LIVE: Ajit Pawar, four others killed in Baramati plane crash; AAIB plans probe

Ajit Pawar's aircraft crashes: Reports

An aircraft carrying Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar crashed while attempting to land in Baramati in Pune district, according to reports.

CM Adityanath pays tribute to Lala Lajpat Rai on his birth anniversary

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the life and sacrifices of Lala Lajpat Rai inspire people to work with the spirit of 'nation first' as he paid tributes to the freedom fighter on his birth anniversary on Wednesday.

"Great freedom fighter, dedicated social worker, and staunch advocate of Swadeshi, 'Punjab Kesari' Lala Lajpat Rai's birth anniversary is being observed today. Humble tributes to him," Adityanath posted on X.

"His indomitable courage, unwavering dedication, unbreakable patriotism, and life of sacrifice are an invaluable heritage of the Indian freedom struggle, which always inspires us to work with the spirit of 'nation first'," the CM said.

Lala Lajpat Rai was born on January 28, 1865 in a small village of Dhudike in Punjab's Ferozepur district. He was a contemporary of great stalwarts, including Mahatma Gandhi.

A leader of the masses, he was a prominent figure in protests against the Partition of Bengal and led a wing of the Congress along with Bipin Chandra Pal and Bal Gangadhar Tilak. The three were affectionately and popularly called 'Lal-Bal-Pal'.

On 16 February 1928, he moved a resolution in the Central Legislative Assembly refusing co-operation with the Simon Commission as it had no Indian member.

Assaulted by the police while leading a demonstration against the commission in Lahore on October 30, 1928, he succumbed to severe injuries on November 17, 1928.

Tens of thousands flee northwest Pakistan over fears of military operation

More than 70,000 people, mostly women and children, have fled a remote region in northwestern Pakistan bordering Afghanistan over uncertainty of a military operation against the Pakistani Taliban, residents and officials said.

Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif has denied the claim by residents and provincial authorities. He said no military operation was underway or planned in Tirah, a town in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Speaking at a news conference in Islamabad, he said harsh weather, rather than military action, was driving the migration. His comments came weeks after residents started fleeing Tirah over fears of a possible army operation.

Will Modi's electoral juggernaut steer the direction of Budget 2026-27?

With high-stakes Assembly polls for Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Kerala due in March-April, how election-oriented will Budget 2026-27, to be presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, be?

Over the past decade, the Union Budgets of the Narendra Modi government have, by and large, followed a pattern of craftily weaving electoral outreach into the exercise through allocations for sundry poll-bound states within programmes and schemes that are otherwise packaged as larger pan-India initiatives.

This approach allowed the Modi regime, for a better part of the last 11 years, to claim that unlike previous governments, it eschewed weaponising the Union Budget for electoral gains.

Read the full story here.

Parliament's Budget session starts today

The Budget session will start today and the first part will end on February 13. The second half will commence on March 9 and conclude on April 2.

IndiGo flights to Tbilisi, Almaty, Tashkent, Baku now cancelled till Feb 11

IndiGo has extended the cancellation of flights to Tbilisi, Almaty, Baku and Tashkent till February 11 due to the prevailing situation in Iran.

Earlier, flights to these cities were cancelled till January 28.

The airline said that taking into account the developments around Iran, it has made additional adjustments to the schedule of some flights.

Flights to and from Tbilisi (Georgia), Almaty (Kazakhstan), Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and Baku (Azerbaijan) have been cancelled till February 11, according to a post by IndiGo on X.

For these destinations, the airline flies over the Iranian airspace and due to the current situation, it is avoiding the region.

Generally, the duration of flights from India to these cities is in the range of six to seven hours. The airline operates flights with its A320neo aircraft on these routes that do not have the range and fuel-holding capacity to operate on longer alternative routes. Tensions have escalated between Iran and the United States, and there are apprehensions that the situation could result in a military conflict. 

North Korea's Kim says upcoming party congress will unveil plans to bolster nuclear deterrent

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country will unveil plans to further bolster its nuclear programme at the upcoming ruling party congress, as he observed the North's latest weapons launch, state media reported Wednesday.

The report came a day after South Korea and Japan said they detected multiple ballistic missiles fired from North Korea, the country's first weapons launches in about three weeks.

The Korean Central News Agency said North Korea performed a live-fire drill of an upgraded large-caliber multiple rocket launcher system in the presence of Kim on Tuesday.

It quoted Kim as saying the test launch was meant to enhance the effectiveness of the country's “strategic deterrent,” a term used to describe its nuclear weapons capability. KCNA said the launcher system's mobility and strike accuracy have been improved.

Trump warns Iraq against returning former PM al-Maliki to power

US President Donald Trump warned Iraq on Tuesday that the US would no longer support the country if its former prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, returns to power.

Trump made the threat days after the dominant political bloc known as the Coordination Framework, a collection of Shiite parties, announced it was backing the nomination of al-Maliki, who the US administration views as too close to Iran.

“Last time Maliki was in power, the Country descended into poverty and total chaos. That should not be allowed to happen again,” Trump said in a social media post announcing his opposition to al-Maliki.

“Because of his insane policies and ideologies, if elected, the United States of America will no longer help Iraq and, if we are not there to help, Iraq has ZERO chance of Success, Prosperity, or Freedom.”