The cumulative Earth intelligence's direct revenue opportunity for technology product and service providers will reach nearly $20 billion from by 2030, a report said on Wednesday.

Earth intelligence will significantly impact every industry as it rapidly moves from government to the private sector, with annual revenue to surpass $4.2 billion in 2030, up from nearly $3.8 billion in 2025, according to Gartner.

“The future of Earth intelligence will be won by the vendors that move quickly to develop technologies that make sense of the oceans of raw data they collect,” said Bill Ray, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner.

Gartner defines Earth intelligence as the application of AI to Earth observation data to deliver solutions specific to industries and business functions.

Basking in the success of "Raid 2" and "Housefull 5", actor Riteish Deshmukh has commenced shooting for his next - "Masti 4".

The shooting for the fourth installment in the 'Masti' franchise is currently taking place in London.

Talking about being a part of "Masti 4", Riteish said "I believe every actor should feel fortunate to be part of a franchise or any film that extends into multiple installments as it signifies the love it received over years. I am grateful to be working on several such other projects. I think it's a source of pride for any actor to be part of a great team coming together to carry forward the franchise that's been celebrated over decades."

The Special NIA Court in Bengaluru on Wednesday handed over the custody of three arrested accused persons in a prison radicalisation case to the custody of the National Investigation Agency for six days.

The Indian stock markets closed lower after a volatile session on Wednesday amid selling in the IT and metals stocks, especially in Vedanta and Hindustan Zinc.

Sensex settled at 83,536.08, down 176.43 points or 0.21 per cent. The 30-share index opened in negative territory at 83,625.89 against the last session's closing of 83,712.51. However, it showed some volatility, hitting an intra-day high at 83,781.36 before closing.

Nifty fell 46.40 points or 0.18 per cent to end the session at 25,476.10.

The J&K Police said on Wednesday that they have recovered Rs 62 lakh in a multi-crore fake gemstone fraud and returned the amount to a Hyderabad-based man who was duped in an alleged sale of fake Kashmir Blue Sapphires.

Police said the Hyderabad resident, Mir Firasath Ali Khan, had fallen prey to a high-profile cheating and fraud case involving fake gemstones.

“The accused had attempted to sell counterfeit Kashmir Blue Sapphires valued at an astronomical Rs 25 crore to the unsuspecting buyer, while already having defrauded him of Rs 3 crore," said police.

The case was lodged at Police Station Bahu Fort in Jammu after the complainant alleged that he was being duped by fraudsters posing as sellers of the rare Kashmir Blue Sapphire. An FIR was registered, and a dedicated investigation was launched under SDPO Bakshi Nagar Dr Satish Bhardwaj, supervised by SSP Jammu Joginder Singh and SP South Ajay Sharma.

Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has voiced his support for under-fire batter Karun Nair, urging the team management to give the seasoned domestic run machine at least one more opportunity in the ongoing Test series against England.

Nair, who was recalled to the Indian Test side after a prolific domestic season, has looked elegant at the crease but has failed to convert starts into big scores.

Congress National General Secretary and Karnataka incharge Randeep Singh Surjewala on Wednesday refuted reports regarding a meeting between the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar in New Delhi, as "purely imaginary".

Answering a question by the media on a possible meeting as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Dy CM Shivakumar are in New Delhi over developments in the state, he dubbed them "purely imaginary."

"I have no knowledge of any such meeting of LoP Rahul Gandhi with the Karnataka CM and Dy CM. Yes. the CM and Dy CM are in Delhi in order to raise issues concerning people of Karnataka and the state government. There is designed discrimination and hatred in BJP and the Union government for the people of Karnataka for voting them out," Surjewala stated.

The change in repo rate is the most reliable predictor among key banking metrics like advances, deposits, and Net Interest Income (NII) that affect lending activities, a report said on Wednesday, adding that banks need enhanced assessment of the interest rate impact.

Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol attended a court hearing Wednesday on his potential arrest over charges related to his failed attempt to impose martial law.

The hearing at the Seoul Central District Court came after special counsel Cho Eun-suk requested a warrant to arrest Yoon over five key charges, including alleged illegalities in calling select Cabinet members to a meeting held shortly before he declared martial law on December 3.

Verbal autopsy is a scientific tool that can significantly aid India in the fight against tuberculosis, as it helps identify the deep reasons for mortality caused by the world’s deadliest infection, said Dr Kavita Vasudevan from Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute (IGMC&RI) in Puducherry.

Vasudevan, from the Community Medicine Department at the Medical College explained how a verbal autopsy model can help identify TB treatment delay patterns, and reasons for TB deaths and improve the referral process.

“A comprehensive approach is essential to effectively tackle TB, which includes the provision of quality TB care through access to quality diagnostics, effective drugs for therapy, prevention strategies, and identifying the underlying causes of mortality associated with the disease. Identifying the reasons for TB mortality can provide critical insights into the factors leading to these deaths,” the doctor said.