Townhall Times, New Delhi

Reporter: Bhavika Kalra

This morning, SpiceJet flight SG-121 (Delhi to Leh) turned a routine takeoff into a full-scale emergency.

The Incident: Minutes after departing IGI Airport at 6:45 AM, the pilots reported a failure in the number two engine.
The Decision: You don’t mess with the Himalayas. With one engine down and the “wall of mountains” ahead, the crew declared a full emergency and banked back to Delhi.
Ground Zero: Fire engines and ambulances were lined up on the tarmac, but the plane landed safely. No fire, no injuries—just 150 very shaken passengers who are now grounded until tomorrow’s replacement flight.

The mystery of why people were dying after drinking milk in Andhra Pradesh has finally been cracked, and it’s a chilling case of negligence.

The Culprit: Investigators found a leak of Ethylene Glycol (a toxic coolant used in industrial chillers) at the unauthorized Varalakshmi Dairy.
The Horror: Instead of using food-grade propylene glycol, the operator, Ganeswara Rao, used the toxic car-coolant version to save money. One can of milk got contaminated on Feb 15, and by the time anyone noticed the “bitter taste,” five people were dead from total kidney failure. Rao is now behind bars, facing multiple criminal cases.

The “Shirtless Protest” at the India AI Impact Summit has moved from the streets to the courtroom.

The Arrest: Delhi Police grilled IYC Chief Uday Bhanu Chib for 20 hours before officially arresting him today.
The Charges: He’s been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for criminal conspiracy and obstructing public servants.
The Evidence: The Crime Branch claims they have “concrete evidence” that the protest—where workers stripped to show “Compromised PM” slogans—was a pre-planned attempt to embarrass the government during a global summit.

Today marks exactly five years since Russia invaded Ukraine. There’s no celebration, only fire.

The Strikes: Russian drones hit Zaporizhzhia’s energy grid overnight, triggering blackouts.
The Cost: The World Bank just released a staggering figure—$588 billion. That is the price tag to rebuild Ukraine over the next decade. The war has settled into a “forever stalemate” of AI drones and trench warfare.

Event	The Bottom Line
Holashtak 2026	Started today (Feb 24). For the next 8 days, auspicious events (weddings, new houses) are on pause until Holika Dahan on March 2.
Cricket Crisis	Pakistan vs. England is on a break in Pallekele. Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat, but they are fighting a “World Cup Curse”—they’ve never beaten England in a T20 WC.
ISRO’s Win	While not today, the Pushpak (RLV) landing success is the talk of the tech circles. We are officially closer to an Indian space shuttle than ever before.