Life in Kolkata and its surrounding areas came to a near standstill on Tuesday as very heavy overnight rainfall triggered widespread flooding, bringing traffic, public transport, and daily activity to a grinding halt.

 India is a relationship of critical importance to the United States, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said as he met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar here and voiced "appreciation" for New Delhi's continued engagement on bilateral issues, including trade, defence and energy.

A 32-year-old woman has been stabbed to death by her husband in front of her teenage daughter at a bus stand here, police said on Tuesday.

The priest of the Ambabhavani Temple in Athkur village has been accused of stopping Dalit youngsters from entering the temple for a ritual related the Navaratri festival, although related parties, including the priest and Dalit leaders of the village, have denied knowledge about the incident.

Six persons were arrested and synthetic drugs valued at over Rs 24 lakh were seized in two separate operations carried out by the City Crime Branch, officials said on Monday.

A case has been registered after Rajya Sabha member and philanthropist Sudha Murty filed a complaint alleging that an unknown person, posing as an employee of the Ministry of Telecommunications, tried to obtain her personal information, police said on Monday.

The Karnataka government has issued an order fixing salaries for chief priests and assistant priests of Jain temples in the state.

In an incident reported from Sandyayanapalya village of Hanur taluk, local resident Johnson allegedly killed his 55-year-old man, Pakiyanathan, by crushing his head with a boulder on Sunday night, before escaping from the village.