SpiceJet will operate eight special flights from Fujairah in the UAE on Wednesday to bring passengers who are stranded due to the Middle East crisis.

Five members of a family from Bengaluru died on the spot after the car in which they were travelling to Tirupati rammed into a stationary truck in Chittoor district on Wednesday, a police official said.

A 23-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly molesting and extorting Rs 50,000 from a 15-year-old schoolgirl over six months in Thane city, police said on Wednesday.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has set up a control room to assist those affected by the escalating crisis in West Asia.

 As many as 22 temporary roadside sheds where furniture was manufactured and sold have been gutted after a fire broke out in one of them here, and no one was injured in the incident, police and fire department officials said on Wednesday.

Congress leader and senior parliamentarian Jairam Ramesh has criticised BJP MPs for "excessively" praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Parliament, saying their actions sometimes give him the feeling that he is sitting in the Supreme People's Assembly of North Korea, a totalitarian Communist country.

 The Defence Ministry on Tuesday sealed contracts worth Rs 5,083 crore for the procurement of six Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) and surface-to-air missiles.

As the conflict in West Asia widened, India on Tuesday emphasised the interest of one crore Indian nationals in the region and voiced concern over consequences for the Indian economy due to possible disruptions in energy supplies, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the evolving situation with leaders of Oman, Kuwait and Qatar.