Assam experienced a brief respite from the scorching heat on Saturday with light rain lashing the state.

Assam has been facing extreme heat conditions this week with the mercury soaring to as high as 39 degrees Celsius in different places.

The situation has changed the school timing in several districts with classes starting from 7.30 a.m. instead of 9 a.m. Moreover, the District Commissioners have issued notice for not continuing classes after 12.30 p.m.

It was also advised that the morning assembly should not be conducted in the open space, rather it must be arranged within the classroom.

Yet another attempt to derail a train was reported, this time in Gujarat's Surat district as the fishplates and keys of the railway tracks were found removed on Saturday, raising concerns over nefarious plans of anti-national elements to cause a derailment.

The incident took place early on Saturday near the Kim Junction railway station when a trackman inspecting the tracks around 5 A.M. noticed the tampering.

The Station Master and the Railway Protection Force (RPF) were immediately informed, and repairs were swiftly carried out to prevent any disruption to train services, officials confirmed.

This incident follows a series of similar attempts to sabotage train operations in recent times.

On September 10, miscreants attempted to derail a train in Rajasthan's Ajmer by placing two cement blocks, each weighing around 100 kg, on the railway tracks between Saradhana and Bangadh. One of the blocks was hit by a goods train but fortunately, no major damage was sustained.

An encounter has started between security forces and terrorists at the Shikari area in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Friday.

"Based on specific intelligence about the presence of terrorists, a joint search operation was launched by security forces at the Shikari area of Reasi," police said.

Contact has been established and a few rounds have been fired from both sides. Area cordoned off."

The operation started after a joint team of police and security forces got input about the presence of terrorists in that area.

The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the National Board of Examinations (NBE) on a petition, challenging the lack of transparency in the conduct of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance (NEET)-PG 2024 examination.

The NEET-PG exam was conducted by the NBE on August 11 and the results were announced on August 23.

A bench headed by CJI DY Chandrachud sought the response of the NBE and the Union government and posted the matter for hearing on September 27.

Senior advocate Vibha Makhija, assisted by advocate Parul Shukla, representing the petitioner, NEET-PG aspirants, said that the introduction of two shifts, normalisation method, and change in tie-breaker criterion just three days before the examination affected the students adversely.

Gondal Division Police in Gujarat destroyed over 19,365 foreign liquor bottles valued at Rs 61.70 lakh at an open space on Vora Kotda Road in Gondal city on Friday.

The liquor bottles were crushed by a bulldozer. The raids and subsequent destruction were part of a broader crackdown, where police conducted operations across 67 different locations over a span of nine months.

Earlier, Minister of State for Home, Harsh Sanghavi, in response to questions raised by Congress MLAs during the Assembly's Question Hour said that in March, said that narcotics and liquor worth Rs 6,413 crore had been seized across the state over the past two years.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) would provide financial assistance of Rs 530 crore to the Tripura government to upgrade the drinking water supply in the state’s 12 cities benefiting around four lakh people, officials said here on Friday.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Friday laid the foundation of the ‘Mukhyamantri Nagar Unnayan Prakalp’ (Chief Minister’s urban development scheme) at a function in southern Tripura’s Gomati district headquarters Udaipur.

The Chief Minister said that after the completion of the ambitious plan within three years, a major drinking water problem of over 75,000 families in 12 cities in the state would be resolved.

He said that 12 cities, where the ADB-funded ambitious scheme would be implemented include, Udaipur, Amarpur, Belonia, Melaghar, Bishramganj, Khowai, Ranir Bazar, Mohanpur, Dharmanagar, Kailashhar, Kumarghat and Ambassa.

A soldier was killed and five others injured in a road accident in J&K’s Kathua district on Friday, officials said.

"The vehicle carrying army personnel went out of the driver’s control and skidded off the road after which it dropped into a gorge at Sukrala Mata Ashram road. One soldier died in this accident while 5 others were injured," an official said.

The injured personnel were shifted to Billawar sub-district hospital, where doctors referred them to the army hospital in Pathankot town of neighbouring Punjab. They were airlifted to Pathankot in a helicopter.

"The soldier killed in this accident has been identified as Sepoy Ram Kishore while the injured soldiers were identified as Sepoys Bhupinder Singh, Mahipal Singh, Anil Singh, Sunder Pandya and Lokinder Singh.

Police has taken cognisance of the incident, officials said.

The Rajasthan government has implemented an amnesty scheme to give waivers in departmental dues and interest for outstanding cases of minor minerals in the Mines Department.

The scheme has been implemented in cases of mining leases of minor minerals, quarry licenses, fixed rent/rent of temporary work permission issued for gravel, surcharge, additional surcharge, penalty, outstanding RCC, ERCC (Excess Royalty Collection Contractor)contracts, permits, outstanding short-term permit and construction department contractors, other departmental dues till March 31, 2023.

The Departmental Amnesty Scheme will remain effective till March 31, 2025, confirmed officials on Friday.

Chief Minister and Mines Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, while explaining the need to implement the Departmental Amnesty Scheme, said this scheme will enable the recovery of outstanding revenue of the state government.

The flood situation in Patna and its surrounding districts has worsened with several villages submerged under the rising waters. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday conducted an aerial survey of the affected areas and took stock of the situation.

The water level in the Ganga River crossed the danger mark at several places in the state capital. Areas like Danapur, Maner, Bind Tola, Fatuha, and Bakhtiyarpur are among the hardest hit in Patna, forcing many residents to flee to higher ground, such as roads, to escape the floodwaters.

In Maner, six panchayats -- Chihattar, Mahaveer Tola, Islamganj, Hathi Tola, Haldi Chapra, and Ratan Tola -- have been completely isolated from the mainland, exacerbating the difficulties for residents.

Additionally, key locations like Gulbi Ghat, Kataiya Ghat, and Triveni Sangam are submerged, further disrupting life in the region.

At least eight persons were killed and more than 16 others injured when a passenger bus and a fruit-laden truck rammed into each other on the Beed-Jalna Road, here on Friday, an official said

According to Ambad Police Station in-charge Police Inspector Satish S. Jadhav, the crash occurred at 8 a.m. near Mathtanda village when the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus was speeding from Beed to Jalna.

Eyewitnesses and survivors told the police that both the bus and an Eicher goods truck were thrown several metres away and the two vehicles were virtually crushed due to the impact of the crash.