KOLKATA: The National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, has confirmed Nipah, a viral disease with high mortality, in both samples sent from Bengal. The samples were taken from two nurses of a Barasat hospital whose condition remain critical. A house staff at a Burdwan hospital, who came in close contact with one of the nurses, has developed mild fever, sources said. Officials are planning to bring the doctor to Beliaghata ID hospital. Earlier, samples from the two nurses, who are being treated at the Barasat hospital where they are employed, tested positive for Nipah at AIIMS Kalyani and were sent to Pune for re-confirmation.

The health department has identified over 120 people who came in close contact with the two nurses, one male and the other female, recently. All of them are in home isolation now. Efforts are on to identify more close contacts. “Contact tracing is on. The 120-odd close contacts identified so far include family members of the nurses and healthcare workers,” said a health department official.The healthcare personnel include nurses and doctors from the Barasat hospital and two hospitals in Katwa and Burdwan, where the female nurse was treated before being shifted to Barasat.Sources in the East Burdwan health department said 10 individuals from Katwa, including two doctors, and 38 from Burdwan, including eight doctors, are in home isolation.Apart from doctors, those under observation include nurses, ambulance drivers and other healthcare providers. Samples of some of the close contacts have been sent to AIIMS Kalyani.Sources said both patients are on ventilation, while the female nurse is in coma. “Doctors at the Barasat hospital are following all protocols. But the concern is the severity and high mortality of the infection,” said a health official.While the source of the infection is still unclear, sources indicated that the nurses might have contracted the virus from a colleague at the Barasat hospital. A healthcare worker at the hospital died a few weeks ago after showing symptoms of Nipah.“It is difficult to pinpoint the source of infection. It could be human-to-human transmission or they might have got the virus from contaminated fruits or fresh date palm sap,” an official said.The patients have no significant travel history outside the state, but they had gone home, to East Midnapore and Katwa, days before being taken ill. Health officials said many migrant workers from the state tend to come back home around this time, indicating another possibility of human-to-human transmission.“During winter, people in rural areas tend to drink raw date palm juice, which can be a potential source of infection as fruit bats feed on date palm,” said the source. A panel is coordinating with a National Joint Outbreak Response Team sent by the Union health ministry to monitor the situation.(With inputs from Mohammad Asif)

Ghaziabad: A six-year-old girl was allegedly beaten to death by her stepmother in Dasna under the jurisdiction of Wave City police station on Monday. Police said the accused assaulted the child for over 20 minutes after locking her inside a room. The child’s father and stepmother have been detained for questioning.The victim was identified as Shifa, a resident of Dasna. According to police, her father, Akram, lived with his second wife, Nisha, and his three children from his first marriage — Fiza (8), Shifa (6) and Aahil (4). Akram ran a shoe and slipper stall at a weekly market in the area.

Wave City ACP Priyashri Pal said Akram’s first wife, Tarana alias Gulzar, died of burn injuries in 2022. Although her family alleged dowry-related harassment, no complaint was filed at the time. Akram married Nisha, a resident of Kithaur in Meerut, in 2023.Police said preliminary inquiry revealed that the children were allegedly subjected to abuse after the second marriage. On Monday, around 11am, Akram left for work. Soon after, Nisha allegedly began assaulting Shifa. When the elder sister, Fiza, intervened, Nisha took Shifa into a room, locked it from inside and continued beating her with hands, legs and later a stick for over 20 minutes.Around 1pm, a neighbour heard the child screaming and knocked on the door. The girl was found unconscious and unresponsive. Neighbours alerted the police and rushed the child to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared her dead.Police said multiple injury marks were found on the child’s body. The body was sent for autopsy, and the report is awaited. Akram and Nisha were taken into custody, and questioning is underway.Shifa’s siblings told police they had earlier complained to their father about Nisha’s behaviour, but no action was taken. Injury marks were also found on Aahil’s body. Tarana’s family has been informed and is expected to take custody of the children, police said.

In a historic display of chasing prowess, the Mumbai Indians (MI) etched their name into the record books on Tuesday night at the DY Patil Stadium, pulling off a high-octane 7-wicket victory over the Gujarat Giants (GG). In what has become the league’s most one-sided rivalry, Mumbai tracked down a massive 193-run target to extend their flawless head-to-head record to 8-0.

Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and Nicola Carey added 84 runs for the fourth-wicket stand to carry the side over the line and also register their highest chase in WPL history. This feat now stands as the overall second-highest successful run chase in the tournament’s history, highlighting the sheer batting depth of the defending champions. The result not only halts Gujarat’s unbeaten start to the season but also serves as a stern reminder of Mumbai’s clutch ability when the stakes are highest.

Aggressive Gujarat Giants batting sets massive target after mid-inning collapse

Winning the toss and electing to bowl, Mumbai’s attack initially struggled to contain the Giants’ explosive start. Beth Mooney (33 off 26) and Kanika Ahuja (35 off 18) took a liking to the returning Hayley Matthews, who looked rusty in her opening spell. However, MI fought back through the middle overs as Amelia Kerr (1/32) applied the brakes, removing the dangerous Mooney just as she looked set for a big score.

The real destruction occurred in the final four overs. Following the historic tactical ‘retired out’ of debutant Ayushi Soni, Bharti Fulmali looked like a woman possessed, dismantling the MI death bowling with surgical precision. Fulmali smashed a staggering 36 off just 15 deliveries*, decorated with 3 boundaries and 3 towering sixes. Alongside Georgia Wareham (43 off 33)*, the duo stitched together an unbeaten 56-run partnership in just 24 balls to drag the score to 192/5. Despite the late onslaught, Carey remained the one of most economical for MI, picking up the vital wicket of Ashleigh Gardner.

Also READ: EXPLAINED: Why Ayushi Soni was retired out during MI-W vs GG-W match in the WPL 2026

Harmanpreet Kaur’s masterclass and Nicola Carey’s clinical finish secure historic MI victory

The second half of the contest was a showcase of pure batting intelligence. Despite the early loss of Matthews and Gunalan Kamalini (13), Amanjot Kaur (40 off 26) kept the required rate in check with a flurry of boundaries. The stage was then set for Harmanpreet, who anchored the chase with an unbeaten 71 off 43 deliveries. Kaur reached her half-century in just 33 balls, using her trademark wristy flicks and powerful drives to puncture the gaps with ease.

The partnership with Carey proved to be the decisive blow for the Giants. Carey played the perfect foil, remaining unbeaten on 38 off 23 balls, finding boundaries at critical moments to prevent the run rate from spiraling. The duo’s 84-run unbeaten stand dismantled the Giants’ confidence, with Mumbai reaching the target when Kaur elegantly flicked Sophie Devine through square leg for the winning boundary.

Here’s how fans reacted:

Orange Cap for Mumbai Indians queen Harmanpreet Kaur. Captain leading us from the front. pic.twitter.com/YAOGLPtLNt

— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) January 13, 2026

It looks like the story of this year’s #TATAWPL will be about batters from outside the national team making a big impact. It means India’s player base is starting to grow and that is music to my ears.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) January 13, 2026

Another day, another Harmanpreet Kaur masterclass 👑

— PUMA Cricket (@pumacricket) January 13, 2026

Back to winning ways! 💪

Mumbai Indians win their second match against GG in the TATA WPL 💙

Strong comeback and great team effort!

Well played, Nicola Carey & Amanjot Kaur👏

Harmanpreet Kaur’s unbeaten 71*#MumbaiIndians #MIvGG #AaliRe#TATAWPL pic.twitter.com/RLfJW6FIfc

— Aneesh (@Aneesh_98) January 13, 2026

HARMANPREET KAUR – THE BEST BATTER IN WPL HISTORY 🥶💥 pic.twitter.com/5wByUIEFRH

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) January 13, 2026

Harmanpreet thor the player you are🙌🏻 pic.twitter.com/pTeoZOJLWy

— Shivani (@meme_ki_diwani) January 13, 2026

Harmanpreet Kaur is a beast in batting.

Truly the best in the WPL. 🔥

— Bhawana (@cricbhawana) January 13, 2026

Nicola Carey is having a dream debut in WPL for Mumbai Indians. She delievered almost everytime whenever team needed her.

She has provided crucial wickets in the middle at crucial junctures, add those clutch runs at the end. What a signing she is turning out be. MI has found… pic.twitter.com/FWXAYAeIZ2

— Akshat (@Akshatgoel1408) January 13, 2026

If you see Nicola Carey and Sophie Molineux bat, you would think they both are sisters and learned batting styles under the same coach so identical ffs.

— Sai (@akakrcb6) January 13, 2026

Captain, Leader & Match Winner- Harmanpreet Kaur 👑#HarmanpreetKaur #WPL2026 pic.twitter.com/40R4ALfN5D

— WomenCricket.com (@WomenCricketHQ) January 13, 2026

Also READ: 5 contenders to replace Alyssa Healy as Australia captain after her retirement from international cricket

This article was first published at WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Times company.

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Kestrel Initial Demonstrator capsule

NEW DELHI: When its third phase failed on Monday, Isro’s PSLV-C62 launch vehicle lost 15 satellites from several countries and Indian companies, including the primary payload. However, a football-sized Spanish satellite called KID (Kestrel Initial Demonstrator), survived, though it transmitted “critical data” back to Earth for only about 3 minutes.The 25-kg satellite separated “against all odds” from PSLV’s fourth stage despite the third-stage anomaly that caused the mission to fail. The satellite’s developer, Orbital Paradigm, said on X, “Our KID capsule… separated from PSLV C62, switched on, and transmitted data…”KID, designed for re-entry testing towards a splashdown in the South Pacific Ocean, endured peak deceleration forces and thermal stresses that would pulverise most experimental hardware. “We’re reconstructing trajectory. We survived peak heat and peak g-load (~28g recorded). We have internal temps. Full report will come,” the company said.Developed with French partner RIDE, KID validates Orbital Paradigm’s reusable re-entry technology, crucial for future satellite servicing and de-orbiting. The startup plans a detailed report soon and is likely to accelerate Kestrel’s full-scale development programme.Tragedy struck PSLV when an “anomaly” in the third stage diverted the rocket from its flight path, preventing sun-synchronous orbit insertion of its payload.Isro chairman V Narayanan said on Monday, “Near the end of the third stage, we observed some disturbance in the vehicle, and there was a deviation in its flight path. As a result, the mission could not proceed as expected.” After his statement, it was assumed that all the 16 satellites, including primary payload EOS-N1 (Anvesha), a hyperspectral earth imaging satellite developed by DRDO for national security and surveillance, were lost.KID turned out to be the only to survive long enough to transmit signals. Orbital Paradigm is yet to confirm if the capsule later burned out or splashed down on Earth.

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NEW DELHI: India’s import of Russian crude recorded a sharp 29% month-on-month decline, falling to the lowest volumes since implementation of the price cap policy, but is making a strong turnaround in January this year, Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said in its monthly analysis of Russian fossil fuel exports for December.The report said the decline occurred despite total imports growing marginally. The drop was driven by a sharp reduction in imports by Reliance’s Jamnagar refinery – to the tune of nearly 49% – and a 15% cut by state-owned refineries in Dec. According to Kpler, a global real-time data and analytics provider, India imported over 20.4 million barrels of crude from Russia in 2025. The month of Dec saw imports of 1.2 million barrels, compared with 1.8 million barrels a month earlier. Till Jan 13 this year, India had already imported over 1.1 million barrels of crude oil from Russia.

In terms of value, India was the third-highest buyer of Russian fossil fuels – displaced by Turkiye from the second position – importing a total of EUR 2.3 billion of Russian hydrocarbons in Dec, CREA said in the report. While crude oil constituted 78% of India’s purchases, totalling EUR 1.8 billion, coal (EUR 424 million) and oil products (EUR 82 million) constituted the remainder of India’s monthly imports. India’s import of crude oil was recorded at EUR 2.5 billion in Oct and EUR 2.6 billion in Nov.The report added that the Jamnagar refinery cut its imports from Russia by almost half in Dec. “The entirety of their imports were supplied by Rosneft, albeit from cargoes purchased before the OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control in the US) sanctions came into effect. State-owned refineries also cut Russian imports by 15% in Dec,” the report stated.As per CREA analysis, Russia’s monthly fossil fuel export revenues saw a marginal 2% month-on-month decline to EUR 500 million per day – the second-lowest figure since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Monthly export volumes also witnessed a similar 2% month-on-month reduction. Total crude oil export revenues dropped by 12% to EUR 198 million per day.Russia’s fossil fuel exports remain highly concentrated, with China dominating coal and crude oil purchases, Turkiye dominating purchases of oil products, and the EU remaining the largest buyer of LNG and pipeline gas. While China remained the largest global buyer of Russian fossil fuels in Dec, accounting for 48% (EUR 6 billion) of Russia’s export revenues from the top five importers, The EU was the fourth-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, accounting for 11% (EUR 1.3 billion) of Russia’s export revenues from the top five importers.In December, five refineries in India, Turkiye and Brunei that use Russian crude exported EUR 943 million of oil products to sanctioning countries. The importers included the EU (EUR 436 million), the US (EUR 189 million), the UK (EUR 34 million) and Australia (EUR 283 million).