The United Nations (UN) humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher has warned that 1.7 million children in Afghanistan are at risk of death due to severe malnutrition and termed the situation as "shocking."

In his remarks during a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) briefing on Wednesday, Fletcher stated that food insecurity has further exacerbated this winter, with many life-saving food distributions suspended. He further said that 1.1 million children do not have access to vital aid, leaving them extremely vulnerable, news agency reported.

Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt and Tunisian actress Hend Sabry were honoured by Golden Globes at a glitzy gala dinner during the fifth edition of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival.

Alia has earned critical acclaim and box-office success for standout performances in films such as “Highway,” “Raazi,” “Udta Punjab,” “Dear Zindagi” and “Gangubai Kathiawadi," reports.

Veteran filmmaker Subhash Ghai has lauded Jackie Shroff for his magnetic presence on stage.

He called him a true hero who connects with audiences through genuine and heartfelt words, unlike the politically correct talks often delivered in front of cameras. Taking to his Instagram handle, Subhash shared a photo featuring Jackie and captioned it as, “He is still the hero on stage and wins the hearts of the audience since he talks through his heart, not like the politically correct talks in front of cameras. and he is #jackie shroff.”

Gold outperformed most asset classes over the long term, delivering a compounded annual return of 15 per cent in rupee terms over 20 years, compared with 13.5 per cent for Indian equities as per Nifty 50 returns, a report said on Thursday.

The FundsIndia report showed that real estate returned 7.8 per cent and debt delivered 7.6 per cent over the period, with Indian equities’ 20‑year return trailing the 14.8 per cent return from US equities as per the S&P 500 returns.

Unidentified miscreants attacked a readymade garment merchant in Bihar's Begusarai district on Thursday, leaving him dead, an official said.

The deceased was identified as Mohammad Shahzad.

Shahzad received gunshot injuries near Parbanda Baba Sthan under the Veerpur police station area early in the morning.

SIP inflows in November remained almost steady at Rs 29,445 crore, slightly lower than the Rs 29,529 crore recorded in October, according to data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Thursday.

Despite this minor dip, overall investor participation in mutual funds stayed strong during the month.

Net equity inflows saw a healthy rise, increasing to Rs 29,894 crore in November from Rs 24,671 crore in October.

With the deadline for the submission and digitisation of the enumeration forms in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal coming to end at 12 midnight on Thursday, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has decided to handover the separate lists of excludable voters to the booth-level agents (BLAs) of all the political parties in the state that are registered with the it.

Sources in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, said the list will also contain the detailed breakup of the excludable voters, like deceased voters, shifted voters, untraceable voters, duplicate voters, and voters deemed to be found excludable for other reasons.

Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in India are poised to reach $105 billion by 2030 as the sector expands into higher‑value research and development, driven by government policy and talent, the government data showed on Thursday.

The country now hosts over 1,700 GCCs that together earned $64.6 billion in FY24 and employ over 19 lakh professionals, up from $40.4 billion in FY19 at 9.8 per cent annually, according to an official statement.

The employee medical plan costs in India are expected to rise by 11.5 per cent in 2026, down from 13 per cent projected for 2025, according to a report on Thursday.

The report by global professional services firm Aon showed that this moderation signals a stabilisation after two years of sharp increases. It also aligns with a broader trend across the Asia Pacific, where the average medical trend rate is expected to be 11.3 per cent.

Medical trend rates represent the annual percentage increase in medical plan costs per employee, both insured and self-insured. These figures help organisations budget and adapt their benefits strategies to ensure sustainability in a rapidly evolving healthcare landscape.

Equity mutual funds saw a strong rise in investor interest in November, with inflows jumping 21 per cent on a monthly basis, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Thursday.

According to the latest data, equity inflows stood at Rs 29,911 crore in November, compared to Rs 24,690 crore in October.

However, on a yearly basis, inflows were down 17 per cent from Rs 35,943 crore recorded in November 2024.

Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) has deployed two state-of-the-art mobile environmental monitoring vans.

The vehicles, procured under the Environment Damage Compensation (EDC) fund at a cost of over Rs 5.76 crore, are now operational across all districts.

As part of an ongoing crackdown on pollution, six industrial units in Ahmedabad have been issued show-cause notices for violating air quality norms. The two mobile vans cover separate zones - one dedicated to North Gujarat, Saurashtra and Kutch, and the other to Central and South Gujarat.

Nearly half a dozen police personnel had a narrow escape when a car driven at high speed hit their official vehicle during night patrolling in Bhopal.

The incident took place late on Wednesday. After hitting the police vehicle at a junction in the city, the car then collided with a road divider and overturned.

However, no one got injured except the car driver, who was allegedly heavily drunk, and was rescued by the same cops, who had a narrow escape at the spot.

The driver, who was not named, was rushed to a hospital for treatment.

On the occasion of Dilip Kumar’s 103rd birth anniversary on Thursday, Bollywood actor Jackie Shroff paid a tribute to the late star and said “always in our hearts”.

Jackie took to Instagram stories, where he shared a monochrome moment of Dilip Kumar from the 1958 film “Madhumati”, where he is seen performing on the track “Dil Tadap Tadap Ke” originally sung byLata Mangeshkar and Mukesh.

“Madhumati” was directed by Bimal Roy. The film also stars Vyjayanthimala, Pran and Johnny Walker. The plot focuses on Anand, a modern man who falls in love with a tribal woman named Madhumati. But they face challenges in their relationship finally leading to a paranormal consequence.

 About 80 per cent of rural households have consistently reported higher consumption over the last year -- a hallmark of rising prosperity, a NABARD survey showed on Thursday.

About 67.3 per cent of monthly income is now spent on consumption, the highest share since the survey began, aided by GST rate rationalisation. This demonstrates strong, broad-based demand - not sporadic or concentrated in specific segments, according to a statement from Finance Ministry.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has directed the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, to conduct the hearings on the claims and objections in the second stage of the three-stage Special Intensive Revision (SIR) only at the offices of the District Magistrates who are also the District Electoral Officers concerned.

The Commission has directed that such hearings should not be conducted at the block development offices or the panchayat offices under any circumstances, sources in the CEO's office confirmed.

 One of Hindi cinema’s most compelling performers, Nawazuddin Siddiqui's journey in the industry has been nothing short of inspiring. From early character roles in films such as ‘Sarfarosh’, ‘Shool’ and ‘Jungle’ to a blink-and-miss appearance in the Sanjay Dutt-starrer ‘Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.’, and now leading projects with ease, the actor looks back and simply calls it a “good and fun” ride.

“It has been a good journey, and a fun one too," said Nawazuddin while talking.

Paris Saint-Germain were held to a goalless draw in Bilabao as Athletic Club became the first team in this season's Champions League to prevent the holders from scoring.

Unai Simon was the hero for the hosts, producing a string of big saves including two point-blank stops against Senny Mayulu and a late attempt by fellow Spaniard Fabian Ruiz.

Bardley Barcola came closest for Paris when he raced in behind but his shot crashed back off the crossbar as it remained all square at San Mames.

South Korea's exports jumped 17.3 per cent from a year earlier in the first 10 days of December, bolstered by robust global demand for semiconductors and an increase in working days, data showed on Thursday.

Outbound shipments reached $20.58 billion in the December 1-10 period, compared with $17.54 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. It marked the largest figure ever for any 10-day period, reports news agency.

Average daily exports climbed 3.5 percent on-year to $2.42 billion, according to the customs office. The number of working days during the period came to 8.5 days, compared with 7.5 days a year earlier.

The government has informed that freight loading increased from 1,233 million tonnes (MT) in 2020-21 to 1,617 MT in 2024-25, making Indian Railways second largest freight carrying Railways in the world.

To keep the freight rate competitive, the freight rates have not been revised since 2018 despite increase in input cost over the years, according to Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

“Passenger fares have been rationalised from July 1, 2025 after a gap of more than 5 years. The increase in fares is very low, ranging from half paise per km to two paise per km for premium classes,” said Vaishnaw in replies to questions in Lok Sabha.

Indian stock markets opened on a volatile note on Thursday, swinging between gains and losses even as the US Federal Reserve announced a 25-basis-point rate cut on Wednesday.

The Sensex, which began the day slightly higher, soon slipped into the red and was trading at 84,312 during early trade, down 79 points or 0.09 per cent. The Nifty also erased its early gains and inched down to 25,750, lower by 8 points or 0.03 per cent.

"From a technical standpoint, Nifty holds immediate support at 25,600–25,650, while the 25,850–25,900 zone continues to act as a strong resistance that has repeatedly halted upward momentum," analysts said.

Delhi Police on Thursday arrested three snatchers who were identified after an extensive analysis of more than 300 CCTV cameras.

According to a statement released by the Anti-Snatching Cell of the South-West District, the team has done a commendable job by arresting three notorious snatchers -- Paras alias Bharat, aged 34, from Gandhi Market, Sagarpur; Pankaj alias Kake, aged 38, a resident of Ram Mandir, Jhanda Chowk, New Ashok Nagar; and Vinod Ghosh, aged 35, from Sagarpur. With their arrest, a snatched gold chain and a motorcycle used in the crime were recovered from their possession.