Top news of the day: June 21, 2025
DGCA asks Air India to remove three officials from roles related to crew rostering
The DGCA on Saturday directed Air India to remove three officials, including a top executive part of the flight operations department, from their roles and responsibilities for “systemic failures” and “multiple violations” in flight crew scheduling. According to multiple sources. The DGCA order, a copy of which has been reviewed by The Hindu, states that internal disciplinary proceedings must be initiated against these officials without delay. An official confirmation from the DGCA is awaited.
In poll-bound Bihar, Nitish Kumar increases pension to ₹1,100 per month from ₹400Ahead of the Assembly election, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday made a major announcement which would benefit 1,09,69,255 people in the State. Mr. Kumar has increased the pension under Social Security Scheme for the old age, differently-abled individuals and widows of Bihar. “I am pleased to inform you that under the Social Security Pension Scheme, all old age people, differently-abled individuals, and widowed women will now receive a pension of ₹1100 per month instead of ₹400,” Mr. Kumar said in the message posted on social media account ‘X’.
Sharing video footage of polling station breaches voters’ privacy: EC officialsAmid demands to make public webcasting footage of polling stations, Election Commission officials on Saturday said such a move is violative of privacy and security concerns of voters. They said that while such demand suits their narrative in making it sound quite genuine and in the interest of voters and safeguarding the democratic process, it is, in fact, aimed at achieving exactly the “opposite objective”.
‘Match is fixed’: Rahul Gandhi alleges Election Commission ‘deleting evidence’ instead of giving answersCongress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused the Election Commission of India of “deleting evidence” when it was required to “provide answers” after the poll body instructed its officers to destroy CCTV, webcasting and video footage of the elections after 45 days. “Voter list? Will not give machine-readable format. CCTV footage? Hidden by changing the law. Election photos and videos? Now they will be deleted in 45 days, not 1 year. The one who was supposed to provide answers - is the one deleting the evidence,” Mr. Gandhi alleged in a post on X.
Missing filmmaker confirmed dead in Ahmedabad plane crash after DNA match; body handed over to kinFilmmaker Mahesh Jirawala, who was reported missing following last week’s Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, has died in the catastrophe as confirmed by the DNA matching of samples, a police official said on Saturday. Jirawala, 34, was passing by from the area on his two-wheeler just when the London-bound plane plunged into a hostel complex in Meghaninagar part of Ahmedabad moments after taking off from the city’s international airport, he said, adding that his mortal remains were handed over to his family.
Anna University sexual assault case: Plea in Madras High Court insists on inquiring Annamalai to find out who is that ‘sir’A writ petition has been filed in the Madras High Court seeking a direction to the Direcor General of Police (DGP) and the Inspector of Kotturpuram police station in Chennai to conduct an inquiry regarding Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) former State president K. Annamalai’s claim that he was in possession of certain records related to the Anna University sexual assault case. The writ petition (criminal) has been numbered and expected to be listed before Justice P. Velmurugan this week.
In-laws kill, bury woman over dowry in Faridabad; whole family bookedA woman was allegedly killed and buried in front of her house by her in-laws, who managed to keep the secret, and the body, hidden for almost two months by reporting her missing. The woman, Tannu Kumar, a native of Shikohabad in Firozabad district in Uttar Pradesh, had married Arun Singh of Roshan Nagar area here two years ago. Her father, Hakim, alleged that police refused to listen to his complaint even after he raised suspicion about the freshly covered pit, which he witnessed when he visited his brother-in-law’s house.
Odisha floods: 50,000 people affected by flash flood in Subarnarekha RiverOver 50,000 people were affected as a flash flood in the Subarnarekha River caused water to enter their villages in Odisha’s Balasore district on Saturday (June 21, 2025) following heavy rain in neighbouring Jharkhand, an official said. As many as 17 gram panchayat areas in the three blocks of Bhograi, Baliapal, Basta and a part of Jaleswar Notified Area Council (NAC) were affected by the flash flood, the official said, adding that the administration has geared up for the relief and rescue operations.
Yoga is the pause button humanity needs, to breathe, to balance, to become whole again: PM Modi“Yoga should guide the world from conflict to co-operation, and from stress to solutions,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Saturday, on the occasion of the 11th International Day of Yoga. The Prime Minister led the Yoga Day celebrations and took part in a Yoga session at an event in Visakhapatnam, in Andhra Pradesh. Stating that in 11-years yoga has become an integral part of the lifestyle of millions across the globe the Prime Minister expressed his satisfaction in witnessing the visually impaired (Divyang) reading yogic scriptures in Braille and applauded scientists practising yoga even in outer space.
Operation Sindhu: 517 Indian nationals brought back from Iran so far, says MEADays after starting Operation Sindhu to evacuate Indian citizens from conflict-hit Iran and Israel, India will fly out two more evacuation flights from Iran to New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday (June 21, 2025). The first flight from the Iranian city of Mashad is expected to land in New Delhi at 4:30 p.m. and the second flight will arrive late evening at 11:30 p.m. The Embassy of India in Tehran also announced that citizens of Sri Lanka and Nepal will be evacuated by the Government of India as per requests from Colombo and Kathmandu.
Israel hits Iranian nuclear research facility as war continues into second weekIsrael’s military said Saturday it struck an Iranian nuclear research facility overnight and killed three senior Iranian commanders in targeted attacks as the war between the two nations continued into a second week. Early Saturday, smoke could be seen rising from an area near a mountain in Isfahan, where a local official said Israel had attacked the nuclear research facility in two waves.
Polls can’t take place without govt’s support: Bangladesh election body chiefThe government plays a central role in the election process, the head of Bangladesh’s Election Commission said on Saturday, asserting that holding polls is “not possible” without its support. Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin said that no matter “how independent” the top election body is said to be, “it is not possible to hold an election without the government’s support.”
As sports embrace gender tests, Coventry and IOC may followAs the gender furore that engulfed boxing at the 2024 Paris Olympics rumbles on, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is weighing reintroducing testing, while several sports have already embraced testing for male chromosomes. Such testing has its critics and the Olympics have already tried it once only to abandon it in 1996. Incoming president Kirsty Coventry, who will become the first woman to lead the Olympic movement when she starts her term on Monday (June 16, 2025), signalled a change of direction on this politically inflammatory and scientifically complex issue when she was elected in March.
Liverpool signs Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen for huge fee that could climb to $156 millionLiverpool delivered a huge statement of intent after winning the Premier League title by signing Germany star Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen on Friday. The transfer fee could climb to 116 million pounds ($156 million), which would make the 22-year-old Wirtz the most expensive player in the history of British soccer. “I feel very happy and very proud,” Wirtz told the official Liverpool website. “Finally it’s done and I was waiting for a long time.
DGCA asks Air India to remove three officials from roles related to crew rostering; In poll-bound Bihar, Nitish Kumar hikes social security pension to ₹1,100 per month, and more on The Hindu Top News of the day | Source: The Hindu
Ralated News
0. Air India Crash Probe: Pilots’ Union Slams AAIB Report | Legal Action, DGCA Meeting Soon - Times Now1. Aviation Safety Alert: Illegal Slaughter Near Navi Mumbai Airport Persists Despite DGCA Orders - Deccan Herald
2. DGCA official from Kannur in Ahmedabad crash investigation panel - Onmanorama
3. Etihad orders B787 fuel control lock checks; DGCA says it is monitoring situation - Business Today
4. India to curb airfare spikes: DGCA unveils plan to regulate pricing amidst safety concerns - Mathrubhumi English
5. Double trouble: Air India asked to remove 3 crew rostering officials & gets show-cause for violating pilo - The Times of India
6. 38 hours after AI 171 crash, another Air India aircraft plunged 900 feet during takeoff; DGCA probe underw - The Economic Times
7. AAIB preliminary report reveals fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position, leading to devastating air tragedy in Ahmedabad - Newsonair
8. DGCA Issues July 2025 Circular Requiring Certified Safety Managers at Indian FTOs - AFM.aero
9. Ahmedabad plane crash: DGCA asks Air India for details of inspections, audits since 2024, says report - Mint