NewsBytes

Kuchipudi dancer receives King’s honour in UK

Celebrated UK-based artiste Arunima Kumar on Thursday became the first Kuchipudi dancer to be conferred King Charles III's Honorary British Empire Medal (BEM), for services to Indian classical dance and community. The Honorary BEM, a royal honour awarded for "hands-on" service to the local community, comes in recognition of Kumar's tireless efforts in taking Indian classical dance, particularly Kuchipudi, to global platforms and fostering cross-cultural understanding through the arts. The renowned cultural leader, influencer and ambassador has many firsts to her credit, including performances at Buckingham Palace and Queen Elizabeth II's Jubilee celebrations and Diwali festivities at 10 Downing Street in London.

Omar orders restoration of Darbar Move tradition in J&K

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday ordered the restoration of the Darbar Move tradition in the Union Territory, fulfilling his promise to the people of the Jammu region. The Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha-led administration had scrapped the Darbar Move tradition in 2021. The Darbar Move traces its origins to 1872 under Maharaja Ranbir Singh, the Dogra ruler who began transferring the royal court between Srinagar and Jammu to escape the extreme weather in both regions. Under this system, government offices functioned from Srinagar during the summer months and shifted to Jammu in the winter. The exercise involved the movement of nearly 10,000 employees, along with records, computers, and furniture, with dozens of trucks carrying files and equipment across the Jammu-Srinagar highway twice a year.

Global analysis finds 15 million in India affected by 2024-25 wildfires

Around 15 million people in India were affected due to wildfires in 2024-25, with Uttar Pradesh being the most impacted region, a global study has estimated. Uttar Pradesh was also found to have experienced its most severe wildfire season on record, which researchers said was driven by crop burning, heatwaves and dry fuel accumulation. Regional fires contributed to severe haze episodes in New Delhi in November 2024, with PM2.5 levels reaching 13 times the daily standard set by the World Health Organization (WHO) — more than 200 micrograms per cubic metre, findings published as the yearly 'State of Wildfires' report in the journal Earth System Science Data show. India is among the worst affected countries, with 15 million in the Democratic Republic of Congo and five million each in Nigeria, China, Mozambique and South Sudan, are estimated to have been impacted.

India makes 85 pc of digital payment through UPI: RBI Guv

About 85 per cent of the digital payment transactions take place through UPI in India, and the country can be a case study in inclusive, secure, and scalable Digital Public Platforms (DPPs), Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra has said. He was speaking at a “High-Level Dialogue on Forging Economic Resilience through Digital Public Platforms” organised by RBI on the sidelines of the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC on Tuesday. DPPs have become a powerful catalyst for inclusive growth and innovation. Foundational platforms for digital identity (Aadhaar) and real-time payments (Unified Payments Interface - UPI) have successfully demonstrated how to build resilient, cost-efficient public service delivery systems at scale, the RBI Governor said.