The long-standing agitation over the demand for Maratha reservation in Maharashtra turned violent after members of the largest community in the state set houses and offices of MLAs from Maratha community on fire, leading to strengthening the security detail of chief minister Eknath Shinde. A meeting was called on Tuesday following the violence and directed Mumbai Police to step-up security of state ministers and around properties owned by them. Dig deeper

More on Maratha quota protest: Minister Hasan Mushrif’s vehicle vandalised by Maratha quota agitators in Mumbai

Maharashtra Worker union calls for shutdown of market in Pune to support reservation demand

Road accidents in India increased 11.9% to 4,61,312 last year after a dip during the lockdown affected years of 2020 and 2021, according to the “Road Accidents in India 2022” report, released by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Tuesday. The number of persons killed and injured increased 9.4% and 15.3% to 168,491 and 443,366 respectively. This makes 2022 the most fatal year for road accidents, with 122 per million population dying in road accidents, the highest rate since at least 1970 Dig deeper

More on road accidents: 1.68 lakh people killed in 4.61 lakh accidents in 2022: Road Ministry

In 2021, road accidents took lives of 4,518 children under 18 in U.P., says NCRB

The Latest News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday extended wishes to the people of Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana on their formation day. Dig deeper

Congress leaders including Nagam Janardhan Reddy, Vishnuvardhan Reddy, Rampulla Reddy, Kota Jaipal Reddy joined the ruling BRS party ahead of Telangana polls, Dig deeper

India News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina jointly inaugurated three Indian-assisted development projects via video conferencing on Wednesday. Dig deeper

A war of words ensued between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) IT cell head Amit Malviya and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Wednesday after the latter questioned the alerts from Apple to opposition leaders. Dig deeper

Global Matters

In a chaotic scene, protestors with “bloody” hands, demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, interrupted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee at the Congress on Tuesday. Dig deeper

The internet and phone networks across the Gaza Strip were not working, the Palestinian telecommunications agency said on Wednesday in a post on X. Dig deeper

Sports Goings

Fireworks, light and sound shows have been quite the norm during World Cup 2023 matches at all the venues in India. They have added to the viewer experience and the festive atmosphere. But things are set to change in the upcoming World Cup matches in Delhi and Mumbai. The BCCI has decided to cancel fireworks in both cities due to the rising pollution levels. BCCI secretary Jay Shah said he took up the matter with ICC and decided to cancel the use of fireworks at the Arun Jaitely Stadium in Delhi and the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Dig deeper

Entertainment Focus

As Aishwarya Rai celebrates her 50th birthday on November 11, check out her memorable moments at Miss World 1994. Miss World 1994, the 44th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held in November 1994 in Sun City, South Africa. 87 contestants from around the world competed for the title and Lisa Hanna of Jamaica crowned her successor Aishwarya Rai as Miss World 1994 at the end of the event. Dig deeper

(That’s all we have at this hour in our afternoon briefing. Catch you in the evening.)