Author: xorance@gmail.com

We plunge into tamatar chaat weather in Varanasi.  The days are warm and sticky, like the city’s favourite snack: a soupy bowl of tomatoes and potatoes simmered in ghee, then finished with a flourish of butter and crisp namkeen. I recoil at my first steamy spoonful, wedged between samosa-wielding strangers on a hard, sweaty bench at Kashi Chaat Bandar. The friendly waiters suggest dahi bhalla instead, with lashings of cool yoghurt, and find me a table angled towards their sputtering air-conditioner so I can wallow in its asthmatic puffs of cool air.I have been drawn to Varanasi by promises of “fortified heritage radish bricks”. BrijRama Palace, set at Darbhanga Ghat, with mesmerising views of the Ganga has just launched a 10-course vegetarian tasting menu. Served at its fine dining restaurant Aangan, this is the 214-year-old fort-turned-palace-turned-hotel’s signal that it can balance contemporary luxury with the responsibilities that come with being a historic property on an iconic ghat in one of…

Image used for representation | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Activity in India’s services sector eased to its lowest level in 17 months, according to a private sector survey, driven by the weakest growth in new order intakes in over two-and-a-half years.The HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index eased to 57.4 in June from 59.8 in May. While the reading remained comfortably above the neutral 50-mark that separates expansion from contraction, and above its long run average, it marked the slowest upturn since January 2025, the report noted.“The loss of momentum points to more challenging market conditions and weaker demand,…

Cricket Ireland president Bryan O’Donnell believes that the “impactful” T20 International series win over India recently will transform the national team into a “more acceptable opposition” globally, and open avenues for challenging assignments.Ireland stunned India 2-0 recently at Belfast to register their first-ever series win over the reigning T20 world champions in any format.”Well, it’s going to be fairly instantaneous because it is a huge lift for our players and on that basis, they will probably become available in other areas of the game,” O’Donnell told PTI.Also Read | India were unprofessional, their attitude condescending”A huge amount of impact because…

England’s Natalie Sciver-Brunt plays a shot during the Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup semifinal match between England and South Africa in London on July 2, 2026. | Photo Credit: AP Not many women have stands or gates named after them. Nat Sciver-Brunt has one.That is right here at the Oval, where she came up with a captain’s knock (75, 47b, 11×4, 1×6) on Thursday (July 2, 2026) to take England first out of deep trouble against South Africa and then into the final of the Women’s T20 World Cup.The Proteas, chasing 170, could only manage 129 for eight.This was Sciver-Brunt’s…

India’s June GST collections rose 13.9% year-on-year to ₹1.95 lakh crore, driven largely by import IGST, which surged 34.6% compared with June 2025, up from 17.2% growth in May. Domestic GST collections grew by a more modest 6.5%, suggesting that the sharp increase in overall collections owes less to a broad-based improvement in domestic value addition. Some economists have argued that this reflects stronger imports of capital goods and industrial inputs. However, May petroleum products’ trade data and Q1 FY27 data on the performance of the eight core industries, point to a rather different explanation. June GST collections reflect economic…

When Radha Yadav ran towards the chance offered by Beth Mooney at long-on, there was tension in the air at Lord’s. Under normal circumstances, you would expect Radha to take the catch with ease; she has taken much tougher, more spectacular ones all through her career. She is one of the best fielders in women’s cricket.But at the Women’s T20 World Cup, she had been going through a terrible time. She was just failing to catch. It looked like she was incapable of even catching a cold. The 26-year-old did catch Mooney, though. And she was relieved and happy, she…

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri elaborated that the retail fuels presently being sold in pumps were derived from crude oil that was purchased months in advance. | Photo Credit: ANI Prices of petrol and diesel will come down only after the crude oil, which is currently cheaper, reaches Indian shores and refiners, Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told reporters on Thursday (July 2, 2026). Thus, indicating that an immediate downward revision may not be possible immediately.The Petroleum Minister also informed that India’s state-run oil-marketing companies incurred a loss of about ₹74,781 crore from the sale of LPG, petrol and…

Rahul’s match-winning knock was filled with seven fours and four sixes. | Photo Credit: Nagara Gopal For Karimnagar Diamonds, the formula has been simple: bat first, post a 200-plus score powered by a century partnership, and eventually win. It worked for the third straight TG20 match as Diamonds cruised to a 58-run victory over Ranga Reddy Risers at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Thursday.Tanmay Agarwal and Satwik Reddy gave Diamonds a flying start, adding 42 runs in four overs, before Tanay Jaddu provided the breakthrough in the fifth over. Tanay Thyagarajann removed Satwik in the following over to briefly…

The new Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme 2026 provides that “the contribution payable in respect of a member shall be subject to the wage ceiling limit, notified by the Central Government from time to time”. Photo: epfo.gov.in The Labour and Employment Ministry has made all contributions in the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) above the monthly wage ceiling of ₹15,000, which is beyond ₹1,800, voluntary under the new Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme 2026 notified on June 29, 2026.Earlier, under the old scheme, the Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme 1952, the wage ceiling, which is ₹15,000 per month at present, was relevant at the…

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