Indian physicist Deepak Dhar has been named a winner of the 2026 Dirac Medal for his major contributions to statistical mechanics. Dhar, 75, shares the prestigious award with Bernard Derrida, Marc Mézard and Haim Sompolinsky. His research on the mathematical “sandpile model” has helped scientists understand unpredictable behaviour in systems such as earthquakes, avalanches and traffic jams. Dhar is an INSA Distinguished Professor at the International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, TIFR, in Bengaluru. A graduate of Allahabad University and IIT Kanpur, he earned his PhD from Caltech before returning to India. He received the Padma Bhushan in 2023. (PC: The Print)

BJP workers blocked roads and burned tyres in Ranchi on Tuesday as the party enforced a statewide bandh over police action against student protesters marching to the Jharkhand Assembly. Protesters were detained at several locations, while traffic was disrupted in Ranchi and parts of Ramgarh. The bandh followed Monday’s clashes, when police used water cannons, tear gas and batons to disperse job aspirants demanding reforms and an independent probe into alleged irregularities in JPSC and JSSC examinations. Students said their movement was non-political and demanded talks with Chief Minister Hemant Soren. Schools and businesses remained largely closed, while essential services were exempted. (PC: India Today)

China on Monday rejected India’s move to officially identify 27 places and geographical features in Arunachal Pradesh with standard names, calling the decision “illegal, null and void.” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Beijing does not recognise what it called the “so-called Arunachal Pradesh” and claimed the region, referred to by China as Zangnan, belongs to China. India announced the standard names last week on its official map. China has released its own names for places in Arunachal Pradesh periodically since 2017. New Delhi has repeatedly rejected Beijing’s renaming attempts, calling them baseless and stressing that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India.

Seventeen-year-old Assam karateka Janmoni Konwar returned home with a national gold medal to find her family still living under a tarpaulin after floods washed away their house in Jorhat. She won gold in the Ashihara category at the National Karate Championship in New Delhi from August 7 to 9. Her family had planned to sell fish from their three-year-old fishery to fund her trip, but the floods destroyed it. They had earlier sold two buffaloes to support her competitions. Despite displacement and limited training facilities, Janmoni continued practising and competing. Physics Wallah founder Alakh Pandey supported her travel, accommodation and gave her family Rs 3 lakh, while Minister Pabitra Margherita provided Rs 10,000.

A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake has killed at least 132 people and injured more than 570 across western Colombia, with Chocó and the Coffee Axis among the worst-hit regions. Colombia’s geological service described it as the country’s strongest recorded earthquake of the 21st century. More than 1,500 homes were damaged, including 37 destroyed, while over 60 buildings, 18 health centres and 52 schools suffered damage. Pereira recorded 60 deaths, while Cali’s University Hospital was partially damaged, trapping patients. Police, firefighters, soldiers and volunteers are searching collapsed structures for survivors. Ecuador, El Salvador and Mexico have offered assistance, while the US and UN said they are ready to support Colombia. Roads and communications remain disrupted.

A US judge on Monday dismissed criminal charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, while expressing concern over the Justice Department’s decision to abandon the fraud and bribery case. Brooklyn-based US District Judge Nicholas Garaufis granted federal prosecutors’ rare request to drop the case after examining their reasons for seeking its dismissal. The judge specifically questioned whether Adani’s November 2024 commitment to invest USD 10 billion in the United States had influenced the decision. The Justice Department’s move marks another instance of federal prosecutors seeking to abandon a high-profile white-collar criminal prosecution during the Republican presidency. The dismissal ends the criminal case against Adani in the US, while the judge’s scrutiny raises questions about the circumstances surrounding the decision. (PC: India Today)

Iran has said it will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States ends its naval blockade of Iranian ports, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said. Tehran is demanding that Washington lift the blockade, compensate Iran for months of war-related damage, remove economic sanctions and release Iranian assets frozen abroad. The demands come amid ongoing efforts to resolve the standoff over the strategically important waterway. Iran’s position could prolong uncertainty surrounding shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route for global energy supplies. Tehran has tied any reopening to concessions from Washington, making the blockade, sanctions relief, compensation and frozen assets key issues in negotiations between the two sides.

Parliament on Monday passed the Taxation and other Laws (Amendment) Bill, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ruling out any tax or transaction charge on UPI. The Bill, already passed by the Lok Sabha, was returned by the Rajya Sabha through a voice vote after a brief discussion and the Finance Minister’s reply. Sitharaman said UPI has remained free for consumers since its launch and will continue without transaction charges. The legislation seeks to remove the linkage between the Payment and Settlement Systems Act and Income Tax Act, while allowing the government to decide which electronic payments must remain free. It also aims to attract foreign capital, boost domestic electronics manufacturing and facilitate foreign cloud companies’ use of Indian data centres. (PC: BBC)

US President Donald Trump secretly flew from Turkey to Britain on an Air Force C-32A after an Iranian assassination threat, The Washington Post reported. Trump had arrived in Ankara aboard a newly renovated Boeing 747 donated by Qatar for the NATO summit but publicly boarded an older Air Force One before being secretly moved by an airport catering truck to the smaller aircraft. The older Air Force One, carrying journalists who believed Trump was aboard, reportedly served as a decoy. The C-32A carrying Trump arrived in Britain around 10:20 p.m., while the older Air Force One landed minutes later. The White House said Trump faces threats from America’s enemies and security measures were used to protect him.

A 20-year-old Indian national, Varun Batchigari, was arrested in Berlin, Germany, on August 9 over the alleged murder of his 19-year-old girlfriend, University of Arizona student Julissa Rubi Salazar, in Tucson. Salazar was found unresponsive with signs of trauma in her apartment on August 6 after her family requested a welfare check. Police identified Varun as the main suspect and allege he strangled Salazar, took her phone and credit cards, and impersonated her in messages to her mother before fleeing the US. He travelled from Tucson to Houston and then Berlin, reportedly possibly intending to return to India. US authorities issued an arrest warrant and expect his extradition to Arizona, where he faces a first-degree murder charge. (PC: India Today)