As a potential crisis in the supply of essential commodities including petroleum looms large over the state due to the ongoing drivers’ strike, the Odisha Government has formed a dedicated task force to deal with the logistical challenges and ensure the smooth movement of fuel and other critical goods throughout the state.

However, most of the buses and trucks remained off the roads across the state on the third day of the strike by the Odisha Drivers’ Association on Thursday.

The decision regarding the constitution of the task force was taken during a high-level review meeting held under the chairmanship of Minister for Commerce & Transport Department, Bibhuti Bhushan Jena on Wednesday, as per an official statement released on Thursday.

Hero Motors Limited (HML) on Thursday placed its fresh IPO document on the capital markets regulator SEBI’s website. According to the document, the company’s profit declined around 60 per cent to Rs 17.03 crore in the year ended on March 31, 2024 as compared to Rs 40.50 crore in preceding financial year (FY23).

The company aims to raise Rs 1,200 crore through selling equity shares at face value of Rs 10 each -- up from Rs 900 crore in its earlier filing.

The company had originally submitted its DRHP in August last year, but subsequently withdrew the application.

According to the fresh IPO document, the company's profit for the 9 months of FY25 ended in December 2024 stood at Rs 22.39 crore.

Meanwhile, its net revenue (revenue from operations + other income) increased marginally to Rs 1,083.41 crore in the year FY24. It was Rs 1,069.9 crore in FY23. The net revenue stood at Rs 823.8 crore for the 9 months of FY25.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday objected to the PILs filed by several NGOs and other political activists in the Supreme Court challenging its decision to conduct Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar.

Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, representing the poll body, objected to the locus standi of the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and other PIL litigants.

“None of them are voters in Bihar! Before you (SC) are some sections of people who write articles and then file petitions. I have a serious objection to this,” submitted Dwivedi before a Bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi.

He said that ADR was recently deprecated by the Supreme Court, apparently referring to the observations made against it in the 100 per cent VVPAT verification judgment.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified bonds issued by Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) as "long-term specified assets" that are eligible for tax exemption benefits under section 54EC of the Income-tax Act.

The tax benefit has kicked in with effect from July 9, 2025.

The CBDT notification states that bonds redeemable after five years and issued by IREDA on or after the notification date will qualify for tax exemption benefits under section 54EC, of the Income Tax Act, 1961, which allows capital gains tax exemption on investments in specified bonds.

The proceeds from these bonds will be utilised exclusively for renewable energy projects capable of servicing debt through their project revenues, without dependence on State Governments for debt servicing, according to the official statement.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has asserted that he will serve a full five-year term and claimed that there is no power-sharing arrangement between him and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who is also considered a contender for the top post.

Speaking to the media on Thursday, CM Siddaramaiah acknowledged that Shivakumar is an aspirant for the Chief Minister’s position and said there is nothing wrong with that. He added that Shivakumar himself has clarified that the CM's post is not vacant.

"Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar has never stated that the Chief Minister should be changed," Siddaramaiah said.

He reiterated his intention to remain in office for the full five-year term. “...I am CM for full term...I will lead the party in the 2028 Assembly elections,” he declared.

“However, I am committed to following the orders of the high command. Both Shivakumar and I are bound to obey the high command’s decisions. As of now, there are no discussions on any power-sharing arrangement,” he added.

The number of measles cases in the United States has hit the highest level in more than 30 years, according to the data released by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

A total of 1,288 measles cases have been confirmed in the country, with 13 per cent of cases hospitalised, so far in 2025, making it the worst year since 1992, when 2,126 cases were confirmed.

The cases were reported across 38 states nationwide, with 753 in Texas alone, according to the CDC.

There have been 27 outbreaks reported in 2025, and 88 per cent of confirmed cases are outbreak-associated, said the CDC, adding that 92 per cent of these cases are either unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.

The airborne, extremely infectious and potentially severe rash illness was officially eliminated from the United States in 2000, meaning there are no measles spreading within the country and new cases are only found when someone contracts measles abroad and returns to the country, the CDC explains on its website, news agency reported.

Six more persons, who consumed adulterated toddy, were admitted to hospitals in Hyderabad on Thursday, taking the total number of hospitalised to 37. The condition of four of them is critical.

Six affected persons were brought to hospitals with the complaints of vomiting and diarrhoea.

The tragedy has claimed five lives since Wednesday morning. The victims were all residents of Kukatpally.

According to officials, 31 people were undergoing treatment at Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS). The condition of four of them was critical. Doctors said they were on dialysis. The remaining people were stable.

Five of the affected persons succumbed while undergoing treatment at different hospitals. The deceased were identified as Sita Ram, Swarupa, Mounika, Narayana and Bojjaya.

Air pollution may not only affect your heart and lungs but can also raise the possibility of developing meningioma -- a typically noncancerous brain tumour -- according to a study.

This common type of brain tumour forms in the lining of the brain and spinal cord. The findings, published in the journal Neurology, do not prove that air pollution causes meningioma -- they only show a link between the two.

The study analysed several air pollutants, including those commonly linked to traffic -- such as nitrogen dioxide and ultrafine particles -- which are especially concentrated in urban environments.

The researchers found that people with higher exposure to air pollutants had a greater risk of developing meningioma.

"Various types of air pollution have been shown to have negative effects on health, and ultrafine particles are small enough to cross the blood-brain barrier and may directly affect brain tissue," said Ulla Hvidtfeldt, doctoral student at the Danish Cancer Institute in Copenhagen.

The creation of a strong launch pipeline by large and midsized developers in India highlights confidence in demand continuity and improves growth visibility over the medium term, a report showed on Thursday.

While real estate companies in the residential segment have reported a mixed bag of operational performances in Q1 FY26, many listed companies (large and mid-sized) have made major progress in business development, according to the report by Emkay Global Financial Services.

This was mainly due to a strong set of launches, supported by healthy demand. Since demand remains healthy, companies have maintained their full-year guidance, as they step up launches ahead.

“On the back of healthy footfalls at project sites and continued traction for newly launched projects in the sector, Emkay Global Financial Services expects prudent real estate companies to largely meet their FY26 pre-sales guidance,” the report mentioned.

The teaser of the upcoming horror-thriller film ‘Chimni’ was unveiled on Thursday. The film stars Sameera Reddy in the role of Kali, who is fighting against a pishach, as per the glimpses in the teaser.

The film tells the story of a grieving mother in a cursed Chanderi palace who battles a malevolent spirit possessing her daughter. As she delves deeper, she unravels a disturbing web of supernatural horror and human vice, tied to a spine-tingling fetus in fetu mystery.

Speaking about her role, Sameera Reddy said, “I was drawn to Kali because of her mysterious aura. What excited me most was portraying her across three life stages—from a young bride to a mother, and later in her 60s. Each phase had emotional depth, and switching between them on set was a real challenge. I truly enjoyed diving into her many layers, and I think audiences will find the story both gripping and emotional. It’s definitely an edge-of-the-seat experience”.