamalakannan from Thirunallar, and AM Ranjith from Karaikal North. In Mahe, Ramesh Parampath has been named as the candidate, while Kollapalli Srinivas Ashok will contest from Yanam.. The announcement follows a seat-sharing agreement finalised earlier this week between the Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), under which Congress will contest 16 of the 30 seats, while the DMK will contest the remaining 14 constituencies.. “We will share seats among the alliance parties in the 14 seats allotted to DMK,” the party’s Puducherry election in-charge Jagadrakshagan said.. Congress and DMK are also alliance partners in Tamil Nadu, where the Chief Minister MK Stalin-led party allotted the Congress 28 of 234 seats for the 2026 Assembly elections.. The Union Territory of Puducherry is all set to hold the 2026 Assembly Election on April 9 in a single phase, with counting of votes scheduled to take place on May 4, the ECI announced. 

 At least five people were killed and around 15 others critically injured after a tourist bus overturned on National Highway 57 in Odisha’s Nayagarh district late Friday night, police said.. The accident occurred around 1 am near Takera Ghat under Daspalla police limits, a stretch known for sharp curves. (Representative photo/shutterstock). The accident occurred around 1 am near Takera Ghat under Daspalla police limits, a stretch known for sharp curves.. Police identified the deceased as Hari Patra, Laxmi Patra, Suprabha Sahu, Sumati Sahu, and driver Praveen Sahu.. According to preliminary reports, the bus, carrying nearly 60 pilgrims from Berhampur, was headed for tourist spots in western Odisha when it lost control near Takera Ghat while negotiating a bend.. Police said the vehicle rammed into a roadside rock before turning turtle, leaving the front portion completely mangled. Locals, along with police and fire service personnel, launched a rescue operation soon after the incident.. The injured were first taken to nearby health facilities and later shifted to the Nayagarh District Headquarters Hospital. Medical officials said at least 15 of the injured are in critical condition, while others suffered minor to moderate injuries.. Eyewitnesses said the bus was traveling at a high speed and failed to slow down at the curve. “Several passengers were flung out of the vehicle on impact, while others remained trapped inside the wreckage,” one of them said.. Police said they are examining factors such as possible overspeeding, driver fatigue, road conditions, and any mechanical issues with the bus.