Air quality in the Chinese capital improved drastically on Thursday as the threeday red alert issued by the government came to an end at noon. The government claimed the improvement was the result of measures taken as part of the red-alert implementation. The reduction in pollutants in Beijing was dramatic with the China Environment Protection Bureau reporting an air quality index (AQI) of 37 at 9pm. The AQI was less than 100 for most of the day, after hovering around 300 on Wednesday. A cold burst and increased wind speed were believed to be the reasons behind the low pollution. The red alert helped to cut concentrations of PM2.5 by 10%, Cheng Shuiyuan, head of the College of Environmental and Energy Engineering at Beijing University of Technology told the Chinese media. The amount of vehicle exhaust had been halved due to traffic restrictions.

NEW DELHI: The Indian cricket team will open its campaign in the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 against New Zealand in Nagpur on March 15 next year, followed by a marquee clash against Pakistan in Dharamsala four days later. The ICC announced the groups and itinerary for the sixth instalment of the tournament to be held across eight venues in India from March 8 to April 3, confirming that the final will be played at Eden Gardens. In all, the 2016 World Twenty20 will comprise 58 matches - 35 for the men's teams, 23 for women's - over 27 days across Bangalore, Chennai, Dharamsala, Kolkata, Mohali, Mumbai, Nagpur and New Delhi. The semi-finals will be played in New Delhi and Mumbai on March 30 and 31 respectively, with Kolkata hosting the summit clash. The women's semi-finals and final will be followed by the men's knock-out matches. The men's event will see eight teams decided into two groups of four for the first round of matches, from with the group winners will progress to the Super 10 stage starting March 16; this is two groups of five teams. From the second round, the top two teams from both groups will make it to the semi-finals. In the women's event, ten teams will be divided into two groups and the top two from each group will progress to the semis. The men's tournament will start on March 8 in Nagpur, with Bangladesh, Netherlands, Ireland, man (Group A) and Zimbabwe, Scotland, Hong Kong and Afghanistan (Group B) competing until March 13. The first day will see Zimbabwe play Hong Kong followed by Scotland versus Afghanistan. The group winners will join Australia, England, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies and India. India, losing finalists in the 2014 edition, have been pooled with Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand and the Group A winner. After the Nagpur and Dharamsala fixtures, India will meet the Group A winner in Bangalore on March 23 and Australia in Mohali on March 27. Defending champions Sri Lanka are alongside South Africa, West Indies, England and the Group B winner.

Dev Deepawali is a famous Utsav celebrated every year at the holy city Varanasi. Dev Deepawali, which is also spelled as Dev Diwali, is celebrated to mark the victory of Lord Shiva over demon Tripurasur. Hence Dev Deepawali Utsav is also known as Tripurotsav which is observed on the auspicious day of Kartik Purnima. On Dev Deepawali, devotees take a holy dip in Ganges on the auspicious day of Kartik Purnima and light earthen lamps or Diya(s) in the evening. When the dusk sets, the steps of all the Ghats on the riverfront of the Ganges are lit with millions of earthen lamps. Not only the Ghats of Ganges but also all temples of Benares are lit with millions of Diya(s).

Guru Nanak Jayanti Sikh festival falls in the month of Kartik (October/November). Sikhs celebrate Guru Nanak's Birthday and the other Gurpurbs with an Akhand Path, a reading of the Sikh holy scriptures, the Guru Granth Sahib, continuously from beginning to end. This is done by a team of Sikh men and women, each reading for 2-3 hours over 48 hours, beginning two days before and ending early on the morning of the birthday. On the penultimate day of Guru Nanak Jayanti, a procession takes place in the morning, which is more commonly known as the 'Prabhat pheri'. Five armed guards, who represent the Panj Pyares, head the procession carrying Nishan Sahibs (the Sikh flag). Local bands playing religious music form a special part of the procession.

Ranveer Singh has put in a lot of hard work for his next release Bajirao Mastani, which is quite evident in the trailer of the film. However, according to a report on bollywoodlife.com, a source has revealed that the actor has not charged the makers of Bajirao Mastani even a single penny. Instead, Ranveer has opted for profit sharing. Ranveer is not the only Bollywood actor to choose profit sharing. Some of the other stars who work on this model include Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn.