A milestone in India’s classical music tradition

Punjab is set to host the 150th edition of the Shree Baba Harivallabh Sangeet Sammelan, India’s oldest Hindustani classical music festival, from December 26 to 28 at the historic Shree Devi Talab Temple in Jalandhar. The three-day event marks a rare cultural milestone, celebrating a musical legacy that has continued uninterrupted since the late 19th century.

A memorial dedicated to India’s nationalist legacy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Rashtra Prerna Sthal in Lucknow on Thursday to mark the 101st birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a Bharat Ratna awardee and one of India’s most respected statesmen. The memorial has been conceived as a national space to preserve, reflect upon and inspire citizens through the life, ideals and contributions of Vajpayee and other key figures of Indian nationalism.

Flood history adds a new layer to Keezhadi’s past

Archaeological excavations at Keezhadi, located along the Vaigai river in Tamil Nadu’s Sivaganga district, have repeatedly revealed brick-built structures, drainage canals, floors and pottery that mirror descriptions of organised urban life found in Sangam literature. A new scientific study has now provided an important environmental context, suggesting that large river floods buried parts of the settlement a little over a millennium ago.

LVM3 success strengthens India’s human spaceflight roadmap

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has reiterated confidence in its ambitious Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme following the successful launch of the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite aboard the LVM3 rocket. ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan stated that the same launch vehicle has been identified for India’s first crewed mission, highlighting the organisation’s growing technological reliability and global standing in space exploration.

Breakthrough research offers hope for PSC patients

A new monoclonal antibody therapy has delivered encouraging early results for patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), a rare and progressive liver disorder for which no approved medical treatment currently exists. Researchers from the University of California, Davis have reported that the experimental drug nebokitug appears safe and may reduce liver inflammation and fibrosis. The findings were published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology, marking an important step toward a potential disease-modifying therapy.