Human Interest

A 57-year-old Bengaluru techie lost ₹31.83 crore after cybercriminals held her in a six-month “digital arrest,” threatening her with a fabricated CBI case and coercing her into 187 transfers. She reported the fraud after growing suspicious; police are investigating

International enrolment at US colleges dipped slightly this fall, but new foreign student arrivals plunged 17% amid visa delays and policy tightening under the Trump administration. Graduate programmes were hit hardest, straining budgets, while other countries ramped up efforts to attract students

Sabarimala is set to begin its 41-day Mandala pilgrimage, with the shrine opening Sunday evening. Extensive preparations—water supply, sanitation, medical centres, and virtual queue controls—are in place. New melshanthis will be installed as TDB’s new president vows transparent temple administration

Counter Intelligence Kashmir raided a doctor’s residence in Anantnag linked to a “white-collar terror module.” A Haryana-based doctor tenant’s phone was seized. Separately, local seller Bilal Wani attempted self-immolation after questioning; his son remains detained. Key accused Dr Muzaffar Rather is abroad

Recently released House Oversight Committee emails reveal Jeffrey Epstein maintained extensive ties with global political figures, academics and business elites long after his 2008 conviction. The messages show exchanges on politics, introductions and personal advice, highlighting his persistent influence until his 2019 arrest

A bold “tiger abhi zinda hai” poster featuring Bihar CM Nitish Kumar beside a tiger appeared outside his residence as early election trends showed the NDA leading. The cinematic image energised JD(U) workers, symbolising Kumar’s enduring political dominance

A 65-year-old farmer, Kittappa, was trampled to death by a wild elephant early Thursday in Kurmanupalli village, Chittoor district. Police said the lone elephant attacked while he was asleep in his field, prompting forest officials to track the animal

Sunny Deol lashed out at media outside his Juhu home for invading family privacy amid rumours about his father Dharmendra’s health. The family condemned false death reports, urged restraint, and confirmed the 89-year-old actor was discharged and recovering at home

China is rapidly advancing toward its first crewed lunar landing by 2030, developing new spacecraft, rockets, and spacesuits. Its steady progress rivals NASA’s Artemis program, raising geopolitical stakes and highlighting Beijing’s growing technological, strategic, and symbolic ambitions in space exploration

The Indian Army is establishing the Lachit Borphukan Military Station at Bamunigaon in Assam’s Dhubri district near the Bangladesh border to strengthen intelligence, border security, and regional stability amid rising concerns over cross-border crimes, fundamentalist activities, and geopolitical tensions

Rajyalakshmi Yarlagadda, a 23-year-old Indian student from Andhra Pradesh and recent Texas A&M University graduate, died in the US after suffering from severe cough and chest pain. A GoFundMe campaign seeks $125,000 to repatriate her body and support her grieving family

New York’s newly elected mayor, Zohran Mamdani, faced online ridicule for eating with his hands, exposing lingering colonial hierarchies around race, civility, and culture. The controversy sparked debates on identity, diaspora hypocrisy, and how colonial-era notions of refinement still shape global attitudes

China has officially commissioned its third and most advanced aircraft carrier, *Fujian*, designed and built domestically. Featuring an electromagnetic launch system, the carrier marks a major leap in Beijing’s naval power and global ambitions as it seeks to rival US maritime dominance

‘Vibe coding,’ coined by AI expert Andrej Karpathy to describe creating software through natural language, was named Collins Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2025. The term highlights AI’s accessibility and impact, alongside trending words like glaze, aura farming, and biohacking

Meghan Markle returns to acting with a cameo in Jason Orley’s comedy *Close Personal Friends*, starring Lily Collins, Jack Quaid, Brie Larson, and Henry Golding. The film follows two couples whose friendship spirals hilariously out of control during a Santa Barbara getaway

Switzerland has nominated yodelling for UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list, highlighting its evolution from Alpine herding calls to a modern art form. With growing popularity and academic recognition, advocates hope UNESCO recognition will preserve and promote this distinct national musical tradition worldwide

Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old Ugandan-born son of filmmaker Mira Nair, won New York City’s mayoral election, defeating Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa. In his fiery victory speech, Mamdani vowed immigrant-led governance, challenged President Trump, and declared “hope over tyranny and big money"

The Telangana State Human Rights Commission (TGHRC) has taken suo-motu cognizance of the Mirzaguda road accident that killed 19 people, citing repeated safety lapses as a violation of the Right to Life, and has ordered detailed reports from relevant authorities by December 15.

Italian archaeologists, working with Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Directorate of Archaeology, have discovered eight new ancient sites from Swat to Taxila. The findings, including a 1,200-year-old temple in Barikot, highlight Gandhara’s rich heritage and continuous human civilization across multiple historical periods

In a first for South Eastern Railway, the Chakradharpur divisional railway hospital in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum district enrolled four newborns for Aadhaar and issued their birth certificates on the same day, streamlining identity documentation through coordination between multiple government departments

A global study published in *Science* reveals that agricultural drones are transforming farming worldwide, spreading rapidly from East Asia to the US. Used for spraying, seeding, and monitoring, drones boost efficiency and safety but risk displacing workers and causing environmental concerns

Adopting lethal injection in India would create deep ethical and practical conflicts for doctors, erode public trust in medicine, and risk inhuman suffering

US President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to resume nuclear weapons testing, risking a renewed global arms race. The move threatens the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, raises environmental concerns, and comes amid rising proliferation and stalled arms-control negotiations

King Charles has stripped Prince Andrew of all royal titles following the release of Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir Nobody’s Girl, detailing her abuse by Jeffrey Epstein and others. Giuffre’s revelations reignited global outrage, exposing systemic failures and prompting renewed calls for accountability