Using metal-organic framework (MOF) made of cadmium chloride and synthesised under ambient conditions, a research team has been able to detect organophosphorus pesticides such as azinphos-methyl, chlorpyrifos, and parathion both in water solution and in apples and tomatoes. The MOF is highly sensitive such that the presence of pesticides as …

Investors can safely ignore glimmers of hope in the trade war between the United States and China. The latest round of U.S. tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods, and Beijing’s response, could have been worse, and that buoyed markets. The S&P 500 Index, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq …

The U.S. is increasingly diverse and census calculations project that by the year 2044, the White population of the country will be less than half of the total. The growing diversity appears to be reflecting on the political arena, though differentially, for the Democrats and the Republicans. In the current …

On a recent August evening, fishing boats from France and England were filmed ramming each other, in the Baie de la Seine in the English Channel, off the northern French coast, while rocks and other projectiles were tossed at one another. The sight, while alarming, is not entirely unknown in …

Bangladesh readied a new law giving sweeping powers to the police to crack down on cyberoffences and arrest any potential offender without a warrant. The Digital Security Act, passed in Parliament on September 19, drew criticism from journalists and civil society leaders as they said that the law would muffle …

The Vatican on Saturday announced a historic accord with China on the appointment of Bishops in the Communist country as Pope Francis recognised seven Beijing-appointed Bishops in a move that could pave the way for a rapprochement between the Catholic Church and the world’s most populous country. Beijing immediately said …

Many poll observers were denied visa Around 2,60,000 Maldivians will cast their vote on Sunday in the nation’s third-ever multi-party presidential election since 2008. The election has come under focus amid fears of possible poll rigging and violence. In a statement issued on Saturday, the Asian Network for Free Elections …

The biggest increases in acreage this kharif season come from water guzzling crops such as sugarcane and paddy. More resilient crops such as nutri-cereals — ragi, jowar, bajra — have dropped in acreage this year, Agriculture Ministry data reveals. As on September 20, paddy has been planted over 2.5% more …

The court of second appeal in Milan found no conclusive evidence of corruption with a foreign public official in the 2010 sale of helicopters to India by AgustaWestland, according to a document released earlier this week, Reuters (Milan) has reported. The document, which explains the reasons given by the judges …

What is the problem? Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, in his report to Parliament recently, said that while non-performing assets stemming from corporate loans are a current problem, the government should focus on sources of the next crisis. In particular, he warned, the government should refrain from setting ambitious credit …

For over a week now, more than 100 Forest Department officials, guards, tranquillising experts, shooters, trackers, rescue teams, veterinarians and two elephants, brought from Madhya Pradesh, have been carrying out a massive hunt for a tigress in the Ralegaon area of Yavatmal district of Maharashtra. What happened? They are looking …

What is it?How did it come about?Why does it matter?What next? Over 54,000 cases are pending in the Supreme Court. But only a few grab public attention, and they become the litmus test for the court. Justice Ranjan Gogoi, who assumes office as the Chief Justice of India on October …

The Chief of the Army Staff, General Bipin Rawat, said here on Saturday that stern action was needed to avenge the barbarism by terrorists and the Pakistan Army against Indian soldiers. The comment comes after a BSF jawan was shot and his throat slit recently, followed by the brutal killings …

Joint operation of police, Army, CRPF after militants killed three SPOs A day after three policemen were abducted and killed by militants, security forces on Saturday launched a massive cordon-and-search operation in Shopian and Pulwama districts of Jammu and Kashmir, the police said. The operation was conducted in at least …

Congress chief calls for clarification from Modi after Hollande’s statement Congress president Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday, “We are absolutely convinced that the Prime Minister of India is corrupt. This question is clearly settled into minds of people that Desh Ka Chowkidar Chor Hai (the country’s watchman is a thief),” …

Per capita alcohol consumption in India has more than doubled from 2005 to 2016, according to a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The consumption of alcohol has increased from 2.4 litres in 2005 to 5.7 litres in 2016 with 4.2 litres being consumed by men and 1.5 litre …

In their fight to get Abu Zubaydah released from the U.S. military detention facility, lawyers are trying to collate details of his stay in Karnataka More than 27 years after he abandoned his undergraduate studies in Mysuru to wage jihad against the Soviet-backed regime in Afghanistan, Zainalabdeen Mohammad Hussein Abu …

India, Pakistan Foreign Ministers may face off at UN Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Saturday charged India with having “trampled on diplomatic norms” by cancelling the meeting between Foreign Ministers that it had agreed to just a day prior. Speaking to presspersons in Islamabad, Mr. Qureshi said the …

Days after the promulgation of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights of Marriage) Ordinance, 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced here on Saturday that the NDA government would soon get the triple talaq Bill approved by Parliament. “Three days ago, the Centre took a decision that was needed for years. …

Meet Ushakumari, the lifeblood of a school in a forest settlement in south Kerala At 7 a.m., even before the sleepy Amboori village in southern Thiruvananthapuram is fully awake, R. Ushakumari begins her day. The only teacher of the Kunnathumala Agasthya Eka Adyapaka School (one-teacher school) inside the Agasthyavanam biosphere, …