Nagpur (PTI): Police are investigating a suspected leak after the class 12 Chemistry question paper was allegedly circulated on social media in Nagpur ahead of the exam being conducted by the Maharashtra board, officials said on Saturday.

The exam malpractice came to light on Wednesday at a high school examination centre after a female student’s frequent visits to the washroom raised suspicion.

Invigilators seized the student's smartphone. Its analysis showed that the question paper had been shared on a WhatsApp group before the exam began, officials said, adding that possible answers were also exchanged in the same group.

Based on the student's statement, another pupil is being questioned.

The preliminary investigation suggests a person linked to a private coaching shared the question paper for money, officials said.

A case was registered at Sadar police station, and an investigation was launched.

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Kabul (AP): An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.8 rattled parts of northern and eastern Afghanistan and western Pakistan late Friday, killing at least eight people in Afghanistan, authorities said.

The region is highly seismically active, and quakes have caused thousands of deaths in recent years. Friday's earthquake had an epicentre in the Hindu Kush mountain range, about 150 kilometres (90 miles) east of the Afghan city of Kunduz, according to the Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center and the US Geological Survey.

Hafizullah Basharat, a spokesman for the Kabul governor, said eight people were killed and a child was injured when a house collapsed on the outskirts of the capital. He said all were members of the same family.

Kabul is roughly 290 kilometres (180 miles) southwest of the epicentre. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries from areas closer to the epicentre. The area is remote, and it can often take several hours before local authorities can relay information back to Kabul.

With the epicentre at a depth of over 180 kilometers, the quake jolted a wide swath of Afghanistan and Pakistan. In Pakistan, it was felt in the cities and towns of Islamabad, Peshawar, Chitral, Swat and Shangla, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries in Pakistan.

Afghanistan's Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said Kabul and provincial health authorities had been put on alert.

Last August, a 6.0 earthquake that struck a remote, mountainous part of eastern Afghanistan killed more than 2,200 people, levelling villages and trapping people under rubble. Most casualties were in Kunar province, where people typically live in wood and mud-brick houses along steep valleys.

In November, a 6.3 earthquake struck Samangan province in northern Afghanistan, killing at last 27 people and injuring more than 950. It also damaged historical sites, including Afghanistan's famed Blue Mosque in the city of Mazar-e-Sharif, and the Bagh-e-Jahan Nama Palace in Khulm.

On Oct 7, 2023, a 6.3 quake followed by strong aftershocks in western Afghanistan killed thousands of people.

Impoverished Afghanistan often faces difficulty in responding to natural disasters, especially in remote regions. Many homes in rural and outlying areas are made from mud bricks and wood, with many poorly built.