In a major step to phase out manual scavenging and ensure the safety of sanitation workers, the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation commissioned G-Spider, an AI-powered robotic canal-cleaning system, at the Amayizhanchan canal near the railway station premises at Thampanoor here, officials said on Thursday.

Hundreds of mourners thronged the residence of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar at his native village Katewadi near here on Thursday morning to pay their last respects to the leader who died in a plane crash.

Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University on Wednesday said it has opened admissions for the 2026-27 academic session and announced 24 new courses.

The last rites of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, killed in a plane crash, will be held with full state honours on Thursday at Baramati in Pune district.

The Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court on Tuesday set up a commission of inquiry comprising a former HC judge to probe the issue of water contamination in city's Bhagirathpura, saying the matter requires probe by an independent, credible authority and "urgent judicial scrutiny".

India and the US have made "very significant" progress in their negotiations for a trade deal, with New Delhi maintaining steady momentum in talks with Washington for a positive outcome even during the final stages of concluding its free trade pact with the European Union, official sources said on Wednesday.

In an apparent snub to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said the plane crash involving his nephew Ajit Pawar and four others was an accident which shouldn't be politicised.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday flagged concern over state governments not complying with its directions to enhance their stray dog sterilisation capacity, saying, "They are all building castles in the air."