Hassan (PTI): A couple was seriously injured following a suspicious explosion that occurred at a house in Alur taluk of Hassan district here, police said on Tuesday.

The incident occured on late Monday, they said.

Initially, it was suspected to be a cylinder blast, but police are yet to ascertain the exact cause of the explosion, a senior police officer said.

A bomb disposal squad has also been roped in who will enter the house premises to know what exactly led to the explosion, he said.

The couple, Kavya (28) and Sudarshan (32), who were severely injured in the explosion, have been shifted to Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru for further treatment, he said.

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New Delhi (PTI): Gross GST collections rose 6.2 per cent to over Rs 1.93 lakh crore in January, mainly on higher revenues from imports, sources said on Sunday.

Total refunds declined 3.1 per cent to Rs 22,665 crore.

Net Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenues, however, grew 7.6 per cent to about Rs 1.71 lakh crore in January.

Cess collection (from tobacco products) in January stood at Rs 5,768 crore. This compares to Rs 13,009 crore in collections in January last year when a cess was levied on luxury, sin and demerit goods such as cars, and tobacco products.

Effective September 22, 2025, GST rates on about 375 items were slashed, making goods cheaper. Also, a compensation cess is levied only on tobacco and related products, as opposed to luxury, sin and demerit goods earlier. The lowering of GST rates has impacted revenue collections.

Gross tax collections from domestic transactions grew 4.8 per cent to Rs 1.41 lakh crore, while import revenues were up 10.1 per cent to Rs 52,253 crore in January.