Coimbatore, June 6 (IANS) Anticipating a rise in human-wildlife interactions with the onset of the southwest monsoon, the Gudalur Forest Division in Tamil Nadu has intensified surveillance and conflict-prevention measures across vulnerable villages in the Nilgiris district.

The Forest Department has deployed local youths, additional patrol vehicles and thermal drones in areas that frequently witness wildlife intrusion during the rainy season. The move is aimed at preventing wild elephants and other animals from entering human habitations, a recurring challenge in the hill region during the monsoon months.

As part of the initiative, 40 youths from villages prone to human-wildlife conflict have been engaged to assist forest personnel in monitoring elephant movements and alerting local communities. The youths are helping officials track animal movement and take preventive steps to stop elephants from straying into residential areas.

To strengthen field operations, three additional patrol vehicles have been brought from Mudumalai to support elephant-driving activities and emergency response efforts in conflict-prone zones.

Forest officials believe the enhanced mobility will help teams respond more quickly whenever elephants are sighted near settlements. Thermal drones are also being deployed extensively across forest ranges to monitor wildlife movement, particularly during the night and early morning hours when elephant activity is at its peak.

Information gathered through drone surveillance is being used to alert nearby villages whenever elephants or other large animals are detected close to human settlements.

The Forest Department has advised residents living along forest fringes to avoid unnecessary travel during late-night and early-morning hours and to remain vigilant during the monsoon season. The intensified surveillance comes amid continuing concerns over human-wildlife conflict in western Tamil Nadu.

In a recent incident in Erode district, Kalan, a 60-year-old farmer of Ramarana village under the Thalamalai forest range of the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve, lost his life after encountering a wild elephant near his cattle shed late at night.

Forest officials said the man is believed to have come face-to-face with the animal in poor visibility conditions. The elephant reportedly attacked him before moving away from the area. The body was later recovered and sent to the Government Hospital in Sathyamangalam for post-mortem examination.

The incident has once again highlighted the challenges faced by forest-fringe communities and the importance of strengthening monitoring and early-warning systems during the monsoon, when wildlife movement often increases across the region.

–IANS

aal/uk

Kolkata, June 6 (IANS) A huge cache of firearms and cartridges hidden in a pond belonging to a Trinamool Congress leader was recovered by the Special Task Force (STF) of the West Bengal Police in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district on Saturday morning, officials said.

Based on a tip-off from a secret source, the STF investigators raided the area and searched on Saturday morning. The officers, during the search, uncovered a cache of weapons in the pond. However, the owner of the pond, Trinamool leader and party’s former regional president Robin Das, and his brother Gopal Das, have fled the area

Investigators went to the house of the Das brothers in Sandeshkhali. Both are said to be very close to the arrested Trinamool strongman Sheikh Shahjahan. Their house and the area adjacent to it were also searched during the raid. It is said that a large quantity of weapons was recovered at that time. It is believed that these weapons were stored to create unrest in the area. As soon as the news spread, there was a huge commotion. A large number of people started gathering in the area.

Central police forces jawans accompanied the STF during the operation. Following the recovery of arms, extensive searches are still underway across the area. The two brothers have long been accused of committing atrocities against local residents, including BJP workers. Police have launched a manhunt for the accused Trinamool leader and his brother.

The BJP has stepped up its attack on the Trinamool Congress following the recovery of weapons. BJP MLA Sajal Ghosh said, “Earlier, fish used to come out of the pond. If not for the Trinamool, I wouldn’t have known that bullets, bombs and guns could also emerge. They are truly the ninth wonder of the world.”

Not stopping there, the BJP leader added, “Every day, it is proven that they took the state of West Bengal to the brink of destruction. If the election results had been different and TMC had won, then the firearms would no longer be in the pond. Common people would have been attacked with these weapons. I will appeal to the government so that these Trinamool leaders, once arrested, don’t get out of jail even for a day.”

–IANS

sch/skp

New Delhi, March 20 (IANS) Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani was interrogated by the CBI here for seven hours on Friday for the second day in a row in connection with the alleged Rs 2,929.05 crore SBI fraud case.

The CBI had registered an FIR on August 21, 2025, following a complaint filed by SBI over allegations of fraud to the tune of Rs 2,929.05 crore on the public sector bank, in which Reliance Communications Limited, Anil D. Ambani and others, including unknown public servants, are accused.

During the investigation of this case, the CBI had summoned accused Anil Ambani for interrogation on Thursday at the CBI Head Office in Delhi. Since the interrogation remained incomplete on Thursday, he was summoned again to the CBI office on Friday, a senior official said.

A criminal case was registered against Reliance Communications Limited, Anil D Ambani and others unknown including unknown public servants on the complaint dated August 18, 2025 from the State Bank of India (SBI) which is the lead bank in the consortium of 11 banks– Bank of India, Central Bank of India, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, e-Corporation Bank, Canara Bank, e-Syndicate Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, IDBI Bank Limited, and e-Oriental Bank of Commerce that had extended loans to the Anil Ambani group.

The complaint is based on a forensic audit report that alleges large-scale diversion and misutilization of loan funds through interlinked and circuitous transactions among group entities during the period 2013-17, resulting in wrongful loss of Rs 2929.05 crore to SBI out of total exposure of Rs 19, 694.33 crore involving 17 public sector banks, according to an official statement.

Subsequent to the registration of the case, separate complaints were received from Punjab National Bank, Bank of India, Union Bank of India, UCO Bank, Central Bank of India, IDBI Bank and Bank of Maharashtra.

Further, another case has been registered against Reliance Communications Limited, Anil D Ambani and others unknown, including unknown public servants, on February 25, 2026, on the basis of a complaint dated February 24, 2026, received from Bank of Baroda, which includes exposure of e-Dena Bank and e-Vijaya Bank, the statement explained.

Also, another case has been registered against Reliance Communications Limited, its directors Anil D Ambani, Manjari Ashok Kacker and others unknown, including unknown public servants, on March 5, 2026, on the basis of a complaint dated February 2, 2026, received from Punjab National Bank, which includes exposure of e-United Bank of India.

The CBI obtained search warrants from the court of the Special Judge for the CBI, Mumbai and conducted searches at two official premises of Reliance Communications Limited, residential premises of Anil D Ambani, all in Mumbai, on August 23, 2025. Several incriminating documents were taken into possession during the searches, the statement added.

–IANS

sps/uk

Thiruvananthapuram, March 20 (IANS) In his first detailed reaction after the Congress high command wrapped up the contentious seat selection process, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Kerala Assembly, V.D. Satheesan on Friday struck a combative yet confident note, asserting that the United Democratic Front (UDF) had completed one of the fastest and most cohesive candidate finalisations in its history.

Addressing the media in Thiruvananthapuram, Satheesan said all 140 candidates of the UDF had been announced without “even a single discordant note,” underlining that the coalition functioned as a unified “Team UDF.”

He acknowledged that allies, including the Kerala Congress, made temporary compromises, but stressed that the process was inclusive and consensus driven.

Dismissing criticism over a perceived delay in releasing the Congress list, Satheesan explained that the party follows a structured and consultative mechanism, unlike rivals.

The state leadership submits recommendations to the screening committee headed by Madhusudhan Mistry, after which the central election committee led by Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi takes the final call.

“Even then, within 48 hours, the first list was out,” he noted, attributing the brief delay to Mistry’s health issues.

The Congress leader launched a sharp attack on sections of the media, accusing them of running a sustained campaign of fabricated stories to portray divisions within the party.

He alleged that in the past 48 hours alone, multiple “false narratives” were aired, including speculative reports on whether MPs like K. Sudhakaran and Adoor Prakash would contest.

Satheesan categorically denied reports claiming he had threatened to resign as Leader of the Opposition, terming them “baseless and unethical.”

He also accused certain channels of amplifying unverified claims to damage the Congress and UDF, adding that such attempts would not impact electoral outcomes.

Reiterating that decisions on MPs contesting Assembly polls are taken solely by the national leadership, he said the controversy was artificially created.

He further dismissed reports of internal rifts involving leaders like K.C. Venugopal, calling them “laughable.”

Projecting confidence, Satheesan said the UDF would return to power with over 100 seats, riding on strong public sentiment against the incumbent government.

“No amount of misinformation can derail us. The people of Kerala want change, and UDF will deliver it,” he said.

–IANS

sg/rad

New Delhi, March 20 (IANS) The Northeastern states have always been on the radar of external elements. This explains why insurgency lasted so long in the region. And now, some militant groups are trying to launch drone strikes targeting critical infrastructure in the region.

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi government since 2014 has laid plenty of emphasis on the northeastern states and showered it with infrastructure development and inclusion.

While a large part of the Northeast has embraced these moves, there are external elements who are hell-bent on reviving insurgency, an Intelligence Bureau official revealed.

Myanmar remains a major headache for India. While Myanmar has been used by insurgent groups as a training ground, now the Indian security agencies are dealing with a massive problem of drones.

Many insurgent groups are now trying to launch drone strikes targeting oil refineries, military infrastructure, dams and other critical infrastructure for the northeastern states.

In particular, infrastructure that has been set up since 2014 has become the primary target of these groups who have the backing of external elements.

The drones are in fact becoming a major worry as there are plenty of drones which are ready to be launched from Myanmar into the northeastern states, officials say.

In recent months, banned insurgent groups such as ULFA, NSCN, and Kuki Zo-aligned outfits have gained access to not just expertise, but even technology.

These groups, with the help of external support, have managed to build capabilities and are capable of carrying out precision strikes in the northeastern states.

In addition to infrastructure, on the hit list of these groups are the Assam Rifles and Army posts near the Manipur-Myanmar border.

They also have on their radar the Indian Air Force (IAF) bases at Tezpur and Chabua. Officials say that the idea is to target these assets with the drones that they have managed to accumulate over the last many months.

More details on these operations are emerging following the arrest of seven foreign nationals which includes six Ukrainians and an American. They have been accused of being involved in a proxy destabilisation plot. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing this case.

The agency has so far learned that these people were allegedly equipping and training armed ethnic groups across the India-Myanmar border. All these groups have links with the insurgents operating in the northeastern states.

This is not just a run-of-the-mill warfare that these elements are planning. They are using sophisticated equipment and plan on targeting high value infrastructure.

The NIA will also look at the violence that engulfed Manipur in 2024. There were inputs about foreign hands being involved in such actions with the intention of destabilising Manipur.

Even during that time, the agencies found that the Kuki militants had used sophisticated equipment. Drones were used to drop 40 bombs in Imphal West, which led to several civilians losing their lives.

The PLA insurgent group, too, had used drones to carry out an attack on a temporary base set up by the Assam Rifles.

Another official said that the intention is not just to disrupt peace. The idea is to carry out strikes on infrastructure, that could completely derail development.

Intelligence inputs suggest that these insurgent groups have on their radar, ONGC oilfields in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Any precision hit on these oilfields would lead to massive economic disruption.

These groups are also looking to hit hydroelectric projects in Manipur and Mizoram.

Hitting such projects not only creates a flood risk, but will also trigger blackouts. Officials say that the recent arrests were made in the nick of time. More details will emerge as investigations progress.

It is important for the NIA to find out the entire plan, so that work on dismantling such terror infrastructure could take place, the official also added.

–IANS

vn/rad

Dehradun, March 20 (IANS) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inducted five new ministers in the state cabinet on Friday, taking the total figure to 12. The legislators who will now serve as ministers in Dhami’s cabinet are Bharat Singh Chaudhary (Rudraprayag), Khajan Dass (Dehradun), Mandan Kaushik (Haridwar), Pradeep Batra (Roorkee) and Ram Singh Kaira (Bhimtal).

Madan Kaushik is a member of the BJP National Executive Council and was the Uttarakhand BJP president.

Khajan Dass, a former minister in the erstwhile Uttarakhand government, also served as the state BJP vice-president earlier.

The remaining three — Ram Singh Kaira, Bharat Singh Chaudhary and Pradeep Batra are reportedly first-time ministers.

The oath of office was administered by Uttarakhand Governor Gurmit Singh at Lok Bhavan at 10 a.m.

With the induction of five new ministers, the Uttarakhand cabinet has attained its maximum strength of 12, officials said.

Uttarakhand CM also took to his social media handle, X, to personally greet each minister and extend good wishes for the fulfilment of their responsibility in their new role.

Congratulating Madan Kaushik, CM Dhami wrote, “Heartfelt congratulations on taking the oath as a Cabinet Minister. Your extensive political experience and organisational capabilities will infuse the government’s developmental initiatives with new energy and direction.”

Greeting Khajan Dass, the legislator from Rajpur Road (Dehradun), CM Dhami said, “Your sharpness in public relations and seriousness on issues related to public welfare will certainly lend greater breadth to the impact of the government’s public welfare schemes.”

The Chief Minister extended greetings to three other ministers, praising their achievements and valuable contributions in public life.

He said that Bharat Singh Chaudhary, with his deep understanding of the needs of the hilly regions and dedication to public service, will strengthen the balanced and inclusive development of the state.

“Your experience, active leadership, and dedication to public service, development works in the state will gain even greater strength,” CM Dhami said about Pradeep Batra, the legislator from Roorkee.

He also welcomed Bhimtal MLA Ram Singh Kaira into the cabinet, voicing confidence that his service will impart new momentum and direction to various developmental initiatives of the state.

“Infinite best wishes for a bright future and the successful fulfilment of this new responsibility,” CM Dhami wrote in a post on X.

Notably, the cabinet expansion was under consideration for a long time but kept getting delayed. Now, with the state government expanding its capacity to full, this is seen as a move to prepare the party for the upcoming Assembly elections in 2027, in its bid to secure a third consecutive term.

–IANS

mr/dpb

New Delhi, March 20 (IANS) With the terror infrastructure largely in tatters, Pakistan is likely to bring back Sajid Mir to fix the problem. Mir, who played a major role in executing the Mumbai 26/11 attacks, was handed over charge of Pakistan’s ambitious ‘Karachi Project’.

Mir’s existence was always denied by Pakistan. However, to get out of the Grey List of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), he was detained by Pakistan in 2022 and sentenced to 15 years in jail by a Lahore court.

Although he remains in jail, he has been told to oversee some important projects that the ISI wants to implement.

An Intelligence Bureau official said that he is currently in charge of reviving the Lashkar-e-Taiba’s Muridke camp, which was destroyed during Operation Sindoor. Prior to his arrest, he lived at the Ganda Nala lane in Lahore. There are Intelligence inputs suggesting that Mir gets many visitors. These visits are all linked with the revival of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and other terror groups.

The ISI did not want to use Mir for any of its operations immediately. However, the process to revive the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad, which faced immense losses during Operation Sindoor, has been harder than Pakistan expected. The ISI had even decided that operations by these two terror groups, and also the Hizbul Mujahideen, would be carried out under a unified command.

An official said that when all these terror groups have one common goal, and that is the destruction of India and the Kashmir issue, the ISI must have felt that it was a good idea to have these groups operate unitedly. Who better for the ISI than Sajid Mir to oversee the structural changes in these terror groups, which the ISI wants to implement.

Inputs suggest that the ISI has directed Mir to coordinate from jail. For Mir, coordinating operations from jail is no big task. He has access, and there are many times that he has been allowed to leave jail and meet with operatives covertly, another official said.

When India sought his extradition in 2020 in connection with the Mumbai 26/11 attacks, Pakistan had long denied his existence, with shifting claims about his status. Pakistan said that he was dead. However, the Pakistanis brought him back to life in 2022 to lower the heat it was facing from the FATF.

Pakistan also floated a rumour that Mir had been poisoned, but Indian agencies can confirm that the news is false. The official added that roping Mir in to oversee these changes and shape the revival also fits perfectly into the larger plan of undertaking the Karachi Project.

If Mir is able to get these terror groups under one command and ensure they’re seamlessly functioning, then implementing the Karachi Project becomes easier. Another official said that reaching out to Mir is a risky move, but Pakistan is ready to take it.

It is Mir’s experience and expertise, coupled with the fact that he is highly respected in terror circles, that led the ISI to take such a risk.

Owing to free access, he can summon anyone to jail and hand out instructions and also implement the plan.

The Karachi Project is an ambitious one which involves carrying out terror attacks at multiple locations in India. The project has been in the making for many years now. The first time the project was being discussed in Pakistan was when the Indian Mujahideen was very active. However, with the collapse of the Indian Mujahideen, work on the project also slowed down.

The idea was to have a strong homegrown terror network carry out attacks in India. For the attacks from Pakistan, the ISI had roped in the Lashkar-e-Taiba to undertake this project. Officials say that if Hizbul Mujahideen, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba are able to work together, then this project would become much stronger.

Another aspect is the homegrown terror network. The ISI has been working on nurturing a homegrown network in various parts of India. It would want one to undertake operations in the North and the other in the South. If this plan goes through, then the three Pakistan-based terror groups would put all their efforts into Jammu and Kashmir.

Another official said that the ISI has also roped in (Retd) Major Hashim and the head of the Lashkar-e-Taiba’s naval wing, Abu Yukoob, to be part of this project.

Earlier, the plan for the setting up of homegrown operations in India involved recruiting youth from Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala, Delhi and Tamil Nadu. The recruited youth were meant to travel to Pakistan, undergo training and then return to India and carry out attacks. Today, the ISI has dropped the plan of moving these recruits to Pakistan, as borders are on high alert and undertaking such an operation would be risky. The recruited youth will be trained online, and modules will be set up on the lines of the one that was busted at Faridabad, officials say.

–IANS

vn/dpb

Guwahati, March 19 (IANS) In a significant political development ahead of the Assam Assembly elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Nihar Ranjan Das, on Thursday, resigned from the party’s primary membership after being denied a party ticket from the Dholai Assembly constituency in the Barak Valley region.

In a resignation letter addressed to the Assam BJP President Dilip Saikia, Das said that he had served the party “honestly and sincerely” as the MLA of Dholai Assembly constituency and had worked to strengthen the party’s image among the people within a short span of time.

However, Das expressed disappointment that his contributions were not recognised and that he was deprived of a party ticket for the upcoming state polls.

“As such, I am tendering my resignation from the primary membership of BJP,” he wrote, requesting the party leadership to accept his resignation and relieve him of all responsibilities.

The development comes shortly after the BJP announced Amiya Kanti Das as its candidate from the Dholai Assembly seat, replacing the sitting legislator Nihar Ranjan Das.

The decision appears to have triggered discontent within the local party unit, with Das choosing to step down soon after the announcement.

Dholai, a reserved constituency in southern Assam’s Barak Valley, has been considered an important seat for the BJP in the region.

Party sources indicated that the ticket distribution was part of a broader strategy to reshuffle candidates and strengthen its electoral prospects.

The BJP, on Thursday, released its first list of candidates for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, announcing nominees for 88 constituencies across the state.

The list features several prominent BJP leaders, including Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who will contest from Jalukbari, an Assembly seat he currently represents and is considered a BJP stronghold.

Senior Minister Chandramohan Patowary has been fielded from Tihu, while state Finance Minster Ajanta Neog will contest from her earlier seat, Golaghat.

In key urban constituencies, the BJP has nominated Pradyut Bordoloi from Dispur, Diplu Ranjan Sarmah from New Guwahati, and Vijay Kumar Gupta from Guwahati Central, signalling a strong focus on retaining hold over its bastion.

Bordoloi joined the BJP snapping long ties with the Congress on Wednesday in New Delhi and he also resigned from the post of Nagaon Lok Sabha MP.

–IANS

sc/khz

Kochi, March 19 (IANS) Leader of Opposition in the Assembly V.D. Satheesan on Thursday said issues within the CPI(M) are going from bad to worse, and if it took 33 years for its decline in West Bengal, the party in Kerala appears to be heading down a similar path much faster.

“After a decade in power, the situation has reached a stage where internal cracks are becoming increasingly visible and difficult to contain,” said Satheesan.

With the Kerala Legislative Assembly Election 2026 scheduled for April 9 to elect 140 legislators, the political landscape is rapidly evolving.

While the Left faces mounting criticism, both the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) have so far released only their first lists of candidates.

The opposition in the state has sharpened its attack, pointing to what it calls growing unrest within the ruling front. Satheesan said the current scenario vindicates concerns raised earlier about the CPI(M)’s internal health.

Speaking to reporters at Cochin International Airport after returning from Delhi, he remarked that even senior leaders within the party are now speaking out in unusually harsh terms.

Adding to the concern for the Left is the apparent disillusionment among its traditional supporters and fellow travellers.

Satheesan argued that this erosion of confidence stems from the manner in which the government has been running over the past decade, suggesting that dissatisfaction is no longer confined to political opponents.

He also hinted at more political surprises in the days ahead, noting that earlier warnings about upheavals were largely dismissed.

On the opposition front, Satheesan said the UDF has resolved most issues related to candidate selection, with a second list of around 40 candidates expected shortly.

As Kerala heads into a crucial electoral battle, the focus is as much on governance as it is on the internal stability of the ruling front.

–IANS

sg/dpb

New Delhi, March 19 (IANS) Industrialist Anil Ambani is set to appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) at its headquarters in the national capital on March 19-20.

Anil Ambani’s appearance before the CBI is in connection with the FIR registered on the basis of a complaint filed by the State Bank of India regarding Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCOM).

“Anil D. Ambani will be appearing before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Delhi on 19th and 20th March, 2026 for examination, in connection with the FIR registered on the basis of a complaint filed by the State Bank of India regarding Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCOM),” said a spokesperson for Anil Ambani.

The appearance is in furtherance to Ambani’s commitment to extend full cooperation in the matter with all agencies, the spokesperson added.

Last week, Anil Ambani’s son Jai Anmol Ambani was grilled by the CBI in connection with the Rs 228 crore fraud case involving Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL). He was examined by the premier investigative agency for two days.

The agency questioned him in connection with an alleged bank fraud case in which he has been booked along with Reliance Home Finance Ltd’s former CEO and ex-whole-time director, Ravindra Sudhalkar, and others.

The CBI had registered the case on December 6, 2025, in connection with the alleged bank fraud involving Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL), Jai Anmol Anil Ambani, Ravindra Sudhalkar, unknown persons and unknown public servants.

The criminal case was registered against RHFL — a company of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group — its promoters or directors and unknown bank officials on the basis of a complaint by Union Bank of India. The complaint alleged criminal conspiracy, cheating and criminal misconduct, causing a wrongful loss of Rs 228.06 crore to Union Bank of India (ex-Andhra Bank).

Earlier, the Enforcement Directorate attached another lot of properties, worth more than Rs 581 crore, of Anil Ambani group companies Reliance Home Finance Limited (RHFL) and Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL).

–IANS

na/