The flight had 170 passengers and 9 infants on board. All passengers and crew were safe. m. to ensure the readiness of all airport emergency response services.
An Air Arabia flight, G9 454, operating from Sharjah to Kozhikode was diverted to Cochin International Airport in the early hours of Saturday (June 13, 2026) following a technical issue related to the aircraft’s engine reverse thrust system.The flight had 170 passengers and 9 infants on board. All passengers and crew were safe. Airport operations remained unaffected.As per established safety protocols, a local standby was declared, followed by a full emergency at 3.34 a.m. to ensure the readiness of all airport emergency response services. The aircraft landed safely at 3.38 a.m. and was guided to the designated parking bay. The full emergency was withdrawn at 3.45 a.m. after all safety checks were completed.After rectifying the snag, the aircraft departed to Kozhikode at 7.15 a.m. Published - June 13, 2026 10:12 am IST
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the Kozhikode District Collector to examine all complaints related to the functioning of the Pantheerankavu toll plaza on national highway (NH) 66 in Kozhikode and take appropriate action within eight days.The directive follows a public interest litigation alleging misconduct by the toll plaza personnel, traffic delays affecting motorists and emergency vehicles, and deficiencies in safety infrastructure at the facility.The petition, filed by human rights activist Noushad Thekkayil, cited a list of complaints from truck drivers, tourist vehicle operators, ambulance drivers, and daily commuters using the highway. According to the petitioner, motorists had reported frequent delays at the toll plaza, particularly during the peak hours, affecting the movement of goods vehicles and passenger transport services.Ambulance operators were among those who raised concerns, pointing to difficulties in negotiating traffic congestion near the toll plaza during emergencies. Tourist vehicle operators also reported delays during weekends and holiday periods when traffic flow gets choked on the highway owing to the slow movement at the toll plaza.“There are drivers who fail to use QR-code for toll payments. Such people may take time to make payment using other direct options. Some may struggle to pay it even by using UPI applications. Whatever be the situation, the staff should be polite enough to deal with all types of drivers,” said a truck driver who recently locked horns with the toll plaza staff over some technical issues related to the UPI payment. He added the staff should be properly trained in customer care service ahead of their joining with the toll collection team.A few local drivers who earlier approached the traffic police with similar petitions also recalled instances of discourteous behaviour by some toll plaza employees during hated interactions with motorists. According to them, there were no proper supervisory efforts on the part of senior officials to ensure good behaviour among the staff, who were often compelled to answer public queries regarding poor road maintenance works even after toll was paid on certain stretches.Some of the daily commuters using the inter-district stretch said recurring bottlenecks at the toll collection point affected the smooth flow of vehicles on one of the busiest sections of NH 66 in Kozhikode city. Lorry operators on the Kozhikode-Palakkad and Kozhikode-Thrissur routes also complained that delays at the facility disrupted their schedules many times and increased total transit time for no reason.Responding to the complaints, the NHRC sought a report on the matter and directed the Collector to initiate immediate action in consultation with other stakeholders. The Commission’s intervention comes amid growing confrontations among highway users over inadequate traffic management, safety concerns, and operational issues at similar toll plazas. Meanwhile, the toll plaza operators, who declined to comment on the public complaints, said they would cooperate with the ongoing investigation and implement necessary changes based on the Collector’s instructions. Published - June 10, 2026 07:25 pm IST
A close view of the 14th-century inscription, which appears to record grants of vrittis for worship at the Siva temple at Kondaveedu. | D. has been found at the Kondaveedu Fort in Andhra Pradesh, offering fresh evidence of the Reddy rulers’ patronage of temple worship and religious institutions in the region.The inscription is engraved on a partially broken pillar of a dilapidated Siva temple atop Rudrapada Peak, the highest of the 42 hills that form the Kondaveedu hill fort complex. Kondaveedu Fort Development Committee Convener Kalli Siva Reddy and his team found it during an exploration on Saturday. The fragmentary Telugu inscription on the pillar of a Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) at a ruined Siva temple atop Rudrapada Peak in the Kondaveedu Fort, Andhra Pradesh. | Muniratnam Reddy, Director (Epigraphy), Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Mysuru, said the inscription is in Telugu, in a script characteristic of the 14th century. Though damaged and incomplete, the surviving text appears to record the grant of four vrittis (shares of endowed revenue or land assignments) to certain Bhattulu and two vrittis to Virupaksha Dikshita for conducting worship in a Lord Siva temple at Kondaveedu.The inscription also contains the invocation “Sri Kailasa Sivaya Namah” and mentions that it was engraved by “Parvatam Oubhalam Pancharamulu.” Based on palaeographic features and the content, experts believe the record belongs to the period of the Reddi dynasty, which ruled large parts of coastal Andhra during the 14th century.Mr. Siva Reddy said the inscription was on the pillar of a Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) in front of the sanctum of a ruined Siva temple. Of the two Siva temples on Rudrapada Peak, one has been almost completely destroyed, leaving only the sanctum standing. He alleged that illegal digging and vandalism over the years had contributed to the deterioration of the monuments.Rudrapada Peak, later known as Adam Shafi Bodu under Muslim rule, continues to attract both Hindu and Muslim devotees. Besides the sacred Rudrapada footprint shrine, the hill houses a small dargah visited regularly by devotees.Based on historical references and the nature of temple endowments mentioned in the inscription, researchers suspect the grant may have been issued during the reign of either Anavema Reddy or Pedakomati Vema Reddy, two prominent rulers of the Kondaveedu Reddi kingdom. Historical records describe Anavema Reddy as a devout Saivite who promoted regular temple worship and restored the Pancharama temples. Kondaveedu Kaifiyat records also mention donations by Pedakomati Vema Reddy to the nearby Bollumora Venkateswara Swamy temple.ASI experts said the exact ruler and the date of the grant can be established only after the missing portion of the inscription is examined. The script style still points to the Reddy period.Mr. Siva Reddy said many unidentified inscriptions remain scattered across Kondaveedu Fort, and called on the ASI to depute a team to document, copy and study them systematically.He recalled that in 2024 he had brought to light five previously undocumented inscriptions at Kondaveedu Fort, including one from the reign of Pedakomati Vema Reddy. Published - June 09, 2026 12:57 pm IST
Security agencies have flagged the availability of weapons with civilians as a major challenge in violence-hit Manipur. File | P. Singh has asked personnel deployed in Manipur to “neutralise” miscreants roaming around in civilian areas with weapons.Mr. Singh made the remarks during an interaction with CRPF personnel in Manipur on Saturday, according to a 6.05-minute video clip seen by The Hindu. He said that discussions were held at the highest levels in the government, and added, “It is expected that there will be a turnaround in the situation in the northeastern State in the next 1-1.5 years.More than 6,000 police weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition were looted from armouries after ethnic violence erupted in the State on May 3, 2023. Security agencies have consistently flagged the availability of a large number of weapons with civilians as a major security challenge.In the video, the CRPF officer said that personnel need not worry about firing at miscreants and he, as a DG, would protect any “bona fide action”.“If you do not fire at miscreants, why has the government given us so much arms and ammunition. I have your back. Till the time I am here, no need to worry about any (legal) action,” Mr. Singh said, referring to an April 7 incident in which CRPF personnel opened fire as a mob stormed the force’s camp at Gelmol, a buffer zone between Meitei and Kuki-Zo areas in Bishnupur district since 2023. The firing led to the death of three protestors.The crowd had gathered to protest the killing of two Meitei children in a “bomb attack” earlier in the day. Gelmol was once a Kuki-Zo village, but after the ethnic violence erupted on May 3, 2023, the tribal community was displaced and the village became a CRPF base camp.When contacted, Mr. Singh said the video was meant for “internal purposes”.“I had addressed the troops in Manipur and exhorted them to take the strongest lawful action against armed miscreants. I have always maintained that the responsibility of all the bona fide action taken by the force shall be mine as chief,” he said.In the video, the officer said that the security forces should prepare for the coming days to deal with all types of miscreants.“There are two scenarios here. One is the armed miscreants, some of them are active militant groups, or with surrendered militant groups, all of them have weapons. They are misusing the weapons to vitiate the situation in Manipur. The second is the law-and-order issue, which is connected to the armed miscreants. The crowd provides cover to these armed groups so that they can create tensions,” Mr. Singh said.He further said a calibrated strategy would have to be formed to deal with both scenarios in collaboration with local police, and the strategy should be futuristic and not merely reactionary. “Find out about the events planned in the next 24 hours or over a period of 7-30 days and how they can be stopped at source,” he added.“Whoever is found roaming in civilian areas with weapons should be neutralised. Please have no doubts over this, I am saying this in clear terms,” the CRPF DG said, adding, “If people continue to charge despite repeated warnings, then the use of force is completely justified.”The CRPF is one of the largest Central forces deployed in Manipur. Recently, two battalions of the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA), a specialised unit raised for anti-Maoist operations, were deployed in the State.“When we said last year that Naxalism would be ended, no one believed us. The next turn is of Manipur,” Mr. Singh said.More than 260 people have been killed in the State since ethnic violence broke out in 2023, and the tensions between Naga and Kuki communities since February 7 this year have added a new dimension to the conflict. Published - June 07, 2026 10:26 pm IST
Illustration for The Hindu | Her parents found her body in her house. They complained to the police that she was being harassed by Phiraj Kale, a local youth. Police have arrested the accused.A case has been registered.(Those suffering from anxiety or depression can seek assistance from Arogya Sahayavani’s round-the-clock helpline 104) Published - June 06, 2026 10:16 am IST
image for representation | The complaint was raised by the family of Rajendraprasad of Paripally, who had been admitted to the MCH following a road traffic accident with serious injuries to the legs. He had undergone an orthopaedic surgery wherein a metal rod had to be inserted to repair the fractured bone and his injured limb had been kept stabilised using an external fixator.The patient’s family had alleged that maggots were found on the patient’s injured limb after he was shifted to the ward, after the initial post-operative period in the ICU. After the family raised the issue, the patient was reportedly shifted back to the ICU. The family also alleged that though they had informed the nursing staff about finding maggots on the leg, nothing was done about it.When contacted, the MCH superintendent, CG Jayachandran, said he had received a report about the incident and that he had asked the Head of Orthopaedics to inquire into it.He said that even when the ICU is a sterile space, people are moving in and out of the ICU, food is being carried in and then there are many patients who need diaper change. There were hence opportunities for flies to sneak in. Wound myiasis (the condition wherein flies are attracted to open wounds or secretions and lay eggs which hatch into maggots in a day or two) has been clinically documented in ICUs and it would be enquired into, he said.Report soughtMr. Muraleedharan said that he had asked a four-member committee, including the Vice Principal of the MCH, the superintendent and the heads of Orthopaedics and General Surgery to inquire into the incident and submit a report by Wednesday evening. He said that the hospital staff, who allegedly misbehaved with the patient’s family, would be sent for counselling. Published - June 02, 2026 10:53 am IST
The Pantheerankavu police have launched an investigation into the death of Karthik, 19, a national-level shooter from Kozhikode.He was found dead at his residence here on Tuesday (May 25, 2026) night. Karthik, son of Shibu of Edakkattupurath Manal, was a student of a private engineering college at Kuttikkattur. He was reportedly found in a pool of blood with a gunshot wound to his forehead on the first floor of the house when his parents and brother returned home.Though Karthik was soon shifted to hospital, he passed away later. The police have found a licensed gun used for shooting competitions from the premises. He had participated in the national shooting championship thrice.Those in distress or having suicidal tendencies could seek help and counselling by calling any of the following numbers: DISHA - 1056, 0471-2552056, State’s health helpline 104, Maithri - 0484-2540530, Thanal Suicide Prevention Centre - 0495-2760000. Published - May 27, 2026 07:27 pm IST
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