Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders have unveiled a new-look jersey for the upcoming 18th edition of the Indian Premier League on Monday. As part of an unprecedented campaign, KKR released the official jersey launch video, where fans of the team are seen being obsessed with “Number 3”.

The video culminates into 'Three Stars' being woven into the fabric of the new jersey, depicting the three titles in KKR’s trophy cabinet. Cricketers Rinku Singh, Venkatesh Iyer, Ramandeep Singh, Manish Pandey, Vaibhav Arora, Anukul Roy, Mayank Markande and Luvnith Sisodia feature in the video, sporting the new kit.

Apart from the newly added third star on top of the team crest, KKR’s jersey also carries a special golden IPL badge on the arm this year, introduced by the tournament to recognise the defending champions of the 2025 edition.

Hong Kong and Macau residents would no longer be provided with leniency for permanent residency in Taiwan as the country is considering introducing stricter citizenship laws due to China's policies, according to local media.

The Taiwanese government may remove the optional path to citizenship for Hong Kong and Macau residents and is considering lengthening the terms of permanent residency eligibility, reports.

On the condition of anonymity, an official familiar with the matter told the Taipei Times that in a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the Taiwanese government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment.

The official said that under the amendments, before becoming eligible for permanent residency, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for four years, up from the current one year, and they would no longer be able to apply for citizenship after obtaining permanent residency.

Former India cricketer Ambati Rayudu believes the clash between talismanic batter Virat Kohli and Australia leg-spinner Adam Zampa will be a key battle to watch out for in the all-important Champions Trophy semifinal at the Dubai International Stadium on Tuesday.

Kohli has been dismissed five times by Zampa in ODIs since 2017, making this a keenly contested match-up on the slow pitches of Dubai. The India star has been dismissed five times by leg-spinners since the start of 2024, while amassing only 37 runs against them at a strike-rate of 48.68.

"It’s going to be Adam Zampa versus Virat Kohli (a key battle in the semi-final). Virat has struggled a bit against leg-spinners lately, but the kind of form he has shown in this tournament will serve him well against Australia," said Rayudu to JioHotstar.

India’s Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) market is expected to expand to $22 billion by 2030, according to a report on Monday.

The report by Praxis Global Alliance, a management consulting firm, stated that the APIs are growing at a CAGR of 8.3 pc in the country.

APIs are biologically active components in drugs that provide pharmacological activity or direct effects in disease treatment. For instance, in common medications like Crocin, paracetamol functions as the API, directly responsible for the drug's pain-relieving properties.

The report noted that “India is also the third-largest global producer of APIs, with an 8 per cent market share and over 500 different APIs manufactured”.

“India contributes 57 per cent of the APIs on the WHO's prequalified list. The market is expected to expand from $18 billion in 2024 to $22 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 8.3 per cent,” said Madhur Singhal, Managing Partner, Pharma and Lifesciences at Praxis Global Alliance.

Rain lashed the plains, while higher reaches received fresh snowfall on Monday in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Meterological (MeT) office has forecast light to moderate rain and snow in higher reaches on Monday, adding that a few higher reaches in north and central Kashmir might receive moderate to heavy snowfall.

The weather is expected to remain mostly dry from March 4 to March 9, while a fresh spell of rain and snow is expected between March 10 and March 12.

Rain and snow during the last seven days has set at rest the fears of a prolonged dry spell resulting in drought in the union territory this year.

The water level in rivers, streams, lakes, springs and other water bodies has improved considerably. Some of the perennial springs that had dried up due to the prolonged dry spell for 50 days in January and February have again started flowing with water.

India’s largest manganese ore producer MOIL has delivered its best-ever February performance with the production of 1.53 lakh tonnes of ore, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Steel on Monday.

The government-owned company, which supplies manganese ore as an input for making steel, has also achieved its best ever February exploratory core drilling of 11,455 meters, scaling an impressive growth of 43 per cent over the same month of the previous year.

During the April 2024-February 2025 period, MOIL has registered sales of 14.32 lakh tonnes, which represents a 3 per cent increase over the same period last year.

The exploratory core drilling carried out during this 11-month period jumped by as much as 20 per cent over the same period of the previous year to touch the 94,894 metres mark.

Former India cricketer Ambati Rayudu believes Varun Chakaravarthy’s 5-42 in the 44-run win over New Zealand in the 2025 Champions Trophy has created a serious selection dilemma for the team management ahead of the semifinal clash against Australia.

Replacing Harshit Rana in India’s playing eleven for their final Group A game, Chakaravarthy bamboozled New Zealand with his variations to pick a five-wicket haul in just his second ODI and lead India to the top of the points table in their group.

“Varun was great. Early in his career, he wasn’t very consistent with his lines and lengths. But now, his bowling makes him a very difficult bowler to face. His action naturally makes it look like he’s delivering left-arm spin, but 90 per cent of his deliveries are googlies, making it tough for batsmen who haven’t faced him before.

“I don't think many New Zealand batsmen have played against him much, and he will only continue to improve for India. His impressive performance might have created a selection dilemma heading into the semifinals. India will have a tough time deciding, with so many big players to choose from, but Varun Chakaravarthy has been brilliant,” said Rayudu on JioHotstar.

Bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha is reportedly all set to make her much-awaited South film debut.

The actress, known for her roles in Hindi cinema, is venturing into Telugu cinema with the upcoming thriller ‘Jatadhara’ that also stars Sudheer Babu. Although an official confirmation is still pending, industry sources hint that Sonakshi has been finalized for a powerful, unique role never seen before.

Presented by Zee Studios and produced by Prerna Arora, “Jatadhara” stars Sudheer Babu in the lead and has already generated significant interest following its grand muhurat ceremony in Hyderabad. As per the latest reports, Sonakshi is set to join the cast and will begin shooting on March 8.

Interestingly, Sonakshi’s very first film offer was for the Tamil movie "Hey Ram," where she was to star opposite Kamal Haasan.

In the global energy landscape, India stands strong as the third largest biofuel producer, driving the shift towards cleaner and renewable energy, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, said on Monday.

The minister highlighted in a post on X social media platform that “India has achieved 19.6 per cent ethanol blending in petrol as of January this year and is set to achieve 20 per cent very soon – five years ahead of the original 2030 schedule, reducing fuel imports and emissions.”

During the last 10 years the ethanol blending initiatives have enhanced farmer incomes as it is made from sugarcane, increased rural employment, reduced CO2 emissions equivalent to planting 1.75 crore trees and resulted in savings of Rs 85,000 crore worth of foreign exchange, according to official estimates.

Public sector oil companies, Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, have been at the forefront of this endeavour, introducing various blends of Ethanol with Petrol across the country.

The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Chennai has forecast rain in a few areas of southern Tamil Nadu over the next few days. While no rainfall alert has been issued for Chennai, the city is expected to experience mist and haze during early morning hours.

According to the weather department, Oothu in Tirunelveli recorded 8 cm of rainfall from 8.30 am on Friday, while Nalumukku, Kakkachi (both in Tirunelveli), and Rameswaram (Ramanathapuram district) received 7 cm each.

Continuous rain in the Tenkasi district has increased the water flow in Courtallam Falls, prompting authorities to ban bathing at the main waterfalls and Aintharuvi.

In Mayiladuthurai and Nagapattinam districts, moderate rainfall disrupted the final stages of samba and thaladi paddy harvests.

The rain also affected Nagapattinam fishermen’s schedules and salt production in Vedaranyam.