By Alasdair Pal. Australia PM Albanese to address nation over Iran crisis. SYDNEY, – Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will deliver a rare address to the nation on Wednesday about the war in the Middle East, with media reporting he will encourage Australians to conserve fuel.. The address will be broadcast simultaneously across major television and radio networks at 7 p.m. . Similar addresses were made by previous prime ministers during the COVID pandemic and the 2008 global financial crisis.. “Australian prime ministers traditionally address the nation in times of great challenge,” Housing Minister Clare O’Neil said in an interview with Sky News on Wednesday when asked about the address.. “The prime minister will be talking about the status of what’s going on in Iran and the plans that the government has to protect the Australian community from the worst.”. A spokesperson for Albanese declined to comment on the contents of the address.. The month-long conflict in the Middle East has spread across the region, killing thousands, disrupting energy supplies and threatening to send the global economy into a tailspin.. Albanese said on Monday the government would halve the excise on petrol and diesel and remove the heavy-road-user charge for three months to help households cope with a surge in costs driven by the war, at a cost to the government of around A$2.55 billion .. Australia has its highest fuel stocks in 15 years, but they are still far below International Energy Agency recommendations of 90 days.. Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Wednesday small businesses affected by the war would be given easier access to credit.. “We know that the fallout is affecting everyone, but we believe that by working together, if everybody does their bit, we can get through this difficult period,” Chalmers told reporters.. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. 

 Amid ongoing global energy supply disruptions, state-run oil marketing companies on Wednesday raised prices of commercial LPG and aviation turbine fuel (ATF), marking a significant increase across key fuel segments.. This is the second time this month that price of commercial LPG cylinders has been hiked. (PTI). The price of a 19kg commercial LPG cylinder was hiked by ₹195.5, taking the rate in Delhi from ₹1,883 on March 7 to ₹2,078.50 on Wednesday, a 10.4% increase. Commercial LPG is widely used by hotels, hostels and restaurants, and this is the second price hike in less than a month.. Earlier, on March 7, the price of 19kg commercial LPG cylinders was raised by ₹114.50 to ₹1,883 per cylinder in Delhi. On the same day, domestic cooking gas (14.2kg cylinder) prices were also increased by ₹60 across the country, pushing the retail price in Delhi to ₹913 — the highest since August 2023.. Aviation turbine fuel prices witnessed an even sharper surge. ATF for domestic airlines rose from ₹96,638.14 per kilolitre on March 1 to ₹207,341.22 per kilolitre in Delhi, registering a 114.55% increase.. For international airlines, ATF prices jumped from $816.91 per kilolitre on March 1 in Delhi to $1,690.81 per kilolitre from April 1, marking a 107% rise.. The retail LPG and ATF market in India is dominated by three state-run oil marketing companies — Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited. 

 IndiGo on Tuesday named William Walsh, a former British Airways chief executive and the current head of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), as its chief executive officer — closing a leadership gap that opened three weeks ago when Pieter Elbers resigned in the aftermath of the worst operational crisis in the airline’s history late last year.. William Walsh began as a pilot, rose to lead Ireland’s Aer Lingus, then served as chief executive of British Airways from 2005 to 2011. (PTI). Walsh, who is expected to join no later than August 3 after his IATA tenure concludes on July 31, brings to IndiGo a career that spans the cockpit and the boardroom. He began as a pilot, rose to lead Ireland’s Aer Lingus, then served as chief executive of British Airways from 2005 to 2011, before spending nearly a decade as CEO of International Airlines Group — the holding company that owns British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling — making him one of the architects of modern European aviation consolidation. His appointment is subject to regulatory approvals.. ALSO READ | IndiGo ‘privileged’ to be led by new CEO Willie Walsh, co-founder Rahul Bhatia says. “I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead IndiGo,” Walsh said in a statement by the airline. “What stands out most to me are its people, their passion, professionalism and commitment.”. The appointment arrives at a fraught moment for India’s largest airline. In December 2025, IndiGo cancelled at least 5,500 flights over roughly a week after it failed to implement revised flight duty time limitation norms — rules governing mandatory rest periods for pilots and crew — despite having had nearly two years to prepare. The disruption stranded hundreds of thousands of passengers during peak travel season and triggered a regulatory response of unusual severity. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation imposed a record penalty of more than ₹22 crore, ordered a 10% reduction in IndiGo’s winter schedule, and directed the airline to furnish a ₹50 crore bank guarantee tied to phased operational reforms. Show-cause notices were issued to Elbers personally, as well as to the chief operating officer. A senior vice president was removed from his position on the regulator’s orders.. ALSO READ | Vir Vikram Yadav appointed new DGCA chief, Faiz Ahmed Kidwai moves to DoPT. Elbers resigned on March 10 — 18 months before his contract was due to expire in September 2027 — citing personal reasons in his letter to the board. But a person familiar with the matter told HT the resignation was linked to findings from the airline’s own internal investigation, which had also sought the help of independent experts. “The resignation seems to be a fallout of the airline’s investigations,” the person said, declining to be named.. Rahul Bhatia, IndiGo’s co-founder and managing director, stepped in as interim CEO, and on Tuesday said: “As we enter a new phase of transformat 

 Jagdalpur: Monday evening. Union home minister Amit Shah is speaking in the Lok Sabha, detailing his government’s success in ridding India of left wing extremism or Naxalism. He speaks for almost 85 minutes, explaining how the state won.. (From left) Bhaskar Mandvi, (in purple) Ranita, Ratan Elam, Rupesh and Pawan Anand Reddy. (Photo/Prawesh Lama). At an undisclosed location in Bastar district’s Jagdalpur town, five top Naxal leaders who surrendered in late 2025, are listening to Shah. For decades, they fought the state, but admit that eventually, the state prevailed.. On Tuesday, the five meet with Hindustan Times at a park on the outskirts of Jagdalpur . They speak candidly about the decline of the Communist Party of India (Maoist), the steady strengthening of intelligence networks and security forces, the leadership vacuum at the top of the insurgent group, their mistakes, curiosity over their former chief Ganpati, who is still at large, and their ultimate loss of relevance.. The tipping point in the state’s fight, according to one, came in 2009. “Until 2009, the government and intelligence agencies knew very little about our party and its military structure. They had no real insight. The Maoists were at full strength,” says Pawan Anand Reddy alias Chaitu (62), a state committee member of the proscribed party.. Then, things changed.. “It was sometime after 2009-10 that the government began systematically gathering information about us — our hierarchy, governance model, and internal functioning. The first batches of surrendered cadres who joined the District Reserve Guards (DRG) revealed everything: our training methods, weaknesses, and military formations. Once that happened, the forces gained a clear understanding and prepared themselves for a long fight,” he adds.. Those years, according to Chaitu and his fellow comrade Rupesh alias Satish Kofa, also a state zonal committee member, were a phase when the CPI(Maoist) was strongest.. “Between 2007 and 2009, we were at our strongest in terms of numbers and outreach. There were around 2,500-3,000 full-time armed cadres in the Dandakaranya region alone, with support from 50,000 to 100,000 cadres across Bastar and adjoining areas. The Salwa Judum movement around 2005 caused us losses, but it also pushed thousands of villagers toward us. Support also poured in from other states where our influence had spread,” Rupesh says, referring to a state-sponsored militia that sought to combat the Maoists.. Rupesh, Chaitu, Ranita, Bhaskar alias Yadagir, and Ratan Elam alias Bajirao surrendered in October 2025 along with over 150 cadres. Their immediate senior, Central Committee (CC) member Mallujao Venugopal Rao aka Sonu Dada surrendered in Maharashtra before Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.. The movement’s decline also had to do with the state’s performance,adds Rupesh. “Our rise in the 1980s and 1990s was tied to the conditions in remote villages at the time. But by the mid-2000s, g 

 A report of the Comptroller and Auditor General tabled in the Telangana assembly on Monday painted a picture of strained public finances in the state during 2024-25, marked by under-utilisation of the budget, poor revenue mobilisation, rising debt, and irregularities in tax administration.. CAG report on Telangana’s fiscal performance in FY25 flags debts, budget underutilisation. The report pointed out that while the government managed to keep the fiscal deficit broadly within projected levels through borrowings, the widening revenue deficit and increasing debt burden could remain a matter of concern for the state’s fiscal sustainability.. According to the report, the Telangana government was unable to utilise its budget in line with the targets set for the 2024-25 financial year, spending only ₹2,18,251 crore against the ₹2,74,058 crore projected in the budget under revenue and capital expenditure, which amounted to 80%.. Under the revenue expenditure, the government had estimated spending ₹2,20,945 crore, but actual spending stood at ₹1,77,224 crore, which was also about 80% per cent of the estimate.. In contrast, under capital expenditure, the government had proposed to spend ₹33,487 crore, but ended up overspending by 108%, with a total of ₹36,072 crore spent in the current financial year.. The report also pointed out that the government had projected ₹17,730 crore towards its interest payment obligations in the year. However, the actual burden was much higher, with the state paying ₹27,803 crore.. Similarly, under the salary and allowances bill for government employees, the government had budgeted ₹28,093 crore, but had to spend ₹30,277 crore, leaving little room for development, welfare spending.. The CAG also pointed out sharp shortfall in revenue receipts. The state had expected ₹2,21,242 crore in revenue receipts, but the actual collections stood at ₹1,67,804 crore, 76% of the estimate.. The shortfall was particularly severe in non-tax revenue and grants expected from the Centre. Under non-tax revenue, the government had projected collections of ₹35,208 crore, but realised only ₹23,608 crore, or 67% of the estimate.. Likewise, the state had anticipated receiving ₹21,636 crore in grants from the Central government, but actually received only 37% of that with ₹7,913 crore.. The government had originally projected that revenue receipts would exceed revenue expenditure, resulting in a modest revenue surplus of ₹297 crore. However, the state ended up with a revenue deficit of ₹9,420 crore.. At the same time, the state had estimated a fiscal deficit of ₹49,256 crore. The actual fiscal deficit was found to be ₹48,922 crore, broadly in line with projections. The government bridged this deficit by raising ₹48,922 crore through open market borrowings.. The report said the state raised a total of ₹65,537 crore in open market loans during 2024-25. This figure included ₹ 5,842 crore of unpaid old Ways