External affairs minister S Jaishankar

NEW DELHI: Amid calls by Bangladesh for ex-PM Sheikh Hasina’s extradition, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said Saturday her stay in India is her personal decision influenced by what transpired in the country last year.India has so far not acceded to Dhaka’s demand for the extradition of Hasina, who was sentenced to death last month for crimes against humanity.Asked if she could stay as long as she wanted, the minister said this was a different question. “She came here in a certain circumstance, and I think that circumstance clearly is a factor in what happens to her. But again, that is something in which she has to make up her mind,” he said. He also said India is a well-wisher of Bangladesh.

“As a democratic country… we would like to see the will of the people ascertained. I’m quite confident that whatever comes out… would have a balanced and mature view about the relationship and, hopefully things would improve,” he said at Hindustan Times Leadership Summit.On the visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said the India-Russia partnership has been among the “steadiest big relationships” in the last 70-80 years.Unreasonable for nations to expect say in our foreign ties: EAMForeign minister Jaishankar disagreed that Putin’s visit could complicate India’s negotiations with the US on a bilateral trade agreement.“I think everybody knows that India has relations with all the major countries in the world,” Jaishankar said at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit. “I think for any country to expect to have a veto or a say in how we develop our relations with others is not a reasonable proposition,” he said.Jaishankar was asked if Putin’s two-day visit to New Delhi that focused largely on significantly enhancing the economic dimension of India-Russia ties will have a bearing on the negotiations with the US for the proposed trade deal. “Because remember, the others can expect the same. I think we’ve always made it very clear that we have multiple relationships. We have a freedom of choice,” he said. “We talk about what is called strategic autonomy and that continues and I cannot imagine why anybody would have reason to expect the contrary,” he added.The minister acknowledged that the focus of the Trump administration has been on trade and noted that India’s approach in navigating it is totally driven by national interests. “I think clearly right now trade is the most important issue there. We have, it’s clearly very central to the thinking in Washington, much more than it was to earlier administrations, which is something which we have recognised and we are prepared to meet,” he said.“But we are prepared to meet it on reasonable terms. I mean, for those of you who think that diplomacy is about pleasing somebody else I’m sorry, that’s not my view of diplomacy. I mean, to me, it is about defending our national interests,” he said.The India-US relations are going through possibly the worst phase in the last two decades after Washington imposed a whopping 50% on Indian goods, including 25% levies for New Delhi’s procurement of Russian crude. The two sides are currently holding negotiations for the proposed a trade deal “We believe that there can be a landing point for our respective trade interests. Obviously, that is something which will be negotiated hard because it has an implication for livelihoods in this country,” he said.“At the end of the day, for us the interests of the workers and the farmers and the small business and the middle class matters. When we look at a trade agreement with a country like the US, you have to be extremely judicious about your position, about what you put on the table,” he said.On President Putin’s trip to India, Jaishankar said for a “big” and “rising” country like India, it is important to maintain good cooperation with as many important players as possible in the world in line with freedom of choice.

Yashasvi Jaiswal. (Photo/

India defeated South Africa in the third ODI of the three-match series on Saturday to clinch the series 2-1, completing a strong finish to the contest.Chasing a target of 271, India overhauled the total with 10.1 overs and nine wickets to spare. Yashasvi Jaiswal scored an unbeaten 116 off 121 balls, striking 12 fours and two sixes. He shared a 155-run opening partnership with Rohit Sharma, who scored 75 off 73 balls with seven fours and three sixes, giving India a solid foundation.

Virat Kohli played a quick, unbeaten innings of 65 off 45 balls, hitting six fours and three sixes to finish the chase and ensure India’s victory with more than 10 overs to spare.The match also marked a milestone for Jaiswal. His century was his maiden ODI hundred, and it made him only the sixth Indian batter to score hundreds in all three formats of men’s international cricket. The other players who have achieved this feat are Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, and Shubman Gill.

India batters with 100s in all three formats

India’s strong batting performance, led by Jaiswal, Rohit, and Kohli, ensured that the hosts not only chased down a tricky target but did so efficiently, leaving South Africa with little room to fight back in the final game of the series. Earlier, Kuldeep Yadav (4/41) and Prasidh Krishna (4/66) took eight wickets as India bowled out South Africa for 270, even as Quinton de Kock scored 106 in the third ODI.De Kock scored 106 off 89 balls with eight fours and six sixes. Captain Temba Bavuma made 48 from 67 balls with five fours. The other South African batters did not build on the start.Prasidh dismissed Matthew Breetzke (24) and Aiden Markram in the 29th over. Kuldeep took charge of the remaining wickets, removing the lower order.

NEW DELHI: Govt on Saturday cracked the whip on IndiGo and other airlines charging exorbitant fares amid mass cancellations, capping domestic airfares at Rs 18,000 (UDF, passenger security fees and taxes extra). In a late evening meeting, civil aviation secretary Samir Kumar Sinha gave IndiGo two days — instead of the 21 sought by the airline — to fully restore operations.Sinha summoned the airline brass led by CEO Pieter Elbers to Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan after the ministry invoked the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, arming itself with powers instead of leaving it to aviation regulator DGCA. The carrier, controlling 60% of the domestic traffic, has been ordered to ensure refunds for cancelled tickets by 8pm on Dec 7, and return bags within two days. The airline has been barred from charging any rescheduling fee, which it was levying despite failing for over a month to adhere to new flying time norms for pilots and crew.

Unlike other airlines which were updating DGCA periodically about flight duty time limitations (FDTL), IndiGo not only failed to implement it but even refused to disclose details to the regulator. Officials pointed out that the airline did not update authorities and travellers adequately during the chaos caused by its failure to adhere to FTDL despite being given two years to accept the globally accepted protocol.IndiGo has been instructed to improve its communication: it will now submit a report every fortnight on implementation of its commitment to recruit enough pilots to ensure compliance with resting norms.Separately, officials indicated the probe into IndiGo’s operational collapse may be expedited to find out why such a massive failure took place, and based on that the airline may be penalised. The role of the management is under the scanner as well. The airfare caps stay till IndiGo operations stabilise.Cap on fares comes too late for lakhsFares for short flights covering a distance of up to 500km (like Delhi-Lucknow/Jaipur) have been capped at Rs 7,500; for 500-1,000km (Delhi-Udaipur, Hyderabad-Chennai) at Rs 12,000; 1,000-1,500km (Delhi-Mumbai) at Rs 15,000 and above 1,500km (Delhi-Chennai/Bengaluru/Hyderabad) at Rs 18,000. India had last imposed fare caps during Covid (May 2020 to Aug 2022).Aviation ministry said it has “taken a serious note of unusually high airfares being charged by certain airlines during the ongoing disruption” and “invoked its regulatory powers to ensure fair and reasonable fares across all affected routes” to “protect passengers from any form of opportunistic pricing.”IndiGo is expected to normalise operations by Dec 15 after govt kept certain provisions of the new FDTL norms related to its Airbus A320 fleet in abeyance till Feb 10, 2026.A reduction in flight cancellation may have begun on Saturday when that number dropped to about 700 — from over 1,000 a day earlier. “We are on our way to operate over 1,500 flights by end of day (Saturday). With regards to destinations, over 95% of network connectivity has already been re-established as we are able to operate to 135 out of the existing 138 destinations in operations. We are committed to build back the trust of our customers,” IndiGo said in a statement. IndiGo used to operate over 2,200 flights daily.The fare-capping development may have come way too late for lakhs of passengers who had IndiGo tickets for travel from earlier this week when the airline started cancelling hundreds of flights, till mid-Dec when IndiGo expects to normalise operations. These passengers had to cancel their IndiGo tickets and buy on other airlines like Air India, AI Express, Akasa and SpiceJet at sky-high fares — touching upto Rs 90,000 on certain routes.Geeta Srivastava (name changed on request), for instance, bought tickets for Delhi-Udaipur-Delhi for Rs 11,000. While she travelled Delhi-Udaipur (Dec 5) on some other airline, she was forced to cancel her IndiGo Udaipur-Delhi ticket of Sunday. “I bought Udaipur-Delhi ticket on another airline for Rs 24,000. Of what use is govt directive? Throughout this crisis, aviation ministry has been nothing but a mute spectator,” she fumed.Like Srivastava, lakhs of passengers have had to shell out many times the usual airfare to get to their destinations. The arithmetic is against passengers as IndiGo has almost 65% of the domestic market share. Before the IndiGo crisis, more than five lakh daily domestic flyers were travelling daily this season. Until IndiGo operations are back to normal, almost the vast majority of travellers are chasing seats on airlines that have the remaining 35%. With such a demand-supply mismatch, fares have zoomed.Aviation ministry said in a statement Saturday: “An official directive has been issued to all airlines mandating strict adherence to fare caps that have now been prescribed. These caps will remain in force until the situation fully stabilises. Any deviation from the prescribed norms will attract immediate corrective action in public interest.”

A complaint has been officially filed against Aryan Khan, the son of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, following an incident on November 28 at a Bengaluru pub where he allegedly flashed the middle finger toward the crowd. Videos of the alleged action went viral, causing immediate online outrage and leading to legal action being taken against him.According to ANI, advocate Owaiz Hussain S, a resident of Sankey Road, submitted the complaint to the Director General of Police, the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner, the DCP (Central Division), the Inspector of Cubbon Park Police Station, and the Karnataka State Women’s Commission. He sought the registration of an FIR against Aryan Khan for making what he described as an obscene gesture in the presence of the public.

Complaint alleges insult to women’s modesty

In his complaint, Hussain stated that several women were present at the venue when Aryan Khan allegedly made the gesture, claiming that the act “insulted their modesty” and attracted relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). He further alleged that the gesture caused “public discomfort, embarrassment and emotional distress,” and said the incident reflected poorly on Bengaluru as a “safe and dignified public environment.”Hussain outlined three main accusations in his complaint:Intentionally making an obscene and humiliating gesture in the presence of womenObscene acts in public, alleging the gesture was likely to cause annoyance or distressConduct likely to cause public disorder or alarm, citing viral footage and ensuing outrageThe lawyer noted that the gesture occurred during an event under the jurisdiction of the Ashok Nagar police station.

Police initiate suo motu enquiry

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Division) Hakay Akshay Machhindra confirmed that the police had already taken note of the incident. He said that based on social media posts, authorities had initiated a suo motu enquiry and collected CCTV footage from the pub premises for verification. The case is currently being investigated under Section 173 B of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. On the work front Aryan made his directorial debut with ‘Ba***ds of Bollywood’

Justin Greaves and Kemar Roach carved their names into Test cricket history after producing a record-breaking, unbeaten seventh-wicket stand to rescue West Indies in the first Test against New Zealand at Hagley Oval, Christchurch. The duo added 180 unbroken runs in the fourth innings – the highest seventh-wicket partnership ever recorded in a Test run chase – to deny the hosts victory in the opening match of the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.

Chasing a monumental target of 531, West Indies were staring at defeat at 277/6 on the final day when Greaves and Roach joined forces. However, what followed was one of the greatest acts of defiance by a lower order in modern Test cricket.

Justin Greaves’ double ton and Kemar Roach’s career-best resistance rewrites records

Greaves produced a monumental innings under pressure, finishing on a marathon 202 not out off 388 balls, holding the innings together with remarkable composure and stamina. Roach, better known for his new-ball spells than his batting, played the innings of his life – a gritty 58 not out off 233 deliveries, the most balls ever faced by a No. 8 or lower in a fourth innings.

Together they consumed 409 balls, blunting a world-class New Zealand attack under fading light and rising tension in Christchurch.

Their unbeaten 180-run partnership surpassed the long-standing record of 160 set by Sachin Tendulkar and Manoj Prabhakar for India against Pakistan at Old Trafford in 1990 – previously the highest seventh-wicket stand in the last innings of a Test match.

While the overall Test seventh-wicket record still belongs to West Indies’ Denis Atkinson and Clairmonte Depeiaza (347 vs Australia, 1955), Greaves and Roach now hold the distinction of owning the premier stand in the uniquely challenging setting of a fourth-innings Test chase.

Also READ: Andre Russell reveals his toughest IPL opponent and the most challenging bowler he has faced

Top 7th-wicket stands in the fourth innings of Test matches

• Justin Greaves & Roston Chase (West Indies) – 180* vs New Zealand, Christchurch, 2025
• Sachin Tendulkar & Manoj Prabhakar (India) – 160 vs England, Manchester, 1990
• Richie Benaud & Alan Davidson (Australia) – 134 vs West Indies, Brisbane, 1960
• Ajit Agarkar & VVS Laxman (India) – 126 vs England, Lord’s, 2002
• Asoka de Silva & Ravi Ratnayeke (Sri Lanka) – 124 vs Australia, Hobart, 1989
• Jacob Oram & Daniel Vettori (New Zealand) – 124 vs Sri Lanka, Colombo (SSC), 2009
• Dave Nourse & Gordon White (South Africa) – 121 vs England, Johannesburg, 190

Also READ: NZ vs WI – Fans go wild as Justin Greaves’ stunning double ton leads West Indies to historic draw in 1st Test against New Zealand

Mumbai: The world famous Alphonso mango, a rich agricultural legacy of Maharashtra, is mirrored by a similarly luscious fruit in neighbouring Gujarat. Now, a handful of farmers from Konkan are protesting against a move by Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) in Gujarat to acquire a GI (geographical indication) tag for the Valsad Alphonso.Alphonso mangoes have been cultivated across the western belt of Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat for over a century. BKS, through its Valsad unit, had submitted an application for GI tag for ‘Valsad Hapus’ two years ago and the first hearing was held Oct 30 this year. It will take a few hearings before the tag is awarded. However, a Konkan growers’ association, led by Vivek Bhide, argues that the tag threatens the Konkan Alphonso, which is known worldwide for its creamy and non-fibrous texture. It claims no “fake Alphonso” should dilute its worth. Bhide did not respond to TOI’s requests for comment. But the BKS representative who filed the application told TOI, “Alphonso is a variety of mango that has been grown from Karnataka to Surat for nearly 150-200 years. Customers, even from Vashi APMC, who have eaten our Valsad mango, vouch for its delectable taste. We have merely sought a GI tag of ‘Valsad Hapus’ to increase our brand value. Ratnagiri and Devgad already have the tag. There is no rivalry. Moreover, Gujarat’s crop season starts after May 20 when Maharashtra’s ends. Maharashtra and Gujarat were a single state before 1960. We are brothers.” The timing of the issue—amid local body elections—made it ripe for state politicians to attempt to score a point. They complained that Gujarat was usurping yet another Maharashtrian asset. Congress accused the state govt of giving preference to Gujarat over Maharashtra under the direction of Union home minister Amit Shah. “Around 16 projects, which were supposed to be set up in Maharashtra providing employment opportunities to lakhs of locals, were diverted to Gujarat, including semiconductors. In the same way, now they want to give Alphonso to Gujarat,” said its spokesperson in a statement issued on behalf of state party chief Harshwardhan Sapkal. NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar said Konkan was synonymous with Alphonso. “Konkan Hapus has demand from all over the world, and farmers here have preserved Hapus with immense hard work,” he said on X. “The largest turnover in Konkan happens through Hapus, but since Gandhinagar and Navsari University applied in 2023 for GI under the name Valsad Hapus, now a crisis of indication looms over Konkan Hapus. Govt should protect the producers of Konkan, and leaders of Konkan in govt should raise this issue.” Traders at Vashi APMC have mixed feelings. Akshay Shinde, a merchant, said, “A GI tag for Gujarat Alphonso is a threat to Konkan. In any case, there is the Shivneri Alphonso to contend with. Now, Gujarat will join the bandwagon.” Other traders termed the opposition “unjustified”, saying Valsad Alphonso differs in taste, colour, aroma, texture and pulp and is grown in different conditions. “Alphonso is grown along the Saurashtra-Konkan belt over a 700km range and each has different characteristics. There should not be any opposition,” said wholesaler Nitin More. A farmer from Chiplun, Sharad Surve, said every Alphonso crop has a different harvest season, preventing market clashes. “Valsad is not a new variety. Similarly, Shivneri with a long tradition is also seeking GI tag. If all get GI recognition, it will benefit farmers nationwide, as each Alphonso has a unique identity,” said Anil Meher, chairman of Krishi Vigyan Kendra of Narayangaon, managed under Indian Council of Agricultural Research. Farmers and traders acknowledge that the GI tag offers no real protection. “Even crates of Konkan Alphonso are ‘adulterated’ with cheap varieties in transit from farm to table. One dozen Konkan Alphonso sold in the market often contains four to five pieces of cheaper varieties, and buyers cannot tell the difference. Manufacturers of mango juice, jam, pulp and aamras brazenly use labels like Konkan Alphonso on their packages but use cheap varieties of the fruit,” said a trader.

Fr Richard D’Souza with Pope Leo XIV. D’Souza has served as superior of the Jesuit community attached to Vatican Observatory since 2002

PANAJI: Physicist, astronomer, scientist, Indiana Jones. Not quite the words to describe a priest, let alone a 46-year-old Jesuit from Mapusa. But that is exactly what Fr Richard D’Souza is.At the Vatican Observatory in Castel Gandolfo, an ancient castle that once hosted pontiffs, D’Souza is piecing together the violent history of galactic cannibalism — the consumption of smaller galaxies by larger ones. “My work is basically to understand the histories of galaxies. I try to be a galactic archaeologist, so I put on this Indiana Jones cap and I try to see how galaxies grow to the massive size that they are,” he said.His breakthrough came in 2018, published in Nature Astronomy, when he and Eric Bell proposed that the Andromeda galaxy’s most significant merger — a violent collision that reshaped the Milky Way’s nearest galactic neighbour — occurred approximately 2 billion years ago.D’Souza’s own trajectory was less violent. Born in Pune in 1978, raised partly in Kuwait and partly in Goa, he entered the Society of Jesus, the formal name of the Jesuits, at 18. A Catholic order known for its intellectual pursuits, the society recognised in him something worth nurturing.“I used to go for camping trips while studying at St Britto’s, in the countryside, far away from the city lights where you could see the night sky. This was perhaps my first interest in the heavens, and this was confirmed a lot during my novitiate in Desur, Belagavi, which was a remote place where I could see the night sky,” said D’Souza.For his Jesuit formators, D’Souza’s path was neither straight nor predictable. After completing his physics degree at St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, he pursued a master’s degree in Heidelberg, working at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy. Then came philosophy in Pune, as his Jesuit formation demanded, followed by theology. Then, a gravitational pull-back to physics through his doctoral work at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics in Munich.“I seriously started thinking of astronomy as a career when I started my master’s in physics at Heidelberg, where I did some small research project on astronomy, and it was this that really attracted me. I fell in love with the subject,” he said.Between philosophy and theology, he briefly veered towards social action in 2007 when he helped start St Paul’s Community College in Belagavi for school dropouts. This oscillation between the cosmic and the communal, between the spiritual and the celestial, should be debilitating. Not for him.“Our work at the observatory is basically doing scientific research with 80-90% of our time going in collecting and analysing data, and going for conferences. The remaining 10% of the time, we remind the Church that faith and science need to go together,” said D’Souza.Since 2022, D’Souza has served as superior of the Jesuit community attached to the Vatican Observatory. He is now director of the observatory itself, one of the oldest astronomical institutes in the world that dates back to 1774.Given that he straddles the two heavenly realms of theology and astronomy, he is often asked about extraterrestrial life. “I was waiting for this question and my response is, thank God I am not an expert on that,” he recently said at an event in Porvorim, blending humour with pragmatism.