India’s aviation regulator has directed airlines to conduct a one-time drug test on all pilots by July next year, according to a government official, following recent cases of crew being found under the influence.

Testing across carriers is already underway, the official told reporters in New Delhi, asking not to be named pending a formal announcement by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

The Supreme Court on Thursday took serious view of allegations of harassment of a minor girl who participated in the July Cockroach Janta Party protests and said the nobody can be permitted to browbeat a victim or her family for pursuing criminal proceedings.

A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to ensure action on the girl's FIR and sought report from Delhi and Uttar Pradesh governments on the issue.

An Indian swimmer, who had qualified for the Asian Games, was on Wednesday suspended for 18 months after failing a dope test and will miss the continental event in Aichi-Nagoya this month.

The 17-year-old had qualified for two events at the Asian Games and was part of the short list for the continental event.

Indian aviation sector offers immense opportunities for MSMEs, and efforts are underway to have more Indian suppliers in the global aerospace market, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Thursday.

Global aerospace players have a strong interest in India's aviation sector, Naidu said and highlighted that Indian airlines have placed orders for over 1,600 aircraft.

A bipartisan group of US Senators have written to the Trump administration seeking action against three India-based companies that allegedly hacked and stole data from thousands of Americans and US companies.

Democratic Senators Ron Wyden and Sheldon Whitehouse, and Republican Pat Harrigan, have urged Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to take action against Sunkissed Organic Pvt Ltd.

A Tata Trusts meeting is scheduled for this Friday amid long-drawn turmoil in the organisation. Since Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) — one of the two main entities of Tata Trusts —remains frozen, this will be a meeting only for the trustees of Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) — the other core shareholder. Tata Trusts holds around 66 per cent stake in Tata Sons, which is the holding company of the salt-to-software conglomerate.

The size of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) IPO may shrink with the offer for sale (OFS) likely to be cut to 5.2-5.5 per cent, from the 6 per cent planned earlier, as some shareholders have backed out of the sale, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

More than 4 million people have been affected by floods across 14 districts of Bihar following torrential rains over the past five days, with several rivers flowing above the danger mark, officials said on Wednesday.

"Incessant rain in various districts caused rivers and streams to overflow. Besides, heavy rainfall in catchment areas of Nepal has also led to rivers flowing above the danger level at several places," an official said.

Benchmark Brent crude oil futures rose past $100 a barrel on Wednesday, breaching the symbolic barrier ​for the first time since July 24 as ​intensifying conflict in the West Asia fuelled growing concern about ‌oil flows from the region.

Brent crude futures rose $2.15, or 2.2%, to $100.07 a barrel by 0721 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was up $1.70, or 1.83%, at $94.73 a barrel.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd plans to soon launch a localised mass-market SUV built on a dedicated EV platform, the company said on Wednesday.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd's (HMIL) current EV portfolio comprises the IONIQ 5 and the CRETA Electric, it stated.

The auto maker is preparing its sales and service network ahead of the launch, and training its dealer workforce to be EV-ready.

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