Indian judoka Tulika Maan has been withdrawn from the ongoing Glasgow Commonwealth Games after NADA provisionally suspended her for three whereabouts failures within 12 months. Maan, who won +78kg silver at the 2022 Birmingham Games, was considered a strong medal prospect in Glasgow. She now faces a possible two-year ban. A team coach confirmed the withdrawal to PTI on condition of anonymity.
Activist Sonam Wangchuk released a video from Delhi's Medanta Hospital on Friday denying he 'cut any deal' with the government by ending his hunger strike. He said he stopped fearing a crackdown on students protesting at Jantar Mantar. Wangchuk broke the fast around 12:30 am Friday as Union Ministers J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh looked on, with Nadda serving him soup.
Brazil's men's football team could play an international friendly in Kolkata this October, ESPN Brasil reported. The Brazilian Football Confederation has finalised its first post-World Cup window with two friendlies against Australia, in Townsville on September 25 and Brisbane on September 29, and is reportedly close to adding an India fixture. Kolkata last hosted an Argentina-Venezuela match featuring Lionel Messi in 2011.
Amazon MGM Studios unveiled the first teaser for Blade Runner 2099 at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday. Led by Hunter Schafer and Michelle Yeoh, the eight-episode Prime Video limited series is the franchise's first live-action television show and premieres November 25. Created by Silka Luisa, it is set 50 years after Blade Runner 2049 and follows a fugitive-turned-Blade Runner named Cora.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged Union ministers at Friday's Cabinet meeting to boost their Instagram presence and create reels to engage young people, CNN-News18 sources said. He asked how many actively used the platform, saying youth are the citizens the government must continuously reach. Modi himself posted a midnight reel opening with 'Friends,' as Gen Z-led Jantar Mantar protests dominate social media.
Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned on Friday, citing health problems that left him unable to perform his duties, in a letter to National Assembly Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed. A long-time ally of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, he became its 22nd President in April 2023. He defended his role in forming the interim government after Hasina's government collapsed on August 5, 2024.
US President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on the European Union and a Section 301 trade investigation after Brussels fined Google 890 million euros ($1 billion) under the Digital Markets Act. Posting on Truth Social on Friday, he said the EU would pay 'a very big price' and called the US no 'piggybank.' The fine covered self-preferencing in search and Google Play restrictions.
Kerala's opposition LDF has escalated its campaign against the ruling UDF government over an alleged cut in development funds for local self-government bodies. The Kannur district panchayat says ₹12.73 crore was slashed from its allocation, disrupting welfare schemes and projects. The LDF district committee has announced protest marches to local body offices on August 1 and 3 over the reduced Plan funds.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang used his first X post on Friday to champion open-weight AI models, sharing a joint letter signed by Nvidia, Microsoft, Palantir, ServiceNow and Box. He wrote that AI 'will transform every industry, power every company, and be built by every country,' arguing openness boosts safety, competition and sovereignty. Huang urged US policymakers to lead in developing open AI.
Dempo Goa Challengers beat former champions Dabang Delhi TTC 8-2 in Friday's first semifinal to become the first team into the Ultimate Table Tennis Season 7 final. Spanish Olympian Alvaro Robles won his singles against Youssef Abdelaziz and mixed doubles alongside Syndrela Das. Abhinandh PB clinched the tie 11-9 over Delhi captain Sathiyan Gnanasekaran. Goa, unbeaten all season, need one more win.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday that a quarter of the flood-hit areas in Sivasagar and Charaideo districts remained cut off almost a week into an unprecedented deluge that has killed 61 people. He said nearly 11 lakh people across more than 2,000 villages have been affected, with heavy rain continuing to waterlog parts of Guwahati and other areas.
Google has ended Play services support for phones running Android 6.0 Marshmallow, raising the minimum requirement to Android 7.0 Nougat. Affected devices won't stop working immediately — calls, messaging and existing apps continue — but they will no longer receive Play services updates, gradually causing compatibility, security and reliability problems. Google advises updating to Android 7.0 or newer, or switching to a supported phone.
Coca-Cola has raised Diet Coke's price in India by over 10%, Reuters reported, as the Middle East conflict disrupts aluminium can supplies. With shipping through the Strait of Hormuz hit after a truce collapsed, the company is reportedly sourcing larger cans from Southeast Asia. The 300ml can (Rs 40) is replaced by a 330ml can at Rs 50, 13.6% costlier per millilitre.
American Express shares fell about 5.3% on Friday to $322.64, their steepest intraday drop in nearly five months, despite the card giant beating second-quarter estimates. It reported earnings of $4.53 per share against $4.08 a year earlier and revenue up 10% to $19.6 billion, and raised full-year revenue growth guidance to 10%. Investors instead focused on expenses climbing 12% to $14.5 billion.
A Mozambique-flagged LPG tanker, the DISHA, carrying 28 Indian crew members was attacked in Iranian territorial waters on Friday amid escalating Iran-US tensions. The Indian Embassy in Tehran confirmed the incident and said all 28 crew are safe, adding it is monitoring the situation with Iranian authorities. The extent of damage and those responsible have not been disclosed.
Nisarga Adhikary, the 19-year-old security researcher who exposed flaws in CBSE's On-Screen Marking portal, joined the Cockroach Janta Party protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar on Friday, its seventh week. He had reported authentication gaps, including a hard-coded master password bypassing two-factor authentication, to CERT-In; IIT Kanpur's C3iHub later hired him. Friday's two-hour government-CJP talks agreed some measures but deadlocked over resignations.
Argentina midfielder Leandro Paredes said he believes Lionel Messi had already decided the 2026 World Cup final would be his last national-team match. Speaking to DSports after the 1-0 extra-time loss to Spain, Paredes hoped Messi would reconsider. The 39-year-old, who has 125 goals in 207 appearances and won the 2022 World Cup, has not confirmed retirement; neither has the AFA.
The death toll from a landslide in southwestern China's Pengshui County, Chongqing, rose to 14 on Friday after rescuers recovered three more bodies, with officials warning dozens more likely died. The slide, which struck about a week ago, buried homes at a mountain's base and along a riverbank. Rescuers searching for around 50 missing people reported finding no signs of life.
A son of jailed former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has appealed to the international community to intervene, saying his father urgently needs medical care. Khan, 73, the cricketer-turned-politician, has spent about 1,100 days in custody and is held in solitary confinement at Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail. He was first jailed in August 2023 in the Toshakhana case, then convicted in others.
The US-led coalition shot down five explosive-laden drones over Erbil, capital of Iraq's Kurdistan region, on Friday morning, Kurdish counterterrorism forces said. The drones were intercepted between 9:32 and 9:45 am near the city's airport, which hosts coalition troops. An AFP reporter saw them overhead before air defences fired. Erbil has faced repeated strikes amid renewed West Asia hostilities.