6+ hour, 57+ min ago (471+ words) Published - November 30, 2025 07:45 am IST - ISTANBUL Pope Leo XIV wraps up a four-day trip to Turkiye on Sunday (November 30, 2025) after a warm welcome by its tiny Christian community, before heading to Lebanon with a message of peace for the crisis-mired nation. On his first overseas trip since being elected leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, Pope Leo met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before travelling to Iznik for a celebration marking 1,700 years since the First Council of Nicaea, one of the early Church's most important gatherings. On Saturday (November 29, 2025), the American Pope hosted thousands of worshippers who battled the rain to attend a public mass in Istanbul, with many travelling from across Turkiye to join the multilingual service, which left many moved by its beautiful and haunting choral interludes. On his final morning, Pope Leo was expected to attend a prayer service…...

10+ hour, 1+ min ago (167+ words) A petition challenges the use of bouncers at Sree Poornathrayeesa Temple, questioning their appropriateness for managing devotees. A petition has been filed before the Kerala High Court, challenging the practice of engaging "bouncers" to control devotees at the Sree Poornathrayeesa Temple, Thripunithura, in connection with the "Vrischikotsavam" .The petitioner N Prakash, a devotee, said that in all the previous years, sufficient police personnel were deputed to control the huge crowd inside the temple, besides volunteers from among the devotees But from 22 to 25 November, fifteen bouncers were engaged by the Cochin Devaswom Board, citing insufficient number of police personnel He contended that these people were wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the word "bouncer", a term ordinarily associated with personnel deployed outside bars and similar establishments as strong-arm security staff He added that the engagement of such individuals, especially within the precincts of…...

13+ hour, 59+ min ago (126+ words) Published - November 29, 2025 07:43 pm IST - RAJAMAHENDRAVARAM Minister for Tourism and Culture Kandula Durgesh and Rajamahendravaram City MP D. Purandeswari on Saturday said that halts of more trains in the nearby railway stations will be ensured for the devotees during the Godavari Pushkarams-2027. An esimated eight crore people are likely to participate in the mega event. Addressing the officials, Mr. Durgesh said Nidadavolu railway station should be developed to ensure the halt of more trains to clear the rush of devotees. Kovvuru MLA Muppidi Venkateswara Rao suggested the development of Kovvur and Nidadavolu railway stations." MLC Somu Veerraju appealed to Mr. Durgesh and Ms. Purandeswari to ensure allocation of sufficient funds by the Central and State governments for the Godavari Pushkarams-2027....

18+ hour ago (296+ words) Published - November 29, 2025 08:42 pm IST - KOCHI With approximately 150 cardiac events reported at Sabarimala during each Mandalam-Makaravilakku season, of which 40 to 42 devotees die, the Kerala High Court has directed the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) to ready a protocol, including a detailed health advisory, to ensure pilgrims" health, safety, and orderly movement. The court also referred to a report on the necessity of an ambulance to shift bodies of deceased devotees from the Sannidhanam to Pampa, while considering a suo motu proceeding. Their bodies are now being transported in stretchers, which causes significant distress and discomfort to relatives of the deceased. The Special Commissioner had sought a directive to use an old ambulance stationed at Pampa for the purpose. Already the board had decided to use the ambulance to transport their mortal remains, the court was informed. The court also directed that steps…...

19+ hour, 3+ min ago (814+ words) Published - November 29, 2025 02:38 pm IST - ISTANBUL Pope Leo XIV visited Istanbul's Blue Mosque on Saturday (November 29, 2025) but didn't stop to pray, as he opened an intense day of meetings and liturgies with Turkiye's religious leaders and a Mass for the country's tiny Catholic community. The head of Turkiye's Diyanet religious affairs directorate showed Pope Leo the soaring tiled domes of the 17th-century mosque and the Arabic inscriptions on its columns, as Pope Leo nodded in understanding. The Vatican had said Leo would observe a "brief minute of silent prayer" there, but it didn't appear that he had. The imam of the mosque, Asgin Tunca, said he had invited Leo to pray, since the mosque was "Allah's house," but the Pope declined. Speaking to reporters after the visit, Tunca said he had told the Pope: "It's not my house, not your house,…...

20+ hour, 11+ min ago (214+ words) Published - November 29, 2025 06:31 pm IST - MANGALURU "If every household placed Ardhanarishvara at its centre, perhaps the subliminal message would be clear: We share this world as equals," said M.Y. Manjula, Professor Emeritus at Christ University and retired professor in Psychology, SDM College (Autonomous), Ujire. Ms. Manjula invoked the philosophical icon Ardhanarishvara, describing it as a symbol of equal energy and complementarity in her keynote address at "Nurture the Nurturer, a national conclave on womens health organised by Sakshama, Alvas Womens Association of Alvas Education Foundation, and India Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, Mangaluru Chapter, at Moodbidri on November 27. Iron-deficiency anaemia affects 6070% of women, alongside deficiencies of Vitamin D, B12, iodine and Omega-3. "India is not food-scarce; our priorities of consumption are," she said, calling for dietary realignment from adolescence onward. Stating that hormonal maturation forms the foundation of a womans reproductive health,…...

21+ hour, 25+ min ago (146+ words) It has been only a week since Sabarimala opened for the Mandala-Makaravilakku season, but concerns are overshadowing devotion. With eight deaths in eight days, severe crowding, medical delays, and poor planning flagged by the Kerala High Court, this year's pilgrimage has become a major safety challenge. We take a look at what went wrong and what authorities are doing now. Watch: Why Sabarimala is facing a crisis this pilgrimage season | The Hindu Explains It has been only a week since Sabarimala opened for the Mandala-Makaravilakku season, but concerns are overshadowing devotion. With eight deaths in eight days, severe crowding, medical delays, and poor planning flagged by the Kerala High Court, this year's pilgrimage has become a major safety challenge. We take a look at what went wrong and what authorities are doing now. Updated - November 29, 2025 12:18 pm IST...

1+ day, 4+ hour ago (260+ words) Updated - November 29, 2025 10:12 am IST - Kolkata The number of public holidays in West Bengal for 2026 adds up to almost two months, something that's bringing smiles for those who will get frequent (and long) breaks from work and frowns mainly for those who run businesses. According to a notification issued by the State Government on Thursday (November 28, 2025) evening, public holidays for the coming year total 51 " up from 47 in 2025. The day of Mahalaya has been declared a public holiday, and an extra Durga Puja holiday " a Saturday after the festival has long ended " has also been added to the list. Arabinda Dasgupta, managing director of Dasgupta and Co., the oldest existing bookshop in Kolkata that dates back to 1886, reiterated his recent social media post when asked what he thought about the large number of public holidays in the State. "It is comical how…...

1+ day, 19+ hour ago (325+ words) Published - November 28, 2025 06:47 pm IST - MANGALURU Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that the words in the Bhagavad Gita guide not only individuals but also the policies of the nation. Speaking at the Laksha Kantha Gita Parayana programme organised by Udupi Sri Krishna Mutt and Paryaya Puthige Mutt in Udupi, he said that the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna in the holy text were "practical in every age. The programme was a devotional gathering of thousands of participants, including students, monks, scholars, and citizens from various walks of life, who recited verses from 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita in unison. Speaking of the philosopher and theologian, Madhwacharya, who hailed from Udupi, the Prime Minister said, "Throughout his life, Jagadguru Madhwacharya, who propounded the Dwaita philosophy, carried these sentiments and strengthened the unity of India, he said. Underscoring that behind the…...

1+ day, 21+ hour ago (336+ words) Updated - November 29, 2025 01:20 am IST - MANGALURU Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday (November 28, 2025) that the words in the Bhagavad Gita guide not only individuals but also the policies of the nation. Speaking at the Laksha Kantha Gita Parayana programme organised by Udupi Sri Krishna Mutt and Paryaya Puthige Mutt in Udupi, he said that the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna in the holy text were "practical in every age. The programme was a devotional gathering of thousands of participants, including students, monks, scholars, and citizens from various walks of life, who recited verses from 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita in unison. Speaking of the philosopher and theologian, Madhwacharya, who hailed from Udupi, the Prime Minister said, "Throughout his life, Jagadguru Madhwacharya, who propounded the Dwaita philosophy, carried these sentiments and strengthened the unity of India, he said. Underscoring that behind…...