NEW DELHI: Dense fog across Delhi and northern India on Friday morning disrupted flight operations at Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), with 79 departures (including 2 international) and 73 arrivals (including 2 international) cancelled and over 200 flights delayed.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for the national capital, cautioning that persistent fog could continue to disrupt flight operations at select airports. The weather agency also warned of possible delays and safety concerns on highways and railway routes due to reduced visibility.

Passengers have been advised to check with their airlines for the latest updates before heading to the airport. IGIA officials said operations are currently being conducted under CAT III conditions, a specialized Instrument Landing System (ILS) category that allows landings in very low visibility, sometimes close to zero. “Dense fog is impacting flight schedules. Our on-ground teams are coordinating with all stakeholders to assist passengers across terminals. We sincerely regret the inconvenience and urge flyers to check their flight status with respective airlines,” the airport said in a statement. Airline advisories IndiGo also issued a travel advisory, noting that early-morning fog is affecting flight operations in Delhi and parts of northern India. In a post on X, IndiGo wrote, “Early-morning fog in Delhi and across parts of northern India is reducing visibility and disrupting flight operations. We seek your understanding, as this is a seasonal occurrence, and flight movements are being managed accordingly to ensure safe and orderly operations. Customers travelling in the early hours may experience delays or revised timings. We recommend checking the latest flight status prior to leaving for the airport, goindigo.in/flight-status.“The airline is monitoring the weather, coordinating with authorities, and adjusting operations to help passengers.“Our teams are actively monitoring weather conditions and coordinating with air traffic authorities. Wherever possible, we are making operational adjustments to minimise inconvenience and ensure customer support remains available across all key touchpoints. We will keep you informed and get you on your way as soon as conditions permit,” post added on X. Passenger woes Thursday’s disruptions compounded the troubles for travelers, as over 500 flights were delayed and 27 cancelled. Visibility at the airport dropped to just 100 metres between 6:45 am and 7:30 am, improving slightly to 200 metres afterward. Passengers faced long waits inside terminals, rescheduling hassles, and anxiety over missed connections. Many complained about partial refunds, with some citing deductions for convenience fees or travel insurance despite flight cancellations. The worst disruption this week occurred on Monday, when over 800 flights were delayed, more than 200 were cancelled, and five diverted. While numbers improved midweek, the recurring fog continues to challenge smooth operations. Air quality adds to woesAdding to the disruption, Delhi woke up on Friday to ‘very poor’ air quality, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) pegged at 387 at 8 am, data from the Central Pollution Control Board showed.

The fifth and final T20I between India and South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium has kicked off with a massive personnel shift following the exclusion of India’s vice-captain, Shubman Gill.

Shubman Gill sidelined for T20I series decider between India and South Africa in Ahmedabad

During the toss on December 19, 2025, skipper Suryakumar Yadav confirmed that the star opener would miss the series finale due to an injury sustained during a practice session in Lucknow.  With India leading the five-match series 2-1, this final encounter has transformed into a high-stakes audition for the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup, as the team management explores alternative opening combinations. The absence of Gill has paved the way for the return of Sanju Samson. As South Africa captain Aiden Markram won the toss and elected to bowl, both teams revealed multiple changes to their playing XIs, reflecting a mix of tactical rotations and injury-forced adjustments.

“Gill picked up a niggle in Lucknow, so Sanju comes in,” Suryakumar said during the toss.

BCCI confirms captain Suryakumar Yadav’s update on Gill

The official reason for Gill’s absence from the Ahmedabad decider is a right-foot impact injury, an update confirmed by the BCCI medical team shortly after the toss. Providing clarity on the situation, the BCCI stated, “Shubman Gill sustained an impact injury to his right foot while batting in the nets on 16th December in Lucknow; he is improving but remains unavailable for selection.” While the injury is the immediate cause, Gill’s exclusion comes amidst a significant statistical slump that has seen the 25-year-old struggle to justify his promotion to the vice-captaincy.

𝐔𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞: Shubman Gill sustained an impact injury to his right foot while batting in the nets on 16th December in Lucknow.

After consulting a specialist and getting treatment with the BCCI medical team, he is improving but will be unavailable for selection for the final…

— BCCI (@BCCI) December 19, 2025

In 15 T20I innings throughout 2025, Gill has managed only 291 runs at a lackluster average of 24.25 and a strike rate of 137.26, failing to register a single fifty-plus score since July 2024. This “lean patch” has coincided with difficult tours of Australia and the ongoing home rubber, where he has consistently failed to provide the explosive starts required in the modern T20 format. With the 2026 T20 World Cup just two months away, this forced break might actually serve as a reset for Gill, though it simultaneously allows rivals like Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan to stake a claim for his starting spot.

Also WATCH: Jasprit Bumrah gives a shocking response after a fan disregards his request for ‘space’

Key team changes for India and South Africa in the 5th T20I

Beyond the headline-grabbing absence of Gill, both India and South Africa have opted for significant tactical reshuffles to exploit the unique conditions of the Narendra Modi Stadium. For the hosts, the return of local hero Jasprit Bumrah in place of Harshit Rana stands as the most impactful change, as the premier pacer returns to bolster the attack in his home city.

Additionally, the spin department saw a swap with Washington Sundar replacing Kuldeep Yadav, a move likely influenced by Sundar’s intimate knowledge of the track as a Gujarat Titans regular and his ability to lengthen the batting order. South Africa, too, made a calculated adjustment by bringing in spin-bowling all-rounder George Linde for the express pace of Anrich Nortje, indicating that the Proteas expect the pitch to offer grip and turn as the game progresses. Captain Markram highlighted the importance of the toss, choosing to bowl first to capitalize on the anticipated dew factor that often plagues the side bowling second in Ahmedabad.

Also WATCH: Ishan Kishan breaks into iconic ‘Dhurandhar dance’ after Jharkhand wins SMAT 2025

NEW DELHI: Supreme Court said on Friday that the right to free speech is not unfettered and denied anticipatory bail to a Bengaluru-based 24-year-old chartered accountancy student, who, on his parody account ‘Jawaharlal Nehru Satire’ on X, had posted about the PM and his mother. The court said the student can approach Gujarat HC for relief.“People who abuse free speech cannot be extended discretionary relief by the courts,” said SC.

SC: Right to free speech not absolute, denies pre-arrest bail

Supreme Court said on Friday that the right to free speech is not unfettered and denied anticipatory bail to a Bengaluru-based 24-year-old chartered accountancy student, who, on his parody account ‘Jawaharlal Nehru Satire’ on X, had posted about the PM and his mother. The court said the student can approach Gujarat HC for relief. “People who abuse free speech cannot be extended discretionary relief by the courts,” said SC. It dismissed the petition which had sought quashing of the FIR registered by Ahmedabad police and refused to accede to his request for grant of anticipatory bail or protection from arrest to enable him to join investigation. Counsel for the accused said the man only put a question to a post which he had not generated. “For this he is being accused of outraging the woman’s modesty. Police from Gujarat visited his house and he was detained at a Bengaluru police station without following the procedure of law,” he said. “Police are threatening that they will arrest him. He is ready to cooperate with the investigation but requires protection from arrest,” the counsel said.The bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholisaid, “You do not have any sense of remorse or repentance for the abusive words you used against her.” The counsel said he is just a student and is repentant about his post and requested the court to at least protect him from arrest.The bench said, “Petitioner who has abused his free speech right cannot be extended discretionary relief by the court.”An Ahmedabad resident on Nov 7 filed a police complaint that the accused had posted defamatory content against the PM and his mother to “harm their dignity, reputation and tarnish India’s standing in the international community”. Police registered an FIR and went to Bengaluru to question the accused. X has withheld the account after registration of the FIR.The petitioner alleged that in violation of his fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19 and 21, of the Constitution, Ahmedabad police, in league with Bengaluru cops, illegally took him to cyber crime police station and threatened him with arrest.

Mumbai: Water supply in some areas of G North, K East and H-East wards will be low pressure for 87 hours that is from 10 am on December 22 to 1 am on December 26. Besides, there will be changes in regular water supply timings as well, as BMC is carrying out cross-connection work after diversion of a 2400 millimeter diameter Upper Vaitarna main water pipeline for Metro Line 7A project work. According to the civic body, this work is extremely important and would be carried out in a planned manner by following the required standards. In the ‘G North’ ward, Dharavi morning water supply – Dharavi Loop Road, A. K. G. Nagar, Jasmine Mill Road, Matunga Kamgar Colony, Sant Rohidas Road, 60 Feet Road, 90 Feet Road, Sant Kakkaiya Road, M. P. Nagar Dhorwada, Mahatma Gandhi Road, while the regular water supply timing is between 4 am and 12 pm, there will be a low pressure water supply from 9 am to 5 pm daily from Monday to ThursdaySimilarly, the Dharavi evening water supplies areas such as Dharavi Main Road, Ganesh Mandir Road, Dilip Kadam Road, Jasmine Mill Road, Mahim Junction and A. K. G. Nagar timings are from 4 PM to 9 PM, while low pressure water supply will be from 5 PM to 10:00 PM during the same period.In the K East ward, areas such as Kabir Nagar, Bamanwada, Parsiwada, Airport Area, Tarun Bharat Colony, Islampura, Deulwadi, P&T Colony, which has regular supply from 2 PM to 5:30 PM, will have low pressure water supply from 2 PM to 5:30 PM. Areas such as Koldongri, Juni Police Galli, Vijay Nagar (Sahar Road) and Mograpada, which has egular water supply timing between 5 PM and 10 PM, will have low pressure water supply from 5 PM to 10 PM.In the H-East, areas such as the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) including Motilal Nagar, which has regular water supply timing 10 PM to 11:40 PM will have low pressure water supply from 10 PM to 11:40 PM daily, while areas such as Prabhat Colony, TPS-3, Agripada, Kalina, CST Road, Hansbhugra Road, Vidyapeeth, South side of CST Road, Yashwant Nagar, Sundar Nagar, Koliwari Village, Teen Bangla, Shantilal Compound, Patel Compound, Golibar Road, Khar Subway to Kherwadi, Navapada, Behram Nagar, A. K. Road, and Government Colony Bandra (East), which has regular supply from 3:30 AM to 9 AM will have low pressure water supply from 3:30 AM to 9 AM daily from December 23 to 25.The civic body has appealed to citizens of these wards to store necessary water as a precautionary measure and use water sparingly during the repair period. Citizens have been advised to boil and filter water before drinking for the next few days, as a precautionary measure.

US President Donald Trump introduced the US visa scheme aimed at wealthy foreigners willing to pay at least $1 million to gain permanent residency in the country. The programme is called the Trump Gold Card, and it is designed for high-level professionals who can prove they will provide a “substantial benefit” to the United States.Speaking as he revealed the card, Trump described it as “the green card on steroids. It is a pathway, it is an amazing thing.” He criticised the Biden administration, claiming that around 25 million people had entered the US during its tenure, including “drug dealers and all sorts of people… from jails all over the world: Venezuela, the Congo, everywhere.”Trump said the Gold Card scheme would prioritise talent over mass migration. “Now, when people come in, they have to pay $1 million. And we’ve seen a tremendous surge,” he said. The MAGA chief added that the programme would allow graduates of top US universities to remain and work for American companies. “Someone graduates top of their class at the best school, wants to work for a great American company and now they can. The company will pay a little bit, but that’s okay. They’ll be able to keep the talent.”Under the scheme, companies sponsoring workers must pay $2 million, plus additional charges. A higher-tier “platinum” option offering preferential tax treatment will also be available for $5 million. All applicants must first pay a non-refundable $15,000 processing fee, with further payments to the government potentially required depending on individual circumstances.Trump compared the Gold Card to a standard green card, which allows immigrants of all income levels to live and work permanently in the United States, often leading to citizenship after five years. He suggested that the new programme was targeted at “high-level” professionals who are “productive,” rather than low-skilled migrants.The announcement comes alongside Trump’s hardline immigration stance, which included a crackdown on illegal migration and measures discouraging legal immigration. According to the POTUS, the Gold Card programme would generate revenue for the US Treasury while ensuring that top talent can remain in the country to contribute to American businesses.

KOLKATA: A 78-year-old retired central govt employee, who was an established hockey player and served as a senior functionary at Food Corporation of India (FCI), reportedly lost his life after being hit by a luxury sedan, a BMW, on Thursday morning near Eden Gardens.The accused driver fled immediately, turning it into a classic hit-and-run case, only to abandon the vehicle a little way ahead and flee. Cops from Maidan Police and the Fatal Squad of the Traffic Police department are yet to nab the driver, though details of car ownership have been processed by them.

According to police, victim Subhendu Hazra, a descendant of the Rani Rashmoni family who lived at 13, Rashmoni Road, was a regular at Maidan all his life. Even when he hung up his boots as a hockey player, he had been going for his morning walk for the past 35 years.“It was around 7.55 am when Hazra was trying to cross Indira Gandhi Road towards the Eden Gardens side. The BMW appeared from the CR Das statue end. The driver noticed Hazra and tried to swerve, hoping that he would not cross. However, Hazra suddenly tried to sprint away from the car, and was hit by the BMW in the process. By the time we took him to hospital, he had died,” said an officer.The police said they have studied the CCTV footage that shows the exact sequence of events. “Hazra used to go with a lot of others from the area. He took a neighbour’s car or even the bus. Our neighbour said he would not go on Thursday as his car had broken down. However, Hazra insisted on going there and said he would take a bus. He got off at Akashvani Bhavan and then met with this accident,” said a family member.Cops said the BMW driver realised he might be lynched, and stopped the car near Babughat, where he abandoned it. The right right of the car bore dents. “We have progressed in the probe and we are on the verge of carrying out the arrest,” said an officer. Though the case has been registered at Maidan PS, the case has been taken over by the Fatal Squad of the Traffic wing.Barely eight days ago, at least three persons were injured, two of them seriously, after a Ferrari spiralled out of control, hit a lamp post, and then a roadside tree in the middle of Hospital Road. That incident was reported around 7.40 am. The car had broken apart into two under the impact.Just like the Ferrari accident, Kolkata Police has decided to seek help of engineers from BMW in order to study the exact reasons that led to one of their cars getting involved in this accident.

Mumbai: Bombay high court has directed the state govt to extend the benefit of Rs 50 lakh compensation to the family of a zilla parishad frontline worker from Kolhapur who died of Covid in July 2021, saying the cutoff date under such a welfare scheme cannot be sacrosanct.A bench of Justices M S Karnik and Ajit B Kadethankar, while allowing a writ petition filed by the legal heirs of Yashwant Khandu Jadhav, an extension officer with Karveer Panchayat Samiti, ordered the authorities to grant the benefit within four weeks. Jadhav contracted Covid during the second wave of the pandemic on June 16, 2021. He had served as a frontline worker in the first wave, too. He was hospitalised from June 16 till his death on July 11. His wife, son and mother approached the court after the state rejected their claim on the grounds that his death occurred after June 30, 2021—the cutoff date for seeking compensation prescribed under an April 25, 2022, govt resolution. The state contended that the scheme clearly applied only to employees who died on or before June 30, 2021, and that a cutoff date was necessary for implementation of welfare measures. Rejecting the state’s narrow and technical approach, HC noted that there was no dispute that Jadhav was a frontline worker who contracted Covid in the course of his official duties. The court said the insurance scheme was welfare-oriented, meant to honour the sacrifice of frontline workers, who faced exceptional risks during the pandemic. The bench observed that Jadhav had been admitted to the hospital before June 30, 2021, his health had worsened prior to the cutoff date, and his death on July 11, 2021, was a direct continuation of the same illness. In such circumstances, the cutoff date could not be treated as “sacrosanct”, it held. “Many of these bravehearts made the ultimate sacrifice; their own lives fell victim in their courageous efforts to save others,” HC said. The court ruled that denying relief to Jadhav’s family would amount to injustice and would undermine the very purpose of the scheme.