The Delhi High Court on Thursday (June 18, 2026) reserved its judgment on the plea challenging a temporary ban on Telegram messaging platform ahead of the upcoming NEET-UG re-examination. This comes two days after the Centre’s decision to suspend access to the platform services in India until June 22, citing concerns linked to the conduct of the retest. In the hearing, the Centre said it has been repeatedly asking Telegram messaging app to take proactive measures to keep a check on illegal and suspicious channels. Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta submitted the Court that “nothing was done” about the matter.
Iran said on Thursday (June 18, 2026) that its missile programme would not be part of future negotiations with the United States, after the two sides agreed a framework deal for ending their war. U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a memorandum of understanding early Thursday (June 18, 2026), ending a regional war that erupted on February 28 with U.S.-Israeli strikes.
Union Minister of Education Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday (June 18, 2026) chaired a high-level review meeting of senior officials and functionaries of the Ministry of Education, State Governments, National Testing Agency (NTA) and Higher Education Institutions to assess the preparedness of the NEET UG re-examination scheduled to be conducted on June 21. Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, Sanjay Kumar; Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Vineet Joshi and Director General, NTA, Shri Abhishek Singh, also attended the meeting.
The government has ratified 8.25% rate of interest on employees’ provident fund (EPF) deposits for 2025-26, which is likely to be credited to over seven crore contributing members this month. EPFO provides the rate of interest on EPF after it gets ratified by the government through the Finance Ministry. The finance ministry has given its concurrence to 8.25% rate of interest fixed by Central Board of Trustees (CBT), the apex decision making body of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), a source said on Thursday (June 18, 2026).
The West Bengal government on Thursday (June 18, 2026) approached the Supreme Court challenging a Delhi High Court order directing the release of Rashid Khan, who is serving a life sentence in the 1993 Bowbazar blast case that left 69 people dead in Kolkata. The State sought urgent intervention from the apex court to prevent his release. The counsel representing the State sought urgent listing of the matter before a Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice V. Mohana, contending that the case involved a “very serious offence” and should be heard on Monday (June 22).
Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Thursday (June 18, 2026) delivered his customary address during the first session of the 17th Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, after the government led by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay assumed office and won the trust vote, marking a smooth start to the House proceedings without any disruptions. The session began at 10 a.m. with the rendition of the State song Tamil Thaai Vazhthu (Invocation of Mother Tamil), followed by the National Anthem. This was a break from House convention where the National Anthem is played only at the end of the Governor’s Address.
Karumuri Sunil Kumar, son of former Andhra Pradesh Civil Supplies Minister Karumuri Nageswara Rao, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday (June 18, 2026) in connection with the alleged Andhra Pradesh liquor transport scam. The arrest comes a week after the ED carried out searches on premises linked to Mr. Sunil, his father and other accused in the case. The agency is investigating alleged irregularities in liquor transportation contracts awarded by the Andhra Pradesh State Beverages Corporation Limited (APSBCL).
The Congress on Thursday (June 18, 2026) came down heavily on the government after the U.S. and Iran signed a peace deal, saying the pact being called the ‘Islamabad MoU’ shows the new-found regional standing and global influence of Pakistan which is a “severe setback” to both the substance and style of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh noted that the 14-point Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between the U.S. and Iran has now been officially released.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak on Thursday (June 18, 2026) waded into the Ram Mandir donations controversy and hit out at Samajwadi Party chief Akhliesh Yadav asking “why isn’t the SP talking about donations received to build Babri Masjid.” “I want to ask the Opposition, especially the SP chief, funds were collected to build the Babri Masjid, where has the money gone,” he asked while speaking to presspersons. “He will never raise questions on that issue. He will only question the Sanatan culture and do politics of appeasement and vote bank. He thinks this will secure his vote bank,” said Mr. Pathak.
The agreement on social security that India and the U.K. have signed and that will come into force on July 15 will save Indian companies and workers there about $500 million worth of social security payments that they otherwise would have had to pay in the U.K., according to sources in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
The United Arab Emirates has set a minimum age of 15 for social media use, becoming the first Arab country to introduce such a restriction as governments worldwide seek to address growing concerns over the impact of online platforms on children. Under a resolution approved on Thursday (June 18, 2026), children under 15 will be prohibited from creating, using or operating personal social media accounts. The ban means they will not be able to post content, comment, share or join public groups, the government’s media office said.
An Indian teenager died while trying to save his mother, who was thrown from a horse-drawn carriage after the horse suddenly bolted at the famous Central Park in New York City. Romanch Mahajan, 18, was on his first trip to New York with his family when the incident took place on Wednesday (June 17, 2026), The New York Times reported. The driver stopped to take a family picture, and in an instant, the horse bolted. It tore up onto the sidewalk and bumped onto the grass, accelerating crazily, the driver racing behind, the report added.
The text of the Iran-U.S. Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), as read out by U.S. officials and reported in the media, contains two key provisions regarding shipping. While promising to relieve sanctions on Iranian oil sales, the agreement opens the door for Iran to stake a claim in ship passage in the Strait of Hormuz and charge a fee for transit. Before the war, Iran did not exercise such a right, and no toll or fee was mandatory for any merchant ship transiting the strait.
Portugal coach Roberto Martinez dismissed questions about Cristiano Ronaldo’s role after a frustrating World Cup opener, defending his decision to keep the captain on for the full 90 minutes in Wednesday’s (June 18, 2026) 1-1 draw with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Ronaldo went without a shot on target in Houston, extending his scoreless streak to five straight World Cup matches and 10 consecutive games at major tournaments. The 41-year-old forward hasn’t scored a non-penalty goal at a World Cup or European Championship since June 2021, but Martinez said removing him was never a serious consideration while Portugal chased a winner.
Mexican military forces intercepted and brought down a drone that flew near the South Korean national football team’s training camp ahead of its World Cup match against Mexico, a federal official told The Associated Press on Wednesday (June 17, 2026). Military forces used specialised equipment to detect an “unregistered drone” near the South Korean camp, prompting them to “neutralise” it, the Mexican federal agent said.
此内容由惯性聚合(RSS阅读器)自动聚合整理，仅供阅读参考。 原文来自 — 版权归原作者所有。