India is expanding its space in the global order and this can be seen in its space programme too, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today as he revealed the names of four astronauts part of the country’s human space flight mission Gaganyaan.

The Prime Minister today gave astronaut wings to the four selected for the space flight during an event at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram. The four astronaut-designates selected for the Gaganyaan mission are Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla.

The human space flight mission aims to launch a three-member crew into a Low Earth Orbit and bring them back after three days. The astronauts chosen for the mission have been trained in technical knowledge as well as physical fitness to ensure they stay well during the mission.

“The country has come to know about the four Gaganyaan passengers. These are not just four names or four people. These are four powers who will take the aspirations of 140 crore Indians to space,” the Prime Minister said. “Forty years later, an Indian is going to space. But this time, the timing, the countdown and the rocket belong to us,” he added. Earlier, Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma (retired) went to the space in 1984 as part of a Soviet mission.

The Prime Minister said that at a time when India is set to become the world’s third-largest economy, the Gaganyaan mission will take our space sector to new heights.

He also noted the crucial role women scientists have been playing in the space technology sector. “India’s Nari Shakti is playing pivotal role in the space sector. Be it Chandrayaan or Gaganyaan, no such mission can be imagined without women scientists,” he said.

The Prime Minister said India’s success in the space sector was not only sowing the seeds of scientific temperament in the young generation, but also helping it emerge as a dynamic global player in the 21st century by showcasing significant strides across sectors.

The Supreme Court today came own heavily on the Centre for not taking any action in a case of “misleading and false” advertisements by the Patanjaliu Ayurved – which is co-owned by yoga guru Ramdev.

“The government is sitting with its eye closed,” the Supreme Court said.

The Supreme Court said that the entire country is being misled through such advertisement. “This is very unfortunate. The government will have to take some immediate action,” the bench said.

The bench directed the company to stop all electronic and print advertisements of its medicines with immediate effect.

The Supreme Court had in November last year cautioned Patanjali Ayurved against making “false” and “misleading” claims in advertisements about its medicines.

“What happened to this Guru Swami Ramdev Baba?… Ultimately we respect him as he popularised yoga. We all go for this. But, he should not criticise the other system. You see the type of advertisements accusing all the doctors as if they are killers or something. Huge advertisements (have been given),” the bench headed by the then CJI NV Ramana, since retired, had said.

The top court had asked the counsel appearing for the Centre to find a remedy to the issue of misleading medical advertisements.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had referred to several advertisements which allegedly projected the allopathy and the doctors in poor light, saying that “disparaging” statements have also been made by firms, engaged in the production of ayurvedic medicines, to mislead the general public.

These commercials say that the medical practitioners themselves are dying despite taking modern medicines, the counsel for the IMA had said.

Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff arrived in Lucknow to promote their upcoming film, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. During the promotional event, they risked their lives and performed a daredevil aerial stunt. There were thousands of people gathered to witness the event and cheer for the stars. While the actors were suspended from the harness, the crowd went crazy, trying to capture the stars on their phones.

The event took an ugly turn when the actors started throwing freebies into the crowd, which broke out into a stampede as the crowd surged forward. To get the situation under control, UP police resorted to lathi-charge to manage the crowd. The videos from the same period have been going viral.

Action superstars @akshaykumar & @iTIGERSHROFF have taken over #Lucknow with their jaw dropping action stunt ahead of the release of their highly anticipated action packed mass entertainer #BadeMiyanChoteMiyan.

The fans were highly engaged in the fun activity and also had the… pic.twitter.com/KDH7QxNWlo

— Sreedhar Pillai (@sri50) February 26, 2024

During the promotional event at Husainabad Clock Tower in Lucknow, Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff were seen dancing and entertaining the crowd. Akshay even wished the crowd “Eid Mubarak” in advance.

Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan is set to hit theatres on April 9, 2024. The film boasts a stellar ensemble cast, including Prithviraj Sukumaran as the antagonist, along with Sonakshi Sinha, Manushi Chhillar, and Alaya F.