NEW DELHI (AP) — More than a billion Indians celebrated Diwali on Saturday amid twin concerns of a resurgence in coronavirus infections and rising air pollution that is enveloping the country’s...
LUCKNOW, India (AP) — The north Indian city of Ayodhya kept its Guinness World Record for a second year on by lighting 606,569 oil lamps and keeping them burning for at least 45 minutes as part of...
NEW DELHI (AP) — The crowds filling shopping areas ahead of the Diwali festival of lights on Saturday are raising hopes of India's distressed business community after months of lockdown losses but...
NEW DELHI (AP) — India reported 47,905 new cases of coronavirus infection, with New Delhi setting another daily record Thursday.
The surge of 8,593 cases in the nation's capital is the...
NEW DELHI (AP) — India hopes to temper the environmental damage from its biggest annual holiday on Sunday with low-emission firecrackers and light shows, but the plan's uneven rollout has hurt...
An Indian worker mixes gunpowder to make firecrackers for Diwali, the upcoming Hindu festival of lights, at a factory on the outskirts of Ahmadabad.
Indian brides display henna designs on their hands during a mass wedding ceremony of 35 couples.
In other images from the Asia-Pacific region this week, a Nepalese vendor sells powder during Tihar, the festival of lights, in Kathmandu.
In New Delhi, toxic smog shrouds the landmark India Gate following massive fireworks during the Diwali festival, a major Hindu holiday.
NEW DELHI (AP) — Toxic smog shrouded the Indian capital as air quality plummeted to hazardous levels Thursday after tens of thousands of people set off a multitude of firecrackers to celebrate the major Hindu festival of Diwali.
AYODHYA, India (AP) — The northern Indian city of Ayodhya broke a Guinness World Record on Tuesday by lighting 300,150 earthen lamps and keeping them burning for at least 45 minutes on the banks of the river Saryu as part of the annual celebration of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights.
South Korean first lady Kim Jung-sook attended the record-breaking event after meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a four-day visit to India.
NEW DELHI (AP) — Diwali, a major Hindu festival for more than a billion Indians, includes lighting oil lamps or candles to symbolize a victory of knowledge over ignorance, light over darkness and good over evil. People visit friends' homes and exchange gifts.
The festival marks the return of deities Rama and Sita in the epic Ramayana to the northern Indian town of Ayodhya after 14 years of exile.
Firecrackers are in huge demand across the country as the evening sky is lit up by the festivities.
NEW DELHI (AP) — India's Supreme Court on Monday banned the sale of fireworks in New Delhi and nearby towns 10 days before the Hindu festival of Diwali, in a move to curb the capital's deadly air pollution.
The ban is effective immediately and lasts until Nov. 1.
Millions of highly polluting firecrackers are normally lit on Diwali, which falls on Oct. 19 this year.
The court said it will assess whether a fireworks ban makes a difference to New Delhi's air, among the dirtiest in the world.
NEW YORK (AP) — The holiday of Diwali is starting to light up mainstream America.
Diwali, a festival of lights celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and others in India and other countries, has long been observed in immigrant communities around the U.S.
But now public celebrations of the holiday are starting to pop up in places ranging from Disneyland and Times Square to parks and museums.
Five Filipino sailors returned home last week after being held captive by Somali pirates for more than four years. The five were among 26 released sailors who had been held since the pirates seized them and their Taiwanese-owned fishing vessel in March 2012. International mediators said the release "represents the end of captivity for the last remaining seafarers taken hostage during the height of Somali piracy."