Category: Life & Style

Samaira Hullur, an 18-year-old from Vijayapura, has earned her commercial pilot license, making her one of the youngest in India to achieve this milestone.

Over the course of one-and-a-half years, Samaira cleared six exams and logged over 200 hours of flying experience. She attributes her success to the guidance and mentorship of Captain Tapesh Kumar and Vinod Yadav.

Samaira’s father, Ameen Hullur, an interior designer, proudly shared that she is the youngest in India to pass all tests and obtain the license. She began her journey at the Vinod Yadav Aviation Academy (VYAA) in New Delhi before joining Carver Aviation Academy in Baramati, Maharashtra.

After earning her license, Samaira relocated to Baramati for further training.

Her inspiration, Captain Tapesh Kumar, obtained his license at 25, a milestone that fueled Samaira’s determination to reach her goals at an even younger age.

Mr Hullur said, “We bought tickets and were seated next to the pilot. Samaira was attracted by the pilot’s attire and style and began asking him several questions. He patiently answered them. That was the day she decided she wanted to be a pilot. We supported her by saving money and looking for good quality aviation academies.”

Krish Arora, a 10-year-old Indian-origin British boy, has stunned the world with his extraordinary intelligence, surpassing the IQs of Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. Scoring a maximum 162 on the Cattell III B test, Krish earned a spot in Mensa International, the prestigious high-IQ society, which recognizes genius-level intelligence for scores above 160.

Living in Hounslow, West London, Krish proudly joins the top 1% of the world’s most intelligent people. “The 11-plus exams were too easy,” he shared, expressing excitement about starting at Queen Elizabeth School in Barnet next year, which he hopes will challenge him more.

Beyond academics, Krish is a well-rounded prodigy. He is a grade 7 piano player and has earned a place in the Trinity College of Music’s Hall of Fame. “I love playing chess and often beat my teacher,” he adds with a smile, recalling how he’s been fluent in spelling and math since he was just four.

Krish’s twin sister, Keira, is equally brilliant, securing admission to four grammar schools. Together, the siblings are setting high standards, showcasing a perfect blend of talent and dedication.

Dr. Sultan Al Neyadi and Maj. Hazza Al Mansouri received First Class Space Medals on Eid Al Etihad, the UAE’s National Day, during a ceremony at Zabeel Palace on Monday. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, presented the awards, with Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, in attendance.

“As part of our National Day celebrations, we celebrated a group of the nation’s sons who contributed to the advancement of the space sector, established the UAE’s global position in this field, and contributed to shaping its future in this advanced scientific sector,” Sheikh Mohammed said on X. “Under the directives of my brother Mohamed bin Zayed, we awarded astronauts Sultan Al Neyadi and Hazza Al Mansouri the First Class Space Medal.”

Maj. Al Mansouri, a former Air Force pilot, made history in 2019 as the first Emirati astronaut. His eight-day mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS) marked the beginning of the UAE’s ambitious space journey. Dr. Al Neyadi, now Minister of State for Youth Affairs, followed as the second Emirati in space. Last year, he spent six months aboard the ISS and became the first Arab astronaut to perform a spacewalk.

The Indian Navy successfully tested the K-4 ballistic missile on Thursday from the nuclear submarine INS Arighaat.

The missile, with a range of 3,500 km, was launched in the Bay of Bengal. The trial enhances India’s nuclear deterrence and second-strike capability.

Defence sources said test data is under review, with briefings planned for military and political leaders. The trial bolsters India’s nuclear triad, ensuring retaliatory capacity during a nuclear conflict.

K-4 Ballistic Missile

The K-4, developed by DRDO, is an underwater-launched missile. Extensive trials ensured it met strict operational standards.

INS Arighaat

Commissioned in August 2024, INS Arighaat was built at Vishakhapatnam’s Ship Building Centre. It features advanced technology, surpassing its predecessor INS Arihant. The successful test boosts its operational readiness.

INS Arighaat is equipped with K-4 missiles capable of striking targets over 3,500 km away. This range far exceeds the 750 km range of the K-15 missiles on INS Arihant. The upgrade strengthens India’s nuclear-powered submarine fleet, enhancing strategic defense flexibility and power.

India’s Nuclear Submarine Fleet

India’s nuclear submarine fleet includes INS Arihant, the country’s first indigenously built nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, commissioned in 2018. A third vessel in this class will join the Navy next year, further boosting deterrence capabilities.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, while commissioning INS Arighaat, praised it as a symbol of India’s technological excellence and the government’s ‘Aatmanirbharta’ initiative.

“Drops of God,” which is a French-Japanese mini-series, won the International Emmy award for Best Drama Series on Monday night.

The show is an adaptation of a Japanese manga hit having the same name. It is about following the estranged daughter of a French wine critic after she starts battling his protege, trying to claim her inheritance.

The season’s first show streamed on Apple TV+ in 2023, and the American streaming service acquired the forthcoming second seasonvice.

Fleur Geffrier, the show’s star, told AFP – “It’s a series about family, bonds, and the search for identity in the world of wine, which is a world of its own,” at the awards ceremony in New York.

The International Emmy Awards recognize television produced outside the United States and are held separately from the awards for American productions.

Dubai is making a bold move towards sustainability with its first flagship marine reef project, set to transform the emirate’s marine ecosystem. This innovative initiative, known as Dubai Reef, focuses on creating artificial habitats to preserve biodiversity and enhance water quality, addressing pressing environmental challenges.

Spanning nearly 600 square kilometers, the project aims to provide a sanctuary for diverse marine species while boosting ecotourism. Over the next four years, Dubai plans to install an impressive 20,000 marine structures. By advancing conservation efforts, the project seeks not only to protect the coastline but also to solidify Dubai’s status as a global leader in eco-friendly innovation.

The first phase has already seen the successful installation of 1,000 modules, marking a significant milestone in the government’s drive to create a greener, more environmentally conscious city.

At the Global Cooperative Conference (GCC) in New Delhi, Bhutan’s Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay warmly referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “bade bhai” or “big brother.”

During the inaugural session held at Bharat Mandapam on Monday, Tobgay commended India’s cooperative movement, applauding its pivotal role in alleviating poverty and enhancing livelihoods. He described it as a remarkable achievement.

Tobgay also underscored the deep ties between Bhutan and India, reaffirming their commitment to collaboration for shared progress and mutual growth.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Thursday signed an Implementation Agreement (IA) with the Australian Space Agency (ASA) for further strengthening of cooperation in space activities between the two countries. This agreement will help to boost coordination between space agencies on crew and crew module recovery for the “Gangayaan” mission, which will be India’s first crewed spaceflight program.

The agreement was signed on November 20 by D.K. Singh, the Director of the Human Space Flight Centre(HSFC) on ISRO’s side, and Jarrod Powell, General Manager of the Space Capability Branch on ASA’s side.

ISRO has launched the Human Spaceflight (“Gangayaan”) program with the objective of demonstrating the capability to carry out Low Earth Orbit in an Indian Crew model with up to three crew members onboard for up to three days to safely recover the module.

ISRO, in a statement, said that The IA will enable the Australian authorities to work with Indian authorities, ensuring support for the search and rescue of crew and recovery of crew module as part of a contingency plan for the ascent phase that aborts near Australian waters. It added that India and Australia will become strategic partners, and both space agencies will work closely and are committed to exploring current and future collaboration activities, it said.

The United States took this initiative of repatriating stolen art from countries across Southeast Asia and South. As a part of it, the US on Wednesday announced returning over 1400 looted artefacts, all of which is worthed at $10 million to India.

Until recently, these looted goods included artefacts that were displayed at the New york Metropolitan Museum of Art, says a report by CNN.

Amongst the items returned to India is a sandstone sculpture of a celestial dancer that was an artefact smuggled from central India to London and then was illegally sold to one of the Met’s patrons and donated to the Museum

In a press release, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office said that the goods were recovered as a part of “online investigations into criminal trafficking networks.” This includes all the items operated by convicted art traffickers Subhash Kapoor and Nancy Wiener. Kapoor is an Antiquities dealer in America who was imprisoned for 10 years and held responsible for running a multimillion-dollar looting network at the front of his New York gallery.

Kapoor was arrested in Germany and later sent to India to face charges for the matter.

William S Walker, Homeland Security Investigations New York Special Agent in Charge, in a press statement, says, “Today’s repatriation marks another victory in what has been a multi-year, international investigation into antiquities trafficked by one of history’s most prolific offenders.” according to the Manhattan DA’s office.

In July, India and the United States signed their first-ever “Cultural Property Agreement” to prevent and control the illicit trafficking of antiquities from India to the US. Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Govind Mohan, and US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti, finalized the agreement, as announced in a press release from the Indian Ministry of Culture.

Indian students have outnumbered all the international students in the United States. This has happened after 15 years that 29.4% of the total international student body are Indians as per a report published by Open Doors 2024 on Monday. With a student count of 331,602, India has overtaken China during the academic year 2023-24. Today, Indians become the biggest source of International students in the US.

 The milestone is accounted as 23% increase from the last academic session when the Indian student count stood at 268,923.

The note shared by the US Embassy on Open Door’s 2024 report says “India is now the leading country of origin for international students in the United States, with over 3,31,602 students studying in the United States.”

Continuing on this, the report says, “The number of Indian students is at an all-time high.” The Open Doors Report, an annual study on international education, reveals that 277,398 students from China, which held the top position for the past 15 years, are studying abroad. South Korea contributes 43,149 students, followed by Canada with 28,998 and Taiwan with 23,157, rounding out the top five.