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UPI Payments Above ₹2,000 to Cost Merchants 0.4% from October 15; Small Vendors Stay Exempt
india

UPI Payments Above ₹2,000 to Cost Merchants 0.4% from October 15; Small Vendors Stay Exempt

The National Payments Corporation of India will levy a 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate on UPI person-to-merchant payments above ₹2,000 from October 15, 2026, while person-to-person transfers and payments up to ₹2,000 remain free. Small merchants earning up to ₹1 lakh a month through UPI QR codes are exempt, and essential sectors such as Railways, telecom and fuel will pay a flat ₹5 per transaction.

15 Sep 2026, 03:30 PM
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Tramadol crackdown: violations found at 55 medical shops across Andhra Pradesh
india

Tramadol crackdown: violations found at 55 medical shops across Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh's Drug Control Administration found violations at 55 of 100 medical shops inspected across the State, after five persons were arrested in Eluru district for allegedly selling Tramadol injections without prescriptions. Two shops were found to have bought and sold large quantities of medicines without bills, and officials have said licences of those involved in illegal transactions will be cancelled.

15 Sep 2026, 03:35 PM
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IMA Haryana calls off Ayushman Bharat shutdown after CM Saini's assurance on hospital dues
health

IMA Haryana calls off Ayushman Bharat shutdown after CM Saini's assurance on hospital dues

IMA Haryana has withdrawn its call for an indefinite suspension of Ayushman Bharat services from September 16, after Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini assured a delegation that issues raised by empanelled private hospitals would be examined. Private hospitals had halted services for 24 hours on September 1 over outstanding payments of about ₹1,200 crore and other operational concerns. The dues remain unsettled and no timeline has been announced.

15 Sep 2026, 03:42 PM
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Kerala launches AI portal Mukulam to give government school students free entrance-test coaching
india

Kerala launches AI portal Mukulam to give government school students free entrance-test coaching

Kerala has launched Mukulam, an artificial intelligence-based portal that offers free entrance-exam preparation to government school students. Inaugurated by General Education Minister N. Samsudheen, it will cover tests such as NEET, JEE and CUET, with material in about 10 subjects. The platform, built by KITE, follows a pilot in 25 schools and is now open to all higher secondary and vocational higher secondary students in the State.

15 Sep 2026, 03:46 PM
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Two solar-electric ro-ro ferries to join Kochi's water transport fleet by 2027
india

Two solar-electric ro-ro ferries to join Kochi's water transport fleet by 2027

The State Water Transportation department will soon order two partly solar-powered electric ro-ro ferries from an Alappuzha boatyard for the Bolgatty–Vallarpadam corridor. Each ₹9.50-crore vessel will draw about 30% of its energy from 35-KW rooftop solar panels, and is expected to cut both running costs and noise compared with the diesel ferries now in service. Commissioning is expected in October 2027.

15 Sep 2026, 03:52 PM
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Ukraine's postmen risk drone attacks to deliver pensions and medicine
world

Ukraine's postmen risk drone attacks to deliver pensions and medicine

Ukrposhta, Ukraine's state postal service, delivers pensions, utility payments, food and medicine to remote villages, including areas within range of drone attacks. Its chief, Igor Smelyansky, decides each morning which routes are safe enough for staff to take. For many elderly and poor Ukrainians, the postman or postwoman is a lifeline to the outside world.

15 Sep 2026, 05:01 AM
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EU Plans Age-Based Curbs: Under-15s May Need a Parent's Approval for Social Media
india

EU Plans Age-Based Curbs: Under-15s May Need a Parent's Approval for Social Media

The European Commission is preparing a proposal under an EU Kids Act that would set graded age limits for children's use of social media, video-sharing platforms, AI chatbots and online games. Under the plan, under-15s would need parental involvement, the youngest children would have parent-controlled accounts, and under-3s could be barred. The rules are still subject to negotiation with EU governments and the European Parliament.

15 Sep 2026, 05:02 AM
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Japan Hand Asian Games Squad Chance to Face World Champions India in Historic T20I
india

Japan Hand Asian Games Squad Chance to Face World Champions India in Historic T20I

Japan will field their Asian Games squad for a historic one-off T20 International against world champions India at Sano on September 22, with Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming captaining the side. The match, played under the Suzuki Cup, marks 75 years of India-Japan diplomatic ties. Japan, ranked 41st, then travel to the Asian Games, where they face Afghanistan and Nepal in the group stage.

15 Sep 2026, 05:17 AM
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Meta to Report Child Sexual Abuse Cases to India's Cyber Crime Portal Amid Government Pressure
india

Meta to Report Child Sexual Abuse Cases to India's Cyber Crime Portal Amid Government Pressure

Meta has agreed to report child safety matters, including child sexual abuse cases, directly to India's cyber crime portal run by I4C, as the Centre presses platforms to protect children online. The move follows an NCPCR inquiry into alleged child sexual exploitation and abuse material advertisements on Meta platforms and an NHRC direction to Delhi Police to investigate. Officials say children's online safety is non-negotiable and that further action will follow.

15 Sep 2026, 05:41 AM
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Gurugram Hit-And-Run: Attempt To Murder Charge Filed Against Driver, Victim Vows To Fight On
india

Gurugram Hit-And-Run: Attempt To Murder Charge Filed Against Driver, Victim Vows To Fight On

Gurugram Police have filed an attempt to murder charge against the driver accused of ramming a woman biker in a hit-and-run captured on CCTV, an offence that carries up to 10 years in jail. The victim, who identified herself as Sia, questioned the delay in the arrest and said she would not give up the fight, while the accused has said only one side of the incident has been presented.

15 Sep 2026, 05:43 AM
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Saudi Arabia warns of firm response after Houthi attacks wound 13 civilians
india

Saudi Arabia warns of firm response after Houthi attacks wound 13 civilians

Saudi Arabia has warned it will respond firmly after Houthi missile and drone attacks wounded 13 civilians in the kingdom's south. The attacks came as the Iran-aligned group tightened its hold on Yemen's Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a key shipping route. Saudi Civil Defence later issued an all-clear for six cities, including the oil port of Yanbu.

15 Sep 2026, 05:48 AM
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Caste census: One community, many names — BC Dal flags counting challenge
politics

Caste census: One community, many names — BC Dal flags counting challenge

The National BC Dal has flagged a key difficulty in the proposed caste census: the same community is known by many names, spellings and sub-caste identities across States and languages. Its president, Dundra Kumaraswamy, said that without scientific linking of such entries, communities could be fragmented in the official record, and sought clear standards for classification and aggregation.

14 Sep 2026, 02:12 PM
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UN rights chief urges urgent global action to govern frontier AI, warns of unprecedented risks
india

UN rights chief urges urgent global action to govern frontier AI, warns of unprecedented risks

UN human rights chief Volker Turk has called on countries and frontier AI companies to act urgently to govern advanced artificial intelligence, warning of unprecedented risks to humanity. His letter follows public concerns from Anthropic employees about the possibility of AI escaping human control, and an appeal by CEO Dario Amodei for companies to coordinate a slowdown. Turk urged states and firms to use multilateral forums to develop human rights-based rules for frontier AI.

14 Sep 2026, 02:40 PM
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NDA Allies in Bihar Split Over UCC After Amit Shah's 2029 Rollout Target
politics

NDA Allies in Bihar Split Over UCC After Amit Shah's 2029 Rollout Target

A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the Uniform Civil Code would be implemented by 2029, NDA partners in Bihar have taken differing positions publicly. JD(U) MLA Shyam Rajak said the code will not be implemented in the State "at any cost", while HAM(S) leader Santosh Kumar Suman and the State BJP spoke of consensus and consultation, and the RJD and LJP (Ram Vilas) sought wider discussion before any decision.

14 Sep 2026, 03:03 PM
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AI Stocks Slide as Industry Leaders Urge a Slower, Safer Pace of Development
india

AI Stocks Slide as Industry Leaders Urge a Slower, Safer Pace of Development

US stocks opened lower on Monday, with Nasdaq down 1.05 per cent, after Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei called for a coordinated slowdown in AI development, a position reportedly backed by Sam Altman and Elon Musk. AI-linked shares including Nvidia, Intel, AMD and CoreWeave traded in the red, and weakness spread to Asian markets, with SoftBank falling as much as 10.7 per cent.

14 Sep 2026, 03:04 PM
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‘Partners, not rivals’: Wang Yi says Modi-Xi meeting set new direction for India-China ties
india

‘Partners, not rivals’: Wang Yi says Modi-Xi meeting set new direction for India-China ties

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping at the BRICS summit in New Delhi produced a key consensus — that India and China should be partners, not rivals. India's account of the talks stressed border peace, the “three mutuals” and predictable market access, while Beijing emphasised expanding cooperation and multilateral coordination.

14 Sep 2026, 03:12 PM
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Tamil Nadu signs ₹12,300-crore MoUs in London, expects 10,000 jobs
india

Tamil Nadu signs ₹12,300-crore MoUs in London, expects 10,000 jobs

The Tamil Nadu government signed four MoUs in London in the presence of Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay, covering proposed investments of about ₹12,300 crore and an expected 10,000 jobs in manufacturing, engineering services and power equipment. The agreements include a ₹11,000-crore commitment from Samvardhana Motherson International and a Global Capability Centre by Ernst & Young. The Chief Minister also met Ashok Leyland and Finolex Industries representatives on follow-up to earlier investment commitments.

14 Sep 2026, 03:16 PM
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'Playing With Our Health': Rail Neer Water Sample Fails Quality Check in Bhopal Division
health

'Playing With Our Health': Rail Neer Water Sample Fails Quality Check in Bhopal Division

A Rail Neer packaged water sample and a batch of loose gram flour failed quality checks in the Bhopal Railway Division, which handles roughly 1.14 lakh passenger journeys a day. Passengers have called for regular monitoring of food and water sold at stations, while officials say more samples from the same batch have been sent for testing and the matter is under investigation.

14 Sep 2026, 03:20 PM
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Bihar floods: Nearly 50 lakh affected in 15 districts as Ganga, Kosi breach danger marks
india

Bihar floods: Nearly 50 lakh affected in 15 districts as Ganga, Kosi breach danger marks

Nearly 50 lakh people across 15 districts of Bihar have been affected by floods as heavy rain pushed the Ganga, Kosi, Budhi Gandak and several other rivers above their danger marks. The administration has set up 1,248 community kitchens and 13 relief camps, with 27 SDRF and 10 NDRF teams deployed for rescue operations. Officials expect river levels to keep rising as catchment areas in Nepal continue to receive rain.

14 Sep 2026, 03:30 PM
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Amazon Halts Cargo Deal With 21 Air After Miami Runway Crash Kills Five
india

Amazon Halts Cargo Deal With 21 Air After Miami Runway Crash Kills Five

Amazon has paused its partnership with cargo carrier 21 Air after a Boeing 767 carrying Amazon packages ran about 1,300 feet past a Miami runway and struck a van, killing five people and injuring five others. Federal investigators are reviewing the aircraft's history, maintenance records and the pilots' approach, which cockpit audio indicates was too fast.

14 Sep 2026, 11:50 AM
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